Same/Different, take 3.

I've been a very neglectful blogger this week. It's not that China has ceased to amuse me (I'm not sure that's possible), it's just that work has really picked up, on both sides of the ocean. All that said, I am feeling a little stumped for funny commentary. Sometimes you just need to be here.

So, here's the next best thing to you being here. Another round of Same/Different:

Different.

I have seen a lot of Chinese men in their underwear. This is not because I am some sort of hussy. Rather, it is because Chinese men insist on wearing their underwear on the street. And on their scooters. And in their stores. It is everywhere. (I'm working on getting a photo of this. I feel like a pervert pointing my camera at some old dude in his boxers.)

Strictly Business.

But perhaps even more popular than the "just my boxers" crowd is the "sensible pajamas" contingent. This group includes both men and women, young and old, pedestrians and motorists.

For those of you who are interested in joining in on the fun, there are only a few requirements to belong to this hip crowd: First, the pj's must match, top and bottom. Second, you must be utterly un-sexy. Third, you must not acknowledge that you are in your pj's. In fact, as far as you're concerned, you're wearing Prada. Like this guy:



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I hate to admit it, but this next one gets filed under Same:

Good lord.

Tails are wrong, and they should be stopped. And yet, they persist. I can't help but this "we" started this...and now look how out of control it is? A tail in China?!?!?

And as much as I hate to say it, this is not the only tail in China. In fact, I saw a 20-ish girl sporting a bob + tail combo, just this morning. The mullet has a strong presence amongst the fashionable, and you've already seen the abominable perms sported by both men and women.

Which leads me to the conclusion that here in China, bad hair = good hair.

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This one's easy.
Same. Big Blue Sky = Happy Day.

I took this shot on my walk home yesterday. As some of you may have read, a big typhoon rolled into the southeast coast of China today, killing 100+ and forcing well over a million to evacuate. Scary stuff. (Is this a good time to mention that you should all go see An Inconvenient Truth if you haven't already? Well, you should.) I'm not certain, but I think the blue sky and billowing clouds were courtesy of said typhoon.

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Different.

I hope you already wrote your poem.

Remember that pile of rubble from a couple of weeks ago? Well, this is that same pile of rubble. Except it't not much of a pile anymore. It has actually looked like this for over a week, but I keep forgetting to post this. Can you believe that? Where did the old building go? It's pretty amazing how quickly things change around here. Truly, truly overnight.

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In the case of mysteries, I don't think Same/Different applies:


I took this picture surreptitiously as I walked home the other day, without looking at the view finder. I was hoping to get a clear shot of a family who lives in a little lean-to type of structure in the field of rubble pictured above. What I got was this, which I think is a person's head under a towel. But I'm not sure. Anyhow, it's a little strange. Enjoy.

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Happy Friday, y'all. I'm off to M on the Bund tonight. Tres chic!