Death March

Posted on 02/March/2023 by John McCrarey

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Marching forward

Posted on 01/March/2023 by John McCrarey

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Fed up

Posted on 27/February/2023 by John McCrarey

My Sunday included my standard solo walk, a visit to the doctor(s), and the feeding at Hideaway Bar. And I’ve got some pictures to prove it!

***The view as I left the neighborhood***

I messed up with my tracker, so I don’t have a distance to report, although it was probably a tad less than 7K, based on past performance.

The visit with Dr. Jo and her physician husband, Chris, is always pleasant. It’s more like chatting with friends than a doctor’s appointment. Anyway, the diagnosis is that my coughing/phlegm expulsion indicates an infection not associated with my COPD. I got some meds for that, and they already seem to be working. Same with the eyes, and a different medication for that. I mentioned that they have that tube in the nostrils whenever I see photos of someone being oxygenated in the hospital. Since I can’t breathe through my nose with my sinus congestion, I’ll be a dead man if I’m administered oxygen in that manner. They both agreed that since nothing else had worked to relieve the congestion, I should consider surgery to remove the overgrown nodules in my nose. A different doctor had recommended that, but I rejected the idea when I was told it required being anesthetized to unconsciousness. I just don’t trust the hospitals here with my life. Dr. Jo says she has an ENT friend in Manila who is much better than the local doctors, and I agreed to pursue the surgery through her.

After the appointment was completed, I headed to the Jewel Cafe to order some food for the Hideaway girls. The nice thing about Jewel is that they deliver, so I don’t have to sit around waiting at the restaurant.

***Along with spaghetti, pork sisig, and of course, rice.***

***And brownies for dessert. I actually made two batches; one of the waitresses asked if I could bring some for her daughter to take to school.***

***I hope your friends like them too!***

***Joy seems to be enjoying the garlic bread***

I was the only customer for most of the time I was there, and I guess things got a little crazy. I know my tab was over 3000 pesos, about triple what I usually spend. Joy messaged me this morning and asked if I remembered what had happened. Uh oh. No, I didn’t remember anything beyond getting home drunk. Joy said that I was licking the bare breasts of one of the waitresses. And no, I didn’t get grabby; she pulled her shirt up and offered them to me. I told Joy I was sorry, and she said, don’t be sorry; it was fun. If you say so. I’m embarrassed by that kind of behavior.

I’m really thinking I need to switch back to beer. I don’t seem to be able to pace myself appropriately with gin. The problem is that gin sneaks up on you–one minute you’re okay, the next you are a drunken idiot. And it’s not like I’m out drinking all night. I started at 5:00 yesterday, and my Fitbit says I was asleep at 8:21. I guess I’m just a lightweight.

It’s Hash Monday today, so I’ve got that to look forward to. I am also going to the dentist this morning to have my crown reattached. Yep, one adventure after another around here.

Another small town Saturday night

Posted on 26/February/2023 by John McCrarey

Alcohol called, and I answered. I hadn’t been to Cheap Charlies in a while, so I made that my first stop. I was surprised it wasn’t busier, but it was still early (a little after 4 p.m.).

***My crew was waiting; ready, willing, and able to make me feel special***

So, I ordered up drinks for all of us and enjoyed the views.

Feeling overly generous, I treated “my” girls to some supper:

***You can almost see the satisfaction on all of our faces***

Anyway, I enjoyed treating the girls. Narissa messaged me today and asked if I’d like to join her in exploring some nearby historic sites, and I heartily answered affirmatively. I’ve wanted to see Bataan since I moved here, and now I have no excuse not to do so.

After Cheap Charlies, I visited It Doesn’t Matter and shared some drinks with the lovely Juliet. Then I finished my night with a couple more at Wet Spot. My former favorite there thought she was ignoring me, but she didn’t realize that after her rude behavior on my previous visit, I had no desire to be in her presence. So, do me a favor and keep on rejecting me, bitch.

A rough night last night with the breathing; I had to get up a couple of times to nebulize.

***But I lived to enjoy another beautiful morning.***

***So, I celebrated by baking up a batch of blueberry muffins***

Facebook memories reminded me of a time in my working life when I was appointed Acting Director, Human Resources for the Roanoke, VA Management Sectional Center of the United States Postal Service.

I’m going to visit Dr. Jo this afternoon. This time about my eyes. They’ve been dry and itchy and oozing some white goop. I’ll also let her know my sinuses haven’t improved since my last visit, and my lungs have worsened. I’m not confident there’s a fix for that, though.

I’m posting a Hal Ketchum song I like called “Small Town Saturday Night,” and when I did the search, I was surprised to discover he died in 2020. At age 67. Scary shit. Rest in Peace, Hal, and thank you for some great songs.

Because I’ve been away the past two weekends, today was my first Sunday weigh-in since February 5. Sadly, I’ve gained 0.8 pounds since then, putting me at 219.4. That’s down 5.9 pounds since January 1. Time to reign in those cheating excuses, I reckon.

SOBserviant

Posted on 25/February/2023 by John McCrarey

My date with Mary last night left her SOBing. But she professed to enjoy it, so there’s that. We met up at Mango’s for dinner before the show.

***I went with the pork chops. Mary chose sizzling sisig for her meal.***

After dining, we crossed the highway to Alaska Club and arrived early enough to secure a good table. We had an hour to fill before the show, and I opted to have a beer cheat day to maintain some semblance of SOBriety. Mary had a beer too, but her’s lasted the entire hour. Once drinks were free at the show’s beginning, she switched to mango juice and water. The SOB made money on her (or should I say me) because I couldn’t drink enough to recover the 1400 peso entry fee for a couple. I’m not complaining. Much.

Just before the dancing started, Mary ran into a school friend who danced with the Wet Spot team. Naturally, I invited her to join us for a couple of lady drinks. Mary got into the show, taking videos of all the teams performing on her phone. A couple of guys who arrived late took the empty seats at our table, which I don’t have an issue with. One of them got very drunk before the show ended and proved to be a bit of a dick. He was passed out on the table when I left.

It was only 8 p,m. when we left Alaska, but I’d had enough. Mary wanted to come to spend the night, and I was okay with that. I made some smoothies and turned on the TV. for the first time in months. Mary says she’s addicted to Korean dramas, so I decided to share one of my favorite Korean movies, a romantic comedy called “My Sassy Girl.” She seemed to enjoy it.

It was well past my bedtime by now, and my lungs were giving me fits–coughing up gobs of phlegm. So, no romance in the sack other than a bit of cuddling. In the morning, I fired up the nebulizer and popped a pill, and was ready for a go before breakfast.

Mary joined me for the dog walk; then, I made a batch of burritos for our morning meal. Afterward, she accompanied me for a portion of my Saturday street walk, and we said our goodbye at the town marketplace on Rizal street. I think we both enjoyed our date together.

The Friday morning group hike was okay. I told my fellow walkers that they could proceed to climb mountains without me because my lungs were not up to the task. They insisted on sticking together for a flat walk, so we did an 8K street trek. I was worn out by the end. I’m increasingly worried that my diminished breathing capacity is my new normal.

***Seven in our Friday group this week*** ***(Jim missed out the photo)***

***On the neighborhood streets of Matain.***

And there you have it, another day I lived to tell about. I hope there are many more to come.

Float some

Posted on 24/February/2023 by John McCrarey

I took a pleasant stroll out to Baloy Beach yesterday afternoon and visited the newly reopened Kokomo’s Floating Bar. It’s been almost two years since I was last aboard. The floater was heavily damaged in a typhoon last year, and I’ve watched it being slowly rebuilt on the beach these past few months.

***On the raft en route to the floater***

***Welcome aboard! The most crowded I’ve ever seen it. I think many*** ***folks have been missing the unique and relaxing experience of imbibing on the water.***

I stayed for three drinks soaking up the ambiance. A newly hired waitress sat beside me, and I quenched her thirst as well. Honestly, the waitresses on board weren’t all that attractive, but mine was friendly and sweet. I think she’ll do fine. I’ll be back soon.

After the floater, I walked back into town and visited The Green Room. I had a coupon to expend before its expiration date. Had some food from Sit-n-Bull brought over for me and my “girlfriends,” too. Then I finished things off at Wet Spot and spent a little time with the cuddly dancer I took home for Valentine’s. She invited two of her friends over and asked me to buy them drinks, and I did although I don’t like being asked, I prefer to offer. And then, as I was paying my tab, they all disappeared without even a goodbye or a thank you. That’s just fucking rude. Needless to say, I will not be so generous the next time we meet.

It’s SOB Friday, and tonight’s event will be at Alaska Club. I invited Mary to join me, and she accepted. We’ll be meeting up at Mango’s for some dinner before the show. She’s already dropped some hints about becoming my girlfriend, and I told her let’s take our time and see what happens. The more I think about it, the more I realize that I have come to enjoy my single life and the freedom that comes with it. I think I’d make a better Sugar Daddy than a boyfriend.

We’ll see what happens.

Comings and goings

Posted on 20/February/2023 by John McCrarey

Made it back to Barretto safe and sound. I let Justin use my printer to prepare some forms for Korean immigration. The nephews headed to their hotel to prepare for departure early this morning, and we agreed to meet up at Hideaway around 4 p.m. and then go next door to Arizona for the annual Beach Bash Beauty Paegent.

When they arrived, Josh bought some lady drinks, and then the group went outside to the smoking area to indulge in cigars. I had food for the Sunday feeding delivered from the Jewel Cafe (a chicken breast for Joy, quesadillas, and chicken wings for the others). I brought ChocoPies and Orea cookies for dessert. I did bake a batch of brownies but didn’t share them with the group. Last week a waitress named Anna told me that her daughter loves my brownies and always asks for them. Anna brings her portion home for her, and the daughter likes to take them to school for her friends to also enjoy. When Anna told me that, I thought to myself, damn, that’s stretching a couple of brownies a long way. So, I gave Anna the whole tray last night and said these are for your daughter. I was surprised when her daughter came to pick them up and thank me.

***You are welcome! I hope you and your friends enjoy them!***

I headed out to Arizona early to try and secure some decent seats, and the nephews followed later with a female entourage. This week I found myself shaking my head at Josh’s touristy “two-week millionaire” behavior. Still, in all fairness, he is on a vacation of sorts, and I probably engaged in similar behavior before I learned the facts of life here.

***The beach where the Bash was held at the Arizona resort.***

***The stage is set for the beauty pageant,*** ***and Daddy Dave serves as the MC.***

***Bring out the girls! There were eleven contestants last night.***

***This is the only contestant I recognized–she works at The Green Room. I’m not a fan of tattoos, but to ruin that perfectly fine ass with all that ink is a travesty.***

***Not a good shot, but this was an impressive costume.***

***I wouldn’t mind getting caught up in her net.***

***I’m unsure who ultimately won; I left before the judging was completed. My favorite was #5 (counting from the right side).***

Joy dropped by near the show’s end after she finished her shift at Hideaway. I’d hit my limit by this point and was ready to head home. I asked if she wanted to join me, and she accepted.

***Does a smoothie count as dessert? I made a batch so Joy could have a taste, and she said it was good.***

It was quite nice having a snuggle partner throughout the night. I made some banana-walnut muffins for breakfast–Joy’s favorite. I walked her down to the highway to catch a trike; then, I did a Baloy Beach walk to get in some steps before the Hash this afternoon.

***The floating bar is now anchored offshore, and it appears to be fully equipped now. I expect it will be open by the weekend, if not beforehand.***

In other news, my chats with Mary have continued, and she is still impressing the hell out of me with her sharp mind, wit, and humor. We confirmed another attempt at meeting in person for tomorrow.

I asked her if that was her niece. She did a “LOL” and said, “that’s me!”. I told her you look like you are fifteen. She laughed again and, a few minutes later, sent me a picture of her birth certificate confirming that she was of legal age. Turns out we only have a fifty-year age gap (she turns nineteen in November). That’s a stretch even for me.

We talked some about her future plans, and she wants to go to college if her finances allow it. It would be a shame to see her sharp mind go to waste. If she checks out after we’ve met, maybe I can help make the future she’s dreaming of happen. I’m too old to be her boyfriend, but I might enjoy being her Sugar Daddy. We’ll see.

What a life, huh?

Where’s the Alamo?

Posted on 19/February/2023 by John McCrarey

Sorry, wrong San Antonio. I’m in Zambales province, not Texas. Still, there is adventure to be found here, especially when you don’t know where you are going. That was the case when me and the nephews decided to hike to the beach from our riverside resort. Things didn’t go as planned, and rather than retreat, we fought on, following little-used paths that kept dead-ending in pond water. We pressed on, though, taking different trails leading in the general direction we wanted. Luckily, Justin had a Google maps app, and we could see we were getting closer to a road that led to the beach. Just when we thought we had found our way after crossing the water on three rickety old bamboo bridges, we discovered a fence that blocked our path. Our options were to go back from whence we’d come or wade through the pond and find a way around the fence. We chose the wet feet route and, in that way, successfully achieved our goal of walking on the beach. I’ve got a slew of photos from the hike I’ll share at the end of this post.

I’ve been to Monty’s a couple of times previously for Hash events, but it’s the first time I’ve spent the night here. My room is surprisingly spacious and much nicer than the one I had in Baguio last weekend for the same price (3500 pesos/$70).

It turns out, though, that I’m sharing the bathroom with a non-paying guest.

***He’s been hogging the toilet all morning. Bastard.***

I decided not to end his life, however. He was here before I was, after all.

***It’s a weird location for a resort. You drive a kilometer down a dirt road to get here.***

***It’s owned by an American named, you guessed it, Monty and his Filipina wife.***

***The bar area features a second floor affording heightened views.***

***But the views from the lower floor bar area suited me just fine.***

***Huts on the water if that’s your thing.***

***I took a nap after the hike but woke up in time to watch the sun go down.***

***Being down a long dirt road with no vehicle after dark limited our drinking options. We wisely chose to do our Saturday night imbibing at Monty’s.***

***Monty’s wife, Jenny, does the cooking and did a nice job on this Philly cheesesteak sandwich. Justin had a Rueben that he raved about. I don’t remember what Josh ate.***

Alright, to the hike, then. We arrived at noontime and, after checking in, decided to do a beach hike. I asked Jenny if the dirt road out front led to the beach, and she seemed to indicate that it did, so off we went.

After going down the dirt road a kilometer or so, we came to a house, and the man who lived there asked where we were going. We responded to the beach. He told us you couldn’t get there from here. Hmm. We weren’t sure if he was just being a prick or not, but we changed course and found a path going in the general direction we wanted.

***We found a different trail, and it led to the first of three bridges over the pond that was blocking our way.***

***They were rickety, and some of the bamboo footings were cracked and rotting.***

***The last bridge was much sturdier but led us to an insurmountable fence.***

***Fuck it; we’ll just wade through the water to get around the fence. Google Earth said there was a road on the other side.***

***And at last, we were on pavement again. Now to find the beach.***

***A paper tree in full bloom Actually, they wrap the mangoes in the paper, I assume to keep the birds and bugs away until it is time to harvest.***

***This resort was the last obstacle to overcome to reach the beach. The receptionist was very kind and accommodating, showing us the way to access the water.***

***Across this bridge, and we are there.***

***Wide sandy beaches that were much cleaner than the ones in Barretto***

***But damn, that thick and loose sand was a bitch to walk through. We did about 2K on the beach, and it felt like four.***

***It was slow going for Josh doing the sand walk, and we’d had enough of it for one day. Time to hit the road again.***

***Justin on the mean streets of Pandaquit.***

***Making our way to my favorite venue in San Antonio–the Car Wash bar and grill.***

***The pork steak in mushroom gravy was the daily special.***

***I got mine with a side of coleslaw.*** ***Heavy on the carrots and not all that flavorful***

***The Car Wash features a live band on Saturday night, but it was too far to walk in the dark from Monty’s***

***Two kilometers to walk after lunch to get back to Monty’s. I loved the way that tree had chosen to grow over the highway. It probably saved its life by doing so.***

You can Relive the adventure here if you’d like:

It was a good day with the nephews in that other San Antonio. Time to pack up and head on home to my Sunday night in Barretto. Justin and Josh are heading to Manila tomorrow to complete the visa process at the Korean embassy.

Bound for Pundaquit

Posted on 18/February/2023 by John McCrarey

***For the first time in the history of mankind, three McCrareys have blessed the Philippines with their presence.***

Pundaquit is the beach area of San Antonio that I’ve always enjoyed visiting. Looking forward to doing some walks on the sand and seeing some of the local sites. Only a couple of bars within walking distance, but the one at my hotel, Monty’s Riverside View Resort, will be just fine for my one-night stay.

***A little over an hour’s drive from Barretto.***

Had a nice time hanging with the nephews at last night’s SOB. I don’t recall anything of interest happening, though, which is probably for the best. Wet Spot won the contest, FWIW,

And that’s all I’ve got for now. But if you want the kind of post you’ve come to expect here at LTG, I came across this one from 2007 when I had my first-ever encounter with the Korean police. It was a strange night.

I’ll be back with something new tomorrow!

Nothing but nada

Posted on 16/February/2023 by John McCrarey

Even by my low standards, yesterday was about as empty and meaningless as it gets around here. My overnight guest threw me off schedule, so I missed out on the Wednesday Walkers group hike. I did a 7K valley walk later on my own. I showered, napped, baked brownies, and blogged to while away the afternoon hours. (Okay, I think I used the right while as opposed to wile. Okay, I looked it up, and I’m right.) When it was time to do the feeding at Hideaway, I headed into town and stopped in at Sit-n-Bull for some takeout.

***Chicken fingers and lumpia for the crew***

Josh joined me at Hideaway about an hour into my visit. So, I stayed longer than normal and drank more than usual. That’s not a good combination, but at least I didn’t fall down or wake up on the floor this time. I’ll call that progress.

And that is really all I’ve got to report today. I’m meeting someone new for dinner later at John’s place. We’ve been chatting for a couple of days, and she appears to be the smartest young woman I’ve encountered since the move. We’ll see how she stacks up in real life.

I think I’ve probably used this here before, but it’s good enough to use again:

Until tomorrow then.

Long and Hard

Posted on 14/February/2023 by John McCrarey

Yesterday’s Hash trail proved to be quite the challenge. A long hard climb to the top of Kalaklan ridge, and then stroll on the ridgeline before descending back down to Barretto and the On-Home at the VFW. My tracker says it was a 7.7K journey, and that was on the SHORT trail.

It looked like this from above. The yellow line was the shortcut avoiding another down and up on the long version of the trail. I further deviated by using the down path past Rolly’s Place (the yellow pin in the middle of the map with no trail line) to avoid walking back on the highway.

Anyway, despite the difficulty, it was nice to be up on the ridgeline again. I was recently looking up at Kalaklan from my barstool at Cheap Charlies and missing the views from up there, so it was good to see them again. There are no really easy ways to get up there, but the one taken was at the higher end of the difficulty scale. My poor nephew Josh wasn’t in condition for such a challenging hike, and I was worried about him completing the journey safely. Luckily, he made it back down. Once we were on the street again, I asked if he wanted to trike back to the VFW, but he insisted on completing the trail with the rest of us.

***We had some street walking to do to get there.***

***Enjoy that flat ground while you can.***

***The steps ran out long before the climb did***

***A brief respite on relatively level ground***

***Then on up in a final push to the top***

***Or maybe not. It was touch and go towards the end of the climb.*** ***Thanks, Cum Slinger, for hanging back and helping Josh out.***

***That’s Easter mountain way off in the distance.***

***And a bay view. It’s burning season, so the air quality is not as good as it usually is.***

***Fortunately, this burn was done before we arrived.***

***The famous (to us hikers) Mr. Rolly and family. He asked me about Scott, who is still recovering from his broken ankle.***

***But we all made it down in one piece.***

***And enjoyed some liquid refreshments at the On-Home.***

Some after Hash beverages at It Doesn’t Matter, then home for some well-earned sleep.

You can Relive the hike here if you are so inclined:

https://www.relive.cc/view/vAOZoj3XVo6

And now my masseuse has just arrived. Time to enjoy some Valentine’s Day comfort.

Back to life in the Barrio

Posted on 13/February/2023 by John McCrarey

Gee, it’s good to be back home again. Sometimes this old town feels like a long-lost friend…

Welp, I’m back to my bar routines, including the Sunday feeding at Hideaway.

***Joy and the crew joined me at the bar to enjoy their dinner of roast chicken, pork liempo, and pizza.***

***Joy is getting a leg up on dinner.***

The girls surprised me because they all wanted a trinket (refrigerator magnet) over the snacks I brought as pasalubong. The most expensive item was a carton of strawberries, which was still there when bartender Rolan, the last to choose, made his selection. I guess I know what to buy next time. Anyway, they all got two items, so I didn’t have to carry anything home, at least.

***There’s nothing like the real thing, IMHO.***

Josh joined us a bit later, and he seemed to enjoy Mhel’s company and backrub, as demonstrated by his buying her multiple lady drinks. When the time came to move on, Josh joined for a nightcap at Sloppy Joe’s. He was back there this morning watching the super bowl and enjoying a cigar when I walked past.

My night ended with this:

***A strawberry smoothie made with fresh strawberries is a rare treat around here.***

I mentioned in yesterday’s post that I had hugged a tree as I hiked the forest trail in Baguio on Saturday. I saw a Hasher had caught the moment on ~~film~~ camera and posted it on Facebook.

Someone also posted a YouTube video featuring highlights from the Hash. It’s kinda cool to see the trail in motion; give it a watch if you are so inclined.

I make a cameo appearance at the 1:42 mark…

Another Subic Hash run is coming up this afternoon; I hope it goes as well as it did on Saturday. Only one way to find out. I’ll let you know all about it tomorrow.

Hashing in the Hays

Posted on 12/February/2023 by John McCrarey

Camp John Hay, that is. This is the second time I’ve had the pleasure of hiking through the forested trails on this former U.S. military installation. The path we took on the short route (6.5K) had its ups and downs, but no exhaustingly long climbs. And the lungs didn’t give me any trouble during the hike. Thanks to the La Union Hash House Harriers for the invite and for providing everyone with a Hashy good time.

***I didn’t count the number of Hashers in attendance, but the sign-up cutoff was 100.***

***Here are the attendees from Subic Bay H3***

***The Hare gives last-minute guidance.***

***The first 2K was on pavement walking to the gates of Camp John Hay***.

***Be careful, Josh; one false step and you are a goner!***

**I didn’t take the pledge, but I did hug a tree.**

***Finally on the forest trail. I’d never seen a handprint Hash mark before, but they are easy to follow***.

***And a down. Easier trail than most of the Subic hikes.***

***More signage to provide inspiration***

***Josh is making his way past the defunct zipline, presumably another COVID casualty.***

***Subic Gash enjoying some beverages post-hike***

***After a brief circle-up, we moved to the On-Home hotel and had dinner by the fire.***

The view of the hike from above. A very pleasant afternoon.

After dinner, the Subic group gathered at the small bar back at The Log Cabin hotel.

Guys on one end of the table, the gals on the other. Funny how that works. Lots of beers were drunk before the 9 p.m. last call. Actually, the bar ran out of beer before 9:00. Guess they didn’t expect a group of thirsty Hashers to invade the place.

***We enjoyed this duo’s music again, and once the alcohol kicked in, we engaged in some sing-along fun. It really was a good time.***

Made the long drive home after breakfast, and I’m a bit exhausted, but it is Sunday, and that means there are hungry girls at Hideaway to feed. And I’m sure they will be expecting some pasalubong from Baguio.

Luckily, I am prepared for those expectations with some Baguio delicacies (and refrigerator magnets). And yes, those are fresh, locally grown strawberries. I bought some for myself too, and will be enjoying a strawberry smoothie when I return home from tonight’s mission.

Oh, here are a couple of shots I took on the drive down the mountain looking back at Baguio:

***It’s a city literally built on a mountainside. I’m talking way there in the background.***

***I did a zoom shot so you could see it better.***

Time for me to get on with it, then. Back tomorrow with more of the inanity you’ve come to expect from me!

Friday in Baguio

Posted on 11/February/2023 by John McCrarey

Not sure why it is named that; it doesn’t look like any log cabin I’ve seen before. Anyway, my room is around the back side and is called “de lux,” which is also a stretch. Tiny inside the room and not particularly cheap at 3500 pesos.

And a big ol’ pine tree I rather like the looks of. One noticeable difference besides the air temp up here is that the vegetation and foilage are unlike back home. This area is where strawberries and other fruits are grown, I assume because the climate is more conducive to their production.

***The hotel restaurant. Food average, service poor.***

They do have a “fireplace suite” (you can see the chimney, something that is very rare in the tropical Philippines. I was cold when I got out of bed this morning, and that is a strange feeling. Oh yeah, last night, I could even see my breath! It got all the way down to 16 celsius! Yeah, yeah, I know that’s nothing, but it’s been a long time since I’ve felt chilly.

***Ed’s girl Helen got to experience her first horseback ride.***

***The white ones with pink manes cracked me up.***

***The hotel bar It’s the only bar within walking distance, so that’s where our group hung out.*** ***Later they had a duet that wasn’t bad. Closed at 10:00, which seems crazy for a Friday.***

***This is a page from the hotel restaurant menu. The part about “beating a chicken live” was a little disconcerting.***

We did our dinner at a place next door to the hotel. The food was good, but they messed up our bill. We had asked for separate checks, but they brought one bill. No big deal; we all added up what our dinner and drinks totaled and put it in the basket. I checked to make sure we had enough (3500 for all of us), and we were only being charged 2600. We called the waiter over and explained that there had been a mistake. He didn’t think so, but we insisted he recheck. He came back, and sure enough, we owed 3500. He was grateful to us for having called the shortchanging to his attention.

***The prices were low. This US ribeye was under 700 pesos.***

I couldn’t decide which I wanted, and it was such a good deal I wound up getting both. Yeah, I know, but damn such a bargain. They were good too!

After the meal, I was using a toothpick to dislodge a piece of meat, and my f’n crown popped off. Looks like a dentist visit is in my near future.

I hope to get some photos during the Hash this afternoon that capture the unique beauty of this city. I also hope the trail isn’t too difficult. I don’t know if it is a coincidence, altitude, or temperature, but my lungs have really been acting up at the slightest provocation. We’ll see what happens.

Assuming survival, I’ll be back tomorrow with a full report.

Baguio baby!

Posted on 10/February/2023 by John McCrarey

Made it to the mountain city. Over four hours door-to-door. Then took a hike to find tomorrow’s Hash On-Home. So, no time for a post today. I will throw up a few pics to tide you over and then play catch-up in the morning.

***The famous lion’s head carved into a rock.***

Some shots from last night’s Barretto bar crawl with Joshua.

***Dinner at Mango’s featured this view.***

***First stop, Voodoo. Lyn is looking mighty fine on her 55th birthday. She is still dancing!***

A drink in Hot Zone, but no photos and no company there.

***My regular Whiskey Girl waitress was occupied with another customer. So, I “settled” for this dancer. She filled the void nicely.***

***Josh has different tastes in women than I do.***

We finished the night at Josh’s hotel bar, Rock Lobster. He had a drinking companion when I left. I maintained much better control than I did on Wednesday, that’s for sure.

Alright, I’ll be back with some updates from Baguio in the morning.

A bad example

Posted on 09/February/2023 by John McCrarey

I decided to start the evening out on the town with my nephew Josh at John’s place. My reasoning was two-fold: it’s always best not to drink on an empty stomach, and I wanted to throw some support John’s way as he deals with his current medical emergency. So we both enjoyed some sandwiches, and I ordered some wings to go for the Hideaway girls. After dinner, I threw some cash into a jar on the counter to help with John’s medical bills.

Josh is also wanting to lose some weight, so he followed my lead and switched from beer to gin and soda water. I carefully explained my methodology: one shot of gin on the rocks in a tall glass with a can of soda water on the side. After filling the glass with soda, you enjoy a couple of sips, then replenish the glass with more soda. In this way, the initial shot of gin is watered down and weakened, making it easier to drink more and get drunk less. When it came time to order our second round of drinks, Josh didn’t order more soda because his can was still half full. So much for taking advice from your uncle.

Despite being Wednesday, one of my regular feeding days, I hadn’t initially planned to visit Hideaway. As I explained to Joy in a text message, her birthday feeding was it for this week. She seemed disappointed and said there were no customers, so no drink commissions. Since I was at John’s, which is practically right across the highway from Hideaway, I decided to make a surprise visit.

***Joy got her chicken and drink commissions and was a happy camper.***

Josh seemed to be enjoying himself as well; one of the other girls latched on to him and enjoyed his generosity in the form of lady drinks. I noted that Josh was ordering his gin straight up with no soda at all. I wouldn’t last an hour if I drank them that way.

The next stop on our barhop was Cheap Charlies. When we first arrived, it wasn’t busy, and we got my preferred seats up front with the highway view. Narissa came and took our drink orders, served them, then walked away as if we had never met. My other regulars were not working or otherwise occupied. I don’t understand the logic of showing disdain for a customer known for his largesse with lady drinks when it is your job to entertain him and earn commissions from the drinks he buys you. Oh, well. I don’t need the company of someone who doesn’t want to be there (and can’t hide that fact) anyway. I did notice that Josh caught the eye of some lass, and she came over to join him and make a little money.

Next up was Wet Spot. That’s where things started getting a little fuzzy for me. Even with my watered-down version of gin, it hits me harder than beer does. Worse, it kinda sneaks up on me–one minute, I’m fine, and the next, oops! Anyway, I checked my phone this morning, and I had taken some photos that helped me remember how I spent some of my time there.

***I did vaguely recall hooking up with that sweet young thing, Mevelyn.***

***Josh was wearing his recently acquired Hideaway shirt and had his back turned to the dancers.***

***It appears someone had a birthday. Josh says I ate a piece of cake.***

The last photo I took was of how things were looking to me as I headed home from Wet Spot:

***Yikes! Made it home safely, though, and woke up with a hangover. Even though we both felt like shit, Josh joined me for a street walk this morning.***

The day began better than it ended with a nice hike and climb to the top of Black Rock. I was honestly a little worried about Josh’s ability to do the moderately difficult trek on his still-recovering leg, but he was game to try, so off we went.

***Only four of us Wednesday Walkers this week***

***Making our first climb up a seemingly endless stairway.***

***The conquest of Black Rock is completed successfully.***

***Looking back from whence we came–Barrio Barretto.***

***I zoomed in for a closer look at Alta Vista.***

***I wanted to compare it to this photo Scott sent me of Alta Vista back in 2005.***

***A cookie recipient. I hope she didn’t share them with the carabao.***

***Taking time to ~~smell~~ photograph the flowers.***

***Josh crossed bridge #3 for the first time***

***Ended the hike at my house, and I prepared a burrito lunch while Josh enjoyed a cigar and the view on my back patio.***

Korean culture is really not all that prevalent here, although quite a few Korean tourists (almost always men for some reason) visit the area. Still, I see signs like this one at the 7/11, so I guess Filipinos enjoy a taste now and then.

***K-pop, K-drama, K-style foods. What’s next?***

***Well, it appears that soju is dominating the liquor shelf too.***

So, that was the day. I’m heading to Baguio for the weekend tomorrow morning. Going to Hash there with the La Union kennel on Saturday. Tonight I’ll show Josh some more of the bar scene here, although I’m going to need to be more moderate in my consumption. Wish me luck!

A Joyous celebration

Posted on 08/February/2023 by John McCrarey

Joy from Hideaway bar celebrated twenty-five years of life on Earth yesterday. Since I’m the resident feeder, I was tasked with providing the vittles for the party. I asked the birthday girl what she wanted to eat, and she said, “Jollibee.” The specific items requested were fried chicken, spaghetti, hamburger steaks, and tuna pies. I, of course, accommodated her birthday wishes.

***A birthday bag full of kisses and some cash in an envelope were my gifts to Joy.***

***Waiting on my order at Jollibee. One thousand four hundred pesos for the birthday food.***

***I was surprised that the party decorations also included one for me. Isn’t that sweet?***

***Joy devouring a birthday brownie I baked in her honor***

***The traditional birthday cake. Joy’s name is Mary Joy, but everyone except me calls her MJ.***

Caught up in the spirit of the celebration, I rang the bell, an act that bestows a lady drink for all the girls. Josh was there too and bought drinks for the two girls rubbing on his back. It was a fun party, and I’m sure it was the best birthday Joy has had this year.

The MJ versus Joy thing and Josh visiting reminded me of something I hadn’t really thought about for years. Josh calls me by my middle name, Mark, and is one of the few people left on this planet who do so (his father, my brother, is another of them). When I was born, my dad wanted to name me John, and my mom preferred Mark. So, I became John Mark. Growing up, my dad called me John, and my mom and brothers called me Mark. At school, I was John. The kids I knew from the neighborhood called me Mark. I guess I’m lucky I didn’t experience schizophrenia as a result. However, my John persona was the more serious version of me, while Mark was the party guy pothead. Over time as I grew up and moved around the country, people all called me by my work name John, and that is who I have become. Having Josh call me Mark is still a bit surprising to hear, but it brings back fun memories.

After we departed the party at Hideaway, I took Josh up to the rooftop at BarCelona.

***Josh could enjoy a cigar with his beer in this open-air environment.***

***And it was nice to watch the sunset from our vantage point***

I also took Josh to Wet Spot so he could get a taste of what a bar with dancers was all about. The young cutie Mevelyn was looking especially enticing in her braless midriff top. I can’t remember if I bought her a drink or not. Yeah, it was a bit past my limit at this point.

I finished my evening with a nightcap at Johansson’s, where Josh is lodging. I went home, but my friend Reggie was there, and she messaged me this morning that Josh kept her up late with drinks and pool games. Yep, definitely kinfolk.

Facebook memories took me back to this day in 2017:

In the emergency room at the Army hospital on Yongsan Garrison. That was the day I received the diagnosis for my increasingly frequent breathing attacks–COPD. I blogged about that experience here. No cure, but I’m still around six years later, although I’m using my nebulizer with increasing frequency.

And in other health news, John, the restauranteur/foodie, has been hospitalized. Here’s the disturbing post from his Facebook page:

It’s me again. I guess I was not as healthy as I thought I was. My HB level is less than half of normal and hospital is requesting of blood transfusion. I need at least a couple pints to help the situation. I don’t understand why a big hospital like this has no blood, but A + is out of stock. It sucks to ask but those who have same type.
I need 4 sessions of dialysis for now, but due to HB level so low, my heart cannot take it. My survival rate would be very low. So I am asking blood donation. Doctor indicates the dialysis may or may not be permanent. Too early to say but initial treatment is a MUST

Good luck, John. Hope they can cure what ails you soon.

In a story with a happy ending, here’s the dog I always saw tied to the end of a short leash with no food or water on this date in 2019:

And here he is today:

I was pretty surprised when Gen sent me this picture of her pussy:

Had a good hike up Black Rock with the Wednesday Walkers this morning–I’ll post about that tomorrow. Gonna take Josh out for some barhopping this evening and show him the ropes. For as long as I last, anyway.

***I’m not sure why this resonates so much.***

Plastic Jesus

Posted on 07/February/2023 by John McCrarey

It’s strange sometimes how your mind takes you to places you never thought you’d go. I took one of those little side trips this morning, and it turned out to be kinda fun. I’ve already forgotten what the Quora question being answered was, but the response included a reference to Paul Newman playing the banjo in a scene from the movie Cool Hand Luke. Wow, I hadn’t thought of that film in years, but it has always been one of my favorites. Recalling that scene of Newman with the banjo got me trying to think of what the song was that he was singing. I knew I really liked it, but I was drawing a blank. So the search was on. And with the help of Duckduckgo (fuck you, Google!) I found it:

The clip’s context is that Luke, a prisoner, just received word that his mother had passed away. The other inmates give him some space, and he picks up the banjo and sings this song. The Quora answer that led me down this road talked about Newman learning to play the banjo for this scene.

Here in the real world, yesterday’s Hash seemed to go well. There were many positive comments about the trail from the Hashers, and no one got lost or injured. For some inexplicable reason, three of the girls voluntarily took the long trail and were the last ones to reach our On-Home at Johansson’s. I was worried about them and relieved when they finally showed up.

***Hashers gathering at VFW for last-minute instructions from my co-Hare, Anal Retentive.***

Sorry, I haven’t seen anyone posting pictures from the trail, so that’s all I have for now.

While the Hashers were out, I went to the Outback pool bar to check on Josh. He was ensconced on a beach-view stool and tapped into the wifi, working on a course assignment for his Masters in Divinity he is completing online. Josh had asked me earlier where he could buy some shorts, and I suggested he take a trike to Divimart, a few blocks up the road from his room. He was wearing shorts, so I was glad to see they had his size. I asked how he liked his first trike ride, and he said it was pretty cramped and uncomfortable. Then he told me the driver had charged him 300 pesos. What? That’s a 50 peso ride at most, even with the “skin tax” (a Filipino wouldn’t pay more than 20P for such a short trip). I felt bad that he had gotten scammed on his first day in town, but he really should have known better.

Josh is trying to get back in shape after being laid up for months with a severely broken leg. He walks with a limp now and has this massive bump on his hip that will require surgery to remove. He did okay on the Baloy hike, but no way he could do some of those trails up in the hills. Still, he is lucky to even be alive after getting run over by a truck while riding his motorcycle.

***Josh sent me this photo of the aftermath of the accident.***

The On-Home was where Josh is staying, and I invited him to watch the circle proceedings (he’d have to buy his beer from the bar, though). He seemed to enjoy the spectacle, especially some of the Hash songs. We’ll see if he wants to participate in the Hash rituals sometime during his visit.

I was feeling tired at the conclusion of the Hash (the Angeles trip had interrupted my sleeping hours), so I went home directly after we finished the free beer portion of the circle, and I was in bed by 7:30. That might be a new record for this oldtimer. Josh was already “home” and hung out with a couple of the female Hashers, Trouble Cumming and Black And Dick Her.

***It looks like they had a good time! Josh told me they did a couple of more bars after the Hash together. Glad there was a McCrarey around to fill the void.***

Today is Joy’s birthday, and I’ll be doing a special feeding at Hideaway bar in her honor. I invited Josh to join the festivities, gave him directions, and told him no more than 50 pesos for the ride. We’ll see how that works out.

Full report tomorrow.

Hare we go again

Posted on 06/February/2023 by John McCrarey

It’s Hash Monday, but since I’m a Hare, I have already made the trail. I’ll meet the group at the VFW starting point, offer guidance, and send them on their way.

***The short version is 6K with one big climb. The long trail is 8K with two ups.***

***A view from the top of the first climb***

***My co-Hare and the Blessed Virgin Mother. Ed and his girl came out last week and repaired and repainted the statue.***

***Near the end of the trail, the descent into Barretto.***

I hope everyone enjoys the trail. Nothing all that new to see and not particularly challenging for most folks, but it’s still a pleasant hike.

The Hideaway feeding went well last night. I had several dishes from the Jewel restaurant delivered, and the girls devoured the feast in record time. My cornbread also seemed quite popular.

I had a few and bought a few, as usual. I got home and set my alarm for 12:30 in anticipation of my driver’s 1 a.m. arrival. I woke up a little after one to pee and had an “oh shit!” moment when I remembered where I was supposed to be. I’m not sure what happened, but my phone was lying on the floor, and the alarm had been turned off. Next time I will keep my phone out of arm’s reach.

Anyway, we arrived at the airport just as passengers were beginning to exit the terminal. We were loaded up in the car within ten minutes and headed home to Barretto.

I took Josh for a walk on Baloy Beach this morning and followed up with lunch at Sit-n-Bull.

***The floating bar is still a work in progress, but progress is being made. Looking forward to having a water view now and then when I’m drinking.***

That’s it for now. More about today, tomorrow.

In Joy

Posted on 03/February/2023 by John McCrarey

Thursday’s highlight was a visit from Joy, then sharing dinner with her at one of the new samgyeopsal houses here in Barretto.

I’d rate the food overall as mediocre. I know I’m spoiled by all those years in Korea, but how can you not get samgyeopsal right? None of the three types was more than paper-thin; whether that was why it was almost tasteless, I can’t say. The sides were nothing special either, and the kimchi sucked. I enjoyed being in Joy’s company for the meal but not much else. Oh, and I knew the restaurant wouldn’t have gin, but the only beer they had was San Miguel Pilsner. I wasn’t going to break my diet for a beer I don’t even like. I had water with my meal.

Joy went home after dinner, and I hit the bars, starting with It Doesn’t Matter. Fellow Hasher Jim showed up a bit later, and I had company at the bar I didn’t have to pay for. We did a bit of a bar crawl, hitting BarCelona next. I don’t frequently visit there, but they all knew Jim by name. The bartender had a hot body and a friendly personality. Good combination!

***Walking the highway between bars as the sun goes down***

Next up was Sloppy Joe’s. I’m liking this bar more and more. It’s got the outside seating I like and good service. It seems to be getting very popular too. We had a couple of drinks here, then Jim headed home. I went next door to Alaska for my nightcap and hoped to see Virginia. Alas, she hadn’t shown up for work again. Oh, well. Her loss. I’ll use the money I saved on lady drinks to pay my entrance fee for tonight’s SOB.

I did a solo morning walk on the neighborhood streets on Matain and through the Santa Monica subdivision.

***Here’s how it looked from above. And yes, I grabbed some lunch to go from Sit-n-Bull at the end.*** ***Almost 8K altogether.***

I played around with that ChatGPT thing for a few minutes. I asked it who I am and it said I’m a nobody:

I’m sorry, but without additional context, I cannot determine who John Mark McCrarey is. It is possible that John Mark McCrarey is an individual who is not widely known or someone who uses a pseudonym.

I guess that may be true, but what about my blog?

I’m sorry, but I don’t have information on a specific blog named “Long Time Gone”. It is possible that the blog is a personal blog or a niche blog with a limited audience, and therefore may not have information readily available online. To find out more about the blog, you may try searching for it on the internet or contacting the author or administrator of the blog directly.

Oh, well. I’ll keep trying to make something of myself someday.