Post and Riposte

I haven't posted in ages and was prompted to by an earthquake. A colleague said: "You should write about this in your blog."

Well, Zhu Linyong: I have.

There are several reasons why I haven't been posting. First, and most pertinent here, I am writing elsewhere. Second, I have been somewhat busy and the hassle of navigating the digital jet streams of the nanny state's hatred for Blogger is almost overwhelming.

That, combined with the sloth-like nature of my laptop, do not make posting easy. When I do make it through, like now for instance, the formatting is wonky and my writing is artless and mundane.

Anyway.

Things have been progressing. Today marks the "one month" since I returned to Beijing from India. Three days ago marked the day Chinese trains hissed out of stations for Lhasa, Tibet; a heavily documented escapade in which I played a minor editing role - "Um, I think we should mention the environment here." etc. I have had a few articles published, a couple held, but I am content. I am writing, and that is enough.

I have been crafting fiction, which I enjoy immensely. Some people, better friends than they know, have given me kind encouragement that will not be forgotten. I have been laughing a lot, as well. I like being able to remember vividly the last time I laughed tears; and counting back hours or days, and not weeks, to when it last happened.

My brother and Nara are flying out to Beijing soon and I will attempt to show them a good time. I am buying a tent soon.

I have been drinking in hutongs with friends (Carleton grads?). Yesterday, I was playing badminton with my friend Mu Qian when a pug walked over and pee\'d on my bag. The woman started beating it on the head with a newspaper and then I took their picture while some old men laughed. I almost die daily, but my bike (though it has seen better days, perhaps before the Cultural Revolution) is not literally falling apart on me anymore. The back wheel worries me though.

I do realize, by the way, that this post is horrible. I will continue in the hope that it drains me of my ability to be tedious and dull, so that the next post may be more lively.

I also went out to a beach house with a bunch of French people, a Beligian and some Chinese folks. That was a lot of fun. There was a company party on the beach and they had a massive supply of fireworks. I, unfortunately, fell bizarrely ill after some beach soccer matches, and woke up staring into a black TV reflecting the explosions in the sky outside the window. We also BBQ'd on the beach. Not, like, hunks of beef; but mushrooms, eggplant, potatoes, cloves of garlic, and of course, mutton. That was fun. I swam in the sea.

Also, hey apparently there's a World Cup on. I can't tell you how much beer I have drunk watching the games; but now that Brazil and Argentina are out, being eliminated by Germany and France (Say what? A farce.), there isn't too much reason to keep watching.

However, at one point, under a torn Beijing sky, I sat on the back of a Belgian's bike, while were all racing through the soaked alleyways, as Theo, a Frenchman yelled, "Look at us: A Belgian, a French, an Indonesian, and a Canadian. All soaked. All crazy foreigners." And it was pretty apt, I suppose.

Essentially, I've been reading a lot of the Atlantic, writing a lot of zany, mildly shocking things, and biking.

Today, the newspaper for which I am unofficially employed, has a front page with the following main headline:

"Emergency response law 'will ensure accurate info'"

Subhead: "Fines aim ato prevent media from misleading public, causing chaos"