Chinese Immigrants' Kids - Culture Clash

On yesterday's segment of NPR's All Things Considered, they had a story titled Chinese Immigrants' Kids Play Balancing Role. The story discussed the tension that arises from American children and their traditional Chinese parents.

The parents come to the U.S. in hopes their children will get a better education and a better chance of success. With it though, their fears of losing them to the American cultural norms are high since those norms are very different than what they feel is proper or even what they feel is common. The parents even lose the ability to speak with their children in many cases.

"Because of the loss of the language and also because of the more authoritarian parenting, there isn't as much of a close parent-child relationship in the way that we think about it in the United States," says Professor Vivian Louie of Harvard University.

The professor also says these problems with their parents can cause the kid to have high rates of depression, suicide, and mental health issues. On a positive note though, the immigrants' children have really good work ethic and set high standards for themselves.

I loved this story because I could relate so well. I know my parents sacrificed a lot to give my siblings and I a far better life than what they could have provided had they stayed in China and as I have gotten older, I have learned to really appreciate that. However, I am definitely one for fighting with my parents on a regular basis. I always say I feel like I am lost in translation when trying to explain an event, my feelings, or anything of importance. Then I get very frustrated with them, which causes us to clash.

I think my parents have transitioned really well with giving my brother, sister, and I a well balanced Chinese and American life. I can speak the language, I eat all the strange foods, and I know when to be that respectful, dutiful daughter. I also always brought home great grades and was an outstanding student because they instilled that responsibility in me. But they still let us go out with our friends and I got to party a lot in high school.

I am sad for them that none of us became the doctor or lawyer they probably wanted, but none of us are bad kids and we all have a decent relationship with them. I think my brother calls them at least once a week from California and I'm sure my sister talks to my mom a lot. I love my parents and I'm thankful that they worked so hard their whole lives so that I could be blessed. That doesn't mean I'll stop fighting with them though. :)

I didn't mean to make this such a long post. At any rate, to hear the story or read the transcript, click here.

Good Old Hard Work

In the Opinion column of the New York Times last weekend, there was a piece written by Nicholas Kristof about the three groups, Asian-America, Jews, and West Indian blacks, in America who have been unusually successful as far as minorities go.

He basically just points out that these groups are not so much smarter that they are successful but they work harder, put a higher emphasis on education and have a drive to succeed that has lead them to do so well. Bottom line: you don't have to be smart to do well--just work really hard.

Similar thing was said on Anderson Cooper's CNN show two years ago.

Sriracha: From the Creator's Mouth

My sorority sister, D, sent an article that was in NY Times article about the delicious sriracha chili sauce. I've been using sriracha for a long time now, on dumplings, wontons, eggs, noodle soups, etc. It's neat to see it getting so popular. You can find it in your regular grocery store instead of having to trek out to the Asian markets like a few years ago. And where popular famed chefs incorporate it into their sophisticated menu and even chain restaurants such as Applebees, P.F. Chang's, Flemmings, have it on their menu.

The best part of this article was that the consumers are able to get some insight as to how the sauce originated. The creator, David Tran, 64, who comes from a Chinese heritage but born in Vietnam, began making chili sauces with the peppers grown by his older brother on a farm in a village north of Saigon. All the different sauces he made, he never gave them a formal name. The only consistency was the rooster on the bottle, which is Tran's zodiac sign.

In 1979, Tran had enough money to send himself and his family to America. The first week of 1980, Tran went to Los Angeles and began making sauce. He did not anticipate the popularity of his take on sriracha. He thought the sauce to be good, was proud of it, but still modest. The name Sriracha is a town in Chonburi Province, Thailand, famed for their homemade chili sauces, do not recognize Mr. Tran’s sauce as their own. Tran says, “I know it’s not a Thai sriracha. It’s my sriracha.”

Over the last decade, a number of imitators have entered the sriracha category; Cock brand sriracha from Thailand, Shark brand from China, Phoenix brand and Unicorn brand from Vietnam. Even with the competition, more than 10 million bottles of sriracha now roll off the line each year. As said earlier, even though the sauce is now popular amongst the general public, the company, Huy Fong, says, "We still sell 80 percent of our product to Asian companies, for distribution through Asian channels. That’s the market we know. That’s the market we want to serve.”

“I made this sauce for the Asian community,” Mr. Tran said.

[image via NY Times]

6 Year Old Ping Ponger

Six Year-Old Ping Pong Prodigy - Watch more Funny Videos

I am concerned about all the balls on the floor. She could roll her ankles!

Also, this is what I imagine my mom to look like when she use to play ping pong back in China. She claims she was really good.

First Love

When I listen to music, I am a little OCD about it. I will listen to a song on repeat all day long (that would be 9 straight hours at the office) and then still want to hear it when I'm at home. This can go on for weeks or months.

My current obsession is a REALLY old song by Utada Hikaru, a ridiculously famous pop star in Japan. The song is called "First Love," it was released 10 years ago and I still love it. I don't know Japanese so I don't really know what she is saying, but you get the idea. There is an English version, but I like the Japanese version so much more. She tried to make it in the US but I think her album tanked. According to online articles, she is going to be releasing another US album this year.

Top Chef Master!!!

I am a HUGE fan of Top Chef on Bravo so when I first heard about Top Chef Master months ago (I actually found it on accident reading the Wikipedia page of Kelly Choi, random I know) I was very excited. Then I did not hear anything about it...until now.

On the LATimes Show Tracker page on Wednesday, they provided some great details about the new show featuring "world-renowned chefs" hosted by Kelly Choi (yay for more good looking Asian people on television). New York Magazine food critic Gael Greene, Saveur magazine Editor in Chief James Oseland and British food critic Jay Rayner will be the judges.

The show will premiere on June 10 at 10pm. Guest judges slated to appear are Neil Patrick Harris, Zooey Deschanel, "Lost" writers Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof, "Flipping Out's" Jeff Lewis, all of the previous "Top Chef" winners, and of course, Tom Colicchio, Padma Lakshmi and Gail Simmons.

There are a lot of competitors on this show so the producers have changed some things from the original series.Bravo's press release states:

In each episode, money will be at stake for the chefs, with the winners of eliminations being awarded cash donations for their charities. The first six episodes will consist of four chefs competing against each other to name one winner. The six winners of each episode will then meet up for the final four weeks when one person will get eliminated each episode until the finale where one winner is crowned Top Chef Master. The winning chef will receive $100,000 for the charity of his or her choice.

Some competing chefs that I am excited to see: Rick Bayless, Michael Chiarello, Wylie Dufresne, Elizabeth Falkner, Hubert Keller, Christopher Lee, Anita Lo, Art Smith, and Roy Yamaguchi. I was actually hoping David Chang would be competing, but maybe he needs more years to be considered "world renowned."

It's going to be interesting to see these chefs compete since most of them have appeared as guest judges on the show before. I can't wait!

[image via bravotv.com]

Easier for Americans to Deal With?!

My pledge mom from college sent me a link to a post this afternoon from Think Progress. I am outraged.

Here is the post below posted by Amanda Terkel (actual article is also linked):

On Tuesday, State Rep. Betty Brown (R) caused a firestorm during House testimony on voter identification legislation when she said that Asian-Americans should change their names because they’re too hard to pronounce:

“Rather than everyone here having to learn Chinese — I understand it’s a rather difficult language — do you think that it would behoove you and your citizens to adopt a name that we could deal with more readily here?” Brown said.

Brown later told [Organization of Chinese Americans representative Ramey] Ko: “Can’t you see that this is something that would make it a lot easier for you and the people who are poll workers if you could adopt a name just for identification purposes that’s easier for Americans to deal with?”

Yesterday, Brown continued to resist calls to apologize. Her spokesman said that Democrats “want this to just be about race.”

I know I should not do the name calling, but what an ignorant bitch. This lady needs to be removed from office. An apology from her would not ease my mind, but the fact that she won't even issue one makes me so upset.

[image via chron.com]

Chinese Scholar Beaten at Tiananmen

BBC News report that Sun Wenguang, a 75 year old retired physics professor who has been imprisoned before for criticising communist revolutionary leader Mao Zedong, is hospitalized after a brutal beating at Tiananmen cementery. He was there paying respect to late communist leader Zhao Ziyang, who was purged for supporting the 1989 Tiananmen protests, which is still considered taboo in China.

Every year, Mr. Sun visits the grave. 2009 marks the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown and Shandong University (where Mr. Sun use to teach) and the police had warned him not to go this year. He said he had suffered three broken ribs and injuries to his hands and legs in the attack

"Five minutes after I went in, five strong men suddenly appeared. They punched and kicked me until I fell to the ground and could not move any more. I'm 75 years old, you know," he said.

All I can say is, China is nuts. They say they commit themselves to be a society that puts their people first. So what I don't get is why the continous punishment to their people and why they would use a 75 year old man as an example. So sad. This is why people think you are crazy and backwards.

[image via Wikipedia]

Single Asians

M sent this to me this morning. It's a parody of Beyonce's Single Ladies. It's actually not that funny, but its funny these girls did it. I'm kind of embarrass for them.

Asian Glow Can Cause Cancer

According to this New York Times article, my so called "Asian glow" from consuming alcohol can kill me, sort of.

The redness is a result of an enzyme deficiency called ALDH2 and affects a large population of the Asian race. Because the deficiency causes the alcohol to not metabolize correctly, the toxin, acetaldehyde, accumulates in the body. This can result in esophageal cancer (also caused by smoking), with survival rates being very low.

The article suggest reduce drinking can prevent the cancer cells from building up and thus, avoiding the cancer effect. There is a test you can take to test whether you are ALDH2 deficient.

I do get the rapid heart beat symptom often, but sometimes I get beet red and sometimes I do not get red at all. I wonder if I am starting to build a tolerance to the effect. Either way, I have already cut back a lot on my alcohol consumption, so I am not too worried. But I do worry for all my other Asian glowing friends. Go get checked out!

[image courtesy of freephoto1]