tuktuktuk

I'm not surprised that Huntsville would be more expensive. I looked at some rental prices, but didn't research like you've been doing. I've only been there a couple of times. It's pretty hard to get by without a car most anywhere in the US unless you're really in a city center. City centers like that will always be expensive. Get a small Japanese sedan with a manual transmission and you can get by for a long time with minimal maintenance costs. We moved to where we are after my retirement because it was inexpensive. Property taxes are small compared to Texas. Paying school taxes without any children doesn't work to my advantage. Northern Alabama is a warm climate. You can a have a few chilly weeks in the winter, but it's never prolonged. I could use a little snow here in Chaiyaphum right now. We've had some tornadoes - some severe. I don't really worry myself with it. I've lived in tornado country all my adult life and I've still never actually seen one. It's a Gulf of Mexico influence thing. I'm not sure about the culture side of things. We keep to ourselves and travel a lot. Our neighbors are country people, but absolutely wonderful and will show up to help without even asking them. We live out of town on 9 acres. We leave it unoccupied for months at a time when we're here in Thailand and there's never been an issue with any intruders. There are a lot of rural poor folks and a fair number of relatively wealthy farmers. There are almost no restaurants and we have to travel to Nashville or Memphis just to buy Thai chilis. Last time we bought some they were $15/lb. We've been unable to grow them like we did in Houston.

Funny, I thought about suggesting Florence when I first read your post. I figured Alabama had such a stigma that nobody would have considered it. Florence/Muscle Shoals isn't paradise, but it's not so bad. Restaurants are just your basic chain places like Olive Garden or Texas Roadhouse. I live about 40 miles from Florence in west Tennessee near Savannah. We go to Florence for the shopping that's not imaginable in Savannah and for doctors and dentists. I was thinking that Huntsville might be an even better option. It's a NASA town. More people with higher education and a sense of opportunity. Savannah's quaint, but nothing in the way of restaurants or general infrastructure. It's generally pretty warm, but it did get cold this past winter. It was -6º F one morning. It was in the 50's a week later. I've been in Florence when it was snowing one day in 2022.

Some would say there is no distinction.

They're a favorite for cargo and don't have to meet the same certification requirements as for passenger service.

I'm struggling to understand why the minimum draft age in Ukraine is 25.

Your card numbers are never revealed to the merchant. They only see a google transaction number. Same with Apple Pay.

You're starting to make me miss home. I can't wait to get a double helping of New Orleans red beans and rice with a link or two of grilled andouille.

I'd stay out of the whole mess. My inclination is to side with the rebels, but no doubt they'll just turn out to be another crew of thieves.

Made with a fine Vermont cheddar.

That was my initial thought. I don't think I've ever stayed in the Kingdom for more than 180 days in one year unless perhaps one year we returned early. I never stopped to consider what it would all add up to. Now I will. My concern is with my wife. She's a dual citizen. She enters and exits with her Thai passport but spends with our credit card and makes ATM withdrawals. In the last several years she's been here for more than 180 days per year. I'm sure the same applies to her, but they probably won't be looking at how long she's been here. I wonder if or how they might monitor her "remittance".

Don't use an angle grinder to cut wood. The best you can hope for is a crude cut.

This is timely for me. I need to do the same in a few weeks. I have a one year ME visa. My 90 day stamp expires April 10th. I need a 60 day extension since we have no plans for a border run and I'll be going home in late May anyway. We've done this before, but always seem to go unprepared. Best I can remember is that I need the completed TM 7 form, my passport and E visa hardcopy (with copies), a couple of passport photos and the 1900 Baht fee. Seems like it can be done at any time before it expires. I'd rather do it before the end of the month to avoid any of the potential Songkran crush. Any other tips?

That’s garbage. I’ve been to every airport on the list except Doha. None stand out. Most are unpleasant. Seoul/Incheon and Vienna are better than any of them. BKK is okay, but the air conditioning is inadequate.

He’ll just blame it on MAGA Republicans. I began to think Ukraine could win after routing the Russians near Kyiv. Now I’m convinced that materiel alone without manpower will never bring about a win. Nobody even knows what winning looks like. Nobody is ready to send troops beyond the covert forces that have been there all along.

Go Toyota. 2012 Pajero was so so. 2016 Hilux was flawless. Replaced after 200k km with 2022 Fortuner. Fortuner flawless too. Our Toyota dealer has the best service department I’ve ever experienced. Both vehicles have only required scheduled maintenance. Both Toyotas have 2.8 liter diesels. Pajero was a gasoline V6. Mitsubishi service was substandard.

That’s the stuff. I’ve seen it referred to as 2 4 D also. It should tell you how big an area that can treat. Don’t over do it or it may kill more than you want. These chemicals are all toxic to some degree. Try to avoid breathing in any dust and keep it away from skin.

At home in the US I’ve used broadleaf weed killers in spray and mixed with fertilizers as weed and feed. The active ingredient is 2.4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid. It prevents weeds like clover and dandelions from growing without killing the grasses. Spraying roundup (glyphosate) on weeds in and amongst flowers works fine. Don’t spray so much that it runs off and leaves puddles. Wet the leaves or blades of unwanted grasses in mid day sun. It will evaporate leaving a residue that impedes cell growth and they die. Nearby tulips and daffodils are fine after this. Could be different here.

Sun Tzu said it best - all warfare is based on deception

I bought a fat tire mountain bike at Nai Chan Bike Shop six or seven years ago. It wasn't very expensive and it's been a real joy to use. I've had it repaired there a couple of times. It's on Lao Nadi Road across from where the big stadium is. https://maps.app.goo.gl/D38nGYpurz59a6icA

It's generally rather trivial (with a few exceptions) to change the internal hard drive and just swap things around. Almost certain to be faster, especially with an SSD. The only time I ever met any challenge was with an all-in-one.

It could be welded. It's probably stainless steel. Might be hard to find someone who's truly qualified. In all likelihood there are many spots on the verge of breaking through, but sometimes not. You have to patch it on the inside assuming that's accessible. I'd first try something like Flex Tape. I see it on Lazada and Shopee (4 inch). Clean the area with something like hand sanitizer and some sandpaper if it's rough. The best option is replacement, but always more costly.

I have noticed that some of the newer antiperspirants are sticky and more difficult to wash of than they used to be. Perhaps they are effective for longer.

We keep two rooms (occasionally three) at 22 C all day. Late afternoon the inside temperature will climb to 27 and maybe a little higher. At night one room 22 all night another 25 but for just a few hours. Electric rates here are almost exactly what we pay back home in Tennessee. About 0.16USD/kwh. The maximum bill here (~12k THB/month) is about 50% more than home, but it's not a fair comparison. Tennessee has plenty of 37 C days in July and August but cooler nights and good insulation. I always say I'm never going to stay for April and May again, but here I am.

None for me. Stopped all of that when I left grad school, got married, started a career and a family. Never really developed any friendships outside of work and never mixed that with family time. If I wanted to do that here the nearest bar is 30 minutes away. About the same for our home in Tennessee. I’m 65 now. Best I can tell most expats aren’t interested in socializing. Most avoid even eye contact.

I’m waiting to see a thread on how many of us prefer squat toilets.