Showing 1 - 10 of 29
Farewell to two fine former colleagues
Roger Crutchley, Published on 10/12/2023
» Far too many of my former Bangkok Post colleagues have passed away this year and this week things got even worse with two more old pals gone.
Taste of inflation from a reliable sauce
Roger Crutchley, Published on 03/12/2023
» I am not sure where Bangkok stands in the list of most expensive cities released by the Economist this week. Singapore and Zurich top the table but judging from recent visits to the supermarket, Bangkok must be racing up the inflation charts.
Those happy days of family albums
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 25/06/2023
» For most of June I have been squirrelled away in Chaiyaphum and very pleasant it has been too. There has been a fair amount of rain which is good news for our rubber trees which were looking decidedly thirsty.
Brits can still put on a good show
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 14/05/2023
» Considering how depressing the world news has been lately, the coronation of King Charles III last weekend provided a brief diversion. It might not be everybody's cup of tea but the Brits certainly know how to put on a show if a bit of history is involved. They're good at pomp and pageantry and most importantly love a parade with plenty of horses.
Tuning in to the opening day of May
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 01/05/2022
» Well, here we are in the first 24 hours of the magical month of May. According to the dictionary, May Day is the time for "a celebration of the coming of Spring". Unfortunately, we don't experience Spring in Thailand and are still perspiring our way through the hot season, hoping Jupiter Pluvius might oblige with an occasional refreshing shower.
You can't escape a rural soundtrack
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 03/01/2021
» Admittedly it's is not exactly earth-shattering news, but for the first time in 20 years I haven't spent the New Year holiday in Isan (the Northeast). This was not due to any dramas, but simply a combination of factors that made it more sensible to stay in the Big Mango.
A lovely bunch of coconuts and all that
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 19/07/2020
» The humble coconut (ma prow) has been in the news lately following allegations of abuse of Thai monkeys used in harvesting the fruit. I admit to not being familiar enough with the training of the monkeys to know if they are maltreated as alleged and certainly would not endorse any cruelty. But if they are treated well it shouldn't be a problem. On sporadic visits to the South I've seen the monkeys at work and play, and they appeared to be quite happy scampering up the coconut palms. They certainly have more fun than those used in medical research.
It's 'Sherpa time' without the mountain
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 31/05/2020
» Towards the end of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's uncomfortable grilling by MPs last week he complained that preparing for the meeting had taken up a lot of "Sherpa time". As it seems unlikely Boris is planning an Everest expedition, the "Sherpas" he was referring to are apparently those people with the unenviable task of helping him prepare for such questioning, or more accurately, the ones who do all the hard work.
Theme tune that lasts the test of time
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 17/05/2020
» Watching the BBC World Service's Panorama documentary on the coronavirus situation, it struck me that it is one of the few TV offerings in which the theme music is just right. You wouldn't want to hear it too often, but its distinctive authoritative tones with a hint of foreboding, suggests the show is of some substance, which it usually is. It was surprising to discover that this serious music was adapted by Francis Lai from the soundtrack of the 1966 hit film, Un Homme et Une Femme (A Man and a Woman), basically a love story. The music, which has introduced Panorama for nearly 50 years, is called Aujordhi C'est Toi (Today it's You). Well, that's enough French for one day.
More a sorry scrawl than a signature
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 15/09/2019
» Visiting the bank the other day I had to sign a bunch of documents that no doubt would be carefully filed away to collect dust in a basement, never to be seen again. By the time I had finished I was uncomfortably aware that no two signatures of mine are exactly the same, even when written in close succession.