simon43

Same here! I bought my laptop in Laos and (as usual), it had a pirated copy of Windows 10, which always displayed the 'activate now' text. So I bought a genuine licence key for about $30. It didn't work!! I just followed this hack and now my Windows 10 is activated 🙂

Presumably only 1 of the 3 was driving. The other 2 might have been screaming 'slow down!!'

Best thing I ever did was to buy a Chinese sex doll...

Launching a satellite from a launch site near the equator can save rocket fuel, but it all depends on the desired orbit of the satellite. Take low-earth orbit (LEO) weather satellites for example. They are launched into a polar orbit, ie flying around the Earth from top to bottom, so that as the Earth spins beneath them, they can take images of every point on Earth. A launch site close to the poles is preferable in this case. In fact, I would say most LEO birds are not placed in an orbit around the equator, because then they are not able to observe the Earth other than in a narrow band around the Equator. As a radio ham, I receive signals from various weather and scientific satellites, and polar birds are generally much easier to receive as they pass over my location. Geostationary satellites usually do benefit from an equatorial launch site. China has such a site on Hainan island, which is on about the same latitude as Chiang Rai.

You not understand. Thai injuries not same as farang injuries 🙂

How does an undervoltage ruin your soundbar/home theatre? More likely due to an overvoltage 'spike'.

Thanks, not interested in expat foods, bit like coals to Newcastle!

One thing that I would like to try out is hydroponics on a small scale, growing fresh vegetables 🙂 Yes, I can buy them from a local market of course, but growing organic veggies sounds interesting.

Wot? No amulet??

Koh Phangan has gone the same way. Loads of Russian-financed villa projects, loads of Russians on the island. I gave it a miss!

Absolutely no! I am very happy living alone and not relying on others 🙂 In any case, what does the average Thai know about healthy food? Very little I suspect!

This post doesn't really fit in the food sub-forums, so here is maybe the best place to ask for advice. I'm in the process of moving into a peaceful, rural little house in south Thailand. The nearest shop/restaurant is about 20 minutes drive away. So this status encourages me to prepare my own healthy food at home. Eating fresh fruit (bananas/water melons etc) is no problem, as is eating muesli cereal for breakfast. But I'm thinking about hot food for main meals. I hear that air-fryers are very useful cooking aids, but I've never used one. I do have a fridge and freezer, but the only items that I can think of buying frozen in quantity is chicken. Remove the fatty chicken and it's a good source of protein. How long do chicken eggs stay fresh in a fridge? Frozen fish?? I do make my own kefir milk, so that's healthy. I'm not a big meat-eater (because beef is usually rubbish in Thailand unless you spend a large amount of money!). JT, you're a food afficiado - any suggestions for hot, healthy food that I can prepare at home?

Living alone, I do try to minimise the risk of having a serious accident. Ground floor accommodation, no stairs. I always hold onto support/walls in the bathroom - I have read too many reportsof expats slipping/hitting their head and dying, especially when drunk My primary risk is climbing ladders/trees to install my radio ham antennas - I have suffered broken ribs, cheek bone, torn arm tendons etc from previous falls or attempts to lift heavy antennas. Now I have a safety jacket/belt with rope to tie myself to the tree!

Yes, Carbapenem antibiotic, that's the one. Not cheap, and in my current location (Khao Lak), I doubt if the local small hospital has such a medicine. The UTIs don't bother me too much - I wonder if there are some dietary ideas which might help (I drink pomegranite juice and cranberry juice when I can find this in the local shops).

Years ago, the same thing happened to a chap transporting sheets of glass in north Phuket. He crashed his truck, the glass slid forward, head wasn't found for a few days....

Amazing how many people that it's perfectly acceptable to jog without a shirt. Bare-chested is solely for the beach, not the beach promenade, not the park, not the shopping centre. Still, there are 'bogans' on many forums......

I always do! I never sit in the car like some lazy, entitled guy. I get out, chat to the pump attendant, count my wheels, that sort of thing....

Although no-one wants a UTI, I think any detriment of this depends on the individual. I have symptomatic UTIs, which means that I effectively have permanent E.Coli infections in my prostate, (probably as a of 2 prostate stones which seem to encourage UTIs). I've got used to the mild stinging as I pee and the fishy smell! Analysis of the infection indicates that it is not treatable by 'standard' antibiotics and Hiprex didn't help. Apparently only some very expensive antibiotic 'might' help, and my medical insurance doesn't cover this, so I've learn to live with the UTIs. Their presence does play havoc with my PSA values, but it stays steady at about 9, so as long as it remains steady, I'll just get on with life.

I consider myself fortunate that I've spent most of my 22+ years in south-east Asia living in relative isolation in Myanmar and Laos. This means that the scourge of wokism and PC has completely passed me over. (I'm like the old expat guy that I saw on a documentary yonks ago who just returned to the UK after a life in Kenya, and had no clue how to operate a toaster!). So when I encounter wokism/PC, it just makes me laugh. My father taught me that honesty is very important, but some of these wokies don't seem to appreciate my honesty when I call them out. I have no problems at all about upsetting people with my honest comments 🙂 Sometimes the truth hurts!

1 - No charge. I was upfront with both my new GP and hospital doctors that I had been living in south-east Asia for more than 20 years, and my French medical insurance company had cancelled by cover when I tried to claim for the MRI costs (they cited the fact that I omitted to tell them that I had mild BPH, which is totally unrelated to prostate cancer. Ho hum... The topic of me paying for treatment never arose at all. 2 - This was in February 2023.

I've lived alone (but not lonely) for more than 10 years after my last divorce. I have many friends, still good friends with my 2 ex-wives in Thailand, but the thought of sharing my life with another person is way down on my list of 'things to do'

Perhaps I've been unlucky, but no-one (except my dear mum) has ever cared for me 🙂 All 3 ex-wives were only interested in the few $$ that I earned by my hard work. So I'm not about to start wasting my precious time heeding any woman who claims to care for me. I'd rather have a pet dog....

Hmm, so in my dotage I combine doing some outdoor gardening with some uphill gardening 🙂.

I found this interesting video on YouTube about the benefits for older men to live alone. Actually, the points mentioned in the video would seem also to apply to women living alone. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1dqJO-OIPo The only downside that I can think of when living alone is if one has medical needs or a medical emergency. A compromise would be to employ a daily housekeeper or closer neighbour who perhaps brings food (if one is housebound), does some cleaning, or just pops in to check that you're OK.

If it happens, just tell your Filipina wife that they used to be nuns at the church you attended previously in Pattaya.