I originally had planned to publish this at the end of last month just so I could see a “2” next to October in my archive’s drop down list but, sadly, it did not happen. Surprisingly enough, I’ve been at this for seven and a half years. 2017 will mark the eighth year of my “blogging” (if you can even call it that any more). Any regrets? No, but I wish I had started sooner.
As the weather has changed so has the smog rolled in both of which have been playing with my sinuses and overall health. Apparently La Nina is here this year and so it will be a colder than usual winter, which means more heat is needed and in order to get that heat, more coal needs to be burned. I roll my eyes at the thought of the AQI stretching beyond 350 again this year.
The US Presidential Election is coming up and I also see that the stock market is taking a turn for the worse. No doubt whoever wins will be blamed for it. It’s hard to imagine what life will be like when people aren’t talking about this election. Personally, I think Trump will win but I don’t think he actually wants the job. Instead, I think he wants the business contacts that come from running for the presidency.
Other than that, I’m surprised that the semester has gone by so quickly. As I mentioned in my previous posts, this semester seems to be running a lot more smoothly than my previous two years as my prep work is practically nothing (it’s all been done) and my grading is going a lot more quicker than before. So that is nice. Maybe that’s why I’m getting sick all the time? I have so much time on my hands that my body needs something else to do.
Probably the most notable change to my semester is rather dull: I got a new phone. The Xiaomi Mi 5. I paid 2000 RMB for it brand new (two weeks later they released the Mi 5S and 5S Plus, but whatever) and, despite good online reviews, I can say it’s an alright phone. Some webpages don’t load on the default browser so I had to download several others and even still some pages just don’t show up. I also got a new phone plan with China Mobile which is supposed to be 4G but I’m not noticing much of a difference… except dropped data connections and weak VPN service. And most recently, after working so well for the first couple of months, I’ve noticed the bluetooth doesn’t always work which I use a lot.
But there are a few good things about the phone that will have me keep it for at least a little bit longer. First, the camera is 16 MP and the video shoots at 4K, so the pictures do look a lot better than from my other phone, and borderline as good as my DSLR camera. Next, the phone does have 64GB of storage so I can actually download AND KEEP different apps on my phone and not have to delete them every time I want to take a photo. And since it’s an Android phone I can also use it as an external storage device, which especially came in hand during my trip to the Philippines.
So the camera is good, the storage is good, the glass is still smooth, it is a flagship phone that has been advertised on billboards, and I’ve even had one pair of kids ask me about it, so it’s good to be in the “in crowd.” However, the most important change in my life that has come about because of this phone doesn’t have to do with any of that. Instead, it’s because of something even my students know: it can play games. And like a dutiful student (of Chinese, that is), I downloaded whatever game I was most familiar with and that just happened to be… Simcity Buildit. :O
I can’t believe they made a free version of this game! It has been YEARS since I played it and so, now like a relapsing addict, many of my breaks and much of my free time on weekends is spent babying this game and its little citizens. Here are some screenshots of my city’ growth:
As you can see, with a population of over 220,000 people, a cargo dock, an airport, Dr. Vu’s disaster tower, mountain cottages, a beach and now I’m adding OMEGA homes in addition to London and Paris homes. When I’m not competing in one of the competitions, I am building bricks to sell in the marketplace because, as I’ve found, nothing raises money faster than making bricks and shovels. They’re easy to make, well-priced and something a lot of players seem to need.
So November is here and I am making my winter vacation plans already. I’ve decided on which destination I’d like to visit and I have already begun brushing up on that language. The destination is tentative because I’m not sure I can actually apply for that country’s visa here in Beijing so I’m tempering my mood for now.
Other than that, despite the cold weather and the smog, somehow, someway the mosquitos are still here flying around the class room. I think Beijing’s mosquitos like the cold better than I do, or maybe we just don’t hear their complaints.
That’s all for now. Stay well!