rsokolowski

I call bull$h!t. Even if it is true!

Thank you all. Love to here more please chime in.

cyberfarang, luckily I'm not on a "just enough money budget" I just want to get by on my monthly retirement check so I don't have to dip into my savings. If social security is still available I'll collect that at 62.

From my research I believe I'll be able to fund a decent studio apartment, eat well, lite travel around Thailand & health insurance and a little extra to boot. All on my retirement check alone 65k baht.

I hope I'm not wrong and can leave my saving alone.

I'm leaning on renting my house out just in case.

If you are referring to USA Social Security, I would advise waiting until full retirement age (67 for those of us born 1960 and later) to start collecting, if that fits your plans.

Starting the benefit at age 62 results in ~ 30% reduction vs collecting at full retirement age.

Yes that is true, but the $90,000 you make between age 62 and 67 is a lot. And if you pass away before age 67 taking the benefit early will be the smart move. For me social security will be a relatively small part of other retirement income (military retirement, government civilian pension, 401K, and social security). Not sure what I will choose but I am leaning on taking social security as soon as I am eligible due to future uncertainty of the program given the U.S. governments crazy national debt and never ending deficit spending habits.

sound can travel more clearly once the people are asleep.

what?Yes, when you hear something sound waves lose a bit of energy. When people are asleep they don't hear anything and the sound waves travel further. Also dark air transmit sound better and most people sleep at night.

It is a scientific fact that dark air transmit sound waves better because dark air is more dense than bright (light) air.

Before I enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1982 a family friend took me aside and gave me some words of advice before departing for boot camp in Great Lakes Illinois. He said to me "you will get out of the military what you put into it."

Those words did apply to the military, but they also apply to everything else you attempt in your life whether it is a marriage, raising children, your career, church, or moving and living in a new country.

Living here isnt that hard if you adopt the right attitude.

However, I personally find it a little unsettling at how things can change so rapidly here, and the future and constant political unrest does cause me some concern.

I think you are right about attitude.

Since 1975 there have been so many twists and turns with one faction or the other predicting catastrophe, I have perhaps grown jaded. I have always been able to adjust in the past, so I tend not to worry about stuff which hasn’t happened yet.

It is like when I am out riding my bike. I deal with what the trail conditions are on any given day and don’t spend a lot of time worrying about what might happen to the trail at some time in the future.

It'll be fine until it's not

That is life, it will be fine until it's not. Prepare the best you can and enjoy while you are able. The bumps in the road and difficulties that come along are part of the journey. Some of the bumps can be avoided by being aware of your surroundings, choosing the people you associate with, preparing financially, and having a positive attitude. However, some of those bumps are just not going to be seen beforehand and finding a way to deal with them (and move past them) is what makes up a life.

a growing number of economists are beginning to voice the single inescapable fact that the world cannot support the current level of consumerism, or anything even close

If they've only just worked that out they must be really dim. I've been aware of that as long as I can remember, and that was when there were 2 billion less people on the planet.

The only thing that will make a real difference is less people, but that ship has long ago sailed. Sadly, I think hard times lie ahead because some people in the west care only about themselves and their self gratification, consuming vast amounts of resources, while the poor in the rest of the world live in desperate situations.

Seems every time the price of oil goes up, and inventions come out to reduce the use of oil, the oil price drops and sustainable energy gets dropped again.

If it is an "inescapable fact that the world cannot support the current level of consumerism" where is the problem? Market forces will work out the problem, governments don't need to do anything. Doing nothing is one of the few things that governments the world over are any good at, one other thing they are really good at is creating unintended consequences while trying to "fix" things.

Plumbing is not rocket science. As others have stated a "P" trap or a "U bend" and proper venting will solve all these issues. Otherwise you have a direct pipe to your septic tank and all the smells that go along with it. All joking aside the gasses that come off a septic tank can be dangerous in an enclosed space.

First problem is you bought a Chevy, mate. This is just the beginning..

Care to divulge further please,after 7 years as a Colorado owner I have nothing but praise for their after service care and the reliability of the truck itself.

A new fan belt,change of tyres,regular oil changes,wiper blades the usual wear and tear,as good as new.

Were you aware that GM was bankrupt? They needed a 50billiion dollar bailout from the US government. The US government lost 11 billion dollars. What was the problem? Cookie cutter designs, high maintenance, and low quality parts used.

Japanese vehicles were far superior. Nobody wanted the US cars but they were far behind the game. It's hard to sell cars when the makers say they are producing garbage and the CEO of the company admits that their cars are shit.

Recently, they have been producing better quality cars though and their profits have been much higher.

The way the Chevrolet bankruptcy was handled (unions making out, investors taking a haircut) is the reason I will NEVER own a GM product.....ever.

New York,Paris,London,Bangkok hot dogs are all the same processed crap the world over.

Mechanically separated meat.

A good "Nathans" or "Hebrew National" hot dog is a mechanically separated thing of beauty (every once in a while).

Nathans and Hebrew National are brands of higher quality hot dogs for those not familiar.

I have been married to an Isaan woman from Buriram since 1993. We currently live in Hawaii and we will be retiring and moving to Thailand in the next 14 months. I love her mother and father and most of her family (issues with one sister and brother-in-law). She became a US citizen several years ago. Isaan women are just like women every where, some are good, some are bad. Find a good one and you will be a happy man for the rest of your life.

How much is a cell phone call to the USA from Thailand? My current phone is with T-mobile (Hawaii) and the charges from Thailand to USA are 0.20 cents a minute (about 6 baht a minute).

Aloha & Sawasdee Khrap

FYI: I am writing this as I stand at my Kiosk in front of the Food Court at Ala Moana Center in Honolulu, Hawaii.

(Leave Jan. 6th for Maui & then to BKK. My Thai wife is in BKK now.)

The LEAST of your concerns should be learning the language.

Living in the ISSAN area of Thailand, you will learn quickly. Very quickly.

+ When I am in the "Homeland" - Tha Bo (west of Nong Khai) NO ONE -- and I mean no one speaks English. I learned very quickly. If you want to talk to anyone, you will learn the language.

++ Courses are good, but learn from the Thai people. Learn how they say things, not how an instructor "thinks" you should learn.

+++ My Thai Wife and I have "THAI DAYS" -- where only Thai is spoken between us.

Trust me. When it's the only language around -- you'll be surprised how quick you re-learn!!!

Thanks for the confidence builder, but I will feel better after I can speak and eventually able to read the language.

My wife's family has the fiberglass (I think) sheets of tiles on their roof. They are very hot during the day. I have done some research on metal insulated roofing (radiant barrier that reflects the heat before it enters into your house. Many colors, it is what I plan on putting on our house when we eventually build. I even have talked the wife into getting a white metal radiant barrier roof (it is the most cool). There is a building website for Thailand named "coolthaihouse" just google it and any house related question you have will likely be answered (or already has been answered).

I realize that people who spend 6 months here and 6 months there like to say that they "Have the best of both worlds" but, to me, it means that they don't don't have enough going on to fill up the entire year in either.

i love canada in the summer and hate it in the winter. I certainly have enough going on.

I am originally from Washington state (Tacoma) and feel the same way. It is wonderful in the summer and suicidally depressing in the long, damp, cold, and cloudy fall/winter/spring.

Where will you settle? I moved here 12 years ago at the same age and have had no regrets at all. Just stay away from negative farangs and you'll be fine.

I will have no problem staying away from negative farangs. Negative attitudes are a recipe for failure, even if your current situation is less than optimum you should always try to look at the positive and always remember that it is very likely that your situation is much better than others have to deal with.

I would like to thank everyone for the useful and thoughtful replies to the original post. Many of the threads on TV tend to devolve into less than useful posts for the OP, but this one has not.

You may want to consider buying secondhand transport, reasonably low mileage, rather than new. No doubt there will be some Buriram residents who can advise you on reliable servicing.

Don't know how much Thai you've acquired from your wife; however, it is worth learning as much as possible so you can communicate effectively. Good luck.

We have a second hand Isuzu 4x4 pickup truck that is lightly used by her brother (real brother) it is nothing to look at but it runs well. We are considering a formerly expat owned, lightly used (and well serviced, and documented) truck, but we have budgeted for a new one if needed.

My Thai skills are very basic and I would like to look into formal classes during the first year. Cambodian is also spoken in my wife's village so it has been harder (for me anyway) to pick up Thai. I have attempted the Rosseta Stone program for Thai several times and have gotten pretty far through it, but I always ended up stopping and then I very shortly forget everything I have learned. It started to get very difficult when I was required to match a sentence written in Thai to the correct picture (no audio).

Since you are retired US military you might be eligible to join the VFW which is big in Thailand. 5 Posts and almost 2000 members. There is a Post in Korat with about 140 members so you should check them out. Here is a like to their website,http://www.vfw10217.org/

No problem with the dog, just make sure he/she as all their shots. No quarantine period in Thailand. My neighbor brought 3 cats from the states with no problems.

I am eligible and have copies of my DD214 (US military discharge paper).

The other sort of major issue that we will need to figure out is getting our dog into Thailand. Plenty of posts on TV about this topic.

There is a very good thread about this. I followed it and it worked out OK. Not cheap and at times frustrating. Especially when getting NO response from Thai officials at the airport after submitting documents. Getting a reply 48 hours before departure is a bit unsettling. What kind of dog?

She is a Labrador Retriever, German Short-Hair Pointer Mix (about 62 pounds), well trained and loves children.

Do you have an account with USAA? I've found them great to work with while here in Thailand. Easy online money transfers to Bangkok Bank.

Setting up financial accounts is sometimes a problem if you are over here. Especially trading US based mutual funds. Get direct deposits setup before you leave. Go online with as much as you can. Makes a huge difference.

What are you going to do about your mail? Just some quick thoughts....

We use Navy Federal Credit Union and already have direst deposit. Online money transfers via Bangkok Bank (New York office) are fast and easy. I have received some excellent information about a mail forwarding company in the Seattle area (forwards the mail for $3.95 plus tax and actual postage cost) that will solve this issue nicely. We use USAA for insurance and a couple of car loans, but not banking.

I use this for our mail. It allows me to see the mail and decide if I want it forwarded to just save it as a PDF. I have been happy with it.

http://www.virtualpostmail.com

I will check it out. Thanks.

Op wish you all the best!

I moved to Thailand in mid 90's and enjoyed ever minute of it. So much to see and do in Thailand and then Thailand is a good point to travel around

Southeast Asia. Thailand has changed allot in the past 20 years, it can be as advanced as any western country but then turn around and still be a third world country.

Just to give you a heads up on somethings. Thailand still has allot of corruption. Police can and will stop you for no reason and make up excuses to extort money out of you.

Unlike the USA the police in Thailand setup check points, most of time I'm waved through. Sometimes they are looking for "tea money" so when I travel by car I only

keep 100 Baht cash in my wallet the rest of my cash is in my pocket or luggage. When stopped by the police and they are asking for a donation the only money I has in

my wallet is the 100B unless they want to go to an ATM, which then never do.

If you end up having to do any boarder runs the guys in Cambodia always want a fee. Just tell them no, that you never pay. They will wait you out a few minutes

and then give in and stamp your passport. Never accept the first price with a street vendor for items other than food, always negotiate it's expected.

I'm sure your wife is up on all of these things. Welcome to Thailand!!

Looking to traveling within Thailand the first year or so. I have experienced the same issues with the police. 100 baht is alot cheaper than the 127 USD i paid for my last speeding ticket in Hawaii (12 miles per hour over the limit).

The other sort of major issue that we will need to figure out is getting our dog into Thailand. Plenty of posts on TV about this topic.

Do you have an account with USAA? I've found them great to work with while here in Thailand. Easy online money transfers to Bangkok Bank.

Setting up financial accounts is sometimes a problem if you are over here. Especially trading US based mutual funds. Get direct deposits setup before you leave. Go online with as much as you can. Makes a huge difference.

What are you going to do about your mail? Just some quick thoughts....

We use Navy Federal Credit Union and already have direst deposit. Online money transfers via Bangkok Bank (New York office) are fast and easy. I have received some excellent information about a mail forwarding company in the Seattle area (forwards the mail for $3.95 plus tax and actual postage cost) that will solve this issue nicely. We use USAA for insurance and a couple of car loans, but not banking.

I has to call BS on this. It was organized at least from the top of the engine department and likely higher than that. Why would a small number of people lower down the food chain do this? what would they have to gain? It was likely directed from the top down, in my opinion.

It is always a big step to pick up and move, it is a slightly larger step to move to a new country with an entirely different language. I adapt to other cultures pretty well. Living in Hawaii since 1983 is living in another culture even though it is still in the USA and most people speak English (sort of).

Aloha and Mele Kaleke Maka - obviously you have been to Thailand many times and know 'Muang Thai' - I am just the apposit of you - I have spent many months/years in Thailand (20+) and a relatively short time in Hawaii (where I have house and call home, eight years now ) Since I detect from your avatar, you are a blue water fisherman, let's face it, you won't be happy 100% in the Isaan, I tried that (Nong Kong Phanom) and always migrated to the South, Chon Buri, Bang Saan, Sattahip, Pattaya, Rayong, Bang Chaang, Hua hin , etc etc etc you get my drift........needed the salt water - Rent in Isaan for a year, build your own place in Isaan for the Misses & family, but, for shit & giggles, Rent a nice getaway in the South as well - Don't Buy, no matter how good of a deal it seems - Rent, the rental prices are crazy cheap now.

Mahalo and Shaka Bra Tim

You are correct regarding the fishing. I need to figure out how to catch the giant snakeheads in the freshwater, but I will eventually need to go south (Ko Lanta, and the Similan Islands). I was thinking about splitting the time between the two places. Also the first year or so we plan on traveling around inside Thailand ad checking out different areas. My wife left Thailand 23 years ago and her current level of knowledge about everything is slightly out of date.