I heart China

...and if you didn't know that, then you really don't know me at all.

I was in China during the summer of 2001 when they first announced the win for the Olympic bid. I was astonished by the emotional reaction from our Chinese friends. They cheered, they shouted, they cried, they celebrated. I had never felt that way for an Olympics held in the US.

I get to have a Chinese American understanding of the Olympics, an understanding backed by compassion for China and its people along with some shame over our country's current reputation. Here are some articles others wrote that I really resonate with:

Forbidden Clichés: A guide for visiting journalists
A lot of injokes. Having gone to China multiple times, I commiserate with the author. Most of these things cause my eyes to roll too.

My Friends, What Do You Want From Us?
I think this aptly describes the sentiment of the Chinese on its relationship with the Western world. It references some history stuff, and it paints a bigger picture of the ongoing tensions over the last 200 years.

Where does China fit in the West's understanding of the world?
Somewhat heady but dialogue over this would be eye-opening.

I heart chicken

When I was a kid, I had a thing for chicken... eating chicken. I loved chicken so much that I thought all meat was called chicken. At meals, I would tell my mom, "I want that piece of chicken, and that piece of chicken," pointing to beef and pork dishes.

Yesterday I had my hair done at a Chinese salon in Milpitas. There are many things one would expect at a Chinese establishment in the bay area (or anywhere, for that matter)... a flat screen hanging on the wall would be one of them. And of course, it was playing music videos. It was going to be either that or Korean soaps.

I saw the video below. The words are in Mandarin.



It was one of the most cute and bizarre things I've ever seen. Some of the lyrics say things like:

I don't want to say I'm safe
I can't ignore the misunderstanding of people
Eat my meat, I don't mind
Take my eggs, I am willing
We've become the transmitters of the bird flu
You can't live in a world without chickens

Hm. I have a craving for some chicken now. Let's go see what's in the fridge.