Farmers

In the World of Warcraft, there are members of the community that are called "Chinese Farmers". It's a totally racist term that even I have been guilty of using. Basically (not all of them) there are a bunch of people, from China, who spend all day long fight a particular enemy over and over for their loot, and then they sell it on the Auction House for gold. They get paid for how much gold they make in the game, and then at the end of the day, they send that money to their employer for real money.

So these Farmers are notorious for setting (and sometimes inflating) the market prices of items in the game. And thus hated by everyone because of it.

I've tried to communicate with some of the farmer with my limited chinese vocab and have had some pretty interesting conversations. They always ask where I live, of course I tell them [jia na da]. They ask me how I'm able to speak chinese, always impressed by what I can say -- even though in my opinion, I'm rather ashamed of my inability to speak fluently in my native tongue.

It's always interesting the one question every single one has asked me -- have gone back to visit? [ni you mei you huei guo le ma?] I always tell them about my China trip. And when I tell them all the places I've been, they're always surprised. I guess people in China don't have often have the luxury of travelling. They're limited to where they are.

Another thing I find interesting is that they're all playing for profit, not for entertainment. Even when "having fun", the sole purpose is to make a living, not to entertain themselves. Perhaps the money they make allows them to entertain themselves, but I really don't know.

I think they work by shifts, at least some of them do. I met this one guy "Badday", talked to him for about 15 minutes and then he logged off. Immediately after, another guy whispered me, Badday's friend, "Supernice", and I chatted with him for nearly an hour. They probably take turns playing or something.

Best line ever:

[wo ke yi jiao ni da ge ma?]