Stolen but relevant
Not Chinese, but amusing nonetheless
23 May 2011
22 May 2011
Migration
Emigration is less a matter of the Chinese government, it is more a matter of the country which is to receive such migrants. The Mainland Chinese government has little control over people leaving. If you want to leave you can, the many many illegal migrants from China I encountered in Russia was a prime example of this. There is an old socialist jibe which is relevant. Whereby Socialists say if you don't like it leave!
Then people REALLY do leave and the government seeks to prevent people from leaving. The Berlin Wall and the Korean Border are excellent examples of this. The Great Wall under the Ming Dynasty is also supposed to have a secondary purpose. To keep the Barbarian hoarders out AND people IN. The UK used to have a totally open door migration policy, inwards because the government in the pocket of corporates like to lower wages. The migrants are happy because of wage arbitrage.
Thus it is actually a HK government issue. Although the CCP has powers over the HK government it is very rare for them to actually interfere overtly except in limited areas. So when the USS Nimitz docked, the HK government had to ask the PRC government. The PRC government said yes.... much to the delight of all the working women, bars and dealers in HK. But they have done some noticeable things. For example TV broadcasts first thing in the morning you get the PRC anthem, in schools soon children will be taught ONE China type thinking. But shadowy slight movements are harder to detect.
Boiling a frog is a very good example.
Hong Kong as said is a funny place, it is quite legal to buy your citizenship, you have to invest several million HK$ (I forget the exact amount) and you get citizenship right away. This is pissing off local HK people because there are many many wealthy people in China, this is causing lots of hot money to flow into HK stoking uberinflation where prices can and DO change daily (upwards) as the investment is often property. Which restricts supply and makes property which is already expensive in HK even more expensive.
Anyway as I mentioned in prior posts, Chinese people are internally racist to one another. Mainlanders are just another sect to which people can spit their bile to. As really there are benefits in HK, but it is rather low. $900-$1100 a month (HKD) but this is about the same as you'd get working in a shitty main lander job so it makes sense to them sometimes. Much like working for min wage makes sense for Eastern European migrants in the UK.
Anyway the HK government in 1997 one of the first things they implemented was the right to abode/return law. Meaning if you were born overseas but your parents were born in HK or the NT then you were granted 3* citizenship status. 3* status is full citizenship, which means uber subsidised health care (not dentistry) right to vote (in the rare occasions they do vote that is), right to government rebates like the $6000 stimulus thing (which is still not resolved) and also heavily virtually free education in HK. This law was overturned in 1999 on appeal. Which allowed a lot of people to 'return' as well as 400,000 people on the mainland also to take up residency.
This has been going back and forth for pretty much a decade about how there should be restrictions on mainland Chinese going to HK. It waxes and wanes. The last BIG issue I recall was the pregnant mainland women thing. Whereby mainland women who gave birth in HK their child would gain substantial benefits which you don't get in some parts of China. I.e. subbed health care, freeish education and many of the 3* benefits above. This annoyed a lot of people because it was seen that many people came across the border and got a free ride having not paid into the system. Such benefits to some looked attractive so the number of mainland women who did go to HK to give birth increased from about 4-8K a year to about 25K a year. The HK government responded by demanding a $5K bond if they were to travel to HK and were pregnant, though I'm not sure of the intricacies of this arrangement. Since I've never been pregnant or gotten anybody pregnant.... I think...
The issue that has flared up the tussle is the $6000 stimulus package amongst other things. I.e. people want to get the $6000 (a substantial amount in some areas of Mainland China) for nothing. TCG has and does pay into the HK tax system btw since a couple of my exist in cyberspace businesses are registered there. I.e people don't want to be paying it to others who are seen not to have earned it. Similar issues in the UK, if you've worked for ages and lose your job nobody is that fussed about if you are unemployed and claim welfare. However if you have never worked and claim it is seen as much less fair.
But to answer your original question, there are hoops to jump through which are increasing all of the time, but it is far from impossible for both HK and the wider world... I mean in Manchester China town there are many many restaurants staffed completely by mainland Chinese. 10-15 years ago they were staffed by Cantonese and Hakka migrants. Thus it WAS pretty easy for them to get in..... in a terrible irony I remember an illegal immigrant in the UK from Chongqing. He had hidden in a container to get to the UK. He was pretty pissed off to realise that the legal route was so much easier.
Then people REALLY do leave and the government seeks to prevent people from leaving. The Berlin Wall and the Korean Border are excellent examples of this. The Great Wall under the Ming Dynasty is also supposed to have a secondary purpose. To keep the Barbarian hoarders out AND people IN. The UK used to have a totally open door migration policy, inwards because the government in the pocket of corporates like to lower wages. The migrants are happy because of wage arbitrage.
Thus it is actually a HK government issue. Although the CCP has powers over the HK government it is very rare for them to actually interfere overtly except in limited areas. So when the USS Nimitz docked, the HK government had to ask the PRC government. The PRC government said yes.... much to the delight of all the working women, bars and dealers in HK. But they have done some noticeable things. For example TV broadcasts first thing in the morning you get the PRC anthem, in schools soon children will be taught ONE China type thinking. But shadowy slight movements are harder to detect.
Boiling a frog is a very good example.
Hong Kong as said is a funny place, it is quite legal to buy your citizenship, you have to invest several million HK$ (I forget the exact amount) and you get citizenship right away. This is pissing off local HK people because there are many many wealthy people in China, this is causing lots of hot money to flow into HK stoking uberinflation where prices can and DO change daily (upwards) as the investment is often property. Which restricts supply and makes property which is already expensive in HK even more expensive.
Anyway as I mentioned in prior posts, Chinese people are internally racist to one another. Mainlanders are just another sect to which people can spit their bile to. As really there are benefits in HK, but it is rather low. $900-$1100 a month (HKD) but this is about the same as you'd get working in a shitty main lander job so it makes sense to them sometimes. Much like working for min wage makes sense for Eastern European migrants in the UK.
Anyway the HK government in 1997 one of the first things they implemented was the right to abode/return law. Meaning if you were born overseas but your parents were born in HK or the NT then you were granted 3* citizenship status. 3* status is full citizenship, which means uber subsidised health care (not dentistry) right to vote (in the rare occasions they do vote that is), right to government rebates like the $6000 stimulus thing (which is still not resolved) and also heavily virtually free education in HK. This law was overturned in 1999 on appeal. Which allowed a lot of people to 'return' as well as 400,000 people on the mainland also to take up residency.
This has been going back and forth for pretty much a decade about how there should be restrictions on mainland Chinese going to HK. It waxes and wanes. The last BIG issue I recall was the pregnant mainland women thing. Whereby mainland women who gave birth in HK their child would gain substantial benefits which you don't get in some parts of China. I.e. subbed health care, freeish education and many of the 3* benefits above. This annoyed a lot of people because it was seen that many people came across the border and got a free ride having not paid into the system. Such benefits to some looked attractive so the number of mainland women who did go to HK to give birth increased from about 4-8K a year to about 25K a year. The HK government responded by demanding a $5K bond if they were to travel to HK and were pregnant, though I'm not sure of the intricacies of this arrangement. Since I've never been pregnant or gotten anybody pregnant.... I think...
The issue that has flared up the tussle is the $6000 stimulus package amongst other things. I.e. people want to get the $6000 (a substantial amount in some areas of Mainland China) for nothing. TCG has and does pay into the HK tax system btw since a couple of my exist in cyberspace businesses are registered there. I.e people don't want to be paying it to others who are seen not to have earned it. Similar issues in the UK, if you've worked for ages and lose your job nobody is that fussed about if you are unemployed and claim welfare. However if you have never worked and claim it is seen as much less fair.
But to answer your original question, there are hoops to jump through which are increasing all of the time, but it is far from impossible for both HK and the wider world... I mean in Manchester China town there are many many restaurants staffed completely by mainland Chinese. 10-15 years ago they were staffed by Cantonese and Hakka migrants. Thus it WAS pretty easy for them to get in..... in a terrible irony I remember an illegal immigrant in the UK from Chongqing. He had hidden in a container to get to the UK. He was pretty pissed off to realise that the legal route was so much easier.
21 May 2011
Chinese savory cake
TCG, there is something I saw at a restaurant the other day, its sorta like squares which were burnt on the sides almost like a less watery tofu with little cubes of meat inside. What is it? How can I make some? Does it taste good?
John C
Erm this could be anything, but my guess at the moment it that it is poorly named turnip cake. Though such cakes can be made from pretty much any root vegetable. You can probably make one out of cabbage if you want. Anyhow traditionally this is made from Chinese turnip. It is very easy to make..... its sort of like hash browns but prepared in a slightly different manner.
Because I'm lazy and busy here is the recipe
You can exchange the turnip for anything else tbh as said previously. Its interesting to have it made from carrot or even potato or sweet potato
18 May 2011
Living in Beijing
So what is it like living in the heart of China: Beijing?
Unknown, I haven't really lived there visited for longish periods but never really lived there, tbh I'd guess that it is like living in any big city. It's crowded, polluted, expensive (compared to the less ubanised areas) and is filled with tourists from all over the place. This is my experience of both London, Seoul, Hong Kong, Manchester and Hamburg.... though Hamburg was cleaner less polluted and had a fairly good standard of living for a big city. But balanced out by good transport good food and better employment prospects. I.e. like any other big city on the planet.
Unknown, I haven't really lived there visited for longish periods but never really lived there, tbh I'd guess that it is like living in any big city. It's crowded, polluted, expensive (compared to the less ubanised areas) and is filled with tourists from all over the place. This is my experience of both London, Seoul, Hong Kong, Manchester and Hamburg.... though Hamburg was cleaner less polluted and had a fairly good standard of living for a big city. But balanced out by good transport good food and better employment prospects. I.e. like any other big city on the planet.
16 May 2011
Questionable questions
1. How is the United States portrayed in China?
Depends on how the CCP wants at the time and who you ask.
2. What do native Chinese think about American people?
I covered this in an earlier post, although as said this is going to be a mass generalisation as my view is limited
3. What did you like most about Chinese Culture?
Very little these days. Maybe the go getter attitudes of people, i.e. you see people try and fail try again and fail again try again and fail and they keep on getting up and trying again.
On the flip side:
A lot of the traditional values of Chinese culture I do not share and I abbor completely. Like being a typical Chinese parents i.e. being a dick to your children. Automatic respect for being old which I hate even more. Veneration of the dead when I don't believe in life after death and stupid Confucian values like YOU MUST HAVE A WIFE AND children (my dad argues with me frequently when I say I want neither and he can't get his head around it). I also utterly hate the concept of face which means people do incredibly stupid things to save face. While apparently reputationless rascals like myself who apparently have no face do the eminently sensible thing, i.e. admit I am wrong and thus seek to correct my deficiency, or not starve to death type situation.
4. Was it easy to get an education in China?
Unknown as I've been in and out of private education there and in the UK.
5. Where did you live in China?
In the South, north of the Border from HK and in HK itself somewhere along the Pearl River.
6. What dialects do you speak?
A mishmash of Cantonese, Hakka, Wu and bits of borrowed Mandarin. People often ask me to repeat myself a few times because of this.
7. What about China would surprise Americans?
Up frontedness of many questions. Almost to the extend of people on the street asking how long your penis happens to be. People will be that abrupt and job interview you on the street. They'll ask questions about your life people in the western world are uncomfortable or feel impolite answering like their salaries and ages.
8. What about America would surprise Chinese?
Not sure not been to the US probably the huge amount of space as everywhere you go in other than the empty desert bits and the mountainous regions in the middle there are people EVERYWHERE. There is always somebody around in almost any city in China at all hours. Not even up mountains can you find peace, because there are tons of tourists clambering all over the mountains and Sherpas hauling things up the mountains as well for the tourist traps.
Thus privacy and isolation are a premium.
9. What is young life in China like?
Lots of school lots and lots of school because of the obsolete thinking that schooling = success. Which has been proven wrong many times over and over again but the belief is still ancient and ingrained in the people.
10. Are different dialects seen differently in China?
China is sort of like the USA, not in terms of politics but it is less of an entire country it is more like a union of provinces which form a.... non voting, non free press type republic. Europe would be a more apt example except Europe is not politically unified. They pretend it is but generally countries act unilaterally. In effect some dialects are very similar and quite close much like German, which is close to Dutch, Danish, and Scandinavian languages as well. For example a Cantonese speaker can understand a Hakka speaker as they are close somethings are even identical. Some things are different.
Ah Por = granny in Hakka on fathers side
Ah ma = granny in Cantonese
Nai Nai = granny in Mandarin
(all on the fathers side)
11. What is changing the most in China?
This is too wide a question tbh. But if I could stick it in a nut shell, I would say everything which happened in the USA between 1945 and 2000 has pretty much occured in the last 15 years in China. Sexual freedome (yay) , gold diggers (nay). General ownership of whitegoods in homes. Families becoming divided, credit, loans, abandoning parents in old folks homes. Food improving
12. What is a communist nation like?
This is pretty irrelevant, as China isn't communist. Much like the USA isn't a democracy (says my buddy from Illinois) it is a Republic. China is communist in name only and going through the notions but China represents more of a corporate state than anything else. With some communist leanings.
http://www.comtourist.com/
Has some interesting views. Of course the cynic in me says that it is exactly same as living in a western nation. I.e. we have tons of corruption and voting changes absolutely nothing as the corruption and pork barrelling still goes on. But people are fooled into thinking they can affect change by voting. When change can only come about via events which occurred post Boston Tea Party and the bloody war which occurred afterwards.
13. How did people in China handle the attention from the Olympics?
Another too wide question tbh,
14. In America wealth and fortune are high priorities is it the same case in China?
Pretty much except in China it is MUCH MUCH more overt and people show it off for face issues. You see 50 cent show off his bling bling? In China a LOT of people are like this.
15. What is the climate like where you lived?
Insanely hot and humid 24/7 from March to October with regular hard rain from April for a few hours a day. Cool(er) in the period from October to February but still fairly humid and uncomfortable.
15 May 2011
Glorious Mission
Epic
The Nanjing military region has hired Giant Network Technologies to produce a Modern Warfare-esque video game to help train soldiers. Despite being Chinese, it looks very well made. There is a full article here.
The Nanjing military region has hired Giant Network Technologies to produce a Modern Warfare-esque video game to help train soldiers. Despite being Chinese, it looks very well made. There is a full article here.
 |
| Destroy the American Imperialists! |
I MUST HAVE IT!!!
Someone please, find me a torrent or something!
12 May 2011
Jessie Ventura as the ultimate boy scout, yeah Predator was on last nightDear Chinese guy
What are the young pioneers of China?
Lucy
Dear Lucy
The Young Pioneers of China is sort of like boy scouts and girl guides, and erm brownies, girl scouts type organisation. The Chinese version of boy scouts was banned about a year after the PRC was formed. It was reformed as the communist version. Though I forget the exact year even the communist version was disbanded during the cultural revolution. It was replaced briefly with little red guards.
Much of the same things are done, group activities except with a communist sort of slant and of course loyalty to China rather than the US. Which is kind of laughable really as China is NOT a socialist communist country. Its more like an ultra corporate state. A bit like the government Corporate type from the game master of Orion 3
Have a gander at the American Boy Scouts motto's, or is it Boy scouts of America.... I forget (TCG was NEVER a boy scout as I grew up in the inner cities)
Scout Oath
On my honor, I will do my best
To do my duty to God and my country;
To obey the Scout Law;
To help other people at all times;
To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight.[27]
Scout Law
A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent. The original version by Lord Baden-Powell had only 10 points to the Scout Law (the last two of the BSA version were added when the BSA was founded).
Scout Motto
Be Prepared
Scout Slogan
Do a good turn daily
Outdoor Code
As an American, I will do my best, to be clean in my outdoor manner, to be careful with fire, to be considerate in the outdoors, and to be conservation minded
三、我们队的性质：是中国少年儿童的群众组织，是少年儿童学习中国特色社会主义和共产主义的学校，是建设社会主义和共产主义的预备队。
Which pretty much means for Children to learn communism and how to promote communism and socialism.
四、我们队的目的：团结教育少年儿童，听党的话，爱祖国、爱人民、爱劳动、爱科学、爱护公共财物，努力学习，锻炼身体，参与实践，培养能力，立志为建设中国特色社会主义现代化强国贡献力量，努力成长为社会主义现代化建设需要的合格人才，做共产主义事业的接班人。维护少年儿童的正当权益。
Blah blah, I will be loyal to the mother land, country work hard etc etc. That kind of thing, in effect through my cynical eyes it is a form of indoctrination sort of like :
Robots which build robots which build robots..... etc...
Commies to produce more commies which produce more commies. Which is supposed to be common in communist states. Except of course China ain't communist! By my half assed extrapolation I reckon they'll grow up and become disillusioned pretty much.
For a bit of balance here:
I'd note indoctrination and propaganda is NOT limited to China. In UK schools Children are brainwashed into believing everything hook line and sinker about Man made global warming. Even when it was discredited here. Hell UK children are FORCED to watch Al Gore's Inconvenient truth DVD.
What are the young pioneers of China?
Lucy
Dear Lucy
The Young Pioneers of China is sort of like boy scouts and girl guides, and erm brownies, girl scouts type organisation. The Chinese version of boy scouts was banned about a year after the PRC was formed. It was reformed as the communist version. Though I forget the exact year even the communist version was disbanded during the cultural revolution. It was replaced briefly with little red guards.
Much of the same things are done, group activities except with a communist sort of slant and of course loyalty to China rather than the US. Which is kind of laughable really as China is NOT a socialist communist country. Its more like an ultra corporate state. A bit like the government Corporate type from the game master of Orion 3
Have a gander at the American Boy Scouts motto's, or is it Boy scouts of America.... I forget (TCG was NEVER a boy scout as I grew up in the inner cities)
Scout Oath
On my honor, I will do my best
To do my duty to God and my country;
To obey the Scout Law;
To help other people at all times;
To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight.[27]
Scout Law
A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent. The original version by Lord Baden-Powell had only 10 points to the Scout Law (the last two of the BSA version were added when the BSA was founded).
Scout Motto
Be Prepared
Scout Slogan
Do a good turn daily
Outdoor Code
As an American, I will do my best, to be clean in my outdoor manner, to be careful with fire, to be considerate in the outdoors, and to be conservation minded
三、我们队的性质：是中国少年儿童的群众组织，是少年儿童学习中国特色社会主义和共产主义的学校，是建设社会主义和共产主义的预备队。
Which pretty much means for Children to learn communism and how to promote communism and socialism.
四、我们队的目的：团结教育少年儿童，听党的话，爱祖国、爱人民、爱劳动、爱科学、爱护公共财物，努力学习，锻炼身体，参与实践，培养能力，立志为建设中国特色社会主义现代化强国贡献力量，努力成长为社会主义现代化建设需要的合格人才，做共产主义事业的接班人。维护少年儿童的正当权益。
Blah blah, I will be loyal to the mother land, country work hard etc etc. That kind of thing, in effect through my cynical eyes it is a form of indoctrination sort of like :
Robots which build robots which build robots..... etc...
Commies to produce more commies which produce more commies. Which is supposed to be common in communist states. Except of course China ain't communist! By my half assed extrapolation I reckon they'll grow up and become disillusioned pretty much.
Man, I see in fight club the strongest and smartest men who've ever lived. I see all this potential, and I see squandering. God damn it, an entire generation pumping gas, waiting tables; slaves with white collars. Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy shit we don't need. We're the middle children of history, man. No purpose or place. We have no Great War. No Great Depression. Our Great War's a spiritual war... our Great Depression is our lives. We've all been raised on television to believe that one day we'd all be millionaires, and movie gods, and rock stars. But we won't. And we're slowly learning that fact. And we're very, very pissed off.
For a bit of balance here:
I'd note indoctrination and propaganda is NOT limited to China. In UK schools Children are brainwashed into believing everything hook line and sinker about Man made global warming. Even when it was discredited here. Hell UK children are FORCED to watch Al Gore's Inconvenient truth DVD.
09 May 2011
Busy
Sorry I've been away for a while, one of my family passed away and some ritual customs have to be performed, they are on going.
Although I don't believe in life after death thinking once you're gone thats it is over a bleak view many say. I still have to do these sorts of things because of social custom.
Torture in Ancient China
Torture has been practiced by nearly every civilization at some point. It is mostly used as a punishment for a crime or to extract information or a confession. In Ancient China (2100 BCE - 200 BCE) torture was frequently practiced.
Some of the best recored torture practices were known as the Five Punishments, used in ancient China up until the Han Dynasty. They are divided into 3 categories; Five Punishments for Slaves, Five Punishments for Serfs, and Five Punishments for women. Most of these punishments could be remitted by paying a fine.
Five Punishments for Slaves
Qíng (黥) meaning tattooing or branding. The offender would be tattooed on the face as a mark for their crimes.
Yì (劓) meaning to cut off the nose. Obviously this would cause you horrible disfigurement.
Yuè (刖) meaning to cut off one or both of the feet. This would greatly hinder your ability to work and provide for your family.
Gōng (宫) today known as Yāngē (阉割) or castration. I have a whole post dedicated to this here.
*Dà Pì (大辟) lit. "Great Provision", the death penalty.
Five Punishments for Serfs
Chī (笞) Caning. The more severe the crime, the more lashes.
Zhang (杖) The same as Chī, but with a larger stick.
Tú (徒) Slavery or Penal servitude for a given period. I guess the equivalent would be "community service"
Liú (流) Exile. The more severe the crime, the more remote and farther away the exile location.
*Sĭ (死) Death
Five Punishments for Women
Xíngchōng (刑舂) The offender was forced to grind grain. So in other words, a typical day for a women in ancient China.
Zǎnxǐng (拶刑) To crush the fingers slowly.
Zhàngxing (杖刑) To beat with a wooden plank.
Cìsǐ (赐死) The gift of death, permission to commit suicide. (I don't get it either)
Gongxing (宫刑) Although it had the same name, Gong for women was solitary confinement rather than castration.
*Execution was carried out in various ways depending on the time period, including boiling, quartering, decapitation, strangulation and two very unique methods described below.
One famous form of torture/execution was by bamboo. In World War II and Vietnam, the Japanese and Vietnamese would force strips of bamboo under POW's fingernails which I imagine hurt like hell. But in ancient China bamboo was used in a different way. The victim was suspended over a bamboo shoot, and since bamboo grows so fast, the shoot would grow into and out of the victims torso over several days, causing a slow and painful death. It was even featured on Mythbusters.
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Another famous practice was that of 殺千刀 (Shā qiān dāo) or "death by a thousand cuts". It was practiced from the Tang Dynasty until the fall of the Qing in the early 20th century. As the name implies, it involves slowly slicing into different parts of the victims body until they died. This punishment was seen as disgraceful to the victim because mutilating ones body was against Confucian ideals.
08 May 2011
twins
Hi Chinese Guy!!
I first fell in love with China when I visited in 2007 and can't wait to go back there in the near future, I miss it! Especially Beijing, they love white (I'm not tanned AT ALL) girls with blonde hair over there! I can't believe how many people wanted to touch me and have their photo taken with me! I saw a fortune teller in HK in mid November of 2007 and he told me I would have a baby boy "next year". November 2008 I had a baby boy. I'm sure he mentioned I would have 3 kids although I only ever wanted two. I can't rememeber what he said exactly but I think it was a girl then another boy. I thought to myself I would make sure I don't fall pregnant a 3rd time so I just had a boy and a girl. Perfect pair. Well, I'm pregnant with TWINS aren't I?! They are due any day now and we have not found out what we are having. I believe I'm having a boy
and a girl. Just wondering what the Chinese think of twins? Are they lucky? Is it luckier to have a certain set like identicals who are the same sex?
Thanks!
Nays
Twins have no special luck to them. Or any other luck, I had to ask around for this. I've two aunts who are twins and they were not considered to be lucky in any manner. However many Chinese people are fascinated with twins and will do the typical foot in mouth asking awkard questions in the western world where social ettiquette does not allow us to ask! Things like how much do you earn is NOT to be asked in the UK.
There is also something along with the thinking two is better than one. I'd add anedotally some Chinese people think that twins are good because no matter how far away they are they can always reunite. Just like if you separate them as far apart as you can they will come back together, and there have been fairly big stories about reunited twins here and there in China after long separations.
However if you were in China and happened to be the Han Majority then it would be considered lucky since this is a perfectly legitimate method to get around the one child policy without any repercussions (which vary from area to area). Other than that nope.
HTH
I first fell in love with China when I visited in 2007 and can't wait to go back there in the near future, I miss it! Especially Beijing, they love white (I'm not tanned AT ALL) girls with blonde hair over there! I can't believe how many people wanted to touch me and have their photo taken with me! I saw a fortune teller in HK in mid November of 2007 and he told me I would have a baby boy "next year". November 2008 I had a baby boy. I'm sure he mentioned I would have 3 kids although I only ever wanted two. I can't rememeber what he said exactly but I think it was a girl then another boy. I thought to myself I would make sure I don't fall pregnant a 3rd time so I just had a boy and a girl. Perfect pair. Well, I'm pregnant with TWINS aren't I?! They are due any day now and we have not found out what we are having. I believe I'm having a boy
and a girl. Just wondering what the Chinese think of twins? Are they lucky? Is it luckier to have a certain set like identicals who are the same sex?
Thanks!
Nays
Twins have no special luck to them. Or any other luck, I had to ask around for this. I've two aunts who are twins and they were not considered to be lucky in any manner. However many Chinese people are fascinated with twins and will do the typical foot in mouth asking awkard questions in the western world where social ettiquette does not allow us to ask! Things like how much do you earn is NOT to be asked in the UK.
There is also something along with the thinking two is better than one. I'd add anedotally some Chinese people think that twins are good because no matter how far away they are they can always reunite. Just like if you separate them as far apart as you can they will come back together, and there have been fairly big stories about reunited twins here and there in China after long separations.
However if you were in China and happened to be the Han Majority then it would be considered lucky since this is a perfectly legitimate method to get around the one child policy without any repercussions (which vary from area to area). Other than that nope.
HTH
05 May 2011
The Chinese Text Project
There are countless Classical Chinese trans-panning a history of thousands of years. The Tao Te Ching, the Zhuangzi, the Analytics of Confucius, the I Ching, The Art of War, the 24 Histories, Romance of the 3 Kingdoms, etc. May aspiring Sinologists want to study these texts to help understand Chinese philosophy and literature. How ever it can be expensive and inconvenient to order these books through amazon. Thats were the Chinese text project comes in. Since these texts are thousands of years old and therefore in the public domain, the Chinese Text Project has published every Chinese classic ever written for free in a massive, organized online library. Complete with annotations, Chinese transliteration and more. If you ever want a quick read and a taste of a Chinese classic, go here. Also, I urge you to donate to the project to preserve this resource for future generations.
04 May 2011
Fingers
Dear Chinese Guy
Why do some men here in China have long finger nails on their pinkies, but short nailes on the rest of their fingers?
Ruth
Dear Ruth
Erm pinky? (Had to look this up) first thought was this:
little finger.
There are many reasons for this:
Fashion and status.
Fashion is self explanatory
Status is to do with not appearing to be a peasant type who has to make a living working in the fields or as a manual laborer in the sun. People in China town were a tad arsier to me the other day after hanging around sunny drop zones and getting a funny tan. You know the kind where your sunglass covered bits don't get tanned but the rest of your tace does. Anyway I mean if you had long nails like this it would be hard to work in an agricultural environment right? That old chestnut again.
Next is excavation, not just this
But people digging in their ears, teeth and more horribly their arses..... i.e. smell my finger.
Finally there is another luck/superstition reason as to why many men keep a long fingernail on their little fingers. It goes back to palmistry. According to palmists folklore and the bloke down the pub, if your little finger is longer than one of the joints on your ring finger (it varies from who you hear it from) say the first or second joint then you will become prosperous. Men will often cheat by growing their finger nails so that it is sort of longer than their ring ringer joints since it is probably cheaper than limb lengthening surgery (which incidentally is illegal in China).
Looking at my hands and the fact I don't have a pot to pish in currently and the fact that my finger is a good 9mm shorter than the last joint on my ring finger. If folklore is to be believed then it is the second joint. Which means I'm a bit fookered then, of course this is merely folklore as I know plenty of Yakuza like types who are missing bing chunks of their little fingers through accidents rather than cutting off of. And they are loaded.
Why do some men here in China have long finger nails on their pinkies, but short nailes on the rest of their fingers?
Ruth
Dear Ruth
Erm pinky? (Had to look this up) first thought was this:
little finger.
There are many reasons for this:
Fashion and status.
Fashion is self explanatory
Status is to do with not appearing to be a peasant type who has to make a living working in the fields or as a manual laborer in the sun. People in China town were a tad arsier to me the other day after hanging around sunny drop zones and getting a funny tan. You know the kind where your sunglass covered bits don't get tanned but the rest of your tace does. Anyway I mean if you had long nails like this it would be hard to work in an agricultural environment right? That old chestnut again.
Next is excavation, not just this
But people digging in their ears, teeth and more horribly their arses..... i.e. smell my finger.
Finally there is another luck/superstition reason as to why many men keep a long fingernail on their little fingers. It goes back to palmistry. According to palmists folklore and the bloke down the pub, if your little finger is longer than one of the joints on your ring finger (it varies from who you hear it from) say the first or second joint then you will become prosperous. Men will often cheat by growing their finger nails so that it is sort of longer than their ring ringer joints since it is probably cheaper than limb lengthening surgery (which incidentally is illegal in China).
Looking at my hands and the fact I don't have a pot to pish in currently and the fact that my finger is a good 9mm shorter than the last joint on my ring finger. If folklore is to be believed then it is the second joint. Which means I'm a bit fookered then, of course this is merely folklore as I know plenty of Yakuza like types who are missing bing chunks of their little fingers through accidents rather than cutting off of. And they are loaded.
03 May 2011
02 May 2011
OBL
Dear Chinese guy
Why are Chinese people mourning the death of Osama Bin Laden?
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2011/05/02/a-hero-lost-chinese-reactions-to-bin-laden-death/
James K
Dear James
SOME people might be mourning the death of OBL, while others are indifferent. The problem here is that it merely illustrates that you can get arse holes all over the planet in each and every country. China is no different!
I would add however that there is also the issue of the enemy of my enemy type thinking. Nationalists still portray the old idea of if somebody is a thorn in my enemy's ass then that's a good thing. Oddly enough this has some real ironic overtones to it. Like the CIA supplying weapons to the Mujaheddin of Afghanistan who proceeded to defeat the Soviets. The Chinese example is of Vietnam whereby China provided 'help' to Vietnam during its various 'conflicts' only for Vietnam to bite China back in its ass a few years later.
Anyway the CCP has a tendency to blame as much as possible other outside forces for bad things happening. The thing is this is not unique to the CCP style of governance. The last UK prime minister who I might add nobody voted for. Blamed his crappy running of the economy on the USA.
Bob Mugabe blames the white man for the problems in his country.
Obama blamed BP (which is incidentally called Beyond Petroleum for a big oil spill, which then got hushed up when the safety company involved was a US company.
Then you get people who make you think WTF?
Tbh I don't know if Poe's Law should be invoked here
since I seriously can't tell if it is a parody or if it is real. Thus saying Chinese people as if all people are mourning is a gross generalisation.
Why are Chinese people mourning the death of Osama Bin Laden?
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2011/05/02/a-hero-lost-chinese-reactions-to-bin-laden-death/
James K
Dear James
SOME people might be mourning the death of OBL, while others are indifferent. The problem here is that it merely illustrates that you can get arse holes all over the planet in each and every country. China is no different!
I would add however that there is also the issue of the enemy of my enemy type thinking. Nationalists still portray the old idea of if somebody is a thorn in my enemy's ass then that's a good thing. Oddly enough this has some real ironic overtones to it. Like the CIA supplying weapons to the Mujaheddin of Afghanistan who proceeded to defeat the Soviets. The Chinese example is of Vietnam whereby China provided 'help' to Vietnam during its various 'conflicts' only for Vietnam to bite China back in its ass a few years later.
Anyway the CCP has a tendency to blame as much as possible other outside forces for bad things happening. The thing is this is not unique to the CCP style of governance. The last UK prime minister who I might add nobody voted for. Blamed his crappy running of the economy on the USA.
Bob Mugabe blames the white man for the problems in his country.
Obama blamed BP (which is incidentally called Beyond Petroleum for a big oil spill, which then got hushed up when the safety company involved was a US company.
Then you get people who make you think WTF?
Tbh I don't know if Poe's Law should be invoked here
since I seriously can't tell if it is a parody or if it is real. Thus saying Chinese people as if all people are mourning is a gross generalisation.
26 April 2011
Turn pork into beef
Here
Precis master Chinese counterfeiters (who else) have turned pork into fake beef....... heh reminds me of when I worked for a meat packing company that would mix meat which was labled unfit for human consumption in with OK meat. Though it was a bunch of Irish gangsters that time.
For balance though it's not just Chinese people being dodgy here. There is something called meat glue.
Precis master Chinese counterfeiters (who else) have turned pork into fake beef....... heh reminds me of when I worked for a meat packing company that would mix meat which was labled unfit for human consumption in with OK meat. Though it was a bunch of Irish gangsters that time.
For balance though it's not just Chinese people being dodgy here. There is something called meat glue.
21 April 2011
Medicine help
Hello,
I’m a 31 year old women and my acupuncturist has me taking Xiao Yao for anxiety and panic attacks and Nuan Gong Yun Zi for fertility. Last night I ended up in the ER because of a severe anxiety attack. Since then I went to my doctor and he wants me to take .5mg of xanax or klonopine when I begin to have a panic attack. Should I be taking the Xiao Yao and the Nuan Gong Yun Zi together? and if so can I take a .5mg of xanax or klonopine with them when I have an attack?
Thanks for your help,
Lisa B
Dear Lisa
Seriously I am NOT a physician, and I am in no way qualified to give out medical advise, nor would I ever give out any serious medical advise either. Really I can't answer your question and it would be foolish for me to even attempt to say anything i.e. to stop taking it or to continue taking it. Remember I'm just a weirdo sat at a keyboard somewhere in the UK you don't know me or my credentials... anybody who says they do have credentials you should look carefully at anyway.
Go see your doctor and ask his or her advice. Your doctor should know about these things why as said before I most definitely do not.
Sorry I can't help.
I’m a 31 year old women and my acupuncturist has me taking Xiao Yao for anxiety and panic attacks and Nuan Gong Yun Zi for fertility. Last night I ended up in the ER because of a severe anxiety attack. Since then I went to my doctor and he wants me to take .5mg of xanax or klonopine when I begin to have a panic attack. Should I be taking the Xiao Yao and the Nuan Gong Yun Zi together? and if so can I take a .5mg of xanax or klonopine with them when I have an attack?
Thanks for your help,
Lisa B
Dear Lisa
Seriously I am NOT a physician, and I am in no way qualified to give out medical advise, nor would I ever give out any serious medical advise either. Really I can't answer your question and it would be foolish for me to even attempt to say anything i.e. to stop taking it or to continue taking it. Remember I'm just a weirdo sat at a keyboard somewhere in the UK you don't know me or my credentials... anybody who says they do have credentials you should look carefully at anyway.
Go see your doctor and ask his or her advice. Your doctor should know about these things why as said before I most definitely do not.
Sorry I can't help.
18 April 2011
16 April 2011
Eww
I don't believe lots of women do this in Asia EVERY single day....
Nowt wrong with our eyes folks.... ok we have to put up with bafoons like Prince Philip whose gaffes are actually sometimes funny due to the way he constantly puts his foot into it. (The ultimate irony is that our Royal Family is a bunch of Germans who changed their names around WWI so we wouldn't lynch them)
Maybe it's because I saw a video nasty when I was about eight. Where I saw a man get red hot pokers on a minature railway track inserted into his eyeballs (the screams haunt me to this very day). But eww...
Nowt wrong with our eyes folks.... ok we have to put up with bafoons like Prince Philip whose gaffes are actually sometimes funny due to the way he constantly puts his foot into it. (The ultimate irony is that our Royal Family is a bunch of Germans who changed their names around WWI so we wouldn't lynch them)
Maybe it's because I saw a video nasty when I was about eight. Where I saw a man get red hot pokers on a minature railway track inserted into his eyeballs (the screams haunt me to this very day). But eww...
15 April 2011
Oh FFS
From the WSJ
HONG KONG—Officials here have taken special measures to speed up approval of 270 one-year work visas for professionals looking to leave Japan after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, a move aimed primarily at attracting and retaining top talent in the finance industry.
Talent? Talent is this
Using money printed by the government so the price of food and petrol goes up is NOT talent, its more akin to extortion.
Note TCG follows a sort of Austrian angry school of economics, sort of like Max Keiser but less polite.
Fitting in?
Dear Chinese Guy
I read the link to the article about not being Chinese enough and the illiteracy of the girl who wrote it.
I'm wandering if it is realistic or possible for foreign born Chinese people to actually be 100% completely literate and indistinguishable from Chinese born Chinese people? I've been to Chinese school on Sundays for years and speak Cantonese with my parents as they refuse to speak English with me.
What do you think?
J
Dear J
Of course it is possible. However like all things to be good at anything it requires lots of effort and time to actually get good at something. I forget where I read it actually its here To get good at anything you need at least 10,000 hours of it, (which is a bit of a pisser because to become an expert skydiver which I am not this would require 600000 skydives from a 15000ft drop and a 3000ft pull).
It is most aptly put forward by Gene Simmons in this song
God Gave Rock and Roll to Ya, I quite like this song (stop laughing at the back)
The bit where he goes
"Now listen"
If you wanna be a singer, or play guitar
Man, you gotta sweat or you won't get far
Cause it's never too late to work nine-to-five
It is completely apt. While it is relatively straightforward to get to the level of my parents who speak in a stilted way with a funny accent (My dad was taught by a Yorkshire man with a thick thick accent). A bit like this
Luckily he did not settle in Northern Ireland.
Sometimes I wonder what I sound like to native Chinese speakers tbh due to my really mixed wordage.
Secondly it is UBER important who and where you learn. The fundamental problem with schools is that they over egg what they are capable of. My travels through Korea, China and Japan illustrate this. Whereby a school will promise to make your child a fluent English speaker in only a few months. They of course do this to get customers and therefore raise expectations. To keep the children coming and their parents paying they will teach them poorly using teaching methods which give easily visible results. Results which the parents can see and they think oh my child is doing so well and they aren't so pained when the huge Hagwon bill comes. Since the parent isn't exactly fluent themselves they don't have the confidence or the skills to actually scratch beneath the surface and see the crappy methods they are being taught.
TCG Disclaimer * NOT ALL SCHOOLS ARE CRAPPY AND USE SUCH METHODS OF TEACHING, THE ONES WHERE THE OWNERS ARE NOT TEACHERS AND WHERE THEY PLAY OF IMAGE ABOVE QUALIFICATION AND QUALITY OF THEIR TEACHERS YOU SHOULD MAYBE BE MORE CAREFUL ABOUT*
I've experienced this a few times in my own limited teaching, TCG teaches ESL when he is bored, though with less anger ranting and swearing of course! Though I'm not expert teacher it is pretty obvious. Like you walk into a class and they can say, "Good Morning Teacher." absolutely perfectly as they've been rote taught. Now ask them something out of what they've been rote taught and they'll look at you as if you just pulled an AK47 out on them. TCG thinks the best method is total immersion btw. Not that a couple of hours a week isn't useful though but total immersion you're forced to learn pretty damned quickly and get 168ish hours of 'learning the language' and that's IF you mix with the locals and they are willing to talk to you and be patient.
In a nut shell, put time and effort and find a good teacher while at the same time being dubious of miracle claims of fluency within X weeks or months.
HTH
I read the link to the article about not being Chinese enough and the illiteracy of the girl who wrote it.
I'm wandering if it is realistic or possible for foreign born Chinese people to actually be 100% completely literate and indistinguishable from Chinese born Chinese people? I've been to Chinese school on Sundays for years and speak Cantonese with my parents as they refuse to speak English with me.
What do you think?
J
Dear J
Of course it is possible. However like all things to be good at anything it requires lots of effort and time to actually get good at something. I forget where I read it actually its here To get good at anything you need at least 10,000 hours of it, (which is a bit of a pisser because to become an expert skydiver which I am not this would require 600000 skydives from a 15000ft drop and a 3000ft pull).
It is most aptly put forward by Gene Simmons in this song
God Gave Rock and Roll to Ya, I quite like this song (stop laughing at the back)
The bit where he goes
"Now listen"
If you wanna be a singer, or play guitar
Man, you gotta sweat or you won't get far
Cause it's never too late to work nine-to-five
It is completely apt. While it is relatively straightforward to get to the level of my parents who speak in a stilted way with a funny accent (My dad was taught by a Yorkshire man with a thick thick accent). A bit like this
Luckily he did not settle in Northern Ireland.
Sometimes I wonder what I sound like to native Chinese speakers tbh due to my really mixed wordage.
Secondly it is UBER important who and where you learn. The fundamental problem with schools is that they over egg what they are capable of. My travels through Korea, China and Japan illustrate this. Whereby a school will promise to make your child a fluent English speaker in only a few months. They of course do this to get customers and therefore raise expectations. To keep the children coming and their parents paying they will teach them poorly using teaching methods which give easily visible results. Results which the parents can see and they think oh my child is doing so well and they aren't so pained when the huge Hagwon bill comes. Since the parent isn't exactly fluent themselves they don't have the confidence or the skills to actually scratch beneath the surface and see the crappy methods they are being taught.
TCG Disclaimer * NOT ALL SCHOOLS ARE CRAPPY AND USE SUCH METHODS OF TEACHING, THE ONES WHERE THE OWNERS ARE NOT TEACHERS AND WHERE THEY PLAY OF IMAGE ABOVE QUALIFICATION AND QUALITY OF THEIR TEACHERS YOU SHOULD MAYBE BE MORE CAREFUL ABOUT*
I've experienced this a few times in my own limited teaching, TCG teaches ESL when he is bored, though with less anger ranting and swearing of course! Though I'm not expert teacher it is pretty obvious. Like you walk into a class and they can say, "Good Morning Teacher." absolutely perfectly as they've been rote taught. Now ask them something out of what they've been rote taught and they'll look at you as if you just pulled an AK47 out on them. TCG thinks the best method is total immersion btw. Not that a couple of hours a week isn't useful though but total immersion you're forced to learn pretty damned quickly and get 168ish hours of 'learning the language' and that's IF you mix with the locals and they are willing to talk to you and be patient.
In a nut shell, put time and effort and find a good teacher while at the same time being dubious of miracle claims of fluency within X weeks or months.
HTH
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