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I have completely let this Tumblr lapse, but after a chat with my Tulsa next-door neighbor Susan, I realized there are some people who still read this thing every once in a while.

I mentioned to Susan I was learning Russian in London, and happened to come across some Romanov vacation photos shortly afterwards. The first thing I thought is, wow, I always knew the dynasties were inbred, but the resemblance of Tsar Nicholas II to George V and his progeny is absolutely uncanny! Then sure enough, here’s a photo of the two of them together. Amazing. Queen Victoria had some strong genes…

So, there’s a Russia/England link to remind anyone who may be reading this that I’m still here, and still interested in the most arbitrary, random things. Happy Holidays!

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From a book fair in Beijing … a completely natural historical progression from emperor Qin Shi Huang to Indira Ghandi to Queen Elizabeth, Lenin and finally to the man himself. RIP.

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accidentalchinesehipsters:

I think I saw her on the L train.

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My first half-marathon—July 2, 2011—Xiwuqi, Inner Mongolia.

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Working at a gas station must be even more boring when there are no cars. Eerie. But surprisingly artistic.

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My article on CNN.com! (the one with the picture of the Chinese cop)

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I love the way the design looks on this.

My Chat with Sexy Russian Robot

Hi Brainy! I can’t wait for you to put many small humans in my phone! Will they make toys? What kinds of toys? I can’t wait to approach random people in the subway to talk about the tiny humans in my phone. Where are you from?

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Chinese Squirrels

I am doing a quick story about people who raise pets in Beijing for a local magazine. (Not hard-hitting journalism, but hey, why not). I just composed an email interview to someone who raises squirrels and translated it back through google translate. I’m very entertained by what I got back:

Your animals are squirrels or squirrel? Flying squirrel? Ground squirrel? Is there any difference?

Where did you find your chinchilla? When looking for animals, there are many choices… Why do you want to keep a chinchilla?

You also have raised squirrels friend?

Chinchilla sick, you are right it is to vet it? Which one?

Its name? It be?

Yang squirrel is hard? Need a lot of work it?

About your chinchilla, your favorite aspect of that? Least favorite?

HAHAHA um … wow.