The rain has once again put a damper on things around here, including the Wednesday Walkers group hike. It doesn’t appear there is much hope on the horizon either:

Fortunately, neighbors Jeff and Davina were also attending the grand reopening of Sloppy Joe’s, so we caught a ride with them and avoided a wet walk.

We did our nightcap upstairs at another newly reopened bar, Tryst (formerly La Oficina), for the first time. It really hasn’t changed much from its previous iteration, just your standard girly bar with dancers. It’s okay if that’s your thing, but it won’t be a regular stop for us.

And that’s all my Wednesday had to offer this week.

A few days ago, I posted a photo of a mysterious-looking ship anchored in the bay. A friend sent me this Wikipedia link identifying the ship.

I hope a port of call in Subic doesn’t indicate that trouble is on the horizon. War with China is rising on my list of ways I’m liable to die in the Philippines.

It’s still June of 2009 in my journey through the LTG archives. Lo and behold, I actually came upon a post with some substance! In it, I share some insights regarding my transformation from the left to the right side of the political spectrum. Spoiler: I didn’t move, the left did. I talked about reconnecting with an old high school friend via Facebook, who had followed his dream of becoming a journalist and was working for the Seattle newspaper. Oddly enough, he unfriended me when I shared my political thoughts with him. Over the years, a large number of my lefty “friends” opted to ghost me rather than deal with divergent beliefs. In the post, I quote John F. Kennedy and delve into the deeper meanings of Bob Dylan’s song Blowin’ in the Wind. After reading that post again, I was shaking my head and thinking, Whatever happened to the guy who wrote this? Well, I’m still here, but maybe my deep thinking days are over.

Today’s YouTube video is Reekay’s latest, and he talks about three things you need to have a successful retirement in the Philippines. The first one seems pretty obvious: a source of income. But maybe not so surrpisingly, some fools move here without a plan to support themeseles and once the savings account is empty, they are screwed. When it comes to women, I spent six years screwing up before I finally got lucky and found the right one. And finally, common sense ain’t real common anymore, but I’ve managed to navigate the challenges of living overseas. Having helpers in my employ has been a benefit in that regard.

And some humor before I go:

We are having an Independence Day gathering at The Rite Spot later this afternoon. I’ve got chili in the crockpot, and I baked some cornbread muffins and brownies as my contributions to the feast. I’m also installing some vinyl panels to hopefully stifle the rain from penetrating our alcove of shelter under the roof. We shall see how that works out.

I was sad to learn that Brian Wilson, the Beach Boys founder and songwriter, has passed away. I loved hearing their music while growing up in Southern California. Rest in peace!