The Fugitive

Whole family crunches away on insects in my house, everytime I open the 'fridge there's always a big stash inside. Revolting IMHO.

We live only 11 km from a station on the North Eastern Railway line. If it was up to me I'd hire a Skylab to/from home and travel by railway. Mrs thinks she's safe driving her SUV and likes the convenience.

Any (or all) of the driver faults you mention could apply to any coach operator. There is no safety device either e.g. 'dead man's handle' that railway drivers have in the event of stroke/heart attack.

Credit where it's due though, HGV drivers generally 'play the game'. They drive in the left hand lane and, after overtaking, quickly move back into the left lane but without 'cutting in'. Some are especially safety conscious IMHO using their hazzard lights when braking for traffic lights after a long fast run on a dual carriageway. Using their left turn indicator to tell you it's safe to overtake and right when a motorist appears to be attempting an overtake when it isn't is a nice touch too. However, I'm sure this wasn't mentioned when I learned to drive in the UK fifty years ago.

Thanks for that! Some years ago (in Wales) my cousin riding his MZ was prosecuted for failing to stop at a STOP sign. He wrote in disputing that in the direction he was turning he had an unobstructed view of the major road, therefore the junction should be a GIVE WAY only. The response he received was that the view whilst turning in the other direction was more restricted and, as you can't have a GIVE WAY for one direction and a STOP for the other he was guilty of 'failing to conform to a lawfully erected traffic sign'.

I'm trying to educate my Mrs. A solid white line at a junction means STOP. If riding a moto you must place at least one foot upon the ground. She says (quite rightly) "If people did that the driver/rider behind would crash into you". I've given up.

Totally agree. Nothing worse than to hear the words; ‘Rules is rules, no exceptions’. You know you are dealing with a jobsworth that has no discretionary ability, no reasoning power or the courage to determine that sometimes the rules are too harsh and he should help people who deserve helping. What we all want is to be able to move on, get the matter resolved and worry about more serious things. If it takes a few thousand baht it’s money well spent.

When staying in hotel LK President in Pattaya I noticed the individual air conditioning units upon the balconies (Daikin). Wonder what sort of discount the hotel group obtains?

Nice reading on this thread. My Thai Mrs 'prepares' our pets for burial. My nephew kindly buried our cat in Mum's garden. He thoughtfully gave him a Christian burial as you can see.

My Mrs considers Nescafe to be the best. I refuse to pay the price and always buy supermarket brands whenever possible.

Good knowledge! Thanks for posting.

Mitsubish HEAVY INDUSTRIES are the units of choice in our markets. Properties owned by Chinese. They know what is what. Had same unit in my wife's shop for 15 years. Fast to cool, quiet in operation. Has never needed any maintenance. Reasonable electricity bills. Chinese shopkeeper next door transplanted a 20 year old unit. Works perfectly.

Agree! Turn this into an advantage. Obtain the IO's mobile number for future reference. You never know if you might need 'assistance' in the future.

Thanks for the info, didn't know about Lazada offering such a facility. Not good for you that you can't draw cash without a 20km journey. As you say it is a sign of the times.

I know we're talking about Pattaya but it is a shame. In my town we only have one branch of one bank and they now refuse to allow you to pay bills 'over the counter', referring you to their mobile APP services. Some time ago they installed a greater range of outside machines so we now have; ATM, CDM, Passbook update & VTM's. Closure seems inevitable unfortunately.

Thanks! Never used Zoom so looking into it now.

Many thanks! Checking it out now!

I am a basic computer user, normally use Windows 7 Home Premium as my main operating system but also use Debian based Linux, usually MX or BunsenLabs. My step-daughter occasionally asks me to help her remotely with her studies. Can any member recommend a simple to set up and operate VPN whereby I can see what is on her screen and her cursor moving? Occasionally I may also need to take over control if she gets completely stuck. Either a Windows or Linux suggestion would be appreciated. Many thanks.

Top comment!

Thanks very much for the info. I'm going to test this out very soon!

Thanks! Never knew this.

Thanks for the information. WiFi calling is relatively new. Apparently you need a suitable modern (post 2015) smartphone to use it. You've also helped the OP and others by stating an alternative which they may not have been aware of.

Thai Mrs and I want to visit her sister in Mumbai. Mrs has Thai passport, I have UK. If we both fly together from Thailand then different rules could apply to each of us?

Very interesting khunjeff! Receiving calls and SMS from anywhere is free. The same international call/SMS rates apply wherever in the World you are calling from but you are charged the same rates that you would pay in Thailand. http://www.dtac.co.th/en/info/dtac-call.html

Most helpful information thank you!