Hillary,
In answer to Antoinette who was unsure of when to ‘wai’ - I only wai when I am wai’ed to and then only if the person is of similar standing and generally shows me respect. Very few of these around, so wai’s from me are very few and rare.
JCB

Dear JCB,
Thank you for that, and you are correct that respect should be shown. However, when I receive a wai I do generally return it, unless it is at the checkout at the supermarket.

Dear Hillary,
Regarding George’s complaints about his Issan GF and her friends. But seriously George presuming that you are a veteran of having “in-laws” there is nothing here out of the ordinary. In America I was well acquainted with a fellow who would cringe when his wife’s family visited because they would prepare Southwestern food that burned his nostrils. Similarly here I know a fellow who insists that his Issan lover eat the foods he loves on the balcony of the condo for the smell.
Robert

Dear Robert,
I think George does complain a little too much. A group of farangs in a pub act just the same way as the Issan girls sitting on the floor. However, I do know that most farangs object to the smell of ‘Pla Ra’ and insist it be left outside, or on the balcony!

Dear Hillary,
A couple of weeks back, a writer called Jackson tried to show what happens with Thai girls’ fascination with ‘selfies’, but evidently you have spent only a limited amount of time with the “contemporary” fairer sex of teen age and early 20’s women in your own country. I assure you the similarities are overwhelming as IQ points drop. If you have qualification to be a university instructor or interest in attending college here in the English language I can assure you that you will and can find young people filled with serious purpose and much less interest in their physical appearance. This leads to two questions: Would you attend an English language university? Would you pay attention to a woman who paid less attention to her physical beauty? Your answers say as much about you as you imply about silly flirty girls with smart phones.
Jim

Dear Jim,
An interesting comparison, but one that cannot really be debated, as none of us have the knowledge about the ‘selfies’ in your home country. I must also rise to defend the Thai ladies - looking after their physical selves is important, and the same goes for about any country in the western world. You’ll have to excuse me now as I have ordered my normal bath in asses milk to be drawn, and I don’t want to let it get cold…

Dear Hillary,
I was in at the Pattaya Mail last week and saw an (may I say it) “elderly” lady sitting at a desk in the back of the office. Was that you? Like lots of people here, I’ve been dying to meet you and see what you look like. Did I get it right? And is your hair done with a blue rinse?
Jacob

Dear Jacob,
You must be pulling my leg, Petal. Is Hillary a member of the ‘blue rinse set’? No, I do not use a blue rinse, though sometimes my salon lady will add a little black to the final rinse. No, I do not have an office desk at the back of the ground floor, though some days it is tiring going up all those steps to my attic at the top of the building. (I must ask the editor to install a lift!)

Dear Hillary,
I like a drink, who doesn’t, but my fan likes a drink even more. She’s getting into the hard stuff during the day while I’m in the office, and is definitely tipsy by the time I come home. When I look forward to a home cooked meal, she’s too tired (or too tipsy), but really too far gone to take out to a restaurant, so now I go by myself. I’m getting pretty p’d off with this but what can I do? We’ve been together over six years, but the last two years it has been getting worse. She won’t admit that she’s drinking so much either, and gets angry if I show her empty bottles. What is the next step, Hillary? Divorce?
James

Dear James,
This is a medical problem, James, not an Agony Aunt problem. You must be getting near the end of your tether mentioning divorce as an option, but I believe it is the final step, not the next step. You have to sit down with her and tell her what you feel. Try to get her to go to a doctor - if she’s drinking as much as you suggest then some blood tests might back this up. However, if she won’t go, then you’re stuck I’m afraid. Since you have been together for six years, I think you should take on the responsibility of trying to help her, but put a time limit on it, or you will end up being dragged down as well. You have already admitted that you like a drink too!