KhunLA

I did a long winter 'temp' at DTW when working for NWA, now DL. Brutal winter, though upgraded my work classification, and lots of overtime. Actually wasn't bad at all. Loved Ann Arbor & GreekTown. On Topic ... all about neighborhoods. Old Town Phuket is great. Some of the beaches, maybe, even during high season, though can't verify, as never been, aside from deserted covid times.

Only met 2 that I know of, and both turned out to be a-holes. Oh well ... better luck in the future, if ever ???? Check that ... 3 ... though didn't know the other that well, but did have a 'superiority' complex. Thought his "Phantom 200cc commanded respect on the highway" ... his words. What a POS, the scooter, as he seemed nice enough.

Better angle of "Common Flameback" above:

OK ... if you died, how much would your estate get. Not counting assets to be paid off in the event of your death, such as a mortgage. Agree the chart is nonsense, as most average & medium charts are, when involving demographics of diverse disparity. Especially when say 15% of USA population now live under the poverty line. Only takes 1 or 2 billionaires to balance that average out.????

Net worth is present assets vs liabilities. Not income. If you sold all your assets, at market price, and paid all your debts/bills/loans, what is left, is your Net Worth. You have a 1 mill house with a 800k mortgage, your net worth is 200k... ... etc etc etc

very few do, per capita. Not until 9/11 did many have passports, as not necessary when traveling in most of the Americas, where most Americans holiday. I only went to Europe once, and to visit my niece. If she didn't live there, the trip would have never happened. If I didn't work for an airlines, and had timeshare weeks to burn, I would have never went to Phuket, the first time, and that was geared toward a diving holiday. I found no reason to leave the Americas to holiday. Hop up to Canada, and I do know all the provinces ????, down to Mexico, and more than a few islands in the Caribbean. No reason to leave, and have yet to have a better holiday in either EU or TH. If not for an occasional earthquake and extreme weather in those holiday areas, I wouldn't be here.

The chart is kind of irrelevant. As an example, I made more than the medium in one year, 1 market trade in this bracket. I do tend to spend money on my smile. So net worth now is less than the chart, 'average' for my present age, 68, I think, but I also have basically no mandatory monthly bills, besides food, and more income than I can realistically spend. If my income stopped, I wouldn't have any financial worries for the rest of life. Having more than I need, or what wife & kid should need for the rest of their lives, living in TH, is enough. Friends ask why I stopped making money ... because money for me, is not a priority. Having more than enough, and my smile is my priority. Bigger bank account or more assets don't do anything for me. Having time to enjoy what I have is more important. I got off the hamster wheel 23 years ago. Not that I actually spent much time on it. Work smarter, not harder or longer.

Reading these replies ... ... there really is no need to ask why I'm Anti-social toward expats and avoid them regularly. The level of arrogance, ignorance & prejudice is simply mind boggling.

He was born in Iran. Don't do the crime if you can't do the time. You get caught helping terrorist nations kill someone, in Iran, you die. As it should be.

Lived in Beckley, WV (1979/80) ... was lovely. My first airline job, AeroMech, use to commute for Allegheny, now US Airways. 3 Beechcraft 99s a day to PIT as AeroMech ???? Went belly up in 83. On Topic, WV, check off, didn't buy the t-shirt. I could easily live on Phuket, but probably no Patong, or even visit if I did live on Phuket. Was excellent 2020/21, but now back to a tourist ghetto.

Over 500 million people speaking Spanish in the Americas. Less than 400 million speak English / American, as first language.

Yes, as the breaker box on the wall inside house is the grounding, to earthing rod. We have a breaker on the inside of the perimeter wall, about 2 meter length of wire from the PEA meter. That's where I turn off the grid. Then on the breaker box, it has the lead in for grid and solar, with their own breakers, incase you wish to turn one off. Some folks without solar, will dedicate the other breaker to an external generator. With that, the house should be grounded, hopefully avoid any electrocutions from appliance. Though all bets off, if house hit by lightening. Not a whole lot will protect you from that, except luck. If so, hopefully not too much gets fried, component wise. ESSs for us, igniting, would be the biggest issue, as they are located indoors, in the entrance foyer ????

Only seen 1 'The Gambler', from the OP, and never heard of probably 95% of the rest, if that many. Top List for me: Matrix V for Vendetta Equilibrium Platoon Casualties of War Saving Private Ryan The Falcon and the Snowman Leon, the Professional Fifth Element Gladiator The Vikings (original, Douglas & Curtis) Lesser known B movie: Serenity Original/prequel/sequel runs, though some a bit weak: Terminator Matrix Star Wars Harry Potter Aliens Predator

2. All movies are Americans ... target audience in USA alone, 300+ million, make sense now. 3. All music is American ... British invasion, covering USA blues songwriters ... hmm 4. Best schools, America ... far from it, though a few do shine, as in most 1st world countries. 5. Strongest Military ... untested, thankfully ... and yet, can't seem to win a conflict, since 1783, and only with the help of the French, indirectly. OK, Japan/WWII with a bit of help from some friends. 6. Best Athletes (Top 1%, Olympics, etc......usually American). ... not even close. Olympics don't count, as selective, and some paid professionals. 7. Most expensive everything ... and yet, most things sell for less in USA, except healthcare. 8. Lives in a place that's massive, can see mountains, beaches, whatever......all in America ... NO argument, it is massive, why most Yanks don't waste their time traveling out of the Americas. Why bother 9. 100 million people apply to live there every year ... again true, seems top spot people want to go. That Land of Opportunity, and can't argue that. Very true, if apply yourself. 10. The ONLY country that can save Ukraine ... defense contractors make money, don't save anyone 11. The ONLY country that can solve world hunger ... that's obviously failed, and the UN should be ashamed of itself, long with every G20 country. 12. The ONLY country that every other country listens to, worships, and is afraid of. ... you can't fix stupid ????

Both correct: https://www.britannica.com/science/aluminum Sort of like some folk's sense of humour, or when it comes to racism, are colour blind ... ????

Yea, I get up and shake their hand & give them a tip with each serving, along with a pat on the head. Do you think before you post ... ... that was rhetorical ????

This thread simply exposed more than a few Anti-Yank members, not that it was needed. As it seems most of the vocal forum members lean that way. Explains why the world is the way it is, and why many of us, avoid new 'friendships' with expats.

If I can squeak out a bit more range, I'm happy. Noticed it's a more relaxed drive for me now, as sometimes at 110+, I didn't feel comfortable, whether the road, or simply too many side sois, u-turns/intersections. Found myself easing back to 100 or even 90 kph more times than I would in my younger days ????

I don't. Still the Land of Opportunity (USA), and definitely enjoyed my birthright of being part of and taking advantage of it. But I hold no respect for the govt and politicians, or policies. USA not alone in that, as I don't think I like any country's politics or govt. People themselves, are basically the same worldwide. I see no difference what so ever between most nationalities.

Yes, they seem to be out in force lately, for enforcement of speeding. More check points, and people actually being pulled to the side. Was doing 100-115 ish, when roads good enough, right after the 120 kph announcement almost 2 yrs ago, and they seemed to not enforce any speed limits. Later, recent news-blips explaining in detail, when 120 was allowed, along with signage now. Apparently we were in violation probably 75 % of the time on the highway, all around the country, and surprisingly, not 1 camera citation. Which I actually expected to receive. Now back to 90 kph, and depending on traffic, seems slow. Wife stated the same, and then we are passing most cars, stated it seems we were driving fast. All relative to traffic around us.

From link: "Can run up to 420 km. per charge (CLTC standard)" What is CLTC? In the EV world, Chinese automakers are the only ones that use NEDC to test their electric vehicles’ range, Americans use EPA ratings, European and Japanese manufacturers all depend on WLTP standard. But China has been gradually implementing a new fuel economy/EV range test procedure in its domestic market, namely the CLTC (China Light-Duty Vehicle Test Cycle). This new standard promised to be more accurate than the old NEDC. The new CLTC standard includes three test phases (slow, medium, fast driving). The testing process lasts 30 minutes, and the car travels about 14.5 kilometers in total. CLTC can be considered the WLTP equivalent of the Chinese automakers. There are some significant differences between WLTP and CLTC, as well. One of which is the idling duration of the car while testing the consumption; it is two times longer in the CLTC tests than the NEDC. The CLTC test cycle also includes more stops than the WLTP cycle, and the CLTC testing speed limit (114 km/h) is lower than both NEDC and WLTP. https://www.licarco.com/news/ev-range-tests-explained-comparison-between-epa-ratings-wltp-nedc-and-cltc Our MG ZS exceeds the WLTP rating consistently in 'eco' mode, w/KERS set @ #3. That's while at highway speeds also, 90 kph, so kind of impressed with that. Rarely exceed NEDC rating. Actually surprised if matching that at all. (NEDC = ~12.4kW/100kms) I'm happy with 14 or 15 kW/100 kms 14 = 357 kms, closer to our average. 15 = 334 kms, still beating WLTP rating of 320. I like to keep a reserve around 30% when O&A, so travel about 250 kms, with the ZS telling me I'm good for about another 100+ kms, before we stop to top back up. Easily 3 ish hours on Thai roads, so I'm definitely ready for a break by then.

Never hurts to kiss up, with people serving me food ... ???? Agree, the whole concept is nothing but class division.

hmm ... think you just stated, you don't respect anything or anyone. But please tell us how to wai.

Only if you didn't have 2 yrs of Latin ... ???? Using QED speaks more than simply using words ????