Sailfast

I am a lacto vegatarian and get along fine in LOS. However, I was taken aback by the lack of vegatarian stuff. I imagined a vegatarian heaven...NOT. If you eat Tofu you can get all the protien you need. Also, most 7/11's sell soy milk. I'm not sure if Soy protien fits into your diet though. Edemame is easy to find, but this is cooked. I would be very wary of the water in soaked seeds/sprouts. The thai word for tofu is tow hoo (or something like that). As you have been there before you know that raw unpeeled fruit is not problem to find. I would imagine that raw nuts would also be easy to find. Since your diet sounds strict, I am going to assume you don't drink. You can use the time that the rest of us using drinking to graze Sailfast

Sorry, that 80% was a US figure. I should have been more specific. Sailfast

Not really. THEY are worried about the charges because if they are fraud...the bank must cover the loss (or maybe they are insured, but YOU don't pay) They act like it's good will on the part of the bank but that is bull shit. If YOU over draw with your atm, then they get to charge you, even though they approved the transaction. I read that banks now make 80%+ of their income from fees. Fuckers! Once I paid my mortgage twice by mistake. They cleared the first check, then bounced the second BUT held my money for something like 48 hrs till the "check return" was processed. In the mean time all the other checks I wrote (not knowing I wrote duplicate checks) starting bouncing around like ping pong balls. Then the return check fees started, then they let me overdraw my atm...fuckers fuckers, fuckers. I bitched and screamed till they cancelled most of the fees but they are still fuckers. I have so many bank stories, but so little time Sailfast

I know it's still a long way off but I'm thinking of booking a ff ticket now for Nov. Just wondering if it will still be the first week of Nov? United's ff schedule for Nov. seems wide open now so I might as well just do it. Sailfast

I agree. I think they both build wonderful aircraft. Also, I have to add that imho these arguements are rather silly. Sailfast

I'll settle for being the poolside lackey. What kind of 401K match will you be offering? Sailfast

Here is my take. If the hotel is filling up and you are not there yet, they will over book without a cc to hold the room and charge you if you are a no show. Just like airlines they sometimes over book. If the room is paid for and you don't show up, well, it's one less room to clean but has been paid for in full. Asia Hotel, BKK, screwed me w/o lube on 3 rooms my first night in BKK. I did not send them a cc # so I had no recourse. For the record they also charge 600b joiner fee so fuckem. Sailfast

The responce had as much chance of being penned by sailfast as the original letter being penned by Cleese Thanks for the nice remarks, but, I did not write the responce. I thought you guys would pick up on the sarcasm...oops. I did make a few modifications. Regards, Sailfast

I think he does live in the US, but not sure. Anyway, we love UK humor. Keep it coming That telletubies thing scares the shit out of me though. Can you make that go away? Sailfast

Lemons, OK, so what you are telling me is that this Faulty Towers show that has been airing on American TV for years is a comedy? GASP! So what you are saying is Benny Hill is funny? So where does DR Who fall into this? Oh, wait I forgot you probably can't see these shows on UK telly anymore. Well, pop on over for a beer and I'll catch you up on all the latest re-runs from classic British television. I'll bet the BBC is still airing The Dukes of Hazard though (I still haven't figured that one out). Sailfast

John Cleese; funniest guy in the world, however, he did not pen this letter. This letter has been going back and forth in various forms SINCE NOVEMBER 8 OF THE YEAR 2000! Some are funny, others not so funny. The original letter only had four articles. What may be the second version of the letter encouraged us to "Nuke France and Quebec". Some of the not so funny stuff was replaced by funnier stuff bit by bit. Some of the versions are really rather stale, witless and don't have that British humor/zeal. Some will find the above paragraph interesting and do their own research. After all, if you can read this, the word "research" is nothing more than typing the word "google" or "snopes.com" I do find it annoying that people go nuts over this letter because they assume John Cleese wrote it. Not flaming anyone here, just that this type of "internet rumor" gets my goat. Don't get me wrong, I do think the letter is very funny, but, I am also a big J.C. fan. Just for fun, Sailfast has penned this letter to John Cleese. TO: John Cleese SUBJECT: NOTICE OF REVOCATION OF INDEPENDENCE CC: the citizens of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: FROM: Sailfast John, We welcome your concern about our electoral process. It must be exciting for you to see a real Republic in action, even if from a distance. As always we're amused by your quaint belief that you're actually a world power. The sun never sets on the British Empire! Right-o chum! However, we regretfully have to decline your offer for intervention. On the other hand, it would be amusing to see you try to enforce your new policy (for the 96.3% of you that seem to have forgotten that you have little to no real power). After much deliberation, we have decided to continue our tradition as the longest running democratic republic. It seems that switching to a monarchy is in fact considered a "backwards step" by the majority of the world. To help you rise from your current anachronistic status, we have compiled a series of helpful suggestions that we hope you adopt: 1. Realize that language is an organic structure, and that you cannot always correct in your pronunciation or spelling. Let's use your "aluminium" example. Sir Humphrey Davy (an Englishman) invented the name "aluminum" (note spelling) for the metal. However, in common usage the name evolved into "aluminium" to match the naming convention of other elements. In 1925 the United States decided to switch back to the original spelling and pronunciation of the word, at which point we dominated the aluminum industry. We'd also like to point out that the process of actually producing aluminum was developed by an American and a Frenchman (not an Englishman). However, we'd like to thank you for the Oxford English Dictionary. It's an interesting collection, considering that over 10,000 of the words in the original edition were submitted by a crazy American civil-war veteran called Dr. William Charles Minor. Did I mention he was in prison for murder at the time? 2. Learn to distinguish the American and Canadian accents, and then we'll talk about the English and Australian accent issue. 3. Review your basic arithmetic. (Hint 100 - 98.85 = 1.15 and 100 - 97.85 = 2.15) 4. If you want English actors as good guys, then make your own movies. Don't rely on us for your modern popular culture. We liked "Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels", "Trainspotting", and "The Full Monty". We've also heard good things about this "Billy Elliot". But one good movie a year doesn't exactly make a cultural powerhouse. However, you're doing pretty well with music, so keep up the good work on that front. 5. It's inefficient to have a national anthem that changes its title whenever your monarch dies. Let's not forget that your national anthem has an extremely boring tune. We suggest switching to that Rule Brittania ditty, it's toetapping. Or maybe Elton John could adapt "Candle In The Wind" again for you guys. 6. Improve at your national sport. This just in: United States gets fourth place in men's soccer at the 2000 Summer Olympics. United Kingdom? Not even close. By the way, impressive showing at Euro 2000. You almost managed to get through the tournament without having your fans start an international incident. If you don't like American Football please simply turn off your telly (yes we know your dirty little secret)! 7. Learn how to cook. England has some top notch candy. Salt 'n' Vinegar chips are quite yummy. However, there's a reason why the best food in your country is Indian or Chinese. Your contributions to the culinary arts are soggy beans, boiled meat and spotted dick. Perhaps when you finally realize Americans aren't the spawn of satan we will teach you how to cook. 8. You're doing a terrible job at understanding cars. The obvious error is that you drive on the wrong side of the road. A second problem is pricing, it's cheaper to buy a car in Belgium and ship it to England than to buy a car in England. On the other hand, we like Jaguars and Aston Martins. That's why we bought the companies. 9. We'll tell you who killed JFK when you apologize for "Teletubbies". Thank you for your time. Yu can now return to watching bad Australian soap operas. p.s. Mark my words! The 2006 world cup will be dominated by the Underdog US team. Regards, Sailfast

I will have to give the fabric the trial by fire next time. Good idea! In my situation the fabric, even if not 100% wool, seems to do the job. Bear in mind that I put my suits through hell. An $85.00 suit will get retired almost as quickly as a $500.00 suit, I just won't feel the guilt. Ten tailored suits that last a year (or longer) cost me 850 bucks. That is a bargain for me. If I was getting one or two suits for weddings, funerals and the occasional formal I would spend the money and get a very high quality custom suit. You can still do this in LOS and save $$ by going to a highly reputable tailor. In Bangkok: www.Ravistailor.com Not sure if it's all hype but supposedly he has made dresses for Barbara Bush, etc. and loads of Secret Service guys go to him because he fits the suit so perfect you can't see the weapon(s). The $85.00 suit I buy seems about equal to the $250.00 - $350.00 "on sale reg. $500.00" suit I would buy at home. Plus I would have to pay for tailoring. Your mileage may vary. Sailfast

Some are, some are not. Like everything else in life. Maybe most sound like con men because of the amount of competition? Siam Tailors are good. Go left out the FLB, cross about 100 yrds (or so) down walking steet. Tell him Robert and the casino boys from CT sent you. He will probably through you out on your ear when you tell him that The shirt guy is kind of annoying and really sounds like a con man but in the end he did reallly good work. I never even tried on the final cut and everything was pre paid and shipped to the US. No complaints and I (we) will be buying more suits from him soon I hope. I paid $85 US/ two piece suit. and $10 US/shirt. I did however buy a decent quantity. Sailfast

How much? Thanks, Sailfast

If the lines in a draught system are not cleaned regularly the beer will start to taste like shit. You don't want to know what the inside of some of those lines look like. I am 100% sure that many bars in water down the booze. Try drinking JW straight and you will be ok (I think), harder to water scotch without it getting lighter in color and many people drink it straight. The Bacardi has to be watered in some places because I have drank gallons of the stuff and not been smasher OR had a headache the next day. Sailfast

Just wondering, how long does your united flight take and where are your stops? I have done the United from Prov RI, to Chicago, to Tokyo, to BKK route and it was hell. I don't envy you How long would a drive to JFK take? I use the park/sleep/fly package at the JFK Ramada (not much of a hotel, but..) 180 bucks for the room and 10 days of parking if memory serves me. Then JFK to BKK direct 17 hrs on Thai. That shower just before going to the airport is nice, no traffic worries as the hotel is at the airport. You can use your United ff number for Thai air. Sailfast

If that map is the Thai air map on the Thaiair.com, I don't think it has much meaning. I booked 5 round trips last time, all in row 44. Two of us ended up in row 44 on the way out, none on the return. There where NO infants in that row on either flight. I think the $199 is a "last minute offer" at JFK check in if there are seats available for an upgrade. The price is not regularly 199. We asked about purchasing this upgrade in BKK and they said it is never offered from BKK. Not sure if this is true, but that is what they told us at BKK check in. Also, Thai offered us the uprgrade at JFK and when we said yes they directed us to another line where we waited for 30 MINUTES. Only to be told that there where no seats available! Man was I pissed! Sailfast

I use etickets. Bring a copy of the email and the card you used to pay for the seat. Many airlines in the US will not let you on the plane unless the paying cardmember is present. Some won't even let you book an eticket for another person unless you will be traveling with them. For example, last trip there where 5 of us. Thaiair's website only allows 4 names at a time and one of them must be the card holder. So we had to book two seperate times with two diferent peoples credit cards. Sailfast

Check out Solar Golf. They did great by us. Even managed to get my buddy name brands in the flex he needed. Mine turned out to be all nice Taylor Made clubs. callum@solargolf.co.uk Sailfast

Very FUNNY! Sailfast

Great advice. I will add one more. When in doubt, "lay up". This means if you can't hit the ball 250 out of the fairway, don't even try. Just hit the ball a nice easy 150, then a second shot onto the green. Trying to smash it longer than possible only make you play worse and get frustrated. Sailfast

Thanks to everyone for the time spent forwarding sites and sharing knowledge. It has been very helpful. I still have not settled on a camera but I am much closer than I was a couple of weeks ago. Now, how about a Steves-bargirls.com ?? Sailfast

I know there have been some recent threads about digital cameras but I'm still confused! I'm looking for a new camera and this is worse than car shopping. The models change so fast I can't keep up. I'm hoping to get some information from the real photo experts! Price? I don't know how much to spend. I will mostly be using this camera while on vacation a few weeks a year so it is hard for me to justify spending more than $300 US. That being said, I want something I will still be happy with in a years time. Portability is important. I would prefer something I can carry in my pocket. Video is important. I won't be taking long video shots, just short clips, but I would like something that can take quality video. I'm also considering one of the smaller digital video cameras but how do they stack up for still shots? Rechargable battery? I'm thinking I would rather just be able to buy a replacement battery at 7/11 if need be. That being said I have never owned a camera that I could recharge so maybe they are better. Zoom? I would like to get as much zoom as possible but I don't want to be changing lenses. The more I shop, the more confused I get. Thanks in advance for your help, Sailfast

If you are looking for more of a traditional holiday consider Phuket. There is no shortage of nightlife but it gets going later than Pattaya. The water is cleaner, beach is amazing, etc. Some girls took rayray and I to a cabarat show in the gay area on a night out. Seemed like a pretty crazy block, also looked cleaner than Pattaya. Sailfast

The round trip I was on last month was pretty much full both ways. I think they have reduced the trips to every other day or so. I hope they can keep it up, it's a nice flight. The Thai flight crew was top notch. Food was only OK though. Singha was perfect Sailfast