<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.blogger.com/styles/atom.css" type="text/css"?><feed xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:openSearch='http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/' xmlns:blogger='http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008' xmlns:georss='http://www.georss.org/georss' xmlns:gd="http://schemas.google.com/g/2005" xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497</id><updated>2024-10-07T12:07:02.392+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Chiang Mai Chatter Box</title><subtitle type='html'>A collection of vague ramblings from a &#xa;&#39;Geordie&#39; expat now ensconced in the &#xa;beautiful mountains and valleys of Northern Thailand who has &#xa;nothing better to do with his time.</subtitle><link rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default?redirect=false'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/'/><link rel='hub' href='http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><generator version='7.00' uri='http://www.blogger.com'>Blogger</generator><openSearch:totalResults>20</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>25</openSearch:itemsPerPage><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-1215491957377961908</id><published>2018-11-22T18:02:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-11-22T18:59:17.181+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Geordie&#39;s Platter</title><content type='html'>My mother would have been proud of me. Just cooked a big dollop of pease pudding, Geordie style and a very tasty cottage pie...Kempie style. Out of his world, or as some might say &quot;yummy yummy&quot;, not my favourite word to sum up my exquisite cooking, but some seem to like it. A few beers tonight should add the finishing touch&lt;br /&gt;
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Brings back the rhyme:&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;i&gt;&lt;b&gt;Pease pudding hot&amp;nbsp;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;i&gt;&lt;b&gt;Pease pudding cold,&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;i&gt;&lt;b&gt;Pease pudding in the pot,&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;i&gt;&lt;b&gt;Nine days old.&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
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Not exactly Lord Tennyson, but brings back a few memories all the same. Remember taking fresh pease pudding and freshly cooked ham stuffed into a stotty (Geordie loaf) down the pit when I was a young bairn of 16. My pit pony, Jackie, loved them. Not sure who farted the most, me or Jackie.&lt;br /&gt;
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</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/1215491957377961908/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2018/11/geordies-platter.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/1215491957377961908'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/1215491957377961908'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2018/11/geordies-platter.html' title='Geordie&#39;s Platter'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4fYm3bzYy7V3UItGDVaHrDw661SIsIn9MASCBKmPRb_Ka9m4VWKtYaJeyu8yhygqHxmsT9byG-yhwg9y3wLhSpZvxqMxaj7PnyXnO1I6spH-qSvDwMOQdF7Nsd2XsCb4zbh4FQR65BZY/s72-c/pease-pudding-photo.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-1227555857087980977</id><published>2018-11-15T19:08:00.001+07:00</published><updated>2021-07-22T08:11:23.543+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Rejoice </title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_nZe8dYPVppAcEHNvibYtCCpznomUcNEhxRmA6roL5SQfMCqbBTo0652sJYuoGAIavGuDa5pekiN4gmMgA8o858ZtMK8TDaPg3F0_fZO4jn5i1Kzyf_2mhgNSHm4de54KyweWjzYwsAg/s1600/unnamed.png&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; data-original-height=&quot;280&quot; data-original-width=&quot;771&quot; height=&quot;143&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_nZe8dYPVppAcEHNvibYtCCpznomUcNEhxRmA6roL5SQfMCqbBTo0652sJYuoGAIavGuDa5pekiN4gmMgA8o858ZtMK8TDaPg3F0_fZO4jn5i1Kzyf_2mhgNSHm4de54KyweWjzYwsAg/s400/unnamed.png&quot; width=&quot;400&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
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Just back from an enlightening 2 day trip to Fang and all points north into the hills and valleys of northern Thailand. As I had visited that part of the countryside on several occasions previously, the trip in itself, although passing through many scenic locations, didn&#39;t qualify to be described as&amp;nbsp; enlightening. What made it enlightening was what I experienced while there and the sweet and sour memories that lingered with me on my return journey. Sweet because I witnessed first-hand the incredible inner strength that some of the people I met displayed and made me feel humble in their presence. Sour because of the effects of the stigma some others were forced to endure from their neighbours and sometimes their own loved ones. I am talking, of course, about the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;a 1=&quot;&quot; href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtWwq9KHG8I7Hvgz8-L-8Pdtw8BS1YEMqNBt2CEM0yNFGwLm9ZHmtcPvXl0dkUT9bu1L0UnEp5D5cnLm8h3IQFBGHeVOIWfI6hkwbi4NBIsyZHUVl4hH2RX75zpvtUtb43_CueXIbyIrqt/s1600/Arm_Baby.jpg%20imageanchor=&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;148&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtWwq9KHG8I7Hvgz8-L-8Pdtw8BS1YEMqNBt2CEM0yNFGwLm9ZHmtcPvXl0dkUT9bu1L0UnEp5D5cnLm8h3IQFBGHeVOIWfI6hkwbi4NBIsyZHUVl4hH2RX75zpvtUtb43_CueXIbyIrqt/s200/Arm_Baby.jpg&quot; width=&quot;133&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;
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&lt;span style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;I was fortunate to be in the company of 3 hard working and totally dedicated young gentleman, employed by the northern Thailand charity foundation &quot;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://rejoicecharity.com/&quot; style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;u&gt;Rejoice Charity&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&quot;. They are affectionately known as &quot;The Three Men and A Truck&quot; charity by the local communities and HIV patients they cheerfully present with, Formula Milk, sweets, snacks, cast-off clothing but most of all a listening ear and ever-ready words of sympathy&amp;nbsp;and understanding, something which can be in very short supply in their local community. Their role in&amp;nbsp; supporting children, families and communities in rural Chiang Mai Province can be a daunting and sometimes thankless task and one which, unfortunately, the end is not in sight. Read more about them and the work they do &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://rejoicecharity.com/staff&quot; style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;u&gt;here&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-5gORddzj5vEEFpYAKMRnkE1MJ8M4w9ep284F1S2mJ9o4bZx9wfAYjnR4E4cpnBTzEywS84MSBE2idbLjLJXfqMD0kx7rYFUvKSoYghbcsve26mTw99M0Ydexg3763vq4RZu2-tGdMnYE/s1600/Giving.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;148&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-5gORddzj5vEEFpYAKMRnkE1MJ8M4w9ep284F1S2mJ9o4bZx9wfAYjnR4E4cpnBTzEywS84MSBE2idbLjLJXfqMD0kx7rYFUvKSoYghbcsve26mTw99M0Ydexg3763vq4RZu2-tGdMnYE/s320/Giving.jpg&quot; width=&quot;200&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo8-PirRIQBgbtkGi3mbNxLpSoC00_B3gY0k67-ieX9qy7Ys-oe218F8ogBJbBHE-sZPEibWvcNVQ7DwxEexfMfbWM4YvtX5P6_jzGWFESPEoNSzc1z1OgixFFWEneiquAfh0Aqiyr4ycH/s1600/care+worker+give.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;148&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo8-PirRIQBgbtkGi3mbNxLpSoC00_B3gY0k67-ieX9qy7Ys-oe218F8ogBJbBHE-sZPEibWvcNVQ7DwxEexfMfbWM4YvtX5P6_jzGWFESPEoNSzc1z1OgixFFWEneiquAfh0Aqiyr4ycH/s320/care+worker+give.jpg&quot; width=&quot;180&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt; &lt;/tr&gt;
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&lt;span style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;During all the time I spent with them, which included an overnight stay in a Fang hotel and a few refreshments before&amp;nbsp; dinner, not once did I hear or detect a hint of dissatisfaction, frustration or disagreement (except, maybe, who&#39;s round it was to buy the beer!) and how well they deserved that cool refreshing liquid after their gruelings day&#39;s work. They&#39;d soon be up and back on the road again, together with local Health Care Workers (all HIV infected) visiting another batch of needy locals, some hilltribe and some Thai. Never showing signs of hurry or time constraints and always leaving the impression that they had travelled from Chiang Mai, solely to visit them.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3ejHPgTWX-364f53NM0xjSw9Wnrr0TRi0LiH0mP2PQOJGa0JXoz1PTGbuCjRbywQ0f8T4iUMVwOnLJotgPQkcSo6aHq6uE94zeKVRcPdBqIS-8KOTEwlsJibkBXaQ5c-FoSEEoXDTniX3/s1600/Lady.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; data-original-width=&quot;200&quot; height=&quot;148&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3ejHPgTWX-364f53NM0xjSw9Wnrr0TRi0LiH0mP2PQOJGa0JXoz1PTGbuCjRbywQ0f8T4iUMVwOnLJotgPQkcSo6aHq6uE94zeKVRcPdBqIS-8KOTEwlsJibkBXaQ5c-FoSEEoXDTniX3/s320/Lady.jpg&quot; width=&quot;200&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a height=&quot;148&quot; href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0TZVrhcmvOpvleQHZIXVh9zOkby0XTLiJSbDkiAt09jSSon4NbL3I-2eYuKMmkNa2kfzVw3qhuRUPOZ_yZnAKwKCDZU03JvwFe3WmAqCK73CvuT_TMzGSniDdsDMs_ubkswFT-P7SPYrh/s320/2nd+Visit.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; width=&quot;200&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;148&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0TZVrhcmvOpvleQHZIXVh9zOkby0XTLiJSbDkiAt09jSSon4NbL3I-2eYuKMmkNa2kfzVw3qhuRUPOZ_yZnAKwKCDZU03JvwFe3WmAqCK73CvuT_TMzGSniDdsDMs_ubkswFT-P7SPYrh/s320/2nd+Visit.jpg&quot; width=&quot;200&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt; &lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;
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&lt;span style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;A mention must be given to the volunteers, themselves infected with the HIV virus, who assist the doctors and nurses at the various rural hospitals and clinics who&#39;s help is invaluable and rightly deserve the title of &quot;Angels of the North&quot;. Of course, what charity doesn&#39;t need donations and sponsors and Rejoice is very much in the same financial dire straights, even more so because of the below-the-radar operation it employs, thereby only just managing to survive almost on a day-to-day basis. They also operate a school sponsorship scheme which, for small amounts, can make the difference between a child getting a worthwhile education, in many cases up to university level and scrounging day-to-day in the squalor&amp;nbsp;and grime of their lowly existence.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;center&gt;
&lt;table&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;
&lt;tr&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzUTnqjDi8yItygQGy1P6djt_2JkRhZ-bURplkVAQQdYofA_hviwz2A2i1d6Bwi-kET8AyMJOuR0dWRI5Xk0zcaRIE2QnJYXRjdxobSONwbX0YihbwMckJff6dpuig7AjNJTdTaBcs6hfX/s1600/School.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;148&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzUTnqjDi8yItygQGy1P6djt_2JkRhZ-bURplkVAQQdYofA_hviwz2A2i1d6Bwi-kET8AyMJOuR0dWRI5Xk0zcaRIE2QnJYXRjdxobSONwbX0YihbwMckJff6dpuig7AjNJTdTaBcs6hfX/s320/School.jpg&quot; width=&quot;200&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPCjVok5tF8fztweGrHbEUSm1sU6Q87x34cDrcf6bWWWXWLRS8Y1WEyV_mmA2H2Etjj6ASo1ees2Mm0lGogsUfR2PxApAzKRTf7ULbc2Zl6CU58TUiO7lLMF2Rczh08QFA8W97xCdvh3eV/s1600/1st+Visit.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; data-original-width=&quot;1162&quot; height=&quot;148&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPCjVok5tF8fztweGrHbEUSm1sU6Q87x34cDrcf6bWWWXWLRS8Y1WEyV_mmA2H2Etjj6ASo1ees2Mm0lGogsUfR2PxApAzKRTf7ULbc2Zl6CU58TUiO7lLMF2Rczh08QFA8W97xCdvh3eV/s320/1st+Visit.jpg&quot; width=&quot;200&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt;  &lt;td&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8-ukBU1JeuM7_2BoEmnfSlOEeeZlYv2GK5WKeCDAhk6wFbm9CXee5ZXo11XISfiyqRof_XoEdfqGb91GMuvmjcuV_38oUFhC89f97tt40bxgr0baySUm7bxj02a2DgCh3GE-nldFNChO1/s1600/Gee+giving.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; data-original-width=&quot;1162&quot; height=&quot;148&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8-ukBU1JeuM7_2BoEmnfSlOEeeZlYv2GK5WKeCDAhk6wFbm9CXee5ZXo11XISfiyqRof_XoEdfqGb91GMuvmjcuV_38oUFhC89f97tt40bxgr0baySUm7bxj02a2DgCh3GE-nldFNChO1/s320/Gee+giving.jpg&quot; width=&quot;200&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt; &lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;
&lt;/center&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;Having lived in Thailand for almost 20 years I am fully aware of the numerous charities, orphanages etc that exist in and around and beyond the Chiang Mai area&lt;span style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;and all doing incredible work for their organisat&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;ion. All, except maybe the large international christian sponsored, needing assistance, in one form or another, but believe&amp;nbsp;me if Rejoice, who are not having any regular or reliable sponsorship, become unable to continue their outstanding work, it could be the difference between life and death for many of the people who rely on them so desperately.&lt;/span&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;center&gt;
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&lt;tr&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq7h8HZndS92r7wBsaFffv5vl33KSK9TFhC61aeVXD7LsYAVp91oP_DmvQfe0ZZhOMnyvV3Ze58drfGAH9ewGm3Bn9PAVDWMnMxPBlQk6B0cJoXCOKHd7dhOpzll2jQl3l3ZcTsBzHkjz5/s1600/Giving+by+Wi.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;148&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq7h8HZndS92r7wBsaFffv5vl33KSK9TFhC61aeVXD7LsYAVp91oP_DmvQfe0ZZhOMnyvV3Ze58drfGAH9ewGm3Bn9PAVDWMnMxPBlQk6B0cJoXCOKHd7dhOpzll2jQl3l3ZcTsBzHkjz5/s320/Giving+by+Wi.jpg&quot; width=&quot;200&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE4wRfW60wi2uxe-2Z7Ps7pbCwZ1rt_0LmcZDbywcNH2I4k0YVqFpRqCi-0V3r_UunSRvWLSnBhs2lHNQD8-bgFS1KIyxvMVb7HH2fQk75zI_bE23ADS41ZN_iE4hjZ4gknu6cPwKTIeHa/s1600/Giving+Milk.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;148&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE4wRfW60wi2uxe-2Z7Ps7pbCwZ1rt_0LmcZDbywcNH2I4k0YVqFpRqCi-0V3r_UunSRvWLSnBhs2lHNQD8-bgFS1KIyxvMVb7HH2fQk75zI_bE23ADS41ZN_iE4hjZ4gknu6cPwKTIeHa/s320/Giving+Milk.jpg&quot; width=&quot;200&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL0hnvfd0eV6DFGjAsVH0fMuPF2xLyEnonLsOP0fUE4FA9aGgbVfhaTKJjN07EYU9WRxbAvxQd_eHXTmGUoMCjGHREOVxMb3WCD3cMOoFrUO4oAuA-N8DlZtGIvJweq5F5QF8HJlNx7z6j/s1600/kitchen.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;148&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL0hnvfd0eV6DFGjAsVH0fMuPF2xLyEnonLsOP0fUE4FA9aGgbVfhaTKJjN07EYU9WRxbAvxQd_eHXTmGUoMCjGHREOVxMb3WCD3cMOoFrUO4oAuA-N8DlZtGIvJweq5F5QF8HJlNx7z6j/s320/kitchen.jpg&quot; width=&quot;200&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt; &lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;center&gt;
&lt;table&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;
&lt;tr&gt; &lt;td&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCceZC2LNr7hPNPWgT4_1uiVvXwI6IcqFnM8VD67GUzaWuKg-4tNPtUsIbw2koOjFTSKxGAIBSt2ZQ1JpNSkmGCc9ChgmyQ_YunuT92UCMh6b-bl59wYDUTqPzuGkabSIMZhmfqB8nLGkB/s1600/School2.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;148&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCceZC2LNr7hPNPWgT4_1uiVvXwI6IcqFnM8VD67GUzaWuKg-4tNPtUsIbw2koOjFTSKxGAIBSt2ZQ1JpNSkmGCc9ChgmyQ_YunuT92UCMh6b-bl59wYDUTqPzuGkabSIMZhmfqB8nLGkB/s320/School2.jpg&quot; width=&quot;460&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/td&gt; &lt;/tr&gt;
&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;
&lt;/center&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/1227555857087980977/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2018/11/rejoice.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/1227555857087980977'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/1227555857087980977'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2018/11/rejoice.html' title='Rejoice '/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_nZe8dYPVppAcEHNvibYtCCpznomUcNEhxRmA6roL5SQfMCqbBTo0652sJYuoGAIavGuDa5pekiN4gmMgA8o858ZtMK8TDaPg3F0_fZO4jn5i1Kzyf_2mhgNSHm4de54KyweWjzYwsAg/s72-c/unnamed.png" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-6781199350148090613</id><published>2018-10-23T19:11:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-11-15T23:59:03.819+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Journey of a Lost Soul</title><content type='html'>&lt;div xmlns=&quot;http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml&quot;&gt;
&lt;div&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;color: red;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;verdana&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: yellow; font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;b&gt;23 October 2018&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;verdana&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Starting this diary on my smartphone to hopefully help me get a grip on the weight problem. Also to put some thoughts down on paper in case Alzheimer&#39;s kicks in, God knows everything else seems to be. Yesterday&#39;s water-fast was quite successful, made a bit of a pig of myself around midnight though! Will try again today, hopefully it will be as successful if not more so.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;verdana&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;verdana&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Read up again on my health check-up report from Rajavaj hospital re. a few possible problems, which I won&#39;t go into. The weight problem was again highlighted, especially with the gout playing up, how many times do I need to be told!! Happy, though that the new medicine for the osteoarthritis in the knees seems to be doing some good.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;verdana&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;verdana&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Have I had such a great life that I deserve all this comeuppance? It&#39;s all relative I guess. Some would say I got a raw deal, others may say I got off lightly.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;verdana&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Need to dig out the &quot;&lt;i&gt;Easy Way to Lose Weight&lt;/i&gt;&quot; book. Was a great help the last time. So why did I stop? Good question.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;verdana&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;verdana&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Still on my bed at 8 am, this new smartphone has a lot to answer for.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;verdana&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;verdana&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Feeling quite peckish, tried drinking water, then drinking more water, talking to myself, even having a haircut, but it was the KFC that finally did the trick!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;verdana&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;verdana&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Weight: 117 Kg/257 lbs/18.4 st (and for those who haven&#39;t caught up yet): 2.3 cwt!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/6781199350148090613/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2014/10/journey-of-lost-soul_44.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/6781199350148090613'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/6781199350148090613'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2014/10/journey-of-lost-soul_44.html' title='Journey of a Lost Soul'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-5095333060984964183</id><published>2018-07-22T16:15:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-11-16T08:46:53.454+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Rutted</title><content type='html'>&lt;div style=&quot;font-family: georgia; font-size: 100%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;We&#39;re half-way to 2018 already? Seems like I’ve been asleep for years. And maybe I  have. At least in terms of living a purposeful life. Felt that the  proverbial ‘rut’ was widening and sucking me into its belly. The Collins  New Dictionary defines ‘rut’ as “a narrow or predictable way of life,  dreary or undeviating routine.”(not the alternative: “sexual excitement  of male ruminants”, I hasten to add!) Yep, I guess that’s about it,  seems to fit the bill, or at least did.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggYOVYRQrj3Jqm7eomHb0xZBt3m1LtS5V8d4gXB9K9KqfBGSe0ANkzCtygTTpPRp2SD_NRJEOLglUgag1372hzBJBW4euYitLtK-eG-cXyfuFZ_7Ts1ZfkEcC3NTJFEz1bWQH9RnI01nE/s1600/stuck-in-a-rut.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;151&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggYOVYRQrj3Jqm7eomHb0xZBt3m1LtS5V8d4gXB9K9KqfBGSe0ANkzCtygTTpPRp2SD_NRJEOLglUgag1372hzBJBW4euYitLtK-eG-cXyfuFZ_7Ts1ZfkEcC3NTJFEz1bWQH9RnI01nE/s200/stuck-in-a-rut.jpg&quot; width=&quot;200&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: right;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;That’s not to say that being in a  rut is necessarily an undesirable state for all. There are many who  languish in its sanctuary, and indeed wouldn’t (or couldn’t) have it any  other way.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;It was Arnold Bennett, the British Novelist who said: “&lt;i&gt;The great advantage of being in a rut is that when one is in a rut, one knows exactly where one is.&lt;/i&gt;“&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;But Ellen Glasgow, the American Novelist suggests: .”&lt;i&gt;The only difference between a rut and a grave is their dimensions&lt;/i&gt;“&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Take your pick.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/5095333060984964183/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2011/10/rutted.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/5095333060984964183'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/5095333060984964183'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2011/10/rutted.html' title='Rutted'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggYOVYRQrj3Jqm7eomHb0xZBt3m1LtS5V8d4gXB9K9KqfBGSe0ANkzCtygTTpPRp2SD_NRJEOLglUgag1372hzBJBW4euYitLtK-eG-cXyfuFZ_7Ts1ZfkEcC3NTJFEz1bWQH9RnI01nE/s72-c/stuck-in-a-rut.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-2818134827756193557</id><published>2018-06-21T14:15:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-11-09T12:17:33.544+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Nowhere Man</title><content type='html'>&lt;div style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;georgia&amp;quot;; font-size: 100%;&quot;&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Was having a quiet drink the other night in a local downtown Chiang  Mai pub with a friend, talking about this and that but mainly the other.  In the background, local songsters were playing their own rendering of  the Beatles song “Nowhere Man” I knew it was this song because my friend  did the interpretation.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5II5ny3jM79B2CFJMsxiUTHpp6V6TECk9V8rtwv-VwC4JAnqKEoLEf81UXmfI-CEMWLgWV8KWkST8NCfAV0p362zDg8JjZUgSPvv50k31lNidWs-9S0NYCgSiuEvkpaier9lE4CZRlBw/s1600/original_john-lennon-imagine-wall-sticker.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5II5ny3jM79B2CFJMsxiUTHpp6V6TECk9V8rtwv-VwC4JAnqKEoLEf81UXmfI-CEMWLgWV8KWkST8NCfAV0p362zDg8JjZUgSPvv50k31lNidWs-9S0NYCgSiuEvkpaier9lE4CZRlBw/s1600/original_john-lennon-imagine-wall-sticker.jpg&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: black;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Not that the song wasn’t in English, it was, or  at least was meant to be, it was just that, well to be kind, it needed a  wee bit more practice. Not that yours truly could have done a better  job, but I tend to keep my sorrowful serenading behind my shower curtain  and not contaminate the all-ready over contaminated Chiang Mai air with  more pollution.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;As the song reached its welcoming end my friend said to me in a  thoughtful manner “You know, you’re a bit of a Nowhere Man”. I thought  nothing of it at the time but later I reflected on what she had said and  what caused her to say it, “..a bit of a Nowhere Man”. Ok, so it was  out with the lyrics and on with the MP3. At the end I could see where  she was coming from... but alas not where I was going!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/2818134827756193557/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2011/10/was-having-quiet-drink-other-night-in.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/2818134827756193557'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/2818134827756193557'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2011/10/was-having-quiet-drink-other-night-in.html' title='Nowhere Man'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5II5ny3jM79B2CFJMsxiUTHpp6V6TECk9V8rtwv-VwC4JAnqKEoLEf81UXmfI-CEMWLgWV8KWkST8NCfAV0p362zDg8JjZUgSPvv50k31lNidWs-9S0NYCgSiuEvkpaier9lE4CZRlBw/s72-c/original_john-lennon-imagine-wall-sticker.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-2868161522823169114</id><published>2018-05-30T17:40:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-11-09T12:19:01.783+07:00</updated><title type='text'>What&#39;s it all about!</title><content type='html'>&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Have you ever been in a position (No, not that position JJ!) when you  say to yourself “What the f****** h*** (flipping heck) am I doing here!”  I don’t mean here in Chiang Mai, I mean here on this God forsaken  planet! That’s if you believe there is a God to have done the forsaking  in the first place. I have travelled extensively around Arabia, Asia and  the back streets of Newcastle-upon-Tyne and had many a reason to doubt  the ‘Maker’s’ existence. My Irish catholic mother (bless her) would be  turning in her grave, to hear her only, ex altar boy son utter such  heresy. But doubt has a lot going for it.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Without going into Tsunamis,  Middle East conflicts and Newcastle and Sunderland derbies, there are  countless, seemingly insignificant, experiences anyone of which is  qualified to sow those nagging, irritating, inconvenient seeds of doubt in, what is already, a confused mind.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Where was the descending finger when I asked for another pint of the  devils brew in my local the other night and ended up serenading the  ugliest Lady of the Night to be found on the backstreets of Chiang Mai. Or the time on the golf course when I chose the wedge instead of the 9-iron and plonked it straight into the water. Where was He I ask! And so  on, and so on...&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;div a=&quot;&quot; class=&quot;separator&quot; gt=&quot;&quot; href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg09weKPu0mOI9z3nUU9GFFuyZntaCSNXWSgysy3JWLVZD2amRkx09T9cKsBu4iRP-aTiGGvVRar0SEofWsX6Tfd-yZ2APoTI4Ugl2W2FB6AK1s5d8LURn0LLpTjuM_RojBh5QbJcznAoI/s1600/michelangelo-finger-of-god-lg.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;47&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg09weKPu0mOI9z3nUU9GFFuyZntaCSNXWSgysy3JWLVZD2amRkx09T9cKsBu4iRP-aTiGGvVRar0SEofWsX6Tfd-yZ2APoTI4Ugl2W2FB6AK1s5d8LURn0LLpTjuM_RojBh5QbJcznAoI/s320/michelangelo-finger-of-god-lg.jpg&quot; width=&quot;320&quot; /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/2868161522823169114/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2011/10/have-you-ever-been-in-position-no-not.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/2868161522823169114'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/2868161522823169114'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2011/10/have-you-ever-been-in-position-no-not.html' title='What&#39;s it all about!'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg09weKPu0mOI9z3nUU9GFFuyZntaCSNXWSgysy3JWLVZD2amRkx09T9cKsBu4iRP-aTiGGvVRar0SEofWsX6Tfd-yZ2APoTI4Ugl2W2FB6AK1s5d8LURn0LLpTjuM_RojBh5QbJcznAoI/s72-c/michelangelo-finger-of-god-lg.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-1666756773872354009</id><published>2018-05-01T06:40:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-11-09T12:21:09.442+07:00</updated><title type='text'>93 Year Old Australian Charged With Rape</title><content type='html'>&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;, sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Despite the seriousness of the case I had to smile at the recent incident involving a 93 year old Australian guy who was recaptured in Myanmar having fled from Chiang Mai following rape charges. He is accused of raping 4 girls under the age of 15 at a local village in Doi Saket.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;, sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;, sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Although he has pleaded not guilty, should he be convicted it is understood he could be sentenced up to 20 years in prison. But the good news for him is he may only serve 10 years of that. At 103 years old it is considered unlikely that he will still be a threat to society...but you never know! Lock up your daughters!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/1666756773872354009/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2012/09/93-year-old-australian-charged-with-rape.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/1666756773872354009'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/1666756773872354009'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2012/09/93-year-old-australian-charged-with-rape.html' title='93 Year Old Australian Charged With Rape'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-1560411818085103320</id><published>2017-08-31T18:59:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-11-09T12:22:55.868+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Mayor Wants Us To Cut Down On Boozing</title><content type='html'>&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;, sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;The Chiang Mai Municipality has said that they have noticed pubs breaking the law, underage drinkers getting away with it, so something needs to be done.The answer is simple; extend the drinking times; lower the legal age of drinking and the associated crime rate will drop dramatically and who knows Chiang Mai may just be a happier and more law abiding place to live in. And as an added bonus, many of the less fortunate bar owners may just about keep their heads above water. (At least before the floods return again) Add all of that to the increase of tax on booze and everyone&#39;s a winner!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;, sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;, sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Don&#39;t know why someone hasn&#39;t thought about that.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/1560411818085103320/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2012/08/mayor-wants-us-to-cut-down-on-boozing.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/1560411818085103320'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/1560411818085103320'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2012/08/mayor-wants-us-to-cut-down-on-boozing.html' title='Mayor Wants Us To Cut Down On Boozing'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-3802251498202049018</id><published>2017-01-29T08:09:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-11-09T12:23:44.564+07:00</updated><title type='text'>It&#39;s All Too Much!</title><content type='html'>&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;, sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;It&#39;s enough to pull your hair out! Decisions, decisions, and more decisions! Pressure after pressure and after even more pressure! Why is there such a demand on my life, how am I to cope with all these complexities thrust upon me unwanted, uninvited and totally unnecessary. At a time when I ought to be reaping the fruits of my hard earned retirement, having battled through the rigors of adolescence, married life, fatherhood and bloody hard work here I am tense, tired and stressed out.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;, sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;, sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Why you may ask (or may not!) What is the cause of such mental anguish from a normally placid, tranquil and ordered mind? It&#39;s the sodden Olympics, that&#39;s what! Why so, you may further inquire. Because in years gone-by when the Olympics were broadcast on the telly, life was easy, there was only one channel to watch and a little later on maybe one or two more at the most. Now, thanks to the wonders of satellite TV and streaming on the internet there is a multitude of events to be watched and most at the same time. Add to this golf, F1, football and others, the result is cranial confusion! &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;, sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;, sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Well I suppose I can last out for two weeks when things should settle down and relative calm descends. I&#39;ll be challenged by more manageable tribulations such as; should I just have 2 bottles of Leo or go for the promotion, how shall I cook my eggs in the morning and one slice of toast or two. Ah! The good life!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;calibri&amp;quot; , &amp;quot;sans-serif&amp;quot;; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/3802251498202049018/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2012/07/its-all-too-much.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/3802251498202049018'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/3802251498202049018'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2012/07/its-all-too-much.html' title='It&#39;s All Too Much!'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-8930896889376041465</id><published>2016-03-14T17:25:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-11-09T12:25:16.496+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Can anyone help me please!</title><content type='html'>&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;It has almost reached the stage when it&#39;s all become too much! Nothing I do seems to improve the situation. My life has become one big calamity with failure after miserable failure. My body is in a constant state of anguish and rebellion. My mind appears to have given up the ghost in all but the minimum of mental tasks and refuses to allow reason to enter its tumultuous vault. I have scoured the web; solicited well meaning advice even sought the company of better minds but all to no avail. It seems that I am at the doorstep of the &#39;Waiting Room&#39; where once inside it&#39;s only a matter of time before the door in front of you slowly creaks open and the beckoning finger appears from the darkness and in the immortal words of the late Roy Orbison, &quot;It&#39;s Over&quot;.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;If anyone has any last ditch advice to help improve my golf, I beg you speak up and speak up now before it&#39;s all too late. My life, such as it is, is in your hands.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;i&gt;God meets the world’s greatest golfers as they enter heaven.&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;i&gt;God asks Arnie first: ‘What do you believe?’&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;i&gt;Arnie thinks long and hard, looks God in the eye, and says, ‘I believe&lt;br /&gt;
in hard work, and in staying true to family and friends. I believe in&lt;br /&gt;
giving. I was lucky, but I always tried to do right by my fans.’&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;i&gt;God can’t help but see the essential goodness of Palmer, and offers him a&lt;br /&gt;
seat to his left.&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;i&gt;Then God turns to Nicklaus and says, ‘What do you believe?’&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;i&gt;Jack says ‘I believe passion, discipline, courage and honor are the&lt;br /&gt;
fundamentals Of life. I, too, have been lucky, but win or lose, I’ve&lt;br /&gt;
always tried to be a true sportsman, both on and off the playing fields.”&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;i&gt;God is greatly moved by Jack’s high-pitched eloquence, and he offers him a&lt;br /&gt;
seat to his right.&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;i&gt;Finally, God turns to Woods: ‘And you, Tiger, what do you believe?’&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;i&gt;Tiger replies, ‘I believe you’re in my seat.’&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/8930896889376041465/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2012/03/can-anyone-help-me-please.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/8930896889376041465'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/8930896889376041465'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2012/03/can-anyone-help-me-please.html' title='Can anyone help me please!'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-7366350052960659724</id><published>2015-05-20T10:37:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-11-09T12:27:18.851+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Moments of Magic</title><content type='html'>&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Returned, from my self imposed exile and soul searching, due to popular demand, (thanks David!) to once again take on the responsibility of delivering the &lt;i&gt;coup de grâce&lt;/i&gt; to my would-be suicidal readers. Although given what&#39;s happening in current world events they need little help from me. Notwithstanding these gloomy times there have been a few moments of magic:&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;The latest being the great win by Chelsea winning the European Cup, congrats to the team and their loyal supporters, must confess I had written them off. Seems the 2-0 drubbing by &#39;The Toon&#39; did the trick! Come on ye Blues! Not to forget a word of solace for the Spurs fans, &quot;heads up you still have Harry&quot;.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;The Chiang Mai Immigration On-Line Queue System was given a try-out by yours truly last week and worked like magic. In and out in 30 minutes, amazing! What used to drag on for hours and sometimes into the next day has been streamlined into an efficient, painless and almost pleasurable experience. At a time when the volume of visitors, mainly due to immigrant workers, has expanded three-fold I had no time to open my book and switch on my music. Well done everyone you deserve our applause....and now the 90 day reporting fiasco?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;The £ (or ₤) peeped into 50+ Baht for a short while last week, sparking a frenzy of shopping lists, holiday arranging and plans for a new car. Alas it was short lived, dipping once again into the 40s and bringing with it fears of the impending gloom associated with the Greek crisis.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;A cross-section survey of 10,000 people in London, made up of a representative sample of local citizens consisting of Afghans, Albanians, Pakistanis, Indians, Poles, Iraqis, Somalis, Bosnians, Turks, Moldovans, Latvians, Lithuanians, Bangladeshis, Ethiopians, Russians, Congolese and Zimbabweans were asked if they thought Britain should change its currency and adopt the Euro......99.9% said no, they were happy with the Giro.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/7366350052960659724/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2012/05/moments-of-magic.html#comment-form' title='2 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/7366350052960659724'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/7366350052960659724'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2012/05/moments-of-magic.html' title='Moments of Magic'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>2</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-3650288792773745512</id><published>2014-07-23T20:51:00.001+07:00</published><updated>2018-11-09T12:13:37.456+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Why is life such a bitch sometimes? </title><content type='html'>&lt;center&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1B61PJZ63GF_7mkWpcj5LX0ZbF82ZKsJP6Zfu1YFKVFpbEeEY4aorCuzwDP6RJLN7ZF_2CgRpYn2_f2Ehqv9fYfmI0zLUM1yMeo7AYUHjTsRBAQuj7t_PjRkV3W3pW3VugeOxnbzlWiA/s1600/JIM+WATSON.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; height=&quot;200&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1B61PJZ63GF_7mkWpcj5LX0ZbF82ZKsJP6Zfu1YFKVFpbEeEY4aorCuzwDP6RJLN7ZF_2CgRpYn2_f2Ehqv9fYfmI0zLUM1yMeo7AYUHjTsRBAQuj7t_PjRkV3W3pW3VugeOxnbzlWiA/s200/JIM+WATSON.jpg&quot; width=&quot;156&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif; font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 24px;&quot;&gt;My bestist buddy had been home in UK for only a few days and goes and pops his clogs! Not a bye-your-leave, nor a &quot;farewell fellow traveller&quot; not even a &quot;you can have my 3-wood if I don&#39;t come back&quot;. Totally inconsiderate and downright&amp;nbsp;shameful, that&#39;s what I call it! How did he think I was going to survive without the bars of Cadbury&#39;s Bourneville chocolate or worse still the packets of Plain Chocolate McVities Digestives he always brings back for me. Who was I now going to thrash on the golf course the 3 days a week we played together and now I won&#39;t have the satisfaction of telling him I used to cheat!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif; font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 24px;&quot;&gt;Why is life such a bitch sometime?&lt;/span&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif; font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 24px;&quot;&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small; line-height: 24px;&quot;&gt;Went to the Gymkhana Club to empty his locker (and steal his balls) as requested by his son Steven in U.K. Before I could even get near the locker the management were there taking photos of the content and asking if I had had permission from my friend&#39;s son to remove the contents. Several packets of tees, a few balls, 1 half-decent set of clubs, a sweat stained hat and smelly golf shoes. I was furious! Was I about to &#39;steal&#39; my dead friends belongings? A friend who I have played golf with, drank beer with for years, looked after when he was ill and prayed for when I thought he was on his last legs before going home last year.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small; line-height: 24px;&quot;&gt;Why is life (and some people) such a bitch sometimes?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif; font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 24px;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif; font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 24px;&quot;&gt;On the other hand I have to thank the management at the Riverside Condo and his landlord, David, for the help and kindness they showed when I turned up at his&amp;nbsp;apartment to begin the painful task of sorting out his bits &#39;n&#39; pieces. Believe me the contents of which are worth considerably more than the contents of that grubby old&amp;nbsp;dilapidated locker at Gymkhana. No photographs except the ones I took, no proof of authourisation needed from his family, which by-the-way I had with me, I was left alone to prepare an inventory of the apartment for sending to his son for his decision on their disposal. I must confess to the &#39;stealing&#39; of 2 of his chocolate bon-bon candies, It had been a long day.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif; font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 24px;&quot;&gt;This time life wasn&#39;t such a bitch!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif; font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 24px;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif; font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;line-height: 24px;&quot;&gt;God rest your soul Mr Jim, I will miss you bonnie lad&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
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</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/3650288792773745512/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2014/07/why-is-life-such-bitch-sometimes.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/3650288792773745512'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/3650288792773745512'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2014/07/why-is-life-such-bitch-sometimes.html' title='Why is life such a bitch sometimes? '/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1B61PJZ63GF_7mkWpcj5LX0ZbF82ZKsJP6Zfu1YFKVFpbEeEY4aorCuzwDP6RJLN7ZF_2CgRpYn2_f2Ehqv9fYfmI0zLUM1yMeo7AYUHjTsRBAQuj7t_PjRkV3W3pW3VugeOxnbzlWiA/s72-c/JIM+WATSON.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-4738839893249208375</id><published>2011-06-24T17:39:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-03-26T11:03:15.026+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Lumps and Bumps</title><content type='html'>&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Following a check-up with the local hospital Dermatologist and the  subsequent biopsy results I was told that I had several areas of skin  cancer on my face, head and ear and that they all needed to be removed.  This was the payback for all that sunshine I subjected my body to while  working in the Middle East for many years and not heeding the advice of  using adequate protection. Macho Man strikes again! &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;To cut a long story short, I priced around, found a reasonably priced,  reputed Plastic Surgeon and had them removed. (Due to the Family rating  – Photos on request) About 1 hour and a bit on the operating table, a  few deft slices and a dozen or so stitches and voile! No, not a  good-as-new face but a face that would put Rocky in the shade. One week  later, stitches removed, a few words of encouragement and back in a week  for the laboratory results. Fingers crossed they got it all.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/4738839893249208375/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2011/10/following-check-up-with-local-hospital.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/4738839893249208375'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/4738839893249208375'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2011/10/following-check-up-with-local-hospital.html' title='Lumps and Bumps'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-2336506858190441196</id><published>2009-04-03T16:52:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-11-09T20:26:08.042+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Hips O&#39; Steel VII</title><content type='html'>&lt;h2 class=&quot;entry-title&quot;&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: large;&quot;&gt;Hips ‘O Steel – VII&amp;nbsp;(Driving)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;b&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;1 Weeks Post Op&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Just a last quick update re the galloping hips. Driving and getting  around much better, still cautious with the getting in and out,the  Suzuki’s wee bit compact in the driving compartment area so need to  slip in a little gingerly. But once ensconced, eat yer heart out Lewis  H!&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjinU10eiUFFNDH0KO58nD5MMkZzpDSj0LNnVkUJFajW0932xmuN7yusLmXNFL4lbZxsrJvQ9LLzE8AF4g3Jo1bNu8Kq6bTvazUbndWGQzsqqaxX87ZTiqLDdhLJYiTA5ivslc2MFRGgQA/s1600/Driving+range.jpg&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; data-original-height=&quot;208&quot; data-original-width=&quot;220&quot; height=&quot;189&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjinU10eiUFFNDH0KO58nD5MMkZzpDSj0LNnVkUJFajW0932xmuN7yusLmXNFL4lbZxsrJvQ9LLzE8AF4g3Jo1bNu8Kq6bTvazUbndWGQzsqqaxX87ZTiqLDdhLJYiTA5ivslc2MFRGgQA/s200/Driving+range.jpg&quot; width=&quot;200&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
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The golf is not so progressive as the driving but hitting the ball  well and even bringing the Driver into play which I had abandoned  several years ago as a waste of time and energy, but starting to put it  through it’s paces again with some positive results. Have to be careful  with the golf and not let my new found enthusiasm carry me away. Feel  some pain after each session, finding muscles and ligaments which are  still on the road to full recovery.</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/2336506858190441196/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2012/01/hips-o-steel-vii-11-weeks-post-op-just.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/2336506858190441196'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/2336506858190441196'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2012/01/hips-o-steel-vii-11-weeks-post-op-just.html' title='Hips O&#39; Steel VII'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjinU10eiUFFNDH0KO58nD5MMkZzpDSj0LNnVkUJFajW0932xmuN7yusLmXNFL4lbZxsrJvQ9LLzE8AF4g3Jo1bNu8Kq6bTvazUbndWGQzsqqaxX87ZTiqLDdhLJYiTA5ivslc2MFRGgQA/s72-c/Driving+range.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-4440418049924496844</id><published>2009-03-24T16:48:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-11-09T12:08:24.332+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Hips O&#39; Steel VI</title><content type='html'>&lt;h2 class=&quot;entry-title&quot; style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: large;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: large;&quot;&gt;Hips O’ Steel&amp;nbsp;VI&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;entry-meta&quot; style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span class=&quot;by-author&quot; style=&quot;font-size: normal;&quot;&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;   &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;color: white; font-family: inherit;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif; font-size: normal;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif; font-size: normal;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: normal;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: normal;&quot;&gt;&lt;b&gt;9 weeks Post Op&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Have been driving my car for a few days and swung a golf club for the  first time with the new hips. Great to be back in the driving seat.  Although it is a bit of a struggle to get in (the 90 degree rule is  still in place). Once in all is well. Nice to be able to get out and  about without assistance. Although my taxi driver Mr. Jamras was a God  send and I can’t thank him enough. Always available and always cheerful, would have gone crazy without him. But now my little Suzuki  is up and running and taking good care of me once again, “Arigato”&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipedbXxU8zpjgoffeaT7aghJp9iQD5gT2SvMgfPRo1j-ukfuDBbBUL1-mcl1ZrA3pJ7jAtDC-qxgMrE37CgCtuyc8X5z7Q-vl9hzygg0cs6B_JI81p7hJ5l3dBuh8rTU7GYFW4m8cdvIU/s1600/my-trusty-steed-7-weeks.png&quot; imageanchor=&quot;1&quot; style=&quot;margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; data-original-height=&quot;496&quot; data-original-width=&quot;640&quot; height=&quot;248&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipedbXxU8zpjgoffeaT7aghJp9iQD5gT2SvMgfPRo1j-ukfuDBbBUL1-mcl1ZrA3pJ7jAtDC-qxgMrE37CgCtuyc8X5z7Q-vl9hzygg0cs6B_JI81p7hJ5l3dBuh8rTU7GYFW4m8cdvIU/s320/my-trusty-steed-7-weeks.png&quot; width=&quot;320&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: normal;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: normal;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: normal;&quot;&gt;Hitting a few baskets of balls&amp;nbsp;on the driving range at the golf  course and walking around several holes to build up the strength in the  legs. Think it will be a little while before I’m back in the thick of it  cursing the water hazards and the trees, but, a month or two should see  me just about there. Watch out Mr. Watson, your days are numbered!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/4440418049924496844/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2009/03/hips-o-steel-9-weeks-post-op-have-been.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/4440418049924496844'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/4440418049924496844'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2009/03/hips-o-steel-9-weeks-post-op-have-been.html' title='Hips O&#39; Steel VI'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipedbXxU8zpjgoffeaT7aghJp9iQD5gT2SvMgfPRo1j-ukfuDBbBUL1-mcl1ZrA3pJ7jAtDC-qxgMrE37CgCtuyc8X5z7Q-vl9hzygg0cs6B_JI81p7hJ5l3dBuh8rTU7GYFW4m8cdvIU/s72-c/my-trusty-steed-7-weeks.png" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-8701721375054194367</id><published>2009-03-14T16:42:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-06-16T11:26:39.411+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Hips O&#39; Steel V</title><content type='html'>&lt;h2 class=&quot;entry-title&quot;&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: large;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: medium;&quot;&gt;Hips O’ Steel&amp;nbsp;V&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
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&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Just to keep you in the picture re the hips. Saw the Orthopedic  Surgeon yesterday and he seemed pleased re my progress, wasn’t happy  about the suggested game of squash. Said I could walk without the stick  while around the house but take it when I venture outside walking. I  need it more to fend off the dogs around my streets as much as I do for  stopping me falling over. (memo to me: buy a catapult!)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;div class=&quot;mceTemp mceIEcenter&quot; style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;b&gt;March 2nd 2009 – 6 weeks Post Op&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;I am to see&amp;nbsp;the OS&amp;nbsp;again next Friday 13th, strangely enough the last  visit was Friday 13th also, wonder if his first name is Jason by any  chance, being meaning to ask him about the white mask he wears. I was  expecting him to give me the ok for starting golf and hopefully driving,  but,&amp;nbsp;4 days ago my right knee blew-up (blood everywhere!!) the size of a  balloon and painful as hell. I went straight to the hospital.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;At first they were worried about thrombosis, which is not uncommon  after a hip operation, but an ultrasonic scan ruled that out but showed  gallons of water around the knee joint. Then a straight x-ray showed  arthritis of the joint which had flared up causing the swelling. Not  much to do but get an injection, more pills and complete rest of the  joint. He said that maybe the extra exertion on the knee joints, because  of the hip situation, was too much. So that has slowed down my planned  progress by quite a bit. In fact I am only now starting to hobble around  once again with the aid of the stick…what a bummer!!!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;But life goes on, albeit at a more sedately  pace. So looks like golf is on hold as is driving for sometime, I  reckon for at least another month, maybe more. Let’s see what ‘Jason’  has to say next Friday. I hope he doesn’t advise replacing the knee  joints as well, or I’ll never get through the airport scanners. Not that  I would be able to afford to go anywhere at the moment, or indeed ever  again, what with the money situation and cost of bodily spare-parts……&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;b&gt;March&amp;nbsp;14th 2009 -&amp;nbsp;8 weeks Post Op&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Visited the OS clinic yesterday. Thankfully the knee has returned to  it’s normal size and is no longer a problem. But will continue  the&amp;nbsp;anti-inflamatory medicine for&amp;nbsp;another week. That apart&amp;nbsp;he is well  pleased with the progress and unless I have any problems he wants to see  me again in one year for a follow-up x-ray! I was a little stunned,  felt like someone had kicked my walking stick away. But gotta say, I am  at the moment feeling confident about the whole affair and continue to  make good progress. Mustn’t get too cocky though!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;div class=&quot;mceTemp mceIEcenter&quot; style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;He did advise  me to start swimming and do my exercises in the pool, I have found this  has helped a lot. I am also walking up to 1 km with the cane. Ok maybe a  little without the cane but I&amp;nbsp;didn’t tell&amp;nbsp;him this. I had a dry run  trying to fit into the car, maybe next week will see me there. Golf is  my next target, he tells me that’s not too far away, (he must have seen  me on the tee box!)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/8701721375054194367/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2009/03/hips-o-steel-just-to-keep-you-in.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/8701721375054194367'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/8701721375054194367'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2009/03/hips-o-steel-just-to-keep-you-in.html' title='Hips O&#39; Steel V'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-6736176438083305371</id><published>2009-02-06T16:32:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-06-16T11:25:16.990+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Hips O&#39; Steel IV</title><content type='html'>&lt;h2 class=&quot;entry-title&quot; style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: large;&quot;&gt;Hips O’ Steel&amp;nbsp;IV&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;entry-meta&quot; style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span class=&quot;by-author&quot;&gt; &lt;/span&gt;   &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;color: white; font-family: inherit; font-size: 100%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;b&gt;3 weeks&amp;nbsp;Post Op&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;color: white; font-family: inherit; font-size: 100%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;I know you’re all&amp;nbsp;sitting on the edge of your seats wondering how yours  truly and the new hips are doing. Well we’re doing just fine. 30 sutures  (metal clips) out on Saturday and the wounds are A1. Dressings were  removed on Thursday and no longer required. Told-off by the surgeon for  trying to walk without my cane, said I must stick with it for at least 2  more weeks. Have lost another 2 kg (4.4 lbs to you imperial lot) which  all helps me and my hips get along that bit quicker.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;color: white; font-family: inherit; font-size: 100%;&quot;&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;font-family: inherit;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;Driving and golf are still a way off yet but walking (hobbling)  towards that time. Maybe 4 more weeks will see me there-abouts. Have  been a good boy with the booze, none since before the op. Although I’m  edging towards a nip or two of Jameson’s as a nightcap, purely for  medicinal purposes you understand.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;wp-caption aligncenter&quot; id=&quot;attachment_146&quot; style=&quot;width: 282px;&quot;&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;font-family: inherit; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;wp-caption-text&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;div style=&quot;font-family: inherit;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Sleeping has been the bug bear, having to lie on my back is unnatural  for me and is very uncomfortable. Trying not to use the sleepers as  much as I can but sometimes it’s necessary. Not that they help a great  deal, still consider Jameson’s as the drug of choice. Watched the  Toon/Mackham game last night, now there’s real pain!&amp;nbsp;A few hip  operations wouldn’t go a miss there, and maybe a lobotomy or two also&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;font-family: inherit;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Ok gotta rush (I wish) hope you are all well and not letting the weather or economical crisis get to you.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/6736176438083305371/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2009/02/hips-o-steel-3-weeks-op-i-know-youre.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/6736176438083305371'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/6736176438083305371'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2009/02/hips-o-steel-3-weeks-op-i-know-youre.html' title='Hips O&#39; Steel IV'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-7895191159360055259</id><published>2009-01-23T16:25:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-11-09T18:46:43.570+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Hips O&#39; Steel III</title><content type='html'>&lt;h2 class=&quot;entry-title&quot;&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: large;&quot;&gt;Hips o’ Steel&amp;nbsp;III&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
A  few hours in the ICU then back to my room, with tubes going in and  tubes coming out, everything was hunky-dory. The next day the OS came  and asked me to swing my legs over the side of the bed. Even though I  had been warned that this was routine for my post-op, it was still an  anxious moment. Shouldn’t have worried though the staff were well  trained to manage the situation even with a fat fart like myself. With feet on the floor and a few guided and assisted steps I was  (almost) mobile 1 day after the operation. From then on it was me and my  Zimmer frame and Khun Took the Physical Therapist. Nice girl but determined!&lt;b&gt; &lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;b&gt;Day 4 &lt;/b&gt;saw the end of the tubes, wounds were clean  albeit very sore, especially if I strayed over onto them while sleeping.  Bodily functions had almost returned to normal, although during a # 2  the tiny bathroom was reminiscent of a scene from a Harry Houdini act.  One major problem was sleeping for any length of time, more so because I  was not allowed to turn on either side and had to maintain a pillow  between my thighs to alleviate stress on the weakened hip muscles and  ligaments that crossing my legs would cause, possibly resulting in a hip  dislocation. It all resulted in only one or two hours sleep a night.  But that was a small price when compared with the progress I was making.&lt;b&gt; &lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;
&lt;b&gt;&amp;nbsp;Day 5&lt;/b&gt; and it was away with the Zimmer frame,  by-passing the crutches and introduction to the walking stick. Again Took  came into her own and drilled me on the techniques of walking with a  cane. She also dangled a carrot in the shape of an instruction from the  OS saying that once I mastered the ‘art’ of climbing up and down the  stairs minimum of 10 steps, I would be allowed to go home.&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/7895191159360055259/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2009/01/hips-o-steel-few-hours-in-icu-then-back.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/7895191159360055259'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/7895191159360055259'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2009/01/hips-o-steel-few-hours-in-icu-then-back.html' title='Hips O&#39; Steel III'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-8601337443735319726</id><published>2009-01-15T16:16:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-06-16T11:10:48.679+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Hips O&#39; Steel II</title><content type='html'>&lt;h2 class=&quot;entry-title&quot; style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;  &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: medium;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Hips o’ Steel&amp;nbsp;II&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;entry-meta&quot; style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span class=&quot;by-author&quot; style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;   &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;font-family: inherit; font-size: 120%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;2 days to go&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Working my way through the many mini ‘to do’ lists I’ve made out;  order taxi, adjust the house, haircut, toilet seat arrangements, etc,  etc, etc. Been trying to reduce the flab over the past few months to  help make the extra weight on the arms and legs a little less after the  op. Managed to come down 8kg but a wee bit short of my target of 12kg.  Maybe the next couple of days may see a kg or more if I knuckle down to  it.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Played my last game of golf on Monday, badly, said goodbye to my  lovely caddy Pin, a petite and beautiful hill-tribe girl (Aka) she’ll be  a big miss. She said she would wait, but don’t they all! It felt like I  was off to some distant land to fight for some lost cause, could almost  smell the grimy station and hear the hissing steam from the train.  “Farewell my Lovely”. Silly old bat!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/8601337443735319726/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2009/01/hips-o-steel-2-days-to-go-working-my.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/8601337443735319726'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/8601337443735319726'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2009/01/hips-o-steel-2-days-to-go-working-my.html' title='Hips O&#39; Steel II'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6998468947213216497.post-4890656649319741414</id><published>2009-01-12T16:03:00.000+07:00</published><updated>2018-06-16T11:08:14.660+07:00</updated><title type='text'>Hips O&#39; Steel</title><content type='html'>&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: large;&quot;&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;h2 class=&quot;entry-title&quot; style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: large;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: medium;&quot;&gt;Hips o’&amp;nbsp;Steel&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;entry-meta&quot; style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span class=&quot;by-author&quot; style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;   &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;color: white;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;color: white; font-family: inherit;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;b&gt;1 week to go&lt;/b&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;It was when I was unable to bend down to stick my golf tee in the  ground and had to drop my ball instead that I finally decided enough was  enough, time for the chop! The discomfort in the left hip had increased  over the past few weeks and now is in competition with the right as to  which one is the biggest pain in the backside!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;I asked the orthopedic surgeon to replace them both simultaneously if  he considered it doable. He strongly advised a pre-op medical (heart,  ECG, chest x-ray, blood count) the works really, to be sure I was in  good enough shape to withstand the traumatic effects of the bi-lateral  replacement. And what do you know, I passed with flying colours! The  internal workings of this oldish body are in great shape, apart from the  crumbling hips that is. Even the gout is behaving itself. So decision  made.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Let the hip-op music begin.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;So it’s looking like Saturday 17th January will be the chop day, and  all being well, 7 hobbley days after that, I can take my new spare parts  back home with me. Golf maybe a little difficult at first and 5-a-side  football and squash will definitely be out for some time, but getting  drunk and falling down stairs is always a viable alternative. Probably  puts me in contention for a place in the ‘Toon’ (Newcastle United) team.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;I looked at the cost at some length as to which country and hospital  would offer the best deal. The deal I was offered here in Chiang Mai  turned out to be the best, not only was the bi-op. cheaper but it eliminated the need for airfares and accommodation. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;The total costs  involved could have bought me a nice new shiny car or shares in an Omani  racing camel (jockey not included). ‘Fraid it’s put a big hole in the  inheritance dosh, has reduced it to the equivalence of “pints all round”  and a half a bottle of Jameson’s! There might be a money order or two  (enough for the cremation fuel bill) lying around from The Department for Work and Pensions in UK but  that’s about it.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;trebuchet ms&amp;quot; , sans-serif;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: small;&quot;&gt;Tune in next week for another exciting episode of “Hips of Steel” and  find out if BoF (‘Boring old Fart’) can take the steps which will  return him to his former glory!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/feeds/4890656649319741414/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2009/01/hips-o-january-12-2009-1-week-to-go-it.html#comment-form' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/4890656649319741414'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6998468947213216497/posts/default/4890656649319741414'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://chiangmaichatterbox.blogspot.com/2009/01/hips-o-january-12-2009-1-week-to-go-it.html' title='Hips O&#39; Steel'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry></feed>