Conscious

 I don't like repeating myself. As such, I am not too keen in re-transcribing my thoughts and descriptions of my two weeks in Vietnam and Cambodia. It was a terrific time with some wonderful people (both friends and strangers). I captured my pontifications in my personal notebook, though, and that is where they will stay. Ask me and I'll share it with you, but I'm not going to run down my vacation.

Besides, nothing negative happened so it's immediately less riveting than a total train wreck would have been. Flying back into Beijing the flight attendant came over the loudspeaker in the plane.

"The ground temperature in Beijing is -11 degrees Celsius," she said.

I groaned. It's silly to complain, since I spent the previous two weeks in paradise, but it was a fairly severe shock to the system. I grumbled.

Memories will settle in and nestle their way into my subconscious. This is why we travel. It's an opportunity to see the world and build on our perceptions and experiences. Every meaningful moment, positive and negative, is a puzzle piece forming our personal identities. Mine is unique...just like everyone else.






Worse...the pollution is more oppressive than ever. The air quality index was, apparently, off the scales on Saturday. It probably set me back to day one of not smoking. Drat.

For everything new, there is something familiar. Upon returning to the frigid concrete jungle, the safest and most comfortable option is staying inside to catch up on movies and television. Hooray! From Lincoln to Django to Zero Dark Thirty, the movies of 2012 have impressed. Netflix has given me access to Sons of Anarchy, which I have put off for some time. Turn the heat on, lay back on my tiny couch and I avoid the cold. Not a bad call.

But still I am restless at times. I don't like to blog without purpose...but I also don't like leaving this space untended for too long. It's good practice to compose these posts, however aimless. I'm not Kerouac, though and stream of consciousness doesn't flow easily for me. Perhaps the more I force myself to do it, the easier it will get...like most things.

Less than a month until Spain. My mind is already there.