SternAAlbifrons wrote: ↑Wed Nov 18, 2020 5:00 am

Doc67 wrote: ↑Tue Nov 17, 2020 10:01 am ... but a contented one

Yeah well, don't hang onto it Doc. It can disappear in a flash.
I was as happy as a pig in shit when Atts started this thread.
Nothin' like a good wallow, i always say.

Then, all of a sudden, all these well adjusted, glass half full, sunny side of the street a'holes crashed the party.
Bloody Pollyanna's with their "positive" attitude to life.
'Make me sick they do.

Spoiler:

Ahh... that feels better

I reckon not getting all bitter and twisted will the biggest challenge of my final years.

I think that ship has already sailed...

All in all, those of us in Cambodia (and Thailand) seem appreciative of how fortunate we are. Those who are stuck abroad, and who would normally be here at this time of year, will confirm this and happily trade places.

This is a good thread as it makes us take stock of things and having done that we all seem doing be doing very well, all things considered. I certainly feel better for a bit of reflecting on my personal circumstances.

Well done @atst

SternAAlbifrons wrote: ↑Wed Nov 18, 2020 5:00 am

Doc67 wrote: ↑Tue Nov 17, 2020 10:01 am ... but a contented one

Yeah well, don't hang onto it Doc. It can disappear in a flash.
I was as happy as a pig in shit when Atts started this thread.
Nothin' like a good wallow, i always say.

Then, all of a sudden, all these well adjusted, glass half full, sunny side of the street a'holes crashed the party.
Bloody Pollyanna's with their "positive" attitude to life.
'Make me sick they do.

Spoiler:

Ahh... that feels better

Sorry to spoil your morning or afternoon, just a reflection of what I have been feeling, twice a year I spend 3-4 weeks in both Australia and NZ visiting family with a stop over in thailand each way for a bit of fun, this year I had 5 months couch surfing in Australia waiting to get back here, flew straight back asap no thailand stop, straight to the province couldn't have been happier to escape Australia.
Yes we are lucky to be here as most have said, maybe after reading this thread it's more of a guilt feeling bringing out the grumps seeing so many suffering business wise, places closed etc. Only effect on me is can't travel.
As others have said and I'll listen, glass half full , it's out of our hands make the most of every day enjoy what we have.

Absolutely, huge thank you to @atst for this thread. It was great to vent a little, and I feel much better for it today. Big thanks also for those who shared stories of irritation and difficulty, its great that we can discuss this a bit, because staying positive is easier said than done for some people. For those of you who have managed to keep the glass half full, good for you, I hope it continues for you all.

Accept the demons when you have to.
Challenge them when you can.

...and the wisdom to know the difference

I wrote this yesterday but was reticent in posting it. But the thread went in a good direction, so here it is:

Thumbs up to thread birther @ATST, thread booster @Siliconlife and others. I've been thinking very much the same thing for months and was materializing into a Grumposaur.

But I don't want to write a long diatribe on the actors contributing to the scary dilution of civil society, kindness, co-operative spirit, trustworthiness, honesty, creativity, expert knowledge, in short, the best of the human race. I'll try for the positive . . .

--Being stuck in Thailand has been a gift. There's virtually nothing to worry about here. I can move about without any restrictions. All services are functioning.
--During the 9ish darkish months, I've met a lot of good people in my condo complex in Bangkok. We drank and chatted poolside when and as we wanted. We've become very close.
--I've been having some knee and foot problems for many months, which affected my walking. I got the time so I started exercising. Made a remarkably positive impact. The problems are virtually gone.
--I'm also very lucky to have a solid source of funds. A long, long way from wealthy but good for life.
--There are still people in this world who have integrity.
--There are still authors, artists, nurses, doctors, scientists and thinkers in this world.

I definitely feel better for having made this list.

xandreu wrote: ↑Wed Nov 18, 2020 3:47 pm This might sound like a terrible cliché but I've always lived by the notion that being happy or being grumpy is a personal choice. Nobody else has any control over your emotions except yourself.

We can't control much of what goes on around us but we do have control over how we emotionally deal with it.

I'm happy because I choose to be happy. It's as simple as that.

You must be one of them chrisyians

Interesting thread indeed.

For me things are developing a bit differently. I have kept myself busy with work and seem to have adopted to the “new normal” in terms of running my business. But PP simply doesn’t seem to cut it for me.

For years I used to come here every month or so but seldom stayed longer than 2-3 days, so the past few weeks have been the longest I’ve ever been in Cambodia. In anticipation of the longer stays, primarily because of the hassle of having to quarantine both ways, I got myself a fairly nice pad, a car and other things to make me feel comfortable in a place where I normally wouldn’t have considered living.

Don’t get me wrong, I understand what most people like about like about this place. And I do enjoy the “holiday feel” I seem to get when I venture around the city and it’s surroundings. Weather has been nice lately, I always knew some really nice places for food and drink and added some more to the list over the weeks. Rooftop bars, pools, beautiful ladies on my couch every now and then... and ridiculously low prices to boot.
But I’m getting increasingly bored as it seems to be always the same. So much so that I’m likely headed back to HK as early as next week. Coming from a big city PP will always feel a bit provincial to me.
I miss the hustle and bustle, the social life, even the stress of HK. Obviously also my friends there. And I miss playing rugby and it’s related off-pitch activities. Simply can’t find that here.
So I’m likely off next week... only to be back again in, perhaps, January.