Country living brings the clean air, lush green areas, farm fields and solitude.
Both have a lot of great qualities to be extolled, but the fact is, we all came from cleaner, better ordered societies that had more comfort, convenience and cleanliness than anywhere you will find here in the Philippines.

I never experienced a brownout in the USA. A driver’s license renewal took twenty minutes, as did getting new license plates for the car. Grocery shopping was a clean, simple, comfortable task that took more time to shop than to checkout. Dairy products were fresh and plentiful. Meats and poultry were not laid out to be handled by every dirty handed shopper that walked by. The roads were in better shape, most people obeyed traffic laws and pedestrians ALWAYS had the right-of-way. Cable TV was better, phone service was better and my computer worked WAY, WAY, WAY better than ANY provider in the P.I.

I never was asked for a bribe just to go about my daily life and never even considered it as a way of doing business.

So, anyone who tells you that living in the Philippines is better than living in, say, the USA, is either trying to sell you something, has their own ulterior motive or is a bald faced liar! Oh yeah, I do like living here and plan to stay for 4 years while my wife goes to college. (My ulterior motive is 4 years of college in the USA $50,000 USD or the same degree here in the Philippines $6,800 USD)

Now for the reason I wrote today,
People, who do not understand Bruce’s decision to give the USA another try, have not lived in Bruce’s skin, walked in his shoes or experienced life in the same way he has. I think Bruce knows that this move will not be easy. It’s a road he has chosen for himself and his wife (who will probably, one day, become a US citizen herself).

Most Filipinos, if asked, would say “Hell YES!” to a trip to the US or Great Britain, Australia, Europe or any first world county.

We all (expat’s) come here for many different reasons. Begrudging one of our own for choosing a path back is a little hypocritical, don’t you think? I commend Bruce for stepping outside his comfort zone and heading out to the USA. He received an opportunity to go and believes it worth the attempt to try. I am sure it was a very difficult decision to make. Good for him!

All of my friends thought I was a NUT for coming here to live. Most of yours probably do too! (Be honest!)
We have all read Bruce’s writing here and agree with him or not, we were glad to have them to read, think about and respond to.

I have met Bruce and can tell you that he has written with great insight, honesty, self-discipline, tolerance and respect for the Philippines. All he ever wanted to do was tell you about his life here, to journal his experiences as an Expat trying to make it in a different country and sharing with us, his life. He did not try to convince anyone to do it his way or do as he did; he just put his life out for others to experience.
Thanks Bruce for your musings on life in Davao, the ranting when you needed to and the friendly advice when offered.

I will continue to read and try to contribute time to time.
Good luck in Vegas and God’s speed.
Hugs for Elena.

Steve in Davao

His girlfriend had to work on Sunday, so I mentioned how we go early to the Palengke (public market) and later to the mall for the rest of the marketing. He wanted to experience life here so he was interested in joining us. We then planned for his girlfriend to come to our house after work and they could have dinner at our home.

We all got along so well it looked like it would be good being his companion and tour guide the days his girlfriend was working. Each day we would meet in the morning, go for coffee, drive around, eat lunch and just enjoy talking and getting to know each other.

On Wednesday, he came with me when I played bridge and watched or took a walk around the area to take photos. On Thursday, he came with me to the group Bisaya lessons with the expat group.

Since he contacted me before my plan to return to the U.S., he brought me a few items I needed. At times, I would buy coffee and he would buy lunch. Sometimes it was the other way. We would talk about different things and enjoyed each other’s company.

He also had the idea, when his, now, fiancé comes to America, to have her fly to Las Vegas and he will join her there. He said I could be the Best man too.

Sometimes you meet someone, there is not click, and you each try to avoid each other. Sometimes it started well but each other’s lifestyles are too different that you do not see each other often and sometimes a bond develops.

I never thought when I started this site I would have people wanting to meet me when they visit. I also never imagined my site would turn into advice to others. From this, I am glad I have met so many people on line and in person and was able to assist in any way. It makes me feel good when, in some small way, I have touched someone’s life and helped.

Originally, we played on Wednesday from about 10:30 am until about 2:30pm. We would break for lunch. The location we play is an apartment complex with a restaurant. We use one table to play and then move to another table for lunch. Now we are usually playing on Wednesday and Saturday and at times play to 5:30 pm.

As I stated, in Bridge, you are part of a team and you bid for the contract. A bid is a code, but a code everyone knows. You cannot make up secret codes only known to your partner. Not as in Spades where each player gets a point for each trick won, in Bridge only the team takes wins the contract counts tricks. The bidding tells your partner and the other team approximately how many points you have in your hand and which suit you want for trump. There is also a No-trump bid where there will be not trump. A bid means you will win 6 plus the number you bid, so One Spade means you will win seven tricks. In addition, the different suits have higher value than the others for bidding. A Club is the lowest, and then comes Diamonds, Hearts, Spades and then No-Trump. Spades and Diamonds are major suits and Diamonds and Clubs are minor suits.  If you bid one Club, then next player can bid one Diamond. After one No-Trump the next higher bid is two Clubs. As I stated a bid of One means you will need to win seven tricks and a bid of two means you will need to win eight tricks to complete contract.

The bidding convention, or rules and meanings of the bidding terms have changes over the years. Now most play “Modern Standard American” bridge. In this version, to open a bid you need a

That is the easy part, the confusing thing is some bids do not mean as they sound. First, after you look at your cards you need to value your hand. To do that you count high card points, an Ace = 4, a King = 3, a Queen = 2 and a Jack = 1. To open, or the first of your team to bid and not pass, you need a minimum of 13 points in your hand in most cases. If you have a long suit of 7 or more in that suit and have 5-9 points, you can open the bidding for your team.

Once you open, when the bidding comes to your partner, he can do a response bid to let you know if he has any points, the approximate points and if he likes your suit, or wants to let you know if he prefers a different suit. This is all accomplished with a bid. For instance, I have 13 points and five cards in a major suit or 4 cards in a minor suit I can bid one of that suit. Now if my partner has 3 or more cards in the suit I bid, he should reply with a two bid in that suit unless he has opening points and wants to let me know he has a different suit he wants the contract.

If this all sounds confusing, it is a first. Over time and playing a lot, you get to remember and understand the bidding. It takes time, but it is fun and an enjoyable hobby. For me it is almost an addiction. I downloaded Bridge tutorials and then bought Hoyle’s Card Game, which has Bridge. Now I can sit for hours at home playing Bridge.

I joked with Steve via email about his Christmas Day, with family there, how much English he heard during the day. In response Steve wrote another interesting article about now living in the Philippines.

Speak English to me! by Steve in Davao

Bruce emailed me the other day with this question. “I wonder once your daughter learns Bisayan and uses it on a daily basis and now your wife is back in her element, how much English you will hear.” He also asked if I hear many complete English sentences spoken in my house. It doesn’t sound like a real hard question, but it did set me to thinking.

The question actually cracked me up. I found it a rather funny question, and at the same time, a little disquieting, almost a plea for help (or at least a good conversation). I have only been here a short time and already I “get it”. Between my wife, her niece, who lives with us and my sister-in-law, who lives down the street, I rarely do hear full English sentences spoken in my house. To complicate things further, my brother-in-law is Japanese and we find ourselves hanging around his friends a lot. They are a great bunch of people and we enjoy being with them, but the language barrier does exist. Luckily, my 5 year old speaks good ole’ American English, but, a conversation with a five year old does have its limits. I do worry that she will start to lose her English over time.

I had not given a lot of thought to the language barrier until Bruce asked me about it. He mentioned that my daughter would soon be learning the Bisayan language and I would become even more isolated. He’s right! I will hear less and less English spoken as time goes by. I think that is why he asked the question. He is already feeling the effects of being a little isolated by language, you can only be the outsider on so many conversations, and you start to feel left out. Maybe I need to cultivate some new friendships between the English speaking population here in Davao. I already have plans to meet Bruce and Elena after the holidays. I think we will hit it off and we will become friends.

Note: My wife calls all non-Filipino looking people “Americans”. She said that includes all European or European descent, including Americans, African-Americans, Australians and just about all foreigners. So please bear with me if you’re not an American, but fit into her broad definition.

One observation I would like to get some opinions on. Have you noticed that most “Americans” you see, do not make eye contact and generally ignore each other? Am I mistaken on this or what? I actually stopped a Canadian family in a grocery store recently just to chat and they seemed a little taken back at first. We had a nice chat and enjoyed the conversation, but that was it. I have smiled and made eye contact with many “Americans” here, but most just look away and go about their business. I would have thought that we English speakers would seek each other out for conversation and possible friendship. I think I am starting to get a complex.

I once read an article in this forum that mentioned numerous organizations here, made up of expat’s. Expat and Foreigner Relationships in the Philippines
was the name of the article and you can read it under Bruce’s heading “culture”. Maybe that’s part of my reaching out to Bruce and Elena for friendship. Bruce might, in turn, be able to introduce me to other expat’s. I do not know how I pictured the expat community prior to coming here. I have not been here that long, but so far, I am not feeling very welcome. Is that only the impression of a newbie who has not given Davao a chance or are people that tight with their friendship? Let me know your thoughts on this.

Anyway, the longer I live here, the more Filipino, Japanese, Chinese and other languages I will hear and probably less and less English. That is not a problem because I don’t think I will “lose” my English, but I just might start to feel a little isolated at times.
In the meantime, anyone who wants a new friend, I speak English and I‘m available! ….Ha-ha!
Steve in Davao

A while back he mentioned that once he retires here, it there was something he needed from the States he would ask friends planning to visit to bring some items or have them ship it through a Balikbayan shipper.

Balikbayan shipping is a way to ship personal items and the shipping cost is based on box size and not weight.

Well, I joked, if he visited, I would like some Seagram’s 7, which has not been available in Davao. The next comment I received was just one word, “done”.

Since electronics are imported in the Philippines and with that a import tariff, I asked about purchasing for me an external disk drive to have for backup and then replacement if my large external drive ever crashes. He informed me a good system available that I did not know about was a docking station where you can just insert an internal drive. The price is less than the external drive type that I use and with it; I can have multiple drives to use. I was interested in a Terra drive, but he convinced me to get two 500 GB drives so I can alternate for backups.

There were a few other items I asked for that is not available, one being the PM type of non-aspirin pain relievers, like Tylenol PM. Again he said no problem. Well Monday evening they came to our house for dinner and with them all the items I requested. The price was even less than I expected. Since I am not a big drinker and rarely ever drank at home I was shocked to see two 1.75 liter bottles of Seagram’s 7.  I hope I can finish these bottles before the alcohol evaporates.

The main point of this article is to show the help, assistance and friendships that can develop over the internet. Here is a couple that read my site for the information I provide, and at times comment with any agreement or even disagreement. They planned a trip here and were willing to purchase and bring items I wanted and needed.

With an article about having hobbies, he decided to open his own site Philippines or Bust (Retiring in the Philippines) http://www.philippinesorbust.com/

I have met other readers from this site, some who live here and some that visit. One of the most memorable was meeting Evelyn, a Filipina from General Santos City that works as a Caregiver in California. When she came back to visit her family, she invited us to visit her city and gave us a tour. She and her friends were so friendly, gave is gifts and would not even let us pay for anything during the day.

This is one of the most delightful ways that shows how the internet makes the world smaller and the connections and friendships that can be formed.

With this site, and many readers, I have been asked to get information for some people, answer questions, locate items and also assist people either moving here or once here finding places to rent. I always do my best to help when asked.

About three months ago, one of the readers here contacted me. He was soon to arrive in Davao and asked if I know of a nice apartment to rent on a monthly basis for his stay. He was planning an extended vacation and felt if he could rent a place cheaper than a hotel, and had the ability to cook some of his own meals, he could remain here for a few months. The day he arrived, he emailed me, and then sent me a text. I told him of about the apartelle I posted about on June 30th. Click here to read.
I also offered to meet him at his hotel and drive him to see the accommodations. As soon as he viewed the apartment available, he said he would take it. I drove him back to his hotel where he checked out, brought his luggage down and I drove him back. He became a real friend that day and stayed here 2 ½ months until he needed to return home quickly because of an illness in his family.

Last Friday I was contacted again by an American who just arrived in Davao and with a similar request. This man is planning to live here in Davao but wanted to locate a place to rent, fully furnished with all the amenities including wifi or internet access. I directed him to the article I had posted, and again as in the past, I offered to pick him at his hotel and drive him to see the apartments. I met him at 10 am at a nearby coffee shop and we talked a little, then I drove him and his girlfriend to see the apartment. Just as with the previous person, he liked it right away and I drove him back to check out of his hotel and after we stopped for lunch, I brought him to move in. Just as the first person I met and showed the apartment, we sat for a few hours talking and soon realized we felt comfortable with each other to be friends.

With both these people, they asked to pay me something for my time and gasoline. I told them to give me what they felt they thought was applicable and I was treated fairly.

Also from my time here, and my associations with tradesman and architects, I have been asked for design assistance and to possibly help with getting a house built. Many times someone has needed a painter, electrician, carpenter, mason or other building or repair needs.

Recently a friend replaced an old hot water unit in his shower. The new unit drew more current than the old one and after about a minute of use, it blew the breaker. He asked me if I had an electrician. I contacted my best contact and two hours later, I brought my electrician to his house. The electrician went into the attic, checked the wiring and gave his recommendations, a part list of needs and his fee for labor. My friend agreed and within two hours, the job was done.

Earlier this week, another friend contacted me. He bought a new range with a lift cover and an exhaust fan unit. Unfortunately his kitchen cabinet was too low to even raise the glass cover. My friend wanted to have the cabinet bottom raised, the exhaust fan wired and a hole to the outside for the exhaust outlet. I contacted my carpenter and the next evening brought him to my friend’s house. They discussed the project and my friend also realized with the location of the range, he would have room to add an “L” extension to the lower cabinet between the range and the existing cabinet. My carpenter looked over the project, made a parts list and decided it would take four days with him and a helper. He gave my friend the labor fee and my friend agreed. The project started Wednesday and on Friday I visited the house, most of the work was done and the tile on the cabinet extension was complete. It matched so well, once painted, it would look original. Saturday I met with my friend in the evening and asked about the project. He told me it was done and he was completely satisfied with the work and will keep my friend in mind for future needs.

After we hired our domestic helper, Elena was asked by a few friends if she could get helpers for them. Elena called her sister-in-law and about a week later, she came to Davao with three girls for Elena’s friends.

I enjoy these situations. I get to help foreigners that need assistance and also get to help Filipinos whom I know with their businesses. If I make a commission, that is fine, but not my main objective. Maybe someday it will turn into a real business or someone will offer me a position or a way to earn some income because of our connections.

Approximately thirty minutes after posting the article I received an email from PayPal that I received $2.10 USD (approx 100 pesos). This donation was from a Filipina reader from Luzon. This lady is someone who has followed my site for a long time now and through emails has gotten to know each other fairly well. She has some online and virtual businesses and at times we have both asked each other for advice on internet matters.

This lady does not have a lot of money and has times she struggles to support herself and her children. The amount is not a lot in value, but huge in feeling. I sent this lady a thank you email letting her know how thoughtful she was. She replied that her grandmother taught her “you receive more than you give.” She felt since she finds value from my site, and our friendship that has develop, she wanted to show her appreciation.

A few weeks later, I told her about how I met an American here in Davao that has a business supplying content for some large websites. I mentioned to this lady, it might be something she would be interested in applying for. No contact was made, but the next day I received $5.00 in my PayPal account from her again. As before I emailed her to thank her and she explained her reason again. She wrote back about her grandmother and how she was taught “Before your cup can be filled, you need to empty the existing contents.” She explained in her life, at times when she goes through her closet and takes out items she does not use, or worn and gives to a charity, or to someone in need, she receives new clothes as a gift or a money gift where she can go shopping.

I still have not been able to connect this lady with the man in the content business, but we still keep in contact to see how each is doing. Last week I received another donation. I saw her online in one of the chat programs and thanked her. She mentioned she was thinking about our friendship and decided, since she has a little extra in her account, to donate again.

Now, the amount she has giving me is just enough to maybe have a small meal, or something small, and not enough to support me or my family, but the value of her thought and friendship is riches.

It is also interesting with all the Foreigners that follow this site, ask for advice and or information, nobody else has donated. I do need to make this clear, I am not asking for, expecting, or even begging for my readers to support me. I realized a while ago, this site is something that has become part of me and I will not earn enough to support myself here. I will not get rich or even make enough for a good meal. I am just showing to all readers who have distrust or fears of making friendships with Filipinos, here is a lady with so little but has a need in her heart and soul to show her appreciation in our friendship, the value of my writings, how I try to teach other foreigners what to expect living here or just a visit and right or wrong, it is the way it is and it is their culture.

I know this lady will know I am writing about her, so in this puplic forum I want to say to her Thank You so much and I cherish and value our friendship. You are a wonderful lady. If your Grandmother is still alive, please tell her my admiration for how she has raised a wonderful person. If she is gone and up in heaven, I know that she is watching you and already knows.

Palawan? – by John Ray Arquisola

Last May 26, 2009 was my 10th year of residency here in Palawan. Originally, I am from Cebu City. It is there I spent the 14 years of my life. The first two years of my life was spent in Mindanao. Basically, you could say, I have been traveling for quite a while. But any way, I as I said, it’s my 10th year here in Palawan and I have been a witness to many good and some not so good things of this place. I have decided long ago that I will probably die in this place someday. That is of course if nothing comes up in the near future.

When I decided to finish my secondary studies here 10 years ago, I never thought I would be able to get this far. Originally, my plan was to go back to Cebu and finish tertiary education there. I spent most of my life in the city and it was even unthinkable back then to see myself living in a barrio. I thought I would go insane.

However, my first months turned out to be anything aside from boring. My uncle, a pastor, and some of the people I know taught me to fish, dig for crabs in a nearby island, open up sea shells and eat sea urchins. It was also here that I experienced swimming while numerous fish swam around me. Before, I only get to see these happen in television. Now I don’t have to watch television to know how it feels, I have lived it. So as the months moved on, my love for the place also grew. Thus four years ago, I finished my tertiary education at Palawan State University and three years ago I decided to marry my long time friend and college classmate. My love for Palawan has evolved from just mere admiration and adventure. It may not be perfect place. There are many what if’s and could have’s in this place. Things are not yet quite mature (even most of the politicians are not). But Palawan is still starting to progress and with technology becoming more available to the masses, progress is not far to achieve.
*SO WHERE IS PALAWAN?*

Nine years ago on a summer, I told my former classmates where I now live and described to them the beauty of this place. They just stared blankly at me and said, “Ah, so where is Palawan?” I was taken aback by the question. Why on earth were they clueless about Palawan considering that they live in the Philippines? I realized that back then; Palawan did not receive much media attention. Yes, Puerto Princesa city was the cleanness and greenness city in all of the Philippines, but despite this prestige many remained clueless about the island.

That was ten years ago. Now, whenever I get to meet people in the internet and I tell them where I live, they get so excited about Palawan. I believe that the media attention and the affordability of communication have widened the knowledge of most people. Though Palawan is still considered the last frontier in the Philippines, I think today, it is most of the time the prioritized destination for tourist.

So where exactly is Palawan? Here is a textbook answer for those who do not have any clue.
Palawan is an island which is (1990 pop. 528 287) 4, 550 sq mi (11 785 sq km) and is the 5th largest in the Philippines. It is north of Borneo and between the Sulu Archipelago and the South China Sea.

*WHAT MAKES PALAWAN FAMOUS*

Basically, Palawan is most famous for its white sand beaches. I have been to beaches in Puerto Princesa City, here in my hometown-Roxas -San Vicente and EL Nido. Most of Palawan’s famous resorts can be found in Puerto Princesa city, El Nido and Coron. There are other famous resorts in some of the other municipalities but the majority is found in the places mentioned above. I have not been in those five star resorts because the cost per night ranges from 4,000 to 15,000. The most expensive resort in Palawan, Amanpulo, is near the island of Cuyo. A night in Amanpulo costs around Php. 47,000 + per night. According to one of my friend who once worked there, they had many guests who were Hollywood actors and actresses.

My favorite beaches can be found in El Nido. My wife grew up there and their family owns a beach.  One thing I love about El Nido is that I do not have to pay a fortune to experience the bounty of nature.

Aside from beaches, Palawan is also rich many forms of natural resources. Palawan boasts of many different kinds of animals and plants. Mineral resources also abound.  Two of the Philippine’s world heritage site can be found here in Palawan—the Tubbataha reef and the Puerto Princesa subterranean river. There are also offshore gas natural deposits.
*WILL YOU VISIT PALAWAN?*

I invite you to visit Palawan someday. If you live here in the Philippines or live abroad, do make it a point to visit Palawan. I am sure you will enjoy it.

*WHAT ELSE WOULD YOU WANT TO KNOW?*

I cannot cover everything in this short post, but if there is anything you would like to know about Palawan, please leave a comment. I will try to cover it in my next post here or in my blog, Palawan Anecdotes.

Last Wednesday the foreigner group I belong to, Friends of Mindanao, made a road trip to Agusan del Norte to visit the home of one of our members, Richard and Jesa. Their home is in Agusan which is about a 3 hour drive north of Davao. We arraigned for two private vans to accommodate the 20 members and their wives/girlfriends.

We met at a local shopping mall parking lot, where our cars would be safe for the day, early and we left about 7 a.m. Because of the early departure, we stopped about an hour into our trip in Tagum for a light breakfast at Jollibee. I was surprised with my order. I do not like fried eggs, which was on all their egg breakfasts except their Pancake Sandwich with sausage egg and cheese. I was surprised, the savory taste of the sausage and the sweetness of the pancake.

After our breakfast it was back on the road to Agusan. With all of us in the vans the conversation was good and the trip was not too bad. I was in the rear and it did get warm but tolerable.

After about 2 more hours we arrived. The house sits up on a hill and with the weight of the van they decided to leave the vans at the lower area. With this we had to climb the steps up to paradise.

Once on top I got to see why they named the place “New Eden” because it was beautiful. They had 2 huge aviaries; a long bamboo pole going from a high dog enclosure angled down for a cute little monkey chained but able to move around. The monkey at first intimidated us by his growl and jumping off the pole towards us until he reached the end of the chain. Eventually Richard came over and was holding and petting the monkey and showed how friendly he was. I took the challenge and walked over. The little guy climbed over to my arm and let me pet him until he decided to climb up my arm and around. He started giving me friendly love bites to my arm and I decided to put him back before he decided I might be a tasty snack.

Then I saw a beautiful landscaped area with a nice size pool. There was a covered sitting area to the side of the pool to relax and a big patio off the rear of the house.

Richard and Jesa made us at home right away with smiles, hugging and cool beverages for all. We all relaxed at the different seating areas and relaxed. After a while we were called in for the feast they put out for us and after a short prayer it was come and get it. They had of salad, fried chicken, spaghetti and chili con carne to pour over the pasta, there was a type of shell fish that looked like tiny conch shells and of course a huge lechon (grilled whole pig). There was also fresh pineapple and watermelon.

A little while after lunch some of the guests put on their swimming attire and went into the pool for some cooling fun and relaxation. I was just being lazy and just relaxed and enjoyed conversation with some friends I do not see often.
Well, the afternoon progressed and before we realized it, it was time to pack up and head back to Davao. With big thanks to our hosts and sad feelings of leaving such a wonderful place, we all got back into the vans for our ride home.  We stopped along the way at a nice roadside stop for a snack and then back to the traffic and congestion of Davao City.

Even though it was nice to be home, I sure missed the country feeling being so far away in such a beautiful location. If Richard and Jesa read this, I thank you so very much for opening your home for us all to enjoy. It was a wonderful day for us all and your kindness unsurpassed.

The other night while I was doing some things on my computer, I noticed I received an email from Facebook. The message was “Are you the Bruce from Hemit, CA?” Well I was kind of shocked. I had not lived in Hemit since 1992 and moved from California to Florida in 1997. It turned out it was from an old friend Debbie who at the time I lived there was dating my friend Bill.

Around 1990 I moved to a little town in Southern California called Hemit. Hemit and San Jacinto are two little towns in a little valley in Riverside County. It was a farm area and a retirement community too. I was renting a nice little 2 bedroom duplex in a small rental community of duplexes.

I do not remember who was living there first, but I became good friends with a man about my age named Bill. We got along well and had something in common; we both enjoyed Country Western Dancing.

For a while we would drive together to a club we enjoyed called the Brandin’ Iron in San Bernardino. The Brandin Iron was a very nice club because of a large dance floor and over all a friendly crowd. After a while Bill started dating Debbie. She was a sweet lady and really liked Bill. There was times Debbie would come to Bills home with all the items needed to cook a nice meal and many of these times, I would be invited to the dinner. I remember on Easter I was invited to a wonderful Easter dinner. As I am a joker, Debbie had a great sense of humor and we would always joke with each other. About the time I was moving from California they told me they were engaged.

Well, I moved to Florida and we lost touch with each other. And now living half way around the world, I have lost track of many old friends. And with my poor memory, I am lucky if I can remember old friend’s first names, let alone last names.

In America, not like here in the Philippines, unless you had a close and long friendship, as life goes on and you move from place to place, state to state or as for me, to another county, you forget many of the old friends you have made. You have some friends and after you move you make new friends and many old ones are forgotten. So you can understand how shocked someone I had not seen, spoken to or had any contact with from 12 years ago, how shocked to get the email and find out I was not forgotten.

Well as soon as I received the email, I opened Facebook and saw Debbie was still online. I sent her a chat message and then eventually on the phone talked for a while catching up.
It turned out they have been married 12 years. Bills 2 daughters I had known as teens are married and Bill and Debbie are grandparents. The also are retired and have a travel trailer and spend their time touring the US.

Debbie was also shocked to learn I am living all the way in the Philippines. I explained what had happened in my life and why I am here.

I am amazed as forgetful I am that I had made such a impact in a friendship  and someone’s life that one day someone typed my name in Facebook and found me.

Maybe with Facebook and the internet I will find and be found by others from my past.