Winter
Winter on the 30th parallel is proving to be a lot more miserable than anticipated. The weather here has been just like the weather in Victoria this time of year for the last 2 months, with no sign of improving for another month. The good news is, I leave it in 4 days for greener pastures...or should I say, sandier beaches?
With the weather being as miserable as it's been, and me refusing to buy warm clothes and neglecting to bring any, most days lately have been 'inside' days. The upside seems to be the foraging of a few new relationships, and the deepening of others. This brings me to a common musing of mine: which is more important, where you are, what you're doing, or who you are with. Currently my answer is all of the above in various ratios (depending on where I am, what I am doing and who I am with) but lately, the value of the third variable has been increasing exponentially (woah, math geek!).
Gina's boyfriend Levi came to visit last week. He is very cool. He is in grad school for poetry at NYU. Needless to say, I went a bit over the top with him around; speaking in rhyme, metaphor and iambic pentameter for my own entertainment. But I'd like to think he was entertained slightly as well. Maybe he'll write a poem about it.
It turns out Levi is not only an amazing poet, but also a decent photographer. Here, he caught me at the Mexican bar we were at, in my own little world; mid philosophical analysis regarding "if taco's actually did have legs and could dance, how would they dance?" I hadn't started talking about it yet, but as you can see, the wheels are turning.
Although she has been flaking out due to the cold weather lately, there is also a new woman in our (mine and Gina's) lives. Anya is a vivacious, quirky Russian who was recently hired to teach at our school. We took her to the night market last week, since she has asked us to introduce her to 'real' china. I am sure you will hear more about her in the coming year.
With the weather being as miserable as it's been, and me refusing to buy warm clothes and neglecting to bring any, most days lately have been 'inside' days. The upside seems to be the foraging of a few new relationships, and the deepening of others. This brings me to a common musing of mine: which is more important, where you are, what you're doing, or who you are with. Currently my answer is all of the above in various ratios (depending on where I am, what I am doing and who I am with) but lately, the value of the third variable has been increasing exponentially (woah, math geek!).
Gina's boyfriend Levi came to visit last week. He is very cool. He is in grad school for poetry at NYU. Needless to say, I went a bit over the top with him around; speaking in rhyme, metaphor and iambic pentameter for my own entertainment. But I'd like to think he was entertained slightly as well. Maybe he'll write a poem about it.
It turns out Levi is not only an amazing poet, but also a decent photographer. Here, he caught me at the Mexican bar we were at, in my own little world; mid philosophical analysis regarding "if taco's actually did have legs and could dance, how would they dance?" I hadn't started talking about it yet, but as you can see, the wheels are turning.Although she has been flaking out due to the cold weather lately, there is also a new woman in our (mine and Gina's) lives. Anya is a vivacious, quirky Russian who was recently hired to teach at our school. We took her to the night market last week, since she has asked us to introduce her to 'real' china. I am sure you will hear more about her in the coming year. And lastly, I hosted a fellow couch surfer (www.couchsurfing.com) this weekend. Ketao was traveling to Shanghai and needed a place to stay on route. His English was horrible but he understood my Chinese (not common because of all the different dialects and my pathetic pronunciation) so he is welcome back anytime.
Basically this couch surfing project has given new meaning to budget traveling. And, in fact, I will be couch surfing myself in Thailand. This reminds me of another musing I have been having recently. I will introduce it by saying that as my 27th year quickly approaches, I figure I can sagely begin sentences with phrases like: "As I get older..."
As I get older, I am learning to put my faith more and more in the fact that everything always works out. It seems that there are others around me who as they age are becoming more cynical or more anxious due to the crap that life has a habit of throwing at us all. Well, for me I guess the more I live through, the more proof I have that it always sorts itself out. This thought has been at the forefront of my planning strategy (or lack thereof) for this upcoming vacation. Thus far, my plans include: flying into Thailand on January 26th and meeting with the woman who is hosting me on her floor (she doesn't have a couch). And that's pretty much it. I am not meeting anyone. I don't know anyone where I am going. I know I fly out of Bangkok 5 days later into Bali and am considering booking accommodation but figure I can deal with it when I get there. And then I know I fly out of Bali to Shanghai two weeks after that. All I care about is surfing. Everything else will be icing on the cake.
Now, some of you might find this attitude narcissistic. I guess there is some possibility of self-injury, but I get a little bit of a rush thinking about the unknown; along with a warm comfort in the belief that it will all work out. It always has before. And the beauty of traveling to someplace warm is, you can always just sleep on the beach. And now that I think of it, that sounds pretty appealing right now....
Basically this couch surfing project has given new meaning to budget traveling. And, in fact, I will be couch surfing myself in Thailand. This reminds me of another musing I have been having recently. I will introduce it by saying that as my 27th year quickly approaches, I figure I can sagely begin sentences with phrases like: "As I get older..."As I get older, I am learning to put my faith more and more in the fact that everything always works out. It seems that there are others around me who as they age are becoming more cynical or more anxious due to the crap that life has a habit of throwing at us all. Well, for me I guess the more I live through, the more proof I have that it always sorts itself out. This thought has been at the forefront of my planning strategy (or lack thereof) for this upcoming vacation. Thus far, my plans include: flying into Thailand on January 26th and meeting with the woman who is hosting me on her floor (she doesn't have a couch). And that's pretty much it. I am not meeting anyone. I don't know anyone where I am going. I know I fly out of Bangkok 5 days later into Bali and am considering booking accommodation but figure I can deal with it when I get there. And then I know I fly out of Bali to Shanghai two weeks after that. All I care about is surfing. Everything else will be icing on the cake.
Now, some of you might find this attitude narcissistic. I guess there is some possibility of self-injury, but I get a little bit of a rush thinking about the unknown; along with a warm comfort in the belief that it will all work out. It always has before. And the beauty of traveling to someplace warm is, you can always just sleep on the beach. And now that I think of it, that sounds pretty appealing right now....
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