After the routine morning chores, my first order of business was a visit to immigration to renew my tourist visa for another sixty days. It was a little bit different experience this time because the office has moved to the 6th floor of the SM mall downtown. Getting there was bizarre. The mall doesn’t open until ten a.m., and the parking garage had a traffic cone blocking the entrance. My driver told the guard we were going to immigration, and he moved the cone and let us enter. The parking lot is on the 5th floor, so you’d think one floor up to get there. You would be wrong. The elevator attendant said we had to go down to the 3rd floor and catch a different elevator to the 6th floor. So, that’s what we did. It was weird walking through a closed mall to get to the other elevators. Anyway, the new immigration office is nice enough. I was the only customer, but it took longer than normal anyway. And they charged me 4100 pesos rather than the usual 3000. Like the good visitor that I am, I didn’t dare question why. No need to get deported over twenty bucks.
The next stop was the BPI ATM at Harbor Point Mall on SBMA. Except the machine wasn’t working, so we had to drive across the base to another ATM. This one worked, and my wallet was restocked with a week’s worth of cash, so we headed for the grocery shopping event at Royal. I spent “only” 12,000 this week, including some items for Swan’s pantry
Dropped Swan at home, unloaded the groceries, and took a nap. Swan messaged she was going to Subic, and I responded, “Enjoy.” Then she said she was going to Olongapo instead to shop for school supplies for the nieces. Well, I didn’t see any need to respond to that one. I figured she’d let me know when she was back home if she wanted to see me (Tuesday is supposedly “our day.” I didn’t hear from her by four p.m. (aka, beer o’clock), so I headed into town. I figured if she wanted to meet up, I’d catch a trike back to her place.
A good crowd at Sloppy Joe’s, and I sat at a table with Martin and Chris and shared some banter. Three beers later I was feeling a little hungry so I headed up the highway in search of grub. Was thinking I wanted something light, more of a snack, and different from my usual dinner fare. As I passed by Mugshots I saw their Tuesday special was a ham and cheese wrap–buy one and get a free beer! I was hooked, so I went in and ordered one.
I appreciated a limited menu, especially in a small bar environment like Mugshots. I’ve only had the chicken wings before, but they were quite tasty.
My waitress, April, was friendly and attractive, and earned herself a lady drink. I also bought an order of wings for the girls to share before I departed. It was a pleasant visit.
I considered visiting the Annex bar next, but my favorite seating was occupied by a biker club in full regalia–The Misfits if I recall correctly. Ron, the owner of Sit-n-Bull, was one of them and I called him out to the road shoulder where the motorcycles were parked and asked him if those movie scenes where the drunk guy knocks over one bike and the rest fall like dominos, resulting in the drunk getting his ass kicked, were accurate. He advised me not to find out. So I didn’t. Instead, I climbed the stairs to Cheap Charlies.
After a couple of beers and a couple of lady drinks, I was ready to move on. The next (and last) stop for the evening was Wet Spot.
I took my regular seat and settled in for my nightcap beer. As is my custom, I bought my regular waitress a drink as well. And then came the big surprise of the night. A woman I hadn’t seen for months and months was suddenly standing right beside me, offering her greetings.
Manager Brett sent me over a free beer, and I naturally provided liquid refreshments for Aine. We had a friendly chat, but I was also distracted by my phone. When I first arrived at Wet Spot, I had sent Swan a message telling her I was sorry we hadn’t been able to get together. She responded that she had wanted to do so, but I had never answered her message about her trip to Olongapo. WTF? I asked what I was supposed to say about that, and if she had wanted to see me, all she needed to do was ask, and I’d come running. Anyway, we went back and forth for a while, but the issue wasn’t really resolved until this morning’s coffee.
I went a little overboard at Wet Spot, spending over 1000 pesos on lady drinks. But it was a welcome-back celebration for Aine, so why not. Before catching a trike for home, I went next door to Sit-n-Bull for some take-out dessert.
Not bad for a Tuesday, eh? We had mostly clear skies this morning which allowed the Wednesday Walkers to head for the hills in Calapacuan (or was it Calapadayan?). Anyway, I’ll post the photos from that adventure tomorrow. Joy called in sick to work today, so there will be no feeding at Hideaway. But as fate would have it, my Whiskey Girl pal, Kim, messaged me that she is now working at Showgirls bar. The only time I’ve been to that bar was when it first opened. Let me see if I did a review. Why, yes I did! Tonight’s her first night, so I will welcome her with a lady drink and the brownies I would have taken to Hideaway.
It’s a crazy world.
I was worried. You missed a whole days post. Its good to see Aine again. The pecan pie has me salivating.
I hope things will work out with Swan. Does she see your association with all these bar girls an issue?
We will have the typhoon move North through the peninsula for the next 2 days, Camp Humphries getting ready.
Gotta go to Colorado Springs next week. I hope the weather here and Dallas, will not cause issues.
my first order of business was a visit to immigration to renew my tourist visa for another sixty days.
I keep forgetting you have to go through this nonsense every two months. Do you feel it’s worth it? (I guess you do if you’ve lived there for several years! But going through such a ritual every other month would drive me crazy.)
re: Buffalo wings… “maybe they’re not REAL buffalo”
I wonder if the menu writer realizes that the “Buffalo” in “Buffalo wings” refers to Buffalo, New York, where the wings originally came from. Oh, and that menu could use a proofreader. And with all the shouty ALL CAPS in the text, the menu writer could do with a bit less caffeine.
My ham and cheese tortilla wrap.
I hope it tasted good. Looked a bit meager.
Pecan pie is back in stock! Of course, I slathered that sweet goodness in vanilla ice cream and enjoyed a la mode!
The pie does indeed look good. I side with Rascal on that.
I hope Swan’s not going to turn out to be yet another of those women who assume men have ESP, thus obviating the need to verbally communicate anything. In Asia in particular, so much unnecessary conflict results from A assuming one thing while B assumes another, and neither party has the smarts to just check on what the other is thinking. Maybe we humans just like making drama for ourselves. We say we want happiness, equilibrium, and tranquility, but our actions show we really want drama, conflict, and ambient stupidity. And it’s all avoidable.
Kev, my original intent was to go the retirement visa route, but that proved to be an administrative nightmare, and I wound up just saying fuck it. The 60-day renewal process normally takes less than 30 minutes and is relatively painless. I guess I’m used to it now.
Man, you studied that menu a lot harder than I did! I’m more of a look at the pictures and decide kind of guy. The ham and cheese wrap tasted fine, and I wasn’t looking for more of a snack than a meal, so it worked out fine. For pub fare, Mugshots’ kitchen does a good job. Most bars don’t even bother.
There have been a couple of minor red flags with Swan, and the incident I described is one example. What especially bothered me was when I was telling (texting) her my feelings, she said she didn’t want to “argue about it.” I wasn’t arguing. The next morning she asked if I was still “mad.” I was never mad; I was hurt and disappointed. That kind of communication disconnect is concerning. I’m not inclined to give up on her over this kind of behavior, but it is definitely something we need to be aware of and try to do better at in the future.
“You missed a whole days post.”
Rascal, I think YOU missed it. I’ve posted every day without fail lately.
I’ve told Swan about my bar activities, including buying the girls lady drinks, and she did not express any objections. Of course, I don’t go into details or share pictures of women like Aine with her. As Kevin has noted, being in the bars is one thing; behavior in the bars is another matter. Of course, my comeback to any issues Swan raises would be that I prefer to spend my time with her whenever she makes herself available.
Good luck with your upcoming travel and I hope the weather doesn’t mess with your plans.
Geee! Don’t shout. One of the entitlements of my advanced age, is making harmless mistakes. I.may not get to pecan pie today. Too much rain.
You heard me all the way in Korea, Rascal? I guess I am a grumpy old man!
Hope you find your pie in the sky, by and by. Safe travels!