FolkGuitar

I guess the crust of your pies is made fairy dust instead of wheat flour. Perhaps the shortening used to make it was from WeightWatchers? I'll never understand why some people think that if you change the 'shape' of a food, it changes its properties...

I had the same problem with Lazada, but it corrected itself a few months later. I switched to Shopee when it happened, and didn't even try Lazada again for a few months, then one day tried Lazada again and it worked. These days I use both, but neither for fresh foods.

I do wonder why... the Ku Klux Klan, the Proud Boys, QAnon, The Three Percenters, etc., etc., all align themselves with the Republican party? I wonder why... most of the Southern States have the lowest educational scores in the US, and all align themselves with the Republican party? Actually, I don't wonder at all.

"a deficiency in traffic risk assessment skills," Nope. They know the risks. They just don't give a damn about them or anyone else on the road. But then, isn't that pretty normal here?

I wonder if that's the same as when we greet a stranger and say (not ask...) "How are you." Or the standard New Yorker intro; 'Ha ya doin?' We are not really looking for an answer, just being polite. I know that I when I smile at strangers, it's just a polite acknowledgement that they exist within the same sphere as me, with no other particular meaning what so ever, and because I'm happy enough myself and so usually smiling!

I've been using this machine (bought at Yok for about 3,000 Baht a few years ago. I use it often, as I love to wake up to the smell of freshly baked bread. Most of the better machines can bake 1lb, 2lb, and often 3lb loaves, with a choice of three levels of crust (light, medium, dark,) and a menu of 12 different bread or dough options. Some prefer to use the machine just to knead their dough to be baked in a regular gas oven. Deeper crust that way. The machine I bought came with two 1lb pans and one 2lb pan. As I like to slice my bread for sandwiches (after the first morning's tear-off with breakfast,) the 2lb loaf gives me more usable slices (remember, there will be one or two holes in the bottom of the loaf from the mixing paddles. I try to remember to remove them after the second rise if I'm baking during the day.) Normally, I just dump in all the ingredients, set the timer so that my bread will be finished a half hour before I wake up, and go to sleep. Warm French, Italian, Whole Wheat, Milk bread, quick bread, plain old White bread... even pizza dough and some puddings! Doesn't get much easier than this.

I moved to Asia with a one-way air ticket, suitcase, a box of books, and $500 in my pocket. That was over 30 years ago. I have never questioned that decision. Not once.

"We don't see things as they are. We see them as we are."

True. But that legal document can be any Thai government-issued ID, such as a driver's license. The Top Cop has said that a passport photo copy is all that is needed.

With care, one can find some delicious sausages here, but you do have to pick and choose between brands for the best of a specific type. But... ... to date, I have NOT found a single producer making Cumberland or Italian sausage with a large grind. Almost all are ground too smooth, like cheap fish hotdogs. If I want the grind to be correct, I have to make them myself. Easy enough to do, but it's a shame none are sold that way.

I didn't have much to sell. Lost it all in divorces. My most valuable asset was a Martin guitar, which I sold and bought a one-way ticket to Japan. I arrived there with about $500 to my name, a box of books, and a suitcase of clothes. That was about 35 years ago. Go 'home' ? Wherever I live, THAT is my home. Should I find that I need/want to leave Thailand, I'll find another 'home' and be quite happy about it! Right now, and for the past 20+ years, this is HOME.

If you've found the right partner, it's better to be attached anywhere!

Every time we get on the roads here in Thailand we see the result of people picking and choosing which laws to follow. Perhaps that's one of the reasons Thailand has such a high rate of road fatalities. Have any of us driven a week without seeing or almost having, some sort of accident because another driver (or ourselves) broke the driving laws? I think most of us pick and choose which laws we will follow. Fortunately, most of these are rather petty. Few of us choose to break the 'Do not kill' laws, or 'Do not rob banks.' Unfortunately, we all seem to have a well-developed sense of justification, and so have little difficulty choosing which laws it's "O.K." to break. We rationalize so well that we can even break laws that potentially 'can' harm others, such as driving while intoxicated or speeding. Fact is... we ALL break some laws. Anyone who says they don't is fooling themselves. Let's just be thankful that we all don't break ALL the laws. Most are actually there to protect us or protect society.

We have always gotten our bank letters the day before, but update the bankbook on the same day that we go to Immigration. Never had a problem with that.

Motorbike on-road pickup/repair services. Two different places, but these number are from two years ago. Give it a try! 082-388-2406 053-251-186

We all get some form of stomach problems, regardless what or where we eat, regardless of how careful we try to be. 'Imodium' takes care of that quickly and easily. I've watched visitors here refuse to eat in Thai restaurants, getting all their meals from McDs, BurgerKing, and 7-Eleven while on vacation here. They really didn't get to experience some of the best of what travel has to offer, for fear of getting the G.I. Blues. The ONLY time I ever got genuine 'food poisoning' was when I had lunch at Bangkok's premiere hotel. The rice left over in my rice cooker has never even given me the sh!ts,

That's SOP in most of developed Asia. At first, I was put off by it, thinking we'd all die. But now, 30 years later and still shuffling this mortal coil, my attitude has changed.

I see a mistake that happened earlier.

To an eagle, it's dinner. It all depends on who is looking. We all see things through our own filters. What you see may not be what I see, even when looking at the same scene. Anyone in a cross-cultural relationship becomes instantly aware of that fact.

It's important to note that we do NOT see things as they are. We see them as we are...

Oddly enough, there are actually more American Special Forces operatives retired and living in Thailand than ever were ever on the rolls of the SpecWar units in the U.S. Funny how that happens...

I'd guess that these are NOT the 'average expat.' Just the ones we SEE in our regular, routine, daily life. I'd guess the 'average expat' stays at home with spouse at night instead of downing 6 Leo's at the bar 7 nights a week. But, yes... there sure is a problem! When a guy's stomach enters the room 60 seconds before the rest of him passes the door jamb, there really IS a problem. Morbid obesity will keep the expat numbers from getting too large. Beer for breakfast isn't going to help.

You're correct in that the smog lasts more than a few weeks. I'm sorry that you find it a problem. We don't. The only issue we have with Chiang Mai is that there is no police presence on the streets stopping the reckless drivers. I believe they are a far more serious threat than the air. We know they kill people all year round...

Been here 22 years. Can't think of any reason to leave! Unless you are here for the drinking and bar girls, which I'm told have gone down in the past 20 years, it's a delightful place to live. The food is great, the people are friendly, the prices are certainly right, and the geography beautiful. Who could ask for more?

There are no meds for an attention junkie.