‘Springtime is seen as a season, growth, renewal and new life. But it is also a time when chronic diseases break out’
This has been an excellent week, one in which I secured first ever coverage for clients in mainstream English language publications in China, gave EASTWEST it’s Chinese christening and avoided all Spring related illnesses. I started the early part of the week in Shanghai working with our local partners at a press briefing for our clients the
Asia Public Real Estate Association. Enveloped in the 5 star luxury of the 4 Seasons hotel it was easy to believe one was in New York, but when I went back to the 168 Budget motel past the rows of pink-lit massage parlours masquarading as hair salons, and was accosted by children and their begging mothers outside expatriate watering holes, it was clear that in Shanghai the streets are not paved with gold. Our press briefing on the Monday secured coverage in the Shanghai Daily and China Daily, discussing the lack of transparency that exists in China for property investors and the need for international standards to enable Real Estate
Investment Trusts (REITS) to be safe investment vehicles for international fund managers. A day later Giorgio Armani arrived in Shanghai to announce the opening of 40-50 stores in China over the next five years. The finer detail of a lack of property title transparency was less appealing to the publishers than the sight of the Dorian Gray of fashion surrounded by spring chickens of the catwalk. Spring is officially here, because the heating is off. I arrived back to SOHO to a chilly apartment. Tired and fractious after a days travel I felt the intense frustration of being completely unable to influence my surroundings – the radiators were stone cold and the all-in-one aircon/heater units appeared to have no electricity to them. November 15th to March 15th is apparently the period during which Beijing residences receive heating – regardless of temperature or personal choice. One person somewhere on the grid apparently flips one switch and we are all driven to reach for sweaters, scarves and duvet. Today it was 22ºC. The temperature gains a mean 8ºC during the month of March, rising from Hi/Lows of 7ºC/-4ºC at the start of the month to 16ºC/3ºC at the end of the month. Mercifully because spring is officially here, the same hand that turned off the heat is turning on the water giving life to plants and grass, and flowers in gratitude are bursting into bloom. Nature’s contribution to Spring is the big wind that she uses to scour construction sites for cement and dust the city with a fine grey grit. According to Chen Zhi Yong, a Traditional Chinese Medicine expert, springtime is one of growth and renewal but also
the potential for sickness is high, not least due to this large wind which causes the barometer to rise and fall, affecting one’s Qi or life force. During winter our bodies, like trees, store up energy which forms the essence of Qi, but also toxins. In the springtime these toxins flow as evil Qi that poison our systems, causing illness and skin diseases. Springtime is considered the season of the liver, the cleansing organ, and the organ that is responsible for ensuring the smooth flow of Qi as it takes its passage outwards towards the extremities of the body giving healthy activity. The warmth of spring has also brought health concerns about avian flu, H5N1, and this week government officials were vaccinating pet birds in the park as 16 people in China have been infected so far, of whom 11 have died. The numbering of Avian Flu got me thinking about names and the impact of a name on success, a concern this week as I had to christen the China Company. Chinese people, admittedly mainly girls, have adopted English nouns to make their names easier to pronounce for foreigners but also because it sounds cooler. I have met girls called “Rain”, “Ocean”, “Seven” and at the press briefing a journalist with the Shakespearan name “Ophelia.” Jessica of ‘Lee and Lee’ devised some nice names which had both the sound of EastWest and a meaning of ease and listening. The problem with translating EASTWEST directly is that while Dong (?) means East and Xi (?) means West, when spoken together as EASTWEST /DongXi (??) they mean ‘thing’. “Thing PR” seemed a little inarticulate. We settled on Yi Tong ???? – which means easy communication, but in this language blessed with ambivalence, can also mean ‘easy to go through.’ Spring is coming to Beijing and with it many blooms. Tomorrow I am having delivered a new computer, printer and router which will create more of a sense of this space being an office and not a weigh station for my adventures, and with posting an advert for the first member of staff I am working to create a team that can connect with the team in Singapore and the Beijing community. The main challenge that everyone has told me they face in Beijing is that of recruitment and then retaining staff. The young people that I have met so far have been extremely earnest and keen to please, but then they have been seeking a placement and it may different once they have the rights of an employee. Now that it is officially spring time, the added concern is that potential candidates are not suffering from an imbalance of the elements of wood and earth, or H5N1, and of course that they like my new company name, Yi Tong??. NOTES
CHINA DAILY, "How to Stay Healthy in Spring," 22 March 2006 Thanks to weather.com for precise, unbiased view of the weather Ophelia is the submissive daughter of Polonius, a chief advisor to the new King Claudius, in the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare. She is deeply loved by both Hamlet and her brother, Laertes. ... upon in the play Tong was the character that I originally chose for my logo in 1995 and therefore has sentimental connections while also remaining true to the vision of the company.
Investment Trusts (REITS) to be safe investment vehicles for international fund managers. A day later Giorgio Armani arrived in Shanghai to announce the opening of 40-50 stores in China over the next five years. The finer detail of a lack of property title transparency was less appealing to the publishers than the sight of the Dorian Gray of fashion surrounded by spring chickens of the catwalk. Spring is officially here, because the heating is off. I arrived back to SOHO to a chilly apartment. Tired and fractious after a days travel I felt the intense frustration of being completely unable to influence my surroundings – the radiators were stone cold and the all-in-one aircon/heater units appeared to have no electricity to them. November 15th to March 15th is apparently the period during which Beijing residences receive heating – regardless of temperature or personal choice. One person somewhere on the grid apparently flips one switch and we are all driven to reach for sweaters, scarves and duvet. Today it was 22ºC. The temperature gains a mean 8ºC during the month of March, rising from Hi/Lows of 7ºC/-4ºC at the start of the month to 16ºC/3ºC at the end of the month. Mercifully because spring is officially here, the same hand that turned off the heat is turning on the water giving life to plants and grass, and flowers in gratitude are bursting into bloom. Nature’s contribution to Spring is the big wind that she uses to scour construction sites for cement and dust the city with a fine grey grit. According to Chen Zhi Yong, a Traditional Chinese Medicine expert, springtime is one of growth and renewal but also 
the potential for sickness is high, not least due to this large wind which causes the barometer to rise and fall, affecting one’s Qi or life force. During winter our bodies, like trees, store up energy which forms the essence of Qi, but also toxins. In the springtime these toxins flow as evil Qi that poison our systems, causing illness and skin diseases. Springtime is considered the season of the liver, the cleansing organ, and the organ that is responsible for ensuring the smooth flow of Qi as it takes its passage outwards towards the extremities of the body giving healthy activity. The warmth of spring has also brought health concerns about avian flu, H5N1, and this week government officials were vaccinating pet birds in the park as 16 people in China have been infected so far, of whom 11 have died. The numbering of Avian Flu got me thinking about names and the impact of a name on success, a concern this week as I had to christen the China Company. Chinese people, admittedly mainly girls, have adopted English nouns to make their names easier to pronounce for foreigners but also because it sounds cooler. I have met girls called “Rain”, “Ocean”, “Seven” and at the press briefing a journalist with the Shakespearan name “Ophelia.” Jessica of ‘Lee and Lee’ devised some nice names which had both the sound of EastWest and a meaning of ease and listening. The problem with translating EASTWEST directly is that while Dong (?) means East and Xi (?) means West, when spoken together as EASTWEST /DongXi (??) they mean ‘thing’. “Thing PR” seemed a little inarticulate. We settled on Yi Tong ???? – which means easy communication, but in this language blessed with ambivalence, can also mean ‘easy to go through.’ Spring is coming to Beijing and with it many blooms. Tomorrow I am having delivered a new computer, printer and router which will create more of a sense of this space being an office and not a weigh station for my adventures, and with posting an advert for the first member of staff I am working to create a team that can connect with the team in Singapore and the Beijing community. The main challenge that everyone has told me they face in Beijing is that of recruitment and then retaining staff. The young people that I have met so far have been extremely earnest and keen to please, but then they have been seeking a placement and it may different once they have the rights of an employee. Now that it is officially spring time, the added concern is that potential candidates are not suffering from an imbalance of the elements of wood and earth, or H5N1, and of course that they like my new company name, Yi Tong??. NOTES CHINA DAILY, "How to Stay Healthy in Spring," 22 March 2006 Thanks to weather.com for precise, unbiased view of the weather Ophelia is the submissive daughter of Polonius, a chief advisor to the new King Claudius, in the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare. She is deeply loved by both Hamlet and her brother, Laertes. ... upon in the play Tong was the character that I originally chose for my logo in 1995 and therefore has sentimental connections while also remaining true to the vision of the company.