Thighlander

I just bought a r/t CNX/DM for 1230 THB.......leave at noon, return flight at 2 pm. Train is worse than the bus, and twice as much........

Which airline? Is that the return fare including tax?

Air Asia, yes bottom line, I saved about 160 thb by paying direct from my bank account, instead of credit card....595+595+40......There is about a 25% chance that the train will be delayed for longer than it takes to fly to BKK.

their widows get their pensions, until they die.......

The airline pilots were some of the first to get bailed out.....they ended up with less than they were promised. One huge problem is the pension funds assume 7% annual returns. Also, there are a huge number of people getting ready to retire, and like most Ponzis, not enough paying in.

As far as cost of living in America....it varies as much, if not more, than Thailand. There are some areas of the Sunbelt where you don't need cooling or heat, and taxes are low. The bad news is that the recovery has been exceptionally slow since the crash. For the 20% that buy stocks; they did well, for others, who depend on wages; it's still pretty ugly out there. Some of the great secondary cities like: Reno, Tucson, Colorado Springs, Albuquerque, and even Las Vegas used to be places, where just about anyone could show up and get a job that would pay for a decent place to live.......people on public assistance is more the norm, now. Great wine pieces, cheese, beef, cotton goods......but medical/dental? <deleted>....500 per month for a 50 yo, with a fairly large deductible....a crown root canal will run you 2000 USD....

but Government worker pensions are bankrupting a lot of municipalities. Fire/police/teachers make unsustainable pensions. Just ask Stockton, San Bernardino, and Detroit.....The military has already cut back on pensions for newer members.

always avoid the electronic from mom and pops. My Casio watch that was purchased in Vientianne lasted about three hours before the band broke.....she told me that she didn't have to do anything, but would fix it for me because she was so generous. Never had one last less than two years in the US.

Dogs behave much differently in packs of even two, or more. I would carry a piece of rebar. Mace is illegal in Thailand. They do sell some form of it at the Night Bazaar. I've heard you can mix your own and put it in a spray bottle.

They cut prices! What was 500 per month is now broken into Thai 250, and 350 for international...you get 100 off your second package so if you want both it is still 500, but you can now eliminate the Thai channels and get what you need for 350 for 30 days.....You can also specify your ISP, and apparently that greatly reduces buffering. I just watched USC/Stanford...crystal clear. www.ilikehd.com Washington/Houston live, tonight, followed by Dallas/SF.

I just want to verify before I buy my ilikehd 30 day package.....ilikehd has revamped their pricing...Thai is 250 per month and International 350 per month. ASN 1 & 2 come with both packages.....Is it all in English?

BTW, I was able to watch a couple of great NCAA games 100% free, no sign in, nada on http://www.campusinsiders.com/live/football-northern-colorado-at-unlv

Some schools prefer the younger, as they are more likely to be naive enough to work illegally, and will be a lot easier to short change on payday.

Here is the American Standard shower head that I imported from the US. It cost about 10 USD, and is Water Sense certified. Maximum flow is <6 lpm. There is a gear driven propeller type device that rapidly rotates the spray and makes you feel like you are using much more water than you actually are. This is the newer technology and beats the heck out of the older style that simple have a regulator restricting water flow.

They do have some here with a green "Eco" label, but they are 900 thb and up.....but that is what you should look for if you want to purchase a water saver here, and of course less water means you can make it hotter, and save $$$$.

I still haven't figured out what area the 10 baht is good for. It seems to be only a certain route.

Maybe the Worrorot market to the Night Bazaar..

Or one way to "karaoke."

My Trek was stolen in 2008 near 3 Kings Monument. I still find myself looking for it. A 22.5 inch, too big for 99% of Thais. I was about 8500 thb. Who knows, if might have saved my life......lol. Motorbike theft is a problem, too. That is more related to being close to Myanmar....they will cut through pretty big locks.

I knew someone who was knocked off his bike with a baseball bat in SF......I kept my Marin indoors......

How many Kwh will it produce in an average month?

I just bought a r/t CNX/DM for 1230 THB.......leave at noon, return flight at 2 pm. Train is worse than the bus, and twice as much........

If solar was anywhere near practical here; you would already see lots of panels, but it is more like none, especially when talking about PV.

I am installing PV to my own house. Actually it will be saving a couple of bht compared to the gov/ mains unit price. Over the years the gov price will rise further. While PV panels should come down as they have done over the last 10 years dramatically already.

The thing that holds PV back is the large upfront cost.

There are actually a few "solar farms" in Thailand, which sell energy to the national grid.

Maybe you could fill us in? Cost to install, and monthly Kwh production. I owned five homes in Arizona over the years. Close to First Solar HQ. Even with 350 days of sunshine per year; there were still plenty of horror stories. It is getting better, and it is feasible in some areas....proceed with caution. People were promised they could sell their excess back to the power company, but then found out they only got wholesale rates, which are about half of the delivered rates. If you are off the grid; the battery aspect is quite costly. Many unscrupulous leasing companies duped people into 20 year leases, that saved them almost nothing, and then became real estate deal killers, because there were many stipulations on the assumability of the leases. About half of the installations I've seen look like crap and totally ruined the aesthetics of the property.

If solar was anywhere near practical here; you would already see lots of panels, but it is more like none, especially when talking about PV.

BTS was actually the third attempt at a mass transit system. As of a few years ago, there were still some remnants of the failures.

I use red as my primary mode of transport. I get a solo ride about 1 time in 15. Usually, there are 3-4 other riders. Yellow is usually packed. Certain vehicles could be ticketed for smoke, but emissions testing is a job killer, and would just mean more corruption. Most tuk-tuks run on CNG. The real source of the bad air days is the burning in the fields; not vehicles. An electric car is basically a coal burning car. Over 91% of Thailand's electricity is derived from fossil fuels. http://www.indexmundi.com/thailand/electricity_production_by_source.html

Also, it's time for the landlord to realize that there is a 12.5% tax on leases.....and they can come bite you in the arse for several years worth. And, you are required to inform immigration when you rent to a farang......keep that in mind before you seek police assistance.

A hefty rent increase might be a good starting point. I've been on all sides of this equation. I had a house for sale in a housing development and agents would expect to be able to come right in, just because they were in the neighborhood. 24 hours notice is more than reasonable......4 hours is fair enough......you can still lose buyer's though......there are also norms for showing times like 10-7 or thereabouts. Real buyers like empty places......although, as stated, some do sell with tenant in place.....can cause issue with deposit, damages, painting, inspections, routine maintenance........

What region of Italy does the chef specialize in?

the same tabloid also said 10 THB red taxi fares.......that's not going to happen, either.

Not so great if you had paid 4 million thb for a condo and had to side shuffle to get to it from Sukhumvit.

I promoed on Tuesday night. Ashtray had logo, girl in Singha dress, 100 empty vodka bottles on display, and a Leo ashtray. As of last night; the place next door had placards on every table listing the promos, and was open until at least 2am. There were trying to tell me two years ago in Udon, that happy hours had been outlawed....specifically the 3 for xxx signs....there were plenty of promos in KK.

Please can you let us know where your place is located SO WE CAN AVOID IT LIKE THE PLAGUE

They don't have "Men's Night," so I doubt it would be of any interest to you.

I promoed on Tuesday night. Ashtray had logo, girl in Singha dress, 100 empty vodka bottles on display. As of last night; the place next door had placards on every table listing the promos, and was open until at least 2am. There were trying to tell me two years ago in Udon, that happy hours had been outlawed....specifically the 3 for xxx signs....there were plenty of promos in KK.

That's the route I took (DC Embassy) and after seeing what people are paying agents here in CNX; I think it was clearly the best, most cost effective way to do it. I had a little trouble finding an affordable way to get the medical certificate signed, but found a "travel medicine" physician in DC that guaranteed it would work for 55 USD. Local police report was free. I hear Chicago and NY want the stuff notarized which is kind of BS. Always smooth sailing in LA. DC is strict, but they will accept computer printouts of bank statements. A true FBI criminal check would really bite......could be the next shoe to drop, but for now a trip to the local PD is good enough.