Mavica

US$40? How much did you withdraw? It's not a scam or rip-off - we have the option to accept, or not. Most banks worldwide outside of our home countries ask if you want to accept its / their conversion rate. Nothing new. Just don't accept it. You learned a lesson, which will save you money down the road. I'm surprised this is the first time you've encountered it. Currency conversion fees are typical charges, nothing new from what I've experienced. Some bank / investment account cards reimburse us for the fees ... most do not. Take a deep breath. Tomorrow will be better. Thanks for posting the report.

A President has little to do with gas prices, interest rates, the price of groceries, etc. The Saudi's and others control the price of crude and the building of refineries for gas in the USA has been at a standstill for a long time which contributes to high gas pump prices. The Federal Reserve Board, headed by a Republican, made some serious mistakes and has reacted to the mistakes by raising interest rates high. My condo assessments are rising 40% because of GOP Florida Governor / GOP legislature mandates, my auto insurance is rising, my condo homeowner insurance has risen 200% in several years due to climate disasters. A President has nothing to do with these things. Biden's advisors are failing him by not constructing a better response narrative of the "why" for economic conditions. The GOP has always been better tossing the Molotov Cocktails, but things change and the election is a year away - and the GOP led House is, once again, demonstrating Republicans don't know how to lead. I had hoped there would be a different Democratic nominee than Biden but given a choice between Biden and America-hater / political terrorist Donald Trump - I think the nation will once again elect Biden.

One stupid post after another.

Barrowman, who was/is gay, was playing the role of a prick tease. In his own way, a hustler.

Photographer Bruce Weber was / has been accused of (and settled regarding) hitting on, fondling and probably sucking off some of the AF and other hot, young male models such as ones for Calvin Klein (who probably sucked them off, first). Some of Weber's advances were not consensual ... others probably resulted in the model consenting / not objecting and then obtaining lucrative modeling contracts because of the excellent photos Weber took.

The young, handsome and virile men (not boys) willingly participated for personal gain and some now have buyers remorse. This reminds me, in some ways, of teenage altar boys who, for a period of years, returned time after time after time to let Priests give them blow jobs ... and did so for gifts ... only to at a later date claim abuse. There comes a point when acquiescence replaces seeming coercion. $$$. Modeling and acting casting couches for young men and women are legendary in those industries. Greed (financial or promises of career gain) can and oftentimes does eventually backfire. Earlier in life when I was more physically attractive 😁 I'd visit NYC and spent a lot of time at Rounds, during which times I was frequently invited to private (and declined invitations to) parties out on the Island. None though, to my knowledge, with AF models in attendance. 😒 I didn't accept the offers (in the era of HIV/AIDS), and one of these AF parties eluded me (damn!) (not that I was intriguing enough to be invited!).

Not all properties listed on Booking.com, as an example, have their own websites at which we can book. This is true for places at which I've stayed / booked via that website. Booking.com also affords additional room discounts, and in certain instances reimburses for taxi from an airport to a hotel, when you book a certain number of times. I've used Booking.com now and again for the past decade, and each time I've paid the hotel directly and any deposit information I've provided to Booking.com has not been abused. The title of the discussion is tabloid-like, exaggerating the complaints, though serious, seeming to represent a miniscule number of the 2.5 million properties registered with Booking.com. We could have discussions about other online booking sites, Expedia, as one example, about which there have been traveler complaints regarding reservations not being honored, rate disputes, difficulties changing flights and reservations, difficulties obtaining refunds, etc., etc. Choosing to book via any third-party includes potential risks. Caveat Emptor. One last note about third-party payments to others (service providers): early in my career I managed a 150+ room Holiday Inn. American Express was, at the time, the most popularly used business credit card. Amex held our payments for 120-days after guest check-out before remitting them and kept a 6% fee. We started urging guests to use BofA or MasterCard which paid us in 48-hours and kept only 2.5% as a fee. The devil is always in the details of the agreements.

Booking.com is part of the Priceline related companies that also operate Kayak, Cheapflights, OpenTable, Agoda, etc. If the lodging or other service provider payment complaints regarding Booking.com are as big of a problem for any / some of the 2.5 million lodging providers who’ve signed up with this company as suggested and being reported about, providers concerned but not directly affected can remove their properties from the booking.com website. Most providers are almost certainly affiliated with other reservation aggregators. There’s been no suggestion I’ve seen referred to that affiliated providers have fled Booking.com in any sizable numbers due to similar payment issues. If a traveler is improperly billed for services / accommodations not received or billed twice, it’s easy enough to dispute a charge with our credit card issuer. There are instances when I’ll book accommodation directly on the website of a hotel because the rate is better than found on any booking aggregator website. However, I don’t intend to avoid using Booking.com if I find the service offers value on a trip by trip basis. I will also suggest if the payments disputes that have been reported in The Guardian are widespread, lodging operators worldwide will determine there’s no value listing with Booking.com. The marketplace will sort this out and we can make our own choices.

Welcome home!

A meaningless, insulting video.

Posted to the wrong discussion. Yes?

How many foreign visitors to the GP saunas are conversant in the local language, enough to discuss levels of experience? I'll suggest very few.

Windfall? LOL!

Ok. You asked for it ...

Many gay guys are into bears. 🐻 I'm not one of the admirers, but the wonder of our lifestyle is that there's a type for each one of us. 👬

Handsome? Not much to judge by, viewing the photos.

Anything he agrees to do. I don’t recall any of the showers being large enough to accommodate 2 guys at one time.

Old news.

I haven't been there, so I don't know the answer to your question. However, I did spend a few minutes on Google Search and find multiple references to a gay Thermas Jardins, Rua Germânia, 221 - Bonfim, Campinas - SP, 13070-770, Brazil. There may have been confusion over the name because it is situated on Rua Germânia. There's an inactive facebook page (including an e-mail contact address): Thermas Jardins | Campinas SP | Facebook I don't see mention of GP, however. Edit: When I use Google Maps street view for the address I mention above, it's a vacant lot.

Either many expats residing in Thailand earn what is often considered above-average annual income in retirement (US$40,000 - US$80,000 plus $250,000 to invest in Thailand, or US$80,000+), or they're skirting the regulations in one way or another. Yes, or No.

I'm not a member there but just visited it using Safari and I observed activity within minutes of the visit.

The obsession with polls, at this point in time, is laughable. Biden hasn't even begun to campaign and probably won't until after the start of the new year - which is normal for an incumbent in Presidential elections. All people are reacting to is the attacks of the Republicans. A prescription for Valium would be appropriate - for poll obsessives.

Following my prostate cancer surgery, mine has almost disappeared! 🙃

I live in the USA. My full retirement age for government Social Security monthly benefits 7 years ago was 66.5 years old. That's when I retired from full-time work. I could have claimed that retirement benefit at age 62 but the monthly payment would be approx. 30% less for the rest of my life compared to what I receive now. At age 65 we are eligible for government assisted medical insurance a/k/a Medicare.

Condo governing associations in the US oftentimes restrict how often and for how long we can rent our units. Where I live I can rent once yearly for not less than a 6 month term. The city where I live prohibits rentals less than 3 months and prohibits airbnb for most condos.