An art tea venture

Musician JinR (Zhang Jinjie) opened her first teahouse in Beijing in 1997. Tucked away in Sanlitun, the city's diplomatic quarters and popular night life center, the 12-sq-m room was big enough for just three tables and her favorite instruments - the yangqin (dulcimer) and guzheng (seven-stringed plucked instrument similar to the zither).

Simple pleasures keep the storm clouds at bay

If you had a choice, which era would you live in? I prefer Shanghai in the 1930s, because I love reading Qian Zhongshu's Besieged City.

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Films No Country for Old Men

Life Pulse

An eye for talent

Pang Yong is at Starbucks drinking a latte but he's ready to pounce. Students pass by, some of them attractive and fashionable, but Pang doesn't give them a second glance. He's looking for something special, that would be at home in the pages of Vogue.

If you want the job done right, do it yourself

In sub-zero cold, I joyfully marched across the barren garden towards our building. With running nose and numb toes, I carried a pile of pine boards as if it were my precious dream.

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Books Anonymity by John Mullan, Faber

Life Pulse

Give me a Cho!

She's been dubbed bold and vigorous by the local media, crowned the "sexy goddess on the sports arena" and hailed the "cheerleader of China's cheerleading cause". During training she is a hard taskmaster and vents her fury at teammates. But most of the time, she's easy-going and likes nothing more than playing throw-and-catch with her two dogs.

The single question on everyone's lips

My single status has become a tasty topic for lunchtime buddies. "So what's your type?" they ask.

Moving a crowd to cheers

Having been a cheerleader in several "Good Luck Beijing" pre-Olympic events, such as beach volleyball and handball, Li Qi says she still loves basketball the best. This is partly because it is basketball that first introduced her to cheerleading.

Life Pulse