Even as I sit here,
reflecting on how bored I am, I have to ponder on those Chinese customs,
traditions and doings that, even 2 years into this gig I simply cannot get used
to. But first…
Why am I bored? I’ve got
5 weeks left to teach. Can’t believe how fast the school year went by! I have
all my material planned for all the classes I have left. I’ve been pretty much
everywhere in and around Wuhan and played all the badminton I want. I can still
play more badminton. It is not for lack of players that I don’t play. Usually,
if I’m not playing it is because of the weather. I could travel around a bit,
go someplace I haven’t been yet, but I’m saving my pennies for my stateside
summer adventures. And, there are still buses I haven’t ridden, restaurants I’d
like to revisit, friends to go see one more time before I jet out of here.
I remember feeling this
way about this time last year. Maybe not bored but… restless would be a better
word. After I had bought my plane tickets I was ready to get going. I’m the
type of person who, once a plan is in place or a decision has been made waits
only for the execution of said plan/decision. Well, that’s actually a misnomer.
I DON’T wait. That is in fact my problem. I am not a patient person. If I am
called on to wait you will find one impatient, bored Krejados. And that is
where I’m at today.
How better to cure
boredom than to keep my mind active? In that spirit, let’s revisit some things
that, even after all this time living here I simply cannot get used to.
The impromptu way
people just drop in. I believe it is just a matter of being a part of the
community, or how friendships work over here. I’ve seen it happen time and time
again, and even while out with Gary or Ken, dropping in on some poor,
unsuspecting friend is modus operandi. Dropping in is perfectly acceptable… to
most people. To me, it is still an annoyance.
Dining Protocol:
It took me a while to get used to specifics of dining. While dining at a friend’s
house one mustn’t finish all the food for fear of showing the hostess to be
inhospitable. If there are no leftovers it means the hostess did not provide
enough food for her guests. Bad hostess! On the other hand, if you go out to
eat you are expected to finish all the food you order, or you request a
take-out box. The difference is that you paid for the food in a restaurant and
were invited to your friends’ home. Your friend should be compelled to
over-serve.
Another interesting take
on dining protocol: now that I am familiar with my standard group of friends,
like Gary or Sam, dining protocol has changed just slightly. Last time I was at
Sam’s house, he and his mother in law cooked a sumptuous dinner. What seemed
like midway through it, he got up and went in the living room. And he didn’t
come back. Bad enough he was wearing his jammy shirt at the table – something I’m
completely unused to, Sam-wise, but leaving the table while Penny, her sister,
his sister, brother in law and I are eating?
Later he explained that I
am now more than revered guest. I am friend, almost family so he did as he
normally would when around his family: he said: “You eat slowly” and got up. I
did hear him say that, I just didn’t expect him to get up from the table and
leave me at the mercy of his family members, conversing in their regional
dialect that I don’t understand.
Chicken heads and
feet: No matter how often I encounter it, I simply cannot get used to
seeing chicken heads and feet swimming around in my soup. Maybe in time I could
make my peace with the feet but the heads, complete with beak and comb are just
too much for me to take. I think they will always freak me out. Ditto with
buying an uncooked chicken from the market with everything still attached.
Kitchen protocol:
People who come to my house wonder if I ever cook anything because my kitchen
is clean. By that I mean grease free. Of course I cook. I just clean everything
as best I can once the meal is over. I have to season my wok regularly,
otherwise it will rust. Because I scrub it, with steel wool if necessary, until
no food residue remains. Chinese people do not have to season their wok because
it stays oiled from the last meal or dish they cooked. Their method of cleaning
a wok is to run it under cold water, swish the spatula around, scrape off
remaining bits of food and start cooking again. Cutting boards, cleavers,
plates… all receive the same treatment. Dishes are rinsed under cold water
before and after use, and are put away wet. I try not to think of this when I
enjoy a meal at a friend’s house.
House cleaning: No
matter how hard I try, I cannot keep my house clean or dust free. If I dust the
table, the cabinet will need to be dusted. If I dust in the living room, all
the dust migrates into the dining room. If I dust mop at 9AM, by 10AM it looks
like I’ve done nothing. If I’m not dealing with dust I’m dealing with moisture.
All winter dust was a problem. Now that spring/summer is here, with its storms
and humidity, I have to be careful of excess moisture. My kitchen floor was
literally wet the other morning, when I woke up. Unfortunately I had not swept up
all the dust the night before. Now my kitchen floor has muddy footprints all
over it, and I’ve tracked moisture all over the house. I give up. People who come
to my house are just going to have to deal with either dust or moisture. Otherwise,
keeping up with it is a full-time, never-ending job.
Fluorescent lights:
I am very happy that the Chinese are so environment-conscious. I have an on/off
switch for my hot water heater: if I need hot water, I turn the switch on and
wait 30 minutes after which I have a whole fifty-four liters of hot water at my
disposal. What I can’t get used to is that creepy, bluish fluorescent lighting
that lends a stark, daylight realism to everything. All of my overhead lighting
is fluorescent and the two lamps I bought also have such light bars. I looked
for incandescent lamps, but they are very hard to find. When I look in the
mirror (hung at Chinese height), I look like some sort of monster because of
that terrible overhead lighting, coupled with the fact that I have to scrunch
down to see myself. Wonder if I could get them to rehang the mirror to ‘foreigner
height’?
Being unable to shop:
It seems like every day a new shopping center is springing open around town,
each one more glitzy than the last. I have a lot of fun discovering these new
shopping ventures and then surprising my friends by taking them to places they’ve
never been before. What I can’t get used to is not being able to buy anything. Not
for lack of money but for lack of things that will fit this giant frame of
mine. Giant, by Chinese standards. Here is a good example: hiking boots.
My old hiking boots,
bought in the States last summer, are completely sprung. I wonder how many
kilometers one has to walk in order to completely wear down the sole of a pair
of hiking boots? I thought I would try to replace my hiking boots over here
because such stores – outdoor outfitters like camp gear and extreme sports
equipment, new passions for the Chinese – are now open almost everywhere. Chinese
people are getting larger. Therefore it stands to reason that there might be
larger sizes available. No such luck. Where are all the larger Chinese buying
their things? Or are they still not as large as I am?
Being stared at: Last
year I was (bottle) blond and even uber-blond, and I got stared at A LOT.
Carrie Ann told me that, if I went darker, i.e., not blond I probably would not
get the attention my blond tresses were garnering. I took her advice to heart. All
year I’ve been reddish-brown, and… I STILL get stared at! True: I have explored
the Over-the-Wall community and they are all curious about this fearless
foreigner who tromps through their neighborhood with impunity, and I have gone other
places I’ve never been before, even places where other foreigners frequent. Maybe
I just have a complex.
I ponder these things,
being as my trip stateside is imminent. Next, maybe I should write about things
that, after 2 years I cannot seem to live without? What do you think?
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