Showing 1 - 10 of 22
A missing item in the rural soundtrack
Roger Crutchley, Published on 18/01/2026
» As usual at this time of the year I have been enjoying life in the Northeastern province of Chaiyaphum for several weeks. However on this visit there was something slightly different which I couldn't immediately put my finger on. It took a few days before realising I was not being woken up by the usual early morning chorus of roosters or chickens of any sort.
Paper bags, patriotism and mushy peas
Roger Crutchley, Published on 10/08/2025
» One of the more thought-provoking stories of the week was an unnamed Thai hospital being fined after it was discovered private files on patients were being used to make paper bags for popular street snacks. Apparently some people at the business entrusted with destroying the files instead took them home and made paper bags out of them.
Cheating in exams now a sophisticated art
Roger Crutchley, Published on 27/07/2025
» It was Oscar Wilde who once observed: "Exams sir, are pure humbug. If a man is a gentleman he knows quite enough, and if he is not a gentleman, whatever he knows is bad for him.''
Still plenty of smiles in Thailand
Roger Crutchley, Published on 12/01/2025
» A reader politely questioned a reference to the "Land of Smiles" in last week's column, suggesting the smiles are maybe not as forthcoming as they once were. Perhaps they are not but deep down Thai people remain a cheerful lot. After five decades in the kingdom I still get a kick out of an unsolicited Thai smile whether it be from a shopkeeper, check-out lady, bank cashier or simply someone on the street. Maybe it's because I look a bit funny.
Those acronyms can be bit of a pain
Roger Crutchley, Published on 19/05/2024
» One of my pet peeves with newspapers around the globe has always been the proliferation of acronyms, especially in headlines. Apart from the fact that no one really has the faintest idea what they stand for there's something about them that's just plain ugly.
Some 2023 tales you may have missed
Roger Crutchley, Published on 31/12/2023
» It is customary at this time of the year for PostScript to look back at some of the major happenings of the last 12 months. But we will have a change this year because the news has been far too depressing. So instead we will examine some of the not-so-major happenings of 2023 that you might have missed amongst all the gloom and doom. They may not be particularly significant but are a lot more fun than the grim stuff we read every day.
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.
How two little piggies saved their bacon
Roger Crutchley, Published on 19/11/2023
» Following last week's gripping yarn concerning the rescue of Fiona, the loneliest sheep in the world, it seems only fair to report on another tale featuring animals in distress. My thanks to reader Paul Drew for alerting me to the saga of two pigs, Butch and Sundance, who became known in England as the Tamworth Two, belonging to the breed of that name.
One fishy tale of becoming a Mister
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 19/03/2023
» I got into a tangle last week referring to the Italian immigrant restaurateur Caesar Cardini as Senor when of course it should have been Signore. Apologies to all. I should have known better than to start dabbling with foreign honourifics. I have enough problems dealing with Mr, Mrs and Ms.
Celluloid sleuths more fun in the old days
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 05/03/2023
» I was watching a US cops and robbers film the other day in which the police were using those large portable phones that were around just at the start of the cellphone revolution. Nothing dates a film more than the type of phones they are using. Those unwieldy early portable phones look quite comical these days and seem more cumbersome than convenient.