No complaints about my Thirstday, but not much occurred that warrants inclusion in a blog post. Well, that’s never stopped me before, but at least this one will be short.

We hadn’t seen the homeless umbrella lady I call “Mama” for over a week, and I was actually worried about her well-being. We did a boring Barretto street walk that included walking the length of the National Highway through town, and we didn’t see her at any of the usual spots where she hangs out. Then we turned down one of the side roads, and lo and behold, there Mama was at a sari-sari store having a soda. It was a relief to know she is still okay. I’ve been tossing her some pesos whenever I see her since I was a tourist here. Someday one of us will be gone forever, and the other will never know what happened. Such is life.

After we got home, Swan showered and headed out to spend some time celebrating a friend’s birthday. I took care of my blogging chore, then got in a little darts practice (I’m still way too inconsistent to be competitive). Then it was time to get ready to head into town on my own.

I parked myself at Sloppy Joe’s and ordered my first beer of the day. San Miguel Zero is no longer available, so I’m back on the Light. Oh, well. I’ll adjust. I messaged Swan to see if she would be joining, and she told me not for another hour. She suggested I eat something because she had already had dinner with her friends.

When Swan arrived, she was on the back of a motor scooter with her niece Jane and Jane’s husband Mike (Jane is also my new housekeeper). We invited them to join us next door at The Green Room for drinks. After a round, Jane and Mike departed for home, and Swan and I went next door to Wet Spot for our nightcap. As is my custom, I bought lady drinks for Irene and Beth. A bit later, a “two-week millionaire” arrived and bought all the girls a drink. Irene and Beth asked to be excused so they could partake, and naturally, I agreed. I’m always happy for someone to buy the drinks so I don’t have to. I do appreciate when the gals ask permission instead of just disappearing.

I’d had my fill by then anyway, so we said our goodnights and triked on home. Even a blah day in the life ain’t so bad.

Still seeing lots of funny memes about that “stolen land” idea the left keeps pushing.

It is now April 2017 in the LTG archives. In this post, I’m still wallowing in self-pity, but I’m moving forward in the process of moving on. I began preparations for my move down south to Pyeongtaek and was still planning to re-retire in September. I also spent some time in Busan and at the DMZ. It’s been said that when one door closes, another door opens. That doesn’t mean the new door leads to a better place, but that’s life.

Today’s YouTube video warns against moving to the Philippines for the wrong reasons or in the wrong mindset. Yeah, I was running away from a painful past and looking for a fresh start. It took a while to find my way, but here I am, almost eight years later, and I have no regrets about my decision.

Are these what you’ve been waiting for?

Now it is on with the rest of my Friday. I’m going to chuck some arrows for practice. Later, I’ll hit Alley Cats and see if tonight’s tourney will be singles or doubles. I still don’t feel that confident in my game to avoid disappointing a partner, but we’ll see how I feel when I get there.