2019-07-27

"Spring Poetic Painting by Teachers and Students in Beijing" by Qing Dynasty Xu Yang (清代画家徐扬·《京师生春诗意图》)

【Aiden in English】

        The food is good. That's a simple fact anyone can draw up regarding China. There isn't a bad meal insight. But everyone already knows that.

        One would say eight days in a country across the globe is too short. I say it's perfe

2019-07-26

【Aiden in English】

        And I thought my dining experience was luxurious in Fragrant Pavilion in Hangzhou. 

        When one mentions "fit for a king", one sees a massive set of food in front of a gluttonous man with a gold crown and handlebar mustache. In China, that fat man is replaced by the given dictator of that generation, and he doesn't have a mustache. Disregard my tangent. Ton

2019-07-25

"Night Revels of Han Xizai" by the Southern Tang Painter Hongzhong Gu (南唐画家顾闳中·《韩熙载夜宴图》)

【Aiden in English】

        There are two types of people.

        Normal people and people who take dumps on a plane.

        Like who takes dumps on a plane? 

        A firetruck on fire is just a firetruck.

        I'm a ter

2019-07-24

【You say…】

        You say that you love rain,

          but you open your umbrella when it rains...

          You say that you love the sun,

          but you find a shadow spot when the sun shines...

          You say that you love the wind,

          But you close your windows when the wind blows...

&

2019-07-24

【You say…】

        You say that you love rain,

        but you open your umbrella when it rains...

        You say that you love the sun,

        but you find a shadow spot when the sun shines...

        You say that you love the wind,

        But you cl

2019-07-24

【You say…】

        You say that you love rain,

          but you open your umbrella when it rains...

          You say that you love the sun,

          but you find a shadow spot when the sun shines...

          You say that you love the wind,

          But you close your windows when the wind blows...

&

2019-07-24

【You say…】

        You say that you love rain,

          but you open your umbrella when it rains...

          You say that you love the sun,

          but you find a shadow spot when the sun shines...

          You say that you love the wind,

          But you close your windows when the wind blows...

&

2019-07-24

【You say…】

        You say that you love rain,

          but you open your umbrella when it rains...

          You say that you love the sun,

          but you find a shadow spot when the sun shines...

          You say that you love the wind,

          But you close your windows when the wind blows...

&

2019-07-24

Prosperous Suzhou by the Qing Painter Yang Xu (清代画家徐扬·《姑苏繁华图》)

【Aiden in English】

        Up above there is heaven; down below there are Suzhou and Hangzhou.

        I asked my mom what the difference was between the four attractions*, we saw in Suzhou today and yesterday. She said that some were... bigger. Amazing. Imagine the most generic Asian temple in the most generic Asian setting. Alright, you'

2019-07-23

【You say…】

        You say that you love rain,

        but you open your umbrella when it rains...

        You say that you love the sun,

        but you find a shadow spot when the sun shines...

        You say that you love the wind,

        But you cl

2019-07-23

【You say…】

       You say that you love rain,

         but you open your umbrella when it rains...

         You say that you love the sun,

         but you find a shadow spot when the sun shines...

         You say that you love the wind,

         But you close your windows when the wind blows...

         Thi

2019-07-23 

【Aiden in English】

        Suzhou is full of quirks. What are quirks? Well, it's a characteristic that makes one tilt the head a bit. Suzhou is quite full of mentioned quirks. I am going to elaborate.

        I'd never in a hundred years think that Pennsylvania summertime would be 'cool'; but in the face of hell's kitchen, I feel like even my high school's fans would be of grea

2019-07-22

【Aiden in English】

        Fine dining just took on a new meaning for me. 

        When people eat gold, it's the equivalent of running expensive wine through a wire mesh and throwing out the wine that passes through as if expecting to retain some nutrients. Luckily, I did not eat gold tonight. No, what a waste that would be. But I bring up gold because it certainly feels like we dined as wasteful arist

2019-07-22

【Far and Near】

Cheng GU (1949—1993)

     You,

     you look at me one moment

     and at clouds the next.

     I feel

     when you're looking at me, you're far away,

    but when you're looking at the clouds, how could we be nearer!

—— • —— • —— • —— • —— • —— • —— • ——

【《远和近》】

顾城(1956生—1

2019-07-22

【A Song of a Little Sparrow】

Dan JIAN 

         Only a step away, I would catch you.

         But I gave up.

         I gave up because

         An old sparrow I saw.

         Under the roof, my son stood in the shadow.

         Got it? Son asked.

2019-07-22

【Spring On Lake Qiantang】

Juyi BAI (772—846)

      West of Pavilion Jia, north of Lonely Hill,

      Water brims level with the bank and clouds hang low.

      Among some sunny trees the first orioles trill;

      Down from the eaves to peck in mud young swallows go.

      My eyes seem dazzled by f

2019-07-22

【Some People Don't Say Much】

Dong HAN (1961—)

        some people don’t say much 

        they are neither mute nor introverted 

        saying only what’s necessary 

        speaking only when courtesy demands it 

        floating on the surface of speech 

 &n

2019-07-22

【Night Observations】

Lan WA

       Who in deep night measures the area of darkness

       An angel? An Owl? A schizophrenic patient? 

         Surveyor? Insomniac? Poet? Departed sage

         Forest, high mountain, the abyss

         A goose rises skyward in sudden fligh

2019-07-22

【Monologue】

Yongming ZHAI (1955—)

     I, a rhapsodist, am full of the charm of the abyss

     given fortuitous birth to by you. earth and sky

     unite as one, you call me a woman

     and strengthen my body

     I am as soft as the white-feathered body of the water

     carrying me in your hands, I hold this world

    &

2019-07-21

【Single Heart】

Qi AN (1969—)

        Single heart aches to be double, so it adds self to

        the purity of a river and

        the dawn of a garden.

        It learns Tao,

        round PAST for three,

        round NOW for three, and

2019-07-21

【Aiden in English】

        A lotus flower grows to a certain height. Within a patch, the ideal situation for all is that each grows to the same height. Life would be simple for every plant.

        On my way to the hotel room in West Lake State Guest House, I spotted a grove of lotus plants bundled together near the bank. They varied in height, some shading others. The flowers on top grew in size and surfac

2019-07-20

【Sunset and Moonrise on the River】

Juyi BAI (772—846)

      The last departing rays pave their way on the river;

      Half its waves turn red and all the others shiver.

      How I pity the third night of the ninth month, alas!

     The moon looks like a bow, dewdrops like pearls on grass.

—— • —— • —— • —— • —— • —— • —— • ——

【《暮江吟》】

白居易(772生—846卒)

一道

2019-07-20

【Mount Heaven's Gate Viewed from Afar】

Bai LI (701—762)

      Breaking Mount Heaven's Gate, the great River rolls through,

      Its east-flowing green billows hurled back here, turn north.

      From the two river banks thrust out the mountains blue,

      Leaving the sun behind, a lonely sail comes forth.

—— • —— • —— • —— • —— • —— • —— • ——

【《望天门山》】

李白(701生—762卒)

天门

2019-07-20

【Tune: " Fair South Recalled"】

Juyi BAI (772—846)

      Fair southern shore

      With scenes I much adore;

      At sunrise riverside flowers redder than fire,

     In spring green river waves grow as blue as sapphire,

      Which I can't but admire.

—— • —— • —— • —— • —— • —— • —— • ——

【《忆江南》】

白居易(772生—846卒)

2019-07-20

        南京三伏天气温通常在38^oC/100^oF以上，如果是单纯的干热反倒没什么可怕，但出了黄梅霉雨的七月，空气湿度依旧很大，炎热指数往往超过42^oC/107^oF，因此只要外出活动，浑身燥热汗如雨下，感觉就像生活在蒸笼里面似的。站在生物医学角度来看，人体内有一种热休克蛋白，具有应激反应性功能，42^oC/107^oF高温条件容易大量诱导产生，从而保护机体免受伤害。估计蓝鲸人热休克蛋白表达高于正常水平，对热的耐受性自然要比突然造访的我们强出百倍，今天上午参观完南京长江大桥并转悠过中华门瓮城之

2019-07-19

【Aiden in English】

        Nanjing is a rather interesting city designated as the UNESCO City of Literature in 2019. However, among the other cities of my traveling career, it does not deserve to be revisited for a fourth blog post. Yet last night, a peculiar thought crossed my mind. What amazing flash of enlightenment entered my head? Well, I need to tell you how my night went first.

        Ever since my arrival, m

2019-07-18

【Aiden in English】

        And we're back. China beckoned re-adventure, and I answered the call. Well, technically, my mother answered and dragged me along. The story went a little like this.

        "How was your day, Aiden?"

        "Alright, nothing much."

        "Any big news in sports?"

        "Yeah, a lot of stuff has been happening."

2019-07-11

【Aiden in English】

        What is work? A job – a monotonous, persistent pursuit of promotion? Is it sitting at a desk, eight hours a day mulling over some characters on a computer? Is it speaking into a microphone for four hours a day to an unknown source of people? Is it smiling at the camera, waving goodbye to millions of people? Or is it pointing the camera at such persons?

        Well, whatever it is, the US s

2019-07-06

【Aiden in English】

        If there was ever a moment of divine intervention, the past two years must’ve included some sort of magical editing. My freshman and sophomore years in high school felt as if someone copied and pasted the same algorithm into two-time slots in my life. That isn’t such a bad thing either.

        Ever watch a large wave stroll on the beach? It starts small but eventually becomes sub

Independence Day, 2019-07-04

【Aiden in English】

        Time is a funny thing. It’s a measurement, it’s an event, and it’s also a mysterious force that flows through us, unexplainable with words at times (pun intended).

        From a mathematical perspective, time serves as the fundamental baseline for many real problems. Filling a gas tank takes time. Running from point A to point B takes time. Growing watermelons t

2019-06-28

【Aiden in English】

        “How does one think of something to write about?”

        I get that a lot from my students. Normally, a prompt is slapped in their face, a pencil stabbed into their hand, arms taped to the table, and a clock glued to their eyes, telling them “Hey, this is exactly what you should do to get a good grade.” Oddly, I respect the school system for this matter. They understand that no

Summer Solstice, 2019-06-21

【Aiden in English】

        To what point has humanity crumbled. Recently, I read about complaints of Father’s Day being “offensive” to single moms and working women. While somewhat laughable, this apparently is a strong viewpoint in society. The same drastic feministic ideas keep me up at night staring into the darkness, thinking.

        Now, keep in mind, that this is only an opinion of mine. Thus,

Memorial Day, 2019-05-27

【Aiden in English】

        I watched Kawhi Leonard’s shot bounce in. It defied physics. 

        If you don’t know what I mean, go find a clip on YouTube. The ball was short. It hit the rim at such an angle, that the ball bounced straight up into the air, crossing the circular net towards the other side. It bounced on the inside of the rim, straight up again. Then it proceeded to tortuou

Good Friday, 2019-04-19

【Aiden in English】

        Recently I’ve been diving into politics. Obviously, if there’s ever a time to get interested, the Trump administration is as good an opportunity as any. While everyone is going ballistic over the allegations and frantic scramble between parties, I look back using my Advanced Placement United States History (APUSH) knowledge and say to myself… 

        … nothing

2019-03-24

【Aiden in English】

        Enter, March. Possibly the most interesting month of the year. While that same argument can be made for all other 11 months, it’s called March Madness for a reason.

        It’s almost poetic that such a crazed portion of sports can reflect an equaling appalling section in my life. North Penn HS notoriously ramps up the tempo of curriculum, as they should, in the third marking pe

2019-02-17

【Aiden in English】

        While being a teenage teacher has its moments, receiving an invitation to an appreciation dinner incites a rather satisfying feeling. Granted, the honor of such an exclusive banquet comes from the endeavor to promote Chinese heritage despite hardship, because having money spent on food for teachers is exactly what Guanghua Chinese School (GHCS) would want.

        Social commentar

2018-12-06

【Aiden in English】

        A village sits in the mountains, deprived of food, fertile land, and the eyes of heaven. Water is a commodity; trees, are a rarity; and brief flashes of green only originate from an occasional sprout or small, slimy reptilian creatures. 

        Every year, a man comes to the village. He brings forth a flood of life. The village’s dry well fills with fresh water; the mountai