I started my day with a trip to the blood lab. They withdrew several vials of my precious liquid from a vein and 7500 pesos from my wallet. They will be testing for twenty-five elements, including a prostate PSA. I’ll pick up the results tomorrow and then schedule a meeting with Dr. Jo to see what it all means.
Of course, part of the bloodwork routine is the requirement to fast for 10+ hours prior to the withdrawal. That’s why I scheduled an early morning arrival at the lab, so most of the fasting was spent sleeping. After the samples were taken, I was ready to eat. The lab is located at the Harbor Point Mall, and as I was leaving, I spotted a Pancake House franchise. I rarely frequented this diner back in the USA because I had better options like Waffle House and Cracker Barrel. Those options not being available here, I decided to give it a try.
I was tempted to order a caramel waffle, but I opted instead for a ham and cheese omelet and cinnamon toast. I can’t remember the last time I saw cinnamon toast on a menu—how could I resist? After placing my order, the waiter returned and advised that they were out of raisins for the toast. I told him no problem; I wasn’t expecting raisins anyway.
With my hunger satiated, we headed out to do the weekly grocery shopping chore.
Home for the usual afternoon activities, and at beer o’clock, we ventured out to Baloy Beach. I wasn’t sure if the floating bar was still out, but there she was, bouncing in the rougher-than-normal bay waters.
After our time was done on board, we headed ashore to Treasure Island for some dinner.
A nice night out and a happy ending to a busy day.
The Facebook memories took me back to 2016.
Today’s YouTube is from another vlogger I’ve enjoyed over the years, The Filipina Pea. She has some advice for men coming to the PI in search of love.
Some more lame humor:
That’s all for today; we’ve reached the end of the line.
re: blood work
Good luck with that, and with the upcoming doctor’s appointment.
I was making the most of a nice morning in Seoul.
Looks like Yeouido.
Later that evening, I attended Matt and Sohee’s wedding. Things didn’t end well for them. A divorce, and Sohee committed suicide. Damn, memories are such a bitch sometimes.
Sorry to hear it, but I dimly recall that you’ve mentioned the ill-fated Sohee before. I don’t know which Chinese characters she used for her name, but given her suicide, I’d venture 小希/소희/So-hee, or “small hope.” Apologies. That was morbid.
I am happy to announce that my relationship with Swan has reached the level of intimacy where I feel free to fart around her with impunity.
You’ve been doing that for a while, haven’t you? While sleeping? Of course, if the farts were happening during sleep, you weren’t feeling any “impunity.”
“The answer, my friend, is blowing in my wind…”
I looked up the hanja (Chinese characters) for Sohee, and the “hee” is indeed the “hope” character I showed above (希/희/hee), but the “so” is 素/소/so, which means “root” or “original” or “fundamental.” So “Sohee” really means something like “basic hope” or “original hope.” Kind of sad in light of what happened.
I’m not surprised you took a break from the hiking for some cinnamon toast, John. It seems I’ve started breaking down recently. It’s like once I crossed 40 my body’s all yer a wizard an old man, ‘Arry! My formerly gimpy side has started to hurt again when I walk; something in the meat of my quad muscle really hurts after walking for 40+ minutes; both my (c)ankles ache and throb, to such a degree I practically have to tiptoe slowly after resting for a minute because it feels like I’m going to rip/break something. Worst of all I’m getting really bad lower back pain; years of bad posture slouching at office jobs and at home in front of the computer are catching up with me. I noticed I have a pronounced slouch now when standing; I thought I was standing straight but I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and my shoulders are slumped and spine slowly morphing into an s-shape. Getting up out of a seating position and/or forcing myself to stand tall produces shooting pains in my lower back. Mom always used to chide me, in my youth, that I should sit up straight.
As for Baby Reindeer, I’m like halfway through and enjoying it far more than I thought I would. Donny’s comment about Martha monologuing – and telling stories about people in her life without any context or explanation – reminded me of an ex.
Sohee was one of my favorites—always smiling and happy-go-lucky. She had a good heart as well. Dog rescue projects were just one example of her making the world a better place. I was so shocked that she chose to end her life. It is one more example of how you never know what is going on inside a person despite outward appearances. I wish I could have been the understanding ear she needed.
I’m sorry to hear about your health issues, Thompson. If walking doesn’t work for you, you might consider a gym, where you could tailor exercises to your current limitations and hopefully strengthen those areas. Good luck!
I haven’t seen Baby Reindeer, perhaps I’ll check it out.
I never really thought about the significance of the Chinese characters used in the name. Sohee was always a very positive person, at least outwardly. You just never know.
The funny thing about farting for me these days is that I’ve lost my ability to smell. From Swan’s reactions, I still pack a punch in my gaseous excretions.