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Been there done that and not just once. Doing it again, last one is almost finished with college. They were presented with an opportunity. Yes it is out of love, and the fact fact that I can afford it easily enough. I didn't want a "fresh start", just someone to share my life with. On with the last chapter of the book of my life, just don't know how long the chapter is, but so far it has been a wonderful read.

Would I do it again? Yes. Do I want to do it again? No, that would mean that I lost someone who is very precious to me.

 

Partner and I retired here 5 yrs ago. Came here a year early and spent a month exploring in 2015. I have SRRV (deposit required cut by 85% with a DD214), over 50, which you probably are if you joined navy in '80. Got rid of 90% of our crap back there, don't miss any of it. KEEP the kitchen utensils. Don't store nuttin, donate, sell, garage sale, even if you don't stay, no point in hauling around, suits, sport coats, ties, unnecessary, get a polo barong... Kept our financial program back there, move money here to dollar account by wire, many different ways (we do USAA). Shift to peso account when needed or when good exchange... Easier that way, more liquidity back there, funds direct deposit there. DO estimate expenses, probably 1/2 to 1/3 of Long Beach, certainly better than bay area, which we fled. You can estimate during ur exploratory month (do not skip this, essential).

Health Insurance important, i was government, so have Fed program, like gold. Only for big emergencies, doctor appointments are $10 USD. Ended up buying cheap lot up the mountain, building small house. You could lease land and own a house, WAIT a few years, we've been renting for 5.. Make sure you have good lawyers here, we have two, one is a bull dog to scare anybody that wants to scam you. Local folks are wonderful people and friends. And, about Dumaguete, never criticize, cuz EVERYONE you meet is either a cousin of, related somehow, does business with, or went to school with, everyone else. Constantly blowing our minds, never lived in this small a town..

If any of the following drive you nuts, the place will make you cranky, just smile and deal with it or go elsewhere <grin>.
"sorry sir, out of stock." They will never say, "we don't carry it."
slightly nutty and slow drivers, traffic's a b*tch and not getting better. No such thing as "driver's ed."
somewhat lack of attention to detail by workers.
If they doesn't know the answer to your question, they might make something up.
People do NOT like to confront an uncomfortable situation, will ignore the problem until it goes away or blows up.
Cursing actually makes people uncomfortable. Great respect for elders, no such thing as "retirement home," have seen many 20 and 30 yr olds give grandma "mano." "Lola and Lolo" are very important.

I'm not concerned with vaccination, even at 77, although i wish we had it. 95% people wear masks, active cases less than 200 in a one million population, if you believe the government. We'll get the shot eventually. I'd rather be here without a vaccine than in looney land back there trying to get an appointment. Those people are crazy.....

 

I am sure you know this, but it is NOT the place where you seek a girl - it is the girl herself. Whether you look in 'Why Not', Church X, Dating site X or anywhere else, there will be girls of both good and bad nature. Luck plays a part in finding a good one (and many here have achieved that) but there are clues - does she seem caring, does she treat you as a future husband or as an ATM? Be careful of the family angle - if she has a big local family and they see you as a blessing because you're a foreigner, then perhaps you will have future problems with them.

People are very helpful on this forum, but it is not WHERE you look but WHAT YOU FIND that is most important - and how smart you are in getting to the root of her intentions.

 

Maybe true maybe not. It depends on how you define success.

My brother the accountant sits in a fancy retirement home with a gold plated toilet, not that he really needs it as a nurse wipes hit butt regularly with 3 ply tissue. The high points in his life revolve around which stock trades brought him to his climax. He was always happy to screw anybody and everybody for the fun of winning.
For me well. I raced motor cycle, owned and rode some fine horses at the international level (bottom end, but still). Had a few nice trucks, travelled around a lot for work and pleasure.

My Bro can sit around with nothing of importance to say and I can sit around with friends and a case of cheap beer and have stories to tell.

Who succeeded? That depends on how you define success.

 

My experience with stray dogs on the streets. I hit a stray crashed my motor. Was knocked out when I hit the cement road surface. The scratch on my left ankle got infected. The fight to save my left leg as to the infection lasted more than 3 months and cost more than ₱250,000.oo. I never fully recovered from that. Doctor wanted to amputate my leg at the knee. I had an I.V. in my right hand for a week used to inject powerful antibiotics. This fight to save my leg lasted three months.
One of Maria's cousins was killed after hitting a stray and crashing his motor. His wife (back rider) was in the hospital 45 days.
We have 4 dogs and they WILL NOT leave our yard even if we leave the gate open all night. The stray dog problem is NOT a dog problem it is a human problem. The Philippines has a leash law!?? If by chance you hit a dog and the owner wants you to pay. Just get the PNP and demand that they enforce the law. First offense is a ₱1,500 fine. Nobody owned the dog I hit even though it appeared to be well taken care of. My mistake was that I tried to stop before hitting that dog. The next time it will be hang on and throttle up.

 

I was diagnosed with Prostate Cancer about 6 years ago, before coming the the Philippines. I started my research by visiting 3 specialist in Southern California. each being the leader in a different approach to cure it: Robotic surgery removal of the prostate, use of radiotherapy beads, and radiation therapy. However it was soon apparent that the medical field is not a warm and fuzzy care field but a infomercial commercial endeavor. At least one doctor puts the bums rush on me for an operation. I then visited a fourth a group of doctors that specialized in Prostate Cancer but did not do any invasive surgeries. Their comment was that I would "die with it, but not because of it". I am currently living not as a survivor of Prostate Cancer, but a person living with prostrate cancer surviving in me, as I enjoy a good quality life.

Cancer is a scary word, but must be put in perspective. Prostrate Cancer can be very slow growing, but there are various types. My suggestion would be to monitor it. Do research on where you prostate cancer is located within the prostrate, and the type and speed of growth. Most people die from prostate cancer that escapes into the bones, and other locations of the body, which is why location is important. I also suggest carrying a baseball bat into any doctor's office where the conversation will include Prostate Cancer, because they will try to get you on the operating table, particularly here in the Philippines. When I looked into the eyes of the doctors I talked about prostate Cancer with i generally do not see compassion, I kept seeing seeing "" staring at me and a big smile on their faces. The worst was the one in Dumaguete who immediately want to operate on me, without any information but my comment that I have been diagnosed with prostate Cancer. Prostate Cancer is the Cancer that has built mansions for doctors.

I take it seriously (my brother died from it, my dad had it when he died at 92 years old) but I would not further risk my life here in the Philippines by having it operated on prematurely, by anyone that I did not have the highest confidence in the medical ability. First and foremost after you heart has returned to a normal pumping process after hearing you have prostate cancer is to determine what type you really have and location. There are many types and they are definitely not the same. Yes, people die from it, as my brother did, but monitoring it and getting second opinions is as important as stopping an unqualified doctor cutting on you, because of emotional panic.. DO NOT PANIC.. We can pretty much agree that medical procedures, particularly in Dumaguete and the Philippines in general can be risky, so do not increase your medical health risks by being operated on too early, or with un-qualified medical programs.

Anyone interested in more information please feel free to PM me here. Prostate cancer is no more of an immediate death sentence than eating those high cloestral eggs we have warned about for year until recently.

PS: Just to put thing into perspective, after being diagnosed I applied for a life insurance policy of half million dollars that will extend to when I am 85 years old, currently I am 43, opps that was a keybroad blunder , I mean going on 70. . I was approved for insurance. They had my medical records in making their judgement to insure me, and risk their money. I do not think insurance companies take unfounded chances or risks. I trust the insurance companies educated guess on my survival rate to be better than most doctors that want instant income through operations. So again stay calm and talk to your local insurance bookie.

PS2: I was told that if I had an operation, I may never get an erection again, may lose control of my bowels temporarily , and may have a hard time controlling my urine flow , thus requiring the wearing of diapers. I am a salesman in the past, but not that good of a salesman. I just could not figure out how I could make the pitch in Why Not to some young beauty that she should accompany me the the closest hotel. I could not figure out how to convince her that we would have a great time, even if did not get erection, while pissing and shitting all over the bed. If some good salesman here in Dumaguete can teach me how to make that sales pitch, maybe I will have an operation. In the meantime, I will enjoy life as I live it; knowing if I lose the battle my loved once will be well taken care of by the life insurance. (actually doctors told me those consequences, but a varying rates from 6% to 95% as possible outcomes depending on the size of their own personal house payment requirements).

PS3: PSA test are no longer bench mark test in the US. Protein levels in the Urine have much more reliability. From the internet:"
But PSA testing is problematic because it has low specificity, which generates high false positive rates and leads to unnecessary surgical and radiotherapy treatment.
A U.S. study published last year found that routine PSA prostate screening has resulted in more than one million American men being diagnosed with tumors who might otherwise have suffered no ill effects from them."

 

We bought our Chevrolet in Dumaguete (they were at the mall from Bacolod). We had to take it for required maintenance (for warranty coverage) to a local auto shop every 3 months and have our book filled out, showing we were keeping up with the maintenance. One day my car wouldn't start after driving to the mall, got a jump, drove home. Next morning the battery was dead again, so I charged it and it started. I drove it the next day and it died again. I was told to clean the terminals on the battery, it still died, then I was told it was the battery, so I replaced the battery, it STILL died!! Come to find out, it was the alternator and I was quoted something like 20,ooophp for a new alternator, which was supposed to be covered by the warranty. The car was only 2 years old and I questioned why the alternator would already be bad, and a local mechanic got into the guts of the alternator and was able to replace a small part inside that was faulty (not the entire alternator) for 7,000php. I submitted all paperwork to be reimbursed by Chevrolet for the warranty work. They said they would reimburse me, but denied my claim by ignoring my requests and not taking, nor returning, my phone calls. So, at one of my required maintenance appointments (which was performed by Bacolod Chevrolet), instead of paying them the 9000php (a ridiculous amount anyway) they usually charged for that service, I paid them 2000php and gave them copies of the paperwork for the 7000php warranty work, and I said "now we are even"!! They never refuted it or sent me another bill........anyway, watch out, they are a bunch of crooks!!

 

Thanks for your interest everyone .... Yes we have our own pigs and our Deaf team does the butchering - sort of like in the diagram above but a little more evenly split into 3 sections from the backbone to the rib tips. Baby back are what we may have available from time to time since the other ones are snatched up quickly by resort/restaurant customers. With increasing production, we are hoping supply all of your requests - do text 09936-809-9593.

By the way - All bacon is Php 500/kg - Canadian and "belly" or rashers (strips). That belly bacon is tough to slice just right :-) ALL DELICIOUS! Tocino now available (after 3 days curing - first batch today!) Check us out on facebook! Naturally Negros.