The Big C

Whoever said everything is bigger in Texas probably had never been to China. Because whether we like to admit it or not, everything is bigger in China. Even if it doesn't need to be, it is, just so they can say it is. Texans and Chinese have a lot in common in this way. Here in the Big C, big red sculpture-like thingamajigs are pretty popular. I like this one in the middle of the roundabout intersection. And below you can see that the overachieving landscapers planted pretty flowers there too.

Pansies, perfume, Pekingese and holidays

The last three days have been holidays here -- May Day. While everyone else in town is out soaking in the sunshine, I'm packing, upgrading computer operating systems, backing up hard drives and other tedious stuff. But pretty soon (next week) I'm going on a trip within this country, so that ought to be fun.

I suppose you think it is not safe to tell people when you are going to be away from home. However, (a) I only know one person who reads this blog who has any idea of where I live, and she's nice; and (b) I have a mean dog staying in the house with a dog sitter, so there is no vacant house to invade when I am gone. Trust me. My dog may look like an angel, and even act like one most of the time, but she will take a chunk out of your leg if you mess with her. Americans don't need guns to defend themselves. They just need some Pekingese.

I did break away from the house yesterday to go to a nursery to buy a new plant for my balcony. On the way there by e-bike, I was quite taken by the pansies planted in the median, so I decided to stop and take a photo of them. They plant pansies of varying colors pretty much all the time. This is one thing I didn't expect when I moved to this country. I expected drab dark bleakness. I had no idea that this country is into high-end landscaping. Everything looks beautiful where the professional gardeners have been. They must employ thousands of them. This city is gorgeous.

The azaleas and some other tree with white blooms are so fragrant right now that the air is infused with the smell of perfume. It's like walking through a perfume section of a department store. Wow, sure beats some of the other smells that are usually going on around this crowded country! :-)

Azaleas

The entire city looks like one big explosion of pink thanks to the azaleas in bloom all over the place. I love them. They serve as even more proof that God likes pink. 

Dragonfly

It smells like sandalwood, and relaxing flute music plays over the speakers. 

You can get a manicure, pedicure, eyebrow wax or massage.

You walk in by crossing a bridge with water running underneath it like a pond.

I could live at this place.

Apparently the sinks don't get scrubbed often at this place. Those rocks are permanently glued in. 

Asia at its best.

Explosion

This morning I was sitting at my kitchen table, Mimi underfoot, when we were jolted by a thunderous explosion.

For perspective, this place is loud. All the stinking time. There are fireworks, canons, subway blasting, and similar loud blasts going off fairly often. I don't even flinch when I hear them. And I try not to show any emotion at all because Mimi would pick up on it and be afraid.

But when the blast went off today, there was no pretending that nothing happened. It is the loudest explosion I've ever heard, and it shook my building.

I looked out the north side of the building, and everyone was walking around as usual. I ran to the south side and didn't see any movement either. I ran back to the north. Nothing. Back to the south...

That's when I saw people running towards the east. The smoke seemed slow to rise above the trees, but soon it was thick and black. I could have seen the explosion site from my house if a few tall thick trees were not blocking my view.

I didn't know what it was. I knew there were dozens if not hundreds of onlookers by now (a few seconds later). I could make no contribution to the rescue. I worried that there might be other things nearby that would catch fire and blow up. A natural gas explosion is what I thought at first, though the building nearest the action was not on fire. It appeared to be something in the street. I was still afraid it could be a truck full of exploding chemicals, and since my building was so close, I thought another explosion might take out my building.

I had to take my doggy and run. I decided this before I heard the first sirens.

We went to the basement to get my e-bike. I couldn't find Mimi's carrier backpack though; I thought I had left it downstairs. I decided to take her by foot, or carry her if I needed to.

We went out the gate, at which point I was able to ask some people what happened. They said it was vehicle that exploded. Not a crash, just a one-vehicle explosion.  I could see from far off what was going on, and it was at this point that I knew for sure that my doggy and I didn't need to run.

By this time, police, firemen and ambulances had all done their initial work.

We walked gingerly down to the intersection and we saw a few twisted strips of metal that used to be a passenger van. It was still on fire. The mangled roof of the van had been blown across six lanes of traffic and the police were pulling it out of the way. Broken glass was everywhere (Mimi was in my arms at this point).

I found two young men who told me what happened. The van had four people in it. They were manual laborers who did interior decoration (paint walls, glue down floors, install cabinets, etc.). They had cylinders of oxygen in the van that they used in their work. And it is believed that someone in the van lit a cigarette.

I had purposely left my camera at home. I did not want a photo. I made sure I arrived late enough to not see any bodies. The young men said that 4 or 5 were taken away. They did not specify the state of the bodies (no one will talk about that here, I've noticed). But no one inside that van could have survived that blast intact. Later someone told me a lady walking home from the veggie market was hit by the blast. She could even be one of my neighbors, since they all go there to buy veggies (I go elsewhere for veggies).

Below is the intersection where it happened, about six hours after it happened. The white car is in about the place of the explosion.

In the upper left hand corner is a hard to see scorched spot on the pavement where the blast occurred. The white mangled mess on the median, by the flowers, is what's left of the windshield. The building behind here has all its windows blown out.

Those are some hardy pansies. (The tape is not police tape. The tape is there to keep people from treading on the newly planted pansies.)

I go by this location often. Thank God I was not there this morning.

My crazy little lamb

Above: Mimi practices early for this year's Christmas pageant.

I've got a new bruise on my arm, courtesy of above doggy, Miss Personality herself. She was so excited to be going outside for a walk that she gave me a double high-five body slam. Unfortunately, it came at a time when one of my feet was off the ground, so I ended up falling over onto my dining room table. Fun times.

The usual recipient of the double high-five is the elevator. Mimi gets on the elevator, then does her victory dance. She jumps as high as she can to double high-five the back and sides of the elevator (three different jumps). I have forbidden her to jump at the door itself, lest it open unexpectedly. She's a little thing, thank goodness, or else I might fear damage to the elevator's function!

Well, she's a happy little mutt. She's 8-years-old with the exuberance of a puppy.

Architecture

View from inside a cultural arts center ... fantastic architecture inside and out! There's a Starbucks and a Coldstone Creamery inside it, which I skipped. Seems to me it would be more fitting to sip a cup of hot Jasmine tea in a place like this.

Seen in the village

Tree blossoms in a village.

Motor bikes and motor trikes -- suitable village transportation. Check out that hat...straw hats are still worn by village manual laborers in the Middle Kingdom.

They're gone

Gone, gone, gone.

I went to visit some people in a village that I met some months back. I regret not returning sooner, because the village is gone. Demolished. Wow. I hate it when that happens. I'll never see those people again.

The buildings still standing have been gutted, awaiting their final destruction.

Pretty soon this corner of the country isn't going to have any villages left. *Sigh* I love villages. I mean, I like to visit them, soak in the ambience, talk to people, take photos, etc. I don't want to live in one. 

Happiness

Here's a friend of mine. She's bubbly and full of joy in person, so this picture seems to capture her essence perfectly. Thank God for sweet friends. And thank God too for a camera to catch these moments!