I’ve been feeling like shit lately. The worst aspect of my ill health is my labored breathing. Coupled with that, there has been an intermittent cough these past few days, which is at its worst when I’m in a prone position when trying to sleep. I got less than three hours in last night, and so on top of everything else, I’m feeling weak and drained. I was headed for the door to try and get a walk in this morning, and Swan convinced me to give it a rest. So, I turned on Netflix and randomly selected a movie called “It Could Happen to you” to watch.
Yesterday, I went to the meet-up with the Wednesday Walkers but bailed on joining the group hike. The slightest incline gets me sucking air, and I just hate to hold the other guys back from a more challenging trek. I still did a flat walk through several neighborhoods and kept going until I hit 8K. I felt pretty good about that accomplishment.
I came home, took a nap, wrote TWO blog posts, showered, and then headed into town again for the Wednesday feeding at Hideaway.
I only stayed about an hour, then headed back up the highway to my side of town. As I passed by the new Oasis bar, I saw my pal Mark, who is the bar manager, out front. Naturally I felt obligated to stop in for a beer. Or two.
My waitress said she remembered from when she worked at Queen Victoria. That is a very infrequent stop on my barhops, and she didn’t even look familiar to me. They’ve opened a kitchen at Oasis now, and the head cook, Rica, is also someone I know from my dart league days. She brought me out a free order of fries. I tried a couple to be polite, but I wasn’t hungry. The other girls finished them off quickly. I was the only customer at the time and felt like I should show my support, so I told the waitress she could pick three sandwiches for the girls to share (there were six on duty upstairs). Two club sandwiches and a burger order were placed.
I did my nightcap at Wet Spot, then headed home a little before 8:00. I went to bed early, but a hacking cough is not conducive to sleep, so I was up and down all night. The only good news is that my tooth has stopped hurting, at least for now.
Oh, and when I got home, I showed Swan my lipstick-free neck. She laughed. She’s really been an angel trying to comfort me during this uncomfortable time in my life.
Breathing problems are scary. While my bout with COVID was mostly okay, there was one night where, every time I started falling asleep, I seemed to stop breathing. The fear of suffocating while in that state of semiconsciousness kept me awake the whole night. Luckily, that was the only night where that happened. All of which is to say: I can relate. I hope I don’t come off sounding like Biden comforting Hawaiians by talking about a minor kitchen fire.
I had to look up what Zumba dancing was. And now I know.
Continued good luck with your diet (cut way down on the beer!), and good luck as you deal with those pulmonary issues.
People hammer you for downing beers but literally what else are you going to do there? As an expat you could walk the dogs and read the papers but that still leaves 14 hours of daytime and we all need some community. Just so happens that yours hangs in bars. Unless there are tea shops full of English language speakers you are not letting us onto about I don’t know how you would have friends if you did not call in on these establishments so fuck the naysayers and keep on doing what keeps you sane. Health obstacles would appear even if you mummified and subsisted on organic lettuce. That said, I would also take up learning something.
Korean food is my favorite. I miss both it and the kind, well-mannered Korean people more than you can imagine. You were lucky to be married to a beautiful Korean lady. Maybe one day fate will shine upon you again and allow you the joy of bethrothing another gochujang-scented princess!
Goldberg, yes, I had a very happy Korean life right up until the time I didn’t. I will never understand why that had to end, but life goes on, and here I am in the Philippines, trying to make the best of whatever time I have left. There’s no going back.
Dan, I was raised in a bar culture (my earliest memories with my dad are sitting in beer joints while he held court with his bar buddies and I sipped on RC Colas), and so the social life of drinking establishments just seems to come naturally to me. I’m disappointed that I haven’t been motivated to travel as much as I intended to do in retired life, but things change, and I could find myself on the road once again. Anyway, I am what I am, and that’s all that I am, so I’m gonna do me and try to be happy in my golden years.
Thanks for your support!
Kev, I think you were with me when I had a breathing attack one night in Itaewon. I had to sit down for a while to catch my breath. Since my COPD diagnosis and meds, those incidents have been rare. So, having these issues escalating now is more than a little concerning. I’m not sure how much is related to the nasal blockage, but I’m not confident my forthcoming surgery will alleviate the problem completely. It sucks being short of breath almost all the time. And yeah, the incident you describe is scary as hell and not the way I want to exit this life.
I knew a couple of gals in Korea who led Zumba classes, but it is huge here in the Philippines. I’ve never tried it, but it looks to be a healthy pastime.
Beer will be the last thing to go, and if that becomes necessary, I’ll replace it with something less carby, like gin. I just need to keep moving and breathing and eating smarter. I’ll get there!
Not much to add other than hoping the health issues resolve in the right direction. Sucks having breathing issues. Hate to bring up the C(ovid) word, but lots of talk that Covid is a vascular issue. Daughter of a friend had it and breathing/shortness of breath was one of her main symptoms. Though I think that most people with Covid have a dry cough and it seems that you don’t. Maybe worthwhile to test and see.
Anyway, keep on keeping on.
Brian, it doesn’t feel like Covid. I had it before, and I’ve also been vaccinated, so what are the odds? It could be my COPD has inexplicably progressed, or maybe I’m experiencing some other respiratory infection (I’m hocking up phlegm). I’m going to do some antibiotics, and hopefully, that will help.