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.

Well, things did not turn out the way we expected yesterday, but it wasn’t a bad day regardless. Woke up a little before 5 am and invited Swan to join me on the beach to watch the sunrise.

So, our plan for the rest of the morning was to take a hike to a beach Chris recommended that’s about 3K up the road.

Once we were out of town, there was no internet signal my phone could reach, so the map app I was using couldn’t provide directions. When my tracker announced we had gone 7K, I decided it was past time to turn around and retreat. And that’s just what we did.

So, the hike didn’t go according to plan, but it worked out just fine anyway. The next plan for the day was to pay a visit to Chris at his brewery. We had made arrangements for a tuk-tuk driver to pick us up at 3:30 at our hotel. When he didn’t show, Swan called, and he told us he was busy with another customer. So, we headed up the highway in search of a ride (the brewery is 12K away, so walking wasn’t an option).

Anyway, our quest for a tuk-tuk failed. Two didn’t want to take us, and one said he would for 1500 pesos. Nope, that skin tax ain’t happening (a fair fare is around 600 pesos). We had walked about 2K in our quest, and that put us in front of the Pacifico Beach. We paid the 30 peso each entry fee and made our way to the beach bar. I had a beer, and Swan got a mango shake since wine wasn’t available. I messaged Chris that we weren’t going to be able to make it after all, so we made a new plan for today. We’ll see if that works out better this time.

The beach bar closes at six, so we headed out in search of somewhere to eat.

When I looked in the beer fridge, I was in for a surprise. They had bottles of San Miguel Zero! Swan warned me that they were probably over a year old, but how could I say no to my long-lost friend?

It was a seafood restaurant we had chosen, so we ordered accordingly.

Everything seems to close early in Pacifico, even by my low standards. So, we called it a night after dinner and headed back to the room. Not a bad day by any measurement, just not the one I planned.

Moving on to February 2021 in the LTG archives, where I recount how I’ve become much better at abiding by Rule #1 (don’t be a sucker) when people I’m acquainted with come pleading for money. Yeah, it was an expensive lesson to learn, but I’m still able to say no as needed.

Today’s YouTube video is from a vlogger in Cebu who shares the latest news, most of it positive, about life in the Philippines.

Like it or not, here they come:

Anyhoo, that’s the story. I’ll let you know if my plans for today come to fruition.

This post is going to be short and sweet (or sour) because I’ve got a plane to catch. Luckily, there isn’t much to report about my rainy Tuesday. It did start off with this message from God:

Oh, and it turns out a rainbow DOESN’T mean the storm is over. It rained throughout the day and night. Anyway, took care of the grocery shopping, got my Ozempic injection (still flatlined on the weight), and later spent the drinking hours at Sloppy Joe’s and Wet Spot. It was actually a pretty boring day, even by my low standards.

And now it is January 2012 in the journey through LTG archives. Heh, a boring day back then at least included a random sexual encounter. Thanks for the memories!

Today’s YouTube video provides yet another reminder of why I enjoyed my first encounter with the 70s better than my current one.

Time for the funny business:

Alright, that’s all I’ve got for now. Back tomorrow to share my first experience in Pacifico on Siargao Island. Assuming everything I’ve arranged for works out.

A busy (for me) day yesterday. Some things didn’t go well, but it could have been much worse.

One of the things that concerns me about our candy walks is how some kids come running out into the street without looking when they see us coming. We’ve trained most of them to stay where they are and let us come to them. But yesterday a kid ran out of a shop directly in front of an oncoming motorcycle. I yelled, “Look out!” and somehow the driver was able to swerve around the wayward child. The kid didn’t even look back and kept running towards the candy girl, Swan. I screamed at him in English, which he probably didn’t understand. The motorcycle driver sat on his bike, shaking his head for several minutes before proceeding on.

That’s my nightmare scenario: someone gets hurt or killed in the quest for free candy. Even if it is not technically our fault, we’d be blamed. And in the sense that “it wouldn’t have happened if we weren’t there,” I reckon we’d be found guilty. Swan said afterwards that maybe we should discontinue our candy walks. We handed out 250 bags of candy yesterday, so that’s a lot of kids to disappoint. At this point, we are going to continue our mission, but with increased vigilance for safety.

The other big project I took on yesterday was making arrangements for our upcoming trip to Siargao Island. We’ll be departing on August 5 and returning on August 11. I booked a round-trip flight from Clark Airport in Angeles City on Cebu Pacific. We’ll be staying at the Bamboo Resort in Pacifico, a part of the island we haven’t visited previously.

Nothing comes easy for me these days. I made a flight reservation on the Cebu Pacific webpage and attempted to pay with my credit card. Then I got a message saying Navy Federal needed to confirm the transaction was legitimate by sending a verification message to my telephone number of record. Well, there were options for three US phone numbers, but it is my daughter’s phone that I have linked to my account. I picked the one I thought was right, then messaged my daughter asking her to confirm the transaction. Turns out, I gave the wrong number the first time, so I went back and tried again with her number. Then I got a message saying Navy Federal had declined the payment. Fuck. My daughter was standing by, so I tried again using my debit card and with the proper phone number for verification. My daughter got the message and approved the purchase. Hooray! Except later, when I checked my account at Navy Federal, my credit card had now been blocked due to suspected fraudulent activity. They gave me a toll-free number to call to resolve the issue, but of course, there is no such thing as a toll-free call from my phone in the Philippines. Last time I called them, with a lengthy hold time, the phone charges were over $35. I sent a message to Navy Federal on the webpage, but so far they have not responded. I rely on my credit card, so I’m going to need to get this issue resolved prior to my trip. What a pain in the ass.

As for lodging, that went much better. I contacted Dr. Jo’s hubby, Chris, who is currently operating a brewery on Siargao near where I want to stay. He recommended the Bamboo Resort and sent me the WhatsApp number of the owner. I contacted him, and he responded right away. The only hitch is he is completely booked for the 10th, so I’ll have to check out a day prior to my departure. Well, I’ll have plenty of time to scout for a room once I’m there. He gave me a 3500 peso a night room rate, which is a lot less than Agoda’s 4100 quote. He wanted me to pay in advance, and I was able to do a bank-to-bank transfer via Wise. That went through without a hitch, so I’m good to go. And yes, I am confident it is all legit because Chris knows the guy personally.

By the time I had taken care of all that business and finished my blog post, it was already past beer o’clock. So, we headed into town and kicked off our evening at It Doesn’t Matter. We had the patio to ourselves, but that’s okay, even if a tad boring. I suggested we pop into Alaska next, and off we went. We actually had a better-than-usual time there, and when I asked Swan if she wanted to do the nightcap at Wet Spot, she said let’s just stay here. And so we did. I did my tipping the dancers thing and bought lady drinks for our two friendly waitresses. Owner Jerry gave us a warm welcome, and some familiar faces came in for the pool tournament. So, not a bad Saturday night in the barrio.

Here are some photos for the Decay Dance:

Continuing on through the December 2020 LTG archives, I was reminded of how forgetful I’d become. And yeah, I’m even worse these days. Anyway, my old friend Rodney Headlee messaged me asking about our 1975 championship softball team, the Ringwraiths. That brought back some memories that would otherwise have been forgotten. Rodney is another of those friends who have disappeared. No longer on social media, and I have no way to contact him. Losing people from your past is one of the saddest aspects of growing old. As long as you still remember them, anyway.

I also mention attending the California Jam in that post, another event in my life I’d have otherwise totally forgotten. Damn, this blog does serve a purpose after all!

The archives also had a picture of my former South Carolina home at Christmas time:

A newly discovered vlogger for today’s YouTube video (he only has 65 subscribers). In it, he explains how expats can avoid becoming homeless on the streets in the Philippines. I’ve managed to burn through most of my savings, but as long as Uncle Sam keeps sending my pension money, I’ll have a roof over my head.

Try these on for size:

I’ve got more stuff to do on my plate, but I’ve had enough for now. I just want to take it easy.

Big thunder storm happening right now, and the power is out. Using my phone hotspot for now, but let’s get this one done quickly, fair enough?

Then we did a morning hike.

Back home, I baked up a batch of brownies to bring to the birthday celebration at Alley Hideout for long-time darter Amelia.

After the party, we stopped by Gold Bar. Deader than ever. 6:30 on a Friday night, and not a single dancer on the stage. Well, I guess there is no point when there is no one to dance for. So, we moved on down the road and had some quality time at Queen Victoria. It was like night and day between those bars. Manager Jake bought me a beer, so I wound up staying a bit later than normal. It’s all good!

A couple of commenters shared their views that the COVID nightmare wasn’t really a scam. I respectfully disagree. Fauci’s lies have been exposed, and his diary proves he knew he was lying. Reading my posts from 2020, I was calling bullshit on the lockdowns and other stupidity from the beginning. Now, I’m not denying that COVID wasn’t a real thing. Hell, it was invented in a lab in China. I’m also not saying that it was intentionally released. But the severity of the virus was overstated so all the restrictions that followed could be implemented. And I also know the casualty numbers were overstated. Either that, or COVID cured the flu, since during the COVID outbreak, no flu fatalities occurred. I know firsthand about a guy here in Subic who had a massive heart attack and was dead on arrival at the hospital. Guess what? The next day, it was reported as a COVID death. Nope, I’m sticking to my scamdemic assessment.

Anyway, believe whatever you choose. I hope no one will be fooled into trusting the “experts” again. Never forget.

Speaking of 2020, here’s another post from December in the LTG archives. No, it is not about COVID, although I do mention that someone ratted out the bars. The part I found interesting was that I learned indirectly that my neighbor’s husband was accusing me of paying his wife for sex! Hell, I had the good sense to NEVER get physical with her at all. And as I say in the post, if I were going to pay for sex, I had a lot better options. Fortunately, nothing ever came of the false accusations,

Let’s check in with the Filipina Pea for today’s YouTube video. I think you know my answer.

Time for this crap again:

Okay, running behind schedule now, but at least the power has been restored. Now to get on with my Saturday…

My time on this planet isn’t all about beer. I’m a walkaholic too. A commenter on my Facebook page talked about how my life reminded him of Groundhog Day. Yeah, it’s the same every day, but there are some occasional twists along the way. Yesterday was no exception.

For our morning walk, Swan and I decided it was time to head out to Subic and bring some happy tidings to the grandmother we encounter on our trail. By happy tidings, I mean cookies, lollipops, and 500 pesos. She and the kids are always so excited when we make an appearance. I try to go every other week or so, but her genuine joy in receiving our gifts makes it all worthwhile. Here’s some of what we say along the way:

Swan spent the evening at the compound with her family. I started off at Cheap Charlies while waiting to meet up with my friend visiting from Bohol. He apparently doesn’t like Cheap Charlies, so he messaged to meet up at Sloppy Joe’s. No problem for me; it is right across the highway.

Some beers and chat at Sloppy’s. I’m not going to invade “Nick’s” privacy, but he was a prominent defense attorney in Southern California before his retirement and move to the Philippines. I was surprised to learn he doesn’t like the life his living in Bohol and is looking for new options (he lived for a couple of years in Barretto previously). So, he is planning to join Swan and me when we visit Siragao Island next month. Nick is heading for Angeles City this afternoon.

After Sloppy’s, I took him next door to see the new Rum Jungle (formerly Green Room). Damn, it wasn’t to either of our liking. The music was loud and tailored to the dancers’ tastes, so I suggested we go to Wet Spot, where the music is almost always classic rock. Nick was surprised when I told him I always head home around 8 pm. So, he said goodnight and headed back to Sloppy Joe’s.

Well, what can I say? I’m just not the drinker I used to be. Damn, back in my Itaewon days, midnight was early for me. It sucks being elderly sometimes, but it is still better than not growing old.

It’s been interesting reading my old posts about the COVID scamdemic. I knew back then it was bullshit, but I’ve been surprised to learn that it was so much worse than I thought.

Here’s a photo I came across of my mother’s father, Hal Clinkenbeard.

We’ve reached December 2020 in the LTG archives, and I’ve somehow managed to dodge a bullet with the married woman next door. That post also contains a story from my days working for the post office. That event led me to become active in the letter carriers’ union, and that ultimately resulted in my journey as a human resources professional. It’s odd looking back on how a seemingly minor incident can be such a life changer.

Today’s YouTube video offers a brief reality check on life in the Philippines. I found out some of these things the hard way, but I think I’ve now, for the most part, adapted and acclimated to the way things are here, even when they are not as I want them to be.

The end is near:

That’s the way it was yesterday. Only one way to find out what the future will bring, so I’ll get on with living it.

Came across this golden oldie from my days of watching TV while my dad sat in his easy chair after work sipping on a beer: