I just want to make sure everybody sees this. Awesome!
Fake Steve Jobs Shills Bottled Tea
I just wonder who the guy is (clearly it's not Steve Jobs). My guess: some indigent kids' cram school teacher doing at job at age 45 that really better suits a 21-year-old, who was happy to get the $3000 they paid him to model.
Was that mean?
Sorry. I guess I'm feeling mean today.
The guy in the Jobs ad is .... a fairly well-known actor/model/dancer if you move in those circles in Taipei. Has put on a coupla broadway-type shows here. Good on him for getting his 15 minutes of "fame".
ReplyDeleteInteresting!
ReplyDeleteI'm not criticizing btw, I think it's funny. It's all a part of life in Asia.
For the commenter who was a bit too spammy and rude for me to publish, I don't own an TV - purposely - so telling me to "wake up and watch TV" is kind of funny.
you WERE critizing the male English species teacher syndrome here....admit it ....you *were* mean that day:
ReplyDeleteyiur rather "mean" put down of male teachers is now seen in a new light: ''I just wonder who the guy is (clearly it's not Steve Jobs). My guess: some indigent kids' cram school teacher doing at job at age 45 that really better suits a 21-year-old, who was happy to get the $3000 they paid him to model.
Was that mean?
Sorry. I guess I'm feeling mean today. ''
Well people shouldn't be so keen to sh*t on any expat that gets a break.....your description above couldn't be further from the truth. This is a guy who has done everything possible to make it here in his chosen profession(s). He might have taught a few kids classes along the way to pay the rent but who hasn't?
I would imagine he got a lot more than 3K. Hell I once got 10K for playing the bongos for 10 minutes at a bikini fashion show.
Yeah, I'll own it. I was being mean. I'm not going to deny that. But. BUT!
ReplyDeleteI wasn't specifically targeting men. You might or might not know this but I spent my first year in Taiwan as a cram school teacher, and it sucked. My cynicism-laden bile is spewed more at the buxiban industry than anything. Yes, I did find my coworkers to be average - not dumb but not exactly Harvard Brain Trust material (with a few exceptions - I can say some of 'em were OK) but the system is exploitative, the pay is horrific and while I'm pretty forgiving to the "yeah I did that for awhile, then I got out" crowd, the "I've been doing this for 10 years" crowd does earn some raised eyebrows from me...because I've been there. It was awful and I do wonder why someone would put up with the way they're treated by cram schools for the low pay they earn. For what I made during my year at Kojen, I too would have been happy for $3000 for a modeling gig because the pay was so horrifically bad and they treated basically every employee like a child.
That said, I think you're a bit...err...butthurt. Did I strike too close or something? I never actually said anything about *male* cram school teachers (the only association being that this model was male) - you inserted that. I have to wonder if that wasn't your own sh*t there, adding something I never said in this post. I would've been just as snarky towards a fake...I dunno, a fake Angelina Jolie hawking Taiwan Yes! brand bottled water. Or whatever.
So really, I only criticize because I've been there and yes, I have a lot of contempt for the cram school system **because** I've experienced it firsthand. And yes, a lot of the people they employ are young, and male, and inexperienced, and willing to be treated badly. Maybe they'll grow into decent men (I am sure many of them do) or maybe they'll grow into scary old foreign guys who haunt the bars I won't go into.
I have to conclude, other than the fact that the model is male, that you assumed I was specifically swiping at *male* expats because I run a blog mainly aimed at *female* ones...therefore CLEARLY I must be some sort of man-hating feminazi. *Scoff*
But back to cram school teachers. Be honest here. They are (usually) young, and they are often in a horrible system and very often, they are too dense to figure it out and get out of it (some do. I did). Some of them are real douchebags and some of them are OK folks who figure things out quickly enough.
Anything else you read into it, well, look at yourself. That's coming from YOU.
Actually, I am the Steve Jobs actor, and I find it amazing that everyone has spent so much time talking about it. It was one half day...not important to me at all...
ReplyDeleteSee another of my ads here: http://www.sonystyle.com.tw/nex/ Im the scarecrow...on stilts...
I have 28-plus year of professional performing experience in every medium. I am well-known as a reliable foreign actor for TV, movies, and stage. I have toured and performed in all 50 US states, Canada, and most of Europe.
AND...I resent being lumped in with whatever negative stereotype you seem to have about expats in Taiwan. I came here to direct at an arts festival and I stayed here because I was asked to stay by local performers and directors who thought they could learn something from me. I found I could make a difference and a living as well as learn a new language and culture.
not bad I think....