Friday, May 28, 2010

10 Facts You May Not Know About Asian-American History

I found this article interesting and thought I would post here

It's almost the end of May. Do you know your Asian-American history?

Most of America isn't aware that May is Asian-American Heritage Month. It's a celebration that started in 1978, when Congress urged President Jimmy Carter to declare the week of May 4th "Asian-American Heritage Week." (That date was chosen to coincide with the arrival of the first Japanese immigrants on May 7, 1843, and with the completion of the first transcontinental railroad — built largely by Chinese laborers — on May 10, 1869.) More recently in 1990, following another vote by Congress, President George H.W. Bush expanded Asian-American Heritage Week to encompass the entire month of May.

Sadly, Asian-American history and heritage is rarely taught in U.S. public schools. So for those of you who've missed such curriculum, here's a list of 10 factoids you may not have known about the history of Asian-Americans in this country:

1). The first Asians whose arrival in America was documented were Filipinos who escaped a Spanish galleon in 1763. They formed the first Asian-American settlement in U.S. history, in the swamps surrounding modern-day New Orleans.

2). In the years between 1917 and 1965, Uncle Sam explicitly outlawed immigration to the U.S. of all Asian people. Immigration from China, for example, was banned as early as 1882, when the Chinese Exclusion Act was passed. It wasn't until the Immigration Act of 1965 — which abolished national origins as a basis for immigration decisions — that nearly 50 years of race-based discrimination against Asian immigrants ended.

3). Because of their race, Asians immigrants were denied the right to naturalize as U.S. citizens, until the 1943 Magnuson Act was passed. Consequently, for nearly a century of U.S. history, Asians were barred from owning land and testifying in court by laws that specifically targeted "aliens ineligible to citizenship." Even after the passage of the Fourteenth Amendment in 1868, American-born children of Chinese immigrants were not regarded as American citizens until the landmark 1898 Supreme Court case, United States v. Wong Kim Ark, which established that the Fourteen Amendment also applied to people of Asian descent.

4). Among the earliest Asian immigrants, virtually all ethnicities worked together as physical laborers, particularly on Hawaii's sugar cane plantations. On these plantations, a unique hybrid language — pidgin — developed that contained elements of Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, Korean and English. Today, pidgin is one of the official languages of Hawaii, a state that is itself 40% Asian.

5). Despite the Alien Land Law, which specifically prevented Asians from owning their own land, Japanese farmers were highly successful in the West Coast where they put into practice their knowledge of cultivating nutrient-poor soil to yield profitable harvests. By the 1920s, Japanese farmers (working their own land, or land held by white landowners that they managed) were the chief agricultural producers of many West Coast crops. In fact, the success of Japanese farmers is often cited as one of the reasons white landowners in California lobbied to support Japanese-American internment following the declaration of World War II.

6). Many of the early Asian immigrants who worked as laborers on plantations and in factories were instrumental in the formation of the American labour movement, helping to organize some of the first strikes and unions throughout the country. Japanese plantation workers, for example, engaged in the first organized strike in Hawaii in 1904.

7). Anti-miscegenation laws that denied marriage licenses between interracial couples specifically prohibited intermarriage between whites and Asians. For example, the 1922 Cable Act revoked the citizenship of any female U.S. citizen who married an "alien ineligible to citizenship," a phrase repeatedly used in legal documents to refer to Asians.

8). Unlike Irish immigrants, who predominantly entered the United States via the Ellis Island immigration center, most Asian immigrants entered America by way of Angel Island Immigration Station. Unlike at Ellis Island, where immigrants might spend between two and five hours waiting to be processed, the Angel Island facility's unspoken goal was to limit the flow of Asian immigrants into the country. Between 1910 and 1940, many prospective Asian immigrants were detained for as long as two years at Angel Island, stymied by U.S. immigration officials hoping to find reasons to deport them. Some of the detainees wrote poems in Chinese on the walls of the Angel Island detention facility; these poems have since been translated and collected into anthologies.

9). During World War II, Japanese American internees — including both Japanese immigrants and their American children — were forcibly relocated from their homes in the West Coast to remote relocation camps. Even still, several young Japanese-American men went on to successfully lobby the American government to be allowed to volunteer as soldiers in World War II, often to prove their loyalty to the United States. The 442nd infantry regiment, a segregated Asian-American unit composed almost entirely of Japanese-Americans, fought in Italy, France and Germany and is still the most highly decorated regiment in United States Armed Forces history.

10). In 1982, a young Chinese-American man named Vincent Chin was brutally clubbed to death by two white men in Detroit, Michigan. The crime was motivated, in part, by anti-Asian sentiment stemming from widespread loss of auto manufacturing jobs to Japanese competitors; Ronald Ebens, one of the attackers, was heard saying "it's because of you little motherfuckers that we're out of work" to Chin moments before the attack. Despite pleading guilty to second-degree murder, Chin's killers did not serve any jail time for Chin's murder, and were only fined $3,000. Vincent Chin's death served as a flashpoint that ignited the modern Asian-American political movement.

Know anyone else who might benefit from an Asian-American history lesson? Tell your friends, pass it on — and leave any other key moments you think I missed in the comments.

Source

The F bomb



I don't cuss a lot. I'm not going to lie and say that I don't cuss. I do.

However, when I do, I am. EXTREMELY. Pissed off.

I slipped one out yesterday.

My co-worker took a double-look at me to make sure she heard me right.

And she was. I told her, what she heard was right.

Sometimes, you just have your limits. You can tolerate so much and it comes out.

Instead of using F*ck, I usually say Freaking instead.

Just a random rant.....

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

"Broke"



Everyone is "broke" all the time.

Whether or not, you have $1,000, $100, or even $10 left in the bank is up to that person's terminology if the status is "broke."

Most oftenly, it's the situtation we put ourselves in. Lawyers and doctors are "broke" too.

We, the middle class, may not see that because we know they make the big $$ but choose to spend on more luxurious things in life. For example, instead of eating at Golden Corral, they are dining at high-end restaurants in Buckhead, such as Geisha House. Or instead of shopping at TJ Maxx and Marshall's, they are off shopping at Banana Republic and Sax Fifth Avenue.

In conclusion, don't judge others. Just worry about your own situtation

Random rants & thoughts



My hubby always tells me that he doesn’t understand why I care for my so-called “friends” and “family.”

It’s no secret that I am not close to my siblings. I am there for them but we are not close and do not open up to each other.

The “friends” that I have are more like social butterflies. We usually meet because of gatherings for whatever reasons. I’m not close to many of them. Honestly, maybe because I feel that I tell them a lot about my life but they don’t open up to me. Therefore, I don’t want to tell them anything else about myself.

I know a lot of people. I often introduce myself to many people and continue to keep in touch. Sometimes, I wonder why I do that. To make conversation? To see how that person is doing?

I swear social networking makes it so easy to make “friends.” You meet once, then you add them on Facebook as a “friend.” Then you get status updates. So now, you two are cool and BFFs.

Yeah, right. It really isn’t that easy.

Too many assumptions on Facebook. Instead of being straight forward, you just “assume” something because of a vague status update.

Then you have others who lurk and lurk. And lurk some more. Never ever comment but behind your back, talk about you because they’ve been keeping up with the status updates.

Wow, this is turning to be a Facebook thing….

Hubby continues to tell me that he has let go of those who don’t care in life (friends & even family members)…maybe I should too? He says I always make the extra effort to visit and plan to meet others, but it’s not the other day around.

I get it. I do. Again, why do I care for others if they don’t? That’s something I have to do a lot of meditation and think some more about.

However, in the end, I know for a fact that no one else cares for me more than my hubby. Not even my parents or kids.

Monday, May 24, 2010

Hmong music videos on YouTube

For those who have asked me about Hmong music, traditional Hmong music with the singers wearing Hmong outfits, no modern outfits or hoochified Hmong versions either.

Credit goes to my mom for giving me the links.

"Cog Lus Rau Kev Hlub" - Es Lauj & Maiv See Yaj


"Nco Ntsoov Cim Tseg" - Ntxawg Yaj & Ham Nkauj Zoo


"Nrhiav Kev Rau Wb Thiaj Tsis Lig" - Paj Zaub Thoj


"Niam Txiv Tuag Tsis Muaj Ntxa" - Zuag Lauj


"Luag Tsis Pom Zoo" - Zuag Lauj

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Which phrase is more accurate?

“Good things come to those who wait”

or

“The early bird catches the worm”

A month ago I posted on Facebook about me having patience but not everything is turning out to be the way I want it to be. Maybe it's my high output expectations of life that is making me feel disappointed?

So is that phrase accurate? "Good things come to those who wait"

My friend told me it's "the early bird catches the worm"

I'm just not an attention-seeking person. Maybe that's my problem.

For me, I rather let it happen first and then tell people.

I don't like to boast about things that may happen but it may not.

Maybe it's just my level of pride and accomplishments.

For example, I hear soooo many people telling me that they are going to school for this and that and they will make a certain amount of money.

Good for you.

I'm talking about the Asian people that I know around my same age group, some even younger.

Many of them have been bragging to me about going to a certain college for a degree. But then again, 80% of them haven't even finish school either.

It was how they felt at that time. Whatever reason it was for them to not finish school, it's the level of disappointment I hear from them when someone ask, "how's school going" or "how long do you have"



Maybe I should go for "the early bird catches the worm"

Take all I can and make use of it??

I could, but that's not me....

To me, I go out of my way a lot for others. Many of them do not appreciate it. However, it makes me feel good inside.

For example, I often volunteer myself to help out someone, stay later than usual at a birthday party to help clean up, send out random cards to friends to let them know I am thinking about them, plan a surprise party for my mom's friend because I think she is an amazing lady.

Maybe my tactic is not as great as a goal seeker and attention getter but I still believe that what I like to do, blog what I like, and my thoughts.

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Posting photos online Etiquettes (of others)

1. Don't always assume that posting pictures online is okay.

2. If you look good in a group picture (more than 2 people), ask the other person if it's okay to post the picture. Just because you look good doesn't mean that person feel the same.

3. Do unto others as you want them to do unto you. When you posted that ugly picture of that person, why get mad that an ugly picture of you is up now?

4. If that person wants to see the pictures, e-mail the pictures, no need posting online. Make a private album, only give access to those who are in the picture. Let it be up to that person to post themselves.

5. If your life is that boring that you need photo comments online to feel special, then you really need to get out more and get a life.




I have to admit that I used to not do this. I used to think it was just "cute" just to post online.

It's a matter of experience and learning that made me to where I am today.

My hubby is really against me posting pictures online of him and the kids. It's a security issue for him. He says if I want to post pics of myself, go ahead. Just leave him and the kids out.

A few of my friends were really against posting any pictures of them online. Now, I understand. Just because you and a group of friends think it's okay to do so, does not make it right. If you wanted to share, you could ask first. Or post them and  then take it down later, especially if the pics are of an event months or years ago.

Maybe I look awful now that I'm feeling this? No, not really. I do look awful but I feel weird leaving some of my older pics up now. If people haven't seen it yet, then too bad on them. It's called e-mailing so they could have their own.

It's the point of friends of friends who also have access or those who don't know you or the other person having access.

Social networking makes it so much easier now.

I may seem a lot younger than my age (30s) but that's because of the fangirlness when I watch Indian cinema. However, in reality, everything else, I think I am mature at. When it comes to the "real" life, I believe I am a responsible and sincere person.

Maybe that's my mistake, I think of others before myself. Therefore, there is the miscommunication of me feeling like an idiot sometimes.

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Photos I shared on Twitter

the romaine lettuce is finally growing more! so happy on Twitpic
the romaine lettuce is finally growing more! so happy

banana plant has gotten taller! bought some banana leaves fro... on Twitpic
banana plant has gotten taller! bought some banana leaves from the store and going to make some dessert :)

just went strawberry picking! so yummy, made a strawberry smo... on Twitpic
just went strawberry picking! so yummy, made a strawberry smoothie when I got home

Happy Birthday Dad! Can you see the number on the cake? that'... on Twitpic
Happy Birthday Dad! Can you see the number on the cake? that's his age :)

my dog, Puchy, she's a 9-years-old (almost 10) Miniature Pins... on Twitpic
my dog, Puchy, she's a 9-years-old (almost 10) Miniature Pinscher

it's a beautiful day after all the rain and floods... on Twitpic
it's a beautiful day after all the rain and floods...

my daughter's class is #1 on Twitpic
my daughter's class is #1

hilarious t-shirt found at Wal-Mart :D on Twitpic
hilarious t-shirt found at Wal-Mart :D

Stupid oil spill spoiled my Gulf coast beach vacation plans

Hubby, kids, and I try to take an annual beach vacation. Since I've been looking at possible destinations on the Internet for a few months now. I began my search again.

Hubby tells me to forget the Gulf coast this year because of the oil spill and could take a year to clean up? I was like, "are you kidding me?"

A year? A whole-freaking year????? No way.

Now, I am looking at destinations at the Atlantic Ocean side. I'm not too fond of it. But when I was in Miami, FL, last summer, the ocean and beaches were a lot nicer than compared to Myrtle Beach, SC.

What to do, what to do?

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Mother's Day Photoshoot

We had a Mother's Day photoshoot yesterday. It went great!

It was mom, me, sis, daughter, and nieces!

Just got a few pics as a teaser and will mail me the complete photoshoot on a CD later this week....so here's what I'm going to share :)

All Photos taken by the lovely Thip Athakhanh

I looked descent, nothing scary 



My daughter and me



Me, mom, & sis



Happy Mother's Day!!

Monday, May 3, 2010

I want to travel!!

But I have no passport :(

When people say they want to travel, they just specifically say I want to go to Europe (that's one whole continent!!!) or China (that's one country, where in China do you want to go??) It's like saying, I want to go to America. Where in America? Los Angeles? New York? Miami?

My goal this summer is to get a passport. Seriously. I have friends who has said they are going on vacation and asked me to tag along, places like Mexico, Jamaica, or even Bahamas. I just don't have a passport.

I always wanted to go to India (okay, I will explain where below!!) Everyone should know why.

One of my Filipino friends had a chance to go to India and asked if I wanted to go. She went to Agra and Mumbai! I saw the pictures after the trip. She is always traveling and is in Greece at this very moment. We talked about going to India together. Two non Desi chicks going to India, that would be something. She has been very helpful with getting me Telugu and Tamil films in the past.

However, I do want to travel with someone who is fluent with the language. My Filipino friend was traveling with her Tamil friends at that time. My biggest concern is money! I don't have much of it. If I go, I may have to open new credit cards, just to go, lol.

Now, I am so head-over-heels for South India, I want to visit all the beautiful temples. I want to be away from the urban settings. I still want to see the Taj Mahal in Agra. But I have my eyes set on South India.

How could I resist the beautiful beaches, waterfalls, and coconut trees in Kerala


the gorgeous Mysore palaces and St Mary's Island in Karnataka


Vidhana Soudha in Bangalore (and I have no idea where the second pic is!! Except that it's in Bangalore.  I have been saving pictures of India for the past few years and I found it!)


the same place where Jism was shot in Pondicherry!! I want to see the beautiful cathedrals and the beach


Oh yeah, of course Hyderabad to stalk my favorite Indian hottie, Allu Arjun :)


And maybe see the beautiful buildings


Golconda Fort


Birla Mandir

Saturday, May 1, 2010

Photos I shared on Twitter

Hubby's lettuce garden

 
 
 
garden in front of house, should take another one soon since the banana trees are growing taller!!
 
 
 
found Hello Kitty dressed up like a bunny, could be an Easter thing but still sooo cute :) 
 
 
 
Bought this cake for my sis for the girls night out tonight 
 
 
 
 grill salmon, my dinner at  Pappadeux that night