在北京

The New York Times recently ran an article on Chinese hip-hop. I thought it was fascinating how there was a "poppy" version of hip-hop and a more grass roots, "authentic" version of hip-hop. So I started looking for this song and came across a lot of mp3s that were Chinese opera. But I finally found this song both in mp3 format and on Youtube. The other interesting thing was that this version on Youtube is a cleaned up version of the, I'm assuming, original song. Here's my translation of this version. The whole rap reads like a commercial advertisement for Beijing. Which is really interesting because I took a look at the lyrics for the "dirty" version, and it seemed way more real. For instance there's a line in the dirty version that says, "In Beijing, there's dog poop everywhere." And the line in this version that says "Everyone rides a bike" is "Everyone has had their bike stolen." This probably had to do with getting their rap approved to be broadcast, but still, in translation, there was a lot I didn't understand. A lot of it had to do with being unable to differentiate whether something was the name of a place or it was actually trying to describe an object. Language is so interesting… So, I don't really feel like these lyrics are so awesome but I do think the song is catchy and I like the way they filmed their video. The original lyrics are probably better. (On a side note, I feel weird translating this. There are a lot of Chinese phrases that just sounded stilted in English. I can see why a lot of signs get translated so weirdly; even if your English ability is high, it's hard to find a good translation…)

Intro: Have you heard of Yin Cang? (隐藏) Uh…I'm not sure. Have you heard of Yin Cang? What was that? Uh…no. Have you heard of Yin Cang? Where is Yin Cang? [pause…] In Beijing, word… (the funny part of this is that the guy literally uses the Chinese word for "word") In Beijing, you're walking on the capital streets. In Beijing, there's tons of hot girls. In Beijing, incense sticks are in the temples. In Beijing, cruising in your hood in the HuTongs. In Beijing, go to the Forbidden City to study history. In Beijing, there's stuff to buy like a t-shirt. In Beijing, Tiananmen square is too big. In Beijing… You don't understand. My house is right on the eastern gate, Their house is on the college street, All of us go everywhere so you better hide cuz there's nothing in BJ we don't know. The whole ocean is a school with a computer store. [I have no clue what this means] At the intersection of the fifth road is where all the foreigners buy their CDs. At night you can go into the ocean, go to a village three miles away to drink a little, Both places have karaoke, [something that I reveals my lack of knowledge in Chinese] At night, not only is there dancing, drinking, talking but there's other stuff to do too. On the next day, when you get up from bed you'll [feel like you're walking on air?] Taxis have two prices: 1.20 and 1.60. Traffic is usually ok, but sometimes there is traffic. No need to tip at the restaurants. Roast duck and noodles, on Gui street you eat hot pot, oh my god there's too many choices! When you get up you smell the mountain fragrance, you feel the immensity of nature Don't forget when you come back to go to the Summer Palace. BJ University has friends and really hot girls, On ChengFu street there's a train you can go into downtown on. In Beijing, that's where the 2008 Olympics will be. In Beijing, it's getting more and more pretty. In Beijing, there are lakes and rivers. In Beijing, everyone rides bikes. In Beijing, China's capital. In Beijing, winter's a little cold. In Beijing, there's the People's Heroic Memorial. In Beijing, you know it now! You can buy cellphones at the gate. You can buy clothes at [another location somewhere in BJ] You can get lost at BJ's west train station. From [some place] to [my poor Mandarin again reveals itself]. At SanYuan bridge they sell old electronics. Fifth Ring Road, you'll get through traffic soon. The Fourth district has so many roads, I can't tell them apart. Zhaoyang district has the embassies, the street has big trees. Long distance bus stop busses are on the expressway. The royal well is really clean. The Eastern Frontier Art Gallery is really peaceful. [Some other places and how great they are] BJ welcomes everyone to come back.

Dear Fantasy Football

I'm sorry. I know I let you down. I started the season on a high note. I told everyone how much I loved you, how I would have to commit to limiting my time with you because, without limits, I would kill myself by spending an overabundance of time with you. And, to be honest, I thought you were perfect. Fantasy Basketball, Fantasy Baseball, they asked for too much commitment. Nobody really hangs out with Fantasy Hockey. And Fantasy Soccer? I didn't even know Fantasy Soccer was around. I mean, look at last season… I played in three leagues and came in first, second, and third in those leagues. I would have come in first twice, but Brady had a bum game and I lost by 3 points because of an interception. So this season, I bragged a little about us. I thought I could do five leagues…I figured if I did work for one league, how much harder could it be for five leagues? Well…I know it really hasn't worked out this season. I started strong with a pretty good draft. But then Brady got hurt. And then Larry Johnson didn't perform. And, I'll be honest, you just weren't the same FF that I remembered. And I'll admit, things are different now. I don't get to Tivo a bunch of games and watch them in HD…and it's hard to really connect with players and get pumped to really get into you. Plus I got Real Football hanging around with folks after church. Things aren't super serious, but it was just one more thing to add to the laundry list. I've actually thought a lot about you. And there's a lot about you that I didn't get. Like how even though there were some superstars out there, doing statistically awesome, Real Football didn't depend on Fantasy Football so much. I mean, even if a dude throws for 300 yards, 3 TDs, and no interceptions, his team could still lose. Week after week, a guy could run, catch, score, but the ultimate goal could remain unattained. I guess I shouldn't have been surprised right? I mean, you're first name is Fantasy, not Reality. And, I don't know if you noticed, but I'm seeing this other girl. She's funny. She's smart. She's beautiful. And…well…we got married. Shocker right? And I should've told you. I should've called you. I should've invited you. I just thought maybe we still had something this season… But it's really not the same at all. I have to watch real, live games to really get into you and I'm not able to. Anyways, I just wanted to say it's me and not you. You're the same, year after year. I'm the one that's changed. I know that right now you're probably hurting and that this probably doesn't help at all. So I'm calling it off. I won't call you and you definitely shouldn't call me. It hurts me too, but I think it's the best for both of us. But I know that there will be a time in the future when you'll look back at this and just laugh. And maybe I'll even be there to laugh with you. Wishing you the best…