Category Archives: noted

调休: timely thoughts

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When Dragon Boat Festival approaches, my thoughts usually turn to zongzi and all the delicious fillings. However, this year they have unexpectedly turned to how the Chinese state controls both the distribution of land (space) and time. Usually, I spend my time thinking about hukou and land ownership. However, it suddenly occurred to me that something similar happens with the organization of work and rest times. The prompt — how much I dislike “调休 tiao xiu” or “adjust rest time.” In practice, tiao xiu means rearranging work schedules to create a five- or seven-day stretch of time off for consumption. The catch? There may only be one actual vacation day. The other days are made are made up by working on Saturday, creating 6-day work weeks.

Anyway, I haven’t worked out all theoretical details. But. When thought about in conjunction with Beijing Standard Time, tiao xiu suggests the extent to which the state shapes everyday life in China. In turn, this highlights the fact that everywhere space and time are human constructs with contested origins and purpose (Thanksgiving vacation, for example).

an apparatus of integration 2: the shen kong border, wutongshan south to liantang

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Yesterday had a wonderful time with good friend Denise exploring Shatoujiao and then the land border from Wutongshan South to Liantang subway stations (Shekou Line). Three observations (with illustrations!) and unsubstantiated speculation, below:

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“you’re only as old as you feel”: celebrating the middle-aged

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May 13, 2024 I attended a TEDish event that was jointly sponsored by Hougongfang (厚工坊) and Fenghuang Media Shenzhen (凤凰网深圳). If you drink baijiu, then you’ve probably heard of Hougongfang, a high-end brand of Moutai from Wuyeshen (五叶神), which is based in Guangdong, but brews in Maotai. if you follow Shen Kong media, then you’ve clicked a Fenghuang post or two. The company is primarily state-owned and based in Shenzhen and Hong Kong, offering Mandarin and Cantonese language programming. It is registered in the Cayman Islands. The event theme was “厚浪” which is a homophone for 后浪 (waves or next wave) and also neatly reminds us of Moutai’s (Maotai’s) historical significance, which was consolidated during the Chinese civil war and especially pronounced (chez Shenzhen) during the 1990s and naughties, when deals were sealed with toasts and no one went home sober.

For the past three years (this was the fourth event), Hougongfang has been promoting “middle age day (中年节).” The event was filmed before a live audience to be broadcast on May 25, which is the day they’ve designated for the new holiday. I know, you’re probably thinking: didn’t China establish May 25 as University Mental Health Day (525心理健康节)? And the answer is yes. And to answer your unasked question: yes it explains so much about contemporary China when today’s middle-aged magnates are promoting their contributions to society and the value of their experience on a day that had been set aside to address the mental health of the country’s anxious, overworked and often suicidal college students.

Thoughts (not all of them generous because remind you of US boomers much) below:

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the effect of containerization on shenzhen and hong kong (and coffee beans)

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I’ve been trying to map the emergence of the Pacific Rim from the perspective of Shenzhen. It’s an easy rabbit hole to fall into: neolithic navigation (from Peninsular Southeast Asia to littoral South China), the Austronesian diaspora, trade links between the South China Sea and Indian Ocean, the emergence of Quanzhou as Asia’s most important port, colonial incursions, the discovery of silver in Mexico and the establishment of the Acapulco-Manila silver route, piracy and privateers, and then containerization…so many rabbit holes!

A local magazine asked me to write an essay on the containerization part of the story, so I did. However, the editorial board kicked it back as being “too academic.” In the meantime, I’m uploading that essay and working on something more “popular.” Also, the essay focuses on trade, rather than militarization. I’m trying to get that timetable in order and braid it into the container trade story… If you have thoughts and/or insights please reach out — the topic is vast and fascinating and needs dialogue to refine.

the-impact-of-containerization-on-shenzhen-and-hong-kong-1Download

interview with caixin new media vice president zhou zhichen

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Last week’s interview with 财新新传媒副总周智琛 is now up on the Caixin website as part of their 龙中对 series of interviews. “为城市立心” is about 35 minutes (no commercials) and gives a good sense of how the public debate on urban villages is now being framed, or more accurately how I’m now framing the conversation in terms of my own sojourn. To view the interview, ether use the VR code in the poster or follow this link.

langkou homecoming

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A bit of housekeeping. In “Langkou Homecoming: Art Sprouts, the P+V Gallery and Future Shenzheners,” Zhang Kaiqin and I reflect on our practice at Qianzhen Girls’ School, 2016-2018. The Chinese citation is “乐把他乡变故乡——“艺术童萌”与虔贞⼥校艺展馆的未来深圳⼈”, 发表于《鹤湖⽂史辑刊》（第⼀辑），⽂物出版社，2022年11⽉。

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wtf huanggang?

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These past few days we’ve been “eating melons,”–the colloquial expression for watching other people’s drama. This time, its an internecine melodrama starring the Shuiwei and Huanggang Zhuangs.

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shake hands with 302

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More publicity about Handshake 302.

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a path out of shenzhen…

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In 2023, we said, “Let’s see what happens after COVID.”

By April 2024, we were asking, “Where are you headed?”

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what’s on display and who can see it?

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This past week, in addition to participating in large public culture events, I also had the opportunity to visit two privately organized cultural spaces. The first was a private collection of shoushan stone carvings (寿山石) and the second was a community museum.

So some preliminary thoughts about what these spaces suggest about post COVID culture in Shenzhen.

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