Here we go again. I’ll try to keep it short and sweet today. I’ve got the grocery shopping quirks, the RSL gathering, a post-meeting visit to the Kokomo’s floating bar, and a stroll on the beach. And that was the extent of my Tuesday. It wasn’t all that exciting, but the day did have its moments.

Shopping at Royal was more frustrating than usual due to the out-of-stock bugaboo. It boggles my brain that a major grocery store can’t seem to keep popular items on the shelf. I’m not even talking about imports that may be subject to shipping delays; the things I couldn’t get yesterday are all made right here in the Philippines–stuff like the Bingo cookies I hand out on my walks and Coke fucking Zero for chrissakes. Okay, okay, I’ll calm down. There was a happy ending to the frustration. We visited a supermarket in Olongapo City called YBC to see if we could fill any of those Royal shortcomings. They had everything we wanted and more. I stocked up on Bingo cookies and found Coke Zero in the 16oz bottles I prefer over cans. Royal hasn’t had the bottles going on a year now. An added bonus was getting all the candy we usually have to purchase at the Subic Market Place. I’ll be making YBC a regular stop on my shopping Tuesdays henceforth.

Next up was the Return and Services League meeting that began at 2:00 p.m. I hadn’t been for over a year, so I needed to renew the memberships for Swan and me (1050 pesos for both). The gathering was at Mango’s, and we were lucky enough to get there early and find good seats. Beer cards were available for purchase (four beers for only 250 pesos), which was a reasonable discount. I bought two cards during the course of my visit.

So, the RSL meeting (or at least this one) was all about the raffles, of which there were three. We did stand for a moment of silence to honor those who served defending Australia as well as those who made the ultimate sacrifice. The first raffle was for a variety of prizes (mostly liquor and grocery items), but the big items were two tickets for a chance at the Joker jackpot. One of the reasons for the large turnout is that the Joker pool is now over 75,000 pesos ($1500.). Swan and I both contributed 500 pesos for tickets to the drawing, but alas, our numbers were not drawn. The two folks who were selected had to guess where the joker card was on a board. Only ten cards (out of 52) had not as yet been turned over, so the odds were in their favor. Both of them guessed wrong, so next week, the pot is larger, and only eight cards remain. Will I go and try again? Probably not.

My main gripe about the RSL gathering is the early start, the same reason I retired from dart league. I’ve got my schedule and routines, and heading out before two messes me up. The other thing is I found sitting around waiting for the next raffle to begin excruciatingly boring. Once the Joker drawing was done, the last pot was called the 50-50. You purchase as many separate tickets as you want at 100 pesos each, and if your ticket is drawn, you get half of that pot. We bought 500 pesos worth. They kept going around the room soliciting additional ticket purchases, and I grew increasingly impatient and frustrated because I was ready to go. At last, they did the drawing, and lo and behold, my number was drawn, and I became 6500 pesos richer. That more than covered my expenses for the afternoon.

With my refurbished wallet in pocket, we made our way to Baloy Beach.

So, with eight beers under my belt at the RSL and four more on the floater, it was time to make our way home.

My judgement was once again impaired and I finished off the apple strudel leftovers along with the rest of the ice cream. But that’s all I had for dinner, so it balances out, right?

So, here’s another episode in The Story of My Life. My first dining experience in a traditional Korean restaurant, sitting on the floor and using metal chopsticks, wasn’t a total disaster, and I did learn from it. It was the beginning of my time in Korea and it only got better from there. I will always remember and miss those days.

Going even further down memory lane, forty years ago, I was immersed in another alien world–Oklahoma.

Twenty years ago, when LTG was still something new, I linked to a post from Althouse about intelligence as a factor in mate selection. The comments on my post made me smile when I re-read it today, with both my wife at the time (Carol) and my high school girlfriend (Cherish) weighing in. What a life I’ve lived! And yes, I did write posts with some substance back in those days.

Today’s YouTube video is evidence of just how low I can go. Hey, I’m trying at least. And this really is just for practice, so bear with me. I’ll get better, I promise.

Yikes! Clear your head with these:

Okay, here’s how my day started:

No idea what’s coming next today, or where it is happening, but I expect it might involve some beer. I’ll let you know about today’s hike and tonight’s debauchery tomorrow.

You still here? Well, if you thought the YouTube video I posted above is bad, get a load of this one I did earlier:

I’ve got a long way to go! But I’ll do better. Starting with holding the phone so the video isn’t sideways. Oh, and my story “when I moved to Korea…” was supposed to be “when I moved to the Philippines.” The only way to go from here is up!