Had a few meetups with friends this past week, some of them I haven’t seen since the pandemic began 2 years ago! It’s good that we met up just before an imminent 5th pandemic wave. After 80+ days of zero community COVID cases, a few Omicron variant cases linking a restaurant near my parents’ place were reported. Hopefully, this wave will be contained soon so that family and friends can meet up again in the upcoming CNY holidays.

In mid last week, an online news outlet, Stand News, had their office rampaged by the police. Some executives from the media were arrested and it ceased operation entirely on the same day. I started following Stand News after a major pro-democracy media, Appledaily, was raided and folded mid last year. And while I’m writing this blog post, another online news outlet I support, 眾新聞, announced they will cease operation on Tue. With all the news outlet that had a good reputation of reporting truth (sometimes not what the government wanted ppl to see) gone, a dark veil seems to have covered our already darkened city.

With a pretty crappy 2021 behind us, I was somewhat hopeful in a better 2022. Perhaps I’m a bit too optimistic, might be better not to carry any expectations. The city is dying too rapidly, I should stay focused and expedite my extradition plan back to “our home and native land” this year.