This weekend, due to a hangover, my Indian friend, my white friend, and I (I'm Asian, just to clarify) sauntered into a Vietnamese restaurant to score some beef noodle soup. Afterward, we went into a nearby Indian grocery because apparently they have some really awesome mango juice. I made the quip that we were a walking joke at the point ("So a white guy, an Indian, and an Asian walk into an Indian grocery...").
We go in (I pick up a guava juice, for the record) and we go to the register. When we get to the register, the cashier (an Indian guy, if you forgot it was an Indian grocery) asked us how much the juice was. We didn't know, so he asked the other cashier (also Indian) what the price was on the juice. The other cashier said it was 99 cents. My Indian friend immediately agreed. The cashier immediate did one of those Russell Peters examples of "typical Indian behavior" and immediately did a finger wag and said "No no no no no no. It is not 99 cents. No no no no." He eventually ran back himself and checked the price. For the record, the price was $1.40.
Later that same weekend, my friend and I go to some bar in Halethorpe. Now this should've sent bells going off in my head. Halethorpe...bar...this isn't exactly going to be the Library Bar in LA or the Hudson Hotel Library Bar in NYC. But I thought "Hm...vaguely Irish name, must be an Irish bar. Can't be too bad, right?"
We show up to the place. There was a motorcycle outside what appeared to be a former residence that somehow scored a liquor license through some sort of coercion and rustling up of the local sheriff by some biker gang. I saw a motorcycle outside. Naturally, I thought to myself, "Hm...I wonder if there are any Asians in there" (I'm Asian, if you forgot already). My friend and I walked in and lo and behold there were no Asians. Instead, there were just several white people of the, um, upscale Appalachia variety looking at us. I don't know who they were staring at more: the young, clean cut college student or the Chinaman who was ruining their white haven. It didn't help that there was also some dude with a Confederate flag embroidered on his leather jacket. He probably owned the motorcycle outside. Thankfully, I was not the victim of a good ol' America Fuck Yeah moment gone wrong.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Monday, February 2, 2009
Whoops
So according to one of my previous blog posts, I predicted that the Cardinals would win. It was looking good up until the last drive of the game. Guess that's a career path I shouldn't be taking.
Oh well. Life is not a feel good movie on Lifetime or the Disney Channel. This game reminds us that the underdog doesn't always win. There's a reason that they're the underdog. Sometimes the bad guys are victors. That's life, and we've all got to come to terms with it.
Spring training can't come soon enough.
Oh well. Life is not a feel good movie on Lifetime or the Disney Channel. This game reminds us that the underdog doesn't always win. There's a reason that they're the underdog. Sometimes the bad guys are victors. That's life, and we've all got to come to terms with it.
Spring training can't come soon enough.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
No Soy Un Soldado
There is an old Chinese saying: "Do not point out the splinter in your brother's eye when you have a log in yours." It's a pretty fucking bizarre saying. First thing, what sort of woodshop are you running when you've got wood floating around in each other's eye? Second, if you got a log in your eye, you wouldn't be saying "Hey bro, you got a splinter in your eye" but "HOLY SHIT I'VE GOT A FUCKING LOG IN MY EYE CALL FUCKING 911!!!!"
But the point is simple: don't be messing around in other people's business when there's stuff going on nearby which is going to seriously mess your life up, such as a log in your eye. That'll mess your life up worse than drugs.
I read this article on MSNBC about this dude they call the "Stewmaker." Sounds interesting. Interesting morphs into curious/morbid when I drop the fact that he works with the Mexican drug cartels into the mix. Apparently, his job was to dissolve the victims of whatever drug related violence the cartels ran into acid to dissolve the bodies.
The Mexican drug war has been sailing under the radar while the United States has been basically earning the ire of anyone who adheres to the Muslim faith. Mexico has always been fairly nutty (if you've seen Man on Fire with Denzel Washington, you know what I'm referring to). Now we've got Mexican drug cartels who have their fingers so far up the rear end of the government that their fingernails are tickling the tonsils running a little too close to the border of the United States. Incursions have occurred as well, an issue that should be addressed.
Now the United States did try catching the last guy who seriously tried dicking around with the United States (it was during a war as well) and it wasn't the most effective thing in the world, but at least the United States did something drastic. It's understandable that the United States has limited capabilities right now, but it's less understandable to let the Mexicans pose a threat so close to the national borders.
But the point is simple: don't be messing around in other people's business when there's stuff going on nearby which is going to seriously mess your life up, such as a log in your eye. That'll mess your life up worse than drugs.
I read this article on MSNBC about this dude they call the "Stewmaker." Sounds interesting. Interesting morphs into curious/morbid when I drop the fact that he works with the Mexican drug cartels into the mix. Apparently, his job was to dissolve the victims of whatever drug related violence the cartels ran into acid to dissolve the bodies.
The Mexican drug war has been sailing under the radar while the United States has been basically earning the ire of anyone who adheres to the Muslim faith. Mexico has always been fairly nutty (if you've seen Man on Fire with Denzel Washington, you know what I'm referring to). Now we've got Mexican drug cartels who have their fingers so far up the rear end of the government that their fingernails are tickling the tonsils running a little too close to the border of the United States. Incursions have occurred as well, an issue that should be addressed.
Now the United States did try catching the last guy who seriously tried dicking around with the United States (it was during a war as well) and it wasn't the most effective thing in the world, but at least the United States did something drastic. It's understandable that the United States has limited capabilities right now, but it's less understandable to let the Mexicans pose a threat so close to the national borders.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Prognostication
Congratulations to the Arizona Cardinals for making it into the Super Bowl. Honestly, I don't know how you maintained a semblance of the ability to play football, after essentially mailing it in for the second half of the season, with a QB who was 10 years removed from his last Super Bowl and bounced around more than a rusty pinball in a Coney Island arcade. In addition, the last time they made the playoffs they were still in the midwest somewhere. Furthermore, they were supposed to lose to the Falcons, the Panthers, and the Eagles.
And congrats to the Steelers. Big Ben managed to not colossally mess up (unlike some other QBs) and also had a defense lead by Polumalu, who is most likely certified insane (have you seen his hair?). Also have to give props to their coach, who is actually a year younger than Kurt Warner.
And they meet in the Super Bowl. The geratric Cinderella leading a team who was futility personified for decades and also the backup to some pretty boy in the beginning of the season meets the team led by Big Ben and his team of crazed defenders and some other dudes who are on the field the other half of the game.
I'm calling it now: the Cardinals might pull it off. It's a very similar situation to the last season's playoffs: a team who was supposed to lose at every juncture goes up against the team that is supposed to win and pulls it off. That's right: the Cards are this year's Giants. They've got something going on for them, their record and second half play be damned. It's basically written out: the old timer leading his team after a long and sort of embarassing hiatus away from success and his wide reciever who is doing things that defy the laws of physics.
Cardinals will be Super Bowl champs.
And congrats to the Steelers. Big Ben managed to not colossally mess up (unlike some other QBs) and also had a defense lead by Polumalu, who is most likely certified insane (have you seen his hair?). Also have to give props to their coach, who is actually a year younger than Kurt Warner.
And they meet in the Super Bowl. The geratric Cinderella leading a team who was futility personified for decades and also the backup to some pretty boy in the beginning of the season meets the team led by Big Ben and his team of crazed defenders and some other dudes who are on the field the other half of the game.
I'm calling it now: the Cardinals might pull it off. It's a very similar situation to the last season's playoffs: a team who was supposed to lose at every juncture goes up against the team that is supposed to win and pulls it off. That's right: the Cards are this year's Giants. They've got something going on for them, their record and second half play be damned. It's basically written out: the old timer leading his team after a long and sort of embarassing hiatus away from success and his wide reciever who is doing things that defy the laws of physics.
Cardinals will be Super Bowl champs.
Monday, January 12, 2009
Of Cart and Caddies
Anybody out there remember Afghanistan? You know, the country we invaded before Iraq (with an actual reason)? Well, things were picturesque there for about a month or so before everyone got so hopped up and excited on Iraq and neglected to try to fix Afghanistan. Well, now things are rearing their ugly head again. A story from the Washington Post describes the growing disconnect between the rich and poor in the nation.
Anyone who has studied world history probably knows that if a nation has a sizable portion of the population in severe poverty things get a bit testy and people start agitating for pretty radical things so they can get food on their table and a wallet with some weight to it. This is starting to become the case in Afghanistan. All of a sudden, a select few individuals (with either government, tribal milita, drug, or some combination of any of the three) are becoming increasingly wealthy as the country's poor are becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the current system and are actually thinking about how things were during the Taliban era.
Much of this has to do with the government in place in Afghanistan. Hamid Karzai has had little control beyond many of the "urban" "centers" of Afghanistan, and even that is questionable. While he should have some way of trying to combat the growing inefficiency and corruption, there's only so much he can do. Just look at Pakistan and its ability to try to rein in parts of its own nation. Afghanistan is essentially an entire nation made up of those rogue western parts of Pakistan.
At this point right now, the US is in poor shape to try to bail out Afghanistan, with the problems it already has with Iraq right now and trying to help establish Iraq's government/get the hell out of there in as good of a shape as possible. But even its assistance would have to be immediately effective in order to make any sort of headway; otherwise, it would look like the current regime is an American puppet, thus increasing the popularity of radical factions in Afghanistan in a manner reminiscent of Iran. There has to be more than monetary assistance poured into Afghanistan; people have got to spend some time there to supervise and run the infrastructure smoothly before the government itself can function properly. I mean, who cares if you don't have a democracy when you don't have food or shelter?
Anyone who has studied world history probably knows that if a nation has a sizable portion of the population in severe poverty things get a bit testy and people start agitating for pretty radical things so they can get food on their table and a wallet with some weight to it. This is starting to become the case in Afghanistan. All of a sudden, a select few individuals (with either government, tribal milita, drug, or some combination of any of the three) are becoming increasingly wealthy as the country's poor are becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the current system and are actually thinking about how things were during the Taliban era.
Much of this has to do with the government in place in Afghanistan. Hamid Karzai has had little control beyond many of the "urban" "centers" of Afghanistan, and even that is questionable. While he should have some way of trying to combat the growing inefficiency and corruption, there's only so much he can do. Just look at Pakistan and its ability to try to rein in parts of its own nation. Afghanistan is essentially an entire nation made up of those rogue western parts of Pakistan.
At this point right now, the US is in poor shape to try to bail out Afghanistan, with the problems it already has with Iraq right now and trying to help establish Iraq's government/get the hell out of there in as good of a shape as possible. But even its assistance would have to be immediately effective in order to make any sort of headway; otherwise, it would look like the current regime is an American puppet, thus increasing the popularity of radical factions in Afghanistan in a manner reminiscent of Iran. There has to be more than monetary assistance poured into Afghanistan; people have got to spend some time there to supervise and run the infrastructure smoothly before the government itself can function properly. I mean, who cares if you don't have a democracy when you don't have food or shelter?
Monday, January 5, 2009
Va, Pensiero
A lot of people get really touchy-feely/excited for being back in some land where they feel some sentiment. Good for them. I'm not one of them.
In Verdi's opera Nabucco, perhaps the most famous song out of the entire work is "Va, Pensiero" or "Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves." It is about the yearning of a lost homeland. Some people have interpreted it as an anthem for il Risorgimiento, but recent scholarship has disproven that notion and Verdi's role as a whole as the aristic paton of il Risorgimiento has been downplayed.
I can sort of understand. It sucks being a stranger in your own place, especially if you've been attached to somewhere for a while. I've grown up not really growing an attachment to where I was. It was a place to me. There are millions of places around the world. It was just another place, and I could always find somewhere better/more interesting. Something happens to the place I am, whatever. I'll cry about it when I'm dead.
As such, I really don't understand why people develop attachments. Yes, it feels nice to be grounded, but all things are pro tempore. It'll probably go away before you do or something else might happen and then you're out of luck and wandering around lost. So what's the inherent point?
Who knows. Maybe we're just programmed that way, despite the logical problems it presents.
In Verdi's opera Nabucco, perhaps the most famous song out of the entire work is "Va, Pensiero" or "Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves." It is about the yearning of a lost homeland. Some people have interpreted it as an anthem for il Risorgimiento, but recent scholarship has disproven that notion and Verdi's role as a whole as the aristic paton of il Risorgimiento has been downplayed.
I can sort of understand. It sucks being a stranger in your own place, especially if you've been attached to somewhere for a while. I've grown up not really growing an attachment to where I was. It was a place to me. There are millions of places around the world. It was just another place, and I could always find somewhere better/more interesting. Something happens to the place I am, whatever. I'll cry about it when I'm dead.
As such, I really don't understand why people develop attachments. Yes, it feels nice to be grounded, but all things are pro tempore. It'll probably go away before you do or something else might happen and then you're out of luck and wandering around lost. So what's the inherent point?
Who knows. Maybe we're just programmed that way, despite the logical problems it presents.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Pakistan: Stop Fronting
Pakistan has made several moves and announcements recently regarding how they're going to "fuck shit up" if India does anything. Right.
Let's face it: India will probably not do anything for fear of the Pakistanis firing off nuclear weapons because we all know that Pakistan has as much control over its own country as your local 7-11 manager does and because an unsafe minority of people in Pakistan are what we can probably safely call "bat-shit insane." Pakistan, if they do anything further to piss off India, will probably be wrecked. Taking a look at the CIA World Factbook statistics, the number of troops India could muster in addition to its decently technologically sound infrastructure (ships, aircraft) isn't something to sneeze at either. The end result of anything happening would probably be something of a mess.
Any sort of saber rattling by the government of Pakistan is talk that shouldn't alarm anyone. As for those fellows in the mountains, well, that's a different story...
Let's face it: India will probably not do anything for fear of the Pakistanis firing off nuclear weapons because we all know that Pakistan has as much control over its own country as your local 7-11 manager does and because an unsafe minority of people in Pakistan are what we can probably safely call "bat-shit insane." Pakistan, if they do anything further to piss off India, will probably be wrecked. Taking a look at the CIA World Factbook statistics, the number of troops India could muster in addition to its decently technologically sound infrastructure (ships, aircraft) isn't something to sneeze at either. The end result of anything happening would probably be something of a mess.
Any sort of saber rattling by the government of Pakistan is talk that shouldn't alarm anyone. As for those fellows in the mountains, well, that's a different story...
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Truce
As someone who reads a lot of stuff about war, you find some shocking moments of humanity in what is seemingly a sea of depraved indifference to a fellow man. One of the more poignant stories about such a moment of humanity is the 1914 Christmas Truce on the trench-marked fields of France.
1914. World War I had just started to rage. The men were in for a grueling four years of punishing trench warfare that would wipe out a generation of males in Europe and leave scars that would not be healed for quite some time. Nationalist fervor had brought upon a rivalry between nations that bordered on hatred. Ripe time for decking the halls, no?
Well, at least the Germans thought so. They began doing the customary decorating (Christmas trees are a German concept) and festivities. Scottish troops on the other side began singing carols. After a while, things warmed up between the sides enough that they left their trenches and began exchanging gifts in no man's land. Soccer (or football, since we are speaking of Europe) matches started to break out in no man's land. The soldiers had time to talk amongst themselves, and they realized things weren't so different. Many of the German soldiers spent summers in England as taxi drivers, and Bavarians and Scotsmen shared the same animosity towards the dominating force in their respective nations (the Prussians and the English, respectively).
The next day, things went back to normal. But this event occurred once again in 1915 and once again during Easter in 1916, along with some smaller occurrences. Nevertheless, it was a moment not forgotten. One of the best books about war that I've read is about this very instance in history, called Silent Night. It's one of the few books that I've read that has sent chills down my spine.
Recently, on Armistice Day (11 Nov 2008), they replayed the game at a similar spot where the original truce happened. Germany won the match, 2-1. But I guess you can figure out who the real winners and losers were.
1914. World War I had just started to rage. The men were in for a grueling four years of punishing trench warfare that would wipe out a generation of males in Europe and leave scars that would not be healed for quite some time. Nationalist fervor had brought upon a rivalry between nations that bordered on hatred. Ripe time for decking the halls, no?
Well, at least the Germans thought so. They began doing the customary decorating (Christmas trees are a German concept) and festivities. Scottish troops on the other side began singing carols. After a while, things warmed up between the sides enough that they left their trenches and began exchanging gifts in no man's land. Soccer (or football, since we are speaking of Europe) matches started to break out in no man's land. The soldiers had time to talk amongst themselves, and they realized things weren't so different. Many of the German soldiers spent summers in England as taxi drivers, and Bavarians and Scotsmen shared the same animosity towards the dominating force in their respective nations (the Prussians and the English, respectively).
The next day, things went back to normal. But this event occurred once again in 1915 and once again during Easter in 1916, along with some smaller occurrences. Nevertheless, it was a moment not forgotten. One of the best books about war that I've read is about this very instance in history, called Silent Night. It's one of the few books that I've read that has sent chills down my spine.
Recently, on Armistice Day (11 Nov 2008), they replayed the game at a similar spot where the original truce happened. Germany won the match, 2-1. But I guess you can figure out who the real winners and losers were.
I Like Revenge Served Like My Gazpacho
One of the basal instincts that many of us have as human beings is the desire for revenge, the desire to get someone back, the desire to see things evened out. That is the inherent basis for the establishment of a justice system, to ensure that the proper price has been paid by a party who has supposedly wronged another (even though modern justice systems have their flaws, which is a topic for a different time). But life is filled with injustices that happen that don't warrant such major addressing. So what do you do?
I recently decided to borrow a movie from my local library (now that all my papers are finally done with) called Rocket Science. The movie spotlights the life of a stuttering, awkward high school kid named Hal Hefner who probably has enough issues to have made me look well-adjusted back in the day. The film spotlights his immersion in the New Jersey suburban high-school debate world (how's that for a sub-segment of society) and we watch as he's allured into that world by a sharp, veteran high-school debater with a ridiculous drive to succeed. Oh yeah, the debater's a girl. And being an independent movie, you can probably figure that yes, it hits the fan quicker than you can drop the f-bomb. The second half of the movie is essentially his awkward fumbling in an attempt to win her back/seek some sort of redemption. And being an independent movie, you can probably guess where that leads.
I really did empathize with this kid's drive to seek some sort of payback, no matter how ill-conceived it was. And it make me think about a lot of things. For one, why are we so wrapped up sometimes in making others feel as miserable as we are? Is it because we sense some sort of pride that we have? Take that kid in the film. What sort of pride does he have?
Perhaps it is those who do not have much to give away that fight for it the most. An awkward, stuttering teenager is going to feel a slight like that much more than someone who's successful and more well adjusted. To have what could have been something successful and then lose it like that for someone who probably hasn't even sniffed the scent of it is a disastrous blow.
Remember that when you're seething with the desire for payback. How much did you lose? And how much will you gain?
Oh yeah, merry Christmas. And don't spit in the eggnog...unless someone really deserves it.
I recently decided to borrow a movie from my local library (now that all my papers are finally done with) called Rocket Science. The movie spotlights the life of a stuttering, awkward high school kid named Hal Hefner who probably has enough issues to have made me look well-adjusted back in the day. The film spotlights his immersion in the New Jersey suburban high-school debate world (how's that for a sub-segment of society) and we watch as he's allured into that world by a sharp, veteran high-school debater with a ridiculous drive to succeed. Oh yeah, the debater's a girl. And being an independent movie, you can probably figure that yes, it hits the fan quicker than you can drop the f-bomb. The second half of the movie is essentially his awkward fumbling in an attempt to win her back/seek some sort of redemption. And being an independent movie, you can probably guess where that leads.
I really did empathize with this kid's drive to seek some sort of payback, no matter how ill-conceived it was. And it make me think about a lot of things. For one, why are we so wrapped up sometimes in making others feel as miserable as we are? Is it because we sense some sort of pride that we have? Take that kid in the film. What sort of pride does he have?
Perhaps it is those who do not have much to give away that fight for it the most. An awkward, stuttering teenager is going to feel a slight like that much more than someone who's successful and more well adjusted. To have what could have been something successful and then lose it like that for someone who probably hasn't even sniffed the scent of it is a disastrous blow.
Remember that when you're seething with the desire for payback. How much did you lose? And how much will you gain?
Oh yeah, merry Christmas. And don't spit in the eggnog...unless someone really deserves it.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Merry Go WHAT Myself?!?!
Around this time of year, the problem of what one says to wish someone a happy whatever holiday (or lack thereof) surfaces. It's a serious major controversy, making the news every once a while. Fundamentalist Christians are railing against "Happy Holidays," as if all those naughty atheists are going to be rolling into town fornicating on a flat-bed truck and drinking Jack Daniels out of the bottle. More secular folks have been railing against saying "Merry Christmas" as it seems imperialistic and insulting to those who are not Christian, as if the perpetuation of saying "Merry Christmas" will result in something like the Knights Templar rolling into town on tanks (which I think would totally be cool until they identify my heathen ass and send me to kingdom come in a first class parcel).
Either way, it's a load of malarkey. Say what you want. Hell, say things that don't completely make sense. Go up to a rabbi and wish him a merry Kwanzaa, like I did. Go up to a priest and ask him how his latkes turned out. (For the record, the priest asked me why I was calling him from his own office at 2:00 AM.) Wish people whatever to just mess around with them. After all, it's truly the thought that counts.
Either way, it's a load of malarkey. Say what you want. Hell, say things that don't completely make sense. Go up to a rabbi and wish him a merry Kwanzaa, like I did. Go up to a priest and ask him how his latkes turned out. (For the record, the priest asked me why I was calling him from his own office at 2:00 AM.) Wish people whatever to just mess around with them. After all, it's truly the thought that counts.
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