Swedes who work hard, play hard
THE Swedish Society held its first get-together in the new year on Friday evening at O'Malley's pub on Taojiang Road.
Air quality improves
SHANGHAI'S air quality took a turn for the better last week thanks to speedier winds and less frequent inversion (cooler air trapped near the earth's surface by warm air), according to the latest report from the Shanghai Environmental Monitoring Centre.
Baby sun bear born on New Year
A "SUN bear" cub born on New Year's Day in Shanghai Zoo is now in good health and under the special watch of zoo keepers.
21st Century English contest
FORGET millennium celebrations. Forget Y2K bug. "Prospects for the 21st Century" is the new topic for a new era.
Nike jerseys safe, TBT levels miniscule
NIKE (Suzhou) Co, wholly-owned subsidiary of Nike Co - a global giant in the manufacture of sports products - admitted yesterday 251 of its Borussia Dortmund soccer jerseys from Europe had been made with raw materials containing TBT, but emphasized all of its other products in China are made from safe substances.
Ex-couple in court over fraud
HEARINGS began yesterday morning at Municipal No 1 Intermediate People's Court regarding Cai Linfen and Qiu Laifa who were suspected of being involved in a 62.96-million-yuan ($7.6 million) fraud.
Man stabs girlfriend to death
A MAN who confessed to hacking his girlfriend to death when she tried to leave him is now in police custody.
Jaywalkers arrested for violence
A TOTAL of eight jaywalkers who used violence against traffic police have been detained recently.
Man jailed for killing baby girl
A 21-YEAR-OLD man was recently arrested for strangling his infant daughter just after his girlfriend gave birth to the infant, according to Yangpu District Procuratorate.
Experts evaluate China's WTO entry
LOCAL experts seem to be pretty confident China's entry to World Trade Organization (WTO) will not have any immediate disastrous effects for Chinese banks.
From race course to People's Square
SHANGHAI was once known as a "Paradise for Adventurers." Few places could conjure up a more graphic picture of old Shanghai's decadence than the former horse race track on what is now People's Square.
Teachers wanted
LOCAL universities are going outside city limits in the search of the teaching talent needed to fuel Shanghai's economic takeoff in the new century.
Socks appeal, or does size matter?
AN Acadian American I know has trouble with his socks. The size that is. He has a good grip on the ground, which was the polite way your maiden aunt had of saying you have very big feet. Plus he likes to walk - one of the world's best forms of exercise. As he plans to do this a lot around Shanghai during his one year of tenure here, he is fast wearing out the socks he brought from the United States. He ruefully shared with me that he has been buying some socks recently that are tissue thin and, after two or three washes, assume the size of babies' bootees. All this will change as he finds his way around the city. He will discover the fine Shanghai woollen socks for the cold weather, and the elegant silk and cotton creations favoured by the leaders and tycoons. Not the limp silk variety I bought one time, which now can be used as the sleeves of a sweater. Hopefully, he will toe the line as regards the wearing of white socks - except for sports, the gym or casual wear - and not join the ranks of white-socked men in suits. But size does matter when it comes to socks, especially when a big toe works it way through to freedom through your footwear. So too does quality. I recently got the first blisters on my heels since primary school days. It was a combination of a pair of fancy dan New York men's wear brand, made-in-Italy shoes, that I had bought elsewhere on sale, though still at great expense, and was lusting to wear. Of course they had fitted and felt OK in the plush department store. But when I decided I wanted to be shod suavely and sophisticatedly here in Shanghai, they had mysteriously shrunk to crippling dimensions. Undeterred, I trustfully donned some thick socks -which I liked - in a vain effort to break the shoes in. Now the socks are so holed, I can't give a darn about them. I too must go on a pedestrian pilgrimage to find their replacement. Footnote: I still want to wear those shoes. Brian Cummins is an Australian now working in China.
Copyright 1999 by Shanghai Star. All rights reserved.