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Snap Shots: Fireworks - without getting your fingers burned!
by Harry Flashman
Thailand is lucky, getting to celebrate New Year
several times during any year, be that the Western New Year, Chinese New
Year, Thai New Year or the Patagonian Petunia Festival. At all of these
events the culmination is the letting off of fireworks.
Many photographers attempt to record these colourful
displays on film, and most come back from the one hour photo processor
with disappointing results. Here is how to do it properly!
 The
first item to attend to is the flash incorporated in your camera. You have
to turn it off! Most automatic cameras these days pop their little flash
heads up as soon as it gets dark, and flash settings are exactly what you
do not want in recording firework flashes. You may have to resort to your
instruction booklet to do this. It is amazing just how many camera owners
do not know how to turn on and off the various functions.
The next item of equipment you need is a tripod. I have
written about these many times, but a good sturdy tripod is best. The
light aluminium jobs are easy to carry but don’t keep the camera rock
solid. You need a good heavy one and even hang the camera bag from the
central pole, just to stabilize the whole shooting match even further. My
own Manfrotto is around 18 years old and has never given any trouble. It
is worth the extra expense to get a good one and it will be with you
forever.
Another piece of equipment is a cable release, and even
though not 100 percent needed, makes life much easier in this firework
situation.
The final piece in the equipment list is a piece of
flat black cardboard around 10 centimeters square. Matt black is best as
it does not reflect light (this is why most photographic equipment is matt
black too). Get a matt black spray can at the hardware shop and make your
own card.
With film in the camera (your usual 200 ASA or whatever
will be fine, this exercise does not need super-slow or super-fast film),
let us now get to work. The first decision is where you are going to park
yourself, camera and tripod. Get away from others if you can, as you do
need to keep the camera still. Use a wide angle or even standard lens and
point the camera at the sky where the firework star-bursts explode in the
sky. Even wait for the first star-burst and lock the tripod with the
camera then in the correct position.
The way we are going to get the top shots is to record
more than one firework star-burst on one piece of film. This is how the
pros get all those magnificent fireworks photographs. The trick is how!
Here comes the action. You are going to need something
like 30 second exposures to get several star-bursts. Select “B” as the
shutter speed - popping the shutter button in this mode opens the shutter
and keeps it open until the button is released. Now you can see why the
cable release is a good idea, particularly ones that you can lock in the
depressed position.
With the cable release in your left hand and the matt
black card in your right, you are ready. When the rocket goes up, open the
shutter. As the star-burst wanes, cover the lens with your black card, but
keep the shutter open. As the next star-burst happens, uncover the lens,
covering it again as the star-burst wanes. Now you have two sets of
fireworks on one piece of film. Get another and then close the shutter,
which winds on the film to the next position. Now you can repeat the
exercise as many times as you like. Get up to four star-bursts on one
negative - any more than four and it gets too crowded in the final print.
So there you have it. Shoot like the pros and get professionaแl
results you will be proud of.
Modern Medicine: SARS or the sudden stop?
by Dr. Iain Corness, Consultant
Once again the “killer virus” SARS is starting to become
newsworthy. This shows that following the Iraq debacle, the world media has
obviously precious little to write about; however, they did manage to come up
with a scapegoat this year. The civet cat!
Apparently this Asian pussycat features high on the
‘exotic’ food menu of certain restaurants in China and can harbour a similar
corona virus, so goodnight moggie. This is ridiculous! On behalf of all civet
cats I have to register a protest.
However, my protest is not about how they should exterminate
the felines (placed in a purple sack and beaten to death has a certain
historical value), but is more philosophical than that. I am questioning why
this entire SARS subject is reappearing?
Let us try and put this “killer” virus in perspective. In
the past 12 months SARS was indicated as affecting 8,000 people all over the
world. Of those 8,000 people who fell sick, 800 died. That’s one in ten of
those who got it, for even the most mathematically challenged. However, that
does not make it a “killer” epidemic in my book.
What has to be taken into consideration is the total of the
world population. There are around 6.5 billion people on planet earth, and this
virus managed to get 800 souls claiming early on their life insurance policies.
Yes, that’s correct, 800 out of a population of 6.5 billion, give or take a
few million on the way out from old age and other terminal problems and a few
million on the way in, lining up at the labour wards. In other words, SARS
‘wiped out’ 1 in 81,000,000 of the world’s population. Put another way,
you are going to have to go to eighty million, nine hundred and ninety nine
thousand, nine hundred and ninety nine funerals before it is worthwhile
bludgeoning a civet. And this is the “killer” virus that indeed wiped out
the tourism industry in many countries in 2003, and can do the same again if the
world doesn’t get its head around the numbers properly.
If we are going to look at the dangers for tourists, in fact
for the entire tourism package in Thailand, there is something much more
perilous for Bill and Brenda from Birmingham and Cal and Cathy from California.
This “killer” wipes out 1 in 5,000 of the people in Thailand, and does not
discriminate between Thais or tourists. This “killer” is called the Road
Toll! Did you know that 13,000 people died on the roads in Thailand in 2001 and
it’s worse since then? With a population of 65 million here, that works out at
1 in 5,000 die. Go ahead, do the sums!
So in Thailand we shake and shudder in case a SARS epidemic
mows us down at a rate of 1 in 81 million, while the fact that 1 in 5,000 folk
die from motor vehicle accidents seems to go un-noticed!
Can I appeal for a little application of sane logic here? One
‘threat’ to tourists’ lives here is so small it is negligible, while the
other is so great it is a national disaster. Yet the negligible one gets the
front pages for weeks and thermal scanners at the airports, while the national
disaster gets a couple of days at New Year and Songkran and an edict for
motorcyclists to turn on their headlights!
The tourists are 16,200 times more likely to be killed on our
roads than succumb from SARS. Let’s fix it!
Horsin’ Around : Siam Polo Park in Pattaya
Part 2
by
Willi Netzer
The sport of kings, or the king of sports like some may
say, has arrived in Pattaya. Located 3 km off the Siam Country Club Rd,
you can find Siam Polo Park by following the signs shortly after reaching
Map Prachan Lake.
 Between
chukkas...
Continuing on from last week with an explanation of the
sport, there are one or two umpires, also mounted, enforcing the many
rules, laid down by the Hurlingham or US Polo Association. Every year this
association will issue a handicap for every active player. A handicap
could be from minus 2 goals, minus 1 goal and none to 10 goals. There are
probably a few thousand players world wide, but quite likely only 10
players with a handicap of 9 or 10, perhaps 100 of 6, 7 or 8, another 100
with a handicap of 5 and all the others with 4 goals or less.
 A
serene scene between chukkas.
In matches played on handicap, the individual handicaps
in each team are added together, and the smaller total is subtracted from
the larger; the stronger team then concedes the weaker a start of the
difference in goals.
The horses are traditionally called ponies. The
majority is most likely above the size of 14.2 hands, measured at the
withers, qualifying them actually as horses.
 Battling
for the ball.
With a few exceptions, these horses are all from
Argentina. They descend from the Criollo, the local herds pony, crossbred
for speed with the thoroughbred. I do own a few semi retirees of the
Argentine polo ponies and if it comes to working daily and depending on a
good mount, these horses are comparable to none. They are blessed with
speed, agility and a very pleasing nature and broken in by the old and
traditional way of the herdsmen, the gauchos.
The umpire, throwing in the ball, starts the action of
the game. A player can hit the ball from any side of the horse. He would
have to do this in a standing position, twisting to the side, where he is
going to hit. A dangerous looking strike is certainly an “under the
neck” shot, where the ball is hit right in front of the horse’s legs.
A dangerous shot indeed is a so-called millionaires shot, where the ball
goes right between the horse’s legs. Not recommended by anybody.
Players wear necessary headgear and leg protection, but
a 100km an hour ball probably still hurts. Polo could potentially be a
dangerous sport. Tightly supervised, I don’t think it is. It is
certainly a lot of fun.
So perhaps you should come around and watch a game or
if you are a rider, try your hand with a little stick and ball practice.
For further information, you can call me anytime at 01-3020814.
 Heart to Heart with Hillary
Dear Hillary,
Do all Thai people ask you the most personal questions? Things like “How much
money you make? You married yet? Why not? You got girlfriend? You want me to go
with you?” Apart from the fact that this is considered a very rude way of
starting a relationship in the UK, I also find it very embarrassing when I am
over here. How do I get these people to stop doing this? You seem to have the
answers for everyone else, so I hope you have some for me too.
Philip
Dear Philip,
Just what do you want out of life in Thailand? A gilt edged invitation, hand
inscribed in Olde English? Be real and be thankful that ‘these people’ as
you call them are interested enough in you to even ask questions. There’s
only one thing worse than being a wallflower at parties, and that’s not being
asked at all. In actual fact, Philip my turtledove, those inquiries are very
cleverly designed “standard” questions to see if you are worthwhile
bothering with at all. If you have no money all interest will be lost
immediately. Likewise if you are married they will want to know if “You marry
Thai?” or whether your partner is waiting faithfully for you back home in the
UK. Lighten up, Philip, and when you are asked next time just say, “No money.
Wife take all money to boy bar,” and then laugh a lot. They’ll get the
message and you will be left happily lonely, then you can write me letters
asking why does nobody talk to you!
Dear Hillary,
Another maid problem I’m afraid. Mine seems to be afraid of all time-saving
appliances. I have tried to show her how to use the simple microwave and the
convection oven, but she will not use either, despite smiling and saying she
understands every time. When we have people over for dinner she gets her sister
and auntie to come and help, and they sit on the floor of the kitchen with her
and prepare the food. I am terrified that one of my guests will see this one
day, even though the food is always very nice. How do I get around this
problem?
Mima
Dear Mima,
You really haven’t got a problem at all, Petal. As you say, your maid cooks
you very nice meals, so does it matter if she sits on the floor to do it? I am
sure that she cleans the kitchen floor too, so it will be spotlessly clean. It
is also very common for the Thai staff to call in volunteers when they have to
prepare for a large party. If the food takes a little long in coming, just have
some savories and dips to ward off the hunger pangs in the guests, and relax
and enjoy. You will not change a Thai maid into a western short-order cook, no
matter how many times you show her the microwave! “Thai” means “free”
and maids need their freedom to cook the way they always have done.
Dear Hillary,
I need help, in a hurry, so I hope you can answer this quickly. I am on
holidays and I am in love with a girl who has just come to work in the bar next
to my hotel. She speaks very good English and is really wonderful. She is just
so friendly and has a lot of girlfriends at the bar. She comes from Nornkai (I
am not sure how to spell it) and looks forward to when I come to see her at the
bar and then we go out together. She says she only started working there the
day I walked into the bar and misses me too much when I am not there. I want to
take her to the UK when I go back next week. How difficult is this? Some
friends have said forget it as it is too hard, but I want to try. How do I do
this, Hillary? Please answer quickly.
Bruce
Dear Bruce,
Which shower did you come down in? This is no blushing novitiate you have
found. First off, girls from Esaan (and I think your lady comes from Nong Khai)
do not speak good English until they have been ‘working’ for a while -
many, many months. They also do not have lots of friends in the bar if they
have only just started there. As far as taking your paragon of virtue to
England next week - forget it! It will take you many weeks to get all the
requirements completed for the British Embassy and they like to see a stable,
long-term relationship between the British national and the Thai they want to
take home and meet mother. One week of ‘bar fines’ does not qualify as a
stable relationship, even though it is testament to the strength of your
wallet. Write to her when you get back. Do not send her money, no matter how
sick the buffalo gets and the number of motorcycles crashed by her brother. If
she continues to write to you, even though no money is forthcoming, then look
at doing something next year. In the meantime install a padlock on your wallet
and throw away the key. It’s not to stop her, it’s to stop you, Brucey
woosey!
A Slice of Thai History: Chartchai Chionoi:
Thailand’s Second World Boxing Champion
Part One: The Road to Success 1942-1965
by Duncan steam
It was only after the end of the
Second World War in 1945 that professional boxing began making inroads
into Thailand. Western-style boxing had only been introduced to South-East
Asia at the end of the nineteenth century, and then it was only popular in
the Philippines.
Boxing received a further boost when Pone Kingpetch
became Thailand’s first world boxing champion in 1960, annexing the
Flyweight title.
Thailand’s second world titleholder was also a
champion in the flyweight division: Chartchai Chionoi.
Born 10 October 1942 in Bangkok, Chartchai Chionoi, the
son of a policeman, began boxing at age 11. He commenced his professional
career in 1957, just two days after his 15th birthday, when he knocked out
Suratin Maeprasert in just two rounds in Bangkok.
He did not enter the ring again until just over a year
later when he again scored a two-round knockout victory in Bangkok. After
winning his next two bouts by KO in two rounds, Chartchai travelled to
Cambodia where he fought a six-round draw with Sala Kampuj.
Back on home turf, the 16-year-old won two more fights
and then, just after turning 17, he went back to Cambodia and recorded two
more wins. The new year, 1960, saw him record yet another two knockout
victories in Bangkok before he suffered his first defeat, on points to
Singtong P.T., in six rounds.
Despite the defeat, Chartchai went to Tokyo, Japan in
September for his 13th bout, against Masanobu Kanbayachi. He won by
knockout in the eighth round.
Chartchai remained in Japan for just over a year,
turned 18, fought 10 times and scored another seven wins (four by the
short route), suffering three 10-round points losses.
One of his losses was to Akira Oguchi, on whom he
gained his revenge when he knocked the Japanese boxer out in five rounds
in Bangkok in September 1961.
By the time he turned 19 years old, Chartchai had
fought 24 professional bouts, recording 19 wins (15 by knockout).
His first bout at 19 came against Kyo Noguchi, who he
beat on points over 10 rounds. Noguchi went on to fight Pone Kingpetch for
the Flyweight title the following May, losing on points over 15 rounds.
After two more wins and one loss (a decision over 10
rounds), Chartchai went to Manila in November 1962 to compete for the
Oriental Flyweight title against Primo Famiro. In a torrid 12-round
struggle, the Thai won the title on points.
Just over a month later, he was beaten on points in
Tokyo by Hiroyuki Ebihara over 10 rounds in a non-title bout. Ebihara was
later to knock out the great Pone Kingpetch in the first round of their
title fight the following September, although Kingpetch regained the title
in their rematch.
He again remained in Japan for almost a year, fighting
a further five times but only winning twice. He fought Takeshi Nakamura in
June 1963 and lost on points over 10 rounds and then, a month later, put
his Oriental title on the line against the same boxer and was beaten on
points over 12 rounds.
After boxing a draw over 10 rounds with Tatsumi
Yamagami in August, Chartchai competed seven times over the next 16
months, recording five wins and two losses. He was beaten by Rudy
Villagonza and the brilliant Colombian Bernado Caraballo, both on points
over 10 rounds in Manila. Caraballo was to fight seven world champions in
his career, including Pascual Perez (whom he defeated), the man from whom
Kingpetch had wrested the Flyweight title.
Chartchai began 1965 by defeating Anantadej Sithiran,
for the second time, on points over 10 rounds in Bangkok and then
travelled to Quezon City in the Philippines where he exacted revenge on
Rudy Villagonza, knocking the Filipino out in the fourth stanza. He
repeated the dose a few weeks later, this time knocking Villagonza out in
three rounds.
Two quick knockout victories followed, both against
Cherry Montano in Manila, and both in two rounds before Chartchai was
beaten on points over 10 rounds in Tokyo by Hajime Taroura. It was his
11th defeat in 48 bouts, all of these losses coming on points.
However, the rising 23-year-old Chartchai was now approaching the peak
of his boxing career and his next 15 matches would propel him into
everlasting fame as the proud successor to Pone Kingpetch.
Personal Directions: Singing nourishes both mind and body
by Christina Dodd
I was rather inspired by a program I recently saw about
the use of traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine in treating
illness and life-threatening illness such as cancer, in a province in China.
Although the program left no doubt about the difficulties of treating cancer
and the fact that there is a long way to go in finding ways to successfully
arrest the disease, it did reinforce in my own mind the absolute importance
of taking a “holistic” approach to health and the way we live life.
It has always been clear to me that harmony of the mind
and the body prepares us and allows us to be able to take on the challenges
that life is going to throw at us everyday. But despite my awareness of
this, I am, just like you, human, and to that end become complacent about
the “tools” that we have been endowed with to live in this world. So
complacent do we become, that it is almost a crime at how we disregard these
priceless gifts!
Many of us take for granted that the body we walk around
in and the mind that we think with are always going to be there for us -
healthy and capable of satisfying our needs and requirements as we go about
our task of living. And we think that if one is working well then the other
is too - automatically. This is true to a certain extent but we fall into
the trap of relying upon this to happen without any effort from ourselves.
For example, we forget that the mind - as well as the body - needs
nourishment and needs attention paid to it. We jump up and down the minute
we have raised cholesterol or a headache or put on weight! We immediately
seek a cure that will take away physical pain, we embark on diets and
rigorous exercise programs to get fit, we pay an enormous amount of
attention to our bodies and forget to look at other aspects of our health,
such as the well-being of our minds.
Optimum good health, as we well know, is a harmonious
marriage of physical and mental well-being. There is no way that one can run
independently of the other in providing total wellness. Each fuels the
other, driving it forward and driving us further in our capabilities as
human beings to perform and to live happily, and to stay healthy. Many
physicians, specialists and the like today have an open mind to the subject
of “wellness’ and what keeps us healthy. The mind is a much too powerful
tool to be ignored.
In the program I referred to earlier, there was an
elderly gentleman in his seventies who had been living with cancer for ten
years. He had, through a most remarkable effort, finally beaten the disease
with several tumours simply disappearing over time and the course of
treatment he undertook. This treatment combined not only traditional Chinese
herbal medicines and exercise, but it also utilized the activity of
“singing” with a group of similarly-aged and like-minded people. The
singing was performed with great gusto and no microphones were required at
all! The faces of those singing were beaming and alive with expression and
brightness of life itself. I found myself smiling whilst watching, as there
was so much energy and sheer good feeling coming from this animated group of
elderly people. I felt quite moved and it made me think to myself that I
should clear the cobwebs away from the old vocal chords!
Most of us only sing at school or at church and at
special times of the year as the calendar dictates. In fact we spend most of
our time listening to other people sing. Can you remember the last time you
had a really good go at singing out loud with a group or just by yourself?
Have you ever drawn your colleagues together in the office and had a
ten-minute sing-a-long? You have got to be kidding - I can hear you saying
it right now! But think about it for a minute. Is it such a crazy idea? We
all feel good after singing out loud when we get to do it - right! Be it in
the shower, be it at a party, be it at Christmas, be it as the audience at a
concert. On these few and far between occasions it really is enjoyable. So
what is wrong with doing it more often or even doing it for the first time?
Perhaps it should be a part of our routine to bring added harmony to our
minds and bodies; to reduce the stress we experience.
It is time to stop being a lifetime member of the
audience! Walk away from the armchair and become one of the actors instead.
Take charge of your mind and your body and give both of them food to live!
Stop vegetating and only being an observer. What does it take for you to
move? I dare you to take this action if you don’t already do it in your
life. If you care about yourself and your family, your future and others
around you, be bold and reach out for life! Open your eyes and grab these
moments with all the strength and enthusiasm you have. Let forth with
melodious song - and it doesn’t matter if it’s not quite melodious - but
just do it. Gather your colleagues around in the office - go on - try it.
What a challenge, what a task to be undertaken - what fun!
By now you proba bly think I am hopping mad - but what on
earth have you got to lose? What have any of us got to lose? We each have
only one life and one body and one mind. They all have to work as one in
harmony if we are to achieve complete happiness and enrichment in life.
Don’t you want complete happiness or do you only want to settle for a
third or half? Isn’t it worth it to give it all you’ve got and aim high?
Break with your mundane routine - I implore you. Dare to be different at
least once. Come on! Sing at the top of your voice everyday and sing with a
group when you can. You will see an amazing difference in yourself and your
attitude to life - and to your sense of well-being. Don’t begin to object
until you have at least genuinely tried this.
Balance and harmony of all things are what hold the earth
in its place and allow us to live. Within ourselves this is also very true -
balance and harmony can provide us with the health that we need to be
fruitful and content in our world, and isn’t that what we all want?
If you would like a presentation or more information on
our personal training or coaching services, or any of our business and
corporate skills programs, please don’t hesitate to contact me at
Christina.dodd @asiatrainingassociates.com
Until next time, dust the cobwebs off those vocal chords
and have a memorable week!
Social Commentary by Khai Khem:
More propaganda, please!
Our city’s increasing efforts to address traffic problems
might actually be producing some positive results. Our peak holiday season saw
fewer serious accidents in our region this year and even though we do still have
traffic snarls and parking problems, I actually witnessed more traffic police
stopping violators and writing out tickets in certain areas. Of course this was
a show of force especially arranged for Christmas and New Year, handed down via
an edict by the central government in Bangkok, but it did prove that tougher
enforcement and spreading the word can be effective.
I know that some authorities in Pattaya attributed the
decrease in road deaths to the fact that many people went out of town or
tourists visited other destinations, but let’s give credit where credit is
due. There was a lot of publicity about the Road Safety campaign, including
do’s and don’ts, warnings about stiff penalties for law breakers, sad
statistics regarding previous holiday periods, and tips on how to avoid
accidents. Tighter law enforcement, more police checkpoints and public
cooperation did pay off, especially in our region. Hopefully this is not a
temporary situation and these successes will be perpetuated.
Did anyone notice that many motorcyclists are now driving
with their headlamps on? Propaganda campaigns do eventually get the message
across. Now all we have to do is convince them to wear their helmets.
I still see four and five people riding on one bike - almost
none are wearing helmets, but their headlights are on high beam so maybe we are
halfway there. Pragmatically speaking, it’s cheaper and easier to switch on
the motorcycle’s headlight than it is to buy and wear a helmet. Perhaps like
the Bicycles for Needy Students’ charity campaign, we can start a movement for
free helmets.
What we need is a catchy slogan so people can remember to
actually put them on their heads (and fasten the straps). Or maybe we should
make them more fashionable and attractive so that riders will actually be happy
to wear them.
How about decals with witty remarks like Americans use with
bumper stickers? Tail-gaiters on California freeways are often admonished by a
sticker on the back bumper of a vehicle that says: “If you can read this you
are too close.” The ‘wear a helmet campaign’ slogan in Thailand should be
able to be translated with some sense into English. I hope readers will write in
and let me know if they have an idea for a slick slogan or a jazzy jingo. Thai
driving habits do shock foreigners who arrive in the Kingdom, and rightly so.
But there are plenty of foreigners riding bikes around here who do not wear
helmets. And please remember this is a family newspaper so the wits among us
should omit the expletives.
Propaganda is not always a dirty word. It can be a useful
educational tool when used effectively. In recent years the government, private
sector and charity organizations in Thailand have come up with some very
effective slogans and ambitious movements to promote tourism, the use of condoms
and safe sex, encourage family unity and traditional Thai values, encouraging
community social work, environmental cleanup campaigns, better hygiene and
health consciousness.
One of my personal favorites is the TV spot that addresses
the issue of wildlife protection and urges the global public not to buy
protected species as pets, for food, medicine or fur. It is our money that keeps
illegal trade in these animals flourishing and, “When the buying stops, the
killing can, too.” This phrase and its essence can be easily translated into
almost any language.
Pattaya’s ‘4th S’ campaign to change our Sun, Sea, Sand
and Sex image into an international sporting venue with Sports being the 4th S
is a viable goal and a catchy slogan. I just did a mental count and wonder what
happened to Sleaze and Sin. They’re not in the count. See what a little
propaganda can accomplish!
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