Bye Bye Bali, Plus Daily Life

My grandma is not doing well. So, I am no longer going to Bali and Beijing over my break; instead, I'll be flying back to the U.S. to spend time with her and other family. I was looking forward to these trips, but Bali and Beijing will be there for a long while. Grandma comes first. I am sure those of you reading can understand and would do the same thing.

Now, a few things to share about daily life in China:

1. Street cleaning trucks in my city play "Happy Birthday" in a high-pitched tone, over and over and over. There is also a techno version of Happy Birthday they play in clubs. How "Happy Birthday" became both of these things, I have no idea, but I never want to hear "Happy Birthday" again.

2. Overheard yesterday as I was walking home: a clothing store blasting "Jingle Bells" set to a disco-esque beat, including the phrases "Jingle all the way, oh what fun it is to ride in a one horse open sleee." Sleigh IS spelled like Leigh, I have to give them that. "One horse open sleee" set to disco is more funny than I could have imagined. I smiled all the way home.

3. I bought colored contact lenses this week. I didn't know contacts sold in Asia are made to make the iris look larger than it is. They look a little weird to me, but it's interesting to see the world in 3D all day long. I had forgotten what this is like! (I have glasses but don't like wearing them, so I've been living in a 2D world.) Here's what Asian colored contact lenses look like:

4. This was the cover of a weekly newspaper this week. American culture is so popular here, and yet America knows so little about Chinese popular culture. My students ask me all the time if I watch shows like Vampire Diaries, Cougartown, Californication etc. And I'm thinking, you guys know more about American tv than I do! (I haven't seen any of those shows.) I bought this to put on my wall. A little bit of handsome Americana is never a bad thing.

4. The subject of this article has been big news here. Before living here, I didn't recognize the various ways living in a diverse culture has affected how I disseminate and process information. I'll be writing more about this after the holiday.

I know the next few days will be busy for everyone, so let me take this chance to say Merry Christmas to everyone celebrating it! Hope you have a wonderful day with your families.