Or should I just say, SMH? Things didn’t go according to plan yesterday, which can be frustrating. Still, we made do with our own alternative, and in the end, that proved to be as satisfying as our original intentions. Funny how that works.
Sat 24 May at 3.00 pm: BEACH run (men only). Start at T-Backs (Thunder Girls) bar. P100.
The Angeles Hash provided the above information regarding the BEACH run and my fellow SBH3 mates, Rob and Erik, were up for it. Swan was meeting some old friends of hers here, so I was free to join in the guys-only fun. Things went awry, and I’ll take some of the blame for that. When I saw “T-Backs,” I assumed they were talking about a restaurant/bar about a kilometer from my hotel. We arrived around 2:30, so we enjoyed a beer while we waited. Twenty minutes later, when no Hashers had appeared, I knew something was up. We asked our waitress about the Hash event, and she didn’t know what we were talking about. Then she suggested it might be at a bar named TBACs on Perimeter Road. Duh, we had walked right past it on our way here. So, we grabbed a trike and headed for the other bar with a similar name. And there were no Hashers there either. WTF? Seeing our perplexed faces, the waitress asked if we were looking for someone. When we mentioned the Hash, she told us they were coming at 6:00. Damn, so this must be the last bar on the hop. Now what? I checked the Angeles Hash Facebook page, and nothing was posted about the Beach Run. To hell with it, we ordered a beer and decided to do our own bar hop and finish here when the Hash arrived.
And that’s just what we did. The bar we went to next told us the Hash was coming at 5:30. We laughed about doing the barhop in reverse. But we enjoyed seeing some new places and having them all to ourselves.
I bailed at nine, but Rob and Erik kept going, all the way to the notorious Walking Street. It was a different experience barhopping in this part of town, and overall, I enjoyed it. We didn’t go big on buying lady drinks, but I rewarded a couple of the thirsty young ladies. I was back at the hotel before Swan. Damn, did I lose my balls somewhere along the way?
Oh, and when we ran into the Angeles Hashers later, I learned that they had started at Jollibee’s and did a 5K hike before beginning the barhop. Thanks for letting us know. (To be fair, the Hash webpage was updated, even if Facebook wasn’t. I just didn’t know about the web address. Now I do.)
Saturday’s report: 6041 steps. 4.64 kilometers. 3043 calories burned.
In January 2009, I wrote about the dynamic changes in Itaewon I had witnessed over the preceding four years. That only escalated after the Army Garrison at Yongsan moved down south to Pyeongtaek.
Today’s YouTube video deems Angeles foreigners to be “lowlifes.” Not everyone here is a whore monger, and even those that adopted that lifestyle have their reasons. Why judge? I preferred Barretto’s more laid-back lifestyle, but I understand why some like Angeles better. To each his own.
A moment for ZEN
Honk If You Love Peace And Quiet.
And some funny business:
Time for me to prepare for an Angeles-style Hash. I know where it starts, we’ll see how it ends.
I got a laugh at the different names for restrooms on the door to the toilet at this bar (Garfield’s Last Stand)
I’m surprised they didn’t have a good, British Isles expression like “the bog.”
Damn, so this must be the last bar on the hop. Now what? I checked the Angeles Hash Facebook page, and nothing was posted about the Beach Run. To hell with it, we ordered a beer and decided to do our own bar hop and finish here when the Hash arrived.
What did the Hashers tell you when they finally arrived? How were you supposed to read those directions/instructions? What’s with the sloppy “T-Backs” versus “TBACS”? How were you supposed to know what time to meet people after the walk? Where was the clear indication of the route’s starting point and endpoint (“Start at T-Backs” makes “T-Backs” the starting point, so what’s the endpoint, and how do you know? was the trail a loop?)? This is why it’s important not to be sloppy with language. Never let an illiterate idiot write your instructions.
Oh, and when we ran into the Angeles Hashers later, I learned that they had started at Jollibee’s and did a 5K hike before beginning the barhop. Thanks for letting us know. (To be fair, the Hash webpage was updated, even if Facebook wasn’t. I just didn’t know about the web address. Now I do.)
Wow, this must be Asia: rushed, last-minute changes (you said “updated”) that are poorly communicated. We get that all the fucking time in Korea. The sloppiness of a random, nonlinear life. The inefficiency that such sloppiness creates means you have to develop a “flow with it” mindset, but it’s still frustrating, even after twenty-some years.
I was in the local Costco on Saturday, and the place was a madhouse—worse than ever before. I remembered why I normally visit Costco on Tuesdays, a low-traffic day. Koreans mill around, stop suddenly and randomly, do 180s for no apparent reason, block aisles with no consideration for others, and generally act like selfish barbarians when they’re in crowds. Koreans one-on-one can be wonderful. In groups, well… that’s how you end up with stupidity-induced disasters like the horrific Itaewon crush a couple years ago (2022).
At least the sloppiness you encountered didn’t lead to 159 deaths.
Saturday’s report: 6041 steps. 4.64 kilometers. 3043 calories burned.
To clarify: that has to be 3043 calories burned for the day, not during such a short walk. I’d burn 3000 calories during a 25K-30K walk. But that calorie number seems high even if it factors in the entire day. A short walk plus a day’s worth of sitting? Is your Fitbit sucking again?
re: Jim’s “People who can’t find love buy it” (that video)
I saw this comment exchange on Instapundit between two older people:
Isn’t it nice not to fall in with toxic people? Loving relationships that last aren’t based on transactions, which is why I’ve been down on transactions all these years. If one selfishly thinks only in terms of benefits, one really doesn’t understand love.
Today’s YouTube video deems Angeles foreigners to be “lowlifes.” Not everyone here is a [whoremonger—one word], and even those that adopted that lifestyle have their reasons. Why judge?
Judging, in itself, isn’t a sin—it’s an indication that someone has principles and morals by which to navigate life. And a mere judgment doesn’t put any pressure on anyone else to change. All it is is mental (or outwardly expressed) disapproval. People who feel pressure from someone who judges probably feel at least a little guilty about how they’re living: the last remnants of their conscience. They’re not “being made” to feel guilty. If they really had no conscience, they wouldn’t feel a single twinge of guilt.
I liked Jim’s video, what he had to say. I could learn something from his example.
I know where it starts, we’ll see how it ends.
Wow, you really don’t know what a comma splice is. I didn’t think the error would reoccur in the very next post, but you’ve exceeded my expectations! Let’s celebrate the loss of brain cells with a few more beers!
Nightmarish thought: What if you successfully live to 85 but lose all awareness by 80, having melted your brain to slag through drinking? From Swan’s point of view, that’s a long time to linger as a drooling, pants-wetting, bed-shitting dependent. I really hope her love for you is unselfish. Non-toxic.
Have fun at the Hash (preferably better defined this time), Mr. Fly.
@Kevin To play devils advocate, IMO all relationships are transactional at the very base level.
What do (generic) you want/need from this relationship? What are you willing to give to get that? It may be happiness, it may be security, it may be a comfortable lifestyle, it may be money. And so you will do what it takes to satisfy those wants/needs. In the case you cite above, Mr T and his wife elected to put the other’s happiness above their own because they wanted a loving stable relationship.
I guess I am splitting hairs a bit, and obviously the Mr T/Mrs T relationship is vastly different (and much better) than a girlfriend for hire relationship. In the latter case for example, Anna Nicole Smith was willing to pretend she was in love with the 90(?) year old guy she married in exchange for money and security. In the former case, it is likely that no pretending was needed, but there still was a give/take aspect.
Anyway, just some random thoughts. LOL
Brian, I see what you’re saying, but if the transactional nature of the relationship is the focus (“What’s in it for me?”), this is little different from all of those ethical arguments that claim that all of our acts are ultimately selfish—a claim that gives all acts the same ultimate value, making it impossible to distinguish one act from another. That there are benefits arising from a good relationship is undeniable, but true solidity comes from the selfless giving that is necessary for the best relationships.
Personal example, which I trotted out when I gave a speech about love at my brother’s wedding (I officiated): when our mom was pretty far along with her brain cancer, I often wished for the Jesus-like ability to take her cancer into myself so that she could heal, and I could die instead of her. Had I somehow been able to acquire that ability, I would have gladly and unhesitatingly taken her place. A loving relationship has at its core an understanding of sacrificial commitment that mere transactional selfishness is inadequate to explain. Simply claiming that I derive benefits from the relationship fails to justify what makes it loving. If love is merely and fundamentally a trade, it’s not love. There has to be a sense that the two of you represent something bigger than either one of you alone.
The “everything is [quality X]” argument (e.g., “Everything is art”) fails because it makes makes quality X ultimately meaningless. Things are things only in contradistinction to other things. If everything is art and nothing is not-art, then the term “art” has no value as a descriptor. If a loving relationship is, at its base, no different from any other form of human relationship, wherein lies its value?
Kevin, The confusion was mainly my fault…I should not have assumed they’d post updates on Facebook like our Hash does. I should have made an effort to find the webpage. Also, Angeles Hash doesn’t seem to consider outsiders in their planning…Apparently, the Beach Run is always a hike + a bar hop. Now I know. But yeah, there’s no excuse for why they sent me faulty info on the starting point and never updated me. The AC Hasher I talked to said I was responsible for looking for updates on the webpage. Oh well, lesson learned.
Glad you enjoyed the video. I’ve proven over the years that I’m inherently a selfish bastard, and one of the manifestations of that is that so many of my relationships have been transactional. I’m not sure a leopard can change the color of its spots, but I’m trying.
I do understand the basic concept of the comma splice rule (a semicolon or conjunction should join two independent clauses). I’m just sloppy and/or lazy and don’t pay as much attention to the rules as I should. That’s apathy, not ignorance! 🙂
You guys make some great points. As a transactionalist myself, I tend to see relationships in that light. However, Kevin’s example of trading places with his mother was heart-rendering. Just because I’ve never experienced that kind of love doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. I think it comes down to the character of the individual. If you are wired that way, you won’t be able to give or get “true” love.
John,
Thanks for the comment. Alas, “heart-rendering” sounds like a model heart being rendered via a 3D printer. The verb to rend, however, means to rip or tear, so: “heart-rending.”
Kevin,
Your continued nagging of John on his drinking and grammar reminds of the discussion we had the other day about the meaninglessness of repeating the same actions and also the futility of my trying to discuss non-conservative viewpoints…
We all have our cross to bear!
I suppose we do, Paul. Like moths to a flame.
Daeguowl, When Kevin points out yet another grammatical error, I vow to do better as I ponder my mistakes while enjoying a beer.
I resemble that remark!
Kev, yes I know the difference between “rending” and “rendering.” I’m not sure why my fingers didn’t type it the way my brain told them to. I’m glad you got my intended meaning.