Earthquake News

The past few months have brought unimaginable natural disaster around the World, particularly in Asia. First it was the cyclone in Burma that has killed at least 100,000 people and displaced millions more, though no one can be entirely sure because of the oppressive military junta that has done everything in its power to restrict the flow of international aid and assistance.

Then, just days later, a massive earthquake struck Sichuan Province in central China. The death toll is now reaching 100,000 thousand there, with millions injured and millions more displaced. Having arrived in Shanghai just weeks after the first quake, I’ve been in the thick of things in terms of national reaction, which has been nothing short of incredible.

Every bar, restaurant, hotel, corner shop has played host to some type of fundraiser, whether it’s all tips to door cover to portions of your purchase. Chinese and foreigners alike have given graciously when it comes to giving money.

It is rather amazing how tragedy can bring a nation together. I have been reminded of how I felt in the days following September 11 back in the United States, nationalist pride more pronounced than ever before. The entire country observed three consecutive days of three-minute silences at 2:28pm, the exact moment the first tremor hit. In a moment uniquely Chinese, every car in site from Lianne’s 15th floor balcony stopped in its tracks and blared its horn. From what I hear, that happened through the nation. Just imagine the stillness of 1.4 billion people all doing the same thing at the same time. That energy could seemingly move mountains.

One odd incident has arisen in the midst of so much unity. I went with Lianne to co-teach one of her lessons last week. After granting an additional three minutes of silence per one student’s request, we spent the next hour playing English games to review for their exam. With 10 minutes left Lianne opened the floor for any questions about Western culture, as there was an Aussie, a Brit and an American all present at the time. The same student that requested the earlier moment of silence raised his hand and asked for one more minute. While Kylie (the Aussie) asked the class if they wanted to partake, he rephrased his quesetion. “No no. Not everyone. Just you. The foreigners. You should stand shoulder to shoulder in the front of the class and observe one minute of silence to show your respect for China and the victims.” This came after being asked by multiple students how much money we had donated (to which we were told, you should give more) and what our countries were doing to help (to which we were told, they should give more).

I’ll be the first to tell you that this incident was utterly catastrophic, and I know for a fact that the whole World shares in the grief and sadness of losing 100,000 human beings. Still, if there is anything to be learned from our own experiences following 9/11, it is quite simply that the wake of tragedy is no place to start waging conflict. It is a time for unity and positive action. We will give what we can give. Our nations will give what they can give. We will show our respect the way we find appropriate and at the same time, we’ll allow you to show your respect however you see fit. This is a time for reflection, not reaction.

Sidebar – Why Republican Arguments Work

1. It plays on the heart, not the mind.
2. It insinuates without directly stating.
3. It uses the same language again and again.
4. It reaches people in multiple mediums.
5. It is never cynical or snarky, so as not to sound elitist.
6. It lacks details; the simpler the argument, the easier it is to understand and the harder it is to challenge.
7. It always plays victim to some broader opposition “conspiracy.” (Ie. the “liberal media.”)
8. It always has the perfect name, even if that name has no relations to the actual content of said argument.
9. It is not necessarily true.
10. It always toes the party line.

Sidebar – Why Republican Arguments Work

1. It plays on the heart, not the mind.
2. It insinuates without directly stating.
3. It uses the same language again and again.
4. It reaches people in multiple mediums.
5. It is never cynical or snarky, so as not to sound elitist.
6. It lacks details; the simpler the argument, the easier it is to understand and the harder it is to challenge.
7. It always plays victim to some broader opposition “conspiracy.” (Ie. the “liberal media.”)
8. It always has the perfect name, even if that name has no relations to the actual content of said argument.
9. It is not necessarily true.
10. It always toes the party line.

Sittin’ In A Window…

So the biggest challenge thus far has been deciding when, exactly, to do what with my day. While I did come to write a book, I also wanted to recommit to exercising and above all else, physical therapy. Add in a hope to “listen to my body more” (I have no idea what that means but a lot of very “centered, shakra-like” people are saying it these days) and you have my current existence in China. That whole body listening thing has manifested itself in the form of not setting an alarm. Ever.

I despise the sound of that horrific contraption and, before coming to China, I only EVER once did not set an alarm. Junior year of high school. Last night of the fall play. I was exhausted, slept til’ 3pm and felt incredibly guilty about it. Hence my dilemma – I hate the sound but I hate oversleeping. Still, I’ve miraculously discovered that your body does in fact wake up when it is no longer tired. That is currently happening at 8am if I hit the hay around midnight. Every night I coach myself into believing that it’s ok. “Don’t worry, you’ll wake up. You need the sleep. You’ll have time to get everything else done tomorrow. I promise.” Needless to say, I can’t help but feel slightly insane for promising myself it’ll be ok if I don’t set an alarm. It’s definitely a goal to release that demon (another thing those centered shakra-like people say) before I get back to America.

I digress. Anyway, I’m up at 8, check email (only doing that twice a day, which is another area of high stress. “What if someone sends an urgent email, blah blah blah.” One more said demon), eat a banana, go for a run, shower, do physical therapy while watching myself on TV (apparently I am the spitting image of Matthew Fox on Lost, at least according to the Chinese girls who come up to me on the street with pictures of him on their phone saying, “Lost. Lost. Are you lost?” Where to even begin on that one), then settle into my perch and write.

I have literally put my desk in the windowsill, so I can stare out into the depths of the city in between jotting down notes on electronic paper (that’s slang for Word). It’s going well, as I do believe the right environment makes a huge difference. Let’s just hope my brain starts connecting all the dots soon. Otherwise, it’s going to one spastic journey.

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Kyle Taylor

No Torch For You

As all 6+ billion people on this planet are now aware, China is hosting the Olympics this year and the torch is traveling around the World to what one might call “mixed reviews.” Well, it’s back in China and now making the rounds from South to North, East to West. It’s been to the top of Mount Everest, the streets of Hong Kong, the back roads outside Kunming and now, through the Central Eastern cities of Hangzhou and Shanghai.

Little did we laowei (foreigners) know that this would mean no booking hotel rooms and for some, no leaving our apartments for the duration of the torches stay in the streets. A friend of Lianne’s had gone to Hangzhou for a weekend getaway only to walk into a Youth Hostel and be told that “no foreigners can stay in the city.” While the reason was not explicitly stated, with the torch arriving the next day one might posit that they have been the reason.


Later that evening we were at a friend’s house to learn that several folks in the group were told by the guards at their apartment compounds that they would “not be allowed to leave the building between 7am and 2pm on Saturday” for, get this, “their safety.” Shockingly (read sarcasm), that was the same period of time the torch would be traveling through the streets of the city.

Now, don’t get me wrong, the torch protests have had people up in arms around the World (it even led to boycotts of some French stores here in China, though that lasted all of 3 days), but what foreigner would be dimwitted enough to protest the host nation actually IN the host nation, especially when said host nation could very well determine your own personal fate? Can anybody say deportation? At the same time, would you really want to be trampled by the 1.4 billion, increasingly nationalistic (thanks in large part to those same protests abroad) Chinese who are overwhelmingly excited to host their first Olympic games? I’m going to go with NO.

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Kyle Taylor

The Z H G Yuan, Darling

As usual, Lianne and I are attached at the hip due in large part to our love for Zhongshan Gongyuan (Zhongshan Park) or as we now refer to it, "The Z-H-G Yuan, Darling." We're trying to hip it up in an effort to combat other foreigner's attacking our neighborhood as a "suburb" because they can ride their bikes everywhere. This is the same place I lived last time I was here and, because it's so awesome, Lianne and Oli continue to enjoy the perfect blend of Old China and New China, just minutes from a subway stop that will take you everywhere else in this growing city. Just a few shots of our perfect little land. The above is my favorite building in the World - Cloud 9 Tower. It's about 60 stories tall. SO COOL.


That's the outside of the Cloud 9 mall, home of Carrefour (supermarket) an H&M and now, a Coldstone. That's the "New China."


That's the 6-story tall hanging piece of art located inside Cloud 9. Divine.


This is a cart parked along the pathway to Lianne and Oli's place from the subway. That's "Ville" tagged in the background, French for "city." Why not, right?


Finally, that's my feet after a full day of walking around in flip-flops here in Shanghai. We call that "China Foot." Woo!

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Kyle Taylor

Skyscrapers Skyscrapers Everywhere!

I was washing dishes in Lianne’s 15th floor kitchen this morning and looked up from the sink to see nothing but a sea of “apartment.” The only thing in my line of site was left to right, top to bottom apartment. I cranked my next around and off in the distance, beyond this next apartment skyscraper, the only site off in the distance was more “apartment.” In fact, it is apartments and not businesses that really dot the Shanghai skyline. With 27 million people or so, that just seems to be the most logical way of filling the need for places to live.


And those who live in these buildings lives fairly well. All of them are two or three bedrooms. Hot water and air conditioning are commonplace. Balconies are a necessity, as people don’t use dryers here. Of course there are millions who live with far less, but the image I’m trying to display here is that of China’s rising middle class – the Chinese version of America’s single-family home suburbia. The only difference is, this middle class model is far more affordable, as infrastructure costs and energy cost and land costs are lower.


This model, in many ways, could be an image of how the planet could sustain a certain lifestyle for every person on it. That made me wonder, if we knew that every human being on earth could have food, water, reasonable health care and a decent place to live if it meant that we would have to downsize some, would we do it? To KNOW that we could end poverty, hunger and infant mortality if we skim a bit off the top of our lives. I don’t know what the answer would be, but I am certainly comfortable in this apartment with my 15th floor views, satellite TV, hot water, hardwood floors and recessed lighting. That is, it aint so bad. Just some food for thought.


On a lighter note, while gas is extremely subsidized here and most everyone who needs it can afford it, that doesn’t mean there are enough gas stations to go around. Check out this line of scooters waiting for their turn to pump some black gold. Must have been AT LEAST 100 of them in line. Could you ever imagine being late to work then telling your boss, “I’m really sorry. There were 100 people ahead of me in line at the gas pump.” I don’t think so…

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Kyle Taylor