To be a Thai Monk

I have attended many of these ceremonies. Every once in a while, I will be invited to a lunch or dinner celebration. Sometimes, it is in Bangkok, other I did have to drive gig and her mum a hundred kilometers to a secluded temple in another province. When a man comes of age, his parents will want him to undergo monk-hood. And if he agrees, it is an occasion to be proud of and a celebration will be held. Thais believe that if their son undergoes this stint, he will bring good luck to the family. Often, just before one gets married, if he has not already done the monk-hood thing, his parents will often try to force him to do so. This is because if monk-hood is done after marriage, the superstitious benefits will have to be shared by the wife’s family as well. So better take more now, then to take less after marriage. You can be a monk for any period of time. Over the weekend, a week, 3 months etc. Attending an occasion like this is much like attending a Chinese wedding, or a “mun-yue” (full moon party for baby). You give money or ang-pows.

I don’t think I wanna undergo monk-hood. They are not allowed to wear underwear. Although it may be cooling, I think this condition exposes you to mosquito bites where you don’t want them, especially if you are snoring in the night, saliva drooling, legs wide apart. For a man, monk-hood means 200 over rules to follow. Women in Thailand have their version of nun-hood. Gig does this once a year if time permits. I asked her… so if monks dun wear underwear, what about woman? Of course she gave me that god-gonna-slap-you-in-face-look and explained nuns only have 8 rules to follow. So they can be excused from feeling like a swaying papaya tree in the temples.

I Fired my Technician

A Thai once told me "Do you know why Thailand is the land of smiles? Because when you speak English to us, we don’t understand you, so we just smile back."

How true. A while ago, I fired my technician because he keeps vanishing during important work days. I send an SMS to him during his absence. "Don’t need to come to work anymore, I’m sorry."

He replied "You are welcome." .. ?????? WTF.

It’s hard to find a perfect to anything I guess. No one is 100% perfect and we just have to live with their inconvenient flaws. There is still not one good technician/engineer I can find in Thailand. Hate to say this, but most of them are simply lazy and irresponsible. The one I fired was eerily afraid of girlfriend. We work spans of late nights and continuous hours on site without going home. But this guy had his girlfriend come to the site and waited out for him, not just on one occasion. Then they would end up in a big quarrel and he had to leave, tools and in-completed work, everything left for the rest in a disorderly manner. Why so afraid? Why no backbone? My Thai workers told me that it could be because his entire family relied on this girl who drove a new Camry for financial support. How sad to be a man like this. Not just his life, but his family’s life in the hands of a women. But they also told me that’s the way it is here in Thailand. Eat a bowl of soft rice, popular scenario for men of Thailand.

Insurance No Buy

Do Thais buy insurance? Here’s their view…

Visited one of Gig’s uncle in hospital yesterday. Darn scary, his life slowly being eaten away by colon cancer. Gotta eat more vegetables boys and girls. I asked them if the uncle was on insurance. No. Thais don’t buy insurance. Why? Waste of money. The money could be used better on current things – they said. So what do they do when one falls sick and is in need of money for a major surgery? They will borrow from all relatives around. The family bond is strong and all, they expect, will help. This is the mentality here. Insurance companies may think such is a big market of unexploited opportunities but the fact is that only a fraction of the minority well educated pool of Thais are into buying policies. Such is the trend here that on such a low salary scale, priorities are put forth on immediate things such as food, lodging, transport, fashion and for the middle income - entertainment. Even the near fifties population does not have savings to fall back on and dependability on others is a strong inherent trend. Why do they not plan for the future? Two simple answers. One which is just being unable to because one is financially as it is. Second, which is majority and from what I gather around me is that, why worry about future? Why think ahead. Just relax, don’t worry be happy. Worry later.

What’s a good business for the population? Credit companies seems to be doing very well, there are so many of them here. And when one cannot service the loan and is faced with a penalty that could end in jail? Borrow from loan sharks. Eventually still unable to recover the situation? Sell body, sell daughter. It is still very popular to sell daughters. It is still good luck to be having a daughter then a son. A daughter can generate income for the family through simple ways when compared to a son. It is rumored the stall near where I work selling Thai papaya salad also sell their daughter. I finally understand why there are countless TV jokes where scantily dressed busty girls pound the salad so hard she made her boobs look like a wild Viking ride.

Go borrow, go beg, go steal if out of options. Such is life here. Sad, it’s an unfair world one would say. But hey look, when is the world ever fair? Entrepreneurs in this era so glorified by media in fast paced countries. Ever wonder what it takes to be one? Money from the spoon stuck in your asses dears. These facts of Thai lives mentioned, are the exposed reality of things revealed through enough span of time in this land of smiles. We used to be able to only see the lighter side of Thailand as packed tourist on our vacations.