Philosophical 11

Thanks Gazza. The aggrieved woman in this case is certainly pulling out the stops to catch this woman. Her family is watching this woman covertly and hoping to take photographic evidence. Not sure how pictures of them on a motor-cycle can prove anything.....

Anyway, I mentioned I have been in this position before and my good Samaritan act backfired on me. Sadly.

I have an ex-foreigner friend here who is European and his second language is English. My landlady here told my lovely lady that the woman he has as a gf is a scammer. Cannot remember the evidence she had but its a long complicated story. This guy is not the sharpest knife box and the story goes is that prior to coming to the Phils, he had an on-line relationship with a Thai girl. Long story short....He bought her a house in Thailand so they could live together. But when he pitched up to meet her for the first time at the airport....yes you guessed it.....she failed to turn up. Then he came here.

Anyway...his gf here has 5 kids and obviously dotes on her. On hearing that he was going to buy her a house so they could live together, I wondered how I could drop a few hints etc. But we only met all together on the beach so private conversation was out. But....along comes another foreigner friend of the same nationality. So I got the idea of telling him of the strong rumour and he can tell his mate in their language if we are all altogether. He agreed and shared the same concerns....he didn't trust this guys gf either.

But this second guy is a big drinker and for some reason wanted me as his big drinking buddy. The story on this is somewhere on these exalted pages but in a nutshell....we fell out. My lovely lady didn't want me to get pie eyed each night on the beach and I respected her wishes. He then told his mate that my lovely lady and I were spreading rumours about his gf wanting to scam him. So that was the end of two good friendships. The guy in question is still here and has not bought a house for his gf and 5 children. Instead, he has had a house built which means it will be in his name. Not hers. Maybe he took heed of the rumours after all.

So this time I am reluctant to get involved. Maybe this "contract" that I told you about is a result of a misinterpretation. I don't know. My lovely lady said poison came to her mind. But I have ears to the ground. The woman in question knows that my friendship with her has gone cold and appears to avoid me. Yet my lovely lady still dotes on her. A difficult position....

Regards

MikeNZ

Hi
What ever happens with your friend it will not be pretty. But he will love his new second hand boat and untitled plot of land.

Your ex mate can build all the new houses he likes but the land will still belong to a Filipino or a corporation with the requisite number of Filipinos aboard.

My name is on the title of our house in PI but my wife is the owner and only in the case of her death would I be able to dispose of it. New Zealand does not acknowledge any property owned in the Philippines either as matrimonial property so whatever you buy or build is a gift. I bet Britain will be the same.

I've given one house away, just lucky my current darling is bloody perfect.

Ah well drama is great when you get to watch, keep up the great work, tension is building we all can't wait to see the outcome.

Have a great week, Regards Mike

Philosophical 11

Thanks Mike,

Yes...he can own the house because he built it....but she will own the land. But if he has his head screwed on properly, he would have a lease contract built into the house ownership with the owner of the land....his gf. He is older than me, so for example a 30 year lease would be appropriate in his case.

What makes things very difficult for me is that my lovely lady blames me for the last fiasco which I mentioned today concerning my ex-mate. She says I have a big mouth. She seems to think that the plan I embarked upon was without her knowledge. In other words....I betrayed a confidence. This is not true. We discussed the idea before hand and she approved. Indeed, she was there when we discussed it many times with the other guy to have a word with his mate who we thought was in the process of being scammed. We talked about it today and she still blames me. Obviously I vehemently denied it and in any case, I would never betray a confidence. So, whats going on now is in confidence. But now hearing about the "contract" whatever that means, I am in a dilemma. I am hoping that events overtake the current situation before this guy gets back to the Phils. If it doesn't...I have a plan in mind.

This guy has a friend more closer than me and I believe they are in constant communication with each other whilst he is away. They are both in a partnership to .build a solar power boat. I was thinking of having a word with him if he has heard the rumours.....but I have been down that route before which ended badly.

I find it difficult to be friendly with this woman but I keep things polite and cordial. But I think she and my lovely lady can sense the iciness. As I said....I hope matters are taken out of my hands before I have to do anything....or he comes back.

Regards

Catchafire

Hi , Catchafire down here in beautiful NZ. I have a Filipaina Mum, who come from Negros and resides just up the road

I could easily ask her "who the guys building the solar boat" are and then "well I read this guys gf is shagging someone else when he is in Canada" "well I read about it on the Internet from some Guy "

Please be careful. Its a laugh reading your posts, I have family in Bacolod and Kabankalan. But if I can find them, someone else can.

Take it easy!

Millhouse

I just want to know more about this boat. I didn't know Elon Musk had operations in the phills.

Philosophical 11

Thanks Catchafire. Yes, I realize this is the Philippines. The first Englishman here was shot dead about 5 yrs. Business dispute.

An American here died suspiciously last year. Strong rumour was that he was poisoned by his wife who wanted her hands on his money. She had his body cremated and interred in double quick time before a post mortem.

Not sure what you mean...*.If I can find them, someone else can*. Please explain who you have found.

Millhouse... Yes, the guy in question is an engineer now retired. As I said, a very clever man with a lot of money. He believes he can design a solar powered fishing boat. Now, I am not an engineer, but something tells me if that was possible then it would have been done by now. I just think of how many panels it must require. I am told there is a solar powered boat now trying to sail around the world. No idea how true that is. But it wouldn't be as heavy or cumbersome as a fishing boat I would have thought.

Regards

Catchafire

I came across this thread, not via BE, but via a "Sipay expats" Google search.

Philosophical 11

Thanks Catchafire,

I guess if you want to do some serious searching for a specific reason, then putting enough keywords into Google will find most things.

One reason why I changed the thread title some time ago.

But point taken....thanks.

Stokkevn

Solar powered boats are not an unusual project and should be exploited here. They have their limitation but few actually apply to here. Here fishing is done on nice days here so there is max sunlight, fishing boats do not need to travel for great distances, when fishing are not normally under power and normally only operate during daylight hours. The amount of batteries would be the controlling factor to how far the boat could go. If it kicks off at a good price he could be onto a winner.

grahamuk2

This can be the end result when the Pinoy b/friend/husband gets jealous (last week... near to my place) :

Be careful out there people.

American shot dead in Pangasinan | Inquirer News

Philosophical 11

Thanks both,

There appears to be no motive yet for the killing of the American and like most murders of this type, a motive may never be found. But the point is taken.

The two involved in the solar boat project are looking for backers. I should think a hefty sum would be required. They have a prototype nearing completion and I will let you know the results. Personally, I cannot see it getting of the ground if that's the right term. It will require numerous batteries and I believe they are trying to source enough solar panels that are big enough. The fishing here is done at night mainly and the fishing grounds are about a 3 hour return journey. Yes, the solar panels can store the energy during the day but I think of the overcast days we have and not forgetting the wet season. The boat in my opinion would be too heavy and maybe unwieldly to be practicable. The batteries are very expensive and do not last half as long as a diesel engine. As I said, if it was feasible, then I would have thought it would be done by now. Also, I suspect they would be more expensive to buy than a diesel powered boat.

The woman's fishing boat made its maiden journey the other day and was very successful. It landed 440 kg of tuna half of which went to the 4 man crew. They do not get paid except for 50/50 of the catch. The catch is then sold here at the local market for I believe 100 peso per kilo.

My lovely lady has stopped going jogging with this woman because perhaps she feels she is being used as an accessory. I am pleased at that. But I still feel very uncomfortable about how she feels at ease with the situation when she is laughing and chatting with her on the phone most days. As if she doesn't care about the situation. Maybe its a cultural thing, or maybe she values her friendship more than the situation this woman has created. But her foreigner boyfriend is a mutual friend and we often meet up as a foursome. Life is strange....

Regards

Philosophical 11

And now for something slightly different....

Not sure if its the family or whether its the culture here. Seems to me that kids are spoilt rotten. We have worm boy here who does not want to live with his mother (waddly) because of the reasons outlined previously. Instead he lives with my lovely ladies family about 30 mins walk from here. His mother wants him to live with her and when I asked why his mother doesn't just the law down .....the answer I get is that he will cry. So he gets his way. I mentioned the family had moved recently and the wife and young son of lovely ladies brother have been banned from moving in there because of tardiness in helping out with the rent. But the 2 y/o son seems to reside there without his mother. His mother naturally wants him home but cant force him to. Reason? Because he will cry. Glad me and lovely lady don't have children because I can foresee issues. Discipline does not seem a strong point.

I am amazed how long my lovely lady can chat on the phone. She has a couple of friends where a 3hr conversation is not unusual. During the meantime her fingers are working overtime messaging other friends. And scrolling through my phone.

The affair saga with this woman of my foreigner friend has taken a small development. She has a sister living in Canada and they have both fallen out. She is alarmed at the rumours circulating here but worse still for her.....she thinks she is being scammed by her. Or taking advantage of her being in Canada and not being here. Long convoluted story so I wont go into it. She is disgusted with her behavior especially when my friend is helping out their family in many different ways. He has essentially adopted them. Now, the thing that really angers her is that the adopted family know all the rumoured affair and her apparent scamming. And seem to approve. She has told my lovely lady (via one of the 3 hr phone calls) that she is thinking of telling my friend of what she knows. Cat amongst pigeons come to mind. Or s..t hitting the fan might be more appropriate.

As they ....its much more fun in the Philippines. For some.

Nearly forgot. My divorce settlement looks as though it will be resolved in the next couple of days. Thought I was being screwed here....but I forgot to watch my back. More later.

Regards

Stokkevn

Nearly all kids here are spoilt, especially when grandparents get involved. I am used as the final line to discipline or persuade kids to do something, it comes in the words "If you don't do X, Y or Z, then I will send you to live with uncle Paul" This maybe a blessing in disguise as it will let you off the hook for getting involved and having to tell him.

morpeth

I noticed same thing there especially with the boys, often very little discipline ( same trend in Latin countries). If you have chance to observe Chinese families there you will notice a difference overall, and partly explains why Chinese dominate economy in most southeast Asian countries.

Hah the phone calls can be long as you describe, but gives you some chance to relax, hah.

Philosophical 11

Greetings.

Well, it seems that the financial settlement is now over and I can get on with life. Long story short.... Seems that she is facing redundancy and apart from unemployment benefit, will have no income and the spectre of spousal maintenance was raised. She has 5 yrs before she collects state pension. No doubt she will get a good redundancy package. With this back ground, I decided to pay her the £3k which leaves me with little savings. She keeps the house and I keep my full pension. Not what I wanted but I did not want to risk large legal bills and forced to return to the UK to fight my case with no guarantees. What swung it for her as far as I am concerned is the strong possibility of redundancy and spousal maintenance. So that's how it hangs. But at least its over and now I can get on with life. But not what I wanted....sadly. But I have a lovely lady and together I hope we can make the best out of a raw deal.

Affair-gate.....The sister of this woman has contacted the pinoy involved. She if you may remember lives in Canada and I assume married to a Canadian. She has fallen out with her sister...the woman at the centre of all this. She told/asked this pinoy to cease messing around with her sister. The response from him was "remember where you came from". No denial of affair with my foreigner mate. That says it all I guess.

Solar powered boat. The prototype is near completion as far as the hull is concerned and its on the beach here and I must wander down to take a look. It is built as a catamaran for some reason. My foreigner mate is trying to source an engine in his country prior to coming back to the Philippines at the end of the month. His partner, is going to fly to China to source solar panels if I have understood it correctly.

All for now...