…low rent rendezvous. No significance to today’s post title other than that song came up in my playlist, and it resonated with me for some unknown reason. Go figure.

So, I filled my Wednesday in the usual way–walking and drinking. Let’s start with the beers.

I did my standard feeding session for the Hideaway girls. Last night they dined on fried chicken with ice cream cones for dessert. Actually, they ate the ice cream first, so maybe you have to call it an appetizer.

A few beers and several lady drinks later; I departed Hideaway without a clear destination in mind. As I walked by Wet Spot, I entered on impulse. Took a seat at a table alone, and my regular waitress brought me a beer. Didn’t see her again after that. My beer was empty, and there were several other waitresses lounging about, but none could be bothered to fetch me another beer. As I was getting up to pay my one-beer tab, my waitress appeared and apologized profusely. I didn’t hear what she said caused the disappearing act, but I wasn’t really pissed at her; just the whole vibe of not being served in a mostly empty bar was irksome. It’s very unusual to get poor service in one of Dave’s bars, so I fully expect it was a one-off that won’t happen again. Still, it chilled my buzz.

Turns out, I was on a roll. As I walked past Sloppy Joe’s, a cute waitress gestured to an empty seat, so I shrugged and sat down. She left without taking my order and never returned. Now, the bar was busy and appeared to be understaffed. My patience level was already at a low ebb though, so I got up and left. As I continued up the highway, the urge to pee hit me near Johansson’s, so I went inside, called for a Zero, and continued to the CR without breaking stride. When I returned, my coveted beer was waiting for me.

Johansson’s wasn’t busy; from my observation, it rarely is. One other guy at the bar and someone else playing pool. The bartender was cute but disinterested in any chit-chat. In fact, chit-chat is two words more than she said to me during the length of my visit. (When you use a hyphen, does that make one word?) I did take a few photos and will do a review of Johannson’s for the Bars of Barretto series soon. One beer and out was my mood last night.

Only one bar left on my side of the highway (Rosie’s was closed), so I made my last stop Queen Victoria. The bartender and the manager gave me a friendly greeting. Then I sat at the bar alone, nursing my beer. One bargirl, in particular, looked quite stunning, but she never approached me. Too bad, I would have bought her a drink in a heartbeat. I guess I’m a stubborn old fucker, but I’m all about fending off the thirsty gals; I don’t initiate. It seemed the bar gods were sending me a message, so I paid my tab. As I was leaving, the sexy girl was sitting alone at a table and said, “goodnight, John.” Oh well, I’ll waste that money somewhere else tonight, I reckon.

I love my boys, but they are not as talented as this dog. Well, Buddy does stand on his hind legs and gives me a hug when I get up in the morning. It’s nice to be loved.

So, before we get to yesterday’s hike, when I looked at my Fitbit stats at the end of the day, I was shocked to discover my step count was double my all-time high:

Anyway, we had a great hike, starting in Subic and making our way back towards Tibag. We didn’t go all the way there, went as far as we felt like, then turned around and came back. A little over 7K, all told. It’s beautiful countryside out that way, sparsely populated, and very clean and quiet. It almost felt like a walk in the park. I’ll let the pictures do most of my talking:

And that was how my day went down. It’s good to be alive!

And talk was small when they talked at all
They both knew what they wanted
There was no need to talk about it
They were old enough to scope it out
And keep it loose

She said, "You don't look like my type
But I guess you'll do"
Third rate romance
Low rent rendezvous
And he said, "I'll even tell you that I love you
If you want me to"
Third rate romance
Low rent rendezvous