Betty and I got out Shanghai and avoided the festivities – something I am very happy to do since the only thing I’d consider staying in town for was cancelled. We’re in LeShan in Sichuan province for the wedding of some of my best friends. The wedding is this evening and it’s going to be a blast, but we’re also enjoying being able to relax and just chilling out in the hotel.

I’m enjoying taking a break from the story on renewable energy that I’m working on for our November issue. I spent a lot of time on it over the last week and a half and I really need to recharge my batteries.  I’m going to be doing some work on it next week during the holiday but I am still going to make sure I give myself enough time to relax. 

And I’ve been pretty successful so far. I’ve finished Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers and I’m really enjoying Sarah Rose’s For All the Tea in China - an account of how Scottish Bottanist, Robert Fortune, stole tea plants from China and transplanted them to India to guarantee a stable supply of the drink for British tea drinkers. 

Musically, I’ve been listening to NPR’s All Songs Considered Live Concerts podcast and filling my time with Yo Le Tengo, Raphael Saadiq and the Tallest Man on Earth – making it a great holiday so far, which is just what I need to recharge my batteries.

J.

On a more positive note though, Winnie and I did watch the 2008 Beijing Olympics opening ceremonies on Friday with some friends at a Greek restaurant in Gubei. It was simply awesome especially the fireworks. I do hope that this put a lot doubts to rest about whether China was ready to host the Olympics or not. I’ve also been watching the Olympics on and off all weekend. As of right now, China has six gold and two silver medals.

It was sad to hear about the murder of an American at the Drum Tower yesterday. My thoughts are with the family, but I am wishing deep in my heart of hearts that there is no backlash against China for it. It sounds like it was just a deranged man and the family was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Look for posts again soon.

J.

To avoid any more fights today, I’ve decided to take it easy. I’m off to the gym in about 20 minutes for my final fitness test with my trainer and maybe I’ll go out for a beer with him this evening. The afternoon is going to me and one of Qiu Xiaolong’s Inspector Chen mystery novels. To keep up with that relaxing theme, here’s some interesting news from around the web:

1) Richard Spencer gives a great critic of China’s Green GDP policy here. I agree completely with Spencer, the development model is meaningless unless you find some accountability. You should also check out his entry on the China Development Bank buying Barclay’s and how this really isn’t helping the majority of Chinese.

2) It looks like someone agrees with me for more sex education in China. Especially since the Chinese are now more open to it.

3) Kaiser Kou of Digital Watch gives his opinion why Facebook won’t take off in China. When it comes to business though I have heard of some social networking sites — one in particular called Xing which has a lot of Chinese professionals on it — so I don’t know if I buy his argument entirely, but it is still worth reading.

4) And finally this video is just a tragic cry for more driver education — slow down at intersections please. That includes bicycles.

Man, I can feel my temper rising. Time to go blow off some steam.

J.

Yes, kids should probably be prevented from seeing those types of ads when they are quite young, but parents should also be educating children about sex, puberty and the lot. Maybe then we would see figures such as 79% of China’s high school teens getting their ideas about sex from the Internet and 50% of pregnant teens in Shanghai being impregnated by boys they met on Internet — some not even knowing the guy’s name. This is the sort of stuff you get when only 7.9% of parents teach their children any form of sex education. I understand that China still sees itself as a conservative society, but this is getting out of hand, something has to be done or we’re going to having a lot of one child families with no father and a mother who didn’t finish high school.

Equally worrying to me, is stories such as this one from today’s Shanghai Daily. I’m sure the couples mentioned in the story really love each other now, but in two or three years or when a baby arrives will they be saying the same thing? I think not. They may have good intentions behind but later they may admit this was just an attempt to get away from mom and dad or to hold onto a great feeling that they didn’t have a lot of experience with before (due to strict supervision by parents and teachers, most teenagers in China don’t really have their first relationships until university).

It might be controversial to suggest this in China, but maybe the young couples should try cohabitation first. You’re taking a risk — realizing if you get in to a fight you’ll probably be sharing a bed with that person that night — by doing it, but you learn a lot about yourself and the other person in the process. Hopefully you’ll really learn if she/he is your better half or not (In my case, Winnie certainly is) and the process should give you the maturity you need to let you know when it really is time to marry that person.

Until next time.

J.

J.