Comments Posted By Brian
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Just thinking aloud. Does your bank limit the amount of money you can take out in one day at an ATM? I “think” in the US, ATM withdrawal’s are limited to $300/day regardless of how many ATM’s you go to – basically to limit losses in case of card theft or being forced to withdraw money.
» Posted By Brian On 10/February/2025 @ 2:45 am
Was the climb as bad as going up easter mountain?
>I feel safer from crime in the Philippines than I would in the USA.
Interesting comment. I guess it depends on where (generic) you live in the states. My hometown is in a rural part of the Midwest, and I have no problem leaving the doors unlocked when I leave, etc. Never have felt any concerns.
Comparing to Barretto, do you think you would feel less safe in a equivalent sized town in the US?
Just my guess, but I think that overt crime (assault, etc.) probably occurs less to foreigners than locals. So, I think that you have an advantage in that regard.
» Posted By Brian On 10/February/2025 @ 2:27 am
Is Bauang popular with expats to retire to, or it is just more of a vacation spot? Looking at a map, looks like San Fernando City is a bit bigger and may have more to offer?
» Posted By Brian On 09/February/2025 @ 5:13 am
Re: Video – nice walk. Reminds me of walking along the canals in BKK. Looks like there are steps cut into the wall in case you fall in? I assume that is how you would get out, but if you have a broken leg or two, not so easy. LOL
You always seem to get in a lot of steps, regardless of whether or not you do an “official” walk or not. I guess just the walks to/from town add up. Kudos to you.
I know this has been mentioned in past, but I would think that Fitbit would be a bit more accurate in the calorie count. Everything I have read says that a person burns about 100 cal/mile when walking, while your app shows about 350 cal/mile. Just weird that it would be that far off. It would be interesting to see how they are calculating calories.
» Posted By Brian On 08/February/2025 @ 12:04 am
Re: Hash
Was it a special occasion that resulted in the large turnout?Re: Apartment in Korea
Yeah, as a foreigner, renting a western style apartment in Seoul is crazy expensive. When my company was looking to base myself (and family) in Seoul, they gave me a maximum price/month I would be allowed to expense for lodging. I was blown away by the amount and after doing research, I found that the price would get a nice, but nothing spectacular, accommodation.» Posted By Brian On 05/February/2025 @ 12:18 am
RE: calorie counting
As I mentioned, you inspired me to pay a little closer watch on calories. I am not anal about it, and as you say, it goes both ways. Sometimes you under estimate and sometimes over estimate. Evens out in the end.
For me, makes me a bit more aware of not taking that extra helping.
» Posted By Brian On 04/February/2025 @ 2:57 am
> don’t know; it seems weird that I have nothing exciting to post about here, yet I’m still enjoying my life.
Inertia is a pretty powerful thing. People get comfortable with the familiar and it takes more mental energy to do something different, even if that different thing may be better. The devil you know is better than the devil you dont…..
(Not to say that you are not happy. My statement above is general in nature.)
» Posted By Brian On 03/February/2025 @ 5:18 am
Re: I am impressed with your caloric intake of food. 900 calories or so on a daily basis. Seems to be working but I am not sure I would have the willpower to eat that little every day.
Re: Nice darts! Never have played competitively, only the occasional game. But a good way to spend time in a bar!!
Re: I think I mentioned this way back when in your blog, but one saying I remember about retirement: You can’t add time to the end of your retirement, only to the beginning!
» Posted By Brian On 02/February/2025 @ 12:37 am
Here’s a crazy ass thought. Give up the beers (or G&T’s) a few nights a week. The XXX calories you save by not drinking you can use on a dessert, etc. LOL
re: Going native – I always think of Col. Kurtz in Apocalypse Now. There is a reason that the US State Dept rotates it foreign service personnel every few years. They dont want people going native on them.
It is natural to be around people of similar cultures, languages, etc. You see it with immigrant communities all over the world. And you see it with western expat communities in places like PI, Thailand, etc.
But, I do think that people should make an effort to interact with locals, but it is tough, with language being one of the biggest hurdles.
» Posted By Brian On 31/January/2025 @ 12:49 am
re: Shooting videos – plenty of “selfie sticks” for a phone that allow you to hold it in the landscape position. A bit easier than holding the phone. And, as I mentioned in a previous comment, GoPro can be a good choice for shooting “action” videos.
» Posted By Brian On 31/January/2025 @ 12:08 am
re: garbage. Yeah, it is tough. They need to learn the philosophy taking their trash back to from whence it came.
I read about all the problems that soldiers who were in Iraq developed (potentially) due to the burning trash piles that were at the various bases. I understand that they were burning a lot of weird shit, but still, there is a lot of weird shit in normal packaging. Not something I would want to be breathing in on a regular basis.
» Posted By Brian On 29/January/2025 @ 12:14 am
>Anyway, I probably need to get a clip-on mobile camera instead of trying to use my phone.
I have a GoPro and really like it. There is a ton of various attachments to make them hands free. I think they are up to the GoPro13(?) but you should be able to find a used “like new” older model for <$200.
» Posted By Brian On 26/January/2025 @ 3:14 am
@Drain @John and @Kevin
The problem in todays world is that everybody falls into the “confirmation bias” syndrome.
People tend to follow news reports, blogs, websites, etc. that only confirm what they believe. Algorithms then further feed up content that is even more aligned. It is a news silo and therefore (generic) you tends to believe what you are reading is the only truth.
Both sides are guilty of this. I say Trump is the greatest and I have “facts” to back it up. Someone else says Trump is a corrupt liar, and they have “facts” to back it up. As with most things, the truth is somewhere in the middle.
So John, what are the news sources, websites, blogs, etc that you read on a (semi) regular basis? I am going to go out on a limb and say that they probably all lean partially or heavily to the right.
» Posted By Brian On 25/January/2025 @ 12:01 am
Agree with @Drain Snake. Two wrongs dont make a right.
Someone guys rob a house in Alta Vista and dont get charged. They then come and rob your house. Should they be charged for robbing your house, or let go?
» Posted By Brian On 24/January/2025 @ 12:37 am
Re: tattoos – what is the saying, “there are some good tattoos, some old tattoos, but no good, old tattoos!”
My father has a tattoo he got when he went into the Marine Corps. May have looked good decades okay, but it is not basically a blob of ink. LOL
» Posted By Brian On 22/January/2025 @ 1:22 am
Been a couple of years since I have been to Hong Kong, but I think you will enjoy. I think it is a cool place – probably could spend your whole trip there.
I assume you pick the routing you did because you wanted to visit HK? Seems like your route is two legs of a triangle rather than the hypotenuse.
Re: budget airlines. Yeah, they get you on the peripheral fees. Check a bag? extra. Want an assigned seat or seats (or want to sit next to your partner)? Extra. Bring a carry on? Extra. Want a water or food while on board? Extra
I am surprised those airlines haven’t started to charge for using the planes toilet!!!
Generally, those airlines are always pretty bad with on time departures and arrivals.
IMO, better to pay more upfront for one the bigger name airlines and when all is said and done, not a whole lot of difference in pricing, especially if you have any luggage. But, I guess the journey is half the fun. LOL
Anyway, glad to see that you are going to be getting out of your comfort zone a bit.
Re: Subic Bay – Trump is much more of an isolationist than any recent administration, so would be surprised if he put US troops in Subic Bay.
» Posted By Brian On 21/January/2025 @ 1:02 am
Looks like it was a great hike. Enjoyed being (vicariously) along for the trek.
» Posted By Brian On 19/January/2025 @ 12:36 pm
And that’s all there was to it
Re: Health issues. While I do feel bad for anyone having serious health issues, it is hard for me to have a lot of sympathy when they have to ask for money. Generally, their lack of money is due to decisions of their own making. See it in Thailand a fair amount. Most common is a motorcycle accident. “If you can, please send money to so and so. He was in an accident and didn’t purchase insurance and has no money for xxxxx”
I do donate to those in need but am pretty selective in how I give my money.
Good luck with the next steps with the eye.
» Posted By Brian On 18/January/2025 @ 12:34 am
That eye tag removal does seem painful. Hope the second time around is somewhat better.
And yeah, I am with @Kevin on getting a second opinion on that left eye. Seems pretty serious to me. You are looking to get out of town? Maybe combine that with a visit to a recommended eye clinic, either in the PI or abroad.
Also, your calorie tracking inspired me. I decided to do the same thing as I wanted to lose a few pounds. Like you, I’m not too anal about it, but I do find that just keeping track of the calories helps to prevent me from having the third or fourth helping of sweets, etc. LOL. So, thanks for the nudge.
The “story of my life” link didn’t work. Took me the Vlogger video.
» Posted By Brian On 17/January/2025 @ 1:10 am
Re: do the bars in Barretto get crew from the Navy ships or do they generally go somewhere else?
Re: Videos – what was that noise at the 0:10 mark? a sniffle? belch? something else? (seems to repeat at 0:20 of the second video. LOL)
But nice to see the videos. Both look like good places to hang out.
Re: video on healthcare – yeah, definitely a downside of living in a rural area of a developing country. Medical care is never going to be as good as back in the US or a major city. For any medical care that is anything out of the ordinary or emergency type work, I would be a bit nervous to get anything done. One of the reasons that causes people to move back to the US (or wherever)
» Posted By Brian On 16/January/2025 @ 3:28 am
Re: Coffee Shop Rooftop – is the open air rooftop exclusively the domain of whoever is renting the “penthouse” or is it open to all?
$1500/month is not too bad compared to a lot of places, but I am sure that in Barretto, it is up there among the most expensive places available. Though if you were going to be renting it long term, I am guessing you could negotiate a discount of some sort.
» Posted By Brian On 14/January/2025 @ 12:13 am
@Kevin, I was actually just thinking about John’s daily caloric intake and what % of that is from alcohol. Last couple of days (maybe the norm?), it seems 50% is from alcohol. Seems like the food portion is “starvation level” type of eating (600-700 calories of food).
But John, maybe you are on to something. The Irish managed to survive for centuries on nothing but potatoes so maybe you are coming up with the McCarey diet! As I said, it seems to work for you, so who am I to say. LOL
» Posted By Brian On 12/January/2025 @ 3:08 am
Winner, winner, chicken dinner!
I’m curious to get a breakdown of what you eat.
From your calorie data from today, I assume that the 720 snack calories is beer (60 cal/can)? That means you had roughly 800 calories of food daily? That seems to be the norm for you.
It seems to be working but that seems really low to maintain on a regular basis, not to mention getting proper nutrients.
» Posted By Brian On 08/January/2025 @ 7:39 pm
Re: EV’s – I think they are a good idea, but one where the infrastructure is trying to catch up. I imagine that in 1925, someone trying to drive across the country would have range anxiety, as most likely gas stations were nowhere near a prevalent as today. Battery range and recharge time will only get better. I predict that in 10 years, we will see batteries with a 500+mile capacity and a <10 minute recharge, bringing it pretty much on par with gas/diesel engines.
» Posted By Brian On 07/January/2025 @ 7:44 pm
Re: begging. I agree with your take on begging. In Bangkok, it appears that most of the beggars are of the professional variety and sad sack kids/babies that they have next to them are of the “rent a kid” variety. Fortunately, I have never come across an overly aggressive beggar in BKK. They normally just sit passively on the side of the walkway and look sad.
Re:new topics for the blog. @Kevin has a good list. I like #3 (travel more often). I get the impression that you sometimes feel that you are stuck in a rut but the inertia is too great to pull out of it. You often talk about travel, whether it is domestic or international, but nothing seems to come of it.
» Posted By Brian On 06/January/2025 @ 10:45 pm
Re: Doing a hike in “crocs”. Dont know how anybody could think hiking in those would be a good idea, especially without socks. Obviously does not get out and walk much.
» Posted By Brian On 04/January/2025 @ 11:14 pm
I agree with Kevin on trekking long distances and getting started again after a break. First few steps are painful but I do loosen up after a (relatively) short while. When I am home, there is a lake I walk around with a fair amount of ups and downs on the hills. Circumference is about 35km and like Kevin, the last 5k or so are the hardest.
» Posted By Brian On 03/January/2025 @ 11:38 am
How far is San Narciso from Barretto?
» Posted By Brian On 01/January/2025 @ 11:47 pm
Whenever a firework “holiday” comes around, I am reminded of the meme:
Today, someone will be celebrating their last day with ten fingers!
» Posted By Brian On 29/December/2024 @ 9:49 pm
«« Back To Stats PageIn the PI, what is the reason for getting someone to be godparent? There are responsibilities that come with it in the US, but not sure what the purpose is in the PI.
» Posted By Brian On 29/December/2024 @ 5:42 pm