Stevemercer

This is a straight forward question with a simple answer. Your landlord is trying it on. Forfeit your deposit, move on, and forget about the matter. Put it down to experience. You can freely leave and re-eneter Thailand anytime so long as you meet your visa conditions.

Wow! There are a lot of cynics out there. If ASEANNOW is a true representative of western opinion, North Korea must be a true haven we should all move to,

There's nothing wrong with being bored. As long as you have something to look forward to tomorrow.

Being 'legally; married would no doubt assist in getting a visa (and eventual residency in America). However, once in America, immigration laws recognise de-facto relationships, including same sex (unlike Thailand). So yes, it would be best to go to one of the recommended agencies to work out the best options for your partner. Once in the US, it will be pretty easy to find a pathway for your partner to stay. I would recommend, while still in Thailand, collecting as much proof as posible to demonstrate you have lived together for so long. This might include joint bank accounts, household books, joint travel etc. Even if in Thai, you can get it legalised and translated. It will be much easier to do this while still in Thailand.

My wife once stole 200,000 Baht from my fixed term account (out of 400,000 I had there for my marriage extension. I think she hoped to replace it before the extension was due. She took my fixed term bank book, passport and my forged signature on a withdrawal slip to the bank and convinced the staff I had authorised the transaction. She took it out in 4 lots of 50,000 Baht (at different branches). She tore out the page on the bankbook showing the transactions and new balance. I checked my term deposit about 4 months before it was due and was astounded to find I was 200,000 Baht short. The bank staff managed to track down the original paperwork for the transaction done at that branch and it was obvious from some of the signatures that my wife was behind it. Anyway, I managed to replace the money 2 months prior to the extension, although I took an unexpected financial hit. So if your wife or partner is determined they will always find a way to relieve you of your money. It's our job as husbands to try and safeguard our finances for our shared future. Sometimes it seems like the job of the wife is to spend as much money as soon as possible.

We had a leak and I went on the roof to fix with sealant. Next thing I knew I was in an ICU hospital bed. I fell through the roof for 3 metres until I hit the ceiling, broke through that and fell another 3 m onto the granite floor. I was lucky - no broken bones or permanent injuries that I am aware of. The accident insurance on my SCB ATM card paid most of the hospital bill.

The funeral will cost 100,000 - 200,000 Baht depending upon how many relatives and friends etc, the deceased has. As others have said, the organisers will get 50 - 100% back from donations. If you want to make a contribution, it would be much appreciated. You could offer something like 15,000 Baht up-front, or make a very generous envelope donation of 4,000 Baht at the cremation (give to the widow after the cremation ceremony and when you are walking away from the coffin after the flower giving - the widow and her close family will be waiting nearby discretely for farewells and these more personal envelopes).

Still hard t beat this golden oldie

About 50% of 7/11 shops sell them, but the stocking is hit and miss, and they go quickly. I get a couple a few times a week. If my regular 7/11 has run out, I go to the next 7/11.

I hope the Move Forward Party can take the long term view. All they need to do is hold it all together, be an effective and accountable oposition, and they will be able to govern in their own right after the next election. Pheu Thai is finished as a credible election force and their votes will shift to Move Forward.

Thanks very much for your help.

Here is my worthless contribution. I have nothing at all to add about ancient keyboards and will put up with whatever I am given. I am forced to use a laptop for various reasons and the in situ keyboard is no attraction. The fingers slip off the keys producing unique command combinations that have weird outcomes for the computer. For example, I am happily typing away on this message, look up at the screen, and find the text box has disappeared and somehow I am watching a Queen video (and not a very good one at that). Last week I spilt Coca Cola all over my laptop and thought it was a goner. The next day it started normally, but the keyboard and mouse did not work. We live in a small town and I took it to the sole computer shop not expecting much. To my surprise, they called my wife back that afternoon to say the laptop was working fine - they had replaced the in situ keyboard. The new keyboard is obviously the same size/configuration as the old one, except the keys are more slippy. There must be hundreds of different laptops and keyboard configurations hence my surprise they happened to have one in stock for my machine. The shop charged 650 Baht.

The boss lady must know that your girlfriend has a farang boyfriend? It sounds to me that she is just squeezing you (knowing that you will pay for your girlfriend's absences). She (the boss) is taking advantage of you (in my opinion) and is no friend of yours. If you don't pay for the absences, your girlfriend certainly can't/won't and will have to find another massage shop to work. Maybe that would be for the best. I'm assuming you know and trust your girlfriend well so that she and the boss are not in cahoots.

If the Korat Office has accepted your application, and you have paid, then you are most likely to be approved. It sounds like there may have been some confusion about your 'move' to Korat, but a long term lease (>6 months) should have been acceptable in evidencing your intentions. The office should have requested this sort of information if they had doubts. Anyway, I would be surprised if you are knocked back. I don't doubt it can and does happen, but I have never heard of it or read such on this forum over the last 10 years.

Sounds like you never did find a good book.

I think it's a problem of miscommunication. Unless you both speak the same languge, and have a similar cultural background, it's hard to get the sort of subtle message you want across. Even if your girlfriend has good English, there will still be different cultural understandings and expectations. Personally, I wouldn't worry too much about it. Continue to enjoy the company of attractive women and maybe one day you will meet someone you really match with. The constant follow-up communications are just a necessary evil you will have to deal with - politely and with a minimum of fuss. You'll get apt at it over time.

You can currently apply in Australia. A regulation was brought in during Covid allowing visa applications to be made by people in Australia (when they normally had to be made overseas). This regulation is in force. It is much easier to make the application in Australia. Once accepted/paid, your wife will get a bridging visa with the same conditions allowing her to work, get medicare etc., until a final decision is made. Do you already have your Australian old age pension? If not, you can only apply in Australia and you need to stay in Australia for 2 years before it becomes portable. So if you are going back to Australia to apply you might as well also apply for the partner visa. Then you can kill 2 birds with the one stone while waiting out the 2 years.

My wife insists she is going to Bangkok to march at the next vote (supporting Pita).

I cycle a fair bit and sometimes get a rash in that area. A hydrocortisone cream normally helps me.

I know there won't be a lash-back (as we say in strine) in Thailand - Thais don't complain. I don't own a mobile so I guess I'll have to go the branch to do transfers, or find a bank with online banking.

It would be impossible to shut off online/computer banking services in western countries because of the outcry and it possibly being discriminatory (e'g. the assumption that everyone has and is willing to use a mobile). I suppose I'm hoping there will be a similar lash-back when/if SCB actually closes online banking. So often in Thailand we hear about something that is going to happen, but someone high-up flip flops when the hue and cry goes up, and the status quo remains the same (e.g. nobody has really thought through the consequences or done any sort of risk analysis). I'm not sure why SCB would want to shoot themselves in the foot by pissing off loyal customers. So called security concerns are just an excuse, it's simple cost cutting.

Make sure you take a good book with you

I think reading can help boredom. If I'm on a good book, it brightens my whole outlook for the day because I know I will be onto a good read when I'm ready to relax. It took my a long time to move to a Kindle, but now that's all I use. I used to cart hard copy books from Australia, but no longer. It's easy and instantaneous to download (paid) books from Amazon. Most popular stuff you can download for free. I'm not a great TV watcher, but I enjoy the odd series. I check what's hot and download from the pirate bay. Sometimes old stand-byes are good. I've been downloading and watching ER - an episode or two will suck me in during the evening, and then its time for bed. Sometimes, I'm not in the mood for reading or videos, and give it a rest for a week or two.

I'm with the SCB and typically use SCBEasy on my laptop. I've received emails saying, or implying, SCBEasy will be terminated on 14 July and I need to download the SCB mobile phone App. I don't have a mobile phone, and have sort of been hoping/assuming I can continue to use SCBEasy. I've never received any emails about 'facial recognition', but my transfers are always under 100,000 Baht.

Well, at least the OP got a few people talking and, just maybe, gave him a few things to think about. For me, I go cycling 4 times a week, forcing myself to get up early to beat the heat. The other 3 days I can sleep in so it feels more like a holiday/rest day. When I read the title of the thread, the obvious answer was to go have good sex. Maybe the sex you are having now is not so good, and just habit.