billd766

I started out doing offshore work in 1991 and at that time I was married to a UK lady and our son was 13.

I used to go on contract with my company but came back 3 times a year, for my son's birthday, summer holidays and the Xmas + New Year as well.

Most of the jobs were 3 to 6 months and when I finally went expat with my company my son was getting close to exams in the UK and it wouldn't have been fair to bring him out.

That marriage failed because of me and when it crashed our son was 19.

I married my Thai lady in 2000 a year after my decree absolute and she knew what my job was then and I still carried on for about 6 months of the year and lived in Thailand the rest of the time.

In 2004 our Thai son came along completely unexpected but welcomed and cherished all the same.

I still worked offshore parts of the year until I retired back in 2009 and I haven't been out of Thailand since.

I love and missed my son when I was offshore but for the first couple of years when he was a baby it wasn't a problem but after that I used to ring home twice a week and most jobs were 2 months on then a visa run for a few days. My last job was in New Zealand when I did 6 months on, 2 weekis off and the last 6 months before I retired.

When you children are young it is hard not to be with them and both watch and help them grow, but after 12 or 13 they have their own lives and rely less on you. They may also appear not to care about you so much but they do care usually.

Now of course that I am retired I am always here for my son and it is a delight to watch him grow.

To the OP, yes it is hard to be in your position and perhaps at some point in time you will have to choose what you want to do but until that time just keeps plodding on making money as the world is not that nice a place for someone with no job, no money and no prospects in any country in the world.

And don't worry to much as it will get better.

But when I were nobbut a lad defending Great Britain against the Chinese hordes down in Singapore we used to have a reet good time at Chinese New Year with Chinese opera on every street corner, stings of fire crackers going up to the roof of the Mandarin hotel and back down again.

Chinese taxi dancing girls at the New World, proper Chinese food not the mucked about Thai version and as much draft Tiger as you could drink without falling into a monsoon drain.

A bottle of Gold Cock brandy was the price of 2 litres of coca cola and the lady who sold it used to bottle it freshly for the tin bath out the back.

Ah the good old days.

You could always go for tiffin at the Raffles the a few of us got kicked out of the Hilton one morning at breakfast after the staff actually had the temerity to ask us to show the room keys that we were ordering breakfast on.

After a night on the tiles around Bugis and Albert street you needed a good breakfast and the RAF Mess at Tengah didn't quite pass muster.

Enjoy yourselves my little chickadees while I relax in my palatial mansion out in the jungle where men are men, women are women and there are stranger one than that around.

I must see if I can find my solar topee.

Go home. Get a new passport. Come back.

Or, depending on your circumstances, get yourself a proper long term visa

Wouldn't that be a novel idea? Someone actually going with the program instead of trying to get around it.

That someone could be me and most of the people that I know.

Of course most of them are married or retired but they have gone along with the rules and regulations, the unwritten ones like being polite and reasonably dressed and having all the paperwork.

What a surprise there are no problems at the Immigration Department and often the staff there remember you and talk to you as a friend.

But what do I know anyway.

I am just a fat old farang who plays by the rules and doesn't throw his toys out of the pram when somebody tells him, no you can't have anymore visas as we don't think you are a tourist.

The issues of the FIDF Bank debt were inherited by the government. The logical move would have been to ask the banks to pay higher premiums years ago. These banks which have historically aligned themselves with the ruling military juntas and the Democrats have a vested interest in complaining.

Mr. Korn feigns concer. Ok, why then didn't he address the FIDF debt issue when he had a chance? Now that a former BoT Governor is the finance minister, it is to be expected that there will be action. The other amounts mentioned are minor in comparison to the FIDF debt related to the bank support.

A fiscal conservative would demand that the banks pay up as the industry caused the debt with their business practices and they have to take responsibility for their actions.

A social democrat would demand the banks pay up as the FIDF is tantamount to corporate welfare.

It will be interesting to see if the Finance Minister has the backing and strength to stand up to the banks. He's a heavy hitter as a former BoT governor and his position is common policy in many of the countries that have stable banking systems such as Sweden and Canada.

I agree with you that Korn should have done something when he had the chance.

Equally so should all of the governments before him should have done the same, or is it double standards once again?

I applied to Kbank for a credit card and I was told the same thing.

No work permit, no credit card.

I understand what they mead and just live without it.

Unfortunately those are the rules in Thailand.

Why should the woman be fired just because she made a simple mistake, an easy thing to do when you are working in 2 languages.

Take a chill pill and cool down.

If you desperately need an Iphone use an offshore card or pay cash.

It is as easy as that.

Don't know if this will help.

I'm in K.P.Phet and have tried most of them here and there all crap TOT "via phone line" is about the best of a bad bunch. At first I used their 8mb set up but that was rubbish used to get about 3/4 if I was lucky, so changed to their 6mb and now I'm getting average 5.8mb Happy with that. I use to get them out to me about 3 time's every month with the 8mb since I got the 6 never. Been on that just over a year.

Hey Fred, I will be installing some kind of internet connection in February. However, I will be out of KP by 47kms, SW, I think. Still can't get the name of the village right, but about 25 kms down 1117. I assume you had to have a phone installed with your TOT connection, any idea of costs and is does your package include a wireless router? No wish to use an aircard as I use internet a lot

It looks as though we will be (sort of) neighbours as I live 65 km from Khampaeng Phet on the 1117 past Klong Lan out towards Mae Wong.

It looks as though you are on the KP side on Klong Nam Lai in a small village.

A couple of days ago I finally got a proper TOT internet link though from a microwave tower as we still don't have a phone connection this far out.

I got a 7 mB package and my average so far is around that though it has been over 10 mB downloads and over 1 mB up loads.

It keeps me happy and my wife is happy too as I am not on her back asking when will it be here, phone them up, etc.

Wang Pat (or Ba) Kien sounds as if it may be the name of the village. I am abroad but called just to ask her. Thanks for the help

No problem.

I have Google Earth open and also my GPS map.

Some way down the road from KhamPhet you come to a 4 lane road and towards the middle of that is a sweeping right turn with a temple on the right. It is fairly big a villages go and I figure it is around that area.

I just looked at this again

Hey Fred, I will be installing some kind of internet connection in February. However, I will be out of KP by 47kms, SW, I think. Still can't get the name of the village right, but about 25 kms down 1117.

I am 50 km from the start of the 1117 at Klong Melai and the route 1 and KP is another 8 km further on.

No matter. Perhaps we will meet some time.

Cheers

Bill

Hello billd766, try this link: www.nichino-ie.com they have tillers to.

but their site has an English tab, and a complete list of who sales them,

just find the phone area code for your area.

For the first site I posted, you can check the numbers to see if there is

a resaler in your area.

Thanks for another link.

The closest to me is at Mae Sot or Lampang and Chiang Mai area.

I may stick with my wife's idea of getting somebody local to do it.

Thanks for the update and I will look into it but Korat itself is on the other side of the country to me.

Have a look at this one it says they deliver

http://translate.goo...7s5JCGIsioFHbMQ

I like the look of that but I suspect that my wife will say no.

Use a local guy at 250 baht a day, it is cheaper.

Been talking to the other half, she reckons that a few people near her have TOT telephone lines, so it may not be that difficult. Small as the village is, it has 2 internet cafes, so something available, somewhere.

Tried again for name of village, has me beat. Just a bend on the road with a couple of machinery repair places. Looked on Google Earth and it has no name. However, nearest ATM is at Klong Lan, or a bit further to Klong Lan Phattana, both about 25 kms away, I suppose

Klong Lan is about 30 and is also known as Klong Nam Lai kms down the 1117and is the amphur town and Klong Lan Patana is about 10 km further on. I am about 6km further on than that at 50.8 km along the route 1117.

Thanks for the update and I will look into it but Korat itself is on the other side of the country to me.

Well it goes with out saying the corruption will be rampant.

How ever is that a reason to do nothing?

The article said

"They were not convinced the plan would systematically solve water-related problems, namely flood and drought, as anticipated by Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, the source said yesterday."

If it was under 100 billion would they be convinced. They have not offered a alternative to the obviously over funded plan. For my money a real expert would have a plan.

Then again it is in the Nation and from a source.

The article also said

"The panel proposed a plan to spend Bt350 billion on water resource management in 18 major rivers in Thailand - with Bt300 billion earmarked for the Chao Phraya River in the Central plains."

Is the m300 billion baht to be spent on the Chao Phraya River. Or is it over and above the 350 billion to be spent on water management in 18 river systems?

The way I understood it was that 300 billion was to be spent on the Chao Phraya and the remainder on the other 18 river systems.

I remember reading a short while ago that around 30% of government funds are expected to be lost due to corruption so figure 90 BILLION baht will be STOLEN on the Chao Phraya project leaving only 210 billion to complete the job and 17 BILLION to be stolen from the other project leaving perhaps 33 billion to complete the job.

It makes me think for a little bit that I was born in the wrong country at the wrong time and I could have been rich beyond my wildest dreams and then I think what could be done in Thailand if corruption was down to (only) 10% and spent on the people who need it and not on those with obscene amounts of money.

Don't know if this will help.

I'm in K.P.Phet and have tried most of them here and there all crap TOT "via phone line" is about the best of a bad bunch. At first I used their 8mb set up but that was rubbish used to get about 3/4 if I was lucky, so changed to their 6mb and now I'm getting average 5.8mb Happy with that. I use to get them out to me about 3 time's every month with the 8mb since I got the 6 never. Been on that just over a year.

Hey Fred, I will be installing some kind of internet connection in February. However, I will be out of KP by 47kms, SW, I think. Still can't get the name of the village right, but about 25 kms down 1117. I assume you had to have a phone installed with your TOT connection, any idea of costs and is does your package include a wireless router? No wish to use an aircard as I use internet a lot

It looks as though we will be (sort of) neighbours as I live 65 km from Khampaeng Phet on the 1117 past Klong Lan out towards Mae Wong.

It looks as though you are on the KP side on Klong Nam Lai in a small village.

A couple of days ago I finally got a proper TOT internet link though from a microwave tower as we still don't have a phone connection this far out.

I got a 7 mB package and my average so far is around that though it has been over 10 mB downloads and over 1 mB up loads.

It keeps me happy and my wife is happy too as I am not on her back asking when will it be here, phone them up, etc.

It is working for me now on this page.

http://www.thailandpost.co.th/rate-result.php

And I got there from here http://www.thailandpost.co.th/rate.php

I then clicked on ENG

Hello billd767, maybe larger than you want.

rice555

www.patipongrmachine.com

Thanks for that link but it came up all in Thai.

It looks as though it is a PPK 2000 H but I have no idea where it is for sale or a price.

It looks robust, has a Honda 5hp engine and it looks simple and easy to use and maintain.

Where did you find it please?

I get treated much the same as anybody else does around here be they Thai, English, Danish, Australian, Dutch, Belgian, Austrian, German or Swiss...

So why did all the Americans leave?

Must be an interesting village. Do any Thai's live there? Maybe that's why the Americans left?

That was a quote from me I think but it wasn't just a village but the ones I know of locally which means about a 50 km radius as we are well scattered.

I have 2 bikes and share a scooter with my wife.

I never bothered to wear a helmet locally and had no problem.

After a bout a year I realised how stupid I was and bought a helmet and I am now on number 4 in 5 years.

Since I started to wear a helmet

1) I came off the scooter at 15 kph doing a U turn on grit and got a bit of gravel rash and scraped the scooter.

2) Last July on my Yamaha Virago I came off and slid backwards up a hill at about 20 kph on a very sharp left hand bend and opened the throttle to wide to quickly. I was bruised but the bike was OK.

Both were my own stupid fault.

3) 6 weeks ago on my Honda Phantom 200 cc I got T-boned at a crossroads with traffic lights in my favour by 2 old ladies in a pickup truck running the red light.

I got bruised, scraped, bashed my right hand, and the bike has cost about 10,000 baht in parts to repair. They hit me just under the saddle hwere the pillion footrest is (fortunately no passenger) and the rear crashbar took most of the damage.

Ride without a helmet, cool wind in my hair (I am nearly bald).

ANYBODY that rides without a helmet is lucky, and luck doesn't last for ever, or stupid.

I eat cabbage but I don't want to be one.

They make really nice wheelchairs for paraplegics and quadraplegics nowadays and I NEVER want to be in one.

Internet is bad: Yes, mobile internet in Thailand is a shame! GPRS at the time of Thaksin was faster than HSPA today!

Ease access to religion: would be a good idea to remember Thailand once was a Buddhist country, today I see it as an half Muslim country...

Could it really have been the fact that phones and calls were expensive and GPRS was not used so much because of the cost and the fact that not many mobiles could access GPRS then.

Then to buy a reasonable mobile phone you would pay 10,000 baht or more and now you can get a mobile that works with GPRS for a 1,000 baht or less.

Also the backbone infrastructure wasn't available then.

Has anybody seen a rotovator for sale?

Small enough for garden use something like this one.

I have read this thread and I know what your problem is with the knife and peas.

You need honey as well which makes the peas stick to the knife.

You see, simple problem, simple solution.

Have a good New Year.

"However, the Thai Premier has conceded that the implementation of the THB300 minimum wage policy is to be delayed until April 1, 2012 at the soonest, as the issue still needs more discussions and consent from related parties."

Whats to discus they promised it they have the votes to pass it. They made a promise with out consent from the related parties. Not exactly what you would call honest even by Thai standards.

All that aside how long will it take Thailand to dig out from under the massive debts the current government is going to incur.

Not being a banker I was wondering if all this money shortage will make my Canadian money worth more Baht's.

If the government palm off the FIDF debt (that was supposedly paid off during Thaksin's government) to the BOT there will certainly be a devaluation of the baht.

AFAIR the money to be paid back was the IMF loan plus interest only.

The FIDF debt was the remainder of the non-performing loans and outstanding bankruptcy from banks and finance houses.

Bugger me Dave how long is a piece of string. The peep's I used have a shop in N/S So they tell me, if you phone the mobile No: I put in the other post Alex (mention my name) will tell you where it is. Reason why I cant price it is I had mine done several year's ago and the price included fence's Motor 4 canopy's + so many other bit's I don't want to think about. And it all depend's what type of gate you have fancy of plain. Grade 1 or grade 2 S/S.

Happy new year to you too, hope you had a good one.

On another post you put about fake bank note's, Yes got one of those two year's ago In K.K.P. It was a 20bt one I ask you who the xxx want's to go to the bother of doing those. Gave it to the wife and she got rid of it in 7/11.

My wife got a wrought iron gate a few years ago while I was offshore somewhere but it wasn't that good and we never used to shut it after a couple of years because you could just walk next door and come in through the fence.

Last year I resurfaced the drive and the gate runner is about 3 inches under the new(ish) surface.

It is also the first time that the public's distrust of how the establishment spends our money in the name of helping our fellow countrymen has become a matter of serious and urgent concern.

It certainly didn't seem to be much of a concern to the previous administration - as evidenced by the award of the lucrative Interior Ministry portfolio to the democrats coalition partners, the Bhum Jai Thai party. Well that's the payback that has to be made when you need the Friends of Newins' (and the Armys) help to form a government.

Why the lack of outrage over Newin when he was a part of PPP and TRT?

Double standards.

Well Done Nong38. Might give it a try if I ever get that way. Hope you had a good Chrissy with lot's of pressy's. Father Christmas got me a gas mask. Just the thing on my trip's out of K.K.Phet.

Have a great New year. I might be down there in the next week or two got to get the G/L a passport. Will sent you a P/M so we can meet up for a beer.

Regard's T.T.A.K.P.Phet.

Send me a PM too and I might turn up and buy you both a beer.

Well Done Nong38. Might give it a try if I ever get that way. Hope you had a good Chrissy with lot's of pressy's. Father Christmas got me a gas mask. Just the thing on my trip's out of K.K.Phet.

Have a great New year. I might be down there in the next week or two got to get the G/L a passport. Will sent you a P/M so we can meet up for a beer.

Regard's T.T.A.K.P.Phet.

Send me a PM too and I may just turn up and buy you both a beer.

I am changing my motorbike as I am looking at a great deal on a never used (except at coup time) Thai Army tank, then let the little old ladies run a red light into me.

The main problem I have is that I will be on a page in the forum and I sudenly find myself back on page 1 but not the last 24 hours pages but 3, months, 6 months or 1 year of posts.

I am using Firefox 9.0.1.

I have to go to the previous page and hold it down to find what content page I was on, click that and everything is OK again

until the next time.