fredwiggy

If giving is the most gratifying thing to you, you aren't quite the narcissist you believe you are. All of us have slight narcissistic tendencies, but some have the personality, and they aren't givers but takers and users, not caring about anyone besides themselves.

News that the Thai police force allows sexual predators loose after paying a small fine doesn't do well for tourism or expats living here , especially with children. Do they not understand the world sees what goes on here more and more?

Traveling the world hunting and fishing and seeing all my children end up with good partners.

You don't brandish the gun, you wear it under your shirt, and this isn't a bad idea. They aren't illegal, and won't scare others thinking it's a real gun. Soi dogs can be bribed with food, although some are plain mean and will attack anything in their territory. I see this around my house in the country where dogs have killed any cats I bring here that stay outside. Having biscuits handy will make a few friends and dogs will remember you but again this won't always work. A baseball bat isn't illegal either , if you can get one. A cop isn't going to give you a hard time if you explain yourself. A dog that attacks anyone isn't supposed to be around anyway, unless it's on it's home property and you enter. One of the horns people use at sporting events also will deter them.

No, just tired of hearing people brag because something's missing in their lives. It's always best to be humble because showing off only impresses the sheep. I know a lot of people who do better than most and they aren't feeling the need to tell others.If it was a topic on how much a person spends on food monthly it's a little different. There are some here, and we all know who they are, who feel the need to tell others just how much they have, and this is bragging. How they came into the money might be an interesting story also. Many of them are probably lying anyway which is sadder yet. This is a world in which most people are just getting by, and any advice on how to help others is always a good thing. Do you think anyone in their right minds cares how much the Kardashians make, let alone how they make it?

Of course we are not equals, but it's still bragging showing off what you have. You think anyone cares to hear?

I really don't assume much, preferring facts and evidence, so I'm not sure what you mean.

A large portion of Americans don't spend that much on food every month, and that includes children. Cheese costs here, as does foreign beef, which is much better than Thai beef. Cooking two meals a day does cost more, but I still can't see paying that much if most of it is cooking at home. If I remember right, when I lived back in Texas I ate like you did, with fish, chicken and seafood, salads daily, for my daughter and I, and I spent around half of what you do now.

Some of the people who do have more and don't find a need to brag about it are called humble, modest, frugal and a quiet achiever.

Danger Will Robinson!!

There's a difference in relating good advice on how a person with limited means can be frugal and get by, and one bragging to others just to show off. Easy to decipher between the two

Some people, millions in fact, bust their asses for decades just to get by, while people who sit behind a desk and move money around get wealthy doing a job that isn't helping anyone besides themselves and other rich ones. Some might not be able to work after age 65 because of health problems. Living here, most cannot work anyway because of legal requirements. Back in the US, it's very hard for a retired person to get a decent job, most being taken by the younger set. Yes, there are quite a few who are criminals that have money to burn, who've had jobs that hurt the earth or others, but I'm talking about the normal everyday worker. Social Security is all many have to get by on for many reasons.

Thought I had it a few years ago while visiting Hua Hin with the ex and daughters. Went to a local doctor and told him my symptoms, telling him I thought it might be H Pylori. He agreed, gave me a prescription for antacids and antibiotics, cleared up in two days. I think I might have had it while living in Texas, and maybe again after this one episode, but without checking you can't tell. In hindsight, the doctor actually should have given me a breath test . Much of the world's population has it or had it, and kissing another is one way to catch it, along with other things mentioned. Many people carry it with no problems, or they might come later, as Sheryl posted. I've had some stomach issues since I moved here and since I've always eaten very healthy, I couldn't figure out what I had besides a guess at IBS, because of the symptoms. I started eating the Brat diet more, Bananas, rice, Applesauce and toast, without the applesauce, because I can't find it here. This helped and when I started on collagen, it got much better, although still have symptoms, but a lot less. Without a gastro doctor, all you can do is process of elimination.

Why would one brag about how much they spend? Does it impress anyone perhaps? Spending 3000 baht a month at 7-11 means a whole lot of junk food, unless you do much of your shopping for oil, bread, water, fish sauce and other sundries besides doing it at Lotus or Big-C. Anyone who lives here knows they can get good, healthy food for under 300 baht at most restaurants without getting extravagant for some reason besides to show off. I'm guessing you don't understand that when a foreigner shows off burning his money, it makes the Thais around him think unrealistically about all foreigners, we're all rich and have money to burn, which isn't true for over 90% of the expats.

Average Social Security check by type While most people think of Social Security as a program just for retirees, it serves many other groups, including the disabled, spouses and minor children of retirees as well as the spouses and minor children of deceased workers. The amount that each group receives differs substantially. In fact, the average retired worker receives $1,905.31 each month – about 8 percent more than Social Security recipients as a whole. Here’s how the figures break down by recipient, as of December 2023. Type of beneficiary Percent of total payouts Average monthly benefit Source: Social Security Administration, December 2023.........................Google has a few things that don't match what the actual Social Security Administration says. The maximum they pay out is 4873 a month................The maximum benefit depends on the age you retire. For example, if you retire at full retirement age in 2024, your maximum benefit would be $3,822. However, if you retire at age 62 in 2024, your maximum benefit would be $2,710. If you retire at age 70 in 2024, your maximum benefit would be $4,873. All recipients 100% $1,767.03 Retirement benefits 78.6% $1,856.38 Retired workers 74.8% $1,905.31 Survivor benefits 8.7% $1,501.60 Nondisabled widow(er)s 5.2% $1,774.33 Disability insurance 12.7% $1,395.49 Disabled workers 11.0% $1,537.13

Research how much retirees have in the US. People who have had children spend a lot of their money raising them. if you never had kids, you cannot understand what it takes. The average,from looking around a bit, retirement in the US is $1781 a month, which means many get less. This is what their jobs set aside for them while working. We can't look at the developers, money movers or other jobs that hurt the earth or others because this isn't the normal workers. There are millions of useful jobs that don't pay much, and people need these jobs, as do all of us in some way, to survive. Many people have had decent jobs and have a good pension or retirement, but many do not.

His lawyer was also involved in threatening the mother? I know lawyers will do a lot to get their clients off, but I've never heard of going this far. Also what makes this sound suspicious is this.............According to reports on several Thai media outlets, Narin was also one of the suspects in the unsolved murder case of a three year old girl named Chompoo in the Mukdaharn province.

The reason I commented was this you said, If you can qualify for a retirement visa, then no prob, all are welcome, and you should be able to afford a nice retirement. But if only 35k a month, staying here illegally, with no oops fund ... STAY HOME.............. Why be their police? Everyone knows the deal. The problems here aren't about money but about people hitting others, raping women, driving drunk, making a scene for nothing, working, taking a locals possible job, or being involved in drug dealing or organized crime. Time spent on those and not on minor things would make life easier for all of us.

Reality is, you, I and every other expat here, is looked at the same as all the others. Yes, they make it look worse for us, but a lot of old school thinking is still here, and we are all lumped together, even though the majority of us doesn't cause any trouble, spends almost all of our money here, and are taking care of a lot of their women and children. Expats trying to give other expats advice, telling them to stay home, is still negative talk, which we don't need. The best comment when any expat does something wrong is none. We and they already know what some do here, and the locals do the same things on a much larger scale and most of it never makes the news. Good news about us is good news, bad news is bad for all of us.

Yes, and I can't use it here. If anything serious happens to me, I have to go back to the US for treatment, besides an emergency.

Attention pedestrians, the killing zone is 10 meters outside your front door!

There are countless thousands of retirees that still make mortgage payments on their homes. You don't own it until it's fully paid off, and then you pay taxes yearly forever. I often wonder why a few expats try to see that Thailand has less expats all the time. Are they trying to have the country all to themselves? One thing they don't understand, Like Lacessit said, anyone can be made to leave at any time here. You might own your house here, but you'll never own the land. I don't think many expats are out to stiff the hospitals with the bill. Locals pay nothing more than 30 baht for their hospital stays, unless they want a private room, which isn't many, so why would an expat be stiffing the hospital if the locals aren't? Free health care for locals of course, but it's still something to think about. A locals bill will be the same as an expats for services rendered,even though the bill isn't paid by them, unless the hospital is charging more because they are expats, which is wrong also.

When you have kids, much of the time there is no safety net. Expenses for them take away much of what you have. Thailand is cheaper so many come here just for that, because rents are much lower for a house here.

I just took that from research. I know some that make more and some less. A lot are on Medicare and only pay if they have plan B. People living in Thailand have no idea how little millions live in the US, and that many are a few lost paychecks away from losing their homes or cars.