A few days ago on the subway I was reading my book, happily unaware of my surroundings when my boyfriend Josh interrupted my ignorant bliss to alert me to a particularly disgusting individual sitting directly in front of me. The man was a middle aged Chinese man with salt and pepper hair, seemingly normal except for one disturbing behavior. He was picking at a scab on the back of his neck, with a pair of toenail clippers. I had to actively hold back vomit every time he snipped at the wound. The sound the nail clippers made as they hacked small particles of crusted blood and pus from the scab still haunts me. By the time he disembarked the scab had become an open, bloody sore. It was horrific, but the truly disturbing thing is that this is not the first time I’ve seen something on a Chinese person’s skin and thought, what the hell is that and why are you picking at it?
I’ve noticed that a great many people suffer from skin aliments here ranging from dry patches and dandruff to what looks like severe psoriasis and irritated red welts. I can only assume the problems stem from a variety of factors including poor nutrition or hygiene, unsanitary conditions, pollution and untested topical products. I have struggled with adult acne since my early twenties, but when I moved to China the problem intensified. Compounding the problem is the fact that I cannot escape from the things that trigger my acne. The pollution in Shenzhen, though better than many other large cities, clogs my pores and the water I then use to wash my face is also polluted. The food I eat I know does not undergo the same type of sanitation regulations that it would in America and so I fear that I often eat things that aren’t good for me, let alone for my skin. Then there are the products I put on my skin. Not only are the labels ambiguous but they are also incredibly hard to translate. Chemical compounds like benzoyl peroxide aren’t exactly part of most English courses so nobody knows them let alone can translate them (even my spell check is flagging the word benzoyl). And the limited variety in many shops means I habitually have to choose between a product with unknown contents or a product with whitening properties (see my blog White Beauty for more on China’s obsession with porcelain skin).
A lot of the time I feel hopelessly acne prone living here and it’s a bit depressing. But sometimes I am able to find a little humor in the situation, like when a student told me that I looked much younger than my 31 years because my acne was like a teenager. Umm, thank you? And my acne hasn’t gotten so terrible that I feel the need to pick at it with a toenail clipper while riding public transportation, so I guess that’s also something to be happy about.
Hi, I read your texts with interest, myself having lived in China three interesting years a few years back. Your texts are enjoyable and well-written, but perhaps that’s why mistakes are noticeable. One spelling mistake per post happens even when we double-check, but much more is a bit disturbing. “a open, bloody sore” is of course correct with ‘an’; “sever psoriasis” should be ‘severe’; “untested topical products” should be ‘tropical’, though I’m also a bit uncertain about what you mean by ‘untested’. I can understand your shock at the remark about your acne, though I know that they are prone to saying such blunt remarks in our faces, but I suspect that you’ve missed the mistake in it (which they are also prone to making), which made the remark outrageous, identifying your acne to resemble a full-grown teenager – it should have been ‘my acne was like that of a teenager.’ Anyway, we have to get used to such things. Wiping their noses and throwing the result on the pavement, or sitting in classes with a chorus of loudly sucked noses in winter-time passes under our threshold of sensitivity within days or weeks, so will some other features.
One more thing. It’s true that benzoyl peroxide is not part of courses, but in cases of factual uncertainties, we have more to rely on than our spell-checker. Wikipedia is one such great source, and, among other details, it says of this substance that it is “one of the most important organic peroxides in terms of applications and the scale of its production.” There’s nothing surprising or translatable there, but of course, a little research comes in handy. Or is Wikipedia now also unavailable in China? It would be a real shame, although no surprise.
Thanks for the posts anyway and keep up your enjoyable efforts. SP
SP-
Sorry it has taken me a few days to respond to your comment, but as you seemed to have put a great deal of thought into it I wanted to do likewise with my response. First let me say thank you for the comment, I enjoy getting feedback both positive and negative or in your case both. I’m going to respond to your grammatical edits first and then to the content of your comment.
Spelling, as you and every one of my teachers since second grade has pointed out, is something I need to work on. I don’t know why I am continually befuddled by spelling, though I suspect a great deal of it has to do with laziness. My blog is really meant as a form of communication with family and friends back home, and perhaps to make a few new friends here. So often I treat it with the casualness of an e-mail- something I fire off during my lunch break, do a quick once over then send off. It definitely doesn’t get the formal editing of a professional piece and so little mistakes do slip through. Please know that I will try to keep a sharper eye on my spelling, but I wouldn’t hold your breath because as I said before I’m a bit lazy (and actually hopelessly okay with that.)
I don’t know why in the sentence where I’m talking about lotions and oils for the skin you think “topical” (of, pertaining to, or applied externally to a particular part of the body) should be tropical (very hot and humid; pertaining to characteristics of the tropics). Perhaps you misunderstood what I wrote, but I assure you the word I want here is topical.
By untested I mean the exact definition of the word: not tested. Surely if you lived here you know that many products sold in China are not properly tested before sale. Even food products have this problem which is why a great number of people buy food in Hong Kong then ship it to the mainland. There is very little regulation on the research or production of products here and so there are dangerous products on the shelves of many stores. Did you not have this experience in China?
Additionally you have a couple more grammar points you call me out on, like the wrong article in front of open which of course I’ll need to go back to change. However, you point about needing “that of” for likening my acne to a teenager I disagree with. While it is true that many people believe that “good” or “correct” writing must strictly follow formal grammar rules, I think that modern writing styles and the globalization of the English language allows for different interpretations of the importance of certain grammar rules. I can’t count the number of times students have asked me if “at the weekend” (British style) or “on the weekend” (American style) is correct. Rules, as people refer to them, are really simply conventions based largely on location, and many of them are changing.
I think this is especially true for something as informal as a personal blog. This blog is about my personal experiences and thoughts while living in China told through my words, and I guess I just don’t think or speak with “correct” grammar. However, I don’t view this as a negative thing. My writing is a direct reflection of me, grammar mistakes and all, and I believe conveying my individual style in this case is more important that adhering to grammar. I’m sure you’ll also see that I start sentences with conjunctions and end with prepositions. These things are not done out of ignorance, but rather a stylistic choice. If your personal reading style demands a dogmatic adherence to formal grammar, then I warn you that my writing may indeed be, as you say, “a bit disturbing” and unlike my spelling this is not about change.
Additionally my personal style isn’t the only writing style that defers from strict adherence to traditional grammar rules. Many modern styles especially in the journalistic arena lean more toward the less is more idea and routinely omit thats and these and whose and whoms because they are unnecessary for comprehension and can make the writing seem stuffy or slow. I believe that the true function of grammar is to aide communication by normalizing style, but if understanding is achieved does the form matter? I suppose some would argue that the deterioration of formal grammar usage equals the deterioration of the English language, to that I stick out my tongue and make farting sounds. You may not like my grammar choices, but to imply there is only one correct style for writing in English is outdated.
As far as some of the content in your comment I disagree when you say we “have to get used to such things.” Why does living in a different culture equate to blind assimilation? I have what I consider a respectful tolerance of these actions because I understand that Chinese culture and manners are different from my own. However, after over a year of living here I would not say that I have gotten used to their behavior, nor would I want to. I hope that a person spitting in my classroom always shocks me.
I am also confused why you have explained what benzoyl peroxide is to me. I know what benzoyl peroxide is, I’m the one looking for it. I will hazard a guess that you have not suffered from acne because then you would know that benzoyl peroxide is one of the most common ingredients in over the counter acne medication. I think you have misunderstood this section. My problem isn’t figuring out what it is, my problem is translating benzoyl peroxide into Mandarin. Or were you saying that you think I could go up to the counter and ask for “one of the most important organic peroxides in terms of applications and the scale of its production” and that the sales lady will understand that I am looking for benzoyl peroxide?
Lastly your assertion that Wikipedia is a reliable source for all information, well I hope that’s sarcasm.
Thanks again for the comment.
Hi, Mary, in answer to your problem, one of my friends in China wrote to me that “benzoyl peroxide seems to be 过氧苯甲酰.” Good luck!
Thanks PS I’ll try it out!
Hi, the answer from the other friend has come in quickly too: “过氧化苯甲酰过氧化物 or 过氧化苯甲酰 I think that is right because the other dictionary says benzoyl n. 苯甲酰 peroxide n. 过氧化物” Cheers! SP