From now on I am not going to comment on the heat and humidity. Everyone can assume it is uncomfortably hot and humid. If it is not, I will say otherwise. Have continued to resist turning on the a/c. Working to get acclimated. Am sleeping on my cool bamboo be mattress cover. As long as I an streamlining, you can assume my day is as follows unless I say something different: Work, read at the library, walk home, dinner, exercise in the park. Had coffee and a not-so-fresh Wal-Mart almond cookie for breakfast. Looked at my Twitter account last night. I [View Full Entry]

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Yesterday was the hottest day yet. It was a little cloudy, but still very hot and sticky. I didn’t climb the mountain. I was doing my laps in the park when it started raining. The rain didn’t seem to cool things off. It just made everything more humid. I gave up on trying to acclimate myself to the heat, at least temporarily. I turned the a/c on last night. I slept on my bamboo “sheet.” Since I got on Twitter, I decided to go all the way and got on Facebook and MySpace. Like Twitter, I don’t get it. Maybe the [View Full Entry]

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Last night was Martin’s Surprise birthday party. Yesterday I described my plans to have a birthday cake presented at dinner. I thought everything was in place. The gang rendezvoused at Martin’s car for the drive to Coco Park. When I arrived Sea was already there. She was holding a cake box. What? Somehow the secret cake had made its way from Starbucks to Sea’s hand. Vivian had to be responsible. All my emphasis on “secret” and “surprise” was lost or misunderstood. So we made our way to Coco Park and the pizza place. Coco Park is a large shoppin [View Full Entry]

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Today is the hottest day of the year so far. I don’t know the exact temperature, but I would guess it’s close to 90, and the sun is shining brightly. No wind, of course. The sidewalks are crowded with umbrellas carried by Chinese women to keep the sun off. It is often difficult to walk without dodging and ducking the umbrellas. Here everyone wants white skin. Every skin product from lotion, to moisturizer, to sun block contains whitening agents. Occasionally you see a woman who has bleached herself so much she looks like a cadaver, or like Michael Jackson. It’s ironi [View Full Entry]

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Yesterday (May 12, 2009) was the one year anniversary of the big earthquake in China. It was in Schuian Province and officially about 85,000 people were killed. Several towns were flattened. All day and night the TV was devoted to it. There were hundreds of dead babies and adults shown, scenes of mass destruction, and starving refugees begging for assistance. They also showed the results of reconstruction. They showed happy children in new schools, adults in new homes, and smiling people working in new factories. There were endless patriotic songs, dances, and speeches. Monuments were unvei [View Full Entry]

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As usual I got things wrong. I sent an email to Vivian and Sea inviting them and their families to a Peking Duck dinner on me. They accepted. We would rendezvous at Sea’s house at 16:00 and go from there. I told them to select a good place for crispy duck. I arrived right on time to find Edison and his new girlfriend sitting in the living room while Sea was in the kitchen chopping away at vegetables and singing. I don’t think she even heard me come in. Then Vivian and Martin arrived. With them came Martin’s sister and her [View Full Entry]

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Have been hearing so much about Twitter I signed up today. So far, I don’t get the excitement. Maybe I need to “follow” Ashton Kutcher and Larry King. So far two people are “following” me. One turned out to be a link to a porn site. The other must be very bored. Slept on my bamboo bed cover for the first time last night. It did seem a bit cooler, but I think the weather in general was a little cooler than the past few days. We’ll see. Had noodle soup and mangoes for dinner last night. The mangoes were extremely [View Full Entry]

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Yesterday it was hot again. I did nothing but work, library, home, eat, park. Thus no post. Today it is a little cooler, but still very warm and sunny. At least there is a slight breeze. Last Saturday night I invited “the gang” out for a crispy duck dinner on me. I described how we ended up eating at Sea’s, then going to Window of the World for music, dice and pool, and beer. I didn’t mention that I paid for nothing. Martin and Nina’s husband paid for everything. So my social obligation was not repaid. In fact, I guess I [View Full Entry]

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It is very cool today. I didn’t realize it, but it rained last night. When I went out this morning everything was still wet. It is still cloudy. After work today I got together with a few other teachers for an early dinner. We went to a place they knew close by that served western food including Mexican, hamburgers, and pizza. I had a hamburger and fries, and while I do not miss western food, I must admit it hit the spot. It was well prepared. Most of my colleagues are Australian. There is one Canadian, and a couple I do [View Full Entry]

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Today is the Qingming Festival. It is the day when your dead ancestors are honored. Now that I think about it, your ancestors may not have to be dead. I will try to clarify. The newspaper said so many millions of people will leave Shenzhen to go home to visit cemeteries. The city buses had been instructed to make unscheduled stops at the cemeteries in town. I don’t know if there will be activities going on in the parks. I hope they have fireworks. Sea emailed me and asked if I accompany her to sweep her father’s grave. I said yes, [View Full Entry]

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