mission complete
Boy do i hate buying clothes. It took me about 3 hours of psyching myself up just to leave the house today. Then... well then i left the house and biked to the closest department store, beelined it to the Levi's section and immediately bought a pair of 34/34 511s.
For some reason, Levi's is the only brand in China that stocks tall sizes. Well, tall by Chinese standards. If i was in the west i may look at a 36 leg but, eh. Why 511s? Because they stretch. I belatedly discovered this a couple years back. Since stretch fabric became a thing, skinny jeans are actually more comfortable than regular or relaxed cut. Go figure. Also, skinny jeans don't look as stupid when they are slightly too short.
So, i now have a pair of pants that does not expose my crotch. That's good. Because i found a pair so quickly, i figured it might be worth capitalizing on the moment and trying to find a second pair. That failed. Literally every other brand in three different department stores did not come in my size. I am an ogre.
Now i am home and still stressed out about the whole experience. I've wasted a whole day just buying this one pair of pants.
Last night the anxiety about buying clothes already started, so i started looking at apartments to take my mind off it.
I kind of like the symmetry of moving out near Xili, which is the subway station on the west side (Nanshan) where lines 5 (north of the mountains) and 7 (south of the mountains) cross. I currently live near Tai'an, which is the subway station on the east side (Luohu) where the same two lines cross.
Nanshan doesn't really have a downtown like Luohu does, but it has several big malls and upscale commercial areas, and they are all further away from Xili than downtown Luohu is from Tai'an, so i really would be getting out to the sticks. It's got a reservoir and some greenery, but i don't think you can hike round any of it like you can over here. At least there are lots of universities. If the weather holds up tomorrow, maybe i'll go check it out.
Anyway, a perk of living further out in the burbs is that a "nice" studio over there goes for around 2000元 (260€) a month vs around 3000元 (400€) over here. My current place is 2500, which is the cheap end of "nice". The downside is that none of them have a view. I don't know if i will be happy looking out at another apartment... even though that's exactly how i lived for 4 years in Berlin. Also, sub-2000元 you don't get a kitchen. They are essentially like dorm rooms, with a shared kitchen space. That sounds like a good idea against bugs, but ... fuck if i'm going to come downstairs in my jammies to cook breakfast on the weekend.
It might feel nice to live in a place with more students around, though. This area is plenty mixed in age, but i feel like everyone here is boring because there are not really any bars, mahjong parlors or late night BBQ joints. It's really dead after dark.
I dunno. Moving will suck, but perhaps - after the usual stress and lost weekends - it will give me a bit of that "new place excitement". You know, where mundane things feel thrilling, for a while. Some sense that everything old is new again. Since i don't get much vacation time, perhaps that's just the ticket to perk me up.
Because, you know, i think i am a bit down. Not depressed. Just bummed that my life right now is little more than work, chores and sleep.
For some reason, Levi's is the only brand in China that stocks tall sizes. Well, tall by Chinese standards. If i was in the west i may look at a 36 leg but, eh. Why 511s? Because they stretch. I belatedly discovered this a couple years back. Since stretch fabric became a thing, skinny jeans are actually more comfortable than regular or relaxed cut. Go figure. Also, skinny jeans don't look as stupid when they are slightly too short.
So, i now have a pair of pants that does not expose my crotch. That's good. Because i found a pair so quickly, i figured it might be worth capitalizing on the moment and trying to find a second pair. That failed. Literally every other brand in three different department stores did not come in my size. I am an ogre.
Now i am home and still stressed out about the whole experience. I've wasted a whole day just buying this one pair of pants.
Last night the anxiety about buying clothes already started, so i started looking at apartments to take my mind off it.
I kind of like the symmetry of moving out near Xili, which is the subway station on the west side (Nanshan) where lines 5 (north of the mountains) and 7 (south of the mountains) cross. I currently live near Tai'an, which is the subway station on the east side (Luohu) where the same two lines cross.
Nanshan doesn't really have a downtown like Luohu does, but it has several big malls and upscale commercial areas, and they are all further away from Xili than downtown Luohu is from Tai'an, so i really would be getting out to the sticks. It's got a reservoir and some greenery, but i don't think you can hike round any of it like you can over here. At least there are lots of universities. If the weather holds up tomorrow, maybe i'll go check it out.
Anyway, a perk of living further out in the burbs is that a "nice" studio over there goes for around 2000元 (260€) a month vs around 3000元 (400€) over here. My current place is 2500, which is the cheap end of "nice". The downside is that none of them have a view. I don't know if i will be happy looking out at another apartment... even though that's exactly how i lived for 4 years in Berlin. Also, sub-2000元 you don't get a kitchen. They are essentially like dorm rooms, with a shared kitchen space. That sounds like a good idea against bugs, but ... fuck if i'm going to come downstairs in my jammies to cook breakfast on the weekend.
It might feel nice to live in a place with more students around, though. This area is plenty mixed in age, but i feel like everyone here is boring because there are not really any bars, mahjong parlors or late night BBQ joints. It's really dead after dark.
I dunno. Moving will suck, but perhaps - after the usual stress and lost weekends - it will give me a bit of that "new place excitement". You know, where mundane things feel thrilling, for a while. Some sense that everything old is new again. Since i don't get much vacation time, perhaps that's just the ticket to perk me up.
Because, you know, i think i am a bit down. Not depressed. Just bummed that my life right now is little more than work, chores and sleep.