If you're in the Bay Area, be sure to go see the Asian American Theater Company's production of "Under the Rainbow" by Philip Kan Gotanda.
"Under the Rainbow" takes on sex, race, relationships and Hollywood – my favorite subjects and topics Gotanda touches on in many of his plays. I saw the play last night and was not disappointed.
The production is two one-act plays. Part one is titled, "Natalie Wood Is Dead" and features a mother and daughter duo of struggling actors trying to make it in Hollywood. There's some raw emotion as the pair confront each other over the struggles and sacrifices they each make as an actor, parent and child. Diane Emiko Takei (Gotanda's wife) plays Yoko, the mother. Pearl Wong of the 18 Mighty Mountain Warriors plays the daughter, Natalie Hayashi.
More interesting was part two, "White Manifesto." It's a 50-minute monologue by a WMWA, white male with attitude, who says everything that many of us think, but most of us don't talk about when it comes to the taboo subject of white men dating Asian women.
Danny Wolohan gives a great performance as Richard Saugus, who explains to us why Asian girls are easy for an average white guy like him. The dialogue skewers and expounds on almost every stereotype, excuse, explanation and complaint you can think of when pondering the white male/Asian female phenomenon.
Saugus gives us a "chartered member's" insight into getting Asian girls that he's gleaned from "pillow talk." He also provides a rundown of the sexual differences between women of various Asian ethnic groups. It's all done to wonderful dramatic and comedic effect.
These are old and tired issues that Gotanda raises, but they don't go away if we just stop talking about them. I'm glad there are artists like Gotanda out there still.
Posted by harry at 8:15 AM | Comments (61) | TrackBack
If you're in the Bay Area, be sure to go see the Asian American Theater Company's production of "Under the Rainbow" by Philip Kan Gotanda.
"Under the Rainbow" takes on sex, race, relationships and Hollywood – my favorite subjects and topics Gotanda touches on in many of his plays. I saw the play last night and was not disappointed.
The production is two one-act plays. Part one is titled, "Natalie Wood Is Dead" and features a mother and daughter duo of struggling actors trying to make it in Hollywood. There's some raw emotion as the pair confront each other over the struggles and sacrifices they each make as an actor, parent and child. Diane Emiko Takei (Gotanda's wife) plays Yoko, the mother. Pearl Wong of the 18 Mighty Mountain Warriors plays the daughter, Natalie Hayashi.
More interesting was part two, "White Manifesto." It's a 50-minute monologue by a WMWA, white male with attitude, who says everything that many of us think, but most of us don't talk about when it comes to the taboo subject of white men dating Asian women.
Danny Wolohan gives a great performance as Richard Saugus, who explains to us why Asian girls are easy for an average white guy like him. The dialogue skewers and expounds on almost every stereotype, excuse, explanation and complaint you can think of when pondering the white male/Asian female phenomenon.
Saugus gives us a "chartered member's" insight into getting Asian girls that he's gleaned from "pillow talk." He also provides a rundown of the sexual differences between women of various Asian ethnic groups. It's all done to wonderful dramatic and comedic effect.
These are old and tired issues that Gotanda raises, but they don't go away if we just stop talking about them. I'm glad there are artists like Gotanda out there still.
Posted by harry at 8:15 AM | Comments (61) | TrackBack
If you're in the Bay Area, be sure to go see the Asian American Theater Company's production of "Under the Rainbow" by Philip Kan Gotanda.
"Under the Rainbow" takes on sex, race, relationships and Hollywood my favorite subjects and topics Gotanda touches on in many of his plays. I saw the play last night and was not disappointed.
The production is two one-act plays. Part one is titled, "Natalie Wood Is Dead" and features a mother and daughter duo of struggling actors trying to make it in Hollywood. There's some raw emotion as the pair confront each other over the struggles and sacrifices they each make as an actor, parent and child. Diane Emiko Takei (Gotanda's wife) plays Yoko, the mother. Pearl Wong of the 18 Mighty Mountain Warriors plays the daughter, Natalie Hayashi.
More interesting was part two, "White Manifesto." It's a 50-minute monologue by a WMWA, white male with attitude, who says everything that many of us think, but most of us don't talk about when it comes to the taboo subject of white men dating Asian women.
Danny Wolohan gives a great performance as Richard Saugus, who explains to us why Asian girls are easy for an average white guy like him. The dialogue skewers and expounds on almost every stereotype, excuse, explanation and complaint you can think of when pondering the white male/Asian female phenomenon.
Saugus gives us a "chartered member's" insight into getting Asian girls that he's gleaned from "pillow talk." He also provides a rundown of the sexual differences between women of various Asian ethnic groups. It's all done to wonderful dramatic and comedic effect.
These are old and tired issues that Gotanda raises, but they don't go away if we just stop talking about them. I'm glad there are artists like Gotanda out there still.
Posted by harry at 8:15 AM | Comments (61) | TrackBack
Last weekend I bailed on blog duties to hang out in Reno with some buddies. Not a lot Asians there and I had a couple of eye-opening incidents.
1) In a ski lift line, a white guy 15 feet away nods at me and asks, “Are you Keanu Reeves?” I was flabbergasted. Who? “Keanu Reeves, from the Matrix.” I go, “Totally, dude.” Woah!
2) In da club, straddling the dancefloor, three Latinas pull me into their circle. “What are you?” one asks. Japanese. “Ohhhhh. (to friends) ‘HE’S JAPANESE.” Why do you ask? Are you part Japanese? “No, we just don’t see a lot of Japanese in Reno.” Translation: We just don’t see a lot of Japanese who aren’t uptight, wearing cameras, bad teeth, sandals and socks, etc. They were nice and I was their resident cockblocker.
3) Waiting for a table at breakfast, me and three homeys kick it on a bench. The hostess walks up. “Gordon?” We all get up. “Oh, is it a party of three or four?” Three? We’re all sitting together talking…of course! Why would three white guys be eating with the Asian guy?
Reno was great, otherwise. I highly recommend the Awful Awful burger at the Nugget Diner.
Posted by at 2:52 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack
Last weekend I bailed on blog duties to hang out in Reno with some buddies. Not a lot Asians there and I had a couple of eye-opening incidents.
1) In a ski lift line, a white guy 15 feet away nods at me and asks, “Are you Keanu Reeves?” I was flabbergasted. Who? “Keanu Reeves, from the Matrix.” I go, “Totally, dude.” Woah!
2) In da club, straddling the dancefloor, three Latinas pull me into their circle. “What are you?” one asks. Japanese. “Ohhhhh. (to friends) ‘HE’S JAPANESE.” Why do you ask? Are you part Japanese? “No, we just don’t see a lot of Japanese in Reno.” Translation: We just don’t see a lot of Japanese who aren’t uptight, wearing cameras, bad teeth, sandals and socks, etc. They were nice and I was their resident cockblocker.
3) Waiting for a table at breakfast, me and three homeys kick it on a bench. The hostess walks up. “Gordon?” We all get up. “Oh, is it a party of three or four?” Three? We’re all sitting together talking…of course! Why would three white guys be eating with the Asian guy?
Reno was great, otherwise. I highly recommend the Awful Awful burger at the Nugget Diner.
Posted by at 2:52 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack
Last weekend I bailed on blog duties to hang out in Reno with some buddies. Not a lot Asians there and I had a couple of eye-opening incidents.
1) In a ski lift line, a white guy 15 feet away nods at me and asks, Are you Keanu Reeves? I was flabbergasted. Who? Keanu Reeves, from the Matrix. I go, Totally, dude. Woah!
2) In da club, straddling the dancefloor, three Latinas pull me into their circle. What are you? one asks. Japanese. Ohhhhh. (to friends) HES JAPANESE. Why do you ask? Are you part Japanese? No, we just dont see a lot of Japanese in Reno. Translation: We just dont see a lot of Japanese who arent uptight, wearing cameras, bad teeth, sandals and socks, etc. They were nice and I was their resident cockblocker.
3) Waiting for a table at breakfast, me and three homeys kick it on a bench. The hostess walks up. Gordon? We all get up. Oh, is it a party of three or four? Three? Were all sitting together talkingof course! Why would three white guys be eating with the Asian guy?
Reno was great, otherwise. I highly recommend the Awful Awful burger at the Nugget Diner.
Posted by todd at 2:52 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack
Sorry to bust in like this but this action is going down today! Please read on about how you can help stop Bush from cutting funding to HUD programs. (this is from an email a friend sent me)
The Bush administration is actively trying to snip away what few shreds of an urban policy remain. It's not news that the HUD budget will be slashed to make room for priorities like tax cuts. But there is bureaucratic shuffling afoot that would be the beginning of the end-game for the long effort to make HUD irrelevant, possibly to the point of elimination. The attached Washington Post article focuses on one piece of the proposed whammy, the Community Development Block Grant program
The National Low Income Housing Coalition (http://www.nlihc.org/) has organized a call-in campaign, Feb 23 and Feb 24. Calling your Congress people is not exciting, but quick, easy and --when combined with 1000s of like-minded calls -- potentially effective.
What can you do on February 23 and 24:
1. Call 1-888-818-6641 and ask to be connected to your members' offices
2. Ask to speak to the Legislative Assistant responsible for Budget Issues
3. Call again to speak to your Senators' offices
4. Contact Katie Fisher at 202-662-1530 x.222, katie@nlihc.org, to let her know the results of your calls.
5. Forward this to everyone who will make calls
The Message:
Representative/Senator, "please oppose the President's FY06 budget proposal:
1. The overall funding level for HUD is inadequate to fund ALL housing programs.
2. Ask for an increase in the entire HUD budget, and to preserve the important programs under HUD's purview.
3. The proposed budget will cap spending on housing programs and other key low income programs, causing a deeper cut to vital low income programs over time."
4. The proposed budget protects tax cuts for the wealthy, while gouging low income programs. Please oppose the President's FY06 budget.
Posted by claire at 2:09 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Sorry to bust in like this but this action is going down today! Please read on about how you can help stop Bush from cutting funding to HUD programs. (this is from an email a friend sent me)
The Bush administration is actively trying to snip away what few shreds of an urban policy remain. It's not news that the HUD budget will be slashed to make room for priorities like tax cuts. But there is bureaucratic shuffling afoot that would be the beginning of the end-game for the long effort to make HUD irrelevant, possibly to the point of elimination. The attached Washington Post article focuses on one piece of the proposed whammy, the Community Development Block Grant program
The National Low Income Housing Coalition (http://www.nlihc.org/) has organized a call-in campaign, Feb 23 and Feb 24. Calling your Congress people is not exciting, but quick, easy and --when combined with 1000s of like-minded calls -- potentially effective.
What can you do on February 23 and 24:
1. Call 1-888-818-6641 and ask to be connected to your members' offices
2. Ask to speak to the Legislative Assistant responsible for Budget Issues
3. Call again to speak to your Senators' offices
4. Contact Katie Fisher at 202-662-1530 x.222, katie@nlihc.org, to let her know the results of your calls.
5. Forward this to everyone who will make calls
The Message:
Representative/Senator, "please oppose the President's FY06 budget proposal:
1. The overall funding level for HUD is inadequate to fund ALL housing programs.
2. Ask for an increase in the entire HUD budget, and to preserve the important programs under HUD's purview.
3. The proposed budget will cap spending on housing programs and other key low income programs, causing a deeper cut to vital low income programs over time."
4. The proposed budget protects tax cuts for the wealthy, while gouging low income programs. Please oppose the President's FY06 budget.
Posted by claire at 2:09 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Sorry to bust in like this but this action is going down today! Please read on about how you can help stop Bush from cutting funding to HUD programs. (this is from an email a friend sent me)
The Bush administration is actively trying to snip away what few shreds of an urban policy remain. It's not news that the HUD budget will be slashed to make room for priorities like tax cuts. But there is bureaucratic shuffling afoot that would be the beginning of the end-game for the long effort to make HUD irrelevant, possibly to the point of elimination. The attached Washington Post article focuses on one piece of the proposed whammy, the Community Development Block Grant program
The National Low Income Housing Coalition (http://www.nlihc.org/) has organized a call-in campaign, Feb 23 and Feb 24. Calling your Congress people is not exciting, but quick, easy and --when combined with 1000s of like-minded calls -- potentially effective.
What can you do on February 23 and 24:
1. Call 1-888-818-6641 and ask to be connected to your members' offices
2. Ask to speak to the Legislative Assistant responsible for Budget Issues
3. Call again to speak to your Senators' offices
4. Contact Katie Fisher at 202-662-1530 x.222, katie@nlihc.org, to let her know the results of your calls.
5. Forward this to everyone who will make calls
The Message:
Representative/Senator, "please oppose the President's FY06 budget proposal:
1. The overall funding level for HUD is inadequate to fund ALL housing programs.
2. Ask for an increase in the entire HUD budget, and to preserve the important programs under HUD's purview.
3. The proposed budget will cap spending on housing programs and other key low income programs, causing a deeper cut to vital low income programs over time."
4. The proposed budget protects tax cuts for the wealthy, while gouging low income programs. Please oppose the President's FY06 budget.
Posted by claire at 2:09 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Back from Philly!
I actually wasn't very happy with the trip to Philly (in regards to ECAASU). If I wasn't getting reimbursed for my travel expenses, I'd be blowing up the spot and making a stink, but... At least I can express my disappointment. (Due to bad organizing, only two people showed up to the panel that Chris and I spoke on. And there was no traffic for any of the exhibitors during the tabling session.)
But at least my whole three-day weekend wasn't a complete bust. I got some networking done and saw the city. Met folks from Boston, Sacramento, DC, Los Angeles, Minneapolis... I got to drive through the boonies of Pennsylvania, see the Real World Philly house, and play pool with my new Mongolian friend (think big Asian guy with a heavy Russian accent). Oh, and best of all, I had a cheesesteak at Pat's in the South Philly. Lining up to order my food was like a Seinfeld "Soup Nazi" experience. I was so scared of ordering wrong and being told to go to the end of the line to try it again.
Anyhow.
I don't have much to write about, except that I've been anticipating the launch of a new Asian American magazine called Theme. Apparently the premiere issue has just been released and features such names as: Twist (graffiti artist also known as Barry McGee), Jessica Yu and IQU.
I subscribe to so many magazines, they end up sitting on my bedside table for weeks before getting read. I'd love to subscribe to Theme, just to check it out and to support... But I'd much prefer to borrow someone's copy before I make that financial commitment (haha). So if any of my friends out there have a copy to loan me, then you know the drill.
If you've seen Theme already, tell me your thoughts. I think it's great another Asian American magazine is out in print--one that's not lifestyle specific, or ethnic-specific.
Posted by Audrey at 9:48 AM | Comments (6) | TrackBack
Back from Philly!
I actually wasn't very happy with the trip to Philly (in regards to ECAASU). If I wasn't getting reimbursed for my travel expenses, I'd be blowing up the spot and making a stink, but... At least I can express my disappointment. (Due to bad organizing, only two people showed up to the panel that Chris and I spoke on. And there was no traffic for any of the exhibitors during the tabling session.)
But at least my whole three-day weekend wasn't a complete bust. I got some networking done and saw the city. Met folks from Boston, Sacramento, DC, Los Angeles, Minneapolis... I got to drive through the boonies of Pennsylvania, see the Real World Philly house, and play pool with my new Mongolian friend (think big Asian guy with a heavy Russian accent). Oh, and best of all, I had a cheesesteak at Pat's in the South Philly. Lining up to order my food was like a Seinfeld "Soup Nazi" experience. I was so scared of ordering wrong and being told to go to the end of the line to try it again.
Anyhow.
I don't have much to write about, except that I've been anticipating the launch of a new Asian American magazine called Theme. Apparently the premiere issue has just been released and features such names as: Twist (graffiti artist also known as Barry McGee), Jessica Yu and IQU.
I subscribe to so many magazines, they end up sitting on my bedside table for weeks before getting read. I'd love to subscribe to Theme, just to check it out and to support... But I'd much prefer to borrow someone's copy before I make that financial commitment (haha). So if any of my friends out there have a copy to loan me, then you know the drill.
If you've seen Theme already, tell me your thoughts. I think it's great another Asian American magazine is out in print--one that's not lifestyle specific, or ethnic-specific.
Posted by Audrey at 9:48 AM | Comments (6) | TrackBack
Back from Philly!
I actually wasn't very happy with the trip to Philly (in regards to ECAASU). If I wasn't getting reimbursed for my travel expenses, I'd be blowing up the spot and making a stink, but... At least I can express my disappointment. (Due to bad organizing, only two people showed up to the panel that Chris and I spoke on. And there was no traffic for any of the exhibitors during the tabling session.)
But at least my whole three-day weekend wasn't a complete bust. I got some networking done and saw the city. Met folks from Boston, Sacramento, DC, Los Angeles, Minneapolis... I got to drive through the boonies of Pennsylvania, see the Real World Philly house, and play pool with my new Mongolian friend (think big Asian guy with a heavy Russian accent). Oh, and best of all, I had a cheesesteak at Pat's in the South Philly. Lining up to order my food was like a Seinfeld "Soup Nazi" experience. I was so scared of ordering wrong and being told to go to the end of the line to try it again.
Anyhow.
I don't have much to write about, except that I've been anticipating the launch of a new Asian American magazine called Theme. Apparently the premiere issue has just been released and features such names as: Twist (graffiti artist also known as Barry McGee), Jessica Yu and IQU.
I subscribe to so many magazines, they end up sitting on my bedside table for weeks before getting read. I'd love to subscribe to Theme, just to check it out and to support... But I'd much prefer to borrow someone's copy before I make that financial commitment (haha). So if any of my friends out there have a copy to loan me, then you know the drill.
If you've seen Theme already, tell me your thoughts. I think it's great another Asian American magazine is out in print--one that's not lifestyle specific, or ethnic-specific.
Posted by Audrey at 9:48 AM | Comments (6) | TrackBack
Basketball star Yao Ming is lending his name and 7-foot-6 stature to a new restaurant in Houston, where he plays for the NBA's Rockets. His parents will own and run Yao's Restaurant and Bar.
Posted by harry at 3:05 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Basketball star Yao Ming is lending his name and 7-foot-6 stature to a new restaurant in Houston, where he plays for the NBA's Rockets. His parents will own and run Yao's Restaurant and Bar.
Posted by harry at 3:05 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Basketball star Yao Ming is lending his name and 7-foot-6 stature to a new restaurant in Houston, where he plays for the NBA's Rockets. His parents will own and run Yao's Restaurant and Bar.
Posted by harry at 3:05 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
So if you haven't heard, the congress approved and GWBush signed off on the "tort reform" law that will make it very difficult to pursue large class action lawsuits. It all happened in a matter of days. (See what Greg Palast has to say about it.) Again, I mourn, as I mourned the election and the war and the torture...
The relentless waves of injustice that keep battering down us people who sympathize with the poor and the nonwhite and the noncorporate are starting to feel like a war to me. A war on my lesbian coworker, who I carpool with every week. A war on my sister, trying to educate her kids. A war on the air I breathe.
It's time to fight back.
Right now at work I'm doing a bunch of visual research on American Suffragettes --the women who rallied, protested, marched, and spoke out for their right to vote. Such a simple, obvious thing, you'd think. Certainly something I've taken for granted, this right that has been unquestioned in my lifetime.
But this was no mom-and-apple-pie issue. It was voted down in the Senate, it was fought against by women who said it would lead to all sorts of immoral corruption (like communism), it took years and thousands of women to accomplish. New Jersey actually repealed women's right to vote in 1807, after it'd been granted in 1790. The Supreme Court repeatedly struck down the right in various decisions.
.jpg)
Some women were jailed for protesting, and then force-fed when they went on hunger strikes. When they finally passed the 19th Constitutional amendment in 1920, more than 70 years had passed since the first women's rights convention was held.
More than 130 years since New Jersey had first consented to give women the right to vote.
My point? Lord, it takes a long time. How frustrating it must have been to be a woman at that time, to look around at all of the numbskull men who were afraid, were bigots, were set in their ways, and who alone held the power to grant them their rights.
Much as some of us feel today.
It took a long time to reverse the Chinese Exclusion Act and the Gentleman's Agreement. It may take decades to reverse the regression of the current administration. So pick your battles now, because we've got a long fight ahead.
For more information:
http://www.napalc.org/
http://www.hrw.org/
The Center for Constitutional Rights
Amnesty International's Guantanamo page
Moveon
Hyphen Donation Page
Posted by jennifer at 2:50 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
So if you haven't heard, the congress approved and GWBush signed off on the "tort reform" law that will make it very difficult to pursue large class action lawsuits. It all happened in a matter of days. (See what Greg Palast has to say about it.) Again, I mourn, as I mourned the election and the war and the torture...
The relentless waves of injustice that keep battering down us people who sympathize with the poor and the nonwhite and the noncorporate are starting to feel like a war to me. A war on my lesbian coworker, who I carpool with every week. A war on my sister, trying to educate her kids. A war on the air I breathe.
It's time to fight back.
Right now at work I'm doing a bunch of visual research on American Suffragettes --the women who rallied, protested, marched, and spoke out for their right to vote. Such a simple, obvious thing, you'd think. Certainly something I've taken for granted, this right that has been unquestioned in my lifetime.
But this was no mom-and-apple-pie issue. It was voted down in the Senate, it was fought against by women who said it would lead to all sorts of immoral corruption (like communism), it took years and thousands of women to accomplish. New Jersey actually repealed women's right to vote in 1807, after it'd been granted in 1790. The Supreme Court repeatedly struck down the right in various decisions.
Some women were jailed for protesting, and then force-fed when they went on hunger strikes. When they finally passed the 19th Constitutional amendment in 1920, more than 70 years had passed since the first women's rights convention was held.
More than 130 years since New Jersey had first consented to give women the right to vote.
My point? Lord, it takes a long time. How frustrating it must have been to be a woman at that time, to look around at all of the numbskull men who were afraid, were bigots, were set in their ways, and who alone held the power to grant them their rights.
Much as some of us feel today.
It took a long time to reverse the Chinese Exclusion Act and the Gentleman's Agreement. It may take decades to reverse the regression of the current administration. So pick your battles now, because we've got a long fight ahead.
For more information:
http://www.napalc.org/
http://www.hrw.org/
The Center for Constitutional Rights
Amnesty International's Guantanamo page
Moveon
Hyphen Donation Page
Posted by jennifer at 2:50 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
So if you haven't heard, the congress approved and GWBush signed off on the "tort reform" law that will make it very difficult to pursue large class action lawsuits. It all happened in a matter of days. (See what Greg Palast has to say about it.) Again, I mourn, as I mourned the election and the war and the torture...
The relentless waves of injustice that keep battering down us people who sympathize with the poor and the nonwhite and the noncorporate are starting to feel like a war to me. A war on my lesbian coworker, who I carpool with every week. A war on my sister, trying to educate her kids. A war on the air I breathe.
It's time to fight back.
Right now at work I'm doing a bunch of visual research on American Suffragettes --the women who rallied, protested, marched, and spoke out for their right to vote. Such a simple, obvious thing, you'd think. Certainly something I've taken for granted, this right that has been unquestioned in my lifetime.
But this was no mom-and-apple-pie issue. It was voted down in the Senate, it was fought against by women who said it would lead to all sorts of immoral corruption (like communism), it took years and thousands of women to accomplish. New Jersey actually repealed women's right to vote in 1807, after it'd been granted in 1790. The Supreme Court repeatedly struck down the right in various decisions.
Some women were jailed for protesting, and then force-fed when they went on hunger strikes. When they finally passed the 19th Constitutional amendment in 1920, more than 70 years had passed since the first women's rights convention was held.
More than 130 years since New Jersey had first consented to give women the right to vote.
My point? Lord, it takes a long time. How frustrating it must have been to be a woman at that time, to look around at all of the numbskull men who were afraid, were bigots, were set in their ways, and who alone held the power to grant them their rights.
Much as some of us feel today.
It took a long time to reverse the Chinese Exclusion Act and the Gentleman's Agreement. It may take decades to reverse the regression of the current administration. So pick your battles now, because we've got a long fight ahead.
For more information:
http://www.napalc.org/
http://www.hrw.org/
The Center for Constitutional Rights
Amnesty International's Guantanamo page
Moveon
Hyphen Donation Page
Posted by jennifer at 2:50 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
I'm feeling lazy tonight. I saw "Constantine" last night--fun, but forgettable. Is it just me, or does Keanu get Chinesier as he gets older?
Then today I got to write 2000 words on how the hero of my novel visits a bordello on Mars. So I'm feeling like I've earned laziness. That's enough for one weekend.
Here's a little news:
The Coordinating Council of Muslim Americans released an expanded version of their report on American Muslim perspectives on the 9/11 Commission Report. The mother of a Pakistani American paramedic, who was not on duty but rushed to the World Trade Center to help and was killed, tells how he was investigated as a possible terrorist when he first turned up missing.
Vietnamese American livelihoods are caught in the middle of a debate in the Gulf states over whether or not a moratorium on offshore shrimp fishing licenses should be declared for the next decade to protect the fisheries and raise shrimp prices.
A Hmong American cop in St. Paul, Minnesota pled guilty to lending his department-issued gun to another Hmong to be used in drive-by shootings. His statement threw suspicion of corruption on a local Hmong community leader, but that case has been turned over to the FBI. For more news on this, check out the St. Paul Pioneer Press--but you have to sign in for a free account.
Posted by claire at 2:17 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
I'm feeling lazy tonight. I saw "Constantine" last night--fun, but forgettable. Is it just me, or does Keanu get Chinesier as he gets older?
Then today I got to write 2000 words on how the hero of my novel visits a bordello on Mars. So I'm feeling like I've earned laziness. That's enough for one weekend.
Here's a little news:
The Coordinating Council of Muslim Americans released an expanded version of their report on American Muslim perspectives on the 9/11 Commission Report. The mother of a Pakistani American paramedic, who was not on duty but rushed to the World Trade Center to help and was killed, tells how he was investigated as a possible terrorist when he first turned up missing.
Vietnamese American livelihoods are caught in the middle of a debate in the Gulf states over whether or not a moratorium on offshore shrimp fishing licenses should be declared for the next decade to protect the fisheries and raise shrimp prices.
A Hmong American cop in St. Paul, Minnesota pled guilty to lending his department-issued gun to another Hmong to be used in drive-by shootings. His statement threw suspicion of corruption on a local Hmong community leader, but that case has been turned over to the FBI. For more news on this, check out the St. Paul Pioneer Press--but you have to sign in for a free account.
Posted by claire at 2:17 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
I'm feeling lazy tonight. I saw "Constantine" last night--fun, but forgettable. Is it just me, or does Keanu get Chinesier as he gets older?
Then today I got to write 2000 words on how the hero of my novel visits a bordello on Mars. So I'm feeling like I've earned laziness. That's enough for one weekend.
Here's a little news:
The Coordinating Council of Muslim Americans released an expanded version of their report on American Muslim perspectives on the 9/11 Commission Report. The mother of a Pakistani American paramedic, who was not on duty but rushed to the World Trade Center to help and was killed, tells how he was investigated as a possible terrorist when he first turned up missing.
Vietnamese American livelihoods are caught in the middle of a debate in the Gulf states over whether or not a moratorium on offshore shrimp fishing licenses should be declared for the next decade to protect the fisheries and raise shrimp prices.
A Hmong American cop in St. Paul, Minnesota pled guilty to lending his department-issued gun to another Hmong to be used in drive-by shootings. His statement threw suspicion of corruption on a local Hmong community leader, but that case has been turned over to the FBI. For more news on this, check out the St. Paul Pioneer Press--but you have to sign in for a free account.
Posted by claire at 2:17 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Hey! Sorry I've been MIA from the blog these last couple weeks. Busy busy busy. I'm on my lunch break right now, scarfing down some pasta. We had a meeting at my work yesterday with a catered lunch. I saved the leftovers for today's lunch. Yes, I'm a frugal Asian. I'll go anywhere for free food. Or, that could also be the journalist in me. Wanna have a successful press conference? Promise lots of free food.
So I've been busy at my day job moving offices this week. Lots of meetings too. When I'm not at work, I'm working on Hyphen or on Slant, a film festival that I curate. It takes place every May in Houston at the Aurora Picture Show, an awesome microcinema that is housed in an old church building that was built in the 20s. (The pews are still there.) If you're an Asian American filmmaker with a short film, please check out their website. The call for entries is posted there. You have til the end of this month to send me your film.
So that's where I've been. We're crazy people here at Hyphen. Most of us hold down a job while working on Hyphen and other community events. There's even a couple of us who work full time jobs and go to grad school and volunteer at Hyphen.
Here in Hyphen Land, we're in production for issue 6, which means a new issue will be arriving at your doorstep in a couple months. We had a fabulous weekend at our speed dating event. Thanks to everyone who came out on Saturday. I'd never tried speed dating before, so I participated in the second session. Each date was 4 minutes long. Times 20 dates. That's 80 minutes of nonstop talking. And I'm not much of a talker.
Honestly, I can't remember most of the people I talked to. Four minutes a date is too short in most cases, but also too long if you know right off the bat that there's nothing. There was only time to get a couple questions in and almost always those two questions were "What do you like to do for fun?" and "Are you from around here?" Which meant I got really really tired of hearing "You're from Texas? How come you don't have an accent?"
So let me set the record straight. Houston, Texas is a big urban city, folks. Four million people. Fourth largest city in the U.S. We don't all have accents.
Anyhow, Audrey and Chris are representing this weekend in Philly at the East Coast Asian American Student Union conference. They'll be leading a workshop on using media for social change and passing out free copies of Hyphen. If you're in the area, check it out.
OK, enough rambling from me today. Thank god it's a 3-day weekend.
Posted by Melissa at 12:37 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Hey! Sorry I've been MIA from the blog these last couple weeks. Busy busy busy. I'm on my lunch break right now, scarfing down some pasta. We had a meeting at my work yesterday with a catered lunch. I saved the leftovers for today's lunch. Yes, I'm a frugal Asian. I'll go anywhere for free food. Or, that could also be the journalist in me. Wanna have a successful press conference? Promise lots of free food.
So I've been busy at my day job moving offices this week. Lots of meetings too. When I'm not at work, I'm working on Hyphen or on Slant, a film festival that I curate. It takes place every May in Houston at the Aurora Picture Show, an awesome microcinema that is housed in an old church building that was built in the 20s. (The pews are still there.) If you're an Asian American filmmaker with a short film, please check out their website. The call for entries is posted there. You have til the end of this month to send me your film.
So that's where I've been. We're crazy people here at Hyphen. Most of us hold down a job while working on Hyphen and other community events. There's even a couple of us who work full time jobs and go to grad school and volunteer at Hyphen.
Here in Hyphen Land, we're in production for issue 6, which means a new issue will be arriving at your doorstep in a couple months. We had a fabulous weekend at our speed dating event. Thanks to everyone who came out on Saturday. I'd never tried speed dating before, so I participated in the second session. Each date was 4 minutes long. Times 20 dates. That's 80 minutes of nonstop talking. And I'm not much of a talker.
Honestly, I can't remember most of the people I talked to. Four minutes a date is too short in most cases, but also too long if you know right off the bat that there's nothing. There was only time to get a couple questions in and almost always those two questions were "What do you like to do for fun?" and "Are you from around here?" Which meant I got really really tired of hearing "You're from Texas? How come you don't have an accent?"
So let me set the record straight. Houston, Texas is a big urban city, folks. Four million people. Fourth largest city in the U.S. We don't all have accents.
Anyhow, Audrey and Chris are representing this weekend in Philly at the East Coast Asian American Student Union conference. They'll be leading a workshop on using media for social change and passing out free copies of Hyphen. If you're in the area, check it out.
OK, enough rambling from me today. Thank god it's a 3-day weekend.
Posted by Melissa at 12:37 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Hey! Sorry I've been MIA from the blog these last couple weeks. Busy busy busy. I'm on my lunch break right now, scarfing down some pasta. We had a meeting at my work yesterday with a catered lunch. I saved the leftovers for today's lunch. Yes, I'm a frugal Asian. I'll go anywhere for free food. Or, that could also be the journalist in me. Wanna have a successful press conference? Promise lots of free food.
So I've been busy at my day job moving offices this week. Lots of meetings too. When I'm not at work, I'm working on Hyphen or on Slant, a film festival that I curate. It takes place every May in Houston at the Aurora Picture Show, an awesome microcinema that is housed in an old church building that was built in the 20s. (The pews are still there.) If you're an Asian American filmmaker with a short film, please check out their website. The call for entries is posted there. You have til the end of this month to send me your film.
So that's where I've been. We're crazy people here at Hyphen. Most of us hold down a job while working on Hyphen and other community events. There's even a couple of us who work full time jobs and go to grad school and volunteer at Hyphen.
Here in Hyphen Land, we're in production for issue 6, which means a new issue will be arriving at your doorstep in a couple months. We had a fabulous weekend at our speed dating event. Thanks to everyone who came out on Saturday. I'd never tried speed dating before, so I participated in the second session. Each date was 4 minutes long. Times 20 dates. That's 80 minutes of nonstop talking. And I'm not much of a talker.
Honestly, I can't remember most of the people I talked to. Four minutes a date is too short in most cases, but also too long if you know right off the bat that there's nothing. There was only time to get a couple questions in and almost always those two questions were "What do you like to do for fun?" and "Are you from around here?" Which meant I got really really tired of hearing "You're from Texas? How come you don't have an accent?"
So let me set the record straight. Houston, Texas is a big urban city, folks. Four million people. Fourth largest city in the U.S. We don't all have accents.
Anyhow, Audrey and Chris are representing this weekend in Philly at the East Coast Asian American Student Union conference. They'll be leading a workshop on using media for social change and passing out free copies of Hyphen. If you're in the area, check it out.
OK, enough rambling from me today. Thank god it's a 3-day weekend.
Posted by Melissa at 12:37 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
My roommate (Melissa, Hyphen's editor in chief) and I used to steal wi-fi from the guys who live upstairs from us. I mean, if people don't password-protect their connections, then why not? But for the past week neither of us has been able to connect to the Internet, and I don't exactly sit in the computer labs at school just to blog, so I apologize for missing my blog days.
So much going on in Hyphen Land (personal drama, scrambling to meet deadlines, events passed and coming up, etc.) Last Thursday I went to the launch party for the 2005 San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival, and a volunteer (who I recognize as a returner, year after year) chatted me up, saying that he reads the Hyphen blog. He said he liked reading my blogs and I had to admit that I was amazed that people even read the Hyphen blog, much less my entries. (So thanks, Steve!)
The week that I spoke on a First Thursdays panel in San Jose, I was totally unprepared for the panel to veer into a different direction that what I had "geared up" for. I assumed I'd be speaking on a panel about love and the relationship dynamics between Asian American men and women...but the panel ended up being more like, "How do I meet people?" and "How can I make myself more appealing to the opposite sex?" I felt like one panelist, who monopolized the talking time and Q&A period, came straight out of the '50s, citing advice from horrible books like The Rules. (I held my tongue; didn't want to be catty. But I almost blurted out, "With advice like that, no wonder YOU'RE single!")
Sigh.
The other week I was tabling (all by myself) at the Asian American Music Conference, and quite a few people came up to me and told me how much they love Hyphen and appreciate the content. That day I was feeling especially disheartened about (and tired from) Hyphen, so the gratitude and praise was like a shot of adrenaline.
I'm pretty excited about the next issue coming out. I apologize that you haven't heard from us since October, but Issue 6 will definitely be worth the wait!
Until then you can catch us on the daily blog tip and at random public appearances (events).
Come say "Hi!" at ECAASU and at the SFIAAFF!
Posted by Audrey at 5:39 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
My roommate (Melissa, Hyphen's editor in chief) and I used to steal wi-fi from the guys who live upstairs from us. I mean, if people don't password-protect their connections, then why not? But for the past week neither of us has been able to connect to the Internet, and I don't exactly sit in the computer labs at school just to blog, so I apologize for missing my blog days.
So much going on in Hyphen Land (personal drama, scrambling to meet deadlines, events passed and coming up, etc.) Last Thursday I went to the launch party for the 2005 San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival, and a volunteer (who I recognize as a returner, year after year) chatted me up, saying that he reads the Hyphen blog. He said he liked reading my blogs and I had to admit that I was amazed that people even read the Hyphen blog, much less my entries. (So thanks, Steve!)
The week that I spoke on a First Thursdays panel in San Jose, I was totally unprepared for the panel to veer into a different direction that what I had "geared up" for. I assumed I'd be speaking on a panel about love and the relationship dynamics between Asian American men and women...but the panel ended up being more like, "How do I meet people?" and "How can I make myself more appealing to the opposite sex?" I felt like one panelist, who monopolized the talking time and Q&A period, came straight out of the '50s, citing advice from horrible books like The Rules. (I held my tongue; didn't want to be catty. But I almost blurted out, "With advice like that, no wonder YOU'RE single!")
Sigh.
The other week I was tabling (all by myself) at the Asian American Music Conference, and quite a few people came up to me and told me how much they love Hyphen and appreciate the content. That day I was feeling especially disheartened about (and tired from) Hyphen, so the gratitude and praise was like a shot of adrenaline.
I'm pretty excited about the next issue coming out. I apologize that you haven't heard from us since October, but Issue 6 will definitely be worth the wait!
Until then you can catch us on the daily blog tip and at random public appearances (events).
Come say "Hi!" at ECAASU and at the SFIAAFF!
Posted by Audrey at 5:39 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
My roommate (Melissa, Hyphen's editor in chief) and I used to steal wi-fi from the guys who live upstairs from us. I mean, if people don't password-protect their connections, then why not? But for the past week neither of us has been able to connect to the Internet, and I don't exactly sit in the computer labs at school just to blog, so I apologize for missing my blog days.
So much going on in Hyphen Land (personal drama, scrambling to meet deadlines, events passed and coming up, etc.) Last Thursday I went to the launch party for the 2005 San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival, and a volunteer (who I recognize as a returner, year after year) chatted me up, saying that he reads the Hyphen blog. He said he liked reading my blogs and I had to admit that I was amazed that people even read the Hyphen blog, much less my entries. (So thanks, Steve!)
The week that I spoke on a First Thursdays panel in San Jose, I was totally unprepared for the panel to veer into a different direction that what I had "geared up" for. I assumed I'd be speaking on a panel about love and the relationship dynamics between Asian American men and women...but the panel ended up being more like, "How do I meet people?" and "How can I make myself more appealing to the opposite sex?" I felt like one panelist, who monopolized the talking time and Q&A period, came straight out of the '50s, citing advice from horrible books like The Rules. (I held my tongue; didn't want to be catty. But I almost blurted out, "With advice like that, no wonder YOU'RE single!")
Sigh.
The other week I was tabling (all by myself) at the Asian American Music Conference, and quite a few people came up to me and told me how much they love Hyphen and appreciate the content. That day I was feeling especially disheartened about (and tired from) Hyphen, so the gratitude and praise was like a shot of adrenaline.
I'm pretty excited about the next issue coming out. I apologize that you haven't heard from us since October, but Issue 6 will definitely be worth the wait!
Until then you can catch us on the daily blog tip and at random public appearances (events).
Come say "Hi!" at ECAASU and at the SFIAAFF!
Posted by Audrey at 5:39 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
The Bush administration frequently does things that make me so mad I can't see straight. The war, the environment, treatment of prisoners, the budget, for starters.
But there's something new that has me spitting nails. I don't know why it stands out to me from all of the other egregious behavior of the current admin. Maybe because it's such a visible example of taking power away from us common folk, we of 5-figure salaries, to whom pesky things like mortgages and insurance premiums and overtime make a big difference.
I'm talking about the current push to eliminate the class-action lawsuit.
In case you haven't heard, last thursday, the Senate approved a measure that would move class-action lawsuits to federal jurisdiction. Which would, in effect, kill a great many cases. For example, federal courts refused to hear class-action cases against Wal-Mart (that whole working-without-paying thing they were trying to pull --great way to be profitable!) although states --including Washington, Minnesota, California, Indiana and Massachusetts will.
According to the New York Times, (I'll post the article below, in comments) "federal judges have been constrained by a series of legal precedents from considering large class actions that involve varying laws of different states" --in other words, there will be many cases that will simply be impossible to press.
I woke up to hear W's voice on NPR droning on about how we need to "protect justice, not the interests of trial lawyers." At that point, I think I momentarily gained the ability to shoot lasers out of my eyes.
IF GWB is not so stupid as everyone says he is, which even I am willing to give him the benefit of the doubt on, he surely knows that class action lawsuits sometimes the last line of defense and redress for common Americans. He surely knows that it has consistently been one of the only ways to curtail unabashed infringements on worker's rights (WalMart), public health (tobacco lawsuits), institutional racial discrimination (Abercrombie and Fitch) and gender discrimination (Walmart again) and hundreds of other ways that criminals and corporations have sought to take advantage of consumers, workers, and other decent upstanding citizens of this fine land. And the suits speak to corporations in the only language they understand: money.
If he knows this, and he continues to oppose them, one can only conclude that he's not really on your side, middle America! wake up!
Much has been made of the "frivolous lawsuits" that get filed in this country. Guess what! That's what judges are for! They can dismiss cases that don't have sufficient evidence --hence the age old rituals of depositions, arraignments, grand juries, etc. Yes, some cases slip through that make no sense. OJ Simpson, anyone? But it goes both ways: hear the story of Or Collin Warner, who spent 21 years in jail for a crime he didn't commit (go to thislife.org).
But I digress. There's an amendment that will mitigate some of the damage of this bill, called the Bingaman Consumer Amendment (more info). You can write your congressperson and tell them to oppose the bill, or at least sign on to the amendment.
Or you can find out more about how class action lawsuits have helped regular ole people, at Alliance for Justice.
You haven't heard the end of this from me.
Posted by jennifer at 10:34 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
The Bush administration frequently does things that make me so mad I can't see straight. The war, the environment, treatment of prisoners, the budget, for starters.
But there's something new that has me spitting nails. I don't know why it stands out to me from all of the other egregious behavior of the current admin. Maybe because it's such a visible example of taking power away from us common folk, we of 5-figure salaries, to whom pesky things like mortgages and insurance premiums and overtime make a big difference.
I'm talking about the current push to eliminate the class-action lawsuit.
In case you haven't heard, last thursday, the Senate approved a measure that would move class-action lawsuits to federal jurisdiction. Which would, in effect, kill a great many cases. For example, federal courts refused to hear class-action cases against Wal-Mart (that whole working-without-paying thing they were trying to pull --great way to be profitable!) although states --including Washington, Minnesota, California, Indiana and Massachusetts will.
According to the New York Times, (I'll post the article below, in comments) "federal judges have been constrained by a series of legal precedents from considering large class actions that involve varying laws of different states" --in other words, there will be many cases that will simply be impossible to press.
I woke up to hear W's voice on NPR droning on about how we need to "protect justice, not the interests of trial lawyers." At that point, I think I momentarily gained the ability to shoot lasers out of my eyes.
IF GWB is not so stupid as everyone says he is, which even I am willing to give him the benefit of the doubt on, he surely knows that class action lawsuits sometimes the last line of defense and redress for common Americans. He surely knows that it has consistently been one of the only ways to curtail unabashed infringements on worker's rights (WalMart), public health (tobacco lawsuits), institutional racial discrimination (Abercrombie and Fitch) and gender discrimination (Walmart again) and hundreds of other ways that criminals and corporations have sought to take advantage of consumers, workers, and other decent upstanding citizens of this fine land. And the suits speak to corporations in the only language they understand: money.
If he knows this, and he continues to oppose them, one can only conclude that he's not really on your side, middle America! wake up!
Much has been made of the "frivolous lawsuits" that get filed in this country. Guess what! That's what judges are for! They can dismiss cases that don't have sufficient evidence --hence the age old rituals of depositions, arraignments, grand juries, etc. Yes, some cases slip through that make no sense. OJ Simpson, anyone? But it goes both ways: hear the story of Or Collin Warner, who spent 21 years in jail for a crime he didn't commit (go to thislife.org).
But I digress. There's an amendment that will mitigate some of the damage of this bill, called the Bingaman Consumer Amendment (more info). You can write your congressperson and tell them to oppose the bill, or at least sign on to the amendment.
Or you can find out more about how class action lawsuits have helped regular ole people, at Alliance for Justice.
You haven't heard the end of this from me.
Posted by jennifer at 10:34 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
The Bush administration frequently does things that make me so mad I can't see straight. The war, the environment, treatment of prisoners, the budget, for starters.
But there's something new that has me spitting nails. I don't know why it stands out to me from all of the other egregious behavior of the current admin. Maybe because it's such a visible example of taking power away from us common folk, we of 5-figure salaries, to whom pesky things like mortgages and insurance premiums and overtime make a big difference.
I'm talking about the current push to eliminate the class-action lawsuit.
In case you haven't heard, last thursday, the Senate approved a measure that would move class-action lawsuits to federal jurisdiction. Which would, in effect, kill a great many cases. For example, federal courts refused to hear class-action cases against Wal-Mart (that whole working-without-paying thing they were trying to pull --great way to be profitable!) although states --including Washington, Minnesota, California, Indiana and Massachusetts will.
According to the New York Times, (I'll post the article below, in comments) "federal judges have been constrained by a series of legal precedents from considering large class actions that involve varying laws of different states" --in other words, there will be many cases that will simply be impossible to press.
I woke up to hear W's voice on NPR droning on about how we need to "protect justice, not the interests of trial lawyers." At that point, I think I momentarily gained the ability to shoot lasers out of my eyes.
IF GWB is not so stupid as everyone says he is, which even I am willing to give him the benefit of the doubt on, he surely knows that class action lawsuits sometimes the last line of defense and redress for common Americans. He surely knows that it has consistently been one of the only ways to curtail unabashed infringements on worker's rights (WalMart), public health (tobacco lawsuits), institutional racial discrimination (Abercrombie and Fitch) and gender discrimination (Walmart again) and hundreds of other ways that criminals and corporations have sought to take advantage of consumers, workers, and other decent upstanding citizens of this fine land. And the suits speak to corporations in the only language they understand: money.
If he knows this, and he continues to oppose them, one can only conclude that he's not really on your side, middle America! wake up!
Much has been made of the "frivolous lawsuits" that get filed in this country. Guess what! That's what judges are for! They can dismiss cases that don't have sufficient evidence --hence the age old rituals of depositions, arraignments, grand juries, etc. Yes, some cases slip through that make no sense. OJ Simpson, anyone? But it goes both ways: hear the story of Or Collin Warner, who spent 21 years in jail for a crime he didn't commit (go to thislife.org).
But I digress. There's an amendment that will mitigate some of the damage of this bill, called the Bingaman Consumer Amendment (more info). You can write your congressperson and tell them to oppose the bill, or at least sign on to the amendment.
Or you can find out more about how class action lawsuits have helped regular ole people, at Alliance for Justice.
You haven't heard the end of this from me.
Posted by jennifer at 10:34 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Okay, I know you guys are sick of hearing about the speed dating on the blog so I won't blog about it. (It went very well, thank you. Shout out to the Hyphen staff for working like clocks.) So tomorrow is Valentine's Day and the whole world has hooking up on the brain. I woke up this morning, slightly hung over (organizing has a hangover as well as drinking -- last night I did both) and opened my Sunday NYTimes to find this article on the cover. Arranged marriages the wealthy New Yorker way! Orange you glad you have Hyphen speed dating?
Then I opened up the book review and there was an essay about the sudden revival of interest in the timeless love story of Abelard and Heloise, as evidenced in five new books about them. He was her tutor, her uncle castrated him, they died in monasteries. Yikes.
So, since I really have nothing else to blog about except news and speed dating, and since we can't get away from the weird love theme, and since this blog is supposed to be all Asian American and political, let's use this opportunity to talk about how Asian American love is portrayed in our best friend, the cinema. Or rather, why don't you all tell us all what your favorite Asian American (or Asian/American or American Asian) cinematic love is and why?
I'll start the ball rolling with some that might be my least favorite:
• Tamlyn Tomita and Dennis Quaid in Come See the Paradise, 'cause it was the first movie I ever saw about internment, and the stupid love story kept getting in the way. (I still love you, though, Dennis!)
• Sandra Oh and Callum Keith Rennie in Double Happiness, 'cause there wasn't a single available Chinese man in all of Vancouver that our heroine could date so she had to hook up with whitey. (I still love you, though, Callum!)
• Jennifer Jones and William Holden in Love is a Many-Splendored Thing, only 'cause Jennifer Jones is *hello!* not Asian and her makeup job was cheap. (I still love you, though, Han Suyin!)
• Aaliyah and Jet Li in Romeo Must Die, 'cause, although they're a totally hot couple, they never got to hook up! Plus, the title makes no sense.
• Jodie Foster and Chow Yun-Fat in Anna and the King, 'cause do you actually believe that if you were alone in the moonlight in Thailand with Chow Yun-Fat, your corset would manage to stay on for longer than five seconds? Reality check!
Okay, I'm sensing a theme here. All of the abovementioned loves are interracial. But I've been racking my brain for an Asian Am on Asian Am love in the cinema and drawing blanks. Here's what I got on the least favorite front:
• Both couples in Charlotte Sometimes, but isn't that the point?
• The cheerleader and the rich guy in Better Luck Tomorrow, obviously. Less obviously, I don't like her and the geek together, either. But I think that's the point as well.
• ...
Okay, I thought of a couple I liked!:
• The Mackintosh G10s in Robot Stories, 'cause they're cool and rebellious and 'cause they're robots.
Posted by claire at 10:09 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
Okay, I know you guys are sick of hearing about the speed dating on the blog so I won't blog about it. (It went very well, thank you. Shout out to the Hyphen staff for working like clocks.) So tomorrow is Valentine's Day and the whole world has hooking up on the brain. I woke up this morning, slightly hung over (organizing has a hangover as well as drinking -- last night I did both) and opened my Sunday NYTimes to find this article on the cover. Arranged marriages the wealthy New Yorker way! Orange you glad you have Hyphen speed dating?
Then I opened up the book review and there was an essay about the sudden revival of interest in the timeless love story of Abelard and Heloise, as evidenced in five new books about them. He was her tutor, her uncle castrated him, they died in monasteries. Yikes.
So, since I really have nothing else to blog about except news and speed dating, and since we can't get away from the weird love theme, and since this blog is supposed to be all Asian American and political, let's use this opportunity to talk about how Asian American love is portrayed in our best friend, the cinema. Or rather, why don't you all tell us all what your favorite Asian American (or Asian/American or American Asian) cinematic love is and why?
I'll start the ball rolling with some that might be my least favorite:
• Tamlyn Tomita and Dennis Quaid in Come See the Paradise, 'cause it was the first movie I ever saw about internment, and the stupid love story kept getting in the way. (I still love you, though, Dennis!)
• Sandra Oh and Callum Keith Rennie in Double Happiness, 'cause there wasn't a single available Chinese man in all of Vancouver that our heroine could date so she had to hook up with whitey. (I still love you, though, Callum!)
• Jennifer Jones and William Holden in Love is a Many-Splendored Thing, only 'cause Jennifer Jones is *hello!* not Asian and her makeup job was cheap. (I still love you, though, Han Suyin!)
• Aaliyah and Jet Li in Romeo Must Die, 'cause, although they're a totally hot couple, they never got to hook up! Plus, the title makes no sense.
• Jodie Foster and Chow Yun-Fat in Anna and the King, 'cause do you actually believe that if you were alone in the moonlight in Thailand with Chow Yun-Fat, your corset would manage to stay on for longer than five seconds? Reality check!
Okay, I'm sensing a theme here. All of the abovementioned loves are interracial. But I've been racking my brain for an Asian Am on Asian Am love in the cinema and drawing blanks. Here's what I got on the least favorite front:
• Both couples in Charlotte Sometimes, but isn't that the point?
• The cheerleader and the rich guy in Better Luck Tomorrow, obviously. Less obviously, I don't like her and the geek together, either. But I think that's the point as well.
• ...
Okay, I thought of a couple I liked!:
• The Mackintosh G10s in Robot Stories, 'cause they're cool and rebellious and 'cause they're robots.
Posted by claire at 10:09 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
Okay, I know you guys are sick of hearing about the speed dating on the blog so I won't blog about it. (It went very well, thank you. Shout out to the Hyphen staff for working like clocks.) So tomorrow is Valentine's Day and the whole world has hooking up on the brain. I woke up this morning, slightly hung over (organizing has a hangover as well as drinking -- last night I did both) and opened my Sunday NYTimes to find this article on the cover. Arranged marriages the wealthy New Yorker way! Orange you glad you have Hyphen speed dating?
Then I opened up the book review and there was an essay about the sudden revival of interest in the timeless love story of Abelard and Heloise, as evidenced in five new books about them. He was her tutor, her uncle castrated him, they died in monasteries. Yikes.
So, since I really have nothing else to blog about except news and speed dating, and since we can't get away from the weird love theme, and since this blog is supposed to be all Asian American and political, let's use this opportunity to talk about how Asian American love is portrayed in our best friend, the cinema. Or rather, why don't you all tell us all what your favorite Asian American (or Asian/American or American Asian) cinematic love is and why?
I'll start the ball rolling with some that might be my least favorite:
Tamlyn Tomita and Dennis Quaid in Come See the Paradise, 'cause it was the first movie I ever saw about internment, and the stupid love story kept getting in the way. (I still love you, though, Dennis!)
Sandra Oh and Callum Keith Rennie in Double Happiness, 'cause there wasn't a single available Chinese man in all of Vancouver that our heroine could date so she had to hook up with whitey. (I still love you, though, Callum!)
Jennifer Jones and William Holden in Love is a Many-Splendored Thing, only 'cause Jennifer Jones is *hello!* not Asian and her makeup job was cheap. (I still love you, though, Han Suyin!)
Aaliyah and Jet Li in Romeo Must Die, 'cause, although they're a totally hot couple, they never got to hook up! Plus, the title makes no sense.
Jodie Foster and Chow Yun-Fat in Anna and the King, 'cause do you actually believe that if you were alone in the moonlight in Thailand with Chow Yun-Fat, your corset would manage to stay on for longer than five seconds? Reality check!
Okay, I'm sensing a theme here. All of the abovementioned loves are interracial. But I've been racking my brain for an Asian Am on Asian Am love in the cinema and drawing blanks. Here's what I got on the least favorite front:
Both couples in Charlotte Sometimes, but isn't that the point?
The cheerleader and the rich guy in Better Luck Tomorrow, obviously. Less obviously, I don't like her and the geek together, either. But I think that's the point as well.
...
Okay, I thought of a couple I liked!:
The Mackintosh G10s in Robot Stories, 'cause they're cool and rebellious and 'cause they're robots.
Posted by claire at 10:09 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
Some of the most prolific romancing ever was completed via tape deck. Real Romeos woo extensively by mixtape. The social history—recently saluted in the Broadway play Avenue Q—has evolved as CD burners replace the cumbersome cassette deck, reducing the time-consuming recording task to a fraction depending on hard drive and download speed. The psychology behind choosing the right songs, however, hasn’t changed. It’s only gotten harder as online stores slice record digging into quickly downloadable and digestible ribbons.
For Valentine’s Day, here are some tips for creating the illest mixtape/CD for the lover in your life.
• 60 minutes is the ideal length
Assembling a mixtape is almost like directing a movie. You need an intro, atmosphere, action, drama, comic relief, a dressing up montage, a nightclub scene, a love scene, a climax, a cool down and outro—all in proper doses. You also need good taste in music—a sticking point that could make or break a relationship.
• Lead with something short and upbeat.
Nothing kills momentum than a long-ass, drawn-out song at the start. Avoid droning jazz pieces or jam bands. And if Moody Blues’ “Nights in White Satin” appears anywhere on the joint, prepare to be met with a restraining order.
• Don’t Show Off
Throw in some accessible pop but place it within a new context. You never know how cool it is to hear Debbie Gibson’s “Shake Your Love” next to Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” until you actually commit. That said…
• Use Irony In Moderation.
You’ll regret putting “Shake Your Love” and “Beat It” next to each other when the lights are low. And fast forwarding during necking is a party foul.
• Variation.
That’s cool you’re a big H-Town fan. “Knockin’ the Boots” is the jam, no question. But to load the “A”-side with three H-Town songs and remixes on the “B” is just asking for trip to the circular file. Buy the H-Town CD for the boudoir but save the mix for driving or commuting. But by all means, include “Knockin’ the Boots.”
• Everyone likes surprises.
A good trick is to record short comedy bits between songs to break things up. If you can tie the thematic structure of the comedic bit to the next song, proceed to Advanced Baller status immediately.
• Drop in a Prince song.
DJs use Prince to segue from new wave sets to R&B to hip-hop and back again. Same principle applies here whether jumping from schmaltzy to smooth. Prince is timeless and shows class, taste and sensitivity. Plus, he makes girls lose their shit.
• Dress Up the J-Card
It’s a good way to score bonus points. An artsy fartsy J-card sticks out on a cluttered desk, the shoulder bag, and most importantly, among the Regular Joe tapes or CDs scattered about. Give it a good name and in a year you’ll be giggling about it at your wedding ceremony. In short: a J-card with just names and songs written in Bic = boring in bed. A J-card with found magazine clippings, glitter pen calligraphy and Pepe Le Pew stickers? Soundproof the room and reinforce the headboard.
• If the tape runs out before the song does, find a shorter song.
It’s simple courtesy. You wouldn’t leave a telephone message halfway done. Or an article partially typed without
Posted by at 10:24 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Some of the most prolific romancing ever was completed via tape deck. Real Romeos woo extensively by mixtape. The social history—recently saluted in the Broadway play Avenue Q—has evolved as CD burners replace the cumbersome cassette deck, reducing the time-consuming recording task to a fraction depending on hard drive and download speed. The psychology behind choosing the right songs, however, hasn’t changed. It’s only gotten harder as online stores slice record digging into quickly downloadable and digestible ribbons.
For Valentine’s Day, here are some tips for creating the illest mixtape/CD for the lover in your life.
• 60 minutes is the ideal length
Assembling a mixtape is almost like directing a movie. You need an intro, atmosphere, action, drama, comic relief, a dressing up montage, a nightclub scene, a love scene, a climax, a cool down and outro—all in proper doses. You also need good taste in music—a sticking point that could make or break a relationship.
• Lead with something short and upbeat.
Nothing kills momentum than a long-ass, drawn-out song at the start. Avoid droning jazz pieces or jam bands. And if Moody Blues’ “Nights in White Satin” appears anywhere on the joint, prepare to be met with a restraining order.
• Don’t Show Off
Throw in some accessible pop but place it within a new context. You never know how cool it is to hear Debbie Gibson’s “Shake Your Love” next to Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” until you actually commit. That said…
• Use Irony In Moderation.
You’ll regret putting “Shake Your Love” and “Beat It” next to each other when the lights are low. And fast forwarding during necking is a party foul.
• Variation.
That’s cool you’re a big H-Town fan. “Knockin’ the Boots” is the jam, no question. But to load the “A”-side with three H-Town songs and remixes on the “B” is just asking for trip to the circular file. Buy the H-Town CD for the boudoir but save the mix for driving or commuting. But by all means, include “Knockin’ the Boots.”
• Everyone likes surprises.
A good trick is to record short comedy bits between songs to break things up. If you can tie the thematic structure of the comedic bit to the next song, proceed to Advanced Baller status immediately.
• Drop in a Prince song.
DJs use Prince to segue from new wave sets to R&B to hip-hop and back again. Same principle applies here whether jumping from schmaltzy to smooth. Prince is timeless and shows class, taste and sensitivity. Plus, he makes girls lose their shit.
• Dress Up the J-Card
It’s a good way to score bonus points. An artsy fartsy J-card sticks out on a cluttered desk, the shoulder bag, and most importantly, among the Regular Joe tapes or CDs scattered about. Give it a good name and in a year you’ll be giggling about it at your wedding ceremony. In short: a J-card with just names and songs written in Bic = boring in bed. A J-card with found magazine clippings, glitter pen calligraphy and Pepe Le Pew stickers? Soundproof the room and reinforce the headboard.
• If the tape runs out before the song does, find a shorter song.
It’s simple courtesy. You wouldn’t leave a telephone message halfway done. Or an article partially typed without
Posted by at 10:24 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Some of the most prolific romancing ever was completed via tape deck. Real Romeos woo extensively by mixtape. The social historyrecently saluted in the Broadway play Avenue Qhas evolved as CD burners replace the cumbersome cassette deck, reducing the time-consuming recording task to a fraction depending on hard drive and download speed. The psychology behind choosing the right songs, however, hasnt changed. Its only gotten harder as online stores slice record digging into quickly downloadable and digestible ribbons.
For Valentines Day, here are some tips for creating the illest mixtape/CD for the lover in your life.
60 minutes is the ideal length
Assembling a mixtape is almost like directing a movie. You need an intro, atmosphere, action, drama, comic relief, a dressing up montage, a nightclub scene, a love scene, a climax, a cool down and outroall in proper doses. You also need good taste in musica sticking point that could make or break a relationship.
Lead with something short and upbeat.
Nothing kills momentum than a long-ass, drawn-out song at the start. Avoid droning jazz pieces or jam bands. And if Moody Blues Nights in White Satin appears anywhere on the joint, prepare to be met with a restraining order.
Dont Show Off
Throw in some accessible pop but place it within a new context. You never know how cool it is to hear Debbie Gibsons Shake Your Love next to Michael Jacksons Beat It until you actually commit. That said
Use Irony In Moderation.
Youll regret putting Shake Your Love and Beat It next to each other when the lights are low. And fast forwarding during necking is a party foul.
Variation.
Thats cool youre a big H-Town fan. Knockin the Boots is the jam, no question. But to load the A-side with three H-Town songs and remixes on the B is just asking for trip to the circular file. Buy the H-Town CD for the boudoir but save the mix for driving or commuting. But by all means, include Knockin the Boots.
Everyone likes surprises.
A good trick is to record short comedy bits between songs to break things up. If you can tie the thematic structure of the comedic bit to the next song, proceed to Advanced Baller status immediately.
Drop in a Prince song.
DJs use Prince to segue from new wave sets to R&B to hip-hop and back again. Same principle applies here whether jumping from schmaltzy to smooth. Prince is timeless and shows class, taste and sensitivity. Plus, he makes girls lose their shit.
Dress Up the J-Card
Its a good way to score bonus points. An artsy fartsy J-card sticks out on a cluttered desk, the shoulder bag, and most importantly, among the Regular Joe tapes or CDs scattered about. Give it a good name and in a year youll be giggling about it at your wedding ceremony. In short: a J-card with just names and songs written in Bic = boring in bed. A J-card with found magazine clippings, glitter pen calligraphy and Pepe Le Pew stickers? Soundproof the room and reinforce the headboard.
If the tape runs out before the song does, find a shorter song.
Its simple courtesy. You wouldnt leave a telephone message halfway done. Or an article partially typed without
Posted by todd at 10:24 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
He thought she was cute and open to trying new things. She thought he seemed shy, but like a decent fellow. They both picked seven people they'd like to meet again. Of those seven, only one turned into a date.
But one was all it took.
I'm talking about Sid and Anita, Hyphen's poster couple for speed dating. Six months after meeting at Hyphen's speed dating fundraiser last year, the web developer/taekwondo teacher and the Asian American Studies academic/activist moved in together. As Sid says in his testimonial, "I love her more and more each day."
She's taken up rock climbing and camping, he goes to Jane Kim fundraisers. They moved to Oakland, the mid-point for her commute to UC Davis and his trek to Foster City.
I met with Sid and Anita last night to hear their story of unexpected romance. That they should find a relationship that opens new worlds and motors on with compromise and affection is amazing to me --and may very well be one of Hyphen's most life-changing accomplishments. When we planned speed dating, I don't know if anyone expected serious commitments. We were in it for the fun, the cash, the entertainment value.
But here they sat before me, with the banter and ease that couples comfortable with each other can quietly take for granted.
I wondered if they knew right away, the moment they saw each other. You know, like on West Side Story, when the pair see each other and the rest of the room fades away and they do a cheesy little dance with each other? Did that happen? No.
Was four minutes enough to get a good idea of who the person was? "I just followed my gut," Anita says, and admits she would've been turned off if Sid had said he was a Silicon Valley computer wrangler. (He only mentioned the taekwondo part.) He says her fiery passion for politics and her engaging, outspoken personality didn't really come out in the 240 seconds he spent with her. But he thought she was cute.
Both of them said they liked the fact that it was a Hyphen fundraiser --for one thing, if the night was a bust, at least the money went to a cause they liked. And the fact that people were drawn by the magazine meant that they would hopefully have at least some political engagement or participation in the community. Plus, now they can say they met at a fundraiser in San Francisco, if they don't want to bother with explaining speed dating for the millionth time.
Sid waited a month for their first date --her speaking engagements took her out of state. When she returned, she suggested rock climbing --something she'd never done before. "I got halfway up the rock and I suddenly remembered that I'm afraid of heights," Anita recalled. She wanted to go back down, she said she couldn't do it anymore.
Sid impressed her with his response. He told her to take a rest, look at the outcropping and just think about how she could get around it. She did, and when she reached the top she realized she was with a really great, supportive guy.
The moral of the story?
Some of it's luck, some of it's persistence, but there's some really fascinating people out there --and they like Hyphen. If you want to meet some of them, there's no better way than our Speed Dating fundraiser --plus you help us print the magazine. So grab a friend, click and show up. Maybe it'll change your life. It certainly won't if you don't come.
This Saturday evening, Jon Sims Center. I'll be there.
Posted by jennifer at 10:05 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
He thought she was cute and open to trying new things. She thought he seemed shy, but like a decent fellow. They both picked seven people they'd like to meet again. Of those seven, only one turned into a date.
But one was all it took.
I'm talking about Sid and Anita, Hyphen's poster couple for speed dating. Six months after meeting at Hyphen's speed dating fundraiser last year, the web developer/taekwondo teacher and the Asian American Studies academic/activist moved in together. As Sid says in his testimonial, "I love her more and more each day."
She's taken up rock climbing and camping, he goes to Jane Kim fundraisers. They moved to Oakland, the mid-point for her commute to UC Davis and his trek to Foster City.
I met with Sid and Anita last night to hear their story of unexpected romance. That they should find a relationship that opens new worlds and motors on with compromise and affection is amazing to me --and may very well be one of Hyphen's most life-changing accomplishments. When we planned speed dating, I don't know if anyone expected serious commitments. We were in it for the fun, the cash, the entertainment value.
But here they sat before me, with the banter and ease that couples comfortable with each other can quietly take for granted.
I wondered if they knew right away, the moment they saw each other. You know, like on West Side Story, when the pair see each other and the rest of the room fades away and they do a cheesy little dance with each other? Did that happen? No.
Was four minutes enough to get a good idea of who the person was? "I just followed my gut," Anita says, and admits she would've been turned off if Sid had said he was a Silicon Valley computer wrangler. (He only mentioned the taekwondo part.) He says her fiery passion for politics and her engaging, outspoken personality didn't really come out in the 240 seconds he spent with her. But he thought she was cute.
Both of them said they liked the fact that it was a Hyphen fundraiser --for one thing, if the night was a bust, at least the money went to a cause they liked. And the fact that people were drawn by the magazine meant that they would hopefully have at least some political engagement or participation in the community. Plus, now they can say they met at a fundraiser in San Francisco, if they don't want to bother with explaining speed dating for the millionth time.
Sid waited a month for their first date --her speaking engagements took her out of state. When she returned, she suggested rock climbing --something she'd never done before. "I got halfway up the rock and I suddenly remembered that I'm afraid of heights," Anita recalled. She wanted to go back down, she said she couldn't do it anymore.
Sid impressed her with his response. He told her to take a rest, look at the outcropping and just think about how she could get around it. She did, and when she reached the top she realized she was with a really great, supportive guy.
The moral of the story?
Some of it's luck, some of it's persistence, but there's some really fascinating people out there --and they like Hyphen. If you want to meet some of them, there's no better way than our Speed Dating fundraiser --plus you help us print the magazine. So grab a friend, click and show up. Maybe it'll change your life. It certainly won't if you don't come.
This Saturday evening, Jon Sims Center. I'll be there.
Posted by jennifer at 10:05 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
He thought she was cute and open to trying new things. She thought he seemed shy, but like a decent fellow. They both picked seven people they'd like to meet again. Of those seven, only one turned into a date.
But one was all it took.
I'm talking about Sid and Anita, Hyphen's poster couple for speed dating. Six months after meeting at Hyphen's speed dating fundraiser last year, the web developer/taekwondo teacher and the Asian American Studies academic/activist moved in together. As Sid says in his testimonial, "I love her more and more each day."
She's taken up rock climbing and camping, he goes to Jane Kim fundraisers. They moved to Oakland, the mid-point for her commute to UC Davis and his trek to Foster City.
I met with Sid and Anita last night to hear their story of unexpected romance. That they should find a relationship that opens new worlds and motors on with compromise and affection is amazing to me --and may very well be one of Hyphen's most life-changing accomplishments. When we planned speed dating, I don't know if anyone expected serious commitments. We were in it for the fun, the cash, the entertainment value.
But here they sat before me, with the banter and ease that couples comfortable with each other can quietly take for granted.
I wondered if they knew right away, the moment they saw each other. You know, like on West Side Story, when the pair see each other and the rest of the room fades away and they do a cheesy little dance with each other? Did that happen? No.
Was four minutes enough to get a good idea of who the person was? "I just followed my gut," Anita says, and admits she would've been turned off if Sid had said he was a Silicon Valley computer wrangler. (He only mentioned the taekwondo part.) He says her fiery passion for politics and her engaging, outspoken personality didn't really come out in the 240 seconds he spent with her. But he thought she was cute.
Both of them said they liked the fact that it was a Hyphen fundraiser --for one thing, if the night was a bust, at least the money went to a cause they liked. And the fact that people were drawn by the magazine meant that they would hopefully have at least some political engagement or participation in the community. Plus, now they can say they met at a fundraiser in San Francisco, if they don't want to bother with explaining speed dating for the millionth time.
Sid waited a month for their first date --her speaking engagements took her out of state. When she returned, she suggested rock climbing --something she'd never done before. "I got halfway up the rock and I suddenly remembered that I'm afraid of heights," Anita recalled. She wanted to go back down, she said she couldn't do it anymore.
Sid impressed her with his response. He told her to take a rest, look at the outcropping and just think about how she could get around it. She did, and when she reached the top she realized she was with a really great, supportive guy.
The moral of the story?
Some of it's luck, some of it's persistence, but there's some really fascinating people out there --and they like Hyphen. If you want to meet some of them, there's no better way than our Speed Dating fundraiser --plus you help us print the magazine. So grab a friend, click and show up. Maybe it'll change your life. It certainly won't if you don't come.
This Saturday evening, Jon Sims Center. I'll be there.
Posted by jennifer at 10:05 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Funny how much time academics and other types of thinkers spend trying to codify the ways that cultural ways and means immigrate. But often, it comes down to individuality, be it individual people, families, neighborhoods or cities. Often, it's just an accident of personality.
This article from the L.A. Times makes exactly that point with regard to the upcoming "widow year", i.e. the year of the rooster in the Chinese lunar calendar, a year inauspicious for weddings. Whether or not young Chinese Americans are avoiding a 2005 wedding date depends upon a number of factors converging to form each individual's ethnic identity: sense of ethnic self, familial duty, joy in traditions, practicality, threshold for embarrassment, etc.
I'd never heard of the widow year before today, nor would my mother ever have mentioned it to me, much less expected me to abide by its dictates in setting a wedding date (to be honest, my mom would be glad to hear I'd eloped to Las Vegas, provided it meant that I'd married.) We never celebrated Chinese New Year; until I moved to San Francisco I never ate the traditional food, nor even knew what it was. Holidays, superstitions, medicines, so many touchstones of ethnic usage and ethnic identity my mother dismissed or avoided when it came to raising us. As a result, when I first got involved in the Asian American community in San Francisco, I felt like such a fake. There were so many things I didn't know that everyone else seemed to take for granted. I'll never forget the time I poured a drink for a Chinese American friend and he rapped the table with his knuckles and then had to explain to me that it was a mini-kowtow, a brief "thank you." A short time later, I saw my mom do it for some Chinese friends. Why hadn't she taught me this when I was a kid?
On the other hand, I had to unlearn serving other people at meals because I kept getting such funny looks and even rude comments. This is not least because those of us going to dinner as a group would always include a pan-Asian plethora: Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Filipino, etc. I also forced myself to start taking the last piece of things if I wanted to -- everyone else did. My mom had drilled us in table manners and politeness to guests in part as a recognition of the fact that we would be called upon, in life, to attend a lot of strangers' dining tables in a lot of different cultures and would need to not offend them. But I suspect that it was also probably in part to prove to her Chinese friends and family that her mixed children wouldn't necessarily be crasser than their full blood ones. *Sigh* Sorry, Mom!
Anyway, for those of you still wrangling identity points, you have two days to hit Las Vegas before the widow year starts. If it was me, I'd be taking my red-silk-clad ass to the Elvis Chapel.
Posted by claire at 10:39 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
Funny how much time academics and other types of thinkers spend trying to codify the ways that cultural ways and means immigrate. But often, it comes down to individuality, be it individual people, families, neighborhoods or cities. Often, it's just an accident of personality.
This article from the L.A. Times makes exactly that point with regard to the upcoming "widow year", i.e. the year of the rooster in the Chinese lunar calendar, a year inauspicious for weddings. Whether or not young Chinese Americans are avoiding a 2005 wedding date depends upon a number of factors converging to form each individual's ethnic identity: sense of ethnic self, familial duty, joy in traditions, practicality, threshold for embarrassment, etc.
I'd never heard of the widow year before today, nor would my mother ever have mentioned it to me, much less expected me to abide by its dictates in setting a wedding date (to be honest, my mom would be glad to hear I'd eloped to Las Vegas, provided it meant that I'd married.) We never celebrated Chinese New Year; until I moved to San Francisco I never ate the traditional food, nor even knew what it was. Holidays, superstitions, medicines, so many touchstones of ethnic usage and ethnic identity my mother dismissed or avoided when it came to raising us. As a result, when I first got involved in the Asian American community in San Francisco, I felt like such a fake. There were so many things I didn't know that everyone else seemed to take for granted. I'll never forget the time I poured a drink for a Chinese American friend and he rapped the table with his knuckles and then had to explain to me that it was a mini-kowtow, a brief "thank you." A short time later, I saw my mom do it for some Chinese friends. Why hadn't she taught me this when I was a kid?
On the other hand, I had to unlearn serving other people at meals because I kept getting such funny looks and even rude comments. This is not least because those of us going to dinner as a group would always include a pan-Asian plethora: Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Filipino, etc. I also forced myself to start taking the last piece of things if I wanted to -- everyone else did. My mom had drilled us in table manners and politeness to guests in part as a recognition of the fact that we would be called upon, in life, to attend a lot of strangers' dining tables in a lot of different cultures and would need to not offend them. But I suspect that it was also probably in part to prove to her Chinese friends and family that her mixed children wouldn't necessarily be crasser than their full blood ones. *Sigh* Sorry, Mom!
Anyway, for those of you still wrangling identity points, you have two days to hit Las Vegas before the widow year starts. If it was me, I'd be taking my red-silk-clad ass to the Elvis Chapel.
Posted by claire at 10:39 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
Funny how much time academics and other types of thinkers spend trying to codify the ways that cultural ways and means immigrate. But often, it comes down to individuality, be it individual people, families, neighborhoods or cities. Often, it's just an accident of personality.
This article from the L.A. Times makes exactly that point with regard to the upcoming "widow year", i.e. the year of the rooster in the Chinese lunar calendar, a year inauspicious for weddings. Whether or not young Chinese Americans are avoiding a 2005 wedding date depends upon a number of factors converging to form each individual's ethnic identity: sense of ethnic self, familial duty, joy in traditions, practicality, threshold for embarrassment, etc.
I'd never heard of the widow year before today, nor would my mother ever have mentioned it to me, much less expected me to abide by its dictates in setting a wedding date (to be honest, my mom would be glad to hear I'd eloped to Las Vegas, provided it meant that I'd married.) We never celebrated Chinese New Year; until I moved to San Francisco I never ate the traditional food, nor even knew what it was. Holidays, superstitions, medicines, so many touchstones of ethnic usage and ethnic identity my mother dismissed or avoided when it came to raising us. As a result, when I first got involved in the Asian American community in San Francisco, I felt like such a fake. There were so many things I didn't know that everyone else seemed to take for granted. I'll never forget the time I poured a drink for a Chinese American friend and he rapped the table with his knuckles and then had to explain to me that it was a mini-kowtow, a brief "thank you." A short time later, I saw my mom do it for some Chinese friends. Why hadn't she taught me this when I was a kid?
On the other hand, I had to unlearn serving other people at meals because I kept getting such funny looks and even rude comments. This is not least because those of us going to dinner as a group would always include a pan-Asian plethora: Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Filipino, etc. I also forced myself to start taking the last piece of things if I wanted to -- everyone else did. My mom had drilled us in table manners and politeness to guests in part as a recognition of the fact that we would be called upon, in life, to attend a lot of strangers' dining tables in a lot of different cultures and would need to not offend them. But I suspect that it was also probably in part to prove to her Chinese friends and family that her mixed children wouldn't necessarily be crasser than their full blood ones. *Sigh* Sorry, Mom!
Anyway, for those of you still wrangling identity points, you have two days to hit Las Vegas before the widow year starts. If it was me, I'd be taking my red-silk-clad ass to the Elvis Chapel.
Posted by claire at 10:39 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
What's up Hyphen Blog aficionados? I am back with a vengeance, after spending many weeks marinating in the over-stimulating/over-stimulated nation of India. While I was far away from the destruction of the tsunami, I did feel India move (slightly) under my feet and watched as the waters in the ponds and rivers rose up in some kind of angry agreement with the ocean. I’m still trying to process the energetic vibrations of the earth’s shifting and the departure of so many thousands of souls.
So, it really helped soothe my already severe culture shock to come back to the Hot 97 tsunami song scandal. It just made me want to cocoon in my house and listen to old Bengali songs on my tape recorder even more. But Jin tha MC became my new hero when I heard his retort to Miss Jones and the Hot 97 crew. Not only is the song clever and dead-on, but he steps it up for Asian Americans in a way that I don’t remember happening before. There was surely no one rapping about Vincent Chin’s murder back in the day, but there wasn’t even anyone spitting lyrics about Abercrombie a few years ago.
Mad props, Jin. Imma go out and buy your album right now, boyee.
Posted by neela at 4:29 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack
What's up Hyphen Blog aficionados? I am back with a vengeance, after spending many weeks marinating in the over-stimulating/over-stimulated nation of India. While I was far away from the destruction of the tsunami, I did feel India move (slightly) under my feet and watched as the waters in the ponds and rivers rose up in some kind of angry agreement with the ocean. I’m still trying to process the energetic vibrations of the earth’s shifting and the departure of so many thousands of souls.
So, it really helped soothe my already severe culture shock to come back to the Hot 97 tsunami song scandal. It just made me want to cocoon in my house and listen to old Bengali songs on my tape recorder even more. But Jin tha MC became my new hero when I heard his retort to Miss Jones and the Hot 97 crew. Not only is the song clever and dead-on, but he steps it up for Asian Americans in a way that I don’t remember happening before. There was surely no one rapping about Vincent Chin’s murder back in the day, but there wasn’t even anyone spitting lyrics about Abercrombie a few years ago.
Mad props, Jin. Imma go out and buy your album right now, boyee.
Posted by neela at 4:29 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack
What's up Hyphen Blog aficionados? I am back with a vengeance, after spending many weeks marinating in the over-stimulating/over-stimulated nation of India. While I was far away from the destruction of the tsunami, I did feel India move (slightly) under my feet and watched as the waters in the ponds and rivers rose up in some kind of angry agreement with the ocean. Im still trying to process the energetic vibrations of the earths shifting and the departure of so many thousands of souls.
So, it really helped soothe my already severe culture shock to come back to the Hot 97 tsunami song scandal. It just made me want to cocoon in my house and listen to old Bengali songs on my tape recorder even more. But Jin tha MC became my new hero when I heard his retort to Miss Jones and the Hot 97 crew. Not only is the song clever and dead-on, but he steps it up for Asian Americans in a way that I dont remember happening before. There was surely no one rapping about Vincent Chins murder back in the day, but there wasnt even anyone spitting lyrics about Abercrombie a few years ago.
Mad props, Jin. Imma go out and buy your album right now, boyee.
Posted by neela at 4:29 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack
I spoke with the awesome British/Sri Lankan emcee M.I.A. today. She was in good spirits though a little disoriented by the amount of attention being placed on her. The rapper had a sold out show last night in L.A. that had all kinds of press and label peoples out.
I asked if she had anything to say to Asian America, she said:
“I just want to say I’m really impressed by the turnout at the gig yesterday. There were loads of Asian Americans there. I haven’t met the community and it opened the world up for me today. I really want to access it. I want to get in touch.”
Her album drops on Feb. 22 on XL Recordings. "Galang" and "Fire Fire" are available on iTunes.
Posted by at 1:52 PM | Comments (7) | TrackBack
I spoke with the awesome British/Sri Lankan emcee M.I.A. today. She was in good spirits though a little disoriented by the amount of attention being placed on her. The rapper had a sold out show last night in L.A. that had all kinds of press and label peoples out.
I asked if she had anything to say to Asian America, she said:
“I just want to say I’m really impressed by the turnout at the gig yesterday. There were loads of Asian Americans there. I haven’t met the community and it opened the world up for me today. I really want to access it. I want to get in touch.”
Her album drops on Feb. 22 on XL Recordings. "Galang" and "Fire Fire" are available on iTunes.
Posted by at 1:52 PM | Comments (7) | TrackBack
I spoke with the awesome British/Sri Lankan emcee M.I.A. today. She was in good spirits though a little disoriented by the amount of attention being placed on her. The rapper had a sold out show last night in L.A. that had all kinds of press and label peoples out.
I asked if she had anything to say to Asian America, she said:
I just want to say Im really impressed by the turnout at the gig yesterday. There were loads of Asian Americans there. I havent met the community and it opened the world up for me today. I really want to access it. I want to get in touch.
Her album drops on Feb. 22 on XL Recordings. "Galang" and "Fire Fire" are available on iTunes.
Posted by todd at 1:52 PM | Comments (7) | TrackBack
Asians are about to be all over your TV screen!
Read this article penned by Jeff Yang.
Posted by Audrey at 9:50 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Asians are about to be all over your TV screen!
Read this article penned by Jeff Yang.
Posted by Audrey at 9:50 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Asians are about to be all over your TV screen!
Read this article penned by Jeff Yang.
Posted by Audrey at 9:50 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Thursday already. Man.
Later this evening I will be in San Jose, speaking on a panel (I think it's hilarious the panel is being called "Man Jose") about dating issues and the Asian American community in the Bay Area/Silicon Valley. Go here for details. As I said before, I don't know how much of a dating or relationship "expert" I am to impart any sort of knowledge upon anyone who's paying for this event... But I'll at least try to make people laugh. I already know that some of my friends will be in attendance to put me on the spot, so I'm prepared.
While we're on the subject of speaking on panels, I've been boning up on readings from Moving The Image (a book I saved from an Asian American Studies class I took five years ago at UC Berkeley). I'm trying to prepare for ECAASU in two weeks. I'm excited/nervous/terrified about the panel(s) I'll be speaking on/moderating (I'm pretty sure I'll be moderating and speaking as a panelist, though I don't quite know yet) about media and social change, and Hyphen's voice/place in Asian American media. I'm trying to anticipate what some questions might be that conference attendees will be asking. I want to be prepared, or at least sound like I know my ish.
On the other hand, I was sent a couple of questions in advance for this Man Jose panel, and I have no idea how to answer any of them. Critical thinking and dating issues just don't belong in the same sentence in my opinion (or in my "case")--it's all heart and feeling, and hope and timing.
I guess I'll just smile and look cute and hope that'll excuse me from having to wax intelligent on the subject of love. Sometimes cute is all you need.
Posted by Audrey at 12:45 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Thursday already. Man.
Later this evening I will be in San Jose, speaking on a panel (I think it's hilarious the panel is being called "Man Jose") about dating issues and the Asian American community in the Bay Area/Silicon Valley. Go here for details. As I said before, I don't know how much of a dating or relationship "expert" I am to impart any sort of knowledge upon anyone who's paying for this event... But I'll at least try to make people laugh. I already know that some of my friends will be in attendance to put me on the spot, so I'm prepared.
While we're on the subject of speaking on panels, I've been boning up on readings from Moving The Image (a book I saved from an Asian American Studies class I took five years ago at UC Berkeley). I'm trying to prepare for ECAASU in two weeks. I'm excited/nervous/terrified about the panel(s) I'll be speaking on/moderating (I'm pretty sure I'll be moderating and speaking as a panelist, though I don't quite know yet) about media and social change, and Hyphen's voice/place in Asian American media. I'm trying to anticipate what some questions might be that conference attendees will be asking. I want to be prepared, or at least sound like I know my ish.
On the other hand, I was sent a couple of questions in advance for this Man Jose panel, and I have no idea how to answer any of them. Critical thinking and dating issues just don't belong in the same sentence in my opinion (or in my "case")--it's all heart and feeling, and hope and timing.
I guess I'll just smile and look cute and hope that'll excuse me from having to wax intelligent on the subject of love. Sometimes cute is all you need.
Posted by Audrey at 12:45 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Thursday already. Man.
Later this evening I will be in San Jose, speaking on a panel (I think it's hilarious the panel is being called "Man Jose") about dating issues and the Asian American community in the Bay Area/Silicon Valley. Go here for details. As I said before, I don't know how much of a dating or relationship "expert" I am to impart any sort of knowledge upon anyone who's paying for this event... But I'll at least try to make people laugh. I already know that some of my friends will be in attendance to put me on the spot, so I'm prepared.
While we're on the subject of speaking on panels, I've been boning up on readings from Moving The Image (a book I saved from an Asian American Studies class I took five years ago at UC Berkeley). I'm trying to prepare for ECAASU in two weeks. I'm excited/nervous/terrified about the panel(s) I'll be speaking on/moderating (I'm pretty sure I'll be moderating and speaking as a panelist, though I don't quite know yet) about media and social change, and Hyphen's voice/place in Asian American media. I'm trying to anticipate what some questions might be that conference attendees will be asking. I want to be prepared, or at least sound like I know my ish.
On the other hand, I was sent a couple of questions in advance for this Man Jose panel, and I have no idea how to answer any of them. Critical thinking and dating issues just don't belong in the same sentence in my opinion (or in my "case")--it's all heart and feeling, and hope and timing.
I guess I'll just smile and look cute and hope that'll excuse me from having to wax intelligent on the subject of love. Sometimes cute is all you need.
Posted by Audrey at 12:45 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Looks like the pressure (or the pullout of advertising dollars) has worked. The company that owns Hot 97-FM has fired two members of the morning show crew. And they are making a donation to the tsunami relief efforts. Here's the press release from Emmis Communications and Hot 97.
From: Emmis Communications - WQHT/Hot-97
Dan Klores Communications
For Immediate Release
Terminate Two Members of Morning Show Crew
for Displaying Gross Insensitivity and Making Offensive Remarks
Emmis Donates $1 Million to Charity to Aid in Tsunami Relief & Recovery
New York - February 1, 2005: WQHT/Hot 97-FM and Emmis Communications announced today that they have terminated the employment of morning show producer Rick Del Gado for his role in writing, producing and airing "The Tsunami Song," a highly insensitive parody of the 1985 single "We Are the World." Hot 97 and Emmis also terminated morning show personality Todd Lynn for making offensive, racially insensitive comments while on the air. Both terminations are affective immediately.
Simultaneously, Emmis announced that it will make a lump-sum donation of $1 million to Give2Aasia to aid the organization in its Tsunami relief and recovery effort.
An internal investigation by Hot 97 and Emmis determined that the singularly egregious actions of Lynn and Del Gado warranted termination from their employment at the station. Other members of the morning show crew: Miss Jones, DJ Envy and Tasha Hightower have each been given two-week suspensions. The salaries of these individuals will be redirected to Give2Asia for the duration of their suspensions, which will end on Wednesday, February 9. Another member of the morning show crew, Miss Info, has not been suspended.
"The actions of the morning show crew were socially and morally indefensible and the entire Emmis family is ashamed by this," said Rick Cummings, President of Emmis Radio. "Emmis and Hot 97 have investigated this matter thoroughly over the course of the last week. Our decision to terminate Mr. Del Gado and Mr. Lynn while suspending the other members of the morning crew sends a message that this type of insensitivity is utterly unacceptable."
Posted by Melissa at 9:57 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Looks like the pressure (or the pullout of advertising dollars) has worked. The company that owns Hot 97-FM has fired two members of the morning show crew. And they are making a donation to the tsunami relief efforts. Here's the press release from Emmis Communications and Hot 97.
From: Emmis Communications - WQHT/Hot-97
Dan Klores Communications
For Immediate Release
Terminate Two Members of Morning Show Crew
for Displaying Gross Insensitivity and Making Offensive Remarks
Emmis Donates $1 Million to Charity to Aid in Tsunami Relief & Recovery
New York - February 1, 2005: WQHT/Hot 97-FM and Emmis Communications announced today that they have terminated the employment of morning show producer Rick Del Gado for his role in writing, producing and airing "The Tsunami Song," a highly insensitive parody of the 1985 single "We Are the World." Hot 97 and Emmis also terminated morning show personality Todd Lynn for making offensive, racially insensitive comments while on the air. Both terminations are affective immediately.
Simultaneously, Emmis announced that it will make a lump-sum donation of $1 million to Give2Aasia to aid the organization in its Tsunami relief and recovery effort.
An internal investigation by Hot 97 and Emmis determined that the singularly egregious actions of Lynn and Del Gado warranted termination from their employment at the station. Other members of the morning show crew: Miss Jones, DJ Envy and Tasha Hightower have each been given two-week suspensions. The salaries of these individuals will be redirected to Give2Asia for the duration of their suspensions, which will end on Wednesday, February 9. Another member of the morning show crew, Miss Info, has not been suspended.
"The actions of the morning show crew were socially and morally indefensible and the entire Emmis family is ashamed by this," said Rick Cummings, President of Emmis Radio. "Emmis and Hot 97 have investigated this matter thoroughly over the course of the last week. Our decision to terminate Mr. Del Gado and Mr. Lynn while suspending the other members of the morning crew sends a message that this type of insensitivity is utterly unacceptable."
Posted by Melissa at 9:57 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Looks like the pressure (or the pullout of advertising dollars) has worked. The company that owns Hot 97-FM has fired two members of the morning show crew. And they are making a donation to the tsunami relief efforts. Here's the press release from Emmis Communications and Hot 97.
From: Emmis Communications - WQHT/Hot-97
Dan Klores Communications
For Immediate Release
Terminate Two Members of Morning Show Crew
for Displaying Gross Insensitivity and Making Offensive Remarks
Emmis Donates $1 Million to Charity to Aid in Tsunami Relief & Recovery
New York - February 1, 2005: WQHT/Hot 97-FM and Emmis Communications announced today that they have terminated the employment of morning show producer Rick Del Gado for his role in writing, producing and airing "The Tsunami Song," a highly insensitive parody of the 1985 single "We Are the World." Hot 97 and Emmis also terminated morning show personality Todd Lynn for making offensive, racially insensitive comments while on the air. Both terminations are affective immediately.
Simultaneously, Emmis announced that it will make a lump-sum donation of $1 million to Give2Aasia to aid the organization in its Tsunami relief and recovery effort.
An internal investigation by Hot 97 and Emmis determined that the singularly egregious actions of Lynn and Del Gado warranted termination from their employment at the station. Other members of the morning show crew: Miss Jones, DJ Envy and Tasha Hightower have each been given two-week suspensions. The salaries of these individuals will be redirected to Give2Asia for the duration of their suspensions, which will end on Wednesday, February 9. Another member of the morning show crew, Miss Info, has not been suspended.
"The actions of the morning show crew were socially and morally indefensible and the entire Emmis family is ashamed by this," said Rick Cummings, President of Emmis Radio. "Emmis and Hot 97 have investigated this matter thoroughly over the course of the last week. Our decision to terminate Mr. Del Gado and Mr. Lynn while suspending the other members of the morning crew sends a message that this type of insensitivity is utterly unacceptable."
Posted by Melissa at 9:57 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Sorry whoever's day it is to blog. But this is some important stuff!
After reading a review on Jeff Chang's book in my beloved Entertainment Weekly (they gave him an A-), I emailed him and told him, Hyphen loves the Asian American Male Pop Music Critics (or AAMPMCs: a term coined by Oliver Wang).
Yo, Jeff's book, Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-hop Generation is officially on sale today! Better go get your copy.
All the buzz I'm hearing on it has been fantastic. I'm very excited for him, and excited for hip-hop (if that makes any sense). (I know, I know. It's very "I Used to Love H.E.R."ish. But I know people out there feel me on that.)
Next week, kicking off on February 8th, Jeff will start a book signing tour. To find out where he's going to be and when, click here. Go to a signing with a pre-purchased book, or buy your book at the signing, and you'll also get a free mixtape loaded with Quannum and old school tunes, mixed by DJ Icewater (don't call him "Manila Ice") and DJ D-Sharp.
Yay, Jeff! Gloat all you want.
Addendum: Although I already pre-ordered a copy of Jeff's book on Amazon.com, I couldn't wait to actually get it in my hands. I went to Barnes & Noble and had to ask for the book, because it hadn't been stocked on the shelves yet. Never in my life have I ever been so excited to read through a book that was as thick as one of my college textbooks! Mad props to Jeff for accomplishing such a feat as writing this book. I cannot wait to finish reading it!
Posted by Audrey at 9:37 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Sorry whoever's day it is to blog. But this is some important stuff!
After reading a review on Jeff Chang's book in my beloved Entertainment Weekly (they gave him an A-), I emailed him and told him, Hyphen loves the Asian American Male Pop Music Critics (or AAMPMCs: a term coined by Oliver Wang).
Yo, Jeff's book, Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-hop Generation is officially on sale today! Better go get your copy.
All the buzz I'm hearing on it has been fantastic. I'm very excited for him, and excited for hip-hop (if that makes any sense). (I know, I know. It's very "I Used to Love H.E.R."ish. But I know people out there feel me on that.)
Next week, kicking off on February 8th, Jeff will start a book signing tour. To find out where he's going to be and when, click here. Go to a signing with a pre-purchased book, or buy your book at the signing, and you'll also get a free mixtape loaded with Quannum and old school tunes, mixed by DJ Icewater (don't call him "Manila Ice") and DJ D-Sharp.
Yay, Jeff! Gloat all you want.
Addendum: Although I already pre-ordered a copy of Jeff's book on Amazon.com, I couldn't wait to actually get it in my hands. I went to Barnes & Noble and had to ask for the book, because it hadn't been stocked on the shelves yet. Never in my life have I ever been so excited to read through a book that was as thick as one of my college textbooks! Mad props to Jeff for accomplishing such a feat as writing this book. I cannot wait to finish reading it!
Posted by Audrey at 9:37 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Sorry whoever's day it is to blog. But this is some important stuff!
After reading a review on Jeff Chang's book in my beloved Entertainment Weekly (they gave him an A-), I emailed him and told him, Hyphen loves the Asian American Male Pop Music Critics (or AAMPMCs: a term coined by Oliver Wang).
Yo, Jeff's book, Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-hop Generation is officially on sale today! Better go get your copy.
All the buzz I'm hearing on it has been fantastic. I'm very excited for him, and excited for hip-hop (if that makes any sense). (I know, I know. It's very "I Used to Love H.E.R."ish. But I know people out there feel me on that.)
Next week, kicking off on February 8th, Jeff will start a book signing tour. To find out where he's going to be and when, click here. Go to a signing with a pre-purchased book, or buy your book at the signing, and you'll also get a free mixtape loaded with Quannum and old school tunes, mixed by DJ Icewater (don't call him "Manila Ice") and DJ D-Sharp.
Yay, Jeff! Gloat all you want.
Addendum: Although I already pre-ordered a copy of Jeff's book on Amazon.com, I couldn't wait to actually get it in my hands. I went to Barnes & Noble and had to ask for the book, because it hadn't been stocked on the shelves yet. Never in my life have I ever been so excited to read through a book that was as thick as one of my college textbooks! Mad props to Jeff for accomplishing such a feat as writing this book. I cannot wait to finish reading it!
Posted by Audrey at 9:37 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Search
Categories
Recent Comments
Recent Entries
Archives
Resources
