Author Archives: Meg
Bing Kafei
I have an electric kettle in my room, so one of the first things I bought was a package of those Nescafe instant coffees. They’re nice, of course, but not even the most optimistic expat could mistake it for brewed, fresh coffee. Fortunately, … Continue reading
Retro Point-and-Click “Theropods” on (The) Absolute
I have a new post over on The Absolute, talking about Therapods. Theropods is a simple point-and-click adventure game about a cavewoman battling dinosaurs, but the game is surprisingly adorable. Our story opens when a peaceful evening at the neolithic campfire … Continue reading
Anne of Arkham Asylum
Inspired partially by Julia’s post about getting all the Anne of Green Gables books on the Kindle, and partly by a chat with a coworker about Prince Edward Island (Australian coworker: They’ve assigned me to teach a class on Canadian life… … Continue reading
Yangzhou Differences
It’s Really, Really Hot I mean, I knew it would be hot. I packed for summer. But, you guys, it’s so hot. I bought one of those cotton nightgowns that the grandmas in my old Beijing hutong used to wear around the neighborhood, … Continue reading
Essential Chinese: Frappuccino
I recently learned that xing bing le is Chinese for Starbucks’ frappuccino. This is pretty exciting because I recognize each character from another context, so I feel like I actually understand the whole, as language and branding, not just as sounds … Continue reading
Hamburger Helpful
Yesterday I had a Chinese lesson through my school. I was quite happy that we had a structured lesson, and I was even happier when one of my coworkers joined me. We were given a dialogue where one person orders a hamburger … Continue reading
Double Outrage
It was a lot of effort for me to get onto Facebook here, and I sort of wish I hadn’t bothered. The latest viral outrage, about the lion hunter, is about endangered animals, sure, but it also highlights wider issues about American … Continue reading
Montclair Filament
I started reading Elisabeth Egan’s A Window Opens shortly before I left for Yangzhou, but for some reason, moving to China and immediately losing my suitcase put me slightly behind on my reading and blogging. I mean, I could have just … Continue reading
Marco Polo
Detail of a photocopy of a map drawn by a previous expat teacher. I paid extra for an iPhake with a workable map app, but I really like the idea of a hand-drawn map of the city’s highlights, and maybe … Continue reading
