Theonlyparentingthey'redoingrevolvesaroundtheirsixdogs. Yes, they'reallpartofourfamily. We'reonebigfamily. It's likeourchildren. Yes, it's likeourdaughters, oursons. A reflectionoftheindependent-mindedyoungergenerationinChinawherehavingchildrenisnolonger a priority. Differentgenerationsvaluethingsdifferently. Accordingto a recentstudybyGoldmanSachs, thenumberofpetsinurbanChinaisexpectedtosurpassthenumberofchildrenageszerotofourbytheendoftheyear. By 2030, therecouldbenearlytwiceasmanypetsinurbanChinathanyoungchildren. Businessopportunityforthisdoggydaycareownerwhohasalsochosennottohavekids. I feellikepeoplestarttobemorelikethisiswhat I wantorthisiswhat I likeformyliferatherthanlikeohthisiswhatthesocietytoldmetodoorthisiswhatmyparentswantmetodo. Officialsreported a recordlowbirthratelastyearasthepopulationdecreasedforthesecondyearin a row, a sharpdippartlyduetoCOVIDlockdowns. Whileanalystsexpect a reboundthisyear, itisstill a blowtotheworld's secondlargesteconomy. Oncesoworriedaboutoverpopulation, itlimitedmosturbancouplesto a singlechild. At a women's conferencelastyear,
China's strongmanleaderXiJinpinglectureddelegatestofoster a newtypeofmarriageandchildbearingculture. Thisnewfoundpetpopularitycomesat a timewhentheChinesegovernmentisofferingthingslikefinancialincentivesandtimeofffromworkallwiththegoalofpromotingparenthood. YetformanyyoungChinese, noneofthisseemstomatter.
Thefirst, cognitiveloadtheory, explainswhyitcansometimeshelptobedistractedwhentakingininformation. Yourworkingmemorycanonlyholdsomuchnewinformation, sowhenyousee a commontask, likesomeoneapplyingmakeupwhilebeingtoldsomethingserious, getreadywithmewhile I talkaboutthings I wouldavoidsayingifmyfrienddeveloped a chronicillness. Thefamiliarityofthesemotionsreducesthestrainofprocessingallthatinformation. A secondpowerkeepingyouengagedisyourbrain's provenloveofauthenticity.
TheDesertBreezeCommunityCenterinLasVegashelditsannualpupswimovertheweekend, andwhat a paw-tyitwas. It's a traditionheldbyClarkCountyParksandReceveryyearbeforethepoolisclosedforthefall. Nosuchthingas a roughdayhere. A doggonegreattimeforthepups, and a howlarioussightfortheirownerswhogettowatch. Allright, superstars, it's shoutouttimefor a coupleofschoolsrighthereintheATLAtlanta, Georgia. TheRamsatHowardMiddle