Last night, round about midnight, I heard one loud boom (like a crack of thunder). Shortly thereafter, it rained. Hmmm. Farmer Wang must have been out shooting at the clouds with his rain gun. This morning we awoke to cooler temps, lower humidity, clean air, and gorgeous views of the mountains. Nice to know that […]
Behind the Headlines
The AP today has another story on the tug-of-war going on behind the scenes between the government and broadcasters as the countdown to August 8 draws closer. Promises of free and unfettered access for foreign media given at the time of the bid are being rescinded, either directly or by red tape and the issuing […]
In case you’re interested…..
Today was day 4 of the automobile restrictions and factory shutdowns in Beijing, and it was as smoggy as ever. In fact, each day has been smoggier than the last. Today it reached the level of eye-burning and throat-scratching. But somehow still managed to fall in what the government calls a ‘blue sky day.” I […]
Of Fungus and Laser Tag
Ok folks, this is a quiz. Answer the following question: what do fungus and laser tag have in common? You have five seconds to answer…..BZZZZZ. TIME’S UP! If you answered NOTHING–ANY IGNORAMOUS KNOWS THAT FUNGUS AND LASER TAG HAVE NOTHING IN COMMON, then you are wrong. If, however, you answered THE 2008 BEIJING OLYMPICS then […]
Smoggy, As Usual
Well, the driving restrictions and factory closures didn’t suddenly make the skies all happy and clear today. I’m not surprised. When all the cars are out and the factories are running, we still get smoggy days and clear days. That won’t change. It’s just that the way this has all been portrayed, one sort of […]
My Acupuncture Points
Yesterday afternoon a friend and I decided to go to the movies. We wanted to see Red Cliff, the new epic film that is sweeping the Chinese box office. It is based on the story of a famous battle in Chinese history, so the plot was familiar to every single person in the theater except […]
