Diary of a farang in Isaan

[Damrongsak]

On 5/1/2020 at 2:10 AM, Assurancetourix said:

In high school, I learned Latin, German and English; the only language that survived ( in my mind ) is English; ...

Not much of my high school/college Spanish survived.  After 3 years in Thailand we once took a vacation in Mexico.  I was speaking Sphai or Thanish, something like that.  Thai words just popped right in there with the Spanish.  Sounded good to me, but I got some very puzzled looks.  ????

[Assurancetourix]

16 hours ago, Odysseus123 said:

Now Asterix...your problem with your non-photogenic bike (according to some troll or another) is not unsolveable as the boys in the village have put their heads together and come with this one,what do you think?

 

 

An anvil with a handlebar that moves on its own;
You get what you pay for , since it costs around 2,000 baht in the Lotus store nearby ...
It's like "Thaksin" bicycles for those who have known these bicycles blue, white and red ...

[thaibeachlovers]

13 hours ago, HighPriority said:

Hard to have street cred on a pink bike... ????????

Pink does not have the same connotations in LOS as for farangs. The King's Royal Guard had pink hats when I saw them.

[thaibeachlovers]

12 hours ago, owl sees all said:

He reckons that drinking a litre of olive oil a day stops heart malfunction (and other stuff). Next time in Big C I'll get a crate or two. Got to look after yourself in LOS.

A LITRE a day!!!!! Are you sure about that?

Glad I won't be around when you go to the loo.

The good stuff isn't cheap and you probably don't want a litre of the bad stuff ever day

 

https://www.quora.com/What-happens-if-I-drink-one-litre-of-olive-oil

1. You don't actually make it to one litre, because you throw up, half the way, instinctively, since your body tries to protect you from ingesting that poisonous liquid.
2. You force yourself in doing so, and you end up in the hospital with acute pancreatitis
3. You escape pancreatitis, but you suffer from a steatorrhea, a malabsorptive state, i.e a terrible liquid and oily diarrhea.
4. You escape both, but end up with a fracture after slipping on the oily <deleted> that falls all over your legs because you didn't make it to the restroom ontime…

 

https://theconversation.com/drink-a-glass-of-olive-oil-every-day-the-mediterranean-way-to-a-long-life-48837

In Britain and the US, people consume on average around 1 litre of olive oil per person per year, but isn’t much compared to the Greeks, Italians and Spanish who all consume more 13 litres per person.

 

BTW that's 13 litres a year, not a day.

[phetphet]

On 4/30/2020 at 3:07 PM, Kadilo said:

Apologies for going off track. 
 

Im longing for this, basic yummy Thai food. 

 

 

Why not cook it yourself? That's what I used to do. Quite easy, provided one can get the ingredients. I used to buy all mine from Waitrose in the UK. Including the Thai Basil.

Google for recipe, and Youtube videos on how to do it helped a non cook like me. Turned  out pretty good.

[owl sees all]

10 hours ago, Kadilo said:

Spooky. This was the photo that my gf sent this afternoon of the concreting outside their home. Excuse the darkness. She took them early evening and I should try some lighting magic but can’t be arsed. 

 

You mentioned your wife asked about paying the neighbour 470  baht lottery debt. Be interested to know your response. The MIL tv seems a nice gesture. I was wondering if you’re tempted to keep the goodwill going. I know what I would do. 

 

Seems you have a lovely rapport with the local children always mucking in to help. 

 

Good to see your your heart holding up. Don’t drink it too quick. My experience of drinking it post fasting is that one may not keep it down too long if it’s rushed. 

 

Take care. 

 

 

Maybe the village road development is the governments way of saying 'look how we are helping the poor villagers'.

 

Someone will do OK out of these contracts.

[owl sees all]

19 minutes ago, phetphet said:

Why not cook it yourself? That's what I used to do. Quite easy, provided one can get the ingredients. I used to buy all mine from Waitrose in the UK. Including the Thai Basil.

Google for recipe, and Youtube videos on how to do it helped a non cook like me. Turned  out pretty good.

Surely that's what women are for!? Cook your own food!!!???

 

They fix the grub; we fix the pick-up. They breast feed the nipper; we teach the toddlers footy.

 

This mixing up the roles is the cause of many of the world's problems. Just ask the Swedes.

 

 

[owl sees all]

1 hour ago, thaibeachlovers said:

A LITRE a day!!!!! Are you sure about that?

Glad I won't be around when you go to the loo.

The good stuff isn't cheap and you probably don't want a litre of the bad stuff ever day

 

https://www.quora.com/What-happens-if-I-drink-one-litre-of-olive-oil

1. You don't actually make it to one litre, because you throw up, half the way, instinctively, since your body tries to protect you from ingesting that poisonous liquid.
2. You force yourself in doing so, and you end up in the hospital with acute pancreatitis
3. You escape pancreatitis, but you suffer from a steatorrhea, a malabsorptive state, i.e a terrible liquid and oily diarrhea.
4. You escape both, but end up with a fracture after slipping on the oily <deleted> that falls all over your legs because you didn't make it to the restroom ontime…

 

https://theconversation.com/drink-a-glass-of-olive-oil-every-day-the-mediterranean-way-to-a-long-life-48837

In Britain and the US, people consume on average around 1 litre of olive oil per person per year, but isn’t much compared to the Greeks, Italians and Spanish who all consume more 13 litres per person.

 

BTW that's 13 litres a year, not a day.

I hear you concern TBL, but Dr Gundry insists that olive oil is the best thing for our (humans) well-being, and goes says to put olive oil on virtually everything. "Eating", he says, "should be used as a way of  getting olive oil into the system."

 

He has other themes; such as putting a younger (but healthy) person's faeces up an older person's anus. And removing the skin and seeds of tomatoes and chillies. Also not eating any grain (unless pressure cooked) and definitely no peanuts. I didn't know that raw kidney beans could kill in five minutes, until I read the good Doc's words. The olive oil option seems to be a good bet after reading some of the other ways to regulate the gut.

 

I'm gonna take your words of caution very seriously TBL, but I don't want no heart attack.

 

ps. I might have misread his words. Maybe half a litre a day. I'll go back and check.

[Bredbury Blue]

On 5/2/2020 at 10:35 AM, Bredbury Blue said:

English is famous for words written the same but pronounced differently, example, heard and bird. One plus english has on other languages is it ceased with gender centuries ago, so no masculine, feminine or neutral words, which to anglophiles seems a rather weird concept.

My wife's favourite example of our irregular English:

 

One foot, two feet

One boot, two beet.

[pineapple01]

"We are going to grow Avocado Trees". Anyone got a spare room till this Good Idea has been Forgotten.

[owl sees all]

9 minutes ago, Bredbury Blue said:

My wife's favourite example of our irregular English:

 

One foot, two feet

One boot, two beet.

And you of all people - being the champion of the footy threads - why not 'feetball'?

[owl sees all]

35 minutes ago, pineapple01 said:

"We are going to grow Avocado Trees". Anyone got a spare room till this Good Idea has been Forgotten.

We bought an avo' tree. Couldn't keep it alive. Grew three from the seed. Again no success. At the mo' I've got one with roots growing in the cup. 

 

 

[Kadilo]

3 hours ago, phetphet said:

Why not cook it yourself? That's what I used to do. Quite easy, provided one can get the ingredients. I used to buy all mine from Waitrose in the UK. Including the Thai Basil.

Google for recipe, and Youtube videos on how to do it helped a non cook like me. Turned  out pretty good.

Buying the ingredients from a supermarket and cooking it myself would kill the enjoyment. 
It has to be eaten in a street cafe with an electric fan by your side shushing off the flies drinking ice cold water on a steaming hot day. 

[pineapple01]

4 hours ago, owl sees all said:

We bought an avo' tree. Couldn't keep it alive. Grew three from the seed. Again no success. At the mo' I've got one with roots growing in the cup. 

 

 

From seed ,how long it took no idea. I tripped over the first lot when they were about 8 inches, and they grow at the same rate as Mango.They do look rather healthy.

[owl sees all]

2 hours ago, pineapple01 said:

From seed ,how long it took no idea. I tripped over the first lot when they were about 8 inches, and they grow at the same rate as Mango.They do look rather healthy.

Getting them started is much slower than mangoes, but when they about, as you say, eight inches they grow about the same rate.

 

I will try to keep the next one out of strong sun until it's very well established. About two feet tall.

[pineapple01]

1 hour ago, owl sees all said:

Getting them started is much slower than mangoes, but when they about, as you say, eight inches they grow about the same rate.

 

I will try to keep the next one out of strong sun until it's very well established. About two feet tall.

Took phone pictures of them but Mr Windows says nothing to upload. You must keep out of direct sun and water daily until about 2ft. Took about one year im told from 6 inch re potted seedlings.

[thaibeachlovers]

17 hours ago, Bredbury Blue said:

My wife's favourite example of our irregular English:

 

One foot, two feet

One boot, two beet.

Every Filipino I've worked with says "fruits" instaid of "fruit"

Blue can be a colour or a mood or a type of movie.\

Gay means happy and carefree or homosexual.

[HighPriority]

20 hours ago, owl sees all said:

I hear you concern TBL, but Dr Gundry insists that olive oil is the best thing for our (humans) well-being, and goes says to put olive oil on virtually everything. "Eating", he says, "should be used as a way of  getting olive oil into the system."

 

He has other themes; such as putting a younger (but healthy) person's faeces up an older person's anus. And removing the skin and seeds of tomatoes and chillies. Also not eating any grain (unless pressure cooked) and definitely no peanuts. I didn't know that raw kidney beans could kill in five minutes, until I read the good Doc's words. The olive oil option seems to be a good bet after reading some of the other ways to regulate the gut.

 

I'm gonna take your words of caution very seriously TBL, but I don't want no heart attack.

 

ps. I might have misread his words. Maybe half a litre a day. I'll go back and check.

Owl... with all due respect to yourself and your Dr, I think he’s one of those “outliers” 

The “Mediterainian diet” is regarded as a good way to eat, but as posted above by TBC a liter or 1/2 per day is way above normal consumption, however, a tablespoon a day would be a great addition to any diet.

Im always wary of anyone who promotes any food as some sort of “superfood”, because frankly they are not and the proponents of such theories usually profit directly from such “advice”...

Lots of vegetables and a little meat works for me, just need my wife to understand serving sizes ????????

 

Personally, I try to avoid as much processed food as I can, preferring to prepare raw ingredients myself.

 

[HighPriority]

19 hours ago, Bredbury Blue said:

My wife's favourite example of our irregular English:

 

One foot, two feet

One boot, two beet.

My wife’s incredulous outburst when she came home from English classes “Why call finger on foot toe ? Why not just call foot finger ?!!” ????????

[Bredbury Blue]

7 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Every Filipino I've worked with says "fruits" instaid of "fruit"

Blue can be a colour or a mood or a type of movie.\

Gay means happy and carefree or homosexual.

One of my son's, when aged younger than 10, came home from school and told me "Dad, you're wrong, it's not warTer,  it's waR-Der". I asked him who told him to pronounce water like that? It was his Filipino teacher. I've refused to allow my kids to use a lazy d sound(American style) in words instead of a t sound (British style).

 

[owl sees all]

1 hour ago, Bredbury Blue said:

One of my son's, when aged younger than 10, came home from school and told me "Dad, you're wrong, it's not warTer,  it's waR-Der". I asked him who told him to pronounce water like that? It was his Filipino teacher. I've refused to allow my kids to use a lazy d sound(American style) in words instead of a t sound (British style).

 

If my memory serves me;  Catweazle, or was it Worzel Gummidge, pronounced water as watter.

 

Just came back from Big C. Astounded at the price of olive oil. 450 Baht a litre. My 'add years to my life diet', will have to wait. Can't afford that for the minute. I'll try Amazon or Lazada.

[sotonowl]

10 hours ago, HighPriority said:

ps. I might have misread his words. Maybe half a litre a day. I'll go back and check.

 

@owl sees all A half litre of Olive Oil a day would come out at around 4000 calories. Anyone consuming that will make themselves violently sick not to mention what it would do to your toilet pan. Did the doctor who told you this have a bone through his nose by any chance?????

[Assurancetourix]

3 hours ago, owl sees all said:

I'll try Amazon or Lazada.

Above all, never buy Spanish olive oil;
because many bottles of Spanish olive oil are not. Best way to get to the hospital

[Bredbury Blue]

5 hours ago, owl sees all said:

If my memory serves me;  Catweazle, or was it Worzel Gummidge, pronounced water as watter.

 

Just came back from Big C. Astounded at the price of olive oil. 450 Baht a litre. My 'add years to my life diet', will have to wait. Can't afford that for the minute. I'll try Amazon or Lazada.

Oh spirit of the Tellingbone (catweazle).

[faraday]

And electrickery.....

 

 

[phetphet]

On 5/3/2020 at 9:37 AM, owl sees all said:

Surely that's what women are for!? Cook your own food!!!???

 

They fix the grub; we fix the pick-up. They breast feed the nipper; we teach the toddlers footy.

 

This mixing up the roles is the cause of many of the world's problems. Just ask the Swedes.

 

 

Maybe so. But if you are back in the UK, single, and have a yearning for a good Phad Krapow, making it yourself is probably the only way you will get it.

 

It wasn't on the menu in any of my local Thai restaurants. In fact, I don't recall seeing it on any Thai restaurants that I visited in the UK. So when I wanted it, I made it.

 

Now I am here permanently, the girlfriend does all the cooking...except a few western dishes that I prefer to do myself. 

 

Now why don't you tell your other half to get back in the kitchen and leave the farm and the tree planting to you?  ????

 

Please let us know how that goes down. 

 

BTW. I really enjoy reading your thread about life in Isaan..

 

 

 

[Odysseus123]

30 minutes ago, phetphet said:

Now why don't you tell your other half to get back in the kitchen and leave the farm and the tree planting to you?  ????

 

Umm...err...

 

Because he's got Buckley's and none?

 

..and knows it?????

 

I used to keel over laughing when such superannuated

'Sanders of the River' statements were uttered sotto voce by expats because,as I pointed out, "There are 67 million of them and one of you..."

 

"Have another Leo,my friend,it's on the house!"

[hotandsticky]

14 hours ago, HighPriority said:

My wife’s incredulous outburst when she came home from English classes “Why call finger on foot toe ? Why not just call foot finger ?!!” ????????

 

 

I soon discovered that was because they have the same word for both........ นิ้ว  niu

[Odysseus123]

15 hours ago, HighPriority said:

The “Mediterainian diet” is regarded as a good way to eat,

True..but not chugging litres of olive oil at one go...

 

The Italians would merely refer you to a frisky Frascati or a bold Barolo..and they would be right.

[pineapple01]

I know all about the KITCHEN, i walk through every Day on my way to the GARAGE.!