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3 minutes ago, VocalNeal said:

Stupid <deleted>

it was serious questioin and I asked a Thai girl in her 30's in CNX and she said "it's weird" .  This is just one opinion from a city girl.

This is an offensive weapon.  Is this bound for the Cambodian border? Just wondering.  Maybe the Ukranians would be interested and Thailand can start a defense industry? 

What do rural Thai residents think when they see a 70+ year old foreigner with a bride in her 20's and a baby? 

3 hours ago, bamnutsak said:

Hopefully someone will ask and get an answer re: the status of the 2025 7162 firm.

 

I wouldn't want to take up a slot for those who have more pressing requirements (enrolling, sorting out a stoppage of benefit payment, etc.)

 

 

How about this: Rent out a hotel conference room and ask all SSA reciepients who are able to attend to answer "Are you alive" question in person?  Of course this is the Federal Government and something that direct and possibly efficient would never happen.  It looks like the appointments are in the morning so I do not see a lot of slots available.  

Don't know how appointment slots they have but if one has a pressing SSA issue might be worth a trip to BKK:

The Social Security Administration's Federal Benefits Unit (SSA/FBU) will provide services on Thursday July 24 at the American Citizen Services Section of the U.S. Embassy Bangkok. We have a limited number of appointments, so sign up now to secure your appointment. Please sign up via the link below. Closer to the date of the event the American Citizen Services section will provide more specific information via email to those who register successfully. https://forms.office.com/g/1Uypg7twD5

My guess is the appointments will fill up. Maybe a flight to BKK is in the works for me:

The Social Security Administration's Federal Benefits Unit (SSA/FBU) will provide services on Thursday July 24 at the American Citizen Services Section of the U.S. Embassy Bangkok. We have a limited number of appointments, so sign up now to secure your appointment. Please sign up via the link below. Closer to the date of the event the American Citizen Services section will provide more specific information via email to those who register successfully. https://forms.office.com/g/1Uypg7twD5

Air Asia was the only nostop from CNX to KUL so I have taken it several times.  Otherwise I would not fly with them.  

1 hour ago, jeffandgop said:

Mine was certainly sent via EMS.  However, the Post Office just placed the package on the wall at my home; never alerted me that they had a delivery nor obviously was my signature required/requested.  Anybody could have picked the envelope up and walk away with it.....

Exactly same for me.  Was delievered on a Wednesday but did not find it among the packages in front of the apartment offcie until Satudarday.  

1 hour ago, Yellowtail said:

Trump made a ton of money on that bankruptcy. 

The best casino owners are Native American Tribes.  I guess they got even for the Trail of Tears. 

  Read about a Japanese guy who ordered one and held a marriage ceremony with it.  He looked happy.  "Different strokes for different folks" and "whatever floats you boat".  

5 minutes ago, Yellowtail said:

In the long run, but that does not mean everyone that plays loses. 

Yes. Many have some winning days  But more have losing days, Casinos and lotteries  play the long game.  For every big winner in both there are 1000's of losers. That is how the numbers work out. 

2 minutes ago, Yellowtail said:

No one goes to Vegas to lose. 

"house always wins".  

20 hours ago, Callmeishmael said:

Most of the 'painful' provisions of the BBB won't take effect until the end of 2026 - after the midterm elections. So the Republicans will be insulated from the consequences of the bill.  Also the fiscal ill effects - the increased deficit - won't be felt until there is another president.  

 

The BBB is basically an economic time bomb that will hit the US hard in the coming years.

Exactly. I looked at it and really nothing in it for me as a 62 year retired guy from CA.  I am not medicare, medicaid, I do not own an American car that is financed,  I do not have gig job through an app that people can leave tips and my income taxes do not go up or go down.  The Democrats in DC look pitiful.  They look like Republicans in CA where Dems have a super majority. Elections have consequnces and in 2026 if people have more money then I see the Repuclicans keeping the majority. I did notice that professional gamblers might suffer because a provision in this bill reduces the deduction on gambling losses from 100% to 90%.  Sports betting has exploded in the last few years and I'm interested to see if "Vegas" suffers?

One of first Thai Phrases I learned was "no sweet". I still cannot believe so many of the drinks have added sugar syrup.  I mean even fruit smoothies have added sugar syrup not to mention many of the coffee drinks.  One can even overdue healthy foods like fruit.  I stopped eating most Thai foods years ago because I suspected there was added sugar.  

Just finished Attack on London: Hunting the 7/7 Bombers.  Very interesting series.  I forgot that there was a second attempt on July 21 Currently on Netflix. 

This is from a city council meeting in Los Angeles.  The person asking is LA City Council member Imelda Padilla and the person answering is LAPD Chief Jim McDonnel. At least the Chief knows the law.  

Of course the mystery can be solved if the BKK Embassy would do just one thing: Email the passport applicant the Thai Post Courier tracking number (this starts with 2 letters and then 9 numbers and ends with TH). when the envleope is sent. Of cousre this would require additional work by an Embassy employee so it will not happen. My Thai courier passbook envelope with the two passports arrived at my apartment building on a Wedneday but I did not find it until Saturday because of the unorganized manner that the apartment office receives mail and packages. Anyways for me "mission accomplished" and if there is a next time I will probably do it from the USA. 

Hey. Go Big or Go Home.  Good luck to her. Just one month at her asking price would go a long way. 

2 hours ago, Pib said:

I expect the Embassy expects the person to track the Bt100 mailer tracking number as that would tell when they mailed it.  Did you use that return mailer tracking number (not to be confused with the order number)?   

 

When looking at other embassy websites in other countries and even the State Dept general instructions they say to use the return/prepaid mailer tracking number.   I expect the State Dept/embassy figure by telling folks to use the return mailer tracking number then that's one less task they need to accomplish....save a few minutes/X-amount of manhours of work I guess. 

When I paid the 100 Baht I did not get a tracking number. I got a confirmation of payment number.  The Tracking number was on the address label of the envelope that had my two passports. 

Most bread in the US has too many ingredients.  But fewer ingredients means shorter shelf life.  In my old neighborhood few actual bakeries were around.  Only real option was to buy the brand name breads from the usual stores.  In CNX I usually go to Miyazaki and St Etoile bakeries  which are located in the major malls for baked goods.  

2 hours ago, Pib said:

 

Thanks.

 

 Just checked on the status of the wife's passport again at 11:15am/1 July Thailand time and the US State Dept passport status webpage now shows her passport book and card were "mailed" 30 June.   This is a status change because when the wife checked a few hours earlier it still showed "in process."     And while writing this post at 11:33am/1Jul she got an email update from the US State Dept repeating the info found on their passport update website.   

 

Based on the updates provided when her renewal application was received by the passport center and when they mailed the new passport back these passport status updates appear to reflect status from 1 or 2 days earlier because in both cases the status was always reflected "as of" a day or two earlier.

 

As posted earlier the passport status webpage earlier showed the passport center received her renewal application from the US Embassy on 24 June.   So, as mentioned the new passport was mailed back 30 June....a 6 day turnaround time "at a US passport center" which was apparently in the wife's case National Passport Center in New Hampshire vs one of the 30 or so possible passport centers/agencies in the US.  I expect all passport applications sent from the US Embassy Bangkok go to the NH passport center which probably has responsibility for applications from outside the U.S....just my guess. 

 

Now it's just a matter of waiting for the passport to get from New Hampshire to US Embassy-Bangkok (that comes via the US Postal System) and then the embassy remailing it to the wife here in Bangkok.  It took 8 days to reach the passport center when initially mailing the renewal application (i.e., our home to Bangkok Embassy via EMS and then the embassy mailing it to the passport center vis USPS assuming it was snail mailed vs electronically sent). 

 

So, I'm expecting the return mailing time will be in the 8 to 10 days ballpark which takes in account the embassy remailing it via that Thai Postal prepaid Bt100 envelope once the embassy receives the renewed passport.  I'll start watching the Thai Postal tracking number for that Bt100 return envelope since buying the envelope which supposedly ThaiPostal send to the US Embassy - Bangkok.   That tracking number still shows "data not found."  I don't expect it will show anything until the embassy actually remails the new passport assuming they did get the Bt100 envelope and that same envelope is used to mail the passport from the embassy to our home.  

 

 Time will tell but it looks like the wife may get her passport back in less than 30 days from the date the renewal application was mailed from our local Bangkok post office.  But I expect the passport card will show up a few weeks later in a separate envelope based on US State Dept info and previous experience.

 

Cheers.

 

 

 

 

Mine was 29 total days.  1) It took 13 days to get the "application in progess" email from state. 2) 6 days later I gto the "passport mailed" email message. 3) Then I found the Thai Post envelope in front of the managers office of my apartment 9 days later..  Never got any kind of status message from the BKK Embassy,  Overall the Passport Center did a great job.  

55 minutes ago, Pib said:

 

 

Thanks for the update. 

 

Did you do any status checking of the passport completion/return mailing at the the U.S. State Dept Passport Application Status tracking website which shows when the passport center in the U.S. received your application from the Bangkok Embassy and also returned mailed it to the embassy?   Thanks.

 

https://passportstatus.state.gov/

Yes. The only thing I knew was that the US State had sent the new passport out to the BKK Embassy on June 16, After that no other updates were posted on State or the BKK Embassy website.  It does not appear the BKK Embassy notifies applicants that the new passports were mailed out through Thai Post.  This type of update would have been nice to have so I could have looked for the envelope. I did track the progress of the delivery from BKK to me in CNX after I got the envelope because the Thai Post tracking # was only on the address label.  My expectations of the BKK Embassy is really low and this time they did not disappoint.  The real credit goes to State for such a fast turnaround.  

6 minutes ago, JensenZ said:

If only that were true. I've had to contend with a pool of sweat left by Thai men more than once over the years. Some of them train in sweat suits to induce sweating, even with low-intensity exercise.

 

My best solution has been my home gym for the last 12 years. None of the above problems, with lots of other advantages.

You know I wish I could have such a place but I am looking at the end of the LOS road for me and maybe I am suffering from Thai fatigue?  8 years and some good times but some bad experiences.  Lately all of my contacts with the Thai people have been brief.  I realize everyones Thai experience will be different but for me the first 2 to 3 years were good but the last few have not been so great. 

I have never seen anyone at my current gym wear a sweat suit.  We have a sauna for that. Most mornings I am about the only one who uses it.  It's almost like paraise for me in the sauna. Most of the Thai members do not grab a rag and wipe down machines because most fo the them do not sweat.