Anonymous participant you need to be clearer re drama. The post was about both 90d and TM30.
You are correct about going in and out of the country before getting to 90d. That avoids the 90d drama. But every time you go away and come back you have to do another TM30, which can be another drama as per the post. 😉
your retirement visa qualifies as a long term visa. The other thing you should check is that the sim of the phone number you provided to them is held in your own name. Then you should be OK
Look at the Thai visa pages, decide which visa suits your circumstances best, go through the requirements and make sure you can provide what is required, and then apply.