Starbucks has become my office here in Beijing. A tall regular coffee, free wi-fi, and the buzz that remotely resembles a gossipy newsroom–that’s all I need. Some of the shops here in Beijing have quite intimate seating arrangements, and Chinese people are never shy of conducting private conversations at volumes for public announcements (I’m guilty of that, too). So I’ve been enjoying the privilege of stumbling into some surreal exchanges. Hence the debut of this mini-series “Overheard at a Starbucks.”
November 25, 2009/Fu Xing Men Starbucks
Middle-aged woman talking into a cell phone: “I’m having trouble thinking of a gift for him/her? What can I get with a thousand dollars? (Yes, she said dollars!)”
November 25, 2009/Fu Xing Men Starbucks
Middle-aged guy to a woman of unknown age since she had her back to me: “I have an apartment, a car and a stable job. I like to drink occasionally and to watch soccer. You know, the usual pursuits of a dude…”
December 7, 2009/Guo Mao I Starbucks
Middle-aged guy A: “How did you become interested in this topic?”
Middle-aged guy B: “When I was eight, I watched a movie about Lei Feng (A half real and half fictional figure created by the Communist Party who supposedly devoted everything he had–time, energy, money, and life–to the people, the party and the PRC and who supposedly wrote in his journal “Treat the people with the warmth of the spring. Treat the enemy like the fall gale that sweeps away that the fallen leaves.”). I couldn’t believe one person could be so completely selfless. Thus it sowed in me the determination to become a selfless person…I know you and I know your reputation. You are a loving person. You share my purpose. In a communist society, kind people and loving people will be successful. We can make lots of money together…”
Guy A: “You and your book have great potential.”
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