Hey Hey and a Big G'Day toya,
 
Yipee! National Day has arrived!
 
National Day commemorates the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949 and more importantly it also gives me a holiday and a chance to see Luo Wei. So whilst she and I go for dinner and have fun here is my indepth, very mature and well thought out history of why I am not at work today.
 
OK, lets go back before 1949, the Long March had finished, the Japanese had invaded and by this time Mao Zedong was established as the leader of the Chinese Communist movement.
 
Yes people, the man who would become Chairman Mao one day said,'HHHmmm, I wouldn't mind being Chairman for awhile! So the big feller stood up on the 1st of October 1949 and said 'Hey Man! Like, I'e got an idea! Like, let's become the People's Republic of China and I'll be Chairman!' 
 
So began the huge Communist Movement at the beginnings of the Peoples Republic of China.
 
When the big change occurred all the other big guys fled the country with all its wealth leaving Mao Zedong to become Chairman Mao. A massive change soon swept the country. They began land reform by giving back the land to the peasants (how sweet), women were recognized, inflation was grabbed by the butt and the big 'Five Year Plan' was introduced.
 
All seemed pretty good for most during those first five or so years.
 
People were put into their Work Units, the country was divided into twenty one provinces, five Autonomous Regions and two municipalities being Beijing and Shanghai, there was food, everyone was in a big warm happy snuggle.
 
Once the Great Leap Forward kicked in China was not heard of for a long time.
 
Within its walls strange things were happening. Big people became little, famous people disappeared, special universities were opened, society was changed, people were sent to agricultural communes, blast furnaces were created, people were too busy melting spoons and woks and no one was tending to the crops, famine hit, many people died and Mao said good by to his job as the head of state.
 
Of course he was still Chairman of the Communist Party though!
 
Then came the writings of Chairman Mao, bounded together in the 'Little Red Book'  In kicked The Cultural Revolution. Thoughts were thrown around and implemented, posters put up, families were split, romance really sucked, the Red Guards began their destruction, smart people disappeared, special things and places such as art and temples were torched and destroyed.
 
Basically anything 'old' was not allowed eg: old customs, thinking and culture and due to clothing codes and in came the famous Chairman Mao suit!
 
After the big guy died in 76 Deng Xiaoping returned and soon thoughts of modernisation were thrown around. They were tossed here and there and finally the 'Four Modernisations' program was released. The new big guy had thought of things like agriculture, industry, science and defence and said 'hey, we are nearing five thousand years old as a people but where are we globally? The one child policy was enforced to slow down the population growth, farmers were given permission to sell surpluses on the market, political reform grew, religions were tolerated and Hong Kong was given back to China.
 
Soon Shane entered China, left China, went home for a spell and thought to himself, 'Hey Man, I think it's time to get me one of those Chairman Mao suites, I'm heading back to China for awhile.
 
In his wake schools have flourished and new breweys opened.
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The soundtrack to this entry was Wolfmother
The album was 'Wolfmother'
Dunno, kind of like a cross between Tiny Tim, Zep and
T'Rex. Can't stand T'Rex or Tiny Tim but somehow these
guys seem to blend it together well and the outcome is...Big!.
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