Jack Batty

So glad to have retired from this crap after 23 years. Stupid laws and dealing with stupid people. Love the pension though!!!

Any Grab delivery, unless they totally <deleted> it up, 20 baht. When I got out to a nice meal, 20 to 100. That is it. 

2 hours ago, ChrisY1 said:

It's hilarious that so many Thais flock to this place.....it's just another Thai restaurant in China Town.

That someone gave them a Michelin Star is testament to the con of these awards.

Agreed. I would never wait so long, nor pay so much. Everyone I have talked to who have gone there tell me it is absolutely nothing special.

On 2/24/2024 at 12:40 PM, kingstonkid said:

One of the things I have noticed is that with the digital wallets and all the pther digital crap that people are not tipping as much.

 

Tips used to be the loose change or 20 baht note that you got as change.

 

How many here actually dig into their pockets and put a tip in the container after paying digitally

I’m an American. I almost always leave something. And yes, I always pay digitally when it is available. 

5 hours ago, The Old Bull said:

I was in Toulon years ago when the US navy came to town. There were a whole bunch of shady ladies showed up on the street corners . I guess they follow the fleet. There were three squads of police marching around ,they would come to attention outside of the bar and the NCO would come in and check it out and away they would go again. One was US navy, one was French navy and one was French police. I was drinking with the two guys that were in charge of lighting up the ships while they were in port. They seemed to be on their own schedule now body paid attention to them.

One of my first liberty ports while serving in the US Navy, ‘88-‘92, was Toulon. It was a great time. I will never forget my time spent in ‘the gut’. I wonder if that area of town is still called that?

On 1/18/2024 at 2:37 PM, Pouatchee said:

i truly enjoy watching tv. but over the years i have found that the actors/actresses are more and more difficult to understand. they slur more, mumble with low voices and many actors arent even native english speakers. now i am watching true detective season 3 (as example) and i gotta have the subs on all the time. season 2 was just as bad with woody harelson and Matthew McConaughey drawling in texas accents. same goes for british tv... even more so cos much of what is being said on brit tv is colloquial and particular to england. any others struggling with this new generation of actors?

When I read the title of your post, I immediately thought of season 3 of True Detective! Haha. That was terrible. 

As a retired police officer, with 23 years in the job in a fairly violent city in the US, I am often floored by the lackadaisical tactical  approaches these Thai officers take with clearly unhinged individuals. Yeah, this guy was a bloated, drunk p.o.s, but to just laugh and hold him at bay with your clipboard as he rants a mere foot away from you? That cavalier attitude only works…until it doesn’t, and your colleagues are visiting your widow’s house with hats in hand. It serves no one.

I don’t hate golf. It just never seemed interesting to me. I do like playing on those little mini putt-putt courses though.

On 10/11/2023 at 12:05 PM, giddyup said:

The Sopranos

Breaking Bad

Fargo

Great, solid list. I love Fargo, but I will replace it with Curb Your Enthusiasm. That is my three. 

Lived in a studio when I first got here four years ago. Lasted three months. Never again. Just too damn small. Bathroom always next to the bed too. If someone’s in there taking a crap, it sounds like they’re doing it while sitting on your chest. No fricking privacy.

Black coffee, and lots of it. Been doing IF/OMAD for the past month, so my only meal for the day won’t come until about 3pm.

Well, I guess I know where I will be on November 18th, My favorite singer, from my favorite band, of all time. Great music.  I’ve seen him four times, but alas, never got to see The Smiths live. 

I’ve been in Thailand for 44 months now, and I have sent money from my US account to my Bangkok Bank account every month since I’ve arrived. I went to send money last night and encountered this same situation. That has never happened before. I took the passport photo and then the selfie, no problem, and my money, according to Wise, is supposed to arrive sometime today.  I appreciate the added security, but it was a first, and nothing about my situation has changed to prompt new security features. It must be just their way of doing business now. 

I did mine two weeks ago at the PKK office. No appointment. In and out in 20 minutes, as always. I love their efficiency. 

Spent the first two weeks of February diving on Koh Lipe and spent a lot of down time on Sunrise Beach. It really is quite beautiful. I don’t know if it deserves the high ranking, but as others have mentioned, you must consider the source.  

That’s too bad about the salary requirement. Working on my Thai fluency everyday, and spending about $36k of my pension yearly in this country. Been here three years and will probably make the ten-year mark, where I would assuredly be fluent. I would like to think I could get permanent residency then, even if I never worked here. Seems like a ridiculous requirement, considering everything. 

In February I took the 1st class sleeper from Hua Hin to Hat Yai on my way to Koh Lipe for some diving. If you are traveling alone, you run the risk of having a cabin mate. If you pay an extra 800B, you can reserve the cabin to yourself, but you can only do that in-person at the station. You can not reserve the entire cabin online. I did that on the way down, but was unable to do so on the journey back. I was dreading the strange cabin mate, but it never happened. I had the cabin to myself and did not have to pay extra. And the cabin was very nice, and it was fun to sleep on the train. 

Before doing anything else, I learned to read and write the Thai alphabet and vowels. This was back in 1990, before internet. I was very fortunate to find a Thai language book in the Virginia Beach Public Library and I took that book with me everywhere for about a month. Opened it and studied whenever I could. By learning to read and write first, it helped me immeasurably with my further studies. I think that this is a crucial first step.  And the good thing about it? You can do it in a vacuum. No outside help or resources needed. Just you and a book, and a pad and pen. 

Had a booster of Pfizer on Tuesday. My first two jabs were Pfizer as well. 

Tuesday there were no symptoms. Woke up Wednesday morning with a sore arm, which I still have now, Friday evening, with a bit of itching. Wednesday also brought an achy back that was gone by Thursday evening. Hopefully there will be nothing else.  I should also note that on January 2nd I tested COVID positive with symptoms lasting about four or five days. Reading the list of what I had, it appears that it was Omicron. 

I’ve entered Thailand tens of times and was never asked to show a return ticket. I always had one, but was never asked. I retired in 2019 and came on a one-way ticket. No problems. My plan, if it came down to showing an onward ticket, was to just get out of line, buy a cheapo Air Asia ticket to Phnom Penh on my phone, and get back in line. 

I started playing it on Friday. I now eagerly await the new word everyday. All three days I have been able to solve the word in three moves. I have to admit that this latest one had me staring at the screen for about ten minutes. The first two were pretty simple. I guess that’s how they get you! Haha.

Tapatio hot sauce, if you happen to enjoy it. Can’t find it here. Closest substitute is Cholulu for $7 a bottle. Also, Hidden Valley Ranch is $10 a bottle, and there is no good substitute over here. Bring a bottle if you like it. No Uncle Dan’s anywhere. Bring a few packs. I also wished I had brought a few more packs of Gillette gel deodorant. All they seem to have here is liquid roll-on and sprays similar to Axe.