Talk Talk China, the blog where three hardened expatriates detailed their frustrations with life in China to hilarious effect, is closing down. For a year and half, the blog entertained cynical foreigners and enraged the odd nationalist and politically correct Westerner, but that’s over now.
This is their farewell message:
The time has come to say goodbye. In the 1.5 years that TalkTalkChina has been up and running, we’ve had our soapbox to complain – and complain we did. This blog was set up because we just needed to get things off our chest and validate our frustrations. You have helped us do just that!
So why are we shutting it down now, at this time of seemingly great “success”? Well…because we are lazy. We’ve said what we wanted to say. Things aren’t so bad anymore – China is doing better as a country. It’s no Japan, mind you, but spitting is dwindling, traffic is getting better, pollution can be filtered with cigarettes and more people are choosing more appropriate English names, like “John”, instead of “Strong”.
To paraphrase Tyrell in the film Bladerunner: The light that burns twice as bright burns half as long – and you have burned so very, very brightly, D men.