On the road again


Well, I’m so tired of crying
But I’m out on the road again
I’m on the road again
Well, I’m so tired of crying
But I’m out on the road again
I’m on the road again
I ain’t got no woman
Just to call my special friend

Just another day in paradise, doing what I do. Which ain’t much but it’s all I got.

Actually what I do is getting more challenging as the weather warms up. We are just coming into “hot” season which seems to be evaporating my motivation to get out and walk. I haven’t given up though, just making some concessions like going out for the longer hikes later in the afternoon. I started today’s effort at 2:00 p.m. when I at least had a bit of a breeze and the sun wasn’t quite as high in the sky. Oh well, rainy season is right around the corner.

Standard hike #2: Alta Vista-Baloy Beach-San Isidro-Alta Vista. Mostly flat.

Anyway, working hard to try and keep the blues away. My rational mind knows I’m a lucky bastard. And my heart keeps saying “yeah, but what about me?” My response to that is “shut up, loser!”

Seriously, I’m fine. Transitions and adjustments are sometimes challenging, but this too shall pass. I actually had a dream last night where I fell in love. It was pretty fuckin’ awesome because she loved me back. We even laughed at each other’s jokes. Only weird thing about it was she was a Western woman. That ain’t likely to happen in this lifetime. Still, it was a good reminder that settling for less is for suckers.

I hear it’s siblings day so here’s a shout out to my brothers. Neither of which reads my blog, but that’s okay.

I’ve got to give the bros credit. I got both the brains and the good looks and neither of them outwardly show much jealously. That must really take some self-discipline.

And now it’s beer o’clock so I reckon I’ll head out and contemplate life and all the lessons I’ve declined to learn. Cheers!


But I ain’t going down
That long old lonesome road
All by myself
But I ain’t going down
That long old lonesome road
All by myself
I can’t carry you, baby
Gonna carry somebody else

I actually saw Canned Heat in concert back in my high school days. This was their biggest hit. And it is was only today that I learned the song was written by Willie Nelson. I’ll be damned.

UPDATE: Well, this makes three times I’ve used the “on the road again” title. The first was in September 2010, a worthless (well, more worthless than normal) post about going to the East Sea.

I used it again in September 2015 about making the commute from Gireum to Yongsan in my new old car. Back when I still had a wife to help me navigate my life.

7 thoughts on “On the road again

  1. What’s the problem with Western women?

    My own confession: I used to think Asian women were less neurotic and less into mind games than Western women were. These days, I think all the womenfolk are crazy, each in her own culturally mediated way. Finding a sane woman, whatever her race or culture, is like finding a 10-pound chunk of ambergris on the beach—rare, and nearly a miracle.

    Let me define “sane”:
    – not given to drama
    – not given to mind games
    – well-intended and congenitally kind
    – optimistic and basically cheerful, but not overly so
    – minimally bitchy, but when bitchy, bitchy for non-petty reasons (e.g., when I legitimately fuck things up, as I know I will)
    – taking full responsibility for her own conduct & mistakes
    – generally unselfish
    – practical and realistic, not given to magical thinking
    – smart, and her own person, i.e., not needy
    – not the type to want to remake me in her image
    – not given to stupid grudges

    The kind of woman I find attractive isn’t the kind I immediately want to bang. For me, respectability is a huge component of attractiveness: if the woman is one I can respect and/or admire, that respectability makes her hot. She does need to be smart and capable, but if she’s not up to snuff IQ-wise, I’ll be happy enough if she’s of good character.

    Alas, here in Korea, most of the women who’ve been attracted to me (with one major exception, and the ending of that relationship was entirely my fault) have turned out to be weirdos in one way or another. They seem to see me as a source of solace from whatever inner demons are hounding them, which means they’re not really looking for a healthy relationship. In a healthy relationship, both people see each other as equal partners and willing to grow together, as opposed to seeing each other as “someone who meets my needs.” (I think unhealthy relationships are usually founded on needs, not wants.) Damaged people are worthy of sympathy, but I’d never date a damaged person (again—cough). I don’t want scars and drama.

    So who’s more damaged (or kooky, or whatever), in your view? Western ladies or Asian ones? Why do you think so?

  2. John
    Should have responded yesterday. Lucky sure is a lucky dog to have you.
    Your woman problems will all go away if you add a rabbit, hamster, pine snake, a cockatie and 2 cats By all means get an aquarium a most labor intensive endeavor.
    Best to you
    Jerry

  3. Thanks, guys.

    Interesting observations Kevin. I think my attempt at a response is worthy of a blog post. Stay tuned.

    Good idea, Jerry. I’ve got two dogs and a trouser snake so far….

  4. All I can handle is my two dogs and a weak snake. Would like to have as cat but wife is allergic. Brother has a ragamuffin that probably eats small dogs for sport.

  5. John, just an FYI, but the Willie Nelson “On the Road Again” is a completely different song.

    He did not write the Canned Heat version. The Canned Heat song is based on an old blues song.

  6. Thanks, Brian. You are absolutely correct. The site where I pulled the lyrics listed him as the songwriter and I was really surprised by that because it is NOTHING like any Willie Nelson I’d ever heard. Should have confirmed it myself, but good to have readers keeping me honest!

    Actually, I was familiar with Nelson’s On the Road Again which is an okay song. But that should have been a HUGE clue he hadn’t written another with the same title…

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