phuketsub

Don't jump to confusions; this has nothing to do with the situation in the Deep South.

Personally it has always amazed me just how lax the security is at SalaKlang.

Even the separatists in the Deep South have never targetted a seat of provincial power, at least not that I am aware.

Anyway, given that the Phuket Reporters Club office is a stone's throw away, I wonder why more news hasn't been forthcoming.

I wonder if this could have anything to do with the protest to build a new SalaKlaang across the street. I talked to the mototaxi drivers there last week and they told me the protest was over.

Anyway, this should be an interesting case to follow.

Given everything that goes on over there I am surprised that I have never seen them on sale anywhere...

I know the pain that you are going through. I have had it in both elbows, 25 years ago, while golfing a lot. Had both elbows, at different times, operated on. They cut you open, disattach your tendons, sand down the bone spurs, and then lay the tendons back down to reattach. After time to heal, months of physical therapy. Hope this rubber tool works for you. My problem was solved permanently.

Thanks, and glad to hear you got a permanent fix. I won't get surgery until I have exhausted every other option though. I am still racking my brain on where to find this elusive 'rubber bar', though.

One friend suggested jokingly that I use a big dildo, but I wouldn't know where to acquire one of them locally either!

Woe is me; getting old sucks.

I think we need to view this in terms of the entire spectrum of potential 'roadkill', from the clueless centipede or cockroach up to animals that can really have an impact (literally) on one's vehicle. This could be a good premise for a reality TV show: Daihatsu Mira vs African Elephant, etc.

More seriously, and I don't intend any disrespect, my greatest fear remains 22-wheel flatbeds parked in the breakdown lane of the road (especially the bypass road), with little or no lighting when I am on a motorbike.

Anyway, due diligence to anyone who would take to the roads of Phuket, sober or otherwise...

working to keep it from the beaches, because if no one sees it then it didn't really happen

No you keep it off the beaches as it has less of an environmental impact if controlled at sea. Have you ever seen an oil spill on a beach? Sea birds get coated with the oil and die, fish and shellfish dying due to the pollution. The MO for controlling oil spill are the same the world over, Google BP's oil spill in the Gulf and look at the effect it had on coastal communities when the oil washed up onshore.

It is well established that clean-up at sea is also detrimental - the hemicals used are detrimental and the substances that get into the food chain in droplet form in suspension will eventually end up being consumed by other animals and ultimately US! there is also fallout from the suface and a lot of stuff ends up on the sea floor - coral etc being destroyed or otherwise affected.

This is a pretty black-and-white view. Petrochemicals float on water, especially saline-dense saltwater, although of course some fraction will dissolve (this is why time is of the essence). There are many examples where cleanup efforts have had a successful outcome and the technology is several decades old. The key is readiness and having a predesignated person with experience, necessary resources and authority to make decisions in real time to assess the situation and make command decisions based on a variety of complex factors: the size and nature of the spill, prevailing currents and tidal info, winds and, most importantly, the OVERALL effect on the environment -- not its potential to affect the tourism industry.

Sadly, the various agencies reported to be a part of the so-called 'cleanup' effort don't have a very promising track record in this regard.

The headline that keeps giving and giving...how many times has it been reported and/or discussed before?

As for sweeping generalizations about nationalities, ethnicity and religious beliefs: equally redundant and boring.

The unofficial motto of the Thai state is as an indivisible, single entity based on three pillars, the first two of which are Nation and Religion; whatever the Constitution says about the right to practice religion, the presumption is that Thai is the national language (Not Melyu Patani) and Buddhism the national religion (see the holiday schedule). Every time the idea arises to provide some level of autonomy on such issues, it is quietly squelched and allowed to die on the vine, and the careers of the officials who broached the topic seldom benefit.

So, almost ten years on, now we have what we have: a horrible status quo pitting a well-funded, monolithic Government security apparatus (throughout which one hand doesn't know what the other is doing) against a small number of active 'real' insurgents and their supporters, on the other. If that ain't bad enough, throw in all the corrupt politicians and bureaucrats, drug-dealers, mafioso, etc., and others who benefit from the chaos in multifarious ways. The Deep South, for all its beauty, is now home the worst armed insurgency in Asia, not what the nice and innocent people who make up the vast majority of the population deserve at all.

The well-funded SBPAC tries to "buy off" the presumed opposition, such as by spending over a BILLION baht to fly Muslims from the region to Mecca for the last Hajj last year, to what end? A better approach would be to adopt a secular approach and get the government out of the 'business' of religion altogether.

Espionage blimps, the bogus bomb "detector" scandal, dropping origami birds by aircraft: you could not make this stuff up if you wanted to.

The reporting is pretty abysmal too. For example, in the car bomb attack that left two Muslim teachers dead in Narathiwat recently, the driver of the car died a few hours later from schrapnel wounds to the head: never reported in the English-language media (at least that I am aware of).

The solution to the problem will remain elusive as long as so many continue to profit so handsomely from the misery of others. If I had a magic wand and a single wish, I would wave it over this entire region and extract all the minority scum on both sides who are perpetuating the situation at the expense of the normal people who just want to get on with their lives, not live in constant fear.

Hi phuketsub,

I don't claim to be a therapist or doctor of any kind, so with a grain of salt, I'm pretty sure a friend of mine that had the same problem used rubber surgical tubing tied to a chair and did exercises for the same problem.

Maybe a youtube video out there on it, might be a quicker solution, going and purchasing rubber tubing.

In college we use to use the stuff and a funnel to make water balloon launchers, might be a Songkran idea.......

There are indeed some good videos on YouTube, including one that advocates self massage,but the 'rubber bar' one is the only one that seems to have been proven clinically effective in a controlled study, so I want to try that first.

Anyway, thanks for all your input...

It may be easier to just order one from Amazon. com.

Sent from my i-mobile IQ 6 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Amazon doesn't ship to Thailand, so if I go that route I have to inconvenience people stateside and then face shipping fees, import duty, etc.

Since we live in the world's largest rubber producing nation I thought they should have them here...we'll see.

Hi Everyone,

I just found out that I have 'tennis elbow' (self-diagnosis) and my initial Internet research shows the best and most convenient treatment is a set of exercises using what is essentially a 'rubber bar'.

These are marketed in the US as Thera-Band Flexbars...

Does anyone know of a store that carries them, or something similar?

I really don't want to spend my Sunday on an annoying wild goose chase, so any help would be much appreciated. Thanks.

(Also, please no flak for performing self diagnosis.)

Best of luck Bill & Flower...As for the inevitable debate over Patong/Pattaya, it sounds like a lateral move to me.

Many of the locals buy food from street vendors from near Banzaan (when it is not under water). In my opinion Patong is the worst part of the island for dining out on a budget, however.

The general idea is that the west coast is overpriced, less authentic.

In general the best food values are in Phuket Town and Rassada. One that might be of interest to some readers is the khao soi (30 baht) shop run outside the Burmese minimart, called CityMart, next to the wet market on Ranong Rd. They also have 'export' Leo on sale there: apparently made in Thailand, exported to Burma and then smuggled back in. Cheaper than at 7-Eleven and tastes the same. Go figure...

The weekend night market in Wichit has several stalls that sell all kinds of remotes.

This is indeed your best bet. The market, known locally as 'Phuket Variety, is at the top end of Wirat Hongyok Road, not far from the intersection with Chao Fah West

A better question might be "What doesn't annoy you on Phuket radio?"

For me its oblivious farangs mangling Thai language, or Thais doing the same to English.

If they want to do English language radio here they really need truly bilingual announcers.

The worst in this regard has always been Radio Thailand.

Sometimes it sounds like they kidnapped some random Rajabhat student, put a gun to his/her head and said: READ THIS.

It is truly painful to listen to.

Steven Layne has a spot 8am-9am Mondays and Fridays on 90.5FM.

He's bilingual (Thai mother), grew up in Colorado, has good taste in music and is a big Phuket FC fan.

Worth a listen IMHO.

On the Thai side I think 94 City Radio is the best for local news, though reception is not that good outside Phuket Town.

Personally, I prefer long-form podcasts to radio. My absolute favorite is the Adam Carolla Show. There is nothing on the web or in any other media that I could recommend more highly.

I got an insurance "package" for my daughter from AIA shortly after she was born (she is almost 8 now) and I consider it a really sound investment as she has been hospitalized quite a few times for various things, mostly just fevers. I think it works out to about 10,000 baht/year, which includes extra accident insurance. Not a year has passed when we claimed less than 10,000 baht

It only covers in-patient treatment, which means there have been borderline times when I chose to admit her when I otherwise would not have, knowing that really all she needed was to stay home from school and rest up.

However, this also seems to work well for wage slaves like myself because it is easier to tell a boss you have to miss a day of work because your daughter is in the hospital, rather than 'she doesn't feel well'.

I always have her treated at Mission, where she was born. I am generally happy with their services, though I think they tend to over-prescribe medicine (obviously a key revenue stream at all hospitals) and I am not too fond of the bland food there.

Other good parts of the AIA "package" we use:

1. When she reaches 20 she will get back around 200,000 baht

2. If I pass away, she will still get all of the benefits without anyone having to continue the annual premiums, so it is sort of like a form of life insurance as well.

The agent we used is a really nice former neighbor who is also like an aunt to my daughter, so we never have any problems with filing all the paperwork. Send me a PM if you want her contact details.

I asked this general question, but received no replies.

If you are insured, your wife/girlfriend is insured, and you have insured your daughter, wouldn't a family plan be cheaper and less paperwork?

We are all insured under different plans with different agencies, mine through the government Social Security scheme which gives good healthcare for jut 365 baht/month, even though I have been technically unemployed for almost a year.

My concern is: where is this all going to end?

When they put the retarded sign up they were just asking for trouble, and it didn't take long to come.

Bangkok is just a sprawl of crumbling concrete and rebar; the so-called "street art" seems to fit there, just as it does in its (nominal) sister city Los Angeles (both are named 'City of Angels').

It seems that every trend that starts in BKK ends up here...

Anyway, I am just going to lower the periscope until I can get out of here, which hopefully won't take too long.

here's a link to the promo video to the Bangkok Street Art video in February:

I got an insurance "package" for my daughter from AIA shortly after she was born (she is almost 8 now) and I consider it a really sound investment as she has been hospitalized quite a few times for various things, mostly just fevers. I think it works out to about 10,000 baht/year, which includes extra accident insurance. Not a year has passed when we claimed less than 10,000 baht

It only covers in-patient treatment, which means there have been borderline times when I chose to admit her when I otherwise would not have, knowing that really all she needed was to stay home from school and rest up.

However, this also seems to work well for wage slaves like myself because it is easier to tell a boss you have to miss a day of work because your daughter is in the hospital, rather than 'she doesn't feel well'.

I always have her treated at Mission, where she was born. I am generally happy with their services, though I think they tend to over-prescribe medicine (obviously a key revenue stream at all hospitals) and I am not too fond of the bland food there.

Other good parts of the AIA "package" we use:

1. When she reaches 20 she will get back around 200,000 baht

2. If I pass away, she will still get all of the benefits without anyone having to continue the annual premiums, so it is sort of like a form of life insurance as well.

The agent we used is a really nice former neighbor who is also like an aunt to my daughter, so we never have any problems with filing all the paperwork. Send me a PM if you want her contact details.

Quite the same graffiti. What's the meaning of this meme?

This was on the Central Festival overpass where they are digging the hole.

2012-12-27_16-02-46.jpg

Looks a little like Mickey Mouse with a bad hangover

I think they are trying to combine the scariest of images (skull) with the cutest (Mickey Mouse)...Who knows what the point is really. Anyway, they are all over the place now...If they put one up on Khao Toh Seh or on a building on Thalang Road ( etc.) I'll be baying for blood. With all the video cameras up everywhere the cops could probably put a stop to it...if they were so inclined.

Completely retarded. The OrBorJor put this ridiculous sign up at Point 7 on Khao Toh Seh, now it is covered in graffiti.

The sign itself is ugly and only serves to BLOCK THE VIEW it is trying to promote!

Pathetic.

July 20-21: Toyota Motorsport 2 @ Saphan Hin

Motor racing. Expect a lot of hi-so types down from Bangkok for this one.

July 22-24: 5th annual Kathu Street Culture Festival on Wichit Songram Road.

Opens at 5:30pm on the 22nd with a parade starting at the new market

He just wants to be seen as doing his job.

The law is unenforceable, especially since so many of "accommodation establishments" in Phuket are unregistered to begin with.

Still, like many of the other unenforceable laws on the books, it still holds open the possibility for a big payday if they ever decide to have a 'crackdown'...

There is a guy in a little shop on Koh Sim Bee Road that sells Robusta beans from Chumporn for 165 baht for half a kilo; quite a bit cheaper than at most retail outlets. He also has 'friends' that grow their own up in Chaing Mai and send him samples and he will give you some to try for free.

I understand that Arabica is preferred by most coffee aficionados, but personally I am okay with the Robusta. Plenty of bang for the buck.

Also, at the orchid festival at Saphan Hin (see events thread) there is a girl selling Robusta seedlings in case you want to try your hand at growing your own.

I suspect they will launch the service around the same time the dodgy section of Patong Hill Road finally collapses...

Tesssaban Rawai "6th annual Keep Rawai Traditions going" fair time: 1pm -11pm, July 28

location: Wat Sawanarom, Rawai Village 2

Seems to be a sort of cultural fair with performances and cultural exhibitions by "three generations" of performers.

If anyone has been to one of the previous installments pls let us know; I never go to Rawai.

Source: Tessaban Rawai>CityNews Cable TV>Facebook

Yeah, it's pretty old, but the engine runs well so I don't want it to rust away like my old jalopy (Suzuki Carribean).

it looks like bog falling off so at one stage the car was pranged and repaired with bog(fibreglass) and re sprayed, might pay to get it checked out before all the bog starts to fall out. The rust behind the bog is a dead give away, salt air corrosion starting up which will go behind all the bog in the car........

I suspect you may be right; it is a used car and the doors have a slightly different color than the rest of the car.

I recommend Dr Kanokwan's clinic, just south of Yaowarat Bridge on Yaowarat Road in Samkong, near the entrance to Phuket Villa 1, in Phuket Town.