Climate Change

Al Gore is making headlines today by winning the Nobel Peace Prize. What an amazing story for a man who lost the presidency to Bush by 500 votes. It is encouraging to know the truth behind the teaching "the last become first, and the first become last."

But what I'd really like know is- so what have YOU done since seeing last year's An Inconvenient Truth? Most likely, you're one of the many who simply reverted back to a lifestyle of consumption. Documentaries, profound as they may be, tend to fail as agents for social change simply because the movie medium is overwhelming fiction. Authentic moral messages and entertainment become indecipherable. It woud be interesting to know your thoughts on this..

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Nothing's cooler than reading about yourself in someone else's blog.

This is my latest tbj article, with edits, featured here:

Adult Playgrounds

At the park inside my apartment complex, there is a playground filled with multi-colored tubular contraptions. Every time I walk past these rather bizarre constructions, I can't help but notice elderly men and women scratching their legs and their backs against them. At almost any hour of the day, there seems to always be a crowd milling about them. Not wanting to miss out, one uncomfortably warm evening, my roommate and I decided to escape the sticky apartment and see what all the fuss was about.

Outside we found not only senior citizens but people of all ages soberly making use of this "outdoor fitness centers," which are essentially adult playgrounds. A pregnant woman slowly paced from one side of the park to the other. A group of boys flexed their muscles with the pull-down machine. Two teenage girls perched on another machine, not actually using it, but typing messages on their cell phones. A five-year-old girl tinkered with the biceps curler, and after much difficulty, hopped off and ran back to her mom. A group of women, toddlers in tow, gossiped away on the bench.

These playgrounds and impromptu gathering spaces, ubiquitous in Beijing, have become both an essential piece of the country’s recent fitness craze and a fixture of the Chinese urban landscape. Their popularity began about twelve years ago, when the Chinese government created "The Nationwide Physical Fitness Program" to promote the health and well being of the general population. Proceeds from the state's sports lottery helped with funding this project, and as a result, fitness machines have been installed everywhere—in public parks, within residential complexes, and even along narrow alleyways.

"They might not be so effective, but at least you're moving," my roommate yells while gliding away on the air walker, legs swinging back and forth. "Even if you're an old lady, you can still use this." These machines would certainly not satisfy the needs of, say, the Chinese Olympic weight-lifting team, but are designed rather for those of us who normally don't exercise. I attempted the row machine, which lifts me up against my own body weight, and realized that it does (to a certain extent) work out my biceps and back muscles. I imagine that if I came here every day to use each of the machines, I just might get something approximating a workout.

One manufacturer puts it quite matter-of-factly on their website: "Even when factors like pollution and accidental injury are taken into account, the outdoors has more to offer than the gym…The vitamin D gained from natural sunlight, plus the fresh air and freedom of movement, beat the strip lights [and] air conditioning of the gym any day." Or of the office, for that matter.

While it’s hard not to question the science behind these machines, they seem to be catching international attention. Just recently, Berlin added a series of public adult playgrounds of its own, with dimensions adjusted to fit a taller European demographic. And instead of the gorgeous color scheme of bright red, yellow, and blue found here in China, the Germans preferred a more subtle brushed steel finish.

Whatever the color, in the context of the rest of the world’s cities, the potential for these play spaces looks big. Could this be the modest, urbanist answer to reclaiming the great outdoors? A solution to childhood obesity? The key to bringing back neighborhood life? For now, they remain a quaint but useful part of the Beijing cityscape—and give some weight to the argument that spending time outside can be good for your health.

National Day Holiday

The whole country went on vacation this week to celebrate the founding of the People's Republic of China.

More Edmonton Photos

Chase, our family dog.


View out Jocelyn's window.


Downtown Edmonton.


My favorite Chinese restaurant (situated in a seedy part of town).


West Edmonton Mall.


Galaxyland inside the Mall.


Gabe.


Uncle CK.


Roger, who gave a great wedding sermon.





Edmonton Chinese Alliance Church.


At the rehearsal dinner.

Wii Wedding

My sister and Tim are now happily married!

Basically, they reinvented the wedding. Like, what if we could do just modern worship music during the ceremony? And what if Tim suddenly took out a camera after the kiss at the ceremony, and took a photo of themselves? What if we didn't have a wedding car? What if, instead of a first dance, we would play Wii tennis in front of 215 people? What if the wedding favor was actually practical? They gave these cool heart-shaped gel hand warmers that become hot when you bend it- and they're reusable too!)

The end result: a truly personalized, practical, and memorable wedding.

Here are some photos that I collected on Facebook:

One Week in Vancouver

CCTV

The CCTV tower is already a major presence along the 3rd ring road. Looks to me like the structure for the two towers is almost finished. Notice the gigantic steel framing at the top, possibly to take the shear for the cantilever. The effect of the skew is strange and fascinating, especially from a distance.

Great Wall Photos
(Thanks to Susan and DyAnn for the photos)

Farmer Suen, who took care of us during the weekend.


DyAnn and Calvin posing as we slept on the Wall.


We woke up to this unexpectedly stunning vista.


Sunrise at 6AM.






Notice Alli and I on the left, and Calvin doing his devotions in the tower on the right.


Group Shot


Climbing the steepest part of the wall.






Alvin and Anita.