I don’t really think it’s odd at all, what Thailand is trying to do in my opinion is Boost their economy, the more activities we get involved with, the better the economy will be, although I think a lot of of us support the economy, just by being there In Thailand, but if we get involved in other activities, it’s only going to benefit the Thai economy
Very similar to me, once I switched to soft power activities category, I was approved in two days and my wife in one day, we got a letter from our dentist in Hua Hin on letterhead, signed by the doctor, only provided current balance at our bank account, Just like you, our experience at the consulate in Vancouver was wonderful, they even allowed me to change categories from remote worker/digital nomad to soft power activities category 
Good luck, I was turned down for the DTV under the remote worker category, I was able to get my DTV visa under soft power activities, I am definitely self-employed and a remote worker, but they wouldn’t accept that, I provided many documents and letters, bank statements, etc., etc., nothing worked