Welcome ... 

You have stumbled upon a small chunk of  the internet under the direction of me, Alex Mellor. Although this is not my real name, it is the name I use when I write. This is not because I am ashamed of what is here, more that it is a lot less likely to cause me complications, not to mention unwanted attention from spammers etc.

Below I will be giving an email address where you can contact me, should you wish to, and a brief description of me simply so that readers can get an insight into the perspective of the writer (we all have unconscious bias, this description may help either to confirm your pre-conceived thoughts, or blow them out of the water!).

Before all of that, let me try to guide you around this webspace. There is a navigation bar or box, depending on what size device you are using to access this site. The box is at the top left of the screen and is sometimes opened by tapping / clicking on the 3 horizontal line symbol. The bar is along the top of the screen and can be opening by tapping / clicking on each of the heading you will see. By tapping or clicking either of these, you will open more options, frequently in the form of more headings. Often these headings will have a '▼' symbol, this indicated there are further choices to be made, i.e. different stories or chapters of stories for you to select. It may sound a little daunting to the innocent, but it quickly becomes easy to get to the place you want to be. 

Contact details - should you wish to contact me, you can do so by email at the following address - alexmellor66@gmail.com . However, unless your email is of a life threatening nature, do not expect a response soon, if at all. This is simply because I am extremely reticent to enter into time consuming dialogue with people (or AI bots!) I don't know. The internet has sadly become a haven for the unscrupulous who prey on the genuine.  

About me - I am male, from the north of England, white, straight and closer to 70 than 60. None of these things define me, but they do contribute to my attitudes and perspectives. I most certainly do not feel I have any greater insight to life than anyone else, but I do think / hope that some people maybe mildly interested in my ramblings. There are a couple of other aspects to my life experiences which also have a significant bearing on my views which you should be aware of. Firstly, from the age of 25ish through to 42, I became an alcoholic. Since 1998 I haven't had a drink, so I am reasonably confident, not complacent, that this  part of my life is under control ... as I said, confident, not complacent. Secondly, since 2004, I have lived and worked (and now retired) in South East Asia, mainly Thailand where I am now, but also Malaysia, Cambodia and Vietnam. I have also travelled, for pleasure, to other countries in this region. All of these experiences have impacted on me, mostly I think for the better. Both my time as an alcoholic and recovering alcoholic, and my life in S.E. Asia over the past 20 years, in my opinion at least, have given me a sense of gratitude for who I am now. I feel lucky to have survived my addiction, it would have been impossible without the support of loved ones, but there is still an aspect of luck involved - things could have ended very differently 25 years ago. And the time I have spent in Asia has given me a perspective and regard for the lives of others which I treasure. For all our differences, for all of the adversity we face, we should savour and appreciate life by embracing the good and learning from the bad.

I hope you enjoy these ramblings - Alex. 

Hua Hin, September 2024.