The bit about "patriotism class" is good to know. I was having some good conversations about the "kill line" on xhs, introduced some people to the phrase "paycheck to paycheck", but it really struck me that users didn't know the realities of living under bourgeois dictatorship to begin with. It took independent study for me to put words to that reality, but I would have expected those to be taught in school in China.
I've been listening to Blackshirts and Reds while I work, and I can't help but think about the people of the Eastern Bloc not knowing what they had until they lost it.
The day before, complain about some regular symptom like a sore throat, maybe throw in some coughs, and say you think you're coming down with something. Call in the next day and say it got worse overnight.
There's something about musicians tbh, I felt like this watching a drummer and he wasn't even really my type