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The Champagne Cabana / Re: What's Making Me Happy!
« Last post by AMonk on July 02, 2025, 11:26:20 PM »
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The Champagne Cabana / Re: What's Making Me Happy!
« Last post by Escaped Lunatic on July 02, 2025, 06:49:20 PM »Mom visited. Live reenactment of Escape From LA successfully completed. Three days relaxing in HK with my wife completed.
Now I need to plan my delayed vacation in Hunan.
Now I need to plan my delayed vacation in Hunan.
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The Champagne Cabana / Re: What's Making Me Happy!
« Last post by Escaped Lunatic on June 18, 2025, 04:50:19 AM »It still gets a little sore if I walk too much (or drag luggage through airports - I'm visiting my mother in the USA right now), but I think I'll be back to 100% in another week or two.
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The Champagne Cabana / Re: What's Making Me Happy!
« Last post by El Macho on June 13, 2025, 07:00:37 PM »Sounds great! Hope your foot is continuing to improve!
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The Bar (ON-TOPIC) / Re: Do We Have Numbers of Western (Teaching) Expats?
« Last post by Escaped Lunatic on June 09, 2025, 04:30:29 PM »I concur about long term expats frequently not being tied to local expat communities. Despite being at the Saloon and in some expat groups on WeChat, I very rarely interact with other foreigners in person and socialize with local people. I suppose if I hung out on Bar Street, I'd meet more, but I keep my bar activities in the virtual realm here at the Saloon.
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The Champagne Cabana / Re: What's Making Me Happy!
« Last post by Escaped Lunatic on June 09, 2025, 04:25:09 PM »Paddling and dinner with the third sector went well (I just had to slowly limp without a cane).
By Friday, I was able to walk with only a small limp. We had the Rewarding the Boats parade in the morning. This involves sending all the boats around the pond and stopping to pick up drinks, snacks, and even cigarettes. I think of it as sort of being like Halloween for Dragons.
Saturday was race day. It was not actually an official race with judges, but the general rules were followed anyway, including all boats making the same number of runs in each of the three lanes. This is done because the pond is curved and giving each boat the same number of runs in each lane saves the complications of offsetting either the start or finish lines.
Those of us not on the race teams got our usual front row seats in the non-racing boats near the finish line.
By Friday, I was able to walk with only a small limp. We had the Rewarding the Boats parade in the morning. This involves sending all the boats around the pond and stopping to pick up drinks, snacks, and even cigarettes. I think of it as sort of being like Halloween for Dragons.
Saturday was race day. It was not actually an official race with judges, but the general rules were followed anyway, including all boats making the same number of runs in each of the three lanes. This is done because the pond is curved and giving each boat the same number of runs in each lane saves the complications of offsetting either the start or finish lines.
Those of us not on the race teams got our usual front row seats in the non-racing boats near the finish line.
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The Champagne Cabana / Re: What's Making Me Happy!
« Last post by Escaped Lunatic on June 05, 2025, 03:09:44 PM »Doc at hospital told me to get a CT scan and come back to see her about an hour afterwards. First CT scan appointment was 1. Ended up getting scanned at 1:30. Guy in CT department told me the data would be available at the machines in the nursing station at 5 pm. 
The doc got access to the scans at about 2:45. She said it wasfatal just a soft tissue strain.
The pain had reduced some, so cane in hand, I made it to the pond. I decided to sit on the drum deck and take photos and videos (and not to even try to stand up while doing so).
My 3rd uniform was delivered to my sector's dining hall. I think I won't exactly help that sector's boat go a lot faster today, but I should be able to paddle some. This will also give me a chance to take photos in their dining hall.
The doc got access to the scans at about 2:45. She said it was
The pain had reduced some, so cane in hand, I made it to the pond. I decided to sit on the drum deck and take photos and videos (and not to even try to stand up while doing so).
My 3rd uniform was delivered to my sector's dining hall. I think I won't exactly help that sector's boat go a lot faster today, but I should be able to paddle some. This will also give me a chance to take photos in their dining hall.
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The Champagne Cabana / Re: What's Making Me Happy!
« Last post by Escaped Lunatic on June 04, 2025, 02:57:13 PM »And another sector reserved me for Thursday while I was heading towards the far end of the pond. 
Sadly, something went wrong exiting the boat. I had to step over to another boat to get to shore and slipped. My left foot came down hard. It hurt on impact, but felt more like a stinging sensation than a break. Everthing was fine during dinner and walking home.
Three hours after the incident, it started hurting, a lot. I'm about to head over to the hospital to get it looked at. I've got a bad feeling that I'm done paddling this year.
Sadly, something went wrong exiting the boat. I had to step over to another boat to get to shore and slipped. My left foot came down hard. It hurt on impact, but felt more like a stinging sensation than a break. Everthing was fine during dinner and walking home.
Three hours after the incident, it started hurting, a lot. I'm about to head over to the hospital to get it looked at. I've got a bad feeling that I'm done paddling this year.
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The Bar (ON-TOPIC) / Re: Do We Have Numbers of Western (Teaching) Expats?
« Last post by kitano on June 03, 2025, 06:44:40 PM »Hi Everyone,
Many of my friends and I independently commented that while China is such a big country, with a big population, many of us teachers tend to know each other somehow.
"Us expats are some sort of a village withing a big country or big city."
1. Do we have any data of how many of us foreigners there are?
2. It would help to narrow the field to Western, ex-patriates that work at schools like ours.
For example, I am guessing there are millions of workers here in China for construction, etc. Maybe even lots of people who work in training centers.
But, few with our same visas, line of work, etc.
3. My guess is there are 10,000 in all of China who have a Native-7 English speaker, have college degree and certs, etc.
I think that can be quite deceptive because in my experience the more settled expats are often invisible. Although I've not been in one place long term for a while, I do have a few friends who have been in China for a long time and generally they are quite disengaged from any 'expat communities' because the majority of people will stay for one or two years before returning to their home country, so there's not really much point in making friends with them and so on. Last time I was in China I didn't really bother with socialising or interacting with other expats in the city because of that, and I have all of my own hobbies and obligations and so on, so I never bother to make friends....
I have no idea what the number would be, 10k sounds believable, I'd bet higher,
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The Champagne Cabana / Re: What's Making Me Happy!
« Last post by Escaped Lunatic on June 03, 2025, 03:25:33 PM »Happily, death by splashing was avoided, but I'm spending a second day in the other sector's boat today.
My sector's dude was informed that I'd be in a boat from another sector, but the crew wasn't. Someone shared a WeChat video taken from one of the bridges yesterday that showed my sector's boats. My seat was empty. I guess they saved it while thinking I was running late.
My sector's dude was informed that I'd be in a boat from another sector, but the crew wasn't. Someone shared a WeChat video taken from one of the bridges yesterday that showed my sector's boats. My seat was empty. I guess they saved it while thinking I was running late.