May 9, 2012
MAIL CALL!
MAIL CALL! Woohoo! Two in one day! News of garage sale season opening and drawings of puppies.
I got mail!
May 8, 2012
graffiti sgraffiti scratchings leftovers
We returned to the M50 arts area last weekend and it did not disappoint. We almost didn’t make it to the main area of galleries, wandering slowly, checking out the changes to the graffiti wall, including watching a few boys working on new pieces.
Incidentally, I was doing a little research on graffiti and found this blurb on Wikipedia–don’t know that it was really the FIRST graffiti in all of China, but perhaps the record is true–sure sounds like him:
In China, graffiti began with Mao Zedong in the 1920s who used revolutionary slogans and paintings in public places to galvanise the country’s communist revolution. Mao holds the record for the longest piece of graffiti, which contains 4000 characters criticizing his teachers and the state of Chinese society.
As we came to the end of the graffiti on the road in, there was a gap in the wall and we looked in to find a whole lot of rubble. It appears that some houses (shikumen) were torn down–you see areas like this often in Shanghai, but I’d never walked right into one before. A hollow shell of a house remains (you’ll see it pictured) on the left side of the lot. There was a fair amount of writing on the walls of this dwelling, and in the former main room someone had hung some large photographs of living room scenes–couches and chairs.
On the right side of the lot there was another “leftover” house, which I assumed was also empty. When we got closer, I noticed a tarped-off pile of furniture and some suitcases along the side of the house. “Someone must be coming back for those,” I thought. However, when we came around the front of the house, it was clear someone is still living there. There were a couple chairs, and a picnic table umbrella with a washing machine under it. I have no idea how that works–why is one house left standing? Or are they just on borrowed time? We didn’t see any people near the house.
Surrounding those two remaining houses was all the rubble. Bits of concrete from the walls that used to be there, but also heads of garlic, make-up compacts, combs, shoes–as if the remains of a community of people were put in a blender. So strange and eerie. There were a few chickens strutting around, and some cages for them (presumably they belong to the one remaining household) and on one end of the yard there was a larger pile of trash that, by the time we left, a woman was sorting through. She didn’t pay much attention to us.
After checking that out for awhile we finally strolled to the main gallery area. If you recall, the last time we were there it was dark and most of the galleries were closed. (Oops.) During the daytime the complex was no less impressive. The industrial spaces are really interesting and there are so many galleries and studios! I need to go back there soon. One of the favorite studios we visited was a man who makes giant abacuses, and the beads are ceramic versions of his head. He quoted some old saying that was like, people make their calculations but God has the bigger plan. I am butchering that, but you get the idea. He didn’t allow photographs, but I’ll link to his website when I figure out where I put his business card. It’s around here somewhere. . .(Aha! here it is. Pianzi.)
Lots and lots of pics below. Enjoy!
TEDx Shanghai
I just got home from a volunteer meeting for TEDx Shanghai which happens next week. I saw a call for volunteers and decided to sign up, and I think it was a super-great decision! I don’t want to give away all the fun in store, but stay tuned to my facebook and twitter late next week and I will keep you updated.
I’m going to assume most of you are familiar with TED by now–a series of talks on Technology, Entertainment, and Design, whose motto is “Ideas worth Spreading.” But in case you don’t know what TED “x” means, like I didn’t exactly until I googled it, the TEDx are independently-organized TED events. The TEDx Shanghai website is still coming to life, but if you look right now you’ll see characters flashing across the screen. The six characters say something that loosely translates as “I am Chinese,” which is the English slogan, but they said it’s more along the lines of I am related to one of two specific famous emperors long ago (I think I have this right) in characters, and so, apparently is a little different feel than simply saying “I am Chinese.” For example, there will be people presenting who are of Chinese heritage, but may be from another Asian country–which gets into a lot of interesting territory–race/culture/nationality/??–I wonder how these ideas will express themselves at the conference. One cool thing they are doing is sending sets of six shirts with those characters to people in Chinese communities around the world, and having them stand in the sentence order, and take a group photo. These will eventually show up on the site. It will be fascinating to see the project evolve and what faces and bodies and locations appear.
update: more on the theme:
this year’s theme “I am Chinese (six Chinese characters here) ”
has been on our minds for a while, we now have the courage to produce the 2012 event around this title.
our goal and aim is to make a time for many of us to listen, to learn, to be touched and inspired by what it means to be Chinese from the perspective of ethnicity, time and geography.in May, we will have over 26+ sets of speakers, thinkers, do’ers, performers, artists, social entrepreneurs, scientists… from different parts of greater China, HK, Taiwan, South East Asia, Europe, America, Japan… tell their story about their Chinese-ness.
they will speak and perform, sharing their deep passions, expertise, and humanity, while touching on this common theme during their 18 minutes including their own personal chinese identity, chinese pride, chinese-ness. (or may be the absence and longing for it while growing up far from the Motherland)we want to celebrate a unique time, place, and people that are striving in different ways to build a more beautiful world for us and our children to live in… we wish for these great stories to be spoken, shared and multiplied.
In addition to the full day of May 20th TEDx Talks, a couple days prior there are auditions for Chinese people who are trying to be part of TED USA (or I think that means regular TED–the acronyms started to get confusing.) They get a mere 3-6 minutes to state their case. Chris Anderson, the head of TED will be here for the auditions. It’s all going to be exciting, and I can’t wait to get inspired and meet lots of interesting people. And of course tell you all about it. I also plan to give a more detailed report of the event in the May Monthly Multiple, so subscribe here!
P.S. Today was to be my return to Chinese classes, but they called just as I got off the subway and said it was cancelled. So time for Plan C on the Mandarin front–something will work out.
- TEDx is going to be enlightening! ;)
May 6, 2012
anxi clothing market
Happy May Day Parade Day to those of you back in Minneapolis!
Last weekend we visited the Anxi Clothing Market, which was on our list of places to visit. Truth-be-told, I have less patience for wading through mounds and mounds of used clothing than I used to, but it was worth a visit.
We checked out the stalls in the outer corridor first, which were filled with secondhand clothing, then moved to the inner stalls, which were filled with luxury knock-offs and shirts with exciting graphics. As usual in Shanghai, I was a little overwhelmed by sorting through all the visuals. I didn’t buy anything, but came away with some memorable images.
my favorite scenes:
> the man trying out every type of head massager
> the moxa and cupping supplies, Including several types of moxa boxes
> the fake cigarette with a USB plug (??)
> the mannequins!
Enjoy!
P.S. What would you like me to pick up for you the next time I’m there?
P.P.S. I apologize for some of the photos being blurry. I have pledged to use my camera more than my phone, to save your eyes, but I obviously forgot about that pledge on Sunday.
MAIL CALL!
MAIL CALL! including two hand-crafted pot holders (I needed those!) and news of bachelorettes, avocados, and work.
pot holders w/ handprinted fabric! by angelasprunger.com
May 4, 2012
friday love note!
Another love note for another Friday! This phrase jumbled itself together on the vision board Sarina “made” me make, and I kind of like it. I noticed it again today as I was breaking in a new journal, and used it to welcome the first page. Enjoy!
5/4/12 love note / make your own your own / juliekesti.com
May 3, 2012
so you’re moving to shanghai
I’m nowhere near even an Expert-Level Novice at living in Shanghai. Somewhat counter-intuitively, I’ve decided that makes this the perfect time to cover the topic “So You’re Moving to Shanghai.” I’m still so green that I haven’t forgotten all the little challenges of being a New Arrival. Some of the tips people gave me before I left the U.S., and some are lessons I learned myself.
Hopefully someday, someone out there will think, “Holy crap, I am moving to Shanghai!” and then find this list and think, “Alright, I can do it. I’m on my way!”
> bring items that remind you of home. You may or may not clutch them each night as you go to sleep, but having familiar items around is a comfort. 
It helps remind you that you are still you, even in a strange new setting. I was limited to a few suitcases, so my items included photos, small paintings, a few charms and trinkets.
> herbal tea. This is another comfort-of-home item, but also a good soothing-the-stomach-while-you-adjust-to-new-foods item, and is light to travel with. Most of the herbal tea I’ve found is imported, and so pricier. I didn’t know to bring it, but my mom sent me some and it was a lovely, familiar treat.
> medicines or supplements you usually take. Again, you will probably find them here eventually, but it may take you awhile to find ones you like.
> lotions and potions. Products here are more scented than ones I use at home, and many have whitening agents in them. I’m not sure what these agents are, and I am pretty darn pale already! In general, if you can’t read the characters for chemicals, you will have no idea what is in products, as there is a sticker in Chinese over that part of the bottle, even if the product itself might have some English on it. So it’s nice to have familiar products on hand for awhile. It can take time to find the product you’re looking for, and will likely cost more than you are used to paying. Buy yourself some time to gradually observe where you might want to shop for some of these products, and enjoy some scents and comforts of home while you adjust.
> on that note–deodorant. There doesn’t seem to be a lot of deodorant here. . .as far as I can tell. . . and it’s one of those products whose contents you may want to know.
> you might not act the way you think you will. Be prepared for this. There are things you mighta thought would be a piece of cake, that aren’t. There are challenges you are sure you’re up for, but suddenly you won’t be. And there are everyday tasks you’ve handled gracefully all your life, and suddenly–not at all. It’s no big deal, you’ll get done what you need to get done, and you will learn new strategies, but leave some room to be surprised by yourself, and to be gentle with yourself. It’s an awesome opportunity to shake up your habits and watch yourself act, react and deal, and amuse yourself in lots of ways. Keeping some sort of journal/notebook/photo record/list/etc. might be helpful as you process on through the early days.
> rain-appropriate footwear!! I was so unprepared in this area, and had a lot of discomfort the first months of constant rain—soggy, soggy feet. And on that note. . .
> distance-appropriate footwear! I generally wear comfortable shoes,
but I realized painfully that everyday-walking in Minneapolis, where we tend to drive cars, is NOTHING like walking to get everywhere around a giant city, and climbing in and out of metro stations, and doing it all in a humid, rainy climate. It’s also hard to find sizes over size 39, and again, things are more expensive here so…be more prepared than I was!
> heads up, Americans, office paper is a different size here. And prepare your mind for Celsius and centimeters, etc.
> IKEA is here. Anything you might that need that is IKEA-like, you will probably find at IKEA here. Though again the pricing is sometimes counter-intuitive. I haven’t solved that mystery yet–are some items not typical here, and therefore more novel? I’m not sure, but if you are having trouble finding something that would be at IKEA, you’ll at least be able to find it there. (And maybe you’ll sneak a peek at the single seniors meeting for coffee in the cafe!)
> start snooping online The internet offers you many helping hands. Check out: Shanghai Mamas, Shanghai Expat, Smart Shanghai, That’s Shanghai, Jen Ambrose’s Blog, Adam Minter’s Blog, Christine Tan’s Blog. . . these all helped me get in a Shanghai state of mind.
> treat yourself
once in awhile to something familiar and enjoyable. “Real” beer (and by that I mean delicious and tasty beer), for example, can be hard to find here–but making the effort and spending the extra yuan to enjoy a pale ale may be just the boost you need in a bout of homesickness.
> sense of fun, sense of fun, sense of fun It will certainly disappear at moments, but you must always try to get it back. Good opportunities to find it include the next time you see a couple in matching outfits, or a girl with giant plastic glasses featuring an attached plastic bow and no lenses, or a dog in a sweater and shoes. Your sense of fun is your number one strength as a New Arrival–the ability to notice everything and revel in the differences.
> last but not least–feel free to write me! I’m here.
If you’ve made this move, add your own tips in the comments–I’m sure they will help someone out! I also plan to return to this topic as my experience grows.
P.S. I’m pretty sure another helpful tip is to start shifting your idea of “home”. . . but that probably needs its own post. Stay tuned.
welcome to shanghai!
May 2, 2012
a list of things i love in shanghai
I took my first solo taxi ride in Shanghai last week. Usually I don’t splurge on such extravagance, but I’d just bought a shelf at IKEA for my art supplies, and it was the cheapest way to get the shelf home by myself. I also thought it was time to test my skills with words such as “left” “right” and “straight.” It all went impressively well until I learned that I haven’t yet learned the word for “stop.” No major harm done, though.
While we were stuck in traffic waiting to make a U-turn, I composed this list on my phone. Enjoy!
things I love in Shanghai:
> flower salesman bicycle carts
> chair cart (by this I mean dude pulling a cart with his bicycle that has about 300 chairs jumbled atop it, tied with string)
> bicycle carts of any kind
> bright shoes on almost everyone
> friendly and curious people
> kids in homemade sweater vests over homemade sweaters
> old people strolling
> completely unselfconscious qi gong in the parks
> taxi techno, taxi reggae, taxi barry white
> subway sleepers (someone is always asleep on the metro)
> groups of women gossipping in fake IKEA kitchens
> shady tree-lined streets of the former French concession
> local hole-in-the-wall flower shops in every neighborhood
> couples in matching outfits
> the way young women cover their mouths when they laugh
> dogs, dogs in sweaters, dogs in shoes, dogs tied to race cars by a string
> the millions and millions of different faces with stories to tell
> the super-friendly, slightly cross-eyed doorman who works evenings downstairs
> noticing that people write characters so quickly and beautifully and compactly with fine-tip pens
> how the air cools on the evening
pineapple cart ain't so bad either
May 1, 2012
pupdate
After many cute dog moments this weekend, it is time for another pupdate! Here are the latest & greatest (well, cutest) dogs spotted in Shanghai! The sweaters have disappeared–it’s getting warm out.
Please note:
> the pups-for-sale outside the train station, from a duffel bag (when we passed by later there were only two)
> the dog being trained to follow-along-but-not-run-off by having a race car tied to him
> his buddy, the standing dog, about to shake a little boy’s hand
> the dog that is blue from the under-lit bridges overhead
> the dog using an empty pack of cigarettes as a chew toy
Shanghai + dogs = love. Who is your favorite pup?
Apr 30, 2012
stovetop stuffing (us)
We’ve just enabled comments on the blog, so–just for today–this becomes a food blog!
Our kitchen has no oven, just a stove top. My #1 purchase in Shanghai so far is the blender we bought during the Qingming holiday. It’s helping me get creative without an oven to roast vegetables or bake things.
It’s a regular ol’ cheap-o blender, but it does the trick for most of my experiments. Now that the comments are working on the blog, I’d love for you to share your favorite stove-top or no-cook recipes with me.
Here are a few recipes I’ve used so far:
> Pureed Beet Soup ala Martha Gorgeous and delicious. I added some greens to the recipe, too. The blender part was messier and more labor intensive than I anticipated–the kitchen looked like a bit of a crime scene by the time I finished.
> Bob’s GF Pancakes I sorta accidentally bought gluten free flour, and realized quickly it doesn’t act like regular flour. I found this recipe, however, from good old Bob, and have used it in savory and sweet incarnations.
> Cauliflower Green (Red) Curry We also bought some red curry paste, so I tried this recipe (which is really for green curry, but it was still tasty). It calls for rice, but I ate the leftovers w/o rice and that was just as good, if not better.
Share your ideas and tips with me in the comments!
Thanks!