'Halfpats, the new expats'

I recently had a talk with one of my few American friends who actually got a job in America after we graduated. It was only three weeks into the new job, a copy editing position at a decent big-city magazine, but already the honeymoon was over.

"It's going OK, I guess. I don't know, I have an appointment at the Peace Corps office tomorrow."

It's just that simple. If work doesn't work out, maybe it's not the job you need to change. Maybe it's the country.

At least that's what a growing number of recent American graduates think. There are more than 6 million American expats living abroad now and according to a recent Wall Street Journal article, the most entrepreneurial among them are young, unattached travelers willing to wander until the right career track finds them.

We're "halfpats," according to this article, or local for-hire expatriates that are younger, cheaper and more willing to take risks, thus the meandering that lead us so far from home. Not only am I surprised to find myself among this workforce, I had no idea I chose one of the best destinations for halfpat hiring. (My halfpat friends and I are pictured above. The smaller photo is another halfpat friend, Kelsey, embracing the Malaysian therapy of being lit on fire.)

The Beijing area and China have been boom territories for these marketable expats, according to the WSJ article. In lieu of the previous economic slowdown and now crisis, people see strength in China; 44 percent of Americans already think China is the world's leading economic power, according to a February Gallup poll.

We kids are marketable because we don't come with the costs of transportation, family relocation or housing. In most cases, halfpats have a cultural understanding and better language skills because they often come during college or right after, Richard Brubaker, blogger and manager of China Strategic Development Partners, said.

"Halfpats, with prior work experience of 3-4 years, and prior in-country experience of 3+ years, have already proven their ability, desire and commitment to operate in China," Brubaker wrote in an article for China Success Stories, a business Web site. Brubaker sees this "widely available talent pool" as a great resource for business management in China.

I've seen evidence of the "halfpat" phenomenon in my own microcosm of under experienced, over educated and thus unemployed friends. I know four History majors moving to Spain, one political science major already in Turkey, a marketing major maybe in Paris and myself, a wannabe journalist and English teacher in China. But in three weeks, I've gotten job offers over the phone, taken up tutoring and looked at opportunities hosting a radio show, writing bar reviews and acting. (Yes, acting. Foreigners with little or no acting experience in China are often sources for movie or TV show extras, when a role calls for that Western face. Read more here)

My friends are having trouble just getting apartments in the also slow economies of the European Union, let alone extra tutoring jobs to supplement a meager 700 Euro/month income.

It seems the gap year halfpats can actually make money, and forgo the calls home for cash typical for the last 20 years. That is, as long as you're in China.

Collections of Conversations #1

I've taken notes on comments that sounded pithy, profound or insightful even though they were in common conversation. I've included names for comments taken from conversations with friends, acquaintances and other adults. I have not included names in cases where I took quotes from my class or my friends' classes. Here's a few: 

-"What is your opinion of Christ?" -Benjamin, the American name of a Shanghainese man who asked me this question within the first hour of our flight from Chicago to Shanghai.

-This comment was made during a conversation about Bjork's outspoken support for Tibet at a music concert in Shanghai during the National Holiday in October 2007, and the government's subsequent wariness to permit foreign musicians to perform in China.

"She came on stage and said, 'Tibet! Tibet! with her (fist pumping) in the air like that and now some people don't like her simply because of that. I think music is music. But I think there are so many people, maybe the government needs to be strict." -Viola, who chose her name because it was the name of a strong-willed, unmindful woman, and the name of Shakespeare's lover.

-"China and America are friends." -Sui, or the man on the bus to Cuandixia

-After being asked to describe the ideal place to live: "Do you mean anywhere in China? or anywhere outside of China?"

-"If she could change one thing about herself it would be the color of her skin."

-A comment made after I fielded the omnipresent question, who do you support in the U.S. election? "I must see you again, because you are one American who believes in change." -Prince, a Frenchman who's soul was born in Congo.

-"You'd be surprised how far a kiss can go." -Kiley, an Australian expat coaching my friend on how to utilize her foreign appeal.

-"So American women aren't like in 'Sex and the City'?"-Viola