Comments Posted By John McCrarey
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Kevin, yep, water is in abundance here, you just need it in the right places. I see people with big barrels under their rain gutters to collect the runoff. I’m glad I haven’t had to resort to that. There was a lot of flooding in Subic and Olongapo last night, but everything seems to be still working.
“Bill out” is how they say it here. If you ask for your tab, you usually just get a funny look. Maybe it’s a Filipino thing. When it is time to pay, you wave at the waitress and say, “Bill out, please.”
Yes, it is a different relationship culture here. Being perceived as “rich” is more valued than being young and attractive. Granted, if you are young, handsome, and “rich,” you are a rock star with the ladies. And yes, not all the girls are like that. Since I’m a barfly, I meet bargirls. Back in the day, when I’d date these girls, I found that the ones who had just started in the bar business were much more enjoyable to be with than the jaded veterans. I have indeed been blessed to find a jewel like Swan amongst the gravel.
HaHa! Poor Clyde and Harold. Your reaction is exactly what I’d expect from an educator. I had a teacher in Junior High who actually kicked me hard in the shin when I rudely commented on his beer belly. And now I have one. Karma never forgets!
No, the Candy Walks are both 5K, and we serve around 250 kids each day, so they aren’t growing or becoming more expensive. There’s a lot of work behind the scenes as Swan sets up an assembly line on the dining room table and fills 500 candy bags with assorted sweets each week. I fund the operation, but I consider it one of my charity projects.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 25/September/2025 @ 10:16 am
Brian, after thinking about it, I decided drinking is good so now I think when I drink.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 25/September/2025 @ 9:50 am
Kevin, thanks for the introduction to Swedish meals. Although my beef stew was nothing like American-style, it was fine for filling my after-hike stomach void. I mixed those potato chunks in with the beef and gravy and it wasn’t bad that way.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 25/September/2025 @ 10:19 am
Kevin, no water or power issues so far. The worst of the storm seems to be over now.
Yeah, those potatoes were technically a side dish that I could have changed to something else, like mashed taters. Their definition of beef stew is different than mine. Chunks of beef in gravy (where were the carrots?) doesn’t make a stew. This is a Swedish establishment, so maybe that’s the way they do it there.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 24/September/2025 @ 2:44 pm
Brian, so far the water and power have survived the storm. I think the worst is over now.
Yes, I agree that moving here with inadequate assets doesn’t necessarily make you the kind of loser Reekay was talking about, but it does keep you living on the edge of disaster. I’ve known some folks who run out of money before the end of the month and so they run a tab in the bar until the next pension deposit comes through. I’m not one of them, although I have burned through some of my savings account over the years. I can live comfortably on my pension money every month, but I am sometimes a little to generous in helping those in need. I need to get a grip soon.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 24/September/2025 @ 1:35 pm
Brian, we are pretty much in sync on the issues. I don’t think I’ve moved right all that much over the years, but the left has gone batshit crazy.
Yep, beer may not solve the world’s problems, but it makes them easier to ignore.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 26/September/2025 @ 10:26 am
Brian, should illegal immigrants be deported? Should men who identify as women compete in women’s sports? It is issue like those that are losing middle American for the dems.
I know nothing about crypto, Trump’s or otherwise. But I’m not hearing you claim anything illegal about Jr.’s involvement. The Trumps were rich to begin with, that not need to lie, steal, or cheat for money. But the stupidest Congress-critter (and that’s a low bar) somehow manages to become a multimillionaire since being elected. Hmm…
It never crossed my mind to violate the rules when I worked for the government, and if I had, I would expect the consequences for my dishonesty.
“Anyways, life will go on, the sun will come up, hikes will be walked, and beers will be drunk regardless of who is in charge. LOL”
See? We have found some common ground! I’m just glad I’m not living there.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 25/September/2025 @ 9:58 am
Okay, John. I went back and looked at the comments on those Facebook posts of mine. No threats of violence or personal attacks against you. I did find these:
“No, better to just slag them off without them knowing, like a real man hey. Don’t worry, ill stop before you right wing snowflakes cancel me as well.”
“Keep up the hate john, its really becomingNice blog post john, way to listen to your “friends” instead of perhaps wondering why people are offended by the racist, hateful shit you post, you, blame everyone else. What a man.”
“Your the one putting the hate out! Jesus, you’re thick, and brave! Retired postman living overseas calling for war and violence! Pathetic, letting others do the fighting again i see.”
Those are all from you. No one else took the bait.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 24/September/2025 @ 2:51 pm
Brian, I’d be curious to learn the positions a centrist takes. Where do you stand on illegal immigrants? Do you think biological males who claim to be women should invade female only spaces? Were you bothered by the corruption discovered in USAID? I’m against all those things and I think I’m a centrist politically. Do you agree?
Comparing Hunter to Donald Jr. seems like a stretch. Do you have any info on how he allegedly gained that wealth? Bribes? Insider trading? If you mean most investors are doing much better these days, then yeah. But now do AOC. How does a former bartender on a Congressional salary become a multimillionaire?
Like it or not, MAGA resonates with the majority of Americans. As long as that is the case, I don’t see a third party succeeding. Although, if the centrists like yourself rejected the leftist tropes, there may be room in the tent.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 24/September/2025 @ 1:45 pm
Tye Regasa. Still blowing.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 23/September/2025 @ 1:30 pm
Kevin, nothing like a good blow job.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 23/September/2025 @ 10:05 am
Good one, Bobster.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 23/September/2025 @ 10:04 am
Kevin, I don’t have a drinking problem. I drink. I get drunk. I fall down. No problem!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 23/September/2025 @ 10:05 am
Kevin, re: “it doesn’t take much to get you to the “loose lips” stage!” In my defense, I did mention we had started imbibing two hours early due to the birthday party we attended.
Ah, the guy is Hobbiton’s Columbo. I get it now.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 22/September/2025 @ 10:06 am
Steve, two wrongs don’t make it right.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 22/September/2025 @ 10:03 am
Maurice, do you speak of the pompatus of love?
» Posted By John McCrarey On 21/September/2025 @ 1:54 pm
Kevin, it’s not surprising that I was a total dunce about these calendar deviations. I noticed that holidays in Korea were never on the same dates, so that explains it.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 21/September/2025 @ 1:53 pm
Brian, it makes a lot more sense than the standard calendar, but I guess it would disenfranchise all those folks born on the 29th through 31st.
Yeah, it was weakened without Hot Zone and losing Alaska was the death knell. I only attended once a month or so, but that special occasion marketing would have helped. Also, they could have tried to add some of the newer bars in town like Red Bar and Nipsey’s. We’ll see how this new Battle of the Bars thing works out…they are going with a quarterly format and expanding the number of participating bars.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 21/September/2025 @ 1:51 pm
Gary, it sounds like true love.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 21/September/2025 @ 1:47 pm
Gary, it’s all so confusing.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 20/September/2025 @ 3:36 pm
Kevin, balut is duck, these were baby chickens…
» Posted By John McCrarey On 20/September/2025 @ 3:34 pm
Thanks, William. That tells me more than I’ll ever need to know.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 20/September/2025 @ 9:45 am
William, no preference either way. They are what they are.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 19/September/2025 @ 1:22 pm
Kev, as a matter of fact, Swan is preparing my Filipino-style burrito as I type this response. I’ll let you know how it comes out. Thanks again for the recipe!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 19/September/2025 @ 1:21 pm
Brian, I spend the first couple of hours of my day catching up on the news via the internet. My favorites include Instapundit, Hot Air, and Althouse. They have multiple links to news items, including traditional MSM sources. What is added is “the rest of the story.” My big awakening happened right after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Up until then, I had been a lifelong Democrat voter. Every morning on my train commute to DC, I dutifully read the Washington Post and thought I was up to speed on what was happening. Then I discovered the internet and quickly realized that the bias in the MSM wasn’t so much what they report but what they leave out. These days, I consider myself better informed than those who still feed exclusively at the MSM trough.
Like I said, I didn’t know Art or his personal circumstances. I’ve since learned that he was a heavy drinker of the hard stuff and lived upstairs from Wet Spot at the Paradise Hotel. That’s where they found his body on Sunday morning. It appears that he lived his life on his own terms and went out doing what he enjoyed most.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 19/September/2025 @ 1:20 pm
Kev, that’s a lot of food for thought, and as always, I appreciate your insights and viewpoints on the afterlife. I’m probably more agnostic than I let on, but there is some comfort in fantasizing about an all-powerful God who can answer our prayers for a heavenly afterlife. Like you, I expect when it is over, it is over. The bliss in that is that we won’t be aware that we are no more. Still, on those sleepless nights when I reflect on all the decision points that have occurred during my lifetime, it is somehow comforting to consider what might have happened if I’d taken a different path. Yeah, I’d likely screw up again anyway, but an eternity of trying to get it right still seems more comforting than the blackness of nothingness.
Anyway, I spend a lot of time in the Maze (there are six bars there) and the beer is cold, so it’s all good.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 19/September/2025 @ 1:34 pm
Kev, yes, I was raised in the church, but I took a step back in my teens and rejected the basic tenets of the Christian faith. The biblical concept of heaven (or at least the way it has been depicted) of spending an eternity in a garden paradise, petting lions, always seemed to me to be hellishly boring. Hence, I like to come up with my own version of a heavenly afterlife. The “do-over” concept is my current favorite. A key difference with the Hindu and Buddhist concepts you’ve described is that I get to carry forward all the knowledge I’ve gained in my current life. Of course, I’d use those insights to make the world a better place…for me. I’d make a killing on Wall Street buying tech stocks in the 90s. Oh, well. It’s nice to have a dream life.
Yes, that Hash history is consistent with what I’ve seen from other sources. In fact, I expect it was plagiarized. My understanding is that the founders were British soldiers in Malaysia, and it grew from there after WWII. I’ve personally Hashed in Korea, Philippines, and Thailand. Missed out on opportunities in Vietnam and Cambodia. On-On!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 18/September/2025 @ 9:11 am
William, do you mean the memes I post or the actual shows? Either way, I like them both about equally. I think the Star Wars storyline is deeper, but Star Trek is more grounded in reality.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 18/September/2025 @ 8:55 am
Damn, it just keeps getting worse and worse.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 17/September/2025 @ 1:16 pm
«« Back To Stats PageKevin, please know that I take no issue with your criticisms when I fuck up. On the contrary, I appreciate that you care enough to try to help me improve. I may be unworthy of that effort, as I don’t seem capable of retaining what I learn when I read your lessons. I think at this stage of my life, I’m a lost cause. That won’t stop me from continuing to make an effort, but I have no expectations of reaching that mountaintop.
Yeah, I thought that AI monk looked familiar. When I first viewed it, I thought he might have been in one of those medical videos, but it makes more sense that it was a play on Buddhist-like principles rather than health.
That “reaction to my blog posts” was directed at you or referencing my grammatical shortcomings. I was referring to the readers who find my posts redundant and boring. They miss the good ol’ days when I had all those exciting “transactional” encounters to write about. As far back as high school, I would get an “A” on content and a “D” on execution. For whatever reason, my brain just doesn’t seem to be wired to follow the rules.
I reckon I’m in the camp that poor Frodo did the best he could and probably better than any other Middle-Earther would have managed. Gollum inadvertently saved the day, but he would not have been there but for Frodo. Still, what Sam said in the meme wasn’t wrong!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 17/September/2025 @ 9:53 am