Acharn

Yesterday (Tuesday) was a government holiday, but I would have expected the transfer to have arrived on Monday. When I transfer funds from the U.S. "for long term stay in Thailand" it arrives at 2:00PM that day. If I transfer funds for any other reason it takes seconds.

On our way to my monthly appointment at the hospital, I noticed my niece was driving 30 kilometers per hour (kph). 30 kph = 18 mph, a speed so slow I've never seen it in America. It was actually nice. We were moving at a comfortable pace and I didn't feel any impatience. No stress. We were keeping up with traffic and few cars were passing us.

My mask doesn't limit my air supply, thank you.

Portugal seems to have found a workable program. It's hard to tell, because the American media never cover it.

Well, in the U.S. over 1 million died before they stopped keeping statistics. Granted, that was three years ago, and we don't know how many Covid has killed since then. There's also Long Covid, of course, and I don't know if that's a problem in Thailand, but assume it is. I'm 87 years old, so I take it pretty seriously. I also get a flu shot every year.

You need a step-down transformer to change the 220V Thai current to 110V US current. They used to be common here fifty years ago, but so many brands started making 220V appliances (what all the rest of the world uses) I don't know where you'd go looking for one now. I don't know why you'd want a surge protector anyway. A full Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) is only about ฿900 ($27) anyway, and includes surge protection.

If ฿30K is not a burden for you, go for it. That's a pretty good monthly income for an upcountry Thai family, especially if they're farmers. If it is a burden try to talk it over with her. After all, if you marry her you'll have to send her family something to make up for the loss of her income. Or not, if you're a cheap, hard-hearted bastard.

Yes.

Oh, I don't know. I rather liked the one that happened in October, 1973. Unfortunately that led to the Counter Revolution in 1976, which the Thai don't like to talk about, but which eventually led to Prem's appointment as Prime Minister. And Anand was a very good Prime Minister.

I don't know the current situation, so I probably shouldn't comment, but 15 years ago a friend of mine, who worked in Bangkok but was married to a Vietnamese woman, told me that his trips to visit his wife were OK, but Vietnam had more stress, was more competitive, than Thailand. I think most expats here will stay. Unless Vietnam offers foreigners free medical care. No, even then I have Thai family I wouldn't want to leave.

I met my first wife at the NCO Club at the Army base in Sattahip, in 1971.

Last time I spoke to a foreigner was about four and a half years ago. It was the last time I spoke English, too. I live outside Nakhor Sawan, if it matters.

I live outside Nakhorn Sawan. Everyone here seems to have tattoos, especially religious in nature. It's an ancient tradition in Thailand, maybe because the government used to tattoo people to show their citizenship (for taxation purposes).

It all depends on China. If the Chinese let Trump back down, the shortages and recession will be comparatively brief. If they maintain their tariffs and export restrictions for long, the US is probably going to be in a Depression in 2028. Before 2001 I would have expected that to be good, but given the state of the Democratic Party now the future does not look good.

Oh, yes, I'm from the U.S. I spent twenty years in the Army, half of it overseas. I was in high school during The McCarthy Years, and things have been that crazy since 2016. Maybe since 2001. I've mostly lived away from farang areas, among lower-/middle-class Thais.