And I will be celebrating it with CRAB on Sunday!!! My dad just informed me this morning. He calls crab "crap" and so he told me it was because I loved "Crappy food" that I was getting a "Crappy dinner" on Sunday!
I can't wait for crap!
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
I've Figured it Out!
So today my dad decided to turn on some lion/dragon dance competitions. He blasted the music like he always does. It INSTANTLY drew me in! The dances were amazing!! After a couple of dances my dad turned off the TV (he said he couldn't watch it anymore because Vietnam WHOOPED Hong Kong's lion tooshies).
My mom walks up the stairs a couple minutes later and goes into the kitchen. My dad asks, "Want to watch some lion dances?!" My mother replies with, "Not if I have to sit and listen to something going BAM BANG BANG BAM BAM BAM! The whole time! My mother could NEVER sit and watch this let alone be in the next room!!" My dad asked, "Why?!" My mother answers with, "It's OBNOXIOUS!"
And that is why I love my Asian culture SOOO much better than I love my Caucasian. It's exciting. It's loud. It's CULTURE!!! Caucasians are boring. They don't appreciate sound (or noise whatever they call it). They don't appreciate the THOUSANDS of years that it has taken to perfect the art of lion and dragon dancing!! Instead Caucasians are obsessed with the culture of consumerism. Eating. Keeping up with the Jones. Is there any reason to NOT love my Asian culture?!
(It also doesn't help that I LOVE EVERYTHING OPPOSITE of my mother. I can't help it. It's just a natural attraction that pulls me in like a N to S polar opposition!)
My mom walks up the stairs a couple minutes later and goes into the kitchen. My dad asks, "Want to watch some lion dances?!" My mother replies with, "Not if I have to sit and listen to something going BAM BANG BANG BAM BAM BAM! The whole time! My mother could NEVER sit and watch this let alone be in the next room!!" My dad asked, "Why?!" My mother answers with, "It's OBNOXIOUS!"
And that is why I love my Asian culture SOOO much better than I love my Caucasian. It's exciting. It's loud. It's CULTURE!!! Caucasians are boring. They don't appreciate sound (or noise whatever they call it). They don't appreciate the THOUSANDS of years that it has taken to perfect the art of lion and dragon dancing!! Instead Caucasians are obsessed with the culture of consumerism. Eating. Keeping up with the Jones. Is there any reason to NOT love my Asian culture?!
(It also doesn't help that I LOVE EVERYTHING OPPOSITE of my mother. I can't help it. It's just a natural attraction that pulls me in like a N to S polar opposition!)
Thursday, March 19, 2009
I Have Lots of Personal Thoughts Today
I'm just sitting here wondering how I made friends with the most boring people on earth. Every year in March there is a festival run by a local Krishna temple. It's called Holi Fest. In the celebration of Holi Fest there is a section where everyone gathers together and tosses colored dust at each other. Loads of fun right?! No one can resist unless they're a grandmother, recently impregnated woman, or a woman with 15 children. My friends fall under the category of just pure lame. Today I texted my friend and asked her to go with me. Her response? "Meh it looks like an asthma attack waiting to happen." No. She does NOT have asthma.
I'm having trouble with people today. I hate them. All of them. Except for the really cute guys who made me my Hummus Harvest Sammich at Great Harvest. They were very nice. And smiled at me like the appreciated my business. And I appreciated their kindness on this very, very, VERY craptastic day. Now everyone begin to feel incredibly sorry for me. Thank you. You're a very good audience. *waves to the audience of no one*
I'm having trouble with people today. I hate them. All of them. Except for the really cute guys who made me my Hummus Harvest Sammich at Great Harvest. They were very nice. And smiled at me like the appreciated my business. And I appreciated their kindness on this very, very, VERY craptastic day. Now everyone begin to feel incredibly sorry for me. Thank you. You're a very good audience. *waves to the audience of no one*
The Father Prevails
So I don't think I should over-generalize on either side of this but, Caucasians, especially males in America, enjoy their sports. To the extreme. I personally find it incredibly annoying.
While growing up the only influence I had, as far as sports fanaticism went, was when my mother rooted for her college football team (for the rivalry game of course) by bringing a TON of blue and white jelly beans to her red and white rooting workplace. Since my mother was not around very often while growing up I was not heavily influenced by her love for her college team. I'm sure she's now regrets more fully that she was not around to instill that burning love into me especially since I went to that college and still don't love the sports team. It's okay mom. I'm all the better for it! Believe me!
My father once revealed to me that he loved playing soccer on his roof growing up in Hong Kong, but that's the only sports related thing I've ever heard him utter.
Needless to say I've grown up as a minority in the 89% Caucasian state of Utah (Yess!!! I just checked and there 2.2% of Utah residents are "Two or More Races"!). When people started talking sports the hair on my back would rise and I'd begin to hiss. After a while the guys I hung out with learned to not include me on sports talk and just ignore me like every other girl even if I did sometimes resemble a boy.
Fanaticism. What do I see wrong with it? I'll tell you. The human mind is an interesting thing. It likes to attach itself to lots of different things. Take Twilight for example. There are teenage girls and boys all over the WORLD now who have become obsessive/fanatic about this book. And it's scary. Almost as scary as sports fanatics.
Let's look at how being that attached to a sport will negatively effect the human race:
1) The human mind morphs to somehow create the illusion that by rooting for a favorite team that they are somehow actually a part of the team. A self identity crisis begins to ensue. Suddenly they cannot tell the difference between themselves and the team. They begin to refer to the team as "We." (i.e. "We just SMASHED BYU!!") I'm sorry. You are not playing the game no matter how much you dream about it at night. You were not skilled, brawny, tough, good looking, or talented enough to make it onto that sports team. Get over it. Have a HEALTHY love for the game. Say, "The UofU just SMASHED BYU!!" or "My favorite team just SMASHED BYU!!" This sentence is a perfect segue into my next point.
2) Becoming a fanatic instantly transforms you into a caveman-like creature. The only thing you focus on is that game much like the caveman focused only on finding food to eat. The only difference between you and the caveman is that the caveman is smart enough to focus on something that will keep him alive. You focus on something totally detrimental to your well being. You not only become an idiot stuck to your tv, or now computers what with technology exploding, but you also lose family respect (unless of course you've brain washed your children into becoming as idiotic as you).
3) Becoming a sports fanatic instantly makes your "World's Most Annoying Person to Be Around" points SKYROCKET. We're at work. No. I do not want to know what the current points are on the game. No. I do NOT want to celebrate my birthday with the company by taking my sacred 1 hour lunch time and dedicating it to the current basketball tournament. No. I do not want to hear you bad mouthing my school's sports team even if I don't give a flying shit about whether or not they win or lose. No. It does not annoy me that you're making fun of my school. It annoys me that you still think I'd care to hear about sports even though I named my bracket "WTF IS THIS?! I HATE SPORTS!!!" In the end all this conversation just makes you look like a tactless fool anyways. *rolls eyes as co-worker begins to slander my school, yet again. Of COURSE he's made sure that I can hear*
4) Being a fanatic suddenly creates a narcissistic nation. #1 mixes in with #3 and suddenly you get this ginromiously big headed giant monster of DOOM. Suddenly you think you are FAR superior to your fellow man because "your team" is kicking your fellow human being, with a healthy love for their favorite sports team's, ass. YOU DIDN'T DO ANYTHING YOU BLABBERING IMBECILE!!!! THE MEN WHO HAVE WORKED HARD ALL YEAR LONG TO KICK ASS HAVE DONE IT!!!! GET OVER YOURSELF!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THE SADDEST PART IS THAT I'M TURNING INTO YOU SAYING, "YESSS!! I'M KICKING YOUR ASS ON THESE BRACKET TROUNAMENTS ON YAHOO AND I DON"T GIVE A FLYING TARD ABOUT SPORTS!!! SO EAT THAT!!!" I'M FREAKIN' GIVING IN TO THE IDIOT STATE OF MIND THAT YOU'RE SPREADING!!! STOP IT!!!!
*takes deep breath*
I'm sure this post wouldn't have been so full of hate had I not written it at work while in the midst of all the sports fanatic fever currently going on. Of course I don't hate the people who have a healthy love for sports. It's okay to root for your team! It's okay to celebrate when your team wins. But the second you start acting superior to another group of human beings is the second you turn into a fascist-like pig. You are not superior. You are just like everyone else with different talents/skills to add to our human race. Get over yourselves already.
I blame my Caucasian culture for influencing me to have such a volatile temper.
While growing up the only influence I had, as far as sports fanaticism went, was when my mother rooted for her college football team (for the rivalry game of course) by bringing a TON of blue and white jelly beans to her red and white rooting workplace. Since my mother was not around very often while growing up I was not heavily influenced by her love for her college team. I'm sure she's now regrets more fully that she was not around to instill that burning love into me especially since I went to that college and still don't love the sports team. It's okay mom. I'm all the better for it! Believe me!
My father once revealed to me that he loved playing soccer on his roof growing up in Hong Kong, but that's the only sports related thing I've ever heard him utter.
Needless to say I've grown up as a minority in the 89% Caucasian state of Utah (Yess!!! I just checked and there 2.2% of Utah residents are "Two or More Races"!). When people started talking sports the hair on my back would rise and I'd begin to hiss. After a while the guys I hung out with learned to not include me on sports talk and just ignore me like every other girl even if I did sometimes resemble a boy.
Fanaticism. What do I see wrong with it? I'll tell you. The human mind is an interesting thing. It likes to attach itself to lots of different things. Take Twilight for example. There are teenage girls and boys all over the WORLD now who have become obsessive/fanatic about this book. And it's scary. Almost as scary as sports fanatics.
Let's look at how being that attached to a sport will negatively effect the human race:
1) The human mind morphs to somehow create the illusion that by rooting for a favorite team that they are somehow actually a part of the team. A self identity crisis begins to ensue. Suddenly they cannot tell the difference between themselves and the team. They begin to refer to the team as "We." (i.e. "We just SMASHED BYU!!") I'm sorry. You are not playing the game no matter how much you dream about it at night. You were not skilled, brawny, tough, good looking, or talented enough to make it onto that sports team. Get over it. Have a HEALTHY love for the game. Say, "The UofU just SMASHED BYU!!" or "My favorite team just SMASHED BYU!!" This sentence is a perfect segue into my next point.
2) Becoming a fanatic instantly transforms you into a caveman-like creature. The only thing you focus on is that game much like the caveman focused only on finding food to eat. The only difference between you and the caveman is that the caveman is smart enough to focus on something that will keep him alive. You focus on something totally detrimental to your well being. You not only become an idiot stuck to your tv, or now computers what with technology exploding, but you also lose family respect (unless of course you've brain washed your children into becoming as idiotic as you).
3) Becoming a sports fanatic instantly makes your "World's Most Annoying Person to Be Around" points SKYROCKET. We're at work. No. I do not want to know what the current points are on the game. No. I do NOT want to celebrate my birthday with the company by taking my sacred 1 hour lunch time and dedicating it to the current basketball tournament. No. I do not want to hear you bad mouthing my school's sports team even if I don't give a flying shit about whether or not they win or lose. No. It does not annoy me that you're making fun of my school. It annoys me that you still think I'd care to hear about sports even though I named my bracket "WTF IS THIS?! I HATE SPORTS!!!" In the end all this conversation just makes you look like a tactless fool anyways. *rolls eyes as co-worker begins to slander my school, yet again. Of COURSE he's made sure that I can hear*
4) Being a fanatic suddenly creates a narcissistic nation. #1 mixes in with #3 and suddenly you get this ginromiously big headed giant monster of DOOM. Suddenly you think you are FAR superior to your fellow man because "your team" is kicking your fellow human being, with a healthy love for their favorite sports team's, ass. YOU DIDN'T DO ANYTHING YOU BLABBERING IMBECILE!!!! THE MEN WHO HAVE WORKED HARD ALL YEAR LONG TO KICK ASS HAVE DONE IT!!!! GET OVER YOURSELF!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THE SADDEST PART IS THAT I'M TURNING INTO YOU SAYING, "YESSS!! I'M KICKING YOUR ASS ON THESE BRACKET TROUNAMENTS ON YAHOO AND I DON"T GIVE A FLYING TARD ABOUT SPORTS!!! SO EAT THAT!!!" I'M FREAKIN' GIVING IN TO THE IDIOT STATE OF MIND THAT YOU'RE SPREADING!!! STOP IT!!!!
*takes deep breath*
I'm sure this post wouldn't have been so full of hate had I not written it at work while in the midst of all the sports fanatic fever currently going on. Of course I don't hate the people who have a healthy love for sports. It's okay to root for your team! It's okay to celebrate when your team wins. But the second you start acting superior to another group of human beings is the second you turn into a fascist-like pig. You are not superior. You are just like everyone else with different talents/skills to add to our human race. Get over yourselves already.
I blame my Caucasian culture for influencing me to have such a volatile temper.
I've No Clue Where to Put This
So I have no clue where to put this other than here. I guess this is like my personal blog with an emphasis on my personal culture so I'll somehow tie this thought into that idea.
Today I saw a man in a bright red Irish cap. I've recently been reading about a girl who made it a project to take a picture of a stranger each day for 365 days. I thought to myself, "Wow. If I were to ever start that project I would totally choose him for the first day. I should go ask him if I can take a picture of him!!" Literally that dialogue occured in the 2 seconds it took him to walk out of the office next door and down the stairs to his car.
I've been trying to come up with the reason why I didn't just go and ask him to pose for a quick photo. I've done crazy things before like give people my number and give friends numbrs to guys for them and gone up to random people and asked them to do a favor for me or to give me their opinion on something (Look for this story below). In California I even asked a couple to be MUSHY in front of me so I could get a silhouette photo of them!!!!
So I knew it wasn't that I was scared of asking a stranger to pose for a photo for me.
Now that I've had time to think, it's my total lack of confidence in my skills that held me back from asking him to pose! I'm scared that I won't do as well as the girl who is doing the 365 project. I need to suck it up and grow some freakin' balls already!! (sorry for the harsh terminology but it's true) Of course statements like that will not improve my confidence but I keep hoping if I show myself how pathetic I can be I'll change. Maybe.
So you're looking for the promised story about going up to random people and asking their opinion on matters. Well you've just found it! I was once in a conversation with a boy I liked. We were talking about a local restaurant and how everyone loves their salads even the manliest of men love them! He didn't think that everyone loved them as much as I thought. So I went up to a girl in the library and asked her if she had ever eaten at the restaurant. She had. I asked her if she had a choice between their salad or anything else on the menu if she'd choose the salad. She answered that she'd get the salad. It's a pretty universal love! Of course I only asked that one girl and no girly men but he gave up the argument after that. He also gave up on trying to pursue me. His loss.
Alright next post will be about being not so caucasian. Again.
Today I saw a man in a bright red Irish cap. I've recently been reading about a girl who made it a project to take a picture of a stranger each day for 365 days. I thought to myself, "Wow. If I were to ever start that project I would totally choose him for the first day. I should go ask him if I can take a picture of him!!" Literally that dialogue occured in the 2 seconds it took him to walk out of the office next door and down the stairs to his car.
I've been trying to come up with the reason why I didn't just go and ask him to pose for a quick photo. I've done crazy things before like give people my number and give friends numbrs to guys for them and gone up to random people and asked them to do a favor for me or to give me their opinion on something (Look for this story below). In California I even asked a couple to be MUSHY in front of me so I could get a silhouette photo of them!!!!
So I knew it wasn't that I was scared of asking a stranger to pose for a photo for me.
Now that I've had time to think, it's my total lack of confidence in my skills that held me back from asking him to pose! I'm scared that I won't do as well as the girl who is doing the 365 project. I need to suck it up and grow some freakin' balls already!! (sorry for the harsh terminology but it's true) Of course statements like that will not improve my confidence but I keep hoping if I show myself how pathetic I can be I'll change. Maybe.
So you're looking for the promised story about going up to random people and asking their opinion on matters. Well you've just found it! I was once in a conversation with a boy I liked. We were talking about a local restaurant and how everyone loves their salads even the manliest of men love them! He didn't think that everyone loved them as much as I thought. So I went up to a girl in the library and asked her if she had ever eaten at the restaurant. She had. I asked her if she had a choice between their salad or anything else on the menu if she'd choose the salad. She answered that she'd get the salad. It's a pretty universal love! Of course I only asked that one girl and no girly men but he gave up the argument after that. He also gave up on trying to pursue me. His loss.
Alright next post will be about being not so caucasian. Again.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Intolerance
So today's post does not come from an ethnic point of view, rather the view of a human being. The other day I found myself in a very angering situation. I went to lunch with my co-worker to one of our favorite sushi places. I'm a religious person. My co-worker is a former member of my same religion. Let's just say he doesn't look upon it very kindly. I guess I should also mention that this particular co-worker was my friend in elementary school. We've been in a lot of the same classes since Kindergarten and were close in the last few years of elementary school. We lost contact when we went to separate junior highs and by the time we went to the same high school our interests had been so different that we didn't associate with each other. In fact I had no idea that he went to the same school!
Anywho, in my religion we are asked to not drink caffeinated beverages which includes one of my guilty pleasures; tea (hey! I'm Chinese!! What do you expect?!). My friend/co-worker began to tell me all the properties of tea and how there must be poison or something alluding to the fact that my religion does not smile upon it being consumed. He mentioned that it was just a bunch of leaves and water and that there was hardly any caffeine in it. I asked him why he was so oppositional. He replied that he was not at all and had no idea why I was asking. I told him his tea speech was proving otherwise. He found no fault in his speech and stated that he was simply stating the properties of tea to me. I knew better. He had been stating the properties with a purpose; to somehow prove to me that my religious beliefs were absolutely bogus. Saying that tea "must have poison or something in it" is not stating the properties of tea. He mumbled a reply about how if he were oppositional to anything it would be our boss and her incredible lack of ability to coherently communicate her thoughts to us. I told him to stop taking out his frustrations on me. He assured me that he wasn't. Okay then!
Needless to say conversation lacked. Luckily there was an eccentric woman sitting next to us at the bar and the sushi chef had remembered us from our previous visit. My co-worker remembered that the sushi chef usually had 2 hour breaks before he had to come back and start cheffing again. So he asked him what he was going to do for his 2 hour break. The kid responded that he was going to figure out new and exciting ways to drink sake (Japanese rice wine). He asked if we wanted to join. I pointed to my co-worker and said, "He would!" Earlier we had been talking about how warm sake would have been choice to drink on a cold day like this. I don't particularly enjoy the smell of sake and can't imagine it tasting too much better. The chef asked why I didn't want to. I told him I didn't drink.
Now telling someone in Utah that you don't drink means either one of two things. Either you are a freak of nature or you are a freak of nature Mormon. Yeah. He asked if I was Mormon. I replied yes. I'm not ashamed. He then prefaced his next question with a caution; he didn't mean to disrespect my religion. So I listened to his question knowing that he probably was going to ask something controversial. He asked about how in our scriptures it had been described that black skin meant the more sin a person had committed. Let me tell you right now. If black skin = more sin then count me in on the sin-o-meter. I'm Asian. Asians can have freakin' dark skin. Does that mean I'm chuck full of sin? No. That's not what the Mormon religion states. If any Mormon states otherwise they are mistaken. The color of skin has nothing to do with a person's sin. It only has to do with ancestry.
Unfortunately I didn't get to answer this question. My co-worker/former member of the church I believe in hoped right on to the answer since I was swallowing my drink. He said, "Yeah that's what they used to teach." Then the eccentric woman joined in and said, "The darker the skin the more the sin! That's how it is plain and simple baby!" and something about digging it.
At this point I knew that explaining my point of view would not have been taken seriously and that it would then be smashed and a holy war would begin. I hate confrontation. Nothing comes from it. The people only lean more towards their own beliefs. I'm so sick of people thinking that they know so much more than everyone else. Sure you may be more educated than others but that does not somehow make you omnicient and give you the right to sit and bash how another person thinks.
Alright. I know you're all (all? am I sure that anyone really reads these posts? yeah doubt it but it's always nice to think someone else cares about these issues as passionately as I do) thinking of the recent spat between the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the GLBT community. It's like we've forced our beliefs onto them. I personally do not believe in forcing anyone to do anything. I've tried to think of situations where it's a positive situation. I've come up with the following: Forcing an anorexic person to eat, forcing a bolemic person to stay away from the bathroom after eating, forcing a person with evil intentions to drop that gun or knife and walk slowly away from their hostage, forcing chocolate down a chocolate virgin's throat. That's about it. *pop some Cadbury Mini Eggs in mouth* Those situations include someone harming someone else with their actions. Of course self harming is no beuno either. I think the only reason why I back up my church in their fight for Prop 8 is because I'm scared that eventually laws will change until we no longer have the right to have marriages in our church because it would be unlawful to not marry those who are GLBT. That scares me. I don't know if it's a possiblitiy for that to happen since the whole "separation of church and state" deal, but other than that possibility I'm all for GLBT marriage. I'm happy that people want to be together so badly that they'll fight the government to get their idea of true love.
So I guess at the conclusion of this little blurb is that I really wonder what the world would be like if everyone just respected the cultures/lives/beliefs of others. Even when I was a kid I knew that my parents didn't know everything. I knew I didn't know everything. I really don't believe that anyone is smarter than another person. I think we are all experts in some area and when we come together that is when we will benefit from the knowledge of all. Am I asking for an unreachable Utopia of sorts? I guess so. And that makes me sad.
Presidential Highlights
I end this post with some of my favorite highlights from our current President's address to Congress on February 24, 2009:
" What is required now is for this country to pull together, confront boldly the challenges we face, and take responsibility for our future once more."
"But I also know that in a time of crisis, we cannot afford to govern out of anger, or yield to the politics of the moment. My job – our job– is to solve the problem. Our job is to govern with a sense of responsibility. "
"We are a nation that has seen promise amid peril, and claimed opportunity from ordeal. Now we must be that nation again."
LOVE this: "It is our responsibility as lawmakers and educators to make this system work. But it is the responsibility of every citizen to participate in it. And so tonight, I ask every American to commit to at least one year or more of higher education or career training. This can be community college or a four-year school; vocational training or an apprenticeship. But whatever the training may be, every American will need to get more than a high school diploma. And dropping out of high school is no longer an option. It’s not just quitting on yourself, it’s quitting on your country – and this country needs and values the talents of every American. That is why we will provide the support necessary for you to complete college and meet a new goal: by 2020, America will once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world."
"These education policies will open the doors of opportunity for our children. But it is up to us to ensure they walk through them. In the end, there is no program or policy that can substitute for a mother or father who will attend those parent/teacher conferences, or help with homework after dinner, or turn off the TV, put away the video games, and read to their child. I speak to you not just as a President, but as a father when I say that responsibility for our children's education must begin at home."
"I know that it is easy to lose sight of this truth – to become cynical and doubtful; consumed with the petty and the trivial. But in my life, I have also learned that hope is found in unlikely places; that inspiration often comes not from those with the most power or celebrity, but from the dreams and aspirations of Americans who are anything but ordinary."
"And I think about Ty’Sheoma Bethea, the young girl from that school I visited in Dillon, South Carolina –a place where the ceilings leak, the paint peels off the walls, and they have to stop teaching six times a day because the train barrels by their classroom. She has been told that her school is hopeless, but the other day after class she went to the public library and typed up a letter to the people sitting in this room. She even asked her principal for the money to buy a stamp. The letter asks us for help, and says, “We are just students trying to become lawy
ers, doctors, congressmen like yourself and one day president, so we can make a change to not
just the state of South Carolina but also the world. We are not quitters.
"We are not quitters.
"These words and these stories tell us something about the spirit of the people who sent us here. They tell us that even in the most trying times, amid the most difficult circumstances, there is a generosity, a resilience, a decency, and a determination that perseveres; a willingness to take responsibility for our future and for posterity. Their resolve must be our inspiration. Their concerns must be our cause. And we must show them and all our people that we are equal to the task before us.
"I know that we haven’t agreed on every issue thus far, and there are surely times in the future when we will part ways. But I also know that every American who is sitting here tonight loves this country and wants it to succeed. That must be the starting point for every debate we have in the coming months, and where we return after those debates are done. That is the foundation on which the American people expect us to build common ground.
"And if we do – if we come together and lift this nation from the depths of this crisis; if we put our people back to work and restart the engine of our prosperity; if we confront without fear the challenges of our time and summon that enduring spirit of an America that does not quit, then someday years from now our children can tell their children that this was the time when we performed, in the words that are carved into this very chamber, “something worthy to be remembered.” Thank you, God Bless you, and may God Bless the United States of America."
Amen. I highly suggest that everyone reads this address. I HATE politics but knowing what's going on in our nation is of VAST importance. I feel like Obama has opened up the communication lines again between the President/Congress to the people who give them their jobs. Take advantage of that.
Anywho, in my religion we are asked to not drink caffeinated beverages which includes one of my guilty pleasures; tea (hey! I'm Chinese!! What do you expect?!). My friend/co-worker began to tell me all the properties of tea and how there must be poison or something alluding to the fact that my religion does not smile upon it being consumed. He mentioned that it was just a bunch of leaves and water and that there was hardly any caffeine in it. I asked him why he was so oppositional. He replied that he was not at all and had no idea why I was asking. I told him his tea speech was proving otherwise. He found no fault in his speech and stated that he was simply stating the properties of tea to me. I knew better. He had been stating the properties with a purpose; to somehow prove to me that my religious beliefs were absolutely bogus. Saying that tea "must have poison or something in it" is not stating the properties of tea. He mumbled a reply about how if he were oppositional to anything it would be our boss and her incredible lack of ability to coherently communicate her thoughts to us. I told him to stop taking out his frustrations on me. He assured me that he wasn't. Okay then!
Needless to say conversation lacked. Luckily there was an eccentric woman sitting next to us at the bar and the sushi chef had remembered us from our previous visit. My co-worker remembered that the sushi chef usually had 2 hour breaks before he had to come back and start cheffing again. So he asked him what he was going to do for his 2 hour break. The kid responded that he was going to figure out new and exciting ways to drink sake (Japanese rice wine). He asked if we wanted to join. I pointed to my co-worker and said, "He would!" Earlier we had been talking about how warm sake would have been choice to drink on a cold day like this. I don't particularly enjoy the smell of sake and can't imagine it tasting too much better. The chef asked why I didn't want to. I told him I didn't drink.
Now telling someone in Utah that you don't drink means either one of two things. Either you are a freak of nature or you are a freak of nature Mormon. Yeah. He asked if I was Mormon. I replied yes. I'm not ashamed. He then prefaced his next question with a caution; he didn't mean to disrespect my religion. So I listened to his question knowing that he probably was going to ask something controversial. He asked about how in our scriptures it had been described that black skin meant the more sin a person had committed. Let me tell you right now. If black skin = more sin then count me in on the sin-o-meter. I'm Asian. Asians can have freakin' dark skin. Does that mean I'm chuck full of sin? No. That's not what the Mormon religion states. If any Mormon states otherwise they are mistaken. The color of skin has nothing to do with a person's sin. It only has to do with ancestry.
Unfortunately I didn't get to answer this question. My co-worker/former member of the church I believe in hoped right on to the answer since I was swallowing my drink. He said, "Yeah that's what they used to teach." Then the eccentric woman joined in and said, "The darker the skin the more the sin! That's how it is plain and simple baby!" and something about digging it.
At this point I knew that explaining my point of view would not have been taken seriously and that it would then be smashed and a holy war would begin. I hate confrontation. Nothing comes from it. The people only lean more towards their own beliefs. I'm so sick of people thinking that they know so much more than everyone else. Sure you may be more educated than others but that does not somehow make you omnicient and give you the right to sit and bash how another person thinks.
Alright. I know you're all (all? am I sure that anyone really reads these posts? yeah doubt it but it's always nice to think someone else cares about these issues as passionately as I do) thinking of the recent spat between the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the GLBT community. It's like we've forced our beliefs onto them. I personally do not believe in forcing anyone to do anything. I've tried to think of situations where it's a positive situation. I've come up with the following: Forcing an anorexic person to eat, forcing a bolemic person to stay away from the bathroom after eating, forcing a person with evil intentions to drop that gun or knife and walk slowly away from their hostage, forcing chocolate down a chocolate virgin's throat. That's about it. *pop some Cadbury Mini Eggs in mouth* Those situations include someone harming someone else with their actions. Of course self harming is no beuno either. I think the only reason why I back up my church in their fight for Prop 8 is because I'm scared that eventually laws will change until we no longer have the right to have marriages in our church because it would be unlawful to not marry those who are GLBT. That scares me. I don't know if it's a possiblitiy for that to happen since the whole "separation of church and state" deal, but other than that possibility I'm all for GLBT marriage. I'm happy that people want to be together so badly that they'll fight the government to get their idea of true love.
So I guess at the conclusion of this little blurb is that I really wonder what the world would be like if everyone just respected the cultures/lives/beliefs of others. Even when I was a kid I knew that my parents didn't know everything. I knew I didn't know everything. I really don't believe that anyone is smarter than another person. I think we are all experts in some area and when we come together that is when we will benefit from the knowledge of all. Am I asking for an unreachable Utopia of sorts? I guess so. And that makes me sad.
Presidential Highlights
I end this post with some of my favorite highlights from our current President's address to Congress on February 24, 2009:
" What is required now is for this country to pull together, confront boldly the challenges we face, and take responsibility for our future once more."
"But I also know that in a time of crisis, we cannot afford to govern out of anger, or yield to the politics of the moment. My job – our job– is to solve the problem. Our job is to govern with a sense of responsibility. "
"We are a nation that has seen promise amid peril, and claimed opportunity from ordeal. Now we must be that nation again."
LOVE this: "It is our responsibility as lawmakers and educators to make this system work. But it is the responsibility of every citizen to participate in it. And so tonight, I ask every American to commit to at least one year or more of higher education or career training. This can be community college or a four-year school; vocational training or an apprenticeship. But whatever the training may be, every American will need to get more than a high school diploma. And dropping out of high school is no longer an option. It’s not just quitting on yourself, it’s quitting on your country – and this country needs and values the talents of every American. That is why we will provide the support necessary for you to complete college and meet a new goal: by 2020, America will once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world."
"These education policies will open the doors of opportunity for our children. But it is up to us to ensure they walk through them. In the end, there is no program or policy that can substitute for a mother or father who will attend those parent/teacher conferences, or help with homework after dinner, or turn off the TV, put away the video games, and read to their child. I speak to you not just as a President, but as a father when I say that responsibility for our children's education must begin at home."
"I know that it is easy to lose sight of this truth – to become cynical and doubtful; consumed with the petty and the trivial. But in my life, I have also learned that hope is found in unlikely places; that inspiration often comes not from those with the most power or celebrity, but from the dreams and aspirations of Americans who are anything but ordinary."
"And I think about Ty’Sheoma Bethea, the young girl from that school I visited in Dillon, South Carolina –a place where the ceilings leak, the paint peels off the walls, and they have to stop teaching six times a day because the train barrels by their classroom. She has been told that her school is hopeless, but the other day after class she went to the public library and typed up a letter to the people sitting in this room. She even asked her principal for the money to buy a stamp. The letter asks us for help, and says, “We are just students trying to become lawy
ers, doctors, congressmen like yourself and one day president, so we can make a change to not
just the state of South Carolina but also the world. We are not quitters.
"We are not quitters.
"These words and these stories tell us something about the spirit of the people who sent us here. They tell us that even in the most trying times, amid the most difficult circumstances, there is a generosity, a resilience, a decency, and a determination that perseveres; a willingness to take responsibility for our future and for posterity. Their resolve must be our inspiration. Their concerns must be our cause. And we must show them and all our people that we are equal to the task before us.
"I know that we haven’t agreed on every issue thus far, and there are surely times in the future when we will part ways. But I also know that every American who is sitting here tonight loves this country and wants it to succeed. That must be the starting point for every debate we have in the coming months, and where we return after those debates are done. That is the foundation on which the American people expect us to build common ground.
"And if we do – if we come together and lift this nation from the depths of this crisis; if we put our people back to work and restart the engine of our prosperity; if we confront without fear the challenges of our time and summon that enduring spirit of an America that does not quit, then someday years from now our children can tell their children that this was the time when we performed, in the words that are carved into this very chamber, “something worthy to be remembered.” Thank you, God Bless you, and may God Bless the United States of America."
Amen. I highly suggest that everyone reads this address. I HATE politics but knowing what's going on in our nation is of VAST importance. I feel like Obama has opened up the communication lines again between the President/Congress to the people who give them their jobs. Take advantage of that.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Welcome to the year 4707!!!
Tomorrow will be the first day of the Chinese New Year. The zodiac sign of this year is the ox. "The Ox is the sign of prosperity through fortitude and hard work. This powerful sign is a born leader, being quite dependable and possessing an innate ability to achieve great things. As one might guess, such people are dependable, calm, and modest. Like their animal namesake, the Ox is unswervingly patient, tireless in their work, and capable of enduring any amount of hardship without complaint.
The first day of Chinese New Year is usually celebrated with the family. Several natives of China will make the trek home to see families. During this time food is eaten and li cee (money in a red pocket) is given out. My own family does this but we usually do it on a weekend. Our family gathers together and eats at LEAST a 9 course meal (7 and 8 are bad luck according to my dad). Unfortunately this year I only made it to the 7th course since my headache was so severe. It was still amazing food and I was thankful that I have the dad that I do.
This year I threw a party for my friends and family to celebrate the New Year. We ate food and set off loud fireworks to scare away evil spirits (another tradition). I wore my cheung sam (traditional Chinese dress) and found that I was a bit more American than I used to be. I'll have to go purchase a new dress for next year. Hopefully I can find one that fits a full chest and full hips (My Caucasian family is from Texas! They do everything bigger there so naturally I'm bigger).
On the fifteenth day of the first month of the lunar year, there is a Lantern Festival. I've never celebrated this festival due to lack of knowledge of it. According to somewhat reliable internet sources (*cough*Wiki*cough*), the latern festival is meant to view the full moon in all it's glory and splendor. Traditionally people also eat rice-gluten balls called tangyuan. Mmm! Another tradition is to solve riddles that are found on the lanterns. I think I will attempt to celebrate Lantern Festival this year! At the very least I will go out and appreciate the moon.
The Lantern Festival is the end all event. After this the New Year has been properly celebrated. You've made your prayers at temples, you've gotten together with your living family, you've shared gifts of money, you've eaten lots of good eats, you've done several things to scare away all those evil spirits, you've looked at the moon and appreciatedit's splendor and glory, etc etc etc. What an awesome way to bring in a New Year.
So! All that's left for me to do is wish you a Happy New Year!!!
Gong hay fat choy! Gung xi fa cai!!
Ox people need peace and quiet to work through their ideas, and when they have set their mind on something it is hard for them to be convinced otherwise. An Ox person has a very logical mind and is extremely systematic in whatever they do, though they have a tremendous imagination and an unparalleled appreciation for beauty. These people speak little but are extremely intelligent. When necessary, they are articulate and eloquent.
People born under the influence of the Ox are kind, caring souls, logical, positive, filled with common sense and with their feet firmly planted on the ground. Security is their main preoccupation in life, and they are prepared to toil long and hard in order to provide a warm, comfortable and stable nest for themselves and their families. Strong-minded, stubborn, individualistic, the majority are highly intelligent individuals who don't take kindly to being told what to do.
The Ox works hard, patiently, and methodically, with original intelligence and reflective thought. These people enjoy helping others. Behind this tenacious, laboring, and self-sacrificing exterior lies an active mind.
The Ox is not extravagant, and the thought of living off credit cards or being in debt makes them nervous. The possibility of taking a serious risk could cause the Ox sleepless nights.
Ox people are truthful and sincere, and the idea of wheeling and dealing in a competitive world is distasteful to them. They are rarely driven by the prospect of financial gain. These people are always welcome because of their honesty and patience. They are reputed to be the most beautiful of face in the zodiac. They have many friends, who appreciate the fact that the Ox people are wary of new trends, although every now and then they can be encouraged to try something new. People born in the year of the Ox make wonderful parents and teachers of children.
It is important to remember that the Ox people are sociable and relaxed when they feel secure, but occasionally a dark cloud looms over such people and they engage all the trials of the whole world and seek solutions for them." (Wiki)
The first day of Chinese New Year is usually celebrated with the family. Several natives of China will make the trek home to see families. During this time food is eaten and li cee (money in a red pocket) is given out. My own family does this but we usually do it on a weekend. Our family gathers together and eats at LEAST a 9 course meal (7 and 8 are bad luck according to my dad). Unfortunately this year I only made it to the 7th course since my headache was so severe. It was still amazing food and I was thankful that I have the dad that I do.
This year I threw a party for my friends and family to celebrate the New Year. We ate food and set off loud fireworks to scare away evil spirits (another tradition). I wore my cheung sam (traditional Chinese dress) and found that I was a bit more American than I used to be. I'll have to go purchase a new dress for next year. Hopefully I can find one that fits a full chest and full hips (My Caucasian family is from Texas! They do everything bigger there so naturally I'm bigger).
On the fifteenth day of the first month of the lunar year, there is a Lantern Festival. I've never celebrated this festival due to lack of knowledge of it. According to somewhat reliable internet sources (*cough*Wiki*cough*), the latern festival is meant to view the full moon in all it's glory and splendor. Traditionally people also eat rice-gluten balls called tangyuan. Mmm! Another tradition is to solve riddles that are found on the lanterns. I think I will attempt to celebrate Lantern Festival this year! At the very least I will go out and appreciate the moon.
The Lantern Festival is the end all event. After this the New Year has been properly celebrated. You've made your prayers at temples, you've gotten together with your living family, you've shared gifts of money, you've eaten lots of good eats, you've done several things to scare away all those evil spirits, you've looked at the moon and appreciatedit's splendor and glory, etc etc etc. What an awesome way to bring in a New Year.
So! All that's left for me to do is wish you a Happy New Year!!!
Gong hay fat choy! Gung xi fa cai!!
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