Philippines House Husband, Hypermart and Fleet Foxes

 

Hypermart
I just put up our latest trip to Hypermart video, in which I am on a quest to find a meat tenderizer.  You see, with Michell now working, I can’t expect her to be cooking after nine hours in a hot office, so it’s up to me to start cooking.  And considering that I have virtually zero cooking skills, it’s a bit of a challenge.

The video was actually fun to do – the production values are pretty spectacular in regards to awfulness – the Go Pro 2 is mounted crooked on my chest harness, and I am using the backup camera, which seems to have some audio problems.  Ah, well – at least people can see once again what stores and shopping are like in the Philippines. 

We go to Hypermart about once a week, mainly to stock up on the big stuff like bread, rice, peanut butter, meats, soda and the like.  The prices and convenience of shopping there are spot on, but their prices on fish and vegetables are awfully high – it’s much better hitting the Daro produce market on Tuesdays and Fridays for the veggies and passing through the Dumaguete public market early in the morning for fresh fish.  As I was filming, I also noted that I should probably do a section on shopping costs here so peeps can compare it against what they are paying in the rest of the world.  You can find some indication of general costs for Dumaguete over at numbeo.com – the actual link to it can be found HERE

Shopping Hyper Rat on Floor
Dead rat from our last Hypermart Trip

Whacha Doin?
I spent quite a bit of time working on collating all of our photos and video stock – I take a lot of each and had them scattered all over the place.  Being unorganized causes me stress, so it was a good feeling to finally get everything in one place.  I need to start posting up more photos in the blog and on our Facebook.  The problem with putting them up on the blog is that I have to resize them before posting – the storage space we have on our server is limited, and with each photo being over 4 MB, it adds up quick.  So what I do is use a program called pixresizer which does just that – it takes that 4 MB file and shrinks it down to about 150 KB with no noticeable loss of quality.  And considering that I am not a great photographer (and am relying mostly on phone cameras), the quality isn’t much to begin with.

DSC00044
Dude blowin his horn on the boulevard…
DSC00050
Goat friend of mine up at the kids’ new house


House Husband
Michell has been working for over two weeks now.  I am glad for her, and she seems to be enjoying it.  She was in an understandable funk for a good while after her father passed away, and I think having a job is a good thing.

Me waching clothes (800 x 450)
A house husband’s work is never done….


Since she is working, I have taken on the job of “house husband.”  You know, cinching on my apron, doing the dishes, sweeping and mopping the floor, mowing the grass, washing the vehicles, grocery shopping…. all that fun stuff.  Renting a house in the Philippines can be a pain – with the incessant heat and humidity, simply sweeping the floor can be a rather damp experience.  Mowing the grass is an absolute mess – I usually only wear shorts and those are drenched through by the time I am done.  Yuck…  But, at least it is a good cardio workout.

Rouser 200NS
I am SERIOUSLY considering purchasing this bike.  I know I have been saying it for a while, bu
t it’s pretty much the perfect bike for the Philippines – lightweight (only 50 pounds heavier than my YBR125) and powerful enough at 25 horsepower for the Philippines.  The YBR is a great bike, don’t get me wrong – it is just so underpowered and trying to maintain 70 KMPH on a long trip is pretty hard.  I am also thinking about seeling the truck (yet again).  We just don’t use it that much at all, and rainy season in the Philippines  isn’t like monsoon season in other parts of southeast Asia.  It rains for half a day at most, and then usually the sun comes out.  The Rouser costs 98,000 pesos brand new.  I can probably sell my YBR for about 38,000, so I will just have to make up the 60K difference.  It’s doable.

Kawasaki-Bajaj-Pulsar200NS
Kawasaki Rouser 200 NS

Seen at Unitop Department Store – Purveyor of Fine Chinese Products….
And it seems as if the President has already started up his new career path – exporting Obama pens!

Shopping unitop obama pens



Fleet Foxes
Oh, yeah – someone turned me on to a band called Fleet Foxes.  I don’t know how to describe their music, but they were pretty fantastic.  Check out the video for Grown Ocean below and let me know if I am wrong!  I just kinda wish I still smoked pot….

 

 

19 comments

  1. ned have you looked at the Kawasaki 220 avenger cruiser? has a better design for long distance and looks to have heavier shocks. price 101,000 Php. I plan on buying one in September. I don’t know if the price is for time payment or cash. thanks for the heads up on Obama’s new career. you know how the pens are going to be. wasteful, don’t work and make a huge mess. hehe
    don

  2. Nice update, sounds like things are moving along at its normal pace there. That bike Ned, is exactly what the last 6 months of research narrowed down to for me as well (once I actually get there that is). Thought that was a pretty amazing choice!

    1. For the record I was looking at the 220, but same bike. Just seemed to fit the all around bill. Even allowing use on some of the other roads that require a 200 or larger.

  3. I wondered what happened to the Fleet Foxes. They hit the scene about four years ago & then nothing!? Big beards! Man

      1. Father John Misty–WOW! I hear a little Alan Parsons Project, a little Jeff Lynne, a little George Harrison guitar, a little Honeydrippers… Hard to categorize–but man do I love his music!

  4. As for the ‘fleet fox’s’ I think they fall into my jonra , James Taylor ,Gordon Lightfoot, Crosby, Stills and Nash and America. So yes they sound great. I’ve been Considering the Honda CBR (I believe ) 250cc. As for the two children’s doors for the children’s house what are they expected to cost? My cell phone # 1-XXX-XXX-XXXX.

    1. Thanks, Brian and yeah- they do fit in there somewhere. The CBR is a good bike – but expensive. We already paid for the doors (and some other things). The kids house should be done on September 3, so keep your fingers crossed.

  5. I’ve been twice to the Philippines spending a total of six weeks, the traffic is frightening, the junctions and crossroads is chaos…I cannot figure out the rules of the road…motor bikes and scooters my be the way to go, but boy are you vulnerable on both…

  6. Ned, love your comments.
    I am so happy about Michell, it seemed like life was being really hard on her. Her smile and her comments are most welcome on your videos. Bless her and her family.

    and one suggestion, i realize you are a humble man ( mostly ) but it might be good to stop putting down your skills with videos and writing abilities. you have come a long way and it is great to watch.

    thanks for all your hard work.
    peace, jerry

    1. Haha – thanks, Jerry. My biggest issue is still moving the camera too quickly making for a rough ride. I am not overly humble, brother – my arrogance is one of my biggest challenges, and I can’t seem to shake it! 🙂

  7. Thanks for the heads up on Fleet Foxes. Kinda reminds me of Neil Young. You might like a band called Tame Impala. Slightly psychedelic and the lead singer reminds me of John Lennon, especially in the song Feels Like We Only Go Backwards.

    What do you think is the largest practical size motorcycle for the Philippines? I had thought about something in the 400 cc range so I could pull a small trailer for grocery shopping, etc. Thoughts?

    1. Hey Darrell. I will put that band on my list of ones to check out! I am always looking around for something new. The most practical bike for 95 percent of the Phils is probably a Honda XRM 125. It’s a underbone semi auto type that is very rugged and lasts forever. For a bigger person, the 25 HP Rouser 200NS is pretty awesome and they also have XR 200 dirtbike types here. I use our little RUSI Yamaha Mio clone for zipping around town – nice and light and fully automatic. For longer rides, I use my bigger motorcycle for more comfort.

  8. Might sound like a dumb question but is there any Harleys around? I know manilla and Angeles city there i . I’m 6’2″ and over 300lb right now. If I ride a 125 I need someone to fallow me around to pull it out if my rear end when I stop.
    I’m possibly looking at cebu suburbs if the relationship with my girl holds up.

    1. Hi, Al. Yep. Have seen two in the last couple of days. Big beasts and cool sounding (louder than the dong’s DBS-equipped scooters) but are tough to ride in the stop and go traffic here. Ya might wanna check out the Rouser 200NS or Kawaskaki Avenger.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *