What is (or was) your profession or occupation?

[Dazinoz]

13 hours ago, ripstanley said:

Norfolk Island is only 1000km from Australia. That is not in the middle of the Pacific. It also a part of Australia. 

Well its not exactly just off the coast is it? I guess you take everything literally.

 

And did I say it wasn't part of Australia? I talked about the arrival card asking for profession. I been there many times so I think I know about that.

 

But thanks for your much needed input.

[SAFETY FIRST]

On 2/9/2022 at 7:45 PM, GarryP said:

Had a job offer in Singapore, but flights to Thailand were much cheaper so I decided to have a holiday here first and catch the train down to Singapore. I just never got to Singapore until about 15 years ago, by which time the job offer was no more. It didn't matter really as the trip to Singapore was a business trip for my Bangkok employer. ????

 

My job title includes the word "manager", but it is not really a managerial position. I was just given the title as a way of saying thank you for such long service, and to justify a decent pay increase. I am a jack of all trades in my department which involves intellectual property. 

 

As to staying on, it is not up to me. I hit 60 in December and the office policy is retirement at 60, except in special cases if they want to keep you on. In which case it would be on annual contracts. But I really have had enough. I have had some good times but the past 4 or 5 years have worn me out.    

I bet you have a few stories to tell having lived here for nearly 40 years and 30 years in the one job. 

 

Well done ????

[earlinclaifornia]

On 2/9/2022 at 5:26 PM, Paulaew said:

Glad to see another ex-Silicon Valley member here. I started my Silicon Valley career as a postdoc at Stanford back in 1987, then moved to Xerox PARC for a while, then a slew of  startup companies.

 

I had the chance to travel all over the world, including my first trip to Thailand in 1989. Once I had to do some product training in India and added some other stops to make it a complete around the world trip. It's how I acquired the travel bug and eventually ended up living in Thailand.

 

Paul Laew

I worked my first real career job around the corner from that Xerox PARC on California Ave with Beckman Spinco. Expediter for Engineering then Engineering Buyer then Senior Electronics Buyer for Manufacturing.

[roo860]

On 2/9/2022 at 3:17 PM, redsongthaew said:

Who cares about a satellite? Your real claim to fame is that you worked with Mr Bean (second from the left).

Deleted

Edited February 12, 2022 by roo860

[dj230]

Ever since high school I was starting business’ (cellphone sales, nutritionist/personal training, gym equipment sales) for income but now I just manage investments online. 
 

 

Edited February 12, 2022 by dj230

[thaibeachlovers]

On 2/8/2022 at 1:24 AM, Paulaew said:

Honesty would be good. I'm frank about my wandering career and lack of accomplishment. I'm sure many forum members did much better.

 

Paul Laew

I doubt many would post about lack of any meaningful employment though. A life time of living off the tax of those that worked might seem less than beneficial to humanity.

 

For myself I worked as farm labourer till I realised it was a dead end for poor pay and long hours. I then joined the military and enjoyed it till I didn't and then I made the 2 biggest mistakes of my life and acquired a partner and became a nurse. Once I shed the soul destroying partner I was free to go overseas where they at least pay nurses a better wage, and I did that till I retired and made the third biggest mistake of my life and got married to the wrong woman in Thailand.

So, a mixed bag of a work history. I enjoyed some of it, and the rest I endured to make money to do what I preferred. Unfortunately, a large part of my earnings went to the undeserving, but such is life.

[thaibeachlovers]

On 2/9/2022 at 4:46 PM, SAFETY FIRST said:

BTW, the most hated country I've worked was Saudi, <deleted> hole. 

Depending on the rigs location we'd spend the night before crew change in the Mercure Hotel, had a plaque out the front, it said '5 Star hotel', not sure if true, I read a hotel without a wine menu could not be a 5 star. 

Also no pretty females to look at, checkin, reception, room cleaning all men, I was working in Hell. 

No argument from me there. I loathed Saudi Arabia as did almost every non Saudi I worked with. However, the Bedouin were lovely.

The only reason any of us stayed was because they paid so much, but even the money wasn't enough to make me stay in the end.

Beautiful country, but ruined by the mutawa ( religious police ) for living in, and even the Saudis I knew well hated them too.

 

BTW, I stayed in hotels in Saudi that were far more sumptuous than any 5 * hotel in Thailand. Who cares if one can't get intoxicated while staying in such splendour?

 

quote

Also no pretty females to look at

end quote

You think you had it tough? I worked with pretty females every day, but couldn't have a girlfriend as the mutawa would have jailed and probably flogged us, before being deported ( if we were lucky ).

 

[SAFETY FIRST]

4 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

BTW, I stayed in hotels in Saudi that were far more sumptuous than any 5 * hotel in Thailand. Who cares if one can't get intoxicated while staying in such splendour?

 

I never said I wanted to get intoxicated. 

 

I just wanted a glass of red wine with my steak dinner. 

[thaibeachlovers]

Just now, SAFETY FIRST said:

I never said I wanted to get intoxicated. 

 

I just wanted a glass of red wine with my steak dinner. 

Should've brought your own, smuggled in in a Coke bottle. That's probably what most foreigners did that couldn't go without booze with dinner.

[SAFETY FIRST]

19 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Should've brought your own, smuggled in in a Coke bottle. That's probably what most foreigners did that couldn't go without booze with dinner.

Ha ha. That brings back memories.

 

It was early days working in Saudi, I was waiting for the gate to open at Survarnabhumi. As you come down the escalators from duty free there would be a lady in a kiosk selling cans of beer, she had a small fridge, I used to buy a couple of beers, drinking one and putting the other in my carry on luggage waiting for boarding. I forgot I had this beer in my bag. Unpacking my bag in the Mercure I found it, I nearly sh.t myself. 

I poured out the contents crushed the can and placed it in a small rubbish bin in the toilet by the lobby.

 

You don't want to get caught bringing booze into Saudi.

[thaibeachlovers]

9 hours ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

Ha ha. That brings back memories.

 

It was early days working in Saudi, I was waiting for the gate to open at Survarnabhumi. As you come down the escalators from duty free there would be a lady in a kiosk selling cans of beer, she had a small fridge, I used to buy a couple of beers, drinking one and putting the other in my carry on luggage waiting for boarding. I forgot I had this beer in my bag. Unpacking my bag in the Mercure I found it, I nearly sh.t myself. 

I poured out the contents crushed the can and placed it in a small rubbish bin in the toilet by the lobby.

 

You don't want to get caught bringing booze into Saudi.

Indeed not.

One poor Filipino got caught with chocolate liqueurs, and was given a very hard time. Those mutawa are really bad dudes IMO.

They are so <deleted> that they employ people to go through magazines and use a black felt tip pen on any photos of women showing skin.

They used to censor music as well, so I was delighted to find Crusader on a Chris De Burgh tape had been missed.

 

I had a very bad experience when I arrived. I was taken to my apartment by a Saudi and he was showing me around the place, but what he missed was the large plastic rubbish bin that was full of the home made wine my new flatmate made.

A week later I was smuggled into a house that a female work colleague had in the women's area of the hospital, for a party, but I was rather stressed when she got very drunk and started making so much noise that I feared the security would arrest us all- visions of being deported after only 1 week! I was so alarmed that I hot footed it out of there at 1 am and walked back to the apartment, hoping no cops would see me. Other than the mutawa, the only people I feared in Riyadh were the cops, and I went to great lengths to avoid them.

[Golden Triangle]

The dreaded civil servant ????

[Sparktrader]

19 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

I doubt many would post about lack of any meaningful employment though. A life time of living off the tax of those that worked might seem less than beneficial to humanity.

 

For myself I worked as farm labourer till I realised it was a dead end for poor pay and long hours. I then joined the military and enjoyed it till I didn't and then I made the 2 biggest mistakes of my life and acquired a partner and became a nurse. Once I shed the soul destroying partner I was free to go overseas where they at least pay nurses a better wage, and I did that till I retired and made the third biggest mistake of my life and got married to the wrong woman in Thailand.

So, a mixed bag of a work history. I enjoyed some of it, and the rest I endured to make money to do what I preferred. Unfortunately, a large part of my earnings went to the undeserving, but such is life.

I spent most of my money on booze, women and fast cars, the rest i just wasted.

 

George Best

 

 

[bbko]

Like many many on this site, I'm a amateur detective, always jumping to baseless conclusions, making false accusations, speculating and acting as if my word is golden with made up "facts". Using my own bias, bigotry, and hatred to the point I can't wait to deride the country I choose to live in or visit, the term "glutton for punishment" fits me well.  Sadly after me living so many decades, you'd think I'd be smarter, more peaceful, sadly my hatred for the country I choose to live in or visit has consumed me. 

 

 

 

NOT! If you don't like it here, GO HOME! DON'T VISIT! STAY HOME!

Edited February 15, 2022 by bbko

[seajae]

did an apprenticeship in painting and decorating, finished that and did a bit of time driving machinery in a new estate while waiting to go into the army,(2 cav then first armoured regt and also spent time at the SAS in '77 in the dive wing), left the army went back into my trade eventually working for myself till an injury stopped me. Did a photo journalist course and then got caught up in plants, now known around the world for my knowledge on plumeria/frangipani(have been flown to the US and Australia a few times to do talks), have several hundred trees here and a few thousand seedlings as I do a lot of cross pollination work to create new varieties, Thailand is perfect for it which is what made me move here originally, it has become a hobby for me, setting it up for my wife for when she retires

[thaibeachlovers]

5 hours ago, bbko said:

Like many many on this site, I'm a amateur detective, always jumping to baseless conclusions, making false accusations, speculating and acting as if my word is golden with made up "facts". Using my own bias, bigotry, and hatred to the point I can't wait to deride the country I choose to live in or visit, the term "glutton for punishment" fits me well.  Sadly after me living so many decades, you'd think I'd be smarter, more peaceful, sadly my hatred for the country I choose to live in or visit has consumed me. 

 

 

 

NOT! If you don't like it here, GO HOME! DON'T VISIT! STAY HOME!

Bad day?