I attended a large gathering of mostly Americans last night, with a few British, Australian, Canadian, and Chinese thrown in. Whether living here or just passing through, the word got out that there would be a 4th of July barbecue and some fireworks.
I made a giant bowl of potato salad, starting with 3 kilos of potatoes. With all the other stuff added in, I’m pretty sure we had at least 2 gallons of the stuff. I thought it needed more salt; nobody else seemed to notice. It disappeared within an hour of my arrival.
The fireworks were fun, but required us to explain to some of the locals what the big fuss was about. After all, fireworks are for the lunar new year. They nodded, but of course I have to wonder if they understood at the same level as we do. I want to say more, and my VPN makes it look like I’m posting this from Hong Kong, but I feel like I can’t post what I really want to say if I want this stupid little blog to remain accessible within China. After all, some foreigner just got deported for his actions on the internet, though he was clearly a bit of a stalker and a total nut. It sets a precedent. I hope that my reluctance to say what I want here speaks volumes, though I don’t want anyone to get the idea that I dislike everything here. I just hate the glaze of dishonesty that covers much of the official communication, so that one never really knows what’s going on.
P.S. For a happier ending to this post, imagine a handful of last night’s partygoers singing at least a few bars of our national anthem while the fireworks were going off. There was no all-encompassing chorus of patriotism, but a few were inspired, including myself.
I asked my husband before we left Kunming for the holiday if maybe Sam and his wife (Wen Li, which I called her the whole time, forgetting that Wen is her family name) would ask us to give their baby an English name. I’ve been trying to come up with a Chinese name for myself, knowing that if I picked it myself I’d probably end up insulting someone. To me, if they asked for an English name for their baby, it was the perfect opportunity to ask them to give me a Chinese name. I had hopes for my Chinese name — maybe something to do with nature and sounding vaguely like the name my parents gave me. Prior research (thumbing through a dictionary) had me looking at combinations pronounced roughly “Wei Li”, but I didn’t like any of the meanings.
Anyhow, after spending a few days with this well-insulated baby (did I mention it was cold there?) commonly called Niu-niu or “little cow” because she was born in the year of the ox, I had already come up with a name for her. One day, finally, they asked us! We quickly agreed, and I countered by asking them for a Chinese name. Two nights later, the whole family was discussing it.
The first one they came up with sounded nice, but after seeing and trying to write the characters, I sheepishly asked for another that was easier to write. It’s important for me to be able to write my own name. 
After more deliberation, they suggested ?? (Xia Mei) which means “beautiful summer” or “summer beauty”. It’s significantly easier to write, though I do need to practice. Sam and Joyce’s father also pointed out that the xia character has something to with China, and the mei character is the first part of the Chinese word for America (making me the person to unite China and the U.S.?). Unfortunately, when I inevitably mispronounce my name, I could become ??, which means “shrimp mildew”.
Oh, and the name we gave the giggly 8-month-old? Joy! I wanted to give them something easy to say and spell, as well as something with a meaning.
From left: Sam, Li, Joy, XiaMei, and DiMing
In short, it was mostly great. You know that saying about guests and fish starting to stink after 3 days? Sometimes it applies from the perspective of the guest as well! Unfamiliar styles of hospitality can be overwhelming, though at the end of 6 days, I had actually begun to adjust better.
The view from the 2nd floor, on our first morning in the village.
We were staying at the family home of my husband’s friend “Sam” and his sister “Joyce”. It’s in a village about a half an hour outside of Ji’an in Jiangxi province.
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