simon43

Thanks very much to an extremely generous forum member, I as able to send the Bitcoin 🙂

Nope - that is not it. My computer is clean and I've used it for several years for banking without ever any problems. The problem is FreeWallet, and googling about them supports my view. Can you answer my OP question about how/where to send $30 in Bitcoin? Thanks

I very rarely use crypto, but I did have $94 in a FreeWallet account that I hadn't used in maybe 3 years. I needed to send $30 as Bitcoin. So I logged into the Freewallet website as usual. (I checked the URL etc) and all was good. The webpage prompted me for my 4-digit PIN, all as usual. Then the website logged me in and there was about $94 in my account. But then the website froze for about 30 seconds and then..... there was no money in my account! The thieving bastards at FreeWallet had stolen my money.... I still need to send my $30 to a Bitcoin address. Are there any walk-in crypto offices in Pattaya where I can do this? I'm loath to open another online account since I have (tending to zero) trust in these online exchanges. Or if it's not possible to send from an office, then which online company is considered 'safe' I did go into the 'Pulse' shop on Pattaya 2nd road 'cos it was all written in Russian on the windows, and I thought it was a Crypto exchange, but the gay man inside just wanted to give me an HIV test (which I don't think is needed prior to dealing in crypto!!) 🙂 Thanks!

Very long post! But my text will explain why I'm usually found in Myanmar nowadays. The lowest point in my life was about 20 years OK, when I married wife #2 (I didn't learn my lesson from English wife #1). My Thai wife was 50% bad and 50% mad (certified by doctors). I'm not quite sure how I missed those points when I married her. We opened a small hotel business in Phuket. She destroyed a very successful business (the first airport hotel on the island, now making millions with its new Belgian owner). She took drugs and was mad as a mad coot. I spent a fortune on mental health treatment at hospitals and clinics. I had a great working relationship with the local pharmacist in Nai Yang and together we would 'Google' suitable drugs to calm her down. On a daily basis, she break out from the hotel where I and her family members kept an eye on her. She would run down the street and boy could she run fast! On 2 occasions, she stole our hotel car (she can't drive), and somehow drove to Patong where she crashed into multiple parked motorbikes, then fleeing on foot. More money to pay out in compensation. One one occasion, a good American friend joked with her that I had another girl-friend. When she spotted me at the beach (with no girl-friend of course), she drove the car off the road and tried to run me down. She had control of the business bank account and would regularly write blank checks for her friends. I pleaded with the bank manager not to allow her access to the money, but he sadly told me that he could not stop her from accessing her own money. She spent all the hotel staff wages on drugs and booze... I joined the Tourist Police Volunteers, in an effort to have time away from her (wrestling with drunken Russians in Soi Bangla was a holiday compared to her!). But she also then secretly joined the police and 'ambushed' me when on patrol. The police threw her out because her crazy actions scared tourists... Then I started to study 2 days a week on the MA Thai Culture course at Chula in Bangkok. Again, she destroyed that idea by gate-crashing the actual lesson and causing a scene. Her Thai family and I decided to take her faraway from the Phuket hotel, so she couldn't cause more damage. I took her to stay in Nong Khai. But every day she would literally run away, running down the Rim Kong road. One day, she managed to board a bus going to Bangkok. We had to call the bus company and then the actual bus driver who stopped the bus near Khon Khaen, so that we could 'catch' her again. All my friends knew what a terrible situation I was in. One US friend owned a small and remote holiday bungalow, located on a beach at Ban Nam Kem, (where the tsunami museum/memorial is). When things got too much for me, I would go up to this house to rest. In the morning, I'd walk along the beach and think what a terrible state of affairs this was. Due to the sea currents in that area, the beach was literally covered with millions of tiny, colourful shells. The sight of such beauty will stick in my mind forever. She gave birth to a son, yes, my son 🙂 But it was too dangerous for that boy to stay with us, because she would grab himby the leg and pull him rapidly across the room. He was brought up by a good Thai aunt and her husband in Bangkok who were medically unable to have kids. He never returned to live with us, but grew up happily with his aunt and uncle, and I would visit him regularly in Bangkok. My mad wife took to throwing plates and cutlery at me when my back was turned. She would also physically attack hotel guests when they had a complaint (she is only 145cm, 33Kg, but fights like a devil). Some of my replies on TripAdvisor from guests who had been physically attacked by her make good reading!! So she had destroyed our successful business and our family. So only the marriage was left. She got pregnant by a gay hill-tribe hairdresser (you can't make this up), and I finally divorced her. When she gave birth in Phuket, she told the doctors that I was the father, (which I clearly was not). Therefore my name went on the legal birth certificate. To get that changed required her, me and the gay guy to visit the local police and obtain a report that she was totally nuts. We were thrown out of 2 police stations until she managed to bribe a police officer to write the report and my name was removed 🙂 At this point, due to the business failure, family failure and marriage failure, I was not in a 'good place'. Kind friends let me stay for free at their hotels and gave me food each day, (since she had spent all the money and I didn't yet have another job). One evening when they took me to a local restaurant and gave me some whisky (whisky makes me depressed), I could take it no more and collapsed on the restaurant floor in tears. All my friends and the restaurant owner knew what I had been going through with this 'mad and bad bat', and carried me out of the restaurant. I was at my lowest point, but I'm not one to give up! I'm not religious but I asked 'my god' to help me and that if there was a way out of this situation, then I would do whatever I could to help others. I considered my options as to how I could get away from her. I had an idea! I knew that she would not pursue me if I went to the country of Myanmar (Burma). So I searched for hotel manager jobs in Myanmar. I found none, but I did find a job for an English teacher at a private school in Yangon. The pay was good (because no-one really wanted to endure the 'hardships' of Myanmar at that time). I was no English teacher (I was a qualified and experienced space/satellite engineer). But I applied and got the job. On my arrival at the school, I expected to be teaching a class of teenagers, but found myself (at the age of 53) singing English nursery rhyme songs with a class of 5-year olds 🙂 The new job was a shock, but it paid good money and was easy and fun. So I stayed.... I self-funded various CPD (Continuing Professional Development) courses to improve my pedagogical knowledge, such as Phonics and Montessori. But I also never forgot the promise that I made to 'my god'. One Saturday (my day off), I took a ferry boat across the river to Dala Township, a slum area that I was warned not to visit. Monsoon rain had left many of the bamboo houses flooded, and it was a sad sight to see families standing up to their knees in dirty flood water. My pedalo driver took me to visit the local monastery school, where 2 Burmese volunteer teachers were teaching Burmese language. No-one spoke a word of English, and I remembered my promise. So I started teaching English to these kids (see photo from 2012). I had to rapidly learn some Burmese 'what is this?', 'what colour is this?' and so on. I never gave up on the promise to 'my god'. Now, almost 13 years later, you will usually find me in Myanmar, (I'm in Thailand right now for a few weeks). I teach at the international schools to earn a living salary, and then I use some of that money to donate school books and teaching/learning resources to orphanages and 'poor' schools throughout the country. I have funded the development of a free Android English learning app that is used by thousands of students and local teachers. I still keep in touch with my mad ex. Prior to her giving birth to the gay guy's baby, the doctors at the hospital told me that if she had a hysterectomy, then that would 'calm her down'. So on my authority (I was already divorced from her, so actually had no legal authority), the doctors removed her womb after the birth. Indeed, this did calm her down, and aging also had a calming effect. She still offers to look after me in my old age, but I think a jump off the highest building is preferable!! As for myself, I don't really have plans to stop working, so long as my health holds up. I've seen the benefits of my educational charity efforts in Myanmar, helping those who through no fault of their own were born into an unlucky environment and situation. I had the good luck to be born British and in a decent middle-class family. I went all the way to the bottom and came up again - so it's time to pay back 🙂

Personally, I think he should lay off Greenland. I doubt that there are any illegal immigrants or drug cartels in the USA from Greenland, and Denmark has refused many times over the centuries to sell Greenland to the USA. Furthermore, under a 1917 legal agreement with the UK, the latter has first right of refusal to buy Greenland from Denmark, if Denmark does decide to sell. The USA would have to join the queue 🙂 I think Trump should tread carefully, since Denmark is quite entitled to kick out the important US Space/Satellite base in Greenland.

Is there any chance that Trump will claim the UK as the next US state? 'Cos we really need his kind of action plan to sort out the mess that the current (and previous) UK governments have made.....

Just an update: My updated learning/teaching Android app is almost ready for relaunch on Google Playstore. This is good news, because downloading the old version from my website causes various pop-up warning messages "Do you really want to download this app?" etc by the Android software, which is rather worrying for end-users! I've been testing the updated app on my phone and I'm very pleased so far. The app now supports the Burmese character set for my file names, which makes it easier for beginner learners to understand. Once that app is completed, and I've moved into my Jomtien Beach condo 'base', I should be back to Myanmar. It's likely that I will be in Yangon, because there are warnings that the pdf/civilian fighters may try to cut off the road between Mandalay city and its airport, so not a great idea to return to Mandalay. 2 international schools in Yangon have asked me to join them, so everything is looking 'rosy' 🙂

Yes, most expats are non-immigrants, but they maybe stay here for 5, 10, 20 years or more, renewing their non-immigrant visa each year 🙂 I think once you're on your 5th annual renewal, you should be required to take a spoken Thai language test. That shouldn't be too difficult now, should it?

Hmm, we need to cut imports of an export from France that they currently sell a huge amount to the UK. Let me think... what does the UK import from France in huge quantities? I know!! Electricity!! Er.... wait a moment.... 🙂

I don't think Columbia wanted to coordinate these actions a little. They just didn't want to accept their citizens back. According to media reports, it was only after Trump threatened tariffs etc on Columbian imports that they relented. Perhaps The UK should threaten France with tariffs if they don't take the illegals who left their safe shores back. 500% on imports of frogs' legs or something perhaps?

Correct. He wasn't 'hiding' in Kanchanaburi. The authorities knew where he was all the time, but there was no evidence to arrest him.

If our attitude is that we should not learn Thai, then why should immigrants to the UK learn English? I speak/read Thai to a good level because I consider it 'good manners' to speak the language (at least to conversational level) of the country that one lives in. So I speak/read Thai, speak/read Lao and speak/read Burmese, with Thai being my most fluent language because that's the country that I've resided in for the longest time.

In my youth I did actually work for MFI 🙂 My 'weapon' was a large box of 6 inch mails and a hammer, because as an employee of MFI I had been warned that it was impossible to construct a strong piece of furniture from these flat-packs without resorting to use of 6-inch nails to hold it all together.... BTW, 'MFI' stands for 'Manufacturers' Foreign Imports' 🙂

I'm hoping that Trump will have a positive effect on the useless UK government. He already started by not inviting Starmer to his inauguration..

How on earth can anyone. regardless of their beliefs, attack and kill a 2-year old child?

Yes I know! I have been teaching in Myanmar since 2012, so I'm aware of the changes. Now there are many ATM machines of course, but no foreigner would want to use them with the appalling official exchange rate!

Although I'm currently in Thailand, and resting my eye, I want to post more in this thread, sort of to keep the momentum going. I'm just waiting to move into my new 'base' studio condo at Jomtien Beach. Since I am only a few months away from drawing my huge (!) UK state pension, I've decided to no longer teach 'in-class' for a monthly salary, but to continue with my online science teaching AND to only teach in-class in Myanmar as part of my volunteer efforts. I move into the condo in a few weeks from now, but I've been sorting out more audio file recordings for my mobile app. Since there are hundreds (probably thousands) of these files, I'm going to build a small 'sound recording booth' in my condo, with a decent microphone and sound-absorbing wall/ceiling tiles, to provide the clearest sound recordings of my dulcet voice 🙂 The mobile app development company in Pakistan sent me their first attempt at updating my existing Android app. This was very good, with only a few issues, and they are now checking through these software bugs. Once I've tested it all, then it's pay-day for them and my updated app can be back on the Google Playstore 🙂 My Myanmar business visa expired 2 days ago. Since I no longer plan to teach at a school in Myanmar, I can no longer get a business visa. So I'll have to rely on 28-day tourist visas. I am pessimistic enough to consider that the junta may - at some time - refuse me entry to the country (they don't really like people helping local teachers to educate local students). So in my initial tourist visa trips, I will try to recruit a local (anonymous) person who can market my app, print vocabulary posters etc in my absence. Luckily, return plane tickets from Bangkok to Yangon with Air Asia are reasonably cheap, about $110 USD on the cheapest dates. A Burmese friend in Yangon is sourcing the cheapest hotel/hostel that is licenced for foreigners, so that I can minimise my expenses whilst in Myanmar. Anyway, all my plans are going well 🙂

This is a major issue in many countries. The English teachers can't speak English! This is the problem that I face in Myanmar. The local teachers can read and write English to an acceptable level (usually), but their spoken English is appalling. This is no surprise, because they've learnt to speak English from a local teacher, who learnt from a local teacher who learnt from....... You get the idea! Sort of Chinese Whispers and the English they speak is not the same language as the English that I speak 🙂 In Myanmar, I do a lot of volunteer work to help local Burmese teachers improve their English pronunciation, so that their students can also achieve clear pronunciation. But there has to be a willingness to learn! In Myanmar, every Tom, Dick, Jack and Jill is extremely keen to learn to speak and understand English, because they realise that knowledge of English can increase their chances of getting a job or going on to higher education. In Thailand.... well they seem not so keen. As to Native English Speakers, that phrase means absolutely nothing when one considers many of the unintelligible Brummie, Scouse and Scottish accents that I've heard over the years. A dear friend of mine (now deceased) taught English at a school in Yangon where I was also teaching. I once asked his students what they had learnt today. "Teacher Simon, we don't know" was their reply. "Huh?, why not?" I asked. "Because no-one can understand him!! - but we are too polite to say anything..." Oops!

In 2012, I was teaching English to a class of young adults in Yangon, Myanmar. We were reading a passage from The British Council. The English vocabulary was not difficult, but my students were all having a hard time understanding some of the words and phrases. I asked them which words they didn't understand. "Teacher Simon, can you please explain to us. What is a credit card and what is an ATM?" This English language passage from the British Council would have been understood in almost every country in the world. But Myanmar in 2012 still had no credit/debit cards nor ATMs....

Can I just mention that in a previous career I was indeed a rocket scientist, but my efforts to establish a porn-star career with my colleague Candi has come to nought...

Mods, please move this post if you think it's in the wrong sub-forum! Yonks ago, one of the first qualifications that I obtained was a certificate in 'Sound Studio Recording Techniques' from North London Polytechnic. Well, although I'm a scientist and often teach about sound energy etc, I'd like some advice as to how I can obtain good voice audio that I will use for my little educational charity work in Myanmar, which provides video and audio content to local school-teachers and their students, so that they are better-equipped when they teach/learn English. I use Filmora for editing my content files, and the video part is not as important as the audio part. The audio content consists of myself reading various English words and sentences that match with the video. So it's very important that my pronunciation is clear (no Scouse accents please!), and also that the actual audio recording is clear. Previously, I simply used to record the voice files using my mobile phone, then import the file into Filmora and then edit/trim it etc. In a few weeks, I will move into a small condo at Jomtien Beach, which I propose to use as my 'base' between my regular trips into Myanmar - I visit various orphanages/schools etc and assist local teachers to access my free content. I regulary record new files that are then uploaded to my webserver and can then be downloaded either directly from the 'web', or (more user-friendly), using my free android App So I thought it a good idea to create a small audio recording 'corner' in my condo which will provide a good environment for decent audio voice recording. I'd very much appreciate your advice about what I would need to do to create this space. I'm thinking about: - Build a little 'box' with sound-absorbing tiles to minimise echo. Good idea or not? - Use the correct microphone for the purpose. What kind of microphone etc? (Bear in mind that my work is totally non-profit and self-financed, so no $1,000 microphones!) - Microphone shields etc?? - Recording hardware/software. Should I just connect my microphone to Windows Voice Recorder or Zoom record function? Or perhaps use a simple audio mixer to adjust the input levels, equaliser etc The aim is to create a voice file that is as clear as possible, so that the local Burmese teachers and their students can clearly hear the word/phrase being pronounced. Thanks for advice 🙂

^^^ Frozen state pension, winter fuel allowance cut, triple lock under threat, means-testing pension, where will it end? I'm getting a little concerned about my UK state pension, which I'll start to receive in about 5 months from now. For various reasons (which don't include p*ssing my income up the wall), I will need to rely on my UK state pension as my main income source after I retire. I still have a decent income from inline teaching, but I don't expect to be teaching in this manner into my 70s etc, and I would be foolish to assume that I would be teaching. We all know that the UK state pension is 'frozen' for those pensioners living in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia etc, and this will never change, regardless of how many people moan about it. The winter fuel allowance is being cut, but this doesn't affect overseas pensioners. Now I hear about 'threats' to the triple lock. Again, that doesn't affect UK pensioners in the Thailand, thanks to the frozen pension state. But means-testing pensions is a possible threat to pensioners' income in future years! (It won't affect me, because I don't have a pot to p*ss in!). However, where will this all end? I fear that this UK government may try to save more money by restricting state pension payments for expats, regardless of which country they are living in. Perhaps they will only pay out for pensioners who are living in the UK? (Of course, not paying expats will force many of them to return to the UK, thus costing the government more money in claimable allowances/benefits etc, but I don't think any government has enough brain cells to think this all through...) What are your thoughts about this? And is there anything that you can do to mitigate these possible scenarios? Plan your retirement to minimise unnecessary expenses, or even plan a return to the UK? Difficult decisions....

Speaking with some of my Chinese (online) students, the news is all over China that Thailand is a very dangerous place to visit..... I countered this by pointing out that Thailand is as safe as houses when compared to Myanmar...

What are 'laptop deniers'??

[quote] so i guess this thread dies ;-( [/quote] Why? I have already planned my return trip to Myanmar. I am resting my eye for the moment by the sea at Jomtien Beach and using this time to improve my spoken/reading Burmese by taking face-to-face lessons from a native Burmese teacher. It also gives me time to update my Android app content files (the updated version of this app is almost ready for relaunch on the Playstore). @Rhodie, I went to Rutin Hospital in Bangkok, zapped by some laser gun to re-attach the retina. That eye does not have perfect vision anyway, so any sight remaining in it is a bonus for me. I don't know the final cost - my insurer handled all that directly.