The Spanish Fly

Please excuse the chronological hiccup.

Waiting in line to check my bag for the flight from Manila to El Nido (technically Puerto Princesa), an older woman (60s or 70s) kept standing much too close to me. I would inch forward and, when she noticed, she would inch forward as well. While this invasion of personal space was annoying, it wasn’t the end of the world - what really made the whole thing truly annoying for me was that she, oblivious to her surroundings, would turn to talk to her husband and, in the process, hit me in the back with her bag. I stayed silent and did my best to rearrange my position in line without making a fuss, but it was a constant struggle of dodging her unwitting attacks.

I, being who I am, never brought it up and wouldn’t be making this post had the incident been limited to the hour or so we stood in line.

Hittin' the Dusty Trail (Manila 2 and the Islands)

As is my usual, I'm a few weeks removed from the events contained herein, so expect that type of post. That said, I wrote up a piece for a contest that's a little more timely. Also, of course, my poems (on the other blog) usually capture my feelings a bit more "in the moment" than these posts.

Getting back to the rumble of Manila made my heart swell. I found a nice little capsule hotel on a block where I ended up spending $4 - $1 for a shave, $1 for dinner, and $2 for beer. I would have stayed there for a few nights, but I was in a rush - I was meeting a girl I had met in Georgetown (Penang), Malaysia in El Nido.