Wednesday, June 21, 2006

Hot or Not? Stupid Question



5am Thursday finds me awake and rested after a few days of even more bizarre sleeping habits than usual - and here is the lovely view of the world from my window on the 6th floor of the conference center at the China East Normal University in Shanghai. I figure I better develop some sort of writing habit here or the dream of PaddyWop-as-cultural-dialogue (rant?) will go the way of the CCP in Shanghai, i.e. an ambitious and well-intentioned enterprise that somehow got pushed aside by business and fashion. Ok, so Shanghai...well I just noticed as I write that my google search has gone all Chinese on me. Now Paddy's already getting good at ordering hip Asian fusion food in Mandarin, but cheking the weather is another thing. Which brings me to the issue at hand: IT'S HOT! Hot in a dear-me-some -fat-German-businessman-just dumped-another-cup-of-water-on-sauna-stones kind of way. Hot as in "Odds botkins Jarmyn, what's a man of your stature and girth doing roamin the streets without a sedan chair at this hour?" (The right honorable, and quite gout-ridden, Fezzywig Constantine representing the rotten borough of Bowie-on-the-Wold knows what I'm talking about here.) At 5am the temp stands at 84F! This is NOT Paddy weather to be sure, but I'm coping. The world outside the Yifu Building here at China East Normal University is just a public, but keep your crows on preez mister, sauna. But no worries. As you can see my ever resourceful Directress has discovered a 'New' way to beat the heat.

OH AND Paddy has already developed irritation at a certain administrative staff member (a fellow from Hogwarts who recently endured the blue box ceremony) who's proving to be quite the delicate flower when it comes to just about anything, heat, eating, walking, work, etc. (more bout that later maybe). [The other photo on top was taken on central campus, in front of the 'administration' building; but hey, it's a communist university so it's all administration right.]

5 comments:

Will Wilson said...

Take it from a veteran of the tropics, Paddy, there is no way to beat the heat. You have to stop fighting it and instead, welcome it!

Put on a tweed jacket, welcome the heat. Bring it inside you. Let it pass through you. Become one with the heat. Feel the heat. Find the right rhythm so that the sweat pouring down your arms and face doesn't splash around too much. Welcome the air-conditioning, but be prepared to embrace the heat.

Remember, you are in it's territory now. You live and breath at the sufferance of the heat. Respect it, look it in the eye, and it will let you pass. You really can do no more.

- Le Duc

Anonymous said...

the heat is just a tactic They use to get you to spend your american dollars on state of the art air conditioning/cold drinks that they jack the prices up on (not that I would know) but it should be your mission to stick it to the man, regardless of his less than intimidating stature. And if they ask any questions, give them a piece of their own medicine, the finger.

Anonymous said...

Hmmm...I detect an angry-hetero-patriarchal-white-man strain in the Sobinator lately. Typical of you long-nosed Ghost barbarians.

Anonymous said...

Tell delicate flower to suck it up a little bit; I'll do the same next time I talk to him.

The food here has not been spicy at all, and we have sampled much excellence.

We just left Hoi An, where 5 days ago it was 120F...I agree with sobinatior in saying that the commies are trying to get to us, and there is really an invisible greenhouse made by charlie over all of east asia.

The Black Pajama Boys are now off to get some fine street cuisine. Keep up the updates.

Anonymous said...

You will NOT tell Delicate Flower any such thing. There is a reason I use a psuedonym: Paddy doesn't need more enemies, thank you very much.