Decide that my enjoyment of F1 2010 can be enhanced by dragging my F1 chassis out of storage. Takes a dusty, sweaty hour to extract it; but then I can enjoy a more authentic (i.e. uncomfortable) driving experience.

Cat makes valiant attempt to stop she who must be obeyed from rotting her brain with Facebook games.

Two scenarios:

A. Street vendor selling sandals with the face of the Prime Minister on one, and his deputy on the other; and the words “people died at Ratchaprasong” imprinted on both. Sandals on sale at a red shirt rally.

B. Street vendor selling CDs containing images and video of child pornography, with example images on the cover of children (advertised as being as young as seven years old) being sexually abused by adults. Disks on open display in a major tourist area in Bangkok.

And it’s all Geoff Crammond’s fault.

I first became aware of Mr. Crammond in 1986. I was in Oman, on some fruitless mission for my employer, and was spending an evening at the house of my host. A dinner date with senior people, where pressing business issues would be discussed after pleasantries had been dispensed with. Exactly the sort of encounter that I loathed. But as I half-listened to a self-important Dutchman mouthing off about something irrelevant (an occupational hazard in the company I used to work for), I caught a glimpse of the son of the house in the next room, playing a car racing game on his BBC micro. Enough of the oil business, I slipped away to take a look.

It was Geoff Crammond’s Revs.

If you are looking for a quality English language newspaper in Pattaya, don’t bother. Actually, you could probably use that sentence, replacing “Pattaya” with the city or country of your choice and it would still be true; but that is your problem. My problem is finding a decent source of news for the city I live in; and there isn’t one.

The two main offerings are The Pattaya Mail and Pattaya Today; and I suppose I should start by declaring that I used to write for both of them.

If pool is your game, then get yourself down to Royal Garden Mall this afternoon for the semis and final of the Pattaya 9 Ball Pool competition. The semis are on now (1300) and the final is played at 1730.

And why would the Thai Airport authority issue such a statement yesterday?

1. Floor re-surfacing operations in progress?
2. Exit barrier is not functioning correctly?
3. Car park is full?
4. More than one hundred armed men, wearing black, have seized control of the area?

Well, of course it was number 4.

And what is the response when an area of an international airport is occupied such a manner?

1. Send in specially trained troops to disarm and arrest the men?
2. Dislodge them with tear gas, water cannon and rubber bullets?
3. Send some police round for a nice chat?

You know the answer.

I like to think I maintain a pretty rigorous exercise regime. Only last week I took a one hour walk down the beach, and I vaguely recall doing something slightly strenuous last April. A man has to keep in shape.

Core to my physical well-being is windsurfing, but a combination of no wind, man flu, assorted other ailments and general laziness has kept me off the water for a couple of months. Until yesterday. A fresh wind from the North East promised much, and I soon had my windsurfing bag ready to go.

This morning I received a missive from our very own genuinej, apologising for not commenting as much as he used to. The reason for his absence is that his vitriolic messages are normally fuelled by the consumption of vast amounts of alcohol, and he is not imbibing to his usual level because he is currently driving around America; no doubt complaining about their spelling at every opportunity.

But the nights are drawing in and getting colder in the land of the fear free, and both genuinej and the entire population of the USA will be retiring to the comfort of their living rooms. Genuinej will stay amused by getting pissed and nit-picking my grammar; Americans will need TV.

If you buy coffee beans from most outlets, they will look dry and dull. The natural oils in the beans, released during roasting, have long since dried out.

Luckily, I get my beans from someone who vacuum packs them immediately after roasting, and gets them too me within a few weeks after that. So when I open the pack, the beans are still shiny and moist; an indication of good coffee to come.

Opened a new pack of beans this morning. Seemed only logical to photograph them.