Comments Posted By John McCrarey
Displaying 661 To 690 Of 6,593 Comments
Drain, you are spot on about the Cambodia nightmare. And yes, my lack of writing discipline made my point lose the meaning I was trying to convey. I appreciate you adding some needed clarity.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 13/December/2025 @ 4:34 pm
Kevin, damn, it seems like I’m getting worse and worse the harder I try. Anyway, at first glance, I’d say putting an “I” before managed is better. Or making it two sentences.
I had to look up the meaning of FANBOYS. The search AI said: “FANBOYS refers to a group of seven coordinating conjunctions in English: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, and so. These conjunctions are used to connect words, phrases, or independent clauses, and a comma is typically placed before them when joining two independent clauses.”
Well, I had the comma before “but,” but I guess without the “I,” I assume it wasn’t a proper independent clause. But here’s the thing: the sentence as originally written is perfectly understandable, so what’s the big deal?
“Not sure why no one else ventured in, it’s been busier on my other rare visits.”
Replace the comma with a semicolon is the fix.
Whose mistake is that? 🙂
» Posted By John McCrarey On 13/December/2025 @ 9:56 am
Good luck, Kun. I hope peace prevails.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 13/December/2025 @ 9:37 am
Aloysius, I have absolutely no idea what you are basing that comment about Brad on. We talked for an hour, and bargirls weren’t the topic.
That seems to be the Angeles City mentality–you whoremongers think that is all there is to life. Enjoy it while you can. I’ll take the mountains, the beaches, and my girlfriend.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 12/December/2025 @ 4:46 pm
Brian, I do remember those words, and they resonated at the time you shared them. Too many people die at their desk or soon after retiring. I doubt anyone’s final words are, “I wish I had worked another year.”
Maybe you are right that people haven’t changed, but the technology has allowed them to express what they want to look like. I remember when I first moved to Korea, I was shocked by all the girls who had the “rounded eye” surgery. I love the way natural Asian “slant eyes” look.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 12/December/2025 @ 4:39 pm
Kevin, I enjoyed your post on the A versus B writing mentalities. Obviously, I’m in the B camp. I mean what I say, and I say what I mean; I just don’t always write it properly.
Anyway, sorry for causing you the headache of looking for a mistake that wasn’t there. I guess I hadn’t had my coffee yet.
I sometimes go back and correct an error, but I usually can’t be bothered since I doubt anyone goes back to re-read a post. I will try to do better going forward.
I appreciate the clarification on formal versus informal writing styles…almost like that A and B thing you mentioned.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 12/December/2025 @ 4:35 pm
Kevin, it must have just been my imagination. As I scrolled through your posts this morning, I *thought* I saw a mistake in one of the titles. I went back to look later, and it wasn’t there. I assumed you caught and corrected it. If not, chalk it up to another feeble-minded mistake on my part.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 12/December/2025 @ 2:47 pm
Linda, sorry to be a disappointment. No issues with your creative writing, it just wasn’t related to anything on the blog. Good luck to you going forward!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 12/December/2025 @ 10:08 am
Kevin, I totally agree with you on the unfortunate changes that have occurred since the classic 70s. I don’t recall any transgender pretenders back in those days either. And yeah, lowering standards to achieve DEI goals is an accident waiting to happen. Just ask Boeing.
Reviewed the lesson and here is my correction: Oh, another benefit of having Scott along is that he takes better photos than me, which I shamelessly steal and post here.
It would probably be more correct to say “I do” than “me,” but I like the informal style better.
Yep, “Eater” was just being sloppy, kind of like a since-corrected title on a post I saw at Big Hominid this morning. Shit happens, right? 🙂
» Posted By John McCrarey On 12/December/2025 @ 10:07 am
Brian, the thing that really got me was that I believed my Korean wife would always be by my side. That’s why I gave up my dream of going to the Philippines for her. We had a good run, and I was happy. It was a shock to hear her say she wasn’t. And she was the only wife I was always faithful to…she got the best version of me and rejected it. Ouch!
Once the trust in her was lost, there was no going back for me. I still have feelings, but what is done is done.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 12/December/2025 @ 4:44 pm
Kevin, nope, Cash ain’t twangy. I must have been thinking you just didn’t like country music in general. What’s an example of twangy you don’t like?
Yeah, it is hard to believe in an all-powerful creator who would let His world go to shit, free will of mankind or not. I’m not a man of Biblical faith, but in my fantasies I cling to the idea of something intelligent driving the universe. An intelligent being willing to give me a do-over life to be precise.
I’m trying to tighten up my standards for approving comments. I don’t always spot the AI, but if the comment is unrelated to something I’ve posted, I’ll trash it. Also, attacks on other commenters are verboten. I see I’ve pissed off Linda by deleting her creative writing, but it had nothing to do with this blog, and she can find a better forum for her work.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 12/December/2025 @ 9:52 am
Kevin, nope, no desire to reopen old wounds. For what it is worth, we did talk shortly prior to my leaving Korea. She said she regretted her decision and wanted to try again. I was too far gone by then to take that step. The trust I had in her love for me had disappeared. Maybe I was wrong, but something had died in me by then.
I see what you mean about the potential flaws in believing that everything happens for a reason. Maybe.
Yeah, I don’t have a problem with a reasonable wait, but hours and hours won’t work…I’m not that kind of patient. I used to send my helper in early to get my place in line, then I’d join her when my turn was coming.
Wait a minute, I thought you hated twangy country music. I mean, I like Johnny Cash, but was shocked to hear you prefer him over REM…you are full of surprises. Or something. 🙂
» Posted By John McCrarey On 11/December/2025 @ 2:16 pm
Kevin, I didn’t find that Gaffigan video funny at all. I kept my opinion to myself so others could decide for themselves. Glad we agree!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 10/December/2025 @ 9:34 am
Merry Xmas to you, Aaron.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 10/December/2025 @ 9:32 am
Kevin, I’ll look for a recipe as soon as I get there! Promise!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 09/December/2025 @ 8:43 am
Aloysius, that bloke’s Hash name is Tiny Cunt, and he’s a straight shooter, as far as I know. Wearing the maid outfit was a joke on his part. The gal he brought was supposed to wear it and she was dealing with a monthly visit from her Aunt Flo from Redlands, so didn’t want to participate.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 08/December/2025 @ 11:21 am
Kevin, that was a typo I missed when I proofread, not just a misspelling. Although I guess the end result is the same. Pozorrubio comes easier for me than Siargao ever did.
Yes, I agree calling the low-alcohol brew Zero was a mistake. I think the San Miguel Brewery agrees, as they now have a zero alcohol/calorie beer that they’ve named “0-0.”
I passed on the egg, but the haggis wasn’t bad. I just tried not to think of the contents.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 08/December/2025 @ 10:57 am
Brian, the once-a-year Haggis gathering is a unique and popular event. One of the largest attended Hash runs I’ve been a part of.
Perhaps “unique” is a better description than sweet for that bagpipe noise.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 08/December/2025 @ 10:48 am
Kevin, no, being a slave doesn’t work for my fantasy afterlife. The alternate universe seems like the best option.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 09/December/2025 @ 8:42 am
Kevin, thanks for the refresher course. I think I’m better at recognizing when a hyphen is needed more than I am with commas.
Interestingly, I’ve had similar thoughts about the implications of the “do-over life” scenario. One change I’d make is not knocking up my 17-year-old girlfriend. But the ramifications of that are that my daughter would never have been born, and her children wouldn’t exist either. That’s even beyond my level of selfishness. So, I’ve thought about The Matrix workaround. If it’s fake but you don’t know it, it’s still better than being dead. The best fantasy option is a “multiverse” scenario…the life I lived isn’t changed by the decisions I make in the do-over life because it’s a whole other newly-created world. An all-powerful God could surely work out the logistics of making that happen, right?
Damn, the best part of the fantasy is being young again, and now you’re telling me that won’t work either? Shit. You know, in all seriousness, these fantasies are about dealing with the realization that, with old age, options become limited. There’s not much time left for me, so what I have now is all that will be. I guess I’m lucky in that what I have isn’t so bad, but all the doors being closed except for that one at the end of the hall is disconcerting. Oh, well. I’ll just keeping walking towards the light…
I’ll look forward to reading your short story!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 08/December/2025 @ 11:16 am
Kevin, yep, I missed the hyphenation. For what it’s worth, it was an early-morning mistake.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 08/December/2025 @ 10:44 am
Kevin, that second kind “do-over” life is my fantasy. Choosing a different path, knowing where the original route led me. Yeah, I’d likely fuck up on that road too, but it would be a new way of doing so. One thing’s for sure: I wouldn’t accumulate four wives along the way.
Yes, the gal you mention is one of the cutest Hashers in Subic. I don’t know her well, but she is friendly and has a great smile. Foreigner boyfriend, too.
Pozorrubio is mostly flat, and I like that. There I fixed it! Pronunciation: Pozo sounds like that clown, Bozo. And rubbio is pronounced the same way as our Secretary of State’s last name.
As for lessons learned, shit happens. Then I react. Yesterday, I limited myself on beer intake. Nothing until I finished the after-hike meal, and then one beer (they had Zero!) every 30 minutes. And none of the Scottish whiskey on offer. It worked, I climbed the stairs to my hotel room without assistance!
“The early morning view, AS SEEN from my hotel room,” sounds better. It links the dependent clause to subject predicate.
Maybe we have a different definition of rare. But I’ve had enough to last a while now.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 07/December/2025 @ 3:43 pm
Aloysius, I’ve had Burns before and they hurt like hell!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 07/December/2025 @ 1:34 pm
Nigel, thanks for the tip, but my plan is to reduce the intake.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 07/December/2025 @ 1:31 pm
Brian, welp, I guess the joke’s on me then!
The La Union Hash is the host for the annual Haggis event. Other Hashes participating included Subic, Angeles City, Manila, and Puerto Galera. Around 160 Hashers attended.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 07/December/2025 @ 1:30 pm
Aloysius, there is nothing to be gained by speaking ill of the dead. Or his widow.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 06/December/2025 @ 10:15 am
Kevin, some pain and stiffness, but I managed the trail just fine. Overdosed on painkillers afterwards, but that’s a different story.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 06/December/2025 @ 10:12 am
Sick, take or leave it. Up to you.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 06/December/2025 @ 10:11 am
Kevin, okay, from now on I’ll only use catsup on my hotdogs.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 06/December/2025 @ 10:13 am
«« Back To Stats PageKevin, I always enjoyed the company of the Filipinas I met in Korea. Of course, our conversations were always in English.
It wasn’t so much that they were young; it was more that they were young surfers, mostly from European countries, so we had nothing in common. Expats living together in a community can bond and overcome those cultural differences, not so much with a transient crowd. By the time you get to know them, they are gone.
My apologies to Clint, but that was the way my mama served my hotdogs.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 05/December/2025 @ 9:22 am