emo boys. hardcore boy. boys will be boys

i have been trying to start a playlist on lastfm.com (disorientaled is my profile) being that my work computer is now run by hal, i cannot really log on to the site. bummer since i love making playlists. actually, i still make mix tapes. i am certain some of you are scratching your head and thinking a mix tape? wha? huh? look it up on wikipedia dudes.

anyhow, my only friend on lastfm is a german dude. we bonded over hardcore and emo music.

emo music makes me remember these careless days of summer. going to the hardcore church and seeing your favorite bands. one of my favorite show seeing back in the day was bluetip. join us. honestly, this band can do no wrong. i also remember seeing sunny day real estate and pretty much crying over how achingly pretty the music was. emo music was all about girls and boys crying. seriously. we all needed medication!

to this day, as i am thinking about chisel, mineral, ted leo, texas is the reason, i get all giddy. i mean these were shows to see. being cramped in a small space. people just bobbing their heads in unison, orange earplugs sticking out of everyone's ears.

my friend mark back in boston, my old stomping grounds told me he knew he had reached "emo" status when he finally got an asian girlfriend. i don't know if that is necessarily true, but i loved how we all would go to shows up at the middleeast in central square, cambridge and you saw a sea of backpacks. backpacks with black and white notebooks filled with doodles, thoughts and tons of unlabeled mix tapes.

perhaps i am a dud, but a good mix tape can cure all.

a better mix tape would have some mineral on it...sigh.

the trouble with big headphones and ipods

i often wander this dirty city with big headphones on listening to one of my ipods. i go through ipods like i go through men. :)

i feel naked without listening to my music. sometimes i do walk home and just listen to the traffic, the sirens, and just absorbing the sounds of the city. but most of the time, a walk clears my head, my shuffle list calms my soul.

my sister and i usually try to hang out once a week. usually it involves getting food, walking around, people watching, book browsing, coffee.

one of our favorite thing to do is grab a hoagie after work and go home and watch a movie.

one day we stopped into subway to pick up a hoagie. my sister was ordering hers. i was next to her. headphones on, but not on full volume. i stood there looking at the smudgy plexiglass that covered the bins of peppers, onions, lettuce, mayo.

we always get the same hoagie. italian bmt. i had my hoagie card ready. it is sad when you have a subway sandwich card. sadder when you are only one hoagie away from a free 1/2 hoagie. not a full hoagie. only 1.5.

the subway guy behind the counter was busy making the hoagie. he was talking to my sister. then he turned to me. i smiled and replied to his question. i responded, "pickles." he asked me again. "pickles," i replied. why was he not putting pickles on the hoagie?! for the third time, i replied, "pickles. pickles." he stopped talking to me. my sister was paying for the hoagie. she was speaking to the counter dude. man, i was really hungry.

as we walked away, my sister busted out laughing. i gave her a look. a raised eyebrow.

"what is so funny?"

"that guy.."

"who? the subway dude?"

"yeah, he wasn't asking what you wanted on the hoagie."

"yes, he was..wasnt he?"

"he asked where you were from. he wanted to know your name. and all you kept saying was "pickles!"

"oh..."

"so i told him you were retarded. he seemed to understand after that."

we both burst out laughing. we ate the hoagie, yes, it had pickles. i never did get my hoagie card filled, but i figure it is ok.

the trouble with headphones is that i don't listen to people. the trouble without my headphones is that i don't listen to people.

correction

it is hiro and splurt. no spurt. whoopsy.

kaossilator: i got one

anybody wanna play? i's got one. actually my girls and i all got one. count em. 3. pho reals.

also, i just wanna say, i went into brave new world comics and the dude was nice. i told him how i was treated like someone who only reads marvel.

also, lonely zombie issue 2 is in the works. so be patient lonely zombie lovers!


gotta go play with my kaossilator..this is instant awesome!

kaosilator and hiro and spurt

what i want.

for only 200 bucks why not huh?

now all i need is a japanese sidekick....volunteers?

perhaps i should be wearing sunglasses inside when i get my korg? does korg give you the dudes in sunglasses as a promotional gift?

who knows, all i know, is i have been laughing on this snowy day.

english is my second language

still a bit sick for those floating around da internet world, blog surfing. i have been rubbing my eyes, lack of sleep. lack of sunlight. (if you've notice, i'm pale pale pale). anyhow, lots of jasmine tea with honey and kumquats seem to be doing their trick. that and just asking everyone around me to baby me. i know it is a low shot, but heck, i am a baby. no, correction. i one of those people that constantly tries to please people, so sometimes, when i just come down with the icks, i just wanna have someone buy me some tea and a scone.

sigh.

work today was long. i think when one is under the weather, the hands of the clock does not move. this afternoon i was at a deposition. i was doing lead. after it was over, the boys club was asking me questions. apparently, they have never seen a girl know how to tie tie. much less have an opinion about ties. i prefer double windsor knot ties, but they look too bulky and ridiculous on me. girls can rock the ties. i can rock a power skirt suit, so why not a tie? chit chat is inevitable after these things. it is like people don't wanna head back to the office. a stalling technique.

well today, i pulled a pearl.

what does tim do?

he works in advertising. commercials. youtube type stuff. you know virile video. virile.

silence.

crickets. crickets.

the old dudes laugh and say, we could use some of those videos!

me with furrowed brow and my slanty eyes pointed upwards.

it's viral, not virile.

you say potato. i say tomato.

i threw the yellow card down. hey, english is my second language!

also, one should not address opposing counsel who are partners as doods. or dude. or tell them they are on crack when they give absurd demands.

comfort list

i am coming down with some cold bug or it is just sheer exhaustion from work. so i am not going to blog today. i have been sneezing all day. it was ridiculous.

my head feels all congested and i ordered some take in for dinner. nothing gourmet. pizza. hence, i am sick.

when i get all icky, i always want to drink hot tea or cider. actually walking home, i did pop in to get a cup of their caramel apple cider. it was nice to walk home in the flurries and drink cider.

the things above are what i want to make me feel better. chubby sodas. mario. :)

it is funny how i write in my blog as if it is going to respond and say get better pearly. but whoever is reading, just browse my other entries.

i have another comic idea. i need to hook up my scanner. i need a tissue. good god.

goodness too much for little head to think about right now. back to mario and chubby sodas.

breakups, heart aches, heart breaks: my graphic novel

i have been making my own comics ever since i was an even littler pearl. in high school/college, i started to document my heart breaks, heart aches, and breakups: all inked on my bristol board. every pen stroke recording a piece of my heart ripped.

i don't know how it started. i never was allowed to date in high school. strict asian upbringing. it was ok since i was no hot commodity in high school so you can't miss when you didn't have, right? also, when i did get a date to the prom, i was soo excited. little did i know how much prom dresses cost, so i ended up sewing mine and it was no pretty in pink moment, but the same reaction from snotty girls. "how home ec of you!" sewing takes a skill. going to freakin nordstrom doesn't take much skill.

getting asked out to prom was like some magical moment in my high school career. it was like getting a red rose in my locker. it was like getting to start in the opening game, off the bench, the cheerleader on top of the pyramid, the apex. it was totally cool that me, little pearl was going to prom!

then it hit me like bricks, my parents. how did i convince them this is a study session which requires girls to wear strapless taffetta and boys in tuxedos? totally not going to fly.

i decided to just ask them and explain how important it was for me to finally sort of be accepted, etc. my parents were actually understanding and i was surprised. the one condition was for them to meet the dude. ok.....i was waiting for a catch, but there wasn't.

i worked on my dress for 2 months. simple black mandarin collared chinese inspired dress. the night finally came and the dude arrives all nice in suit and flowers in hand. i was nervous. i mean it wasn't a date, but sort of. anyhow, my parents answer the door and i greet him and pics taken. then my parents ask the dude to sit down in the dining room. they pour him tea. then my cute mama, asks him, "what time dance end?" dude: "around 12 midnight, don't worry, i should have pearl back by 2." my mama's slanty eyes go round. "2? no. no. not acceptable." dude: "ok, but the dance ends at 12, so..." mama: "not 2." dude continues to "argue" with my mama. i am sitting there, my stomach becoming heavy. no one is drinking the tea. it is getting cold. my mama stops arguing. instead, she takes from under the table, a brick. a red brick. prolly from our garden. places it on the table. dude looks at me. we both are confused. my mama places the brick on the table and with her hand strikes it, it breaks in half. "bring pearl home by 9." dude turns white (or i should say whiter). that nite, i was dropped back from the prom at my house at 8:30pm. the prom started at 7pm.

with my dating history starting off with a smashed brick, it is no wonder i documented my heartbreaks.

college is like best of series. i documented how my heart was torn and the many evil ways/methods on how i was dumped. i know, people will say the "post it" story, aka. sex in the city, but that happened to me way before that show aired. i inked my story with post it and my note was not as nice. i have another comic depicting how some dude broke up with me over speaker phone and during his band practice. yes, his band mates were present.

heart aches and breakups are hard. i mean what do you expect with words such as "aches" and "break" in the words? inking and just sketching out my breakups made it less real to me. at the time it was real. i was hurting, i was crying, but these comics show me how funny some of these situations were. it was almost like therapy.

life inspires art. i think it is the madness in life that inspires my art. it is this little satisfaction, this smirk i have. these boys may have broken my heart, but in the end i got the last laugh. i should thank them all. i got some great comic strips out of it. how can you not laugh at a little asian woman breaking a brick in half? fyi, i spent 1 hour at my prom. that was first and only date i ever had in high school.

FREEZEPOP FOREVER

last nite i went to see freezepop. when i lived in boston, i saw them a few times and i always have fun. my friends weren't into them, but i like them because their fans are nice and no one cares about being a hipster. it was nice to be with just real people who wanna bop around. i mean how many guys and girls can we see every day wearing black eyeliner and miss sixty jeans?

i met my friend shannon for drinks before heading over to the show. freezepop has not been to philly since i have been here, so i was quite giddy to see them. they are a cute electro synth pop band that writes songs about pop music, crushes, science, etc. my outer and inner geekdom is always satisfied by them.

we missed the first opening band. prolly because we were out and i insisted on ordering a grilled cheese and bacon samwich. what can i say, i graze. i eat like every 4 hours. so if you see me out and about, don't be surprised if i have food on me or in my mouth.

we caught the second opening band, boy in static. . this band is also from boston. it was two dudes, one white guy and one asian guy. there was a drum machine and then the asian guy whips out an electric viola! my jaw dropped and i was excited to see an electric viola! i mean come on. that is like super asian. i was all eager to talk to him after the show about it since i play and i was listening to his pick up on his viola, etc.

turns out the asian guy, alex chen is also a member of freezepop. he goes by the stage name french ghost. there were peeps there who were chatting with me and told me this info. they were convinced they had seen me in pittsburgh the night before. i told them it was my clone.

anyhow, after the show had ended and it was a fun one. freezepop is good at getting the crowd clapping and reminds of what happens to ravers and the big pants crowd. they come here to get their dose of techno/electro. freezepop is friendly and funny and honestly just down to earth. i think i stood in the first row with a big ass grin.

as the show ended with their pop cover of journey's "don't stop believing" and then closing out with a favorite, foreigner's "final countdown" i made sure to find the asian viola player. i totally scoped him out so i could chat him up about string instruments. i know. geeky.

he is a nice guy and when i told him i play violin/fiddle and that my electric violin looks like something prince would play. seriously, it is hot pink and modern looking. anyhow, he laughed and he told me he uses the pick ups for his viola for live shows, not for recording. then he was checking his iphone and both he and my bff, jonathan, were talking about their iphones. i responded that i was not giving into this iphone epidemic because i would look super asian with an iphone. alex laughed. i told them i was happy with my tank/sidekick3.

after the tech/shop talk, i asked alex if i could take my pic with him. (gosh, who is acting all asian now?!) and he said yes. ok, so i took about 3 pics. i threw down my gang signs and put on headphones to make it even more asianlike kitch. after the photo op, alex asked me if i had a flickr account. i said i was going to post it on my blog. he laughed. i dont know if it was from amusement or sympathy or due to the late hour, who knows. dude, it's a blog party. get with it!

i think i should email him the pic. but perhaps that is way too creepy?

oh also, the other guy in the band, i think his last name is diamond. i wanted to tell him that if we got married, my name would be "pearl diamond." hot. omg, another prince reference. whoa.

oh yeah, my renewed pet peeve. why is it the tallest people and i am talking about like amazon tall peeps gather together and stand right in front of me? one guy stood in front of me and i sighed loudly and then i said in a soft voice, "can you not stand there please?" but he could not hear me from the bottoms of the bar floor. he was up in the clouds. grrr. do i have to wear high heels out now?! seriously, cut this little mushroom a break!

harder done than said

i always mixing up my metaphors. i think being raised in a bilingual household prolly did this to me. people who know me. my friends who love me call these sayings, "pearlisms." i believe i wrote about this in an earlier blog.

today was my parents' chinese new year dinner for friends and family. they had postponed it from last week. dumplings. shrimp rockets. spring rolls. summer rolls. rice noodles. the list of food goes on. i have been eating all day, like it was my job. i actually fall asleep on the sofa as people held a ping pong tournament. wow, i just realized how "asian" that sounds. "hey guys, anybody up for some full contact ping pong?"


i don't know what we all were talking about, but like my usual self, i was trying to make a point. my response to the conversation was "harder done than said."

the chatter went silenced.

then the question marks popped up over their heads. i continued to chatter.

then i got corrected.

i still think my saying is fine just the way it is.

anyhow, eating all this food made me sleepy. i took a nap. ok, naps. after waking up from my naps. i was dreaming of food. pathethic huh? i just ate a full meal and then i dreamt of food. the photo to the left is how i protect myself from "pho." pho is the traditional vietnamese beef noodle dish. it can be made with chicken (which i prefer) as well. anyhow, pho takes time to make, but it smells the entire house up. seriously. it seeps int your clothes, the drapes, the sofa. it is like the nothingness from the neverending story.

i always just pull my collar or turtleneck in and use it as my "pho mask" so to speak. i guess bryan was right to put only 1/2 my face in those TRKFLD ads. i sport the 1/2 look more often than i realized.

while napping, food and playing drawn to life on my ds will tucker a girl out. i woke and was talking to my sister, gesturing with my hands in an animated manner and i poke my finger in my left eye. how the heck?! first, off i am extremely clumsy. i just am and my mom lied to me when she told me i would outgrow this. i also realized my mom lied to me when she told me drinking milk would make me taller. i drank milk and more milk and i never grew any taller than 5'1''. hmpf. but that is ok. i have accepted being pocket sized.

so i poked my left eye. which i find remarkable. i must have amazing aim. seriously. i mean my slanty eyes, the width of a dental floss and i managed to land my finger in my eye between blinks?! i am like a sharp shooter. a sniper.

my left is red. hence the photo is shot black and white. did you all really wanna see me all pinky? prolly not. it would be too japanese horror movie and that would give me and everyone nightmares.

now i am lying in bed. i have a compress over my left eye. my ds is sleeping. i was going to begin reading to terra part 2, but find it difficult to read with one eye.

not much has changed since i was little. the clumsy things i have done now or the mixed up things i say now, all have their roots.

THEN:

i slept in a bed with guard rails on the side placed by my dad because i would often roll off my bed and hit my face on my night stand. why we didn't move the night stand is beyond me.

NOW:

i knocked myself out while doing a weight machine. one of those weights that you pull down on a pulley. i clonked myself in the head with a 20 lb. weight. it was the clonk heard around the gym. i saw bright light and awoke to find my friends laughing at me. big bump on head. thank goodness for bangs. and i was told by the staff that perhaps i should work out wearing a helmet.


THEN:

i would spend hours playing nintendo with my dad and my sister. zelda. mario. duckhunt.

NOW:

i spend hours playing nintendo with my dad and my sister. zelda. mario. duckhunt.

THEN:

when i worked as a cashier for a store, my vest (our ugly uniform) got stuck in the cash register drawer. i was new so i didnt know how to open the drawer and an angry line formed. i basically looked like i was making out with the cash drawer.

NOW:

i got my desk drawer stuck at work. all my drawers wouldn't open. my work called a locksmith and it took him 3 hours to open my desk. he took a hammer out and started banging the desk, then he looked up and asked, "you don't have anything fragile in here do ya?"

i got stuck in a revolving door. this has happened twice.

my last work place got clear doors for their entry way. i had been out for the last 2 weeks in ny for them. i got off the elevator and waved the receptionist and then ran face first into the prestine clear doors. she told me i looked like a hurt little bird. maintenance was upset because i left a smudge mark of my face on the doors. i did this about 3 times.

now i am gonna hide my face again.

1984 in 2008

today i went to get my usual cup of coffee at dunkin. you know you drink too much coffee when the dunkin dude makes your order ahead of time. they threw in a free muffin for me. i think they felt sorry for me since all these women in line had tacky flowers and bad foiled chocolates. so they gave me a stale raisin muffin. fair trade? sure, why not.

i entered work, cold and cheeks flushed from the wind. i always look like chinadoll on cold days. today i was in a foggy mood. my slanty eyes were half moons due to lack of sleep. my mittens clutched my cup of joe and i walked into work and said morning to all. i set my coffee down on my desk and threw down my bag. i turned on my computer. which is slower than a commodore 64. i swear it is like running on DOS. ok, it isnt, but you get my drift. there is an email in my inbox stating we need to change our id and password to swtich to a "faster" server. i follow the instructions and realize that my work is now tracking our internet use. my name. the webpages. the length of time. WHA?! soo 1984. i mean now the whole place gets into paranoia state of mind. who the heck is really surfing for porn at work? or gambling? now, certain websites are blocked. so is the word. i didnt blog at work and i apologize for not being on pownce, but i did check my personal email.

i remember thinking 1984 was the scariest book ever. police monitoring your thoughts. here, i know monitoring web use is not the same, but i felt a bit insulted. we all work hard and most of the time, the internet is my lunch buddy. i work and work. just like a good asian. :)

i thought they wanted to boost morale. now everyone is running around like crazy chickens.

so my valentines has started with big brother watching my every move.

i am checking for cameras now!

on a happier note, there has been interest in my lonely zombie dolls. i may make some and first come, first serve basis. i only will let lonely zombie into loving homes. i also make them so he walks with a gimp, so to speak. they all have scars. and the original zombie doll, i stiched by hand so it looks very zombie esque franksteinesque~ also, i out a red heart on him. my chibby guy has a soul. with zombies, i consider myself a chubby chaser!

i have been in my office, scared to type in my computer. it freaks me out that the man is watching. overseeing. a czar looking down on his diligent proleteriat subjects. shudder.

i doodled a zombie friend to keep me company. he is on a yellow post it. i stuck the post it on my computer. he will have to be my lunch buddy since my computer has betrayed me.

this aint no law and order sh*t

if you are keepin up with me, you know i work in a field that is pretty much alpha male dominated. so seeing me in my nicely put together skirts and ties (hommage to annie hall) and wing tip heels can throw any opponent off i am sure.

today i had a pre trial conference at city hall. our city hall is amazing. it looks like gotham. especially today with the rain pouring down and the grey clouds above good old ben.

i had to take 2 interns with me. both are tall dudes in navy suits. basically, i looked like i had 2 bodyguards with me walking into the courtroom.

as we sat there in front of the judge in his chambers with opposing counsel and co defendant counsel. my interns mind you were happy to just get out of the office. even despite getting soaked by the rain.

as we sat there, i explained the case, the facts, the legal questions, as the judge called us to order so to speak, opposing counsel, who is a tall gangly dude was seated next to me.

he put his arm on the back of my chair, i moved forward.

then he poked me on my arm to ask me a question. i squinted my slanty eyes and gave him a quizzical look.

he told me he bought his suit at armani and proceeded to show me the label, i quipped, "it looks like it says ARMANIA. like a bad knock off."

he turns sour. calls me a smart ass.

yes, a grown ass man. then he proceeds to show me his cufflinks. all this in front of the judge.

as i sat there in a room surrounded by men, i moved/leaned back into my seat. i feel something. on the chair. under my leg/bottom.

my mind flashes.

"IS THAT YOUR HAND?!"

the hand that was there, suddenly was gone.

who does that? put their hand on your chair knowing full well you will sit on it.

apparently, i was hanging out with a third grader.

how would my opponents feel if women put their hands on them in court?

nevermind. they might enjoy it. hell, they all prolly need it!

long raining day. nothing to do but to eat some pizza.

notice the pic. taken by my bff jonathan. this was after i passed out from seeing blue cheer (if you are a music snob, you know who they are) and i needed to refuel and put my power pellets back to full. hence, me devouring the pizza.

what can i say i can eat! and i can litigate. not at the same time tho.

score today:

dude's hand: 1
my butt : 0
fouls : a lot

snowing

it's been snowing and icing all morning. being that i normally dress like an eskimo or a villager from mongolia, i dig this weather. i do afterall look good in furry hats and i prefer wearing boots instead of heels.

the windows in my office have been all coated white from frost. delicate, lacey snow flakes have blanketed my view. it is so pretty and as i sit and gaze out my window, i find myself just watching the snow fall. totally not being productive.

i remember when my cousins immigrated here from 'nam. they were young. probably around 2 years old or so. i remember being all excited to meet them as we drove to the airport to pick them up. being in america was all shiny and new to them. they quickly adjusted, but some things remained completely foreign to them.

their first winter here was one of my favorite memories.

it was december and it was the first snowfall. we all woke up to a sheet of pure white covering the yard, cars, the trees had icicles, the windows opaque with condensation. there were some footprints from dogs walking by, passerbys.

my parents were downstairs making hot jasmine tea with kumquats. i remember waking up to the sweet smell and then retracting my feet back into my warm blanket as i touched the cold floor to get up.

i put on my slippers and i was going to go wake my little cousins. but i could hear them. they were not yelling. no high pitch screams that toddlers can be prone to doing. instead as i walked downstairs and entered the living room, our front door was wide open. the cold air gust blowing into our little house. i was about to yell and ask what was going on. my thought was cut short. i see my two little cousins in their pajamas in the doorway. they are looking outside at the snow. their dark almond eyes wide with amazement. i was confused. were they pointing at something? a fox? a mormon soliciting door to door? cujo? what?

slowly, i approached my two cousins. both still pointing and their eyes wide, the brows furrowed in deep thought.

they hear my footsteps and look at me and whisper, "chi, in america. sugar falls."

i laughed.

my cousins jump up and down and yelp, "sugar! look at the sugar!"

my little cousins were so precious. they couldn't believe that in america, sugar falls from the skies.

then they ran out to eat some.

their barefeet cold.

their eyes wide from surprise as they picked up the cold "sugar."

not sugar, but one of the "sweetest" memories of winter that i have.

lonely zombie: my valentine to all

i drew this comic, "lonely zombie" and it depicts a chubby zombie that wears a 1/2 shirt that says hi.  he is lonely because he can't find a mate because when he does go on a date, instead of leaning in for a kiss, my zombie leans in for a BITE....of your brains.

i always thought that zombies would have a difficult time dating. and a chubby zombie would just have a horrid time dating. hell, dating for anyone is hard.

i think you can zoom in on the comic above. i had to scan it into 2 pieces since i had inked it on a big piece of white board.

basically, we all are lonely zombies. allegory of life. we wander the earth, like that kung fu dude. 

my lonely zombie is my valentine to you all. nobody likes to play checkers by themselves. eat those frozen solo dinners all the time. or teeter totter by themselves.

i made lonely zombie dolls. they all have the scar and the potbelly 1/2 shirt as well.

if i could make lonely zombie cookies, i would. i would make them all chubby and have bites taken out of them, courtesy of me.

chomp chomp.

rambo and the racist

today i was excited to see rambo. i figure i could make it up to my parents after the cloverfield disaster.

we decided to see rambo over at this big theater since it was playing in two hours and we all had just finished eating our new years' meal.

now, if you are not a fan of rambo, what is wrong with you?! ok ok ok. come on, like the other rambo movies, this movie proves to be action packed, quite violent, and filled with some great one liners. stallone co-wrote this movie and directed it. i dont know if that will attract or detract people from seeing it, but it worked for me!

basically, rambo sees a pretty blond missionary and falls prey into taking a bunch of missionaries to burma, yup, burma. the country that is under a civil war/genocide. these people are armed with the word of the lord and rambo is armed with fury and a crossbow. nice.

anyhow, as we all sat watching this blockbuster, i notice that the theater has toddlers running about. scared and crying from the decapitations and blood from the war scenes. hello?! dude, hire a babysitter. why are you taking your babies to witness this violence? i know this movie is rated R and kids can come to watch if accompanied by an adult, but seriously. besides having toddlers and babies crying throughout this movie, right at the end, some ignorant dude in front of my parents screams, "F*CKING KILL THE GOOKS!" the theater was silent. what did he just scream?! my parents were ignoring him, but i could tell apalled. my ears were burning and i turned to look at the dumb jerk. other people in the theater were confused. there were no "gooks" in the movie. the movie took place in BURMA and part of it was in THAILAND.

when we confronted him after the movie to let him know he shouldnt shout out racial slurs. he told us to "F*CK OFF." he prolly thought we were chinese. all asians are chinese right? well, it doesnt make it right.

this dude was wearing a rocky balboa shirt and was with his mom. yes, a grown ass man with his ma.

there was no point in talking to this dude and putting sense into him. i felt sorry for him. he is a 50 year old dude living with his mom and he went to the movies with her and then shouted racial slurs.

clearly, he has no friends.

but he left thinking, "why did those chinese people yell at me?!"

the world makes me laugh and it makes me cry. much like stallone movies.

feeling a bit sad

today i woke up feeling tired, but eager to start my day. seems like everyone is getting sick and i have been dodging this bug.

i woke up freshfaced and bundled to face the elements as i began my quest for seaweed paper and shrimp chips.

but now as i sit after taking a long hot bath, i feel ill. my head is pounding. i cant read my comics. my mind is just not focused.

this bothers me since usually reading makes me calm. settles me.

on my adventure today, i picked up some string dolls/charm made in thailand. i selected a french dude doll. beret. red and white

striped shirt and funny moustache. so gigi. i am sitting here typing and my doll sits gazing at me. he makes me smile.

at the store i bought him at, the cashier girl noticed my TRKFLD bag and i talked them up and told her the 1/2 hoodie asian girl

in their ads is yours truly.

my fresh faced start has began to tumble. my head is pounding and i feel like i am squeezed in a vice. perhaps some tea or cider

will help me. i have spent the whole day walking, searching for a sketchbook that i can fill.

i have to go blow my nose and take a nap.

feeling unpearly like today.

sit tight peeps

i will be sans my macbook this weekend. long story. but three words: failed hard drive. oh goodness.

anyways, read this story and sit tight.

i got my haircut today. ok ok ok. for my friends, i have been sporting the same elf bangs forever, but just realize, that now, i really look like an elf. today was a good day. i took a walk at lunch, got a perfect haircut, the weather is nice and soon i will be going to yoga, which is my new jawn.

read and then i'll post next week. compooters make me angry.

the story below happened this summer. i am a magnet for crazies. or should say i am a "magNUT."

btw, i am beginning to write my memoirs. it is going to begin with the chapter of what happened to me yesterday after the gym. i was waiting for the bus since it was 100 degrees out and it takes me 30 minutes to walk home and i decided to sit on an air conditioned bus. (not a green move, but oh well). as i was waiting for the bus stop and rummaging for my shuffle ipod, some old creepy lady that looked like a she male approached me. then she burped in my face. she quickly explained that when she talks to people, she always burps. my thought bubble: this crazy woman just ate mcdonalds.ew.

she takes out of her patch work hand bag/tote/luggage a tube of cheap looking lipgloss. she taps me on the shoulder and says, "you like? wanna pay me a dollar for it?" before i can throw out a quip, she adds, " i pick pocketed it out of someone's purse, so i didnt use it." as if this last sentence would entice me. as if i would be inclined to buy a lipgloss used by another and not this wanna be saleswoman. but i dont say any of that. the asian in me, didnt want to be rude. i politely tell her no thank you. she huffs at me and then as a last resort asks, " do you have any extra bus tokens at least?" i nod no. by now, i have untangled my ipod shuffle earplugs and quickly put them in and tune in to the soothing sounds tex ritter and johnny cash.

finally the bus arrives. i pick a seat. of course, it is right across from the crazy lady! she gives me disappointing looks. i wanted to tell her that first off, no one is going to buy a used lipgloss! second, no one really wants to wear hot fushia lipgloss!

my second thought bubble was interrupted by the septa driver telling us passengers that there is a detour and my stop was not on it. grrr. so i ended up walking home anyways.

end of the night, the score reads:

pearl 0

septa 1

crazy lady still a crazy lady.

chinese new year, year of the rat

it is a new year and i am hoping the year of the rat bodes a good one. it is tradition during new year to give the children "lucky money." the money is placed in bright red envelopes. i remember being a kid and totally just collecting these red envelopes and counting the crisp dollars. i felt like a millionaire, not realizing that 20 bucks was not that much, but to a kid. the list was endless. i could buy smurfs, hello kitty pencils, more comic books, perhaps buy that voltron set i wanted, particularly the blue lion.

new year is always filled with the chatter of my family, extended family and friends. lanterns are lit and hung up. gold and red lanterns. red envelopes are given out. moon cake is cut into to precise little pieces. you only eat this cake for new year. hit the stores now and i bet it is all gone, empty shelves. the candy of dried coconut, happy plums, and ginger are laid out for guests.

when i was little, my sister and i would wear the our ao dai (traditional vietnamese clothing, a long dress with slits on the side with wide pants). mine was yellow with white pants. we would feel all fancy and special with our cheeks full of ginger and plum candies and our lucky money!

i am trying to organize a dinner tonite in good old chinatown with friends. next weekend will be a huge feast with my family. with such good weather in february, i would love to eat some egg noodle soup and perhaps stop at my fave asian mart and give this little girl who bags my groceries some lucky money so she can start the year of the rat in style and with some luck!

we're on a rickshaw to nowhere- super tuesday

watching super tuesday updates all day. sat at work and killed some time on the internet reading about the republicans vs. democrats.

it freaks me out that huckabee has won some states. here is a man who believes that jesus rode dinosaurs. i am a firm advocate of separation of church and state. that could be due to my profession, but the settlers migrated from england to escape the church and the monarchy. why the heck are we reverting back?! there are people who believe the earth was created in 7 days. yup. one week. they won't acknowledge the fossil that exists. that was placed by satan.

when i was little, my grandparents immigrated here from vietnam. i was in 3rd grade. i remember going to a church with them. both my grandparents are devout buddhists, but they appreciate all religions. buddhism is like a sponge. it allows you to soak up other aspects and appreciate other aspects of other faiths. my grandparents wanted to go to church. it was a beautiful structure, high ceilings. pretty windows. i remember my grandparents being stopped in the hall before the auditorium where people were starting to sit. they were in conversation with some people. i was nearby trying to peer into the auditorium. was there going to be a concert? i was confused. a moment later, my grandfather took my hand and told me we were going home. why i asked? he didn't answer me. my grandmother looked a bit flustered. why i repeated. when we got to the car outside, my grandfather told me very simply, they didnt want us at their church.

i wasnt sad. i wasnt angry. i was confused. growing up, i would try to fit in, but events like the above reminded me that i was not ever going to fit in.

knowing that huckabee is even a candidate for the primary scares me, i wanna take the last rickshaw out of dodge. anybody wanna join me? takers?

the brainstorm for henry the hedgehog and penelope the porcupine

i like to write stories. i like to make comic books. my mom still has the comic books that i made starting in the 1st grade. yes, my geekdom started early! i would make them like graphic novels, covers, credits, and i would staple them so they had a spine, just like a real book.

i also did pop up books. i made a series of pop up books all based on the greek and roman mythological stories. normal for a 2nd grader no? of course not!

my art supply box has scraps of unfinished doodles of creatures, monsters, characters that i try to bring to life and then i get distracted or i am not ready to ink them.

recently, i have been brainstorming henry the hedgehog. i have always liked the name henry. solid name. perhaps because it reminds me of john henry.

today i sat in my office and this is the story that played out. a fat hedgehog that walks with a limp. he is shy and his limp makes him even more introverted. not sure if hedgehogs are even extroverted animals. i do believe they are against the law in PA to have as pets i think. anyhow, limpy fat hedgehog. he lives under a mushroom and sometimes frequents this bar located in a hollow tree stump. here the shady animals, ie. slugs, potato bugs, moths, and millipedes. henry collects herbs and enjoys cooking. so far, i think i wanna have him wear glasses. putting glasses on any animal makes me giggle.

i have a scanner, but i need to hook it up to my macbook. is this complicated?

oh henry and penelope are going to fall in love, but like any love story, there will be tragedy.

YELP review of the day!

hey kiddies, i am so 2.0 and i dig food! :)

read my review!

all roads lead to..cake?

i am not from a big family. the typical nuclear family. my childhood memories are filled with aromas of pho, spring rolls and hot dogs, flan, and frozen orange juice popsicles. i remember going to other kid's homes and their families didn't eat pho. they didn't eat rice everyday or snack on shrimp chips or cold lychees. i was a freak. what kid's mom packs them lychees and mangos for dessert along with tuna fried rice? oh mine did. i remember sitting in the cafeteria in first grade with a hello kitty lunchbox that smelled of spilled milk. my mom put milk in my thermos in hopes perhaps that i would sprout and not always be the shortest kid in class. i would sit and not drink this warm milk and look longingly at the other kid's pbj and capri suns. i would think, wow, their parents buy the cool foods!

lunch was difficult for me. the kid who eats shrimp chips does not attract friends. so i would usually quickly my lunch and take walks outside for recess, collecting acorns and looking at ants. (wow, how the hell do i have friends now?!)

when i would go home, my dad would be home already since he worked the night shift. my dad to me is john rambo. he can do no wrong. he would often sneak a pack of hubba bubba blueberry bubble gum to my sister and i when he returned with my mom buying groceries. he also bought us the thriller album and got me a loverboy folder so i could store my violin music. my dad is the top of the pops.

summer vacations were slow for me. we didn't have money to vacation so my sister and i would enter every library reading contest and win. i would read all the recommended reading the teachers suggested. twice. summer was a time when we both got to spend more time with our dad since he would come home from work in the mornings. he would make us cereal and we all would watch get smart and marine boy. it was lovely. i would think to myself, i love summer vacations!

one day, i recall sitting on the bathtub's edge watching my dad shave. it was amazing. he had whip cream on his face and he would comb it with some stick and then his moustache was gone. i was in awe. i asked my dad what happened to his face. he laughed and said, "daddy more handsome now." "i liked the moustache!" "no, daddy no need. better now."

the next day, i entered the bathroom and i wanted to comb my face. i found the "comb" and in grandiose manner began brushing it in quick strokes on my face. no sooner had i done this feat, did my face start to burn. the razor had cut into my chin. red blood started to drip from my face. i screamed. my mom ran up the stairs to see me in the bathroom dripping blood onto the black and white tiled floor. i started to cry. that is what you do as a kid. you cry when you are hurt, confused, angry. i was all of the above. my mom cleaned me up and even blew on the cuts as she cleaned it with antiseptic. she kept saying, "why you do this? you need to do more schoolwork. then you don't get into trouble." i didn't say a word. i was rehashing what i did and why it hurt. it didn't hurt my dad. i was like columbo, i was examining clues.

that nite i didn't get dessert. my mom told my dad what i had done. i could tell they were upset with me. we weren't allowed to leave the dinner table unless we asked to be excused. i asked and i went to my room. i shared this room with my sister. it was a small room that had bad red carpet. it was not a relaxing colour and in fact the ugliest carpet i had ever seen. i sat on my bed and my dad came in and put a plate of flan cake i looked up and my dad just waved off my reaction and said, "ok. eat cake. no tell mom."

the following week, my mom burst into my room to put away clean clothes when she caught me reading nancy drew books and not practicing my violin. in fact, i was practicing. ok ok ok. i figured out that i could record myself doing scales and playing minuets on this clunky tape recorder. i would lie on my bed and read, keep my door shut, and let the tape run for an hour. i am such an evil genius. this stunt lasted for 2 months, until the incident above. this time, my dad did not bring me cake.