Sunday 6th December, 2015                  0130

Yes, late again but I had to stay up late to hang Joan’s laundry up to dry after she started the washing machine very late. Off to Uncle Sam’s early (for me) in the morning but at least I will be finished by noon,

I met Kevin in McDonald’s this morning at 1120. Disappointing, as I had told him the special was currently the double burger with German sausage and mustard. I didn’t want one (not that hungry) but on the bus yesterday I had seen the sign on the window going past on the bus.

They must have changed the menu overnight.

There were no marshals or queues for the buses from school today so there must have been VIPs prowling yesterday. Pity.

Of course the good thing about today was that although I had no intention of going to town I was forced to - Kevin had made the trip and I would have felt like a bag of manure had I not met up with him. Not only that, I could buy a decent quantity of wine because I was getting a lift back instead of bussing it.

No offence to my current foreign colleagues here, two of whom will read this, but we both complained that life was not the same for either of us. For him, he has been parked in old accommodation half a mile away from all the other foreign teachers in Huangshan (although I know there are some he would rather be further away from) and as for me, well I am getting very little interaction with my own “species”.

That sounds idiotic and probably is and of course none of the other foreigners here are cut from my cloth. Andrei and Juliette are great and of course being a couple they are hardly going to want to interact very much with an old corpulent Englishman. Richard is young and I have to say it, prickly, so much so that in his company I find myself keeping my guard up the entire time in his company because I never know when a chance remark will be pounced upon. I can hold my own but I like to relax - he’s like the sleeping cobra in the corner and you never know which comment will invite a strike.

With Kevin it was much more clear cut - nearly everything I said was challenged and vice versa so we had some magnificent (and to the students present, most unseemly and unholy) rows but I miss them! And you know, Ollivier had verbal diarrhoea 24 hours a day but he is sorely missed as well.

I miss my old colleagues and yes, they were and still are friends, life is not the same. It was never going to be and I must be thankful that my first job teaching abroad pitted me against that irascible, impossible, irritating, balding guy I call my friend, Kevin, and later Ollivier who drove me to distraction but both of whom would have done anything for me and it was one for all and all for one.

Andrei and Juliette (and Richard if they relay this, as they surely will) may take it as a slight but it is not intended as such. The nearest to my age is Andrei and he is still younger than Ollivier (just) while Juliette and Richard are mid-twenties. To them I am an old fart and I have never considered myself as such until this very moment.

So anyway, back to what I was working up to before I sidetracked myself and probably alienated myself from my fellow westerners forever!

The ice festival trip.

Changing everything by a week for both of us is, economically, not feasible.  I have explored every option and short of waiting on a knife edge to see if we can bag bargains three days before travel - not my style - we are cattle trucked

However, I am nothing if not a thinker. My father often used to tell me I was “cack handed” and he was 100% right, my hands have only ever been useful for writing or taking sun sights at sea.

Rather than incur hideous additional expense I have a new plan. I can go as intended, sadly seeing the ice city alone but Joan can come a day or two later and catch me up in Shenyang. I reckon the damage for that will be 1,500y and sadly she will also see it solo but at least she will see it and still get to see Nanjing. It’s that or I cancel the entire thing and take a “haircut” but for five years I have wanted to do this.

But.

The exam schedule is still not set in stone, so who knows? The original plan may be on but if not I now have a plan B.