Primal grunts

NEWS:
I had written ten professional tips for the Game Career Guide, which will be published by the folks behind Game Developer Magazine. It should be out soon.

WEBLOG:
I don’t know if this is just a thing common in Fuzhou, or if it’s like this everywhere else in China, but 80% of the time when I pick up the phone and the person calling has called the wrong number, they always just hang up. No apology. Not a word. Nothing. It usually goes like this:

Me: Hello?

Stranger: Hello?

Me: Yes? Hello?

Stranger: Huh?! (This is something they do–a very loud “huh?!” as if they either can’t hear you or believe what you just said.) *grunts* (Yes, they actually make this grunting noise that I can only describe as how caveman probably communicated with each other back in the day. It is not a civilized and contemplative “hmmmm” or “errrr” or “ummm” kind of sound, but an animal-like grunt.)

Me: Yes? Who are you looking for? (In the States we’d say “Can I help you?”, but that sounds strange in Chinese as it sounds like you are a salesperson, so you’d say “Who are you looking for?” instead.)

Stranger: *A few seconds of silence, then hangs up* (Sometimes another grunt, then hangs up.)

Me: WTF?

And every once a while a minor variation in the last step before the hang up:

Stranger: *Silence* *Says something to someone next to him/her, then hangs up*

Sometimes they are still not sure if they have the wrong number:

Stranger: So-and-so (person’s name)? (It’s never a polite and full sentence such as “Hi, is so-and-so there?”– they always simply say the person’s name only, as if I might suddenly transform into that person and go, “Hahha, had you fooled!”)

Only once in a blue moon do I get a proper, civilized response:

Stranger: Hi, could I please ask if so-and-so is there?

Me: I think you have the wrong number.

Stranger: Oh, I apologize. Excuse me. *hangs up*

The strange things is, I’ve observed that the polite ones are usually the ones that speaks proper mandarin Chinese without any local dialect accent, and the rudest ones are almost always the ones with very heavy local dialect accent. (There is stigma attached to people who can’t speak proper mandarin Chinese, as they are often seen as less civilized. I guess it’s similar to if someone in the States spoke with a heavy hick accent, you immediately think of trailer parks, pickup trucks, and shotguns. Ok, I’m just being mean now. I’ll stop.)

Oh wait! Just as I’m typing this, I got two more wrong number calls from the same woman. Instant classic. This is what transpired:

(Before picking up the phone, I said out loud, “Ok, this is your chance to redeem your people.” By your people I mostly mean the locals in Fuzhou. I’m pretty sure it isn’t this bad in cities like Beijing, Shanghai…etc.)

Me: Hello?

Woman: *Says something unintelligible–probably local dialect*

Me: Yes? Who are you looking for?

Woman: *Says something else unintelligible*

Me: I can’t understand you. Do you speak mandarin?

Woman: *More unintelligible stuff*

Me: I think you have the wrong number.

Woman: Huh?! *grunts* Wrong number?! *hangs up*

Me: WTF?

30 seconds later the phone rings again:

Me: Hello?

Woman: *Says something unintelligible*

Me: Who are you looking for?

Woman: *Says a string of something unintelligible*

Me: Look, I think you have the wrong number.

Woman: Huh?! *Says another string of something unintelligible*

Me: Do you speak mandarin? I said you have the wrong number.

Woman: Huh?! (in local dialect accent) How can I have the wrong number?! I call this number everyday!

Me: I’m telling you, you have the wrong number. If I don’t know the person you’re looking for, and you don’t know who I am, then obviously you have the wrong number.

Woman: Huh?! *hangs up*

Me: ….FAIL. You did not redeem your people.

Maybe I expect too much. Afterall, this is a place where you can sometimes see people openly pick their noses in public, roll it around between their fingers, and then flick it off–all in mid-conversation.

…

Our cargo arrived over two weeks ago, and had been held up in customs hell. Finally, after two weeks of back and forth we were allowed to go get our stuff, but some of it are still being held for inspection (anything that is politically sensitive or pornographic). My photography and painting books were almost confiscated because some contained nudity, and it’s absolutely absurd because I can walk into any bookstore right here locally and find the exact same things. And get this–you are not allowed to bring more than ten books or a dozen or so DVD’s/CD’s/video tapes, even if you are moving your entire house here. This is totally unreasonable because just about every modern family I know has at least one bookshelf, and it certainly contains far more than just ten books or a dozen movies and CD’s. On the other hand, it may not be all that unreasonable afterall, since the average family here barely have any books in their homes. When they find out how many books, DVD’s, and CD’s I have, they always ask, “Why do you have so many of those useless things? Why don’t you just throw them away?”

Sometimes it’s almost impossible to talk to people here because their lifestyle and values are just so different from mine. If I try to explain, I just end up looking like a total freak to them. Story of my life I guess.

…

I updated the 3D mock-up of my studio currently under construction:

All the models were downloaded from Sketchup’s vast libary of user-made assets, so I only had to do minor modifications. If things go smoothly, the studio should looks almost identical to the 3D mock-Up.

…

Quickie movie reviews:

Doomsday – I liked Descent a lot, so I thought I’d check out what Neil Marshal did next (although Dog Soldiers made me want to ask for that hour and half of my life back). Overall it was an over-the-top wacky film, and I had hoped for something a bit more realistic and serious. Some of the scenes made the digital cam look too obvious and made the movie look cheap–almost like some low-budget TV show (TV shows these days have excellent photography work, even if they aren’t shot on film). I don’t understand why if TV shows like Battlestar Galactica or Lost can make their shots look so beautiful, but a feature film like Doomsday couldn’t.

Charlotte’s Web – This was pretty much “Babe Lite” and I was disappointed by it. I know it’s based on a classic book, but it just wasn’t nearly as charming, heart-warming, entertaining, or as well-made as either of the Babe films. I mostly watched it because I love Dakota Fanning, and I was disappointed in how little of her acting there was in the film. But it looks like there will be some very interesting films coming up where she gets to flex her acting muscles

Vintage Point – I have to say, I like Jack more as a bad guy (for those of you that watch Lost). The premise was nothing compelling, and the the value of the film mostly rested on the gimmicky timeline jumping and viewpoint shifting, which had no meaning whatsoever beyond being a gimmick. If the same premise had been done in a gritty and realistic manner and told in a linear fashion, it probably would’ve been a better film.