When I’m posting this early in the day it means there isn’t likely to be any other time to do so later. I don’t like being in that situation, but since joining the dart league my Wednesday afternoon is committed. My mornings belong to the Wednesday Walkers group. I’m really going to be in a crunch today because the Walkers are going to tackle the climb to Tralala. That’s the highest point on the Kalaklan ridge and it’s brutal. I’ve written about it here and here. It’s funny, in revisiting those posts I always claim “I’ll never do that again!”. And yet, here I am almost looking forward to the challenge. One of the reasons is enjoying views like this:
We’ll catch a ride out to Gordon Heights in Olongapo and begin our climb to the top from there. Assuming I survive that, we’ll march back along the ridgeline then down into Barretto. It’s around 12K all-in.
I’ll let you know how it goes tomorrow.
A full plate yesterday as well.
Between lunch and dinner, I played some darts Alley Cats.
My friend, Bhel, finally had the surgery I had previously agreed to pay for. What was supposed to be a simple procedure, in and out with maybe an overnight stay in the hospital, has proven to be something else altogether. She spent six days hospitalized waiting for the surgery to be performed in what appears to me to be a fiasco of incompetence. It’s a “public” hospital and apparently, the care and well-being of patients is a low priority in such institutions. Not sure how much longer they will hold her post-surgery. It’s been a nightmare for her and I’m not sure what amount I’m going to be on the hook for, certainly much, much more than what I expected it was going to be paying.
Let’s just hope it goes better than my previous efforts at generosity have turned out.
I got a smile from this:
No rest for the weary–give this a watch (less than a minute long):
Alright, that’s enough for now. I’ll be back with a report on today’s hike, tomorrow.
*Billy, as you might have guessed, identifies as a male. But I see him/her as a biological female, and can’t seem to do the male pronouns. Not out of spite or any negative feelings about her sexual orientation. I guess I’m just old-fashioned. She’s never made an issue of it with me. I noticed the Filipinas do call her “kuya” (brother). Anyway, I consider Billy a friend that I respect and mean no offense by my choice of words.
You okay with the level of health care they provide in the Philippines? For yourself, I mean? Korean health care still leaves me leery, despite a week in a hospital (or maybe because of that week), and I can’t help thinking the quality of care would be better in the States, even if it’s not stellar.
On a totally different topic: what makes a Salisbury steak different from a hamburger patty? The presence of gravy and mushrooms?
I honestly didn’t know what makes it Salisbury, so I asked Google. Generally, the difference is the steak-like shape of the patty and the mushroom gravy is why it is not a hamburger. It seems some folks make an egg-based seasoning mix as well. I’m not sure what they add at Sit-n-Bull.
As far as health care goes in the Philippines, it kind of depends. You are screwed if you wind up in a public hospital, that’s for sure. The private facilities range in quality of services, but most expats speak well of Clark Medical Center in Angeles or St. Jude Hospital in Manila. If something major needs to be done and you are able to travel, people go to their home country or somewhere like Thailand for treatment. I just hope I never get that sick. I don’t think the quality of medical service here compares favorably to Korea, so you can gauge by that how things are here.
Re: healthcare – Thailand is good, IF you get into a private hospital. The quality of care you get in those rivals western countries, but of course you pay for it.
A guy of mine was in an accident in Thailand while riding in a taxi – window broke, glass got in his eyes. The “ambulance” took him a public hospital. When I got there couple hours later, he was sitting in a hallway, not having been seen by anyone yet, though it was pretty obvious he needed immediate attention. Got him moved to a private hospital and they took care of him. He lost an eye and in all honesty, he probably would have lost it even if he were taken directly to a private hospital, but I hate to think how much worse it could have been if he had to sit around at the public place for much longer.
Re: your friends surgery: Dont mean to pry, but what is/was wrong with her?
Re: Billy, from the pic, looks more like a guy, so I guess it is “working” for him/her. LOL
Yeah, it is almost criminal what goes on in these public hospitals. I know Thailand actually promotes medical tourism, obviously in their private institutions. My friend had something growing in her female plumbing is what I understand. She’s currently suffering from the catheter they’ve inserted.