Posted 7:30 AM by Andy

I have a brief respite, so let me run through the annals of my mind for recent memories of note.

International Fellowship. After the malaise I suffered in July where I felt a great sense of alienation here, I reasoned the proper anecdote would be some nurturing fellowship. I attended a few community group meetings held in Pudong. Most of the group are Southeast Asian and in their forties with a sprinkling of young adults. There is a lot of collective wisdom that I can draw from. I met a few well-heeled businessmen including the former CFO of Jinjiang Hotel, now with a private equity firm. The first Sunday service will start this coming weekend in Jinqiao which will be a boon to folks like me.

Hanging with ballers and shot-callers. As I age ever so gracefully, I've noticed that my peers are ascending into increasingly more prominent roles in the global society. Two weeks ago Dave P came through with a couple of friends. He has a passion for international development having spent a couple years with World Relief. One interesting question to wrestle with is how to set the compensation packages in an equitable way in an organization that employs natives and expatriates from various places while still attracting talent. Chris L put his Wharton business education on hold to work at Skype. It seemed like a wise move when he described it, and now two weeks later, that decision is absolutely brilliant with Ebay's acquisition of his firm. We also hung out with Grace, a consultant with Boston Consulting Group, and Victor, a former lawyer and current Wharton student. Conversation typically would revolve around business models, leadership, and GDP growth of China versus other developing countries (Goldman Sachs projects China to overtake the US in 2041 in total GDP.) This week I just bade farewell to Gideon’s drawmates who were in town for his wedding. They are an eclectic and fun group. Their collective expertise includes medicine, development economics, product marketing, and market research. I had fun playing ball, talking about mutual topics of interests (girls), and kicking it in the city. Snippets of conversation I remember:

“Let's move away from the topic of language and back to girls.” Jeff to me.

“Guard him. You have to give him respect. Treat him like Kobe.” Gid to Mike, referring to me.

“Did you know Justin had a crush on your sister?” Jeff to me, with Justin on my other side.

“I thought your sister was so attractive.” Mike, slightly buzzed, to Andy K.

“I was surrounded by supermodels.” Andy K, about a night at an exclusive club in London.

“I was crushed when the love of my life asked me to go to Germany and she showed up with another guy.” Mike, describing the one that got away. “What’s her name?” Me, in response. “WK.” “I know her and her boyfriend is a good friend of mine.” Upon hearing this, Mike bolted out of his seat and shook my hand.

“I had once lacked confidence in my basketball skills, but now I really enjoy the game, to the point where I dominated today and blocked two of Andy Pan's shots.” Anthony, crediting his progression from bball scrub to solid player to Gideon and dissing me in the process.

Contrary to the perception given by this selective sample set, the guys are actually really eloquent and deep. We gave toasts to Gid at his bachelor party, and the quality, candor, and humor displayed were unparalleled. It was very touching to see grown men spill their guts about how they feel about another man. I was not repulsed by their borderline homosexual overtures towards each other either. Of course, Gid looked sexy that night at our behest.
The wedding itself was simple and sweet. The weather held up as the ceremony went was conducted without a hitch at Yongfoo Elite's garden. One highlight was the draw-group's rendition of “Julia and the Beast”. They shouldn't quit their day jobs, but it was a rousing and funny tribute. Afterwards, we had dinner at Xintiandi followed by chilling at Guandii. I can safely say I was with a few of the most eligible bachelors in Shanghai, but the girls there wouldn't know it because of their understated styles.

More friends. After digesting “Never Eat Alone,” the relationship networking primer recently, I am intentionally taking advantage of every opportunity to connect with people. I met Ray P at the wedding. He travels on a cruise ship and evangelizes to people at ports around the world. I listened with rapt attention as he recounted the time when he was in the vicinity of a suicide bombing in Beirut and rattled off a list of exotic locations he has been like Seychelles and Mauritius. I saw Annie L passing through from her vacation in Malaysia with Eddie. She absolutely looked more relaxed and content after having stepped off the corporate ladder and forsaken her attorney obligations. Eddie just kept encouraging me to mingle more with the female denizens of this city. I reconnected with King L who is here working for a GM joint venture. This week I will see Florence L, an Indonesian-Canadian who is in the fashion business and also hope to catch up with Pui and Jennifer M this weekend.