Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Don't Bring Me Down

You might ask, why does it always cost more and take way more time to get anything done? If you’re in the US of A, one answer is safety. Safety regulations, these blasted little rules pretty much bog down any project, any undertaking, any activity, such as construction, parking, driving, hang gliding, starting a forest fire. You name it, there is a book of safety regulations that the man uses to take away your spontaneity, your own special know how, your fun, your everything. And the other answer is the law. There’s always someone ready to sue you for all your worth, so you better take your time and follow the law, follow the safety rules, waste all this extra money on BIG GOVERNMENT just to cover your ass in case someone sips on your fresh hot coffee too fast.

Not so in Thailand. Safety is cool, but who needs it if it’s going to slow growth. This is a country on the move and the people ain’t gonna stop for some man with a clipboard.

Got no delivery truck? No problem pile in, and bring your 500 lbs of green vegetables with you. You’re probably better off barefoot any way, it keeps you cool in this heat.


Like Shankly said, we are on the move and we got no time for that guy to fix the platform. That's why we keep ropes and buckets.


You’d think all these trinkets would impede my vision, they actually improve my vision. They tell me how hard and fast this mofo is turning, and I adjust throttle and brake as necessary, it's what we call TVSC - THAI Vehicle Skid Control.


It’s only a fire hazard if someone is smoking near all these extension cords.


The ever evolving miracle of cinderblock. Not just for shelving anymore.


Ahh, the bus is for assholes anyway, and I just hate getting harassed by crazy homeless people.

3 comments:

Ben said...

Cool employee835. Thanks for the pics, now I can actually see what i imagined in that backwards country where everyone goes around in shorts and flip flops. They so crazy! I'm sorry to tell you this but, a lot of those scenes you could have captured here in the states. The O.C.! That's where my next vacation will be.
Get back to LA with you and your better half back and try to avoid food poisoning and/or electrocution...

Anonymous said...

F,

I make fun of the safety issues, but these people are the GO team. They are non-stop. Malls close at midnight, night markets set up at dusk, I can't figure out if the bars close at all, the day markets start at 5:30 am. Most people work seven days a week, with maybe a day off every three weeks. Maybe that's why they overlook safety, they gots no time to sit and think about the obvious, like if you are walking up a hooptied together staircase, made out of cracked cinderblock, maybe you should watch your step, like everybody else does, instead of finding ways to fall on your skull to sue for damages. I don't think they have time to ponder the transcendelic like you and I do. These guys definitely win the hustle award.

Ben said...

I totally hear you. And thinking that all this blogness got started because, we sit around in front of computers all day and pretend that we're hustling is rather embarassing.
I tip my hat to all the hardcore hustlers world wide...