Jelli

3 hours ago, HuskerDo2 said:

Don't equate a person's weight with their health. Just because a person carries a few extra pounds doesn't necessarily mean they aren't healthy. I have a friend who is about 30 - 40 pounds overweight BUT he has low cholesterol, perfect heart rate and can outrun most of us. 

Lol

Couldn't outrun me that's certain. 40 pounds.. sheeeeit that half of my wife's weight.

Just bc someone has cholesterol levels a bit elevated is hardly death sentence like being fat. Especially if HDL is high.

Heart rate is important, I'll give you that

I dropped 7kg over recent weight and 10kg over all time high doing nothing more 20mins of exercise daily, climbing every set of steps I could, walking 9k steps M-F and change of diet. Mostly just cut back on carbs, sugar. I'm well into my 60s as well so there's slow metabolism at play as well.

Just try.

1 hour ago, timendres said:

I just logged into MySSA over AIS no VPN no problem.

What good is this site? I made the huge effort of signing up but all I see is some silly information about what I'm going be distributed by year. I was dumbfounded with all the security for apparently nothing.

Help

Low pressure system in cool season brings worst of it.

Was so much worse in early 90s. Needed tongue scraper and gentian Violet at times

On 10/13/2023 at 5:54 PM, Crossy said:

Bare feet - has to be Aussies I'm afraid ???? 

 

Us Brit's feet are far too delicate!!

Aussies

Even Americans not that daft to appear like that on public city street

4 hours ago, Jelli said:

Things that have proven issues and obstacles in becoming more proficient in Thai

 

While I have spent the last 15 years in Thailand the 15 before that was spread out living in three other countries with as good or better language skills than my Thai. I've lived in seven countries each no less than 18 months.

 

I'm vested in nothing here other than my wife. No citizenship, not even PR. Grovel for annual extension.

 

You'll never have a meaningful conversation with a Thai other than your partner so it's chit chat and utility

 

My wife had good reason to learn English. Communicate better with me, travel outside Thailand, communicate with my family which she has visited often and in their homes, skill that if she gets retired at 55 (to 60) English is a marketable skill.

 

My Thai is sufficient enough to get most things done. Many Thai too quick to compliment. I'm lost in government offices, hospital, bank but probably be ok if I acquired that vocabulary.

 

Given what's going on in Thailand and in the world it's not implausible we end up back in the US. It would not be my first choice and my wife even sees how broken it is but the world is in a mess and the future is quite uncertain.

 

Finally, going back to my second point. I had a friend that lived in China for years. He was all about China and Chinese culture down to the tea thing. He was a strong hsk3 and believed he could hit 4 - but he bolted. Between the hassles of schools stealing from him, visa hassles, costs with relocation changing jobs and finally just having enough...he left. Every minute of study, every ounce of effort just wasted energy and life.

 

Having said all this I don't disagree with your post. I'm going to regroup and study up again but there will always be limits.

 

I had a good shot at PR due to my job and marriage but at 5 years and 200k this is a silly fool's errand. As for citizenship same story.

 

Everyone has excuses and those are mine

To add one more additional issue... Thai is not English, Chinese or Spanish. It's not used whatsoever outside the nation's borders.

Here's a bonus. Thailand is imo moving backwards not forwards economically and politically. Things have not been functional since about 2004-5.

14 hours ago, likerdup1 said:

Realizing there are multitudes of farangs who have lived in Thailand for decades that have never ever bothered to even learn basic Thai.

Chuckling every time I hear a forang speak with his Thai girl friend in broken English thinking this will actually help the communication. I have lived on and off in LOS for 10 years and this is a daily occurence. 7-11, Songtao, BTS whatever!

 

Word of advice. If one decides to live in a country where your native tongue is not widely spoken  you might want to take a few hours a week to take a few languages classes! Rather than sit on a bar stool sit in a class room for a few hours a week!

Making this simple effort could quite possibly save a lot of farangs the anguish of the all the failed marriage stories heard between Thai woman and farangs.

Things that have proven issues and obstacles in becoming more proficient in Thai

While I have spent the last 15 years in Thailand the 15 before that was spread out living in three other countries with as good or better language skills than my Thai. I've lived in seven countries each no less than 18 months.

I'm vested in nothing here other than my wife. No citizenship, not even PR. Grovel for annual extension.

You'll never have a meaningful conversation with a Thai other than your partner so it's chit chat and utility

My wife had good reason to learn English. Communicate better with me, travel outside Thailand, communicate with my family which she has visited often and in their homes, skill that if she gets retired at 55 (to 60) English is a marketable skill.

My Thai is sufficient enough to get most things done. Many Thai too quick to compliment. I'm lost in government offices, hospital, bank but probably be ok if I acquired that vocabulary.

Given what's going on in Thailand and in the world it's not implausible we end up back in the US. It would not be my first choice and my wife even sees how broken it is but the world is in a mess and the future is quite uncertain.

Finally, going back to my second point. I had a friend that lived in China for years. He was all about China and Chinese culture down to the tea thing. He was a strong hsk3 and believed he could hit 4 - but he bolted. Between the hassles of schools stealing from him, visa hassles, costs with relocation changing jobs and finally just having enough...he left. Every minute of study, every ounce of effort just wasted energy and life.

Having said all this I don't disagree with your post. I'm going to regroup and study up again but there will always be limits.

I had a good shot at PR due to my job and marriage but at 5 years and 200k this is a silly fool's errand. As for citizenship same story.

Everyone has excuses and those are mine

Anything that goes on in a Thai school. Makes no difference even if farang is managing issue, activity, department all still turns out to be shiTiT

Pity the students

Malaysian roads by comparison are vacant and there is a rule of law there.

Good advice is to prepare a will and have insurance card taped to your forehead.

Best advice is do not do this.

My students used to tell me the new red plates were red because they had hit those not in cars (pedestrian, bicycle, motorcycle). But hey, go ahead.

Just today... and you want to bicycle!

ISRAEL IS AT WAR !

Israel has always been at war. A people that are throughly and tita6 incompatible with other tribes and ethnicities. They work at it.

Blame UK/US that land should have never been given to those white Europeans.

1 Magic thinking that masks stop bacteria let alone virus.

2 Idiotic people both Thai and especially farang that still wear them.

Truly TiT

Vipassana meditation: most can't do 3 let alone 10 days. I recall a monk saying NOT to do this if you have head problems. Not talking to anyone for X days does many heads in. Usually, the 10 day classes in India drop about 85% as people need to be social.

Weed these days brings on wandering thoughts and paranoia. NOT recommended

Benzos probably quickest fix but imo not good short or long term unless they are REALLY necessary.

Exercise cardio, exercise lose weight, exercise walking, listen to fave upbeat music, don't read political news. Whatever you are doing - do the opposite. Everything opposite/ radically different yet focus on same goal. Get yourself out of the rut.

Change where and how you live.

Leave Thailand. If you truly miss it you'll feel good returning. If not then stay gone

Make to-do lists, work it and conquer any apathy and lack of motivation

Travel somewhere beautiful and fun.

Pay a pretty, young girl to entertain or help you do something. Not sexually. A fun, young woman. Both.

We are our own worst enemies at times. Myself, all the time.

12 hours ago, SingAPorn said:

It is time to wake up in the 21st century use a bit of intelligence if possible and accept that most educated and well balanced people non-thai or thai of the new generations,  do not give a hoot anymore about anyobdys skin colour.

 

Farang or foreigner it's the same in Thailand and many places in the west. 

 

The main concern in Thailand is do you have reasonable amount of cash to spend and are you a decent a polite individual.

 

 

The Thai and Asian cosmetic and aesthetic industries would disagree as would 90% of Asian women but what do I know ?????

Good luck. Wish you healthy, happy beautiful children.

I've had a number of stunning luk krung students over the years. Mostly female but a few handsome lads.

I tend to think that generally the better looking kids are often from European fathers

Never know.

8 hours ago, dinsdale said:

Fantastic statement. Would you like to back it up as to why you think this is so or is this just what you think? "Thai teachers should be retired after 20 years", so how old would they be then do you think.

Your entire post is nonsence.

It's widely understood what a burnout job teaching is. Teachers in US often last under ten years.

From my vantage point, Thai teachers being overworked and underpaid just lose it. It's really tragic to especially see young teachers here give up but the older teachers just shut down as they stopped learning the day the left university. It's not about giving but taking. So...twenty years on. From my experience, I don't see them as engaging or effective. Would be extremely rare to be interested in continued learning, growth. Rather, it's just minimal effort and a lot of laziness due to burnout, salary. They also tend to inject themselves if possible into the bureaucracy becoming even less valuable as a teacher. *Thai teaching* is generally just yapping at the students from a chair.. Students just tossed paper worksheets.

* it's nonsense btw 

8 minutes ago, marin said:

I was speaking to the poster Celcius who was saying how expensive Mahidol is. I made no comment at all about its ranking or scholastic virtues. 

Fair enough

It is definitely one of the top three generally speaking and the medical programs are highly competitive.

Int'l programs are generally thought of as weaker because they have lots of foreign teachers

2 minutes ago, Yellowtail said:

That's what I thought, thanks! 

Is it really?

I mean it was never about you lol. I was curious about your son's school in Thailand.

I'll message if it will make you feel better.

Just now, Yellowtail said:

I went to:

John Dolland Elementary K-4

Ramona Elementary 5-6 (due to integration) 

John Glenn HS

Cerritos Collage AA

Cal Poly Pomona, BS

 

You? 

 

Yes, rich people in the US generally have better schools than the poor, even those have suffered dramatically. 

 

I meant your son lol.

I don't want to post my personal history.

Grew up in the same area. Cerritos is okay community college and Cal Poly Pomona is a very solid regional university although not necessarily nationally prestigious polytechnic.

I had two close friends go there. One CS degree, the other electrical engineering.

Good for yew

12 minutes ago, marin said:

You are thinking of their international college not the Thai Government university.  MUIC, Mahidol university international college.

MUIC is not highly prestigious nor especially competitive. Chula for Intl programs.

Only had one student and thousands that was interested in going there and it was because they offered a remedial program

2 minutes ago, Yellowtail said:

Yes

Boast what? Do you have any idea how bad education has gotten in the US? It was bad in the '70s when I went to HS, and it's gotten nothing but worse. 

 

Oh, you're making stuff up again. He went to a great government high school in Bangkok, he had to test to get in, and I think it was around B5-6K a term. 

 

Did you mean to say States? I no longer live in the US.

 

So, I'm curious...

Surely you can name the school??

Yeah, I don't disagree about Education in USA but a better zip code solves that issue .