Job is an upright man. He feared the Lord. The narrator gives us this information and we cannot doubt it.
But The Satan (which means something like 'prosecutor' in Hebrew), he isn't so sure. He says to God that maybe Job is only upright because of how he's been rewarded. The only test of his faith is to take it all away. And so God does.
God takes away Job's cattle and wealth. God kills all of Job's children. God gives Job some kinda leprosy. And Job maintains his goodness.
Three of Job's friends show up and they don't even recognize Job, the poor guy has been through so much stuff. Job tells them what's happened, and they all try to figure out what sin he's committed. Maybe he did something without realizing it... Job says no. Maybe it wasn't something he did but something he did not do.... Job says no.
Job demands justice. He knows he has done no wrong. God shows up to defend himself. The only real words he says directly to Job are basically "I'm only gonna say this once, so you'd better listen."
God explains that he made hawks and falcons and snakes and alligators and hippos. Then he scolds Job's friends for misrepresenting Him, and cures Job and gives him even more wealth and children than he had before. And Job lives longer than anyone has since Moses.
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
thoughts on Hong Kong
Hong Kong's a bit different than the mainland. I wasn't stared at even once, for one thing. Everyone I encountered had at least basic English, and the automatically decided to use English when talking to me, which was an interesting change.
HK also has better manners (sparing the guy who ran my hotel). Even towards one another. In Suzhou and Shanghai people like to get right up against the doors of the metro to get on/off. Even though there are signs and lines saying where they should queue up. Even though those doors are made of glass and they can see other people's noses just inches from their own. And everyone has to be first onto or off the bus here in Suzhou.
But in Hong Kong they seem to be more aware of everyone else. Or maybe they just care more. HK was a little more crowded, I think, than Suzhou or Shanghai. They even line up on the right side of the escalators so that people in a rush can walk up the left. They don't smoke inside, they don't spit inside -or- outside, and they use turn signals with some regularity. They also don't let their children urinate or defecate on the sidewalks or in bus trashcans.
HK also has better manners (sparing the guy who ran my hotel). Even towards one another. In Suzhou and Shanghai people like to get right up against the doors of the metro to get on/off. Even though there are signs and lines saying where they should queue up. Even though those doors are made of glass and they can see other people's noses just inches from their own. And everyone has to be first onto or off the bus here in Suzhou.
But in Hong Kong they seem to be more aware of everyone else. Or maybe they just care more. HK was a little more crowded, I think, than Suzhou or Shanghai. They even line up on the right side of the escalators so that people in a rush can walk up the left. They don't smoke inside, they don't spit inside -or- outside, and they use turn signals with some regularity. They also don't let their children urinate or defecate on the sidewalks or in bus trashcans.
Hong Kong!
I got off the plane in Hong Kong and after going through customs and all that business I ate at a Subway. I had a meatball sub and macadamia nut cookies.
I took a cab from the airport to the hotel I was staying at. And I had to lurk outside the door and wait for someone to come along because I didn't know the pin number to get through. I wrote it down.
From here I went up a flight of stairs and found the door to my hotel.
There was a post-it note on the door that had the name of the hotel -English and Chinese- and had a phone number on it. And a wire ran under the door and up the wall nearby to a pink plastic phone. I called the number on the post-it and after confirming my reservation I was given the pin code to get in.
I was in room five, which was on the left-hand side of a long hallway. My bed took up half of the room I had - fine, I didn't intend on spending much time there anyway - and my bathroom took up less space than the desk my computer is sitting on as a write this. It's not even a very large desk.
The bathroom's sink was probably the size of your average mouse pad. And the entire bathroom -was- the shower stall. One of those deals where there was a drain in the floor and the shower spicket on the wall above the toilet and the knobs right by the light switches. and I had made the mistake of assuming that 'hotel' meant that they would have towels. I had to dry off from my one brief shower with my hoodie.
On my second day there I called the number on the post-it again and explained that I need a receipt, or a bill, or some kinda paperwork, to show I was there, and what everything had cost. The man on the phone, who I suspect was in a bar or loud restaurant, told me that he had never done that before, and would not do that for me. I explained that it wasn't my money he was costing me, but a coworker's. And that if I didn't get some kinda bill then this coworker wouldn't get his money back.
I never saw him. Nor did I see any other human beings in the hotel.
I took a cab from the airport to the hotel I was staying at. And I had to lurk outside the door and wait for someone to come along because I didn't know the pin number to get through. I wrote it down.
From here I went up a flight of stairs and found the door to my hotel.
There was a post-it note on the door that had the name of the hotel -English and Chinese- and had a phone number on it. And a wire ran under the door and up the wall nearby to a pink plastic phone. I called the number on the post-it and after confirming my reservation I was given the pin code to get in.
I was in room five, which was on the left-hand side of a long hallway. My bed took up half of the room I had - fine, I didn't intend on spending much time there anyway - and my bathroom took up less space than the desk my computer is sitting on as a write this. It's not even a very large desk.
The bathroom's sink was probably the size of your average mouse pad. And the entire bathroom -was- the shower stall. One of those deals where there was a drain in the floor and the shower spicket on the wall above the toilet and the knobs right by the light switches. and I had made the mistake of assuming that 'hotel' meant that they would have towels. I had to dry off from my one brief shower with my hoodie.
On my second day there I called the number on the post-it again and explained that I need a receipt, or a bill, or some kinda paperwork, to show I was there, and what everything had cost. The man on the phone, who I suspect was in a bar or loud restaurant, told me that he had never done that before, and would not do that for me. I explained that it wasn't my money he was costing me, but a coworker's. And that if I didn't get some kinda bill then this coworker wouldn't get his money back.
I never saw him. Nor did I see any other human beings in the hotel.
Friday, March 20, 2015
Take Me With You
Yesterday on the way to work I was nursing this head cold thing that I've got right now (don't worry about it, mom) and carrying my umbrella without any good reason - It had rained the three days before, I got caught out everytime with no way to cover myself... The day I decide to invest in an umbrella and bring it with me...
It was my first real experience with "Chinglish."
This guy spotted me on the street corner on my way to work and followed me in.
"Hello, hello. Hi" He said and I said hello to him. Pleasantries were exchanged.
He told me that he looked like a nice man. My facial expression must have been lost on him, because he kept going. He said "I go with you." Meaning, I thought, up to the EF offices - that maybe he had a kid enrolled there but wasn't sure exactly where it was or something along those lines. But in the elevator he kept trying to talk about things. He said 'America' several times and 'Obama' one or two. He said "blablabla nations" where blablabla is some Chinese word I don't know, but which I would later learn meant 'United'
He followed me into the EF offices, and said we must get someone to listen and speak for us.
When we got to the secretary desk she translated for him.
"He wants to know when you leave."
"Leave work? What for?"
"No, he wants to know when you leave China."
"In about ten months."
<Chinese>
"This man, he says that... he must meet your Obama. That he is to have a meeting with him. He wants to know if you can get him to talk to Obama."
"No.
"He says he is a person from the United Nations, and that he must speak to Obama as soon as he can and he wants to know when you will go to America."
"Yeah, almost a year from now."
<Chinese>
<Chinese>
...
<Chinese>
"He says he will wait."
And then this man was escorted from the building.
It was my first real experience with "Chinglish."
This guy spotted me on the street corner on my way to work and followed me in.
"Hello, hello. Hi" He said and I said hello to him. Pleasantries were exchanged.
He told me that he looked like a nice man. My facial expression must have been lost on him, because he kept going. He said "I go with you." Meaning, I thought, up to the EF offices - that maybe he had a kid enrolled there but wasn't sure exactly where it was or something along those lines. But in the elevator he kept trying to talk about things. He said 'America' several times and 'Obama' one or two. He said "blablabla nations" where blablabla is some Chinese word I don't know, but which I would later learn meant 'United'
He followed me into the EF offices, and said we must get someone to listen and speak for us.
When we got to the secretary desk she translated for him.
"He wants to know when you leave."
"Leave work? What for?"
"No, he wants to know when you leave China."
"In about ten months."
<Chinese>
"This man, he says that... he must meet your Obama. That he is to have a meeting with him. He wants to know if you can get him to talk to Obama."
"No.
"He says he is a person from the United Nations, and that he must speak to Obama as soon as he can and he wants to know when you will go to America."
"Yeah, almost a year from now."
<Chinese>
<Chinese>
...
<Chinese>
"He says he will wait."
And then this man was escorted from the building.
Monday, March 16, 2015
Monday, March 2, 2015
Back to the Bible, briefly
I've been reading the bible, but I've also been making real legitimate efforts to understand what I'm reading, how it all came to be. So I thought real quick I'd make a post about the different sources I've found online.
http://oyc.yale.edu/religious-studies/rlst-145
Dr Christine Hayes teaches this Intro to the Hebrew Bible course, and you can audit it for free. From anywhere that you have an internet connection. She does a pretty solid job explaining the various sources, and provides clarification on translations when she thinks that it's necessary.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/course/hebrew-scriptures-in-judaism/id512201207?ign-mpt=uo%3D8
Another free class. You can sit down and listen at your leisure. This time it's from Harvard instead of Yale.
You can actually find a HUGE list of classes on the topic of religion on iTunes. I haven't listened to any other than this one, but the topics seem fascinating.
And I have to give a shout-out to www.reddit.com/r/askhistorians and www.reddit.com/r/AcademicBiblical
And in case you are wondering, I'm reading the "Fully Revised Fourth Edition New Oxford Annotated Bible New Revised Standard Version With the Apocrypha College Edition, An Ecumenical Study Bible"
http://oyc.yale.edu/religious-studies/rlst-145
Dr Christine Hayes teaches this Intro to the Hebrew Bible course, and you can audit it for free. From anywhere that you have an internet connection. She does a pretty solid job explaining the various sources, and provides clarification on translations when she thinks that it's necessary.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/course/hebrew-scriptures-in-judaism/id512201207?ign-mpt=uo%3D8
Another free class. You can sit down and listen at your leisure. This time it's from Harvard instead of Yale.
You can actually find a HUGE list of classes on the topic of religion on iTunes. I haven't listened to any other than this one, but the topics seem fascinating.
And I have to give a shout-out to www.reddit.com/r/askhistorians and www.reddit.com/r/AcademicBiblical
And in case you are wondering, I'm reading the "Fully Revised Fourth Edition New Oxford Annotated Bible New Revised Standard Version With the Apocrypha College Edition, An Ecumenical Study Bible"
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
Water Town
My roommate woke me up this morning and said she was off to visit a little village place, did I want to come with and etc. and so I have more pictures for you. I hope you enjoy them.
This first batch comes from the water town village. There were a bunch of little shops and a bunch of homes tucked away behind them or on the second floor of some of these places.
What follows are pictures of fireworks shot off outside of my apartment. The bits of colored fire were actually hitting against people's windows. Pics taken at about 11 PM China time (it's all one single time zone, by the way)
And here's the cover of a notebook I bought today. I really like it.
This first batch comes from the water town village. There were a bunch of little shops and a bunch of homes tucked away behind them or on the second floor of some of these places.
Don't know what the deal is here, exactly. If the birds were tethered to their perches, or if they were trained, or if they just like getting rides like this.
Got turned around in the water town and ended up in what looks to be a shared backyard.
Here's some pictures of what were advertised as "yachts" Though not yachts, they are still really cool. One had yellow mop buckets in it, and the guy captaining it was wearing a neon yellow vest. So they have a special boat just for keeping the water clean of litter and etc.
Not really so important. But my roommate and I had a giggle. She suggested "Mannequin Massacre" as a band name. I would suspect it's an 8/10 band name, but I'll have to check it against the MFBNS (Matt Foudray Band Name Scale, obviously)
What follows are pictures of fireworks shot off outside of my apartment. The bits of colored fire were actually hitting against people's windows. Pics taken at about 11 PM China time (it's all one single time zone, by the way)
And here's the cover of a notebook I bought today. I really like it.
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
Assorted pictures.
These first two are from when I got lost in Shanghai. I actually walked past my destination a couple of times.. I'd already seen three Motel 168s in China, and all the others had English letters and Arabic numbers on them. But I got to see this cool graffiti and walk down this sinister looking alleyway. 
These two are from near my work in Suzhou. No idea what the store sells or why they chose these decorations.
These pics are all from in/around the Suzhou Central Train Station.
About five minutes walk from the train station you might run into a bridge like this.
Look on the other side of the bridge and you may see these boats 'parked'
This is a bus stop. It's beautiful.
Thursday, February 12, 2015
Teaching
I haven't been saying much about teaching, so I suppose I'll touch on that a bit.
Today I took a solid punch to that sensitive in-between-the-legs area. Kid had a running start, then jumped in what may have been a lunge or a pounce or even just an attempt to give me a hug. Not really sure. Kid's name is Tony and Tony sure has an arm on him.
I immediately dropped the little tray of supplies I had- flashcards, scissors, and glue- and grabbed his arm. I think his guardian type figure must have seen because she rushed in at about that time, and I was later told that this woman was angry I'd grabbed her son's arm like that. I then proceeded to fall and make a sound that was probably just kind of like "euuuuugngngngnhhhhhhuueueueu"
and the Teacher's Assistant (who actually knows Chinese) explained what had just happened to the parent. Complete reversal!
The parent's English was very limited, but she did know "sorry" and she said it about twenty times. I waved it off and got myself a glass of water. Class started five minutes late.
More on this another time.
Today I took a solid punch to that sensitive in-between-the-legs area. Kid had a running start, then jumped in what may have been a lunge or a pounce or even just an attempt to give me a hug. Not really sure. Kid's name is Tony and Tony sure has an arm on him.
I immediately dropped the little tray of supplies I had- flashcards, scissors, and glue- and grabbed his arm. I think his guardian type figure must have seen because she rushed in at about that time, and I was later told that this woman was angry I'd grabbed her son's arm like that. I then proceeded to fall and make a sound that was probably just kind of like "euuuuugngngngnhhhhhhuueueueu"
and the Teacher's Assistant (who actually knows Chinese) explained what had just happened to the parent. Complete reversal!
The parent's English was very limited, but she did know "sorry" and she said it about twenty times. I waved it off and got myself a glass of water. Class started five minutes late.
More on this another time.
Monday, February 9, 2015
Teaching, cooking, etc
Tonight I made jambalaya from scratch. Like a boss. My roommate ate it and she liked it, too.
She's Australian and pretty chill. A bit older than me, and with more teaching experience, too. She's been in China for I think two years already, and spent at least one year in Russia. She made me Russian pancakes one morning (which are like pancakes in America but less fluffy and you use condensed milk instead of syrup and butter) and I've been trying to figure out what I could cook for her in return ever since. But now that I have a little thing of cajun spice I can actually make stuff.
She liked the jambalaya, but wouldn't take a peanut butter sandwich with it, and was terribly confused when I suggested it. She's never had a peanut butter sandwich with soup or chili or anything like that. Nor has she ever had a PB+J sandwich. But I've never had Vegemite, so I guess we're all even.
Today I had to hop over to the SIP (Singaporean Industrial Park) district of Suzhou. Conveniently for me the San Xiang Square metro entrance is right near my apartment. San Xiang is on the North/South metro line, but is only one stop from the East/West line. I picked up some sausage and some spaghetti sauce and even found pumpkin pie filling at the Euromart (a store specializing in imported goods- mostly English, but there's also some Japanese, Indian, etc), so I might try to make pumpkin pie here soon.
As soon as I came up out of the subway I saw a guy on a little ebike moving water jugs like what you'd put on a water cooler. These water jugs are a booming business because the water in China is, well, it's not fit to drink. He had two of these giant plastic bottles between his legs, four or five on a string that ran from handle to handle, and then some kinda weird backpack rig that he'd attached at least twenty more water jugs to. And he was just passing people and swerving in and out of traffic.
I got to ride an ebike myself, and drive one, too, the other day, with my friend from Canada. I can see how they would be a lot of fun in warmer weather. Perhaps I'll invest in one.
But for now I am stuffed on jambalaya. I'm gonna call it a night.
She's Australian and pretty chill. A bit older than me, and with more teaching experience, too. She's been in China for I think two years already, and spent at least one year in Russia. She made me Russian pancakes one morning (which are like pancakes in America but less fluffy and you use condensed milk instead of syrup and butter) and I've been trying to figure out what I could cook for her in return ever since. But now that I have a little thing of cajun spice I can actually make stuff.
She liked the jambalaya, but wouldn't take a peanut butter sandwich with it, and was terribly confused when I suggested it. She's never had a peanut butter sandwich with soup or chili or anything like that. Nor has she ever had a PB+J sandwich. But I've never had Vegemite, so I guess we're all even.
Today I had to hop over to the SIP (Singaporean Industrial Park) district of Suzhou. Conveniently for me the San Xiang Square metro entrance is right near my apartment. San Xiang is on the North/South metro line, but is only one stop from the East/West line. I picked up some sausage and some spaghetti sauce and even found pumpkin pie filling at the Euromart (a store specializing in imported goods- mostly English, but there's also some Japanese, Indian, etc), so I might try to make pumpkin pie here soon.
As soon as I came up out of the subway I saw a guy on a little ebike moving water jugs like what you'd put on a water cooler. These water jugs are a booming business because the water in China is, well, it's not fit to drink. He had two of these giant plastic bottles between his legs, four or five on a string that ran from handle to handle, and then some kinda weird backpack rig that he'd attached at least twenty more water jugs to. And he was just passing people and swerving in and out of traffic.
I got to ride an ebike myself, and drive one, too, the other day, with my friend from Canada. I can see how they would be a lot of fun in warmer weather. Perhaps I'll invest in one.
But for now I am stuffed on jambalaya. I'm gonna call it a night.
Thursday, February 5, 2015
Rugby
Last night I sat down with a Canadian and an Irishwoman and a guy from New Jersey and we drank Dutch beer at a Cuban restaurant. We watched a rugby game between South Africa and New Zealand. On Japanese Street, in Suzhou, China.
Rugby. What a sport. Only the lady from Ireland had any clue what was going on in the rugby game, but she wasn't entirely sure on the rules. I'd recommend everybody go watch a rugby match. Similar to American football, but much rougher. And with a serious cut down on stuff like time-outs, commercial breaks, and padding.
I have no idea what the rules are. But I think American football could stand to take a page or two out of rugby's rulebook. The scrums are really something to see. Even on TV. Go find a rugby video or two on youtube and be glad you did.
Rugby. What a sport. Only the lady from Ireland had any clue what was going on in the rugby game, but she wasn't entirely sure on the rules. I'd recommend everybody go watch a rugby match. Similar to American football, but much rougher. And with a serious cut down on stuff like time-outs, commercial breaks, and padding.
I have no idea what the rules are. But I think American football could stand to take a page or two out of rugby's rulebook. The scrums are really something to see. Even on TV. Go find a rugby video or two on youtube and be glad you did.
Tuesday, February 3, 2015
Chinese New Year Party
I was told to bring my ukulele. I was not told why.
Sat down and met some people who work for the company that up to this were strangers. But they didn't speak much English, so it was kinda difficult to get to know them. Everyone had red wine, and there was toast after toast. Not from wine glasses, but from these little vials. Wine is something I'd like to enjoy, but just can't get into. Sorry, wine drinkers, wine makers.
But even before the wine came out, a number of plates were already arranged in the middle of the table. There's a big glass spinning thing, you get to spin it around to get the various plates and bowls to you. That's pretty common. On the table was some kinda fried-then-baked fish that still had a lot of bones in it. And duck. I had duck for the first time. Ducks are oily creatures. Even their tongues.
Pictured: duck tongue
Then moved on and had some kinda radish and cucumber dish. Glass noodles, so named because you can see right through them. After they are cooked they take on a slight coloration based on what spices you cook them with, but uncooked it seriously looks like strands of glass. In the States we have cabbage and black-eyed peas around New Year's. The idea being, I think, that you'll have financial success in the coming year.
In a way it's easier to see how eating pig ears would make you listen to your parents if you are very young, or help you keep your hearing if you are very old.
After eating and etc we played a few games. I lost at a hot potato type game and had to either drink or perform. So I played about half of 'The Science of Selling Yourself Short' by Less Than Jake on my ukulele. It went well; when I looked up from my ukulele there was a room full of people recording me on their phones.
And I won the door prize and I got some fancy headphones. Another example of me being entirely too lucky. Headphones were going to be my first purchase after a paycheck, too. I don't know what to do with myself.
Sat down and met some people who work for the company that up to this were strangers. But they didn't speak much English, so it was kinda difficult to get to know them. Everyone had red wine, and there was toast after toast. Not from wine glasses, but from these little vials. Wine is something I'd like to enjoy, but just can't get into. Sorry, wine drinkers, wine makers.
But even before the wine came out, a number of plates were already arranged in the middle of the table. There's a big glass spinning thing, you get to spin it around to get the various plates and bowls to you. That's pretty common. On the table was some kinda fried-then-baked fish that still had a lot of bones in it. And duck. I had duck for the first time. Ducks are oily creatures. Even their tongues.
Pictured: duck tongue
Then moved on and had some kinda radish and cucumber dish. Glass noodles, so named because you can see right through them. After they are cooked they take on a slight coloration based on what spices you cook them with, but uncooked it seriously looks like strands of glass. In the States we have cabbage and black-eyed peas around New Year's. The idea being, I think, that you'll have financial success in the coming year.
In a way it's easier to see how eating pig ears would make you listen to your parents if you are very young, or help you keep your hearing if you are very old.
After eating and etc we played a few games. I lost at a hot potato type game and had to either drink or perform. So I played about half of 'The Science of Selling Yourself Short' by Less Than Jake on my ukulele. It went well; when I looked up from my ukulele there was a room full of people recording me on their phones.
And I won the door prize and I got some fancy headphones. Another example of me being entirely too lucky. Headphones were going to be my first purchase after a paycheck, too. I don't know what to do with myself.
Thursday, January 29, 2015
Regarding the Plagues and the search for the land of Milk and Honey.
This is arguably just a minor detail, but something else I'm intrigued by is that as God metes out the plagues on Egypt he repeatedly steels the Pharaoh's reserve.
He doesn't go down and talk to Pharaoh, but does this through his Godly ways. It isn't exactly clear how he does this, but he doesn't seem to be having a chat, it seems to be a much more supernatural thing. Pharaoh would have actually caved after just a few plagues, but God keeps him stiff.
The motivation behind this seems to be that Pharaoh would have in all reality changed his mind once the Israelites left. Maybe not immediately, but eventually he would decide to go get them back. So he forces Pharaoh to learn in the hardest way possible, so that it sticks.
He even does it right at the end. He allows Pharaoh to give the go ahead and dismiss the Israelites, then goes on to change Pharaoh's mind and give chase through the sea of reeds. But then he protects the Jewish people and closes the sea on the Egyptians.
Side note here: In movies and things the bit where they walk through the sea of reeds is a mad dash. In the Bible this event takes at least a few days.
...
Then the Jewish people have to get to the land of milk and honey. This takes a very long time. I'm not sure how old Moses is when they leave Egypt, but it takes right up to his death at 120 years old. And during that time these people repeatedly screw it up.
The most well known bit seems to be that when Moses goes up to receive the commandments from God, they make a golden calf to worship. They thank the golden calf for getting them out of Egypt, even. But then God shows up and they come back to him.
Then of course there's the deal where they aren't themselves permitted to enter the land, but only their children may, and so they have to wander the desert for 40 years.
Then of course there's the deal where they aren't themselves permitted to enter the land, but only their children may, and so they have to wander the desert for 40 years.
This actually happens repeatedly in various ways. They won't go to war because of the enemy's superior numbers, so God punishes them. And when they try to go to war without his go-ahead they are punished, too.
At one point some of the Israelites who are not descendants of Levi decide that they want to be priests, and they follow all of the directions, but God doesn't like it and sends a plague that kills 14,700 people (I think that's the number).
I can't think of the other times this happened, but I'm pretty sure there are a couple more.
God calls the descendants of Jacob a "stubborn people," but I have to wonder. Maybe he did the same thing to them. Maybe he decided that the lesson to stay loyal to him, that he would protect them, wouldn't really stick unless he put them through quite an ordeal. It's not said explicitly. It's not even suggested, really. They just seem... honestly kind of dense to not catch on to how things work.
But that's my hypothesis about the Pentateuch. I'll let you know when more cool stories come up.
Perception of the West
The Chinese seem to have very few reservations when it comes to smoking. Even right under the signs that say NO SMOKING even in the elevators. Maybe especially in the elevators. It seems they think it a courtesy to go to the restroom to smoke if they are in a building. But even then they don't bother to throw the butts in the urinals or the toilets. They simply drop them on the ground. Even on carpet.
And they have traffic signals, too. Big bright ones. They even have timers on them to say when the lights will change. And just like most places the roads have lanes. But these things are not important to the Chinese. The general rule of thumb is that you need to honk if you are passing someone, and otherwise just kinda go with the flow. Especially the various ebikes and scooters and bicycles.
So when they see the lao wai (direct translation is 'old whitey', just really means westerner. Kind of a lighthearted insult like calling an elderly gentleman 'old timer,' but this applies to all westerners regardless of skin-tone or age) never smoking indoors, driving inside the lines, etc., they get the impression that we are a very law-abiding people.
They also love English words on their clothing, the way folks in America get Asian stuff tattoo'ed on them without any way to check what the word means. One kid at my school, maybe 8 or 9, had GO TO HELL on his shirt. A guy in the elevator last week had a great big American flag on his back and then GREAT BRITAIN.
And they have traffic signals, too. Big bright ones. They even have timers on them to say when the lights will change. And just like most places the roads have lanes. But these things are not important to the Chinese. The general rule of thumb is that you need to honk if you are passing someone, and otherwise just kinda go with the flow. Especially the various ebikes and scooters and bicycles.
So when they see the lao wai (direct translation is 'old whitey', just really means westerner. Kind of a lighthearted insult like calling an elderly gentleman 'old timer,' but this applies to all westerners regardless of skin-tone or age) never smoking indoors, driving inside the lines, etc., they get the impression that we are a very law-abiding people.
They also love English words on their clothing, the way folks in America get Asian stuff tattoo'ed on them without any way to check what the word means. One kid at my school, maybe 8 or 9, had GO TO HELL on his shirt. A guy in the elevator last week had a great big American flag on his back and then GREAT BRITAIN.
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
On the Tower of Babel
So I mentioned a couple of posts back about the Tower of Babel, I wanted to kind of ramble and explicate my thoughts on that to you guys. I'll be doing this with the parts of the bible I find particularly interesting. If you'd like to, then you can find the story about the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11:1-9. It's really quite short.
The Tower of Babel (though never called that exactly) was built by some folks who wanted to either sneak into Heaven (though it doesn't say this; it says "the heavens", not the plural form and the small h), or to get in on some godlike powers. Depends on who you ask.
The exact reason they built this tower isn't so important to me, really. What's more important is the cause-and-effect of the parable. The humans want something that they shouldn't have, and that would upset the (for lack of a better phrase I'm going to call it) natural order of things (would God/gods be considered natural? Purely hypothetical.) And in response they are punished in an interesting way, by splitting them into separate peoples by giving them separate languages.
This story is amazing. It's a two-birds/one-stone kinda parable. One of those birds is hubristic. The other is etiological (I just learned that word and had to use it). Which is to say, it's both a warning and an explanation of a phenomena. And it's only nine verses long.
It's a warning against trying to be like God/gods (God says 'let us,' make of that what you will), and at the same time an explanation of a phenomenon (that's what the word etiological means). The phenomenon in this case being multiple languages.
The Tower of Babel (though never called that exactly) was built by some folks who wanted to either sneak into Heaven (though it doesn't say this; it says "the heavens", not the plural form and the small h), or to get in on some godlike powers. Depends on who you ask.
The exact reason they built this tower isn't so important to me, really. What's more important is the cause-and-effect of the parable. The humans want something that they shouldn't have, and that would upset the (for lack of a better phrase I'm going to call it) natural order of things (would God/gods be considered natural? Purely hypothetical.) And in response they are punished in an interesting way, by splitting them into separate peoples by giving them separate languages.
This story is amazing. It's a two-birds/one-stone kinda parable. One of those birds is hubristic. The other is etiological (I just learned that word and had to use it). Which is to say, it's both a warning and an explanation of a phenomena. And it's only nine verses long.
It's a warning against trying to be like God/gods (God says 'let us,' make of that what you will), and at the same time an explanation of a phenomenon (that's what the word etiological means). The phenomenon in this case being multiple languages.
Tuesday, January 27, 2015
The Pentateuch
I'm also going to keep you updated on the Bible. So ignore this post, Eric Collier.
I've finished the first five books. And so far the Bible is a wild ride. I have a fancy pants scholar's bible from Oxford. Fourth edition NRSV, with the apocrypha, something like that.
There were several stories that I knew of and that I knew were in the bible, but that I had no idea where they really were in the timeline. Like the Tower of Babel, for instance. It's in Genesis. Babel is/was a place where they built the tower. The story of Sodom and Gomorrah, also in Genesis. I had no idea that Lot and Abraham were related at all.
I was terribly confused about the differences between the story of Lot in Sodom and Gomorrah and the story of Abraham and Isaac. The basic gist is that God comes up to Abraham and says that the sin and inequity and etc of Sodom and Gomorrah are calling out to him and he's real upset about it and says he's going to smash the cities. Abraham talks God down, and says that woah woah woah, there's gotta be some innocent people in there, so you can't kill all of them, right? and God kind of takes a deep breathe and says he'll spare the city for a bit if Abraham can find fifty people and then Abraham haggles with him for a few verses and God finally says that okay, if Abe can find at least ten people (I think ten, maybe five?) in those two cities then He will walk away.
So God has a temper and Abraham is the voice of reason.
But then not very much later in the book God says to Abraham: You gotta kill Isaac. Abraham doesn't say word one in the way of protest. Just nods and accepts it. Especially screwy when Isaac is Abraham's only son and God promised to give Abraham and heir (if certain conditions were met, which they very much were).
God seems to be the more consistent of the two between these two incidents; He's got a temper, he wants everything to be his way, he's testing people all the time to make sure they are up to par.
But Abraham seems like two completely different people. I don't get it.
I've finished the first five books. And so far the Bible is a wild ride. I have a fancy pants scholar's bible from Oxford. Fourth edition NRSV, with the apocrypha, something like that.
There were several stories that I knew of and that I knew were in the bible, but that I had no idea where they really were in the timeline. Like the Tower of Babel, for instance. It's in Genesis. Babel is/was a place where they built the tower. The story of Sodom and Gomorrah, also in Genesis. I had no idea that Lot and Abraham were related at all.
I was terribly confused about the differences between the story of Lot in Sodom and Gomorrah and the story of Abraham and Isaac. The basic gist is that God comes up to Abraham and says that the sin and inequity and etc of Sodom and Gomorrah are calling out to him and he's real upset about it and says he's going to smash the cities. Abraham talks God down, and says that woah woah woah, there's gotta be some innocent people in there, so you can't kill all of them, right? and God kind of takes a deep breathe and says he'll spare the city for a bit if Abraham can find fifty people and then Abraham haggles with him for a few verses and God finally says that okay, if Abe can find at least ten people (I think ten, maybe five?) in those two cities then He will walk away.
So God has a temper and Abraham is the voice of reason.
But then not very much later in the book God says to Abraham: You gotta kill Isaac. Abraham doesn't say word one in the way of protest. Just nods and accepts it. Especially screwy when Isaac is Abraham's only son and God promised to give Abraham and heir (if certain conditions were met, which they very much were).
God seems to be the more consistent of the two between these two incidents; He's got a temper, he wants everything to be his way, he's testing people all the time to make sure they are up to par.
But Abraham seems like two completely different people. I don't get it.
Trip to Shanghai
Just spent a week in Shanghai to get properly certified to teach here. It turns out that teaching without two years of experience or without going to (and passing) this week long class is illegal and the PRC will ship you home if you don't have the certification.
Everybody in the class had already been teaching. I'm an illegal worker and I'm taking jobs.
Seriously, one guy in the class had been here three years, and had never once had a problem. The right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing.
I'm getting settled into my apartment. When I got back to Suzhou after the class I met my roommate, who is Australian and who is not insane, which is a quality I look for in a roommate.
There are no open container laws here. It's so strange for a guy from a dry county (no alcohol sells period) to see people walking down the street in suits drinking clear alcohol (possibly baijiu) at 10:00 AM.
They don't have wishing wells here.
These two pictures are from when I was lost in Shanghai.
Everybody in the class had already been teaching. I'm an illegal worker and I'm taking jobs.
Seriously, one guy in the class had been here three years, and had never once had a problem. The right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing.
I'm getting settled into my apartment. When I got back to Suzhou after the class I met my roommate, who is Australian and who is not insane, which is a quality I look for in a roommate.
There are no open container laws here. It's so strange for a guy from a dry county (no alcohol sells period) to see people walking down the street in suits drinking clear alcohol (possibly baijiu) at 10:00 AM.
They don't have wishing wells here.These two pictures are from when I was lost in Shanghai.Wednesday, January 14, 2015
First Impression
The flight was just about hellish.
But then I got to Shanghai. Customs was easy enough to navigate. I was asked on both sides of the flight by official looking guys how much money I had on my person and did I know that it's illegal to carry more than 10,000 USD cash out of the country. I told them the honest answers to both, and that I'd never had 10,000 in general, let alone on my person, and went on with my day.
Day One:
I had to get my money changed from USD to RMB. There's some sort of racket going on where certain individuals will 'buy' your foreign money. I got a free few Yuan for trusting this guy and giving him my money. I assume he then sells the foreign cash for very little Yuan? Not sure.
After this I hopped on the bus to get back to my apartment. I was eating a mango ice cream, and enjoying the sites, paying careful attention so that I would get off at my stop (had no phone yet). At the second-to-last stop a mother and child get on and the mother sits down before gently pushing her kid, five years old tops, over in my general direction. I realize he's going for the trashcan at my feet. He gets over to the trashcan after the bus driver has decided on a speed, and drops his pants to his feet and begins to urinate into the trashcan. Nobody says a word.
Welcome to Suzhou, China.
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