Pudding and Chopsticks

I posted about 10 months ago about a scooter fire that I saw.. Well I thought that I would post it again, because it seems that there is a lot of things catching on fire lately here.

Scooter Fire

Living in a different culture can be a massive frustration. Mostly I think it’s China. I suppose if I moved to London the culture would be different but I don’t think that I would be as frustrated as I am now.

It wears you down. Like for instance at work.

You roll in, it’s your first day and you are all stoked to get going. You get tons of ideas to make the company better. Your fired up, etc.

A few months down the road you realize that no one cares about your ideas, they will not pay you any more because of them. The ideas that they did like and implemented  no one follows through on. No one directly makes any more money because of your idea, so no one does it nor cares.

What do you start to do? You start acting like you are Chinese. You start not to care about work. It’s just something you do to live. You have ideas but you don’t tell anyone. You stop contributing like you did when you first arrived. You only do what you need to do and not anything more.

I suppose that this can be true with any place. America, China, wherever. But it’s frustrating. You tell your boss do this, and you will make more money. They don’t and by the 5th time you give them an idea and they shoot it down you become jaded and don’t give an S*.

Just the way it is I guess.

Well, I had an interesting day today. I thought that I would share all of it with whomever give an S*. So here it is.

Get up, 730. Shower leave apt at 755.

Get almost hit by a scooter and a car in apartment complex.

Get to car, drive to work, almost hit a scooter, car, bus, almost see bus clip scooter and a pedestrian.

Pick up girl at work and drive to pick up package. The package came from Shanghai landed here but no other company is allowed to deliver it to the widget factory. I guess it’s toxic.

Stop at Starbucks because it’s been a while since good coffee. 830am

Wait for coffee. 840. Grab coffee get back in car.

Get lost in out of town area. Car gets air off poorly built bridge. Find company. Pick up package.

Have conversation with girl online. You let her borrow your phone a few weeks ago because hers broke. She now wants to give it back to you. Why.. not because she fixed her old one, but because she wants to be free and she doesn’t want to talk to anyone. Currently she only talks to me, but she still wants to talk to me, but doesn’t want a phone. She then says that she thinks everyone is fake and superficial. Ask why, she won’t say, or can’t or something. Go round and round. Give up. Realize that her brain has issues and she is probably psycho.

Arrive at widget factory. 930am.

Print blue prints. Work on problem from the other day. Walk widget factory.

See lots of things that I find questionable. Sweat, because it’s super hot.

Walk around factory. Arrive back at office. 1030am. Print blue prints.

Go back down to widget qc area. Worker wants to leave for a few hours. I ask why, can’t understand her. Tell her that this is the fourth time this month that she tells me that she has to leave. Not including the day that she called and said that she had to leave at 8am and wasn’t coming back. Argue with her that if I added all the time that she hasn’t been here it would be about a day. I tell her that maybe I shouldn’t pay her for one day and then everything is equal. Worker swats my arms and says shes angry. Fine she will go during her lunch. Good, lunch is your time be back by 1pm.

12 go to my lunch. Get in car. Miss a scooter, drive to regular lunch area. Regular place, order. Wait, sweat.

12 50pm, eat ice cream bar.

1 arrive at factory. Turn AC on. Continue on the problems from before.

2pm walk down to give blue prints to girl. Get yelled at because her department made to many widgets and now she actually has to work and qc them all. Yell back at her that oh, sorry yesterday I had to go with a customer and that I didn’t have time to get your blueprints. Maybe next time I tell him that he can’t come because I have to print your things. No order, no money, nor pay for you sweet buns.

Walk back to widget print area. Watch girl mess up because she wasn’t smart enough to think about the width of three widgets put together. Lose 12 minutes and 3 pcs.

Go back to widget qc area. Girl that wanted to leave is there. But she is not talking to me. Other girl says that she is thirsty. I should give them more water. I then state that I gave them water once before because I was being nice on a super hot day (Once in the last year I gave them water. About a week ago. Now they apparently expect it). The next day after I gave them water they state that the water was too cheap and that I should buy more expensive water. I then ask them why they expect it everyday. It doesn’t mean anything if I do it everyday. Also you don’t like my water because it’s too cheap. Ignore whatever they say, head back to office.

4pm still working on problems from before. Work on some other stupid issue, solve in like 30 seconds and then go back to big issue.

5pm everyone bolts like a bat out of hell. Time to go home.. for them.

510, walk around factory. See what’s going on.

530 leave early.

545 back at apartment. Girl is texting you. Grab junk and head out.

6 meet her in back of her work, she gives you phone, grab it and walk away. She tries to talk to you, ignore her. Who the hell doesn’t want a phone.

615 she gives you message on chat program. Says you look angry and she is sad. List out all the problem that she has.

Head to bus stop. Almost get hit by car, bike, and scooter.

620. get on bus. Sweat.

645 arrive downtown on the bus.

Head to bank. Card doesn’t work

Head to different bank. No atm.

Head to another bank. Doesn’t give you money.

Head to fourth bank. Works.

Almost get hit by three wheel bike, scooter, bmw, moped, bike, get pushed by people, bus coming at me.

Arrive at dvd store. Listen to guy shove new movies in my face.

Women comes in and starts talking to him. Throws her pile of dvds on my pile. She doesn’t care. Basically they are yelling at each other but this is a normal conversation.

Buy dvds.

Leave.

Walk to bus stop. Dodge cars and bikes again.

Get on bus. Sit in seat.

Next stop people next to me leave. New people come in. People on both sides to me are talking to each other as loud as they can while I am in the middle.

830 arrive at bus stop. Get out and walk to apartment. Step over puddle of yellowish, greenish something.

buy something at store, have owner say China is cheaper, America is more expensive. have old people crowd around you like they are watching a zoo animal.

leave, head home.

Get home, blinded by someones high beams almost get hit by a scooter.

Finally close door and start typing this. 915pm

Fairly typical day.

Here is how my morning is going. I wore two shirts today. It’s hot but I chose to wear a thin white t-shirt and a thin polo. Thus making the same thickness as a heavy weight t-shirt. The polo is made of some kind of fabric that allows air to move in and out. It’s not as hot as it looks. We have a customer coming today and well, I thought that I would look a little sharper then usual.

But my day thus far has been a mess. Here is why. 10 people have already asked me if I am sick. Why? Because I am wearing two shirts. It really chaps my ass. I’ve told most of them off and asked them if it was any of their business what I wear. Usually shuts them up. I literally can’t walk more than 50 meters before I get a comment about my clothes.

Are you sick, are you cold, why are you wearing two shirts, etc. I can’t take it. I guess that China is just on my nerves lately.

Just goes to show you what happens to the nail that is still sticking up.

Living in China has its ups and downs. Real ups and real downs. There are times when I am super stoked on life and then there are time when I hate it and everything about it.

I suppose that this can be true of any place but is especially hard in a country other than your own. I’ve lived away from home for some time now, it’s mostly all the same. Your alone a lot of the time and you have to fend for yourself.

These past few days have been pretty gnarly. Work is hectic, I basically work with a bunch of kids, if I want something done it is so much faster just to do it myself and then I know it gets down right. I went to the dentist today and had something come up at made my trip 30 minutes longer which then made me miss the last bus back home. All the trains are done for the most part. I had to find a hotel to stay for a night. Something that I was not planning on.

Then there is the fact that where ever you go here you are poor, feel poor, and are dwarfed by the fact that Shanghai people make you look like a 3rd world citizen. I saw my dream car today, an Audi R8. It was pulling into underground parking rit underneath a Gucci store. Makes me sick. At least in America unless you are in Socal, Vail, or any other rich place you don’t really see people showing off there spoils of life. For the most part. But here it’s actually culture, or so people say, to show off what you have. You walk down the street and you think you are in Milan during fashion week. Designer, BMW, etc. It just gets to me because I’m getting older and for the most part have nothing to show for it. I mean yeah, I do. It could be worse, but I’m not where I want to be. I’m just being hard myself. Nothing new.

So yeah, that’s all I really wanted to rant about. I’m going to pass out and then catch the first bus back home. Something like 6:45 I think. Hopefully tomorrow will be better.

So I was at KFC the other day enjoying my fries and scrumptious chicken sandwich type thing when I saw a dad and his son roll out of a shopping center. This shopping center is quite large and contains probably the biggest grocery store in town.

I knew exactly what they where going to do. He sets the kid down and pulls his pants down and BAM. He makes tinkle at the entrance of the shopping center. In front of everyone that is walking in. But to everyone else this is normal. Because everyone else does it. I understand that in an emergency situation that you might have to let it rip, but come on. Oh, did I forget to mention that there is actually a bathroom inside, on the same floor, not too far from where dad help little guy pony up.

That’s China for ya.

Here is a few helpful hints about traveling in China and in Shanghai’s metro. The first being to buy a train ticket you now have to have a passport to show the teller person so that uncle Hu can track you (actually it’s something about buying bulk tickets, or something). The second, being careful about the 50yr 65+ old Chinese women.

Why must you be so careful around a little old lady. Because inside they are not little old ladies but fire breathing hardened women with hearts for no one but their family, and even that might be pushing it.

So cut to me, the handsome white guy standing close to the doors of the subway train before they open. The doors break their seal and start to separate when BAM, a little old lady with alligator skin pushes me to the side along with people getting off the train so that she could get on. This is a 50yr old Chinese women.

I have a few thoughts as to why they have become this way. Allow me to elaborate a little.

They had nothing given to them. At least I am assuming. Today’s youth in China, or at least urban youth is given every modern luxury. Again, it’s my opinion. But they all have Iphone 4s, Ipads, etc. They never had to ruff it out and take what they needed to.

They have been treated like crap. They are traditional women in the old China. They had to be tough in order to survive. I’m talking about the country here. Not the city. I will assume  that most of these older women have come to live with their children in the city rather than grow up living in the city their entire lives. A women that has grown up in the city been educated looks a tad bit different then the women that I am talking about. At least I think so. But really I clam not to be an expert merely an observer.

They lived through China’s turbulent past. Seen a lot of things change.

They live in the city, learn fast, and are lightning quick. You ever see a bunch of Ayi (women older then you) exercising outside in those little parks. Think of it like subway bootcamp.

BAM. They dont give a rat’s ass about anyone but their family. So really they push, spit, nudge and do whatever they want. Who the hell is going to tell them otherwise? Sure as hell not going to be me.

If there is one thing you don’t want to do is piss off a Chinese women, the only thing worse then that is pissing off her mom. Dad, well, you don’t have to worry to much about him. A carton of smokes and a bottle of white lighting and he forgets. The wife, they don’t ever forget.

Cheers.

*update – Ayi 阿姨 translates as maternal aunt, step-mother, childcare worker, maid, women simular to my mothers age, and probably a few other things that I don’t know about. I was always told to call women that are my mothers age Ayi.

Also, I will admit that I don’t study Chinese history. I don’t have the time and I actually want to stay awake. So all of this is just my logical deduction of various things.

So here is another analogy between Mad Men, read: the 1950-60s in America, and China.

I have been planning on having a girl over to watch a movie and help me pick out bed sheets. Sounds like a plan right? Well it is. But it’s all with good intentions. I’ve known her for a bit and she hasn’t wanted to come to my apartment till now. Which can mean a few things. All are good. But this is China and you can’t plan taking a piss because something will come up. That’s right. My boss flew in yesterday, which is no big deal. We never have dinner together. I’m not worried about it. This morning he drops it on us that he has some customers coming in today. Ok fine that’s great. Then a few seconds ago I got a text saying that we are eating dinner together tonight, read: my plans are shit.

I hate this sometimes, no, in fact most all the time. There are times when I want to go out because I haven’t in a while. But usually the boss just springs in on me and I have to go. I could be planning a special dinner for a girl, going to have a awesome make out session, but then an hour before I get out of work the boss will tell me that I have to have dinner with him and some customers. Just like Mad Men. You have to wine and dine, go out and party, smooze with booze, hit on the ladies, be that guy for the customer. Now, I get pushed into this because I am a manager and I am white. What customer wants to travel to China and hang with a bunch of people he can’t communicate with, no one. But the white guy that speaks English, well, hell ya. Cancel his date with the hot ass model looking girl and make him have dinner with me.

Now I have to tell the girl that I can’t make it when I made a big deal out of canceling things a while ago. Damnit. You just can’t win can you.

But on the flip side everything will be free tonight, food, booze, and maybe even a little singing action. On the down side, I could be missing a make out session with a girl I have been crushing on for a good bit.

One day I will be obscenely rich and powerful and will get to lay waste to everyone’s plans and make them do what I please.

One day.. one day..

*update: the girl that I canceled on, like I suspected totally understood. Why? Because that is the way it is here. All the time. You can’t rely on anything and plans get scrapped all the time. She also made a good point that the boss probably didn’t want to go out either. To which I should reply that he makes probably 100 times what I make and one night out to rack in a few orders he can live with. My salary on the other had is set and will not go up because I go get drunk with a few businessmen.

Another reason why she didn’t complain is the fact that she knows that my boss pays me and I need to respect him and give him face, thus keeping our relationship on good terms and the money from my salary rolling in. So she sees a direct connection between going out and me getting paid. I on the other hand see, me going out to someone else getting paid.

But yeah, such is life in China. I will have to reschedule my make out session another day.

A few leftovers from the photo excursion last week. I have some more to edit but I haven’t had the time. Soon though.

Note the cell towers. You will see these bad boys where ever you go. Which is why cell service here is awesome. Well at least for the most part. I think that if the States owned the cell providers and or were really good friends with them and no body could sue them for putting a cell tower where ever they want, well, then we would have good service everywhere in America. But that’s not the case.

Old door to somewhere. Probably awesome inside.