On n’a plus 20 ans!

So work is piling-up and some things we simply can’t get done with the constant interruptions in the office. So the plan is to leave the yard early and put-in a few long hours at home to tidy-up the paperwork and end-of month accounts (yep, we’re at least 2 weeks overdue) In any event, we decide that it would be nice if we all go out for an early dinner, the whole gang. Nothing fancy, just some quick dumplings and simple stuff. After this satisfying dinner, we’re all a little bit gitty from the beer and so we know at that point that we won’t be doing our homework. Instead, we decide to go disco-roller skating! Yeah! For 60 cents a pair, we strap-on some oll skates and hit the rink with strobe lights and techno music. The guys are rusty and take a few minutes to get used to the skates. I’m not feeling too bad but some blades would have been much more pleasant. In any event, Peter’s the only one who didn’t dare skate so he was tending the bar, making sure that had a fresh supply of cold beer to keep us hydrated. You all know by now how one thing leads to another… Kevin is more often on his bum than on his feet, I get dragged around the rink by some hotshot skater who can stop on a dime and we go whizzing and whizzing around like mad idiots. Thank god for the beer ‘cause we all landed pretty softly… After we’ve had enough of falling onto each-other, I’m ready to pack-it in for the night I say good night to all and have, about a 5 minute walk to get back from the skating rink and realize that the whole group is following me… turns out that the party will continue at Kevin’s apartment. By now, it’s about 21hrs and we’re listening to mp3 songs on loud speakers dancing barefoot, drinking beer and having a blast. How to better end the evening than to go dancing at the bar in the back of the apartment? So there we end up…dancing on the speakers and Kevin is taking pictures of the whole thing…
This morning’s awakening was a whole different story though… We all have bruises all over our bodies, Mark has sore ribs and Reg broke a bone on his hand. Was it worth it? Definitely!

This relatively long blog is compliments of the ride from the ‘Ollo’ to Beijing where I will escape for two days to disconnect from the project and pamper myself. I’ve made no plans at all, just go with the flow. For the 1st time, I’ve hired a car to drive me to Beijing. It’s an illegal private car who stops 3 times to change plates to avoid paying the tolls! So I advised him that on my return, I’ll pay the tolls if he doesn’t stop anymore. I’m sharing the ride with a colleague (who’s name I will keep secret to protect his identity ) and his new Chinese ‘friend’… boys will be boys I guess.

Something I’ve just recently noticed since I’ve been biking a lot is that many Chinese just don’t adjust their bike seat. You know, the seat is left low so no matter if you’re tall or short, the settings are the same for everyone. Sometimes, you wonder how they manage with knees almost hitting their chin! But I gotta give it to them, they are bike whizzes. The balance they have is just un-real. The other day, one guy had two tv sets strapped on the back of the bike. The things that they carry on their bikes is just un-believable. Small dogs in the front baskets of the bike, ladies sitting sideways on the back rack balancing with their legs… they make it all look just so easy. Everytime I’m on the bike, I get road rage. They’re just so damn dangerous on the roads! Like the driver now… geez I regret sitting in the front seat.