Lacessit

I sometimes wonder if there is any motivation to close a sale, aren't the salespeople on commission? Our washing machine carked it, we go looking for a new one and knew what we wanted. Go to first store, model we want is on the shop floor. Guy keeps trying to upsell us, no, that's the model we want. Can't sell it to you, why not? We don't have any in stock. It'll take a month to get new stock. So what's the point of having something on your shop floor if you can't sell it? At this juncture, my GF loses patience and walks out. Not often I've seen a Thai do that. Next store we go to, a saleswoman convinces my Thai GF the different brand she is pushing is cheaper, bigger, and with a longer warranty. Delivered to the house that afternoon.

I might be able to live on 13,000 baht/month if I bought no luxuries, played no golf, and did not shop in Big C. I would have to stop supporting my GF, and sell my car. I might be able to keep my scooter. In the last years of my life, I fail to see why I should deny myself anything within reason, or save money so my heirs can spend it instead. That would be stupid squared. I suppose I could feel good by posting on ASEAN about how thrifty I am.

All that BS for 650 baht?

What am I missing? If I have a current "O" retirement visa/extension, a re-entry permit, and a MOPH vaccination certificate, why do I need a Thailand Pass? Or a Certificate of Entry? Seems to me it's just another bureaucratic layer, what purpose does it serve?

I have not heard of too many foreigners who are living here on 13K baht per month, most IME are in the 50K-100K baht/month area, except the real skinflints. Thailand has a long way to go before it gets to be as expensive as Australia. Show me a condo apartment in Australia, with condo swimming pool, that I can buy for AUD 40,000.

I would prefer to look at the Hawke government as a better example. Traditionally. Labor governments have always been reforming, and Liberal governments dedicated to the preservation of the status quo. The only meaningful reform of the Howard government was gun control. Privatisation of aged care facilities in Australia has been a disaster for the elderly and their families, all the owner operators care about is their bottom line. IMO with Dutton at the helm of the Liberals, they will spend a long time in the political wilderness, unless he undergoes a road to Damascus conversion. That gives Albanese a lot more leeway. Getting back to Thailand, I've just bought a takeaway chicken biryani dinner. The shop/restaurant is run by a couple in their seventies, the guy speaks good English and we occasionally have a discussion. He has been outside Thailand. I asked him when he planned to retire. He said they will keep the shop open for as long as they can, they have no savings to retire with. He and his wife get the government pension, which does not even cover the shop rent. Village Thais can manage quite well on 2500 - 3000 baht/month income, 600 baht/month once they hit 60 is an insult.

It depends on whether Albanese sheds the small target body armor he took into the election. Mention socialism to an American, and most start frothing at the mouth.

True enough, a fair bit of bartering goes on in my GF's village. Having said that, there are bills such as electricity that can't be paid for with chickens.

I have repeatedly noticed Thais seem to be unable to live without noise. Whether I am in a coffee shop, massage shop, or Big C, there is always music or a TV blaring somewhere. In Big C, there's is an unending stream of announcements over the PA. Not many motorbikes are quiet, the objective seems to be being as noisy as possible. If I am in my car with my GF, she gets uncomfortable if I am silent for more than 10 minutes. She is quite capable of having the TV on, having a conversation on the phone with a friend, and asking me what I want for dinner contemporaneously. It goes beyond multi-tasking. Neighbors all around us have dogs barking, roosters crowing, and music blaring. Is there such a thing as contemplative Thai music, a la Moonlight Sonata? It's the same with solitude, Thais can't seem to handle being alone for any length of time. While I don't know about Thai men, IME Thai women are never more comfortable than when they are in a group, and never more uncomfortable than when alone. My GF will invite her sister-in-law to sleep with her when I am away. Her grand-daughter shares a room at college with another girl, they share a bed and a cat sleeps there as well. I am very comfortable with being quiet and alone. What about you, and what are your experiences with your Thai significant other?

It’s been a year like no other. The oil price went negative, airlines were grounded, some forever. A single meat market in Wuhan, specializing in exotic meats for conspicuous consumption by wealthy Chinese, generated a virus which spread like wildfire. Countries went into lockdown, some stringently, some half-heartedly. The results are there for everyone to see. Millions became employed overnight. Some countries responded with support, others opted for benign neglect. Vaccines were developed at unprecedented speed. A would-be tyrant was rejected at the polls. Most if not all of us will say goodbye and good riddance to 2020. I’m in Thailand by choice and some good luck. Two weeks later in February, and I would still be locked down in Australia, contemplating slashing my wrists. A much more enjoyable life for me here. Having said that, there are some things I miss about my home country. I miss the wind. In Thailand, it seems the wind can’t get much above a gentle zephyr. I would rug up with about four layers of clothing in winter, go down to Gunnamatta beach with an offshore wind of 50-60 km/hr, and watch 10 metre waves pound the coast. Nature at its most primeval. I miss the wineries that dot the Mornington Peninsula, where one could have a light lunch and a couple of glasses of the local product, which most of the time was very good. Apart from Thai wine quality, I don’t believe Thais know what a cellar door is, or what it’s for. I miss my 2004 Mitsubishi Magna AWD sedan, IMO one of the most underrated vehicles ever produced. Balanced like a cat on dirt roads and wet bitumen. About a third the new car price of a comparable Mercedes. My son has it now, still plugging along with 300,000 km on the odometer. I miss the golf competitions I used to play. Par, foursomes, match play, Canadian foursomes. Here, it’s just stroke and Stableford. Boring. I miss the camaraderie of the Wednesday Boys. 15 – 20 of us, some real characters and nicknames. The Poet, The Farmer, The Whippet, Pistol Pete, Triple Treat. Best net score got a two-dollar coin from every other player, with an appropriate obeisance. Some really acid sledging during play, one of the best at my expense. A day when I was spraying my tee shots all over the course, but making pars because I’m holing putts from everywhere on the greens. Our group gets to the seventeenth tee, par 3, and I’m fretting about club selection, is it a 6 or 7 iron? One of my mates says “ Why don’t you tee off with your putter? It’s the only club you’ve hit straight all day”. I miss a Gippsland eye fillet steak, medium, with a Warby Ranges Shiraz. Followed by a King Island blue brie on water crackers. I miss grilled flake and chips,with a pickled onion on the side. Flake is also known as shark to non-Australians, very sweet fish, and filling. All the best to everyone on TV over Christmas, and may 2021 be better. What do you miss?