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EXPAT_PATHOS

                                                  May  01, 2006
                                     Additions:   June 18, 2006

While traveling from
Ubud to Gili Meno and
back, it turned out
that we were on the
same route used on
a party circuit going         From one side of
from Kuta to another          Gili Meno, you
one of the three              could hear the
islands called "the           rave music going
gilies".                      thump-thump-thump
                              all night, coming
                              across the water
  So we were packed           from the next
  into vans and riding        island.
  ferries with what
  seemed like an
  infinite supply
  of vaguely trashy
  party girls and     A reminder once
  their escorts.      again of how
                      ugly pretty
                      girls can be.

     So many people with
     so little grasp on                    We were doing another
     what to do with their                 shuttle van in Bali,
     lives...                              returning from the
                                           port, and there was
        And they think they're             some confusion about
        so *hip*, so *clued-in*.           routes.  This van was
                                           going to Ubud first,
            "I'll meet you in              then Kuta.
             Kuta, at Planet
             Hollywood..."                 One of the Kuta girl's
                                           was incensed at the
                                           additional delay of
                                           an hour and a half.

                                           "I don't have *time*
                                           for this!"

                                           At first I felt bad
                                           for her, I figured she
                  June 15, 2006            must have a plane to
                                           catch or something like
And at the other end of the                that... but still, you
age range... I was at a small              just don't cut things
cafe up in Champuan once,                  that close traveling
and the only other folks                   in third world countries.
were a party of gray-haired
white dudes and two native                 As the scene progressed
women.                                     though, it became apparent
                                           that it was just some
They were chatting up a storm              attack of self-importance...
with these two women as an                 she was in a hurry to get
audience, one guy in particular            the next party.
was impressing them with his
sparkling wit and astute                   The driver did what he
observations ("Sex sells                   could to flag down
everything!").                             cabs for her to bargain
                                           with -- she could go
Astoundingly pathetic.                     straight there faster
                                           if she were willing
I can kind of understanding                to spend another $10,
paying for sex, but I can't                but she wasn't.
imagine paying someone to
laugh at my jokes.                         She was just slowing
                                           the rest of us down
       ("Please don't let me               with her conniptions.
       ever turn into one of
       those guys.  Shoot me,
       if necessary.")

                    CITIZEN_DOOM

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