Comments Posted By Kevin Kim
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Those amazingly blue skies.
Sorry to read that someone is trying to block off your trail. Why would he do that? You’re not trespassing or anything, are you? I sense there are a lot of little passive-aggressive turf wars going on in your region.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 04/October/2020 @ 8:57 pm
Budai, eh? A buddy of mine calls this divinity “Happy Charlie.”
(I feel as if I may be repeating myself, here. Have you mentioned Budai before?)
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 04/October/2020 @ 5:35 pm
The chili and cornbread look good!
You’re better off avoiding any female-related drama. After a while, the whole thing starts to feel as if you’re reliving high school, or at least a “Glee”-like TV version of it– all the free-floating pettiness and estrogen.
That bloated woman on the right (beach photo of whales) could’ve been me!
Enjoy the fruits of being a regular.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 01/October/2020 @ 2:25 am
I could’ve sworn I’d written a comment here, but I guess I didn’t.
So will you and your alternate-path machinations now be the cause of a Hash House schism?
Drama follows you wherever you go.
To be clear, though, I’m with you re: the idea of offering hard and easy paths. Your local membership is large enough to justify having a menu of options other than just “short vs. long route.” So give in to your inner liberal and change things up!
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 30/September/2020 @ 6:18 pm
Best be careful whose hind you a-lickin’, there, Jethro.
Congrats on the blazing-fast Internet connection. You’re doing all right for a tourist.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 28/September/2020 @ 8:40 pm
Brian,
I started out using two trekking poles during a 600-mile walk in 2008. I never got comfortable with that setup (too unwieldy and cumbersome), so I switched to using just one pole, and I haven’t looked back.
Not that I would ever dissuade others from doing the two-pole thing. If it works for you, then it works for you, and why argue with success?
So, John: how many Hashers use two poles when hiking? And what’s their opinion on the topic? I’m honestly curious.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 29/September/2020 @ 5:22 pm
Thanks, Brian!
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 28/September/2020 @ 4:30 pm
Thanks for the shout-out!
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 27/September/2020 @ 10:29 pm
Awesome pics. Too bad about the chair. Here in Seoul, the local Costco sells cheap-but-sturdy folding chairs that cost only W17,000 each ($14.50 at the current rate). I’ve used these for years, although I do occasionally think about upgrading. Now that your own chair has broken, will you be upgrading? Does your town have any traditional craftsmen who make sturdy chairs out of locally sourced materials? (traditional Filipino chairs, Google Images)
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 26/September/2020 @ 5:19 pm
We’re undergoing more and more restrictions on our liberties here in South Korea, too. The whole “wear a mask!” thing is increasingly becoming a matter of law and not merely a guideline. I don’t like the way things are trending. The leftist government, up to now, has handled the pandemic with a fairly light touch, especially compared to the blue states in the US. That’s changing now, unfortunately. But I don’t plan to mask up during my hike unless I’m inside a city’s limits. Lucky for me, I’m never in any city for very long.
In French, Cambodia is le Cambodge.
Keep on a-weatherin’ those storms!
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 25/September/2020 @ 7:21 pm
Your new backpack looks good! Not sure that the chest strap does much about taking pressure off your shoulders, though; that’s what a hip-belt assembly is for. Your pack looks to be too small to have a hip belt, though (or did I miss something?). I know what you mean about how, even if there’s very little weight in the pack, the pack can still cause aches and pains if you wear it long enough. I sympathize.
I also sympathize about the sharting thing. Walking is a simple, primitive, focused activity: life strips itself down to the bare essentials when all you’re doing is going from here to there, so of course your intestinal condition becomes much more of a concern. When you’re back in civilization, with all of its distractions, you don’t have the time or energy to think too much about your guts, but when you’re on the trail, what’s happening in your guts is of the gut-most importance! My most feared nightmare, when on the trail, is needing to take a massive dump and not having anyplace to do it because there are no trees or bushes to act as hiding places. There are stretches of the Four Rivers path that cut across flat, wide-open farmland where you’re exposed from all directions. I’d hate to get the urge to shit while out on one of those stretches.
Lady drinks for the ladies, and cookies for the villagers! You’re an all-year-round Santa!
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 24/September/2020 @ 8:06 pm
John, as others have mentioned, we all have to be thankful for your candor. Without that, we’d never be able to see and comment on the recurring behavior patterns that make your life so… interesting. I myself am pretty closed-mouthed about my personal life; I don’t think I’m brave enough to let it all hang out (of course, it helps to be living semi-monastically for the past couple of years). So, yeah: thanks for putting it all out there, however painful it might be for you to do so.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 24/September/2020 @ 7:05 pm
Yeah, Judy’s neediness is tripping all sorts of alarm bells and “Here We Go Again” warnings. If you follow the think-with-your-dick path, then you and Judy will succumb to naughty temptation, once or several times, and you’ll both eventually realize that that’s a toxic dynamic because, ultimately, you both have very different goals in life, not to mention very different notions of what counts as “love.” What feels good in the moment isn’t good for a long-term relationship. In the end, nothing new will be learned or gained by taking the phallic route. Based on this latest post, that’s not the route you seem to be taking, but you do strike me as tempted by the forbidden fruit. Yet again.
Sigh… it’s easy to be a stud when all the women are desperate or needy or cynical users. Is it really that hard to find someone who’s good and decent and caring and wholesome? Someone who’s not a psychological and/or financial train wreck?
This is why I keep saying you need to search outside your normal ambit, i.e., bars. Hashing has taken you out of one sort of comfort zone (and I respect you for that), but to find the woman you truly seek—assuming you’re seeking—you’re gonna have to remove yourself from some of your other comfort zones. If you refuse to change your bar-loving ways, then you’re trapped in this particular hell forever, paddling around in ever-tightening circles as you get older and the girls get younger every year. Eventually, the mud puddle dries up.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 23/September/2020 @ 9:57 pm
re: lack of a close quote
Ya’ got me. And, yes: the comma’s the thing.
The German had come for McCrarey, but this was terrain that McCrarey knew well, and the American would use that knowledge to his advantage.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 23/September/2020 @ 10:30 am
By the way, I thought you were doing a completely different trail from Guenter’s. (When you can’t type a U-umlaut in German, a “ue” is acceptable, with the “e” functioning as a replacement umlaut.) Are you still under his Teutonic thrall despite swearing off his paths?
Oh, yeah: ALT-0252 is the U-umlaut. Let’s try it:
Deutschland über alles!
It works! Ausgezeichnet!
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 23/September/2020 @ 1:08 am
Great pics of the Hash.
Regarding this:
“My Grammarly app says no comma after week, but I like it that way.”
Grammarly has a decent blog/website, but the app sucks. You’re right to put in the comma. Your “but damn” is shorthand for an independent clause (e.g., “I’d never seen her before, but damn she was hot.”) As explained in Lesson 1 of my comma series, using a comma-conjunction to separate two independent clauses is A-OK. It’s required, even.
As for the sentences with the heteronyms…
“5. He could lead if he would get the lead out.”
That’s supposed to be a second-conditional sentence (if-clause in the past tense, main clause in conditional [would] tense), such as “If I were rich, I’d buy a car.” Notice that sentence (5) above has the if-clause in the conditional tense. Wrong! Rewritten:
“5. He could lead if he got the lead out.”
If-clause in the past tense, if you please.
And then there’s number 18:
“Upon seeing the tear in the painting she shed a tear.
Something crucial is missing. What is it, and where does it go?
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 23/September/2020 @ 12:57 am
Happy hiking! Those pasta faces only make me hungrier.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 21/September/2020 @ 2:41 pm
John,
Good luck with the grilling. For the sear, your cooking surface needs to be cranked up until it’s insanely hot, i.e., the air is practically shimmering over the surface. A lot of people prefer cast-iron pans for that job: cast iron absorbs, retains, and evenly distributes whatever heat goes into it. It’s a bitch to maintain cast-iron cookware, but a lot of people swear by it. Maybe buy a cast-iron skillet and make your caretakers watch YouTube videos on the proper maintenance and “seasoning” of the equipment. That way, you don’t have to worry about maintaining your own cookware.
Anyway, the issue of overcooking the meat shouldn’t be a problem if you get the cooking surface ripping hot (literally smoking hot), then sear each side of the meat for no more than a minute. The center of the meat ought to remain pink. For videos on how to do this, I highly recommend Sam the Cooking Guy. He’s less of a chef and more of a home cook, but he’s got spot-on intuition when it comes to handling meat via grill or oven. You can learn a lot by watching any of his steak-related videos. Whenever he cuts open a chunk of meat, the result is always gently pink and perfect.
How do you say “Good luck!” in Tagalog?
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 22/September/2020 @ 2:58 pm
Yeah, those rib eyes look a little thin, not to mention a little pale. Ya’ gotta give ’em an aggressive sear so they get some color (and taste)! Traditionally, you sear the meat first, then lower the heat and gently “finish” the steak via gentle cooking. These days, though, it’s trendier to gently cook the steak first, then do a sear at the very end (this is called a “reverse sear” because the sear happens last, not first). Searing is done only when the cooking surface is smoking hot, and the meat’s contact with the surface shouldn’t be longer than about a minute per side.
Sorry to hear about your rough day, especially with bitchy Gina. Be sure to cut her off permanently next time. You don’t need that kind of crap happening in your own home. As for Judy, well… tread carefully. Adultery is illegal, and technically, you’re still married, too, no matter what your heart says regarding your marital status. Judy has a right to know your legal status. (Hell, the knowledge might make you even more of a naughty temptation in her eyes!) Truth in all things, especially relationships.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 20/September/2020 @ 6:00 pm
Sorry to hear about the nose, but…
“That is just about all I did today was hike.”
Please explain this. Is this the grammatical version of a pushmi-pullyu?
I’m yanking your chain, of course. I understand the meaning even if the grammar has radically mutated. Suggested repairs:
That’s just about it today. All I did was hike.
That is just about all I did today: hike.
That is just about all I did today—hike.» Posted By Kevin Kim On 18/September/2020 @ 10:33 pm
Today’s forecast: more of the same
I always appreciate the views of the lovely countryside. Thanks.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 17/September/2020 @ 4:13 pm
I’m stealing those political memes.
So was that a full-on pedicure? I’ve never had one of those. Do you recommend them?
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 16/September/2020 @ 7:31 pm
What sort of complaints did you receive? I can’t imagine there were that many, or that they were particularly severe.
Looks to have been a good Hash, all in all. And good food at the end!
Interesting use of a leaf as a plate. Welcome to SE Asia!
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 15/September/2020 @ 6:11 pm
Agh! My eyes!
“The men I please ARE none of your business”!
It’s always frustrating to me when a clever meme is undermined by the writer’s poor mastery of English. (That same meme is also missing a comma. I’m sure you can guess where.)
Hares don’t walk with the rest of kennel, correct? So I assume you’ll do your check-walk and just meet everybody at the On-Home location. Well, here’s hoping it’s a fun day with few to no complaints.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 14/September/2020 @ 2:30 pm
Good luck to all the people who follow your trail tomorrow! As for Karmic Catherine… I’d like to say that I hope she learns a lesson from all this, but I’m betting she won’t. Few people in this world learn the lessons they’re supposed to learn, yours truly included.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 13/September/2020 @ 6:48 pm
Well, a lazy man’s slaw is also easy to make:
1. Shred up a bowlful of cabbage. Mince into tiny bits if that’s the texture you prefer.
2. Shred up a single medium carrot (or half a large carrot). Mince if you prefer.
3. (optional) add a small handful of finely minced onion.
4. Add your dressing, plus some black pepper to taste. If you’re lazy, just dump a bunch of ranch dressing onto the veggies. If you’re a bit less lazy, mix together about 3 parts mayonnaise and 1 part pickle juice to make a decent slaw dressing.Voilà—homemade slaw! The prep time (gathering ingredients and equipment) is probably about 5 minutes; the time to make the slaw is probably under 10 minutes.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 12/September/2020 @ 3:56 pm
Good luck getting back into competition shape with the darts!
Surely you can do pulled pork at home with your slow cooker…?
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 12/September/2020 @ 2:47 pm
Bakla, huh? Don’t let the hidden snake in the grass become the snake in your ass, I guess. Heh.
Am currently belching up gyros. Life is good.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 11/September/2020 @ 8:38 pm
Good-lookin’ pork chops. As in most of Asia, they do the pig justice in the PI. You need to go with a group and get a huge-ass lechon, though.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 10/September/2020 @ 3:39 pm
«« Back To Stats PageAm surprised Janey is even talking to you. I gather she’s dealing with her own internal confusion. (Or is she just spitefully hectoring you now, for entertainment’s sake?) The Korean way: break up and cut ’em off completely. There’s closure that way, and any confusion is boxed up and locked away. As for Koreans who don’t do that: they’ve been hanging around too many Americans. Americans, who are often gluttons for unnecessary self-punishment, love to teeeaaase out the drama. Break up, get back together, break up, get back together… what a waste of time and life. I saw this all through college. Never understood it.
To be fair, if you break up with someone in a small town, everyone’s orbits and ambits are so restricted that you can’t help routinely bumping into your exes. That would feel stifling to me.
» Posted By Kevin Kim On 09/September/2020 @ 7:21 pm