Monday, September 8, 2008

How Dodgy Is My Candidate?

Ok, here are the things I *know* to be true about him:

1. He is an art student at Silpakorn, and fairly good (has gotten pieces of his that I've seen into magazines and suchlike).
2. He speaks English suspiciously well (has an electronic dictionary).
3. He does not seem to have a lot of free cash (rides the bus, few extravagant spending habits that I've seen).
4. He's very bright- not only in English and art, but also in computers and a certain amount of philosophy.
5. He has a personal computer (compaq laptop).
6. He has been to Korea and dated at least one gay man there.
7. He has won several art awards (I've seen portfolio including award presentations).
8. He has worked for both a marketing agency and a pottery export company doing art for pay.
9. He has a number of pairs of shoes, some of which look fairly expensive.
10. He has a small number of tasteful clothes, but rather a variety of kinda provocative underwear.
11. In a bit of a financial bind recently, he sold his mobile phone to pay his rent and refused to take my 1-month offer of help.
12. He has obviously had quite a lot of experience with farangs- fair enough, I've been dating Thais, myself.
13. He freely admits to going to gay bars where farang often go; for example, DJ station- however he also goes to all-Thai gay bars with his friends.
14. I do all the paying for dates (he's a STUDENT, for gosh sakes), but he doesn't ask for other money and seems embarrassed quite often when I pay. He always makes sure to thank me for anything I've paid for.
15. When he's with me he seems more and more affectionate- not suddenly declaring his undying love, but measuring me just as I am measuring him.

Here are things he has TOLD me but for which I have no direct confirmation:
1. He is from Isaan and has a poor family.
2. He has an "aunt" married to a Korean man, which explains his trip to Korea and while he was there he earned the money for the computer by cleaning a restaurant for a few months
3. He's been at school funded partially by an uncle, partially by the Korean married aunt, partially by his brother, and partially by government funding (but overall has little spare money).
4. He's had a stingy Spanish boyfriend whom he is now considering breaking up with in my favor- claims the guy never even took him out to a movie or anything else but soi food.
5. He lives with a few other students in a typical student-block room near his university, but spends a lot of his time working and painting (I can confirm this anytime, 'cause he's not shy or paranoid about my visiting him in his home or at the studio- just haven't had time to go yet)

Now, the money and farang experience and the poverty all perhaps don't QUITE add up- but on the other hand, he's not apparently out to milk all farang for all he can get, either, and I think the feeling side of things is real; I'm convinced at the very least there's already a real friendship beginning to operate. Physically, things started slow but are getting hotter.

So, how sincere do you think this guy is? I'm trying to believe in him as much as I can, but it's in light of a recent relationship which went sour despite my ex-'s honest affection for me, because I found out about the other 3-4 guys bankrolling him (the ex). What do you recommend?

"Steven"