Dear
Hillary,
I read your column every week and enjoy your comments to your
posters. You have a great sense of humor! I must be in a small minority however,
because I don’t have anything to complain about. I am married to a Thai angel
who is everything I ever dreamed of. I met her online, and when I first started
writing to her she said “I am not a bar girl! If that’s what you’re looking for,
get lost!” I had a feeling right then, that I was heading in the right
direction. After reading so many sad stories from other farang gents, I feel
really blessed! My wife is a tenured school teacher in a government school. She
is attractive, intelligient (sic), good with money, a great cook and a
passionate lover! Needless to say, her parents drove a hard bargain when it came
to negotiating the sin sot, but she was worth every baht. We’re getting ready to
build a little house in Selaphum and I’m looking forward to many wonderful years
with my little angel and her sweet family as well. I hope my letter offers a
little hope to those fellas who are wondering if there really is someone out
there for them.
David
Dear David,
It is indeed nice to read of successful marriages between
foreigners and Thais, as I generally only hear of the disasters. So your wife is
a school teacher, I see. Get her to go over some spellings for you each morning,
my Petal. It is “intelligent” not “intelligient”. Yes, you can find your soul
mate through on-line dating, but you must be very careful and not commit to
anything before meeting your angel. That reminds me of the book by Mike Smith
called Bangkok Angel. Worth a read by all foreigners who are wondering
about mixed marriages. By the way, actually I am against the concept of the sin
sot, unless there is a similar return if the marriage fails. A wife is not a
commodity to be bought, sold or traded.
Dear Hillary!
First of all, I love your column. But I wonder why you do not
show a photo of yourself in the column? I heard by the grapewine (sic),
that you are only an alias for Iain Corness! Hm... He has the same style in
writing, and he has shown a slightly split personality, the Doctor, the Gourmet
(Ms Terry Diner). I have also heard from Australian friends, that the doctor
loves champagne and chocolates. Time to come out from the closet? But whoever
you are, your column is worth more than the total price for the Pattaya Mail,
and I wish you the best of luck!
Mr. Lelle
Dear Mr Lelle,
First of all, thank you for your contribution to the column
and your request for a photo of me. I’m sorry to disappoint you, Petal, but my
image is not one that you would keep under your pillow. Well, not since the
accident, anyway. I have spoken to Dr. Iain and he said to tell you he does
admit to writing the medical column and the motoring column and also the Dining
Out column under the pseudonym of Miss Terry Diner (say it quickly), but he does
not admit to being Hillary. He did say that his friends in Australia also know
it is not champagne they drink down there, but sparkling wines produced by the
Methode Champenoise. And while on the fizz bottles, please note for the future
it is “grapevine” not “grapewine”. Too much “grapewine” makes people think they
are great detectives! Keep trying my Petal. Keep trying.
Dear Hillary,
About a year ago I set up home with a Thai girl. Her family
comes from the north east and I have been up there and met them, and they seemed
nice enough farming folks. They accepted me but I always felt a little left out
at the family gatherings as they can only speak Thai and my girl had to
translate all the time. For this reason, and because I am busy at work, I have
not been back up there, though my girl does go up frequently. Is this the usual
way for families behave? If it is, I will say nothing, but she will often go
back for two or three days, the last being the end of Buddhist Lent. Have I
anything to worry about?
The Worrier
Dear Worrier,
You may have lots to worry about, or nothing at all. Are you
worrying because you think she is not going back to the family rice paddy? I am
reading between the lines here. It is very usual for daughters to go home and
pay respects to their family, and often contribute financially as well. Does
your lady have children there that are being looked after by her Mama? Honestly,
Petal, it sounds very normal to me. Caring and following the family principles
will carry over to you as well, if you allow her to follow her traditions. In
the meantime you can always see your doctor for some anti-worrying pills!
