A Day of Rest and Adjustment

I want to start this post with a discalimer. It may sound like Im whining, but Im not. Im just describing what I feel. Im one of the few people from our groupremaining in the city of ChengDu. I am the only one in the hostel that Im staying at. Its very odd to be the only one left here. Very odd not to see the people Ive come to know so well. Truth be told, I was feeling kinda down and lonely yesterday. Its kinda strange, because I didnt think that I would really feel this way. I didnt take many photos yesterday, and I didnt really feel like doing much. I also think that the constant gray skies are getting to me a little. I miss the sun. Having grown up in California has spoiled me into seeing Apollo race across the sky on his golden chariot. At 2pm, I went out to hang out with Francine for a while, and I went to deliver some photos to the clay man (see previous post with "Clay Hands"). He showed me the progress of the sculpture (below) and was very happy when I gave him some photos. He was so happy that he gave me a toy from his shop. Its kind of like a top, except you throw it with a string attached to a stick. I wont bother elaborating. After that, I walked around with Francine a bit, and then I walked her back to work, and then walked back to the hostel still feeling a bit down. So what did I do? I slept. Why not? I took a nap at about 4pm, and I woke up at about 6. I still felt down and didnt feel like doing anything. I knew I had to do something, though, so I went to go get some food at my favorite restaurant (which is where Francine, Li Dan, Huang Li, and Liao Jing work). I ordered food, and wasnt really liking the vibe I still had. Then I just kinda started chatting with the girls. I had my laptop with me, because I wanted to show some family photos to my friends there, and that led to more conversation, and next thing I knew, I was back to being my normal self again. In the words of Nacho Libre, "It was gooood. Real good." I spent the rest of the night talking to my friends at the restaurant, and came back to the hostel and talked to people there. Actually, I ended up talking until 630am. So what does that tell me? Something most of you already know. Dan likes to talk. A good conversation is sunshine in my day. Its stupid, I know, but being social is a portal to my happiness. Anyway, I didnt feel like posting yesterday, so Im posting a little later today. Here is the photo. Enjoy.


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