DavidS

I NEVER use my mobile phone when I'm driving the car. I find the signal interferes with my TV reception!

Then you should do like the Japanese chap I saw driving on New Petchburi Road last Sunday afternoon.

Red light, I was in the back of a cab, looked over and saw him reading a manga comic, both hands on the wheel, comic between them.

Light turns green, he moves off with the comic still in place, glancing up and down trying to keep an eye on the road and read the comic at the same time.

They do say reading is better than watching TV.

Why didn't you post this in the Health forum?

I did think about that, but in the end opted to reach out to where I believe it would have the most effect.

Intention was for additional balanced perspective to the long and sometimes contentious debate about smoking in this and the regional forums.

In the discussions about smoking, there have been a number of "What about drinking?" posts.

To the ones that I responded, I always maintained that drinking in moderation is OK, but I have yet to see a study that says the same about smoking.

If anyone wants to know more about drinking in moderation, see;

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080307/hl_nm/...mOlFSo3kZ0Q.3QA

I am using TOT ADSL and have a dynamic IP address that changes from session to session.

Is there a way to use the filters in Google Analytics to exclude my own visits to my site?

If I had a fixed IP address, it would be simple, but I have recorded the last 8 sessions and every one is different. I am looking at the client IP address, which I understand is the one assigned to my computer.

Server IP address also varies, though it replicates more often. But as I understand it, if I filter on server IP address, then anyone accessing through that server will be filtered out in the report.

Maybe a lost cause, but perhaps there is a wizard out there who knows how?

Electrolux have showrooms in Central Bangna and New Pechburi Road, and probably in other Central stores.

Smeg has a showroom on Sukhumvit road near the Phra Khanong BTS Station.

Both have their products displayed in Home Pro & Home Works, though perhaps not as full a range as in the showrooms.

Good luck, and don't forget to ask for a discount if you are buying from the showroom. They price the same as elsewhere, but pay cash and you can get a discount.

The steroidal nasal spray I was prescribed is Flixonase Aqueous Nasal Spray.

Listed adverse reactions are dryness and irritation of the nose and throat, headaches and nose-bleeds. Noted as extremel rare is nasal septal perforation.

For these reasons I would much prefer non-steroidal sprays, even though reportedly one needs to use 3 - 4 times a day for effectiveness.

Just to add, it is fluticasone propionate.

So what happened to the Leyland?

SO much fuss about 1 bloke who cant keep his pecker in his pants?

We are all into tabloids aren't we?

Mmmmmmmmmm, tabloids are almost identical to car magazines...it all comes down to what turns you on........

And uptill now " the bloke" did keep his pecker in his pants and desperately trying to change that...... But as he stated " she will fall for me"......And i am sure he will tell us the detailssszzz.

Not into cars, so cant say.

I am haunted by 1 sentence he wrote - "I feel her like animal."

I keep wondering how my wife would react, on a non bar day (exclude the possibility of being pissed), if I were to say to her "I feel you like animal".

Actually, I might just try that line. Life is short, shock people you love.

PS - If you never hear from me again, assume I got knocked on the block for my efforts.

This is to encourage Thais to make a considered and sober attempt at voting.

CB

Crow Boy, I must say you have a delightful turn of phrase.

Consider me a fan henceforth.

So what happened to the Leyland?

SO much fuss about 1 bloke who cant keep his pecker in his pants?

We are all into tabloids aren't we?

I agree with the previous poster that they are probably left as they are - fantasies.

Interesting point this. Imagine if all fantasies have been fulfilled, all hopes and dreams. Things would be boring without the mystery of the unknown.

After all, haven't some of the greatest achievements of humanity been driven by the desire to fulfill hopes and dreams?

DavidS I totally disagree with you about going outside the relationship If you are Man/Woman enough you can do it on level terms ...

Point taken, and perhaps I should have phrased it better.

I meant that an unfulfilled wish or desire, if strong enough, could lead one to fulfill it in a way that one otherwise would not dream of. That is true of a lot of things some people do, that others may well not dream of doing. And it is probably the reason why we have all the weird and wonderful news snippets in the papers and on the telly.

Did not mean to imply that it was normal or desirable to go outside a relationship. For me personally, if I could not communicate openly with my partner, I would question the whole relationship. But thats just me, and far be it from me to preach how others should live their personal lives.

I'm sure many ladies have fantasies of one kind or another whether it is sleeping with different partners or real life fantasy stuff not necessarily sexually related.A guy's ultimate fantasy is the three kind maybe.

If you had a fruity kind of fantasy you wanted to try out with your partner,how would you approach them with it if you thought there was no way they'd try it?

Guys would you go outside a relationship to fulfill anything out of the ordinary?

Find the right moment and broach it with a 'what do you think about that' question. It helps if you are actually referring to something.

If you get a 'eee, how could they do that response', you are wasting your time.

Unfazed, curious, anything more positive, take it from there.

Going outside the relationship? Nothing to do with guys or gals, just human nature. Anyone who wants to experience something strongly enough will not rest until it happens. Either that or they die wondering 'what if?'

But surely steroidal sprays are what is required David ??? Are you sure you are not getting mixed up with decongestant sprays which I agree should be avoided.

Steroid sprays don't seem to have side effects- that's what the splurge says anyway

I found fluticasone at Boots today - 895 bt. Anybody know of any more?

I may be wrong, but a number of doctors have told me that steroids thin out skin tissue. Long term topical use is definitely frowned upon. Not nasal passages, normal skin.

For steroidal nasal sprays, I have read that one of the side effects is perforation of the nasal membrane. Whether this was due to sticking the spout in too hard (physical damage) or due to the effects of the steroids, the notice did not make clear. Frankly, knowing what steroids do to skin, I am not inclined to chance it. I think I still have the last steroidal nasal spray I was prescribed. I will check and if so, will post about the side effects.

What about Thai massage?

How much do you uasually tip?

I've been tipping about 50% but my Thai girlfreind doesn't.

Am I tipping too much?

This one is maybe a little difficult to give a firm answer. One time my best friend's Thai wife took me for a foot reflexology that cost I think 200 baht, and she asked me to tip the masseur 200 baht because the place that we went to keeps the full fee, and the masseurs survive on the tips given.

If no such system, then I think 50% is pretty OK. When I go for a foot massage, the fee is usually 250 baht and I will tip the lady 200 baht, unless I do not get a good strong massage. A bit high I know, but I go to the same place regularly and I think it makes a difference. Plus, I am not having a massage everyday or even every week, so if it makes some lady who is working hard for a living happy, why not?

No alcohol sales 6 pm Saturday till midnight Sunday is the letter of the law.

Some jurisdictions allow sales after polls close Sunday, but that is very much a local thing so do not count on it if hoping.

That still gives all Friday to enjoy the rugby with a beer in hand, plus half Saturday.

I can live with that. Beats watching rugby with a coke in hand like I did last week.

Their website looks nice but is very, very slow and more Thai than Farang orientated but maybe it's me, from a distance.

Wouldn't that be because 99.99% of their customers will be Thai?

Having driven around a few of their housing projects in and around Bangkok I noticed not one foreigner living there.

At least 3 caucasians and perhaps a couple of east asians where I live, but I wasn't particularly interested to be honest. After 12 years in Thailand, I am very comfortable living among locals. Better be, I live with one.

If I felt I needed more foreigners around me, I would opt for a condo.

The trouble with viewing a thread from the last post, as I usually do, is it can be hard to get a handle on what is going on.

I seriously thought someone was thunderstruck by the beauty of the Leyland P76

After much scrolling up, I come to the part about "I feel her like an animal".

Thank goodness he wasn't referring to the Leyland.

It depends on the establishment and the service.

Bellboys - I slip them a 20 baht note for a single bag that I could have handled myself, 40 baht if they handled a couple.

Food & Drink - typically a service charge of 10% is added on. If so, just leave the coins or coins plus 20 baht. Otherwise, 10% tip is in order. If service has been exceptional, by all means tip more. And as someone once explained to me, the golden rule is if you plan on coming back, tip generously. He was so right.

Taxis - Customarily I let them keep the coin change, so if a trip was 131 baht, I'll give 140 baht. That said, if the chap has taken me home at 2 a.m. and will have to drive miles back towards town, I'll give an extra 40 baht. No big deal, but they seem to be happy so I guess it covers their fuel cost.

Haircuts - I do not normally tip here, but I have seen Thais giving 20-40 baht to the shampoo girl, and perhaps the same to the one who cut their hair. Little expertise here but I would guess if the lady has had the works done for a couple of hours she would tip more.

But don't get hung up on this. Thais are pretty easy going on this issue, unlike in the States where you can get serious grief if you do not tip appropriately.

They are just doing a job (that I would not fancy doing) keeping the facilities that I happen to be using in a clean condition.

I appreciate what they are doing, if we make eye contact, I give them a smile and a nod. Other than that, I just go about my business.

Words fail me, what are you doing while she changes the wall sockets? You have it made. well done.

I sort of expected that.

She hates to cook, I love cooking. She is OK washing up, I can't be bothered. And she has got far better eyesight and more patience than I have, so she does the intricate handywork like wall sockets.

But its all about give and take mate. If she has had a rough day at work, I boot her out of the kitchen after dinner, and I do the washing up as well. And if I'm in a hurry to get to the local for my big screen rugby or whatever, she'll chase me off and water the garden for me.

Its not about who does what, its just trying to make life better for the other person because you care.

Having said that, I still think I'm a lucky sod to have her.

I did manage to identify a non-steroidal nasal spray on the web.

Brand name: NasalCrom,

Content: cromolyn sodium.

Tried 4 pharmacies in Central Bangna last weekend, no luck. They all stock steroidal sprays only.

If anyone comes across this in Bangkok, I'd appreciate being told.

I gave up smoking one month ago, appear to be very fit for a 47 year old and am healthy, with a good blood count, immune system, etc.

I'm going to see a specialist I've decided, but can anyone comment in the meantime?

Any comments ?

Moldy, you plan on seeing a specialist, so please do not let anything I say deter you from that.

What rang a bell was you quit smoking 1 month ago. Well, I quit 2 years ago, and the first six months was hel_l. My sinuses were worse than they had ever been. I basically ignored it because there was no seriously discoloured mucous, a sign of infection I believe. But slightly discoloured mucous there was aplenty, as my body cleaned itself of the tar and muck I had been feeding it for 33 years.

One reason I did not fret was I had seen others who quit and had a variety of reactions to the cleansing and adjustment period. One chap had a cough for the first 6 months, with quite a bit of phlegm to boot. I just said thank goodness I didn't cough, had quite enough of that and bronchitis as a smoker. I do not know why, but about 6 months seems to be the magic period.

Today, what remains is the sensitivity I wrote about in my other post. And once every few weeks, I wake up with my sinuses so totally congested that I go through about 4 Kleenex clearing them.

Other than that, its just greater sensitivity and learning what triggers a bad spell. Last weekend, I discovered that walking about a basement carpark of a busy mall is a bad idea. Too much crap in the air for my nose to take.

So, if the specialist gives you the all clear, hang in there and you may well find it settles down somewhat.

My advice is DO NOT GET INVOLVED or MARRY A THAI WOMAN........

Ok I will chip in here and probably regret it.

The reason I would never marry a Thai woman is that there is no necessity to do so.

Most Thai women are happy to live/be with you without marriage.

Why complicate things?

Abrak, according to OPs advice, you should not even be involved with a Thai woman, so it is not just marriage to one that he is opposed to.

My advice is DO NOT GET INVOLVED or MARRY A THAI WOMAN........

I am sorry to say this, but what utter rubbish. How many failed marriages have you had to Thai women, that you can believe you have had the full experience and can warn people off based on empirical evidence?

If every failed marriage is an indication of the utter unsuitability of the women of that country, then no woman in the world is fit to marry. And in the interests of fairness, all the men as well, because it take 2 hands to clap.

I have had 12 years with the same Thai woman, and she has put up with so much. My description of her is gentle, caring, warm, upbeat, courageous and extremely resilient in the face of adversity. And I would add never afraid to disagree with me, so this is no submissive doormat I have been with.

And yes, today she makes more than I do, so it isn't the money. And she changes the wall sockets etc, so it isn't having a handyman around either.

Words simply fail me. Short of swearing, which I refuse to do, I have nothing more to say.

Just thinking about the unique sound of the drill makes me cringe.

Pretty much my problem that day. By nature, I automatically ask 'why' when I do not understand something.

That day after 30 mins in the chair for cleaning and polishing, my brain had pretty much shut-down. No pain, just the 'chalk squeaking on blackboard' sensation. Trying my best to relax and not doing terribly well with it. Ah well.