This is about as real as it gets around here I suppose. But I think sometimes it’s all a matter of perspective. On my morning walk today I passed by an old woman rocking on her porch. That was probably the best part of her day. It made me realize my life is maybe not as boring as I make it out to be. Later in my walk, I saw a foreigner out in front of his local-style hovel. He was also on crutches and when I looked closer I saw that he’d had a leg amputated at the knee. So here he is living a poor life amongst poor people and doing it with a significant handicap. Damn. Next time I complain about my lot in life will someone please slap me upside the head? Thanks!

I was back at Alley Cats last night for the darts tourney. One of the new girls there, Jez I think her name is, has taken an interest in the game. I’ve noticed when she is not busy with customers she practices throwing. And during the tourneys, I’ve seen her watching the games intently appearing to want to learn how to improve. So last night I paid her entry fee so she could participate in the tournament. The best way to get better is to play in a competitive environment. And in the category of no good deed goes unpunished, I drew her as a partner. Well, I don’t mean that in a serious way. Sometimes you get a skilled partner, sometimes you get someone inexperienced. I think the better players owe it to the beginners to be patient and helpful. So, I did my best to provide some coaching along the way. It was no surprise we didn’t make it to the money round, but we did win a couple of matches. Jez had some good throws but needs to work on consistency. Don’t we all.

I’ve got a singles league match scheduled this afternoon and hopefully, I’ll play well enough to win. I will report on that tomorrow.

And then there is Mary. I thought I’d rid myself of her “with a bang”. Well, Thursday she shows up at my house unannounced. That pissed me off and I told her how rude and unacceptable I found her behavior. I asked why she wasn’t in Manila and she told me she was leaving Friday and “wanted to see me” before she left. I wished her good luck and sent her away. Then yesterday she sends me a message saying she wants to see me. I’m like WTF? She’s supposed to be in Manila. I responded, “Sorry, I’m busy”. And then this morning my phone is blowing up with messages and calls. I never answer her calls, but the messages said “help me, I’m hungry”. According to Mary, she is in Manila now but someone stole all her money while she was riding in the Jeepney. She begged and pleaded with me to help her.

Well, I wasn’t born yesterday and this sure did smell like a scam. I told her to send me a picture from Manila. She sent something that was inside some type of non-descript shop. I said that’s not Manila. Then she sent a photo of people standing on the street. Except it looked posed and taken professionally. Well, I’m a soft touch I guess. I sent her $25 via Western Union and told her to never contact me again.

And oh, I had to have the name on her ID to wire her money. She’s not Mary. She’s not Mae (a Facebook name she used in the past with me). She’s not Baliwag Kamo, the name she is using on Facebook now. Turns out her real name is Ruhama Alcober. Anyway, once she picked up the money she deleted all of her begging messages. So yeah, I’m totally convinced now that she is just another lying scammer. I’ve blocked her on Facebook and Messenger now. Good riddance!

Alright, let’s move on to something more pleasant, shall we? About that morning stroll today, I did the every 1000 step photo thing again. So here you go:

And finally, via Facebook memories, I’m reminded that I was also doing important shit three years ago.

And the road goes ever onward until the ultimate dead end. Hopefully, I will still be around tomorrow!