Lacessit

For some, it does absolutely nothing for me.

So? I'm pointing out Thailand does internet better, another item to love.

You evidently have not tried the internet in Australia. About three times the cost for one-third Thailand's speed.

AFAIK magnesium helps with night cramps. IMO quinine is more effective. There is research recently published which shows the brains of dementia patients are deficient in magnesium.

Place your phone, set to record, by your bed for a night. That should tell you if you have sleep apnoea based on your breathing patterns. Taping your mouth shut is a bad idea, it is causing the headaches. The usual treatment for sleep apnoea is a CPAP machine. If you don't have apnoea, possibly something like melatonin or a drowsy antihistamine ( Codiphen ) may help.

In quite a few countries, governments are using them to raise revenue. Road safety is secondary. A bit shy about the accidents you have had in Thailand?

I don't make a habit of it, I've been fined twice in 10 years of driving. The last fine was on one of the few speed cameras that work in Thailand. 500 baht for speeding. In Australia, the same traffic offense would have cost me 17,000 baht, plus 3 demerit points on my license. You might like draconian laws, I don't. I've never had an accident in Thailand, how about you?

I am deducing from your post you are not an normal age pensioner, but some kind of vet ( Vietnam? ) with a Gold Pass and subsidized accommodation. I don't begrudge you those perks if that is the case, I respect people who have served their country. Having said that, you are quite unrepresentative of most retirees.

Here's mine: 1/ Renting a condo or a house for less than a quarter what it would cost me in Australia. 2/ The freedom to hop on a scooter and go shopping, or just for a cruise. Relaxed road laws, traffic fines won't break the bank. 3/ Having a girlfriend 23 years younger than me, who thinks the sun shines from my posterior. 4/ Enjoying all the permutations and combinations of the multiple cuisines available here, inexpensively. 5/ Knowing I won't be shoved into an aged care facility, and fed food that would make a dog puke. Bonus - Seeing a specialist without BS referrals, and getting replacement medications at pharmacies without BS prescriptions.

The term wowser does not only apply to people who don't like alcohol, it means a killjoy in general. I drink very rarely, it doesn't mean I object to other people doing it. Their life, their business. Just as my life is none of your business. If you want to kill what few remaining brain cells you have left with alcohol, or develop paranoia with extensive pot use, be my guest. My Thai GF thinks I am the best thing that has ever happened to her, and prays to Buddha every night for a long life for me. Explain how that is exploitation. You proffer the opinion the majority thinks the same way you do - twice. As if it is established fact. It's called begging the question, or arguing in a circle. What's pathetic is your sanctimony.

The bad pictures I get here are of loud, drunk, obnoxious, dirty foreigners who dress as if they are about to go fossicking on the local garbage dump. Thais might think any Thai woman with a foreigner is a prostitute. I've never thought that way.

Why does it bother you what other people do with their lives? Does their lifestyle affect you in any way? The term wowser springs to mind.

I don't hate anything about Thailand, just have dislikes instead. 1/ ASEAN posters with no manners, who seem to think it is their duty to provoke and annoy everyone else. 2/ Foreigners who bitch about Thailand. Why the hell are you here? 3/ The cumbersome visa system for retirees. After a couple of blameless years here, why not let us be? 4/ Expensive cheese. 5/ The Thai system of licensing drivers, when the instructors probably would not pass a road test in any Western country.

I don't know the OP's intentions with the gold he brings in. For what it's worth, Thai gold is 96.5%, not the 99.9% of bullion from most countries. I don't know what the limit is. It does seem a bit like bringing coals to Newcastle.

I'm not sure what your post has to do with the topic. Be that as it may, there are a few inconvenient facts obstructing your view of a multipolar world. 1/ The USA is self-sufficient. It can feed itself, and fuel itself. 2/ Russia is heading towards being a failed state. If the Ukrainians don't achieve that, sanctions will. The ruble is becoming toilet paper. 3/ China is utterly dependent on imports to survive. A couple of nuclear submarines interdicting shipping through the Malacca Strait is all that's needed. 4/ China is also dependent on trade with the US. The only reason the CCP is not aiding Russia militarily - they are terrified of sanctions. 5/ I don't know where you are getting your GDP figures from. Mine say the combined GDP of the US and EU is $40 trillion, that of the BRICS $25 trillion. China is about 70% of the group's GDP. Note: It's all in USD, the world's reserve currency. 6/ Dictatorships such as Putin and Xi are always sclerotic, because no-one wants be the bearer of bad news. When such entities become dynasties, the results are evident in places like North Korea. People there are starving. 7/ Your assessment of resource availability is incorrect. For example, China controls about 90% of rare earths. That is only because the CCP is willing to foul the countryside with the toxic mining by-products. In point of fact, rare earths are not all that rare, and Australia has deposits which are an order of magnitude richer than those China is mining. I don't disagree some nations have an axe to grind, it's getting a suitable grindstone that's the problem. With everyone rushing towards renewables, I doubt fossil fuels will be a sufficient lever. While you may be right about the UK being a basket case, it's GDP at $3 trillion is about the same as India.

Bigotry and snobbery are alive and well.

The Chinese pump the fish full of water. Then sell them by weight.

The fuel specified for the 2006 Honda Jazz is regular ULP, i.e. 91 octane. That points to something else being the problem, such as water, the fuel filter, or injectors. In Thailand, it is not unknown for smaller gas stations to increase their profit margin by adding water to gasohol, as the ethanol/hydrocarbon mix can tolerate water up until the point it separates into two phases. It's why I always buy my gasoline from high volume, main highway businesses.

The only businesses that care if their customers gain in weight are weight loss companies. IMO some four-eyed bean counter seeking a bonus or promotion decided to cut the size down, and hope consumers would not notice. I don't buy them because they can sometimes extract teeth fillings.

I can't touch type at all, and it does not matter.

Useful knowledge, thanks. I was not aware A&E in Thailand was that efficient. My GF tends to favor clinics over the government hospitals due to the wait times, which may be different in the provinces.

I have never been asked for money by my GF's family, who are quite poor. I occasionally give them some money, or employ a nephew for odd jobs. As I am twice the size of any of the family, maybe they are too frightened to ask. Dealing with social media is simple. Either don't be on it to begin with, or block it.

You presumably are not Thai, hence not getting a doctor for 30 baht.

The Thai food banks are the temples, the monks give out food. There is very little social welfare in Thailand, most Thais get 600 baht/month when they turn 60. Health care is 30 baht; however, it's usually a wait of 6-8 hours at government hospitals. I know a woman who must be in her 90's, I see her on the road walking between villages. She gets food and a few baht for helping with funeral services, cleaning up after the parties.

Nice, but I would not call it shuffle. Hip swivel, yes.