Thread: Now I've learned to tie my own shoelaces...

...and read enough posts to understand that it doesnt matter how intelligent or otherwise any questions us newbies may have, we're likely to receive the information we're after on TD so long as we don't mind laughing at ourselves - I'm now happy to pop my posting cherry.

Veteren posters will probably have heard my story many times before. It's the one about the bloke in his mid-30s that gets disillusioned with big city life, feels he's missing out on something, so decides to take a career break and buys himself an around-the-world ticket to find somewhere else to have a different type of life.

My ticket took me to Thailand, Australia (via Bali), New Zealand and The United States and depite the fact I don't speak Thai and I know I'll have to take a major decrease in my income (it's currently a 100% decrease) I've chosen Chiang Mai.

I've sorted my accommodation and now need a 'sensible' income. I've 15 years experience within the London advertising scene which has resulted in the successful launches of multiple businesses and countless products.

I know I can fall back on the teaching option as I've taught both children and adults in England but I'd like to do something more 'rewarding'. Any advice as to how best to move forward (excluding putting one foot in front of the other, now I've learned to tie my own shoelaces I've found walking much easier) will be gratefully received.

Like most virgins I may have got a bit carried away with my first time so if you've managed to get this far, hello, thanks for reading, and please feel free to provide any advice (either helpful or amusing, preferably both) that might help.

Cheers,

AC

Hi and welcome. Just take it easy for the first little while and enjoy.

Originally Posted by Adman Cando

My ticket took me to Thailand, Australia (via Bali), New Zealand and The United States

I bought a ticket for that very same trip 10 years ago. I've still not been to Bali!

Welcome. I was on me way to Aus' but fell at the first hurdle when I decided to pop into Thailand first. No complaints really.

Good choice ! Chiang Mai is probably the most liveable city in Thailand. It's got good facilities for foreigners, and is neither too big nor too small. Easy to get out to the mountains, too. And if you're a reader, it has a few good secondhand English book shops.
The only real problem is air pollution from burning off in the mountains.....it's quite extreme at certain times of the year.

How's the air pollution up in CM these days during the burn-off season and how long does the burn-off last?

Originally Posted by The Fresh Prince

Originally Posted by Adman Cando

My ticket took me to Thailand, Australia (via Bali), New Zealand and The United States

I bought a ticket for that very same trip 10 years ago. I've still not been to Bali!

Yep, many moons ago I went out to buy a newspaper and 20 Rothmans, took a wrong turn and been here since.

Originally Posted by Adman Cando

Any advice as to how best to move forward (excluding putting one foot in front of the other, now I've learned to tie my own shoelaces I've found walking much easier) will be gratefully received.

I suggest you ponder this issue whilst getting your genitals man-handled in an oil massage establishment. After the explosion, everything will become clear..

Originally Posted by Bangyai

and 20 Rothmans

Posh bastard! Sovreigns or Lambert and Butler were all I could muster..nowadays I have to look under the sofa cushions to finance a 3 baht pack of Ya-Sen..oh the gloom of it all..

Originally Posted by somtamslap

Originally Posted by Bangyai

and 20 Rothmans

Posh bastard! Sovreigns or Lambert and Butler were all I could muster..nowadays I have to look under the sofa cushions to finance a 3 baht pack of Ya-Sen..oh the gloom of it all..

I was buying them for my dad mate in the days when our whole family lived in a matchbox next to the municiple dump. Things have improved now. Us siblings have moved out and mum has moved up to a detatched shoe box on some wasteland.

Originally Posted by somtamslap

Lambert and Butler

urrh, you could always tell when the student loans were running out because everybody started smoking Lambert & Poverty.

Originally Posted by The Fresh Prince

Originally Posted by somtamslap

Lambert and Butler

urrh, you could always tell when the student loans were running out because everybody started smoking Lambert & Poverty.

Poverty!? They're about £3.40 for ten nowadays!

Your best option would be to use your contacts from your life in the real world to set something up here where you can work from home.

What was your job-role before?

Originally Posted by The Fresh Prince

Originally Posted by somtamslap

Lambert and Butler

urrh, you could always tell when the student loans were running out because everybody started smoking Lambert & Poverty.

Lambert and Butler seemed to me the only smokes that used to fall of the back of a lorry down our way...cheap and ok for making joints with

Originally Posted by somtamslap

Originally Posted by Adman Cando

Any advice as to how best to move forward (excluding putting one foot in front of the other, now I've learned to tie my own shoelaces I've found walking much easier) will be gratefully received.

I suggest you ponder this issue whilst getting your genitals man-handled in an oil massage establishment. After the explosion, everything will become clear..

As I'm sure I've mentioned, I already learned how to 'walk' - though I understand some people are compelled to practice..

Perhaps I should consider establishing a Ramblers Meditation School? I'd be able to guarantee 'complete' satisfaction. My staff would have to sit a suitability test and pass an intense 3 months on-the-job training course before they got anywhere near a paying customer...

I can do this all day, and however amusing it is it's not exactly what I'd call productive.

I was wondering (& I know it's extremely unlikely & very 'un-Thai') if there was any organisation whatsoever to the businesses owned by foreigners in Chiang Mai? I've seen loads of businesses (& I don't mean the Gogo/lady bars - any falang attempting to compete with the local owners is already beyond my assistance) that either aren't turning a profit or aren't maximizing their potential - and I know I can help. To describe the quality of Marcoms of most as 'amateurish' does disservice to part-timers worldwide.

To the others that've said hi - cheers, I'll try to relax but I've just been on holiday for a year and I'm ready to get working again. And on the cigarette conversation - I've found LM Blue a more than adequate substitute for Marlboro Lights - which probably makes me the richest, poshest, London Council Estate kid in Chiang Mai ;-)

Nice first post and welcome to the forum.

I hope everything goes well for you.

Originally Posted by Loy Toy

Nice first post and welcome to the forum.

I hope everything goes well for you.

Yes ditto that and good luck.

Originally Posted by Adman Cando

Perhaps I should consider establishing a Ramblers Meditation School? I'd be able to guarantee 'complete' satisfaction.

I'm sure you could but this is covered already by the Semi comatosed Thais that abound.

Maybe a school for the rehabilitation of the morbidly depressed ?.

Marmite would be your # 1 customer.

Hey LT,

Maybe you can start a new branch of your bucket enterprise and our new friend can manage that. Seems to be up to it.

Originally Posted by Adman Cando

As always comment and feedback is welcome either about the quality of the post or the product.

There's a graphic design fault on your web site.

The 2 elements Let's get started and find your new website address should have been grouped before applying a drop shadow to both elements, as it looks odd with only the second element having a drop shadow that finishes halfway along the first.

I see what you mean... I'll pass your feedback to our designer and see what they come back with.

Minor design issues aside, any thoughts about the product?

where has the long update I posted gone? Have I been censured or have I done something stupid like reply to one person only?

Originally Posted by Adman Cando

where has the long update I posted gone?

I guess it contained a link which a moderator considered unsolicited spam.

Bit harsh, really. But then again, 9 posts in 12 months hardly qualifies as a regular poster.

That's fair enough.

There was a reason for my silence though, I wanted to re-appear with a bang, having succeeded against all the odds with a pukka product and a business model that actually stands a chance of working.. though I appreciate I may have inadvertently broken a rule by posting its URL.

That said, I have a feeling that the moderator may have done me a favour as my tirade (and it certainly qualified as that however much I disguised it as 'advice') against the system probably wasn't my wisest move.

Lets try again and see which it was: the site is ExpressPages.Asia.