…on my other blog. Not really, but if you’re interested in seeing what happens when you suggest Chinese people are racially insensitive and some popular Chinese bloggers find out about it, check out ChinaGeeks. I’d link directly to the post, but you can’t miss it anyway. It’s the one with over a hundred comments in the past day.

This being a music site primarily, I occasionally remember I ought to post music related stuff on here. Here are some American Expatriate statistics for you:

Instrumentals Composed: 75
Songs Written (for American Expatriate): 10
Songs Written (for Untitled Free Album): 6

Obviously, some (many) of the instrumentals are crap, and the songs may be too. At least a few of them are good though. I’m looking forward to writing the last few American Expat songs in the next couple months and piecing the album together. This, even more than any of my previous work, might well be something that only appeals to me. It’s also about as cheerful as a morgue, at least lyrically, so get ready for that.

The instrumentals are more of a departure from my previous work. Think dirty live drums mixed with spacious piano chords and simple melodies and you’ll have an idea of what I’ve got on my hands here. My guess is there’s still quite a while before you can get your hands on this album (I’m guessing we won’t start recording until at least the summer), but I may record and post some demos before then. If I do, they will be shitty shitty quality, but they might be fun to listen to for some of you.

Also, keep an eye out for news regarding an album with Sarah Clark, and further collaboration with DJ HDL, who sent me something quite awesome the other day.

Some things are too good not to share. This has nothing to do with China, but it does have to do with hip-hop.

Young people, read this for its sheer hilarity value.

Old people, read this as an example of what never to do when trying to appeal to young people.

There’s just too much good stuff in the article to even quote it, just go read the whole thing for yourself, it’s well worth it.

I am now home, safely. My flight was delayed, etc. etc. I will post some of the best photos late, for now, here is a link to the Facebook photo albums:

• Part 1
• Part 2
• Part 3
• Part 4
• Part 5
• Part 6

MASS MEDIA STATS:
Photos Taken (Estimate): 1,500
Photos Kept: 986
Video Recorded: 62 minutes

MASS TRANSPORTATION STATS:
Planes taken: 2
Buses taken: 15
Trains taken: 1
Cabs taken: 26
Private vehicles taken: 3

FOOD STATS:
Ate Something Sold From A Tricycle: 7 times
Ordered 宫爆鸡丁: 6 times
Ate At Sichuan Restaurants Outside of Sichuan: 5 times
Ate at KFC: 3 times
Most Expensive Meal: 45 RMB ($6.42)
Least Expensive Meal: 3 RMB ($0.42)

LIVING CONDITIONS STATS:
Largest Number of People Sleeping in the Same Room: 150 (Appx., sleeper train to Xi’an)
Longest Without Shower: 2.5 days (Kaifeng)

AWARDS
BEST OVERALL CITY: Xi’an, Shaanxi
BEST OVERALL TOURIST SITE: (TIE) Leshan Giant Budda (Leshan, Sichuan) and Longmen Caves (Luoyang, Henan)
BEST TEMPLE: Wenshu Temple (Chengdu, Sichuan)
BEST TOMBS: Xi’an, Shaanxi (Terra Cotta Warriors, Emperor Jingdi’s Tomb)
BEST WEATHER: Chengdu, Sichuan
BEST CUISINE: Chengdu, Sichuan
BEST STREET FOOD: Xi’an, Shaanxi
OLDEST THINGS: Shaanxi History Museum, Xi’an
WORST OVERALL CITY: Luoyang, Henan
WORST TRANSPORTATION: Taxis in Chengdu, Sichuan
MOST ANNOYING POPULACE: Chengdu, Sichuan
WORST PLANE: Zhengzhou to Harbin (Delayed 1.5 hours)

Many thanks also to the cool people I met along the way and traveled with, including but not limited to: Brian, Chris, Amber, Elsa, Greg, Danielle, British Girl Whose Name I Forget, etc.