Rebecca A. Foster

Those of you who read here before I left for China know it used to be called “Stuff I Love.” In memory of times gone by, here are a few things I love right now: 1. Fit To Strip , the workout DVD by Carmen Electra. I know, I know, it sounds lame, but disc 2 is a calisthenics routine that has nothing to do with stripping and everything to do with building strength in your core, legs and upper body. I used this DVD before I ran a half marathon a few years ago and was the most toned I’ve ever been. I let myself get chubby after my dad died, so I’m back on a strength training/toning regime, and this DVD is part of my new routine (along with running, weights and yoga). It kicks your butt in a really good way. Amazon.com, $12.99 2. Community , the tv show on NBC. One of my friends in the U.S. prodded me to watch this show, and it takes the place in my heart that used to be occupied by The Office until The Office turned kinda lame. (Sorry, but you know it’s true.) Abed and Troy crack...

There is a phenomenon of giving directions in China that I still don’t understand: people will only give you directions to the next block. For example, “Go straight ‘til the next intersection, then turn left.” Now, you as a Westerner might think that means that after you turn left, you’ll be there. Oh no, my friend. This is just the beginning. If you don’t see what you’re looking for after you turn left, you ask someone else, and get the next set of directions. You will keep doing this, block after block, until you arrive at your destination. This happened to V. and I when we were in Chengdu for training. I needed to get to Tiffany & Co.* to get some jewelry cleaned, and he came with me. I didn’t know where Tiffany was exactly, but I figured it was downtown near the other big shops. Turns out it was in a new shopping plaza built a little zig-zaggy ways away from where we were. It took four sets of directions to get us there. Yup, that’s about right. Also, be aware: you will alw...

As soon as I discovered my bra had removable straps , I knew the next step would be losing one of 'em. Sure enough, a strap went MIA only the second time I took them off. Bra straps are my new bobby pins! Luckily it's fashionable right now in China to have fancy, exposed bra straps, so I went across the street to the accessories store and bought these as replacements (along with a clear set): (Perhaps these are also now fashionable in the U.S.? I'm not keeping up on the home trends very well.) It's one of the dichotomies of life in China: a very conservative culture in which it's completely acceptable for your bra and panties to show through your clothes. And by panties, I mean the 1/2-inch inseam denim shorts in size -3 that are so popular here. They're pretty much denim underwear. (And Chinese girls have no cellulite, so they look great in them!) In my city, a popular summer outfit for girls is denim panties, fancy-strap bra, long sheer shirt, and high he...

I was unprepared for the amount of panties I see everyday in China. I don't mind panties, I think they are quite cute, but I'm used to them being a private or semi-private thing. Not so here. It's one of the lovely paradoxes of China that this quite socially conservative culture displays its undergarments so freely. (It is also possible to buy panties on the street like you would a baseball hat or purse.) It's popular to say that in China there is no sense of privacy, but I didn't understand all the ways in which this concept manifests itself here. Publicly hanging up your underwear is one such way. A bit of backstory: clothes dryers aren't used here, you have to hang your wash to dry. Most people choose outside drying and many apartments have special bars outside the windows on which to hang laundry. Those that don't have them make their own drying lines (pictured above). As a result, you constantly see cute, fancy panties hanging in windows and outside d...

According to Mexican tradition, brought to San Antonio by its large Mexican expat population, the color of panties you are wearing when the clock strikes midnight determines what you will find in the new year. So, you should wear red panties for passion, yellow panties for prosperity, and rose colored panties for true love. I love this tradition, because how easy is it to find rose colored panties vs. red ones?  RIGHT. The Mexicans are onto something. I always wondered about yellow vs. green for prosperity, but green panties are hard to find too. I guess this one is just about practicality. I have also heard you should wear yellow to find true friendship. 

San Antonio airport gates 10-14 concourse, where in 2006 I accidentally dropped a pair of black panties that had been laundry-basket-static-clinged inside the navy blue hoodie wrapped around my waist and a cute guy stopped to pick them up for me and it was kind of like a movie but not really because actually it's embarrassing to drop panties at the airport in front of a cute guy, you don't really want to chat when he stops to help you pick them up, but every time I walk down that concourse I smile.