There Goes The Neighborhood

[canuckamuck]

I have lived here two years in a sleepy moo bahn on the outskirts of Chiang Mai. In the two years I have never seen any neighbor hesitate to smile or say hello. There is so little noise generally that I have to turn my fan on so the white noise will help me sleep. Well this summer someone built a house in a vacant lot almost across from me. We have seen the neighbors (a couple in their 50's) occasionally fine tuning their new house, getting the final touches done on the yard. Many time we have gone by and smiled I even waved a couple of times. They simply stare through us and go back to their task. They both have a permanent frown on their faces.

Well I can deal with that, but they are out growing their territory and it is wearing a little thin. First they cut down a tree in an adjacent but vacant lot, because they didn't like the shade I guess. It was a nice place for people to park a car on a hot day. Then they started to colonize the lot across from them by putting up shelters for their own cars.

Well I can deal with that too, but this morning that vacant lot is filled with tables and chairs and there are two three meter towers of speakers in their driveway and a few minutes ago my windows started to rattle. I have nothing against music, but of course they are not playing music, they are playing the Thai imitation of music that is so deeply irritating. You know, like on a bus to Issan. And the thing is there isn't even any guests here yet.

We will see how it goes, I know complaining is only as effective as your own personal connections and I have very few and I am a renter too.

Mostly I am lamenting a paradise lost

Rant over...

For now.

Edited January 23, 2011 by canuckamuck

[yeoldesage]

You have my sympathy, for what could turn out to be a really tricky situation which needs to be handled with delicate diplomacy. Although if your actual persona resembles your avatar I think they will get the message soon enough.

[Semper]

I think they are just preparing for the housewarming party.

[bifftastic]

or the opening of their new all-night karaoke bar?

[gotlost]

Definitely a house warming party. Join in the fun

[CMX]

canuckamuck,

You, sir, are shi_outtaluck. Or remarkably adaptable.

Housewarming is a heartwarming idea, however. Stand in your yard with a dopey smile, maintain eye contact, and see if you're waved over.

Edited January 23, 2011 by CMX

[CobraSnakeNecktie]

you need to purchase a Trebuchet

[Fishenough]

Take one of these

or two of

Or worst case (use caution (don't do it), sonic nausea inducers work, but imagine the results combining it coboious amounts of the first item and bad music) -

hopefully with starting early your neighbors party will wind down early!

[Cnxforever]

I think they are just preparing for the housewarming party.

I agree with you - they most probably prepare for a housewarming party - it will all be over the next day.

Being grumpy with a permanent frown on their faces they will probably never have a party again! Who wants to party with "frowning Grumpies"!!??? hehehe

But what you described here is quite comon acctually - don't know what it is with many of these Thai "middle class" people thinking of themselves as "HiSo"- we have them here in our Moo Baan - my friends tell me about them in their Moo Baans - while some are very friendly others never smile, never great, don't want to get to know their neighbors - which is their choice - but I don't understand what is wrong with a friendly "Hello" when you walk past people in your neighborhood???!!!

[IanForbes]

Good luck, Canuckamuck. We can pick our friends, but we can't pick our neighbours or relatives. It sounds like a one time event that you might want to miss by taking a short holiday. However, if it carries on to be a regular event you can always fight fire with fire. Just give them a "FRIENDLY" warning... with a slight smile on your face that bodes warning. If you need some help later just ask me.

[gotlost]

Get yourself 20 liters of Lao Kao and take it to the party and welcome your new neighbours. You will be amazed at the hit you make.

[softgeorge]

I think they are just preparing for the housewarming party.

I agree with you - they most probably prepare for a housewarming party - it will all be over the next day.

Being grumpy with a permanent frown on their faces they will probably never have a party again! Who wants to party with "frowning Grumpies"!!??? hehehe

But what you described here is quite comon acctually - don't know what it is with many of these Thai "middle class" people thinking of themselves as "HiSo"- we have them here in our Moo Baan - my friends tell me about them in their Moo Baans - while some are very friendly others never smile, never great, don't want to get to know their neighbors - which is their choice - but I don't understand what is wrong with a friendly "Hello" when you walk past people in your neighborhood???!!!

:Maybe they don't smile because canuckamuck is in thier nieghbourhood.

[canuckamuck]

Thanks for the replies, I have been out most of the morning, but the tunes are pounding out pretty good now. It's karaoke right now, my personal favorite

It is clearly a house warming and it is actually kind of comical with the host walking around looking so poo yai. There are lots of cars about, but nothing over a Camry in status, so it apparently isn't the Hi So occasion of the week.

My kids (toddlers) are getting into the music so they are having a good time.

Anyhow, I think i will survive the day.

My only question is when do these things normally wind down? midnight? later?

[gotlost]

Thanks for the replies, I have been out most of the morning, but the tunes are pounding out pretty good now. It's karaoke right now, my personal favorite

It is clearly a house warming and it is actually kind of comical with the host walking around looking so poo yai. There are lots of cars about, but nothing over a Camry in status, so it apparently isn't the Hi So occasion of the week.

My kids (toddlers) are getting into the music so they are having a good time.

Anyhow, I think i will survive the day.

My only question is when do these things normally wind down? midnight? later?

Let's put it this way...No sleep tonight.... and tomorrow????? Have fun and join in.

[Beetlejuice]

This is what happens when neighbors live in boxes and so close to each other.

You have to put up with each others noise, trash, cooking smells, dogs barking, social and unsocial activities, intrusions and so on.

For those that choose to live in these sort of homes and environments there is virtually nothing you can do other then compromise and put up with it.

Humans as a rule are territorial and no matter how nice your neighbors, sooner or later they will become irritating in some way or another.

Personally I would not enjoy living on a moo bhan not even for free. I like some space around me, being a reasonable distance from the neighbors and enough land area on the property to be able to park my vehicles without the need to use communal land or having to share with anyone.

The solution is to sell up, purchase a large plot of land with a brick wall around it and build at the centre so that you are free from the irritations of others. The only other option is as the OP said, grin and bare it.

Good luck to the OP and hope he and the neighbors can live together in harmony.

[BB1955]

Well I had a problem a little different,the folks behind my house have a giant german shepard they keep caged between thier house and mine behind a wall right under my bedroom window . Well I feel sorry for the dog but he isnt mine.. He begins barking at about 4 pm when the mail man come through or at 7 am when the garbage truck comes by . Of course it runs right through every room in my house .

I am a dog lover and have a little one myself she has a squeeky toy she loves to squeek when she jumps on the bed playing . I noticed this makes that poor dog howl like he is being squeezed in the you know whats ... Only the dog can hear it of course my neighbors can not ..

Well figuired we,d use that to our advantage when the lights go out at thier house ... Three nights and the dog was moved to the front of the house ... I can now enjoy my afternoons .... There are always ways to skin a cat ....

[WinnieTheKhwai]

So.. wait: there is a house warming party (or other party) which clearly means you have to move some stuff away from the main house to clear space, and this is a topic worth bitching about?

I did pretty much teh same for our house warming party. (Though I of course had the good manners to inform all neighbours first, warn about the noise and of course invite them to the party.)

Either way: You can't beat them. Join them.

[sfokevin]

Thanks for the replies, I have been out most of the morning, but the tunes are pounding out pretty good now. It's karaoke right now, my personal favorite

It is clearly a house warming and it is actually kind of comical with the host walking around looking so poo yai. There are lots of cars about, but nothing over a Camry in status, so it apparently isn't the Hi So occasion of the week.

My kids (toddlers) are getting into the music so they are having a good time.

Anyhow, I think i will survive the day.

My only question is when do these things normally wind down? midnight? later?

If it keeps up after midnight I would march right over there and offer up some ABBA Karaoke!!!

Edited January 23, 2011 by sfokevin

[Semper]

Thanks for the replies, I have been out most of the morning, but the tunes are pounding out pretty good now. It's karaoke right now, my personal favorite

It is clearly a house warming and it is actually kind of comical with the host walking around looking so poo yai. There are lots of cars about, but nothing over a Camry in status, so it apparently isn't the Hi So occasion of the week.

My kids (toddlers) are getting into the music so they are having a good time.

Anyhow, I think i will survive the day.

My only question is when do these things normally wind down? midnight? later?

When the alcohol is mot leo...

[canuckamuck]

Well it's over already, I was all prepared for the long night.

I guess it went well, but I wasn't here much. I did see they hired a girl singer to dance around the tables with a cordless mike wearing a pair of shiny red daisy dukes and a tiny top. Some guys were tucking money in her belt. What happened after that I don't know cause I had to go, and when I came home everyone was getting in their cars.

Well I guess I get to sleep tonight after all

Cheers

[Beetlejuice]

Well it's over already, I was all prepared for the long night.

I guess it went well, but I wasn't here much. I did see they hired a girl singer to dance around the tables with a cordless mike wearing a pair of shiny red daisy dukes and a tiny top. Some guys were tucking money in her belt. What happened after that I don't know cause I had to go, and when I came home everyone was getting in their cars.

Well I guess I get to sleep tonight after all

Cheers

Girls with tiny tops and shiny red boots?

You could have done the decent thing and invite us along.

[caf]

Definitely a house warming party. Join in the fun

Agreed. This is good advice

Take the initiative to get to know your Thai neighbours. Thais are deep down probably more shy and reserved than most westerners. Take the first step, politely of course

[caf]

Good luck, Canuckamuck. We can pick our friends, but we can't pick our neighbours or relatives. It sounds like a one time event that you might want to miss by taking a short holiday. However, if it carries on to be a regular event you can always fight fire with fire. Just give them a "FRIENDLY" warning... with a slight smile on your face that bodes warning. If you need some help later just ask me.

No, Canuckamuck, get in and enjoy

Nothing gained by walking away. You may make some long term friends

[caf]

So.. wait: there is a house warming party (or other party) which clearly means you have to move some stuff away from the main house to clear space, and this is a topic worth bitching about?

I did pretty much teh same for our house warming party. (Though I of course had the good manners to inform all neighbours first, warn about the noise and of course invite them to the party.)

Either way: You can't beat them. Join them.

Agreed

[merijn]

Thanks for the replies, I have been out most of the morning, but the tunes are pounding out pretty good now. It's karaoke right now, my personal favorite

It is clearly a house warming and it is actually kind of comical with the host walking around looking so poo yai. There are lots of cars about, but nothing over a Camry in status, so it apparently isn't the Hi So occasion of the week.

My kids (toddlers) are getting into the music so they are having a good time.

Anyhow, I think i will survive the day.

My only question is when do these things normally wind down? midnight? later?

Ho Ho, I drive also a Camry just because a Mercedes is to bloody expensive in Thailand. So does this mean I’m also not so Hi So ?

[jackr]

Personally I would not enjoy living on a moo bhan not even for free. I like some space around me, being a reasonable distance from the neighbors and enough land area on the property to be able to park my vehicles without the need to use communal land or having to share with anyone.

The solution is to sell up, purchase a large plot of land with a brick wall around it and build at the centre so that you are free from the irritations of others.

That's the perfect scenario in dreamland, but look where you are! If you can't handle a bit of noise, you're in the wrong country I'm afraid. Saying that, with your 10 rai (or whatever) plot of land and 50m high wall, it's only a matter of time before a karaoke joint sets up right on your perimeter and you're stuffed. You also have a very good chance of getting robbed unless perhaps you have an army of rotties on guard 24/7. Used to entertain the idea of being somewhere on the mountain right in the middle of a huge plot, but soon let that one go for points outlined (and also huge cost). Think I'll stick where I am for now; in a huge moobaan, 15kms from town, 2kms from the nearest road with rice paddies between me and mountain. Neighbours are generally good apart from non-hi-so hi-sos and the random, trashy Pattaya-type sexpat.

Op, get yourself a hi-powered water pistol and squirt their meter intermittently.

[a99az]

Personally I would not enjoy living on a moo bhan not even for free. I like some space around me, being a reasonable distance from the neighbors and enough land area on the property to be able to park my vehicles without the need to use communal land or having to share with anyone.

The solution is to sell up, purchase a large plot of land with a brick wall around it and build at the centre so that you are free from the irritations of others.

That's the perfect scenario in dreamland, but look where you are! If you can't handle a bit of noise, you're in the wrong country I'm afraid. Saying that, with your 10 rai (or whatever) plot of land and 50m high wall, it's only a matter of time before a karaoke joint sets up right on your perimeter and you're stuffed. You also have a very good chance of getting robbed unless perhaps you have an army of rotties on guard 24/7. Used to entertain the idea of being somewhere on the mountain right in the middle of a huge plot, but soon let that one go for points outlined (and also huge cost). Think I'll stick where I am for now; in a huge moobaan, 15kms from town, 2kms from the nearest road with rice paddies between me and mountain. Neighbours are generally good apart from non-hi-so hi-sos and the random, trashy Pattaya-type sexpat.

Op, get yourself a hi-powered water pistol and squirt their meter intermittently.

Make sure your well earthed too.

[BarnicaleBob]

I live in a mooban and one of my Thai neighbors has his own Karaoke machines that he pulls out every time some on the block has a party. And my Thai neighbors seem to have a party for one thing or another almost every weekend or at least every other weekend due to a birthday, holiday, house warming or any other excuse they can come up with. I just attend all the parties and throw one myself every couple of months or so just to do my part. By doing this I am close to all the people on my street and we I have a feeling of really belonging here. The women are always coming over to share their food together for lunches on my front porch or my wife is going over to one of their places where they get together and have their lunch in the carports and porches. So what I am saying here is that it is much more fun to join them rather than worry about a little noise.

[canuckamuck]

Thanks for the replies, I have been out most of the morning, but the tunes are pounding out pretty good now. It's karaoke right now, my personal favorite

It is clearly a house warming and it is actually kind of comical with the host walking around looking so poo yai. There are lots of cars about, but nothing over a Camry in status, so it apparently isn't the Hi So occasion of the week.

My kids (toddlers) are getting into the music so they are having a good time.

Anyhow, I think i will survive the day.

My only question is when do these things normally wind down? midnight? later?

Ho Ho, I drive also a Camry just because a Mercedes is to bloody expensive in Thailand. So does this mean I’m also not so Hi So ?

Well that seems to be the Thai way, Where I come from rich guys drive high end pickup trucks.

[softgeorge]

I live in a mooban and one of my Thai neighbors has his own Karaoke machines that he pulls out every time some on the block has a party. And my Thai neighbors seem to have a party for one thing or another almost every weekend or at least every other weekend due to a birthday, holiday, house warming or any other excuse they can come up with. I just attend all the parties and throw one myself every couple of months or so just to do my part. By doing this I am close to all the people on my street and we I have a feeling of really belonging here. The women are always coming over to share their food together for lunches on my front porch or my wife is going over to one of their places where they get together and have their lunch in the carports and porches. So what I am saying here is that it is much more fun to join them rather than worry about a little noise.

Sound like you are living my life.