valetudo Posted December 15, 2007 Report Share Posted December 15, 2007 Has anyone else noticed that there are a large number of 'Walter Mitty' characters in the EFL world and beyond in LOS ? You know people who used to be astronauts before they decided to teach ! Or ones who have been close personal friends of Hollywood Stars and Royalty ! I worked with a guy in Sathorn who claimed to be a friend of Mick Jagger. Another guy was ex-SAS and another ex-Delta Force and yet they still lacked class room management skills. We all know BKK is a magnet for bullshit but come on!!!! By the way for those who don't know about Walter Mitty. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Mitty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeusbheld Posted December 15, 2007 Report Share Posted December 15, 2007 pretty much all of my closer friends are who they say they are and know who they say they do. i don't know many english teachers, but most of them i DO know can actually speak, read and write english (which, judging by some of the 'english teachers' who post on TF, is shockingly rare). beyond that, though, i have met Those People In Pubs. now i'm not saying that these guys (and yeah it's always guys) are bullshitting, but um.... how come every ah merkin you meet over the age of 57 did unspeakable things for the navy seals or CIA etc in the vietnam war (the american war if you're vietnamese)? i mean sure i know it was a dirty little war--but weren't there any friggin' grunts??? (let alone, file clerks) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kfg_johnny Posted December 15, 2007 Report Share Posted December 15, 2007 We had a fellow TF'er, that said he was Brad and Angelina's body guard... Guess what... It was True... I bumped into Nicholas Cage when he was filming in Bkk last Sept... Does that count. I am sure there are many BS stories after a few beers, but anyone ex SAS or Military to teach ESL... Thats a stretch of the imagination. But, I would just smile and listen... It may be true after all, and the reason they cant manage a classroom of kids.. simple... SAS and other para military are trained to kill, and parents would not appreciate kids being strangled to death in class... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeusbheld Posted December 15, 2007 Report Share Posted December 15, 2007 It may be true after all, and the reason they cant manage a classroom of kids.. simple... SAS and other para military are trained to kill, and parents would not appreciate kids being strangled to death in class... yeah i listen *politely* to all these ex navy seals. on the outside chance they're the real deal i don't want to piss them off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ling_dtua_khaao Posted December 16, 2007 Report Share Posted December 16, 2007 I shook the hand of the lead guy from Tears for Fears at a hotel in Pattaya. (My brother's ex-gf knew them because she did make-up for them.) Can't remember his name and hated their music, but you can't be picky when it comes to hobnobbing with the rich and famous. I grew up around the corner from Mr. Dressup. (He frequently locked us in the Tickle Trunk and forced us to do unspeakable things with Tracey and Finnegan.) How's that for fame eh? Top it! --Ling P.S. Here's my other brush with fame in Thailand: the Crown Prince. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ling_dtua_khaao Posted December 16, 2007 Report Share Posted December 16, 2007 One of my uncles was a real life Walter Mitty type, though had never been to Thailand. His stories were all about his exploits with the RAF during WW2. Actually he was a plane mechanic, but somehow he was fighting among wogs (his word) in Egypt, piloting planes over Iceland and other daring adventures, and somehow his rank had become Captain. At other times he was a gunner. After the war he was an executive with various oil companies (actually a salesman). If you brought up any subject at all in conversation, he'd come up with some story about how he used to be good at that when he was young, and proceed to bore you breathless with a long-winded account of his activities. I'd be afraid to talk at all, ask any questions in conversation, because I knew it would set him off. I'm convinced he drove his wife, my father's sister, to dementia. Actually I think it was her revenge against him. Oh yes, and I'm a close relation to the future King of England, Prince William. --Ling oooh, post 1000. I know thats meaningless to some of you forum whores, but for me, signing in only once in a while... it almost brings a tear to my eye... must be the sake Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
English_George Posted December 16, 2007 Report Share Posted December 16, 2007 KUDOS It's a drug for some people Other's just don't give a.......... ....There's always a bit of confabulation in everybody...or Brain Fiction. ......especially after having a beer........ Although not quite the same, alot of people will tell a 'white lie' about themselves in a social situation, if they feel pressured by the fact that the 'truth' may not bring them the 'kudos' they require.....insecure people are like dogs when they have drunk alcohol.....they will wag their tails for affection. ..It happens....... ....But as mentioned, there is the other end of the scale. People who will blatantly lie about careers and/or riches and fame..... ...But you can tell these people a mile off.....once you've asked them a few questions..... The ways to tell are: 1.) Someone telling you what they do, before you have asked them. Same for what they used to do.... 2.) Curling of the shoulders when talking, (if not curled already) This shows tightening of 'self'. A natural reaction to lying. 3.) If they don't ask you what you do, after they have spouted for 10mins, then they are lying. I came to this conclusion because their mind is only focused on the "pretence", and not the natural conversation. 4.) Eyes......the gateway to bullshit. That may be the problem with TF, it's all 3rd person. 5.) Constant talking......(not the same as 'American' constant talking)...but generally not shutting up.....this is a defence mechanism so that you never have a chance to ask a question and discover they're lying. ...These rules are something I started working on whilst I was studying Psychology in Vienna under the tutorledge of Barry Freud, the grandson of Sigmund Freud. ..I eventually used this study to gain my Phd and subsequently translated the Bible into Swedish under the patronage of the Pope.........yesterday. ...79 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeusbheld Posted December 16, 2007 Report Share Posted December 16, 2007 I nutmegged Zico (Kitisak Sanamueng not the Brazilian) but that part didn't make it into the advert we were filming..And back in the day I was woughly thrown to the floor and stamped on by Steve Coppell. During a match not foreplay I hasten to add. Gentleman that he is, he later apologised and bought me a beer when I met him in Phuket years later. But yeah I spend a lot of time meeting re-invented people. Funny, most of the millionaires, bank robbers, sporting professionals, public enemies, famous and infamous etc I have met left it to someone else to brag about who they were. Those re-inventing themselves usually doing the name dropping too. so was andy goram real? as far as the name dropping goes, if i start dropping names i'm just giving a list of famous people who won't remember ever having met me, projects that didn't get off the ground, celebs who won't return my calls, etc. do i really need to go to those lengths to demonstrate i'm a loser? i don't think so, usually all i have to do is show up and people get it right away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeusbheld Posted December 17, 2007 Report Share Posted December 17, 2007 so was andy goram real? I wasn't gonna go there... who would believe Admin and Zeus eating haggis with Andy Goram and a talking sense Siam Hotel !!! was convinced it was a dream sequence, but couldn't find the dwarf. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.