CrunchWrapSupreme

I watched the full interview of the Thonburi Hospital CEO when he first tried to make that big order of Moderna himself, then got smacked down by the govt. Too much loss of face for them. Now all this waiting and a backlog of orders, to finally get this big truck paraded around with logos, so just the right people can get their pat on the back, as well as fat envelopes I'm sure. Ridiculous, useless drama.

3 hours ago, Gecko123 said:

Can't help wondering if any expats would be willing to work for those wages

They'd have to be 1000+ baht a day to compete with the minimum Westerner teaching salary, workers who are still in short supply. I know because one at my school just jumped ship to another for a slight bump in pay.

Worried? That there won't be enough booze? That they can't get back to the bars fast enough? ????????

On that note, there happens to be a "naughty bar" in a nearby town, with Christmas lights and blacked out windows. I thought it was closed. But the other day, I saw two smiling Thai men come out of it.

American anti-vaxxers are proudly taking their pink slips (getting sacked) as they stand tall for their firm beliefs.

Fine by me. More job opportunities for both me and the wife when we go back.

Friend of mine has been trying to land a govt job forever. He says this'll probably be his ticket.

Many things in Thailand are purely symbolic, often with little to no practical purpose, other than the imagery, or "optics" as we like to say in American politics recently heh. It just looks good. The "big cleaning" days, the meetings, the photo ops with important people standing together, the teachers who mostly stay in the office, the scores I must give to students who never show up, the alcohol gel at the markets almost no one uses. Just gotta go through the motions, at just the right moments, whether or not it seems there's really a point to it.

Very similar in shape to my Swift, especially the wheels all the way back at the rear corners. I like my Swift.

Yeah, I like watching car vids, and so have been getting a barrage of these Good Cat Thai adverts and reviews. Yeah, 1 mil is steep considering that gets you into a loaded pickup or SUV.

Good Cat is a good, cute name. Yes, you certainly want the Good Cat, the one who's always happy when you come home, plays with and gives you affection. You don't want the Bad Cat who ignores you, and tears up all your stuff.

Just got word we're still only at about 78% vaxx, and thus our opening is pushed back 2 weeks. Back to online classes tomorrow.

Most bars and pubs, here in the LOS and back in the States, have only a FB page. I have to go to them to find out if they're open or having any special events. I can't stand FB either, and have to keep shutting that annoying pop up telling me to register.

Make sure it doesn't say "MADERNA" ????

I just paid 340 for two kits, 170 each. Said it was a special promotion. Yeah, the ol' special farang price. Whatever.

These are the nasal kits. Over 1000 students were lined up today at school for nasal tests also. Lots of hilarious disgusted face making and sneezing were made as the things were twisted up there over and over, so I heard. Hah. Thus, they told us farang teachers to avoid the festivities and just do the test ourselves at home.

12 hours ago, ozfarang said:

Also many people with serious money in Thailand, (Thai hi-o's) have overseas accounts, why would that be?

I remember years ago this huge Citibank ad near their office in Asok BKK. On it a lovely, superstar looking lady, elegant dress, on her way to some important destination, Citibank credit card in her hand. On it her name could clearly be seen, Thai first name, English surname from the rich farang husband. Ah, the dream.

Meanwhile in my moo ban, the young men lay about playing mobile games, race motorbikes up and down the road, then eventually turn to ya ba.

Oh, why won't the Thai employers give their fellow countrymen, the very future of their country, some good honest work? Come on, just hand them some tools and sticky rice! They're ready to go!

59 minutes ago, kelboy said:

Why would you want to go somewhere that you can't have a glass with your dinner

My favorite part of Chatuchak is the paella place. Great cocktails. Getting properly tipsy while listening to their live DJ, before staggering about to take in the scenery, makes the experience much more enjoyable.

I'm also in an Issan village. I was told November 1st would be the reopening for in person classes again. But now I was just told this can only happen if the student vaccination rate is above 80%, which it is still not. More vaccinations will be occurring this week. If they don't hit the number, our reopening will be delayed.

I had transwomen friends back in the States. There many feel compelled to “get the surgery” in order to “complete the transition”. Many are quite torn over it. There’s feeling they shouldn’t be discouraged from doing it and be accepted for it, yet there’s the many issues the procedure is fraught with. It often doesn’t have the desired effect. Here in the LOS, they’re respected as the “third gender” regardless if they do it or not. Thus less pressure, and thus fewer have done it.

Walking down on Sukhumvit Soi 7/1, before you get to the Australian bar on the left, you’re likely to be accosted by many lovely ladyboys on the right. They’ll actually grab and try pulling you into their massage parlor, Plame Relax. Most are post-op. If you ever wanted to give it a try, maybe do some comparisons, that’d be the place to do it. Uh, so I’ve heard. ????????️‍????

An awful lot of brake failure, in this country known for its love of mobile phones and alcohol. ????????????????

I once taught at a “prestigious” BKK private school with a famous name. It looked the part, but beyond that was anything but.

Like many things Thailand a great deal of care went into the impressive facilities, a big part of the sales pitch as parents came in to pay the ridiculous fees. The curriculum itself was a joke. Rampant copying and cheating. Fancy textbooks which mostly made for part of the impressive decor. Kids playing games on their latest Apple gear. Tossing things about the classrooms like it’s always lunchtime in the canteen, as teachers flipped through PowerPoints and barked into mics regardless. Little to nothing done about it lest the spoiled brats complain to their hi-so parents upon hopping into their BMWs. Incredible arrogance, much of which rubbed off onto the long term farangs, despite being little more than lapdogs for their Thai admins.

Happy to be back in Issan at my humble country school, with humble country bumpkins. Just show up, give lessons, no pretensions, no attitude, feel appreciated. Online classes haven’t been great, yet not bad given the circumstances. There’s always the large portion who hardly do anything, same as it was during in person classes. It’s been touching to see the continued dedication from the groups of good students, the ones who make it worth it. No one’s whining about refunds. They’ll all get their scores and progress to the next grade next year. Meanwhile I’ve heard that private school has had to fork out refunds and cut salaries. Som nam na.

Sorry to hear. Tough times tend to trigger incidents like this.

I used to sell on eBay, and when the economic crisis of '08 hit, I suddenly got a ton of messages like, "Hey, since you also sell electronics, have you ever worked with or bought from so and so..." I said no, why? Many began taking orders, collecting money, then just running with it. They quit sending out product, probably didn't even have it to begin with. Yet had probably lost their jobs, then got desperate with bills and rent to pay.

I was real lucky to have a helpful and supportive condo building manager, and condo unit owner, given one of the worst immigration offices in Samut Prakan. Just to do the change of address and TM30, they made us redo the rental contract several times then wanted to see the chanote. I wouldn't expect an agent to do all that.