it's not uncommon to see

It's recently come to my attention that I've been stuck in a crappy day for going on a month and a half now, so I'd best update my blog. However, as I've said before, I no longer feel like a tourist here, so I no longer feel compelled to spend every free minute I have exploring some new side of the city. That, in addition to having been rather busy at work for the month of August, has left me with remarkably little to share with you now.
Instead, I'll offer a few more of those crumbs that I promised to share a while back - a few more things that make Shanghai just a little different from Austin. The theme for today: It's not uncommon to see...

• People, usually men, sleeping on lawn chairs on the sidewalks or just off the curbs – in their underwear, more often than not.
• People, usually men, bathing themselves on the sidewalks or just off the curbs – in their underwear, more often than not.
• Hair salons with pink lights and scantily clad women inside. Obviously, you get more than a haircut there.
• Hawkers on street corners, peddling everything from cheap knickknacks to slippers to pirated DVDs. I'm told the latter usually sell for about 10 kuai a piece. Blockbuster and Vulcan Video would never survive here.
• Farmers on street corners, carrying upon their shoulders a yoke from which hang two baskets filled with a seasonal fruit. A month or two ago it was peaches and, I think, lotus. These days I'm starting to see some persimmons and a few fruits I've never seen before.
• Muslim Chinese serving freshly roasted lamb shish kebabs from their street carts.
• Babies' bottoms revealed by the open flaps in their pants.
• Parents holding their babies up next to a tree or over the grass as they – the babies, that is – relieve themselves.
• People of all ages playing badminton in any available open space – usually in the park.
• Middle-aged and old men and women singing in a chorus or dancing the waltz or foxtrot in the middle of a public park, as bystanders gather around to watch.