Panda Porn
The Giant Panda is endangered, but apparently the pandas themselves are at least partially to blame. Turns out they don’t much like the company of others, and they’re terrible parents.
According to our guide, certain panda centers have taken to showing the animals videos of their panda peers having sex, so they, you know, know what to do when the time is right. Apparently it helps.
One thing it doesn’t help with is parenting, though. If they can get two pandas to stand each other long enough to mate, mom really doesn’t want anything to do with the baby once it’s born. Seems to go against biological nature, but apparently it’s a serious issue. Zookeepers have to rush in and take the baby panda into protective custody or risk it dying of neglect.
One Child Policy
To curb population growth, China has enforced a strict One Child Policy since 1978. The penalty for having a second baby is enough to “make an average family broke,” according to our guide.
Some unintended consequences:
- Since boys were preferred, and no-questions-asked abortions were readily available, millions of pregnancies were terminated as soon as the parents learned they were having a baby girl.
- This created a large gender imbalance. Lots of competition for a generation of Chinese guys.
- To stop this behavior, it is now illegal to find out the sex of your child before birth.
Some interesting exceptions:
- Twins and triplets are exempt from the penalty (and I assume other multiple-births as well).
- If your baby is born with mental or physical disabilities, you can try again.
- If you live in a rural area and your first-born is a girl.
- If both parents hold a master’s or a PhD.
- If you’re rich and can afford to pay the penalty. Apparently many celebrities and other wealthy Chinese laugh in the face of the One Child Policy.
Concubines
On our visit to Beijing we heard a lot about the emperor and his concubines. It was good to be the emperor; he was the only male allowed to live in the 178 acre Forbidden City, and had his choice of 3000 ladyfriends.
The evening’s entertainment would be delivered to him pre-stripped (so as not to conceal any weapons).
And what’s in it for the girls? Aside from the honor of serving the emperor, there was always the chance of becoming empress if you could produce a son.
Some emperors grew weary of the steady flow of concubines though, and would don disguises and venture beyond the palace walls in search of common prostitutes.
Whatever floats your boat.
*I fact-checked none of this.
Tags: china
Bryn and I returned safe and sound from our China trip. Came down with a little bug toward the end but seem to be on the mend now.
We got an amazing deal through TravelZoo with a company called China Spree. Like, airfare, hotel, meals, and the whole week’s worth of tours were less than the published price of just the flight. It was too good to pass up, but we were slightly worried it was some sort of scam. Turns out China Spree exceeded all expectations. The only catch was it’s freezing in Beijing in January.
I was wary of being part of a tour group as we normally like to explore on our own.
I could learn to love it.
You just show up and everything is taken care of! Kind of takes the adventure out of it, but I suppose that’s ok when time is limited.
Beijing First Impressions
Air China
I was pleasantly surprised by the leg room on Air China. Especially given the general disregard for personal space everywhere else, this was a nice bonus.
Air You Can’t See Through
According to the US Embassy, the air quality during our first day in Beijing included readings of:
- “Hazardous”
- “Beyond Index” (off the charts?)
- “Very Unhealthy”
Thankfully it cleared up a bit after that, and eventually reached “Unhealthy”, “Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups,” “Moderate”, and even “Good”.
It looks like fog, but you only wish it was water vapor you were breathing in.
The cars were coated in a thick layer of atmospheric nast. One study found the lung cancer rate in Beijing up 60% over the last 10 years, even while the smoking rate remained flat.
Chairman Mao
The communist leader gets much better treatment in Chinese histories. We’re more familiar with the horrific stories of his mass-murdering millions of his own citizens.
Our tour guide explained that her parents were Mao-supporters, but also acknowledged his track record was probably “50-50″ at best.
In the West, the true hero of modern China is Deng Xiaoping, whose economic reforms lifted hundreds of millions from poverty.
Euro-Centric Education
In visiting China, you realize how little you know about the world’s most populous country. In school, it’s all Egypt and Mesopotamia, then on to Greece and Rome. There’s a short mention about Eastern civilizations in India and China, but the most they cover is typically the invention of gunpowder.
And Marco Polo makes a visit.
Facebook is Banned
A national firewall (“The Great Firewall”) prevents access to Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, WordPress, and more. The communist party still fears open access to information (as a threat to their legitimacy?).
Socialism or Communism?
Interestingly, our guide kept referring to China as a socialist country. PotAYto PotAHto right?
My new page-a-day calendar was filled with interesting trivia. Yes I skipped ahead for your reading pleasure:
- Both male and female reindeer have antlers, but only female reindeer keep their antlers through the winter months. Therefore Rudolph and the rest of Santa’s reindeer are really girls?
- Bert and Ernie are named after a policeman and taxi driver from It’s a Wonderful Life.
- A liger has a lion dad and a tiger mom. A tigon has a tiger dad and a lion mom.
- The lowest scoring NBA game of all team was a 1950 defensive struggle between the Fort Wayne Pistons and the Minneapolis Lakers. The Pistons won 19-18.
- Cats rarely meow at other cats.
- During the middle ages, people put thyme under their pillows to ward off nightmares.
- A dairy cow produces 6 gallons of milk per day.
- A chameleon’s tongue moves 5x faster than an F16 fighter jet.
- A mid-day nap lowers blood pressure, reduces the risk of heart attack, and improves post-siesta learning ability.
- “Most people are about has happy as they make up their minds to be.” –Abraham Lincoln
- Supposedly, dogs can see movement up to 985 yards away. Don’t tell Moch.
- Scientists believe the reddish-orange sweat of a hippopotamus acts as a sunscreen.
- Baseball wasn’t invented until 1845, but the word first appeared in print approx. 50 years earlier in a Jane Austen novel.
- The highest temperature ever recorded in the U.S. was 134 degrees in Death Valley in 1913.
- The bicycle was invented in 1817, but pedals weren’t added until 1865. In the meantime people just had to propel themselves with their feet on the ground, Flintstones-style.
- Susanna Salter was the first female mayor in the US. She was elected by 2/3rds majority in 1887 Argonia, Kansas. 2010 population: 501.
- A giraffe’s tongue is 15 inches long, and is occasionally used to clean out their ears.
- A vexillologist is flag expert.
- Vinegar can be used as a weedkiller.
- Mother’s Day became a nationally dedicated holiday in 1914. It was conceived by Anna Jarvis in 1908 who organized local celebrations for moms in West Virginia and Pennsylvania.
- Eating chili peppers releases endorphins in the brain.
- An ant can lift an carry more than 50 times it’s own weight. I’m so weak.
- In 1983, the first commercial cell phone cost $3500 and weighed a full pound.
- A male clownfish will undergo a sex change if the adult female in a school dies. Finding Nemo?
- The world’s smallest “park” is Mills End Park in Portland, OR. It measures approximately 3 square feet.
- Felines are unable to taste sweet foods.
- Richard Nixon’s wife Pat was the first First Lady to wear pants in public.
- Invented by an Italian monk in AD 610, Pretzels claim to be the world’s first snack food. The folded shape was meant to emulate arms folded in prayer.
- When Superman was introduced in 1938, he couldn’t fly. To get around instead, he would leap from building to building.
Giving up alcohol for a month might be tough, especially with all the delicious Christmas beers I brought home. But I think I’m overdue for a little detox.
I really don’t have a problem with a drink or two or ten every now and then. It’s more about proving to myself I don’t need it, rather than any holier-than-thou self deprivation.
I’ll let you know how it goes.
Tags: beer
Happy New Year!
Sorry for the outage, apparently there were some database issues over the holidays at Bluehost. As a result I lost all my search engine rankings for the site, so hopefully those come back now that it’s fixed. Thankfully the site isn’t moneymaker, otherwise that would be really bad.
There are some things I’d like to get done this year. Maybe posting them publicly will make me more accountable.
Side note: goals are different from resolutions, in that goals are “SMART‘.
1. Cook Dinner Once a Week
I’ve been super spoiled by Bryn’s cooking for the last few years. It’s time I start helping out more.
2. End the Year With 10% Less Stuff
“What you own owns you.” So true. This has led to an inventory project, to be discussed later.
3. Figure Out What To Do With Our Townhouse (and do it)
I’ve made some poor financial decisions, but buying property in 2007 was BY FAR the worst. According to Zillow, we are $135k underwater. I really like it here, and after almost 5 years it feels like home. But continuing down this futile and money-wasting path is the opposite of smart.
4. Generate $1000 a Month in Passive Income
I’ll define “passive income” as requiring less than 4-hours of work a week, like a certain book. Capital gains from investments don’t count, but dividends and interest do. I have until the end of the year to make this happen, and have a LONG way to go.
I think I’ll try a series of month-long personal “challenges” as well. Go vegetarian for a month? Spend a full month traveling?
First up: a Dry January — going the full month without alcohol.
What are your goals for 2012?
Tags: goals
