whatever you think is best for my future.

in many ways university life in chongqing differs, from what we have come to consider normal. when the momentous day of going off to college arrives, the common denominator for freshman students is their new found freedom. one day you are sneaking out of your parents home, the next you are sneaking into your new home, trying to not disturb your roommate. did you have a late nite? no problem, just skip class the next day, no one will notice. you thought you wanted to be a doctor, huh? turns out you have found your true calling of teaching gym class. well, just change your major. my point is, college students in china abide by certain rules and have less freedom when they move away from their parents. for them this is not anything to get into a fit over, you just accept it, or you can always kill yourself.

this semester my workload is much lighter than the last. i teach seven classes spoken english. the class enrollment ranges from 28 to 34. i also have office hours that consist of 10 to 15 students. office hours give the students more chances to speak and myself more topics to discuss with them. as i have said before, the best part of teaching here is the interaction with my students. they are all freshman and many of them are very shy. they assume their english is not good enough, so the best thing to do is not talk. this only occurs within the classroom. outside of class, the quietest students will talk your ear off, using every english word in their limited vocabulary. they all know english, it is mandatory to learn. they begin at a young age, and even in college they may have at least three more english classes in addition to mine. my job is to get students to talk. sometimes that can be difficult, but i do find success. in china, the teacher speaks, the students listen. they accept what the teacher tells them because the teacher is right. they would not be teaching if they were wrong. i try to get them to voice opinions, arguments, contradictions, classroom proceedings in traditional american universities. usually, the girls are more likely to speak and participate than the boys. many of the boys sit in the back and sleep, while the girls are in front with smiles on their faces. i try to teach to the good students and make the others happy so they stay awake. chinese students are extremely competitive so playing games with them is always a fun activity. classes last about an hour a fifty minutes, with a ten minute break in between. i do not have to keep track of time because there are buzzers, like high school, that signify when class ends and begins. i also must take attendance every class period. i only meet each class once a week, but it reflects on their grade if they do not show, or they try and sneak out of class.

some of things that are totally different from an american university is the idea of not choosing your major. i believe they take a test in high school, then they are placed in the field that suits them best. even if they find their major boring, they just accept it. it is strange like that, the chinese, how they just accept things the way they are. earlier this year the women were forced to move to a dorm further away, creating a much longer walk to campus. i asked them what they thought of this, and the reply was "we now have a TV". "do the boys have a TV?" "yes, they always have." the women just accepted the fact that they did not have television before, and now accept the fact they have a 15-20 minute walk to campus. of course, i explained to them that women in an american university would not be too happy with lesser living standards than the men. another strange fact is the loss of electricity. on the weeknites at 11:30, the power to all dormitories is shut off. the students get around this by having full batteries for their computers or using candles. many even stay off campus and sleep in a karaoke room or internet bar. but there is never any complaining to the superiors at the university, just maybe amongst themselves.

the pressure for students seems to be much higher over here in the east. not only in china, but in many asian countries, suicide is a more frequent occurrence. losing face, or extreme embarrassment, is one of the worst things that could happen to a student. the pressure to perform well is larger for a student because going to college and learning english is significant. some students release this pressure by jumping off a bridge. this happened fairly recently at my university. a junior student walked into the water to release her pressure or save embarrassment. they thought she jumped off a bridge, but then said she drowned herself. they had a meeting about it. told the students not to kill themselves. then accept that it happened, and move on.

not this song again

for many people, music is a necessary and indispensable aid to keep the blood rushing through their veins. many of you know that i feel this way as well. sometimes i feel that i live in a place where good music does not exist. i will confess that i am a music snob. i listen to plenty of popular music and in many ways am not impressed. i am trying to make the most of this opportunity and educate my fellow students and friends on, not just american music, but music and the entire genre. that includes different cultures, countries, and histories. i actually am doing a lecture on this topic in front of hundreds of people. many are receptive so far, unfortunately they just do not get exposed to this during adolescence. they listen to what is fed to them, as many of you do back home. hey, if you do not believe me, let's listen to what good music has to say on this matter.

music magazine: so good music, i hear you are going spend some time over in china.

good music: yeah, you know, just wantin' to expose everyone to what i got to offer. you fell me?

mm: that sounds great. what is it you have to offer?

gm: well, i got a lot of different styles, genres, classics, mad talent. maybe some studio, with a little on stage. throwing some live instrumentation in there, intuitive lyrics, also something to get the party started, know what i mean, son? it's like bon-bon, bang-bang, gotcha.

mm: i did not quite understand the last part, but i think i know what you mean. you are going to chongqing, correct?

gm: word.

mm: uh.......okay, have a fantastic time.

gm: yo, yo, yo, peace to the god. holla at ya boy!

good music arrives in china
wow, this place is off the meat rack! let me lay my thang down. i think i can get some work in, for real.
one month
why is everyone listening to the backstreet boys? didn't those mothafuckas break up like ten years ago, or some shit? britney! you know she is a crazy bald bitch, right?
six months
it's like every popular song is about love or dancing. where the songs at about killin' fools? hatin' yo job, being poor? smokin' drinkin'? women gettin' a bad rap? gettin' bush out the motherfuckin' white house? angst, pain, sufferin'? you know what i mean, real life shit. enough with this bunny rabbits, ice cream, and flowers shit.
one year
i met some peeps here who feel me. they say i should get my ass to beijing or shanghai. things are more western there. they got all the dope shiznit there.
two years
we going to ktv (karaoke) tonite? that is super. i would love to sing a love song.
later that nite
how about that song from titanic that is sung by celine dion. i love singing it. here goes guys! near, far, wherever you are, i believe that my heart will go on...........

i have no idea why good music sounds like RZA from the wu-tang clan. maybe it is because i am listening to hip-hop as i write. maybe because the music he produces, in many ways is the exact opposite of what i hear on regular basis. i love it here, but i know the cities on china's east coast have more options when it comes to what one may want to hear. i have met many chinese who do have similar tastes: a couple rock guitarists, a few young MCs, and i sat in with a great jazz quintet, the latter being in beijing. we all are trying our best to make those styles more popular here. i think the young generation wants it, they just do not know where to look. that is where we come in. honestly, i have heard some good pop music here, and the traditional chinese music can be really cool. there are also some great traditional instruments that i want to learn to play. the language is also very musical. one reason why i am trying to become fluent. it is very tonal; the pitch of a word will change its meaning. it is actually documented that musicians have an easier time learning the language. this may have the same effect in reverse. potentially, i could be surrounded by a billion chinese with an innate sense of scales, tones, and pitch. let's get the band back together!?

edub

hey baby, you look good.

there are three different types of women in chongqing: the prostitute, the gold-digger, and the traditionalists.

1. the prostitute is........well, just that.

2. the gold-digger is the chinese woman who is out for a foreigner, no matter what they look like. they just want a foreign man who can buy them shit. also, maybe there is some sort of prestige to having a foreign boyfriend because it sets them apart from the millions of chinese women without. what i do not like about this scenario is most of these men are losers. that does not phase the gold-digger because he has money. when i am witness to this in a bar or club, it can become quite disgusting. these bum-ass fat, old geezers with these skinny little, young girls. it is a relationship that is headed toward the dark sea of unsatisfying, artificial happiness.

3. most women in this country, i would classify as traditional girls. they are nice, kind-hearted women just like women back home, but there is one difference. you cannot really date them. it is all the way or not at all. i mean, you can get to know them, but the physical part that comes along with dating is slim to none. if you want a little sensuality, well you had better expect on becoming their boyfriend for a long period of time. oh believe me, i am all for buying the cow, i have had my share of free milk, but i feel these traditionalists do not experience enough in the dating department. "hey, just because you had sex with that guy does not mean you need to marry him. i know, i know, he was your second, and you are almost 26. what in the world are you going to do! oh, no!" i am just saying that having intercourse with a man does not mean he is the one. honestly, what the fuck do i know? maybe it is a good thing to be conservative when it comes to the opposite sex. no one-nite stands, mistakes, less chance for pregnancy, disease. hopefully the man they marry does not turn out to be that cat strolling around the red-light district so he can experience another woman. in the future i know i will meet more men and women, hopefully having to revise some of these statements. i do not want to generalize and place women into these three categories, even though i just did that.

as for myself, well the whores are out. i know that would make a great story, but i cannot bring myself to paying for it. i guess it was the way i was raised.
gold-diggers. nope. that scene is phony and in many ways repulsive.
that leaves the old-fashioned chinese girl. of course that will not happen unless i meet one i am truly into; that may take a while. i could have a girlfriend, it is very easy to do so, and use her to better my chinese. but then i would feel bad when i dumped her after i became fluent. there is the fourth option of the foreign variety, but there could be another post dedicated solely to the dating scene for foreign women in china. actually, there is an entire blog for just that.

to the ten or so people who actually read the drivel i churn out, do not fret. i will begin to post something new every week so check back. do me a favor and give me some feedback. comments, what you want to know about, anything. it should be easy to leave your thoughts, and it will make for better writing on my end.

edub