Alright, so the package I sent to Cass in December finally washed up upon those distant shores. I admit, after the fiasco of the box of Christmas presents I sent from BC to Ontario going missing at the Greyhound station (NEVER ship ANYTHING via Greyhound), my confidence in long-distant shipping had hit an all-time low. (how's your confidence in long-distance shipping? have you considered that lately?). Anyway – so it arrived, and she seems to like the CD (as well as the plethora of Canadiana I sent her, including a bottle of the good ol' maple stuff). I admit, I was holding my breath a bit about the whole CD thing arriving… I'm not known for putting myself up for criticism. So, what does this mean for anyone that happens to read this blog? Why, a link of course! I've put the album in MP3 form here on my site, and you can download it by going to the following link: 
www.thehumanaught.com/blog/music For those that don't know, the album was just something I put together as a pet project to send to Cass. Cass, for those that don't know, is a friend of mine in Australia who despite having pronounciation problems, is one of the most amazing people I know. The quality of the CD isn't perfect, as it was recording on the very laptop I am currently writing this from using a couple microphones, a little USB device and not much recording know-how. Well, I'm officially off work for two weeks. Does it seem to anyone else that I don't do a whole lot of actual work? I always seem to be off for a week or more. Anyhow, I have taken a week off of school and will be heading to The Northern Capital, Beijing, Friday night. I'm meeting up with my friend Martin, whom I met last year in Thailand. It was originally supposed to be a three-person reunion, but our friend Jin from S. Korea can't make it. 
Martin and myself in the thick of the Full Moon Party on Koh Phangan. I've been cruising Web sites all day trying to get a scope of what to budget for the trip – and think it should run me about 2,500¥ (or about $370) including train there and back, hotels for the week, trips to the Beijing Opera, Great Wall, etc. Regardless – I'll have LOADS of photos upon my return. Oh, also… should anyone need my phone number… it is 0086 411 87710562. I had to sort out the country code and all that for my Aunt, as the family is giving me a call on Easter – and figured that if anyone was actually ambitious enough to crank call me in China, hell, everyone can do with a heavy breather now and again. Hit up Dalian last night with the 'new' crew. Finally got to meet "Peanut Girl", as Lorna's roommate Alice has been affectionately dubbed. Despite her allergy to one of China's most commonly used ingredients, she is quite cool indeed. I mean it takes balls (nuts?) to come to China with a peanut allergy. We ended up at a bar called Noah's Ark near Renmin Guang Chang (People's Square) and it was awesome. Relatively cheap booze, a live band, a HILARIOUS Chinglish menu (Sex On The Beads, Spite and God on Gin are the only ones I remember now), and a full on bar fight that involved loads of shouting, chairs flying, a bloodied head (he's alright, don't worry) and the police. No idea what the deal was – but the bloodied guy seemed somewhat impressed when I indicated to the jerk that started it and said, "ta shi ar bai wu!" As for the lao peng you (old friends)… Lorna has shipped out to some mountain near Shanghai for the week and I've not heard much from Vanessa and Alan lately, but assume that they've been just as busy as me with classes on the weekend. There's a bit of a St. Patty's Day party in the works, and I must remember to give them a call tonight and let them know about it. Apparently there are a few of us singer/songwriter guys here… so we might do some live music for the event. It should be a blast, as we've got Emma from Dublin and Tim from Boston to give it that Irish flav. Alright… time to find some food… Maggie gave me some new dishes to try out at the restaurant, and I'm eager to taste them.
