wpcoe

I'm a 67-year old American, and after 19 years in Thailand I left for Mexico in 2020. I rationalized it by being ticked off at having to put THB800,000 in a Thai bank for the retirement extensions. I preferred to keep that money invested in the USA in higher-yielding equities. However, I think the reason was at least as much that I was restless and wanted a change. Now, I'm pretty much prevented from returning to Thailand full-time even though I still have a condo in Jomtien. I canceled my long-standing Thai Aetna/BUPA health insurance policy and soon thereafter was diagnosed with cancer. If I were to return to Thailand now, everything documented in 19 years of Thai medical records + cancer would be excluded. If I get tired of Mexico, I'll probably return to the USA for health care under Medicare.

Are 20-year-old “Lakkhana” and 19-year-old “Netnapa” men? Maybe I'm not woke enough, but those two folks with blurred faces like like women – who are they and what's their connection to the story?

I like how the lead white car in oncoming traffic decides to make a U-turn. "Uh uh. Nope. I'm outta here!" ????

I like plain "chaa dahm" better. It's the famous "Thai iced tea" without the dairy and sweeteners.

Most of the 110/120v heaters here are 3.5kW, but yeah, 4.5kW would need hefty cabling. Electrical supply is as stable as in Thailand. We have 14°C mornings as often as Pattaya, i.e. not often. (I don't think we went that low this winter. Yet, anyway.) From the comments here, I think what I probably have in my Jomtien condo is a 3.5kW heater. When I was in smaller homes and in a low-rise smaller condo building with rooftop tanks, in the summer the "cold" water was warm enough for a shower without turning the hot water knob. In a high-rise condo, the cold water's not quite that hot, and in the winter whatever heater I have (3.5kW?) is enough for hot, but not scalding, shower. I think there's a big difference between underground tanks and rooftop ones exposed to the sun, and the latter is what I have in Mexico. After reading these comments, I think I'll go with a 3.5kW or 4.5kW 220/240v heater. Thanks!

I'm renovating a home in Mexico (I will be splitting my time 50/50 between Thailand/Mexico once it's finished) and want to install an on-demand "multi-point" electric water heater. In Thailand these are fairly common and I've had them in my past four Thailand homes. However, I've been stuck in Mexico for three years and have trouble remembering what type of heater I even have in my Jomtien condo. Tankless on-demand electric heaters are relatively new here. Most people use a gas heater, usually with a big tank. None of the "changs" that I'm working with have ever seen one, and even the experienced contractor I'm using has never used nor installed one, so local knowledge is pretty slim. Seems like the entry-level heaters are 110v and 3.5kW, with a few 110v 4.5kW units. There are a fair amount of 220v models starting at 5.5kW. The climate where I am is almost identical to that of the Pattaya area. Rooftop water tanks are ubiquitous here, too. There are tons of scathing reviews for almost all of these heaters on Amazon, even for a 220v 7kW unit, saying they barely warm the water. I have my suspicions that these reviews are from folks who live in colder climates, but not sure. Is a 220v 5.5kW heater adequate for a one-bedroom home (think condo) for sinks & shower? What do you think about a 110v 3.5kW heater?

Identical to my situation here in Mexico. When I called the SSA 1-800 number in December, the helpful representative gave me a fax # and an actual street address in Wilkes-Barre PA. Can't FedEx to the P.O. Box number on the pre-addressed envelope, but can FedEx to the street address, so I (a) FedEx'd the form with my original signature to the street address, (b) faxed a copy, and (c) sent a photocopy of the signed form via registered mail in the provided pre-addressed envelope. I included a cover letter with each, explaining my three-pronged strategy. I hope I covered my bases! In case anybody else wants to courier their form to the SSA, this is the address I got from the lady on the phone: Social Security Administration Stegmaier Bldg, St. 102 7 North Wilkes-Barre Blvd. Wilkes-Barre PA 18702-5241 ... and this is the fax number she gave me: 1-833-950-3192

Back in the day, after the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami, it was quite a discussion topic when it was decided that foreign rescue workers would need proper work visas. I assumed that's what @trainman34014 had in mind with his post? PS: I can hardly believe the tsunami was 18 years ago!

That may be? But, when I got the Janssen vaccine, it was competing with AstraZenica, Pfizer and Moderna which all required two injections.

Two questions: 1) Does the Johnson & Johnson Janssen single-injection vaccine count the same as two of, say, Moderna or Pfizer under this new policy? 2) Is there a time period within which the vaccine(s) need to have been received? e.g. If I was vaccinated in 2020, is that good enough?

Nor do the rich. e.g. Oprah being shocked that people can't afford $100 Christmas gifts.

Thanks. I had received e-mails from PayPal, but really didn't bother to check what the changes were. You made it very simple to understand. I rarely used PayPal, but nice to know that it is still an option.

Is this the same guy as: The names don't seem to match, but they are two, very similar looking fellows.

In a short article I read online (so it has to be true!) the current approval of interracial and same sex marriage is based on past Supreme Court rulings, much like Roe v Wade was for abortion. What the Supreme Court has approved in the past in can all too easily decide to change today. The fact that the Supreme Court *did* reverse the Roe v Wade ruling, made Congress scramble to make these marriages a *law* (not just a Supreme Court ruling.) That was my takeaway from the article. I'm sure I'll be corrected here if that's incorrect.

And, some states have made it very difficult to renew a license without multiple forms verifying permanent residence within the state. For Nevada, I had to show an apartment lease or home title in my name plus either a utility bill or car registration at that address in my name. Has to do with the "REAL ID" program that apparently is DHS (Department of Homeland Security) program.

I'm a little bit of a cell phone luddite, but I thought you could only have one active at a time: either the eSIM or the physical SIM. Are you saying you can have both active simultanesously and, for example, receive a call on the eSIM and a minute later receive a call on the physical SIM without changing any settings?

That was my first thought, too. Especially the restrooms. ISTR there were complaints about no restrooms available for folks boarding the ferries.

??? Do they mean B36,829,499 x 1,000,000 (B36,829,499,000,000) or B36,829,499? The former seems like an awful lot, but the latter (only about one million USD) doesn't seem like much.

If it is deemed inappropriate or wrong for foreigners to own land (or more than 49% of a condo building), then the Thai government should also pass laws prohibiting Thais to own land/property in other countries, no? Either it's okay to own land in another country, or it's not. </sarcasm off>

Yeah, bad habit I acquired here in Mexico. They use the same $ symbol for the peso as is used for the US dollar.

Damn, AseaNow, give a guy a break with these premature postings! I found a scan of a PEA bill from back in 2017 that had the account numbers that I needed for the PEA online app. Then, miracles of all miracles, I was able to get my AIS SIM to connect to AT&T here in Mexico so I can receive SMSs on my Thai mobile phone number. Logged on to the PEA app and found that there was an unpaid bill: 61.85 for August 2022 107.00 for meter reconnect fee 168.85 due I was able to make the $168.85 payment online and the money is already gone from my BBL account. I show monthly PEA payments deducted from my BBL account in every month except Sept 2002, including one on Oct 11 for a typical amount (47.87). - Is the "meter reconnect fee" charged even if they never really physically disconnected the meter? - If not, and they *did* disconnect my meter, why was there a nominal usage charge for the next month?

(oops, accidentally posted that too soon)

I know you have all been at the edge of your seats wondering what happened with me & my missed PEA payment. Well, wait no more: