Proffesor

Might I ask, is he having to pay for that ( if so how much ) or is the Thai government providing ?

My Visa is a Non O ( Marriage ). Originally it was a Non O ( Retirement ), but I had to change it so as to be able to get a Work Permit. I have managed, so far, to avoid using an agent. I ( often accompanied by my wife ) always go direct to Jomtien Immigration, and jump thro' whatever hoops they decide are relevant, even though my blood pressure suffers.

For what it's worth . . . My 90 day was due last Monday, so I went to Jomtien ( I live on the Darkside so it is only 15 minutes on the 'bike ) at about 14.00 the previous Wednesday. I was in and out in 5 minutes, just 2 people in the queue in front of me. No questions, no form filling, no paperwork asked for - almost a pleasant experience. It was my first time out of the village area in weeks, so I then went up to Pratamnak for a late lunch at Tara court, which was definitely a pleasant experience. These posters were displayed about the reception area of the Immigration Office :-

When it comes to sport bikes, my problem is ( and always has been ) "ability overtaken by enthusiasm " !

I pay via my U.K. PayPal account, GBP7.50 + 1.50 tax, a month. I think this equates to about THB 360 Could be completely wrong, but I believe some of the newer films are held back in certain regions, depending when their release dates ( in the cinemas ) are scheduled for.

I pass the time by reading an online site called Quora Digest, which has numerous "topics of interest" that you can annotate to keep you inundated with, mostly informative, articles. Coming from a Marine Engineering ( Navy ) background, that was one of my stipulated areas of interest. Over the course of several weeks I read a couple of articles penned by a guy who obviously knew his stuff as regards warfare. In a postscript to his articles he referenced a novel that he was writing, and provided a link. Curiosity got the better of me yesterday morning, so I dialed in to take a look ( https://thekiddincident.com/ ). It is riveting ! The web edition appears to be a work in progress, started a couple of years ago with new chapters added as they are drafted. After each chapter, there is an open forum comments section. Veterans and retired personell from all services have been chipping in with comments about issues of detail, which the author is, in the main, using to edit / correct the text. I know this because having read a couple of the comments I backtracked to find the error, only to see that it had been corrected. I'm now up to chapter ( Episode ) 60, which is dated 2019/04/07. I don't know how many more there are, other than it is in excess of another 40 ( Episode 100 is dated 2020/01/04 ). If you are from a Service background, have an interest in GeoPolitics or just enjoy a fast paced good read, then I highly recommend this. As an aside, given recent / current / possible forthcoming events ( Trump -v - China ), God forbid, it might turn out to be a prophecy ! Enjoy the read, people ( and Stay Safe ! )

May she Rest In Peace

Tommy, Hat's off to you Sir. We are currently helping in other areas, but should that cease, will certainly contribute here. Have you considered a TransferWise account ? I've had clients pay by dropping funds direct into my account . . .

It was 'im wot did it guv ! ( Sorry - British humor )

To reply to ToyBoy ( post #96 ) :- I have a personal bank account in Scotland, and 2 here in Thailand, as well as a Business Account ( I have a Work Permit ). I keep only a nominal balance in my Scottish Account. One of my Thai accounts is for my annual Visa renewal bond, the second I use for day to day expenses. Both my U.K. Government ( monthly ) Pension and my ( bi-annual ) Personal Pension are paid direct into my Transferwise account ( in GBP ). As and when I think the GBP / THB exchange rate is beneficial, I convert GBP to THB within TransferWise. As the year progresses, my balance within TransferWise builds. As I am working in Thailand, any remittances received in the current year, which are imported to Thailand may be subject to tax by the Thai authorities, so in early January, I dump the THB residing in TransferWise ( remitted in the previous year ) into my personal Thai account. In the event of a cash-flow emergency, I have the option, at any time, of moving THB from TransferWise to my personal account, but the amount that I move may be subject to Thai tax. In case you don't know, the Thai Tax year is 1st January > 31st December. I started to do this when I realized how much I was being robbed by CitiBank when I tried to have my UK government Pension paid direct to Thailand. I'm given to understand that when the U.K. government were seeking tenders from a banking institution, to handle the distribution of government funds to their citizens, CitiBank ( U.S. ) offered an "inverse bid" i.e. they said that they would pay the UK government for the privilege ( opportunity ) of distributing the funds. For British Expats, this means that the government provide CitiBank with a truckload of GBP and a DataBase of recipients. CitiBank convert the GBP to USD ( at a rate that they decide ) they then apportion it in accord with the DataBase and convert it to the recipients local currency ( in my case THB ) ( at a rate that they decide ) and sent it out to the Expats as a Commercial Transfer - which leaves the recipients liable for the local Importation fees etc. Suffice to say, the UK government accepted this "inverse bid". The financial difference to me, of allowing CitiBank to "handle" my monthly pension payment worth about THB 28k, was just under THB 6.5k ( I received a smidgen over THB 21,500 ), as opposed to using TransferWise where I have never received less than THB 27.5k. I need emphasize, I am an Engineer not a Financial Genius, so I may have got the details wrong, it is stated as I understand it to be. Needless to say, I'm a firm advocate of TransferWise.

Correction :- I erroneously stated that upon joining I was given honorary VIP status, I was wrong; I was given honorary Advanced status. My sincere apologies. Think I must be suffering the onset of old age, exacerbated by cabin fever. Again, my apologies. And again; Stay Safe.

Just got an email alert from "Monito" advising that the GBP / THB rate is at a 2 week high of 41.132.

I "drop in" to browse this forum a couple of times most days, having been invited to join at the on-set, and being given honorary VIP status, presumably because of my contributions to the Secrets forum. If I was to be judged by my post count, I'd probably be ousted. I was brought up with the philosophy of "If you've got nothing sensible to say, say nothing ", which I still adhere to today. There are ( in my opinion ) many BM's here posting utter tripe ( as is there right ), which pisses me off; but I'm prepared to sift through all of that to find the nuggets of information that are interesting, useful, funny etc. I don't particularly want to piss-off other BM's, so I don't "post" for the sake of it, but "contribute" when / where I think I can - which is what I believe the Forum should be about. I sincerely hope that all B.M.s and their loved ones survive the current crisis. Please, take care, Proffesor

Lipton Yellow Label, probably 10 mugs a day. Sometimes have an instant coffee about now. . . .

You is still one pretty bitch, Lally !

It is typically considered bad engineering to set the intake of any stored fluid ( in this case water ) at the very bottom of the tank / reservoir as it would constantly get blocked by sediment and / or contaminents would be sucked into the intake. Now that statement I wholeheartedly agree with.

Why am I suddenly hungry ?

O.K. thanks for the clarification. I believe my wife has had our staff registered. She's pissed off because she doesn't get anything as she's a Director of the Company

Wot they all said . . .

Hi Tommy, would you care to elaborate on that statement, please ? I've had a Work Permit for years. A Transport and Marine Engineer to trade, I "work" for my wifes' company ( undertaking Engineering and Property upgrades etc. ) as a "Technician"; we have the required minimum of Thai Staff to legitimately support my Work Permit. I pay a "Salary Tax" of THB 2,500 every month, plus THB 4,040 Social Security ( for 4 Thai staff ), via our "Business Agent / Accountant. Obviously, with movement having been curtailed and isolation recommended, we are unable to do other than emergency works ( Clients without power, water, basic sanitation etc. ), so income has been drastically reduced. If I'm "entitled" to financial assistance, I'm not so proud as to refuse. How would I apply ?

For what it's worth . . . . . I've had a long standing business meeting in Nonthaburi ( West of Bangkok ) scheduled for today, to oversee the loading of components into a shipping container for export to PNG. Having been completely confused as to what I am / am not allowed to do ( curfew or not , allowed to leave the Province of Chonburi or not, etc. etc. ) I left home ( Pattaya Darkside ) this morning at 05.35 with Passport, Work Permit, Documents detailing the job and Thai Wife driving. Arrived at the Nonthaburi factory at 07.55 without drama. No Police or Army check-points, no trouble topping up with fuel ( Esso on the Chonburi by-pass ), no trouble getting snacks ( 7/11 ), no trouble getting Coffee & Cake ( Chonburi on the way back ) and no trouble getting a sit-down eat-in late lunch /early dinner at our favorite restaurant ( Sami's ) just before we got home. Roads very quiet. Got there about 40 minutes quicker than I have on ( 2 ) previous occasions, and 25 minutes sooner than G-Maps originally forecast. More traffic on the way back, but never to the point of slowing progress. Now, a couple of mugs of tea and early to bed me thinks.

I've heard some of your stories, which is why I'm seriously advocating a book - it would be a terrific read. If you're too lazy to do it yourself, I'm sure you could sit down with a ghost writer and reminisce - leaving them to put it into prose.

Isn't it time for those "in the know" to seriously consider writing a book ? I for one would pay in advance for a copy or two. Obviously, the names of the participants might need to be changed to minimize embarrassment.

What they said ! Have a good one Sir, and hopefully many, many more.