A New Year

Wow, it’s been a year since my last diary entry. What have I done during this year? I want to say: almost nothing.

I have been laid off since June 2025. It has officially been one year since then. In July and August, I was busy working on the arbitration case. I mostly stayed at home in Shanghai, learning English and doing some exercise.

In September, I got what I wanted from the case, so I started traveling for a few days and spent some time in Zhengzhou with one of my friends. In October, I traveled around places near Shanghai for several days.

In November and December, I stayed in Shanghai. I often went to parks, and I also saw exhibitions, movies, and shows. In January, I went to Suzhou. In February, I went back home to celebrate Spring Festival. In March, I returned to Shanghai to pack my things and give the apartment back to the landlord.

In April, I traveled to Tibet. In May, I went to Sichuan, Guizhou, and Guangxi. In June, I went to Shandong. And now I’m in Yantai for the summer.

It feels like such a long time since I last traveled alone outside Shanghai. Every three or four days, I moved to a different city. When I first arrived in a city, I usually visited the tourist attractions. After that, I went to parks and more ordinary local places, trying to get a sense of daily life there.

That is what I have done over the past year. Nothing very special, maybe.

But it feels like a whole lifetime. Time no longer just flies by the way it did when I sat in an office, suddenly found myself off work, and realized another day was already over.

I have another year that I can afford to “waste.” I hope I can enjoy it more, without worrying about money all the time. I just want to enjoy this period of doing nothing: the food, the views, the people, the shows, the movies, and everything happening around me.