Another TWiT (this week in Tsinghua)... is in the can

Actually, there are still some homework left to be done in the weekend. But other than that, the week's been quite chilled both in workload and in temperature :/

Last Sunday I went to have a lunch with the TV station crew, outside campus. And you know the saying what goes around, comes around? Well, didn't I just write about me terminating the relationship with the Man upstairs. But as I followed the crew into the fray of what is known as the Beijingese traffic (ok I'm overly dramatic again, gonna tone it down a bit...), cold shivers began to run through my back. Haven't I been here before? Yes! This ONE time of the week when the Christian folk is meeting, we're going to have a lunch - in the same restaurant!

But, I think it went well. I sat at such an angle that the others couldn't recognize me, and I'm pretty sure they won't take a second look at what had been a bunch of college kids having craploads fun. Just check the picture on the right if you don't believe me :P TAKE THAT, DAD (I know you aren't reading but if you had, that's for you), I'm having my own fun! Ah, just gotta love these people.

Even Mel* came there. But turns out she's already got a boyfriend... mmh that explains a thing or two. Anyways, it seems that the whole station is full of gossiping or then it's just the Chinese people being different, but like the main topic through the lunch was who is whose bf/gf and who's got a crush on whom and I got to teach them how to say 'I love you' in Finnish... yay. For some reason, they forgot to invite Cindy there. I guess she's still unofficially in the ranks? Huh, beats me. And beat me she did, at the game pool, to which I took her playing this week. But hey, exciting news, she's single! Although according to her own words, she warms slowly... so don't get your hopes high!

Meanwhile, the midterm time draws near but apparently I still don't have exams for at least a week. I'm not even paying that much attention to school lol. These courses are quite easy to pass, and the professors give lots of points just for trying. One thing is annoying, though, and I already briefly touched that subject. It's the cold! In Finland, at least the apartments and rooms are well insulated but here, I'm freezing my ass off. There is a central heating, but it's not on yet (government controlled stuff apparently), so I'll just have to shiver more for at least a week or so.

Anyway, lots of love to the folks back at home, hope you haven't forgotten about me and keep on commenting! :)

*) If you didn't get it, please refer a few posts back. The names are in the title, can't really miss it.

I can only drive on every other day? I'll buy another car!

(Previously on Tiger Returns: I discussed the fact that vehicle restrictions are in place and that on odd days, only the cars with a license plate ending with an odd number are allowed to drive and vice versa, except for cabs which are allowed to drive always.)

In related to that topic, they are now contemplating whether to extend the restriction after 20th September. My cousin says they probably won't do it, because an interesting phenomenon has come from it.

They say that when they introduced the semi-"banning" of cars, they tried to encourage people to use public transportation instead of their own cars. However, as the price of the cars are so cheap nowadays, people just bought another car with a different ending to a license plate so that they can switch cars every day. And believe me, I've seen it: two identical cars, one with an odd number and another with an even number sitting next to each other.

Oh by the way, the gasoline is also cheap. Hooray. To hell with global warming when I can pwn the streets! ;P

Things will get better though, because regardless of the outcome on decision to lift the car restrictions, the olympic lanes will be freed. My cousin told me that now if a car is caught using the lane, the driver can get a roughly 1400 euro ticket + one week jail time. The horror!