The air tastes like burned rubber and cellophane. Today is one of those days where as soon as I open my weather app, it tells me the air quality is ‘very unhealthy’, which means that as soon as I step outside, the…
The Chinese man selling popcorn
On Tuesdays, my apartment becomes a Civil War reenactment. From the third floor, we hear the crackling fire of a hand-cranked oven, a voice yelling a signal, and the BOOM of the popcorn machine that follows like clockwork. We’d spent the last few…
What we write about when we can't find the words to write anymore
It happens again. I’ve sat down to start writing this entry several times in the past few weeks, or honestly in the past two months, but everything I’ve written is charged, angry, calamitous, and then resigned. I feel this surge…
What we write about when we write about New York
I used to dream about New York. When I closed my eyes, I dreamed of pillowy snow heaps falling outside my window in Astoria, about the hum of the radiator warming up the apartment. I used to dream about the entire…
When life gives you lemons, make yourself do push-ups
I guess I should take some time to explain what a Tough Mudder is, because it’s one of those things that is also particularly American in a “we’re very macho, but will still sign a dozen safety waivers” kind of a way.
A not-recipe for carrot cake
I baked a carrot cake cheesecake this weekend, but we ate all of it before I could take any photos. Well, actually that’s a lie. I ate the last piece just a few hours ago with a cup of earl grey…
Are we too old to go to Thailand?
I looked like I belonged on Khao San road, but something still didn’t feel right.
Recipe: Gluten-Free Apple Hand Pies
I’ve started preparing for a 16 km Tough Mudder race and it feels like I haven’t been this ill-prepared for anything my entire life. And I don’t think it’s because the race itself will be that competitive or soul-crushing, but the fun…
An American Abroad
The first signs of autumn are always so striking. There’s a certain chill in the crisp apple-cider smell of the Fall air and, to me, a certain New England charm in keeping the windows opened at night. And so, as the Shanghai seasons…
The best is yet to come
I quit my job last week. And I know I should feel scared, but I don’t. I mean, I do feel a little scared. But I am much more excited than petrified. I am quitting my job with no definite…
Some changes are coming
It’s interesting, this idea of living abroad, and the reality of living abroad.
Changing China: The rise and fall of 'foreigner' streets in Shanghai
Yongkang used to be a constant block party, the kind of place where you end up after free-flow brunch and stay until 10pm, at which point you would be ushered inside and the party would go on until 2am. Needless to say, it was absolutely not the best representation of foreigners in China.