Today’s entry number happens to equal the maximum completion percentage in Hollow Knight. I looked at Trial of the Fool, which I still have not beaten, and decided…

No games today!

Fine, it was not exactly a decision. In the morning I followed our PAs, Korbin and Amy, to church to make dumplings. After lunch we visited several board-game stores. In the afternoon I attended a Lake Day organized by a retired missionary to China. By the time I returned to the dorm, it was after nine. A little early to wash up and sleep, so I suppose I should write something.

Dumplings, that great binding thread of Chinese culture, always stir the imagination. (There it goes, still stirring.) Today’s filling was Chinese chives, which inevitably made me think of Grandma interrogating me yesterday—technically early this morning—about why I was still awake so late. The dumplings of my childhood always waited for me in clouds of steam, melting every worry into the air that boiled above the dumpling broth. Sadly, today’s were steamed. Where, then, was I supposed to fulfill the sacred doctrine that “the original broth helps digest the original food”?

Armed with Grandma’s convenient folding method, I worked with both hands at once. After rolling several wrappers shaped like irregular polygons, I put on a convincing performance and wrapped a few dumplings. I did not slack off the entire time. (Definitely.)

Come to think of it, today’s chives also seemed to have been grown at a church member’s home. That reminds me of visiting another teacher’s house last week. The moment everyone saw the great lawn behind the house, several people began recommending what could be planted where. The vegetable-growing instinct really does run deep in Chinese blood.

Once we were full, I followed Korbin to a board-game store he knew. The moment I walked in, I felt something familiar. Wait—is this not just an anime-merch shop? Board games were the main attraction, and Magic, Yu-Gi-Oh!, and Pokémon were all present, but there was also a dazzling range of figures, model kits, and other goods. Ignore the prices and everything looked very cool. Naturally, the moment I saw a tiny acrylic charm priced at nine dollars, I understood that this was not a hobby I could afford.

Then I saw a P-Bandai Exia and physically could not walk away. (I did not buy it!) Sigh. Gundam really is still my favorite. My professor’s remark that “everyone who chooses Mechatronics wants to build a Gundam” was correct, fair, and devastatingly precise.

Meanwhile, at another board-game café, one of my classmates began teaching Americans the rules of mahjong… Were you not 97 percent introverted on that test a few days ago? Do you have a second personality?

We reached Lake Day that afternoon. Faced with foreigners speaking fluent Chinese, I was surprised to discover that I was not surprised. (Excellent recycling of old material.) It made sense: in one month in America, I had met at least ten teachers and older friends who had visited China, quite a few of whom spoke Chinese. Still, that warmth of “meeting an old friend far from home” was entirely real.

From the speedboat, the glittering lake and hills were dazzling. Damn it, I should have brought sunglasses. I regret that we passed right by the geocache on the island in the middle of the lake, but riding at the bow with the wind in my face was fantastic.

When confronted with life’s eternal question—what to eat for dinner—I did not disappoint. I chose the Church of the Golden Arches! Tragically, American McDonald’s does not sell the grilled chicken thigh burger. I transformed grief and fury into appetite and demolished refill after refill of free Sprite. Yes, I brought a huge cup back with me too.

The day was unquestionably busy. I carried my laptop while we were out and occasionally wondered which previously unreachable areas would open up now that I had climbed the mountain and unlocked the double jump. But once I actually returned to the dorm, I abandoned the idea of launching another tense and thrilling round of Silksong. The day was full enough already.

Weekly Chinese Vocal Synth Chart, Masked Hero zzz—launch!

Ah, nothing like an exquisite 5SH weekly chart. Wait, how is it already eleven? (