One golden-rule here is not to lend to locals, especially without security, the next is not to lend to other farangs either.

Not excluding brothers-in-law, or other family-members, who want to buy a car as a taxi, or a herd of soon-to-be-sick buffalo, or start a village-shop/petrol-station.

The theory seems to be, if you can afford to lend it, then you can afford to loose it too, so they needn't bother to repay any loan ! Oh, and you won't expect to see any interest either, as you're a multi-millionaire, already.

Your wife will sometimes have your financial-interests at-heart, but is also expected to help the rest of her family, especially ma/pa, Use your discretion !

Explain politely that you'd love to help them, but that the Global-Financial-Crisis or strong Baht, unfortunately make it impossible at present ... Sorry !

Bravo, Ricardo! You have learned the Eastern Ways. I am not so flexible and prefer a NO. Usually said emphatically it stops the conversation dead.

Pardon the lack of sophistication...

I believe that one more Golden-Rule, applying specifically to newbie-husbands/boyfriends from Farangland, is not to appear too rich or generous, too early-on. It is so very painful to reign things in, later on, if you've sent the wrong signals during the early days.

Outstanding, I enjoyed reading your two posts.

"Must of been an escort service"

Ha ha your way off the mark, its textiles and management / training services

Mrs Stiggy would have it fed to the ducks if I did go that route

I was offered to buy in a company in Thailand (9 years ago) for the cost of a car in Europe. This was from some one I had then met twice, first time at a beach BBQ.

Business is always a risk there is no sure thing, especially out here. I took that risk,we still own the company we started and have done great from it. It also opened so many other doors that it changed my life.

Really? With stories like this, many more gullible farangs will surely get fleeced. Care to share what type of business you invested in?

See post above, but to expand Training and management company for tourism (water sports based) and then specialist textiles for marine industry.

After living here for 25 years , No one has ever asked me to invest in anything,

not even the wife !

So its either the company you keep or you just look like a mark, or both.

Regards Worgeordie

I have never been approached in Thailand to invest, other than some pretty slick boiler room callers who got my name from business cards dropped at business social events (learned that lesson...)

But the first rule when looking for funding (and looking for sex, by the way): You don't ask, you don't get.

I read somewhere that if you ask 10 hot girls if they will sex you up, one of them will say yes. I've also found out through personal experience that if I ask zero hot girls, I sleep alone.

So I enjoyed listening to the ideas back in China, and learned a lot even though the odds of my investing were pretty low... Gotta admire someone with the balls to ask for what they want. Maybe the 10th guy they asked made them rich.

That was in early and mid 2000's China where western restaurants doubled as bars and the only place to eat western food. Here in Thailand, western restaurants stand on their own so I don't hang out in bars any more (don't drink). Maybe there's a correlation there?

Edited April 24, 201313 yr by impulse

After living here for 25 years , No one has ever asked me to invest in anything,

not even the wife !

So its either the company you keep or you just look like a mark, or both.

Regards Worgeordie

Of course, it's probably more likely that you just don't get out much

After living here for 25 years , No one has ever asked me to invest in anything,

not even the wife !

So its either the company you keep or you just look like a mark, or both.

Regards Worgeordie

Of course, it's probably more likely that you just don't get out much

How did you know, second sight, just what ThaiVisa needs another wise cracking Farang,why bother posting if you have nothing constructive to say, Just going out the door, regards Worgeordie

After living here for 25 years , No one has ever asked me to invest in anything,

not even the wife !

So its either the company you keep or you just look like a mark, or both.

Regards Worgeordie

Of course, it's probably more likely that you just don't get out much

How did you know, second sight, just what ThaiVisa needs another wise cracking Farang,why bother posting if you have nothing constructive to say, Just going out the door, regards Worgeordie

Er . . . yeah.

Whatever you say, Mr. I've-been-here-25-years-so-I-should-know.

I guess your original assertion wasn't a wise-cracking, farang generalisation, was it ??

Shame we can't all keep company as obviously exalted as you do and look too smart to be approached, eh??

After living here for 25 years , No one has ever asked me to invest in anything,

not even the wife !

So its either the company you keep or you just look like a mark, or both.

Regards Worgeordie

Of course, it's probably more likely that you just don't get out much

How did you know, second sight, just what ThaiVisa needs another wise cracking Farang,why bother posting if you have nothing constructive to say, Just going out the door, regards Worgeordie

Er . . . yeah.

Whatever you say, Mr. I've-been-here-25-years-so-I-should-know.

I guess your original assertion wasn't a wise-cracking, farang generalisation, was it ??

Shame we can't all keep company as obviously exalted as you do and look too smart to be approached, eh??

Just a wild guess, it's not that you have been asked and have invested in artificial flowers sold to 5 star hotels is it ?

How did you know, second sight, just what ThaiVisa needs another wise cracking Farang,why bother posting if you have nothing constructive to say, Just going out the door, regards Worgeordie

Er . . . yeah.

Whatever you say, Mr. I've-been-here-25-years-so-I-should-know.

I guess your original assertion wasn't a wise-cracking, farang generalisation, was it ??

Shame we can't all keep company as obviously exalted as you do and look too smart to be approached, eh??

Just a wild guess, it's not that you have been asked and have invested in artificial flowers sold to 5 star hotels is it ?

Good one, pbrain, but no, not at all.

Still, nice of you to remember details of my posts, though.

How did you know, second sight, just what ThaiVisa needs another wise cracking Farang,why bother posting if you have nothing constructive to say, Just going out the door, regards Worgeordie

Er . . . yeah.

Whatever you say, Mr. I've-been-here-25-years-so-I-should-know.

I guess your original assertion wasn't a wise-cracking, farang generalisation, was it ??

Shame we can't all keep company as obviously exalted as you do and look too smart to be approached, eh??

Just a wild guess, it's not that you have been asked and have invested in artificial flowers sold to 5 star hotels is it ?

Good one, pbrain, but no, not at all.

Still, nice of you to remember details of my posts, though.

Just in case you missed it, it's J not P.

Or did you mean Peeh as in the older, reputable one ?

Edited April 24, 201313 yr by jbrain