The foreigner finds solace in a bike and Ben Folds

In a never-ending week that is hardly halfway through, I ride my bike for break, and Benny F (both mine and the music man) hold me in sanity. Tonight, I found myself gliding along the street, twisting through traffic, incessantly ringing my bell, fruitlessly of course, no one here listens to, nor actively responds to bells, car horns, or any other sound of warning, but at least the bell carries a joyous tune that lulls out the chaos of the background....or perhaps adds to it and simply makes it a bit more harmonious and unified. The chorus of a messy machine chilling through low smoggy city streets. Whatever the case, I enjoy weaving. I smile every time I hear a horn badgering me from behind and grin, no, I don't have to move, and no, the horn is not a form of road rage, it is simply a warning, a letting me know, a strange "Move please, (though 'please' and 'thank yous' are not part of people's frequent vocabulary here) so that I can come through, even though I know you can't move, but I'm here, so, just so you know I'm here, and hey, I like leaning on my horn, its fun, its mindless, and I do it cuz I can". Nothing in my Canadian experience can compare to biking on a road in China, and I do realize my experience here, so far, has been quite the cushy China experience. So we road, we glided, we swirled around, through, over, under, and in between. Dinner, drinks, and back to the office. I am finally finished my binders with my year plans, now I have a load of marking to get through and some final planning for tomorrow's lessons, thank goodness they are mostly done, because I am MORE than done myself, ready for a good tuck in bed. Until then, oh what a merry sound is Ben Fold's voice telling me "Its ok if you don't know everything" which I don't, so I won't try, its far easier that way:)