Wednesday 20^th November, 2019 1845

So what's happened since the last post?

Alice news first. As you know there are two of them, Alice Wuhu and Alice Peili. Well the Wuhu one has been feeling down of late so I suggested she come and stay with me in spring festival. She has pre-booked her train tickets (on the slow train, rather her than me at over a day's travel!) and Ctrip should procure them for her once they come on sale. In China you cannot actually buy train tickets more than 30 days in advance of travel. But it will be nice to have some company and with events in her life lately I think maybe she will enjoy getting away from it all – not to mention she loves my breakfasts (which I never cook for myself!) and my lasagne.

Alice Peili came to visit me on Sunday with her mate Lillith, a short visit of an hour. I couldn't offer them dinner as I wasn't expecting them and a roast breast for one was already on the go but they were eating elsewhere anyway. The reason she was in the area was that she had been to the Peili campus doctor. She has a pustule on her leg that needs treating and doesn't trust the main campus clinic. The usual TCM treatment and the advice not to drink anything cold or eat anything spicy. It doesn't matter if someone is pregnant, has cancer or a heart attack, Chinese doctors always say nothing cold to drink and no spicy food!

Tuesday I finished my class at 0950 and went to collect my glasses. Well I would have if they were there. Delivery delayed due to “singles day” shopping madness. Come back tomorrow (today). Did my shopping and buggered off home to make a batch of sausage rolls for dinner and freezing for campus lunches.

This morning Alice Peili gave me the news that she has signed a contract for a job in Zhejiang Province (neighbouring Shanghai) as a “learning arrangement person”. I had no idea what that entailed either! Basically it is a sales job flogging classes and my heart sank. Having spoken further, although I don't think she will last selling school courses (but it is apparently “forbiddened” to break your first contract after graduation) at least the basic salary will see her able to live day to day and who knows, she may actually make a good salesman?

So early this evening I picked up my glasses.

Maybe I need time to get used to them but so far I am not impressed. They did warn me they would not be perfect and certainly, distance vision is vastly improved but so far the reading part is not up to much. Watching films on the laptop is slightly improved. I have a feeling that if I make it to the UK next summer I will be visiting Vision Express for some proper binoculars!

Oh yes, this evening I received a call from someone who couldn't speak English. Not unusual and I ended up hanging up. Afterwards I had a text from the cashier at BHG and didn't really understand what she was saying. I asked her to call Alice. I then found the BHG receipt from yesterday. Where I buy 6 bottles of wine for the price of 3 she had charged me for one bottle, ergo, if I don't cough up the difference will come out of her pay. Of course I will make good the deficit next Tuesday when I go again but twice now in the past I have been charged for 6 instead of 3 and never bothered to complain. I shall not repeat that mistake!

And so first thing tomorrow I have the class that prefers to sleep or play on their phones so they drop me in the shit with the Dean. The one that will get no more films. Going to be interesting and woe betide anyone who steps out of line.