August 2005

August 26
Chinese Job of the Biweek
This week's Job of the Biweek winner is a job we also have in Canada - so why do they qualify? Because of all the places in the world, this job should be effective in China. It's the squeegie guy, who isn't actually homeless. Well, guys. They sit on a corner near our school on chairs they've brought from home and they have these really nice mop-like brushes they use to actually wash your whole car. Except that they have never had a customer, and they don't actually make an effort to solicit any of the cars that are stuck in the inevitable jam in front of the school at 9:00 every weekday morning. And yet, the second I step outside I get lots of other people asking me if I want to buy fake rolexs, handbags, dvds, handmade necklaces or bamboo flutes. So, I think they're either really useless, or their job is a cover for something. One of the students suggested that they buy broken, used (and/or stolen) cell phones and mp3 players and then resell them as second hand. Or they could be KGB...
3:27 AM

August 19
Follow up....
A few postings ago, I was discussing my ideas on Sabrina's posting regarding western men. As promised, I have conducted an informal non-scientific survey of people's opinions regarding this, and I would like to share some of the things that I discovered, so here they are:

1. Chinese women are really hot.
2. Most western men come here by themselves.
3. Western women don't seem to be as inclined to come to China.
4. Western women don't seem to be very interested in dating Chinese men, and some are very irritated with the constant attention and outright staring that they encounter.
5. Men are horny.
6. Chinese women are really hot.
7. There are a lot - a lot - of dirty old men here.
8. It's the Chinese man's fantasy to sleep with a white girl; the Western man's fantasy is a threesome.
9. Be careful of the Russian prostitutes in Babyface - they're expensive.
10. All white people are rich; also, all white people are not rich.
11. Chinese women are really hot.

I think that just about clears up the mystery behind the behaviour of Western men towards Chinese women. The next question I will be exploring will be: "Would a swift kick to the groin discourage you from harrassing a woman?" I expect the results will be quite illuminating.
11:40 PM | Add a comment | Permalink | Trackbacks (0) | Blog it | Opinion
Chinese job...
I saw this productive job today when I went to LiHu - a surprisingly clean lake in the south of Wuxi - it was a migrant worker sitting on a bench at the bus stop using a hacksaw to cut some old blue 3" diameter hosing into inumerable 12" long pieces. That's "Reuse" for you... or is it "Recycle"?
9:02 AM

August 18
More Photo Albums
I've posted some more albums, of admittedly, mostly likely Ian's pictures, although I took a lot of them. Do you define ownership by the photographer or the owner of the camera? Anyway, there are three there - one of our apartment, they're horrible, but it should give you the general idea - one of our ski trip (see below) - and one of our trip to a park on Lake Taihu with Sisi, a friend of ours who is in the picture with me. Taihu is the biggest freshwater lake in China, though freshwater is a bit of a misnomer as the lake is nuclear green and smells almost bad enough to make you vomit. The park, however, is quite beautiful and full of gardens and reconstructed taoist temples. There is also a replica of a byzantine church near there. There are also two pictures taken on the boat - these are pictures of members of the Communist Party of China taking pictures of all of us, because, well, we're so white.

Okay, ski trip. Our school likes to organize various extra-curricular activites, or ECAs in order to help market web, and to be fun I guess. They decided, as one of these, to go to this indoor ski centre in Shanghai. Ian and I went with a couple of the Chinese tutors - Jayce and Sophie - and ten students. This would have been easier with six year olds and the school told me I couldn't put them on leashes, so we spent most of the day trying to find out where the students (mostly adults) were running off to in all different directions. It took almost three hours with the train, the subway and the taxi to get there. The ski centre is designed for more of a thrill crowd I think, because almost every person there had never skiied before. The centre provided light ski suits, boots, skis, gloves, poles and even little sock like things to every patron. The hill at its highest wasn't more than thirty feet high, and it was about fifty feet wide. The outside temperature was somewhere over thirty so it was difficult to keep it quite cold enough inside. As a result, the conditions were like end of March skiing. Everything was wet, and the little snow actually on the hill was pretty slick. This combined with the fact that Chinese people try to ski the same way they drive resulted in a lot of collisions and well, general falling on asses. No one, however, mastered falling as well as Ian on snowboard. He won the best wipeout award with his accidental triple flip. Many onlookers were impressed. But, a good time was had by all. More pictures will be stolen from other people and posted on the site soon.




5:53 AM

August 06
Typhoon
I survived my first ever typhoon. It was mostly just a huge rainstorm that lasted for twenty-four hours straight. The winds were pretty high, though. Apparently it caused some damage in Shanghai - a building fell down and killed a few people and a lot of signs and trees were brought down. It was the most serious storm to hit Shanghai in a long time. Anyway, no damage to my life except a soaking wet balcony, a humid house and a leaky office. So, for anyone following the news, I'm still alive, and still posting. Although, I'm not sure that it was an entirely good idea to open my blog up to the public. I hope all those who read my blog realize that most things are said with a note of humour, and are not intended to be entirely serious, as is the case with my Chinese Job of the Week. Anyway, not dead. Actually, I've always liked big storms, and the rain tends to clean up the area, keep down the dust and kill the unrelenting heat for a little while.

10:48 PM

Re: Just want to talk about something
Below is something from Sabrina's blog. I think she made some very interesting points that I would like to discuss. I think it's very enlightening to have a Chinese perspective to compare my thoughts to. So read what she has to say first. READ IT.



Okay, background: True Blue is a bar where all the foreigners in Wuxi like to hang out. Some Chinese people go there if they have foreign friends or if they want to practise their English, but most of the patrons are foreigners. And, yes, the word "foreigner" is used constantly here to describe anyone who is not Chinese. I guess Canadians are in the habit of avoiding language which could be construed as being exclusionary or discriminating, which is why it seems so weird. Or, maybe, we're concious of the fact that everyone is Canada is an immigrant if you follow their family tree far enough back. Secondly, there is garbage everywhere in China, people do throw it on the ground instead of a garbage can. And it is very commmon for men to spit on the ground. Yesterday afternoon, for the first time since I've been in Wuxi, we saw someone spit on the floor in the restaurant... appetizing.

What I find interesting about this is that I rarely ever hear opinions of what Chinese people think about foreigners. Well, I do, but never from students. Or, maybe it's just that some of the opinions I hear are either ignorant or contradictory. So, to the first point: foreign men being too forward with Chinese women. I think they should know better, but some men will push as far as they can, and try as much as they think they can get away with. They don't get too friendly with Western women because we have a women's lib movement and they probably know they'd get their nuts ripped off. But that's not an excuse. They should behave themselves and be aware of the fact that Chinese women may not feel confident in vocalizing their discomfort with a man's advances, especially where the culture permits, to some extent, the physical abuse of women. And it does exist; I see the bruises on my students. Anyway, since I'm not a Western man, I've decided to conduct an informal poll of men's opinions on this issue, so that's left to come. As a side note, it's been my general obsevation that, even though it seems to be the top fantasy here to sleep with a white girl, Chinese men seem to hold their distance and be generally respectful of western women. Although, I have been groped a few times in overly crowded places. Highschool students are the same everywhere.

The second issue is with respect to Sabrina's comment about foreigners throwing garbage all over the place and spitting. I'll leave her comments directed at Chinese people where they are, but I find it interesting that some people believe that it's the foreigners who are making the messes and disrespecting China. I admit that foreigners do, in fact, litter and spit, but the Chinese do it too. There are 5 million Chinese in Wuxi and around 4000 foreigners, most of who are German. Is it the Chinese person's responsibility to set a good example of how they wish to be treated? When in Rome, do as the Romans do... People don't litter in Canada, and certainly not in Guelph. Why? Because I live in fear that a hippy will jump out of the bushes and chase after me about killing the earth and being an evil consumer. I wouldn't litter in China if it weren't acceptable. But, I will never spit in a restaurant. Ever.

And, as for Sabrina's comments about cheap labour, well, I'm going to leave that alone, because I really don't feel that I'm in a position to be able to add anything to the perpetual discussions on this topic. There are many people who are far more capable and willing to argue for the abolishment of the abuse of the Chinese cheap labour market. However, it is just another example of the many contradictory prevailing ideas floating around China these days. I'll discuss this more further when I'm quite sure that the Chinese police aren't going to show up and interrogate me about my potentially negative comments regarding my life in China.



Quote

Just want to talk about something

Sometimes,I feel shame for chinese people.
just a very simple example.In true bule,when a foreigner talk to a chinese gir,he will touch her body.anywhere he wants to touch.but if he talk to a foreign girl,he will kep distance with that girl.it's shame.not presure! but chineses girl doesn't say something about this.she still smile and talk with the guy.so I am not surprise that foreigner look down chinese girl.it's not their falt.Today,I told David,a student study in web:I knew the guy was looking at me that evening in true bule.I just pretend I didn't know.I don't want to lose my vaule. If he just greeting like"hello." I will said:"if you sit down,maybe we can talk about something"But he did such unpolit action.He though who he is!
Don't talk about something like foreigner throw garbage on the ground or split on the ground or something else.a half of falt is ours.If we respect ourself,respect our country,they will respect all of ours.
Cheap larbor is not advantage.it's our shame! we,chinese people,have two eyes,one nose,one mouth,two hands,two feet.why we should be cheap larbor?
Someone ask me:"you learn englishhave you even though about something like go abroad" I said:"no,just for travel.Iwill not change my nationality."because my blood relationship can't be changed.I just like to learn different culture.I like differences.I am not shame for my nationality.
I look down someone that he (she)forget who he(she) is.
sometimes I think chinese people are very strange.all day I aways hear chinese student says:"I have no chance to talk with foreigner".This words make me feel very funny.obviously,they are adults.but why they aways wait for chance not to creat! ridiculous a group of people. If they saw you keep a close relationship with foreign teacher,they will think you don't have self-respect.they will look down you.stupid!Yes,I like to get out with foreigner.because they are very simple .they don't have so many complicated though.they are very easy going to with.I like simple thing.chinese people like say a half,and then give you another half to guess.
5:27 AM

New Words
As the ESL students get to the higher levels of English study, they start to learn the basic rules for changing nouns into adjectives, into comparatives, into superlatives, into verbs ad noseum, by adding different endings. The problem with this method is that many words the students come up with aren't words at all, and so I am going to post them here, because they're funny. Now, don't confuse these with bushisms, because everyone except Bush gets through this stage of language difficulty by the third year immersed in English. I'll add more as I hear them.

manufactory - n, a building where things are made

increasement - n, the process by which something increases

queeness - n, the female ruler of a country

insurancer - n, a person who insures something

enirger - n, a person who enirgers things

confuriating - adj, something which is both confusing and infuriating

authenticker - comp, something which is more authentic than something else

importantest - sp, something which is the most important

minusment - n, the process by which you can calculate the difference between two numbers, ie 11-9=2

overwork - n, the instance where an employee works more than his normally scheduled hours

demeanorly - adj, possessing of a demeanor; sad

4:40 AM

Chinese Job of the Weeks
Ok, I've been slacking off. It's not that I've run out of useless jobs, although I've already gone through all of the best ones. I've just been really busy. Is that ever a good excuse? I'm not sure. You always make time for the most important things in your life. I guess this hasn't been a priority. Well, I apologize. So, here's your long-awaited job of the past few weeks:

Grass Collector - there is a woman, and I don't know why, who goes around the park picking little pieces of grass and putting them in a bucket. I'm not sure if she is cutting the grass one blade at a time, or weeding, or just collecting pieces of grass for some other purpose. Frankly, this job mystifies me. Now, some might say that, really, she isn't working, she's just crazy. But, everybody has to have a job, so unless she's a very rich crazy woman in rags, she's making money doing this somehow. Any ideas?
4:32 AM