Gaybutton

Nothing to be sorry about. It wouldn't be the first time. When I was a kid I had an imaginary friend. He didn't like me. I took off my clothes and that killed him. The perfect crime . . . "I don't get no respect at all. I met the Surgeon General. He offered me a cigarette!" - Rodney Dangerfield

I'm not trying to kid anybody. I already said there are plenty of accidents on Sukhumvit. But there have been none at the major intersections where people cross Sukhumvit going to or coming from "The Dark Side." And your statement about traffic flying by at 100++KmPH is also nonsense. I drive on Sukhumvit every day. First, there's usually so much traffic that going at that speed is an impossibility in the first place. Second, even when traffic flows smoothly, it is rare to see anyone exceeding 60 to 80KmPH, the normal speed limit for Sukhumvit. I'm right out there with that traffic every day, usually several times every day. Are you? Before you start needlessly frightening people, try knowing what you're talking about. Crossing Sukhumvit is no less safe than crossing any other Pattaya intersections. And if you come over to "The Dark Side" you're not going to be confronted by street gangs. You're not going to be attacked by rabid dogs or any other dogs. If you're on a motorcycle you're not going to be knocked to the ground by ropes. All of that is absolutely ridiculous. So, stay on the west side of Sukhumvit. Don't come over to "The Dark Side." Don't try the Continental Bakery or Papa David's over here. Don't try restaurants out here such as Sure Park, Ann's Garden, Ticino's, Swiss Paradise, Magnolia's, Fisherman's, Mannekin Pis, Khun John's, Scott's Corner, Mulligan's, Il Panettiere, Cafe Uno, or any of the others. Stay on the west side of Sukhumvit . . . where you'll be safe.

I know a good place for you to hide your money . . . my bank account.

Also, that reference to the rope across the road is quite true. It happened once, and only once. It was a small group of teens who thought they had come up with a clever way of knocking a motorcycle driver off the bike and then robbing him. They were caught almost immediately and there has never been a similar incident before or since. Also, while there are street dogs over here, just as everywhere else in Pattaya, nearly all of them are quite tame and spend their time either sleeping, searching and begging for food, and howling in the middle of the night. I know of no dog attacks over here and I also know of no rabies cases. Not one. So, HeyGay, if you really want to try to portray "The Dark Side" as some sort of sinister place to be, back up what you say with credible evidence. You won't be able to because there is none. I live over here. I'm happy to live over here and quite frankly I'd rather be here than most other locations in Pattaya. And with all the new building and construction, new businesses, new residential neighborhoods, etc, I'm by no means alone in that. I'll help you out a little bit. You want to know what kind of trouble there is on "The Dark Side"? Street gangs. The police have had quite a bit of trouble with street gangs. Nearly all their activity takes place in the wee hours and they usually prey on each other. I've had my house since 1998. In all that time I have yet to ever actually see any of these gangs, but they're here.

That's it then. From now on I'll go naked.

That's a ridiculous, misleading, and ignorant statement. There are traffic signals at each major intersection and there have been no accidents at any of them for over two years. Do you think you can say the same about the Third Road intersections? There are plenty of accidents on Sukhumvit itself, usually caused by drunk drivers, but there are many more accidents within Pattaya than on both Sukhumvit and "The Dark Side" combined. Do you have some reason why you are trying to frighten people away from exploring "The Dark Side"? I live over here and I know what I'm talking about.

Did you know there is both a Papa David's and a Continental Bakery on "The Dark Side?" If anyone besides me lives out here, on the other side of Sukhumvit, the Papa David's is on Soi Khaotolo, about 100 yards east of the railroad tracks. The Continental Bakery is on Soi Khaonoi, near the top of the hill. If you are coming from Sukhumvit, both restaurants are on the right. Both restaurants serve the same breakfasts, lunches, and dinners that you'll find in Jomtien. The Continental Bakery also carries the same breads and desserts as their counterpart in Jomtien. Papa David's has a small selection of breads too. Apparently "The Dark Side" is quite up-and coming. A hell of a lot of people are moving out here and new construction is popping up just about everywhere. A lot of new, excellent restaurants are either already established here or have recently opened, with more on the way. If you want to read about what's available out here on "The Dark Side" have a look at the following link (the most recent posts are the last posts): http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Dark-Side-t172786.html

Sorry, but whatever kills me, that won't be it. When my time comes I wouldn't mind going out the way Nelson Rockefeller did, gay style of course. If you gotta go, that's the way to do it. Regarding suicide, people might as well forget about getting me to feel sympathy. The only exception to that for me would be a person dying a long, slow, lingering, painful death. Then I would be sympathetic. But if anyone is looking for me to hop on the sympathy bandwagon for someone who kills himself because of financial problems, you're definitely barking up the wrong tree. For all I know the person could be more saintly than Mother Theresa, but I just can't conjure up any sympathy for that, especially if the person did not ask for help. I'm not saying I'm right, but I am saying that's the way I look at it. I've helped people when they needed it and people helped me when I needed it. To me, that's the way it's supposed to be.

I disagree. I've never met the man. While I concede that my own post was callous, the article said he died under bizarre circumstances in a manner very similar to David Carradine. Based on the posts that appear here, chances are that he wasn't murdered and chances are that he did not intentionally commit suicide. I also used the word "if." And "if" he died because of auto eroticism, I don't think it's fair to expect a whole lot of sympathy from people who never even heard of him just because a few people on this board knew him. If I die that way, I would expect people here to have a good laugh over it, not start shedding tears for me and lecturing others about why they should be sympathetic. I see nothing wrong with fountainhalls's post, Bob's post, or my own. However, in deference to those who are upset, I won't write any further posts about the incident.

That's strange. Have you tried using a proxy server? Meanwhile, this board belongs to GT, not me, then under the circumstances if it's ok with GT then it's ok with me.

I think the best gay guide in Chiang Mai is Ben's tours. Everyone has always been absolutely delighted with him and his prices are very reasonable. See his web site at: http://www.benstaxiserviceandtours.com

I'll add a peeve of my own. It's the people who get into an express lane at a grocery store, and most are clearly marked "10 items or less," and they have many more than 10 items. I also get annoyed at cashiers who let them get away with it. Even worse, most of these express lanes are also clearly marked "cash only." Don't you love it when you get behind someone who has about 30 items, isn't carrying enough cash, and then whips out a debit card? I also enjoy it when things happen such as getting behind someone who forgot to get his onions weighed before going to the cashier's line. Now you have to wait about ten more minutes while the cashier flags down an attendant who is apparently clueless as to where to even get the items weighed for the customer, and then finally returns - often at a snail's pace. Nothing like having a nice leisurely stroll while keeping everyone else waiting.

Why not? There are many web sites that refer to Gay Bali. If you have a particular favorite, what's wrong with letting us know what it is?

I think the most reliable way is to send the information to yourself in an Email. That way, even if you lose everything you can still easily retrieve your information from your Email. Also, it doesn't hurt to put a copy of your passport and other ID information on an Email to yourself as well. If you are ever unfortunate enough to lose your passport, the more ID evidence you can give to the embassy, the easier it is to get a new passport. If you have copies on your Email, all you need to retrieve the copies is an Internet shop and a printer.

The following appears in the PATTAYA DAILY NEWS: _____ Bangkok Bank Launches New

If it was, it worked great, didn't it?

I have exactly the opposite problem. I don't usually encounter people who block the top of the escalator. But I all too frequently have people brush past me when the escalator isn't moving fast enough for them. I know it must be very urgent for them to save the ten or fifteen seconds they save by brushing past people and I don't have much of a problem with that since I try to stand to one side in anticipation of these people. But I have a big problem when they physically push me aside in their eagerness to get to the top a few seconds before everybody else.

For those of you who check the current exchange rates via the Siam Commercial Bank's web site, as of today they have changed the URL. The new URL is: http://www.scb.co.th/scb_api/index.jsp

Perhaps, but it would have to be quite a large wallet to be able to hold 400,000 baht.

Last night I spent some time wandering through Jomtien Complex. The biggest surprise for me was that the newest gay venue is now the newest failed gay venue. The Black Cat opened at Christmas. It was to be a combination gay bar, sauna, massage, and eatery. Now, six weeks later, they're already out of business and shut down. I'm rather surprised that they failed so quickly, given that they first opened during the prime of high season. The Panther Pub also no longer exists. That location and the storage facility next door have both been taken over by The Venue, which by the way was packed last night. From what I understand, The Venue has several different ideas for how that space will be used. Another recent addition to the Jomtien Complex scene is the Russian owned Lu'Bov Boys bar. It's still open and has about a half dozen boys working there, but it too is up for sale. They just don't seem to draw in the customers. I'm not sure why. Directly across the street from them is the Question Mark bar and they always have plenty of customers. Monty's is still open and still putting on their nightly show. Monty himself is in Australia and, according to the boys working there, is quite ill. I'm not sure who is actually running things at Monty's, but things seem to be going along smoothly enough. If you know who Alex and June are, they're the ones who seem to be in charge at present. Over on the next soi is the new Ganymede bar. I spoke to the manager. The bar itself is open and they seem to be doing well. They have taken over the adjoining building and are planning to put in a sauna. The current plan is for the sauna to be on the ground floor and at least one level above will have privacy rooms. They hope to keep it open until 4:00am each night, but it is at least one or two months away from being ready to open. There will also be a snooker room. The manager assured me that all of the boys working there are at least 18+ years old and have to prove it in order to be hired. The boys are not pushy and there is no pushy mama-san. The off fee is 300 baht. The boys get 100 baht from that fee. When a farang buys a drink for them, they get 30 baht out of it, which is 10 baht more than most bars give the boys. He also told me he pays the boys better than the other local bars pay their boys, but we did not get into a discussion of how much. I also can't tell you the drink prices. I didn't have a drink. I was only talking with the manager and didn't even think about asking the drink prices. Once he gets everything into place and can get it going, if he can attract a good customer base I think Ganymede will be a great success. I think it all depends on whether the "location, location, location" factor works out well for them. Other than that, all the rest of the long-established venues are still open and thriving.

Even if it was an inside job, how would anyone have known that this particular person was carrying enough cash to make it worthwhile to break into his room and steal the safe? Unless he was stupid enough to flash the cash or open his mouth about it, I don't see how anyone would have known which room to hit. Also, what became of the safe? Unless the thief broke it open and then abandoned it while he was still in the venue, how did he get it out of the place without arousing suspicion? I suppose there are any number of ways he could have done it (if indeed it was a 'he'), but he still would have had to risk being caught with it.

Your point is well taken, regarding farang to Thai and vice-versa. In my post above I meant farang to farang. Probably one of the most common causes between Thai and farang occurs because of "Thai Time," when the Thai boy says what time he will meet you somewhere or how long he will be gone. I have learned that when a Thai boy tells me "Twenty minutes I come," that can mean anything from the actual 20 minutes to 2 hours, or longer. Many farang, especially those new to Thailand and those who have discussed it with their boyfriends until they're blue in the face, still end up the victims of "Thai Time." I'm being victimized by it even as I write this. A young Thai gentleman was supposed to give me a call at noon. At the moment it's about 12:40. I don't even regard him as late unless 2:00 rolls around and I still haven't heard from him. Regarding your question above, I think saying it just as you do in your question ought to be sufficient, assuming the person who is owed the apology is willing to discuss it at all. The person doing the apologizing needs to be prepared to discuss it if the other party wants to discuss it and/or let the other party vent his anger. The person apologizing also needs to make sure he doesn't get defensive about it or try to tell the other party how it wasn't such a big thing when, obviously, to him it was. Depending on the degree of seriousness the other party takes whatever happened, sometimes that will solve the problem and sometimes you'll lose a friend over it.

The vast majority of people have never been hit by a car when trying to cross a street, but that doesn't negate the necessity of looking both ways first. I agree. To me, the purpose of the room safe is to have a place to store valuables while you have a 'guest' in the room with you. Other than that I think there simply is too much risk involved storing large amounts of cash and valuables in a safe. While according to that poll only 4% of those who responded were victims of theft, how would you like to be one of the people within that 4%? No thank you very much. When I'm traveling I'll stick to travel checks and debit cards. So, I'll pay the 150 baht. Given the choice of losing 150 baht per transaction or risking the loss of 400,000 cash, it doesn't take much thinking to figure out the preferable choice. I have yet to understand why people keep such large amounts of cash anywhere other than in a bank account. Usually it turns out that the thieves were aware of the fact that large amounts of cash were being kept in a particular safe in a hotel or in one's home. How do they know? The only two ways that I'm coming up with would be if the theft victim told people that he's got that much cash or if the thieves hang out in banks, look for potential victims who withdraw large amounts of cash, and then follow them. How else do they know? I have yet to ever read a story about a thief who stole an empty safe.

I agree. A simple "I'm sorry" doesn't cut it when the necessity for an apology goes beyond something very simple. Often, that can make an already tense situation even worse. I think a "pseudo-apology" also makes the situation worse. It's when the person doing the apologizing tries to pretend he has no idea what he did wrong. "Whatever I did, I'm sorry." "If I did something to offend you, I'm sorry." What kind of an apology is that? That's nothing but someone essentially saying to you, "I didn't really do anything wrong, but if saying 'I'm sorry' will defuse the situation, then I'll say the words even though they really don't mean anything and without any true sincerity or remorse on my part." To me that's not an apology. It's more a slap in the face. An apology without acknowledgment is not an apology.

The following appears in PATTAYA ONE: _____ 400,000 Baht Room Safe Theft at Central Pattaya Hotel Late on Friday Night, Police Lieutenant Colonel Wirawoot from Pattaya Police Station was called to the Pattaya Place Guest House located in Soi 13 off Pattaya Third Road to investigate the theft of a safe-box from a room occupied by a German Tourist. Officers were directed to room number 301 on 3rd floor and met with Mr. Hans Gunter aged 68. He returned to his room after a night out and realized his door was open and the room safe had disappeared. Inside was 150,000 Baht and 5,000 Euro’s along with Mr. Gunter’s passport and plane ticket along with personal items. Khun Sooksak aged 32, the owner of the guesthouse explained that a middle-eastern man had checked in but did not complete any registration documents. He was assigned room number 302 which is opposite the victims room. Although the man had not checked out, his room was found to be empty apart from a single shirt in the wardrobe. Police have received a description of the suspect and they will attempt to locate and arrest him and recover the stolen items for Mr. Gunter. ____________________ I've lost count of how many similar stories there have been over the years. You don't keep large amounts of money in a hotel safe. Repeat after me: You don't keep large amounts of money in a hotel safe. You don't keep large amounts of money in a hotel safe. Is there anyone who still doesn't get that and can't figure out why you don't keep large amounts of money in a hotel safe?