About John McCrarey

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.

Time to split

Posted on 17/March/2023 by John McCrarey

Mary professed to enjoy the pork chop supper I prepared for her yesterday, commenting on how tender they were. That’s the advantage of crockpot cooking, I explained. She’s a bizarre eater. She ate all of her pork chops first. Then the garlic bread toast. But rather than picking it up and biting it as almost everyone else in the world does, she cut it up and forked it into her mouth, bite by bite. Lastly, she spooned the vegetable medley onto her plate and so completed her meal.

Mary comes across as a bit of a foodie, remembering everything I’ve cooked for her and saying how much she enjoyed it. I guess the way to her heart is through her stomach! She also posts food pictures on her Facebook, and she admits she has gained a bit of weight because she likes eating so much. She told me before that her favorite snack food is a corn dog. So, I picked up a surprise gift for her this week at Royal:

It turns out Mary doesn’t own a microwave or an oven, but she said she’d use the deep fry method to cook her gift. She wants to bring them home on Saturday and feed her Lola (grandmother) too. Why not take them with you today? Oh, she has no refrigerator, either. Well, I’m going to see about bringing some chill to her life.

There was no bedroom dessert this time, and I’ll confess to being a little disappointed. Mary wanted to go out drinking, so I got dressed, and we walked to the floating bar on Baloy Beach. She started out with a Coke but then decided to try my gin and soda combo. She liked it and says it is now her favorite alcoholic beverage. Damn, does that make me a groomer?

We sat and chatted, enjoying our time on the water while watching the sun go down.

***I do love the unique views that come with drinking on the floating bar.***

I wasn’t feeling too good, my lungs were acting up again, so I decided it was best to go back on shore. I was planning to introduce Mary to the McCoy’s beach bar, but once I started walking on the beach, I thought sitting back down was a better option. Treasure Island Resort was beckoning, so we had a seat at the poolside bar. It turns out Mary has a classmate who works at the reception desk, so she went off for a chat. I decided to surprise Mary with a dessert treat:

***The bar waitress put this gem together right before my eyes. Been a long time since I’d had this kind of indulgence, and it was worth the wait.***

We shared the banana split, and we had another gin and soda. It was still relatively early, but I wasn’t feeling it and thought I should spend some time at home with my nebulizer. So, we shared a trike back to the highway; I hopped out at the 7-Eleven, and Mary continued on to her home. Seeing how I was standing in front of Snackbar, I allowed myself a nightcap there before heading home where I belonged.

Still alive this morning, so I took that as a good sign. I made it through a flat 7K hike this morning and felt mostly okay. Mary wants to join me later this evening when she finishes an after-school event, so I suppose I’ll let her tag along for a bit on my bar crawl. Then we’ll see what happens next.

Oh, and commenter Kevin suggested that I go to the source (Filipinas) to determine if I’m truly perceived as a “player.” I posed that question to a woman I’ve known for a while without being romantically involved, and her response was a little surprising.

“You’re a flirt, John. You know that. So you are perceived to be flirting with a few girls. You’ve been in the Philippines for quite some time, yet you are still single despite being in a few relationships with local girls. Before I even got to know you, I heard the same stuff about you. We have a different culture. If, in your culture, being with another woman while dating or in a serious conversation with someone is okay, but we perceive it as guys treating us as an option, Playing multiple cards and seeing which card works. I guess Filipinas are vocal or more demonstrative of their feelings.”

Looks like I have my answer. And since I don’t want to be a disappointment, perhaps I should do what is expected of me and play the game. Apparently, I won’t have to do anything differently; I’ll just embrace the perception.

There you have it. Back tomorrow with more of this nonsense.

A letter from Linda

Posted on 16/March/2023 by John McCrarey

My friend and soulmate, Linda Ketner, succumbed to breast cancer on February 10, 2004. She was 52 years old when she passed away. Four years later, I told our story in this post. Reading that again may provide some context for what I’m writing now. I still think of her frequently and often wonder what she’d have to say about the way I’m currently living my life. I’m sure she would get a laugh out of it, but as was her nature, she’d also offer me support and encouragement. She was my best friend and guardian angel, and I’ll never stop missing her.

What prompted me to revisit the memories of this amazing woman after all these years? Well, it was that damn box with this envelope inside:

**The postmark says Linda mailed it to me from Phoenix, AZ, on February 23, 1993. She called it her “care package.”**

I’m sure I looked at the contents when I received it, but I haven’t looked inside again during this century. I just haven’t wanted to revisit the pain, I suppose. From what I recall, it contained the letters I had sent her over the years before email became a thing. I still have not looked to see what else I might find, but I reached in yesterday and pulled this out:

***It is 30 pages long. She wrote it over the course of three weeks in October 1992***

My plan is to excerpt parts of it here because as I reread it, I couldn’t help but feel like she was in the room talking to me. Her personality seems to shine through her words; at least, it did for me. And it also tells the tragic story of her life; cancer was only one of the battles she fought. Preserving the words she wrote to me here on my aptly titled blog is the closest I can come to bringing her back to this world she left behind. Perhaps no one will care about this project but me, and that’s okay. You never know, though. Maybe someone in her family will find her name on the internet and learn what an amazing woman she truly was.

Much more to come soon.

A Walk On Wednesday

Posted on 16/March/2023 by John McCrarey

Another day in my life that started with a walk and ended with a drunken stagger.

Time out for a safety tip: When withdrawing funds from an ATM, you should have someone around to watch your back. It’s also a good idea to give your lady friend your PIN just in case you forget it. Now back to our regular post.

***A long and flat walk (almost 9K) on the streets of Matain and Calapacuan.***

***Only three were in attendance this week, including newcomer Gary from Austria (on the right)***

***If there were*** ***a theme to the day’s hike, I’d deem it to be “dirty water.”***

***And a boat view. I’m not a fisherman, but I’m guessing these boats are for nighttime catches.***

***Back on the highway and headed for Calapacuan***

***The locals here were all friendly and shouted out cheerful greetings.***

***That peninsula across the water is where Matain is located and where we were earlier in our hike.***

***On the other side of the highway, we passed this big ol’ fishing pond.***

***It boggles my brain when I see what people do with their trash***

The walk was all flat, but I was breathing hard for the last couple of kilometers. I hope my lungs won’t take my breath away.

Feeding time at Hideaway rolled around, and I headed out to take care of business. Last night the girls enjoyed pizza (Hawaiian, of course), pork liempo, and a roasted chicken. I baked a dozen apple cinnamon muffins for dessert.

***The girls were hungry last night! The chicken and liempo were gone in the blink of an eye. I was able to get a shot of some of the pizza.***

***The muffins seemed popular as well.***

***The crew on the far side of the bar***

***And the gals on my side of the bar (the ones I treated to a lady drink)***

When it was time to move on from Hideaway, I hoofed it down the highway to Alaska Club for my nightcap.

***And enjoyed the view of Virginia. If I were a player, I’d have fucked her by now. Hmm, maybe it’s time to get in the game.***

Made it home alone and safe. And now, I’m ready to face the challenges of a brand new day.

Mary is coming over after school. I’m preparing some pork chops in a cream of mushroom soup sauce in the crockpot. After the meal, I’ll take her to the floating bar for a couple of drinks before she goes back home to Kalaklan.

If I were the asshole Nerissa seems to think I am, I’d bring Mary with me to Cheap Charlies. Hmm, maybe next time.

I hear some people
been talkin' me down,
Bring up my name,
pass it 'round.
They don't mention
happy times
They do their thing,
I'll do mine.

Ooh baby,
that's hard to change
I can't tell them
how to feel.
Some get stoned,
some get strange,
But sooner or later
it all gets real.

Walk on

To play or not to be played…

Posted on 15/March/2023 by John McCrarey

…is that the question?

Commenter Brian shared these thoughts on a recent post:

Random thoughts that somewhat tie in to her giving you the cold shoulder. I may have said this previously in response to an earlier post of yours, but there definitely is a double standard with the number of girls a guy is with vs. the number of guys a girl is with and thoughts thereof.

Although you probably don’t see yourself this way, I bet that most of the girls you come in contact with in your little burg see you as a player. One girl one night, a different one the next week, etc. As you mentioned, in a small town, everyone knows your business. With that type of reputation, most/all ladies will hesitate to get to know you on anything other than a superficial level

My initial reaction was that visiting different bars and buying your favorite girls a lady drink, then leaving alone, doesn’t really qualify as being a player. I think that paying for company or sex is kind of the opposite of being a player. I see a player as someone who strings more than one woman along emotionally, making promises he doesn’t mean to keep and ultimately breaking hearts. Of course, women can be players, too, and I’d wager there are more female players in this town than there are men making a game of romance.

On the other hand, how you are perceived often overrides whatever the truth might be. That seems to be Brian’s primary point: if the women in my town see me as a player, whether I am or not, they will treat me as someone who can’t be trusted with their heart. That seems to indeed be the case with Nerissa.

I went to see Nerissa in Cheap Charlies last night and wasn’t sure what to expect, seeing as how she had unfriended and blocked me on Facebook without a word. She didn’t decline when I invited her to join me for a drink, so that was a start. However, she ordered a double lady drink, something she hadn’t tried before. Given the circumstances, I didn’t object. I also told the other girls milling about that I wanted one on one time with Nerissa. And then I asked her why she had blocked me.

“Because I saw you at BarCelona with another girl,” she responded. That’s what I expected the issue was, but it still didn’t make much sense to me. I’ve had one date with Nerissa: nothing physical, no promises, no commitments. I pointed out that she hadn’t responded when I had asked her when her next day off would be, intending to take her out for dinner. Nerissa said she hadn’t answered because she didn’t know when she’d be off yet. Fine, why didn’t you say that? I told her that her non-responsiveness led me to believe she wasn’t interested in dating me. Nerissa asked me why I hadn’t told her I was seeing someone else, and I truthfully responded that I didn’t feel that I had a relationship with her or any obligation to do so. I told her that if I were trying to hide that I was meeting someone, I wouldn’t have chosen to sit on the rooftop at BarCelona in full view of everyone sitting in Cheap Charlies. I asked her why she hadn’t raised her concerns with me directly instead of just blocking me without explanation. She acted like it was no big deal to be blocked and explained that she didn’t want to see posts of me with another girl.

And that’s pretty much where we left it. I had three drinks; she had two (doubles). I paid my tab and left. I guess my feeling is I’m glad I found out how she is sooner rather than later. If she got that jealous before we were even in a relationship, I can only imagine the nightmare she would likely be as a jealous girlfriend. And perhaps she feels the same–happy to learn I’m such a “player” early on. And so it goes.

After my departure, I headed up the highway to John’s place for some grub.

***I had a craving for the pulled pork sandwich.***

I also ordered some Korean-style chicken wings to surprise the Hideaway girls.

***It turns out just four girls were working last night. I was the only customer. Sixteen wings may have been a bit much, but I imagine Joy took the leftovers home to her kids.***

I only had one drink at Hideaway, knowing I’d be back today for the regular Wednesday feeding. I finished my evening at The Green Room with two more drinks, then caught a trike back home.

More and more, I’m thinking I’m better off going through life alone. Who needs all the drama?

Taking a powder

Posted on 14/March/2023 by John McCrarey

Feedback from yesterday’s trail was mostly positive, although we could have done better marking in a couple of places where the path was unclear. Hey, nobody’s perfect! I’ll share the pictures that others took along with a few from me taken while laying the powder.

***Our trail. The white line represents the shortcut (avoiding the second hill climb) for those so inclined. Or should I say, disinclined?***

***Gathering for the start at the VFW***

***And they are On-On for trail number 1540 of the SBH3***

***The view from the top of the first*** ***hill***

***In the foreground, you can see some of the powder I laid earlier that morning.***

Leech My Nuggets with Stuart right behind him. Stuart got named during the Hash circle. I threw out a suggestion I thought was funny but that no one would get. To my surprise, the name I wanted got the majority vote. So, welcome to You Can Call Me Martha.

***A couple of visiting Hashers from Puerto Galera***

***About where the short and long trails split***

***And from the top of the second hill***

**The long and short trails came together again in San Isidro**

***A little confusion about which way to go***

***That morning, we marked this burned-out truck hulk (see to the left of the window). And then someone moved the truck!***

***The trail came back through Alta Vista***

***And if you followed the powder, you cut through Purok 13…***

***…and found yourself on the Matain river***

***Those of us who got On-Home early (you can’t drink until 3:30) spent the time on the floating bar.***

Highs and lows

Posted on 13/March/2023 by John McCrarey

This an earlier-than-normal post today because I’ve got a Hash trail to mark this morning. I prefer laying the powder the day before, but my co-Hare was unavailable yesterday, so here we go. We’ve got one or two hill options available, so hopefully, the kennel will be satisfied.

Here’s a low for you–Mary told me she had posted in one of the Barretto Facebook groups that she was looking for part-time work cleaning houses. Some dude responded with this message:

It’s hard to fathom what kind of asshole thinks it is appropriate to send a message like this to a total stranger. Honestly, I wouldn’t treat a bar prostitute with this kind of disrespect. Disgusting!

Mary reported him to the group administrator, so hopefully, this guy gets banned.

Speaking of Facebook, I hadn’t heard from Nerissa for a couple of days, so I went to send her a message only to discover she had blocked me on Messenger and unfriended me on Facebook. I have no idea why; everything was fine the last time I saw her on Friday night. I am thinking that maybe she saw me with Mary on Saturday evening during our rooftop visit at BarCelona.

***That’s Cheap Charlies in the circle. You get a pretty good view of what’s going on at BarCelona from there.***

I’ll try to stop in at CC tomorrow and see what’s up with her.

I guess to finish this post on a high note; I can show the Hideaway feeding photos from last night.

***My new Sunday tradition is ordering dinner from the Jewel cafe and having it delivered. Pork sisig and chicken wings…***

***…lasagna and a chef’s salad were Joy’s selections***

***Joy appeared satisfied with the meal***

While I was busy imbibing at Hideaway, I got a message from Virginia that she had returned to work at Alaska Club. I told her I’d stop by for a nightcap later. And I’m a man of my (drunken) word!

***Long time no see. Welcome back, Virginia!***

Heh, I was just thinking of the incongruity of having to go to Alaska to see Virginia. Hideaway is next door to Arizona, so it makes for a long trip!

And that’s the state of things this morning.

MDWM

Posted on 12/March/2023 by John McCrarey

Here’s a quick post about My Date With Mary.

As I’ve mentioned, one of the things I find most attractive about Mary is she is a smart girl. Of course, smart girls tend to think for themselves and can sometimes be very willful. So, once Mary has her mind made up, there’s no changing it. She had it in her mind that she was going to spend the night with me. What could I do?

I suggested we start with some drinks, then have dinner, and I’d bring her home after. Those terms were acceptable to her, so we agreed to meet on the rooftop at BarCelona at 5:00 p.m. I chose BarCelona because it has some nice views and also because it is a bar I don’t frequent regularly…i.e., I wouldn’t have to deal with the prying eyes of one of my regular bargirls and any jealousy that may ensue.

Mary arrived about fifteen minutes late, which is what is known as “Filipina time.” In her defense, she was coming from Kalaklan, and catching a Jeepney on the highway at that time of day can be a pain as many are filled with passengers coming home from work in Olongapo City. I was on my second drink when she entered the bar.

I was a little surprised when Mary told me this was only the second time she had been inside a bar–the first being when I took her to Alaska Club for the SOB a couple of weeks ago. She ordered water and a coke, which is her choice, and I’m quite capable of drinking enough for the two of us.

***That hill is the first climb on the Hash trail for Monday.***

***A bit of a bay view from our table between two resort hotels.***

**My second favorite view was watching the sun go down.**

***Of course, my favorite view was of my date.***

We had some chit-chat and ordered a second round of drinks. I asked Mary where she would like to eat dinner, and she said, “I want the chicken fingers at Sit-n-Bull. Alrighty, then. We’ll save those ribeyes at John’s place for another time. Mary has a schoolmate who works at Wet Spot, and Sit-n-Bull delivers to Wet Spot, so I suggested we go there and visit her friend. Mary was up for that idea, and Wet Spot was right downstairs from us, so off we went. That makes three bars for Mary now if you are keeping score.

We grabbed an open table and settled in, only to discover that Mary’s friend wasn’t working, which is very unusual for a Saturday night. Oh, well. My regular waitress came and greeted us and took our drink orders. Mary had another soft drink, I had more gin and soda, and I also bought mywaitress a drink. The Sit-n-Bull waitress came by with a menu, and we ordered some grub. I did a roast beef dip, Mary got her chicken fingers (plus an order to go), and I bought a pizza for the waitresses to share.

And then things get a little fuzzy. I kept drinking; the manager, Bret, sent me over a drink on the house. A bit later, owner Dave came in and bought me a drink too. Mevelyn, the cute little dancer I barfined a while back for “cuddling only,” was onstage, and Mary thought she looked like a girl from her school, so I called her down to join us. It wasn’t the same girl Mary knew, but I got her a drink anyway. It turns out she is moving back home to the province next week. Good luck to you, sweetie.

Mary and my waitress asked if they could do tequila shots, and who was I to say no? Even if they do cost 200 pesos a pop. I think they both had two, but by now, I was over my gin capacity and in no condition to count. But it wasn’t long afterward that Mary and I were in a trike heading home.

***STFU, can’t you see I’m on a date?***

I made us a smoothie (banana, strawberry, mango, and pineapple), and we hit the hay shortly after. Well, rolled in it. I know I woke up with a sweet young thing next to me, and it was very nice for a change to have a warm body sharing my bed.

Mary joined me on the dog walk then I made us some breakfast–cheese quesadilla, tuna salad (as requested by my guest), tortilla chips, and salsa. By all appearances (disappearances?), she enjoyed her morning meal.

Mary is crazy about the salsa I use, so I gave her a jar to bring home.

***Nothing special, really, but it is the best I’ve found locally.***

And then it was time to end our time together. I offered to walk her home to Kalaklan (about 4K up the highway), but she declined, saying she preferred the Jeepney. I walked with her out of the neighborhood, spotted a trike, and sent her home in style.

Diamonds and rust

Posted on 11/March/2023 by John McCrarey

As I remember your eyes
Were bluer than robin's eggs
My poetry was lousy you said
Where are you calling from?
A booth in the midwest
Ten years ago
I bought you some cufflinks
You brought me something
We both know what memories can bring
They bring diamonds and rust

Speaking of lousy poetry, I’ve been rummaging some more in my memory box, and by golly, I’ve got some doozies!

***Poems, short stories, school work from my high school daze, some photographs, and letters.***

That yellow envelope contains all the letters I had mailed to my soul mate Linda over the years (this was before email became a thing, if you can imagine that). I didn’t know she had kept them until she mailed them back to me shortly before she succumbed to cancer. I will confess to a fair amount of cowardice because I haven’t yet found the strength to read what I wrote to her all those years ago. The pain of losing her is still strong in my heart and soul. But, I seem to be rediscovering the person of my youth, and I’ll want to explore that portion of my life as well. So, stay tuned.

So, the poems I’m sharing today seem to be about unrequited love (hmm, sounds familiar) and my strong anti-war positions held during my high school years. It appears that being unlucky at love has always been in my genes. With that other thing in my jeans being a contributing factor. My views on the war in Vietnam have moderated quite a lot over the years. Now, I never disrespected the soldiers who served there (I disagreed with that spitting on returning vets in airports even in my most extreme days), but I have a better understanding of why we were there now and what we were fighting for. Well, there is the one about murdering an NCO, but it was meant as sarcasm. I still believe we were on a fool’s mission, and I think that if you are going to commit soldiers to sacrifice their lives, we should have gone “all-in” for victory. Anyway, that’s all history, but I wanted to provide some context for the poems.

Let’s do love first, shall we?

aflowerinthesun Download

I warned you! I’m not sure of the timing on this one or who I was longing for, but if I had to guess, it would be Gail Weed around 1974.

sometimes Download

I’ll decipher those hieroglyphics above for you:

Sometimes the emptiness seems
More than I can stand
I try to be strong and sure
But I can't always be that man
So when these lonely feelings
Become too much to bear
I close my eyes and think of you
I know you're always there

You'll be so understanding
You won't let me sink too low
And even when the words don't come
It seems somehow you know
It won't matter what I'm thinking
It won't matter what I feel
I'll see your smile and hear your voice
And I'll know our love is real

So I guess I'm never really alone
Even though I feel that way
I'll just drift back into my memories
And you won't seem so far away
I'll hold you close and hear you laugh
Then gaze at those loving eyes
I'll know inside that everything's right
And my love won't have to hide 

You know, it seems to me right now
That this pain is all in my mind
'Cause my heart is so full of love for you
And I know it's just a matter of time
Till I'll open my eyes and you'll be there
Then I won't have to pretend
You'll be everything I dreamed you'd be
My woman, my lover, my friend

Again, I’m not sure of this timing, but I suspect it may have been written for KaraLynne Pope. It didn’t change her mind.

The year I was scheduled to be drafted was when the war and draft ended. I can’t say my poetry had anything to do with that, but here’s a sample:

asoldierofamerica Download

That was definitely written in high school; the war ended my senior year. If the rhyme seems off, it is because I pronounced it Viet-Namb, not Viet-Nomb.

Here’s another in the same vein:

whydidtheydie Download

Okay, I was a bleeding heart that wouldn’t or couldn’t see the big picture.

And then there is this gem:

aheroofhumanity Download

Literati was our high school journal that published the “best” creative writing from the student body. I don’t think I submitted this poem; if I did, it wasn’t chosen for inclusion.

***My senior picture. Everybody’s so different; I haven’t changed.***

Thank you for your indulgence. There will be more to come as I bring these 50-year-old efforts back to life. And yes, I realize I should probably have let them rest in peace in the twentieth century.

Now you're telling me
You're not nostalgic
Then give me another word for it
You who are so good with words
And at keeping things vague
Because I need some of that vagueness now
It's all come back too clearly
Yes I loved you dearly
And if you're offering me diamonds and rust
I've already paid

Joan Baez makes my verse look even more pathetic…

Scouting

Posted on 11/March/2023 by John McCrarey

My co-Hare and I did some scouting yesterday and pretty much finalized our trail for Monday’s Hash. We’ll go back out in the morning and put chalk on the trees and powder on the ground for the Kennel to follow.

***The long version is a little over 8K with two hill climbs. The short trail only has one hill.***

**Stuart (foreground) was the only other person to show up for the Friday group hike, so we invited him to join us on the scouting expedition.**

***A view from the other side of the hill***

***Your day is drawing near, Easter Mountain***

***A farmer’s field, we had to find a way around***

***I get it that Korean food and culture is popular here, but who will*** ***read the Hanguel? I never see any Koreans in the countryside, although Korean men occasionally visit the bar scene.***

***And the On-Home will be at Da’Kudos on Baloy Beach***

That’s the trail; you can Relive the scouting adventure here:

https://www.relive.cc/view/vNOP4yY8n2O

Now, about my Friday night. I did decide to skip the SOB. Back in the old days (pre-scamdemic), I only attended the SOB once a month or so. When the SOB resumed last year, I went every week as a show of support and appreciation to the sponsoring bars. Lately, they have had more attendees than they can accommodate, so I can take a break and give my seat to someone else to watch the show.

I started out at Cheap Charlies, where I enjoyed some facetime with Nerissa. She’s definitely not the typical bargirl type, at least not yet. I need to decide if I want to take the next step toward a potential relationship. As with Mary, I’m just not sure I want to give up my freedom from drama and my ability to do as I please. I know some positives come with having a girlfriend, too, but damn, why risk it?

After I left Cheap Charlies, I was feeling a little hungry. Running through the options as I walked down the highway, I decided to pay Thumbstar a visit. It’s rare for me to patronize this venue for various reasons, but their shwarma shop was enough motivation to overcome them. Plus, a girl I met at Queen Victoria several months ago messaged me that she was working there now, so it seemed appropriate to pay her a visit too.

It was weird being in Thumbstar on a Friday night during the SOB. Thumbstar briefly was a participating bar in the SOB, but because of some disagreement over something, pulled out. And now Thumbstar’s management is engaging in a Bar Wars tactic–a competing event on Fridays they call the SOP. It’s ridiculous and, frankly, one of the reasons I don’t visit this bar very often, but by chance, here I was, experiencing my first-ever SOP. It’s nothing like the real thing, though. No dance competition, just the regular Thumbstar crew.

When I arrived, I saw Che, the former Queen Vic waitress, on stage dancing. So, I called her down to join me. She tried to order a bottled beer double lady drink for a whopping 350 pesos, but I put a stop to that, and she settled for a more reasonably priced single drink. I did buy her two (or maybe more), so it’s not so much the money as it is the principle. My waitress had difficulty understanding my drink order (a shot of gin in a tall glass and a can of soda water on the side). Seems simple to me, but it was confusing to her, and I admit I got a little frustrated and cranky with her. Felt wrong about being a grumpy old man, so I bought her a drink too.

The best part of the SOP is that drinks AND food are all buy one get one free. So, I got two chicken shwarmas for the price of one. Che wanted chicken, so the second order went to our waitress. The waitress wanted fries, so we shared those as well. The way I drink, every order is a double–the shot of gin and the can of soda. So, last night at least I could get my soda water for free.

And in a first for me, the waitress picked up my phone from the table and took a selfie without being asked (or asking permission). I didn’t care, of course, but joked that my wife would be very angry when she saw it. That made her nervous until I explained I was kidding.

***The selfie of which I speak. Not really my preferred body type, but I’m sure some guys would get off on those boobs.***

***Che is definitely more my type. (I lifted this photo from her Facebook)***

And then a two-week millionaire (the name we expats use for free-spending tourists) came in and called most of the dancers down from the stage to join him at his table. I snuck a picture of his bounty and their booties.

***And yes, he bought them all bottles of beer at double lady drink prices. No wonder they love him!***

I have to admit; I had a better time at Thumbstar than I expected I would. I decided to make Queen Victoria my nightcap destination, and I appeared to be the only customer in the bar. No idea how they stay in business, especially when they were paying a live band to perform with no audience. Anyway, I was joined at the bar by two friendly waitresses, and I enjoyed sharing a drink with them to end my night on the town.

And now it seems I have a dinner date with Mary tonight. There’s just no telling that girl no.

Oh, I almost forgot. I came across this post of mine from 2009, back in the days this blog has some substance. I found it especially interesting given what’s been going of late with the media covering up the sins of our government rather than reporting them to the people. Our founders believe a free press was the “fourth estate” that would help preserve our freedoms. Instead, they are facilitating their destruction.

Rockin’ on the water

Posted on 10/March/2023 by John McCrarey

My life consists of daily routines, but sometimes I change things up just to keep it interesting. Yesterday, instead of doing my regular Thursday solo walk, I did my standard Saturday walk. Talk about living life on the edge! And for the third Thursday in a row, I paid a visit to the Kokomo’s floating bar on Baloy. Hmm, I guess that qualifies as a new routine!

**Waiting to be ferried to the floater**

***On board with some of my fellow passengers***

***At first, I thought it was a snake!***

I stayed aboard for a couple of hours, just relaxing and enjoying the vibe. Along with my gin and sodas.

**And the sun went down on another day in paradise.**

.Once I was back ashore, I decided some food would be the next order of business. Johan’s has a new owner and kitchen operation, so I popped in to give them a try. My friendly waitress greeted me by name, even though I’m rarely a customer here. She said she heard I was in her neighborhood handing out cookies on Wednesday, and she didn’t get any. Next time, I told her. Then one of the pool players there asked how my nephew Joshua was doing (Josh had stayed here during his visit). Say what you will about small-town living, but it does make you feel at home.

Anyway, I like the new menu better than the old one. A lot of these beach resorts will have 50+ options, and it always makes me wonder how any chef could learn to make all of them proficiently. I also wonder how you can keep all those ingredients from going bad. I much prefer a limited menu where I know all the items will be fresh and tasty. Johan’s new menu has fewer items, and if the quality of my first selection is any indication, all are going to be well prepared.

***I kept it simple with a beef quesadilla. Might just be the best I’ve ever had, and there was more on that plate than I could eat in one setting.***

I walked Baloy Beach road in the dark back to the highway and popped into Snackbar for my nightcap. Naturally, I wound up buying my four favorites working there a lady drink before I departed.

***Living rich on a pension is one of the benefits of residing in a poor country, I suppose. But for what it’s worth, I do spend as much or more on others as I do on my own selfish indulgences.***

And now it’s another Friday night. Not sure if I’m going to make the SOB or not. Had a long hike today (over 8K with two hills), scouting some more for Monday’s Hash trail. I think we’ve come up with a good one. I’ll share more on that tomorrow.

Onward!

Hare-brained

Posted on 09/March/2023 by John McCrarey

I got drafted to be one of the Hares for the Hash next week. Only one other person showed up for the Wednesday Walkers group hike, so I drafted him to help me scout a trail.

The On-Home venue next week is Da’Kudos on Baloy Beach. I used always to enjoy walking the river bank to Baloy, but someone blocked access a couple of years ago. I wanted to see if anything had changed recently, so off we went. Before we reached the cutoff to the Baloy road, a woman said, “you can’t get through there, it’s closed.” Damn. But then she told us, “you can come this way” and led us through her yard and pointed to a path leading to the road. I thanked her gave her some cookies and asked if we could have a group come this way on Monday and she said that would be fine. So, we’ll have something new next week at least.

Once we were on Baloy I suggested we do my idea for the trail in reverse and that worked out fine. My co-Hare is going to add a loop with another climb (my trail only has one hill) so the die-hards will be happy. We’ll finalize our plans this weekend and mark the trail on Sunday or Monday morning.

***We did almost 8K yesterday, but it was the flat portion. It should be a good trail for everyone with the hill options included.***

I baked a carrot cake for the Hideaway feeding last night. Actually, I added raisins to the recipe, so it was technically a carrot-raisin cake I guess. The girls went crazy for it and it disappeared quickly. I got lazy and sent Joy out to buy whatever food the girls wanted. She came back with fried chicken and some pancit, a Filipino noodle dish, and that was popular with the girls too.

Eating, drinking, and some pool filled the hours at Hideaway. It took Joy three games to beat me twice this time, so I guess that shows some improvement on my part. Griff, the manager, is trying to recruit me for a new dart league team, but I’m really not sure I want to get back into that routine. We’ll see if the bug to play bites me again.

Did my nightcap at Wet Spot, then brought home some chicken fingers and a slice of pecan pie from Sit-n-Bowl. Went to bed fat and happy.

***Yes, it does. Enjoy it while you can.***

Doubling down

Posted on 08/March/2023 by John McCrarey

Another week, another cart of groceries. I changed things up a little this time by visiting both of the large supermarkets on the old Navy base. Sometimes Pure Gold has items in stock I can’t find at Royal, so I’ll pop in there every couple of months for a look around. Found some things on sale, but nothing I can’t get elsewhere. I’ll check back in May.

***I was surprised to find Buddy waiting for me in the dog food section at Royal, though.***

It was my friend Nerissa’s birthday yesterday, and I asked if she had any plans. Alas, she said she had to work because, on Tuesday, the RSL (the Australian version of the VFW) comes in mass to Cheap Charlies, so none of the girls can take off work. It’s too bad she had to work; I was hoping to take her out for a birthday dinner. The RSL are good blokes, but they fill the bar up when they are there, and it gets a bit loud and uncomfortable for an outsider. So, I tend to avoid CC on Tuesdays.

Still, I wanted to do something for Nerissa on her special day, so I baked up a batch of brownies and slipped 500 pesos in a red envelope for her. I arrived at Cheap Charlies around 4:30 and was relieved to see the invasion of the RSL hadn’t started yet. As I walked through the door, I saw Nerissa’s smiling face–as she drank a bottled beer with a customer. Well, that’s her job, and I get that it is first come, first served with the girls, as it should be. My problem was that it seemed awkward and rude to interrupt her interaction with her benefactor by presenting my gifts. So, I sat on the other side of the bar to wait things out, occasionally looking over my shoulder to check on her progress. I was soon besieged by two other bar girls and naturally treated them to the drinks they were craving.

SINGLE lady drinks. I never knowingly buy a double lady drink, which in Cheap Charlies is a bottled drink. I’m not sure why it is, but paying 250 pesos for a bottle of beer just irks me somehow. It’s not really even about the money; I bought my girls two 130 pesos single drinks each, but just the thought of paying more than three times the customer price for a “double” drink feels like a scam to me. Now, I’ve had guys tell me that it takes twice as long for the girl to finish a bottle of beer than it does a mixed drink, so it saves them money in the long run. Maybe so, but I don’t buy double drinks as a matter of principle. One girl told me they get a 120 peso commission on a double and 80 pesos for a single drink. So, my two drinks are better than a double attitude is a good deal for them.

And then the RSL guys started arriving in force. I glanced at Nerissa; she was just starting another bottled (double) drink, which meant her customer wouldn’t leave anytime soon. So, I paid my tab, tipped my company, and prepared to leave. I took the brownies and envelope and gave them to another gal I know and trust and asked her to get them to Nerissa when she was free. Nerissa called out, “thanks for coming!” as I departed.

When I woke up this morning, I saw a message from Nerissa (the girls can’t use their phones during working hours):

Thank you for a delicious brownies and for your visit john.. You are so sweet… I like u a lot..my birthday is complete because of you

You are most welcome, Nerissa.

I treated myself to a Sit-n-Bull meal, had a couple more drinks at The Green Room, and finished my night cuddling some with Jenn at Whiskey Girl. Once again, I was in bed before 9:00. I’ve become such an old man, it seems.

Facebook did remind me of some relatively younger days during my Seoul life with my buddy Duke:

Hooters and Korean gals seem to be a contradiction in terms. I believe this Hooters franchise in Apujeong has long since closed. The girls may have been flat-chested, but then again, more than a mouthful is a waste.

And I just now received a message from one of my female Facebook “friends” I’ve never met before in person:

Hello John when I can taste your cock

Seen by Lorna Cabrera at February 14, 2023 at 6:39 PM

Um, most likely never, but thanks for asking.

What a life I have here, eh?

***Take care of that foot, Kevin! I don’t want my level of tolerance to be tested.***

Halfhashed

Posted on 07/March/2023 by John McCrarey

Half a trail is better than none, I suppose. And while I avoided a couple of hills, my trail, including the distance gained when I walked to the start from my house, was a respectable 8K.

***The red line is the trail as planned by the Hares. The white line is the handicapped modifications.***

***So, my trail looked like this with the 3+K walk to the start***.

***Arriving in Barangay Calapacuan (Cal-ah-pock-u-on)***

***The start of the modified trail at the Calapacuan market street***

That’s Pubic Head in the background enjoying his first Hash trail since breaking his ankle a few weeks ago. Buddy Fucker and his gal, Fuck Buddy, and I constituted the group that walked the handicapped trail.

***Yep, you can see Easter mountain from here.***

***Our path was mainly the second half of the Hare’s trail. This trail marking indicates we should take a climb up and over Black Rock. “Fuck that!” was our response.***

***These flat paved streets worked just fine for us.***

***Good to know where this place is if I ever need me a BJ.***

***Where does this narrow passageway lead?***

***We did have one climb ahead of us…a hundred steps or so…***

***Pubic Head takes a breather on the way to the top***

***The first of the runners from the long trail to catch up with us.***

***Leech My Nuggets, one of the Hares, catches me in this alley near the trail’s end.***

***Further up the alley, I was surprised to see a former Hasher, Arcel (on the right), and her child. Naturally, I made a cookie delivery.***

***Our On-Home venue was Smokes and Bottles.***

***Um, not to be a dick about it, but…***

***Another Hash birthday cake***, ***this time for Titanic Dickhead***

When the Hash was over, I walked back to Barretto and stopped at Snackbar for my nightcap. It was nice to visit with one of my old favorites there, Heidee, again. During our conversation, she asked me how my girlfriend was doing. I was surprised and told her I didn’t have a girlfriend, then asked what made her think I did. Heidee said to me that Lydell and another Snackbar waitress saw a girl on the Jeepney, and she had a keychain with my picture on it.

A friend had gifted me several of those key chains, and I gave them away to some young women I know. I’m unsure who it was on the Jeepney, but she wasn’t my girlfriend. This is just another example of how everyone *thinks* they know your business in this little town. Kinda scary, in a way.

This provides a good segway to me telling about some edits to yesterday’s post. I had revealed some private and personal information about someone I know, and a regular reader commented that I was wrong to do so. When I took a step back and looked at it again, I realized he was right to call me out on it. It was not my intention to cause anyone pain or shame, but if the information that I shared came back to her, she would likely be devastated. No excuses; I just wasn’t thinking about the potential repercussions. I appreciate that thanks to this reader, I was able to make the edits shortly after publishing the post, and hopefully, no damage was done.

I tend to forget that this blog isn’t a personal diary and that what I share has a potentially larger audience than I imagine. Perhaps some with bad intentions. Like that Dick who tried to use my sketchy history with love (i.e., four marriages) to undermine my relationship with a woman I cared about. You’d think I’d have learned by now.

***Are you talking about me? Well, I guess if the shoe fits, I’ll have to wear it.***

Anyway, I’ll try and do better in the future. I have taken to changing the names of some of the people I write about here. Going forward, I’ll keep in mind that some things may be best left unsaid. But don’t worry, dear readers; I’m quite sure that I’ll continue to serve as a bad example.

Lunch and dinner

Posted on 06/March/2023 by John McCrarey

Mary wanted to come over and have lunch with me yesterday. I didn’t really have anything on hand to prepare a proper lunch and suggested we meet up at a restaurant instead. But Mary insisted that anything would be fine, and so I relented. She arrived shortly after noon, and I served cheese nachos with salsa and tuna salad for our meal. She seemed to enjoy it.

After lunch, we had dessert in the bedroom and then a nap in each other’s arms. It felt nice holding her. Given what Mary has been through, I don’t think I’ll suggest being her “Sugar Daddy.” Still, I’ve told her I’m willing to support her continued education and encouraged her to prioritize her studies over work (she’s been looking for a job as a housekeeper). I gave her some cash to pay expenses for the semester that starts today.

Around 4:00, I walked Mary down to the highway, where she caught a Jeepney for her home in Olongapo City. Then I headed to Jewel Cafe to order some grub for the Sunday feeding at Hideaway Bar. I like Jewel for its reasonable prices and that they offer free delivery–I appreciate not having to sit around waiting on my order. I did go a little overboard, though, as my food bill was around 2000 pesos.

***The bounty included fried chicken, spaghetti, pork sisig, and lumpia. And a dozen Dunkin’ Donuts for dessert.***

***Joy and all the other gals seemed satisfied with their meal***

I had a few drinks, bought a few, played some pool (Joy kicked my ass again!), then I said good night and headed on up the highway.

***The next (and last) stop was Cheap Charlies, where I spent some quality time with these two lovelies.***

My Fitbit says I was asleep at 8:30. I’m such a lightweight these days. Well, maybe lightweight is the wrong word. At yesterday’s weigh-in, I was dishearted to see I had GAINED a half pound last week. Hopefully, that was an aberration.

Facebook memories provided a glimpse of how I was looking in years gone by:

***More hair, less belly. Circa 1973.***

My internet time also revealed this article listing eleven Hollywood movies that were filmed here in the Philippines. I’d heard of some of them, most famously Apocolypse Now, which was filmed nearby. Others I had no clue about. It might be fun to give some of them a watch and see if there is anything I recognize.

And here it is, Hash Monday once again. Scott is making his return from a broken ankle today on a modified and shortened version of the Hare’s trail. I’m going to join him so he won’t be out there alone. Truthfully, I was debating whether I wanted to do a long trail that is starting all the way out in Subic town. When I saw what Scott had in mind as an alternative, I liked it. I will walk the 3K to the start of Scott’s trail to add some distance to today’s effort.

Full report on how it goes tomorrow.

Laid back Saturday night

Posted on 05/March/2023 by John McCrarey

Just going with the flow. When you don’t have a plan, everything goes as planned.

I started out at It Doesn’t Matter. Thought I might run into someone I know there, but the place was pretty much dead. Even so, when my glass was empty and no waitress could be bothered to come out to check on me, I went inside, paid my tab, and left.

I was feeling a little hungry and wanted to check on John, so I headed up the road to his place. I didn’t see him when I first arrived because he was sprawled out on his recliner behind the bar. I did ask how he was doing later, and he shrugged and said, “at least I’m still alive.” I told him that’s a good thing and to keep fighting. He wasn’t looking so good, though.

***The view from my seat at John’s while waiting for my meal to be served.***

***It had been quite some time since I’d enjoyed some Mexican food, so I went with the chicken enchiladas. It was more than I could finish.***

Since I was making a semi-rare visit to John’s, I figured I’d order some take-out for the girls at Hideaway, conveniently located almost directly across the highway.

Crappy picture, but the girls love the Korean-style wings. I brought sixteen wings, and they were gone in minutes. And yeah, I know it wasn’t feeding day (that’s today), but it’s fun to surprise them occasionally. Plus, I had to drink somewhere, so why not at Hideaway?

Some drinkin’ and dancin’ and singin’ along with my favorites. Like this one:

I finished the evening at Wet Spot and had a pleasant time interacting with the boss at the VIP table.

Nothing much else to write about today. Mary says she’s coming for lunch, so we’ll see how that goes. Tomorrow, then.

A sophomoric rendition

Posted on 05/March/2023 by John McCrarey

I believe in the long history of LTG, this is the first time I’ve scanned a document and then uploaded the PDF to a post. I wasn’t sure it would even work, and I won’t know if the copy is readable until I publish it. So, consider this an experiment.

Anyway, from deep in the memory box, this is something I wrote as a sophomore in a high school English course. Nothing special about it, although it does demonstrate that I’ve been consistently atrocious in grammar, spelling, and punctuation throughout my life. Now, this is a typewritten document, and I’m sure some errors are, in fact, typos, but still, it demonstrates that I was always better at content than mechanics. You can see the teacher used a lot of red ink on my work. Hard to remember how rough we had it back in the days before automatic spellcheck.

sophIIII Download

I’m still hoping that “heaven” turns out to be a do-over life. Obviously, I’d still make the same grammatical errors, but I’d have a lot more fun if I knew then what I know now.

UPDATE: Weird; when I publish, the document shows upside down. It’s easy to flip using the rotation key at the top of the PDF box, but I don’t know why it does that.

UPDATE II: Hmm, it is also too small to read, at least for me. If anyone has suggestions on how to better upload documents like this one, please let me know in the comments.

An Ernest feeling

Posted on 04/March/2023 by John McCrarey

A comment on yesterday’s post really triggered some memories. Nate’s remark was simply, “A Clean Well-Lighted Pace.” That’s a short short story by Ernest Hemingway. About a five-minute read, so check out the link if you haven’t read it before. The irony of Nate thinking about that story when reading my post isn’t lost on me. I had to write a paper on that story in a college literature course sometime last century, and I found it moving even as a young man. And now, here I am in old age, practically living it.

And the coincidences continue. I did a quick search of my blog archives and saw I had written a post back in 2006 entitled “A clean well-lighted place.” That one was about a pretty wild night out on the town early in my Itaewon life. It brought back a flood of memories of long-gone friends. I am happy to report that one of the “stars” of that post, June, has been happily married to an American Air Force NCO and is the mother of a sweet daughter. How’s that for a happy ending?

Back here in present times, I took a break from the SOB last night and instead hung out in my version of a clean, well-lighted place–Cheap Charlies. But unlike the Hemingway character, I wasn’t sitting alone.

***Although Hemingway did feature two waiters in his story. I continue*** ***to be impressed while conversing with Nerissa (on the left). Jane is happy just to give me a back rub while we share drinks.***

Something also happened in the bar last night that is very rarely seen. A big spender rang the bell. Okay, that happens pretty frequently, but a bell ring usually just provides a drink for the working girls. This guy bought drinks for everyone in the house! No idea how much that act set him back, but he is definitely not a cheap Charlie! He also provided some entertainment with a nifty trick he did with the lady drinks:

***The shots lined up on the drink glasses. Then he knocked the first one in, and the rest fell like dominos all the way down the line. Very impressive!***

I had such a good time that I just stayed at Cheap Charlies and didn’t do my usual bar crawl, although I did stop for a nightcap at Whiskey Girl on the way home.

That was my night; my morning was equally pleasant, featuring a hike with the Friday group.

***We took an infrequently used route for the climb up, then hiked the familiar My Bitch route, but found a little-used and interesting path back down to Rizal Extension. A little over 6K all in.***

***A resting spot at the halfway-up point***

***Looking down on Barretto***. Estimated elevation above sea level. 12.7 meters (41.7 feet) Barreto is a barangay in the city of Olongapo. Its population, as determined by the 2020 Census, was 21,794. This represented 8.37% of the total population of Olongapo.

***Those houses in the foreground are in Alta Vista***

***The kids here call cookies “biscuits.”***

***My mountain friend Olivia with her grandkids***

***Those houses front Rizal Extension***

***Another shady rest spot. I’m unsure who builds these up here or why, but thank you!***

I’d say my life here is better than nothing!

What did he fear? It was not a fear or dread, It was a nothing that he knew too well. It was all a nothing and a man was a nothing too. It was only that and light was all it needed and a certain cleanness and order. Some lived in it and never felt it but he knew it all was nada y pues nada y nada y pues nada.

As the hours roll by

Posted on 03/March/2023 by John McCrarey

I continue to fill my time in the usual ways, walking and drinking being the bookends, with blogging and napping occupying the space in between. I used to feel like I was wasting what was left of my life by not engaging in more meaningful activities during my retirement years, but lately, I’ve come to accept that I’m in my comfort zone, and if this is all there is, then that will be enough. That’s not to say I’m not receptive to any opportunities to change my life that may come along, but in the meantime, I won’t lament the things I don’t have. I’ve actually come to appreciate the value of my solitary life, boring though it may be. There are worse things than being alone, and I’m not convinced that the relationship I’ve craved in my imagination is worth the drama that seems inherent when you open your heart to another.

That’s my initial thinking, anyway. As Joni Mitchell sang all those years ago, “Don’t it always seem to go, that you don’t know what you’ve got ’till it’s gone…” We’ll see if any of the women currently vying for my attention are able to change my mind.

***Enjoying the flowers I encountered***

When it was time for my evening entertainment, I took a walk out to Baloy Beach.

***And visited my new old friend, the floating bar.***

***I took this photo from the raft en route to the floater. One of the other riders cautioned me to put my phone away before I dropped it over the side. It was good advice, and I took it.***

***The raft of which I spoke. Two guys pulling on ropes is how it moves between the floater and the shore***.

***Some of my fellow customers on board***

***A zoom view of the old Hanjin shipyard, currently in the process of reopening under new ownership. Thank goodness the Chinese didn’t get their hands on it like they wanted.***

***It was a nice time relaxing on the water.***

In its previous iteration, the food delivered on board the floating bar came from Treasure Island. This year, the menu was from Lagoon. It’s okay, but not one of my favorites. So, instead of eating on the floater, I went to Treasure Island when I disembarked.

***I went with the pulled pork sandwich. A little skimpy on the meat, especially compared to John’s place and Sit-n-Bull. But it was tasty enough. I put the side of coleslaw on top.***

After my meal, I walked back to the highway and stopped at Snackbar for my nightcap. Haven’t been there in a while; there is too much drama with some of the staff. Last night was fine, though. Even Lydell, the gal I dated a couple of times, was sweet to me. She surprised me by playing “Cotton Eye Joe” and inviting me to do some country swing dancing with her. It was actually quite fun, and she earned herself a couple of lady drinks.

And then, it was time to go home, so I grabbed a trike. Made me a smoothie and then hit the sack. Fitbit says I was asleep at 8:30. That’s the way this old man rolls these days.

Death March

Posted on 02/March/2023 by John McCrarey

I started my March with my first visit to the Bataan Peninsula. We took a southerly coastal route through Morong to Bagac, then followed the path of the Death March as far as Hermosa before heading back home.

As I mentioned yesterday, my gal pal Nerissa suggested we spend some time getting to know one another better by visiting historical sites together. When she suggested Bataan, I was all in–it’s an area I’ve always wanted to see. I was impressed with just how beautiful the parts we visited were.

I left it up to Nerissa to pick the destination; she wanted to see Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar. I’d never heard of it before, but I was ready for something new, so we were off.

***I’m unsure what I expected***, but it wasn’t this. It was more like a resort than a historic site. You can read about it at the Wikipedia link above, but basically, some rich Filipino in Manila had landmark buildings from the Spanish era taken down in their original locations and rebuilt here. So, everything that I saw seemed out of context somehow.

***What little we saw of the place had some interesting things, but we didn’t get to see much.***

***My tour guide at the entrance of Las Casas. She had thought the Spanish buildings were built here by Spaniards living in the area during colonial times. But the real surprise was yet to come.***

So, we went inside to pay the entrance fee, and we were told the guided tour, including lunch, was 2500 pesos PER PERSON. That’s a hundred dollars for us both. That’s Disneyland pricing. Nerissa was as shocked as I was and asked how much for us just to walk around and look on our own. Not an option–guided tour only. I told Nerissa that was a non-starter for me–not worth the price, and I didn’t bring that much cash (I only carry 5000 with me most of the time). She agreed it was a ripoff, so we departed without seeing much more than what’s in the pictures above.

I was hoping to see some sites related to the Bataan Death March. Bagac, the town we were in, was one of the starting locations of the march. As we drove along the highway, we’d periodically see these markers:

***At the time, I didn’t know what the “B” was about. Once I read up on the history, this was the trail from Bagac. Another group started from Mariveles at the southern end of the peninsula.***

***The back side was a memorial to one of the marchers.***

I told Nerissa another trip to Bataan was in our future, but this time I’d do better research and find more suitable historical sites to visit. She agreed that’s what we should do.

Still, driving through the unfamiliar countryside was pleasant, and I was enjoying Bataan’s rural vibe. So, it wasn’t really a wasted trip.

***What’s that off in the distance? Mount Samat, you say? What’s that poking out from on top? Let’s check it out.***

One of the last battles was fought here before the retreat from Bataan to Corregidor. Today, it is a shrine dedicated to Filipino and American soldiers who died during the war.

***The most enormous damn cross I ever did see.***

***Having some people in the photo gives a little more perspective regarding its size.***

***The views from up here were amazing***

***I don’t remember seeing a pine tree that looked quite like this before***

***We had a boomin’ good time on Mt. Samat. It was a blast. I’m glad we gave it a shot.***

***Come on, Nerissa, let’s go to the souvieneer shop!***

***Nerissa got a t-shirt, and I bought this poster. It should help me with my research before the next visit.***

We returned to Barretto late afternoon, and I was a little tuckered out. Dropped Nerissa off and headed home for some rest. I did find the energy to visit Hideaway for the Wednesday feeding.

***Joy found the pizza a little too hot.***

I didn’t stay out late, and I have the evidence to prove it.

***My Fitbit says I was asleep at 8 p.m. Damn, that’s early, even by my low standards.***

Still, it was a good day. I’ve got lots of things to think about and figure out my next moves. More on that another time. I do believe I’ll spend some time reflecting on the floating bar on Baloy this evening.

Marching forward

Posted on 01/March/2023 by John McCrarey

***The beginning of the end…of February***

A fruitful last day of the month included getting an extension on my tourist visa for another sixty days in paradise. I also completed my weekly grocery shopping excursion at the Royal supermarket.

***Speaking of the end of the month, it looks like this milk will never expire! (I found this on the internet, not at Royal.)***

In other news, a young woman messaged me and said she’d like to get to know me better. She suggested exploring some historic sites in the neighboring province. I was up for that and have arranged for my driver to take us to Bataan today to have a look around.

***Yes, I met her in a bar. She’s 31 years old. I’m looking forward to seeing how today’s adventure plays out.***

I also heard from the teenager I’ve been dating. It seems her child is ill with dengue and asthma and needs some medical care. I’ll give her credit; she at least asked me in the proper way: “I know you are not responsible for taking care of my son, but if you could help me out today, I promise I’ll work to repay you.” I wired 4000 pesos to her and haven’t heard from her since. I hope everything is okay.

I made some crockpot chili and baked some cornbread muffins to go with it. Then it dawned on me that my Bataan excursion may preclude me from doing my Wednesday feeding at Hideaway bar. So, I packed up my kitchen work and carried it into town.

***And Oreo cookies for dessert (yes, I doubled checked the spelling this time!)***

It’s chili inside Joy. There’s really nothing special about my chili, but it does get rave reviews whenever I serve it. I’m not sure why. I added some pineapple chunks to this version, and that seemed to go over well.

It wasn’t the most pleasant ambiance at Hideaway last night. A group of guys were there and had almost all the gals tabled and were plying them with drinks. Nothing wrong with that; that’s why the gals are there. What bothered me was that the girls were screaming and shouting as they enjoyed themselves. I couldn’t hear the music or talk over their noisemaking. To escape, I took Joy down to the pool table area and played a couple of games. She proceeded to kick my ass, but I have to give her credit; she made some really good shots.

The two-week millionaires eventually left, and things quieted down. I had a couple more drinks, then headed out myself. I decided to use my “buy a lady drink, get two customer drinks” coupon at Hot Zone. The first order of business was to determine who would be the beneficiary of my lady drink. I assumed it would be my waitress, but then the mamasan also appeared at my table. I told the girls to decide between them, and of course, the waitress deferred to her boss. And I, of course, wasn’t going to make her go without, so I wound up buying two lady drinks. That’s the magic of those coupons–what I think will be a good deal for me winds up costing me extra in the end. Oh, well, it’s only money.

***Hot Zone always has a nice lineup of dancers if that’s your thing.***

Despite having had more than enough to drink, I wasn’t done quite yet. I walked on up the road to Wet Spot for my nightcap. I had another coupon, this one for a “free upgrade” on a Sit-n-Bull pizza from medium to large. I guess I was in a feeding frenzy because I bought one for the Wet Spot girls to share.

***I was a little bit late with the camera, but as you can see, Hawaiian is the pizza of choice for the bargirls here, too.***

I think I mentioned that one of Mary’s schoolmate friends works as a dancer at Wet Spot. I had actually noticed her before I met Mary because there was just something exotic about her looks.

***I can’t remember her name now. I think Mary told me she is twenty years old.***

After paying for the pizza and some drinks for the lass above, my wallet was out of gas (I usually only bring 5000 pesos when I go out, just in case something stupid happens). So, I said goodnight and triked on home.

When I woke up this morning, it was March. I’ll start the month off with a fresh face in some new places. I may not have a clue about what tomorrow will bring, but that just adds to the adventure.

Long Time Gone

Author Archives: John McCrarey