Here I am in Hong Kong, running around with Anthony, whose visa also is running out around now. It's nice to be in a city, but it also reminds me why I don't live in one anymore.

It has occurred to me that the more expensive cost of living has similar properties to government taxation and is used to fund convenience. If you don't partake in or need that convenienve, then it doesn't make sense to be paying that tax.

It has also occurred to me that the only reason that I feel like I should be renovating my house is so that I can let people stay there if they need to. As it is now, I feel that most people would prefer staying in a guest house to crashing at my place.

It has also occurred to me that the key in everything is to not draw your satisfaction with life from anything. Not work, not charity work, not treating people well or earning money or sex or drugs or making music or making art or writing software or doing research or friends or family or kids or religion or anything.

All these are temporary, and leave you wondering what is the purpose in life when they change.

God is defined to be permanent, which I guess makes some sense why people do derive true satisfaction from religion, but even one's concept of god is temporary, and thus open to the same risks (why else would people lose their faith?)

I have some kind of one month tourist visa, which should hopefully make it possible to get a student visa of some sort in Kunming or use one of them Shanghai expat visa services. We'll see.