Sometimes I forget that it is uncommon for people my age to love radio as much as I do. But then again, most kids growing up in America in the 90s watched far more tv than listened to the radio, if at all. Those who did mostly tuned into pop music stations rather than catch Morning Edition or Fresh Air or Piano Jazz. Not that I am any better for loving radio, indeed it wasn’t so much a choice as just out of circumstance. We lived in a place where cable tv did not really exist when I first moved to Cheechunk Road, so rather than buy a satellite we simply tuned into public radio. But today, all these years later, I am so glad for it. Because here I am sitting in my office in Beijing, and I can listen to Selected Shorts AND work simultaneously. Perhaps it is my familiarity with audio input that taught me how to multitask from an early age. One can’t really watch tv and do something else at the same time…but it is certainly possible to listen to a story or the news, and edit photos or clean the room or do laundry. Indeed it makes such tasks so much more fun and interesting. So I guess this is just a personal shout out, to myself, about how much I love the radio and how it can transport me, all the way across the ocean and more than a decade into the future, back to being a kid and sitting in my room in Goshen, just me and my radio! :)
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Ollie is all grown up…well not really I think he’ll get even bigger! MUCH bigger.
Xmas Eve hot pot dinner…before we get there…next to my apt, you can see China’s 2nd biggest tv screen…its I dunno, the size of a soccer field?
The beginning of a ANOTHER documentary here at FAKE, but not about WW, rather the entourage around him…US!
Its official. I live in CaoChangDi, and I’ve inducted my transformation from part time artist to full time artist (whatever that means) by getting my haircut again by Weiwei this afternoon just before he left for Europe for a week. He was supposed to cut it on Friday but ended up going to a movie premier, otherwise Alison would have caught it on tape. Not that there is much to see about the experience I don’t think. For me its a delight because I never know what my hair is going to look like.
“I sit there, no mirror before me, and look out onto the courtyard at FAKE, enjoying the geometry of the door frames with the cube like buildings juxtaposed with the softness of bamboo stalks waving in the wind. Weiwei buzzes away at my hair, hoping from side to side for about 5 minutes until he looks at me and says, “Finished”. I bow over my seat and he thrashes me gently with the apron that was draped over me to get the hair off my neck. I get up and make my way to the bathroom mirror. Rather than giving me the ‘Guggenheim’ he has given me a haircut reminiscent of one of the angles in the ceiling of the gallery space of my house…I can’t quite describe it, but that is pretty much the magic of his haircuts, they defy description.”
Somehow it has become almost midnight. I have to get at least ONE new photo done before bed, time to get back to work.
Outside laser tag, I spied what looked like Chinese croquet being played by old men?!
A new beginning.
It seems fitting that I am starting the new year (soon) in a new HOUSE. YES, I now also reside in a two story beautiful brick house designed by Ai Weiwei, in CaoChangDi, and it all came about simply because I asked him one day if there was space for me somewhere by the office to live. Commuting for 1.5 hrs in the freezing cold bus 2x a day was not really how I envisioned spending the rest of my winter! And voila, WW hands me keys yesterday afternoon and brings me over to my new abode.
I have a very interesting bedroom upstairs, which overlooks the staircase (for now). I am still thinking of how I want to creatively cover up most of this space, and I like the challenge. The large double height ceiling room will be filled with two dozen Norwegian design students working with us come end of January for a few months, so I am definitely looking forward to having so many new faces, and English speakers at that! :) Until then this amazing gallery space will play host to who knows what…Inserk and I already started planning, NYE party, getting a giant video projector to play Wii, racketball? Endless possibilities when you have a large empty room!
While we were looking over the space WW and I walked up the stairs and I pointed out him that you can see right into the downstairs toilet from the stairs but he just laughed and turned to me saying, “you’re an exhibitionist right?” I will clearly be using the UPSTAIRS bathroom! E-shyh will be my housemate which is great!
So, its the beginning of double residency for me in Beijing! I of course will also spend a few nights a week back at Central Park with Eddie, can’t leave my sister! But I’m over joyed to reclaim almost 15 hours of my life during a week (as Inserk smartly observed) formerly spent commuting! YIPEE!!!!
What to do on a Saturday night in the Beijing December winter than make some photos, and listen to Beethovan’s Moonlight Sonata… digesting of course, Hainan Chicken with Rice. Apparently we have become so ubiquitous for this dish that the people who take the orders at Orchard 7 know our apt based on our order, which invariably includes this chicken a few times a week. There is the possibility of Tokyo in 5 weeks time. Would be lovely indeed.
Sunday night, baking night. Eddie comes home at 8pm from a champagne birthday brunch at the Westin…which started at 11am, soooo :)
I stayed home and did photos, what else is new, all day. But at least I also created a new one today…yay, proud father of another photo ha!
Never thought a bowl of flour could look so interesting!
Somehow it has been a month exactly since I last posted anything, and though I am not really so much surprised I am a bit stumped at how time manages to just slip past me like a fast but silent train. I am sitting at home on a sunny Saturday in silence, going through photos for Numero magazine, images from Cotahuasi Canyon from last year…waiting for some chicken rice and sambal eggplant to show up. I have been conversing since last night with people all over the globe via skype. Mat literally “sparked” ;) it off last night via London, then I chatted with Pablo briefly still in Bogota, followed by Arthur in NY and Tom as well, and even caught up with Raja in Kolkata before I passed out around 2am. Then just now a nice long chat with Joy in Portland…I feel like I’ve traveled the world and I didn’t even have to put my shoes on!
Still lots of work to do today, sadly still mostly in front of the computer but perhaps tonight I will let myself out of the house for something interesting…live music?? There is a folk music venue just around the corner, went there last week and it was packed so I didn’t stay, but perhaps today would be nice to check it out again. I cannot believe Thanksgiving came and went, deep fried turkey at Jeremy’s in CCD with a large group of expats, tons of fun…now Christmas and New Years will be here before I know it. Is Tokyo calling me? We shall see… :)
