When I hear this quote from one of the world's most famous artists, I can't help but think of this sculpture...
...which was (understandably) abandoned outside the Catholic Church in Jilin City.
"What on earth is it?" you may ask in horror. "One of Dante's lower rings? A psychopath's cartoon featuring the demented spawn of Gumby and Smurfette?" No, my friends. It is something more tragic, yet. It is the official mascot of the 2010 Shanghai World Business Expo.
Its name is Haibao (海宝), or "Treasure of the Sea," and it's popping up in cities all over the world. I assume it's meant to refer to the city of Shanghai, and bring in a bit of nautical history and mercantilism into the mix. Maybe it's a stylized wave? A walking, talking, creepily staring, stylized wave. Yeah. I don't care what it is, I wouldn't want to see it in a dark alley late at night. I'll do more research on this issue, and maybe write a bit more later.
In other news, my apartment just celebrated its first legitimate social gathering. (All of those firefighters and carpenters and electricians don't count.) Today April got back from her week in Hong Kong, and we had hot pot to celebrate.
All in all, it was much more successful than our first official dinner, which consisted of ramen noodles and boiled water. I even made spiced pecans for dessert. (Luckily, Lisa was present to tell me that the "tinfoil" I was about to put in the oven was actually decorative paper made to look like metal. I think God's getting sick of watching me burn things.)
And, yes, our table is a cardboard box with the shattered remains of our counter layered on top. Just call it art.
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