The Audio Blog of Steven Sirski

Back in the Shuangjing, but feeling a little bit under the weather. Just knackered from this week. Am coughing a little and the throat doesn’t like these ling days. Managed to get the weighted run done AND 100 pull ups etc, but slow going and only did HALF of the pull ups with the vest on. Is this age, mindset or just a bad day? Had lunch with one of the HR ladies, she spent a year in HK getting a...

Throat is definitely stressed. Snatch and grab breakfast! Came back to do laundry. Lu Xun (狂人日记 - “Diary of a worker” but Wikipedia tells me it’s “Diary of a Madman”) - an example of contemporary Chinese writing, had never heard of him before but he’s mentioned in the PPTs- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diary_of_a_Madman_(Lu_Xun) Apparently I gotta start making my own PPTs! starting in Week 3!...

今日惊蛰 昆虫苏醒，译得好棒！The insects awaken!  Apparently it’s the beginning of insect season. Late night, early morning, could I make it back for breakfast?!! Got some things done this morning: gym, squats, lunges, some chest, 20 min run for about 2.5km… should’ve done more. This is an unsustainable lifestyle. Looking at TikTok ads and Shopify, still looking around to see what’s available. New...

Finding a new groove. How’s the hotel? Did get to the gym today but… yea, hotel gym. In the evening. Breakfast buffets, missed them, but didn’t. I always liked the idea of having a three-hour breakfast. Problem is? When do you find the time? How much can you possibly eat? Conversation classes today. At first went slow and took my time. Then… two minutes and out. NEXT! Quite a few Beijingers, Hangz...

Welcome to March, and welcome back to class. The classroom that is. Sitting in Changping, it’s a little 荒凉 huangliang (desolate). Same with the university, but it does have enough. Supermarkets, canteens, and modern tech in the classroom. It’s about 20 minutes by bike from the hotel. Took a cab up with a suitcase full of stuff. Figured I’d take some old stuff with me, use it, get rid of it. Spok...

End of the month! Well, it’s official - done and done and badges handed in! Busy morning: Russian reading, bike ride 10 min (fast), deadlifts (100kg x 5, 105kg x 5) Morning class x 2 115 pull ups, 230 push ups, 345 squats Pengyou came over for a bit to catch up. Night time run? 6.53 km in 54.50. Saw a guy who used to live on the compound, now lives one compound over. Apparently got divorced. Getti...

22K and counting! New YouTube monetization level UNLOCKED! Join in a Shopify store? With what?! Can we trust those websites that promote Chinese wholesale? Looking at Chinese websites found on XiaoHongShu for Chine wholesalers… most are inaccessible and not operational! Lightinthebox (LITB) - stock has tanked and basically offers the most generic shopping experience you could imagine: it’s sourcin...

18,000 views! Almost at my target! Workouts in! Morning bench and squats, afternoon run 6.46km in 41.21 (getting warm out there!), then 20 minutes of slam ball work. Thinking about businesses and websites, Shopify? Could I create a storefront on Shopify that promotes Chinese language learning products? What about other products from China? Does it have to be China? Donate to the show! PayPal link...

How many times can you say the same thing in a day? THREE CLASSES all about language syntax. Luckily I’ve got a lot of material to work with AND I skipped the whole description of prepositional phrases, predicates and adverbs. Bad? Well, how do you make any of that stuff crystal clear to a group whose first language isn’t English? New Chinese language check up on the YouTube channel. New podcast o...

After an eight year hiatus, to the day almost!, a return to the classroom! Online at least. Voice is sore, haven’t talked that much that often in a long time. Not sure it will be the same in person as it is online. I kinda like online since it can be done so quickly, but then you just need to talk cause not sure if the students even understand what’s going on. Also, quite sure even more now that t...

Out with one, and in with the other. Meetings, and greetings, onto the next! Workouts in! X3! Morning: deadlifts, rows, shouldersAfternoon: 100 pull ups, 200 push ups, 300 squatsEvening: 6.55 km run in 53.16, no extras todayWhat’s the new job like? What’s the schedule? And Alibaba go boom! Up! Donate to the show! PayPal link below!https://www.paypal.me/stevensirski?locale.x=en_CA***Show notes n tr...

Nothing like a day without running water! Why? Cause it’s the semi-annual rip up the concrete fest! And so ends one chapter, and begins another. Last day and thinking: did I do the right thing? Is this the right move? Welp, only time will tell, but I can say that this is not the next big thing, this is just for now. So, now, what about China? Do I stay or do I go? Is the country going to get bette...

I admit! McDonald’s yesterday AND I bought Coco Pebbles! I’m terrible! Who is Bryan Johnson and why does he matter? Here’s the list with each supplement on its own line (from https://fastlifehacks.com/bryan-johnsons-supplement-list):1. Acarbose2. Ashwagandha3. Astaxanthin4. B Complex5. BroccoMax6. Vitamin C7. Calcium Alpha-Ketoglutarate (Ca-AKG)8. Cocoa Flavanols9. CoQ1010. Vitamin D311. DHEA12. V...

STOP SWALLOWING! YOU LOOK LIKE A MUPPET!DI.fm going all paid??? No more free tier?!?!Language vlog podcast out! Need to do another language check soon! Big Podcast, gotta figure something out. I don’t think I’m done but it’s not easy to manage all of these projects. GOLD dropping, COT is way overbought but… is this the end? Not likely. INDL sure taking its time. Canadian energy also looking pretty...

Beginning of the week! Last week at old job! What will happen next?!Newsletters out! Language vlog and Substack! Written by me, but the idea to publish more is in the works. How do I get AI to help out? Saw NeZha2 (哪吒)! Not bad, but didn’t understand very much and couldn’t read the subtitles cause of the guy in front of me. NEED TO BOLSTER MY CHINESE LISTENING SKILLS!Workouts in! 6.45km in 46.16...

情人节快乐！Happy Valentine’s Day! Roses are red, violets are blue, I didn’t buy flowers, how about you? Just give money instead? Ukraine peace deal in the works, will need to cede some land to Russia? Should Ukraine just build its own military up better than it is now? Haven’t done much language studying, and few videos posted to the language vlog because… working on automations and shortcuts, th...

Gentlemen, get your engines, be them ignition-based or footwear, and be sure to make time to get some flowers or send a red packet to the lady in your life. Even if they say it doesn’t matter, it does coz… bragging rights. The women will brag. Rising costs, are they worth it? Descript bumps prices by $10! But the things I use it for. Listening to the language vlog podcast, not bad. Sounds pro, rig...

Happy Lantern Festival! I think this officially ends Spring Festival. Workouts in, but slow going. Is it the winter, the weather, the weight or am I just getting old? 6.45 km in 42.31, then 10 minutes of slam ball but… since it was slow running decided to finish up the workout after work. Buying a company in China? Would it even work? Or would I get screwed? Codie Sanchez and Gary Vee talked about...

Self heating 火锅？！Hot pot that makes itself?! SLV podcast out, how many of these can I do in a day? Gotta get my stamina up! Stalled on the subscriber count, which seems odd. BUT… did you know you can create a website using Google Sites? Should I just go all in with Google? Starting a business in China - good idea or bad idea? Tech or education? What about a GPT that uses DeepSeek to teach and...

MORE automations done, how does a Chinese tech company sound? Will GPTs replace teachers or enhance the learning experience? And Steve, why haven’t you built one just yet?https://www.wsj.com/opinion/the-new-wave-of-ai-is-here-some-jobs-will-go-but-others-will-be-created-0dbf9f63?mod=itp_wsj,djemITP_hOut Saturday night, and a long march home. I want to say that’ll be the last time I do that but, re...

Cold and windy! Is that natural or is that a wind machine cranking up? Still went for a run, 7km in 1 hr 4 min 47 sec, plus pull ups, push ups squats, lunges and duck walks. More automations, thinking I might just release the transcripts to this podcast. Will you even look at them? Thinking of spinning off a new show, China Market Report - but not sure I really like talking about this stuff. And S...

“The door to the American Millionaire’s Club is not locked. Contrary to popular modern belief, it is still quite possible for the successful individual to make his million - and more. There will always be room for the man [or woman] with energy and imagination, the man who can successfully implement new ideas into new products and services.” - JP Getty, pg 24 Pros and Cons of China? Let me tell yo...

Back to work! Is this is it? GOLD STOCKS moving, Chinese stocks?? Top five songs to demonstrate that Neil Peart is among the elite drummers of the world? 1. Tom Sawyer (their big hit) 2. La Villa Strangiato (prog af but good drums) 3. Spirit of the Radio (rock) 4. One Little Victory 5. 2112 Overture 6. Fly by Night Worked on a few more automations and shortcuts. Might cut my Repurpose.io subscript...

More automations made! But having some trouble with “big data” - SSAB transcripts are too big! Slow to figure out, but see the potential and what else can be done. SLV podcast is out! Yes, I’m a week behind. Eleven Labs can clone your voice… and PAY YOU! Remember what I said about the future of companies requesting or requiring access to your voice? … But you have to be on the “Creator” plan which...

February already! Let’s say that at the beginning of every month! BUSY DAY! Slept TWELVE HOURS, from 7 or 8 pm last night to about 7 am this morning. Why? Not sure. Double workouts on Sunday. I think I worked out on Saturday, too. Workout in late today (6.52km in 47.41) then some rope work, etc. Why late? Longtanhu Park Temple Fair ALSO, spent the morning editing several videos for the language vl...