Jottings from the Granite Studio

After a beautiful August of silver nitrate skies, it is raining this week in Beijing. I’m taking the day off and thought to dash out to Laitai Flower Market, the Silk Market, and Ikea and do a little sprucing up of The Studio on an otherwise gloomy day. Unfortunately–since it is Beijing–a little light rain on a Friday is all it takes to gum up the transportation works. I walked outside my building and saw two separate squabbles over taxis and went right back inside.

On a slightly more entertaining note, the pharmacy/hotel/bank/Lanzhou lamian building in my neighborhood has decided they don’t want people cutting across their parking lot on bikes anymore and have stationed two woefully overmatched security guards as “enforcers.” So far, the two of ‘em have managed to piss off half the neighborhood and it’s not even 9:30. Good times.