…and going on thirty. Happy Anniversary to the Subic Bay Hash House Harriers!

I enjoyed yesterday’s short version of the trail (4K) quite a lot. It had a tough climb up to the top of Kalaklan ridge, and then it was all downhill from there. Ninety-four attendees (about double our usual turnout), including contingents from Puerto Galera and Angeles City. I’ll share photos from the event at the end of this post.

My other news from Monday is my visit to the doctor. Once again, I had the full attention of two physicians (husband and wife) for nearly an hour. Not all doc talk either; some pleasant banter and chat were also included. My primary complaint is the nasal congestion I’ve been dealing with for several months now. The previous doctor I consulted wanted to perform surgery to remove some bloated nodules in my nasal passages. I’m just not comfortable with the idea of being under general anesthesia during the operation. Way back in the day, a healthy teenage friend was having minor knee surgery and never woke up. I’m still not ready for the big sleep.

Anyway, Dr. Jo and her husband both agreed that other courses of action should be pursued rather than surgery. So I’m doing a new regimen of drugs and natural remedies to hopefully alleviate the congestion and shrink my nose modules. Time will tell if it works.

I also discussed my vaccination dilemma. Like me, they both have real concerns about the long-term impact of the vaccines on the body’s immune system, noting that people who are vaxxed appear more likely to contract the latest COVID variants. I mentioned reading stories about otherwise healthy people, including three doctors in Canada, mysteriously dropping dead after receiving booster shots. They agreed that since I’ve had COVID already, there is no medically justifiable reason for me to risk the side effects associated with the vaccination. When I explained my visa situation and my need to leave and then be able to return to the PI, they were sympathetic. I asked, of all the vaccines out there, which one, in their opinion, was potentially the least damaging. They both said Sinovac. The Chinese vaxx? Well, I guess it makes sense since it’s a Chinese virus. The medical reason is that it apparently doesn’t modify the body’s immune system in the way the other vaccines do.

I’ve also had other discussions about getting documentation of vaccination through sources that don’t require getting jabbed. I considered that option long and hard, but in the end, it just seemed too risky. The ones suggesting that course of action have proof of being vaccinated in the USA. Well, okay, if I go that route, and someone at immigration takes a closer look, I’d have a hard time explaining how I got vaxxed in the USA when my passport shows I haven’t left the Philippines since 2019. So, today I asked my helper to find out where I can get a Sinovac shot. I really don’t have a choice. The Philippines is the only country in Asia that I know of still requiring a vaxx for entry. I kept hoping they’d wise up, but that seems more and more unlikely, at least during my diminishing timeline for departure. Oh well. COVID didn’t kill me; maybe the vaxx won’t either.

So oddly enough, I couldn’t remember one of the memories Facebook shared with me today.

Ah, yeah. I blogged about her in a post called There’s something about Mary. After re-reading that, I am pretty sure I was intentionally trying to forget all about her. Not one of my finer moments. Although it did have a residual impact on my getting to know Iline. That didn’t work out either, of course, but I have no regrets about trying.

Wow. That just triggered a memory of the movie The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. That’s a great film that I’ve not thought of in ages. Hmm, maybe losing my mind won’t be an entirely pointless journey. We’ll just have to wait and see what might happen next.

By the way, I’m baking brownies now, but I set my phone alarm to trigger my memory about removing them from the oven. Thanks for the tip, Kevin!

Okay, let’s do those Hash photos, shall we? (Just a reminder, these are from a collection by several Hashers, including me.)

It was definitely the best anniversary run we’ve had this year!

And I didn’t burn the brownies!

Life is good.