Thursday, November 23, 2017

Happy Rambling Thanksgiving

I made an amazing lasagna for thanksgiving. I used parts of different recipes from all kinds of really good chefs, including the Bolognese that Gordon Ramsey makes with only minor differences. After assembling, I put it in the fridge and started watching some shows on the computer. I also watched some things on YouTube. I came across a channel called, "Cheap Charlie Chronicles' about a guy who lives in Thailand. He seems preoccupied with finding a Thai girlfriend.

In the early 1980s I went to college and had a friend from Thailand, a wealthy friend. He lived in a luxury condo in Boston and was known to blow over $10,000 in a day in Vegas. I was living on a couple of dollars a day. One break he said I should come with him to Thailand. I told him I couldn't afford it. I don't remember the exact dollar amount and this would have been in about 1981; but, he said for maybe $5 a day, I could get a room that came with a woman who would cook, clean and have sex with me. The minimum wage in 1981 was about $3 an hour in the United States and I made more than minimum wage when I was working. Heck, in 1978 I made $8 an hour doing woodworking and I was only 18. I did not go to Thailand and never even really took it seriously.

I started watching more videos to see what it was like in Thailand today. Today you can live in Thailand for $1,000 a month. I don't know what the woman and her making the food would cost. Prostitutes, even live in ones are cheap in Thailand. Thailand used to be and may still be where Japanese men go for sex tours. It is a popular destination for Europeans and Americans because it is inexpensive and you can get anything you want; but, jail for drugs is long and harrowing.

While I watched the videos of Thailand, I was amazed at how little things had changed. I'm thankful I was born here.