Eat, Drink and be Merry

 We read in the Sanur Weekly this week that 42 countries are now eligible for visa on arrival in Bali, including America. Things are gearing up. Additionally, quarantine requirements are scheduled to be dropped altogether for Bali. 

A "Rain Shaman", hired by the government to suppress rains during the Mandalika Race Circuit in Lombok, has apparently failed miserably in chasing away the torrential rains, although the shaman herself insists that she intended for it to rain so that the track could be cleaned. 

An Australian national has been detained after immigration officers discovered that the man had overstayed his visa for eight years, having first entered Bali back in 2014. He now faces a jail sentence before being deported and most probably blacklisted for life. 

In another case of catch-me-if-you-can, a Nigerian national has been arrested after having overstayed his visa for two years. He is also set for deportation. 

........

During this past week, I enjoyed the company of my friend from the Jogyakarta area, wherein it might be said that we became more than friends and yet not more than that. If you know what I mean. I was able as well during her visit to gauge the differences in my condition and capabilities between, say, a year ago and the present time. It became clear, in short, that I can no longer walk any considerable distance before experiencing disabling pain in my back and breakdown of motor movement in my leg muscles, thus causing me to stumble about drunkenly and lean on the poor girl like a crutch. Decidedly less than attractive, I reckon, but she didn't seem to mind. On the bright side, my ramshackle condition earned me a couple long massages, so I guess there's something to be said for being a cripple. 

Other than that, we had pleasant visits to various beaches, including Padang Galak, which I have not visited in some years, a couple of dinners out together, a couple of home cooked meals (compliments of her daughter) out at her kost-kostan, and just generally delightful chats and an easygoing time together. 

I find myself readjusting now to the usual drill, my usual abundance of alone time and my predictable daily schedule. We will not often see each other, will my friend and I, given the particulars of our separate and very different life situations, not to mention our distant locations. Seize the day, I guess, is the applicable notion here. Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die.  

I guess another part of the usual routine is writing here, which this evening has led me to the discovery, or the rediscovery, I suppose, that I really can't write worth a damn anymore, and for this I apologize.