Five more days

Sometimes it's really exhausting to be an American here in China. These days I'm constantly finding myself on the defensive about my home country. Last night at a restaurant a patron at the adjacent table alerted me to my country's role in the global economic crisis. Today my roommate had some words for me about a movie he watched called Standard Operating Procedure about our secret prisons in Iraq. Although it's great practice for my Chinese having these discussions, it really would be nice to be able to be a little proud of where I'm from. And yes, every single Chinese person I've talked with is looking forward to an Obama presidency. Not that it's much of a reason to vote for someone, but still...

Five more days!

QQ

QQ is kind of a combination of America's AOL, Myspace, and GMail. In urban China, where every city block has no less than four internet cafes, having QQ is as common as eating Bao Zi- very! Well I've been writing my personal statement for law schools about how important Guanxi (networking, making connections) is in China, and I just realized I still don't have QQ, so, I got it. 1069018353 is my new Chinese online identity! Ya this randomly-generated number is a bit hard to remember, so if you think of it as a phone number it can also be: 10-ox-018-elf. Ya, I think I like that better...

Dao Le

The trip was a bit longer than expected but I'm finally back in the saddle here in Chengdu. Thanks to an Air China passenger who decided to check a small washing machine, I missed my connection in Beijing. Our plane out of JFK was swarmed by police and TSA agents for two hours- responding to a leak of laundry detergent.

It is good to be back though. The sky is a bit more gloomy, the weather is colder, my heater is broken, but I'm happy to be here. On Thursday our band began what will be a new weekly gig at perhaps Chengdu's most popular foreign bar; The Shamrock. While it did seem a bit dead for a Thursday, the bar has a nice easy going ambiance, very conducive to an enjoyable show.

I've also already been getting calls for the "Lao Wai" gigs, those special jobs just for foreigners that pay so well. I've heard that now is the season for this kind of work, and it's a good chance to horde some RMB (the Chinese currency) in preparation for a potentially barren winter.

Well, after finally adjusting to the Eastern Time Zone less than a week ago, I am hit with the jet lag again. The fatigue is nagging, but I will keep posting for all you loyal readers! Stay tuned for more.

The Journey Begins...

Tomorrow morning I'll be heading out early to Brooklyn to kick it with my main man Andrew "Webster" Smiley. We'll be eating at perhaps the best breakfast establishment in the entire world- Tom's. All my readers in the NYC area, please shoot me an e-mail and we can get together to talk China, politics, breakfast, Steve Clemons style.

Tuesday afternoon my thirteen-plus hour flight departs from JFK to Beijing, then connects to Chengdu after a four hour layover. When my twenty hour journey is complete I should be back in my Chinese home at around 10:30PM China time, Wednesday. My band has a gig that night at Cafe Paname, but I'll have to see how exhausted I am before I make any commitments.

The next time I step foot on American soil there will be a new president.
Thanks to Colin Powell I am feeling confident that this country is in store for a president and system of governance that I can look forward to returning to.

Back to China Next Week- Perfect Timing

As democracy hangs on by its last thread, and a pro-terror, anti-baby, communist is on the verge of becoming our next president, America's Saviors have come out in full force to protect this once great nation...

John McCain's Education Policy

In the debate last night John McCain proposed that "people, after having served in the military, can go right to teaching and not have to take these examinations which -- or have the certification that some are required in some states." I believe this is a fine proposal, and hopefully someday our children's classrooms can be more like that of John Kimbel.

Hartford Jazz Gets Upgrade from Homegrown Talent!

Last night I was pretty thrilled to watch a longtime musical idol perform side by side with a longtime friend and former high school classmate. The "Noah Preminger Group" took part in Hartford's International Jazz Festival, playing duo at Feng restaurant in downtown Hartford. Noah, a friend and former arch rival, has been doing pretty well for himself recently living in Brooklyn as a freelance musician. I really had a hard time believing my ears as I listened to him and the great Ben Monder mesh so seamlessly. Do yourself a favor and check out the website to listen to some of his music. (Or you can wait for me to upload the Mp3's to Limewire before I sell the autographed CD on EBay.)

Barky Van Schnauzer Blogging!

Lazy days here at the homefront in Avon. Mostly I have been parked in front (or underneath) the computer with Lucy the dog, trying to will myself to write this personal statement for law school applications. You'd think the peace and quiet of living out in the woods here would be a cure for writers block but to me the silence is really loud and annoying. Anyway, Yom Kippur was full of atonement as usual with a nice family and friends dinner to celebrate. These days I've also been getting all my doctors and dentist appointments in before my birthday. After November 30th I will no longer be covered by Mom's plan. Hopefully the stock market will take it easy with all the crashing and I can extend my coverage.

So I've been away from China for almost a week. I'm already starting to miss things about life in Chengdu, yet also really appreciating some things here. Surprisingly I am really liking the simple, healthy food at home. The cereal with milk, or coffee with a bagel. The sandwich for lunch and a nice steak and potatoes for dinner. And the bread! As tasty as Sichuan cuisine can be it just doesn't satisfy like a good American diet. And maybe this fondness for American food has something to do with the food poisoning I got three times in the last six months. I do miss my pals though, and just the Chinese people in general. People are genuinely nice, sincere, and pretty easy going back in the far east. My impression here in Avon, Connecticut is that people are a bit uptight, selfish, and really passive aggressive. This could be somewhat attributed to the economy, gas prices, or politics. Of course this is a huge generalization but it's just an overall feeling I get now that I am back. Tonight I'll be going out to a bar and I'm sure I will also be missing the drink prices of China.

Well there probably won't be much to write about in the next couple weeks but don't forget about joshisjazz! The real excitement that made this blog such a hit in the first place will be back in no time! And maybe while I'm home I'll do a little site re-design and make this website a bit easier on the eye...

I knew I was back in America when...

First when the plane approached the O'Hare runway and I could see the neatly organized Chicago suburbs; each neighborhood with a cul-de-sac, the cookie cutter houses, and the swimming pools in the back yard. Then when I got off the plane and went to buy a drink in the terminal. The woman standing beside me nearly lost her mind because she felt I had cut her in line (which I'm pretty sure I didn't, but maybe it was just an unconcious reflex I had developed in China.) Anyway, it is nice to be home. Clean air, cool weather, a little peace and quiet, and driving a car!

Last post from China for a few weeks

I'm back in Chengdu for one last day before heading home. Tomorrow I'll be heading to Beijing to stay with my good friend Alex and his All-American roommate. The following day I begin the 20-something hour journey back to the rolling hills of Avon, Connecticut. I think it has been over six months since I set foot on my native soil and I'm definitely ready for the break.

My work/vacation in Chongqing went by pretty quickly. The actual performances were very short. In total we played about thirty minutes to an hour each day; most of our time being spent waiting around the reception hall or being shuttled around in a taxi. The gig itself consisted of me and my American friend Brent from Chengdu both playing sax over some "band-in-a-box" music tracks. Although the music was terribly boring I did manage to make some new fans!

While the music wasn't so rewarding we tried to make the best out of our little adventure by doing some sight seeing. We had a go at Chongqing's famous "hot pot", known as the spiciest in China. (Thank you TUMS antacid) We also took a stroll along the river, walked through one of the cities famous vendor streets, saw the center of the downtown area, and even went to a big amusement park. The city is truly massive though and to get a real feel for it would probably take weeks or even months. The skyline is filled with what seemed like never ending skyscrapers and towering apartment buildings, and from a high vantage point you can see that the city just goes on and on. Chongqing reminds me a bit of Hong Kong; the downtown area rests along the water, however a lot of the city is also built up into the surrounding mountains. The big difference however is Chongqing is pretty dirty, and this "foggy London town" as our agent called it, is really just a big industrial city choking on its own pollution.

Well, it's good to be back "home", and I'm sure it will be better to be back HOME in a few days. I'll keep the blog going from Avon though as I might have a few interesting tales about law school applications, or maybe even a couple trips to New York or Boston. 从成都- 再见！