buurrrrrrr

I’m finding lots of interesting stuff to do and people are all friendly. Yesterday I went to a lunchtime talk where a guy presented some of the robotics research he’s been doing. Pretty cool. Many people here work longer hours than Redmond – I didn’t think that was possible.


It’s only 50 paces from my apartment building to the office but I still bundle up. It's so cold outside it stings. I packed as warmly as I could but I simply don’t have the kind of jacket you need here. A few coworkers have offered to take me shopping so we’ll go this weekend. If I hadn’t brought gloves, a scarf, and a beanie I’d never be able to go outside.

I blew up a surge protector when I tried plugging a 110V plug in to a 220V outlet. I heard a pop and a saw sliver of smoke rise from the plug. whoops. apparently it tripped the circuit breaker for my entire apartment but I found the electrical panel outside my door and switched it back on.

while the apt was vacant they had unplugged the fridge so when messing with it I'd turned the thermostat all the way down. when i finally figured it out and plugged it in I forgot to change it back and now my milk and juice are frozen solid.

95% of people are Chinese and there's no way to visually distinguish the ones that speak English from those who don't. as a result each morning when I get to the office I'm initially shocked to hear people speaking English in the elevator because the ones in the elevator at my apt building usually only speak Chinese.

I had to register with the local police. I don't know why but it's required of all long-term visitors. just like the HIV test, chest x-ray, ECG, physical exam, college diploma, and 8(!) passport photos.