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Got my battery driven sweeping/mopping slave yesterday from Bed, Bath and Beyond. A neat-looking little guy, its 9″x9″x4″ (roughly) dimensions make it a lot sleeker than iRobot’s Scooba. You can use the sweeping or mopping cloth that come in the same package, or a disposible floor wipe- Anything that can be tucked nicely to the cleaning panel, which is attached to the main body by magnet.

I have hardwood floor in all rooms with an area and a runner rug. With a little guidance from the “beacon cube”, the Mint Cleaner moves around well, never gets stuck, and never steps onto the rugs. If the room is a nearly perfect rectangle, such as my kitchen, with only a dining table, a chair and some jugs on the floor, it can navigate the area w/ minimum repeated coverage (about 10 minutes for ~80 sq ft in my case). The living room is trickier. With the area rug in the center and starting off at an awkward location, it mops the corridor connecting the two areas beside the rug 3 times, and tried to go under the couch twice. But that’s probably also the best thing about Mint: if you have a ~4″ clearance under the furniture, it will get in there for you, and save the “ewww!” moment later when you voluntarily or involuntarily move that piece of furniture. The bedroom is even trickier, my under-the-bed represents sort of maze, and the bot perseveringly pushed any movable object- a small lamp, several boxes, a pair of slippers- around. As a result bedroom takes the longest time among all three rooms to clean. Fortunately, it always finds its way out of the bed area, though I stopped it from further messing with my stuff when it attempted to get under the bed again.

I have only tried the sweeping mode. Mint has so far demonstrated at least two ways of advancing: in an open space, it walks in a ‘Y’-shaped footprint, swinging slightly left, backing up to a tad short of the starting point, and then ahead and to the right. If it detects a corner, a wall, or an obstacle, it turns around quite a bit and tries to “attack” the walls head-on. Given that foot of wall is where dust gathers, this pattern makes sense. But no internal map was ever built, so the coverage could be uneven. Mint makes up for it by being conservative/redundant, if it’s not sure whether it has completed the job, it just keeps mopping, and mopping, and moppping…

A full battery charge takes at least 6 hours. The beacon cube uses #2 AA batteries. Cleaning my three rooms didn’t exhaust its power, and time will tell how well the batteries hold up.

The $200 price tag is acceptable, especially compared to previously released products, but not particularly appealing. I bought it with a bunch of gift cards from my CC cashback and also used a 20% coupon, so it felt like paying almost nothing. I would have thought twice if it was $200 straight out of the pocket.

Overall, I like my little robot who does the dirty work for me. I don’t mind moving my stuff around a little bit, so next time it can be less confused and finish the job more quickly. Its slow speed makes cleaning a very large home challenging. But in my case, I’m already quite happy.

When it comes to parenthood, if you forget about the twisted, sociopath kind, the only assumption we can safely make is that parents want what’s good for their children. (If you disagree, read no more and go talk to Sting about Russians.) Chinese moms and “western” moms are no exception. Then why are some moms more Chinese than others?

Now living in the US, I spent my entire childhood and adolescence in a Chinese family, in China. Even though my parents were not nearly as strict, controlling, and over-the-top as Chua appeared in her book, they are still Chinese. This means they expected good grades, held higher respect for music over other art forms, and defaulted a science/engineering degree for me. Sleepover was never an issue because it wasn’t popular at all when I grew up: most family simply didn’t have enough room to host guests. Except for those economical or material constraints, my freedom was abundant in my everyday activities; but my parents did exert a great deal of influence into what I value and pursue. And they did so merely reflecting what the society is expecting from its next generation.

So much about me and here is what I think. For one thing, Chua confused the means with the ends. What she claimed to be the typical Chinese parenting style was not universal at all; people adopt different ways to make their kids do well in school. I have many, many friends whose parents do not believe for a minute that childhood must be joyless to be fruitful. Nonetheless, Chinese parents do weigh more heavily on academic success compared to the average “western” parents, and as a consequence more likely to urge their kids to spend more time on schoolwork. But, and this is a very important but, you have to understand the circumstances. The stereotypical Chinese parenting, in its ends, should serve the purpose of helping their offsprings survive and bloom in the (typical) Chinese society.

If you look back into the Chinese history, you have every right to be amazed by how such a big, ancient country operated with basically the same social, political structure for the past 2000-something years, until very recently. One cornerstone that provides such stability is the imperial examination system, i.e., moving up the social ladder by academic excellence (doing well in tests), regardless of one’s family pedigree. Except for the imperial family, there weren’t many aristocrats or bureaucrats by heritage. The perception that doing well in exams can potentially change yours, and your family’s life entirely is a powerful aspiration. And it has been calcified as part of the Chinese culture. Moreover, that observation remained largely true for the most part of modern China, although the tests themselves, both in terms of subjects and forms, evolved dramatically. Similarly but to a lesser degree, Chinese culture has long acknowledged the importance of music to Li(礼, could be loosely translated as a combination of rituals or morals) above any other art form, thus leading to the disproportionate respect toward musical talent.

Survival of the fittest, in the original Darwinistic sense, might provide some insight into this superiority debate. In a society where shooting for a high test score is the primary means to well-being for maybe 99% of the population, it is a very good bet to pursue academic/musical excellence even if a kid is only mediocrely gifted in these areas. Because even if one is otherwise talented, their talents hardly lead to prosperity in the face of limited opportunities or social disrespect. But if the paths toward success are diverse, coercing children into a mismatch of their talent turns into a stupid idea.

So, are Chinese moms more superior? Well, that depends. I would argue in China, they probably are. Even in the US, the distinguishment between first-generation immigrants and later generations is important. First generation immigrants tend to be at a disadvantage on social support, in grasping the mechanism behind the society, and often on basic aspects such as communication. Being tight-handed, immigrant families in general have the tendency of encouraging their children to do well in school. Because it not only secures a (good) job by acquiring expertise of sort, but also is pretty much the best shot for their children to build a quality social network of their own. However, further down the road, when more doors have been opened and an established can better back up their children, it could only do a child good to expand the possible ways of building a happy, successful life, one that hopefully conincides with the real strength of the child.

Regardless of the requirements imposed by environment, certain things are invariably, universally desirable in almost every society, such as integrity, responsibility and royalty. Chua’s book largely overlooked that altogether, which is both unfortunate and sad. Good parenting is more about creating individuals with those inherent merits, the values that are close to the core of humanity. It is only secondary to install the right skills in children, to prepare them for a world we think they will be facing. Since nobody really “sees through” the world, or predicts the future, we are more or less all guessing the game here. So we better all be humble when it comes to parenting, and realize how arrogant and foolish it is to judge others by our own narrow view of the world.

Taken in June and it’s a blizzard in NYC that makes me finalize the post processing. Soon I should pay another trip to capture Mission Peak in winter… talking about procrastination.

Anyway, here’s the link: Mission Peak in Summer

出发：Nashville, TN

抵达：St Louis/Fenton, MO

总行程：2305.2英里

今日行程：335.4英里

St Louis（圣路易斯）今年刚刚“荣登”美国城市犯罪率榜首，让前两年的冠军长舒一口气。上周定旅馆的时候我大概花了5倍于平均的时间以确保在圣路易斯的住地是个安全街区，最后不是价格太高就是地段不好，干脆住到市郊卫星城Fenton，图个清净。来了以后才发现圣路易斯其实远没有说得那么不堪，就好像华盛顿特区一般，只要晚上不乱走，还是座很可爱的城市。大家可以放心去玩。

现在提起圣路易斯就会联想到The Gateway Arch，简称The Arch，中国人爱叫它大拱。大拱是个截面为三角形的椭圆形拱形建筑，建造于上世纪六十年代。它的造型很简洁大方，且表面都用不锈钢板覆盖，历经半个世纪却没有任何岁月的痕迹，在阳光下银光闪闪，非常神气。从密西西比河畔通过大拱看圣路易斯，就好像一个完美的相架框住了城市的地平线。这座拱比华盛顿纪念碑还要高几十米，但是因为使用了钢架结构而不是石块垒砌，显得非常轻盈。拱架内部有类似于摩天轮上小单元的电梯车，可以从拱脚里面花四分钟坐到200米高的拱顶，然后在制高点将整个城市的布局看个一清二楚。我觉得一个人需要身临其境才能体会到这个大拱的独特，就好像华盛顿的建筑，式样经典，但是靠细节和规模脱颖而出。就像演唱会一定要去现场听一样。再大的照片，后期处理再老道，失去了绝对的高度和立体的细节，远不能给观众带来现场的震撼。

在大拱脚下遇到一对来自Maryland的老夫妻和我们同行，排着队的时候就聊开了，彼此了解了一些有趣的生活点滴。比如，他们俩带了一个小玩偶叫Stanley，是他们孙辈孩子的“旅行代表”。他们每到一处都要带上Stanley，让他和著名景点合影，然后把照片寄回去给Stanley的主人。这个小玩偶可以发给任何有旅行打算的亲朋好友。他的主人在收到照片后会在地图上做标记、甚至做剪贴画，从而帮助小朋友们熟悉美国甚至是世界地理。再比如，美国人对中国的了解其实很有限。这对夫妻十多年前曾经和一个中国留学生是邻居，所以他们对中国的印象基本就停留在90年代的中国。由此，没有真正接触过中国人的老美（应该是大多数）会用看山顶洞人的眼光看中国，也就不奇怪了。

晚上在“金满楼”吃中餐，相比前一天的炸猪排炸鸡块，绝对是养胃的选择。余振威同学是我此次在圣路易斯的“地主”，不仅不远百里从Rolla驱车一个半小时到城里来给我做东，还送给了我一盒中秋月饼。几乎忘了中秋将临的我受到如此厚待，实在是远超我的想象。这一路上欠下的许多人情债，就请各位到三藩来追讨吧：）

出发：Asheville, NC

抵达：Nashville, TN

总行程：1970.2英里

今日行程：303.4英里

早上8点40出门，下午田纳西州的Nashville被称作是乡村音乐的麦加。这座城市的别名也叫Music City，音乐城。身处传统意义上的美国南方腹地，城市居民淡淡的南部口音，放慢节奏享受音乐美食的闲散，对来客乃至陌生人的热情——貌似千篇一律的大城市地平线之上，Nashville依然发散着老南方的气息。

今天的重头戏是乡村音乐博物馆兼名人堂。乡村音乐可以说是Nashville的灵魂。它的正式诞生大约可以追溯到上世纪美国大萧条前不久，继承了欧洲和非洲大陆的民歌传统，并在美国南方得以融合、发展，形成具有鲜明文化特征的美国本土音乐形式。由于起源于草根，它起初是被称作hillbilly music，标准的“下里巴人”音乐。无论是欢快的bluegrass还是倔强的honkytonk，都拥有叙事式的平民化歌词和琅琅上口的优美旋律。这座博物馆的造型很别致，正面的墙壁仿佛被一只手轻轻握住搬呈微凹的弧线，屋顶两头微微上翘，好像一艘小船的侧面剪影。在博物馆的一侧弯曲的墙壁围拢过来包裹住一座尖顶圆塔，仿佛五线谱上的乐符正随着这圆轴的转动而徐徐展开、流淌。在一楼大厅的大片玻璃幕墙之内有人工阶梯式瀑布，前面设有咖啡厅；配着悠扬的乐曲，在这里小憩也当是分外惬意。在Nashville的乡村音乐博物馆里有着三十多个展柜，陈列有海报、唱片、著名音乐人曾用过的乐器和演出服装、歌词草稿等等，甚至还包括猫王最喜爱的轿车。每隔几步耳畔就会想起不同的乐曲，有时还配合着银幕上的图景，展现了各个时期乡村音乐的风貌。这些展品和电影、录音资料一起，配合文字和录音解说，剪影式地回顾了从十九世纪二十年代到当代乡村音乐的发展历程。其中细节之丰富足以让爱好者欣喜，向门外汉普及。一个世纪内，乡村乐的形式发生了许多变迁，但作为整体依然保存着最初的灵魂，用耳朵一听便知。就像这老南方的气质般，皮毛已易，风骨犹存。

晚饭根据Yelp的推荐去了Monell’s，Nashville城市北头一条平静的小街上一座颇似民宅的小餐馆，擅长传统的美国南方菜式，比如炸鸡块（肯德基炸鸡的发源地Kentucky州是田纳西州北面的邻居）、烤猪排、土豆泥、strawberry shortcake等。这家馆子每周内的不同日子都推出不同的菜式，但是并不像一般的餐馆那样由顾客点餐，而是给所有食客都提供统一的食物。更有趣的是，不论来者是谁，是否相识，都安排在一张张可坐12人的大长桌上共同进餐。一群陌生人把一盆盆食物互相传来换去，很快便会从客套开始热烈的攀谈起来。餐馆的门楣上写着“Come in as strangers, leave as friends”（来时陌路，离时挚友）。就拿我来说，这句话还颇有几分真实。我和邻座的一对年过古稀的老夫妻一边大嚼猪排一边聊天，还真了解了不少彼此的情况。比如他俩依然在工作，一位供职福特，一位在可口可乐。他们拜访过美国五十个州中的四十七个，老头的心愿是有生之年能回到他曾祖父的家乡爱尔兰去旅行。他们的现在住在佛罗里达的Tampa，那里是美国冬季的草莓之都，最便宜的时候一大纸盒只卖两块钱……我们还相约下次我去佛罗里达时去拜访他们。由于吃得实在太撑，我甚至没有心思去计较什么罪恶感了。第一时间腆着肚子回到旅馆后在床上挺尸了足足三个钟头，直到睡觉时才稍微好转。令我百思不得其解的是常常来这家吃饭的老食客、比如坐在我右手边的牧师父子，是怎么保持身材的。

Nashville是我在南方的最后一站，明天向西北进发，进入中西部大平原，前往美国西进运动的门户，St Louis（圣路易斯）。

出发：Chapel Hill, NC

抵达：Asheville, NC

总行程：1666.8mi

今日行程：243.7mi

西进！终于要告别在东岸蹭吃蹭住、吊儿郎当、朝着反方向开车的生活，开始每天向西推进。根据周末订好的全程规划，第一天先到北卡的Asheville就好。早上9点不到出门，区区250迈的路程十二点半时就开完了。我这横穿美国的驾车行还真是没什么强度。

为什么要在Asheville住下呢？这个环境优美、充满活力的山城位于著名的景观路——Blue Ridge之上；向西就是the Great Smoky Mountains National Park（大烟山国家公园，当初国家公园系列音乐里有两张相关专辑），号称是全美年访问人次最高的国家公园；同时这里还是美国最大的私人府邸The Biltmore Estate所在地。修建Biltmore的Vanderbilt家族也就是建造前面访问的The Breaker的家族。他们在十九世纪后期通过货轮和铁路等运输业敛得巨额财富（放到今天绝对是富豪榜前五的人物），一家人又十分爱好建筑和艺术，所以几位Vanderbilt家族的当家人倾注大量财富和精力修建自己的庄园，希望它们能成为不朽的宏伟作品留给后人。Biltmore的主体建筑与其说是一幢房子，更像是一座城堡，毕竟拥有几百个房间的私人住宅还是太稀少了。和The Breaker相比，Biltmore里有更多的艺术品、壁画、雕塑、书籍（Williams Vanderbilt先生常被人称为书虫）；还有室内温水游泳池、健身房、保龄球道等大大超前于他们所属的时代的设计。从客厅外的露台可以远眺连绵起伏的山峦，一对石狮镇守的正门前则是气派的草坪喷泉。各个房间的装饰品、生活用品细小到墙纸床单茶杯钢笔等都尽力复原当时的生活场景，建筑和装潢的细节令人赞叹。

也许是太久没看过这么多娇艳的花朵和江南式的庭院了，在今天一下午的走访里，最让我开心的却是庄园西侧的花园。Biltmore的花园分为好几个区域。一进门有条镂空木格作墙的走廊，上面爬满了葫芦藤。初秋的阳光下，挂藤的葫芦已经腆出圆圆的肚子，皮色却还泛着青绿。从木格的空隙和椭圆的漏窗里可以看到两边的各色花草，包括两片玫瑰园，里面种满各地各种的玫瑰/月季/蔷薇。一个有正厅和两翼的超大暖房就在走廊尽头的台阶下，许多亚热带、热带的植物都可以在里面看到，包括中国人非常喜爱的兰花，在这里也饱受美国人的赞叹。沿着路边的小溪走到花园的最远端时会发现一个池塘，通过一侧的瀑布可以调节池塘的蓄水量。池塘周围有亭有桥，水中还有一队鸭子嬉戏，远离入口的这片水面因此显得分外宁静。除此之外还有其他花园，比如春之园（不出意料，秋天的春之园没什么可看的），以及通往附近山林又顺着山坡绕回的小径。小径的入口处甚至还有一丛竹林，倍感亲切。北卡的天气让我想起江南。四季分明，河湖纵横，绿树成荫，鸟啼虫鸣。真是个宜居宜游的美好地方。一直在想，如果中国的江南不是经过几千年的开发、开化，也许看起来会和南北卡分外相像。包括这里还没有来得及经过水稻种植发育的砖红壤，也是长江中下游土地本来的颜色。随着北卡黄金三角稳健发展，越来越多的中国人来到北卡，也许不久的将来就会打造出北美的小江南也未可知。

看完这座庄园，真想说大款不稀奇，像这样把生活的方方面面都要做到极端精致的富豪，美国这几百年历史上恐怕也就这么一家子了。相比之下，今天好莱坞大多数的所谓名流，水准修养差得实在是太远。而如今美国大街小巷里穿着拖鞋、沙滩裤、体恤走来走去的大叔大妈们，仿佛和Biltmore墙里的种种隔了不止一个世界。

今天还尝了尝本地的葡萄酒。美国产酒的地区其实很多，但是最好的还是在加州。Biltmore自己的红酒乏善可陈，白葡萄酒口感还不错，至少不输给Finger Lakes，有机会的话不妨试试。

访问：Jordan Lake State Park, NC

总行程：1423.1mi

今日行程：42.8mi

在北卡休整的最后一天。把黄石的旅馆都订好了，下午去Jordan Lake湖畔散了散步，读读杂志，还小憩了一会。Jordan Lake和附近其他湖一样有着无数的枝杈，开过几座桥发现还在湖的同一侧。湖畔都是森林，偶尔有几片沙滩点缀其中。水还算清，在初秋的下午依旧温暖。游船和微风掀起的波浪涌向岸边，温柔地拍打着沙滩；树荫下微风拂面，带来附近松林的气息和婉转的鸟鸣。这个近在咫尺的湖区真是个休闲度假的好去处。晚上（又一次）吃了sushi，很满足。告别东岸的亲朋好友，养精蓄锐完毕后，明天起终于要开始向西部推进了！

访问：Duke University, Durham, NC

Duke是个很秀气也很大气的学校。秀气是说这个学校校园面积不大，藏在阔叶林深处，仿佛世外桃源。大气是指它的建筑风格，据说是Duke的创办初衷是建一座南方的Harvard；但其古典砖石结构的校舍在我看来比Harvard的建筑漂亮多了。它的教堂内有高耸的石柱，优雅的拱顶，大片彩绘玻璃和管风琴，墙壁和风琴周围还到处可见精细的木雕装饰。校园内还有个颇出名的植物园，按照地域分成几个园区。我在其中一个看来颇具亚洲风格的小园子里还第一次在美国发现了一株水杉——其身形尚显瘦弱，应当是移栽不多久，但感觉很亲切。

回来后把下周的旅馆都预订妥当了。后天就要开始本次旅途中驾车最密集的中部行程，希望一路能顺风顺水，向wild west挺进:)