"Hello, I must be going..."

Alternate title: "I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello."

Love the Beatles, but I went with Groucho.

Astute (and perhaps not-so-astute) readers will notice a large gap between, say, April and late June.

"Where have you been, Buzz?" you may ask.

Well, an odd thing was happening. Starting after my return to work at the end of the Chinese New Year holiday, I became increasingly exhausted. And lethargic. And apathetic. And pathetic.

Finally, in May, when a skin condition erupted, I went to the doctor and discovered I had diabetes.

A-HA!

During the course of my slow decline, I became less and less inclined to do anything. It even became a chore to sit at the computer for long, something I used to be able to do for hours. And days.

And so, with the help of twice-daily insulin shots, a revised diet, and increased exercise, I'm on the mend. Not there yet, but better and better.

So: "Quo vadis, Buzz? Where ya goin' next?"

As my health improves, and I finish up in Yangzhou,I've been looking forward to spending time in Shenzhen, reviving old friendships and The BUZZ.

Alas, Grandpa Wen had other plans...

My new employer was unable to secure my new Z visa before the old one expires--which is this Monday. Since Lila is on assignment in the Philippines, I decided that, instead of making a frantic visa run to Hong Kong, I'd just go relax in the beautiful Islas Filipinas for a couple of weeks. Plenty of time to get a visa after that.

Now, the Philippines are beautiful. But not all areas are well wired. Like the hotel where we're staying, for instance. So even though I'll have time on my hands, I won't be able to have my hands on a keyboard, except offline. (Time to work on my blockbuster book, I guess.)

So there's not going to be any noticeable, rapid improvement here in the near future, either. Just little bits, as I hit the net cafes.

And that's the view from the fifteenth floor of our new apartment, overlooking Shennan Boulevard, City Hall, and Deng Xiaoping's statue on Lianhua Shan (Lotus Hill).