The edtion for AKIC's Weekend

Fifteen hours a day

One my students works at a Textile factory.  He tells me that he and the workers there will be putting in fifteen hour days, before the Spring Festival, as they try to fill an increase in orders from America.

 

I asked him if he worried about quality issues with workers putting in such long days.  He say what could they do?  The orders had to be filled.

 

I asked if the workers got paid for the overtime.  He told they would get paid a little more, but not the double pay that the central government dictated.  It seems that the local governments can ignore the central government when circumstances and local forces demand it.

 

Wait! Wait! Wait!

Again, Tony can say the words but I don't think he knows what they mean.  He learned it from his parents' constant use of the word around him.  Right now, he seems to think that "wait" means "open the fridge" and "tie your shoes".

 

Music DVDs

Tony can indicate the DVDs he wants to watch.  He can say "Go-Go", "Postman Pat", "Pee Wee", and "Peter Pan".  If he wants to watch one of my music DVDs, he will point to the area I store them.  (I put them out of his reach to prevent his mishandling of them -- his DVDs all seem to end up on the floor.)

 

He likes watching Morrissey videos -- disturbing for me.

 

Work on the Subway

Work on the first line of the Wuxi Subway has begun in full earnest, as the expression goes.  On my commute to work, I can see the roads and sidewalks being torn and dug up.

 

Eighteen Degrees!  Bah!!

I am not happy about the temperature going up to eighteen degrees today.  You can call me crazy, but I am dressed for minus five degrees, so any increase in the temperature is uncomfortable for me.  I prefer the temperature to be consistent.  I hate surprises.  And this temperature increase is only a spike.  The temperature will go back down in a few days.