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I'm still ticked at McDonald's requiring an app in order to earn coffee and other rewards, at least Tim Horton's lets you use a physical card card if you'd rather.

I imagine wise American expats buy extra insurance for living abroad in the same way we Canadians do whenever we leave the country. And yeah, my understanding is that expat enclaves are like gated communities, there is no reason to venture into sketchy areas.
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cwillie, I just helped my son purchase travel health insurance for a 3-month gig in NZ (it's from BCBS). It is "inexpensive" but the issue is not the coverage, the issue is the *quality* of the healthcare you'd receive depending on in which foreign country one is living. Would I choose a surgery and rehab in the US rather than CR? Probably. Would I want cancer treatment in the US? Yes, def. Plus, not sure about getting prescriptions in other countries.

Also, even though NZ offers nationalized healthcare, there is little to no financial provision for non-citizens or people without a 2-yr work visa. In NZ you have no real abiliity to have a "primary doctor" for non-emergency wellness care. Only if you are sick or injured enough to warrant the ER or hospital, so not sure if this is true in other countries. I'm not yet on Medicare so don't really know how it works for out-of-the-US coverage.
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My grandchildren have complained about McDonald's and their insistence on using the app. They've switched to Tim's. Not an inconvenience - they're next door to each other on fast food row.
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Great conversation everyone, while I was sleeping.
Reminds me of the song:
It's a small world after all.

It's a world of laughter
A world of tears
It's a world of hopes
And a world of fears
There's so much that we share
That it's time we're aware
It's a small world after all
It's a small world after all.....
It's a small, small world
There is just one moon
And one golden sun
And a smile means
Friendship to ev'ryone
Though the mountains divide
And the oceans are wide
It's a small world after all.
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Burnt: Wow! Must be similar in nature to the Bahamas. Couldn't even glance at an item for sale, else being hounded to buy it.
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wishing everyone a wonderful sunday!! courage!!

i continue to have a very rough time. but it’ll improve. i’m finding solutions for my LOs.

just wanted to wish you all a GREAT sunday. i’ll return one of these days.

bundle of joy :)
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@Llamalover47
Costa Rica is like the Bahamas as far as the poverty and third-world conditions go. The Bahamas is built up more though and is more cosmopilitan as far as hospitalization and medical care goes.
We love island vacationing, but pretty much it's the same thing everywhere. I'll take Hawaii any day of the week. It's expensive though. Isuppose you pay for the pleasure of not being panhandled and harassed on vacation. You will get none of that on Maui.
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Bundleofjoy, so glad to hear from you. You always share joy/ jokes with us but you don't seem to share your troubles. Don't you want to? Even if we can't help, it may help you feel better having someone listen and commiserate. We're here for you.
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dear polarbear :),

thanks! i got a lot of supportive messages from many of you. it helped a lot.

chaos over here. but bit by bit, things are improving. i prefer not to explain.

sending lots of courage to us all!!
:)
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bundle - the hardest and most important part is to find solutions for you. We can go nuts focusing on other people's problems and finding solutions for them, while not caring for ourselves as much. That being said I understand that the job of caregiving is a difficult one.
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dear golden :),

thanks, i agree! in fact, the solutions i’m working on, are helping me. i’m sending us all lots of luck!

bundle of joy :)
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Third Monday I don't have to jump in the car to drive 100 miles to work! Phew!

But, sure starting to wonder where I go from here.
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Burnt: I went alone to the Straw Market in the Bahamas because my DH had a migraine and stayed back at the hotel. The Straw Market was quite an experience to say the least. DH's company rewarded us with a trip.
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bundle - I understand that. BTDT, but focusing on the problems of others even though their better solutions ease life for us, is not the same as focusing on our own needs and finding solutions for them. I took a long time to learn that one. I know life throws stuff at us which overwhelms.


glad - it's good that you don't have to drive as much as you were and live in two different places. Are you looking at early retirement? Or another job maybe less stressful/demanding? The world is your oyster!
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dear golden :),

by the way, i love being called “bundle” or “bundle of joy”. every time i read that, it makes me smile. and if you met me in real life, you really would think i look like a “bundle” or a “bundle of joy”.

:)

ok, right now i’m definitely less smiley, but i’m climbing back up, to being me. it’s been chaos here. it’s getting better. it started off so well, and then chaos.

anywayyy, regarding what you wrote: yes i agree! :)

in fact i’m working on solving MY problems (what i need and want). and THEN looking at what needs to be done for my LOs.

there is in fact the risk of grabbing the stick by the wrong end:
you try to help your LOs, thinking this will help you, but it’s never-ending…
…their problems just keep piling up…

OR
you can start from the other end: working first on your own needs/wants…

anyway:
things are getting less chaotic. i’m very focused on solving MY problems.

i’m getting there :) !
courage and LUCK to all :).

bundle of joy :)
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BOJ: I hope that your joyous self returns soon.💛
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thanks a lot, llamalover!
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BOJ: You're welcome.
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Prayers for Jay Leno.
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Thank you Llama for mentioning Jay Leno.
Jay Leno is sharing new details about the injuries he sustained during the car fire at his garage.
The comedian and classic car lover, 72, suffered third-degree burns and may need skin grafts, he told TMZ on Monday night from his hospital bed. Posted 2 hrs ago.

Honorable mention:
Michael J. Fox was reportedly passed in just another celebrity death hoax.
Then posters were talking about him here. I cannot confirm with certainty that he is dead or alive, living with Parkinsons.

The internet has enough information to be able to determine if a celebrity has passed, but it may take some time to be accurate before posting.
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send - Michael Fox is alive. The posts mentioning him was with regard to the cause of his Parkinson's, the broader context being aging, behaviour and environment.
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Send: You're welcome. He loves his autos.
Michael J. Fox is alive.
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Wow! Someone reported Dorker”s thread and now it’s gone. That’s just ___.

Let’s report the dinner thread, joke thread, general thread.

Those have nothing to do with elder care.
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Really?

I guess she should have put more emphasis on her mother's take in all of it....🤔🙄
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PB, don't forget the "on my mind" thread.

Perhaps the crime triggered someone.
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I’m sad Dorker was shut out. She’s such a talented storyteller. She really has a way with words.

AC admin, Dorker is one poster that keeps other posters coming back to AC again and again. You made a huge mistake deleting her thread. Remember her other thread from a few years back? “I’m so disheartened.” Over 11K posts. I think that was a record for any single poster/situation.

Huge mistake AC admin. I suddenly don’t like AC forum much anymore.
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Dorker's thread is gone???

RIP 😭

THAT thread was the rope I clung to when I couldn't see for FOG & seemed stuck in the bottom of the bog.

Dorker's turn of phrase & honesty was a treat to read.

It was also such a tale of success! How to unmesh, disentangle from others' expectations & finding reasonable limits. To stick up for oneself. Plus keeping the relationships intact!

I hope she writes a book or film.
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Too bad about Dorker's thread but I don't think any of the aforementioned threads should be reported. It would be like chopping off your nose to spite your face. Not necessary.
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Gershun, I was being a smart a$$ and I have to think that PB was too.

I would be very sad if the threads that just deal with normal life were removed. It would alter the forum far to much.
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Beatty, not her caregivibg journey thread. One she posted today.
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