Bob

Well, there's always Khun Thaiworthy and his enigma machine! The "wrecking ball" comment comes from the name of Springsteen's latest album and Madonna actually did buy her daddy (Mr. Cicilli - if I have the spelling right) a vinyard very close to my home in the midwest USA. I totally missed the Cobain photo but somewhat recognized him once Khun Khortose said the name (but it is hard tfor me to believe that the cute smiling waif in the photo turned out to be "the" Kurt Cobain).

If you would have gone from international to domestic or vice-versa, you wouldn't have been. I hated Don Mueang for that reason alone.....the thousand yard walk through the allegedly air-conditioned elevated tunnel. In Swampy, going from domestic to international and vice-versa is easier than in any airport I've ever used (well, other than the Chiangmai airport).

I was guessing Jim Morrison for #2 ("bra-dtuu" means Door in Thai). You could be right on #3 although my wild guess was John Denver. I think you're dead wrong, though, on #5 and maybe you ought to go out and have a cheesesteak sandwich or something. And I do believe #4 bought her daddy a vinyard.

I know #1 and #4 & #5 (won't say the names as it's early in the game) but am not sure of #2 and #3. Somewhat wild guesses for #2 (maybe front man for the "bra-dtuu?") and for #3 (sorta looks like a former "nak-krueng-bin"). The guy in #5, though, clearly would like to use a wrecking ball on you for posting that goofy photo.

I have it on good authority (being my own eyes) that they proceeded to pray and make merit at one of the local temples. On the other hand, I lie a lot.

The story is fascinating for a lot of reasons but what interests me the most is the dissemination of internal China politics all over the place. Some of it apears intentional and some not (it's the "not" part that I like and that's perhaps a sign that China, like most other countries, is losing it's grip on its usually tight control of information). The article in the New York Times the other day disclosed that Bo was in the habit of wiretapping/hacking the telephones of communist party officials when they came into Bo's province, allegedly for the reason so he could listen into what party officials were saying about him. Strange (and, in my view, also exhibits some clear stupidity and paranoia on Bo's part). And I see CNN is reporting today that Bo's son was ticketed a few times last year driving an expensive Porsche in the states. He didn't own the car but they have the guy's name (sounds like he's Chinese, perhaps) and I'm sure the "rest of the story" will be out soon. The son might be a bit smarter to figure out what's really going on in China before choosing to return.

I quit flying Northwest (now part of Delta) about 2005 when it became almost impossible to use miles to upgrade your ticket. Before then, it was fairly routine but, for whatever reason, they then decided to make it damn near impossible. I always purchased my tickets at least 3-6 months ahead of time and, when I couldn't find a date that allowed an upgrade, I finally called a reservation agent and explained my problem. He wasn't much help and insisted that I give him a given date. I was pissed so gave him 20-30 different dates, keeping him on the phone for a long time. No upgrades on any of the flights, he said, although we were talking about flights 5-6 months in the future. Finally, I told him that their upgrade program was a fraud and I asked if there was any flight within the next 10 years that I could get an upgrade. When he said he couldn't tell me that and I had to pick another date and he would check, I hung up on the bastard. Since then, I've flown EVA. I've used EVA miles with EVA a couple of times and they seem to run the program how it ought to run....if you have the miles, you get an available seat (i.e., they don't seem to limit the number of "upgradeable" seats on an airplane).

My guess is they consider all the tricks they do are rather magical. You should stop by there sometime. And, if you could somehow pull a rabbit out of the momasan's orifice, she'd absolutely screech at such a hair-raising event!

All I've learned so far from this unfolding fiasco is (1) the involved Chinese company can't be trusted whatsoever and (2) somebody should have verified the track record and capabilities of any company involved in the bidding process before allowing them to bid. I don't necessarily disagree with the concept of providing the tablets to the grade school students but the process of approving the deals has been amateurish and wishful thinking at best. Combine that with an apparent fly-by-night company in China and one could have predicted the nightmare that unfolds before our eyes. They need to start over with the whole process now that the selected supplier is obviously a somewhat worthless outfit. It's more important to get the proper equipment and software from a company that can back up the guarantees than to worry about exactly when the kiddies will get the tablets. At least they didn't send somebody down to buy them at the night market...

I'd call that a preference and, while I don't hate ladyboys at all, they sure are not my preference. Unfortunately, over the years - from Bangkok to Pattaya to Phuket to Chiangmai - my early experiences with ladyboys weren't very positive. Typicallly they were the pushy/screechy mamasans at the first few Thai gay bars I ever patronized. The worst fights (only a few) I've seen in Thailand have been between ladyboys. And then, of course, there are the ladyboy lip synchers in the bar shows who simply make me shudder and inherently compel me to beat the world's speed record running for the exit. So, other than my normal preference (where I got that, hell if I know - maybe it came in a box of Post Toasties), I'm fairly sure that these early experiences in Thai gay bars probably had something to do why I somewhat avoid ladyboys.

I'm still working up to that class; on the other hand, Leona Helmsley does help me at the guest house determine if we should fold the hand towels from the left or the right.

Somewhat reminds me of an ex-sister-in-law who, following the divorce, kept wearing a t-shirt that read: If they can put one man on the moon, why can't they put them all there! Wonder what you call a tranny who's had the slossen cut-off that likes pussy? I'd guess "out of luck."

Heck, if we add up all the women of the world who definitely like dick and add in the men who definitely like dick, it appears we gays are now in the majority! B)

Lol. As much as I hate to do this, I have a sister-in-law (one of those blonde U of M fans) who's gonna love that photo. And, besides, I graduated cumma sum budweiser!

Sorry but I can't let this go unchallenged. Good god, man (Khun Thaiworthy), if you find either Khun Khortose or myself "fascinating", you need to get out more!

I've heard that! Think I first saw it written on the bathroom wall of some shady venue..... But I'm glad you got the enigma machine working as, without it, I didn't have a clue either. And I second Ceejay's comments about Laos. I've only been to Luang Prabang but I didn't notice that the prices there were any more expensive than here in Chiangmai. On the other hand, if you exchange $100.00 (US) for Lao kip, you'll feel like a rich man carrying a wheelbarrow full of money down the road....hehe.

I'm not so sure about your thought that there aren't raving wackos constantly attempting to peck away at some of the boards. Good moderation, however, keeps that under control. Sort of like mom or dad when the kiddies start fighting. Sometimes I don't think that the advocates of "free speech" on message boards understand that the normal social controls that modify behavior just don't work (or don't work well) on the internet. Back in your hometown or in your school or in your home or in your workplace, there exists a whole range of human behaviors that actually modify the comments and behavior of jerks, rude ones, wackos, or whatever. Even with a group of strangers conversing, there's a whole range of human reactions (from body language, isolation, telling somebody to "fuck off", and, in the worst scenario, ultimately tossing somebody out the door with or without a broken nose) which modify behaviors. In other words, almost all of these total idiots wouldn't have the balls to behave in normal society as they do on the message boards. In a away, they are cowards in real life (having learned through experience how people react to their petty nonsense) but all of a sudden can be "brave" (but still idiots) on a message board and nobody (other, ultimately, than a moderator) can cause them to modify their behavior. You've mentioned that Sawatdee has changed.....less petty fighting, I imagine....and that is due to moderation. That's fine by me as I quit posting there a couple of years ago because of the morons being given free range to disrupt and totally alter the character of that board. And I wasn't the only regular poster who exited when the food fight began. You may want to sift through the crap (hundreds of posts) that was being spewed out by just 3 or 4 posters but I didn't so I left. If there's some reasonable moderation now, maybe I'll consider rejoining the fray over there. I happen to like the normal social controls and human reactions that modify people's behavior in real life and real time. But, since we can't have that on the internet, then next best thing in my view is some reasonable moderation. And, like mom and dad attempting to keep their kiddies in line occasionally, they're not going to get it right some of the time. Fine by me.

We (Chiangmai) had rain four evenings (or late afternoons) in a row about a week ago and that was unusual, perhaps an indication that the rainy season might be coming a little early this year; however, no rain at all for the last 5-6 days and yesterday and today it turned hotter than hell. I'd guess it was at least 100F (you metric folks can figure out the centigrade for that one) this afternoon. Prior to about the 1st of March, we are quite a bit cooler than Bangkok or southern regions. Nice and cool in the mornings and late evenings and not too hot in the afternoons. But I've noticed in the last week or two that our afternoons are now hotter than places far south of Chiangmai. But this isn't abnormal at all in late March and April. Looks like there'll be a couple of weeks of really hot weather and then it ought to cool a little by early May (likely with a little more regular rainfall - which usually means 20-40 minutes of rain in the late afternoon). I would note that the air quality has been a whole lot better in the last 10 days. While the rains we had surely helped, perhaps some of the field burnings all over the north have abated (which is logical as it's closing in on the time to plant new crops). I would note that it didn't seem all that hot during part of yesterday afternoon (while Khun Khortose and others were bombarding me with bazooka water canons and buckets of ice water). And that was inside the friggin' bar!

I'd guess the answer to Michael's question would largely depend on whether you live or spend long time periods in Thailand and your age and prior experiences. When I vacationed here, I was out doing something almost every night and typically it would be a gay venue mixed with ample quantities of alcohol. Now, however, I rarely even get tipsy and maybe go out once or twice a week. Typically, like Khun Khortose, going out is for socializing (i.e., haven't been in a gogo bar in months and probably won't anytime in the near future - been there, done that, got bored).

I'll be in the middle of the warzone tomorrow and will know better then. I walked out in front of the mall at 1PM today and everything was pretty dry. I saw 3-4 people with those large squirt guns with that "look" in their eyes (it's that look that says "oh, there's a falang, I think I'll go get his ass wet). I retreated into the mall (was just there to pay a couple of bills and grab a Bangkok Post). Vendors had set up tables/booths on both sides of the Huey Gaew - mainly near the mall area - selling various items (I saw a gabillion squirt guns/canons, hats, and whatever). I walked home from the back side of the mall and saw no water-tossing but that's fairly normal as the main war begins tomorrow (13th). Was told that Soho was partying a little today with free hotdogs and whatever. Tomorrow is supposed to be free baloney sandwiches (which might mean I've lucked out since I'll mainly be elsewhere!). I do know I'll be soaked tomorrow but I'm prepared for it and will likely retreat home to dry off by about 4PM. We'll see.

You won't have any problem with communication with respect to the job interview would be my guess - given you say the staff there all speak and write in very good English. As to advice on how to handle the interview, I don't have a clue (other than be sure to wear respectful clothing - a while shirt and dress pants would fit the bill) and be polite. As to your ability to talk conversational English with boys from the commercial scene, sorry, it generally isn't going to happen. Most of them don't speak much English and many or most of them haven't finished high school (many from the north were out of school after junior high school). And, given the generally terrible education that the masses receive (they're simply not taught how to think), you might be surprised on how little they know (and, in some cases, are willing to talk about) even if they had the ability. I've always attempted to talk with the boys first but, back in those days, I rarely got too much past the "where are you from, how many brothers and sisters do you have, what's dad do for a living, etc.) level and I only got that far because I could ask those questions in Thai.

Just a wee bit of an understatement! #1 and #4 are well beyond cute..... Don't remember the temple name but I was there several years ago for Teachers'/Confucius Day festivities. Beautiful cermonies and temple.

I suppose it's possible, KT, but I don't think the OP is asking about English proficiency in the sense of helping him assess his teaching English to them. But, what the heck, I could be wrong as I often don't have a clue. So, Citycolor, what is it you're really asking? Fair question, I think, given three readers (two of whom have some proficiency in English.....I say only "two" just to keep somebody guessing) have three different interpretations.

I'll give you an "A" with respect to the novelty of the question. I've been around various boards for 15+ years and I don't think I've ever seen the question posed. That is, presuming I even understand what you mean here. So, wondering if you'd first indicate what you mean by "level of proficiency." Do you simply mean their (I do presume you're talking about barboys here) ability to converse in English or do you also mean their ability to converse on interesting and/or intellectual topics?

As the regulars now realize it didn't sound like Michael and as Michael has said he didn't make the original post in this thread, wouldn't the correct solution be for a moderator or owner to simply delete the entire thread? Hate to give any airtime to somebody playing a nasty game.