mommysboy

Unfortunately, the issue of pension upgrades was done and dusted in the courts a few year's back. It was handled in the worst possible way by a bunch of blustering old war horses who wanted back dated payments, and their day in court, got just that and failed miserably. I honestly believe that had it just been a request for future upgrades then the Govt of the day would have been amenable, after all most of the bludgeons were likely Tory voters. They really messed up big time and that's why we're suffering. More of the same won't do any good. I despair.

Yes, nobody should be here without at least a few thousand readies to call on for an emergency, and preferably an evacuation plan just in case. I'd go as far as to say that anyone who stays here long enough will end up broke one way or another. I guess we have to make our choice and live with it. One other thing: the best insurance policy is staying healthy (if possible).

Well, someone could just go and live there for a few months. It would definitely get the required upgrade done. Some folks would definitely be quids in, and might even decide to stay.

A retiree today would be claiming 220 quid under the new state pension scheme. It seems wrong. People leave it a bit late to do anything about it- a solution for example would be a reset by moving back to UK for a year, or Philippines perhaps. In the end I think the only reasons were - A. It would cost too much. B. Nobody cares that much in the UK. In fact some blood thirsty wolves were all for cancelling the pension completely. Campaigners shot everyone in the foot by vigorously demanding that a rise be backdated.

I think it must be about heat effect. I would say that we Brits moan about the weather hot, cold, dry, or wet, and anywhere in between. I guess it's not actually that bad, except for now and then when I can feel overwhelmed. It does feel generally uncomfortable though, and it's the fact that it is unrelenting which makes it different from all the other years I've lived in Thailand.

Small differences really do count. Averages are just that. You even skewed the figures by comparing 'typical high' which is not the same as average, with 'current temp' which again is not an average. Nonsense! In summary, the average high here for the time of the year is usually 34-35. Currently and for 4 straight weeks and more it has mostly been 37-38. But I guess that would be a small difference to someone who perhaps doesn't really live in it. Anyway mate, I'm just as daft. I really need to get under the aircon too.

Funnily enough, figures (if correct) can still mask the effect. Perhaps it's the heat index which should be looked at. But anyway- The average April daily high for my city is listed as around 34-35 degrees. Based on my experience, I would expect Surat city to be around 34-35 with short spells of 36 to 38. The last 4-5 weeks has been one long spell of 37 or 38 most of the time. That fluctuation looks small on a graph, but the lived experience is quite different. However someone under air conditioning most of the day might well wonder what all the fuss is about. Perhaps I find it very hot because I only use air con overnight and sometimes for an hour when I nap in the afternoon. Generally I am working on a computer in a room from 35-39 degrees day in day out. I also exercise. I'm really feeling the heat this year. Even the evenings offer little respite. Maybe it's just me though, because where I come from 35 degrees is regarded as very hot, and the death rate in oldies shoots up.

Every day? I've lived here for twenty years and I haven't known anything like this before. The temperatures are high normal but it's not usual every day. When authorities start to issue severe heat warnings it ceases to be a matter of opinion. No, you're wrong imo. If someone is very fit, perhaps a super athlete, comes from Arizona, or similar, then I suppose it might feel merely hot. Likewise someone predominantly sitting in air con behind a keyboard might also be comfortable. What's your situation?

I do think that's a very accurate assessment. Maybe we need to look at the 'heat index' to appreciate that it is not just hot, but very hot and maybe dangerously so in some areas. Even in Surat city the other evening I was staggered to see that temps were still in the thirties and the 'feel like' was 40.

And right now it's very hot and has been for 4-5 weeks, every day.

It's definitely the duration that makes it seem like a heatwave, whereas the temperatures are at the upper range of normal. The heat index is pretty cruel though. Actually, the weather is now a danger- most people will be feeling some degree of fatigue. An old woman living across the road from me was hospitalized yesterday - like many around me she is not in the best of health anyway. It's summer- not a heatwave - but it does open an interesting discussion, because a heatwave doesn't need to be record breaking temperatures, rather a sudden marked increase in temperatures for a few days or more. While that might need to be 10 degrees higher in the UK, perhaps it should be regarded as just a couple of degrees in Thailand.

All about money, as I stated. It really isn't cheap here when you have a family- medical especially. Ideally, we'd also like to settle somewhere else like the UK if possible but can't sell up at the moment without taking a hefty loss. It's different if you are single, already draw a pension, etc. Life isn't a picnic for most families at the moment.

I don't want to be away from my wife or daughter of course, but finances have been slipping for a few years, and it's another four before my pension starts. In the meantime I think I have a chance of earning some much needed real money- fat chance of doing that in this country. I posted because there was a story a while back of someone trying to return on a tourist visa, and spending a week in Thai immigration detention centre before everything got sorted.

I'm currently on the so called Thai wife visa (non-imm o with yearly extension). I'm looking to work in another country, or return to UK for a few years. Will I be able to return to Thailand as and when to stay with my wife for a couple of weeks, enjoy a holiday, etc? Will I need to give it a year or so?

You expect very hot temperatures at this time of year, but every day for 4 weeks! No, it's not definitively a heatwave- thinking about it that's probably an impossibility in Thailand, since temperatures don't have the dramatic fluctuation that can and does happen in the UK for instance. However in Surat Thani the heat has been at the top of end of normalcy with no end in sight. Maybe it's a heatwave Thai style.

That's the nub of it. Prices gone up within Thailand too, particularly hotels.

Not a good place to reside if you are human, really.

The last thing Brits want is to fly into a moral crusade- in fact they come here to let their hair down. Otherwise, they may as well go to Spain, which is more convenient too. More discerning tourists are discovering the charms of Vietnam, etc. Thailand isn't such great value for money these days either. Brits really got hit big by the cost of living crisis- money is always a factor.

Yes, each to their own! Also, if you are going to flame don't get rattled when someone responds in kind.

Personally, I don't make a habit of smelling the inside of handbags...😃 It's definitely very addictive - best kept away from kids imho - so it would probably be best if disposables were banned and flavours toned down. I got off cigarettes due to vaping, and my health really improved from day one. I did revamp many aspects of my life, so it wasn't all due to vaping, although that was a key part, and millions of people will attest to the same thing. But human nature is funny : people would prefer to ignore good scientific evidence and concentrate on isolated incidents, or rare allergies, even though they represent a tiny fraction of the picture. And of course booze, junk food, etc, are really damaging but people don't want to hear that. I think in the end people believe exactly what they want to believe. The majority lump vapes in with cigarettes and they hate both. So Joe public has spoken- just got to accept it.

Oils! Note: Nicotine vapes do not use any kind of oil (unless dodgy/illicit).

Despite all the noise, they actually appear to be relatively safe, especially when compared to smoking. The article quoted completely exaggerates or misleads about the situation: vitamin E is not in any reputable nicotine liquid, collapsed lung is a spontaneous condition with no know cause that existed way before vapes, and popcorn lung in vapers is a complete myth. It's a pile of non scientific junk really. Shouldn't be in the hands of kids though - nicotine is an addictive drug and can cause a nasty turn in unseasoned users.

Nice to hear that he's made a good, though not unexpected, recovery.

Certainly, I've experienced it as a heatwave. Even down here in Suratthani, the temperature has been 37-38 degrees and the sun has been unrelenting for about 2 weeks now. It's true that a heatwave in the UK is weather that is abnormally hot for a while, so Mr Pedantic wins the day I suppose. But the point is that whereas it's normally hot here, it's now very hot. That extra 3 degrees seems to make a big difference.

Surely 34-38 is very hot- not merely hot. I'm in Surat Thani where the temperature is recorded as '38 degrees- feels like 46.'