Alan’s Blog

One of my friends asked me to go on a spiritual trip. I think it is a wonderful idea. I think most temples in China are a bit too commercial recently. Nepal has just changed from a kingdom to a democratic republic, thus no kings but government by the people, for the people and of the people (well, in principle, we have to see how it goes). I have a college friend, and she is from Nepal. She’s been to China before and I asked her to be my information source.

There is still some craziness about my plan in July and August. I hope things will go well and I can make this trip in July…

今天下班在家里附近吃了一份8块钱的青椒肉丝盖浇饭。 突然发觉我花了80个欧分（80 Euro cents）就解决了一顿晚饭， 而且味道还不错， 卫生也还可以。在欧洲简直是无法想象的。 80欧分也许能从自动贩卖机上买一厅可乐。 但是一顿饭， 至少需要3.5-5欧的。

昨天看了看当月的工资， 比我刚来上海时几乎翻了一翻， 可是我还是坐在那吃着廉价的盖浇饭。 感慨良多， 非常复杂的一种感觉。 吃完饭后走在上海夜晚的大街， 清风徐徐， 好不惬意。 想想很多人比我赚着多得多的钱， 每天吃着昂贵的饭菜， 却没有我开心。 为什么呢。 著名的心理学家马斯洛（Maslow）说过,  当人们满足了物质需求以后， 追求的就是被人的理解和精神上的肯定。而真正心智成熟的人， 快乐的源泉不在于周围的人对他的评价和外界物质的丰富与否。 当然， 这并不是说社会的肯定不重要， 而是一个人首先要得到自己的肯定， 而不是心情随着周围人的对自己的评价而变化（如：您真漂亮， 不做电影明星可惜了。 真是的， 这么简单都做不好， 小学生都会！你工作真出色， 简直可以做总经理了！等等， 等等）。 甚至有的人的心情会随着天气的变化而变化， 而真正牛B的人带着自己的天气出门。成熟心智的价值观和自我肯定， 是不随着自己在社会镜子（social mirror）中扭曲的影像而变化的。 就像成人看哈哈镜， 对哈哈镜中的形象不过是一笑了之。为什么有的人历经磨难， 出生贫寒， 却能坚强向上， 自强不息， 为什么有的人出生富裕，接受良好的教育， 却自尊心低， 脆弱敏感，心理学家也解答不了这个谜。

以前看动画片电影《南方公园》（South Park）的时候， 甘地和希特勒一样是在地狱里的， 当时十分不理解。 按照中国文化， 好人理当有好报， 先苦后甜， 甘地为印度人民的解放奋斗了一辈子， 死后应该在天堂享福才对呀。 当前的流行文化非常讲究以结果为导向（做的什么工作，职位， 有没有房子， 有没有车子。。。）， 却忽视了在各种结果的可能性之间人所拥有的选择。 快乐的源泉往往不在于选择了哪个结果， 而是拥有了选择的权利和为选择结果负责的勇气。 现在终于理解了。 在地狱与天堂之间， 甘地拥有的是选择， 而他选择了地狱。他也许属于天堂， 可是他没有贪念天堂的舒适， 而是选择了在地狱来考验自己的高尚。同样在炼狱中的希特勒与甘地， 希特勒承受着地狱的痛苦， 他为他在人世间的恶行付出了代价。 如果有人去采访甘地， 你猜他会怎么说呢？ 我猜他会说， 我在这儿挺好的， 我很快乐。

此文仅仅是我一点点的胡思乱想， 请不要对号入座。 如果对您有什么启发， 我深感荣幸， 如果没有， 就当我在胡说:P.

I have to confess that I didn’t get high ratings often on writing classes in Chinese when I was in school until the last year of high school when I had to prepare for the college entrance exam. Recently I started to understand the importance of writing. So I think writing more often is a good idea. For my own good. I think I’ll keep writing in both Chinese and English, depends on my thinking process.

By Aug 2008, I will be back in China for 3 years. It’s been a exciting and somewhat difficult experience. But I have learned a lot about my own country. It’s been doing me a lot of good. If I stayed in Europe, it could be harder for me to adjust to the life here when I return later.

It’s still hard for me to judge where exactly the opportunity for China is since I only worked for two employers, and they are both Dutch companies. I somehow feel starting up business should be the best idea. Chinese government has some program to promote business created by Chinese student returned from overseas. I looked into some of the specifics in the program and made some contact. I think with the right people and right project the success factor is quite high. Keep watching and keep looking. And of course, more importantly, start doing and learning by doing:).

There’s been some intensive traveling this winter. It’s a good opportunity for me to experience different winter lifes in Normandy France, Shanghai and Hunan China.

Among the three, life in France is no doubt the physically the most comfortable one. Hunan is spiritually the best place for me to stay. France is most developed and Hunan where I was born and raised is unfortunately the least developed. I lived in Europe before. Naturally there were certain habits that I picked up there. Such as, shower in the morning rather than evening, take my coat/jacket off after entering the house/apartment, shower daily, drink bottled water/soda, put bags on the ground while sitting. Those are the obvious ones I can think of now.

After returning to China, I go back to shower in the evening, but occasionally I have the surge to shower in the morning, so now I shower about 30% of the time in the morning. I shower about every 1.5 days. I keep my jacket on after returning to my apartment because the temperature in my apartment is not warm enough to take my jacket off. For those who have never been to China might ask, why not turn on the radiator, I have to tell the truth, because there is no radiator. I drink boiled/hot water because bottled water is too cold. I still put my bags on the ground in my apartment but I try to avoid that while outside, because the ground is gross, everybody in China knows it.

On average, I  make about 1 call on my gsm per 3 days in Europe. I make about 3 calls per day in China:D. 1 sms per 3 days in Europe, about 5 sms per day in China. More blogging in Europe. Less blogging and more human interactions in China.

I drank cold Cola during tea break in Europe. I drink heated Tea in Shanghai for tea break.

I go home immediately after work in Europe and avoid outside when it’s dark. I feel comfortable most of the time outside in the evenings in Shanghai and Hunan.

I do grocery in Carrefour about once a week in France. I do grocery in convenient store, fruit stand, Watson’s (European equivalent of Kruidvat) and everywhere once every 2-3 days in Shanghai.

I talk to my parents once a week, barely talk to my school friends in Europe, occasionally socialize. I talk to my parents whenever I want, call my school friends often. Meet friends in Shanghai once a while.

Fighting The Day after Tomorrow

Right now, the whole China (at least the south, where cold winter weather is rare) is fighting the freezing winter weather. My hometown Yueyang is at the north tip of the worst affected province, Hunan. Going back home was a scary thing for me. One city called Chenzhou had been without water and electricity supply for 8 days. 27 thousand vehicles had been stranded (tbc) on the highway for 3 days along 160 KM. Thousands and maybe millions of people are suffering from the extreme winter weather.

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一辈子不疯狂几次岂不妄活了一回？

很多大道理， 父亲在小的时候其实已经传授给我了。 在成长的过程中才发现父亲所说过的很多东西都是人生的经验。 其中最令我印象深刻的一条就是不要凡事和别人比， 要和自己比。 和自己过去比是否有提高？ 第二条就是做事要力求不后悔。 父亲的理念是事情做到自己不后悔就可以了。 现在看来这是何其高的境界啊。 纵观我过去的成就和失败。 又有几件事能符合不后悔这简单的3个字？

今年是我的本命年， 也是对我相当重要的一年。 酝酿着很多变化。 随之而来的是漫漫的长夜， 无尽的焦虑， 和做不完的事情。 有时间我一定要读完2本书：１.　《高效人士的七个习惯》　２.　《尽管去做——无压工作的艺术》 讲的是如何在有限的时间内做更多的事情。 这两本书并不是教人如何更快的做你已经压力很大的事情。 而是教人如何有效的分配时间。 正所谓好钢用在刀刃上。

现在英语好有个毛病就是喜欢看原文， 不愿意看翻译的。 英文原著在中国还是很贵的东西， 可是在电脑上看书很累。 所以就有了啃书少的接口。 记得小时候父亲基本上是我想看的书都满足我的。 怎么工作了反而在这方面吝啬了呢？ 回到上海以后决定要看的书还是要不惜血本买来：）。 书是有价的， 知识是无价的。

好友胡正有如下理论：

“
有人问我怎样得到大量的沙子，我告诉她去挖金子，这样你就会得到大量的沙子。我为什么不直接告诉你去挖沙子呢？这也是我不告诉你去直接追求快乐的原因。

”

受到此理论的启发， 我想起了Randy Pausch的另外一个理论。 那就是我们实际上不是在做我们想象中在做的事情。 比方说， 小时候练习游泳， 足球， 目的真的是为了以后能做职业选手拿冠军吗？ 毕竟冠军只有那么几个。为什么我们要去做呢？ 一个很重要的目的是学习比赛中的竞争精神和锻炼我们的领导力。 如果父母跟我们说， 孩子， 你去学习竞争精神和领导力去吧，我们会不会还去参与那些运动呢？

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记得当年在比利时的鲁汶剪头发。 理发师给我一本册子， 上面有各个部位的不同发型。 剪头发之前问我前面剪什么样， 我就找一个自己喜欢的。 然后问我两边呢， 我又找一个。 后面呢？ 又找一个。 好叻， 把电动剪子上的架子的深度调好。 开始剪头发咯。 像见草一样， 后面一个深度， 上面一个深度， 两边一个深度， 过度地方就不用架子直接上手。 15分钟内完事儿。 学生打折12欧元。 happy走人。

今天在卡昂箭头， 也是按图索骥。 不同的是发型都是整体的。 不玩部位拼接。 都是老外的发型， 害得我好找啊。 好不容易找到一个两边较短的， 上面又长了， 只好找个上面短点儿的， 可是模特照片很彪悍， 不知道那样好不好看。。。

anyways， 效果我还是比较满意。 剪头发手法基本上是国内和比利时之间。 比较容易接受。 比利时是太草间头发， 国内是当雕塑一根根儿剪， 法国还蛮好， 三下两下， 不多不少。

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答案是有！今天坐公交车坐在我前面的白人女子就是用的方便面味道的香水。 刚开始我还以为是方便面。 巡视了一周发现都没有亚洲模样的人士， 而且是她上了车以后才有的。 她后来坐到我前面的位子。 oh yeah， that’s it！ 方便面香味的香水。 no kidding。

看了下我博客的访问量。 很令人欣慰呀。 另外一个surprise是几个城市我都知道谁在访问：D。 图上饼的大小代表人数。 上海和法国卡昂的巨大访问量基本上是我写博客搞出来的。 还没研究怎么去掉自己的访问量：P。 看到北京的访问量没？ 我明年是得去北京了：D。

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1. The ideaLet’s be clear about this. Ideas are VERY important in technology industry. An idea can change the world. Here are some evidence:
   • Google: Google started at a time when everybody thought: The world does not need yet another search engine. But Google came up with page ranking!
   • Linux: (I made this one up) Linux came at the time when people thought: Why do we need an operating system that support as half the devices as Windows 95 is supporting? And It didn’t have those fancy UI and Icons. But Linux came up with Open Source movement!
   • IE: (I may get lots of fire on this one) Internet Explore came at the time when Netscape Navigator already dominated the market of browsers. But IE came up with bundle with Windows and you can not uninstall it!

   Nowadays many people would debate that having a kick-ass idea is less important than having a team to execute an idea well. Some say ideas are like cockroaches. When you see one Web 2.0 company implement one idea, probably you will see hundreds more doing the same thing. This may sounds true during the Internet bubbles in 2001, 2002. I would rather say, doing the right things is more important than doing the things right.
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