独一无二, 无尽的爱

I’ve been somewhat of a game addict for a long time, but don’t usually play online games. It all changed after gettting curious from all the messages I could see from a cousin’s Facebook notifications. I decided to give it a try, and unfortunately I am hooked!!!

Mafia Wars by Zynga

The game’s Mafia Wars, and you start by being a street thug making your way to be the big boss. For that you need to do jobs and fight rivals. It’s not really an interactive game, but you need to make friends with complete strangers so that your mafia can grow in size and thus be more powerful and resistant to attacks.

After about 2 weeks of play, I’m now level 57 and should reach level 58 when I continue playing after work tonight. I’ve got so far 197 members in my group, and increasing in size by 10-20 per day. Not that much, but I’m not really in a hurry to get the maximum 500 players that I can use when fighting. AFAIK, the highest level player is at 1512, although most of my top mafia members are around 300-500.

Mafia Wars profile

Top mafia in my group

Some loot items in Mafia Wars

I’ve decided to cut on the hours of gameplay, and will only play 2 level increases per day instead of 3. Otherwise I won’t have any life and won’t be able to work properly.

This morning as I woke up, I found my internet connection idle. This sometimes happen, I think it’s China Netcom’s way of preventing you from making continuous downloads of files overnight or something similar. Because it happens more often when I leave the computer on at night for it to downloads some files for me.

Anyway, as my msn finally got reconnected after several attempts, a window suddenly popped up. I thought it was an offline message from one of my friends. But no, this one is supposed to come from Windows Live itself. It basically tells me to go and change my sign-in ID if I want to keep using msn.

From the linked webpage mentioned on the offline message I read:

Important changes to Windows Live Messenger

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As part of this service enhancement, you must now change the ID you are using for signing into Messenger in order to continue using this service.

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Frequently Asked Questions
:: How will I be notified that I need to change my Messenger sign-in ID?

You may receive an instant message from the Windows Live Messenger Service Staff.

The corporation that owns the domain you are using has reserved it for its company’s instant messaging system. If you receive an important service announcement from the Windows Live Messenger Service Staff that says you must change your sign-in ID in order to continue signing into Messenger, then you’re affected by this change. We recommend that you take this action immediately upon receiving the notification. The process to change your sign-in ID is simple. If you don’t make this change in the near future, you’ll receive an error message when signing in, and won’t be able to use the Windows Live Messenger Service until you change your sign-in ID.

You may receive an error message when signing in to Messenger.

The corporation that owns the domain you’re using is reserving it for its company’s instant messaging system.

WTF does that mean? The corporation that owns the domain you’re using? You mean Microf*ckingsoft’s Hotmail? I know it’s doing me a “favour” by letting me chat with people through its software, but I feel so pissed right now. This account, I created it barely a few months ago, at the beginning of the year in fact. It bloody looks like poor planning from msn.

So now I’m supposed to log in through
http://g.msn.com/5meen_ms/95
and change what? In fact my personal details in it are all FAKE! I think I called myself “Unexpected Event” or some similar crap in Chinese (Looks like it was foresight by me. Haha). I’m going to check all these out later when I get to the office. I need to get ready. I am getting more annoyed with Windows Poorpiss Live Messenger with this new crap. I already hate the fact that it removed status like “out to lunch” and especially the “Enter” on the chat panel. Now I can’t click on an icon and send it directly with my mouse. I bloody have to use my keyboard. Bastards.

WLM change ID

I have been hesitating during the last week whether to make that post public or keep it private. It seems like one of those posts that would come and bite me back later. I guess I could move it back to private category or password protect it.

Broken Heart - Picture taken at random from blgospot

After almost one year, I suddenly find myself back to being a single guy. WTF? How can one be ‘not compatible’ when last time you were kissing me, holding hands and making jokes and saying you had a good time? I’m completely baffled. I know what did push you to finally say out these dreadful words, but that in itself is not sufficient for this bombshell. It can but only be one part of the decision making. I can guess some of the things, but some of them would remain a mystery.

Tired of this. I was the driving force behind the relationship, keeping it afloat when doubts would creep on us, but I am spent now. A Chinese friend told me that the girls here like to do the breaking up act so that the guy would rush to try and hang on to the girl (seems like in the Indian movies, just need some singing and dancing, haha). I don’t think she’s that kind of girl. I could be wrong, but after a year I think I would have sensed it.

Anyway, this breakup/makeup act doesn’t work with me. You’ve said ‘break up’, then break up it is. I know you will never see this post, nor would you know how painful it was to hear you say those words. I cried that night. Yes, me, a man, who usually spend his time comforting others. I cried my heart out, I drank myself to sleep, and even went to buy a packet of cigarettes, when I had given up on social smoking last year.

I sincerely wish you all the best. I am deleting all your correspondence, contact details, etc. At the moment that’s the only way for me to move forward.

祝你好运。

Random picture taken from loselove.cn, meaning approx 'The distance between being in love and being out of love is simply the process from feeling the pain of being hurt to feeling nothing from the hurt'

Came upon an article on a couple of Mexican restaurants in China.
Living Life to the Mex

Would like to wish my friend Pedro all the best in his enterprise. He lives too far away for me to be a regular customer of his. But if he does indeed open a new branch in the city centre, then I will surely go and eat there. And hopefully get to catch up on some news.

I first met Pedro in 2004, when we both started learning mandarin at BLCU, in the same class. Although I am of Chinese descent, I was as bad as him in the language. Haha! I thought that he would go back to Mexico since he had a job related to the politics at the time. It is a bit surprising that of all our classmates, he’s the one who stayed behind in this foreign land to try and make a living.

Good luck Pedro. 加油！Aza aza fighting! 頑張って!

Just wondering ….
Can you grind coffee grains and then just add hot water, milk and/or sugar to drink? Or should you use a coffee machine? Any coffee machine would do?

It’s been raining for too many days, and the weather forecast is yet more rain to come. After an unusually dry spell during the end/beginning of the year, rain is back in force in Shanghai. Clothes hanged outside on the balcony stay damp, shoes will probably start to ‘rot’, need to switch the oil heater on when I am home …. Shanghai seems drab.

I read on l’Express this morning that the anti-smoking laws are finally being implemented. But wasn’t the law passed on last year? It seems the government gave practically a whole year for the Mauritians to change their habits and get the required infrastructural modifications (if any). But I am taken back by the fact that you cannot smoke in your car unless you’re alone in it. Why? If you’re worried about passenger’s health, then make it that EVERYONE in the car must be clearly smoking. Or make it illegal to smoke in a car if there are kids/babies. And can you smoke while driving or should the ignition be off? Can you smoke with the windows down or should you keep the windows closed?

I am a bit worried about the allowed smoking on the beach. I am not against people smoking, I have a smoke or two occasionally myself. But if it’s one of the few places where people can smoke in peace, then it will become ‘baz fimere’ and it’s a bit revolting to think of being at the beach and seeing smokers everywhere and used cigarette butts lying on the ground, littered everywhere on the sand …. I know it’s one of the worst scenario cases, but it still doesn’t bring joy. For me, the beach is a place for ‘detente’, not one to get whiffs of tobacco (and the accompanying ‘larak’) …. I am sure I’m thinking too much, and the proportion of smokers at the beach won’t be really affected.

Not much to say, life’s going on as usual. It didn’t rain on Saturday, only rained from late yesterday afternoon. I went to Tianzifang (田子坊) as planned. Not many people there, unlike in Xujiahui where you would have people queueing a long way for restaurants and for the movies. Why did I go to Xujiahui? I was looking a copy of the Mario Kart Wii game for my niece. Got an English version for Rmb5 (less than MRs25).

I didn’t take any picture unfortunately as I had forgotten to recharge my phone battery and didn’t have my camera with me.

Tianzifang was nice, had some lanterns glowing up above, the restaurants open, slightly more people than I expected, especially in Kommune restaurant/bar, but still having lots of space to walk around. Ended eating at a Vietnamese restaurant, where the food was not bad, but service sooooo slow. Thinking that they probably had only one cook for the 2 floors, and since that day it was packed, the cook was probably over-worked. Got there around maybe 7.30 and finished dinner more than 2 hours later. I wanted to look at the teddy bears collection one of the shops had, but it seems like it no longer has many cute ones. A bit disappointed.

Oh, after dinner, while walking around a little before going homoe, there was a Chinese lady asking her friends: “How come there are not many foreigners here? Is it because of the financial crisis?” But lady, the few times I was at Tianzifang there was always about this much people …. Although I do agree that these days the expats are watching their wallets a little more closely.

Yesterday I went walking around Xujiahui because I was looking for a Meizu shop to buy an M8 phone. On Saturday my colleague called one of the shops and based on directions given, I tried to locate it. Unfortunately, there was no sign at all of it. However, found a couple of small things that made the little walk slightly interesting.

The first two pictures were on the arch of the gate to what I guess used to be an exhibition hall. The place has been torn down and it’s hard to know what used to be there. I like these ‘people’s liberation’ era pictures. The last one is about what I can only call Chinese humor. You see, 555 is, as most of us would know, a cigarette brand. Above it is a ‘nautral beauty’ poster, which is for the shop to the right. Under the 555 are the words “Three ‘5′; Healthy”. And it’s not even a tobacco shop.

arch image left side

arch picture right side

555 shop

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day. Weather forecast for the weekend in Shanghai is rain on both days. I was planning to go downtown and take a couple of pictures, but now I don’t feel any interest in it. Rainy days mean lack of empty taxis, umrellas poking you, overcrowded metro ….

Ai… I still don’t know where to take someone out for a romantic date in Shanghai. Would you believe that? Been working there for over a year and the city’s ’special’ places are still to be discovered by me. Tomorrow the restaurants, movie theatres, etc will all be packed by brainwashed youth who believe they should celebrate Valentine’s Day like the laowai (foreigners), and will splash out for over-priced dinners and flowers. I wonder if chocolates are more expensive also. Hmm, food for thought.

I’m thinking of going to Tianzifang again. I like that place. Not noisy, still have decent space for yourself …. Only problem is getting a cab back if it’s raining or if there are some special events going on in Shanghai.

Been a hard start to the year for me. My maternal grandmother died during the Chinese spring festival period, and my grand-auntie in Beijing passed away a short while ago. Following Chinese customs, didn’t go out to have dinner and party (not that I am the party kind of person)

I’m not usually sensitive enough to be really affected by these losses, but maybe because I’m getting old, or because I’m more or less alone in China, I cried. And would shed tears when listening to some very sad songs or seeing some sad scenes on the telly. Just now there was some sappy scene in a Korean tv series, and I felt tears swelling in my eyes. Jeez.

Note: This post I started writing shortly after the Chinese new year, and for several reasons did not end up posting it till now. I’m feeling better now.

Just taking a small break from work. Got something to do and give to my colleagues back in Mauritius by Monday.

Sharing a little something with you (better if you can understand Chinese, but you can read the subtitles):
Laowai’s Job Interview (Laowai meaning foreigner)
Youtube - Laowai lai le 3
Laowai’s Valentine’s Day
Youtube - Laowai lai le 4
Laowai the Expert Translator
Laowai lai le 5