Scattered Observations

No post topic today. But a bunch of observations and things that I have learned in our 4+ months of living here...

1. You get what you pay for. About a month and a half ago, I decided to buy a cheap pair of sneakers just for outdoor activities like basketball or walking through the city (I hadn't found a volleyball group yet, at the time). So I spent about USD $8 for a pair of definitely-not-nikes-even-though-it-has-the-nike-logo. They were fine, until I started playing volleyball in them. Now they are all torn up - especially around the toes - and the left shoe is not so water-resistant if I step in a puddle on a rainy day. Well, especially since I want to play well and don't want to get injured... I will just start using my indoor Asics gel volleyball shoes (which have been hidden away safely, unused, in a closet here).

2. Drilling in concrete is different than drilling in drywall. Now I know why you can buy some drills with a hammering action - this is for helping to pound through concrete. Drywall and wood are materials that can be drilled through, but not concrete. Concrete needs to be cracked through a hammering action, and then the drill bit can grind up the cracked concrete. All of our walls and ceilings here are concrete. There is no drywall. So drilling (with a drill that doesn't have a hammering action) consists of alternating between hammer/nail and drill/bit. It takes a bit longer, but I'm getting faster, and fortunately haven't had to drill anything deeper than about an inch and a half.

3. Look closely at the milk you're about to buy. I thought I learned my lesson the first time I came up with the sour-flavored milk back in mid-July. But I made the same mistake again last week, buying a different brand of milk and again accidentally bought the sour milk. At least I've grown to like it... so it won't go to waste. But it still meant going back to the store the next day to buy a whole other box of milk.

4. I love cities with people outside all the time. I realize from living in LA and Dallas that, except for Westwood, I've never really lived in a place with a citylike atmosphere where people are out and about on the streets well into the night. Not that our city right now is considered large my any standards... but it's nice to see people walking or on bikes from early in the morning until late at night. One of the most enjoyable places to be is the intersection at the gate of our university - there's a night market, street food, tons of restaurants, and people all around. Whenever I bike or walk through there - especially at night - I find myself so thankful to live in a place that I enjoy so much.