These are a bit of order chronologically; some happened in Hangzhou and some in Jiangshan, but all were within the last couple weeks.
First Haircut!
Having my pops cut it real short before I left, I had hoped to make it through the five month trip without a haircut. I was actually very scared of getting a haircut in China...with good reason.
For one, I had a hard enough time explaining to English-speaking barbers at home what I wanted done, and as my hair is a bit different than your standard Chinese person, I feared great disaster. Second, some barbershops in China are, well, more than just barbershops. If you don't know what I'm talking about, walk down the sidestreets of Beijing or Shanghai late at night...and listen to the catcalls. I call them "full service" barbershops. And some are not as obvious as others.
I enlisted Joe to help me as a translator (and to make sure no monkey business went on). Fourty minutes and 25 RMB later ($3), my hair had been meticulously shampooed and rinsed, my head massaged, my ears thoroughly cleaned (yeah, that was a little weird, having a lady clean my ears with her fingers and with Q-tips), my shoulders + back + arms massaged (the arm massage was really different, but pretty cool), and, oh yeah, almost forgot, my hair was cut a little too. But the guy (he did the actual cutting after the long prep process) did a great job. I tell you, the service industry in China is amazing. While you have to be careful, getting your haircut in China is a choice experience.
First Game of Counterstrike!
At the internet bar in Jiangshan. Zhou Li Wei consoled me afterwards by saying that I'll be fine after a year of practice.
First KTV!
I wasn't avoiding this one; in fact, I was always fascinated by the hundreds of KTV joints in every city here, and I looked forward to my first KTV experience. The short of it: I'm not going to quit the day job any time soon. Singing, well, isn't my calling in life.
KTV (karoake) in Asia isn't like the usual setup in the US, where it's found in the occasional bar or restaurant. KTV usually consists of large, furnished, decorated rooms which are rented out to groups. Karoake is more like an intimate affair with your friends. (Talking to my college age friends, no one really throws "parties" at their home, so it makes a lot of sense.)
First, let me say that the selection of English songs at this particular KTV was pretty meager, and what they had was either out of my lifespan or out of my vocal range. My grand debut was Backstreet Boys' I Want it That Way. The video consisted of a single girl and it was definitely from the 80's; it was a little distracting trying to sing as this poofy-haired model tried winking at me seductively in her tacky 80's outfits. Plus, it is actually a rather difficult song to sing when its sung in the real key. I compensated for my cracking voice by some "stage antics" - some good ol' pop star singing melodrama. I got big applause at this.
Later they tricked me into singing "My Heart Will Go On," and I did my little act, but in falsetto. I was still cute at this point, and they got a laugh, so it was OK.
A few songs later I got one of the other teachers to help me sing "Kan guo lai," a song I actually learned in the BYU dorms. I only know like 3 lines, but it was a LOT easier to sing then those stupid English songs.
But I blew it in the end. Later they insisted I try one more, and in desperation (I was so unfamiliar with the selection) I chose "I sing the body electaic" (not my the spelling) which is freakin' hard to sing, espcially when all of the words are wrong. I wasn't so cute by this time, and no one had heard the song. It was a pretty long 3 minutes as I prayed for the song to end.
First Nickname in Connection to Primates!
Driving home from a restaurant, Jenny - perhaps influenced by a touch of alcohol - semi-unintentionally let out the slip that "the children love you so much because your hair is so white. They call you Gold Hair Monkey."
I had noticed that some of the kids in her class had been fascinated by my white arm hair (most Chinese arms are rather hairless).
I wonder if any other teacher has gotten so flattering of a nickname. I am deeply touched.
First Date with a Complete Non-English Speaker!
Now I have acquired two more stalkers, both from Jiangshan. One is already married and one doesn't speak any English. Both scare me. If you'd like the story sometime, let me know, and I'll share it with you. I was half relieved when my cell phone was stolen on a bus the other day - and all my contacts lost. They can't find me when I don't have a cell phone.
First Beer!
Just kidding. Did I make you scared, Mom? I tell you though, the concept of complete, uncompromising sobriety is pretty strange here.
Again, a joke. Although I almost got tricked into having some rice wine ("Meiyou jiu!"...ha), it failed. I'm still stone cold sober after 23 years.
Watching - The Quiet American. I must say I feel a connection to Brendan Fraser ever since he played me in Bedazzled. Here he has quite a mature role, and the movie really makes you think about a lot of things, especially America's attitude and policies overseas.
Listening - Only Chinese music. (Which really means, considering my current supply of Chinese tunes, only Pop music. I'm trying to prep for living in the Chinese House at BYU next year, where English will be outlawed.)
...but that didn't last long, as I was introduced to Speechwriters LLC. (Thanks, Michael.) Check 'em out, I'm serious. Especially if you dig Dispatch, Guster, Jack Johnson, etc. This song in particular is the story of my life.