BarnicaleBob

Not sure if this will help, but I've attached link below to manuals on BMCs'.  I noticed that some of them show you how to make the changes to BMC CPAP machines.  

User Manual – BMC CPAP Shop (cpapeu.com)

On 2/24/2024 at 7:27 PM, bbi1 said:

What's that song again? In the Navy.......YMCA 😄😄

Yes, that's what the ladyboys will be singing when they hookup with the Navy boys. 

I use Dr. Wittawat Rawiyotai at Bangkok Hospital in Chiang Mai.  I rate him far above my American urologist back home.  His English is perfect and he is the best doctor I've ever had in any specialty.  

While I had been living in Thailand on a retirement visa I got married and after 10 years moved to the US for three years with my wife.  Upon returning to Thailand with my Thai wife, I entered on a visa on arrival and applied for a marriage visa.  HERE IS THE IMPORTANT PART:  I was told that I needed to open a personal bank account and have 400,000 baht transferred into it from overseas.  Just saying you might want to check on this for your case.  

I had an unattractive spot on my penis and saw a very professional but nice lady doctor at CM Ram skin center.  She assured me that it was nothing to worry about and could be left alone.  However, I felt it was a bit unsightly and asked her to remove it.  She set up an appointment for me to come in and have it removed, which was to slice off the affected surface skin with a scalpel.  

On the day of the appointment, I was met by the lady doctor and her four young attractive nurses for this procedure.  The nurses were not there to just look at the farang guy, each one of them had a job to do in this procedure. The growth was on top midway between my body and the penis head and easy enough to work on.  The procedure started with an antibiotic cleansing, then the surgery site was injected with several shots to numb the area.  Once numbed up and ready, one nurse grabbed the head of the penis to ensure the shaft stayed stretched out.  As that part of me was not affected by the numbing, I could feel it all too well.  Another nurse held back the base while a third hugged me around the shoulders as she patted my head whispering in my ear to relax.  The fourth nurse assisted the doctor with gauges and other things.  I was then bandaged, and it was all over.  

You can purchase the same fire stick here in Thailand.  Lazada also sells them on-line in Thailand ranging in price between 1,390 and 2,450 baht.  

I also recommend StarVisa, they did my wife's immigration application for a green card, my step-daughter's visa and several friends, all were for the USA.  No problems, all went through on the first try. 

starVisa been in business about 30 year here, others might be cheaper but I doubt if they are as good at it.  By the way, StarVisa has their office, you need to go to the StarVias office 2 which is the location that deals with what you need as well as being the location that owner works from.  Her name is Duan (spelling may be wrong).  If you like you may tell her Bob and Jane sent you there.  Star Visa Service - Home 

Would someone tell me where the immigration drive through is in Chiang Mai.  Thank you.

I have to agree with others who have suggested you rent for a while to get the feel of the various areas in and around Chiang Mai before committing to a home purchase.  

As for what I feel would be a nice area that fits what you're looking for, it would be Doi Saket or the vicinity of the Ruamchok intersection area.  I live just off of the 118 and can drive to most places such as 24 hour hospitals, Big C's, Central Festival Mall and many good Thai and Western restaurants within 15 to 20 minutes of less.  

So. did the mall reopen or not?

I have an American friend that is trying to get a tourist visa for Thailand.  She went on-line to the Thai Embassy and tried to fill out an application but it asked for all sorts of things that seemed a lot too much, such as police background report, medical release, where she is going to stay and other things.  What happened to visa on arrival with just prof of insurance, a covid vaccination card and a covid test within the past 3 days? 

Thanks for the guided tours, I watched all three of them.  

Bangkok Hospital has given cpr classes in English a few times in the past, my wife and I took the class.  Their cpr class also included use of AED machines training.  The class was free but is only offered every once in a while.  Call the hospital and ask about it.

Ask friends and neighbors who already have nannies or maids to ask them if they have friends or relatives who are looking for nanny work.  Being that you are single and assuming you want nothing more than a nanny, I would suggest looking for a Burmese lady.  They are less likely to want to develop a romantic relationship with you.  Burmese are more likely to see the job for what it is and not as an opportunity to hook a farang into a relationship..  

If you don't find a nanny by checking with your friends and neighbors nannies or maids, try going to some restaurants that have Burmese staff and chat them up to see if they have knowledge of anyone who may be interested. 

Good luck 

33 minutes ago, bhatmasterson said:

Thanks Bob! This is encouraging information. All I had been able to learn from the social security office in Whittier CA when we were there last June was about the 5 year rule which has been mentioned below. Even then I wasn't told that the five years didn't need to be concurrent. 

The five year thing is true and it can be an accumulation of five years.  However, time in the US for that to be counted must be as an immigrant not a tourist.  My wife had a total of 8 months as a tourist and SS told her it would not count.  

There are also exceptions to the five year rule if you as her spouse, are a veteran and die of a combat related injury or in action then the rule is waved.  Also, if she becomes a US citizen the five year rule is waved. 

I went through all this with my spouse and can offer only what I learned during the process.  

At first I wanted a SSN for my spouse so I could claim her as a dependent on my income tax every year.  I found that only immigrants to the US with valid green cards could obtain a SSN.  However, as my spouse, she was eligible to be issued a IRS tax number, commonly refereed to as an Individual Tax Identification Number.  You can google for how to apply. 

Once she was granted the ITIN  from the IRS, I could claim her as a dependent on my income tax.  I also did amendments for the past couple of years to my income tax filings adding her as a dependent which resulted in a major tax refund for me.  

My spouse also had a ten your tourist visa and visited the US with me on a few occasions.  

Now for my spouse to be able to collect social security benefits, she could do so by filing for them under my social security number once she had been married to me for ten or more years.  There are some exceptions to this for disabled combat veterans and maybe one or two other circumstances. 

If you decide to have your spouse immigrate to the US, you can apply for a spousal visa.  Being that you have been married more than two years, it should be a straight forward thing to do.  If done properly on the first attempt, the immigration visa should be completed in four to five months.  However, with the current virous restrictions that the US has just put in place, this may be up to question.  

Upon moving to the US, your spouse will then receive her green card within a few weeks.  When that happens, you may take her to the Social Security office in your city and she can apply for a SSN which she will receive within two weeks of applying.  

I hope this clears things up for you, if not feel free to ask me more here or in a pm.  

22 hours ago, Brightly said:

BarnacleBob,

 

Do you have to pay a monthly fee for your doorbell cam?

There is no monthly fee for the Ring camera I use.  

After living here for ten years, I just moved from Chiang Mai back to America.  One of the first things I purchased for my home in America was a security camera.  After a little research I went with the Ring doorbell camera.  It was simple to install, stick on or two screws, I went with the screws for security reasons.  It is battery powered and I only have to recharge the battery once every two to three weeks.  It has a motion detector that alerts your cell phone when there is movement up to 30 or so feet that is adjustable for distance, it has two way talk or you can just listen, it auto records all events, and it has a doorbell that rings on your cell phone.  You can also turn on live view from your cell phone anytime you wish just to check on things.  The cost in America is just $99.00  I've had mine for six months and I'm very pleased with it.     orhttps://shop.ring.com/collections/doorbell-cameras/products/video-doorbells

Thaipauly gave you the best advice so far.  You may also try asking friends who have maids or helpers if their employees know of anyone.  But finding one who speaks English will be very hard.  Although it was said jokingly by another poster about looking in massage and bars for a girl, there may be a chance that if you check out the massage places where most of the girls speak some English you may find an older one looking to get out of the business.  The older massage girls know their days are numbered as most of the customers like to pick the younger girls.  They may be open to a domestic job with a free place to stay.  At any rate, good luck.  

Just now, Thaidream said:

Thanks for the report-  can you tell us what office you used for the extension?

Chiang Mai immigration office.