I’m posting like an early bird today because my plate is full, and I may be in “it’s now or never” territory. On tap are the Friday group hike, my visit to Dr. DeLeon, and the SOB dance competition. I’ll try to find time for a nap in there as well. It’s just one of those rare days where I have too much to do.
Swan joined me on my morning hike yesterday, which is always nice. We took a Jeepney out to Subic-town and did a walkaround to Philseco. Only 5K, but still good to see the sights we rarely visit. Let me show you what we saw:
Our trek begins in downtown SubicOff the highway and down this streetThen through the graveyardSpeaking of dead people, this guy passed when he was two years younger than me.A stroll by this pondNot anywhere I’d want to swimDoesn’t that get your goat?A right turn and a change in directionThrough this barangay Asinan Proper neighborhoodBeauty aboundsOn the road againOver the bridgeA view from the bridgeNo options but the pathA wide-open roadWhen does a pond become a lake?My kind of trailA tree I likedTaking the left turnInto the ‘hoodAnother narrow passageAnd a narrow escapeArriving on Philseco RoadSchool is back in session, so we didn’t see many kids to share sweets with. These children in uniforms were on their way to school and had some treats to enjoy on the way.When we hit the National Highway, the first two Jeepneys to pass were full. Then this Victory Liner came by, and we climbed aboard. 50 pesos each to Barretto.Back in Barretto, safe and sound
Wasn’t that fun?
When beer o’clock arrived, we decided the slower pace of Baloy Beach was what we wanted.
Low tide, and someone cleaned the beach since our last visit.Our first stop was Kokomo’sTime was passing, and we moved on.Next stop, Treasure IslandThe view from our perchBeauty and the beastSwan enjoyed the enchiladas. I’ll have her leftovers for breakfast as soon as I finish this post.I snacked on chicken wings.
The night ended on a sour note because of some miscommunication issues, but I’m sure we’ll find our way back to happiness.
Seven years ago, my favorite Itaewon bartender finished her tenure at Shenanigans. It wasn’t goodbye, though. She got married and moved to Pyeongtaek, where I spent time with the happy couple before I retired and moved away.
One lifetime, many lives.
Today’s YouTube video is the latest from Reekay. I’m in a hurry this morning, but I’m looking forward to see how this guy fucked up.
And now let’s try for some humor:
Maybe he should change his name to RichardI’m glad she bounced back
Alright, time to get on with my day. Thanks for stopping by.
5 thoughts on “Looking for the worm”
wide-open road
Correctly hyphenated! A red-letter day!
You’ve got a full day ahead. Enjoy!
The title of the video is a misleading. The subject of the video was starting from such a low bar that there was no crash possible.
Seems as though a lot of his problems were self inflicted.
Have run into similar characters in places like Thailand. Think that coming to SE Asia will allow them to live a much better life on the cheap. (Though to be fair, I am not sure that was video guys expectation). When they realize that income/savings will allow them to live just a step above a lower middle class local, they do nothing but bitch and moan about how bad the country is, the locals suck, their home country sucks, etc etc. They usually lead an unhealthy lifestyle, but have trapped themselves such that they can’t go back to their home country for medical care, can’t afford decent medical care in their “adopted” country. According to them, It’s everybody’s fault but theirs. (And to top it all off, they usually end up sticking you with their bar tab! LOL)
Sad nonetheless.
I trust Dr Leon gave you good news.
The doctors are busting my balls about kidney function too. My eGFR using cretanine is currently 74 and seems to be going down after each reading. What is yours?
My liver has not been the same since I caught acute Hep B in 2014. I initially presented with AST of 251 but the ALT was a whopping 3509 and Bilirubin was 339. Managed to clear it though like most oldies do and now have got the antigen naturally. But please be careful as I understand Hep B is endemic in the PI. Babies catch it from their infected mothers in the womb but the young don’t tend to shake it off like oldies and then become chronic carriers for the rest of their lives like their mothers and grandmothers and so on. Maybe that is why so many people die younger there.
The rub for me is that I was proactive and paid to get vaccinated against Hep B a couple of years before but still contracted Hep B. Apparently there is still a 5% chance of not acquiring immunity even after all 3 jabs. So be careful.
Do you rubber up? i ask because you can’t be too careful as even if you and your partner get tested, tests are only as good for up to the last test and even then the antibodies might not be manifesting if infections are newly acquired and still incubating.
Thankfully, I got no issues in the weight department even though my BMI is marginally over (25.7) but my waist is less than half my height so they say I am in the clear on that front.
I put my weight control down to regular HITT exercises, fasting and cutting down drastically on cakes and biscuits (but not Staropramen and San Miguel which is now even stronger than Stella here).
I think Kevin Kim once advised you about HIIT but I would further recommend including some weight training at least 2 – 3 times per week. I’m not suggesting bodybuilding just 3 sets of 12 reps of medium weights. You don’t need to go the sweat gym beside the Bela Monte; just have a few weights at home. I think that is sufficient for oldies like us.
What is your cholesterol like? Mine is 5.9 and they want to put me on statins (especially since I got DVT in my right calf two years ago) but I am resisting because as my mother used to say: “they’re giving you something for one thing which is ruining some other thing”. She was a good Scots Presbytarian (unlike me) and died at 74 in the same year as your mom despite never letting alcohol pass her lips nor smoking tobacco, crack or pot.
Enjoy your SOB.
Ted, Dr. DeLeon cancelled her clinic hours yesterday, so it will be next Wednesday that I see her. I don’t have my numbers in front of me, and I can’t remember shit, but the ones that had Dr. Jo most concerned were the ones that said I was on the road to diabetes. Improving those is my primary focus. My cholesterol is in the high normal range.
I’ve not heard about the Hep B endemic, but I’m not sure what I can do to avoid it. Doesn’t sound like the vaccine makes much difference. I can’t remember the last time I used a condom, but I don’t sleep around these days, so it’s not something I worry about. I’ve been snipped, so no worries there, either.
Well, I have noticed that my upper body strength is practically non-existent. So maybe I ought to look into some lightweight training.
My dad smoked and drank beer and made it to 83. That’s my goal!
Thanks for sharing all this good information!
Brian, yeah, it does seem that expats are their own worst enemy when it comes to failures and fuck-ups. Fortunately, that’s not the case with the crowd I hang with for the most part. Most of the bad shit I see happens in relationships.
I’ve been here over six years now, and most of the people I know have reliable pension incomes and have lived here a lot longer than me. I reckon the financial failures probably occur within the first couple of years. I’ve also noticed that when people get seriously ill, they tend to go home for treatment.
wide-open road
Correctly hyphenated! A red-letter day!
You’ve got a full day ahead. Enjoy!
The title of the video is a misleading. The subject of the video was starting from such a low bar that there was no crash possible.
Seems as though a lot of his problems were self inflicted.
Have run into similar characters in places like Thailand. Think that coming to SE Asia will allow them to live a much better life on the cheap. (Though to be fair, I am not sure that was video guys expectation). When they realize that income/savings will allow them to live just a step above a lower middle class local, they do nothing but bitch and moan about how bad the country is, the locals suck, their home country sucks, etc etc. They usually lead an unhealthy lifestyle, but have trapped themselves such that they can’t go back to their home country for medical care, can’t afford decent medical care in their “adopted” country. According to them, It’s everybody’s fault but theirs. (And to top it all off, they usually end up sticking you with their bar tab! LOL)
Sad nonetheless.
I trust Dr Leon gave you good news.
The doctors are busting my balls about kidney function too. My eGFR using cretanine is currently 74 and seems to be going down after each reading. What is yours?
My liver has not been the same since I caught acute Hep B in 2014. I initially presented with AST of 251 but the ALT was a whopping 3509 and Bilirubin was 339. Managed to clear it though like most oldies do and now have got the antigen naturally. But please be careful as I understand Hep B is endemic in the PI. Babies catch it from their infected mothers in the womb but the young don’t tend to shake it off like oldies and then become chronic carriers for the rest of their lives like their mothers and grandmothers and so on. Maybe that is why so many people die younger there.
The rub for me is that I was proactive and paid to get vaccinated against Hep B a couple of years before but still contracted Hep B. Apparently there is still a 5% chance of not acquiring immunity even after all 3 jabs. So be careful.
Do you rubber up? i ask because you can’t be too careful as even if you and your partner get tested, tests are only as good for up to the last test and even then the antibodies might not be manifesting if infections are newly acquired and still incubating.
Thankfully, I got no issues in the weight department even though my BMI is marginally over (25.7) but my waist is less than half my height so they say I am in the clear on that front.
I put my weight control down to regular HITT exercises, fasting and cutting down drastically on cakes and biscuits (but not Staropramen and San Miguel which is now even stronger than Stella here).
I think Kevin Kim once advised you about HIIT but I would further recommend including some weight training at least 2 – 3 times per week. I’m not suggesting bodybuilding just 3 sets of 12 reps of medium weights. You don’t need to go the sweat gym beside the Bela Monte; just have a few weights at home. I think that is sufficient for oldies like us.
What is your cholesterol like? Mine is 5.9 and they want to put me on statins (especially since I got DVT in my right calf two years ago) but I am resisting because as my mother used to say: “they’re giving you something for one thing which is ruining some other thing”. She was a good Scots Presbytarian (unlike me) and died at 74 in the same year as your mom despite never letting alcohol pass her lips nor smoking tobacco, crack or pot.
Enjoy your SOB.
Ted, Dr. DeLeon cancelled her clinic hours yesterday, so it will be next Wednesday that I see her. I don’t have my numbers in front of me, and I can’t remember shit, but the ones that had Dr. Jo most concerned were the ones that said I was on the road to diabetes. Improving those is my primary focus. My cholesterol is in the high normal range.
I’ve not heard about the Hep B endemic, but I’m not sure what I can do to avoid it. Doesn’t sound like the vaccine makes much difference. I can’t remember the last time I used a condom, but I don’t sleep around these days, so it’s not something I worry about. I’ve been snipped, so no worries there, either.
Well, I have noticed that my upper body strength is practically non-existent. So maybe I ought to look into some lightweight training.
My dad smoked and drank beer and made it to 83. That’s my goal!
Thanks for sharing all this good information!
Brian, yeah, it does seem that expats are their own worst enemy when it comes to failures and fuck-ups. Fortunately, that’s not the case with the crowd I hang with for the most part. Most of the bad shit I see happens in relationships.
I’ve been here over six years now, and most of the people I know have reliable pension incomes and have lived here a lot longer than me. I reckon the financial failures probably occur within the first couple of years. I’ve also noticed that when people get seriously ill, they tend to go home for treatment.