von gave me painstakingly specific instructions, down to which condiments to request and which not, in mexican, for ordering a steak quesadilla from boca grande, but when i get there i forget what it is i was to have said and order the steak quesadilla with everything he told me not to put on it. but it was still delicious and cheap, as he foretold.

yesterday night i skip my mandatory house meeting to hui1 huo4 my stipend (which i don't get until tomorrow, actually) with von in a french/tunisian restaurant at the amusing address of 80-and-a-half pearl street. i thought of all the choonping dinners and missed everyone back home. and the woman who ran the restaurant (a terrific and funny woman) simply adored von and teased and bantered with him all night.

and then i went to von's new place and stole a sweater.