Sweet Southern Tea

I have a saying...

"I like my tea sweet, my music country, my hair blonde, and my men gentle."

Living in Minneapolis has given me a really good perspective on who I really am. Sometimes it takes you being out of your habitat to find out what and who you really are. One thing I've learned since moving here is just how Southern I am. There's just something about sitting on the front porch of my sorority house in a rocking chair sipping sweet tea. There's just something about having a guy open my door for me and curling my hair before going out. There's just something about entertaining friends and bringing homemade cupcakes to a meeting. I love the South. Don't get me wrong, I love America more, but there is just something magical, special, and a little extra sweet about the South. And, when you think of a Southern woman she is warm, welcoming, and ultra feminine.

Part of the charm of a Southern woman is her resourcefulness. Part of the charm of ANY woman is her resourcefulness. We can do a million things at once, be running late, and still look damn good. Call me old-fashioned, but I believe in a higher standard for women these days. I feel like we have diminished a lot respect we should have for women and the many roles they play. We get uncomfortable mentioning a woman staying at home, knowing how to cook, how to keep her home presentable, and all the things that were labeled, in the past, as a "woman's job". I'm not saying I'm going to quit my job tomorrow, stay home, and be solely devoted to raising a bunch of kids while catering to my husband's every need. However, I believe that at 23 years old, I should know how to cook, entertain, keep my home clean and organized, look my best when I leave my home, and be a responsible human being. Women used to be judged on other kinds of skills like their cooking, cleaning, managing of a household, and other "accomplishments" like music, literature, and languages. However, I want to know why did we lessen our expectations? I still believe that women should be well read, be intellectually stimulated by learning about new cultures and languages, be knowledgable about the world and its goings on, and be cultured enough to know about art and music.

Women used to be polished, refined, and classy. We're living in a time of convenience and going so fast we forget to just stop and smell the roses, or just stop and cook a damn homemade dinner. We are forgetting the simple things in life and forgetting how to take our time, slow down, and pay attention to the details. Instead, we rather have quantity over quality, which I think pretty much sums up the issue with women today. It's not about how cultivated she is or how accomplished she is, it's about how closely she can resemble a celebrity and how much attention she can get (or give) to guys. Are these the standards we really want our generation to be remembered for? As a young woman, I'm worried we're losing sight of what being a woman really means.

Part of my plan to live a more vibrant life is to refine myself, cultivate my talents, and become a woman of quality, not quantity. Quantity comes over time. As I gain new talents and experiences, I will have a large quantity of quality. Convenience is easy, but actually learning a new skill and putting it to good use is hard, but so rewarding. Expect more from yourself. Expect more from others.

Think of the women who are iconic role models throughout history. How many of them come from our generation? How many women can we look up to and say now that, that is a real woman? Can't think of many? Then be that person. Someone has to.

Around the World...and Back

Some of you may be wondering where I am, what I've been doing, if I'm even alive. I've always been pretty awful at keeping a journal. I'm a talker and somehow writing down my feelings never is as easy as just saying them. My mother once said I started talking early and never shut up. I'm sure those of you who know me can agree.

I started this blog as a travel blog - to share my adventures and stories with friends, family, and the occasional random visitor. However, I don't get to travel every day of my life, but my life is still an adventure, still vibrant. Over the past few months, I've really learned what vibrant means and what my vibrant world actually is.

Since my last blog post, I have been literally around the world...and back. I have traveled to 9 new countries, moved 2,000 miles away from home, graduated with my masters, broke up with the guy I thought I was going to spend the rest of my life with, started a full time job, moved in with an almost total stranger, learned how to make homemade butter, and discovered how strong I really am on my own. It has been an exhausting, exciting, emotional, and enlightening adventure. There's a saying that goes, "You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have."

I would be lying if I said this transition to my new life has been easy. How can I just keep the good and get rid of the bad? How can I become the person I know I'm meant to be? How can I pick up the pieces, and make sense of them again? I never realized what a fairytale life I had in college (because honestly, college is a fairytale) until I was thrown into this world of bills, grown up decisions, working late nights, maybe not even liking work, having to start all over in this big city, and feeling alone. Really, really, really alone. In college, I had best friends who would literally drive 2 hours to surprise me at my door on my birthday, friends who were always up for a late night movie or college pizza session, family that wasn't quite so far away, a million activities and "fun" responsibilities, and a future I thought was set in stone. It's amazing how quickly things can change.

I moved from the only home I've ever known - Florida - to the frozen tundra of the Midwest - Minneapolis, MN, said goodbye to everyone I've ever loved, lost the person I thought I'd love forever, had to begin waking up before the sun comes up on a consistent basis, and had to completely start my life from scratch. I had no friends, no connections, nothing. Talk about being outside of your comfort zone. I realized through this more about myself in a few weeks than I probably discovered in all of college. When you lose everything, you find out what you truly had all along. I found that I was surrounded by love. Deep, powerful, unconditional love of my friends and family. Not once did a friend complain when I wanted to talk for 5 hours and not once did my parents get upset when I asked for my space. I found that being blatantly honest with people instead of hiding my fear and discomfort made them like me even more. I won't lie, on many an occasion I have gone up to people and asked them to be my friend.

In college, I made sure I had it all together. I always thought not knowing what I wanted to do or not knowing what I'm even doing at that moment would make me look weak. Right now, I don't have it all together. There are areas of my life I have let slip through the cracks and it's ok to admit that. To yourself, to your loved ones, and even to the world.

Over the past few weeks as I've acclimated to this new city (and the horribly cold weather) and healed from all of my life changes, I've started defining how I can be more vibrant. How can I clean the dust off of my life and make myself shine? I'm learning how to create, live, experience, and nurture a vibrant life through my mind, body, spirit, home, heart, and world. From exercising more to enjoying the little things, from learning how to cook at home to connecting with my loved ones more, I'm striving to make every day a vibrant day.

They say life is a journey, not a destination. I believe life is an adventure, not a journey (sounds strenuous). I'm on this crazy, wonderful adventure and hope to share humor, lessons, tips, tricks, and lots of love through it all. I hope you'll join me. =)

Until next time, stay vibrant!

M

PS:
My summer before ending up in MN:

View Full Size Travel Map at Travellerspoint

A Moment Like This

There are moments in your life that take your breath away because something is so wonderful and amazing you are completely overwhelmed. I've had those moments before and it feels like you are literally being swept off of your feet, like when my boyfriend, Stephen (I'll tell you more about him later) last came to Florida to visit me. It was something out of a movie when he came off the airport shuttle, ran up to me, dropped his bags, and kissed me right in front of the entire airport. Now that, that is take-my-breath away amazing. However, there are other moments that take your breath away by shocking, horrifying, or depressing you. I have had many of these moments before and each one stays in my mind like a bad, catchy song (think Party in the USA). I have had most of these moments while traveling in developing countries and seeing the poverty and dispair of the people, especially the children. A few days ago, while in Shenzhen, I was on my way to the markets to get a new suitcase to send home more crap I had accumulated. I saw a mother and a baby, sitting on the ground and a few people nearby. I thought nothing of it and kept walking. On my way back to our hotel, carting my new $15 suitcase, I came across the woman and baby again and was faced with the reality of what was really going on. The woman was picking through a trash can, eating what was in it, and having her baby sit next to her, sometimes eating some of the trash or playing with it. It honestly stopped me in my tracks for a few seconds. One thing that never fails to upset me is seeing a helpless child suffer. Would that baby even make it to see another year with the obvious malnutrition and horrible sanitary conditions in which it lives? And secondly, would it be even more worse if that baby did grow up to have health concerns and developmental issues while entrenched in poverty and dispair? I don't know the answer to that and I felt glued to the ground as a myriad of emotions washed over me. Anger at a mother doing this to her child, humility and shame for the suitcase I bought that would feed this family for weeks not including the many silly souvenirs I had bought, dispair in knowing that something so awful as feeding a child literally trash happens in a country with the second largest luxury goods market and a government who is supposed to "care for" its people, and finally, confusion for what I could even do. Do I give money as we are told not to do because so many woman and families use suffering children to lure in tourists? Or, do I keep walking, with my head down, ignoring what I saw in front of me. Or, finally, do I keep walking, say a prayer for this mother and her child, and vow to take action in my own way and do my part to help children like the one I saw on the ground, sucking on an old chicken wing, playing with dirty styrofoam? Your decision may be different from mine, but I did take the last option. I am honestly still unsettled by it and am not 100% sure I made the right choice.

However, hindsight is always 20/20 and to this day, I wish I would have bought the mother some bread, fruit, and water and showed her the love and compassion I had in my heart and mind. As a Christian, I am commanded to show love, compassion, and mercy to everyone, not matter who they are or what they have done. And the key word there is SHOW. Many times, I feel like I think like a good person, but do I act like one? Do I truly express my divine love to everyone I meet? Many times, we get caught up in our own daily lives and when we are stopped in our tracks and our breath is taken away, we have only a few seconds to make a decision and act. And many times, we keep walking and say to ourself, what a horrible thing, I will pray for them. However, you can pray until the cows come home, but it is our actions as Christians or even as world citizens that make the real difference. So, I have challenged myself to do more doing than saying and more acting than thinking. Going and getting that woman some food might have been an inconvenience or used up some of my precious souvenir money, but it would have been the right thing to do, no matter your beliefs. Through traveling, I have seen my fair share of dispair and poverty and have had the pleasure and honor of giving my own time, service, and resources to those in need throughout the world. But, I am realizing, giving of my time, service, and resources is not just a one time thing. You can't schedule being a good person into your life. It's something you have to be ready to be at a moments notice and not just when it's convenient or looks good on paper. This is my public promise to try, every day, to spread God's love and be a better, more compassionate person to every single person I meet. That does not mean throwing a bible into someone's face, or even ever mentioning the world "God", because to me, the people who are truly in touch with God and His love, are the ones who carry God within them and without even saying one word, God's light and love can be seen in their actions, words, heart, and mind. So, regardless of your religious or spiritual beliefs, I ask that you don't keep walking with your head down and eyes averted to those truly in need, but stop and think of any deed you can do, big or small, to show love and human compassion. I'm not saying start giving away money on the street, but perhaps give some food, water, or even some words of encouragement and love to them or, sign up for an hour a week at a soup kitchen or mentoring at-risk children. One minute, hour, or day of your life could end up completely changing someone else's and change the world too.

Spectacular Shanghai and Sketchy Shenzhen

So, I have not posted in a few days because my days seem to only get longer and my body only seems to get sleepier! I forgot how rough traveling is on your body. If you didn't already know, I am in China and will be spending a total of 2 months in Southeast Asia including China, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and Taiwan. The first part of my journey is a three week study tour through my university that is focused on Retail in China. This was a great opportunity for me to get some international retail exposure as I will be working for a large discount retailer in the U.S. beginning in September. The trip is three weeks of non stop company visits and some tourism. We are up between 5am and 8am every day and usually not back to our hotel until 7/8pm every night, when we try to go out and see the city. Our days range from 15-20 hours and I can honestly say I'm already exhausted and conserving all energy I have! I can't believe the trip is almost over and all the stuff we have seen. We will have visited a total of 6 cities all around China and seen a ton of regions and the difference between tier 1, 2, and 3 cities (on a 6 tier scale). This is the first time in Asia and I am constantly amazed and sometimes even shocked by what I am seeing and experiencing.

Today, we arrived in Shenzhen, which is in the Southeast of China and very close to Hong Kong, our next destination. Shenzhen is home to many factories that produce a lot of the stuff you are probably using or wearing right now. It is considered a Tier 1 city, i.e. the population is more than 10 million people. However, we are all a little disappointed by Shenzhen because we just came from Shanghai, literally the Paris of Asia. Shenzhen is known for pick pocketing and does not have the array of delicious American food restaurants as the larger, more developed cities we've been to. One of the biggest reasons we're in Shenzhen is to go to the Wal-Mart China headquarters and visit a factory of another company. I'm very interested to see exactly what a true Chinese factory looks like and if we're just being given a "show". I'm also interested to see what Wal-Mart has to say about their COO (Chief Operating Officer) and CFO (Chief Financial Officer) resigning just days ago. Hmm.

So, Shenzhen cannot hold a candle or even a match to Shanghai and all of us really miss it. Shanghai is the largest city in China with a population of 23 million people. Yes. 23.Million.People. Although I've been here for a bit, I still cannot even wrap my mind around the sheer SIZE of China. And just how many people live here. As a comparison, New York City has a population of 19 million people. However, this size of a city is not rare in China. They have 160 cities with populations over 1 million people. Crazy! Shanghai is the most desirable city in China for most people because of its size, development, opportunities, and lifestyle. It's a veyr international city and has a ton of different kinds of foods and communities. This is due to the International Settlement that was made up of many different, small settlements from multiple countries which governed themselves and their own areas. Two of the largest settlements are the British and French. The British owned The Bund area, which is right along the river in Shanghai while the French had the French Concession.

I just finished reading "Shanghai Girls" by Lisa See and learned about Shanghai in the 1930's and 1940's, during World War 2, the Japanese invasion, and finally, the revolution that would create the People's Republic of China and install communism in China. The book also covered Chinese immigration into the U.S. and how difficult it was to move to the "Land of Opportunities" for Chinese in the mid-1900's. I'm still embarrassed by some of the bad choices the U.S. has made in the past regarding other races and ethnicities, but that is a whole other post in itself!

Shanghai was just amazing. It had beautiful temples, great entertainment, nightlife, delicious food that was NOT Chinese food (I'm over it), and the best shopping (and knock offs) you could dream of! We went to a great Mexican restaurant on the first night and I had probably the best Chimichanga of my life, but that could be because I am not fairing well on the food here. I'm honestly an extremely picky eater, but China is the most difficult place I've ever had to eat. The food is...interesting. I basically feel like I'm on Fear Factor most of the time and most of us leave half the food untouched. The Chinese appetite and taste is just very different from anything Western. They eat off literally dessert plates and their meals consist of a huge variety of food that is barely recognizable by our group. I admit they have the portion sizing right, but I need and like hearty food instead of lots of veggies mixed with some weird meat and tons of more weird sauces and spices. The textures are what most of us are having issues with because things are mushy or jiggly or hard as a rock. It definitely has taken getting used to and most of us are thankful every time we pass a McDonalds, KFC, or Pizza Hut! I don't typically eat fast food at home, but here, it's a Godsend! Shanghai has the most amount and variety of American restaurants we've seen and allowed me to eat something other than KFC every single day. In China, they love their KFC chicken. In fact, KFC is doing way better than McDonalds! Another funny thing is that Pizza Hut is a fine dining experience in China. They don't do take out and serve wine and are actually nicely decorated. You also can get steaks, lasagna, and seafood! It's like a mini Cheesecake factory. Awesome. The other best part of Shanghai was the shopping. You probably already know that China is notorious for knock offs. Of everything. We have coined the phrase, "China is where IP (Intellectual Property) comes to die." We found these great markets that sell everything from designer underwear to knock off purses. And we went crazy. Haggling and bargaining is addictive and we became obsessed with it. The fact that we could get margins of 10 or 15% on products became almost a competition between us and we would run back to the group, trying to boast about our amazing deals and savvy negotiation strategies. Sometimes, we would pair up and go at it together, widdling down the prices until they hit, literally, rock bottom. Many of the shops were scared of our group, roaming the halls mercilessly, ready to do business and get the prices they would never offer another person. But, we were a sale for them and when you're dealing with a market with over 100 shops with the same crap, they are desperate to make some money, because no matter what, it'll be some sort of profit. You might be wondering, how the hell do they get away with selling knock offs that are actually realistic? Because the government does not care. This is a huge money making venture for many people in China and keeps many mouths fed and the economy running. And besides, those brands are making loads of money off of the huge, newly rich class in China. So, regardless of the fact that their intellectual property is being blatantly stolen, they are still making damn good money. This is either a very distorted win-win situation or a major ethical issue. What do you think?

After a few wonderful days enjoying the beautiful and modern city of Shanghai and saying goodbye, we flew down to Shenzhen, sketch capital of the world. Soon, though, we will be driving over to Hong Kong, which is a Special Administration Region of China, meaning they have their own currency and govern themselves, but receive defense and protection from China. I'm super excited to go to Hong Kong and will soon post my upcoming adventures in Southeast Asia!

In the meantime, Stay Vibrant!

What's Black, White, and Cute All-Over?

PANDAS!!!!

Today, we visited the Chengdu Panda Sanctuary and got to see, in person, pandas. For me, this was absolutely a dream come true. I grew up hearing the words extinction and the race to "save the pandas." Pandas were also one of those adorable animals every kid wanted to squeeze and I'm not afraid to say that I have spent hours on youtube watching adorable baby pandas. So, finding out that my group would be going to the official panda sanctuary was so exciting. I had seen videos on youtube also about people who got to play and sit with the pandas, which made me do my research. At the location I would be going to, the only option was to give a donation of 1000 RMB or, $150, to the sanctuary to take pictures with a panda on your lap. After all of my travels, I have learned one important thing: do NOT skimp on experiences. It's ok to go the cheaper route and stay in hostels, eat street vendor food, and travel second class...but never EVER give up the opportunity to do something that probably is once in a lifetime. Do you really need that overpriced pencil with a panda on top? Or, that set of coasters you think your mom might like? Or, the many useless souvenirs that most your friends and family will put on a shelf or in a drawer and forget about? The answers are all: no. Send your mom and dad a postcard and use that money to do something that you can remember with great pictures and great memories. This was one of them. I was all geared up with my make up done and my camera ready as we were hustled into the little area where they use your camera to take your picture with the panda. The panda is there munching on some bamboo that's been dipped into honey and the keepers just throw the panda on your lap and then swing him right off again probably less than a minute later. The panda I got to hold (and cuddle) was only 9 months old and chill as a cucumber. Later, my group decided they must drug the pandas a little so they don't freak out and don't get defensive, since this is a huge money-making venture for the sanctuary to be able to provide the best care for them. The panda was really floppy and kind of out of it. Hey, even pandas need a little Ambien or Xanax, I suppose! During the minute they give you, you have to decide if you want your picture to be of you staring at the panda or looking at the camera and you are just so excited and amazed it's happening you're smiling like a fool, rubbing his tummy, and holding him tight and realizing that's he's just as cuddly as you'd think! It was an amazing experience and I loved that my money was going right back to caring for these adorable and admirable creatures. Pandas have actually been around for 8 MILLION YEARS. Yeah, insane, right? Scientists believe they are important to understanding evolution and so it's very important to keep their species from extinction. Also, pandas have only and are only found in China, in just three regions. So, they are very special and unique animals. I was sad I didn't get to actually play with the panda, but there is hope! At the other sanctuary in China, you can donate money to get 5 minutes to play with a bunch of pandas in their own habitat. However, the cost is a whopping 5000 RMB or, $750. I say, screw a cruise, go for the pandas!

Welcome to the Future: China

For the past few days, I have been in Yingkou, which is this harbor/port city that's in Northeast China and a Tier 3 city. Basically, it's in the middle of nowhere and took a train and then a long bus ride to even get to. However, despite it's questionable locale, it's a city that is in the stages of development and wants to become a Tier 1 city on par with Beijing and others in China. Getting there was half the fun (ha) because we had to take a train that probably hadn't had Americans on it since, well, never. The stares we got as the 26 of us hung out in the train station with our large bags and me with my awesome hand-painted rice paddy hat and angry bird hanging from my backpack were priceless. You'd think they'd never see a group of white people before...oh wait, they hadn't! The town we were going to is actually the sister-city of Jacksonville and is where one of our professors had studied and taught, so they "rolled out the red carpet" for us. They welcomed us with a very formal visit and then we went to a banquet dinner with all of them where they proceeded to make toasts to us and inform us that we needed to "get drunk". Nothing like a good communist drunk fest. After the dinner was over and we were all warm with their welcome, we headed back to our hotel (which we found out was also kind of a brothel) and celebrated one of the guy's birthdays. I was so exhausted that I passed out before 9pm, but apparently the party was just getting started. These government officials actually showed up at the hotel, got the guy a massive cake, and bought everyone tons of drinks. One thing really popular here in China is KTV, a karaoke/club set-up. On the 4th floor of our hotel is this KTV thing and the group decided to rent it out with their new friends from the Communist Party! Unfortunately, I missed the whole thing. Fortunately, I did not have to wear my sunglasses inside and guzzle water in the morning. I do have to admit, I like a government you can drink with.

In the morning, we headed on a trip to this huge pre-planned city area for Yingkou. It was scary, intimidating, awe-inspiring, and creepy all at the same time. The night before we had dinner at this beautiful hotel and it had many detailed models in the lobby. These models were of the pre-planned city that Yingkou was basically building from the ground-up. It was like the models you see of new resorts and timeshares when they're trying to do a sales pitch, except much much better. The models had every detail and were absolutely beautiful. I did not realize at that point how many models I would end up seeing. This morning, we traveled to the actual site of this pre-planned city and drove into a ghost town. Towering apartment buildings and condos being built scattered the skyline and there were parks, buildings, and homes that stood there, perfect in their planning, empty. It was like someone came in, built a huge, modern city and forgot to invite the people. We visited the building that was really the sales center and saw the model for the entire city. It was planned right down to the kind of pipes they would use, their sanitation, water sources, electricity, everything. Every single aspect of this city was planned. Perfectly streamlined. Ultra-modern. And big enough to encompass at least 10-20 million people. Fun fact: the city of Yingkou currently only holds 2.38 million people. We then watched a video that probably was for potential investors. It was a full 3D movie that had epic music and showed almost Sims-like depictions of a bustling city with huge athletic events, a cultural center, plenty of shopping, tons of manufacturing, big businesses, huge residential areas, and perfectly landscaped parks. I felt like someone should have said, "Welcome to the Future." What I was looking at was a combination of Brave New World and Zenon: Girl from the 21st Century. The growth here was completely inorganic. Gone were the days of cities building up from new settlers and cultures and developing over time with historical roots. The Chinese government is the largest investor in this project (DUH! They own ALL the land in China, surprise surprise) and it seemed like one day decided, "Hey! Let's build a brand new city. What do you all think? Oh wait, we don't have to ask anyone! Cool." So, a city was built on a port in NE China that met every single modern expectation and need any city planner with an unlimited budget could imagine or want. The cool thing about a dictatorship/communist government, is that shit gets done. And fast. Now, if you want to do something that wasn't the government's idea, there may be some more red tape. However, the government doesn't have anyone to answer to. No Congress, no Senate, nothing that prevents them from just doing things. I.e. building a city from the ground up. The crazy part? What we saw was built only in 4 years and that land literally used to be rice paddies. And, they plan on having this mega city done, built, and filled within 5 years. Holy. Shit. The pure amount of progress China is taking is insane to me. Instead of baby steps to a developed nation, they are doing Olympic long-jumps, which I suppose is appropriate considering their recent hosting of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, so they had some good examples. If this had happened in America, we would've had tree-huggers chaining themselves to the bamboo and lobbyists and senators and interest groups and everyone in between petitioning against and perhaps for this testament to land development. It's enough work to get a Wal-Mart (ew), let alone a city built overnight in BFE.

So, what did I learn? China is big. Not only is it big, it has money to burn and it does not have anyone telling it what to do. China is kind of like someone who just won the lottery and discovered how much power they can wield and finds out they don't have to answer to anyone. I have a feeling that if this mega city model works, China will duplicate it all across the land. A huge majority of the people live in the East, so the government is trying to encourage people to move West and create new centers of commerce. I can see them building these crazy, pre-planned cities all over China. Here, if you build it, they will come. With 1.4 BILLION people. Hold on. Yes, 1.4 BILLION PEOPLE. I know, that's hard to take in. If you think about the amount of people we have in America who have an IQ over 130 (very superior intelligence), we're talking 2.5% of the population, or 7.75 million people. Now, look at China. They have 35 million people of superior intelligence. That is about 4.5 superior intelligence people to every single one of ours. The amount of potential is astounding and scary. So with their huge population and huge number of very very smart people, they can easily create and fill these cities. And their work ethic is unending. They are just getting started in their hey day and do not show any signs of slowing down. Their people value education and progress and are hungry for it. We, however, are sitting around with our bellies full and our minds empty. We have become complacent and feel entitled to what we have. There are those that work hard, understand the importance of education, and strive for progress in their jobs and communities, but that quality has been decreasing, and rapidly at that. To stay competitive in the global marketplace, we need to wake up and realize that to stay a world super power, we need to act like one. China is looking to move from manufacturing to services and will soon overtake the U.S. as not only the number one exporter in the world, but the number one importer as well. Meaning, they are not only making a ton of stuff, they are buying it too.

Americans are leaders and when we need to, we can create, build, innovate, and initiate things that lead and progress the world around us. Now, more than ever, we need to remember our strengths and encourage each other to not become stagnant in our growth. By taking advantage of new opportunities, and even creating them ourselves, we will continue to be a competitive force globally. Being forward thinking and planning for the future is vital to our success. So, I challenge you all. How can you contribute to our progress? How can you take your job or education into the future? China may be huge, but we're free. We have the freedom to say we want or do not want a pre-planned city popping up on our coastline, we have the freedom to pursue any career or educational tract we want, we have the freedom to make this country our own and pursue life, liberty, and happiness however we see fit. So, use that freedom, don't take it for granted, because there are approximately 1.4 billion people who have not heard that sweet freedom ring.

Keep it Classy

When Marie Antoinette said, “Let them eat cake!” (or apparently did not say that at all…), the world shuddered at the idea of such a blatant admittance of the class system. The wealth of France was sitting in the hands of a very small percentage of the population and the rest were starving in the streets and apparently pissed about their lack of cake. Personally, I’m a much bigger fan of cupcakes, but I’ll get to that later. Anyway, it seems like throughout history we have been battling class systems and yet, when left to their own devices, class systems keep coming back. I would like to recall the 80/20 rule that has permeated so many different areas of my life…involvement, group projects, my wardrobe. The 80/20 rules basically means that 80 percent of the work is done by 20 percent of the people or products. For example, about 20% of my closet is worn 80% of the time, or, there are 20% of the people at my university doing 80% of the work. And in society, it always seems to end up where 20% of the people control 80% of the wealth. We continually try to play Robin Hood and create either three classes with an ideally large middle class or for socialism, no classes at all. We met with the Department of Consumption Economics, which we’re not really sure what exactly they do still, and got to see the role of the government in business in China. They basically told us that the government is using taxes to stimulate and create the middle class, which are the major consumers in China’s economy. However, this control is needed because as the Chinese are gaining more and more wealth, the amount of people who hold that wealth is small and they hold a lot of it. This is creating a larger and larger gap between classes, which is similar to what is happening in the U.S. today.

We have a shrinking middle class, and even though the level of living is high and increasing, our class system is becoming a massive lower class and a group of very wealthy, very powerful individuals at the other end. The big question is…does the government step in? Do we take the cues from many other countries (many of which could be called “socialist”) and utilize taxes to define our class system? Or, do we laissez-faire and let whatever happens, happen? I can promise you I don’t know all the answers and I’m not 100% sure on my own opinion. It seems like this rule is something we cannot escape except for enforcing our own rules i.e. taxes. I’m a free market kind of gal, but I totally see the issue with having a few select people control everyone, then we’re talking a quazi-dictatorship with money the deciding power. I do believe that it’s important to encourage people to work hard, make a living, and have the opportunity to realize their own dreams. I also believe in the Chinese proverb (appropriate and ironic at the same time), “Give a man a fish, he’ll eat for a day. Teach a man to fish, he’ll eat for a lifetime.” I always learned that negative reinforcement and punishment are typically not the best ways to accomplish something. I see income taxes designed to “redistribute wealth” as a negative way to ensure a more balanced socioeconomic system. Starting working and understanding how much money actually leaves my paychecks comes as a shock to me. I feel kind of like a kindergarten mentality sometimes thinking, “Wait! I don’t want to share! That’s mine!” I think of all the hours I will spend in a cubicle and the hours I spent taking classes, studying, getting involved, in meetings, volunteering, and in general preparing myself so that I would be able to get a job in the first place. Then, to have this percentage taken away from me makes me sort of feel like someone is taking away one of the Barbies I spent months saving up for.

This is an ongoing problem that has been debated throughout time. It seems like the natural habit for societies and civilization is that a few people control the majority of the resources, power, and people. Does that mean this is the “natural” and “right” way of things? Probably not. In a Utopian society, sure. In a society that is not perfect and plagued by the universal human condition of greed, we add in a whole lot of other factors. However, is it our government’s responsibility to combat the greed of its people? Or is it the responsibility of others who can control themselves and must try to prevent the misuse of power? I wonder if everyone worked really hard and there was natural competition, if there wouldn’t be such a drastic gap between classes. As a member of this notorious “shrinking” middle class, I wonder what my fate will be. Will I be one of the lucky to join the small percentage of individuals who hold the wealth and power of the nation and perhaps even world in their grasp? If I am part of that group, how will I work to be generous and compassionate to ensure that I do my own duty as someone who is affluent and influential in this world? By having that level of power, it’s important to be a good leader too and to use it wisely. Or, will I be part of the growing mass of people (80% according to our rule) who only hold 20% of the wealth, thus powerless and usually disenfranchised. Throughout history, this mass of people has come together to fight wealth with people and when they really unite themselves, have won. (Much to Marie’s displeasure) So, perhaps some government regulation is needed to prevent the mass rebellion of the people and the mass corruption of those who lead us. Like for many things in life, I believe balance is the answer. I’m a Libra (regardless of that stupid Zodiac change) and am drawn towards a balance of opinions, ideas, and practices that make me feel like I’m incorporating all sides and thus getting the best of all worlds. Maybe being sensitive to the need for individuals to work hard and determine their own lifestyles while doing just enough to ensure there isn’t a drastic gap between different socioeconomic statuses is what our government should focus on. I see it as this: I like sharing my piece of the pie with others as long as I get a good majority of it as well as the first and last bites.

I will be posting my adventures on the Great Wall, being the only blonde for at least 500 miles in this “city”, and shot-glass sized KFC mashed potatoes very soon.

In the meantime, stay vibrant and keep it classy (or not, depending upon your own opinions)!