fiddlehead

Don't know how many of you were effected (or affected??? not sure which is proper here)

A Thai man wrapped himself and his car around a telephone pole the other night cutting (or burning thru) all the lines.

We were without power for 5 hours and internet finally came back on a little while ago.

I learned something: I am addicted to the internet. It is like a drug.

Without it, i got a lot done. Created user logins for everyone in the house, organized my bookmarks and files, created song lists and worked on music, started a video of my kid, as well as non internet things: organized my gear, cleaned my truck, tuned my motorbike, etc etc etc.

Had a jungle walk planned for tomorrow but might just have to cancel now.

I am going to attempt to not go online at least one day a week just to clear up things (including my mind)

And i guess i pretty much missed April fools day although there are a few hours left, but i think the surprise factor is gone. Oh well.

Anyone else go off cause of this accident and have comments?

The really aggressive drivers are usually men.

The scared, don't know how to back up and if they do, it is in very slow motion, pull out too slow, hesitant at the traffic circle (inside) drivers are usually women. (when they don't have the dark shaded glass film so that you can tell)

My 2 cents on the worst drivers.

1. Is drinking making your home life unhappy?

no.

2. Does your drinking make you careless of your family’s welfare?

no.

3. Do you drink because you are shy with other people?

no.

4. Is drinking affecting your reputation?

mmm, kind of!!

5. Do you drink to escape from worries or trouble?

no.

6. Do you drink alone?

yes, sometimes i do!!! (shame of it)

7. Have you lost time from work due to drinking?

yes, come on, that goes without saying!!! not in the past couple of years though.

8. Has your ambition decreased since drinking?

cant remember what my ambition was like before I had my first ever drink so....

9. Has your efficiency decreased since drinking?

same answer as no. 8 but replace ambition with efficiency.

10. Is drinking jeopardising your job or business?

no.

11. Have you ever felt remorse after drinking?

yes, who hasnt?

12. Are you in financial difficulties as a result of drinking?

no.

13. Do you turn to or seek an inferior environment when drinking?

no.

14. Do you crave a drink at a definite time daily?

no.

15. Does drinking cause you to have difficulty in sleeping?

no.

16. Do you want a drink the next morning?

no.

17. Do you drink to build up your self-confidence?

sometimes.

18. Have you ever had a complete loss of memory as a result of drinking?

not a complete loss, sometimes extremely patchy memories!!!

19. Has your doctor ever treated you for drinking?

no.

20. Have you ever been in hospital or prison because of drinking?

hospital yes, prison no.

What's Your Score??

If you have answered YES to any one of the questions, there is a definite warning that you may be alcoholic.

If you have answered YES to any two, the chances are that you are an alcoholic.

If you have answered YES to three or more, you are definitely an alcoholic.

<deleted>.

I agree: <deleted>!

I drink on average of two drinks a month!

Yet answered yes to 3 of the questions.

Your quiz needs some work.

I am far from being an alcoholic. I have one beer once in a great while when it turns out it is hard to refuse one.

Re-work your quiz a bit.

It reminds me of a friend who once went thru alcohol rehab. When he got out, he told us by their definition, we were all alcoholics.

Judge yourself. Not me.

There are 2 on Vichit road. The one is just north of the turn for Sai Yuan (near the BIG 7/11) on the west side.

There is another one that really is not a sit down/drink coffee kind of place at all, just a wholesale bakery that caters to many of the hotels but will sell you a loaf by the piece. It's not european style bread though.

Then there's another one nobody mentioned in Chalong along the Choafa East road across from the police station. That one's been there a long time and is pleasant and good value IMO.

I also like the one in Nai Harn that is now called the German bakery but used to be called Bruno's as well as Flints ones at the Rawai beach road east end.

There's another one too over near the IKon night club.

Lots of them around the Nai Harn/Rawai/Chalong area for sure.

Personally, i liked your first design the best. Except for a few things: Make one bedroom out of the two small ones.

Knock out that wall between the kitchen and dining area and make it more of a bar/sitting area.

I like having the kitchen in or near where people can talk to the cook, maybe even put the stove or sink in the bar area that would separate the two rooms.

That's what i would do anyway. I like open areas, not so many walls and where people around the house can talk/see each other.

my 2 cents. (for what that's worth)

The written test is not so easy. (computer)

The (correct) answers are just funny sometimes.

As far as i could tell, the questions for the motorbike were the same as for a car.

They let you see the correct answers at the end and you can come back again and retake it so, no need to fail it twice.

THe reaction test is good fun. Watching Thai people trying to switch from gas to brake pedals and they just can't do it.

The driving part is a joke. Chaos, just like in real road situations.

Enjoy. It is good entertainment (except for the waiting lines)

Thanks for that Mister Man, I'm going to head over with the family now.

The nightly party in the street in front of our house (or the neighbor's)

The food.

Friendly people (mostly)

The limestone rock formations jutting out of the sea.

The prices for the food.

The weather. (although 5 degrees cooler would be ok too)

The sea

The mountains

The lack of body hair on the women.

The food. (oh did i mention that already?)

I agree with patklang. The driving test here is a joke.

The questions on the computer are a joke. They tell you the correct answers at the end and some of them are just mind boggling: Example: they show 4 pictures of parked cars and ask you to pick which one is correct (legal?) The correct one shows a 4 lane hi-way with a car just pulled over on the left in the lane!!!

Then there's the driving part of the test. NONE! and i repeat None, of the Thai drivers could park the car properly. 2 out of the 8 i watched got completely turned around and knocked over many posts. I didn't stick around to see if they passed but assume they are probably driving on the roads by now (3 weeks later)

How the woman that judges everyone can keep a straight face day after day is beyond me. I couldn't.

But, even if everyone knows how to drive properly, when you get the bully, or drunk, or guy who's late for work barrelling through the roundabouts, breaking all the rules with 2 policeman standing there watching and doing nothing about it....................Well, you're not going to have a country full of safe drivers now are you?

Education for Thai people. C'mon government, teach them about the rest of the world too.

Teach them how to obey traffic rules (roundabouts especially)

Teach them about zoning and why there is a need to have a place to park (other than in the middle of the street)

Teach them some geography, math, science, English (more than thank you, how are you, and good morning), world history.

If i could have 2 wishes, number 2 would be to abolish the tuk tuk mafia and get meters in them ALL and make them use them.

3/ force 7/11's to sell some healthy options too. (just kiddin but it is distracting to take my kid in there)

This is a problem that i've given a lot of thought to also.

I have a will. In America. It says my wife pretty much gets everything.

But, how will she get that money?

I asked at my Kasikorn bank one time about this.

They told me that if i die, my wife or someone who can, get a death certificate and take it to the US embassy.

They will then go about getting the money transferred to America where my executor can work on getting it to my wife.

Not simple at all and so, i have looked at the options:

I could put the money in an account (in my name) that would have an ATM card and give instructions upon my death for the pin number to be given to my wife. But the problem here is that these crooks who put the attachments on the ATM machines can find out your info and make a new card and steal all your money. So, i generally only keep less than 100k in my ATM account.

I don't know an answer for you but will watch this thread in case someone does.

I don't agree with the mods that it's strictly a banking question. It can be a huge problem that could take a lot of red tape, time and money to get what's rightfully your wife's money, into her hands.

Does anybody know anything about a Thai will? Would that make it easier? (or harder?)

Benefits: your Thai children can have your last name.

It is easier for your wife to get a visa to your home country.

If you have a retirement visa, you only need half as much money in a Thai bank. (don't know about other types of visas)

If you die, it is easier for your wife to get your money.

Other than that, it is just a piece of paper.

You cannot own land.

You must sign a paper saying the money wasn't your's if you bought land with your money.

It is still no guarantee (or cheaper) of getting your wife into your home country. (just easier)

I lived with my wife for 6 years and just married her a month ago.

Not much has changed in our life. (I have not changed my visa yet but went in to talk to them and they told me it would not be a problem and confirmed the 400 baht requirement) (I will keep my fingers crossed anyway)

Getting my sons last name changed to mine is not easy though as some dimwit at the hospital apparently misspelled my name on his birth certificate. THis will cost me a trip to Issan, probably a good bit of money AND lots of time in lines at a government office

It'll all look like New Jersey soon enough.

Then you can all go back to New Jersey (or wherever your from) and talk about how good Thailand used to be.

It always amazes me the comments parents make about their young childrens education. The first years are the most important, that is where you lay the foundation for the rest of their years not vice versa. People who think I will send my child to an okay or adequate school until they are older really do their children a diservice in my opinion. Once they have formed their attitudes and learning styles it is very hard to change them when they reach an age that some of you seem to think suddenly matters when is that? 10? 12? university? It would be better to give them the best schools at the youngest age so they develope the ability to learn discover and challenge themselves. This they will carry with them the rest of their lives. Think about it, you build the foundation of anything 1st to serve as the support and strength for all that will come after.

I agree totally.

The years 3 to 6 are the most important in a persons life as far as forming personality, learning logic, how to think, getting along with others, learning to get things done, etc.

I don't make a lot of money but have saved up and can afford 3 years of good school for my child. He started in the Montessori school (here in Phuket) about 2 months ago. (at the age of 3 years, 3 months) (sorry i don't know any schools in Bangkok, I've never lived there.)

Looking for Nobel Peace Prize winners? How about the founders of: Google (both of them), Amazon.com, Wikipedia. All Montessori school learners from an early age.

As for the big registration fee. I questioned it also. The only answer they could give me is that every school in Thailand does it.

It's definitely a feather in their cap because once you pay it, you want to keep your child there just to keep from paying it again somewhere else, aye?

Yes this show how many people dont know shit about food yet reply in a food related post.

my favorite time of the year as a child was when we would drive many many many hours to new bruinswick canada and eat the fresh lobster they have (or in cape coad)

It was always costfull but worth it.

Other's don't know much about spelling yet use a keyboard to try to convey their message.

You should've gone to New Brunswick in Oct when the "soft-shell" lobsters were in. They were around $3.25 a piece in the late 80's early 90's.

Taste even more tender than the big 2-3 pounders too.

Well coming from a Thai Banker.... :D Sorry the whole credibility of the article was lost there.

Well, their stocks (Thai banks) has sure held up much better than the American ones.

I'd much rather be holding Kbank than Citibank over the past year. Or look at some of the financial stocks in the states, even the somewhat solid ones like Genworth finance.

I question Thai banks sometimes because they give loans to building projects that seem nonsense to me, but they don't do 100 times leveraging.

and Maine lobster is considered (by many) the best in the world.

i have to agree. (ok i lived in Maine for a while and dated a lobster fisherman's granddaughter)

Never got tired of eating them.

I've done that drive a few times although not lately.

From what i remember, SC has the best prices for hotels.

The further north you are, the more the hotels cost.

I get an average of 1 1/2 of these a day.

Many from Air Asia

Others written only in Thai so i don't know who they come from.

Is there a way to stop them?

I know in the states, you can put your number on a list and they legally canNOT send to people on that list.

Anything like that here? It is really annoying.

I flew Air Asia 2 times and won't fly them again simply because of this invasion of my time and quiet.

For me it depends what you are used to.

I have been using PC's for 12 years now.

Since i do a lot of video editing, and graphics with pictures and recording audio and things like this, it was recommended highly that i switch to MAC as they are more designed for these things and my PC would crash a lot.

So, i bought an Ibook last year. I had it 3 days and sent it back. I just couldn't make the switch. Too many things were different.

I had nobody around to walk me thru simple problems that a right click takes care of on a PC (no right click on a MAC)

I ended up buying a new PC with VISTA (which i hate but have become used to) I had to put some work into my old laptop that has XP on it simply because many of my expensive programs would not work on VISTA. (they designed VISTA to separate you from your money)

When the new Windows 7 gets proven as a good system (if it does) I will upgrade (again)

It's always a dilemma. Good luck with your decision

If she loves you, and you don't pay, hopefully she will stick with you. I never paid and my wife stuck with me.

Same here. She mentioned it once or twice. I told her i couldn't afford it. She said ok.

4 months ago, i went to Sedona AZ in the US.

I noticed big changes since i had been there last: Every 3rd house for sale, no one in any stores, especially construction stores like Home Depot, restaurants, people seemed scared. People talking about the economy and how they are going to survive.

Then i went to my old home in Pennsylvania which is the coal regions and a poor area of the US. Nothing seemed different at all from a year or 5 years ago. People talking about hunting, football, the new president.

Then just before Christmas, i came back to Thailand and did a 4 week, 5,000 kms road trip around Thailand. Mostly to the west and north parts of the country which is mostly farmland. Everything seemed pretty normal, people seemed happy and very friendly to us. Farmers all seemed to be busy with trucks in long lines at the sugar factories.

Then i came back to Phuket. Everyone is scared. Work is very slow. There seem to be tourists but they are not spending money.

Crime is increasing.

My point is: I think the poor people of the world are seeing no big changes here. They don't have money in the bank to lose. They have food on the table and friendly neighbors who get along.

The rich people of the world are scared however. Their money is dropping in value all the time, they are having to cut their budgets and can't go out to eat as much, can't buy the new car, can't go on vacation, and their houses are too big. Who needs 7 bathrooms for 3 people?? I understand it's for the social status but it's really BS isn't it? Certain things should not be cool anymore. Ever see someone showing off their 15 credit cards?

Hopefully the world is going to learn a few things in this recession/depression or whatever they want to call it: No. 1: no more easy credit. If you want something, save up for it and buy it. Cash is king. Stop trying to get a raise when you already make $50 an hour. Start thinking of alternative energy and try to be more self sufficient. The rich are only going to try to screw you again. Don't let them get away with it. Stop voting for crooks.

unless you are in a remote (and windy) location or if you need an independent from the grid source of electricity, than there is not much point investing in a wind turbine. Same, as there is no benefit to go solar

No benefit to what? The earth? The electric company? The atmosphere? Your kids health? Your health? Reliable voltage? Constant power? Pollution?

If you only think in terms of money, and only think short term, you may be right.

But many people think differently.

Solar panels have gotten much more efficient in the last 10 years. The more they get used, the better the technology will become. Same with wind turbines, hydro-turbines (I have friends off the grid that run a washing machine, refrigerator, and all their lights from a small stream fed by a spring on their land)

I don't think it's unrealistic to see everyone in a sunny area using solar panels (or wind turbines in windy areas) for their household electric use 20 years from now.

All it takes is some tax credits, some leaders to push legislation in the right direction, and improved technology to see it more and more widespread.

I agree that Phuket is probably more suitable for solar rather than wind power. Unless you live on a hill next to the sea perhaps.

I have friends who live in Tucson, AZ (very hot and lots of sun) Who installed 24 solar panels on their roof and they now pay for 95% of his electric bill which used to be average $100.00 a month.

With the money it cost to put in, they estimate it will take 15 years to pay off.

But are happy do be doing something clean and green while increasing the value of their home.

Good luck with whichever route you choose.

YOu can learn a lot and educate yourself on what things could cost if you just do a search on ebay for "wind turbine"

Looks like if you have the generator (motor), you could build the rest yourself fairly easy. Then you would need a battery system and inverter to convert the low voltage power so it's useful in your home of course.

Also, i would think the Yachties would know although everything pertaining to a yacht is usually much more expensive than necessary.

I see they are planning on putting another big one up on Big Buddha hill.