Lacessit

A blood test may also be called for. Dry, itchy skin is a symptom of diabetes.

IMO the OP should give up any thoughts of driving in Thailand. At age 81, with incipient cataracts, slowing reflexes and accustomed to driving on American roads, it's a recipe for disaster. Thai traffic is among the most dangerous in the world. In a crisis situation, the OP's instincts would have him responding incorrectly, because his driving experience is not on the left-hand side of the road. I can remember driving in America in my fifties, and it took a lot of concentration for an Australian used to the other side of the road. As far as reflexes go, the OP can check those on the link. I am 0.37 second average, which is pretty slow. https://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/java/redgreen.html

I can remember my first visit to Thailand, late eighties, as a consultant. I was absolutely gobsmacked by the grace, beauty and attitude of Thai women. Slim, petite. I was also surprised they thought nothing of being with guys that looked as if they fell out of an ugly tree, and hit every branch on the way down.

AFAIK every medical clinic in Thailand is obliged to report a COVID-positive patient, whether they actually do is another question.

IIRC you have stated your four children in the UK are struggling, and hate you. That's not how I would want any child of mine to remember me.

IMO a relationship based solely on having kids would not be worth having anyway.

IMO having a child when one is in their sixties is irresponsible. How would anyone relate to them when they are in their teens? What sort of role model would a father in their 80's be? Delusional at best. People like Bernie Ecclestone may want to affirm their potency at an advanced age, he has the money to ensure any offspring are well provided for. I don't have that amount of money, or any desire to make myself look ridiculous.

Leeches are used in therapies to thin blood and dissolve blood clots, where modern pharmaceuticals are not available. Maggots are a very effective treatment for gangrenous tissue.

Why would I want to do that? I tread my own path. I don't know the situation of many farangs in Thailand, nor do I want to. I'd suggest if you were to cut off the flow of funds to your Thai family for a few months, it would be a good test of whether their love is real. If there was no change in attitudes, my congratulations. I prefer realistic to arrogant, thank you.

Your age is?

I know my GF walked a mile to school barefoot, the family could not afford shoes. I know her father gets a pension of 800 baht/month. I know her brother earns about 2000 - 3000 baht/month. Most of the people in the village do. There are a fair few horror stories about farangs who failed to set boundaries, and ended up broke and discarded. I fail to see why I should join them. My GF is well provided for after I die, and is happy now. You may think you are part of the family. Permit me to doubt the family ambience would continue if your flow of funds to them suddenly stopped, due to circumstances beyond your control. One of the Thai dichotomies is the subject of respect for age. They certainly do with their own kind, I haven't noticed much of it for elderly farangs.

None of them. We are here on 1 year visas maximum, and extensions can be rejected by Immigration at the whim of any officer at any time. Plenty of women around to be invested in.

Best wishes to everyone on this thread for 2022. Restaurants in Chiang Rai have come up with a number of ways to circumvent the prohibition on serving alcohol. This is one form of disguise.

I give small cash gifts to my GF's closest relatives at Christmas. I contribute to my quasi-grand-daughter's education. Her divorced parents are skint most of the time. As another poster has said,it is important to set boundaries. I am treated with respect by all my GF's relatives. However, that may just be because I am usually twice their size.

Break my age.

It depends on golf course policy. I used to know my regular caddie quite well in Chiang Mai. In Chiang Rai, it seems all courses have a policy of rotating caddies, and one has to pay quite a lot extra for a regular caddie. I suppose when there are 100 caddies at a golf course, all wanting work, the policy is equitable. However, it does prevent a golfer and caddie getting to know each other well. Another downside is not knowing whether one is going to get a good, average or incompetent caddie. All the caddies at the course where I am a member seem to know me; be damned if I could remember them all if I was 50 years younger.

Sorry, what is HIIT? The routine I described is daily, there are no holidays.

Alcohol has been listed as a Class 1 carcinogen since 1989. The most common health effect is cirrhosis of the liver, or scarring. The amount of scarring will obviously be related to the amount consumed. Paracelsus, "the dose makes the poison". Ability to detoxify alcohol is dependent on one's genetic inheritance. I've seen several alcoholics die when I was in Chiang Mai, and it was not pretty. Total breakdown of the liver results in dumping blood into the toilet as well as solids.

I had a similar experience with prednisolone, short term memory loss and confusion. My theory is doctors in Thailand are paid on the basis of how many drugs they can dispense, by the pharmaceutical industry. I've noticed Thai doctors are uncomfortable with being questioned if they are male, except if they have had their medical training outside Thailand. Female doctors don't seem to mind. When I get issued with a raft of medications here, I check on the internet for side effects, and also what each medication is supposed to achieve. I sometimes find one or two medications are completely unnecessary. There is also the question of appropriate dosage. While I was in COVID quarantine, one of the medications was 1 mg of Valium, presumably to keep me placid. Which was probably a sub-clinical dose, as with a body mass of 90 kg about 5 mg would have been a minimum. Science is mostly beneficial, but misapplied science can be lethal.

IMO there are 3 step changes which occurred on the way to where humanity is now. The first was the Industrial Revolution. The second was the development of personal transport, i.e. the automobile and aircraft. the third is a combination of factors, deforestation of the Amazon and other countries for profit and by overpopulation. Haiti apparently has the gold medal for the most deforested nation on Earth. The other factor is the rise of China and India as major energy consumers since 1990, for their billions in population. That energy is mostly provided by burning fossil fuels. Science can provide satisfactory solutions. With solar power, water can be split into hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen can be combined with nitrogen to produce ammonia, which can then be safely transported around the globe and converted back to clean fuel at its destination. The technologies already exist, it's a matter of market forces providing the funding to build the necessary infrastructure. Or there is the Sun Cable, a USD 22 billion project scheduled for completion in 2027, sending Australian solar power to Singapore. Meantime, the rear-guard actions of the fossil fuel industry are no conspiracy theory. It is not an accident the Prime Minister's Department in Australia has about 90% of its staff with links to the coal and gas miners there, just as it is no accident scientific advice on environmental effects of mine development is overridden by venal politicians.