Honestly, China

The ATMs in China will only give you 100 RMB bills. This is reasonable enough— roughly equivalent to $12 USD, they’re the biggest China has, and a few of them will last you though a week. The trouble comes when you try to use them. For unknown reasons, shopkeepers and cashiers in China are fanatical about exact change, and no matter how you try to pay for your 7.5 RMB bag of persimmons, they’ll look at you dolefully and ask if, perhaps, you have 5 mao— half an RMB.

But when you whip out a 100 RMB note, that's when all hell really breaks loose. The proprietor will usually open with a startled shriek, and look slowly up at you with an expression that seems to cry “et tu, Brute?” I usually try to look abashed and mumble in Chinese, but it’s often a lost cause; if I’m making a purchase under 5 or 10 RMB, they’ll turn away my business in favor of some ass with an endless supply of small bills. Honestly, China, what's the problem here?

The generator above is just another example of Chinese ingenuity, along with gunpowder and paper. In other news, yesterday's baseball game was canceled-- we showed up, and cars were parked all over our fields. Apparently, there was a Ping Pong tournament in the neighboring gym that had attracted an overwhelming crowd. Honestly, China, get a real national sport.