Tuesday, March 10, 2009

It wasn't me...

Maybe it's because I'm a bit of a geek and I have persecuted many different computers over the years but I think that they are conspiring, via the inter-web thingy, to get back at me.

It has just come to my notice that the last blog update showing on my site was, previously, from 17 December. Now, whilst I admit to having been somewhat slack in my blog maintenance duties, I feel that I have been wronged by technology. There was, in fact, another blog post on 24 January which, for reasons known only to itself and the Blogger.com gremlins, decided to publish itself to its own page.

Anyway, for anyone who is interested, or bored enough, to want to know the story behind the Chinese zodiac, you can now scroll down and have a look.

You'll notice that the date of the wayward post, which is automated when you update your blog, although not beyond forgery given the time or inclination, of which I have neither, is 24 January 2009.

So, why did it refuse to publish in the correct place... ?

Your guesses are as good as mine. Please send your answers, on a postcard, to: Benny, East Coast, China.

I'm sure that they will all turn up in the right place as well.

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Ouchie !!

It has been a long time since my last post and if you are wondering then [...insert lame excuse here...] and so I apologise.

I have had an eventful week this week. I rode my motorbike into a great big gaping hole in the ground that had been left by one of the utility companies. A hole which went straight down into the sewer. A hole which was in a street with no functioning street lights. A hole which caused me a great deal of pain, resulting in five stitches in my chin, cuts and bruises all over my body, and a period of convalescence away from work.

So, what is the outcome?

Well, the police have been very good and are trying to establish who is responsible for the monumental cock-up, whereby you can have a seven foot by seven foot hole in the street with no barriers, no signs, no tape, nor any form of warning whatsoever. They are pursuing this line of enquiry in order to compensate me for my injury and loss. This isn't America, however, so I am only hoping to receive the cost of my suit, my shoes, my motorbike, my glasses and my hospital bills.

The hole in the street, as yet, remains in exactly the same state as before: with no barrier, no signs, no tape, nor any form of warning whatsoever. And the street lights continue to malfunction. Until someone dies I guess that it will be left in its current state.

I will be sure to cross unlit streets from my preferred choice of routes.

Rizhao NewsSpring festival was good, apart from the fact that everywhere was closed. Lantern Day was amusing and my room mate and I made the local paper (see left, you can make out the two white faces in the top corner), along with all of the far more interesting traditional Chinese displays and costumes. But, to the Chinese residents here in Rizhao, the two westerners were of far more interest than any of those, hence the picture in Rizhao News the next day. Two of my students brought me in copies of the paper to show me, which is how I found out that we were famous.

Not much else has been going on here as everywhere seems to go to sleep during the winter. The fireworks have just about stopped a-popping every waking hour, as they are want to do during Spring Festival, and things are getting back to normal. The weather is getting a little better and it will not be too long before I am back swimming in the sea and lazing on the beach during my time off.

I will endeavour to get another post up again before too long but, right now, I feel the need to go and dose up again on pain killers. I'm not sure what they are, because all of the writing on the box is in Chinese, but swilled down with a bottle of beer they certainly take the edge off of the aches and pains!

C'est la vie xx