kennalder

For those in Chiang Mai. Several months ago someone started a probiotics group. It went well for a few weeks then the founder left the country and it fell apart. One of the things discussed in those early meetings was the use of glass, metals and plastics. I don't know how accurate the opinions were, but they were universally for the use of glass only unless contact was for a brief period of time for example using a metal sieve. The general rule seemed to be the more acidic the food, the higher the need to stick to glass. Yogurt was thought to be okay in plastic, but kefir was not. BTW, I would like to restart the meetings and I will be holding a meeting at my house in Sansai this coming Saturday, Feb. 9th. If anyone is interested let me know and I will send you the coordinates and some landmarks to look for. I will have some raw milk kefir and yogurt to sample along with some coconut water kefir. And yes it is raw milk. I watch it come out of the cows, through the plastic tubes into the milk pails, weighed and into a plastic bag for transport home. 30 minutes from udder to my fridge.

I don't even like to drink water from plastic bottles, especially the thin clear ones that you get at the store. Chemicals like BPA leach from them especially as the temperature goes up. Add vinegar and acidic foods and no telling what might happen. I'd suggest sticking to glass. That's all I use for the kefir and yogurt I make. Same for a friend of mine that makes sauerkraut.

Remember that a stronger Baht should mean imported items such as petrol should become cheaper but only if the market is not corrupted by profiteering extreme right wing capitalists who are wrecking out world. Gone are the long lost days of decent fair capitalism, where we all got a fairer share of the cake, I am sorry to say. 99% of us just get poorer whilst the rich cream in more and more and we let it happen !!!!!!! Personally would rather live under extreme Socialism in this sic world and I hate that extreme too. We really truly all need decent fair capitalism and socialism working together with proper centre based Governments of the people who are not slaves to any paymaster lobbyists.

Time I think to sell any excess Baht you have while it is strong and buy them back when the Baht moves back to its proper value soon, I hope. Doesn't bother me as I have only regular pension income and very little cash capital thankfully. I do not want the risk of holding cash either at home or in the bank thank you very much, sure you can make money trading in it but you can and often do also lose money too. Just remember for every winner there has to be a loser and no matter how careful you are that could be you.

You have to remember that theoretically if a currency becomes stronger then that leads to falling inflation and maybe even deflation in an honest non corrupt society. If it does not do that then somebody is cheating at all of our expense of course, which is very likely it seems.

Time I think to sell any excess Baht you have while it is strong and buy them back when the Baht moves back to its proper value soon

...sure you can make money trading in it but you can and often do also lose money too

So which is it? Sell baht because you think it is too high, or be wise and not trade currencies.

You are wrong in thinking that gas will go down in price. Just the opposite. In the world market, oil is sold at US dollar prices, meaning that oil costs will go up for Thailand, and raise gas prices accordingly.

Stoli, please don't include me in something unless I actually made a comment on it. I made no reference to the price of oil or gas. If I had made a comment on the price of gas at the pump in Thailand it would be along these lines. As the US$ depreciates the Thai baht will buy more US$, so at first glance you would expect the price at the pump to go down, but as the US$ depreciates the market drives up the price of oil to compensate, so the net effect is probably next to zero.

Remember that a stronger Baht should mean imported items such as petrol should become cheaper but only if the market is not corrupted by profiteering extreme right wing capitalists who are wrecking out world. Gone are the long lost days of decent fair capitalism, where we all got a fairer share of the cake, I am sorry to say. 99% of us just get poorer whilst the rich cream in more and more and we let it happen !!!!!!! Personally would rather live under extreme Socialism in this sic world and I hate that extreme too. We really truly all need decent fair capitalism and socialism working together with proper centre based Governments of the people who are not slaves to any paymaster lobbyists.

Time I think to sell any excess Baht you have while it is strong and buy them back when the Baht moves back to its proper value soon, I hope. Doesn't bother me as I have only regular pension income and very little cash capital thankfully. I do not want the risk of holding cash either at home or in the bank thank you very much, sure you can make money trading in it but you can and often do also lose money too. Just remember for every winner there has to be a loser and no matter how careful you are that could be you.

You have to remember that theoretically if a currency becomes stronger then that leads to falling inflation and maybe even deflation in an honest non corrupt society. If it does not do that then somebody is cheating at all of our expense of course, which is very likely it seems.

Time I think to sell any excess Baht you have while it is strong and buy them back when the Baht moves back to its proper value soon

...sure you can make money trading in it but you can and often do also lose money too

So which is it? Sell baht because you think it is too high, or be wise and not trade currencies.

I remember when I was buying my first computers in the 80's in the US. My dealer was openly including Microsoft and other software in the deal. As he said; "Software inclusion is the only thing that allows us to be profitable". Part of the problem is the owners of intellectual property. They want to get western market type profits from 3rd world type markets. This forces vendors and consumers to become "creative". Then since fakes/copies are so readily available, those that might normally pay full price for the real thing, decide to go down the counterfeit path. It is just too easy and it saves too much money. Everyone has a price that will make them do something illegal.

I fully concur with dogpoo and Rsquared. Caddies are the biggest detriment to the enjoyment of expensive golf in Thailand. Last year I stopped playing for 8 full months partly as a protest for the escalating fees and the useless caddies. Eventually my love for the game overcame my displeasure. If I wasn't such an avid golfer I would just quit.

re.

That says it starts 4am on the 23rd, which by my calculations is Sunday, not tomorrow.

bugger your right ... sorry people my bad : (

at least it gives certain people on here ( they know who they are )

more time to sign up for it : )

dave2

I wondered why I was the only runner

Did you win?

Do the highway police do ANYTHING else beside provide escorts?

So they are good for something! I knew it wasn't golf.

Where are all these "dolls"? Seems like the quality has gone down a lot around the Chiang Mai courses the last 3 years.

I killed a chicken a few years ago because it was keeping me awake through the night.

Choke it per chance?

All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident. Arthur Schopenhauer

German philosopher (1788 - 1860) Some here have a long road ahead. I'm not saying that every "conspiracy theory" is grounded in truth. But you would have to agree the US has a pretty poor record of doing anything for anybody without there being something in it for them. As for this project, since the US has officially walked away from it, if they do not re-activate it I will agree it could probably be taken at face value. If they re-open it I will be more inclined to think they were bluffing or buying time to gain access. Virtually every government on the planet has a poor history of telling us the truth, so to accept anything without some critical discussion is fools game. Lest anyone considers me a "left wing paranoid nut job" I will be happy to meet in person and will quickly convince you I am nothing of the sort. I can discuss a wide variety of subjects in a sane, logical manner and typically do not criticize an idea unless I have done some research.

Plodprasob said he had talked to Nasa about reactivating the project once Thailand was ready and the weather conditions over Thailand matched the research requirements.

The project is purely scientific and has nothing to do with petroleum resources in the Gulf of Thailand as alleged by the opposition, he said.

However, giant gas company Chevron is involved in the project, as Nasa needs to use one of its sea platforms as a research facility, he said.

So Chevron just happens to have an extra platform standing around doing nothing? How many others around the world do they have laying idle?

Or is NASA just going to use part of the space on a platform? Since when did they start building platforms with extra space that is not needed, just in case the US government wants to do weather research, or carry on some other project?

Something is not right with this.

But then Mr. Plod has checked it out so must be ok.

Intellectually challenged and gullible. Sure, that would be my choice for a science minister.

So this guy has a "corner of his kitchen that stays between 50-65 F"?

If you live in Chiang Mai stop by Steve and Lyn's new health food store in Sansai just a couple of hundred yard north of Rimping market on the way to Mae Jo. They are on the left just over the bridge, before you get to the gas station. I have tried their sauerkraut and like it. They usually have 4-5 jars at a time in the fridge. The name of the store is Only Natural. They are very friendly people and would probably be happy to tell you how they make it.

You might also try attending a meeting of the newly formed Chiang Mai probiotics club. Info on fb. https://www.facebook.com/groups/362045903876086/

We have so far only covered kefir in some of its forms but mention has been made of sauerkraut so I expect we will get around to that in the near future.

I like it. I go there once a week when I want to take a break from my own cooking. I am no expert on Vietnamese food so if you are, don't rely on my recommendation. Very reasonable, very tasty.

Sadly I drove the same way back home. But now I'm expected to pass around corners and race the traffic signals. One way signs are merely a suggestion and my turn signal lever has cobwebs.

"Turn signals different Thailand" (like electricity, plumbing, logic...)

Turn signals are to show what you just did, not what you intend to do.

World wide alert following US deaths, Up to 10,000 exposed...Sounds pretty serious, but no real details in the article. The real facts according to the NY Times-8 cases and 3 deaths. But let's get everyone worked up and perhaps they wont notice almost 40,000 a year die in the US from prescription drugs. And that's what they tell us about. Good to know the CDC is on the ball, and other organizations around the world are listening to their warnings. Just as well we have people like this to keep us safe.

I too have a Kasikorn virtual credit card. When I tried to book a flight on the Air Asia website it allowed me to do everything right up to the point of paying. Then and only then do they tell you, they only accept SCB virtual credit cards. That at least was my experience and it was confirmed by the AA employee in the office near Tha Pae gate in Chiang Mai.

I am a chocoholic, but try to eat low carb, so only go with the dark. I couldn't find decent chocolate here for a decent price, so I ordered a 5 kg block of Callebaut 70-30-38NV Extra Bittersweet chocolate bloc, 71% cocoa, 11 lbs., cost delivered to US, $88.84. My sister reshipped. Ordered from https://www.chocosphere.com/ Best prices; great service!

It was a helluva block! My sister never lets me hear the end of it. She was shocked when she saw it. I think it was something like 19" x 11" x 2".

There is a place on highway 11 between Big C Extra (old Carrefour) and Makro on the opposite of the road. It is called YOK. They have blocks of Dark unsweetened 1Kg for 295 baht. I don't know how to compare it to what you bought as I don't speak Thai and the store does not have a lot of info about the products they sell. If you speak Thai or have someone who does and knows how to ask the right questions I'd be interested in what you can find out about this product. They also have bags of Cocoa, but I don't know how refined they are. I am looking for something that is as raw as possible. Most refine out the epicatechins as these are bitter. However they are probably the healthiest part of cocoa. They also have great deals on things like extra virgin Olive oil in large quantities.

So much material, so little time. Thailand, the hub of comedic reality.

Explain this. First he has been assessed a 1000 baht fine. Then his computers have been confiscated. So was it a fine or a down payment.

Also I am assuming the doctor had a better camera than the one used to photograph his crime scene, otherwise what a waste of time. Geez and if you want something really out of focus, try the quote from his superior.

"“I already commanded this doctor to move to operate duty at a health supporting hospital at one Tambol, and I, as his chief, have brought this doctor to check up his body and found that this doctor has abnormal mental health, and he consented to be in treatment to cure further,” said Dr. Somrerk."

So much material, so little time. Most amusing.

You mean I've actually been telling the truth?

I see that yesterday's shoot from the hip thread "Shock Rise On Imported Alcohol by 400 baht a litre" that generated loads of hits and 11 pages of comment came to a sticky end after it was revealed that there is actually no change in the excise duty. Nice one.

And guess what? Now we get to start a whole new thread! It never ends.

The rates on alcohol products would be raised to Bt120 per litre of alcohol for domestically-produced products and Bt400 for imported products.

-- The Nation 2012-08-21

It never ceases to amaze me at the incessant illustrations of shoddy journalism that get put on display here.... And I'm not talking about ThaiVisa, which is just reposting stuff originally written by Thai "journalism" outlets like The Nation and MCOT.

It's totally meaningless to say the tax on something is going to rise TO some level, without telling folks what the comparable rates are now, thus enabling the calculation of what the actual increase will be.

Somebody's getting paid day in and day out to write these kinds of B.S. articles... It really makes me wonder where they learned their trade... working at 7/11 or cutting watermelons at the local soi fruit stand???

I disagree. Responsible reporting dictates you check your sources before you plaster contradictory headlines. Especially when the source is The Nation, or pretty much any Thai source, given the translation skills. I have to conclude this belongs in your shoddy journalism category.

Yerba Mate tea might be a good news/bad news cup. Possibly preventing colon cancer, but maybe causing other cancers.

This from Science Daily earlier this year. "ScienceDaily (Jan. 23, 2012) — Could preventing colon cancer be as simple as developing a taste for yerba mate tea? In a recent University of Illinois study, scientists showed that human colon cancer cells die when they are exposed to the approximate number of bioactive compounds present in one cup of this brew, which has long been consumed in South America for its medicinal properties." Full story

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120123115539.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Fhealth_medicine%2Falternative_medicine+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Health+%26+Medicine+News+--+Alternative+Medicine%29

But it is also a suspected carcinogen. From Wikipedia. "Mate consumption is associated with oral cancer^[13] esophagus cancer, cancer of the larynx,^[14] and squamous cell of the head and neck.^[15][16] The mechanism is believed to be due to the effect of temperature and the evidence to support this association is strong." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yerba_mate

I'd like to add a hundred or so baht. Where do I send it?