with many things on my mind

traffic:
i used to think driving over here in china takes quite a bit of skill to put it mildly. that was until i came across an intersection, with broken traffic lights.

it was like playing russian roulette with a shotgun - you either get your head blown off or you live to tell the tales. here's basically what you do when you find yourself in a similar situation: close your eyes, step on the gas, say a prayer and hold on for dear life.

food:
nothing special here but your typical mix of authentic chinese food. stuff cooked up in the restaurants generally taste similar. for a real taste of local flavours you gotta head to those small time family diners where many people frequent. those are some of the best food i've tasted.

it's not that they have any secret culinary skills whatsoever. many a times it's the ingredients they use: sometimes what you get on the table might have been still alive just minutes ago, or got plucked from the fields a few hours prior. and everything on the menu depends on freshness. if the chef doesn't think the ingredients are fresh for the day, they generally wouldn't serve it.

after-hours:
not much night life around here. well at least i'm not party animal enough to actively seek them out. usually there's mahjong (everyone plays it), cards and tv. of course you get the usual mix of heavy smokers and drinkers for that.

strange phenomenon:
there's this cat around the neighbourhood that kept showing up. it's got these melancholic grey eyes, and just sits there and stares at you. and when you least expect it, it just shows up, but when you go looking for it, it never seems to be there. i've decided to name him mr. vedder, after my favourite singer eddie vedder. for the cat is full of mystery.

rugby:
i'm sorely missing some action. i can't even get any live streams until saturday's tri-nations clash. and things aren't going that smoothly with the boys either as i came to find out, mostly because of the absense of a coach. i hate it when shit like this happens, wanting to do something but lacking of the means to do it.

but then again it has never been smooth sailing, and will never be. it's all about keeping the faith and coming out of it twice the person you ever were.

there's no telling how many miles you have to run while chasing a dream, and when the world says give up, faith and hope says give it just one more shot.


+listening to: millworker by eddie vedder