So, I guess there have been a couple of milestones on the way to the “new normal”, whatever in the hell that turns out to be. We are just a little over one week into the general (versus enhanced) community quarantine. More businesses have been allowed to open, trikes are allowed to operate again (limited to one passenger) and there is a general feeling of the old hustle and bustle returning. Hell, it’s starting to get dangerous to cross the highway, just like in the good old days. But we ain’t there yet.
No hotels or bars are allowed to have guests yet and restaurants are still limited to takeout only. Some businesses aren’t going to reopen at all, but maybe that’s best for the survivors since the customer base is going to be diminished. The laundry I used to use reopened and I saw the owner as I passed by the other day. She asked when I was going to bring in my clothes again. I had to confess that my helpers are now doing my laundry and I promised to buy them a machine. You could see the disappointment on her face. Oh well.
It’s not all bad news though. “Goman’s”, that hotel/restaurant/bar I used to frequent early in the quarantine, has once again reopened, albeit on the sly. I popped in because I saw the plywood blocking the door had been removed. Turns out that was just because they were doing some construction work inside. Anyway, they welcomed me back, told me to keep quiet about it, and happily served me the San Miguel Zero beer I’ve been craving.
Turns out my old Speakeasy place is also still open. As I suspected, when the manager called to tell me they were closed, he meant they were closed to me. That’s fine. I prefer Goman’s anyway. Also, with the alcohol ban lifted it’s easier to keep the fridge full of cold ones at home. Best of all the prices have dropped back into the normal range now.
So, that’s the update on the quarantine situation. In other news, there are some nice aspects to staying home once you get acclimated to it.
And today I binge-watched seven episodes of season six of Game of Thrones.
I’ll save my thoughts on some of the tangents the series has taken for when I’m sober another day.
I’m also getting to spend more time with my boys here at home.
I didn’t do any walking today except for the morning dog exercise. I did take a couple of “interesting” photographs during that excursion though. It seems the rainstorm yesterday had some impact in the neighborhood.
And there you have it, life goes on and we adjust as necessary I suppose. COVID Hash run #2 is on tap for tomorrow. That will get my lazy ass off the couch and out of the house at least.
Good luck with COVID Hash #2. May it not be too muddy, given all the rain you just had.
Great-looking pulled-pork sandwich!
The reopening of certain restaurants, etc., must be a bit of a relief, but as you say, not all businesses will have survived the shutdown. Whatever the new normal turns out to be, here’s hoping it’s not too different from the old normal.
Well, we are going to be doing most of the Hash today on My Bitch, so I don’t expect there to be many issues with wetness up there.
I think the big difference coming for Barretto will be the nature of the tourist trade. Less foreigners, more Filipino families. I can deal with that I think. The go-go bars that cater to sex tourists aren’t my thing anyway. A couple of nice pubs and some places to play darts and I’ll be just fine I reckon.