Comments Posted By John McCrarey
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I don’t know, you’ve seen the retardation I can fill a blog post with.
It’s early in the morning for brain gymnastics, but here we go:
1: “this pills” should be “these pills”
2. “everyday” is two words
3. there should be a period at the end of the sentences
4. “is” should be “are”
5. “3” should be spelled out
6. there should be a comma before “doctor”
7. I can’t find it. Does that make me ignorant or apathetic?» Posted By John McCrarey On 15/January/2025 @ 8:15 am
So, when exploring in the DMZ, walk around the landmines. You don’t want to blow that!
I hadn’t even noticed that cloth when we hiked by, but it could be to help passersby notice the barbed wire fence. Or it might be someone just hung their shit there and forgot about it. Odds are better for the latter.
Yes, Tim is doing a good job on our hikes. The proper footwear helps, of course, but he appears stronger during the climbs as well.
The hillside will look better once the roads are paved and there are some houses up there. I’m guessing Alta Vista had a similar look in the early days. It has just been frustrating that the work is progressing so slowly. I thought they might have given up on the project, but I saw a few workers building curbs and gutters during the hike. At the rate they are going, it will be years before they are finished.
The slaughterhouse is another weird thing. It was built well over a year ago and is indeed intended to be where pigs go to die (that lechon isn’t going to make itself!). But as far as I can tell, it has never opened for business—usually a couple of maintenance guys out front, but no sign of any animals or murderous activity.
Lick and Spit (aka Ashley) runs It Doesn’t Matter with her husband, Chris. I hadn’t heard about the troubles of the actual “hawk tuah” girl. That first interview that led to her fame was funny, but I haven’t cared enough to follow her story after that. Hope she didn’t fuck up her opportunity.
Yes, I’m sure Tim will figure out how NOT to spend his dough. He told me he is on a vacation budget and staying within the boundaries he’s set. When Tim’s here for the longer term, the things he’s lovin’ now will grow old and the repetition boring. He’ll be fine.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 15/January/2025 @ 8:01 am
Kev, I’d say the average decent lodging in Barretto is in the $25-40 range, but a couple of places are $80-100, which makes the Coffee Shop rooftop a bargain even for here. I’d definitely recommend it to any out-of-town guests. I don’t know much about Tim’s circumstances, but he told me he has several income-generating properties back home in Pennsylvania. He’s here through the end of the month but hopes to get things set up where he can come and stay for six-month intervals. He’s living large on his vacation and lovin’ it. The girls are lovin’ it, too!
Underage girls? I haven’t noticed any on “Squid Game.” The one I like is the pickpocket; I think her number is 67. She’s cute, but I love her “I’m not taking any shit” attitude. Yeah, I get the concept of the games, but I’m waiting for the “why” to be explained. That man behind the cyber-truck mask has invested a shitload of money in those facilities. Holy crap, maybe that’s Musk! Anyway, I will definitely read the review at the conclusion of Season 1.
I read the “12 Angry Men” review; I guess I just forgot to comment.
Underage girls? I haven’t noticed any on “Squid Game.” The one I like is the pickpocket, I think her number in 67. She’s cute, but I love her “I’m not taking any shit” attitude. Yeah, I get the concept of the games but I’m waiting for the “why” to be explained. That man behind the cyber-truck mask has invested a shitload of money in those facilities. Holy crap, maybe that’s Musk! Anyway, I will definitely read the review at the conclusion of Season 1.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 14/January/2025 @ 8:51 am
Brian, there is one other unit (a one bedroom) on the rooftop. I’m not sure if other guests are allowed congregate up there. That’s something I definitely want to know before going long-term.
Tim is being a typical “two-week millionaire” during his visit, and uses the same justification–it is still a lot cheaper than back home in the USA. Like you, I would make signing a long-term lease contingent on getting a discount. I’d pay $1000. a month for that place (my current house is $750.) and perhaps the hotel would think guaranteed occupancy was worth the reduced rate. Of course, it is just a fantasy for me because it wouldn’t work with my dogs.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 14/January/2025 @ 8:29 am
Winding our way through another day
“Oh, look! A river!”
Nah, that’s too clean to be a river.
On Golden Pond was released 44 years ago. Henry Fonda’s character does suffer from some heart issues at the end, but they aren’t fatal. Sound familiar?
I’m not sure they allow substitutions, but we took the fries and leftover taco to Chu at Green Room.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 13/January/2025 @ 7:47 am
Kev, I was actually surprised that a dubbed version was offered on Netflix. I’m usually fine with subtitles, but my current vision issues make reading them from the couch more difficult. Besides, Swan might have a hard time keeping up. Fortunately, the dubbing is done well, so it is not a distraction.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 12/January/2025 @ 7:19 am
Kev, yeah, I’m still just experimenting with the video thing. Now, I know better than trying to record in a crowded room. Thanks for the tip on the lavalier mike. If I get serious about vlogging, I’ll definitely invest in some equipment.
That angry-looking woman is my caregiver/helper. Maybe she didn’t appreciate the walk from the hospital to Texas Joe’s.
Well, there is nothing faux about enjoying a hot Filipina in tight jeans and cowgirl girl. Yippie yi yay!
That excuse for not pulling the pork didn’t make sense to me, either. It tastes good to me both ways. Maybe you have to cook the pork longer to make it easier to shred. I’ve never had a problem pulling my pork roast after eight hours in the crockpot.
It’s true; Google has all the answers. I just didn’t care enough to look. I was surprised that LTG Campbell had his own Wikipedia page.
Yes, and I have a demented monkey mind and a low-level attention span. I’m going to take it slow, one or two episodes at a time, and hopefully won’t miss much of the story that way. Going into yesterday with no idea whatsoever what the series was about made that first episode a little shocking. I’m watching it in English, which is a nice option when your eyes aren’t up for reading subtitles.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 11/January/2025 @ 7:19 am
Brian, I’ve really just been watching the bottom line, but now that you mention it, my beer calories are way up there close to 50% of my total intake on some days. Luckily, I do have some Irish genes. Who knew beer could be such a healthy beverage!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 12/January/2025 @ 7:14 am
Kev, yep, Tim is our visitor and wore appropriate footwear (and socks!) this week.
I’m trying the CICO strategy as of now, although I’m cognizant of the harm carby calories can do. For now, I’m reducing the portion size when I can’t resist a dish with a high amount of carbs.
I’m only on my second round of chelation, so it is too soon to say how effective it will be, but Dr. Jo did note that my blood pressure is lower than it has been. I’ll call that a good start.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 10/January/2025 @ 7:08 am
Winner, winner, chicken dinner!
Brian, you are the first reader to express curiosity about my calorie chart posts. Thanks for that!
Yes, the “snack” category is always alcohol consumption. I had a bowl of Swan’s homemade coleslaw for breakfast. Swan made a beef and broccoli dish for lunch, and all I had for dinner was the apple strudel with ice cream. I usually don’t skip dinner (and twelve beers isn’t the norm either), so I think I’m getting a pretty well-rounded and nutritious diet most days.
Once I achieve my goal (less than 200 pounds), I’m looking forward to a weekly cheat day. We’ll see how that works out for me.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 09/January/2025 @ 7:40 am
Kev, I’ll definitely be hitting YBC most every week from now on. Maybe I’ll go there first and then fill in the gaps at Royal. The fact that YBC has maintained stock that Royal is out of proves it is not a product shortage; rather, Royal just can’t seem to manage inventory. It appears they don’t reorder until they run out.
I didn’t eat the fries anyway; not worth the carbs.
Regarding the video, thanks for your encouragement. I have so much to learn. I would like to be able to edit several snippets from a hike into one video, but I have no idea how that’s done. Guess it is time to read up on the subject. Anyway, it is something I can do to fill some hours productively. Or if it proves to be too big a pain in the ass, I can just keep it simple. We’ll see.
I never knew you had a YouTube channel–thanks for the link! And don’t worry, I’ll find a way to screw up that doesn’t involve punctuation. I’m pretty good at mispronouncing words…
» Posted By John McCrarey On 09/January/2025 @ 7:23 am
Thanks, Ginger. Maybe I’ll do one weekly.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 09/January/2025 @ 7:01 am
Kevin, there is nothing wrong with maintaining some skepticism regarding Musk, but there is no doubt in my mind that he is more trustworthy than just about anyone in the current regime. So, let’s see what he can do to make things better for us all and trust Trump to rein him in as needed.
My RSL shirt does indeed say Returned & Services League. It seems like a strange way to say those who served, but I don’t speak Australian, so what do I know? I’m an associate member, and it appeared to me that there are more Yanks in this Chapter than Aussies. RSL does a lot of charity projects and outreach efforts, so I’m happy to contribute to a good cause. Conversely, the VFW, which has a similar mission at its core, does not allow non-vets to participate. To each his own.
“Well, if you keep the secretary long enough, her tits will sag so low that they can sweep the floor, and she can become your cleaner as well.”
Spoken like a true HR professional! Well done!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 08/January/2025 @ 5:06 am
Brian, if people want to drive electric vehicles, more power to them. They are gonna need it! California is the perfect example of state overreach. Mandating all EVs by something like 2035. Meanwhile, the state cannot generate enough power to meet current demands. Tearing down dams, shuttering nuclear power facilities, and relying on unreliable solar as replacement sources isn’t going to work. Meanwhile, manufacturing all those lithium batteries isn’t good for the environment either.
Meanwhile, China continues to build coal-fired plants. They double their carbon emissions as we foolishly try and pretend we are going green. We are willingly being played for suckers.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 08/January/2025 @ 4:51 am
Kev, Regarding the abandoned houses, that one I posted yesterday is, or was, a good example. When I first saw it years ago, it looked almost livable. It’s huge, and I wondered why the owner just walked away from it. Or maybe they died. Over time, it has become the shell you see now. There is a sad story there, but I guess we’ll never know what happened.
As for the grumpy old man, I won’t resort to violence because even without CCTV, the foreigner is always wrong when there is an aggressive encounter, no matter who starts it. Swan and I had a brief exchange of words over the incident because I thought she was wrong to just walk away without defending herself or completing the candy delivery. I was up ahead and didn’t see or hear what was happening, or I definitely would have told the asshole to fuck off.
Thank you for taking the time to offer suggestions for future blogging topics. I’ll see what I can do with some of them. As for the HR lessons, damn, I’ve been out of the business for almost seven years now, and I might have a hard time remembering anything worthwhile. I’ll think about it and see what I might come up with.
It’s interesting to see cooking on the list. I was just thinking the other day how, since I’ve met Swan, I almost never cook. That thought occurred to me when I saw my crockpot sitting forlornly unused for months out of reach on the top shelf in the kitchen. We’ll see if I can get motivated to climb up and get it.
The travel suggestion is one I can and will tackle. I have a once-a-month goal for 2025.
Does the world really need another vlogger? I will think about some of the ideas you suggest, but since I have the perfect face for radio, it may be in writing. Then again, since I’m losing my grip on the keyboard, maybe video is my future. (You think what I publish is bad? You wouldn’t believe the quantity and nature of the typos and fuck-ups that I manage to catch.)
Anyhow, I’ll see what I can do to liven things up a tad here at LTG. Thanks again for the input!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 07/January/2025 @ 7:49 am
Brian, The beggars being almost polite is one of the things I noticed during my visit to Bangkok. They’d sit silently on the sidewalk with a cup in front of them and sometimes bow their heads as you passed. If you are going to beg, that’s the way to do it.
Well now, I DID get out of town for the New Year’s welcome! Totally on a whim, too. But yeah, I do tend to get comfortable and set in my routines these days. Swan and I just talked about doing an out-of-town adventure at least once a month this year. And she said our San Narciso trip counted for December, so we’ve got to come up with something for January. I’m also going to get off my lazy ass and plan that trip to Bohol that’s been at the top of my list of places to see in the PI.
Thanks for the encouragement!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 07/January/2025 @ 7:15 am
Terry, Kevin and I met in Korea years ago through our blogs. That was before I developed an interest in hiking. Kevin is a foodie, so our first meet-ups in person were in restaurants around Itaewon that I liked. Kevin doesn’t drink, but I did get him up to my Shenanigans hang-out once. After I became a walker, we did a couple of hikes together. I showed him some paths I used to climb Namsan, and he took me on an 18-kilometer ass-kicker river walk out near where he lives. Good times and nice memories!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 07/January/2025 @ 7:00 am
Kev, I pretty much agree with your assessment of the vlogger’s motivations. I certainly wouldn’t be happy in the environment he’s chosen. I recall looking at housing on the old Navy base, just like a place back home. But I wanted to live in the Philippines! Granted, I’ve taken a middle-of-the-road approach–chose an English-speaking country so I wouldn’t have to learn the language, live in an upscale neighborhood but be able to walk to the “real” world in five minutes, and have a large expat community to hang with. I think my biggest failure has been not making many Filipino friends (other than the female variety), but now I’m part of Swan’s family, so that’s a new aspect. When it comes to food, I like what I like, and almost every restaurant in my town offers lots of options besides the Filipino favorites. So, I tend to stick with what I know. Hell, even after all those years in Korea, I never acquired a taste for rice.
As for the cost of living, yeah, a Western lifestyle and imported goodies will come at a premium price. I could pay a lot less than $750. a month for rent, but I’m willing to pay for the comfort. You’ve seen my grocery bill at Royal every week. Still, I can live the lifestyle I’ve chosen cheaper here than I could in South Carolina (or Korea).
At the end of the day, I have few regrets about this life I’m living in the Philippines.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 06/January/2025 @ 10:03 am
Brian, Well, he learned that the hard way. I’ve got to give him credit, though. He kept pushing on despite his obvious discomfort. Not a lot of other options in that situation, but still…
» Posted By John McCrarey On 05/January/2025 @ 8:22 am
Kev, He was exhausted, so it must have been low TIRED pressure. He said his blood pressure was under 100 when he woke up that morning.
The wire on top of fences is a pretty standard security feature around here. That fence in the photo must belong to the neighbor because this house didn’t have a wall in the front. I looked at a house here as a potential rental with eight-foot-high walls and concertina wire on top. From inside, it felt like I was in prison. I couldn’t live that way.
The spelling and pronunciation of her name don’t really jibe. It sounds like “Shay” to me.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 05/January/2025 @ 8:16 am
Is this the “wooden-horse-race derby”?
You know, I never heard the name of the game, but that sounds spot-on. I thought it was cool how the horses were “handicapped” based on the frequency with which their number is commonly rolled (for example, horse #7 needs several more hits to reach the finish line than #3 does). Fun game!
Here’s some background on James Kavanaugh, a poet whose work I’ve always enjoyed. Nothing in there about his future wife having been kidnapped. I went and double-checked to make sure I hadn’t messed up when I transcribed his poem, and nope, he left out that comma. And then I came across this article about the Top Ten Authors Who Ignored The Basic Rules Of Punctuation, and Kavanaugh didn’t make the list. You might also enjoy this one about punctuation marks loved and hated by famous writers.
It is good to know I’m not the only fuck-up out there!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 04/January/2025 @ 7:52 am
Kev, Yeah, my crazy fantasy has become more of a goal now. I’m going to start working on gaining some distance and using the rest at 10K method to see if that works at increasing my endurance.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 05/January/2025 @ 8:20 am
Kev, on my comparatively short group hikes, I rarely sit down when others take a break to avoid stiffening up. I wake up every morning with stiffness in my legs, but I’m fine by the end of the dog walk. I’m going to try the rest break thing at 10K the next time I attempt a long trek.
I feel like my fantasy walk from San Narciso has become a challenge. I mentioned it to one of the group hikers yesterday, and he wants to join in if and when I do it.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 04/January/2025 @ 8:05 am
Wow, Brian, I’m impressed. I didn’t know you were also a distance walker. A hilly 35K trek is quite the accomplishment.
I was sore yesterday after my 14K jaunt, but walked it off during the group hike. I think next time I do a long one, I’m going to try the rest break at 10K thing and see how that works out for me. Thanks for the advice!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 04/January/2025 @ 7:57 am
Kev, Thanks for the YouTube link; I’ll check it out.
It had a wooden fence, as did most everywhere else we saw. It seems to me it could be easily breached, but not having it would make you a target for sure.
Lucky is the worst dog I’ve ever owned. Stupid and disobedient, with no sense of loyalty whatsoever. Buddy is the complete opposite, and he still has his balls, too. Buddy didn’t back down when attacked and gave every bit as much as he got. Lucky’s new life as the downstairs yard dog is still better than the one I rescued him from originally.
If I attempt that 29K San Narciso walk, I’ll likely walk home from there. If I need to wuss out halfway, I can grab a Jeepney on the highway. We’ll see. I’m a tad stiff and sore this morning from yesterday, but I plan to walk it off this morning.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 03/January/2025 @ 8:02 am
The problem is when I stop mid-hike to rest, I tend to stiffen up. I’ll test stopping and resting next time I do a long hike and see if I get re-invigorated. An advantage of walking home from San Narciso is that I can take a Jeepney back to Barretto if I get exhausted and a rest break doesn’t work.
I was younger and lighter when we did that 18K hike. I can’t remember; did we stop and rest on that one?
» Posted By John McCrarey On 03/January/2025 @ 8:08 am
Oddly enough, I hadn’t even noticed the octopus until you mentioned it. If that place ever reopens, I’ll get a close-up shot for you.
Yeah, maybe that shack isn’t ideal, but what do you really need? I spend 75% of my home time at my desk. It wouldn’t be hard for me to downsize.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 02/January/2025 @ 7:23 am
The Mope Resort is 29 kilometers from my house door-to-door. I measured the distance because I have a dream of walking it someday. Imagining that as we drove home yesterday had me thinking, “you must be crazy!”
» Posted By John McCrarey On 02/January/2025 @ 7:16 am
Just how many tiny cunts does Tiny Cunts have?
Let me apostrophe and get back to you on that! Yep, Tiny Cunt’s the only one. (I’m ending the year sloppy and stupid).
Yeah, it is just surprising how many partially finished houses we encounter out and about. Not to mention all the abandoned ones. I bet some of the background stories about what happened would be fascinating. And sad.
You’re a funny guy.
Except when I’m trying to be!
All the best to you in the New Year, Kevin!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 01/January/2025 @ 8:41 am
«« Back To Stats PageOver 7,000 islands (2000 inhabited) in the Philippines is impressive enough for me! More is not always better. We have a lot of Swedish expats here.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 31/December/2024 @ 6:23 am