Born and raised in southern California. My career exodus has taken me to Arizona, Oklahoma, Arkansas, South Carolina, Virginia, and Washington, DC. And as of 23 January 2005, Seoul, Korea. Married with 6 grown children (blended family). First grandchild is in the oven! I created this blog to document my adventures as an expat living and working in Korea. I'm also pretty confident that I will on occasion feel the need to express my views on current events and other matters I find of interest.
I’ve had better days but on the spectrum of my life, yesterday wasn’t anything to complain about. Not much to write about either though. I was feeling a little blah and uninspired. Took a shorter than usual morning walk and did a one-hour afternoon walk all within the confines of the neighborhood. A little internet and some blogging and that was just about it.
Damn it! I hate when that happens!
I did go out and enjoy a few beers at Cheap Charlies last night. Then moved up the highway to Palm Tree for a couple of more. Ran into one of my neighbors, a guy named Tony, there and he shared his story with me. He’s a Brit who first visited the Philippines while he was working in Hong Kong. When Tony returned home to the UK he met a Filipina in the grocery store where he shops. They dated and then married when she was 40 and he was 45. She almost immediately got pregnant for the first time in her life. Shortly before giving birth, she was diagnosed with some form of bowel cancer. She had a son and then died three years later. With the help of his family, Tony raised the child. When Tony turned 56 he took early retirement and moved to the PI with his son. The boy is 13 now and doing well. Tony also told me tales of being scammed by Filipinas since moving here, but honestly, I think I’ve got him beat in that department.
I’m pretty sure I’ve posted this here before, but I like it so here it is again.
We had a night full of thunderstorms which is quite unusual for this time of year. The rain had stopped by the time I took the dogs out for a walk this morning.
I’m pretty sure that is smoke from the locals burning shit, but maybe it is some amazingly low clouds. I do like the way it looks though.
And it looks like we are in for another erection.
This banner just went up near the community center. It is kind of unusual to build a one-story house in this neighborhood. I can only think of one other one. Seems to defeat the purpose of living in a place called Alta Vista. Still, if I built here (and I won’t) I’d go small too. I’d probably build it on top of a garage with a deck on the roof or something though.
What else? Oh, Fitbit emailed me my stats from 2020 this morning:
MOST ACTIVE DAY: March 28. You logged 34,568 steps on this day. Nice work!
TOTAL STEPS: 6,450,022. That’s like walking the length of a cruise ship 16,266 times.
TOTAL MILES: 3099. That’s like crossing the English Channel 148 times
Well, thanks for letting me know Fitbit. I just did the math and see that I failed to achieve my goal of a daily average of 20,000 steps. I only managed 17,671 a day. Damn it. Well, I’ll consider it motivation for this year. And I don’t give a shit about the English Channel but I did walk enough miles to have traveled coast to coast in the USA. So there’s that.
Hmm, I posted on Facebook about Biden canceling the Keystone pipeline and the usual liberal heads exploded. I started to engage the debate, actually writing a response, then thought why bother? And so I didn’t.This one made me smile and brought back memories of my days as a mailman.
One cold winter’s day in December I was putting mail through the door slot of a house on my mail route. A woman opened the door and invited me in for a hot chocolate. Well, damn, that sounded good so I said yes, thank you! As she was serving me, her robe came open and I could see her smoking hot body through the negligee she was wearing underneath. One thing led to another and we wound up in the bedroom doing the deed. When we had finished, she smiled and hand me a dollar. I asked her what is this for? She responded “I don’t know. I asked my husband what to give the mailman for Christmas and he said fuck the mailman, give him a dollar!”
Alright, that didn’t really happen. It’s just an old letter carrier joke. I did have some nice adventures and encounters with customers on my route, but always after duty hours.
This made me laugh too. I really hate talking on the phone these days. I hardly ever understand what is being said.
Alright, I suppose that’s just about enough of this nonsense. More to come tomorrow, maybe even something of substance! Well, comparatively anyway.
Eight hearty hikers and eight scenic kilometers. The stars aligned, the gods smiled, and for those brief moments in time, the world was in balance. Okay, perhaps I’ve engaged in some hyperbole. It was an interesting hike though, and documenting that journey here hopefully fulfills my obligation to post something “interesting” today.
We began our trek with a longish jeepney ride out to Philseco in Subic town. Then we commenced walking through the scenic countryside and didn’t stop until we reached our destination–The Roadhouse in Castillejos. We opted not to do a big climb, irking a couple members of our group, but it was a pleasant walk and plenty enough challenging for me.
You can Relive it here:
Our path as seen from above…This week’s Wednesday Walkers.Didn’t see anyone paddling up this creek.Heading for the hills…Leaving the pavement behind for a while…Hello there children…We didn’t do a big climb, but that’s not to say our path was flat either…But we had enough altitude for some pleasant vistas.Only one water crossing but most of us managed to muddy our shoes…There’s humor in this photo. For whatever reason, the cows and carabao are attracted to Gary. At least he’s been chased a couple of times. He gave this one a wide berth, but you can see the cow giving him the eye. Another cookie delivery. You can tell by the dark skin and curly hair that these are native Aeta children.Those kilometers aren’t going to walk themselves!On and on we go.Mountain views…Water views…Rice paddy in bloom…After the harvest…And still we march.I think these are mango trees…This always cracks me up. Drying the rice on the road. Hey, maybe that’s why there are two lanes…one for the farmer and one for everyone else…After the Mount Pinatubo eruption in 1991, the native Aeta were moved to several resettlement locations, including here in Castillejos.Posing in front of a local resort that might be an option for an outstation Hash run someday…I loved how they constructed this fence right up against the trunk of this tree…I just liked this tree for some reason.I guess you could say the proverbial writing is on the wall.Over the river…What’s bugging you, Scott?And finally, we made it to Roadhouse. It’s been a long time since we’ve been out this way.
I truly do enjoy our out of town walks. Mostly because I like walking new paths and seeing new views. It enhances the adventure. So, it was a good day in that regard.
After a couple of brews at Roadhouse, we caught a bus back to Barretto. That was just a matter of good timing. We were waiting for a jeepney empty enough to accommodate us when the bus rolled up. The fare is not much higher and the ride is way more comfortable. We got off at Cheap Charlies, our traditional watering hole, for more beers and lunch. I took some flak for ordering a Hawaiian pizza. Hey, pineapple needs love too!
Came home and took a much-needed nap, then it was time to get ready for darts. Didn’t finish in the money though. Hey, win some, lose some.
And that was another day in the life. It may not be much but I’m glad to have it.
A nothing kind of day leads to a nothing kind of post. But I will not be deterred! I take the day off from walking on Tuesday so there’s not even that. But today was much busier than normal which is why this post is going up so late. I’ll post about today tomorrow.
So, Tuesday is grocery shopping day and I got that accomplished. Changed that activity up a little by visiting Pure Gold supermarket to try and find the things that are always out of stock at Royal. Then went to Royal for the things they do have that Pure Gold doesn’t. Exciting stuff, eh?
I did see this sign in Royal that I hadn’t noticed before. It made me feel good that crazy people from all over the world could come together in Aisle 4.I also scored some coveted kimchi. Not the brand from Korea I usually buy which has been out of stock. This was made here in the Philippines but it went well (or better than nothing anyway) with the Korean chicken wings I brought home from The Pub resto last night.
What else did I accomplish? Well, I managed a second-place finish in darts, so there’s that. And that’s pretty much all there was. But I did spend some quality time on the internet and came away with these gems:
Via Facebook memories comes this photo taken of me 30 years ago. I’m not as young as I once was but I’m as young now as I’ll ever be…Four years ago this was the view from my apartment in Seoul. I miss Korea but not so much the winters.And oh, by the way, FUCK YOU Facebook!Happy Birthday, Martin. I’m sure you would be disappointed with the newest version of racism from the Democrats.I have my doubts that Shakespeare really said this, but I do appreciate the sentiment.Saw this in a bar and I have to admit it resonates…Sad but true…Well, I did pay in advance for future services from Catherine. What am I gonna do when she shows up at my door with her young daughter claiming to be hungry? Since then she has been messaging me daily to fulfill her promise. So far I have not bothered to respond. I guess you might say I can’t be fucked to meet her.And I’d also like to thank my loyal readers for putting up with bullshit posts like this one.
Here is the report concerning my participation in the one thousand four hundred twenty-eighth running of the Subic Bay Hash.
As the title of this post suggests, it was a good trail overall. It began with a climb from hell though. I’d done that up once before so I knew what I was in for and I wasn’t disappointed. Chants of “never again” with each step up did seem to give me a helping push. I guess it’s kinda like that story “The Little Engine That Won’t”. Yeah, I’m being a little overly dramatic. It was harder and steeper than I like but I did make it to the top so there’s that.
Once the initial climb was completed it was pretty much smooth sailing. The trail was well-marked and familiar (we’d done some of it a couple of months ago on one of our group hikes). There was a second uphill portion but that was a breeze compared to the first one. It was a relatively short trail at just over 6K, although I had an additional 2K walk from my house to the starting point.
This was the first Hash with the newly established starting time of 2:30. A few of us said fuck that and started at 1:30. I’m a slow old fart and I don’t like starting later and always being among the last to finish. It took us around two and a half hours to complete the short trail, so we got back On-Home a little before 4:00 p.m. The runners and others started arriving shortly thereafter. So, the early start worked out well for us. I don’t want to be stuck up on the mountain with dusk falling and I hate when the beer supply is exhausted before I can drink my money’s worth. So I expect early departures are going to be the norm for me.
Alright, let’s let the pictures do the rest of the talking, shall we? I’ll start with the Relive video to give some context. This one is from Pubic Head’s (Scott) app because I thought his turned out better than mine. Most of the photos are his as well.
You can follow the elevation gains with the graph at the top left corner.The route we took. The yellow line is the long trail we didn’t take. It adds another 1.5K or so and another big climb.Here is where it all began.And we are On-On!What madness is this?Come on Pubic Head! If I can do it, you can do it!That’s my not happy with this climb face. But then there is this. 3/4 of the way up and people are living here. That climb is just another routine part of the harsh conditions that come with the territory.At least they have nice views. That’s the National highway way down there.More civilization a tad further up the trail……and cookies to dispense.Then we came to a fork in the trail and made the left turn…Made it to the top and enjoyed a brief respite walking along the ridgeline…Marching onward!I’m A Flaming Asshole and Black And Dick Her trying to decipher a trail marking. After much discussion, it was decided to go straight.Our group for the afternoon…Another mountain home.I’m not sure what’s going on here…maybe Pubic Head had gas…Even caught a fleeting glimpse of Easter mountain out on the horizon.Good job from the Hares! We always knew which way to go…That’s me at the Great Wall of Barretto.The view from The Wall.Time to head back down. Show us the way, Gary.Got to get under that barbed wire fence first though…About halfway down we passed through the yard of our old friends the Rolly family.Friendly folk who always give us a warm greeting…Burn it down! Burn it all down!We were all *ahem* tired by this point… (you can see the re-purposed tires I hope)30 minutes later we arrived On-Home at Queen Victoria…Beers were drunk……and bullshit was dispensed.
Today marks the tenth anniversary of my mother’s passing. No great insights to share–everything changes, yet life goes on for those of us left behind. Perhaps being remembered is enough. My love for you will live on as long as I do.
Bonnie Rose before she was known as mom.With her second-born son. The special one!I made her a grandmother for the first time.She loved my dad for over 50 years.A mom and her sons.Mom with her sisters for the final time. The last picture I ever took of her.
You will always be missed by those who loved you.
Meanwhile, in the world of the living, I changed things up some and drank my beers at Palm Tree yesterday.
It’s right next door to Mangos. I actually stayed here on my last trip to the Philippines as a tourist.The bar is on the second floor with a nice balcony overlooking the beach.
This morning I decided to make supper for breakfast.
The ribeye, while thin, was so tender I could almost pull it apart with my fork. I think I’ve mastered the searing process too as the meat was juicy and medium-rare on the inside.
I guess I’m in a beachy kind of mood as I decided to take a morning stroll to Baloy.
Well, in the event of a tsunami I’m already ideally located in the evacuation area–Alta Vista. Ain’t nowhere to run from an earthquake though.Once you get past the resorts, Baloy Beach Road is almost serene.Some nice bay views this morning…With the weekend crowds gone the beach felt almost deserted.
We’ve got the Hash this afternoon. The new starting time is officially 2:30, but I and a few others are going to head out an hour earlier. That should get us back On-Home before all the beer is gone. I’ll let y’all know how that goes tomorrow.
Now, should I take a nap or exercise? Hmm, perhaps I’ll do both!
You know that old trees just grow stronger And old rivers grow wilder every day Old people just grow lonesome Waiting for someone to say, “Hello in there, hello”
–John Prine
Life continues apace, moving forward step-by-step. And so do I!
Last night I took a third-place finish in the darts tourney. Not bad considering the competition was strong, my partner was clueless, and I was off my game. There is peace in not caring!
For whatever reason, I had a craving for bulgogi last night. So after darts, I popped into John Kim’s The Pub restaurant and ordered me up some. I was disappointed that there was no kimchi available. The waitress said the price of the ingredients made it too expensive to serve as a side. That’s not the first time I’ve heard about a spike in the cost of veggies here lately. Not sure what’s going on with that. Coincidentally or not, the Royal supermarket has been sold out of kimchi for a couple of weeks now too.
The bulgogi was quite tasty even without the kimchi, although I prefer it in that soup/broth with the string mushrooms like I’d find in Korea. I also got a side of Korean-style wings which are always excellent.
For today’s walk, I decided to hike to the old Navy base via the highway and return to Barretto on the beach. It’s been quite a while since I’ve done this route because frankly, walking on the highway is a pain in the ass. The cars, trucks, and jeepneys tend to take the curves by intruding onto the shoulder where I’m walking. So you always have to be alert and ready to jump into the drainage ditch beside the highway should survival dictate such drastic action. Luckily it didn’t today. The walk back on the beach is a little shorter but not without its perils. There are a couple of seawalls you have to scale and also some pretty big rocks to climb up and over on the way home. I used to sometimes go both ways on the beach route but lately, all the access points want to charge an entrance fee. I can’t abide that bullshit when I’m just passing through.
On my way out of town, I popped into Arizona Resort for breakfast. It’s been some time since I’ve been there. The waitress still remembered me though. No other customers were there either. Sad, not sure if the place is going to make it. The owner had been advertising on Facebook about showing the football games today and opening early, but there were no eyes on the televisions. Mine included, I don’t give a shit about American football anymore.
I had an English muffin with sausage, egg, and cheese. It was good.Outside on the beach, it was more crowded than I’d seen even in the pre-COVID days. And this is at 8:00 in the morning! They appeared to be all Filipinos and I’m guessing the Arizona is a bit pricey for the locals. Not so up the road at the ICove hotel, at least judging from the parking lot. The ICove is next door to Mangos and I’ve noted before how packed it is on weekends. Again, almost exclusively Filipinos. It’s a good sign though that people are coming out and moving on with their lives. Places like Arizona are going to have to hold on until foreign tourists are allowed back in the country.
Alright then, so on with the walk! Once again, I recorded the adventure on Relive. Well, technically, I recorded the hike on the Map My Run app, and Relive pulls that data and uses it to do their thing.
https://www.relive.cc/view/vdORWYXGer6
Oddly enough, this time Relive didn’t sort the photos into the proper sequence. I think the reason is that my highway route out and beach return didn’t have enough separation between them for the Google Earth coordinates to differentiate whether I was coming or going. No big deal I suppose. I also discovered that I can only post ten photos on the free version of Relive. I’m not quite ready to go premium yet though.
No worries, here are all the photos in the order I took them:
On the National highway headed towards barangay Kalaklan…These trees were literally growing sideways out of the mountain. Never noticed that before. A little eerie…There’s a wall along the highway with a dozen or so murals. They appear to be government propaganda and most seem to be COVID-related. This one caught my eye. I guess the message is there is freedom in being forced to wear a mask. I’m sure George Orwell would approve.I see dead people. Or at least where dead people are buried. Well, not buried, interred I guess is more accurate.I crossed the highway and took this path down to the beach to begin my return journey.The beach of which I spoke.Stopping to smell, er, photograph the flowers…Man oh man, I would not want to be living here at high tide. Or using that toilet anytime!Some of those rocks you have to scale if you don’t want to wade into the bay to go around them.Was I ever in for a surprise as I crossed the rocks. Sitting there like an old mermaid watching the sea was the homeless woman I call mama. That gal gets around!The view from up top of the rocks.Here we see a beached whale. I’m not sure what that big white thing is…And then an uneventful walk along the highway through Barretto leading to home sweet home.
Another day, another hike is in the books. Well, on the blog anyway. There was something unusual along the way this time though. When I’m out walking alone I wear my headphones and listen to music on the Spotify app. I do have the premium version to avoid commercial interruptions. I’ve made several playlists on my own but Spotify also offers up a “Daily Mix” of songs the algorithm thinks I might like. I listened to one of those today. And while most of the songs and artists are familiar, sometimes I hear something completely out of the blue that resonates enough that I’ll actually stop and open the app to see what I’m hearing. That happened twice this morning and both times the artist was John Prine. Now, I had a vague recollection of that name but had never been a fan and don’t really recall knowingly listening to his music before. So, to be wowed twice in one walk was pretty impressive. I was sad to read in the link above that he died of a COVID-related illness last April. Rest in Peace!
A song that didn’t come up on the playlist today but came to mind as I walked along the highway and provided the title for this post is an old favorite from the Flying Burrito Brothers.
White Line Fever a sickness born down deep inside my soul White Line Fever the years keep flying by like a high line pole The wrinkles in my forehead show the miles I’ve put behind me They continue to remind me how fast I’m growing old Guess I’ll die with this fever in my soul
I wonder just what makes a man keep pushing on Why must I keep on singing this old highway song I’ve been from coast to coast a 100 times or more I haven’t found one place that I ain’t been before White Line Fever a sickness born down deep inside my soul White Line Fever the years keep flying by like a high line pole
For yesterday’s group hike, we did a little scouting around for a potential trail when we Hare the Hash on February 1. Scott had some ideas but they didn’t really pan out this time. That’s part of the process–eliminating possibilities gets you a step closer to finding a suitable path. Anyway, it was a mostly pleasant 6K hike, just a couple of rough patches. Always good to be out and about with friends on trail!
The path we walked.The ones I walked with–Dan, Troy, Jessa, and Scott.Not a bad start……but then things got a little bit dicey. The down was steep and the up was worse. I don’t think we are going to try this again for the Hash.The thatch grass STILL hasn’t given up the ghost.Looking towards Baloy beach……and overlooking Barretto.We wound up doing the My Bitch trail and it was good to see Olivia of the mountain clan family again.I dispensed some sweets to commemorate the moment.Easter mountain from afar…The rarely seen facemask tree was in full blossom…Making my way, surely but slowly.Thanks for waiting. These pictures aren’t gonna take themselves you know!Look out, Scott! There’s a big dropoff ahead!Oh well. We all had to come down that section on our ass.Heading on down…A little closer to Easter mountain now…Love those smiles!Dan and Scott upfront…Troy and Jessa bringing up the rear.A roof over their heads…How did I manage to lead the pack? Must have smelled the beer!I hosted the group at my place for some lunch and liquid refreshment. Good times!
Scott posted his pictures from the hike (most of which are included above) on an app called Relive. I thought it was pretty cool how it incorporates the photos into the section of the trail where they were taken. So I thought I’d try it out on my morning walk. This is the result:
https://www.relive.cc/view/vxOQnPjM4M6
Oh, cool! It actually embeds. Wasn’t sure it would. Nothing special about my walk today. I basically did the photo every thousand steps or so thing again, but I got distracted a couple of times. Anyway, when I uploaded the photos it somehow knew where on the trail I took them. That is both impressive and a little scary! Another thing I like is that it has an elevation bar at the top of the video screen. My trail was mostly flat today though. I still need to learn how to insert elevations at various points in the trail. Give me some feedback on how you like the app. I’ll probably still use photo posts like usual anyway so I can add my witty commentary. Anyway, something new to play with.
Darts and beers. Filling in the hours, however comfortably and well.
Yesterday I completed my final match in Round 1 of the inaugural season of the Barretto Singles League. For Round 2, I’ll be taking the top six finishers for one division and the bottom six for the other division and everyone will play the others in their division twice. That’s the real season, this first round was essentially just to let people play into the division where they belong so things are fair, balanced, and competitive.
That said, I will either finish first or second in Round 1 play–Cristy has one more match to play and could still catch me. Not that it matters, I’ll be in the top division regardless. Actually, Cristy is throwing great darts of late and I consider her to be the top player in the league skills-wise. I’m still not satisfied with my consistency but I’m maybe needing to lower my expectations a bit. I remember being better than I am now but then again, my memory ain’t what it used to be either.
So, here’s an example of what I’m talking about. Yesterday I played Nancy. She’s a solid player but struggles at times (don’t we all?). I expect she will also finish in the top six. This is how our match came down:
So yeah, 12-4 is a big win for me and I’m happy to have done better in that regard than I expected. But the real indicator of how well you are throwing is how many marks you throw. Throwing tons (100 or more) in 501 and 301 generally means you are hitting your target with all three darts. Same with the cricket marks–a 7 mark will close two numbers and give you some points to boot. And 3 bulls in one shot is usually a game-winning throw. Yesterday I had 14 marks in 15 legs (games). Not bad, although my goal is at least one mark per leg.
On Tuesday I played Jo, another very good player. She has really impressed me with the improvement in her game I’ve witnessed this season.
I somehow managed to beat her 12-4, but I’d call that more luck than anything. Again, looking at the marks shows we were both off our games, only hitting 5 each in 15 legs. The final score could just as easily been reversed. So, that’s what I mean when I talk about how inconsistent I’ve been throwing. Anyway, I need to stop overthinking it, remember to relax and have fun, and just let the darts fly.
And enjoy the beers that I call aiming fluid!
After darts, I had my weekly fix of pork chops at Mangos and watched the sun go down on another day.
Life is good.
I was in bed at 7:30 last night, exhausted from all those beers I drank darts I threw. Up a little after 4:00 a.m. to start another day. Coffee and the internet, what a combination! I saw this and liked it:
I may not have all the answers but that won’t stop me from asking the questions.
And I posted these quotes from Martin Luther King to honor his birthday. A man who was clearly ahead of his time. The unity he devoted his life to achieving is exactly what is now being dismantled for reasons I honestly cannot fathom.
He dreamed of a day when a man would be judged by the quality of his character rather than the color of his skin. Saying that now would probably get him banned on Twitter.
But here in my world called the Philippines, there are other questions to consider:
Probably not enough!
Well, I’m kidding of course. After all, age is just a number. All the girls tell me so.
As I enjoyed my breakfast at Harley’s, looking out over the bay, it occurred to me–I am one lucky son-of-a-bitch. Perhaps I am finally beginning to grasp the concept of living in the moment and enjoying life for what it is.
Alright, time to head out for the Friday dart tournament at Alley Cats. I’m going to try and enjoy my game for what it is at the moment too!
Update: Cristy just finished her last match and sent me the scoresheet. It appears we are going to finish Round 1 tied. That’s pretty awesome!
Yesterday my walking group tackled the mountain Scott and I had missed on Monday’s aborted Hash. It proved to be a challenging hike, with two moderately difficult ups and one very steep descent. It took nearly two hours to do a 4K trail on the mountain which gives some indication of the tough terrain. Or maybe I was just slower than normal. One of those.
So the Hare, I’m A Fucking Cupcake, got quite a bit of negative feedback for his efforts in setting this trail. In my opinion, most of it was unfair. Given that so many people had gotten lost on the mountain I assumed it was because the trail had been poorly marked. That proved not to be the case. The problem was likely with the method he used to mark the trail. Most Hares use powder and chalk. Cupcake did most of his marks like this:
Pieces of orange yarn tied to the trees and shrubs. The problem for many Hashers is they customarily look down at the ground for trail markings and so unless they looked up they would miss the mark.
Yes, there were some places where the markings were ambiguous and it would have been better to use more powder and chalk along the way, but I didn’t have any real difficulty following the trail. Some of the guys said that’s because I move so fucking slow I have more time to see shit. Maybe so.
Now, Cupcake does warrant some legitimate criticism. For one thing, the purported 9K trail was closer to 11K. I was so happy I didn’t attempt to walk the entire trail on Monday. Especially with the hard climbing coming during the last portion of the hike. The other complaint I had was with there being two confusing checkpoints on the trail. I’m not a fan of these anyway, but if a Hare is going to insist on using them, it needs to be done right.
This is the second checkpoint. As you can see from the arrows, it shows three possible directions. The Hashers have to explore each trail and if they don’t find any marks, turn around and go to the next trail. I hate that, especially because I’m already last on the trail and don’t like to waste time with such bullshit.
Dan (Bum Burgler) is pictured above and it was at this checkpoint that he and several others wound up taking the wrong trail. Why would an experienced Hasher not notice there were no marks and turn around? Well, because there were marks–from a trail used a few weeks previously. At a minimum, the Hare should have made sure there was only one trail marked. What I’m going to suggest for the future is that Hares use the “false trail” mark (three horizontal lines) within 50 yards or so for all options other than the true trail. Or just don’t do the fucking checkpoint at all.
Anyway, other than that it was quite enjoyable. Props to Cupcake for finding new paths. Even Scott, who has been Hashing here for 15 years, hadn’t seen parts of where we hiked previously. That’s quite the accomplishment. Being a Hare is can be a thankless job, it takes a lot of time and effort to lay the trail, and it is impossible to please everyone. I’ll be Hareing again along with Scott and Jim on February 1st and I’m already thinking about how to pull off a good experience for the Hashers.
Here are the photos from yesterday’s adventure (credit to Scott for most of these):
Closing the loop as it was intended by the Hare.We took a jeepney to the far side of Subic town to begin our trek.My fellow hikers on the journey were Jim, Scott, and Dan.Let’s roll!We walked about 1.5K to reach the spot where the trail we had missed began its climb up the mountain.No, this is not hard. Much.In the shadow of Easter mountain. Well, not really. But I can see it from here.It seems I’m always in slow motion…So, about the point where I’m feeling sorry for myself, this guy comes along dragging a bunch of 12-foot long bamboo poles behind him. Nothing like a little perspective on what is truly hard…We let him pass by and caught up with him a little further down the trail. Hard and honest work being a bamboo harvester. His little girl was there to keep him company.And of course, she got some cookies.A bit later we came down into a small village…Where more cookies were dispensed…Life can be hard.And so was our trail, right Scott?Keep on keepin’ on!We did see some chalk along the way…I got this!Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death…As seen from the top of the mountain…Time to head on down……and down…We got this, Scott!Back to civilization.They got the last of the cookies…Alright, that’s enough monkeying around…
Took a jeepney back to Barretto and got dropped off at Cheap Charlies for some lunch and beers. And lo and behold, guess who was sitting outside:
The homeless old woman I call mama. I try to give her 100 pesos a day but sometimes she is hard to find. So this was a nice surprise.
And that was my day. A third place in the darts tourney last night and a singles league match on tap for this afternoon. What a life, huh?
I just canceled my Amazon Prime membership. Just like they canceled Parler.
I admit that may appear to be me engaging in virtue-signaling, but I’m powerless to do much else about it. It generated the usual pushback from my leftie friends which I expected and ignored. But there was one comment that really made me go “wow!” This is a person I’ve known for years and I consider her to be a good friend. She’s also a liberal, but back when we worked together (she was my Deputy) we would engage in long and thoughtful political discourse about the issues of the day, rarely agreeing, but at least gaining some insights and understanding. Oh, did I mention she is African-American? Not that that should matter, but this comment left me shaking my head:
Whatever! Wypipo are a trip!
You know, I’m a lot of things but one of them isn’t racist. I grew up in those long-ago days when we were taught to judge a person by the content of their character and not the color of their skin. The woman who made that comment certainly knows I’ve never acted in a racist manner. Trust me, I could not have had a successful career with the Federal government otherwise and I certainly never had a complaint filed against me. Well, except for that comment I made here at LTG about Muhammed being a pedophile. And the lawyers said I was free to express my opinion as a citizen, however “churlish”, as long as I didn’t do it at work.
Anyway, I looked up the definition of wypipo just to make sure I wasn’t misunderstanding her intent:
Wypipo is an abbreviation for “White people” that is typically used as a derogatory term to refer to racist white people. It is often used by people of color (POC) or woke white people aware of racist actions by other white people.
Ouch. Well, I didn’t respond. My simple test is to change the color to determine if what someone says is racist. So, if I were to say for example that all black people “are a trip”, I could and should be called out on it. But it is good to know what people really think of you when they slip up and let the truth out. Still shocking and painful though.
And whether I agree with you or not, I will support and defend your right to say it. Even on Facebook!
Speaking about white people, one of them has apparently purchased the property right outside the front gate to Alta Vista. It used to contain a squatter village. Now the shacks have been torn down and a barbed-wire fence erected.
The first thing he tore down was the basketball court. I saw kids playing there every day since moving here. No idea where they are now or what they are doing.
I guess I’m of two minds on this. A property owner certainly has the right to sell his land. And the buyer is free to use that land in any legal fashion. The squatters really have no “rights” in this situation. Still, I feel bad to see their already difficult lives disrupted in this fashion. A Filipina friend told me that often times in this situation the squatters are paid to leave, thus giving them the money to build a hovel somewhere else. That might be the best possible outcome I suppose. But I wouldn’t want to be that white guy building his fancy new house on this land surrounded by angry people he’s displaced. But perhaps that’s just me.
Last night I enjoyed a pulled pork barbeque dinner from the crockpot for the first time in a long time. And it was good. I made up a batch of cornbread too. Put a can of whole kernel corn into the mix. Pretty tasty!
Not bad for a white guy, huh?
Today I climbed the mountain I missed on Monday. I’ll give a full report on that adventure tomorrow. Now it’s time for darts.
Facebook reminded me that three years ago I climbed a mountain in Asan, South Korea. Don’t remember the name of the mountain now though. Haven’t seen snow like that in a long time!
We all gotta die of something I suppose, but until I read this I hadn’t considered dying of HPV as a possibility:
Having more than 10 oral sex over a lifetime partners quadruples a person’s risk for human papillomavirus-related mouth and throat cancer, a study published Monday by the journal Cancer found.
Shit, I might have ten a year! I may be doomed, but what a way to go!
Yesterday’s Hash didn’t quite go the way I planned. For one thing, I spilled a little blood on trail. I get scratches pretty frequently and once I got stitches after a run-in with barbed wire. But this time I managed to get a rather painful scrape on my elbow. Nothing like keeping things fresh and new, right?
It hurt worse than it looks. Or maybe I’m just a pussy. It has been interesting to discover just how many things there are to bump your elbow against during the day.
Another thing that happened was that despite my best intentions, I did not complete the 9-kilometer trail as planned. The way it was set up was that the Hashmobile would drop you at the start of the 6K trail, or you could walk the 3K to that point for a longer hike. Well, I hate riding in the truck enough that it made the additional distance palatable. So, off we went.
My group included the usual suspects–oldsters, Hash virgins, and folks who just prefer a pleasant hiking experience. And on flat ground, I can do a 9K without much problem. I was aware that there were two climbs between the start and the On-Home but I figured I could always bypass them if I wasn’t feeling like doing a hill when I got there.
So we are On-On!
Right after we had begun the trail the Hare, I’m A Fucking Cupcake, caught up to us to ask if we realized we were doing the long trail. We assured him that this was our intention. He appeared genuinely surprised, then shrugged and wished us well. We continued on and then maybe ten minutes into the hike along the riverside we hit a wall. Literally.
The wall of which I speak.The problem came here. We had to scurry down a five-foot or so embankment then scramble up the other side. I couldn’t get a good footing for the up part and don’t possess the upper body strength to pull myself to the top. I eventually lost my grip and slid down backward scraping my elbow in the process.
After that incident though, the trail was actually quite enjoyable. I was familiar with the area, in fact, I had been in the vicinity for my Sunday stroll, but had never walked these particular paths before. I really enjoy the seeing something new aspect of Hashing.
At around 4K there was a water stop. The Hare and the truck were there and cold water was provided. That was a nice touch. We were given the opportunity to ride back to the On-Home from there, but everyone (including the virgins who appeared tired) opted to continue on. And that’s just what we did. Until we didn’t.
We were on the trail another kilometer or so from the water stop when once again the Hare appeared seemingly out of nowhere. He seemed a little concerned for our well-being and suggested we make a turn further on up the trail and then meet the truck on the highway. I figured we could see how we felt once we reached that point and then decide what to do. Maybe the virgins would be ready to ride by then at least.
Apparently, there was some misunderstanding because we made the turn, hit the pavement, but there was no truck in sight. So nothing to do but continue on up the road. And then a couple of kilometers later we spotted the truck parked up ahead.
There you are! Well, not quite. The Hare had gone out looking for us. Turns out we weren’t supposed to turn when and where we did. Oh well.
I walked on up the trail where the Hare had gone for a way but saw no sign of him. My Fitbit advised me that I had reached my daily step count goal of 20,000 so I shrugged and headed back for the truck. Which while in the process of turning around had stalled and wouldn’t restart. Luckily we were able to push it to the downhill part of the road where the driver, Cunt Hunter, was able to do a clutch start. So we all loaded up in the back and went to pick up the Hare who had ended his search for us further up the highway.
And then we drove back to the On-Home which was the long and uncomfortable ride I had hoped to avoid to begin with. Ah well, the best-laid plans and all that. Anyway, Pubic Head and I plan to take the Wednesday walking group to the portion of the trail we missed yesterday and give it a try.
Here are some more photos from the day:
To be continued tomorrow! We did maybe 3/4 of it…That’s me waiting to get started.Some of the others milling about our meet-up location.Onward we march!I’m A Flaming Asshole and I Suck Dick. (not me, that’s their Hash names).Here’s a twofer…my ass and Easter mountain in the same shot. You are welcome!Crossing the river the easy way…Left to right: our two virgins, Black And Dick Her, and Western Union Sperm Bank.Living in the middle of nowhere illustrated.It was a mostly enjoyable, albeit abbreviated, hike.What are you looking at?A babe in the woods…Shootin’ the shit with Pubic Head at the On-Home.Cum On My Boat did the mountain trail and got an injury…Initiating our virgins. I wonder if they’ll be back? My money’s on no. When the Hash circle was completed and the beer ran out, I headed to Mangos for a dinner of roast chicken and coleslaw.And so ends another Hash post…
If you see anything here other than a lamp all I can say is: I like the way you think!
And as long as your dirty mind is thinking of muffins, how about these sweet things:
Blueberry muffins for breakfast with leftover baby back ribs from dinner last night.
I was sticking it pretty well yesterday during my singles league dart match.
Mark is actually a solid player and the games themselves were much closer than the scoresheet might seem to indicate.
And here is how things stand after Week 8 in the Barretto Singles League:
Yeah, it feels like I’m starting to recapture some of the magic of those glory days in Itaewon…In fact, I wore my Seoul Singles League shirt during yesterday’s match hoping to play like I used to. Not there yet, but getting closer.
It was kinda funny, John Kim the owner of The Pub restaurant here, saw this photo on my Facebook page and commented: “Sea elephant? Seriously?”. I explained that back in those days my darts nickname was The Walrus. According to the Koreans I consulted, there is no word for Walrus in Korean, they just use bada kokkili . It’s all good.
After darts, I had a couple more beers at Mangos and enjoyed the sunset:
Lots of folks hanging out on the beach. Little by little, we are getting our lives back.
While I was at Mangos I got a message that my office chair was being delivered but no one was at home to receive it. She attached this picture which made me smile:
Lucky defending the house. Looks like he means business!
I was a little pissed because I had asked my helper if she would be home to accept delivery and pay for the chair and she assured me she would be there. She told me later she stuck around until 6:00 and then figured they weren’t coming. Anyway, I told the seller to just leave the chair on my porch and to swing by Mangos to pick up the payment. She agreed and I added a tip for her trouble.
So here’s my new chair. Ain’t she a beaut?
It’s actually a “gaming” chair if that makes a difference. Well, it does have two speakers alongside the headrest if you want sounds effects blasting in your ears. I don’t. Anyway, it is much more comfortable than what I had been using and should provide better back support.
My back is pretty much back to normal now. A little stiff but almost completely pain-free. I guess since I’m technically elderly now I should be especially thankful for that. I’m also very happy that I’m able to get out and hike every day. That fills my hours in a healthy way.
Speaking of hiking, I need to get ready for today’s Hash. This is the last week of the noon start time, we’ll move it to 2:30 after that. There’s an odd combination of trails today, 3, 6, and 9K. If I’m understanding correctly, the 9K is a combination of the 3 and 6K trails. The 3 and 6K require a truck ride, so as of now my intention is to do the 9K. I hate that truck!
I’m not afraid of love. Just like I’m not afraid of poison. I avoid both, because love is poison to me.
As I keep reminding myself. Actually, I’m doing better at embracing my loveless life. Some of the guys who are in relationships have even expressed some envy for my relatively drama-free life.
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:
1000 steps. National highway entering Subic…2000 steps. A squatter village.3000 steps. Where there is smoke there is fire.4000 steps. Poor village, rich views.5000 steps. GOVIC highway.6000 steps. Easter mountain looms large.7000 steps. The straight and narrow.8000 steps. It really gets my goat when there is nothing interesting to photograph at the appointed step count.9000 steps. The wide-open spaces beckon.10,000 steps. Swallowed by the tall grass…11,000 steps. The outskirts of civilization.12,000 steps. The final climb begins.13,000 steps. An Alta Vista view.And then home again. I have a new office chair being delivered today.One of the Facebook commenters said I looked like Tom Selleck in the selfie posted above. I told him not anymore but I used to hear that all the time. That’s me at 25 years old.
And finally, via Facebook memories, I’m reminded that I was also doing important shit three years ago.
If meeting with the Secretary of the Army is important. Honestly, I enjoyed today’s walk more.
And the road goes ever onward until the ultimate dead end. Hopefully, I will still be around tomorrow!
When I have ceased to break my wings Against the faultiness of things, And learned that compromises wait Behind each hardly opened gate, When I have looked Life in the eyes, Grown calm and very coldly wise, Life will have given me the Truth, And taken in exchange–my youth. –Sara Teasdale
Greetings faithful readers! Sorry for not posting yesterday, but the time just got away from me. Here’s a recap:
As usual, I was up before 5 a.m. That’s when I do my daily slog through my blogroll catching up on the news and views from voices I trust. This has gotten to be quite the chore of late because the news from my homeland is depressingly bad. It made me sick that the voters chose a senile old fool over a competent yet clownish incumbent. That the election was apparently rife with fraud is downright scary and demonstrates that the swamp creatures have no intention of letting the people have their say. So much for democracy. The icing on the shit cake was the Georgia Senate results. Just thinking about the adverse impact Dem control of Congress and the Presidency will have on our nation’s future is the stuff of nightmares. Bottom line–we are screwed. I’m thankful that I’m so far away and don’t have to experience this fiasco up close and personal. I do expect a wrecked economy will cause the dollar to lose exchange value making me a poorer man. I probably won’t live long enough to experience the worst of what is in store for my homeland.
But life, such as it is, goes on. Did my morning routines, fed and walked the dogs, then met up with my Friday walking group. We did a pleasant mostly urban and flat 8K hike. Finished at my house where I treated the guys to a lunch of beers, chicken nuggets, calamari rings, with chips and dip.
When we were done with that I barely had time for a shower before heading out to Queen Victoria for a Hash mismanagement meeting. The agenda included appointing folks to positions of responsibility. Demolition Derby was unanimously chosen to continue serving as Grand Master. I was selected to be the Circle Jerk Master. That’s basically a Sergeant-at-Arms type role, mainly helping to maintain order in the Hash circle by telling people to shut up and pay attention. Seems like my being an asshole made me qualified for the job.
There’s been a bit of controversy at the Hash from a few disgruntled members not satisfied with the way things are being run. Boo fucking hoo is my attitude towards these whiners who were still hiding in their basement afraid of COVID while the rest of us worked to resurrect the Hash under difficult circumstances. So I don’t give a shit if they don’t like the decisions we made to make that happen. We raised the entry prices and now the Gash (females) pay the same amount as men. Well, so what? Most of them drink as much as the men do too. We also changed the start time because of an early curfew. The disgruntled few wanted a return to the traditional 3:30 start. I was opposed to this because I think the earlier start works better. It’s no fun to still be up on the mountain when the sun is starting to set. Anyway, we voted to implement a compromise start time of 2:30 p.m. We’ll see how that works out.
Had a few beers during the meeting, then moved over to Alley Cats to play in the dart tournament. Of course, I was early so I had some more beer while waiting to play. And then of course I drank while playing (I call it aiming fluid). It was a good tourney and I was satisfied with my play overall even though my partner and I lost a tough match in the finals and settled for second place.
Needless to say, I was feeling no pain when I got back home last night. But today is a brand new start, right? Stopped at a hotel called Papagayo for breakfast. I was last there years ago for a dinner so wasn’t sure what to expect. I thought the menu was a little limited in offerings, but the service was good. And nice views from my table as well.
My view during breakfast…A view of my breakfast. Well, what’s left of it.
Here are the photos from yesterday’s hike. These are mostly from Scott:
One climb, mostly steps. A loop around Black Rock mountain and ending up in Alta Vista.My fellow hikers for the morning, Dan, Troy, and Scott.Up we go!As usual, Troy is waiting for us oldsters to catch up.Working on it…I hope daddy shared those cookies with the kids…Getting back to my roots…Coming to Jesus who was hanging around…We decided to cross this field…looks easy enough…And there was kinda sorta a path. Until there wasn’t. And then it got wet.Our shoes all came out looking like this…This kind woman graciously helped us rinse the mud off……couldn’t get her little girl to smile though. I guess she was expecting Oreo’s…Back on solid ground with cleaner feet…I don’t want to romanticize litter, but this seemed kind of sweet to me…The best view of the day.
All right, I do try and avoid politics on social media. Nothing to be gained from it. But I couldn’t help sharing this meme pointing out the hypocrisy of the left regarding “protests”:
And of course, it caused liberal heads to explode.
Here’s an example from ex-wife #3:
You don’t know the difference between protests and insurrection? Well the former seeks change(s) in the law. The latter seeks to change the government.
To which I responded:
Yes, I know the difference. Do you know the difference between protests and riots? Do you know the meaning of the word hypocrisy? Where was your outrage when the Federal courthouse in Portland was being attacked? Where were your posts decrying the violence and destruction in Minneapolis, Seattle, and other cities last year? Make no mistake, I am equally disgusted by what happened at the Capitol this week. Once you engage in violent criminal activities in support of your cause, whatever that cause may be, you are no longer a protester. Rioters on the left or right are no different and are unworthy of support or sympathy if we are to remain a nation of laws. This post merely pointed out that people like you encouraged the rioters through silence and now are suddenly appalled by the same tactics being used by people you don’t agree with. Disgusting.
And of course, the ex immediately saw how wrong she had been and is now a committed Republican. Well, actually she doubled down, proving my point that these arguments or not going to ever lead to a meeting of the minds. Another commenter did chime in with this in response to the whole “insurrection” argument:
The right to overthrow the government is a right of the people. As of late, some people may feel that it is a course that needs to be taken. A fair bit of the population feels disenfranchised.
Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. -Declaration of Independence, July 4th 1776
Hard to argue with that, so I’ll just leave it there.
Let’s cleanse the palate with this:
It snot bad. I need to order one!
Alright, one more for the road:
Best I stay single, for a lot of reasons…
More darts on tap for tonight. I’m starting to feel at least some of my game is coming back. I wore my old Columbia Singles League jersey for my Barretto Singles League match this week and came away with a 12-4 victory.
Reliving the good old days. Such as they were.
Okay, this post may not be twice as good as usual, but it is twice as long. Hope that makes up for yesterday’s absence.
I’ll be back with more of something or other tomorrow.
UPDATE: I was surprised to see I used the “Mourning in America” title once before, back in September 2010. That post consisted of a link to this one-minute long anti-Obama commercial. I said back then that it made me almost dread my decision to move back to the USA. Well, maybe we’ll get through this too.
A challenging hike yesterday was made all the more difficult when we missed the intended trail, but it all worked out in the end. You might say we were blessed to find our way through a hellish landscape and received our reward of heavenly views from above. Or maybe that is so convoluted and strained that only I would say it. I’ll shut up and let the pictures talk, how’s that?
The way we went. Actually, the starting point was at the Ocean View resort in Kalaklan and I walked there adding another 3K to my hike.Although I had been up on this mountain before, the ascent we chose was new to me.Could this be the proverbial stairway to heaven?Sweet mother of Jesus, who is that? Oh, wait, sorry Mary. I guess I just answered my own question.Jesus Christo! What are you doing here?No one volunteers to be crucified though.
This was also a dead end. We went in search of our intended path, found a likely contender, and then we struggled and suffered for our arrogance. It was steep and rugged and the footing was poor. A bad combination. A couple of falls but no injuries. Praise the Lord!
Fighting to keep your feet is not conducive to photography, but there were several spots where a helping hand saved the day.Hallelujah! I made it to the top!The survivors.There are worse places than Olongapo, but that doesn’t stop me from looking down on it.As seen by the angels.Time to make our way down. And we didn’t lose the trail either…Heading for the blue waters of Subic Bay.And handing out cookies along the way.And keeping with our theme of righteousness, that would be Easter mountain rising up in the distance.If you say so, Gina…And that concludes this religious post.
At least, that’s what it felt like. Bending over to pick up my shorts yesterday morning and felt this sharp pain in my lower back. Not sure what I did or what I injured, but damn, it periodically hurts like a motherfucker. Never experienced anything quite like it. I’m stiff when I first stand up, but after I walk a bit I’m practically pain-free. That’s a good thing. But last night when I was trying to sleep I’d suffer immense pain whenever I rolled over to the left. Same stabbing pain when I tried to get up to pee. It seems marginally better today so I’m hoping whatever this is is running its course. We’ll see.
Changed things up a bit yesterday and started my evening out on Baloy beach. Visited my old-time favorite Treasure Island first. I was disappointed that they didn’t have my preferred beer and frankly the service was sloppy and unfriendly. I decided to eat elsewhere. I also noticed that all my old favorites on staff are now gone. Oh well. I went next door to Da Kudos instead.
Da Kudos is owned by Mango’s and I actually knew my waitress. The menu was also the same as Mango’s, so I ordered up the roast chicken salad. It didn’t disappoint. And neither did the view from my table:
Not bad, eh?
After my meal, I walked out on the beach and this is what I saw:
I may be living a lonely life, but at least I’m living it in paradise.
I guess I got to thinking about that being alone thing. And after a few beers I posted this question on Facebook:
Am I an asshole?
That’s probably not the kind of question that is best posed on social media. But I was just curious why a guy like me found himself dining and drinking alone. Maybe I am an asshole or something similar that people prefer to avoid. The responses to my question came in about 50-50, so maybe there’s hope. I did have to laugh at this response from ex-wife #3:
Well you use to revel in your self-identification as an dick. You were delighted when the Team America movie made an argument for dicks, saying pussies needed them for protection against assholes. So no you are not an asshole. You’re a dick.
Heh. Here’s the clip she was referring to:
Damn, that being drunk in the bar fits too!
My pal Jeremy offered up probably the most thoughtful and heartfelt comment:
John, if you’re not making your intentions known, then all that people are going to see is that youre just the nice old guy. How will anyone expect that you’re looking for something more if you’re not telling them that you’re looking for something more?
Also, dont be the nice, generous guy to everyone. That should be reserved for the people that have a special place in your heart. The rest of the people should be content with friendly, easygoing John. Then, people will take notice of your intentions, and only when that happens will there be the possibility of reciprocation.
Though, before any of that happens, you have to decide if you’re going to buy a ticket. Sure, you’re going to have a lot of losing tickets, but when you hit the jackpot, it’ll all have been worth it. I mean, that’s what my Dad tells me about he lottery, anyway, but I dont think those are his views on love after fifty years of marriage, especially when considering my mom.
You’re a smart guy, John. Not only do you have to periodically examine yourself, but you must always examine the company that you keep. I hope that it works out the way that you want according to whichever way you decide.
Hmm, I’ve heard that advice about changing the company I keep somewhere before. That’s probably the bottom line; if I am indeed an asshole I need to find an asshole-lover to share my life. And until I do I’m better off alone, whether I like it or not.
Anyway, I’ll be alright. It’s my nature to never be satisfied with what I have until it’s gone. Might be time to just suck it up and embrace things as they are and stop lamenting my missed opportunities. Scary that a man my age is still trying to figure that out.
As long as we are peripherally talking about my indiscretions on Facebook, this might be pertinent:
That cracked me up.
And as a victim of the Facebook “fact-check” process, I liked this one too:
Ain’t it the truth?
Ah well, enough of this nonsense. I’m going to head out for another night of drinking alone. Hey, it’s what I do!
Well, turns out I made the right call in deciding NOT to do the Hare’s trail at yesterday’s Hash. My group did a hike of similar length but reached our On-Home destination almost an hour earlier than most and a couple of hours before the last of the Hashers arrived. There seemed to be a consensus that both the climb and the downhill were extreme. Granted, some folks like that kind of challenge. I am not among them.
During the after-party at BarCelona, Guenter chided me for not having attempted his trail. I shrugged it off saying I’m a free man and I go where I please. Another Hasher who did the trail chimed in and said it was not an appropriate trail for someone as notoriously slow as I am. Thanks, I think.
The yellow line is the trail as set by the Hares. The green line is the faux trail my group did. Our trails did join together for the last half kilometer though. You can probably discern the difference in our climbs, both in elevation and duration, from this photo.My group left from Alta Vista…On-On!And onward.Are you ready for this climb?Let’s do it!Our climb was easier but still plenty challenging…Well, lookee here, we’ve found the trail laid by the Hares…Good job, Hashers! Our On-Home was at Derelick’s house on Rizal Extension. He’s in poor health and wasn’t able to join us. I went inside and said hello and he really didn’t look good. Get well soon!Paying the piper…The Hares, Vienna Sausage and Fuck A Duck, on ice. Right where they belong!The initiation ritual for two virgin Hashers…Leech My Nuggets helps his girl, Leech My Pussy, celebrate 69 Hash runs…Oh, Peniscolada is having a birthday? Ain’t that sweet?Looks like the Gash gals want to make her a cake!And so they did.Captain Prickhard got the Hashit…
Once the Hash circle activities were completed I made my way to Sit-n-Bull for some nourishment.
The French dip sandwich hit the spot…
Then it was up to the rooftop of BarCelona for an after-Hash party.
A lot of Hashers had gone across the street to Cheap Charlies. They soon saw the error of their ways and joined us.Watching the sunset behind the now-defunct Central Park Reef hotel. What a waste!This post is NOT fake. It’s from the real trail. So there!
Welcome to the first Hash Monday early morning post of 2021! And for the first time this year I’ve got even less to report than usual. That won’t stop me though!
Speaking of the Hash, I won’t be doing the trail today. It begins with an uncomfortable ride in the Hashmobile and involves a climb up a mountain in an unfamiliar area. And oh yeah, Vienna Sausage (Guenter) is the Hare. Nope, not taking my chances! Several other like-minded folks will be joining me on a more safe and sane alternative trail.
What else is going on? Hmm, well I do get a weekly report on visitors here at LTG. Here’s a sample from the past week:
The green bar is page views, the blue unique visits, and the orange first time visits. I’m no statistician, but the fact that my numbers are pretty constant must mean that the first time visitors are mostly final time visitors as well.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s not like the numbers matter to me. When I first started the blog my intent was to use it as a vehicle to keep family and friends back home up to date on the happenings in my life. These days I rarely if ever hear from most of my family. I won’t deny that it hurts to be ghosted but I do appreciate the honesty–at least they aren’t pretending to care.
I also used to be a lot more political here but I eventually came to understand that others were making the same arguments better than I can and more importantly, no one’s mind was likely to be changed by anything I posted on my humble blog. So now LTG has devolved into what resembles a personal diary. I don’t even link to it from my other social media accounts–there’s a kind of freedom in writing what is unlikely to ever be read. Of course, I do have my core readers and commenters and I always appreciate the feedback and advice they provide. So, I am humbled and honored if a hundred people or so a day pop in for peek at my so-called life. I hope to prove the old adage that no man is totally worthless–he can always serve as a bad example!
Speaking of blogs and bloggers, the Big Hominid is a daily read for me. Always something interesting going on over there. Today he shared a collection of memes and this one brought back a twisted memory for me:
Jan-Michael Vincent is the only celebrity I’ve ever met in an up close and personal way. I wrote about that encounter here.
I don’t do drugs these days of course. How does that old saw go? I couldn’t kick drugs until I became an alcoholic. Or something like that. Of course, drinking brings it’s own kind of dangers, especially here in the Philippines.
Across that ramshackle plywood bridge lies the entrance to my darts bar, Alley Cats.
They’ve been working on the new drainage canal here in Barretto for going on two years now. The safety of residents and passersby must not be in the contract. There is an even more rickety crossing to get into Cheap Charlies. Of course, leaving after several beers is the REAL dangerous part. Oh well, we’ve all got to die of something I suppose. Being impaled on rebar in a ditch is at least a rather unique way to go.
And now for an update on my love life: I ain’t got one. But two of my futile attempts in 2020 still come to mind on occasion. Arlene likes to post about her new love on Facebook. Nothing wrong with that of course. But today she posted a picture that made me go “hmm”. She was very excited about “her” new house. The photo looked a lot like the one she had shown me that her now ex-boyfriend in Canada was having built. And since foreigners can’t own property here, it was being purchased in Arlene’s name. Even after she had professed her love for me, she wouldn’t end it with the Canadian because of the house. Now, I don’t know the current circumstances and it’s none of my business. Maybe the new boyfriend stepped up and bought the house for her. Or maybe she just did what a lot of Filipinas have been known to do–my name, my house. As stupid as I was for falling in love with someone who wouldn’t end an existing relationship, I’d have to say I’m one lucky bastard!
And then there’s Jessa. I mentioned sharing some drinks with her on New Year’s Eve. During our conversation that night she told me her daughter’s birthday was coming on January 6. She was hoping to find a location to have a pool party for her. I mentioned the Alta Vista community center would be a nice venue and promised to check on its availability. I did and it is. I’m even going to pay for it as a birthday gift. Jessa seemed pleasantly surprised. She’s a nice woman and I did and do care for her. When we were dating she also had an overseas boyfriend. But unlike Arlene, she did choose to end that relationship of her own volition. The problem was she expected me to become the new him. I wanted to continue dating and see how I felt before making a commitment. That was unacceptable to her and she ended it then and there. At least I guess we are still friends of a sort, so there’s that.
Words I will carry with me in 2021. Actually, I’m unlikely to need them because I’m still firmly in the “done with love” mode.
And one last tidbit of an update. Mary came by the house. It seems she has taken some sort of job in Manila. And of course, she needed transportation and rent money to get started. She was willing to earn it and to her credit, her performance was much improved since our last hookup. I still, however, have no interest in seeing her again. Helping her to get to Manila ensures she won’t be showing up on my doorstep anytime soon. I hope.
Alright, well this turned out to be a whole lot of nothin’, didn’t it? I’ll try to do better in the future. Call it a resolution!
I hadn’t picked up the arrows since last year but I had a singles league match to play. So I gathered up my gear, donned an old darts shirt from my glory days in Seoul, and headed out to Alley Cats.
The league format is 5 legs (games) of 501, 5 legs of cricket, and 5 legs of 301 DIDO (double in/double out). It generally takes around an hour and a half to play a match. My opponent for the afternoon was John from Wales. A nice guy and fellow Hasher but he’s been struggling with his dart game lately. This was our result:
Yeah, it was a bit of an ass-kicking. Er, maybe more than a bit.
I like to win but just as importantly, I like to throw well when I win. And the number of marks I managed (as recorded on the bottom of the scoresheet) indicates I was throwing stronger and more consistently than I normally do. I could have played even better, I actually had several chances to win both of the legs I lost but couldn’t hit the out. Still, I was satisfied with my performance overall.
Here’s how things stand in the Barretto Singles League after 7 weeks of play:
I normally don’t stay for the tourney after drinking beer battling through 15 legs of darts, but the tourney director needed another player and I didn’t really have anything better to do, so I signed up and had the good fortune to draw Espie as a partner. My performance in this event was not as consistent as I would like, but I did manage this:
The rare for me, and most amateurs, ton-80. It’s the highest possible score (three triple 20s equals 180 points). I might hit three or four of them a year.
Espie and I went undefeated in the winner’s bracket to take the tourney championship.
That’s my old Seoul International Dart League jersey bringing those good ol’ days back to life! It’s a little big on me now though.
After darts, I rewarded myself with a pork chop dinner at Mango’s.
Damn, it was good!
And so is life in 2021. So far at least.
Unrelated to this post but I thought it was funny…
“Human beings are remarkable – at what we can learn to live with. If we couldn’t get strong from what we lose, and what we miss, and what we want and can’t have, then we couldn’t ever get strong enough, could we? What else makes us strong?” –John Irving
So much for the first day of the rest of my life, or at least 2021. Felt like shit most of the day and other than a 7K walk around Castillejos I didn’t do shit either.
Ten years ago I retired and moved to Columbia, South Carolina to start a new life. Regular readers know how that turned out. Let’s just say it didn’t end well. Then again, it led me to this moment in time so perhaps it was destiny.
Three years ago I completed my first ever Hash run and got initiated into the Kennel.
Fixin’ to lose my virginity. The gal to my left, Gem, turned out to be a scammer. Big disappointment for sure. I hope she enjoys the Karma I paid for…Drink it down, down, down, down! As we say at the Hash, the beer-guzzling ritual is just like a blowjob because what doesn’t go in you, goes on you!
Speaking of the Hash, Scott (Pubic Head) did a photo collage of me doing my candy and cookies thing:
It’s a small thing that gives me big pleasure, as selfish as that sounds.
Speaking of Scott, he took a couple of photos on our hike yesterday morning:
I was moving slower than usual. Way too much beer and not enough sleep the night before will do that I suppose.At least I’m not this guy. Yet.This is the house of former President of the Philippines, Ramon Magsaysay. It’s a museum now. It inspired me to read his story and it is really quite interesting.
And as long as we are taking a historical detour, I bet you didn’t know that Texas was once called New Philippines. I sure didn’t. It’s good to learn something new, especially when you are an old dog like me.
Speaking of something new, I made meatballs in the slow cooker yesterday. Nothing new about that, but I tried a different recipe. Instead of cooking them in a spaghetti sauce base, I used barbeque sauce and, wait for it, grape jelly. I read about that somewhere online and thought to myself “no way”, but on a whim, I figured why not try it?
How they looked in the pot……and in my bowl.
I feared they were going to come out sickly sweet but that was not the case. They had an unusual tangy flavor but it wasn’t an unpleasant taste. I think I prefer the traditional tomato sauce but might go this route occasionally just to change things up some.
Late in the afternoon, I had Vels come by to give me a massage. It was the second time I’ve used her. She does a really nice job and gives a thorough two-hour rubdown. Well, she did miss a spot. She’s an older woman, mid to late 40s I reckon, but not unattractive. She ignored my hints about a happy ending and I didn’t press the issue. I did feel better physically when she finished the massage, so there’s that.
It was after six when Vels left and I decided to fuck off and stay home. I think that’s the first time in just about forever that I voluntarily didn’t go out for some evening beers. Now that I think about it, I haven’t had a beer since last year!
Alright then, let’s see what’s coming next!
I can’t walk through life facing backwards I have tried I tried more than once to just make sure And I was denied the future I’d been searching for But I spun around and hurt no more By living in the moment Living my life Easy and breezy With peace in my mind With peace in my heart Got peace in my soul Wherever I’m going, I’m already home
