Call me paranoid

I know you all do already, don't you?

This morning I received my first - probably only, this year - Christmas parcel from overseas (abundant thanks to my old Oxford chum, The Nags, and, more particularly, to Mrs Nags). It had only taken 12 days or so to reach me. It had, however, been brutally ripped open (for 'routine inspection' by China Post??). Packages of confectionery inside (which, I think, is not strictly legal to bring into the country) were ignored, but the gift-wrapped package containing a book and a CD had its top chopped off (smashing the corner of the CD case and significantly distressing the top end of the book - although, given the evident violence of this operation, I suppose I should be grateful that the top 2" of the book wasn't sliced clean off!). Over the years, I have had quite a few parcels from friends abroad fail to reach me altogether. A writer friend in America claims that she twice tried to send me advance copies of her debut novel a couple of years ago, but neither one reached me (she'd called her book The Dissident - do you suppose that might have been the problem?).

This, then, was quite a distressing start to the day.

I also suffered a power outage today. Most inconvenient. Unlike last time, I couldn't see any obvious maintenance work on the power lines in progress, so I was briefly inclined to wonder if the powers-that-be were beginning a campaign of petty persecution against me (perhaps for being foolhardy enough to publish some positive comments on you-know-who just recently?). I soon discovered that the power to my entire apartment complex had been cut (but, hey, you know - in this country they really might be willing to inconvenience 100 people just to put the wind up one troublemaker..... happens all the time....). But..... well, the power was restored after only 5 or 6 hours, so perhaps it was just 'maintenance' after all.

But then.... as I was heading off to work just before 9am.... I found the neighbourhood crawling with cops! 2 vans and 3 or 4 squad cars, and perhaps more on the way: 15 or 20 uniforms suddenly descending on the row of shops at the end of my street! Definitely something afoot!!

But it couldn't have been anything to do with little old me, could it? Could it??