@Andy ******

Does your wife ever call you "the husband"? People do say "the dog", as Giorgio points out. Enough said.

@Giorgio *****

I actually don't even mind "my wife" as it sounds like a pairing. "The wife" is distancing and very much sounds like an accessory. You hear women refer to "my husband". You never hear a woman say "the husband". The difference should be a signal as to the meaning behind the words.

@Giorgio *****

you’re absolutely right and thank you. The way in which the men in this group speak about women (see Anthony’s comment below) as if they are simply an accessory is disgusting. No, this is not a “cultural norm” for a given country. It’s misogyny and it sadly exists in every country amongst a limited group of individuals. Unfortunately, it seems, many of them are expats.

GIYF

@Gerry *******

does it run late now?

@Stuart ********

You're amazing.

@Stephen *****

what a great idea! I would not have thought of that, but is it legal on a retirement visa? I thought even unpaid work was not. I’d love to do it.

@Paul ******

why are you nit picking the time? Airlines lost the time between 1:05 and 1:20, depending upon the airline. Does it really matter though? The point was that it was a quick flight.

@Kev *********

please don’t let him take you down this rabbit hole. We’ve been doing this bs for nearly 3 years now. The argument will go nowhere and it’s irrelevant to the OP. He just wants to pull you in. Don’t let him do it.

@Roderick ************

not relevant to THIS post…YEAH, not relevant.