Chronicle 6/21/2010

Blue Sky Counter: 2 days

I think I left off mid-day Saturday.

Saturday night, Cheng, Lam, myself and Willy went out to dinner. Lam & Willy are also old friends and wanted to play a little catch up. We went to restaurant called "small fat lamb" for hot pot. It consisted of thinly sliced meat (lamb & beef), shrimp or fish paste (can't say I know how to explain that one), we also had pig's blood tofu (I've eaten worse things... like duck feet) and some leafy greens and mushrooms.

You toss an assortment of those into some boiling oil & it cooks them up real quick. It's yet another traditional Chinese dish. They have more traditions than Texas A&M and I can't say I ever thought I'd say that about anything. After that we meandered on to Lam's hotel to say goodbye for the night.

The weather in the evenings here is excellent, its very dry here and it becomes quite cool when the abusive sun goes down. During the day I sweat quite profusely. Indoors and outdoors. The Chinese don't fancy air conditioners I guess. And they love to drink hot water- I will never figure that one out. And I will never join those ranks.

Sunday, Lam found a church so we all went. It's held in the basement of a large office building basements/ground levels. Basements are about as common as cigarette smoking, spitting, Yao Ming jerseys, bad drivers and chopsticks.

I don't know if I mentioned JUST HOW BAD these drivers are. I witnessed a vehicle make a u-turn from the furthest right lane! The car crossed 3 lanes, in an intersection, at a red light to make a U-turn! It's absolutely unbelievable. Its also common to watch buses turn right on red from the innermost lane. Incredible and hysterical all at the same time. Everyday I get a nice laugh. But I digress...

Church. The church is underneath a large Raycom (?) building. It's the Beijing International Christian Fellowship. You must hold a foreign passport to be admitted. I think it has something to do with registering with the state that bans the locals from attending. There are other churches around for the Chinese. I don't know how to say "Amen" in Chinese, much less anything else. There were a few Scots, Brits, Africans, 2 other Texans, a few more Americans and a smattering of Asians from countries other than China. Every position seems to be volunteer- worship band, audio tech (a generous title), deacon, etc.

The sermon was a hell & brimstone one. Very little teaching and a whole lot of preaching. It was about Lazarus & the rich man. Luke 16:19-31 I do believe. How Christianity has turned into a business in the US and such. He continued to belittle wealth, then took some baby steps backwards from that point too. The youth led worship service was borderline atrocious. The kids lacked timing. The "leader" was probably 15, wholly uncharismatic and completely inarticulate. An occasion or two the pastor had to "translate" for him. The 2 other singers, both girls, lack timing and a feel for the music. Every verse or chorus begins with a nod from the pre-pubescent kid.

The drummer, is very much infatuated with his cymbals and would beat them until the second coming if someone let him. Though worship shouldn't be ridiculed as long as its done with the right heart, this made mine hurt. And I think my ears might have bled once.

Lam left after he showed us how to work the food court next door. We made our way over to the Bird's Nest. The Chinese people love that thing. I guess stadiums aren't exactly a dime a dozen over here like they are back home. It was a neat place and we watched a guy tight rope walk across the roof (or lack thereof). There was definitely a lot of work put into it and now they're milking every dime they can. We even made a few stereotypical jokes about all the pictures of the record breaking athletes on the wall. It's so much fun. Especially when Lam joins in!

Cheng & I watched the World Cup last night in an outdoor cafe with an 8-fingered, Canadian, English & philosophy majored, "freelancing" documentary cameraman for National Geographic and Discovery Channel. He hasn't cut his hair since 1963, he's been to every continent but Antarctica, has lived here 16 years and refuses to learn to say anything more than he believes to be absolutely necessary. His favorite city is Paris, his favorite dish is giraffe meat, he loves that we elected Obama. He also loves walks on the beach, moonlit nights, campfire songs and s'mores. That part was a lie. This part isn't- he requests to be called "Fella." Goodbye! and Good riddance!

Tomorrow I will be bestowed the annual reports from 2007 and 2008. I cannot wait. (ha)I feel the joy exuding from my pores. Lunch time was interesting today though. I saw a plate that I believed to be a pile of chicken in a sauce consisting of chili. I was pretty set on it, did the ol' point and grin. Its gets 'em every time. Picked up my fruits and the only green veggies this country seems to have, shredded spinach (so they call it). I make it to the table, set my try down and realize that what I believed to be a heaping pile of chicken was actually a heaping pile of....tofu!!

Tasteless, slimy and terrible to pick up with chopsticks because it gets cut in half. Thankfully the sauce/oil pool was more than enough to add some flavor to the dish. I actually finished it all, but was very disappointed. I spent a good deal chatting with a fellow employee; he in English, I in Chinese. We make quite a couple. He looks 17, but is 32 and married. He loves NASCAR and can't understand why I don't. As I'm talking about the endless laps they drive and waving a finger in the air in a circular motion, I say "boring," and he now thinks that "boring" and circling a finger through the air are synonymous. Good thing I'm not going into education.

I think we're heading to the markets this weekend. I'm dying to find one of those conical rice field hats! I'm going to wear it everywhere. I even looked up the name for it so I can ask everyone I see. I'm incredibly excited

All my superfluous thoughts as follows:

The Chinese are a pretty rude people (in US standards), but they don't know any better. They love to push and shove. They're polite in speech and in interaction, but they'll run over you as long as they don't think you're a real person. And its not just because I'm white- they do it to one another.

My only attempt at using a public restroom involved being directed down a dark, damp, putrid alleyway. I took 2 steps into, decided I enjoyed my life and all my limbs, turned around and walked out. Everyday this place amazes me.