lamyai3

On android recently there's a very intrusive box advert with video that slides across the screen from the lower right corner. It appears just in the area where you're scrolling and blocks a good chunk of the reading material.

What a fiasco. As an aside, are there any disadvantages in getting a UK passport renewal overseas as opposed to the UK, in relations to things like NHS or DWP records etc? Think I've read in the past it's better to get the new pp in UK if possible, though I can't remember why.

The Skype thing is terrific, very cheap and crystal clear calls. Before I used it I was using True Intersim and kept getting disconnected after about 30 minutes. I was interested to find that my bank and HMRC had no idea I was calling from overseas, the Skype call just showed on their system as number withheld.

Yes, it's a simplification, as is the case with the post I was replying to. To clarify the figures I'm quoting, £5.29 is 1/35 of the new state pension (£185.15), and £4.73 is 1/30 of the basic state pension (£141.85) pre 2016. In my own situation I missed out on many years of contributions, so the figures I was given by the FPC for topping up correlate exactly with these maximum amounts. For someone with a long contracted out history the calculations will be more complicated and they may require considerably more qualifying years to get the maximum. I think everyone here is in agreement about the need to speak to FPC and get specific information.

Skype is what I used for both FPC and HMRC. No problem with either the 0300 or the 0800 prefix calling from Thailand.

It means It's a Knockout will finally get royal warrant of appointment status.

While it's definitely best to calculate all post 2016 years up to pension age first, the difference between pre and post 2016 is only 12% (£4.73 vs £5.29 for current year). For anyone short of qualifying years, those pre 2016 years are well worth the money.

0800 731 0175 Since they're a bit deluged with people wanting to meet the deadline, call wait times are very long. Spoke to both FPC and HMRC recently and in both cases I was on hold almost an hour before getting put through.

The ID thing seems to be causing no end of problems, all the more so after they ditched the Post Office verification option recently. Not sure if you can find any help in this HMRC forum, though unfortunately there seem to quite a few "computer says no" type responses. https://community.hmrc.gov.uk/customerforums/sa/c65d5c15-7f64-eb11-8fed-00155d975df7

Think she was the one in Bride of Frankenstein.

The cutoff date for paying voluntary NI contributions going back to 2006 is now extended until 31st July: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/taxpayers-given-more-time-for-voluntary-national-insurance-contributions

Did the police ever catch up with the Rayong footbridge rumpy-pumpers? https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/30327025

Many of the street stalls on lower Sukhumvit selling weed are also selling sex toys. You can buy a bubble bong and a double dong from the same vendor.

Keep in mind it may be necessary to do this some days in advance. Earliest available slot currently is 23rd February.

If you can wing the financials (or use an agent) you're really much better off with an O or O-A visa and extensions.

Promax should work fine, the white bottle. I also had good results with a cheap Chinese brand from Mr DIY (hydrochloric acid based). Be careful, if you leave it on for too long it'll dissolve the grouting.

Yes, it should have increased, though only future NIC years are included in the projected figure, so it may also have decreased if unpaid contribution years become back years.

I sent some on Thursday and it credited to SCB almost immediately, a minute or two later.

I was actually asked for a copy of my rental contract when I did Non O extension at CW in December, in spite of having given it a few weeks earlier when converting to the Non O. The reason the IO asked was that my TM30 (filed during the big TM30 kerfuffle of 2019) was not considered recent and she wanted a more current proof of address.

Two gallons a week? ????

The article linked earlier in the thread suggests that in terms of overall mortality this is somewhat true, although losing a bit of weight can certainly help with such things as GERD, mobility problems etc. "Likewise, we don’t fully understand the relationship between weight and overall mortality. Many of us assume it’s a linear relationship, meaning the higher your BMI, the higher your risk of early death. But Katherine Flegal, an epidemiologist with the CDC, has consistently found a J-shaped curve, with the highest death rates among those at either end of the BMI spectrum and the lowest rates in the “overweight” and “mildly obese” categories."

Nana Hiso Hotel in soi 3, just hang around the lobby. They've also got one in Pattaya.

Recent entry at DMK (on AirAsia from SGN in November) was straightforward, visa exempt entry after years of retirement extensions on Non O-A visa. They asked how long I was staying and were trying to find a re-entry permit, as soon as I explained I was in the process of changing to Non O and just needed a 45 day entry they stamped me in.

Sensational Alex Harvey Band did a great version of this song.