Or should I just say, SMH? Things didn’t go according to plan yesterday, which can be frustrating. Still, we made do with our own alternative, and in the end, that proved to be as satisfying as our original intentions. Funny how that works.

Sat 24 May at 3.00 pm: BEACH run (men only).  Start at T-Backs (Thunder Girls) bar.  P100.

The Angeles Hash provided the above information regarding the BEACH run and my fellow SBH3 mates, Rob and Erik, were up for it. Swan was meeting some old friends of hers here, so I was free to join in the guys-only fun. Things went awry, and I’ll take some of the blame for that. When I saw “T-Backs,” I assumed they were talking about a restaurant/bar about a kilometer from my hotel. We arrived around 2:30, so we enjoyed a beer while we waited. Twenty minutes later, when no Hashers had appeared, I knew something was up. We asked our waitress about the Hash event, and she didn’t know what we were talking about. Then she suggested it might be at a bar named TBACs on Perimeter Road. Duh, we had walked right past it on our way here. So, we grabbed a trike and headed for the other bar with a similar name. And there were no Hashers there either. WTF? Seeing our perplexed faces, the waitress asked if we were looking for someone. When we mentioned the Hash, she told us they were coming at 6:00. Damn, so this must be the last bar on the hop. Now what? I checked the Angeles Hash Facebook page, and nothing was posted about the Beach Run. To hell with it, we ordered a beer and decided to do our own bar hop and finish here when the Hash arrived.

And that’s just what we did. The bar we went to next told us the Hash was coming at 5:30. We laughed about doing the barhop in reverse. But we enjoyed seeing some new places and having them all to ourselves.

I bailed at nine, but Rob and Erik kept going, all the way to the notorious Walking Street. It was a different experience barhopping in this part of town, and overall, I enjoyed it. We didn’t go big on buying lady drinks, but I rewarded a couple of the thirsty young ladies. I was back at the hotel before Swan. Damn, did I lose my balls somewhere along the way?

Oh, and when we ran into the Angeles Hashers later, I learned that they had started at Jollibee’s and did a 5K hike before beginning the barhop. Thanks for letting us know. (To be fair, the Hash webpage was updated, even if Facebook wasn’t. I just didn’t know about the web address. Now I do.)

Saturday’s report: 6041 steps. 4.64 kilometers. 3043 calories burned.

In January 2009, I wrote about the dynamic changes in Itaewon I had witnessed over the preceding four years. That only escalated after the Army Garrison at Yongsan moved down south to Pyeongtaek.

Today’s YouTube video deems Angeles foreigners to be “lowlifes.” Not everyone here is a whore monger, and even those that adopted that lifestyle have their reasons. Why judge? I preferred Barretto’s more laid-back lifestyle, but I understand why some like Angeles better. To each his own.

A moment for ZEN

 Honk If You Love Peace And Quiet.

And some funny business:

Time for me to prepare for an Angeles-style Hash. I know where it starts, we’ll see how it ends.

Nothing special about yesterday, but that won’t stop me from telling you about it anyway. I will endeavor to keep it as brief and painless as possible.

Swan and I are going to Angeles City for the weekend (leaving in the morning), so we decided to do the Saturday Sweet Stroll on Thursday. Y’all have been on that walk with me (vicariously through photos) several times, so I won’t bore you with multiple pics again.

After sweetening the lives of the children we encountered, it was our turn for some fun. When beer o’clock arrived, we headed into town. Swan wanted to get a haircut, so I waited for her patiently at Red Bar.

Swan joined me an hour or so later and had her usual glass of red wine (she drinks slowly; I do about three beers per glass of wine).

When it was time for some dinner, we crossed the highway and strolled to Jewel Cafe.

Another glass of wine for Swan, and I’m too much of a gentleman to let her drink alone. Dinner was served while we drank.

After our meal, we moved on to It Doesn’t Matter. You guessed it, Swan had a wine, and that meant I was forced to drink yet more beer. And that’s not all; we went to Cloud 69 for our nightcap and did it again. When we arrived home, Swan declared herself “tipsy” and went to bed. I was fine, so I played some on the internet before joining her slumber there.

The Thursday report card: 16,948 steps, 13.02 kilometers walked, 3521 calories burned.

After my hospitalization in October 2008 (I shared that post yesterday), my almost total lack of blogging continued for over two months. I was indeed a Long Time Gone. I finally returned with a post on December 23, 2008, appropriately titled, “It’s been a long time comin’,” where I talked vaguely about what had been going on in my life, and once again promised to post on a more regular basis in the future. I’m still unsure why I took such a lengthy break from the blog. I got promoted to the GS-15 Director of Human Resources job, which created some stress in my life. My marriage to wife #3 had ended, as had my relationship with the Korean woman I’d been dating (she moved to the USA to attend graduate school). I’m also pretty sure this was the time frame during which I met Jee Yeun, who was destined to become my final wife. Back in those days, I was not as inclined as I am now to write about the drama in my personal life, and that seems to have been all I had going on.

You may have missed a recent comment from James, a long-time reader here. He notes that my blog content is not as enticing as it was in the days before I began my relationship with Swan. Yep, much less drama and sexcapades. Here’s what James had to say:

Long time reader, haven’t visited in a while.
Glad to see that you’re keeping up with your correspondence, as it were.

As you may recall, I was one of the readers who showed no enthusiasm when you settled down with your lady. And I come here to celebrate your success 🙌
But of course it’s no coincidence that your readership may have dropped, or at least changed demographics. Now that you’re a man settled down, there’s less drama and conflict to write about, fewer bar visits and new random characters introduced, and there’s only so much information you can convey to a potential tourist when you’re living the sedate married life.

I say all this because I am still shocked at what Browser wrote all those years ago. Last year I think you attracted some political commentary that animated the blog for a while. But to imagine there was once a time when you were berated for not writing on your own blog; I am shocked. What was he even thinking 🤔 Writing daily is hard
And yet you keep writing ✍️ My gratitude and admiration will never cease. You inspire me to pick up a pen and write, starting with just my grocery list. There’s something soothinng and invigorating about writing down one’s thoughts daily.

and for those who miss the drama, let me say that Joy – she of the feeding scheme- has gotten fat. We’ve all gotten fat, but I don’t have a mirror and I have a side-by-side photos of Joy’s face. Boom! There’s some drama for you addicts

Again, thank you for the daily writing ✍️

James

Today’s YouTube video is short and sweet about the five things a first-time visitor observed about the Philippines. It was nice to look back and remember my first trips here, where I pretty much saw the same things this vlogger talks about. For me, the first thing I noticed that was shocking was the poverty that so many here endure, which made all the positive traits noted in this video all the more impressive. Filipinos are a special breed.

Today’s Zen wisdom:

Light Travels Faster Than Sound, Which Is Why Some People Appear
Bright Until You Hear Them Speak.

And now for the funny stuff:

My last night in town will be spent at the SOB. I’ll try to dash off a post in the morning before we hit the road to Angeles City.

Both bad and good. While marking yesterday’s Hash trail, one of the Hares, Stewed Rat (Rob), experienced numbness in his left arm, lost his ability to speak, and then could not stand. He was fortunate to be near the bottom of the hill and close enough to civilization that the locals could assist in bringing him down to the road, where he was transported by ambulance to the hospital in Barretto. He was diagnosed with having had a transient ischemic attack, commonly referred to as a ministroke. Rob’s symptoms disappeared after an hour or so, and he felt strong enough to attend the Hash Circle. Man, that’s some scary shit. It was just a couple of weeks ago that Pubic Head (Scott) had a similar experience, albeit more severe. This morning, Althouse linked to an article in the NY Times detailing the consequences a ministroke can bring. Bottom line, it is a warning sign that frequently leads to more severe stroke symptoms if not treated promptly. Rob is a relatively young guy (appears to be in his 40s) and still works on a ship, so this condition affects more than just us elderly types.

It was another hot day, and I was on the fence about whether or not to make the big climb up Kalaklan at the beginning of the hike. After hearing about Stewed Rat, I said fuck that and did my own shortcut, coincidentally picking up the trail at Barretto High School again and doing the more gentle end climb before finishing on Baloy Beach. My trail, including the walk from my house to the start, was still a worthy 8K, so I feel good about the effort.

That’s the way Run #1654 went down. I’m happy to report there were no fatalities.

I’ve got friends in low places:

From the archives, the first post from June of 2008 here at LTG was a snapshot of a day in the life back then. Yes, that means mostly darts and drinking.

Fourteen years ago, I was settling into my suburban American life in Columbia, South Carolina:

Damn, it still hurts to have lost it all.

Today’s YouTube video is from The Filipina Pea as she compares an American Jollibee’s with the ones back home in the PI. I’m not a big fan of Jollibee’s, but as fast food goes, it ain’t bad. This video reminded me of the first time I had a KFC experience in Korea. All I could figure was the Colonel’s recipe didn’t translate well.

Today’s moment of Zen:

On The Other Hand, You Have Different Fingers.

And now for some better humor:

Livin’ it while I got it. Let’s see what tomorrow brings.

A-Hashing, we did go! More or less. And if it is true that less is more, I did the best trail ever! Yeah, even as a notorious shortcutter, I bit off a little less than I like to chew yesterday, but the alternative was taking a Jeepney out of town to the start, then climbing up to the Kalaklan Ridge. I just wasn’t feeling that. Instead, our group (me, Swan, and Beth) walked from my house to Barretto High School, then picked up the last portion of Leech My Nuggets’ trail. It was just shy of 5K for us, with one moderately easy climb. The On-Home was at Leech’s house, and it being election Monday, there was no after-Hash at It Doesn’t Matter. So, I had an early end to the evening as well. Anyway, I’m glad to be still rolling along in my dotage.

I made a short video clip of a portion of the My Bitch trail. (Okay, now there’s a first. I went to upload the video and discovered YouTube had made it “age-restricted.” All I can figure is calling the video “My Bitch” triggered the algorithm to punish me. So, I’m making a new video with the same content and calling it something else. Let’s see what happens.)

Success. Well, the quality is still crap, but at least you can watch it here.

The other day, I mentioned the student in Bohol I was sponsoring. Here he be:

And today I took the bait:

Not political, but still funny:

And as long as we are thinking about religion and tolerance, this seems like a good idea:

It’s been interesting (to me) delving through the old posts in the LTG archives. I’m up to January 2008 now, and most of my posts are about darting and drinking in Itaewon (compared to now, when they are about hiking and drinking in Barretto). In this post, I note the occasion of the 50,000th visitor to my site in its third year of existence. I thanked the handful of loyal readers who bothered to engage my content, just as I appreciate the few of you who still visit now. Sometimes I wonder why I’m still doing this every day, but I guess it has just become part of who I am. And I am a selfish bastard.

Five years ago, I made this post on Facebook.

On that day, I also posted this two-minute video to make my point:

Never again!

Thirteen years ago, my sense of humor was on full display for the world to see:

An 85-year old man is having his annual checkup. The Doctor asks him how he is feeling.

“I’ve got an eighteen-year old bride who’s pregnant with my child. What do you think about that?”

The Doctor considers this for a moment, and then says, “Well, let me tell you a story. I know of a guy who’s an avid hunter. He never misses a season.

But one day he’s in a bit of a hurry and he accidentally grabs his umbrella instead of his gun.

So he’s walking in the woods near a creek and suddenly spots a beaver in some brush in front of him! He raises up his umbrella, points it at the beaver and squeezed the handle. BAM !

The beaver drops dead in front of him.

“That’s impossible!”, says the old man in disbelief, “Someone else must have shot that beaver.”

The Doctor says, “My point exactly.”

Today’s YouTube video is from Smart Girl Philippines, and she makes some interesting points about how the sex industry has ruined it for the rest of us.

Humor time:

And that’s all I’ve got for today. Back tomorrow, the good Lord willing.

And hopefully, not for the last time! Yep, keep that Sunday sameness going because boring is better than dead, right?

Anyway, started things off with the Sunday Candy Walk.

This week I videoed the seventh section of the walk. It’s a short one:

The booth was hopping, so I knew the fish was fresh.

Next on the agenda was the weekly Hideaway feeding.

With that duty done, it was time once again to hit the beach.

But back to living this life I have now. Next stop, John’s place for dinner. Sometimes, it’s almost scary how my thinking is in sync with Swan’s. I floated the idea of sharing birria tacos and Korean-style chicken wings. Swan gave me an OMG! look, and said she was craving the wings, but still wanted a taco. She told me she had planned to ask if they would allow a special order of one taco (the menu offering is three), but my plan gave us both what we wanted. I got sixteen wings, so we had some leftovers for breakfast.

We’ve added Red Bar to our Sunday itinerary, so that was where we headed next. They had a big crowd inside the bar, but we prefer the ambiance of sitting on the patio anyway.

We also did our customary nightcap at the Green Room before bringing our Sunday to a close.

My firstborn grandchild, Gracyn, celebrates her twentieth birthday today. I wrote a post nine years ago noting that her birthday was also a national holiday in Korea. I deem it worthy of inclusion as an episode in The Story of My Life.

And now for some Facebook memories:

Five years ago, in the midst of the scamdemic hysteria, I posted this quote from John Adams:

“Be not intimidated, nor suffer yourselves to be wheedled out of your liberties by any pretenses of politeness, delicacy, or decency. These, as they are often used, are but three different names for hypocrisy, chicanery, and cowardice.”

–John Adams

Seven years ago, I climbed Younginsan in Asan for the final time.

Six days later, I was on the plane bound for my new life in the Philippines. And almost seven years since then, I’m still an “outsider” here. Today’s YouTube video discusses how a foreigner can never fully integrate with Filipino culture. I’m not sure why that comes as a surprise to him, and frankly, I have no problem whatsoever being an outsider. I am what I am, and that’s all that I am.

Let’s end this with a smile:

And that’s that. It’s Hash Monday, and Vienna Sausage is the Hare. I expect I’ll be making my own way today. Full report here tomorrow.

Today’s music selection is a little bit off the wall. The song was never a favorite, but I love the video. Cheers!

And so am I. So far, at least.

Started the morning with the Wednesday Walkers group hike. Only three in attendance this week. We did a shady hike on the My Bitch trail, and came back down in the familiar streets of San Isidro. We didn’t beat the heat, but we survived it.

When I headed into town with my gal later in the afternoon, we witnessed a rare sighting of Mary Poppins:

The first order of business was a visit to the Angel’s Touch salon for a foot spa and pedicure.

I was finished before Swan, so I waited for her at Red Bar. When she arrived, we enjoyed some beverages on the outdoor patio, then headed up the highway for dinner at Mylene’s. We both ordered off the Filipino menu:

We did our Wednesday “seldom-visited bars” thing.

(Both of those bar photos were taken this morning on my walk.)

Then we headed back home, where the night did not end well. Things still aren’t right today, but hopefully there will be a resolution soon.

I’ve progressed to May of 2007 in my journey through the LTG archives. And I was astonished to find a post that was actually interesting. It recounts some strange happenings at home and then ends with my only encounter with Korean police during my time in Seoul. Certainly worthy of inclusion in The Story of My Life.

And three years ago, I had some pizza. This one is for commenter Bentley:

Today’s YouTube video is from Smart Girl Philippines reminding her viewers not to pay for O.P.P. (other people’s pussy). It’s short and sweet, just like she is. She’s fun to watch!

Humor me these:

And so it goes. I’m kind of on edge, waiting to see if my life is about to take a wrong turn, but there’s nothing I can say about it at the moment. The greatest gift you can give someone you love is happiness. I’ll leave it at that for now.

Word.

And this creature was stirring outside of the house. Starting with the Saturday edition of the Candy Walk.

And here’s a short video of the stretch we walk to get to neighborhood #6. The kids at the end of the clip were asking Swan the name of my vlog so they could watch the video I took. That’s a first, even though I’m not a vlogger.

Here’s a view from neighborhood #6:

As we were finishing our walk, Swan said she was hungry. I knew what that meant, so I asked, “Jollibee or McDonald’s?” She responded, “Macdoo” (that’s what the locals call it). So, we declared it a “cheat day” and indulged our cravings. I had a chicken sandwich and shared an order of fries with Swan. My big sins were the apple pie AND a chocolate sundae. Oh well.

When it was beer o’clock, we headed for It Doesn’t Matter. I was surprised that it wasn’t very busy for a Saturday. Once we’d had our fill of beverages, we moved to Jewel Cafe for some grub.

The waitress surprised me when she delivered this to our table after our meal:

We did our nightcap at Wet Spot. Swan invited her waitress friend Beth to join in an early morning trip to Botolon (about an hour’s drive up the coast) for an Easter church service. They left at five a.m. and still aren’t back, and it’s after noon now. I hope they don’t need saving! UPDATE: I just got a message that they are stuck in traffic in San Felipe. No surprise, this is the biggest holiday of the year, and just about everyone heads for the beach, it seems.

Forgive me, Father, for I cannot resist taunting my liberal Facebook friends with stuff like this:

Okay, and now back to our regularly scheduled programming.

Today’s find in the LTG archives is about the evening in March 2007 when my realtor treated me to a dinner show at the Walker Hill Sheraton Hotel in Seoul (I’d just renewed my lease for another two years in Korea). I did a mini-review of the “Subway” performance, finding the acting not up to par, but still an enjoyable night out away from the Itaewon bar scene. Another memory in The Story of My Life.

Speaking of which, Facebook reminded me of this beer drinker in 1990:

Today’s YouTube video is a vlogger I never previously watched discussing ways to avoid the current heatwave. Most are just common sense, but I’ve been saying this is the hottest it’s been in years, and he agrees with me. There are also relatively cooler places to reside in the PI, like Baguio, where he’d like to move. Baguio is okay for a visit, but just a tad too isolated for my taste. It’s the only place I’ve been in the Philippines where I felt chilly. Even saw my breath there one night.

Humor time:

Happy Easter to all you believers out there. I’m not trying to get a rise out of you, honest! Hideaway Bar is closed today for the holiday, so there won’t be a feeding to attend (I sent money so they could eat last night). Not sure if the Arizona floater and John’s place will be open, but the best way to find out is to go and see for myself. I’ll let you know how that works out tomorrow.

An eruption of good times yesterday. Well, maybe I’m blowing smoke, but it was mostly good.

I do have a friend traveling there today, so I hope things calm down before he arrives. More of the same in my little town, but still tweaking things some to enhance the experience. Here’s the lowdown:

Me and my gal did our standard Saturday stroll, dispensing candy and cookies along the way. Some of what we saw:

Here’s a five-minute video clip of one of the streets we walked.

And the best part of the day was yet to come. We had made plans to join our neighbor Jeff and his wife Davina for the grand opening of a new bar named Tryst last night. Alas, we discovered that the opening has been delayed until Wednesday. Despite that setback, we kept our scheduled dinner meetup at Sit-n-Bull for 6 p.m. Swan and I headed out early for some pre-dinner refreshments at Sloppy Joe’s.

After our meal, we paid a visit to Alaska Club where Swan and Davina played some pool.

We moved next door to Wet Spot for our nightcap. A busy Saturday night in the bar. And then Davina showed Swan how to do a blowjob. Wow! And I’ve got it on video!

You knew I was talking about a blowjob shooter, right? Right?

After the blowjob revelry, we headed for home. The nice thing about partying with the neighbors is the free ride home in comfort. My resistance to the call from a brownie smothered in vanilla ice cream was nil.

A Thanksgiving post from November 2006 in the LTG archives. It’s pretty worthless without the photos. I hope I can figure out how they might be recovered.

Today’s YouTube addresses which is the better choice, Thailand or the Philippines. I know how I chose, although I still enjoy an occasional visit to the Land of Smiles.

And a bonus video from a vlogger friend who made a video of the recent Fralics bikini contest. Go Philippines!

And now for the smiles:

And that’s that; I hope I didn’t blow it. Stormy skies and rolling thunder as I write this, so my Sunday on the Arizona floating bar is looking doubtful at the moment. I am blessed to have options, though.

The same old, same old does get old after a while, but that’s just small town life I suppose. That’s not to say I ain’t having fun, and even a small tweak can liven things up a tad. Friday kicked off with the group hike, as usual. It’s been hotter than normal these past few days, so we opted to keep things flat and mainly on the street. We hadn’t done that Matain-Calapacuan-Santo Tomas route in quite some time, so that added a taste of freshness as we marched along.

When the day had progressed to the point of making plans for the drinking hours, I wasn’t sure what to do with them. The fact of the matter was that I was feeling a little bored with the Barretto bar scene. Then it occurred to me that we hadn’t made the journey out to Kon-Tiki for quite a while.

When darkness descended, we headed back into Barretto. Our friend Beth was back to work after a two-week vacation, and I was hoping to run into Daddy Dave at the SOB Aftermath, so we did our nightcap at Wet Spot. It was good seeing Beth again, but Dave was a no-show. I hope he is feeling better soon.

We stuck around for the first raffle drawing at the Aftermath, and my number was the first ticket called.

It was after the ungodly hour of nine p.m. before we finally headed for home. Hard to believe I was able to stay out that late, I know.

From the LTG archives is this post from October 2006 recounting some of my daily adventures as I immersed myself in the South Korea lifestyle. For some reason, the photos I posted back then are no longer showing. Perhaps they were lost when I moved the blog to a new hosting service. Are they gone forever?

In today’s YouTube video, the Filipina Pea weighs in on the vlogger Vitaly controversy. She interviews an attorney about the deep do-do this lame motherfucker has gotten himself into. Vitaly is now living my nightmare inside a Filipino jail. It doesn’t look like he’ll be going anywhere anytime soon.

Let’s cleanse the palate with these:

And that’s the way it was. Now, to get on with the way it is. Tell you all about it tomorrow.

I’ve been having some issues with pain in my lower back, primarily when I sit upright or lie in bed. Standing and walking are fine. So, I wake up early (the moonset above is at 3:30 a.m.) and then plop down in front of the computer, which does nothing to ease the pain. Hopefully, this, too, shall pass.

My big Tuesday event was traveling to Angeles City for an updated ECG. My cardiologist wanted the test taken at the same hospital where I had my previous ECG done, and she thinks the AUF hospital is the best around for cardiology testing.

My appointment was at ten, and we arrived a little after nine. The cost for the testing was 4800 pesos, and that was paid upfront. There were two different tests, ECG and something called a 12-Lead. The hospital will email the results on Friday.

Since we were in town anyway, I had my driver take me to the S&R store (it’s like a Costco) to do some shopping. I always come away a little disappointed in not being able to find things that I want that aren’t available at Royal, like sugar-free pudding, but I still managed to spend 15,000 pesos on groceries.

When it was time to hit the beach, Swan opted out because she was preparing for a family outing today. So, I was on my own.

Sunset is my cue to head ashore for dinner at Treasure Island.

Well, it filled the void in my stomach. It had been quite some time since I ventured out without Swan by my side. Everyone on the floater and at TI asked where my “wife” was. I admit I was missing her and realized how empty my life would feel without her. My, how things have changed. I don’t think I could ever be satisfied with a transactional relationship again.

I departed Treasure Island after my meal and headed for home. Surprisingly, no trikes were waiting for customers for the entire length of Baloy Beach Road (about a kilometer). I’d never seen that before. Even the trike stand at the highway junction was empty. I finally flagged down a passing trike for the rest of the ride home.

Swan had prepared a cheesecake-like dessert and I enjoyed a slice before bed.

Tomorrow is going to be one of those days, and I’m powerless to do a thing about it.

My plan at the moment is to rent a room at the Outback Resort so I’ll have a place to relax in the comfort that only electricity can provide. We’ll see.

I’ve made it to August 2006 in my journey through the LTG archives. It was nice to remember celebrating my 51st birthday with my good friend, Duke. We went to a play (a Korean version of Grease, if you can imagine that), then dinner at a fancy Korean restaurant that included singing and dancing performances. After that, we hit the bars, played some darts, and drank a lot of beer and shots. We also stayed out well into the wee hours of the morning. Damn, I thought fifty-one was old back then, but from the perspective of being sixty-nine, I seem so young. Lots of pictures in that post to enhance the memories. Definitely a worthy night for inclusion in The Story of My Life.

Today’s YouTube video provides an update on that scumbag vlogger Vitaly. Guess what? He is not being deported after all. Instead, he has been charged with multiple crimes that could potentially result in a lengthy prison sentence. But this being the Philippines, there is no entitlement to a speedy trial. He may well spend years in a hellhole Filipino jail before he has a court date. Honestly, he fucked up big time and is going to pay for it. I almost feel sorry for him.

And now for the fun stuff:

And that completes today’s blogging duty. You get what you pay for, and LTG is free!

Well, more like a sprinkling of new on top of the same old, same old. That’s just the way I roll.

Kicked off the morning with the Sweet Saturday Stroll, handing out goodies to the kids in the surrounding neighborhoods.

I did a four-minute video clip of one section of our stroll.

Back home and glancing out the window, there was smoke on Black Rock:

So, by now, you are probably thinking, WTF? There’s nothing different here. Well, when we ventured into town at beer o’clock, we went somewhere we’d never been before: the new Red Bar. Or, more accurately, the new location of Red Bar. It occupies the space that was formerly the home of Blue Butterfly, a bar I reviewed here. All the things I liked about Blue Butterfly are still present at Red Bar, but inside, they also added a dance stage. Well, my thing is sitting outside and watching the world go by, and that’s just what we did yesterday.

So, despite it being our first visit, we felt right at home. We both knew several of the waitresses working there now, and Swan bought them some food from a passing vendor. I chipped in some lady drinks, and we let the good times roll. Perhaps the best review I can render is reporting that Swan wanted to stay for a SECOND glass of wine. That almost never happens. She said she was enjoying the outdoor vibe and the music.

Sticking with our open-air desires and seldom-visited theme, we did our nightcap at Cheap Charlies.

It was a lovely Saturday night out on the town. We will definitely be adding Red Bar to our list of frequently visited venues.

From the LTG archives is a post from January 2006 written on the occasion of my one-year anniversary in Korea. I’d signed up for a two-year tour, so I was thinking I was halfway home. Except it didn’t turn out that way. Just another tale in The Story of My Life.

Today’s YouTube video strikes a little too close to home. I feel estranged from my family back home, and from my perspective, they’ve turned their backs on me. Perhaps they see the opposite. Either way, it hurts.

And here I go again:

And there you have it. Back to normal today, but I’m okay with that. I’ll share the details tomorrow. Y’all come back now, hear?

Well, the hike was longer than usual (almost 10K), and it was mainit (mah-een-it). That’s what Swan kept saying as we marched along, so it looks like the hot season is upon us once again. Soon, I’ll be looking forward to the rainy season so I can complain about being soaked with something other than sweat. That’s life in the Philippines, and that’s the life I’ve chosen, so here we go.

I had an SOB to introduce to Jay before he flew home to Japan in the wee hours of morning, so at the appointed hour, we met up at Wet Spot.

Anyway, Jay seemed to enjoy the show. He was also a judge, and our scorecards came out the same. The other judges disagreed with our ranking order, but everyone had Wet Spot on top. Jay said he didn’t have any experience with an “all you can drink” system, and he was pretty toasted by the end of the show. We took him next door to Sit-n-Bull so he could get some food to take back to his hotel while he waited for his airport transportation to arrive. He messaged me today that he made it back to Japan safe and sound.

From the LTG archives is another nearly meaningless post from January 2006 entitled, “Made it to Friday.” I’m only posting it here now because it contains a link (that surprisingly still works) to an article in the Seoul Times about the bars of Itaewon. I don’t remember it being nearly as bad as the author (an Irish bloke) describes, but these days with the Army down south, the Itaewon I knew will never be the same.

This photo of my high school sweetheart and me came up in my Facebook memories today:

Fourteen years ago, I moved into my retirement home in South Carolina and completed my darts setup.

Everything changes, and life goes on. Until it doesn’t.

In today’s YouTube video, Reekay shares his perspectives on maintaining a positive relationship with a “good girl” Filipina. The first example he uses is about a guy who exposed his wife to the bar scene (that she didn’t like), and she eventually left him over his refusal to leave that life behind. Hmm. Swan joins me on my bar excursions, but she seems to be enjoying herself. Granted, we don’t do the raunchy places, but she appears to be okay with that aspect of my life. I guess it depends on the girl.

And now it’s time to smile:

Another day, another post. It may all be meaningless, but keep ’em coming!

An enjoyable Thursday stroll with the neighbors doing the Philseco Road loop around Subic town. And then a relaxing evening on Baloy Beach showing our visitor Jay around. A surprise encounter with Martin and Joss at Treasure Island Resort led to a shared dining experience. We dropped Jay at Harley’s on our way home, and he took it from there. It seems his night had a happy ending. It doesn’t get much better than that around here!

After some R&R at home, it was time to hit the beach.

So, as I mentioned, Jay went to Harley’s after dinner. And when the floating bar closed, one of the gals he had met there joined him. He said they had a nice night together. Well done, young man!

I’ve made it to January 2006 in my journey through the LTG archives. In a post called “Peekaboo Paradox,” I make the claim that I miss the Sunday edition of the Washington Post. Damn, I’ve come a long way, baby! Now, one thing I’ve noticed is almost none of the shit I linked to all those years ago still works. However, to my surprise, the article I linked to is still available and still worth reading. Enjoy!

Today’s YouTube video is a good reminder to not lose your cool as a foreigner in the Philippines. I adopted this mantra long ago: “Take a deep breath. Relax. Accept the Filipino way.” It helps!

The funny business:

Jay’s last night in town, so I’m going to introduce him to that SOB I know. What a life, eh?

Yesterday’s adventure with the Wednesday Walkers took us to higher ground, and it was worth the climb. We wanted to share the views from the Kalaklan Ridge with first-time visitor Jay and my neighbors, Martin and Joss. They were not disappointed. Here is some of what we saw along the way.

I made a shortish seven-minute video from where we stood in the photo above to the viewpoint. Some awesome scenery along the way, and as a bonus, you can hear me sing the theme song to Mr. Ed.

And so concluded the morning fun. When beer o’clock arrived, we headed to Alaska Club to spend the 500-peso SOB voucher I brought home last week. While there, I heard from the wife of Emmanuel, the peanut vendor (she was on his Facebook account), saying that he was in the hospital again and needed my help to purchase medicine.

The wife came from the hospital in Olongapo to Alaska Club to pick up the 3000 pesos he needed. Some nights, I’ll spend that much in the bars, so it’s all relative. I didn’t really keep track, but we bought a pizza, a couple of lady drinks, and some tips (50 pesos each) for the dancers at Alaska. Then we moved on to Green Room for our nightcap, and more lady drinks and tips flowed. It’s a blessing to share the relative bounty of my pension, bringing comfort and joy to those around me. Or so I keep telling myself.

Once back to the comfort and safety of home, I overindulged in dessert. Swan asked if I wanted a scoop of ice cream or her fruit salad. I responded, “Both,” and stuck to my guns.

Today’s visit to the LTG archives took me to a post from December 2005, entitled “Regarding Canada.” It made me smile because my visiting friend, Jay, is a Canadian. The first half of the post is a meaningless rant about Canada’s failure to support the ongoing GWOT (global war on terror). It’s the second half where I recount the circumstances of my being denied permission to enter Canada back in 1974 that makes the post worthy of inclusion in The Story of My Life. I’ve still never been to Canada.

On this day in history, I made these Facebook posts:

The Filipina Pea is still visiting Florida in the good ol’ USA, and in today’s YouTube video, she shares her first visit to a Costco outlet. We do have a similar store here (S&R) in nearby Pampagna, but I guess they don’t have an outlet where she lives in Dumaguete.

The daily dose of humor:

Alright, my duty here is now completed. I promised Jay a tour of Baloy Beach later today, which will include my overdue visit to the Kokomo’s floating bar and Swan’s feet in the sand time. More to come tomorrow, unless the Gods have other plans for me.

The Hares laid a short but challenging trail this week, and I fell for it. We began and ended at the 13 Resort in Calapandayan. The trail started with a mild uphill on pavement followed by a steep and treacherous downward path covered in slippery leaves and ankle-grabbing vines. I had a couple of close calls along the way but never hit the ground. Then there was another up, but it wasn’t too bad. Coming down the other side, our trail was covered in a sheet of trampled grass. It wasn’t as slick as ice, but it was close enough. My feet decided to go airborne, and I wound up on my ass. The only blood I spilled was from a scraped elbow, so I’ve got nothing to complain about.

A bit of over-indulgence yesterday, but that’s what the Hash is all about.

From the LTG archives is this post from my first Thanksgiving in Korea, where I reflect on all that I had to be thankful for. Everything changes.

Eleven years ago, I was reflecting in the mountains of Seoul.

When you are living rich in a poor country, it is sometimes easy to overlook what life is like when you are living poor. I enjoyed this vlogger’s storytelling so much I’ve now subscribed to her channel.

Humor me:

I’ll be continuing my tour guide duties this evening by accompanying Jay to Alley Cats for the Tuesday dart tournament. I won’t be playing, however. Not sure what we will do after that, but I have an SOB coupon I need to use at Alaska Club. We’ll see.

The Wednesday Walkers ventured out to the far side of Olongapo City with the plan of revisiting Martin Falls, a journey we last took a couple of years ago. Things change, and memories fade. Which is the best excuse I can come up with for our failure to find our way to our intended destination. Our two wrong turns both resulted in an unnecessary hill climb and then a retreat. After the second wayward attempt, we did discover the path we should have taken, but by then, we were whupped and just said, “fuck it.” The trail will be there next time we come out this way, and the proper course is not etched in our brains. Famous last words.

Wednesday evening involved a visit to It Doesn’t Matter, a snack at Sit-n-Bull, and a nightcap at Green Room.

How I roll, like it or not:

I never got that email from Musk, but I answered it anyway:

Today’s stroll through the LTG archives recalled the time I had to teach a Korean woman the meaning of sodomy. For the record, I didn’t show her, I told her. Still, it was amusing enough to warrant inclusion in The Story of My Life.

Back in 2008, I fell in love with a Korean woman for the first time.

Five years ago, this insanity had just begun:

Today’s YouTube video is from the Filipina Pea, who is currently visiting the USA and discovering the joys of a Florida flea market. That gal gets around!

And you knew this was coming:

Oh well, that’s just about enough for today. Did my blood work this morning and will pick up the results this afternoon prior to my appointment with Dr. Jo. Then I’ll pay an overdue visit to The Rite Spot On The Roof. I will let you know how that goes tomorrow.

Welcome to the club!

The day started off on the wrong foot with an email from my credit union back home saying the power of attorney I’d submitted to enable my daughter to sell my house “has been declined because it doesn’t comply with state requirements.” That was news to the attorney in South Carolina who prepared it. And it means that day trip to Manila and the two hundred bucks I spent to secure the POA at the embassy was for naught. I’ve messaged the credit union for more specifics on the problem, but they have yet to respond.

In other news, the former president of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, has been arrested on a warrant from the International Criminal Court and is on his way to Rotterdam to stand trial. I avoid engaging in political issues here in the PI since I’m a guest in this country. Still, if my Facebook feed is any indication, Filipinos are incensed that the current president has allowed this to happen. Duterte is accused of having thousands of drug dealers and users murdered during his term in office, without the benefit of due process or a trial. I thought it was wrong then, but I’m on a tourist visa and must keep my opinions to myself.

The rest of my Wednesday looked like this:

The Wednesday Walkers ventured out to Cawag and did a hike in and around Club Morocco. We hadn’t been out this way for a year or so, and that’s long enough to make it seem almost new to me.

We began our Wednesday evening with the traditional “seldom visited bar” search. This week, we found ourselves at Oasis.

It’s been a year or more since our last visit. We stopped coming when they didn’t have red wine available for Swan’s enjoyment. Then, the upstairs bar closed down, and a virtual golf studio opened in its place. That didn’t last more than a few months, which didn’t surprise me. Now, the upstairs Oasis is back, but with a new vibe–it’s the lowest priced beer bar in Barretto at 50 pesos a bottle (Beer 2 Beer brand is only 35!). That’s even less expensive than Cheap Charlies right up the street. I think they should have renamed the place “Cheaper Than Charlies.” And they have red wine in stock!

There was a good crowd of folks there during our visit, so, so far, so good. I understand they also have a food menu, although we didn’t check that out yesterday. I’m sure we’ll be back in the future.

We stopped into Green Room next. I played Chu in a game of pool, and once again, I lost. I did play marginally better, though. Then we did our nightcap next door at Wet Spot. Before we departed, we ordered some takeout from Sit-n-Bull. In a moment of weakness, I ordered the Maui chicken burger (with ham and a slice of pineapple on top) and a side of baked beans. It seems like I’m having an epidemic of weak moments lately.

Today’s entry from the LTG archives is entitled My Favorite Soldier. My daughter, Hillary (she was part of the package that came with wife #3) served two tours in Afghanistan. This post was about a gift she sent me from there.

I posted this YouTube video on Facebook seven years ago:

Four years ago, I was dining at my favorite restaurant in Angeles City:

In today’s YouTube video, George does his afternoon Barretto bar crawl. Of interest was that Dempsey’s, an old bar I’ve seen in Olongapo City but never visited, is moving to Barretto. He also mentions Oasis and their beer specials.

Humor time:

Okay, enough of this nonsense for today. It’s my last night in Barretto until next week, and I’m kicking it off with a chelation session from Dr. Jo. After that, who knows? Well, you will if you tune in tomorrow.

Just a couple showed up for the Friday group hike.

I asked Swan where she’d like to go, and she responded, “Kalaklan.” Sometimes I wonder if she’s trying to kill me! Well, I didn’t want to disappoint her, so we caught a Jeepney out of town to the easiest way up the ridge I know of. Spoiler alert: I survived! But since you’re reading this post, I guess you know that already.

Here’s a two-minute video Swan made when we reached the ridgeline road.

The SOB was being held at Whiskey Girl bar, and I elected not to attend. The last time I was there, they had no wine available for Swan. It’s not my favorite venue anyway, so we spent our Friday evening going to other seldom-visited bars.

Then we went to Jewel Cafe for dinner. We had both been craving the filet mignon steaks they serve there. We were a little disappointed to discover that the price had gone up from 499 pesos to 599. If my math is correct, that’s a 20% increase.

We hadn’t been to Mugshots bar since it reopened after being remodeled. The pool table is gone now, replaced with a stage for dancing girls. It was just what Barretto needed—another go-go bar. Not! They still had the signage up for their pool tourneys, which was a sad reminder of what was and now will not be. I’m not even a pool player, but I’d heard people talk about Mugshots being a great venue for playing. I didn’t much care for the new vibe, and I doubt I’ll be returning any time soon.

We did our nightcap at Alaska Club. As soon as I walked in, I knew something was a little off. Oh yeah, most of the dancers were at Whiskey Girl for the SOB competition. Duh. No big deal; only one dancer to tip, so I saved some coin. We pulled the plug on our evening out a little earlier than usual and headed for home.

I made smoothies for our bedtime treat but then made the mistake of going back for seconds.

Nearly twenty years ago, I first became a fan of the Big Hominid blog by Kevin Kim. I was so impressed with his Arbor Day post from 2005 that I quoted it in its entirety here at LTG. It was and is some impressive writing and remains one of my favorites.

Twelve years ago, I was celebrating with my old friend Duke Gates at the newly opened Hooters in Seoul. Duke is one of those friends who has vanished from social media and doesn’t respond to emails. I hope he is doing okay.

Time for another Q&A session with The Filipina Pea. I have almost zero tolerance for drama in a relationship; more often than not, drama derives from jealousy. Back in my dating days, I didn’t come back for seconds when a jealous nature was revealed. I’m delighted that Swan is secure enough in her self-esteem and our relationship that she doesn’t feel threatened by other females we encounter.

Let’s see if I can put a smile on your face:

Another day of blogging is in the books. Now to get on with the rest of my life. I’ll be back.

Now what am I gonna talk about?

Got home and did some blogging, and then it was back to Barretto to join in the Hash aftermath fun.

And that was that.

Some things I am remembering today.

In April 2017, I wrote a readers’ submission for the Stickman Bangkok website, telling the story of my broken heart and how I had developed A Brand New Plan. Needless to say, things didn’t go according to that plan. I hope love is worth the potential pain.

Then, in August 2020, I wrote a post here at LTG called, Keep The Change, which proved to be a milestone on the road that led me to where I am today. Let’s hope I never forget those lessons!

I’ll be visiting Angeles City the weekend after next, so today’s YouTube video presented information on areas I might best avoid during my stay. Well, I’m not big on the Walking Street (now called Red Street) go-go bar scene, and there are plenty of bars and restaurants closer to my hotel (The Boomerang) anyway.

Things that appeal to my low standards of humor:

Time to get on with today. I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow.

I call it what passes for adventure around here. Another day filled with the ordinary, but with some small tweaks to the routines that serve to pass the hours.

We kicked off our Saturday with the usual stroll, which has now devolved into a variant of the Candy Walk, just in different neighborhoods. But that’s okay; I get my steps in, and Swan loves dispensing her sweetness to the children we encounter. Here’s a taste:

I made a five-minute video of the uphill portion of our hike.

This time, I held the phone vertically to facilitate my ability to climb the steps. I still need to work on improving the angle I capture. Part of the problem is that I’m always looking down when I walk.

So, what goes up must come down. And I did a video of that, too.

That was excruciating. I’ll try to do better in the future.

I still wasn’t feeling like doing the same old Saturday night in Barretto thing, so we did it on Baloy instead. And we changed things up there by visiting two new venues.

It is located at the Baywatch Resort on the second floor. It was empty when we arrived, and no one else came in during our brief visit. This has the potential to be a nice place to hang out, but the owner will have to work harder to find a way to attract customers. I understand they joined the dart league but wound up dropping out because they didn’t have enough players to field a team. They played good music, even some country songs I like, but otherwise, the vibe was non-existent.

While we were there, I caught this guy checking out Swan, so I confronted him:

Swan was ready for her toes in the sand time.

So, the beach bar Laharnyz, which used to be a popular expat hangout, is no more. It is now called Cherryz, but it was not open when we stopped to check it out. The story I heard is that the expat owner of Laharnyz and his girl split up, the girl took over the bar, and now no one goes there anymore.

As we walked the beach, we saw a new place had opened, and some of those former Laharnyz customers were drinking there. We decided to drop in and check it out.

The owner came to our table and introduced himself. He calls the venue “Kim’s Place,” and it is pretty much a one-man operation. In an odd twist, he’s a Filipino, and his name is John Kim. If I understood him correctly, he said his father was Dutch. Anyway, a nice guy and we will definitely be back to enjoy the beach vibe and sample some of the food snacks he serves.

As we chatted, I asked if he might be interested in hosting a Hash On-Home. He was familiar with the Hash from other venues he’s worked at and was willing to have us come for a beach Hash in the future. I’ll discuss that possibility with the Hash powers that be tomorrow.

While we were at Kim’s Place, I got a message from Michael and Taz asking where we’d be later. Our next stop was Treasure Island, so they met up with us there.

Saturday is live music night at TI, so we had a rockin’ good time. The place was as crowded as I’ve ever seen it.

Taz has her own YouTube channel and is a much better videographer than I’ll ever be. She showed me the video short she made of the goat rescue on our Friday hike.

Damn, music and captions, too! I may have to hire her to tutor me!

Michael and Taz live in the Club Morocco subdivision out near Cawag, a pretty good drive from Barretto. I’d looked there during one of my house-hunting trips prior to the move. Loved it, but just too isolated, especially for a non-driver. They dropped us off at our house on their way home. And so ended another day in the life.

When I imagine my “do-over” life, I think I’d elect to start again in high school and take it from there. Today, I was reminded of those long-ago times in an old Facebook post sharing memories of my high school journalism exploits.

My dream was to become a journalist, but as a poor boy, I couldn’t afford the required college degree. In my do-over life, I’m going to enlist in the Army and get my education paid for.

So, what do you think about this?

TRIGGER WARNING!

I should learn to be nicer; I honestly don’t care what people who disagree with me think. I take comfort in knowing I am right and they are wrong.

Alright, enough of the political nonsense. Let’s move on to something that we can all enjoy. Like Jambo’s video from the swimsuit competition at the Beach Bash:

And now for the smiles:

It’s been nice changing things up a tad, but today I’m back to the Sunday routines. Nothing wrong with that: a Candy Walk, the Hideaway feeding, sunset on the Arizona floating bar, dinner at John’s place, and a nightcap at Green Room. Life is good.