A bright, sunny, balmy Hong Kong late November afternoon

Hello all of you out there in blog readership land.  I'm back, having unanticipated free time because of In Tax Expos, a Ukrainian based company putting on seminars in Hong Kong today and tomorrow.  I applied.  My registration was accepted.   Yet upon arrival at the Grand Hyatt this morning, they had no record of me and I was politely told to leave.......

Well I am furious and not so politely, I will state that if you are presented with the opportunity of having to deal with In Tax.....it is my suggestion that you seek a viable alternative because if the way they handled the situation, this morning is indicative of their capabilities, then it is apparent to me that they are not quite capable of handling anything, at all.....

Other than that, I am more or less up-to-date which is fortunate because I am not with any desire to do much, at all prior to going to Bangkok in less than a week.  Bangkok, our 'winter home'.......!

Those Japanese bad back patches are superior to the Chinese patches

What a difference one night makes!   Here it is, cold as cold can be (6 degrees is far too cold for my liking!) but I am up and typing, sitting at the desk in our hotel room, not in pain while typing away.

Yeah,  getting up, be it from a chair or bed or subway car seat will get a grimmace out of me (one of those rare times that my facial expression matches how I really feel) but I feel much better, now.

Baseball tonight!!   Sushi for lunch!!!   We're nearing the end of our stay in Japan, this week.........and then home to the frantic push to complete all that must be completed at home prior to our three months of trial living in Bangkok........

I won't let a bad back rain on this week's parade!!!!

'How'd you pull your back?'

That seems to be the most common question asked as I grimmace my way through the day.

Hell, if I know how I did it I wouldn't have done it!!!

Anyhow, it is 12 degrees in Tokyo and the clouds are likely to disappear later, leaving us with sunny days for the remainder of our stay here.  Last night, at a dinner party of 7 at El Torito, I had the portable router with me and the baseball game,  MLB vs Team Japan played on my new iPhone 6+.  I like the 6+.   True, it is not as big (i.e.  wide) as some on the other new phones on the market but it is wide enough and very definitely long enough to make reading enjoyable - something that my older phone (4S) was not capable of doing.........

And now I've got the NBA on (everyplace but China because those idiots from the Stern gang (as in David, the retiring 'commiss') prematurely sold the NBA rights to Li Ka Shing, someone who I don't particularly like or respect (but he got his come-uppance:  look at his two sons!)) as well as MLB (to watch the Japan games) and a whole list of newspapers......

I love Japan - but not in cold weather.  I love the fact that for the second year in a row, I'm going to baseball games  in November.  Tomorrow night I'll be rooting for Team Japan vs the MLB.  Game 1 went to Japan last night, in what turned out to be a pitcher's battle.   Tomorrow night?   Well, in the warmth of the Tokyo Dome, I don't expect a pitcher's battle but would happily settle for it as then that mind game-aspect of baseball most assuredly shows its strength!!!

another day of gluttony?

I've got to control myself!   Three meals - big meals (at least two of them) yesterday and two meal appointments, today.......what's a diet conscious guy to do????

We went to Jimmy's Kitchen, taking Jon and Pam Bennett of Houston, Texas, baseball buddies who were on the 'See it All' trip to 13 baseball stadiums in Japan in 2012.  We did it, then, in two weeks, a bit too much for all of us.  Jon, this past summer, went to all 30 MLB stadiums for games........a feat to be admired........

Not much to write about, today......but at 7:40am on what looks to be a rainy day, today, such is life.....

Days of glttony - again.....

Yesterday was one of over-abundance:  I started out with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich at the FCC for breakfast, went south of the proverbial border with spicey chicken in corn enchilladas at Mr. Taco Truck....had a big & juicy burger at McDonalds prior to seeing Fury with Brad Pitt about a tank crew in the final month of the second world war in Germany.....good war movie.....good ensemble acting.....and Pitt will likely receive an Academy Award nomination, if not more......and then fruit at night, prior to reading myself into one of those rare, uninterrupted nights of sleep.

Back to a regular breakfast of corn flakes, banana and skimmed milk, this morning but an Indian shrimp curry for lunch.....and tonight will be dinner at Jimmy's in Central.......

Wonder of wonder, miracles, miracles :  in one fell swoop, I am going to obliterate all dietary accomplishments and weight loss of the past year......aiyaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

Back in that blog saddle, again......

....back where (my blog) a friend is a friend......

you get the drift - its been a while since I've pounded my thoughts on the logitech keyboard of my iPad 2.  No, I will not upgrade to the iPad Air 2 (unless my current iPad breaks down) and wait it out another year.....at that time.......multiple screens and tasking for the iPad???

I purchased the NBA for the year and watched the Lakers play a full game today, something I haven't done (a full NBA game) in a long, long time.  I have no idea whether there'll be any coverage in China as Li Ka Shing owns the rights in the PRC, blocking the NBA in what had to have been one of the dumbest moves, ever, relinquishing website control to someone else......

I'm going out, now, to see if I can get a portable keyboard/stand or stand to prop up the iPhone so I can watch basketball......and try some typing on it, as well........

We shall see.......