Dirty Cloth

[David006]

...maybe long while ago but the restaurant table "cleaners" in Heathrow used to use disgusting dirty cloths all the time.

My wife always has about three tea towels going at once ...I am forever throwing one or two dirty ( in my opinion) in the laundry basket....just the way it is ....no big deal...I don't think many rural Thais have ever used a handbasin....had an "auntie" ask me to install one in her bathroom so she could show it off to the neighbors....lol

..lots of things in Thailand continue to amaze re cleanliness and hygiene....once had a friend of the wifes daughter throw her <deleted> tampon out the bathroom window!!

That said, a bum wash would be a great addition to western cultural hygiene.....?

[Kilgore Trout]

I trained my wife to be houseclean as I did whit my dog My dog remember it but not my wife, its a hassle to get here clean properly. I clean my WC my self I dont bother to ask here to do it. It took me 2 years to learn my fam. not to throw litter in front of the house, now am working on the litter backhouse thing LOL Serios you have to talk very hard to improve Thais proper cleaning. Clean the fridge and clean bedsheets once a week that makes me happy. I never look at the backyard kitchen, then I dont eat. LOL

Perhaps you should divorce your wife and marry your dog

[bunta71]

While having a vendor in a wet market slice me some pork chops, she dropped her knife. It bounced off the dog laying at her feet. The dog appeared to be licking some cancerous looking growth near it's butt. The knife bounced off the dog and fell on the sewer/ gutter concrete cover. She picked up the knife, wiped it on that dirty cloth and kept on cutting. Man, did she get pissed off at me for not buying her meat. I am all for survival of the fittest but that day I didn't feel all that fit...

[Kilgore Trout]

People ask why I never seem to change or get any older than what I looked like 10 years ago. I just tell them it's all the preservatives I eat daily. I don't recall ever washing any fruit or vegetables in the past 40 years or so. And, I eat a LOT of veggies and fruit. I DO wash my dishes though, in hot, soapy water. And, because I hate the taste of soap I always rinse the dishes in hot clean water. I grew up at a time when there were few if any drugs for infections. You either died or survived. If you survived you got stronger.

As of today, we still wash our dishes, pots 'n pans, and assorted utensils in cold soapy water. No one seems to be less from it - no ill effects. Go figure.

Bacteria grow slower in cold water, you cant handwash in boiling water and hot water you can stick your hands in are a bacteria bomb.A good soap its the thing.

Water does not have to be "boiling" to kill bacteria; 110 degrees f will suffice. The water is still hot at that temperature; hence the reason people wear long rubber gloves when doing dishes.

Tip: dry wet dishes immediately to lesson the risk of bacteria

[IMA_FARANG]

I know exactly what you mean.

This very morning, about a hour ago now in fact, I was having a cup of tea and some toast. I took a clean dish from kitchen cabinet and was about to put it on the table. My wife insisted that I shouldn't put the clean dish on the table until she washed the table with the wet "dirty rag" she keeps by the kitchen sink.

I think it's more psychological than anything else. A swipe from the "dirty rag" and the table was "clean". Of course, it wan't really dirty before that, but the reassurence she got from the swipe with the "dirty rag" made her feel that she had somehow done her part in keeping everything "clean" and therefore had demonstrated her importance in the busines of "running" the household once again by keeping myself and her family safe from all threats against their continued existance.

It's not what is actually done, it's the perception of what is being done that's important, I guess.

And that is not only a Thai trait, its a worldwide human thing.

Edited May 16, 2011 by IMA_FARANG

[sleepwalker999]

This thread is hilarious because I have been moaning about the exact same thing in my house for the last month. Every time I walk into the kitchen there is this disgusting looking thing looking back at me from the counter and the same goes for the sitting room. I just don't think it even crosses my mother in law's mind to ever wash the things.

[harrry]

Water does not have to be "boiling" to kill bacteria; 110 degrees f will suffice. The water is still hot at that temperature; hence the reason people wear long rubber gloves when doing dishes.

Tip: dry wet dishes immediately to lesson the risk of bacteria

Drying is unhygenic. In Australia health regulations require rinsing in very hot water and air drying. Cloths can only be used if they are changed about every 3 dishes.

[EirikJohannesen]

I trained my wife to be houseclean as I did whit my dog My dog remember it but not my wife, its a hassle to get here clean properly. I clean my WC my self I dont bother to ask here to do it. It took me 2 years to learn my fam. not to throw litter in front of the house, now am working on the litter backhouse thing LOL Serios you have to talk very hard to improve Thais proper cleaning. Clean the fridge and clean bedsheets once a week that makes me happy. I never look at the backyard kitchen, then I dont eat. LOL

Perhaps you should divorce your wife and marry your dog

LOL I love them both

[David006]

I trained my wife to be houseclean as I did whit my dog My dog remember it but not my wife, its a hassle to get here clean properly. I clean my WC my self I dont bother to ask here to do it. It took me 2 years to learn my fam. not to throw litter in front of the house, now am working on the litter backhouse thing LOL Serios you have to talk very hard to improve Thais proper cleaning. Clean the fridge and clean bedsheets once a week that makes me happy. I never look at the backyard kitchen, then I dont eat. LOL

:clap2: :clap2: Thought I was the only one that cleaned the f..g toilets...TIT

[Kilgore Trout]

Water does not have to be "boiling" to kill bacteria; 110 degrees f will suffice. The water is still hot at that temperature; hence the reason people wear long rubber gloves when doing dishes.

Tip: dry wet dishes immediately to lesson the risk of bacteria

Drying is unhygenic. In Australia health regulations require rinsing in very hot water and air drying. Cloths can only be used if they are changed about every 3 dishes.

I think you can safely dry more than three; bacteria likes wet dishes more than dry ones though

[F1fanatic]

I'm convinced that the obsessive hygiene in the West has resulted in the high percentage of asthmatic kids.

Having said that, I make sure that anything that touches food remains clean... Dirt is good for children, but not so good for those that are not used to it...

Edited May 16, 2011 by F1fanatic

[happyrobert]

While having a vendor in a wet market slice me some pork chops, she dropped her knife. It bounced off the dog laying at her feet. The dog appeared to be licking some cancerous looking growth near it's butt. The knife bounced off the dog and fell on the sewer/ gutter concrete cover. She picked up the knife, wiped it on that dirty cloth and kept on cutting. Man, did she get pissed off at me for not buying her meat. I am all for survival of the fittest but that day I didn't feel all that fit...

Dog Sore Soup.

I love watching the vendors in my market who are trimming their toenails while sitting cross-legged on the table where sits their meat and fish. The nails flip about here and there like stones flicked off a speeding car's tires. I saw one guy dig out toe jam with a screwdriver and wipe it on the same cloth he used for....well, you know. Maybe I'll post it on YouTube.

Won't even buy that to cook for my dogs.

[seriouseats]

Seeing as all the dirty thais only get small colds and rarely anything else. I enjoy letting them build my immunity system. Hell if no thais get sick from using raw chicken knifes and forks on their own food .. they must be doing something right. As long as you keep the dust away(i dont think lungs can get stronger?), its fine.

[Kilgore Trout]

Seeing as all the dirty thais only get small colds and rarely anything else. I enjoy letting them build my immunity system. Hell if no thais get sick from using raw chicken knifes and forks on their own food .. they must be doing something right. As long as you keep the dust away(i dont think lungs can get stronger?), its fine.

Great idea; I can provide some excess mucous, phlegm and possibly some puss for your consumption if you like

[F1fanatic]

Seeing as all the dirty thais only get small colds and rarely anything else. I enjoy letting them build my immunity system. Hell if no thais get sick from using raw chicken knifes and forks on their own food .. they must be doing something right. As long as you keep the dust away(i dont think lungs can get stronger?), its fine.

Yes, but whilst the Thais suffer few 'tummy bugs' - after being here 6 years I still get lots!

Our immune systems are not used to the germs - the Thais grew up with them and have no problems.

I agree that their way is probably better, but it doesn't work for us that have moved here....

[StreetCowboy]

Seeing as all the dirty thais only get small colds and rarely anything else. I enjoy letting them build my immunity system. Hell if no thais get sick from using raw chicken knifes and forks on their own food .. they must be doing something right. As long as you keep the dust away(i dont think lungs can get stronger?), its fine.

Yes, but whilst the Thais suffer few 'tummy bugs' - after being here 6 years I still get lots!

Our immune systems are not used to the germs - the Thais grew up with them and have no problems.

I agree that their way is probably better, but it doesn't work for us that have moved here....

I find that local staff have a higher rate of occasional illness than expatriate staff. I've not quantified it,though.

Maybe just malingering because their boss is a tyrant...

SC

[RedFxTrade]

Yes, it is an education thing, even the sticking hands in water after ''eating'' with hands, really has been a job to convince that it does nothing and that's the reason for soap dispensers everywhere in my place. The mrs is OK but some outlaws, sorry inlaws is another story, as well as preferring to piss up the wall outside the garden instead of using one of three toilets.

While I m not disagreeing with the need for hygiene, there was an interesting study done recently by a US Uni that came to the conclusion that we over use soaps and disinfectants. The result is that this actually lowers our immunity as there are millions of bacteria that are relatively "harmless" that get destroyed in the process of cleaning every germ and bacteria. The result being that our bodies never get a chance to get used to or build up resistance to them. This has been my own suspicions for a while. I think there is a happy medium. And by the way i agree with the OP that using the same cloth repeatedly is towards the negative side of the "happy medium"

[zzaa09]

What do guys expect if you marry peasant women from a third world country? No offence.

My peasant woman of a wife worked 15 years as a maid for both hiso Thai and farang households, she sure does know how to clean a house and wash dishes, I am not allowed to help her, she claims I am no good, which is wrong: I cleaned my own apartment and dishes for many years, but I won't complain these days

Indeed. Best not to <deleted> with the wife of peasantry, if you know what's good for you.

[zzaa09]

Bodies build up immunities to germs. When things are too sterile it makes a human body weak. Thais can stomp around in sewer outflows that would probably infect any westerner who tried it.

you are so right.

in the past people with a weak immunity did not survive long enough to pass their genes,now with increased hygiene and better medical care, we are creating a weaker Human race.In conjunction

with the over use of antibiotics, and bacterial killing soaps, we are creating a much stronger pathogen threat.The combination of the two,and the increase in travel, is creating a lethal combination.

Yep. Correctly stated.

[happyrobert]

I trained my wife to be houseclean as I did whit my dog My dog remember it but not my wife, its a hassle to get here clean properly. I clean my WC my self I dont bother to ask here to do it. It took me 2 years to learn my fam. not to throw litter in front of the house, now am working on the litter backhouse thing LOL Serios you have to talk very hard to improve Thais proper cleaning. Clean the fridge and clean bedsheets once a week that makes me happy. I never look at the backyard kitchen, then I dont eat. LOL

Are you saying you dog is housebroken and your wifey is not?

[MrBrad]

A remedy for some of us who prefer things a bit less germy would be to have available at the kitchen sink a simple spray bottle that contains water with a spoonful or two of liquid bleach. Throw out the old nasty rags, get new...preferably of two different solid colors: one for the floor only, the other for the countertops and tables only. When surfaces need to be wiped down, give them a light spray, and use the appropriate cloth. A bonus is that the cloth will also be kept cleaner with the regular use of the bleach. Works for me.

[happyrobert]

What do guys expect if you marry peasant women from a third world country? No offence.

Third World peasantry. Savages.

White Man's Burden.

Do you read a lot of Elmore Leonard?

[lovelaos]

A remedy for some of us who prefer things a bit less germy would be to have available at the kitchen sink a simple spray bottle that contains water with a spoonful or two of liquid bleach. Throw out the old nasty rags, get new...preferably of two different solid colors: one for the floor only, the other for the countertops and tables only. When surfaces need to be wiped down, give them a light spray, and use the appropriate cloth. A bonus is that the cloth will also be kept cleaner with the regular use of the bleach. Works for me.

:jap: problem solved

[IanForbes]

I'm convinced that the obsessive hygiene in the West has resulted in the high percentage of asthmatic kids.

Having said that, I make sure that anything that touches food remains clean... Dirt is good for children, but not so good for those that are not used to it...

That would not surprise me in the least. Asthma has increased tremendously since everyone got so germ conscious. When I was a child there were only a few kids I knew with asthma. Now it seems every family has at least one child with the affliction. There has to be some reason for the dramatic change.

[jimbeam1]

People ask why I never seem to change or get any older than what I looked like 10 years ago. I just tell them it's all the preservatives I eat daily. I don't recall ever washing any fruit or vegetables in the past 40 years or so. And, I eat a LOT of veggies and fruit. I DO wash my dishes though, in hot, soapy water. And, because I hate the taste of soap I always rinse the dishes in hot clean water. I grew up at a time when there were few if any drugs for infections. You either died or survived. If you survived you got stronger.

I always wash anything that I don't peel. My G/F even washes, peeled fruit & veg + meat.

That is probably why you looked very old 10 years ago.

jb1

[jimbeam1]

I'm convinced that the obsessive hygiene in the West has resulted in the high percentage of asthmatic kids.

Having said that, I make sure that anything that touches food remains clean... Dirt is good for children, but not so good for those that are not used to it...

That would not surprise me in the least. Asthma has increased tremendously since everyone got so germ conscious. When I was a child there were only a few kids I knew with asthma. Now it seems every family has at least one child with the affliction. There has to be some reason for the dramatic change.

Don't you think maybe air pollution could be a big problem? Just a thought.

jb1

[RedFxTrade]

I'm convinced that the obsessive hygiene in the West has resulted in the high percentage of asthmatic kids.

Having said that, I make sure that anything that touches food remains clean... Dirt is good for children, but not so good for those that are not used to it...

That would not surprise me in the least. Asthma has increased tremendously since everyone got so germ conscious. When I was a child there were only a few kids I knew with asthma. Now it seems every family has at least one child with the affliction. There has to be some reason for the dramatic change.

Don't you think maybe air pollution could be a big problem? Just a thought.

jb1

There are at least 40 peer reviewed literature papers online that say that the over use of microbe fighting soaps and disinfectant have led to lower immunity to infections. These microbial soaps were only meant for hospitals initially, but became more and more prevalent in the home. I m not a scientist, but I can read up on others who do know more than me have researched. There is also evidence that "superbugs" can be blamed on over use micro soaps etc etc. Having spent a fair amount of time in India, I know that once I got the initial stomach infection and didnt fight it with immodium and such that my body got used to them, and has built up resistance.