Drumbuie

Despite taking precautions I went down with COVID last week *- only the second time I've had it and very different from the first. Only wiped out for two days, not a week. However I still recommend putting some effort not getting it. Those two days were worse than any cold or ' flu.Plus there is good evidence ( actual scientific studies, not some quack on YouTube or RFK Jr) that repeat infections take a cumulative toll on the body, particularly the heart. * Probably caught from a friend just returned from the UK.

If you are resident in Thailand, Thai citizen or not, you can get free advice on wills from the Office of the Attorney General ( use Google Maps to search for your nearest Office).

"Fo fum fi fee, I see the trace of ChatGPT" Lazy journalism, or what passes for journalism.

I often scan the QR code and have to enter the amount manually - last time being yesterday at an upmarket coffee shop on Sukhumvit, near Emsphere. (Duc du Praslin, where they give you a free Belgian chocolate with every beverage - vault le detour)

As I understand it, the TDAC is applied for before you enter Thailand. That allows plenty of time for a database search before arrival. Have we not read recently of a few criminals being taken into custody on arrival? Other countries will be happy their criminals are in jail here, it saves them money.

Unless you have access to Thai Police records, or a high-up contact inside the force, " the last time I heard of a farang opening a mule account in their own name .." doesn't carry a huge amount of weight.

Prohibition never works. Alcohol was prohibited the the USA a hundred years ago and all that happened was the Mob got richer and a few people died from bathtub gin. Alcohol kills, so does tobacco, both are addictive - but both are legal in most countries. Cannabis doesn't kill but it's illegal in most countries and as with all illegal drugs, trade in it enriches criminals all over the world. Legalise, tax, control. PS Heroin/morpine used to be available in the UK on prescription; there were less than 2000 registered addicts who lived normal lives, like the author Enid Bagnold ( National Velvet) . Once it became illegal the number of addicts spiralled, many died from overdoses or infected injection sites and it became a major source of income for criminals. The IRA turned Dublin into the heroin capital of Europe to fund buying guns and explosives. Legalise:Tax: Control

Under the photo on the left hand side is the caption " File photo for reference only"

Tourists? Is that what you think you are? We're not here for a few weeks holiday, we're *migrants*. Economic migrants. Immigrants. The kind of people you probably complained about back home. And no, "our" money didn't build this country nor does it sustain its $546billion+ GDP.

You can make an appointment at CW online to file your 90 day report (or to extend your visa, apply for re entry permit, etc) via the immigration website. Then it doesn't take hours. Or, as Dr Jack says, just send all the documents, including a stamped self addressed envelope, by registered post, before the 15 day deadline. I prefer going in person, just to know straight away that it's done and dusted..

COVID, unlike 'flu, leaves a permanent mark on the body. The virus appears t leave tiny microclots behind and conventional anti-clotting medications like aspirin do not remove them. Repeated infections increase the long term likelihood of strokes, heart attacks, dementia and also ( you may be interested to know) decrease sperm production. You may not care about things like that but I will continue to follow the scientific research ( by, you know, actual scientists , not shock jocks, weirdos and soft eugenicists) and take precautions against reinfection.

If you can possibly stop making sarky comments for a moment....consider whether this is a sign that the Thai Police have really got the hang of using their immigration database now, and may be linking it to other countries' police databases also.

Aspirin is better for COVID as it dissolves blood clots. But it's out of patent so nobody is pushing doctors to prescribe it.

In a situation where I and/or someone else will be signing lots of pieces of paper ( immigration, bank, phone company, hospital), I take the actual passport. For everything else, photos on my phone seem to be enough.

" The fat doctor" happens to be a friend of a friend and in real life he's not fat, it's an unflattering photo. He also has an M.Sc as well as an M.D. and is an Associate Professor at Chulalongkorn Uni, specialising in public health. Can I ask, what are your medical qualifications? ( and while we're at it, what's your BMI?) And are you aware of the complications of long COVID, and the exponential damage that repeat infections case? It's *not* 'flu.