GarryP

This might give a rough idea. From my experience, material costs are higher upcountry but labour lower.

Drug use is a big problem out in the sticks. My soon to be next door neighbour's son is an addict, i.e. a policeman's son. I was actually quite surprised at how pervasive it is now.

I am interested in your type of widows rather than going with window bars. I think if you factor in the costs of window bars, your option is unlikely to be much more expensive (I am really guessing on this). Where did you order your windows if you don't mind me asking?

You only need to add those knife proof security screens and you are totally covered. I don't think bars are an option for homes with very large windows/sliding glass doors. It would look like a cage.

No window bars/ anti-theft bars/ monkey bars or whatever they are called? I don't think my wife would agree to depend solely on cctv for our new build.

It is not uncommon for ganja to be added to food such as noodles, and other broth based meals as it supposedly enhances the taste. Not at levels which will make you high though. This has been going on for decades if not longer.

I'd give up my British citizenship if I had to choose between Thai and British. In the UK I only have my father, step-mother and half sister. Having lived here for 40 years, I have no ties to the UK other than that. It's a no brainer really. Obviously, I won't be proactive in surrendering my British citizenship though.

I would be very hesitant to sell up. I have heard some horror stories and know a couple of families who sold up their land thinking they would be able to have a better future with money to buy this and that and invest in stuff. It didn't work out. There were no plans for a sustainable lifestyle, it was just the feeling of having a load of cash in hand. The money was gone very quickly and they were then worse off than before they sold the land. One family ended up renting land for farming to make a living, but at least they now have a house and a pickup truck. Sad, but not uncommon. Money management skills, or rather lack thereof, seems to be a major problem in Thailand and is not taught by parents or in schools. As a result there is a massive personal loan and credit card debt problem here and just about every civil servant is in debt. Crazy situation. Hold on to the farm Owl. It is also a great place for you to spend time with Mildred, feeding fish, planting this and that, teaching her about wildlife, plants, farming etc. and generally enjoying each others company outdoors.

I don't know, but perhaps many of the refugees already speak English to a reasonable standard, whereas they may not speak French at all. In such a case, surely it makes sense to try to get in to the UK rather than staying in France and having trouble communicating. On the other hand, for those that already speak French, why would they still wish to enter the UK?

Nah, France will start having trouble with Brits in dingies seeking asylum.

It is now 18 days shy of a year since I had the Rezum treatment. I am happy with the results but could be happier. I visited the doctor in July for a follow up appointment on my treatment. The flow was better than pre-treatment and there was no retention post urination. However, the doctor said he had expected the flow to be a little bit higher than it was. Urination is totally pain free and I am not taking any meds for BPH. As to night time, I am getting up to the toilet twice a night (most nights) but as mentioned earlier in the thread, there is no struggle to get started. So visits to the bathrooom are very short and I am back to sleep very quickly. No doubt about it that this outcome has proven really beneficial, although I would prefer to limit my night visits to the toilet to once a night. During my last visit, the doctor did mention that about 5 of his 200+ patients suffered from retrograde ejaculation post treatment. These were patients with large prostates who required more steam injections than the four I had. So while the incidence is quite low, you do need to be aware that this is a possible outcome. I must admit that I was surprised as I didn't recall coming across any incidences of this in the materials I studied pre treatment.