mstevens

4 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

 

Many of us live in Thailand because we want to live in Thailand, not because it is cheaper than elsewhere.

I wouldn't want to live anywhere only because it's cheaper.

No doubt this is true for you and I agree that it is the best reason to live in Thailand. But from what I hear from many people myself as well as what I read in this forum, many people live in Thailand because (they perceive) it's cheap.

14 hours ago, LosLobo said:

The last episode of the current TV Series of Hijack with Idris Elba dropped last night.

 

The series has be a must-see for myself and friends over the past month or so.

 

For anyone who hasn't watched yet I suggest that the initial critics review of a high 6/10 was inaccurate and it should have been 8/10.

Couldn't disagree more. I thought it promised so much but in the end never reached the heights it promised. The last episode was very weak. For me, it was a 5/10 series and no more.

Intriguing tournament ahead with a number of teams who can win it. Favourites have got to be France but Ireland and New Zealand also look good. I'd never write off South Africa despite their last two results. Australia and England are on the easy side of the draw so they are in with a shot but I am not sure either has a sufficiently strong team this year to win it.

I'd love to see France vs New Zealand final which has the potential to be a classic match. Funnily enough, these two teams meet in the opening match. Can't wait!

2 hours ago, Pattaya57 said:

Isn't that the point, how would you be able to tell which set of books they provide 

You ask for receipts they have from all filings with the Tax Department and you and your accountant physically accompany them to the Tax Department and get copies of all recent filings.

10 hours ago, JimTripper said:

Does not work.

 

The owner cooks the books or they act real rushed and confused, talk when your there, etc so you can’t review them properly and carefully.

That is why you insist on the books they provided to the tax department and make all calculations based on those figures. Being a cash busness, no doubt, the numbers listed are BELOW what they actually made.

Tea tree oil works really well to clear nail fungus. I've never bought it in Thailand but if you can find it, it's very effective.

Because so many of these bars are poorly run and they don't even think of the basics, like offering a menu showing what is available (and the prices!)

4 hours ago, dcalaska said:

You got ripped off. This is Thailand. Get used to it. 

Once you hand over money to a Thai, 99.999% it's gone. Only one time did I get back my rental deposit from a Thai person. 

Rented a few different condos in Bangkok and every time my deposit was returned in full when I left.

3 hours ago, MakeYouPay said:

So, I gave notice to break lease

What does it say in your contract? Usually, if you break the lease and don't fulfil the full term of the contract, you forfeit the deposit. If there is no clause in your contract that says you can give x number of months notice and you will then get your deposit back then I am afraid you're out of luck.

There is a reason why a lease is signed for a lease of a certain period. The length of the lease gets the tenant a lower monthy rate i.e. a 12 month lease might get 25K / month, 6 months might be 30K / month, 1 month might be 60K / month. A shorter lease invariably means a higher monthly rate.

1.  Friendly, cheerful, amenable local Thai people.

2.  Low cost of living allowing a higher standard of living than back home.

3.  The fact that in most of the country it never gets cold.

4.  The opportunity to meet a lady for a lifelong partnership who truly embraces her femininity.

5.  Outstanding food and the varied and increasingly sophisticated dining scene, not just Thai food but also international food.

From the sounds of it, a sleep specialist would probably be the way to go. Not something I know anything about but if it's a breathing issue causing sleep problems then maybe a CPAP machine might help? Obviously you need professional help if you go down that route.

There are various supplements that can help sleep including:

Melatonin

L Tryptophan

GABA

5 HTP

Magnesium

They're all a little different, work slightly differently and some can be combined. My personal experience trying all of these found that 5HTP worked best for me.

However, in your case, it definitely sound like seeing a sleep specialist would be the way to go.

4 minutes ago, Confuscious said:

In 2018, my daughter was kidnapped while I was having a heavy surgery.

When I am at home, I still hear my daughter talking to me or hear noises in her room.

That's why I spend most of the day away from home.

Somehow, when I go on a holiday somewhere, it's easier to forget about the past.

That's a truly awful thing to have experienced. I am sure you have already given it some thought but maybe consider moving away from a place with which you have such bad memories to a new place where you can create new, positive memories? If we experience something truly terrible as you have, or simply have a long period of bad experiences, sometimes moving to a new place can help us to leave things in the past and move on.

4 hours ago, Confuscious said:

Strange.

At home, I can not fall asleep.
Turning and turning until 3AM and then I fall asleep.
But I wake up 2 or 3 hours later to go to the bathroom and when I return from the bathroom it's the same story again.

But when I go to Pattaya, Jomtien, or some place for a short holiday, I fall asleep like a block when I go to bed.
Even while the sound of the discobars is bouncing on the walls.

Before 2018, I had no problem sleeping.
But after 2018, the house seems to by haunted.

This sounds like it could be one of two things: stress or mould (or other environmental factors).

That you sleep better when on holiday than at home could well be due to stress. Travel makes you happier, less stressed and you sleep better. This is common and it can also show in other ways such as lousy digestion when at home / going about your regular life and much improved digestion when on holiday.

The other possibility - less likely, but still possible - is mould. Living in a mouldy environment can see the mould essentially get inside us and cause all sorts of problems, some neurological - and this can cause sleep problems and insomina. Less likely, but certainly possible.

if it's stress-related, you need to look at ways to lower / manage your stress. If mould-related, you need to remedy the mould situation and / or leave the place with the mould permanently.

5HTP is definitely a supplement worth trying. Inexpensive, non-addictive and it is effective to boost your mood and help you sleep. 100 mg before bed works really well.

The specific product I use is NOW Foods 5HTP 100 mg capsules. You can get it on iHerb.

I have found over the years that there are more interesting things to do in Thailand, more nice places to go out to, great restaurants to eat at etc and so my spending in Thailand has gone up to levels that are about the same as I would spend if I was back home. In Thailand I feel that I get so much more for my money, most of the time at least, and as such I am happy to spend more than I thought I would. I figure that you only live once so may as well enjoy it!

20 hours ago, Hanaguma said:

Coffee

Good steak

Red wine

 

Of the three, which would be the hardest to give up.... 

For me, steak. Given up coffee and red wine already as it so happens, but eat a good steak at least once a week!

14 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

The arrest was conducted today by an esteemed team of Royal Thai Police (RTP) officers.

"Esteemed team of RTP"? Who wrote this drivel?

On 7/11/2023 at 7:20 PM, BenStark said:

Why would someone spend time and effort to go out buy the ingredients, then spend time again preparing and cooking, and lastly washing up cooking pots and clean the kitchen?

 

Hours wasted for a 20 minute meal, when you just can go to a shop and buy it ready-made, or even better go to a restaurant, where you can order it at almost the same price it cost you to do yourself.

Some of us, like myself, prefer to cook most of the time as we are very health-conscious. We can adjust dishes to include more vegetables, good oil and leave out ingredients that if consumed long-term might not be good for our health.

A lot of Thai food is fried and the oils used are not healthy. There's also a lot of sugar and flavouring sauces, none of which are good for you if you consume too much of them.

Certainly, there is a good argument for eating out in Thailand if you want convenience and to save time (and oftentimes money too). But for me, I prefer to cook at home most of the time and only eat out sometimes, primarily because of the health benefits of knowing that what I am eating is healthy.

The problems of acid reflex are often a problem of inadequate stomach acid rather than too much stomach acid. As we age we tend to make less stomach acid which is one of many contributing factors to digestive issues.

You need stomach acid to acidify your food before it leaves the stomach and enters the small intestine where the nutrients and minerals are extracted from it. If the food has not been well acidified, it will be more difficult to get extract the goodness from your food.

Doctors have long prescribed Omeprazole which reduces stomach acid. When Omeprazole was first introduced to the market it came with warnings to use it for a limited period of time i.e. several weeks. These days some doctors prescribe it for years which can cause issues over time such as small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, fungal overgrowth and numerous digestive issues.

Omeprazole has its benefits and it is one of the most widely prescribed drugs. But today there are many doctors who believe that adding stomach with a supplement like Betaine HCI can help the symptoms of acid reflux.

Dr Mark Hyman is one of many doctors who explains very clearly what is going on with acid reflex and why Omeprazole might not necessarily be a good choice. There's a lot of good info online and it's worth doing some research of your own.

5 hours ago, jaywalker2 said:

I had one bad experience after another with haircutters. I went to one place on Soi 4, 200 baht haircut. It was just okay. The next time I went, she said after finishing the cut, "Okay, now pay me 250." I paid her the 250 and never went back. Same thing happend at the Nana hotel. Price went up 50 baht second time I went. I found another place, 150 baht. The second time I went she paused in the middle of cutting my hair and said, "I'll give you a good haircut if you pay me 200." I paid her 150 and never went back. Several times I went to a place on Soi 3  even though the staff was unpleasant (I think they preferred Arabs). Then one day the barber started yelling at me because I didn't praise her haircut enough. Then there was the place over behind the Platinum Mall, 100 baht.  I came out looking like Alfred E. Newman.

 

Honestly, I feel traumatized.

 

 

Get away from the tourist areas. Some of those doing haircuts in the tourist areas also do massage, nails, book tours etc. They don't specialise in anything and as such I'd be surprised if any of the services they provide they do do particularly well.

14 hours ago, proton said:

Be aware he will shadow ban over the slightest disagreement, sent photos and info to help him in the past and just got ditched on his comments. I just wish people would let you know to stop wasting their time.

The problem with Bangkok Pat is that he just seems to do research on various websites and then put stuff together. Sometimes those websites have wrong info which he just unknowingly repeats. He talks as if he knows Bangkok history well but it's all just from other websites. And his pronunciation of Thai place names, Thai people's names etc is awful and like a farang who just got off the plane, ironic given he is half Thai.

On 2/28/2023 at 10:47 PM, Kaopad999 said:

Sorry to break it to you, but you have no rights to privacy in a public place. 

Sorry to break it to you but Thai law sees things very differently. In Thailand, anyone who feels their reputation has been somehow maligned or damaged when photographed or videoed in a public place can make a criminal complaint to police about the person who took the photo / recorded the video and seek damages through a civil action. To be clear, I am not saying I agree with this, but this is the law in Thailand.

Taurine is useful if you have problems with your gallbladder and digesting fats. It helps to open up the biliary ducts which helps bile flow which in turn helps with fat digestion. If you look at the ingredients list in some of the general gallbladder supplements, Taurine along with Choline and Milk Thistle are common ingredients.