What a night, eh ?
New updates are at http//lucky-jamieson1.20six.co.uk
Warning - Sensitive Personal information about to be disclosed.
(Preamble)
Young Mr. Jamieson has had frequent unfortunate episodes of depression and ongoing alcoholism during his time in China.
What resulted was a semi-functioning alcoholic with steady jobs and a reasonably good reputation as a teacher.
Paradoxically, Jamieson scored High Distinction on every University assignment submitted back to Australia. A degree from a nominated Australian University by Distance Education requires a brace of Major and non-major subjects from a balanced spread of Universities
These Australian Universities are not "penny-ante" Universities. In fact, some are in the top 20 Universities in Australia. I am lucky to have access to world-class Australian Universities by Distance Education, complete with annoying invigilated Australian examinations held at Soochow University - even here in China.
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Courtesy http://www.australian-universities.com/rankings/
Functioning Alcoholic. Holds down Uni teaching position(s), and a diverse array of alternate teaching roles, is happily married, lives in a very pleasant middle class apartment block with tight security and has a lifestyle which in some instances equals life in Australia.
Functioning Alcoholic : The best assignment result was 95%, written over a week while definitely under the influence.
Prior to coming to China, J. was a very mild consumer, with a fondness for unwooded Chardonnay on the front lawn, watching the sun set.
Or a 3 pack of Guinness cans on a fishing trip "down the beach" at night with mates. Why a 3 pack ? Getting busted while driving in Australia with
a blood alcohol content of > .05% means loss of points off one's driving licence, a nasty fine and an offence record.
Why the sudden onset of alcoholism and depression in China ? Is it a chicken and egg scenario ? Some type of bizarre unhelpful coping strategy ? Or is it a response to the apparently unrelenting boredom of life in sophisticated urban Chinese city ?
The almost complete lack of hobbies ? I'll talk about my former hobbies in a new post, and you might get a grasp of the hobby void and socialisation now apparently non-existent.
Mrs. Jamieson was warned prior to the blooming of our relationship in November 2003, that J. did in fact drink like a fish, and that she would have to accept that.
(End of preamble)
Big J - as you know was in Sunny Australia last March - May this year. Whilst he was there, he decided to sign up for some honey from the Australian Government hive.
That includes visiting a General Practioner for FREE and medication at an unbelievably subsidised cost.
It was there that - with plenty of time for reflection, that it was time to stop this nonsense. Stop drinking cold turkey, and get treatment for depression & anxiety.
Great ! Diazepam (Valium) for alcohol withdrawal symptoms, meds to control seizures and Effexor-XR 150 mg for depression and anxiety.
I brought all these goodies back to China, with the Rx to counter any accusations that I may have inappropriate possession of these controlled medications.
Consumed the Effexor in 28 capsules over a month, made some enquiries locally about the availability, as I'd seen some advice about abrupt withdrawal.
Subject : Medications
From: "A doctor" (services@deleted.com)
Sent:Friday, 9 May 2008 10:34:15 AM
To: Jamieson@something.com
Dear Mr Jamieson,
Thank you for your email.
Effexor (by Wyeth) is available in 75 mg tabs, in boxes of 14. Each box costs 175rmb. Stocks are currently available.
Diazepam is not available.
Consultation charge: 350 rmb upwards (excluding first time registration fee of 100rmb).
Please kindly call us at 0512- 6*** ****, if you need an appointment.
Yours sincerely,
Nice Doctor
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.......visiting a General Practioner for FREE (vs 350 rmb upwards) and medication at an unbelievably subsidised cost.
Effexor 150 mg cost me AUD $5.00 for 28, Full cost : $51.30.
Do the maths. 75 mg x 2 = 7 day supply = $30 AUD. 28 day supply = $120 AUD.
J declined this generous offer and stopped taking the Effexor when it was all gone.
Then it started. Vivid, violent disturbing nightmares. Mongrel morning headaches that lasted until mid-afternoon.
*****************************************************************
The event.
Yesterday was a good day, a trip downtown to Starbucks for a free "Language Exchange" session with 2 pleasant young Suzhou ladies who covered my "transport fees" very handsomely. Get home, have dinner, shower, chat with Mrs. J. then curl up with:
"Economic Growth, Challenges, Threats to Nation-States and local culture in the Newly Industrialised Economies of the 4 Asian 'small tigers' "
and
"Chinese Government perceptions of regional order and implications for Australia".
A fairly usual routine at Club Jamieson, lights out at a reasonable hour, everything's fine.
VERY F***ing Unusual.
Jamieson is woken up at 2.16 am by an agonising chest pain and a severe shortness of breath, severe pain when breathing - couldn't breathe comfortably in any position except sitting at the edge of the bed. Felt a carotid pulse several times - regular and normal rate. Mrs. J. was blissfully sleeping.
What is this ? Pre-cursor to a heart attack ? Angina ? Musculo-skeletal spasm ? Some type of anxiety attack - what, in the middle of sleep ? - highly unlikely.
So, like an idiot I waited and hoped it would subside and I could get back to sleep.
Ignoring acute chest pain and panting in short, very painful breaths is probably a foolhardy thing to do for a 46 year old smoker with little exercise, a Chinese diet swimming in saturated fat and pork galore (Yuck).
Mrs J. wakes up to see what's wrong. We hum and hah, procrastinate and it's getting worse.
3.30 am and Big J has had enough, we get dressed, toddle out and get a cab to the Hong Kong Hospital Accident and Emergency Department. I didn't fancy being in a local Hospital, thanks very much. Of course, it's the most expensive Hospital in Suzhou * - but we have more than sufficient financial reserves.
This is definitely NOT part of the plan.
Register, and get straight in to see a Doctor. Very quick medical history and it's off to a treatment room.
J. gets the Nasal Oxygen Cannula, BP checked, a quick listen with the stethescope. Nursey wheels over the EKG and wires J. up, pops a tab under his tongue. Nitroglycerine ? New Nursey wheels up a trolley and takes 50 ml of Laowai blood.
Dr. White Coat wanders over, tears off the EKG printout, has a close look and assures J. that "it's absolutely fine". (Whew).
(Laowai = foreigner)
Jamieson is very happy to see Laowai-type brand names on gleaming VERY EXPENSIVE brand-new high-tech medical devices*. We've got General Electric, Raytheon, Hewlett-Packard connected to Mr. J. and some impressive Philips thingy over there in the corner.
And it's ALL for ME.
* Hence the high costs involved at this Hospital.
Nursey comes in again 10 minutes later. Mrs. J. interprets. "Roll over and bare an arse cheek, you're going to get an injection for the pain."
Oh, wonderful.
So, I'm laying there with a pulse and blood oxygen saturation sensor on the index finger, Expensive Orgasmatron beeping in synch with the ticker. Nice multi-coloured display on the monitor !
Nice snooze for 10 minutes at a time, frequently interrupted by Nursey pulling back the curtain to check on the Laowai. Then, Laowai starts running a temperature, nothing serious. Dr. White Coat comes in and checks the chart. He is nonplussed.
He mumbles something about a severe anxiety attack.
Jamieson mumbles about withdrawal from Effexor.
All seems well. "You can go home if you like, or we can give you an IV to lower the fever". J. selects the former. We get another taxi back to Casa Jamieson, scoff a few painkillers, crank up the air-con and blissfully sleep the whole day.
******************************************************I
I told him I had recently stopped taking Effexor, but I think that wasn't part of his training or clinical experience. After all, how many Chinese take anti-depression meds ?
Comments from others who have stopped Effexor - off the web.
" I TRIED TO WEAN MYSELF OFF LAST YEAR AT THIS TIME BUT BAM INTO A Panic disorder with agoraphobia ATTACK."
"Sample US Cost of Effexor: $100 for 30 75mg XR capsules. As of 11/10/2003. Full retail for the uninsured. Go ahead and gloat, citizens of civilized countries and all of you with full medical coverage."
"Some Effexor withdrawal symptoms: sensations of shortness of breath or smothering; feeling of choking; chest pain or discomfort; nausea or abdominal distress"
" A major depressive episode (DSM-IV) implies a prominent and relatively persistent (nearly every day for at least 2 weeks) depressed mood or the loss of interest or pleasure in nearly all activities, representing a change from previous functioning, and includes the presence of at least five of the following nine symptoms during the same two-week period: depressed mood, markedly diminished interest or pleasure in usual activities, significant change in weight and/or appetite, insomnia or hypersomnia, psychomotor agitation or retardation, increased fatigue, feelings of guilt or worthlessness, slowed thinking or impaired concentration, a suicide attempt or suicidal ideation. "
"Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) (DSM-IV) is characterized by excessive anxiety and worry (apprehensive expectation) that is persistent for at least 6 months and which the person finds difficult to control. It must be associated with at least 3 of the following 6 symptoms: restlessness or feeling keyed up or on edge, being easily fatigued, difficulty concentrating or mind going blank, irritability, muscle tension, sleep disturbance."
" Effexor (venlafaxine hydrochloride) is also approved for GAD. Yet it frequently makes the anxiety that is part of bipolar much worse. I can't honestly give a good risk/reward analysis for Effexor (venlafaxine hydrochloride) and anxiety. Given the experiences I've read of everyone who has taken it for bipolar and depression, I'm surprised it was even approved for anxiety."
"No one can stay upbeat and positive all the time; it's natural to have bad days. However, if you are having more bad days than good ones, talk with your doctor."
I did. I confessed. I have made a huge 180 degree turnaround on the booze thing, saving heaps of money. Dropped the drugs - and wham.
I was mulling the idea of returning to Australia for Cardiac treatment when I was in the bedroom, in the 'unknown' stage. I had no fear of dying - or going to die any time soon. Coherent and lucid, able to make rational decisions. Just God-awful chest pain and agony when breathing.
36 hours later I'm right as rain, zero side effects, no pain at all - business as usual. Now I have to get back into the books and research reports again. Which one(s) today ?
"Chinas unprecedented growth and implications for the Asia-Pacific region"
"A Shift in Focus. Australia and stability in East Asia"
Perhaps a quick leaf through "Beyond belief - Islamism, radicalisation and the counter-terrorism response".
A day in bed is nice, but there is a schedule to keep !
************************************
So, now you know.
"I'm clean now Baby, I promise..."
I'm just glad it was Effexor, and NOT high grade uncut Afghan Heroin.
That's Jamieson's Luck.
Don't get Sucked In - in Suzhou
Also known as "School Alert".
New English teaching schools and wanna-be Corporate Training outfits are popping up like mushrooms toadstools after a refreshing humid spring rain here in Suzhou.
BUT. Most have neither the legal authority to hire foreigners as teachers/lecturers, nor do they have a hope in hell of obtaining that authority. This, ipso facto, means that they cannot sponsor a foreigner for any type of visa.
They would just love you to wander along to classes/seminars/promotional bullshit gigs, toting whatever type of China visa you may have, be it an unfinished visa from a previous employer, or that hoary old stand-by, the Tourist visa.
Red Flag #1 
God help you if you get called in "for a chat" by "the boys" for being really naughty.
Teaching/working in China on a Tourist visa is like having regular unprotected sex with complete strangers.
It is absolutely essential for these outfits to have a specimen whitey to sing, dance, beam at the crowd, shake hands with all and sundry.
You would have thought that Jamieson's finely honed "scamometer" (TM, Pat. Pend.) would have gone way into the red line area, complete with "scam alert" Klaxons.
A thorough assessment of the glossy brochure provided by the would-be scammer(s) had lovely smiling images of former colleagues at Suzhou University - we were all working for what was a reasonable Department.
Jamieson mentioned "Hey, I know these folks personally. I even recommended one for a position in the Department" (and he was promptly hired by the University).
Nervous shuffling of feet by the management.
"Where's so & so ?" Jamieson asks politely.
"Ahhhh, he had to return to Australia for visa reasons - damn near deported." (Why ? Couldn't you organise a visa for him ?)
Red Flag #2
"How about Such & Such ?" "Tied up with other jobs, but still takes classes when required"
Red Flag #3
"Bullshitometer" (TM, Pat. Pend.) now smoking due to bullshit overload of the system.
Now I'm seeing :
***********************************
Any Western "Manager" who rants and raves at Chinese employees - in public and amongst their peers is riding for a fall.
Any Western "Manager" who calls their Chinese employee(s) "fucking useless, incompetent" etc. in front of other Chinese staff (and in front of me) is guilty of one of the most serious violations of employee management protocol in the whole of the People's Republic of China.
Then this particluar organisation has the temerity to offer "Employee Management Skills Training", "Management Techniques for Junior and mid-level Manager" courses.
Chinese feelings run deep, and they have extremely long memories.
Completely stripping a relatively junior and inexperienced Chinese employee of "face" in public might well result in you having an unplanned visit to the Emergency Room with about 19 rather nasty & deep stab wounds to the abdomen, neck and face.
I tell you what Dear Reader, China is NOT the place to experiment with bombastic and humiliating public diatribes against Chinese employees.
Here's the 'thing' in China.
Young "faceless" Leroy over there wearing the suit and trembling whenever Captain Bullshit starts another frothing tirade may well have an uncle who has a friend who has unsavoury friends - ad infinitum.
Mrs. Jamieson assures Jamieson that she indeed does have ongoing family relationships with relatives from Anhui who are part of the "Anhui Diaspora" across China.
Originating from Anhui no longer carries its former stigma. In fact, there are (surprisingly) officials (from Anhui) at most levels of Government and it has been "infiltrated".
To demonstrate that the Anhui stigmata is well and truly healed - look to the very summit of the Chinese Communist Party Leadership, a *rather* famous yet modest chap called Hu Jin Tao.
a.k.a. President of the People's Republic of China, elected on March 15, 2003....Hu Jintao, a native of Jixi, Anhui Province ......
Mrs. Jamieson reassures me that "One phone call is all it takes" to unfurl the revenge umbrella. I'm not by any means implying that she has a hotline to Beijing - but Anhui family & distant associates is a very powerful concept.
...and a quick chat in the village dialect to those in the know - galvanises immediate support.
Folks from Anhui are the type to punch,kick and stab first - then ask questions later. Some commentators refer to them as "Pimps, Goons and Thieves", which is rather a cliched overstatement, but a valid perception at times.
***********************************
You simply cannot arrive in China and use a "Treat them like 'Kaffers' " mentality.
Now, which country uses a derogatory term like 'Kaffers' ? Jamieson wonders to himself.
Do yourself a huge favour : Watch out for funny accents and those with on-line MBAs granted using "life experience" and USD$6,000 as the sole criteria.
You've been warned. I escaped.
Visas in China - Arrrgh ! And other stuff.
Text courtesy http://www.bizcult.com/content/?p=443
Our visiting friend first tried in vain to get a tourist visa last week, but the efforts were in vain due to a lack of empty pages in the passport. When she came back on Monday of this week, all the regulations had changed, and she was denied again. She was referred to the Chinese consulate’s website for information on the updated required documents list, which of course has not been updated since January.
The list of required documents that are now necessary for the tourist visa, which she gleaned in part from fellow wannabe travelers on their 3rd and 4th attempts, seems to be growing by the day, and is in addition to the regular application. No one seems to know what is going on, and the general consensus is that you are completely at the whim of the attendants’ moods. Here is at least what she ultimately said one could be asked for by the consulate:
* A copy of a hotel reservation made for the day of arrival, or a signed letter of invitation from someone currently in the country
* Copies of your plane ticket. Some have reported that visas are being denied on the basis of wanting to see actual paper tickets, which we haven’t seen since Mao was still alive.
* A bank statement with a minimum of US$3,000
* A letter from your employer saying you’ll be on vacation during the time that the airline ticket shows
We wouldn’t believe the list either if we hadn’t just got off the phone with the friend (who arrived at the consulate two hours before opening, and only managed to score 30th in line), but the account seems to align with what’s going through the mainstream media at the moment.
According to the International Herald Tribune, in the absence of an official line from Beijing about recent visa changes, the void is being taken up by rumors, stories and confusion.
We know for sure that multiple entry visas have been suspended until after the Olympics, but the latest twist is that only 30-day single or double-entry visas are being issued, and some expats already in China are being required to return to their home country to get them. That’s right, no more Hong Kong or Macau visa havens.
The article adds that there actually has been one official statement from a Chinese official. Jiang Yu, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, insisted no policy changes have been made, saying, “The Chinese people will welcome foreign friends in a warm, enthusiastic and open-minded way.”
In other words, bring every scrap of paper that they could possibly ask for when applying for the visa, and allow for plenty of time and backup plans. You’re probably going to need them.
*****************************************
Funny, I had to provide ahhhh, let me see.... NONE of this to get my visa in early May 08.
Seems my papers "were in order".
Must be something to do with me NOT being an American. As you know, there has been a lot of drama occurring between the US and China lately. Dodgy pet food, massive recalls of toys with lead based paint (children have a habit of gnawing on their toys)... the list goes on.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister of Australia paid a trip to China (amongst other countries) on his FIRST overseas foray after being elected earlier this year. He *notably* avoided visiting Japan, to China's glee.
Oh, I forgot to mention. The Australian P.M. just happens to be fluent in Mandarin. He made a pretty good impression by giving Japan the finger on that trip, and pissing into China's pocket - I daresay.
(Pissing into anothers' pocket : Australian vernacular for being so physically close to someone that you could literally urinate into their hip or back pocket)
Apart from that, Australia provides literally shit-loads of Natural Gas, Coal, Iron Ore, Bauxite and Nickel to China. We're not talking one or two boatloads here - visualise oh, $10 billion a year or so. Moreover, Australia doesn't have any nagging political or trade issues with China. We're not spoiling for a fight.
It's just better to shut up about certain things, the Chinese can handle their internal matters without too much unsolicited overseas "advice".
It's handy being Australian sometimes, makes things a hell of a lot easier - especially when it comes to getting a China visa but all that could change in an instant.
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The "Other Stuff".
Remember I mentioned thick books and essays in a previous post ? Read all of this - and many other leaflets, and read them fast.
Another Bloody University Assignment.
.... One important way is through the development of a set of materials that we have called the "Terrorism Intelligence Report". This assessment item requires that you research, document and analyse, in depth, two terrorist organisations that have been active over the study period.
.....We are not looking for complete coverage of the news, but rather a deeper analysis of just two groups. You should collect relevant information about the issues/events and collate them into a dossier. Once you have created your dossier you should convert this information into an Intelligence report.
We ask you to provide an intelligence report (around 2,000 words) that would be useful for the Australian Government in assessing the security implications of the organisations' activities (for Australians and Australia's national interests).
.....You should also suggest some policy implications and/or travel warnings.
_______________________________________
Man, I thought I'd finished that sort of stuff decades ago !
Getting my hands on classified documents, radio and email intercepts, real-time tactical movement information and satellite imagery in China is IMPOSSIBLE !
(But, who said I'd be doing that, huh ?)
Well, back to the old drawing board - public domain information.
That will be about as interesting as a visit to a 1/10th of an acre vegetable farm in Hunan Province on a rainy day.
*END*
Another one of those days.....
WTF ? The Internet today is a slow as a queue to buy tickets at a Chinese train station 2 days before a public holiday.
Sure, we have slow days on the web in Oz, but this is crazy. I get consistent timeouts on a lot of sites, and "Server is too busy " blah blah blah - including Hotmail which is VERY annoying.
I reset the ADSL modem, restarted the PC and emptied the cache hoping to improve things but to no use.
On a brighter note, I had an email from Griffith University (Queensland, Australia) last Friday telling me that my study materials had been sent by DHL.
The stuff arrived the following Monday morning. Hmmm, let's see. Brisbane Friday afternoon - Sydney - Shanghai - Customs - DHL Suzhou Depot - Wife's office in SIP in 2.5 days and that includes a weekend in between.
Now I'm waiting for another package from Charles Darwin University so the next 12 weeks in China will not be frivolous and fruitless.
So, Jamieson - ignore this message, and start reading *very* thick books, writing essays and so forth.
Bye !
Reaching into the Wallet
Lounging in the Marital Chamber at Club Jamieson with Mrs. Jamieson last night, I was surprised to hear her suggest that we donate 100 Kuai each to the survivors of the recent earthquake in Sichuan.
Image courtesy:
http://news.sina.com.cn/c/p/2008-05-15/015615540382.shtml
This rather surprised me, because it's been my experience that most Chinese only hand over money/loans to:
a. Family members (no matter how tenuous the blood link)
b. Long-standing friends with an impeccable credit record
So, according to Ryan at the Humanaught, DHL is going to transport relief supplies to Chengdu gratis from The Bookworm in Suzhou. Kudos to DHL in China.
I'm thinking a few cartons of instant noodles, powdered milk, baby food and maybe some blankets. A cash donation *might* get into the "wrong hands".
In Australia, I may be tempted to donate cash to bushfire relief appeals - but here in China I figure the Government has more than ample manpower, relief supplies and equipment to handle just about any natural disaster.
I was listening to Internet radio this morning - Australian Broadcasting Corporation and there was a piece as follows :
***************************************
Australian rescue teams earmarked to help victims of the Chinese earthquake remain grounded because there is little access to affected areas.
Tony Pearce of Emergency Management Australia says taskforces comprising 100 people with 22 tonnes of equipment are ready to leave for China.
But he says Australian offers of help have been turned down because conditions on the ground are so bad that Chinese rescuers have been forced to parachute into the worst-hit areas.
"If you look at the footage overnight the Chinese themselves are actually having to parachute in to some of those villages because they simply can't get access on the ground," he said.
Courtesy : http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/05/15/2245277.htm?section=justin
***************************************
Mister Pearce advised that they had sophistcated listening devices, endoscopic camera systems and the experience to really help.
In addition, he said that the taskforce members already had visas for China (a miracle in itself given the short notice involved), all the equipment was already stacked on pallets ready to go and they could be in the air within 6 hours of the nod.
However, looking at the state of the roads (on local TV) that have been mangled by the earthquake and the many HUGE landslides that block access roads, as well as - quite frankly the roads in many places have just slid down the hill into a nearby ravine. Soldiers and Rescue crews have been using explosives to destroy massive boulders blocking roads.
__________________________________
I rang my mother in Oz to reassure her the day after the quake - that everything was fine here in Suzhou, although I did notice a few more hairline cracks around light switches and on the walls, nothing catastrophic.
*End*
