We live right next to a coal furnace out of which sprouts a huge brick smokestack. This is the energy source. Last night in the dark, I saw a man shoveling coal into the furnace, his face glowing red. I looked up, and yup, there was a huge cloud of black smoke rising. It reminded me vaguely of "Hardboiled Wonderland and the End of the World."

Today, I went to the market with my aunt and we got a big, fresh rooster for 33 RMB. I saw its throat being sliced, blood drained, and its feathers steamed off. When I get back to the States and pull a pack of frozen chicken wings from the freezer at Costco, I will think of this poor soul.

It's -10 degrees celcius outside and dropping. I hope I hope I hope it snows. Thick.

Even though it was frigid, my aunt and I took a three-wheel bicycle "taxi" from the hospital to the market. It's run by pedalling manpower. One of these guys makes as much as 30 RMB a day, about 3-4 dollars. Our ride was 2 RMB. It was a pleasant ride; your body is in the open air, and you're moving at a slow enough pace that you can see the faces of the people you pass. On the way back home from the market, my aunt and I took a little bus. The woman who collects the ticket fare let us take the ride for free, because my aunt always sees her around.

I touched a piano (my cousin's) for the first time in about half a year, and played a Bach invention. I liked it. It gives me the itch to play when I get back ... Pathetique.