Back in hell

[opebo]

I would like to note that I am now back in America.  I had forgotten how bad it is!

I spent the night in LA - what a horrible city!  Spread out and full of fast food.  On the bright side I saw Cloe Sevigny at my hotel.  Also at the St. Louis airport I saw Dick Gephart, retired representative.

However I am currently experiencing severe effects of the excessive driving and the disgusting food that are such an integral part of American life.  Also I am reeling from the exposure to the tense, work-driven, and financially desperate world around me.   Well, I should only be stuck in this nightmare land for a few more months.  Wish me luck in surviving it.

[opebo]

How large is the disparity in prices for whores between Missouri and Thailand?

Are you kidding?  I'm just trying to get some edible food at this point!  I don't feel remotely well enough  yet in this unhealthy land to even consider such hedonistic adventures.

[opebo]

You don't realize how lucky you are to be from the US, opebo...

Are you kidding?  I'm just trying to get some edible food at this point!  I don't feel remotely well enough  yet in this unhealthy land to even consider such hedonistic adventures.

Fast food wouldn't be so bad if you were not such a damn eleitest snob opebo.

No, I meant bad as in it makes me physically ill.  Of course it tastes horrible and is terribly unhealthy, but my response to American food is visceral, not elitist.  It comes from the stomach, not the head.

[opebo]

Opebo,

I suggest you start drinking as soon as you are no longer required to operate heavy machinery.

Well, I'm not sure what you mean by this exactly, but it does seem like good advice.  I have to be here for something like 3-5 months, and a few drinks might help.  I also have an enormous jar of valiums. 

But one of the biggest drawbacks about the US is you have operate heavy machinery almost constantly.  The car culture is exhausting and ennervating.

[opebo]

Opebo,

I suggest you start drinking as soon as you are no longer required to operate heavy machinery.

Well, I'm not sure what you mean by this exactly, but it does seem like good advice.  I have to be here for something like 3-5 months, and a few drinks might help.  I also have an enormous jar of valiums. 

But one of the biggest drawbacks about the US is you have operate heavy machinery almost constantly.  The car culture is exhausting and ennervating.

Against all of my insticts;)  may I suggest you go to New York if you feel that way.  One of the things I love about New York is that you really don't have to drive anywhere.  Pretty much anything you need is within a quick walk, taxi or subway.

Well, patrick, I appreciate the suggestion, and it is a good one.  However the only reason I'm back in the US is that my budget is in its slim phase of the year after spending rather too freely.  Things will be back on track in the very early fall, but until then it is belt-tightening time.  And I suspect one would have to spend at least a thousand dollars a week to live in New York.

[opebo]

Depends on where in NY I suppose. May I suggest the South Bronx?

The South Bronx sounds perfect to me.   Great suggestion, Lewis.

That would give opebo the chance to see on a daily basis how his view of the world and philosophy of life plays out for those who have been born without trust funds.

What does the South Bronx have to do with my 'view of the world and philosophy'?  The South Bronx is filled with poor people suffering the effects of laissez-faire capitalism.

[opebo]

Depends on where in NY I suppose. May I suggest the South Bronx?

The South Bronx sounds perfect to me.   Great suggestion, Lewis.

That would give opebo the chance to see on a daily basis how his view of the world and philosophy of life plays out for those who have been born without trust funds.

What does the South Bronx have to do with my 'view of the world and philosophy'?  The South Bronx is filled with poor people suffering the effects of laissez-faire capitalism.

Maybe, but it also has many people who made a lot of wrong decisions in life, and failed to do the things necessary to live decently in this world.  Many people in those types of neighborhoods follow your amoral views toward sex and your disdain for work, with the result that they end up with kids they can't support, and are unemployable and uneducated.

If not for your trust fund, you'd be in the same place, and deservedly so.

You are focusing on unimportant incidentals, as well as to a certain extent refuting your own argument by reminding us that the results of identical behavior differ according to class.  No, the determining factor in the plight of the poor, as well as the advantage of the owners, is economic class, not personal behaviour. 

[opebo]

it is exhausting to use an automobile?  didnt i read once that you rented a motorbike while in thailand?  it is exhausting to drive a car, but riding around in thailand on a motorbike is relaxing?  help me out here.  im confused.

i also remember once when you siad something to the effect of 'owning a computer is a burden'....lol

Of course owning anything bulky is a burden.  As for automobiles - obviously they are exhausting and tension-producing, as the distances one must drive in the US are absurdly far.  In Thailand I ride around on a motor scooter in a dense beach town (small city).  I am never in motion for more than 10 minutes - relaxing.

[opebo]

pne thing that ive wondered....you were in a small beach city...but i dont recall you mentioning anything about the tsunami.

Actually it is a city of 100-200 thousand.  But we were unaffected by the tsunami.
Take a look at the map:

Note that Pattaya is not on Thailand's west coast, the only part of the country which was effected by the tsunami:

[opebo]

Update From Hell:
I am sustaining myself on a survival diet of nuts and berries in this hostile terrain.  I had a couple of $50 meals, but they were of worse quality than my seventy-five cent meals in Thailand.  I also had an encounter but the American-style full figure made me ill.  How do you people live in this place?  You must be very hardy.  Some views of America:

[opebo]

So leave then.  Why the f**k are you here?  Oh, I forgot.  To get money.  If you had the courage of your convictions, you'd leave and never come back.  And America wouldn't miss you.

I agree completely. You do nothing but bitch about how terrible America is --- just never come back. It's so much easier.

I wish!  But I'm afraid its not possible guys.  Have to mooch a bit to get through the dry spell between the semi-annual remittances.  How would you get money abroad?  Please, I'm all ears..

[opebo]

I wish!  But I'm afraid its not possible guys.  Have to mooch a bit to get through the dry spell between the semi-annual disbursements.  How would you get money abroad?  Please, I'm all ears..

I think they're thinking of working.
Those two cats are waay overfed btw.

Well, it is illegal for foreigners to work outside their homelands, according to my understanding of the law. 

[opebo]

Not necessarily. It requires paperwork.

Sounds bad.  Anyway, persons who suggest work as a solution to anything are very lacking in understanding.

[opebo]

Anyway, persons who suggest work as a solution to anything are very lacking in understanding.

Of you're parasitic lazyness?

Well, in a sense.  Lacking in understanding of the difference between a life of leisure and a life of work.  The former is worth leading, the latter, almost always not.  Nice song by Pulp along those lines (those boys seem to understand what a working-class life is like):

Common People
Pulp

She came from Greece, she had a thirst for knowledge
She studied sculpture at Saint Martin's College
That's where I caught her eye
She told me that her Dad was loaded
I said "In that case I'll have rum and coca-cola
She said "fine"
And then in 30 seconds time she said
"I want to live like common people
I want to do whatever common people do
I want to sleep with common people
I want to sleep with common people like you"
Well what else could I do?
I said "I'll see what I can do"
I took her to a supermarket
I don't know why
but I had to start it somewhere
so it started there
I said "pretend you've got no money"
but she just laughed
and said "oh you're so funny"
I said "Yeah
Well I can't see anyone else smiling in here
Are you sure
you want to live like common people
you want to see whatever common people see
you want to sleep with common people
you want to sleep with common people like me?"
But she didn't understand
she just smiled and held my hand
Rent a flat above a shop
Cut your hair and get a job
Smoke some fags and play some pool
Pretend you never went to school
But still you'll never get it right
'cos when you're laid in bed at night
watching roaches climb the wall
if you called your dad he could stop it all
yeah
You'll never live like common people
You'll never do whatever common people do
You'll never fail like common people
You'll never watch your life slide out of view
and then dance and drink and screw
because  there's nothing else to do
Sing along with the common people
Sing along and it might just get you through
Laugh along with the common people
Laugh along although they're laughing at you
and the stupid things that you do
because you think that poor is cool
Like a dog lying in a corner
they will bite you and never warn you
Look out
they'll tear your insides out
'cos everybody hates a tourist
especially one who thinks
it's all such a laugh
yeah and the chip stain's grease
will come out in the bath
You will never understand
how it feels to live your life
with no meaning or control
and with nowhere else to go
You are amazed that they exist
and they burn so bright
whilst you can only wonder why
Rent a flat above a shop
Cut your hair and get a job
Smoke some fags and play some pool
Pretend you never went to school
But still you'll never get it right
'cause when you're laid in bed at night
watching roaches climb the wall
if you called your dad he could stop it all
yeah
You'll never live like common people
You'll never do whatever common people do
You'll never fail like common people
You'll never watch your life slide out of view
and then dance and drink and screw
'because there's nothing else to do
I want to live with common people like you.....

[opebo]

Common People
Pulp

Laugh along with the common people
Laugh along although they're laughing at you
and the stupid things that you do
because you think that poor is cool

they'll tear your insides out
'cos everybody hates a tourist
especially one who thinks
it's all such a laugh

You are amazed that they exist

That song is ridiculing how patronizing rich people can be about poor people, and the way they sympathize with them without really having a clue about their real problems.

Quite appropriate that you brought it up, it seems.

Yes, it is ridiculing rich people, of course.  But it is also presenting the obvious fact that the life of the poor is a meaningless, miserable horror. 

I don't see how my own condition has any bearing on my commentary on the life of the working-class. 

[opebo]

Thailand is being sucked dry by a parasitic seat that is in effect choking on itself

Hah, that could be said of any capitalist country.  I'm sure the right-wingers would not call it 'being sucked dry' but rather being Developed.   Actually Bangkok is not so bad - the traffic is no big deal now that they have the skytrain and subways.  Anyway I never spend any time in Bangkok.

[opebo]

Thailand is being sucked dry by a parasitic seat that is in effect choking on itself

Hah, that could be said of any capitalist country.  I'm sure the right-wingers would not call it 'being sucked dry' but rather being Developed.   Actually Bangkok is not so bad - the traffic is no big deal now that they have the skytrain and subways.  Anyway I never spend any time in Bangkok.

Hey, we have the same things in the U.S. and the average person is more wealthy! Poverty rates are lower! Fancy that.

Poverty rates are merely statistics.  The fact is that quality of life is higher in Thailand for the median person, simply because everything is so cheap, but even more so because everything is of such high quality.  The meals I bought for seventy-five cents in Thailand were healthier and made of fresher materials than anything I could buy in any American restuarant for $30.

For example, I discovered through aquaintances that the monthly salary of the workers in the ubiquitious 7-11s of central Thailand is about 10,000 baht per month.  That's about $250.  Well, an apartment is about $50-75 per month, and food eaten out is about $3-4 per day, and is delicious.  Health care of a basic nature is provided by the State.  A motorbike is $25/month.  A pleasant existence.

In Missouri, convenience store work pays about $6-8 an hour.  So times 32 hours a week (not many places will allow 40 hours), we get $224 before taxes.   Thai workers taxes are negligable (even the upper classes only pay at most 20%, most workers none at all), but to be fair lets not even take into account America's higher taxes.  So this person makes $896/month.  An apartment is $500/month.  Eating out is $15/day at a minimum, and the quality of food is atrocious, as wellas unhealthy.  We're already at $950/month!  Even before considering transportation, this person cannot afford to live in the same style as the Thai worker.

[opebo]

The majority of Americans don't eat three meals out a day. Cooking two meals and packing a lunch runs a few dollars a day.

That is my whole point!  They can't afford to!  Working class Thais can afford to eat out more frequently than working class Americans, and the food there is of enormously better quality.  America, again, loses.

[opebo]

Eating food at home is much better quality than most restaurants here. Nine times out of ten, I'd rather eat a cheaper and better meal at my house than go out to eat somewhere.

Correct, American restuarants are garbage.  In addition, the food you get at the grocery store is mostly processed garbage.

In Thailand, the food sold on the street and in small restaurants for $.75 is better than anything I ever find in the US, at any price, and to top it off far more convenient.  In other words there is something wrong with America's functioning, and right with Thailand's.  Alas I fear that as the world is Americanized someday within my lifetime all food will be disgusting and poisonous - the process has already begun in Thailand.  Tragic.

[opebo]

Ok Opebo. What exactly[/i] do you hate about American food? Taste? Cooking style? What?

It is hard to explain to someone who hasn't been to a country where food is good.  I think the main problems are lack of freshness, and processing. 

In Thailand I eat rice, enormous amounts of fresh vegetables, incorporated into soups, curries, etc, including lots of green leafy vegetables.  Oh and everything picked that day, nothing refridgerated or transported long distances.  Meat in moderation and lots of fish, and nearly all of it killed or caught that day.  The food is just so vibrant, fresh, and always prepared just right.  I admit I hate the heavy meat and potatos blandness of 'Western' cooking, but it it more than just personal taste.  Like so many things here, American food is just a sort of half-assed compromise, a 'good enough' solution.  In Thailand I think there is more pride in cooking because every little restaurant, including mobile street food stalls, are owned by independent small business people - not these disgusting chains we have here.

And Thai food here is enough to make me cry.

[opebo]

Did you enjoy eating the dog & cat that they often serve there? lol

What a flippant reply about what is one of life's most important issues - food.  Certainly I have enjoyed dog, though it was in Vietnam (it is only a part of the cuisine of one remote region in Thailand, and in fact is a rare treat even in Vietnam).  As for cat, I believe you could find that in China.   

In any case, fat boy, this country is poisonous.  What you eat is not only reducing your quality of life by its poor quality and flavour, its unhealthiness is killing you.  So, laugh it up.. and enjoy your diabetes and heart attack, and the system that produced them.

[opebo]

Did you enjoy eating the dog & cat that they often serve there? lol

What a flippant reply about what is one of life's most important issues - food.  Certainly I have enjoyed dog, though it was in Vietnam (it is only a part of the cuisine of one remote region in Thailand, and in fact is a rare treat even in Vietnam).  As for cat, I believe you could find that in China.   

In any case, fat boy, this country is poisonous.  What you eat is not only reducing your quality of life by its poor quality and flavour, its unhealthiness is killing you.  So, laugh it up.. and enjoy your diabetes and heart attack, and the system that produced them.

You are aware, by the way, that the Thai life expectancy is 69 years, compared to the U.S.'s 78?

I was only refering to the unhealthy diet and obesity that kill Americans.  I believe most Thais are killed in daredevil motorbike accidents.

... and live in a dictatorship...

Actually it is not a dictatorship, unfortunately.  It is a democracy.  I wish it were still a dictatorship!

[opebo]

It is a democracy.  I wish it were still a dictatorship!

You're sounding like Blue Opebo here.

We're not very different at all.  The dictatorships were friendlier to masculine enjoyments.  Democracies are inevitably afflicted with bourgeois morality.

I believe most Thais are killed in daredevil motorbike accidents.

Hahaha!

Only partially kidding here.  Thais are absolutely carefree 'in the moment' people (at least all but the upper class), and death by motorbike accident is very common.

[opebo]

I didn't read the thread.

But I agree with Opebo about America's disgusting food culture and transporation habits.

Maybe it's just me, but I feel like I can taste the heart attack every time I take a bite out of fast food. Most American food is packaged and shipped hundreds of miles. We pack our foods with sugar and butter, feed them to our kids, and then blame their obesity on videogames. The only fast food place I like is Taco Bell, for some reason.

Our driving habits have destroyed cities, made us depressingly dependent on Muslims for oil, and made people sacrifice hours of their lifes everyday in traffic because our pathetic culture has brainwashed them to think that it's worth it so they can have cookie-cutter house that they only get to enjoy when the come home, watch a TV show, and go to bed, and occasionally clean!

Americans have forgotten how delicious healthy foods can be. Not that I should talk, because I LLOOOOOVVVEE chocolate. But I can't eat it, cuz then I'd be fat.

Great post Jesus!  Americans suffer from anhedonia.   I agree about the feeling one gets when one eats most food here - you feel the heart attack, I feel like I'm poisoning myself.  It is hard to choke enough of the stuff down to get through the day.

[opebo]

You don't have to eat unhealthy, you know. There's such a thing as a 'supermarket' (or a 'greengrocer' or an 'ethnic grocer' or a 'vegetable stand' or a 'u-pic' - and u-pics are particularly fresh [in Florida, there's lots of u-pic strawberries, sweet corn, and citrus fruit]) where you can get fruits and vegetables that are, for the most part, fresh (check if they're in season, though. In the US, you can get them all year, but in the wrong season they come from Australia or South America). Then you can cook for yourself. Especially check out places like Korean, Chinese, or Vietnamese 'ethnic grocers' - they'll have stuff you're probably used to.

Good lord man, that sounds like a full time job!  What a lot of trouble.  The whole point is that in Thailand, and many parts of asia, delicious healthy food is available simply by walking down the block and buying it at the small restaurant.  Here in America everything is astoundingly inefficient and difficult.