Monday, July 04, 2011

auto-theft re: my own work (LAST POST PRE-CHINA)

I just vomited up a bunch of text on Facebook. I'm reprinting it here because I'm lazy. All sentiments are still valid (since they were expressed moments ago).

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This is big shit. I've been obsessing over China- its culture, language, history, etc.- for years, and tomorrow I get on a series of planes to visit the Middle Kingdom, and realize firsthand how utterly ignorant I am of the reality of the culture that's contributed so much to the world for a few thousand years.

Since I won't be using Facebook or my blog while I'm in Shanghai, Suzhou, Beijing, or any of the places Tracey and I might visit once she gets there (Tianjin, Xi'an, Qingdao represent!), y'all probably wont get regular updates. You have my email address (and if you don't, make haste in asking for it) if you wanna converse with me while I'm busy studying the fuck out of putonghua, eating interesting food, and conversing with old folks and anyone that crosses my path.



Many of you have an idea of how excited I am about this trip. China has been my goal for at least a decade. I'm a history nerd, but I know enough about modern China than to expect to to masturbate myself into a frenzy over historical Chinese sights and sounds. I'm thrilled to have the chance to stroll around Beijing and buy Chinese heavy metal CDs. Eat Chinese takes on world cuisine. Smoke cigarettes with anyone who has time for a long-haired Western barbarian. See sights. Plug my earbuds into the ears of the willing and curious. Write notes. Read books. Live fucking life.



I owe my beloved Tracey, the University of Houston, Zhang/Mai/Wen (in no particular order) laoshi, and my own willpower for making this happen. Whatever I make of it in the long run doesn't matter. This is about now, right fuckin' now, the Tao that is nameless. Thank all of you.



And thank everyone else that hasn't been mentioned, because I love y'all too. You're a bunch of sexy, handsome, nerdy, literate, meaningful dudes and chicks.



Love always, and I hope that upon my return I'm a better dude,

D.A. Smith


P.S. As I'm writing this I'm bangin' "Male Feminist" by MC Lars, because this song rules and more importantly women make this world fuckin' rad. Madre, Tracey Robertson, (and in no particular order) Amanda Beasley, Vanessa Riley, Megan Neal, Annie Bulloch, Renee Salmonsen, Renee Miller, Janessa Link, Holly Smith, Jennifer Groves, Linda Evans, Alexa Nash, Nicole Derby, Shabis Kinsella, Liz Smith,Shari Fitzgerald, Aunt Linda, Aunt Annell (RIP), Tati Elena, Tati Lu, Nora Joyce, Emma Goldman, Parker Posey, Justine Frischmann, Dorothy Shakespear, Pearl Buck, Dana Scully, Buffy Summers, Willow Rosenberg, Nursehella, your mom, and a zillion more, fictional or otherwise: THUMBS UP, LADIES. KEEP KICKIN' ASS.

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Done. All hail YTCracker and his albums. See y'all on the other side of the Great Firewall.