Once again, it was too wet to get out about for most of the day yesterday, which meant no Decay Dance this week. It sucks to be stuck inside all day. Of course, when beer o’clock beckons, there is no stopping me. Fortunately, there was only a light rain during my journey into town, and my umbrella provided adequate protection.

First stop, Sloppy Joe’s. This is one of the few bars in town that seems to be holding its own. Several big-screen TVs showing a variety of sporting events are one draw. They were also having a pool league match during my visit. Me, I’m content to just sit on my stool and take in the street view and passersby.

Three XL beers later, I was ready for some grub and decided to visit Sit-n-Bull. Someone had posted a picture on Facebook of the SnB pulled pork sandwich, which triggered my desire for one.

Alas, Sit-n-Bull doesn’t stock XL beer for some odd reason (they used to have Zero back in the day), so I made do with a San Mig Light.

I wasn’t sure where I wanted to go next, so I just moseyed down the road to see what impulse might strike me. I briefly considered Cyclone, but rejected the idea. Nipsey’s was closed for some reason, and so I ultimately decided I couldn’t go wrong with Queen Victoria. As I walked in, the bartender informed me that XL was out of stock. I guess it is getting popular. Manager Jake said he’d tried to get some off the San Miguel truck and from a local beer distributor, and neither had any available. Weird, why introduce a new beer and then not brew enough to keep the bars supplied? Oh, well. Take a deep breath, relax, and accept the Filipino way. San Mig Light for me, then.

The beer situation notwithstanding, I did enjoy my visit. Some big spender was there, playing darts with a group of gals and buying them all drinks. It was kind of fun to watch, even though none of them had any talent for the game. Then the guy rang the bell (3500 pesos), providing a drink for all the ladies working. Good on him!

I was ready to move on, but not ready to call it a night, so I paid the rare visit to SnackBar. They at least had some XL beer available for me. I sat with one of the waitresses I’ve known over the years, and of course, provided her with a lady drink. The owner, a former love of mine, was at the next table chatting with a customer, but she did at least welcome me this time. Two beers for me, and I was done. A trike stand right next door made getting home a breeze. And so ended another rainy day.

My new housekeeper, Swan’s sister Cyrene, is going above and beyond the call of duty. I was impressed to see how she has decorated the foyer at the front door of my house:

On with the October 2021 LTG archives, and today is a two-fer. I did this post about firing one of the participants in my “friends with benefits” program due to her constant begging outside the scope of our helping-each-other encounters. A few days later, I did a follow-up post responding to criticisms that I had just given a new name to what amounted to old-fashioned prostitution. Sex was honestly not the intent, although admittedly, it turned out to be a byproduct. My needs were for companionship, and that could be satisfied in ways that didn’t involve sex (hiking, massage, etc.). In return, I would help with some of their financial needs. The real purpose was to stop the incessant begging, and in that regard, the program admittedly failed.

Today’s YouTube video is something I posted on Facebook 13 years ago. It’s as funny now as it ever was. Perhaps one of the best pranks ever. I especially enjoyed the pissed-off reactions of some of the victims when they found out the joke was on them. Worth the two-minute watch, trust me.

We’re on a roll, so let’s keep the humor coming:

We’ve gotten a bit of a break today. Still some occasional showers, but I was able to get out for a stroll this morning. Felt good! Rumor has it we might not have water for another two weeks because they can’t fix the pipe until the river recedes.

Oh well, it is what it is, and that’s all I’ve got to say for today.

We’ve been in the red weather-wise, which is why I’m in a rut—no hikes for two straight days now. I miss being out and about. But at least today’s post will be brief since I have little to bore you with.

Me being me and all, I still managed to make my way into town to celebrate beer o’clock. I began my journey at It Doesn’t Matter.

That’s Tony sitting there on the right. He’s not doing so well lately. He’s trying to get back to the UK for treatment. Hope things turn out for him; he could barely move yesterday. We had to help him into that chair.

Three XL beers later, I crossed the highway and climbed the stairs to Cheap Charlie’s. Was greeted by Gerlie, my new favorite CC waitress, and I invited her to join me for a lady drink. Had a nice chat. She’s in her forties with three kids, but she carries herself well. Enjoyed bullshitting and sharing some laughs with her.

Cheap Charlie’s had a decent crowd, considering the weather. Even some guy there with a bakla (ladyboy) “girlfriend.” I honestly have no issues with how someone chooses to identify. Pretend to be a woman if you want; just leave me out of it.

I did my nightcap at Alaska, and I was the only customer. Owner Jerry is still out of the country, and the vibe when he isn’t around is not as fun. Still, there were two attractive enough dancers on the stage, the beer was cold, and the music and service were good. No complaints.

And that was my day.

From Facebook memories: an old postcard from my girlfriend Gail. When’s the last time you’ve seen a postcard? Or someone writing in cursive?

I’ve moved on to October 2021 in the LTG archives. In this post, I talk about the existing drinking establishment varieties as a prelude to beginning a series of reviews of all the bars in Barretto. The first review was for Redz Pub at the Arizona Resort. Redz shut down for good several months ago, and Arizona will be closing its doors in two weeks. Lots of memories there, but times change.

Today’s YouTube video is based on my favorite short story by Ernest Hemingway, “A Clean Well-Lighted Place.” It’s only fifteen minutes long and worth the watch. Or read it here if you prefer. I first read it in one of my literature classes as a young man, and for some reason it really resonated with me. And now, all these years later, I’ve become a similar old man to the one depicted in the story. Funny how that works.

Today’s daily dose of humor:

I’m not sure when we are going to catch a break in the weather. I’ll contemplate that over some cold beers later on and see if I can figure it out.

As I live out this final chapter of my life, sometimes I need to take a step back and take time to reflect on the blessings that have been bestowed upon me rather than bitch and moan about the parts that are less than ideal. One thing I am thankful for is my overall good health. Yeah, I get the aches and pains that come with old age, but I’m no longer suffering from the breathing attacks that tormented me a couple of years ago. My blood pressure is the lowest it’s ever been (consistently in the 1-teens over low 70s). Once I complete my quest to lose the excess poundage, some of the other risk factors will be reduced as well. I see a lot of my fellow expats who can barely walk, so even my ability to do my easy hikes is something to be appreciated. Whatever the future may bring, I’m going to do my best to live in the moment and be grateful for all that I have.

Yesterday’s Wednesday Walkers group hike was special in its ordinariness. We did a mostly flat, mostly paved trek from the Subic Market to Waltermart, totaling almost 7K. We carried umbrellas, but miraculously never had to open them. The downpours resumed within an hour of our completion of the journey, so we were fortunate in that regard.

In other “news,” my housekeeper, Jane, has decided to pursue other opportunities. I wish her well in those endeavors. So, now I have a new employee:

I’ve been impressed by her performance thus far. Here’s how she rearranged the clutter that used to occupy the top of my bedroom dresser:

So it rained almost all afternoon, but like magic, it let up at beer o’clock, and we made it into town without using our umbrellas.

It wasn’t long after we arrived that the latest deluge commenced:

We finished the evening at Rum Jungle and Wet Spot. And another wet day came to an end.

Oh, and I may have been a tad overoptimistic about how San Miguel XL would help me sleep through the night.

Sad news from Dumaguete:

In the September 2021 LTG archives, I recount a couple more occasions where I invited women to join my “friends with benefits” program. Honestly, looking back on those days now, I feel embarrassed by my behavior. But as I explain in the post, it was a defensive mechanism to the almost constant onslaught of money requests from women in need. So, my rationale was that both of us have needs; let’s make a mutually beneficial arrangement. I did come to find these kinds of transactional relationships to be unfulfilling, and I’m not proud of that phase I went through. Still, it’s part of The Story of My Life”, good and bad.

Today’s YouTube video is from an expat vlogger talking about his experience with this unprecedented rainy season. I’ve been here going on nine years now, and it is the worst I’ve seen. These past couple of days have been more “normal”–still lots of hard rain showers, but with periodic breaks in the storm. At least that way the flooding is greatly reduced.

How about these:

And now I’ve gone and done it once again. Time to get out and make the best of whatever time I have left. Thanks for reading as I make my way through this journey of life.

Nothing much to say about my yesterday. We had our driver pick up our freshly showered bodies at the Anbon Hotel and headed into the city for grocery shopping. Stopped by the BPI ATM to withdraw some cash, and my card was rejected. There was a “fraud alert” email from my credit union when I got home, saying the withdrawal was suspicious activity and I needed to contact them to unblock my account. This is the second time they’ve done this in the past month, and it is getting old. I sent a message telling them it was a legit transaction, but so far, no response. It’s a good thing I’ve found an alternate way to transfer funds from my account using Wise. Anyway, that was about as exciting as things got around here.

Still no running water in our subdivision. So, we are flushing toilets and washing with water in buckets.

No idea how long this water outage will last. The water company posted this today:

Meanwhile, there is still plenty of water falling down from the skies. At least it is coming in intermittent showers now, which is helping to reduce the flood issues.

We caught a break in the rain when we made our trek into town at beer o’clock. We kicked off our evening at Sloppy Joe’s. Swan saw a gal she knows walking by and invited her in to join us. She used to work on the Arizona floating bar, which is long gone now, but she will be starting to work for the new owner of Champs Sports Bar on Baloy Beach soon. The owner is the same guy who has recently purchased several other bars in town. So, by my count, he now has Whiskey Girl, Crazy Horse, Tryst, Barcelona, Champs, and the soon-to-be reopened Voodoo Bar and General MacArthur’s Bar. That’s more bars than customers in most bars. But if you have more money than sense, why not? It’s been said that the easiest way to become a millionaire in the Philippines is to start with two million. Still, I wish him well. Weather permitting, I may venture out to Baloy tomorrow to see what Champs is like under new management.

We shared a pulled pork sandwich and chicken quesadillas from the Sloppy Joe’s kitchen. I liked the quesadilla best. I also downed six San Miguel Extra Lights (XLs). They go down smooth and easy, and at only 3% alcohol, I wasn’t even buzzed.

And we weren’t done yet. We headed down the road to Queen Victoria for our nightcap. Alas, they were out of the red wine Swan prefers, so she had a Mai Tai cocktail instead. I mentioned to manager Jake that he needed to restock, and he disappeared. Came back about 30 minutes later and said he’d gone to two different markets and couldn’t find any. Wow. It wasn’t my intent for him to do that, but that’s the kind of manager he is. And he wasn’t done yet; he sent his bartender out to another local market to continue the quest for a bottle of wine. Impressive!

I’m, of course, drinking more XL. On Tuesday night, Queen Vic has a “buy two, get one free” deal. When I’d finished my free third beer, Swan still wasn’t done with her first drink, so I ordered another. Then another. And that earned me my second free beer. As crazy as it sounds, I still wasn’t drunk. But I didn’t push my luck and called it a night. Always a good time chatting with Jake and enjoying the Queen Victoria ambiance.

I’ve also noticed that when I’m drinking XLs, I stay out a little later than I usually do. I can only empty a bottle so fast after all. Oddly enough, the residual impact seems to be that I’m sleeping better.

Well, I’m going to have to continue to assess the positive aspects of drinking XL. I’ll let you know how that works out.

From Facebook memories on this day in my history:

From the September 2021 LTG archives, a typical day-in-the-life, including a hike and a barhop. It stands out for me because things I took for granted are no more, like enjoying a chat with the now-deceased Dave Fischer and getting my weekly fix of Korean chicken wings courtesy of John Kim’s The Pub, both of which no longer exist. Life goes on until it doesn’t.

Today’s YouTube is something a little different: why it sucks to be born a Filipino. I think maybe the biggest difference between being born poor here versus in first-world countries is that there are fewer opportunities to escape poverty. I wonder how Dolly Parton would have fared had she been born a Filipina.

Humor time:

And that’s all I’ve got for today. It’s pouring down rain again, but beer o’clock will not be denied!

As bad as the weather has been for the past few weeks, yesterday might have been the worst day overall. Heavy wind-blown downpours that were, for the most part, unrelenting. And as bad as yesterday was, so far today has been worse. All the long-time expats I’ve talked with agree this has been one of the roughest rainy seasons they’ve seen.

At least I’m above it all here in Alta Vista. Lots of other folks are dealing with flood waters inside their houses.

Throughout the day, I confined myself to quarters, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to be a prisoner under house arrest when it’s time to enjoy beer o’clock. We did an umbrella walk through the deserted streets of Barretto and, for the most part, were able to avoid the ponds that had formed on the uneven roadways.

We decided to hit Cheap Charlies first and take advantage of the Foodies dining option. We were the only customers, and so we fed the six bored gals working some fried chicken and pancit. I shared an order of chicken quesadillas with Swan. As we were eating, the skies opened up, and torrents of wind-blown rain forced us to retreat to the bar seating.

As the storm outside continued raging, we stayed longer than we normally would. Once the rain lightened up a bit, we headed downstairs and discovered the streets were flooded.

So, we made it as far as Annex Bar without getting too wet and popped in. They actually had a few customers. A couple more XLs, and the flood waters had receded, so we crossed the highway and had a nightcap at It Doesn’t Matter. Then we headed home in a trike and made it without incident.

Another day stuck at home, and I’m worried about the difficulty I may encounter tomorrow when I try to finish scouting and marking the Hash trail. If it keeps raining like this, chalk and powder are going to be useless. We shall see.

So, all the bars are now stocking the new brew, San Miguel Extra Light, aka XL.

And also in the good news department, I haven’t had to deal with tampo lately.

Facebook is burning up with photos and videos of local flooding.

I was just thinking, at least the power hasn’t gone out. Oops! It just did. Fuck.

Continuing the journey through the August 2021 LTG archives, I got bit by the love bug again. And just a few days later, I got a brutal reminder that love is just a four-letter word. Well, at least I tried. And no money changed hands, nor was there physical consummation of the “relationship”. Maybe that’s progress.

Changing it up a tad for today’s YouTube video with a little WWII history. Japan knew they couldn’t win a war with us, but they started one anyway. Here’s why:

Yep, here we go again:

That’s all I’ve got. Man, oh man, I hope we catch a break in the weather soon. But yeah, I’ll be escaping the house again later today regardless.

Oh, well. I’ve got nothing but time on my hands.

Today is my birthday, but we’ll talk about that tomorrow. Assuming I live that long. Still dealing with wet weather, but it is less intense now and more typical of what you expect during rainy season. So there’s that. The Wednesday Walkers convened and set about undertaking a 6K street walk. Here is some of what we saw along the way:

We kicked off the birthday-eve celebration at Harley’s on Baloy. They had my new favorite San Mig Extra Light in stock, so I was off to a good start. Next up was Mango’s for our traditional grilled pork chop dinner. They hadn’t heard about Extra, but now they have. Hopefully it will be in the fridge on our next visit.

I messaged the Jumpin’ Jacks manager to ask about the rumors of the bar’s demise. She responded that a new management team was taking over, but she had not been informed whether she and the current staff would be retained. I asked if they were going to be open tonight, and she said that they were. So, I said we’d come by later.

We popped into the seldom-visited Annex Bar on our way to Jumpin’ Jacks. Hasher Fast And Loose is the bartender there. And by golly, they had some cold Extra waiting to be enjoyed. Looks like I’m gonna have plenty of venue options for drinking extra lightly.

On to Jumpin’ Jacks for our nightcap. And yes, my manager friend had secured the San Mig Extra I had requested on Sunday. Woo-hoo! So, we had our usual good time soaking up the ambiance and enjoying the always nice music. Hopefully, not for the last time. The former manager at Thumbstar is going to be taking over, and Jumpin’ Jacks will be renamed Red Square. The perfectly fine current interior will be remodeled to accommodate a stage for dancers. Yeah, just what we need in Barretto. Anyway, I passed on my advice that they keep the current music playlists and let the dancers move to that. I fear the current good vibe is doomed, but if the bar isn’t currently making money, I understand the effort to draw more customers. Good luck with that.

And that was the way I spent the last day of my 70th year.

Maybe I’ll still be alive in 2028 to witness this:

And here’s a memory from my racist past:

Moving on to August 2021 in the LTG archives, where I share a post about what passes as a bad day in the Philippines. Yeah, I bitch and moan about minor medical-related frustrations, but compared to what the locals deal with every day, I’ve got nothing to complain about. Oh, and my “friend with benefits” Joy crossed a line, and I terminated the relationship. Looking back, perhaps I was overly harsh, but then again, at least I’d learned to apply Rule #1 (don’t be a sucker).

Today’s YouTube video offers a brief history of Luzon Island. And by brief, I mean less than four minutes. That suits my ever-decreasing attention span.

These never get old:

Last year I had the biggest birthday bash of my life, thanks to Swan. This year is going to be a lot more laid-back. So laid-back, I’m not sure what I’ll do to celebrate as yet. I’ve got a pretty good hunch beer will be involved, though. Hopefully Extra!

“Age has no reality except in the physical world. The essence of a human being is resistant to the passage of time. Our inner lives are eternal, which is to say that our spirits remain as youthful and vigorous as when we were in full bloom. Think of love as a state of grace, not the means to anything, but the alpha and omega. An end in itself.”

― Gabriel García Márquez, Love in the Time of Cholera

I always love seeing those other 70s I lived through.

This is the rainiest rainy season I remember since moving here, but at least the intensity of the daily storms has diminished. Luckily, my routines continue unabated, rain or shine. The downside is that I have nothing new or of interest to report, but that’s never stopped me before, so let’s get on with it.

It being Saturday morning, we headed out for our weekly Decay Dance. Just a couple of showers along the way, and we successfully defended ourselves with umbrellas.

That’s all the photos I took during the walk. When you do the same route week after week, there just ain’t much new or interesting to photograph. You are welcome!

As far as the Saturday evening bar crawl goes, things were a little different, but not in a good way. After a rainy walk into town, we popped into Sloppy Joe’s to kick off the drinking portion of the day. The place was packed like I’ve never seen it before. The street-view seats were all taken, but we found a table and chairs nearby. I figured we’d do a round (that’s one glass of wine for Swan, and three beers for me), then move on to the Alaska Club.

Alaska owner Jerry is temporarily back in the States, and his absence was evident. The first thing off was that we were told no red wine was available. That never happens when Jerry is around, and even if it did, he would send someone out to pick up a bottle. We arrived a little after 5:30 (the bar opens at 5), and some of the staff was still coming in late. The thing I enjoy most during my visits (yes, more than the dancers on stage) is the music mix Jerry plays. When we arrived, there was a Toby Keith country song (with video) playing, and that suited me fine. Next up was another Toby song, and I’m like, that’s okay, I like him. Then, the first song repeated itself, followed again by the second. And yep, like a Groundhog Day loop, it started a third round. Either the staff didn’t notice or didn’t give a damn (or both), so I pointed it out and someone did play something new. We were the only customers, and after I finished my beer, I paid my tab, and we departed.

We went to Wet Spot next door, arriving a few minutes before the official 6 p.m. opening. We were served anyway, and yes, they had wine for Swan. When manager Brett arrived, he fired up his usual good music selections (we were both raised in California in the 60s, so our song preferences are similar. A little disappointing that our Hash buddy head waitress wasn’t working, but at least I saved money on lady drinks. I did order some food to snack on from the Sit-n-Bull waitress, who is now back on duty after her maternity leave. Then at the appointed hour, we took a rainy trike ride back home. I made a batch of smoothies, and then hit the sack.

I found this article about “17 phrases our grandparents used to say” to be somewhat amusing. I’ve even used a few of them myself back in the day.

Facebook memories took me back to my last birthday gathering as a working man:

From the June 2021 LTG archives is a Father’s Day post showing three generations of the McCrarey clan. The star of my friends-with-benefits program, Joy, surprised me with a cake and a gift, making a special trip from Subic to deliver it. Looking back now, she was more special than I gave her credit for being. We’d celebrated her birthday the week before, and this post includes a nice picture of her. Thanks for the memories, Joy! Sorry if I wound up hurting you.

Today’s YouTube video talks about the origins of “Filipino time” (always being late). It really is a thing here, and it can be irritating, but it is low on my list of frustrations. Anyway, the video provides some historical excuse-making for this cultural quirk, but I’m not convinced that its foundation wasn’t always, and remains, rudeness.

Speaking of joy:

And so it goes. Still raining today, but that ain’t gonna keep me from my Sunday routines. Onward!

I posted this on Facebook four years ago today:

Into each life some rain must fall

But too much is falling in mine

Into each heart some tears must fall

But some day the sun will shine

Some folks can lose the blues in their hearts

But when I think of you another shower starts

Into each life some rain must fall

But too much is falling in mine

I couldn’t remember writing that, but I didn’t attribute the writer. Thanks to Google AI I found out it is from an old (1944) Ella Fitzgerald song. Let’s give it a listen:

I like it!

Welp, I’m still standing, and when the weather permits, I’m up for a nice walk. It’s been a while since we’ve gathered for a group hike, but yesterday morning’s break in the rain afforded us the opportunity to get together once more. We confined ourselves to the pavement for the most part, but that’s just prudence in action. We all carried umbrellas, but didn’t need them. So, the plan was to take a Jeepney out to Waltermart and walk the backroads to Barretto. We didn’t quite make it, but it wasn’t for a lack of trying. Here’s how it went down:

So, there’s a narrow creek bed coming up that used to have a rickety bamboo bridge to walk over. Yesterday, we discovered the bridge is no longer there. The creek is at the bottom of a steep four- or five-foot-deep embankment. Too wide to jump across, too deep to crawl down and pull yourself up the other side, at least for old guys with diminished upper-body strength. We looked for an alternative route, couldn’t find one, so we were forced to retreat back the way we came.

When we got to San Isidro, it started to rain lightly. That’s all the excuse we needed to grab a trike for the rest of the way back to Barretto.

The weather was nice enough to warrant a walk out to Baloy Beach when beer o’clock rolled around. It didn’t take much enticement when I told Swan of my intention to feed her birria tacos at the Foxhole Resort.

So, we started off with wine and beers at Tropical Zone and had the place to ourselves. The barkeep let me log into the Bluetooth speaker, and we listened to some nice music from my Spotify playlist. That was actually quite enjoyable, picking the songs and the volume.

When the hunger pangs came, we moved on to Foxhole, where my long-time acquaintance, Norman, was tending bar. He gave us the sad news that birria is currently out of stock. So, we settled for grilled pork chops. Foxhole was surprisingly busy with a large group of Filipino visitors. We enjoyed our meal and our visit, staying until it was time to call it a day and head for home.

I’m not sure what happened our why, but my f’n brain wouldn’t let me get much sleep last night.

I seem to be doing okay today despite the lack of sleep. Let’s see how I hold up after a couple of beers this evening.

Courtesy of Facebook memories:

It is now June 2021 in my journey through the LTG archives, and I finally found some drama to report. Well, if you can call a Quora quarrel drama. I still check in there daily, but almost never engage by commenting anymore.

Let’s check in with the Filipina Pea for today’s YouTube video. I’m not much of a foodie, but it’s pretty interesting to see the things you can make to eat from the wild. I knew the female Hashers are always picking from plants we come across on the trail, and now I know why. I looked through some of the comments and discovered that Pea has a boyfriend, and he is 66 years old! Lucky man!

Like them or not, here they come:

And on that note, I’ll sign off for now.

A break in the weather permitted me and my co-Hare, Cums Alone, to get outdoors and do some scouting for an upcoming Hash trail on August 31. I had an idea in mind, but wasn’t sure of its feasibility given the rain-soaked conditions. I was pleasantly surprised to find it doable, although a tad slippery on the ups and downs. So, as long as it is not storming come the end of the month, I think my idea will work. My plan is to have short and long trail options, and we managed to hike the entirety of the short version yesterday. It’s a little shy of 4K, with a good climb. The long trail I have in mind will feature two climbs and more distance, probably 6 or 7 kilometers. I still need to scout that version, but I’m familiar with the path I have in mind.

It was good to be out and about again. Here’s some of what we saw along the way:

As we neared the end of our final descent, I was thinking to myself that despite the slippery and wet conditions, we had the good fortune of not having fallen. It’s not wise to tempt fate, because one minute later I was down on my ass after a hard fall. No injury to me, but the fall bent both mine and Swan’s walking sticks–mine from bearing the full weight of my fall as I went down, and apparently I reached out and grabbed Swan’s pole as I fell.

We had some more rain showers in the afternoon, but there was a break at beer o’clock, so I didn’t need my umbrella for the walk to Red Bar.

We did our nightcap at Rum Jungle, and the music was okay this time. Only a couple of dancers were on stage, and our waitress explained that due to a lack of meeting the lady drink quotas, many of the dancers had their pay withheld and so declined to work. That is wrong on so many levels. If I hire you for a measly 300 pesos per day to dance, that’s what you should get. Lady drink commissions are a bonus to supplement that low salary. Withholding pay is tantamount to human trafficking and should be against the law. Other bars also impose this policy, and it is disgusting.

Oh, well. My waitress got a drink and a tip. That’s all I can do.

From Facebook memories, some photos I posted of life on the farm in Monroe, Oklahoma, in the early 1980s.

Continuing the journey through the May 2021 LTG archives, and something ain’t right. Healthwise, anyway. I’m happy to report that whatever it was, I recovered. I haven’t used my nebulizer in over a year now. My blood pressure is lower than it’s ever been (averaging 110/67 this month). I’m suffering the aches and pains that come with ageing and lack some strength and stamina, but otherwise I’m doing alright for a man in his 70s. The post also mentions that Joy is still the star of my “friends with benefits” program, but now I’m crushing on a woman named Marick. She’s married and living in Australia now, so that didn’t work out.

For today’s YouTube video, we learn that the immigration authorities here in the Philippines are taking a deeper look into past crimes and indiscretions, leading to one poor guy being denied entry despite having lived here for 25 years. Luckily, my past crimes didn’t result in arrests. Man, get a load of the collarbones on the vlogger’s wife.

You can laugh if you want to:

I really enjoyed the break in the weather, allowing me to get back to doing the things I enjoy the most. We’ve had some spotty rain so far today, but nothing like what it has been. I feel confident enough to venture out to Baloy Beach for a change of scenery this evening. We’ll see how that works out.

So, yesterday morning, the rain let up, and I decided to roll the dice and go for a neighborhood walk. Oops, I crapped out. Halfway through the jaunt, the skies opened up again, rain came down in torrents, the wind blew my umbrella inside out, and I got soaked and retreated home in defeat.

Oh, and right about noon, the power went out. By three o’clock, my laptop battery was drained. There was no hot water for a shower, and given that I’d already had one during my walk, I said fuck it and got dressed. Well, you knew I wasn’t going to stay home when the bars began to beckon to me. So, I resurrected my umbrella, and we headed into town an hour earlier than normal. Fortunately, it didn’t rain hard during the journey to It Doesn’t Matter. I had five beers remaining on my IDM beer card, so I drank them. Swan refrained from drinking her usual wine, claiming it was too early. At six o’clock, we moved up the highway to Wet Spot, and wine, beer, and lady drinks flowed. Then, a little before 8 p.m., we headed home, thankful that power had been restored in our absence.

Yep, even by my low standards, it was a pretty bleh day. Oh well, it will make today seem all that much better, and thus far, it has been.

Oh, I did have something weird happen during the night. The rain pounding on the roof woke me, and when I was finally able to get back to sleep, I started dreaming I was seeing one of those video dramas from Facebook projected on the wall. The weird part was that in the dream I kept saying, “this is just a dream.” So, I guess I was dreaming about dreaming. That’s a first for me.

I’m into the May 2021 LTG archives now, and damn, it’s hard to find a post about anything other than hiking or drinking. What happened to all the drama in my life? Oh, I did come across a weekend with three Hashes: the Corona Hash from Angeles did an outstation in Barretto on Saturday, the Angeles City Hash did an outstation run on Sunday, and the Subic Hash had our regular run on Monday. Well, Hashing is part of the story of my life, so there you go.

For today’s YouTube video, I found it interesting to hear a Filipina’s perspective on American life after living in the USA for eleven years. I’m always posting the wisdom of expats on adapting to the quirks of Filipino culture, so this was kind of a refreshing change.

What’s life without a little humor?

The rain continues to fall off and on, but I did manage to get out for a couple of hours this morning to start scouting a Hash trail for the 31st. And yeah, I wound up getting wet again. ‘Tis the season.

As suggested by commenter Chop Suey:

Although yesterday there was a brief respite in the late morning/early afternoon, the rain was back in full fury come evening time, and it is still going strong this morning. At least yesterday was my shopping day, so I was able to take care of business. I did need my umbrella when I walked into town at beer o’clock.

Sometimes you see a deal that looks too good to resist.

Another surprise at the Royal supermarket was seeing Thrifty Ice Cream for the first time since my childhood. There was a Thrifty Drug Store in my hometown of Westminster, and I fondly recall getting a scoop in a cone for a nickel (or, if I was feeling rich, two scoops for a dime). I never knew it was being sold in cartons now, but it seems that’s a new development.

Speaking of which, after consulting with Dr. Jo yesterday, we decided to switch from Ozempic to Mounjaro injections. No weight loss last week, so I might have developed some resistance to Ozempic. We’ll see if I do better on this new type.

Helped my pal Rob celebrate his birthday at Alley Hideout last night. Made a batch of brownies and bought him a beer card (good for six bottles). Then Swan and I did our nightcap at Queen Victoria before taking a rainy trike ride home.

On with the April 2021 LTG archives, and I’ve decided to move from the house I’d been renting for three years in rejection of the landlord’s 10% rent increase. I was already overpaying and doing all the house maintenance to boot. So, the owner wanted an extra $100 a month, and five years later, it is still sitting vacant. Smart move, dude!

For today’s YouTube video, an expat vlogger gives a weather forecast. It seems there isn’t any relief in sight. I’ve agreed to be the Hare for the Hash run on August 31. Hope it is done raining by then.

Keep smiling:

I have been homebound all morning, so no Wednesday walk. I’m hoping there will be a break in the storm long enough to do a neighborhood walk later. We shall see.

Man oh man, I’ve been living here for going on nine years, and this is about the craziest wet spell I remember. Raining now for two weeks straight, and often in downpour mode.

But duty calls, regardless, so we headed out for the Standard Sunday Sweets Street Stroll. We needed our umbrellas some of the time, but got lucky overall. (BTW, that’s five S’s, just like there are five senses.)

Our luck didn’t hold up when beer o’clock rolled around. Steady rain all the way to town, and then about 50 years from our Red Bar destination, the wind came up, and the rain went sideways, negating whatever protection our umbrellas had provided. So, as I settled into my seat at Red Bar, I was as wet as my beer.

As is our Sunday custom, we moved on to Jumpin’ Jacks for our nightcap.

I played even worse than usual but managed to win when my opponent scratched on the 8-ball. That was enough for me, so I went back to my barstool and soaked up the ambiance surrounded by good music. Then we made our way home in the rain with the help of a trike. And that’s the essence of our day.

Those angry skies I mentioned:

From Facebook memories, an old photo I posted of my days as a skier in Flagstaff, Arizona.

Onward in the April 2021 LTG archives. Joy continues to be the star participant in my “friends with benefits” program. Oddly enough, even though she is meeting all my expectations, I’m still not satisfied. And while I claim to have denounced love, I found myself crushing on one of the waitresses at Alley Hideout. Alas, those feelings were not reciprocated. She did participate in a Hash run with me, so at least I have something to remember her by.

In today’s YouTube video, a Filipina vlogger shares her views on why expats are leaving the Philippines. Noise pollution is one of the major annoyances I experience in daily life, but not enough to make me want to leave. Of course, living up high in my subdivision enclave does help, but I can still hear the Philippines from here.

Into each life some jokes must fall:

Another Hash Monday, but at least the Hare has chosen a street walk for today’s trail. Here’s how things look outside at the moment:

The Subic Bay Hash House Harriers hit the trail every Monday, rain or shine. Hmm, reminds me of my mailman days: “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.” Of course, I was getting paid to walk back then…

I’ve been busy getting back into my routines, despite the weather. The skies were threatening as we headed out for our weekly Decay Dance. And then the threats became reality. Oh well, that’s what umbrellas are for, right? Of course, when you are wading down the road, there is no way to keep your feet dry. So, we just rolled on, making the best of it. We did alter our course to avoid the knee-deep backwaters, but we successfully sweetened the day of a couple hundred kids, and that’s what our dance is all about.

The rain continued off and on throughout the day and night, and it ain’t done yet. Well, we did a Saturday evening barhop anyway—Sloppy Joe’s, Alaska, and Rum Jungle. The usual mix at Sloppy between those watching sports on TV, those playing pool, and beer drinkers like me taking in the street views. Owner Bert gave us a warm welcome when we arrived.

Alaska was deader than usual, with us being the only customers for most of our visit. Owner Jerry is back in the States again, so his regulars weren’t in attendance. After a couple of beers, we moved on to Rum Jungle for our nightcap.

I used to be a semi-regular at Green Room, but haven’t enjoyed the remaking into Rum Jungle. One of my biggest complaints was the bar playing crap music, in what I presume was an attempt to get the girls on stage to actually dance. I’d heard similar complaints from others. Maybe the word got back to management, because last night it was nothing but that old-time rock and roll. We enjoyed our visit last night.

Then it was home for a bedtime smoothie and a good night’s sleep.

It turns out there’s an export in which the Philippines leads the world, and it ain’t even close!

From the April 2021 LTG archives, a post about living my life like clockwork. I’m pretty much still adhering to that schedule on a daily basis. The post also covers one of the final chapters in my darting life: the completion of the first and only season of the Barretto Singles League, a league I founded and had successfully run in Columbia, SC, and Seoul, Korea. I lost my passion for the game somewhere along the way.

Today’s YouTube video talks about the arrests of twelve foreigners on Siargao Island. I had heard stories about the shit some of those visitors were pulling, and the immigration folks swooped in and shipped them out. The overwhelming tourist vibe that comes with the influx of a youngish surfer crowd is one of the reasons I would not enjoy living on Siargao.

I beg your forgiveness for these:

And one more item on today’s to-do list is now completed. Up next, my Sunday bar hop.

Things were a lot wilder on that first go-round, but I’ll take my boring routines over being dead any day. I’m not sure how much further this road goes, so I’m just going to enjoy the ride one day at a time.

There was a break in the stormy weather yesterday morning, and that encouraged me to get off my lazy ass and take a walk. It turns out Mother Nature was just fucking with me, because once we got out of the Jeepney in Subic town, the skies opened up again. Oh, well, we had the foresight to bring along our umbrellas. I was also a little surprised at how flooded parts of our chosen path were. So, we did us some wading with our walk. The route I had in mind would have been around 6K, but we’d had enough water in the air and on the ground and bailed after 3K. Here are some scenes from our journey:

When it came time to head into town for the evening imbibing, the rain miraculously let up. It was almost like Jesus turning water into beer!

Instead, I paid a visit to Cheap Charlies. My regular waitress, Gerlie, was there to serve me. I asked her if that made Cheap Charlies a Gerlie bar, and she said, yes, of course. Another waitress who looked familiar sat on the other side of me. She asked how things were going at It Doesn’t Matter, and I said they were doing okay, but not as well as when Cliff and Ashley were running things there. I was curious why she was curious about IDM, and she gave me a funny look and said, “Don’t you remember me? I used to work there.” Damn, my memory ain’t what it used to be. I asked her name, and she told me, Juliet. Ah, now I remember. I reminded her that the first time she introduced herself, I introduced myself as “Romeo.” We both chuckled over that memory.

So, I was enjoying the company enough that I made an exception to my usual rule of no lady drinks that cost more than 200 pesos (CCs are 250) and bought one for both of them. Then I pulled out some old jokes from my repertoire, and they laughed politely at my efforts to be funny. Yep, I made them earn those drinks! Then I ordered some pancit canton and quesadillas from Foodies downstairs, which made all the gals happy. With the crew fed, I finished my beer and headed out. Next stop, Queen Victoria.

I was surprised to see the place so dead on an admittedly early Friday evening. Manager Jake had also attended the gathering at Harley’s, so I missed our usual banter. But Swan joined me about thirty minutes after my arrival, so all was right with the world once more. And when the clock struck 8 p.m., we triked it one home.

Meandering onward through the April 2021 LTG archives, where I post about my dilemma of whether I should stay or go. I’m talking about the house I had been renting for the past three years. I was already overpaying for the place at $900. a month, and the landlord was insisting that the rent be increased by 5%. I could afford that, but as a matter of principle, I was offended, especially since I had paid for all the improvements and repairs and was an ideal tenant. Ultimately, I decided to leave. And now, five years later, the house is still vacant. I inwardly smile every time I walk past the place. I wonder if the greedy bastard regrets his attempt to gouge me.

For today’s YouTube video, we have insights on the value of an afternoon nap. I take one every day since I’m retired, usually in the 30-60 minute range. I wake up feeling refreshed and ready to blog.

Here I go again:

And so it goes. The rain has been on and off most of the day, so maybe the end of this wet madness is in sight. We shall see.

So, another day full of wetness.

So, no dog walk, and no me walk. In fact, I didn’t leave the house until beer o’clock (hey, I have my priorities). Walked under an umbrella in a heavy downpour, trying to avoid puddles along the highway. Encamped at Red Bar and never left until it was time to grab a trike for home. There was no one else at the “backslappers” table with bar manager Cliff and his wife Ashley, so we joined them there. A few other customers came and went during our visit, and we had a nice time chatting as the rain pounded down on the streets outside our patio enclave. Hell, people even laughed at my lame jokes!

And that, dear readers, was all there was to my Thursday. When it rains, it pours. It being beer.

For those with an interest in this kind of thing, here’s a chart I came across showing what it costs to live comfortably in various SE Asia cities:

Our internet provider, AsiaVision, sent a team out to the house in the afternoon to restore my WiFi connection. They had to string a new line from the power pole to my router, but I’m back online. Even have some YouTubes I can share today!

On to April 2021 in the LTG archives. In this post, I talk about my slow recovery from what I suspect was COVID, but I never took the risk of getting diagnosed and potentially quarantined. I also talk about Rose, another beggar girl, who didn’t want to play by my transactional relationship rules. And it turns out, there is actually a name for what I was engaged in: solo polyamory.

For today’s YouTube video, Reekay tells the sad story of why his channel was demonetized and what that means for the future. Reekay was one of the vloggers I followed regularly before moving to the Philippines. His words of wisdom were helpful, even though I might have failed to always follow his advice. And the good news is, he will be starting a new channel soon, so this isn’t goodbye.

Time out for some humor:

That’s all I’ve got for now. Still raining today, but I did manage a 3K walk before I grew weary trudging through ankle-deep water. I’m gonna go out and spread some joy in the bars later, though. Wet money still spends!

It hasn’t stopped raining since we’ve been back home. So, that puts a damper on things. The internet has been out for several days now, but I’ve been making do with my phone’s hotspot until someone gets out here to fix the problem. Took a short morning umbrella walk and then popped into Dr. Jo’s office for my weekly injection.

Hubby Chris was with Dr. Jo, so we had some fun sharing tales from my Siargao visit. And at my weekly weigh-in, I came in at 232 pounds, down by six from last week, and I’ve lost 28 pounds overall. Making progress!

Swan had a doctor’s appointment in Olongapo, so at beer o’clock I made my way alone for my first Barretto bar visit in over a week. I deemed It Doesn’t Matter worthy of the honor of my presence.

Swan joined me there an hour later, and after she finished her glass of wine, we moved on to the aptly named Wet Spot for our nightcap. When we were done with our drinking business for the night, we had our trike driver stop at the fruit stand for some bananas, then completed the journey home, where I concocted a batch of smoothies in the blender. And then it was time to hit the hay. Pretty exciting shit, eh?

Facebook memories provided a reminder of more exciting times in Barretto four years ago:

Wrapping up March 2021 in the LTG archives, and I’m busy Spreading Joy. She was the epitome of the transactional relationship model I was pursuing. But even when I was getting what I thought I wanted, it still felt hollow. I guess that’s the definition of a flawed plan.

I’m also pretty proud of myself for knowing in March 2021 what so many people are just now finding out. Trust the science, my ass.

Oddly enough, although my phone’s Wi-Fi hotspot is working satisfactorily, albeit slower, it seems to be unable to open a YouTube video for some reason. Oh, well. We will try again tomorrow.

And that leaves us with the humor.

And now it’s time to make the best of what’s left of this rainy day. Couldn’t do a hike this morning as it was pouring down too hard. That won’t stop me from making an appearance somewhere in Barretto when it’s time for a beer. Just got to make the best of things, weather I like it or not.

No closing song either, since I can’t open YouTube. Oh well.