August 20, 2008 12:08 PM
Chopsticks Are the New Tongs
In my continued pursuit of journalistic excellence, I've been forced to make sacrifices. Late nights. Long hours. Bad press box food.I've taken my lumps in the past, and here in Beijing, I'm willing to make sacrifices for you, the readers. With that in mind, in search of the great story, I did as any responsible reporter would and headed back to Club Bud.
And yes, I did uncover one story that's getting seriously underplayed in the news media: the Chinese do not use tongs.
Last night, a friend ordered a Corona at the bar. When the bartender needed to put that signature lime in the bottle, he reached into a large bucket and pulled out two chopsticks, before deftly snaring a lime and somehow maneuvering it into the beer.
It was an impressive effort. It's only a matter of time before this catches on in the States.
Also seen at Club Bud:
Evander Holyfield -- who may or may not have be living at the club -- was there again. At least two major cable TV reporters were there. Some swimmer, along with two Jews and a black guy, also showed up. Not sure who they were.
The majority of the medalists, though, remained anonymous. I don't mean to say that they went unbothered, because they were busy all night. What I mean is that no one seemed to know who they were.
Example: inside, one American was taking photos with fans. He had a gold medal around his neck. I asked one kid with a camera who the medalist was.
"How should I know?" he said. "He's wearing a gold medal." He didn't seem to understand the non-sequitur.
It's worth noting that Angelo Taylor, the the two-time gold medalist who no one seemed to recognize, used to work as an electrician. Anonymous then; semi-anonymous still to those without CCTV here in China.
Join the discussion