…but still I didn’t feel so great.
Even a shit day is better than nothing. That said, I don’t want to waste the days I do have left. I was on my own yesterday and feeling out of sorts. I carried on as best I could, but I wasn’t a happy camper.
For my morning walk, I did a boring stroll through the neighborhood. Then I wrote a shit blog post (aren’t they all?) and took a nap. As beer o’clock approached, I showered up and headed into town. I was going to get a haircut, but couldn’t be bothered, so I kicked things off at Sloppy Joe’s.
I had a second Sloppy beer, then paid my tab and headed up the highway to Red Bar. When I arrived, the music was blaring so loud that I turned around to leave. Bartender Rolen asked what was wrong, and I pointed at the speaker. He nodded and said he’d turn it down, so I ordered beer #3. My next aggravation was two loud drunks sitting at the table across from me. It was painful to watch their obnoxious behavior, but thankfully, they left shortly thereafter, so I had another beer.
It being a two-and-done kind of evening, I paid my Red Bar tab and hit the road again.
I only visit Alaska once or twice a month, but it is a sentimental favorite. Owner Jerry shouted out a greeting when I arrived, and I plopped myself down at one of the empty tables and ordered beer #5. When the Sit-n-Bull waitress came by, I ordered me some chicken fingers and some lumpia for the gals. I only ate four of the fingers and gave the rest to the dancers. Then I had another beer before departing for home.
I had a bowl of sugar-free pudding, but wasn’t sleepy yet, so I grabbed a beer from the fridge and headed upstairs to The Rite Spot. I did find some comfort in the rocking chair and the city lights below me. So, I went back to the kitchen for night’s brew #8, then up to the roof again.
I went to bed but didn’t sleep well. In fact, I had my worst sleep score since I began tracking via my Fitbit.
And now I have shared my pain and sorrow with you. Please forgive me!
Onward in the August 2018 LTG archives, and here I am sharing my lived wisdom with a broken-hearted friend. Of course, I talk a better game than I live, and the lessons learned didn’t prevent the heartbreaks yet to come.
Today’s YouTube video talks about the vlogger’s provincial life. The beach town of Mulanay looks nice enough, and one of the things that he likes best is that there is only one other foreigner living there. Hmm, I get that living in an expat town like Barretto isn’t the “real” Philippine lifestyle. Still, I enjoy the company and camaraderie that come with the shared experience of growing old here amongst the familiar faces.
Forgive me once again:
So far, today is going somewhat better than yesterday, so there’s that. We’ll see what comes next.
I was going to get a haircut, but couldn’t be bothered, so I kicked things off at Sloppy Joe’s.
Spot the error! Stop the error! Same error as always.
I had a bowl of sugar-free pudding, but wasn’t sleepy yet, so I grabbed a beer from the fridge and headed upstairs to The Rite Spot.
Same error again. Sammy Jankis.
So—no idea as to the cause of your complaints? Maybe it’s just what Koreans call “momsal,” a vague collection of generic “bleh” symptoms ranging from aches and pains to a runny nose, a headache, or a light fever—in any combination. Just basically a feeling of being generally off-kilter and needing to rest. Maybe the best cure is finding something that makes you happy (other than beer). Hit YouTube and search for “dogs being idiots.” You might get a chuckle out of some of those videos.
And please reread my Substack shit about “compound predicates.” Don’t just say to yourself, “A comma marks a pause, so I need one here.”
Kevin, when you are commatose, sloppy writing just comes naturally. Once you point it out, it seems so obvious. Here are my rewrites:
I was going to get a haircut, but couldn’t be bothered. So I kicked things off at Sloppy Joe’s.
I had a bowl of sugar-free pudding, but wasn’t sleepy yet. So I grabbed a beer from the fridge and headed upstairs to The Rite Spot.
I tend to write like I talk and don’t always stop to think about proper punctuation. Surely you’ve noticed at least some slight improvement, right?
Yeah, “momsal” seems to fit. Doing better now, but I’m sure I’ll have momsal again at some point in my future.
Commas: If I need them, I miss them; if I don’t, I use them.
Okay, compound predicate = 2 actions by the same subject, so NO COMMA.
WRONG: Sheila sat down, and farted.
RIGHT: Sheila sat down and farted.
WRONG: He was hungry, but waited to eat.
RIGHT: He was hungry but waited to eat.
So, turning to your “corrections”:
WRONG: I was going to get a haircut, but couldn’t be bothered.
RIGHT: I was going to get a haircut but couldn’t be bothered.
WRONG: I had a bowl of sugar-free pudding, but wasn’t sleepy yet.
RIGHT: I had a bowl of sugar-free pudding but wasn’t sleepy yet.
For the umpteenth time: Stop interrupting your compound predicates with commas.
10 to 1, you’re gonna make the same mistake in your next post. Sammy Jankis.
Please prove me wrong, I beg you.
Kevin, we’ll know soon enough. Just so we are clear, if I make a DIFFERENT mistake, I’ve proven you wrong, right?
Sigh… always looking for legalistic loopholes. The sign of a bad student.
When I was a teacher, I never understood why some students would put more effort into avoiding learning than into just learning something right. Some people are wired that way, I guess: Don’t give those people safety instructions; if they’re learning to drive, just put them behind the wheel, let them drive off the cliff a few times, and if they survive, they’ll learn to respect roads that way. If they learn at all.
Then again, the idiots who don’t follow instructions are more likely to disobey orders when the Sewol ferry is sinking, so instead of remaining in place as the PA announcements say to do, they abandon ship right away and end up being the only survivors. The ones following instructions are the ones who end up drowning.
But the Sewol disaster may not prove that following instructions isn’t always good. Instead, it may merely prove that a lack of common sense can be deadly: You should know when to follow instructions and when not to.
I don’t know; there’s a time and place for rebellion, but natural rebels often reflexively rebel against the wrong things, and it’s such a waste.
As for your “different” mistakes…
Your pet mistakes mostly revolve around (1) commas; (2) when to use hyphens; and (3) not recognizing clauses and other sentence parts, like compound predicates.
Here—try this. Write three sentences with compound predicates. Don’t make the sentences too short, either. And the coordinating conjunction in each compound predicate has to be “but” since that’s the sort of sentence where you’re likely to mess up the punctuation.
Example:
At the beach, Herbert contentedly scratched his ass but kept a cautious eye out for that butt-crack-pecking seagull.
NO COMMA.