Thursday, February 23, 2012

Got My Fix


So I finally got a fixed gear bike. And found one (in a moped store) that was so dirt cheap that there wasn't any excuse not to get it. (About $150).

On the one hand: does buying another bike fit into my life goal of minimalism? Answer: if i give away my other bike, then Sure Why Not?

After a week on Beijing's uberflat roads, it feels really natural. No less safe than my other bikes. Except that it definitely is faster.

i hesitated to get it, 'cause the fixie scene here seems all about color coordination and green tires or whatever. And doubtless i look like more of a stereotypical hipster now, but who the hell cares when i ride 75 minutes by myself to work in the morning? i love it.

And coincidentally, it does match my bag and helmet. You gotta problem with that?


Note to Joe: the handlebar is a rusted drop bar, sawed off. The perfect bar, imo.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Everybody, Get Wikid



Does everyone realize just how much statusq loves Wikipedia?

Really, he does.

I mean, when you need to check FACTS, then Wikipedia is your best friend.

('cause if it's on the internet, it must be true, yadda, yadda).

But really, if you hear that a chicken can live for EIGHTEEN MONTHS WITHOUT A HEAD, then yes, you shake your head and roll your eyes, but then, with a few simple references Wikipedia will force you to accept the incredible REALITY of Mike the Headless Chicken!!!

EIGHTEEN MONTHS!

If forced to choose between a world with no Wikipedia or one with no Youtube, I'd choose the latter.

Everytime Wikipedia asks for money, i happily pull out my wallet, because for the number of times i use the site daily, it's worth it. i actually gave money to them before they ever even asked .

i decided a while ago that i wanted contribute to my favourite site. You know: participant vs observer. And weirdly enough, my favourite Beijing band had no page. So i wrote one. Great. Great experience. Learning experience.

Because, truly i had no f'ing idea that writing a wiki page is way way way more work than i'd thought possible. i requested help three times. My first attempt at publication was rejected, requiring beefed up references. It took me like three months before i finished the bloody thing.

Can you believe there's all these freaking weirdos out there who created 20 million articles for us? Have these people nothing better to do with their time? Nutters.

I take my hat off to them.

Not to put you off: I highly recommend you give it a try, possibly something with less formatting issues than mine.

By the way, HERE is the page I whipped off, for the great BJ band Hedgehog.

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Me So Pretty




Well, if i be not mistaken, every Converse store in China has images from the photoshoot i did before.

Poked my head into a couple stores, but have yet to have spotted my face anywhere. i wasn't even sure if the bod in the pics was me, except that i spotted my less than cool qiuku (long johns) clearly visible. Gotta represent.

Plus some pic of me and some guys climbing over a fence. i can recognize the hat i was wearing.

But that's cool. In fact, i haven't even seen the face of the hottest girl who was there. Go figure. Those fuckers are only about the clothes, no doubt.






The "Environment Expert"

Apparently, not separated at birth

After being promised that i'd get off of copy editing duty and bk into reporting, i'm stuck for another month copy editing.True, there's times when i get an hour or 2 (or 3) to fuck the dog, but this week (being one copy editor short) has been pretty bloody busy. 

i correct grammar all day, and (unlike the other copy editors) offer concise bits of advice like   "You need to do more research" to ensure journalistic integrity.  It's alright, but  I'm worry that too much copy editing will lead to what i call Repetitive Brain Injury. 

So, i offered to help out w/ this one radio show, and I now have the title "environmental expert" for a weekly 10 minute segment.  It's ok, but a bit intense being on live radio and trying to suss out how to time everything. i need to calm down.

Last week we discussed the cadmium spill in the Longjiang River, China's refusal to pay the EU's airflight carbon tax, and global warming and the f'ing cold BJ winter. It was alright. I know the one host wanted to censor out my personal 2cents about the EU tax, but i squeezed it in there:.

"Well after Kyoto, Copenhagen and Durban climate talks, i think the EU knows that multilateral discussions just aren't productive. There's a need for leadership in this. It's like they think they're telling everyone to eat their vegetables whether they like it or not. But the EU isn't a parent, so maybe they have no right to tell people what to do." i added in that last sentence specifically to please my employer. Ha.

This week, i'll talk about how electric cars in China create more pollution than regular cars, how whales legally can't be "enslaved" like people.

Anyhow, that's the exciting news for CRI. Oh, plus a guy asked me to host a music show. And i might be a regular on a game show. 

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Toeing the Line

I was copy editing a piece about "Post-Holiday Syndrome", which frankly seemed a bit comical, intentional or not. So i was like, what the hell, and i started inserting adjectives here and there to describe the "hilarity and fun of family dinners" and the "tedium of office work" etc.

Then i duly noted that the author had omitted a conclusion. So i wrote, "you didn't write a conclusion, so i added one for you. What do you think?"

If you are suffering from Post-Holiday Syndrome, fret not, for you are not alone. Hundreds, thousands, millions of others feel the same way as you. You may feel like your work is interminably tiring and uninteresting in comparison with the days of vivid experience and emotionally charged interactions with loved ones. But you did that work before, and… you can do it again! Step by tiny step, Psychologists Fan Xiaodong and He Ru's words of wisdom will help you cope with the difficult realities of life. 

And entered it into the system, with a chuckle.

Then i shortly thereafter found another article about PHS on CRI, a proper serious one, actually intending to, like, help people who are feeling, y'know, depressed.

And then i felt all guilty.