Gaybutton

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Yes, a graduate from the Dan Quayle School of Public Speaking

The following appears in THE NATION: _____ Test of Marketing as iPhone 3G Mobile Phones Make their Debut Published on January 19, 2009 True Move's iPhone 3G mobile phones, which made their debut last Friday, got an overwhelming welcome from businessmen to hi-so people but it remains to be seen if True Move can meet the sales target. True Move executives showed mixed feelings of happiness and anxiety when not only those pre-registered for the phones went to pick up the devices at the launch event in Siam Paragon's Royal Paragon Hall, but also shoppers in the mall, who rushed to register and wait for the phones. This prompted True Move's chief executive Supachai Chearavanont to hurry to check if the availability of the iPhone 3G at the event is enough to serve the unexpectedly long queue, of enthusiastic teenagers to businessmen. Tech geeks, who registered for the phones since last December could pick up the devices from last Friday until today. One woman in the queue said she picked up the phone for her sister. "My sister told me that someone had reserved the phone for her and wanted to give it to her as a birthday gift," she added. True Move even set up a gift- wrapping booth in the hall, in anticipation that many people would buy the devices as a present. A "Learn" room was also set up for those who had the phones to learn about iPhone 3G phone applications from True Move staff. One high-society woman said she could not wait any longer in the long queue and would call her housemaid to come and stand in her place. A businessman named Krit Jiramongkol, who said he is an Apple fan, was the first person in the queue. He arrived at the venue at 3.30pm on Friday, well ahead of the launch time of 8pm. The reward for being the first in the queue was he was given the iPhone 3G accessories by Supachai himself, including the T-shirt, which had the words 'I Got the First iPhone 3G by True Move'. The first group of people in the queue were welcomed by continuous applause from 500 True Move staff when they were led to their seats in the phone receiving area. "We studied the iPhone 3G launch ceremonies in many countries and applied them to our own style," said one True Move executive. But he was silent on the number of people pre-registered for the phones. A telecom industry source said True Move had committed with Apple to sell around 100,000 iPhone 3G mobile phones per year for three years but True Move executives declined to confirm the report. True Move was in talks with Apple for more than three months to become the authorised cellular service provider for the iPhone 3G in Thailand. True Move will start retailing the devices at its shops on February 16 and will initially spend Bt50 million on the phone-marketing campaign. Supachai said the company spent Bt20 million on developing the applications for the phones. True Move has offered several iPhone 3G mobile-phone packages - some are tied in with a monthly fee. Industry observers said those who buy the phones with no tied-in monthly fee, will sign up with different networks. But Supachai believes they would sign up with True Move for better mobile applications and after-sale services.

I can answer that one. There is a landfill east of the city. That's where it ends up when it doesn't end up in the neighbor's yard . . . Some of it gets recycled. Not by recycling centers, though. Some people make their living or supplement their living by "garbage picking." The literally go through people's garbage cans and take out anything they can sell. Empty plastic water bottles are quite popular with them. I make it a little more convenient for the local garbage pickers around my house. I pack up the empty plastic bottles in a separate garbage bag for them. If you have a broken piece of furniture or an old appliance you're trying to get rid of, just put it outside. It will probably be gone within an hour.

There is some English spoken in most branches of any bank throughout Thailand, even in rural areas. You shouldn't have any problems communicating your banking needs at any branch, anywhere in Thailand, even the mini branches located in many shopping centers. It's not a problem. In Bangkok, you'll find the best English spoken in areas frequented by farang. Receipts are given at all ATMs and you will also get a receipt when a bank teller hands you cash. If an ATM is out of receipt paper, the machine will give you the option of canceling the transaction or contuing without a receipt. Whenever you make a withdrawal from a bank teller, they want your passport and bank passbook. The teller will give you a receipt and will also update your bank book. Also, most bank branches will have a machine at which you can update your passbook yourself and a great many also have machines at which you can deposit cash into your account (or anyone else's account if they have an account at that bank).

Here's the link buckeroo2 wanted to post: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Tourism-Mini...-V-t235697.html

Yes.

Actually, they do . . . upon request.

I'll bite. What is the "OP"?

I'm not surprised. It is definitely best to get the re-entry permit at an immigration office prior to going to the airport under any circumstances. Even if that sign is only going to be there temporarily, there have been instances when people have gone to the airport only to find that the counter is closed or whoever is supposed to be staffing it isn't there.

Policies do vary from branch to branch. That's why I always recommend going to another branch if you don't like what you are being told at one branch. Quite often you get precisely the opposite answer at another branch. Like so much else in Thailand, sometimes even banking seems to be "just make up your own rules." I'm glad several of you are able to open Thai bank accounts without too much trouble. Again, some banks make it very simple and some are a major hassle. I advise anyone who visits Thailand regularly to open at least one Thai bank account and make sure to get online banking. That's especially advisable if you are even considering retirement in Thailand. The banking rules seem to change quite often. If you don't already have a Thai bank account, I strongly urge you to open one next time you're in Thailand. Don't wait! Open the account while you can and while it's still easy at some banks. Those rules can change any time. It used to be that any farang could open a bank account at any Thai bank even if you were only here on the 30-day privilege. Back then, all you needed was your passport and 500 baht. Now it's not quite so easy, but most banks that will allow you to open an account will still also allow you to open an account with a minimum of a 500 baht initial deposit. They also charge 200 to 300 baht for the Visa Electron Card, which is actually an ATM card with the Visa (sometimes MasterCard) logo. You can use that card in major shopping centers, grocery stores, restaurants, etc. You can even use it at ATMs in your home country or other countries you are visiting.

Why do I have a feeling that ain't all you like at Question Mark . . . ?

I have the same kind of service. Mine costs 600 baht per year. That's up from 450 baht per year. That price lasted nearly ten years before it was raised. Back in the USA it used to cost me about four times that much . . . per month! City water is a bargain here too. The most expensive monthly water bill I've ever received was 120 baht. Believe it or not, for reasons I don't understand, in my neighborhood the water has been absolutely free for the past six months. For a while I thought my water bill had to be wrong when the amount owed was showing as zero. I asked a Thai neighbor about it and he told me the water in my area is going to be free for at least six months. He had no idea why, but neither he nor I nor any of my neighbors are complaining.

I very rarely tip housekeeping staff if I am staying in a hotel only one or two nights. If I'm staying longer and I am satisfied with the job they're doing, that's when I start tipping.

If you are comfortable with that, fine with me. But I'm not comfortable with anything to do with money unless the one in complete control of it is me. I don't dispute that it is trouble free. I believe that. But trouble free or not, I prefer to pay my bills at the time I choose and I prefer it is I who keys in how much my account will be debited, not a computer and not another person. So, for the time being, I think I'll remain in the dark ages.

Considering how his name is pronounced, apparently Madoff 'made off' with more money than even Thaksin can dream about. I hope the courts are able to seize it all. That would be enough to finance the war in Iraq for at least two or three hours.

The part that bothers me the most is that no matter which side initiates the attacks, it's usually the poor and innocent who die, end up maimed, or otherwise have their lives ruined even further than it was a ruined life in the first place.

Please send the link to me in an Email. gaybutton@gmail.com . I'll try to figure out what's going wrong. If I get it figured out, I'll post the link for you.

I've never had a bellboy become rude, belligerent, or impolite when I've approached him for assistance in finding some "companionship." I think you can probably get an idea as to whether the bellboy would be responsive just by his demeanor. If he seems to be the type who might get upset if I ask, then I don't ask. But that's rare. I've never had one tell me he won't try. I've had them tell me they don't know anybody, but that's about it. Once when I was out in the hinterlands, there was no bellboy at all. I said something to the cleaning woman. She merely smiled and shrugged. Much to my surprise, about three hours later she showed up with a young gentleman who turned out to be her cousin. He was really cute and eager. I ended up having a fabulous night! But I was really stupid. It didn't even occur to me to get his phone number until I was far away from that place. Damn! I still bitch slap myself over that little mistake! I wish I turned around and went back. Oh well, ol' love 'em and lose 'em strikes again! I'm sure everyone has his own methods of approaching someone. When I ask for that kind of assistance from a bellboy I simply let him know I'm gay, alone, don't know anyone in this area, and am wondering if he might be able to help me out in return for a good tip. That usually works just fine. I try to solicit that kind of help from the cutest bellboy. That way, if he's interested himself, that's also just fine.

It did until I had another look at my own size. Well, I tried to have a look anyway, but I dropped the magnifying glass.

At the moment the plan is to at least do the drawing publicly. Just where and on exactly what date is still being planned. If GayThailand will not yet be back in Thailand, then I'm going to do it. What we have so far discussed is having GT make arrangements with one of the bars. He and I, even if he is not here, will tally up the names in "the hat" to make sure we both concur. We intend to have bar boys place the names in the hat, publicly, and have a bar boy be the one who draws out the winning name, also publicly. Whether the winner is present or not, he will be contacted by GT to arrange the prize. Whether GT intends to host a party on top of a $1500 prize, I don't know. My recommendation is that anyone who wishes to be there when we do the drawing is welcome, but has to open his own wallet if he wishes to drink. However, that's GT's decision.

And some will completely agree with your tipping policies. I'm one of the people who agrees with nearly everything you wrote with the exception of the amount you give to housekeeping. If I have a bellboy take my luggage to my room (and from my room when I check out) I usually tip him 20 to 100 baht, depending on the amount of luggage I have and how helpful he is. If I happen to be out in the middle of nowhere, or somewhere at which gay venues don't exist, then if I ask a bellboy for "assistance" in finding someone for the evening, and he comes up with what I'm looking for, then he'll get 300 to 500 baht. If it turns out that the bellboy himself provides the, uhhhhh, "companionship," then obviously he's going to get more. I also don't tip quite as you do in restaurants. In restaurants at which a service charge is added, as far as I'm concerned that's the tip. I'll tip beyond the service charge if the service was exceptional. In restaurants that do not have a service charge 20 baht is usually the expected tip. That's what I usually leave. Again, I'll leave more if I particularly liked the service. In restaurants that I consider to be "high class," but there is no service charge, I usually leave 10 to 15%. In the bars, if a boy invites himself to sit with me, and I neither asked him to sit with me nor wanted him to sit with me, he gets nothing. A pushy mama-san gets nothing. A truly helpful mama-san gets a tip from me. The amount is variable depending on many different factors. If I ask a boy to sit with me, he gets 100 baht. If I ask a boy to sit with me and I really enjoyed his company, then he usually gets 200 baht unless I take him off. If I take him off, then he gets his tip along with the amount I give him for his "services." It's difficult to come up with true standards in Thailand, where most everything is "up to you." I don't think true standards exist here at all when it comes to tipping.

That's exactly what I don't want. I don't like the idea of waking up one morning to find money has been deducted from my account without my confirmation first. If that's the way it works, I'd rather pay it myself when I decide to pay it.

I'm afraid my input won't be very helpful. This is the first time this question has come up. I would guess that you can renew at a Thai consulate because you can get a first retirement visa at a Thai consulate. But considering the weird way things can work Thai style, that's only a guess on my part. If I were you I would do either of two things: The Immigration authorities do allow people to renew their retirement visa prior to a trip that means they won't be back in Thailand before the visa expires. I know people who have done it months in advance. The second thing I would do would be to spring for a phone call to the Thai consulate at which you would apply for a renewal. They're the ones who would approve or reject the renewal, so you might as well get your information directly from them. The worst that can happen would be that you would lose the visa and have to go through the process again when you return to Thailand. That's not really much of a problem considering you have to provide most of the same documentation when you apply for a renewal anyway. It would mean an extra couple of thousand baht to convert your entry visa to the retirement visa, but I see no problem about it. Out of all the choices, I think the easiest, least expensive, and best choice is to renew your visa prior to leaving Thailand. Just don't forget to obtain a re-entry permit before leaving Thailand. If you fail to get a re-entry permit, then your visa will be null and void whether you renewed or not.

I'd like to know if they simply debit your account or if they contact you somehow first, let you know the amount to be debited, and you get some sort of control over whether to allow the debit to go through and have some control over the date and time for the debit. If you have control over it, I'm going to consider doing it. Sometimes I'm not in town when the bill comes and they don't give you very many days to pay it before they send someone over to cut off your electricity. Do you use automatic payment for both water and electricity? Also, what did you do to set it up? Can you set it up online or do you need to go to the bank to set it up?