Manners of a Drunk

Manners of a Drunk
Lome, Togo West Africa
Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Drunks
The world has unwritten rule that we pretend they do not exist. The world looks the other way and hopes they go away.

I often explain to the British people that proper Americans will ignore their
- Taking the P -

This is because a well-mannered proper person will consider the behavior of Taking the P that is often performed by all classes of United Kingdom persons as low-classed behavior and to be ignored. Taking the P is to wind up a person by being sarcastic, and to by deliberated design and premeditation make comments that infer the person is stupid. The bad part is the Brits that do it are normally the more stupid and then the American tends to ignore as low classed and they continue more because they believe we do not realize.

The only way to stop is to either do as I do, explain the Americans ignore this behavior, and we consider something done by drunks or un-educated workers, not educated. This normally stops a Brit, because they all have this delusional desire they are educated, and for sure the way they behave at soccer matches proves this.

You can do it back to them, and it will stop them

Loud Mentally Retarded people are ignored on the planet, and the very foolish.

I know, I will naturally try my best to ignore this type of person.

Presently there is some Nigerians here in the Auberge who also, the same as Michael have their battery powered radio on full blast, it has been on all night.

They are not drunk.
I had to remind myself of this fact.

While in Mexico for over a year, there were so many drunks I would continually have to avoid them staggering around in Hotels. They would go on three-day drunks and this country has one of the worst obnoxious drunk problems, maybe Brazil is up there also. There is many countries, like Guatemala and Ecuador where people are laying around drunk everywhere, but not very obnoxious, just everywhere.

West Africa does not have much of a drunken problem; it does have people that behave like drunks. The turn the radio up, they talk loud, they are oblivious to the fact they live in a world with other people.

I think of the right to pursuit of happiness in the constitution of the USA and how it also says, you cannot disturb the rights of pursuits of happiness. It is more or less our protection from the selfishness of others.

Michael wish to learn the values of mine, and not easy for a person to live with my family and friends for 25 years, and socialize them to another culture.

I am going to recommend managers of hotels and not the hotels, it is because a hotel can often turn from a nice place to a bad place when the manager of the hotel has the manners of a drunk and does not have any comrades. Ami my friend has quit the Auberge Mandela, now there is only one person here, Felix who is passive and quiet, and the other managers dominate and have the manners of drunks, therefore the place has went from ok to bad.

Ami was well mannered, and somehow was able to create an environment that told the manners of drunk like behavior of the managers to behave.

When, I was with Michael, his manners allowed this type of person enter our world. I normally avoid these people and after 10 years of travel, I can avoid them at ease. However, the sudden awareness of them around me everywhere, told me, someone left the door opens. I cannot change people, so I must separate from people.

Allowing people with the manners of drunks, they do not have to drink to have them; into your traveler’s world is a simple analogy or explanation on how to choose a hotel. I choose the well-behaved hotels, on the other hand, the manners of 85 percent of travelers, is the same, the manners of drunks, therefore they do not care.

I realized one time I could not marry this women, her family was so badly mannered, that there was no way to overlook and avoid. To marry a person with the manners of drunk is to live with a drunk. I continue to explain to people, my problem with marrying a girl from another country is not the color, race, or education, it is I need to have a person who has respect and manners or I feel like finding a club to tame them.

I have a few pages on this.
http://www.hobotraveler.com/manners.php

I have never considered this, but one of the founding Father of the USA, George Washington wrote some rules of Civility and I sometime refer to them. This in a way, could have set the tone for the future of the USA. They have some values that are now considered bad manners and maybe racist in today’s society, yet nonetheless the overall information is good.

George Washington's - Rules of Civility

http://www.npr.org/display_pages/features/feature_1248919.html
http://gwpapers.virginia.edu/search/index.html

Manners of a Drunk

ChicaChoo Togo Drink

ChicaChoo Togo Drink
Maybe ChuckaCho
Kpalime, Togo West Africa

There appears now to be a Sunday and a Tuesday market here in Kpalime, and the normal city market every day, which is not as good, but full of the more tourist trinkets.



I took this photo after a lot of thinking and asking many questions. How to take a photo, were these people getting drunk, were they drunk? The brain under the influence of an alcoholic drink can be the most dangerous animal on the planet.

I have the greatest respect for the danger of drunks, they cannot be intimidated, they cannot be warned, they cannot be stopped, there is only way to deal with a drunk, that is not to deal with them. I need to avoid drunks.

ChuckaChoo
Chica Choo

Something like that, I am in Frenchish country, trying spell out a word they say in the Mina language and I am writing it as I think it in English.

French? How to spell in French?
Thique Thu

This was a hard Ch like the word Chica in Spanish, like a chicken, like a chick a baby chicken. Chicka Choo. The ch was like a train, like a Choo Choo Train.

Oh well, the never ending desire to figure out what I a looking at clearly, simply and unadulterated by my culture or my thinking trying to explain in my way of thinking what another culture thinks in their way of thinking.

Is this drink an alcoholic drink and dangerous for me, Andy the Hobo…? I have an alcoholic brain, I could go crazy?

I asked in about 10 different ways, all the way from trying to say alcohol to doing a pantomime and they answered no.

Is there Alcohol in the drink?

Therefore, the answer was NO, about 10 times.

This is a mental game people play, it is funny game, it is not so funny to me, but to the average person, they like to play a fantasy game. If I wanted to drink alcohol and if I want a juicy rationalization, if I really had a desire to drink, I would believe them.

I think this drink has alcohol in it, maybe just a very minute amount, but there is about 50 people sitting around drinking it, and they do not do this with Pineapple juice.

(Some story about ducks.)

Sugar and about anything, and you have fermentation, the byproduct is alcohol, I am sure I am explaining wrong, but that is not the point.

Some old man, wanted me to give him money to buy the stuff, I said, no, as I would say no to any what could be a person who wants a drink.

Interesting cultural stuff here, how we somehow say to ourselves and convince ourselves of ideas.

- My wife is not fat. -

- These people do not work, because they have no job? -

- It is not an alcoholic drink? -

I was in Colombia and a girl told me to drink the Chicha, I did, and instantly tasted the alcohol the same as I taste the alcohol in mouthwash. I suppose I could gulp down the mouthwash and get drunk, it would give me a hell of a sugar, alcohol buzz, and really do wonder for my stomach. Life is somehow to me about my intentions and the game I play in my head, what I say is ok for me, and what I say is ok for you. I really enjoy life, and the enjoyment is the degrees of tolerance or intolerance of life.

The people of the world are tolerant beyond imagination, they look the other way, and they do about anything to not have conflict. Then there are the bullies of the planet, who provoke, ask for a fight, and sadly, someone has to give them a fight. This is where a good person has to know they are needed, they cannot just look the other way, they have to be intolerant and say no.

I had a lot of fun with the people drinking the ChicaChoo as Diana said it and ChuckaChoo as Mawulee said it, whoever says it, I am not going to drink it…

It is about probabilities, if there is a 1 in 1000 chance this is an alcoholic drink than for me, no games to be played, I do not chance it. However, suppose I did feel safe, I drink it and it turns out be alcohol, then what do I do, I stop and say, oops, some alcohol entered my mouth. For sure, that is not a big deal, I could guzzle down a whole bottle of beer if I was going to die of dehydration and I would maybe, or maybe I would die.

The road to hell is paved with good intentions.

Everyone was having a good time, drinking the ChickaChoo, whatever you call it, they was enjoying life, and doing what people do, being people, good, bad, and a maybe.

Opinions are opinions, and a judgment is a judgment, not very much of a problem unless, it becomes important to enforce the judgment. I am not in the world changing business, I am in the Andy changing business, life is good, today was a good day.

Chivalry lies somewhere in our intentions and what we do or do not do, it so easy to say yes and go along with the group.

ChicaChoo Togo Drink

I Can Think in Togo

I Can Think in Togo
Lome, Togo West Africa
Thursday, March 1, 2007

I am a recovering alcoholic, I passed the 20 year mark a week or two ago.

Many alcoholics drink to avoid thinking, they wish to drink to stop thinking about life, to avoid life. They wish to hide from the world, and climb into a bottle.

I find it strange now, however, I see the whole world trying to avoid thinking. I suppose thinking can be annoying, sometimes I am very bored. I have been a little bored here in Togo, as I learn to adjust to having free time. I hid in India and Nepal from the people, they just was too much in my face, I cannot stand the constant haranguing of my day.

TOO BUSY

I see too busy as the identifier of a person who is trying to avoid thinking, or keeping too busy. It is a very good way to avoid yourself or myself. I just keep too busy doing stupid things, sometimes smart.

Not all countries are the same, I have received some nasty emails from persons who wish or think I should be in love with all countries. It is sort of funny, really is just plain stupid, why does a person read a blog and then complain to the blogger. I deleted one the other day out of the newsletter system, I hope they never notice.

I have time to think in Lome, Togo, it is sort of a mix of issue, sometimes the streets are too busy, there are a lot of motorcycles or they call them motos here, they make a lot of noise. However, on the small sand roads between the hotels here, there is a peace and quiet that is greatly appreciated.

I can now think and enjoy life, it has been a long time since I could say this completely. I really enjoy the Philippines and Thailand, however, there is too may people. West Africa has about one-fifth the number of people or concentration of people. Yes, a city, is a city, however, I have found Africa pretty much deserted.

I have time, I have a thought to myself, I can dwell on an issue, I can think clearly without the clutter accumulating in my brain of too much of everything.

When I walk outside the hotel I am presently located in, I am instantly jumped on by about 5 people to buy this or that, they are learning, I just do not say a word, I do not answer them, I do not say anything, I just keep working. It is not natural for an Indiana Farm Boy to ignore people, it is city folk way of doing things. I try to remember, the next persons I met to say, Bonjour, or Ca Va or something, then I am back to being myself.

There is something to this, I am not sure how to identify it, but whenever, I walk around and there are people grabbing or wanting me to buy in a too forceful way, then I am in the wrong place. The hotel is not too much, it is only them waiting like the normal predators sales people they are, they demand to want to make money.

I was downtown Lome yesterday, in front of the Palm Beach Hotel and thought I was going to club a guy, he literally grabbed me or touched me. This is not common, a person doe not touch a person to sell, when they do they are wanting to get slapped side the head by me.

Togo has extremely low amounts of this type of behavior, India or Nepal has large amounts of this behavior. I can think here as the ratio of pushy venders has dropped considerably.

Tourist areas are the worst, transportation areas are bad, anywhere there is five star hotels and big centers of shops, many stalls, groups of mass people selling junk that nobody needs, then there is normally pushy salesperson.

I will leave the tourist area soon, this means I also leave some of the convenience like ok internet, the big grocery stores of West Africa.

However, I am a recovering alcoholic, I like to think, I like to be with myself alone and happy. I like to be with me, to think, to talk to people, to explore.

There needs to be some maxim or rules, one could be.
- IF a person really wants to talk to you, then do not talk with them. -

A rule of travel, hehehe

On the other hand, when I am in the most remote, never seen a white man place on the planet, then everyone wants to talk with me, I can not win.

Africa, no tourist, what a great place to think.
I am sure people wonder why alcoholics also go to places like this, or hectic places, or places like India or any under-developed country. They do so they can save all their money for drinking, and it is very difficult to get in trouble with the law, family, or social customs. It is easy to be a drunk, and nobody knows your name, there is zero commitments here, if you make a fool of yourself, you can move on down he road.

What makes life fun though is watching all the chaos, mixing, and the clashing of culture, lifestyles and ideas. Everyone is very serious sometimes, I find I get too serious, it is one of the identifiers of when I need to keep it simple stupid.

I Can Think in Togo