Washing all the clothes really did feel good. I felt lighter somehow, and once the stove was lit, the whole house turned warm and comfortable. It really does seem like if the place stays neat and tidy, a person starts to look better too, haha.
The tiny drying rack Xiaobao bought somehow couldn’t handle this many clothes. Looks like I’m back to the old rule of washing one dirty load at a time. The whole rack bent under the weight, and I almost felt sorry for it. Last night it wasn’t that obvious, but today it looks like it’s about to give out. You’d think it would have been heavier last night, and lighter today after the clothes had drained more water, but apparently the rack just hit its limit today.
My coworker next door saw my miserable little rack and brought over hers to help out for now. Hers is the same kind as the one I used to have, and that one was also bought by Xiaobao. I only used it for a few days before, and honestly it wasn’t that useful for me anyway. If you’re not washing clothes, a drying rack doesn’t do much. After Xiaobao started working over here, she took it back, and it makes a lot more sense with her than it did with me. I really felt that in a very practical way.
When I got up this morning, the stove still hadn’t gone out. That was great. It was really cold, and mornings are especially chilly these days. Once I added some charcoal, the warmth was obvious right away. The bigger pieces in the charcoal room were already gone, which actually made things easier for me—I didn’t need to use tongs anymore, just a shovel, and a couple of scoops did the job. So small charcoal has its own advantages. The only good thing about stuffing the stove full at night is that it’s still burning the next morning, and it’s convenient too.
One thing to remember, though: when sleeping, you absolutely can’t shut the window completely. It’s best to leave a small crack open.
Xiaobao got lucky this morning too. When we got up, breakfast was still available, and the cafeteria timing worked out perfectly. I even brought hers upstairs. Thinking about it, I’m really good to Xiaobao, and even I have to admire myself a little, haha. But she’s good to me too—last night she came over and washed my clothes, more than a dozen pieces. If it were me, I’d probably let them sit there until they were moldy. It really does seem true that men can’t do without women.
For lunch, we had rice. As long as there are eggs, that’s enough for me. I’ve loved scrambled eggs since I was a kid, and I still do now. I remember how my mom once tried to tone it down by adding flour into the eggs, and the scrambled eggs came out not nearly as tasty. Even so, I still liked them. And shredded potatoes has always been one of those dishes I never get tired of, haha.
The weather today was just like yesterday: pretty good, clear skies, no clouds at all, but still quite cold. It’s the start of winter, so it should feel like winter. Honestly, it feels like there wasn’t really an autumn this year at all—summer ended and then winter just showed up.
Last night while browsing Duoduo, I saw some ridiculously cheap vegetables and checked out the daily deals. A few-yuan items were just too easy to click on and buy. I’ve got to say, Pinduoduo’s Duoduo Grocery and Meituan’s Meituan Select are both pretty great. The stuff inside is really cheap, there’s no delivery fee, and it shows up the next day. If I’m buying food in the future, these platforms really do seem worth it. At least they’re cheaper than the supermarket, haha.
