Chun Jie Downer

It's Spring Festival, aka "Chinese New Year" or "Chun Jie." Now that I have down time I found that I am down indeed: I have the time to play, but everyone is out of town. Most foreign people scamper off to their home countries, or at least to Thailand (if not the uber cool Cambodia/Vietnam trek) or if they're married to Chinese people, to their spouse's home town. Me? Here in Beijing. Alone with dogs. Fretting. There's lots to do, such as going through all those damn boxes and finding the cord so I can use my camera, or going through all those damn boxes and finding the cord so I can use the scanner, or going through all those damn boxes so I can find...you get the picture. I could even go crazy and wash the dishes, or brush the dogs. What I really want to do is eat huge dripping steaks and mashed potatoes and oh, junk food! While sitting in front of a telly and laughing my ass off with a couple of friends--or shagging my ass off with just one of my friends--but neither one is likely to happen. I was invited to an orgy but I declined: I will go over to Elvis One's house, but I am bringing a towel to sit on and will decamp should any of his puppets make gestures in my direction. I can't believe how dull I am right now: I have time to laugh and have fun and there's no one to play with. It's too late to book a ticket anywhere (plus what would I do with the dogs?) and I will have to Make My Own Fun. Damn. Is THIS what it's like to be retired? Remind me to never quit working. As my grandfather told me once, "I have all this leisure time but my friends are all dead. What the hell am I supposed do now?" His solution: Tom Clancy novels. Mine: I'll probably whine and post. May God have pity on us all.