Comments Posted By Kevin Kim
Displaying 91 To 120 Of 4,392 Comments
The tampo is over, so what was the problem? Secret, couple-related stuff?
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 08/February/2026 @ 6:16 pm
Here’s a Tolkien of my appreciation.
Sometime in the past few years, I learned the proper pronunciation of “Tolkien” was “TAHL-keen.”
Good luck with darts practice.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 06/February/2026 @ 5:48 pm
So 50 First Kisses is basically 2004’s 50 First Dates. Ah, I see it’s a 2018 Japanese remake.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 07/February/2026 @ 4:46 pm
Kevin, you can’t forget it if you never knew it. Learning and forgetting is different [from] old-fashioned ignorance.
Huh? You just said you’d forgotten the lesson. You had written:
It’s not a matter of never learning, it’s about forgetting what I’ve learned.
So despite being exposed to the phrasal-adjective lesson again and again and again, you’re now going to plead ignorance (“never knew it”)?
The question Why do I bother? is always ringing in my head. I guess it’s the utterly irrational hope that you might try to rise to your potential as a writer, but all the roadblocks of laziness are in place: “Nope, too old.” “Nope, an old dog can’t learn new tricks.” “Nope, senility means everything is new again.” Nope, nope, nope. You do love that word.
God, why do I bother?
Anyway, for what it’s worth, my own operational definition of learning is: change of behavior based on experience.
Behavior is the observable, physical component. Experience is the mental/cognitive component. If I expose you to something but see no change in behavior, then I conclude nothing has been learned. I’m reminded of Sammy Jankis, a brain-damaged character in the movie Memento. Watch Sammy fail to learn which object on the lab table is wired to shock him. Again and again and again—never once learning.
When the memory goes, the past goes with it. Everything really is new again. That’s Mother Nature’s Monkey’s Paw way of granting a do-over life. You just did the thing, but since you don’t remember it, it’s like a fresh do-over. But what’s the value of doing something over if you can’t compare today’s triumph to yesterday’s failure?
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 06/February/2026 @ 3:04 pm
How is it learning if you forget?
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 06/February/2026 @ 10:50 am
The “rule” that you never end a sentence with a preposition (and never start a sentence with a conjunction) is a load of horseshit. The classic rebuttal to that false wisdom: “That is not something up with which I will put!” No one ever says this. The expression “to put up with” is what we call a petrified expression, i.e., it’s frozen that way. The “with” stays at the end. See more here.
As for this:
Today’s YouTube video is from Reekay. I was honestly surprised when I saw him discussing the concept of what I call a “do-over” life. Yeah, let me go back to being an 18-year-old taking everything with me that I’ve learned over these past fifty-two years. I know, be careful what you wish for. Beyond the impossibility of time travel is the reality that the different roads I’d like to explore would mean missing out on all the good things I’ve experienced on this version of life’s journey. It’s only a dream.
And what was his conclusion, pray tell? To keep pining for your fantasy? No, he said pretty much what I said, which was…?
Then there’s this:
a tax-paying citizen
a six-foot-tall man
a violent-weather seminar
your passive-aggressive behavior—and we finish with John’s:
I went with my old favorite, the pulled pork sandwich.
Sigh… you’ll never learn.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 05/February/2026 @ 8:07 pm
Regarding the bladder, she seemed concerned when I told her how frequently I urinate (every two hours or so when sleeping), and that I’m having some bladder control issues (when I gotta go, I can’t hold it. Even peed my pants once in Vietnam). Anyway, I’ll be back next week when the results are in, and we’ll see where things go from there.
Q: How do you plan to handle your bladder’s future?
A: Depends.They are still shit almost nine years later, but the good news is they have not deteriorated to the extent that they might have had I not begun my daily inhaler meds regimen.
Do you think your walking routine has helped keep the lungs clear?
That sounds oddly familiar.
I was sure that that was going to end with some kind of poop punchline.
Keep on walking.
As for gut reduction: Good idea, but also focus on visceral fat.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 04/February/2026 @ 9:23 pm
Good luck with Dr. Jo. Is this a routine appointment or a specially scheduled one?
Scenario 1: routine appointment, but I just happen to have questions
Scenario 2: special appointment because something pressing has come upDoes Swan ever nag you about your health, or is that a forbidden topic? Is she just biding her time, waiting for her inheritance? I assume she’s in your will.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 03/February/2026 @ 5:22 pm
Yep, still dreaming of getting a “do-over life.”
You’d better go read my review of the ultimate do-over movie.
The guys who are usually roasting pigs were making pancit yesterday. That wood-fired stove they built is quite impressive.
The guy seems to be squatting on the stove itself. No heat transfer to where he is? If not, that is impressive. Or the nerves in his feet are dead like mine.
A passing dragon with a full load of beachgoers.
That dragon looks way too happy for something carrying a bunch of humans on its back. I’m guessing it hit a crack pipe before heading out into the water.
Life is good, enjoy it while you can.
Corrected:
Life is good; enjoy it while you can. (or)
Life is good. Enjoy it while you can.Comma splice. Maybe if I attached electrodes to you, you’d remember….
re: parking-lot joke
3 mistakes in the 1st paragraph.
3 mistakes in the 2nd paragraph.
3 mistakes in the 3rd paragraph.
2 mistakes in the last paragraph.re: horse-riding joke
She’d have had more fun riding a Sybian. She’s blonde, after all.
I hope the Hash went well.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 02/February/2026 @ 9:12 pm
So, there’s no point in wasting your time being an asshole.
I’m tellin’ ya’, man: civil, succinct, and relevant. Everything else goes in the trash or gets banned if banning is possible. That’s the policy. Can you ban IP addresses?
Why, yes, you can! See here from the AI god:
WordPress blogs can ban IP addresses to stop spam or malicious traffic using built-in settings, plugins, or server-level configuration. The easiest method is adding IPs to Settings > Discussion > Disallowed Comment Keys. For stronger security, use security plugins (e.g., Wordfence, All In One WP Security & Firewall) or edit the .htaccess file.
ICY hot, you mean.
That ass is nice for now, but wait ten years, and it’ll be overflowing. Western women who look like that almost never maintain that look for long. Hence all the surgery. (Not that vanity is unique to Western women, of course, nor to the female sex.)
They must have heard us coming!
With that weird pole/branch off to the side, this looks like a Stephen King scenario, as though the kids plan to eat your souls.
What more do you need?
The torch on the phone came in handy on our way back down into town.
Looks a little bit like some uphill walks in Seoul.
Enjoy your lazy day of bliss.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 01/February/2026 @ 6:16 pm
re: darts
Congrats on doing better than you’d thought you would. Have fun!
Won my first game there before getting knocked out of the tourney by Pierre.
Lucky Pierre, am I right?
It’s February 2017 in the LTG archives, and in this journey through the past, I tell the story and share photos from one of the best days I ever had as a tourist in the Philippines (back in 2008).
So! Go back to 2017 to read about 2008. What are we, time travelers?
re: “younew 4 x 4”
I guess that’s “your new 4 x 4.” Or is it a word I don’t know?
That wife is worth keeping, you can bank on it!
Comma splice.
BETTER: That wife is worth keeping; you can bank on it!
ALSO BETTER: That wife is worth keeping—you can bank on it!
PROBABLY BEST: That wife is worth keeping. You can bank on it!» Posted By Kevin Kim On 31/January/2026 @ 11:14 pm
I don’t think I ever registered the “n,” either.
Yesterday, we finally got the grocery shopping done, and I paid in cash, about 22,000 pesos worth (7000 at YBC, 15,000 at Royal). Talk about a thick wallet!
About $370, US, according to Google.
So you got these right:
lower-case “n”
post-paid unlimited data planBut then—
cell phone bill
sporting goods store
50 peso tipLearn the damn rule, man. (“Which rule?” he asked for the twentieth time.)
How much to Barretto? “400 pesos,” the driver responded. I said the metered taxis outside are only 250. He shrugged and said, “Fixed [pricing.”] I shrugged and said okay,
Why not find a metered cab for 250?
We walked to the SM Mall across the river (and off SBMA) and caught a cab there. This one didn’t have a meter either, but the quoted price was 300 pesos. I added a 50 peso tip when we arrived safely in Alta Vista. And no, it is not about the money; it’s about being scammed.
But weren’t you scammed just then, at 350? Why not find the metered, 250-peso rides you’d mentioned?
Your grammar still sucks, but I hope the darts went well.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 31/January/2026 @ 2:27 pm
Grade grubber. All the bad students are.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 31/January/2026 @ 12:35 am
Don’t capitalize “psychiatrist.”—yes.
I’d make three sentences into one: Put a semicolon after “it” and a comma after “scared.”—No comma after “scared”: use a semicolon. Otherwise, it’s a comma splice. But really, if those three sentences are the ones I think they are, they don’t need to be fused into one sentence. They’re fine as they are.
A comma after “week”—yes.
A comma after “it”—yes. And after “needed.”
A comma after “later”—yes. And de-capitalize “psychiatrist” again.
Don’t capitalize “eighty”—yes.
A comma after “visit”—yes.
A comma after “year”—okay.
Capitalize “And” in the quote—yes. Start of a new sentence, not a continuation of a previous sentence.So the moral of the story is that there are a lot of comma and capitalization idiots out there. I’d add that the final en dash (–) should be an em dash (—) with no spaces on either side of it, but I wouldn’t expect you to catch that one since we haven’t gotten to punctuation on Substack yet. We’re currently marching through adverbs.
For what it’s worth, and we’re getting really technical here, en dashes are for numbered intervals while em dashes have several functions, including marking dramatic pauses.
• Read pages 40–60.
• I told you a thousand times—Don’t open that coffin.But this is where I have to confess to my own sloppiness: I almost never use en dashes for numbered intervals. I always use hyphens because I’m lazy, and no one notices.
en dash: Read pages 40–60.
hyphen: Read pages 40-60.Remember not to use hyphens/dashes if you start your interval with the word “from.”
WRONG: He was president from 1861–1865.
RIGHT: He was president from 1861 to 1865.If you use “from,” you have to use “to.” Otherwise:
• Read pages 40–60.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 30/January/2026 @ 2:28 pm
Nice walk.
Gary is getting down under this fence that wasn’t there the last time we passed this way.
Are landowners casual about this sort of trespassing? Or is this not trespassing despite the new barrier?
The other side of my pleasure coin is lifting a bottle or ten of beer when the sun is almost done for the day.
I hope it was closer to “a bottle” than to “or ten.”
I went with the chicken quesadilla and was pleasantly surprised by its meaty goodness. I hereby declare it the best quesadilla in town.
Looks good… but are there hidden onions?
Oh well, I made smoothies instead when I got home.
I’d like to see a homemade banana split.
See, sometimes drinking leads to a cure.
What errors do you see in that meme?
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 30/January/2026 @ 12:16 am
My own comments policy: civil, succinct, and relevant. Oh, and no anonymous commenters. Screen names are okay; real names are better. Uncivil comment? Not published. Overly long-winded comment? Not published. Irrelevant comment? Not published. Makes life easy. And life is too short to spend it putting up with bullshit.
Sorry to read about your ATM/cash problems, as well as the fraudulent transactions back in the States. So your bank issued you a credit card? I have a debit card from my own bank (PNC), but you had written:
So, my credit card is now unusable.
I confirmed the cited transactions were fraudulent, and the bank has now cancelled my card and mailed a new one to my USA address, for all the good that does me.
Anyway good luck in the future.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 29/January/2026 @ 12:46 am
You’re lucky to have the one you got.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 28/January/2026 @ 6:13 pm
Had some beers at the On-Home venue before departing halfway through the Circle to make my way back down Rizal Extension for the after-Hash gathering at It Doesn’t Matter.
Is there usually a schedule conflict between the Hash Circle and the after-Hash gathering? And are the Circle and the gathering always at different places? I guess I haven’t been paying attention all these years. I thought the On-Home venue was it: Circle plus gathering all in the same place. I must be blind.
Where dreams die. Someone cleared this lot and built this residence a couple of years ago. It’s been abandoned for more than a year now.
All that effort, eh?
There’s that “crazy guy” beggar I mentioned in yesterday’s post, plying his trade with the Hash gals. Yeah, I gave him the usual 50 pesos.
Have you told him directly that giving to beggars is illegal? I’d like to see video of that.
re: that Smart Girl Philippines video
She does mention staying away from bar girls. You could’ve saved yourself years of heartache and wasted time.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 27/January/2026 @ 5:10 pm
The rare funeral banner featuring someone older than me.
Average life expectancy for Filipino men is 67-68 years. You’re already a winner!
And lo and behold, it was Frank the Frenchman and his lovely lady, Ligaya.
Frank is looking remarkably fit and trim! I imagine that’s because Ligaya sucks out his life-force every night to keep it from overflowing.
Chicken enchiladas for me. They weren’t warm in the middle, which was disappointing.
Always sad when that happens. Did they pull it out of the freezer or something? Obviously little to no quality control going on in the kitchen.
Today’s YouTube video is an interesting discussion on beggars in the Philippines.
Ah, yes—from the AI “girl.” Nice. But the script does make some good points.
Who knows what HTMI stands for?
Not me. I do know that “TMI” stands for “too much information.” But the “H”?
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 26/January/2026 @ 6:03 pm
John,
Having walked the perimeter trail/path around Jeju, I agree with Dr. Greg. But have fun with that Jeju accent. Oh, right… you don’t speak Korean!
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 26/January/2026 @ 10:29 am
It’s funny how just fifteen days can make everything seem almost new and different. I like that.
In Vietnam, weren’t you and the girlfriend agreeing that 15 days = too long?
Rest in Peace, Allan. The pain is over now.
I should troll your archives to find out who Allan was and what his problem was.
According to my Facebook post, it was -13 that day.
The return of the pursed, inflated lips!
And you’ve returned to the comfortable routines. Again, welcome back.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 25/January/2026 @ 7:48 pm
Quite an adventure getting back. Can’t say I envy you. I, too, hate narrow layovers between flights, but when purchasing tickets, it’s hard to spread the flights out. At least you made it back safe and sound, and you didn’t do caca all over your airplane seat. I’d call that a win.
I’d rate this one an X.
Your use of the article “an” forces me to pronounce “X” as “ex.” Had you said, “I’d rate this one a X,” using the article “a,” I’d have thought, “a ten.” So I guess, since it’s “an X” and not “a ten,” you didn’t like the pvn.
Anyway, welcome back.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 24/January/2026 @ 9:03 pm
So long as you didn’t blast diarrhea into your airplane seat, I imagine it’s all good.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 24/January/2026 @ 1:20 pm
When itis your last night in Vietnam and you are hungry, where are you going to eat?
I had a bad case of whenitis once. Every time I took a piss, there was this burning sensation, and I would reflexively shout, “What the fuck day is this?!?”
An American diner named Fly Burgers, of course.
– So, you flew all the way to Vietnam! How was the food?
– It was, uh, great!And now it is time for me to get ready to fly. Da Nang (DAD) to Saigon (HCM) to Manila (NAIA), [t]ake off at noon and arrive in the PI at eight o’clock tonight, assuming things stay on schedule. I’ve arranged for a driver to take us back to Barretto, so hopefully, I’ll wake up tomorrow in my own bed. Looking forward to getting back into my routines again.
As Saavik fatefully said to Spock, “May your journey be free of incident.”
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 23/January/2026 @ 6:32 pm
Kevin, I never knew Itaewon was crass and tacky. Although I hear it is best avoided on Halloween.
The fish doesn’t realize it’s surrounded by water, either.
May your trip back be problem-free. Sorry about your cryptic loss.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 23/January/2026 @ 3:00 pm
I wrote:
“Feed me BQ and tell me I’m dirty”
Sorry—BBQ.
Safe trip home.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 23/January/2026 @ 2:14 am
Don’t ask me…
Okay, so that Korean sign says (line by line):
• men/women golf-club rental
• high-quality luxury goods
• premium clothing
• clothing for golf—basically, you’re back in Itaewon, where everything is crass and tacky.
…I haven’t got a clue.
The neon (with hearts) says: “Da Nang! I’m glad I came to Montana.” I assume that’s a “Montana” sign on the right-hand edge, too. I see a “Mo.” And right below it, in hangeul, it says, “Monta…”
On the blue “Ann Market” sign, the white-font Korean says, “Convenience store, supermarket.” Down lower, the yellow-font Korean says, “Da Nang Specialty Items.”
A kiss for luck[,] and we are ready to order.
I could’ve sworn the neon on the wall said, “Feed me BQ and tell me I’m dirty.” Took me a sec to realize it said “pretty.”
A heaping helping of grilled meat platter.
I hope the slaughtered sentient beings went down easy. But don’t visualize their suffering, no, don’t do that. Don’t imagine how each of those animals had a mom and a dad, how they had lived in peace on a farm somewhere, how they had inner lives—thoughts and dreams. Science only just discovered that cows are tool-users. But don’t let any of that bother you, you… filthy cow-eater. PETA has a special place in hell all ready for you and everyone like you! Now, pass me that burger.
A closer look of our dinner for two.
I assume “of” = “at.”
But we both agree, Da Nang is a nice place to visit, but we wouldn’t want to live here.
From what I saw, it’s got its touristy parts, but it’s also got plenty to explore if you can get past the heat and humidity (of which there didn’t seem to be much this time around). I don’t see how you could possibly run out of things to do there.
That’s at least an hour too far.
Good luck walking over the ocean… unless you’ve got Jesus-y superpowers.
I do enjoy it here, but the Philippines is a better fit for my life’s final chapter.
Overall, did the Vietnamese seem to have gotten over America’s role in their history? Or is that more of a generational thing, with the older, resentful generation now dying out? I normally complain about how the younger generation of Koreans has forgotten history, but maybe in Vietnam’s case, youthful forgetfulness of the past is a good thing from a white man’s perspective. I dunno. You tell me. I can’t imagine the same level of forgive-and-forget in a heavily Muslim, Middle Eastern country. But what do I know?
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 22/January/2026 @ 7:18 pm
I guess enlightenment brings about losing a fear of snakes. Funny how a snake played a completely different role in Christian/Jewish theology.
That’s a good point. I wonder what Carl Jung and Joseph Campbell would have to say about that.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 22/January/2026 @ 12:37 pm
I liked the caves the last time you went in, and this time didn’t disappoint, either.
The wheel in the sky keeps on turning.
That’s the 8-spoked wheel of the dharma, symbolizing the 8-fold path that is the Buddha’s Fourth Noble Truth: right views, right intentions, right speech, right conduct, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration.
The Four Noble Truths are:
1. All life is characterized by dukkha (often translated as suffering, but the word covers everything from a faint twinge of annoyance to dying painfully on a cross; it’s more like “unsatisfactoriness”).
2. Dukkha is caused by tanha (desire, thirst, etc.).
3. Eliminating tanha eliminates dukkha (no desire, no suffering).
4. The way to eliminate tanha is via the Eightfold Path (described above).This isn’t like commandments handed down in the spirit of “obey or else.” This is more of a “see for yourself” kind of thing. Live the path, and if it proves untrue for you, then seek another path. Buddhism doesn’t force or demand “conversion.” But if you live wrong, you can expect consequences—not because some god will punish you, but because the universe simply is this way. Action, consequences. Eat too much, get fat. Drink too much, lose brain cells faster. Be an asshole, lose friends and make enemies.
A tower on the mountain.
And again, you see all of those 8-spoked dharma wheels on the pagoda.
A dragon lair.
Those are likely Indian nagas which, through a Chinese lens, are made to look more like dragons. There’s a lot of naga imagery in places like Thailand, too. In Korea and Japan (and, I think, in China as well), you’re more likely to see out-and-out dragons. A naga is a snake divinity. I think the Buddha, after the day of his great enlightenment, was supposed to have been protected from rain by an umbrella of nagas as he continued to meditate. I don’t think this tableau is of that moment, though: I see at least eight dragon/serpent heads, and the nagas who had protected the Buddha belonged to a seven-headed god.
Thank you for the blessings.
Now, that’s the Buddha! Looks made of whipped cream, though. Is that what happens when you gain enlightenment? You turn into whipped cream?
Damn, now I’m hungry.
I had to give the Philly cheesesteak a try, and I was not disappointed.
Looks good, but small and stingy.
Damn, those tacos were beefy and delicious. Poor Swan won’t be able to get her weekly fix in Barretto now that John’s place is closed.
As I’ve said before: Learn to make them! Swan still sells meat from a distributor, doesn’t she? She should hook you up with a discount and buy a pile of good meat for birria. Personally, I’d get skirt steak, which is a beautiful cut, but I think traditionally (if you’re not using goat), the best beef cuts are chuck, oxtail, and short ribs (like galbi).
re: wiretap meme
Jesus, ain’t that the truth.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 21/January/2026 @ 6:02 pm
«« Back To Stats PageI’ve heard of miracle stories in Buddhism (e.g., Bodhidharma crossing the Yangtze while standing on a reed), but few about the Buddha himself. But apparently, legends about the Buddha grew like an encrustation around him. There are many such legends. Google “Buddha miracle stories,” and you’ll find a trove. Are they historically true? No. But it’s the sort of veneration that you’d expect from followers trying to bolster the reputation of their movement’s founder. I take miracle stories in the Bible to establish Jesus’ authority and glory. A lot of people mistake the Bible for a history book. Some aspects of the scripture are archaeologically verifiable (e.g., which king lived when), but a lot of biblical figures are essentially pious fabrications, there to make a moral point, not to be used as evidence that the Bible is historical fact. No, it’s better and safer to view scripture through the lens of metaphor and symbolism than as literal history. Besides, I don’t get why so many people have the urge to use “historical fact” to justify their faith. Faith alone should be enough for these people. Sola fide, as the Protestant doctrine goes (“faith alone”).
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 22/January/2026 @ 1:01 pm