Guest Posted October 22, 2003 Report Share Posted October 22, 2003 I am much more cautious then the other poster. I am 39 and my job looks like it on skids. When the axe falls I will spend the 6 months unemployment looking for another job. But I have already interviewed over 10 times without a offer. I think it is because of my 6 figure income. I am in R&D software development that is a young mans game these days. Besides my current employer is trying to move all the jobs to China. Anyway I hate my job and would love a change. But I could never walk away from the good money I am making if I can help it. I only get 3 weeks in LOS thought which is a big bummer. I think I could recover if I stay for only a year or two if the economy returns I have been in LOS of smiles for 3 times and love it. I have been to three other Asia countries to. I am basically a sex tourist and spend about 1K USA a week when I go there. I noticed though that my hard-core partying decreases with each visit. God the first trip to LOS was the absolutely the best. Anyway I am thinking of going to LOS and taking a English teaching course and then going to Bangkok and getting a job. I have the money to do this as a sabbatical for a year or two but worry about if I make it a permanent relocation. I have 250K USA + 140K in 401K (which varies with the stock market and yes I was killed a couple of years ago) but worry if that is enough for retirement if I stay in LOS permanently. I will probably be dipping into this savings while teaching there. The teaching will hopefully keep me busy from partying so hard like I do on vacation. My apartment requirements would be minimal but I would expect at least twice a week drinking and sanuk sprees Anyway am I being paranoid or would this be a good move. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 22, 2003 Report Share Posted October 22, 2003 given from how you have described yourself, and your interests in asia, my prediction (based on countless stories like yours) would be that you are broke and fucked up within two years, and too long gone from the west to ever get back into any sort of career. to live happily here you need more than an interest in sex, and more than just teaching english (unless that is the profession of your choice). my advise would be, based on your description, not to move here. come here on some extended holiday, but do not move here. that would be the mistake of your life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whosyourdaddy Posted October 22, 2003 Report Share Posted October 22, 2003 Hmm. You seem to be financially well off enough to retire in LOS but why would you. Do you really want to be screwing thai girls for the next 40 years until you die. May sound like a good life but I think it would get very very boring after a few months. Most long term sexpats are very cynical and live on the brink of depression wondering how to get the next fix. Not a great life. 10 bad interviews and you want to give up your life as you know it?? Keep on trying. Life is always greener on the other side!! But in Bangkok the green pastures can take your life away from you. Think about it carefully. By all means come for an extended visit. But dont burn your bridges and keep your hand in your proffession back home Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 22, 2003 Report Share Posted October 22, 2003 Thinking ahead, it's probably wise to always work in an area where the income is in line with where you want to retire. For instance, on a bay area salary you could eventually retire in LOS. From a LOS salary, you could pretty much guarantee having very limited retirement choices, perhaps not even in the US and find yourself trapped in LOS (well, maybe North Dakota if you are lucky). If you can't find a job now and hate working in IT, the death knell will be having 2+ year old skills on your resume and having to explain your past job was a sanuking English teacher in Thailand. While quaint and maybe even enviable to interviewers, these are huge barriers to reentry. 401K money should never be a consideration. You never touch that no matter what. Just keep shoveling in and into IRA's when you have the opportunity. If you want to come to LOS for a getaway, that's fine. It sounds like a good opportunity to do some hard thinking about your career path and your future. The problems won't be solved by being there. You'll have to do that on your own. As flyz said, you risk falling into a downward spiral that could be the end of a normal life for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 22, 2003 Report Share Posted October 22, 2003 Uh oh, here we go again! I think that the advice "whosyourdaddy" is giving is excellent......do you really want to be fucking hot little 20 year oldThai girls for the next 40 years? :: I think having that $410,000 USD will help you a lot! Teaching jobs only pay 25,000-35,000 baht. Less than you like to spend in a week! I liked the advice from the previous post of: "JUST GO FOR IT" Just remember, "When you're done with the dough, it's time to go" - I like that one Rug Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lazyphil Posted October 22, 2003 Report Share Posted October 22, 2003 You admit you are a sex tourist--most guys were/are and just hate to admit this but manage to move on and assume a stable living away from too much partying and as you said each visit the partying trend is getting less on each visit so I guess this pattern will continue. Just because you are a self confessed sex tourist doesn't mean you feel any less about the country (i.e. the food, culture, weather, smells and lifestyle etc) than a 'good boy'--use teaching English as a mode of staying in the country--(I'd like to know how many English teachers in LOS ever taught English in their home countries prior to moving to LOS and before they ever went to LOS??) is a good idea and if your sensible and maybe find a good girl (some bgs are remember just be careful though) to settle down with and with your cash back up (keep this a secret unless you can honestly trust somebody) I reckon you might have a good life in LOS --it has to be worth a try and if all fails you can find a job back in America, even if stacking shelves at Wallmart--by this time you'd (and have already no doubt) seen what dangerous and shit jobs people in LOS and the 3rd world in general have to do you most likely have been humbled somewhat to just accept this possible fate....LOS will change your perception of what you need and don?t need to survive, but as we?re conditioned to achieve certain standards and aspirations I realize this might not be a pleasant prospect?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redbaron Posted October 22, 2003 Report Share Posted October 22, 2003 Dave, If I were you, I'd take a few months out, maybe travel around the region (SE Asia) or Thailand itself. 1 - 6 months. Have a great holiday and honestly evaluate what you think living there on ordinary money would do to you. It's a decision only you can make, but I wouldn't be burning any bridges. Financially you'd probably be better off working in farangland part time, 6 months a year, than working in Thailand with no experience in teaching english. That way you'd have the best of both worlds. Don't know if this is an option for you though. An extended holiday would definately be my choice, rather than a permanent move. But that's just my opinion. if I ever moved there, it would have to be to retire, not to eek out a living earning tuppence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spirit_of_town_hall Posted October 22, 2003 Report Share Posted October 22, 2003 If I were in your rosey financial situation I would put $310 000 in a safe account in the US and have $80 000 fun funds..... Teaching English if you are used to a proper job, I would imagine be depressing, especially given you are a professional man with status.... English teachers have low status in Thailand, 90% of the expats I have met talk about English teachers with derision.... I don't think they are fair to do that but they do, however self-confident one is that pigeon holing would piss one off... Why not enrol at a course at a Thai Uni one that is taught in English and which will benefit you in the long term... That way you are part of the fabric of the country in a respectable way and you will be mixing with decent people, not whormongering english teachers and bar girls 100% of the time..... Saying that I can think of worse ways to spend 40 years. STH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 22, 2003 Report Share Posted October 22, 2003 Just to throw in my two baht here, I don't see a big risk with a plan to do this with the amount of money that you have and in my opinion you're just the right age to do it. I wouldn't look at it so much as moving her permanently as taking a sabatical. Leave your 401k money where it is, allocate 50% of your capital to your life here and that should give you two to three comfortable years to decide if you like it and to see if you can make a life here. Then it it doesn't work, you still have 50% of your capital to help you relocate back home (or whereever else you want to go). I think that most middle-class people - particularly Americans (of which I am one) - get very hung up on financial security. Especially if you live in a big expensive coastal city like LA or San Francisco.... One doesn't need as much as most people in the USA think you do. A year ago I was looking at $750,000 houses in LA.... now I'm happily living in a $350 house in Bangkok and thanking Buddha that I don't have a $5000 mortgage on my back. As a 42 year old American guy in similar circumstances, who recently faced a similar decision, my advice is go for it. My only caution is that the sex tourist thing gets old very quickly. I was already burned out on that scene before I moved here and most of the long-term expats I know here (with one or two notable exceptions) are as well. But there are many other great reasons to move to Bangkok. I love the food, the cost of living, the friendly people, the laid-back atmosphere. You can always move back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rex7777 Posted October 22, 2003 Report Share Posted October 22, 2003 DaveMan, As I see it, you don't really have enough money to retire comfortably, so don't kid yourself. Moreover, you're only 39. That's really not so old. Surely you can find another job in the USA. Maybe not a six figure job, but so what? In five or ten years, though, you'll have an even harder time finding a good job. If I were you I'd try to work in the USA for at least another ten years. Save up some more money and retire at age 50. In the interim, take as many vacations as possible to Thailand and enjoy it for three or four weeks now and then. On the other hand, I can appreciate a "what the fuck" attitude. Have fun now and worry about what happens later, later. In all likelihood, I'll be living in Thailand three years from now, at age 55, but I'll have a guaranteed cash flow and no desire whatsoever for another "job." So that's a different story. Rex :: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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