flipfob

The new Pope is Latino...or is he?

2013-03-27T01:59:00.001-05:00

Incase any of my Lapsed Catholic readers out there have been under a rock and haven't heard, there's a new Pope. Did you know he's from South America? By the way, he's Latino...or is he?

I happened upon this opinion piece today about the relevancy of debating if Pope Francis, born and raised in Argentina from Italian immigrants, should be claimed as Latino or not. In a way it's kinda like Chapelle's Racial Draft skit playing out in real life.

Are you Latino and would be proud to claim the new Pope as one of yours? Then regardless of where his family originated from, he was born and raised in Argentina so feel free to call him a Latino.

Latino and opposed to the Catholic Church for any-number-of-reasons-that-are-irrelevant-to-this-particular-discussion? Well then regardless of where he was raised his family came from Italy so have no guilt when you don't acknowledge him as being fully Latino.

The article itself looks at this from an American point of view, specifically about why "American society is so obsessed with the need to categorize people into ethnic groups". I don't know if this is an entirely American thing, but I do know that as someone who grew up in a culturally diverse neighborhood here in Chicago it wasn't uncommon to try and find someone to look up to that was "like us".

For myself I think it's got something to do with finding and ultimately defining what your identity is. Coming from an immigrant family in a neighborhood full of other immigrant families, I know that I thought through different priority orders (Am I Filipino first, then American? American first? Chicagoan?) at different times growing up. Whatever priority order I happened to be in at the time guided who I sought out as influences or role models.

In a lot of ways it's never stopped, except that now it's not so much about me. These days I look at it from the perspective of how my views influence how my kids end up defining themselves.

Does It Really Matter if Pope Francis is Latino? [Fox News Latino]

Every party. Every time.

2013-02-03T01:11:00.000-06:00

I have no idea if I’m right or not, but I can’t help but think that at least half of those ‘popularity’ bars on her number one song here in iTunes is due to thousands of line dancing Filipinos.

Every wedding. Every formal. Every party your parents, aunts or uncles have thrown period. You know it’s coming. It’s the signal to drop the forks, crowd the dance floor and send me damn near into a conniption fit every time.

Global Filipino phenomenon? I can only assume so. Only a few more minutes it’ll be over. I look at the DJ. I get it man, you’ve got to give the folks what they want. Filipinos? Yea we both know where this is headed. He nods…then follows up immediately with the Cha Cha Slide or the Cupid Shuffle.

I should loosen up a little. No, point me to the bar, I’m gonna need it.

Upcoming – Up Dharma Down’s Capacities

2012-11-22T23:07:00.000-06:00

It’s not always about house and hip hop here in the land of FlipFob.

November 28 Up Dharma Down releases their third album Capacities. For those of us Stateside, we should be able to get our hands on it via iTunes and Google come December, and the vinyl junkies will be able to get their fix with limited pressings!

Pick this up (literally) or pull it down (digitally) and show your support for independent artists. In the meantime, watch their latest vid, Turn It Well.

For more info check out the band’s main site, or head over to their label Terno Recordings.

[Up Dharma Down]
[Terno Recordings]

hate the war, not the warrior

2012-11-11T02:03:00.001-06:00

Conflicted – Me and my ballot

2012-11-07T01:11:00.001-06:00

One of the things that I seem to be perpetually conflicted about around any election time is the support of Asian American candidates. It’s not that I don’t want to support Asians establishing themselves in public positions – it’s the feeling that I feel pressured to support to vote for someone primarily on the fact that they happen to be of Asian descent.

I would much rather support someone who happens to be Asian whose views and positions I am aligned with. Supporting someone primarily because their Asian, and then trying to find something in their profile or in their positions to latch on to just seems disingenuous to me. Perhaps I may be simplifying it or maybe I just don’t get it.

As I was looking over the candidates for the local races I’d be lying if I didn’t say that I hadn’t taken notice of which folks may have been Asian or not. The fact that some were became a footnote in my mind as my vote was more of a personal judgment of how I felt that person would ultimately benefit the community as a whole, and not just the folks that kinda might maybe look like me.

Wait…that was racist?

2012-10-17T01:34:00.002-05:00

Caught my eye as I was scrolling through my newsfeeds today:

‘Charlie’s angel’ Filipino ‘slur’ stirs cyber storm and Lucy Liu doesn’t want to look like a Filipino

Cyber storm? I hadn’t heard, but ok. A few more links in and there’s a whole string of articles talking about Lucy apologizing for her “little Filipino” comment. I’m skeptical, but ok I’ll bite. Wasn’t too hard to find video of the offense (a little after one minute in):

Have to admit, the first time I heard her comment I chuckled. I laughed because really, which Filipino family doesn’t have some darker skinned folks showing up at every family gathering? It’s funny because it’s partially true – someone talking about some really tanned Asian in America? Chances are you’re talking about some Filipino. A bit oversensitive to consider the comment racist, but when you go back to that same family gathering you know there are some other folks in the room who think the only kind of skin to have is the lightest possible.

If anything the ‘outrage’ says more about how some Filipinos cling to the ‘lighter is better’ notion. I don’t get it, but you all know the feeling is out there. In the end I’m going to chalk this up to a little overreaction to a poor choice of words.

Ironic? At 2:30 in Lucy mentions she practices Eskrima for her workouts “because she thought it was really beautiful.”

Louder than words moment? Letterman’s reaction at 7:13 when Lucy says she could “look Mexican” when it gets hot out.

Well thanks for the thought, I guess

2012-05-29T01:20:00.001-05:00

So, as I was browsing all my news feeds over some downtime this weekend I fell upon a new streaming app from my cable folks. Downloaded, installed, blahdeblah… I wasn’t expecting much but I’m always on the hunt for some distractions. Browsing through all the offerings I found a little something from ESPN for Asian Heritage Month (or Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month if you want to get all formal about it).

So of course I was interested in seeing what kinds of profiles the Worldwide Leader In Sports could come up with:

Not that I have anything against Tiger (well, other than perhaps his choice of hoes), Kobayashi (doesn’t exactly fulfill the American part of Asian-Pacific American Heritage, but since ESPN didn’t think it mattered I won’t either for this), or the Black Widow, but that’s it? Is that all that they could pull out to represent Asian American Heritage?

They didn’t have any Michael Chang footage anywhere? Kristi Yamaguchi? Nothing about Tim Lincecum anywhere in the archives? Surely there’s some J.Lin stuff still on a shelf somewhere right? I guess a doc on Christian Hosoi would be really stretching it.

If you're making fun of someone, pick the right target

2012-01-27T09:22:00.000-06:00

So, the Vice President is being called out for using an accent while discussing the outsourcing of jobs, specifically call centers:

Some folks are criticizing it as a fake Indian accent, and I suppose I can see that. He appears to catch himself pretty quickly if he was. My point here is that if he really was trying to make some sort of jab at overseas call centers by making fun of an accent at least pick the right target, because the Philippines has more call centers than India now.

[Huffington Post: Joe Biden Speaks With Accent To Imitate Call Service Employees In New Hampshire Speech ]
[Manila Times: Philippines overtakes India as top BPO provider]

Apparently October is 'Almost Everything' Month

2011-10-24T21:35:00.001-05:00

Have you forgotten that October is Filipino American History Month? Of course not, but since we share this month with other October observances, remember to knock out all your celebrations while you still have time! Chances are that some woman in your life has battled breast cancer so wear pink and give her a hug because October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. You've got lechon for your parties, right? That takes care of National Pork Month, which is also in October. (Actually this one may be celebrated a bit too much - longanisa and rice with spam and eggs on the side for breakfast anyone?)

You know every family has some bakla representation so make sure you let them know it's ok for them to be open about it because October is LGBT History Month. And hey, that priest that somehow always ends up at your parties because some Tita invited them? You now have Clergy Appreciation Month covered.

That uncle everyone keeps quiet about who comes home drunk every so often and takes it out on his wife? Take him out back and beat the sh!t out of him because October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. If you choose to visit him in the hospital, find some of the ultrasound techs (pinoy or not) and let them know they're appreciated for Medical Ultrasound Awareness Month.

When he eventually gets out of the hospital offer to drive him to one of his follow up visits for National Physical Therapy Month, then have him go to one of your family's Pharmacy school graduates when he needs that pain medicine prescription filled because October is also American Pharmacists Month.

Your other uncle is the one who can't quit the cancer sticks, so give him a little reminder when he's standing outside smoking that October is Healthy Lung Month. You know his daughters - your cousins who only date white guys? It could be they're just celebrating either Italian American Heritage Month, German American Heritage Month, or possibly Polish American Heritage Month.

And of course at the end of the day when your Lolo takes his dentures out at night, give him a pat on the back and grab some floss for yourself - after all, October is National Dental Hygiene Month.

media and parenting

2011-10-20T01:45:00.001-05:00

So, yesterday a press release came out from the American Academy of Pediatrics reiterating their earlier guidance that children under the age of two be “as ‘screen free’ as possible.” I remember when my oldest was born, we were very conflicted with what we thought was appropriate TV use with the baby. It’s something every new parent has to go through for themselves, and over time I think I’ve met parents that represented each opinion of this.

While I can confidently say that I’m completely against the use of the TV as a full time babysitter, I have to also admit that we depended on those dang kids videos at times. Whether it be old Chip and Dale cartoons to distract from the discomfort during teething, or Donald Duck on my phone after a round of shots at the doctor’s office – I’ve not ashamed to say I’ve used media as a distraction. (I do remember a particularly tough time with one of the kiddos while waiting in a crowded doctor’s office – lady comes in with her kid and proceeds to turn the TV off, announcing to everyone that she doesn’t allow her kid to watch TV. “You don’t mind do you?” )

Does having SportsCenter on with the volume down and the closed captioning on while putting them to sleep at three in the morning make me a terrible parent?

I don’t think at that age though, that we had any thought that these kids shows were very educational. I mean, outside of a reaction when their favorite character would flash on screen I honestly don’t think they get much out of it as an infant. And I think that’s exactly what the AAP is getting at.

Now what do you do after they’re two? Funny you should ask, because Elmo just got himself a Kinect.

[American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Press Release]
[pcmag.com: Interact With Elmo Via Xbox 'Kinect Sesame Street TV']

everyone be cool or no one gets laid

2011-09-20T10:07:00.000-05:00

Proof that women ultimately rule us all - or at least they do in Dado where fighting had been breaking out between neighboring villages. With the fighting preventing access to the one passable route to a regional market, preventing them from delivering and selling product, the women got together and gave the ultimatum: Knock it off or no play time at home:

They told them that if they kept fighting with men from surrounding villages, "they would not be accepted at home."

Dado resident Hasna Kandatu's husband Lengs Kupong, a village leader, implored the other men of the village to bring an end to the fighting. Kupong said, "She says to me if you do bad things then we will be separated."

While some fights still flare up, it is sporadic and local. The women of the villages are now able to travel to the market to deliver goods and help build the local economy.

Fighting or sex - yea easy choice if you ask me. If anything, at least the men of these villages have some of their priorities in order.

[Spot: Women's "sex strike" brings peace to warring Mindanao villages]
[CNN: Sex strike brings peace to Filipino village]

spotlight: Death of a Player

2011-09-14T01:05:00.001-05:00

This one’s for all my left coast fam and anyone passing through the Bay.

Pinays Maintaining Sisterhood Through Art (PMSTA) have teamed with Bindlestiff Studio to present “Death of a Player” this October.

In their own words:

DEATH OF A PLAYER pushes the idea that in living life to the fullest, one must die to fully live. Initially conceived as a show that lamented loss of youth and innocence, it has since then evolved into a thoughtful, provocative look into the phases of womanhood, decisions made at each intersection, and living and dying with chosen life paths.

Dayum, that’s some heavy stuff. Prefer visuals instead? Ok watch this:

Wait. What? Shotguns and zombie apocalypses? Looking death in the eye? Guess you’re gonna have to go watch to find out.

WHEN: October 13-16, 20-22 and 27-29 Thursdays through Saturdays, 800PM Matinees (October 15-16, 22, and 29), 200PM

WHERE: Bindlestiff Studio 185 Sixth Street, San Francisco, CA 94103

If you’re in the Bay Area, please consider supporting them in person at one of the shows. (Additional details in their FB Event Page.) They’ve also got a Kickstarter campaign going as well. Everyone could use a little support these days.

[Pinays Maintaining Sisterhood Through Art (PMSTA): http://pmsta.wordpress.com/]
[Bindlestiff Studio: http://www.bindlestiffstudio.org/]

My last trip to Borders

2011-09-12T02:31:00.001-05:00

Enough has been written of the demise of the print industry. I’m certainly not going to dispute any of that - it’s been years since I’ve frequented any bookstore on a consistent basis. This just feels more than just a store closing. Part of me feels like I’m watching another part of my youth fade away.

Growing up, heading out to bookstores and libraries with my mom was a big thing for me. They were the first places outside of our immediate neighborhood where we’d go and I’d be free to roam. My mom had an insane love for books and it was something she wanted to share with me, whether it was going to the tiny Bezazian branch of the Chicago Public Library down the street, or downtown to the big honkin’ Kroch's and Brentano's (RIP), Crown (RIP) or B. Dalton (RIP). In my high school and college years I remember stopping in as many new and used book stores as I could find while on our numerous cross – city vinyl hunting expeditions. (Maybe it was the hunt that inspired me – that undiscovered book as sweet to find as any hot track dug up in the day’s crate digs.)

Ultimately when I had my own kids I fell back on that same strategy my mom had and also took them to the local library, as well as the BAM down the street (now closed). We’d still hit up a Borders or Barnes & Noble when we saw one (easy since you could count on at least one of them being in any mall we’d go to) but more often than not I ended up not actually buying anything for me anymore. I never needed to get the latest releases, and there usually wasn’t anything that I found that I had to get right then and there. If I couldn’t find a used copy at Half Price Books later on I was always willing to bet I’d find it cheaper on the internet anyway.

Ereader? I was hesitant at first - the geek in me more interested in hacking it for a knock off tablet, but once I eventually got to using for it’s intended purpose? Game over. Geez how did I ever live without you?

So while it’s sad to think my kids might not spend hours aimlessly wandering the stacks of ridiculously huge bookstores like I used to, I’ve got to admit I understand why.

Another nail in the coffin? Even with 80% off (plus 15% more if you walked out with six things) I still only ended up pulling one book off the stacks just for me. The rest of the loot went to my wife and kids, who still for the most part think books still only exist in paper form.

Books will still be around, I’m sure. (Vinyl was supposed to die too, you know.) Maybe we’ll have one or two major retailers standing for a while, maybe not. I’ll still take my kids to whatever bookstores are around and we’ll still drop in on the library like my mom used to do. While my ereader will likely become a permanent fixture at my nightstand, I’m sure I’ll still make space for a ‘real’ book when I find one I can’t pass up.

Documentary about WWII Comfort Women in the Philippines

2011-08-25T02:09:00.001-05:00

Growing up in the states, I don’t recall learning much in school about the Philippines in World War II. The few paragraphs we had in our textbooks would have obviously been from an American viewpoint, and I’m sure we read about MacArthur and the Bataan Death March. I don’t have my old books anymore but I’d bet those few paragraphs might have been it back then.
I remember one of my teachers talking about Joy Divisions, but only as a side note in WWII history, since a bunch of us were New Order fans and he probably knew he’d keep our attention a little bit longer with that. We certainly didn’t hear anything of the Japanese equivalent in Asia.
Thankfully for history’s sake the stories of some of the victims have been documented:

In "Katarungan! Justice for Lolas!" people in Manila as well as Luzon and Leyte islands testified how barbaric Japanese soldiers sexually targeted local women and mistreated the community at large, suspecting they were involved in the resistance movement.

The film’s director, Chieko Takemi:

"Many of them became victims of sexual violence by Japanese soldiers at the ages of 14 or 15, and they are around 80 years old now," said Chieko Takemi. "I wanted to record the lives of those who have survived decades of hardships."

I don’t know if this film will ever make it overseas, or even if it will be able to be viewed by English speaking audiences. According to what little I can find on the internet about it, it will be presented in Tokyo at the Women's Active Museum on War and Peace in Tokyo through June 2012. If anyone has further information about this please pass it along.

[Japan Times Online: Japan's Filipino wartime sex slaves tell their story in documentary]
[Women's Active Museum of War and Peace (WAM) | English site]

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Update 29 Aug 2011

H/T to Stephen Dypiangco of Home Unknown for leading us to another documentary of the same subject, Forgotten Slaves - The Comfort Women of the Philippines. Check out the trailer here, and the film's funding campaign here.

sobering stats (Illinois)

2011-08-23T09:47:00.000-05:00

I'm not saying it's not bad anywhere else, but dang these numbers are depressing.

(Illinoispolicy.org - Where Are the Jobs? Not in Illinois)

(Illinoispolicy.org - July employment report: Illinois leads the nation in jobs lost)

Keep pushing.

2011-08-05T10:29:00.000-05:00

[Chicago Tribune: 10 Illinois companies tell state they'll cut 1,100 jobs by year-end]
[Business Insider: "Sudden And Unexpected" Burst Of Downsizing Causes Layoffs To Explode Nearly 60% In July]

Despite the announcement that the unemployment rate dropped to 9.1 percent, I'm still scared out of my mind.

If you're one of the folks looking for work, don't lose hope. If you've got a job but are getting squeezed by an employer that knows it's hard out there, keep plugging away. (Even if you have to shovel sh*t a paycheck's a paycheck. I don't think there's any disrespect in that.) If you've got a good job and your employer still treats you well, count your blessings.

Keep pushing.

daddy issues - thank you anonymous passer by

2011-07-14T01:50:00.000-05:00

Just one of those times in daily life when you're not expecting anyone to pay any attention to you.

Sitting at Portillo's playing with the kids over hot dogs and fries, we were taking turns picking something among all the restaurant's decorations while the others had to figure out what it was. An improvised sit down version of the "hot / cold" game. The sillier the object the better.

OK sure we might have been getting a little loud, but the place was mostly empty anyway and it's hard to stop the kids once they get locked into giggle mode.

Older lady walks up taps me on the shoulder, smiles and says "You're a good father." Mama Piranha gives me the "what the hell was that about" look as we exchange smiles on your way out.

You looked like you could have been a teacher or librarian or something. In reality you cold have been some crazed psycho - I'll never know. But I took what you said at face value and mouthed "thanks".

I don't always think I am, but I'm trying - and every bit of positive reinforcement helps.

daddy issues

2011-06-14T14:30:00.003-05:00

Having kids has humbled me in a bunch of ways over the years. The thrust of responsibility to care for them at their most fragile, newborn state. The late nights. The fact that my whole life had to be rearranged to revolve around their needs.

Bottle service became viewed in terms of Similac vs Enfamil. The minivan became viable option. (You know, for my wife of course.) Screaming kids on the airplane? It's different from the other side folks, although I have to admit I think we've been lucky so far. On all our flights my kids have always been relatively easy going. But we don't push our luck these days; there are definite benefits to taking the extra time on the road versus working our way through various airports.

I'm not complaining, mind you. Watching them grow up - to witness them accomplishing every new step in their lives - has truly been one of the most rewarding things I've ever done. It's put my outlook on life in a completely different perspective and in many ways has forced me to really grow up. First words, first steps, reminding them to wash their hands after going to the bathroom and to put daddy's records back-in-the-order-you-found-them-in-or-I-swear-you-will-never-get-near-my-1200s-ever-again...

I think the most revealing part of being a parent for me has to be that sometimes they can become little mirrors of ourselves. Even though they have their own personalities and tendencies, I've found that there are times they may as well be the fulfillment of some of my mother's warnings when I was younger. "I hope your kids don't pick that up," she occasionally said when I was younger and still single.

Maybe it's because these are personal shortcomings that I've always known about myself, or maybe I've just recognized my own tendencies through them. Maybe they're not even shortcomings at all. Stubbornness isn't necessarily a bad thing if they're going to be stubborn in positive ways.

In either case, I think there's opportunity here. Opportunity for them to be raised in a more positive manner and opportunity for me to become better. I'm certainly not perfect, and I couldn't ever expect anyone else to be either. To become better? That should be reasonable, right? I think so. So for them and for myself I'm going to try to become better. A better dad, a better husband, a better person.

No time like the present as some folks like to say. With Father's Day on the horizon, it seems as good a time as any.

not just my parents’ language anymore

2011-06-06T03:47:00.001-05:00

Came a cross an article today about Fil Ams who are trying to keep their native tongues alive here in the US. I was caught by the answers it gave to it’s opening line, which simply asked “Would you like to learn Filipino?”

“Ask a very young Filipino-American, and you will most likely draw a blank. It’s okay. He can’t decide for himself yet.

When puberty hits, that’s when it hits them. They can’t communicate with their parents or relatives as much as they want to. Speaking only in English, they feel isolated in family gatherings or Filipino parties.”

Wondering about the longer term effects of keeping our parents’ languages isn’t new to me. To be honest, I didn’t hang out with may other Filipinos my age growing up, and the ones I did interact with (even family) didn’t seem to be all that interested in speaking Tagalog or whatever additional dialects their folks spoke at home. In fact there were times we openly mocked it, calling each other a disgrace while mimicking the thicker versions of our elders’ accents. When we got that discouraged “Oh, you don’t speak?” comment from one of our parents’ friends, we just blew it off – when would we ever really need to use it? You all speak English anyway.

Anyone who did speak Tagalog well either came with it when they landed on US soil, or were the rare example of what we were not. Or were from California where dude, they teach that in school over there!

Of course, even among the varied cultures in our own neighborhood we were the anomaly. If I had bet you to find one Spanish kid in my neighborhood who didn’t speak Spanish I’d probably have lost.

I knew my parents tried – as I’m sure all the other parents of my unilingual counterparts. “I gave up” they’d dismiss when asked, enabling themselves and us to talk about different topics. Over time I came to think that they probably agreed with us. When would we need to know the language? For various reasons (I assume mostly financial) none of us were going back home any time soon – if ever. This was definitely different than some other families that headed back to the Philippines yearly or more. Those kids had to know. “Harder to kidnap” we’d always joke.

Over time I’d meet up with people from other backgrounds and occasionally I’d find a similar scenario. Kid doesn’t know their parents’ language and doesn’t think it’s a big deal. Parent wishes it wasn’t the case, but doesn’t put up much of a fight anymore because the times when they’d need to use it would be few and far between.

Now with my own young children, I’m hoping to correct that. It’s not important when or how often the language will be needed. It’s a connection to a culture and family whose separation is more than just distance, and it’s one that might disappear if I don’t solidify that now.

[Inquirer.net: Is it okay to lose your language? Not for these Fil-Ams]

sports weekend

2011-06-04T13:34:00.000-05:00

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Not for 65 Million Dollars – At least according to Bob Arum who said that “legitimate” (versus, what exactly?) people from Singapore offered Floyd Mayweather $65 million to fight Manny, and were turned down.

Who knows if this is true or not. Likely a bunch of peacocking and posturing. In any event, Manny is making ends meet by hawking HP stuff now.

[Bleacher Report: Floyd Mayweather Jr Declines $65 Million from Singapore To Face Manny Pacquiao]

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Congratulations Li Na for becoming the first Chinese player to win a Major in tennis, and doing it with a straight set win over French Open defending champ Francesca Schiavone.

[Yahoo: Li Na wins French Open, 1st major title for China]

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Coach… I really want to root for you. Seriously. But it’s just really really really hard for me to root for your employer.

[Hyphen: Erik Spoelstra, First Asian American Head Coach in the NBA]

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Doctors orders: White people only

2011-05-22T10:00:00.013-05:00

A mentally ill patient asks that they only get white caregivers. Western State Hospital mangers were apparently fine with this, and when the workers complain hospital executives decline to investigate. When a nurse complained about it, “an upset supervisor told her the policy was part of the patient's care plan, devised by the director of the Center for Forensic Studies, Dr. Mary Louise Jones.”

Now nine workers including two Filipinos are suing, stating that “the ongoing practice barred dark-skinned employees from work they would normally be assigned to do and forced white or light-skinned workers to spend extra time with a violent patient.”

I’m hoping that there’s more to this story than this. Granted I'm no medical professional and patients (even ones suffering from some level of mental illness) have the right to request things, but for hospital management to even entertain the thought that having white only patient care was not only an ok request but one they would actually fulfill is beyond me.

[SeattlePI: Lawsuit: Only white workers at Wash. hospital ward]
[The News Tribune: Lawsuit: Western State patient's race-related request was granted]

Super Orient Courser

2011-05-21T21:58:00.003-05:00

I had previously heard about these cats from the nice folks at Fil-Am Ako, but due to other plans was not going to be able to see them at their scheduled show at Ravinia. I was pleasantly surprised to find out they were part of the entertainment line up when I showed up for a private event on Friday night.

In their own words:

Super Orient Courser is an award-winning and critically acclaimed modern Mongolian horsehead fiddle (“Morin Khuur” in Mongolian) musician’s ensemble. Founded in 2005, the ensemble made its debut as the Gold Prize winner of the 2007 CCTV China National Folk Music Instrument Competition. In 2008 they performed at the Opening Ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympics Sailing Competition. In November 2009, they performed for President Obama at the welcome banquet hosted by the Chinese President Hu Jintao. The Ensemble has taken the audience by storm everywhere they have been since 2007.

Seriously, if you’re able to catch these folks you need to. For you Chicagoans, you’ll have to live with the footage from their WLS-TV appearance this morning. Anyone down in Atlanta, they’re probably headed your way now for a show on the 23rd, and then it looks like they’ll be headed to Texas after that for stops in Richardson, San Antonio and Austin.

Truth be told, I don’t know what an Orient Courser actually is, and to be frank I’ve been asked at many points in my life to purge the word Orient from my vocabulary. All that aside, if this is what Orient Coursers are, the Super is not an overstatement.

Check out the Super Orient Courser website here.

[Fil-Am Ako: Super Orient Courser Concert: Distinctive Music Celebrates Asian American Heritage Month]
[WLS-TV: Music ensemble from China performs]
[Super Orient Courser Website]

Quick Hits 16May2011

2011-05-16T23:55:00.000-05:00

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Congratulations, Coach Spo (Can I call you Erik? No? Ok then) on being the first Asian American Coach in the NBA, and now the first Asian American to coach a team in the NBA Conference Finals.

I have to admit though, you’re in a pickle of a situation. If you win, you won’t be given the credit you deserve because it would be assumed that there was no way you shouldn’t have won because of the Big Three. Of course if you lose, then the blame falls squarely on your shoulders because dang, there’s no way you shouldn’t have won because of the same Big Three.

To be able to juggle all those egos, along with a bunch of people begging your boss to get rid of you, and still reach the conference finals is a credit to you.

Under normal circumstances I’d tell you to put up the good fight and show your critics how wrong they were.

I’d love to be able to hype you up as not only the first Asian American coach in the NBA Finals, but the first Filipino American one as well. Being from Chicago though my allegiances are in conflict here and I’ve got to go with the hometown choice, along with Englewood’s finest, to reach the NBA finals since a certain other player roamed the court in a Bulls uniform.

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There are more than one million Filipino Americans in California according to the 2010 census.

I have to say I’m not sure what would feel like. Growing up in Uptown Chicago, most of my classmates growing up were Spanish. I don’t have any numbers to say if that was due to the population of the city, but it was certainly true of my neighborhood. While there were always other Filipinos around I have to admit I never really connected with them. I don’t understand why that was, really. I always thought that there was a community of folks ‘like me’ that I needed to go find and hook up with. Of the various Filipino sub communities I’ve come in contact with over the years, I have to admit I’ve never really felt a bond.

There are numerous individual Filipinos that I’ve found common ground with, but I guess I’m just not into the group thing… perhaps some introspection is due here.

[Contra Costa Times: Census reveals East Bay’s ethnic mosaic]

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Vatican suggests bishops report abuse to police. Suggests. As in “hey, you guys know what might be a good idea?”

The Vatican told bishops around the world Monday that it is important to cooperate with police in reporting priests who rape and molest children and asked them to develop guidelines for preventing sex abuse by next May.

‘Next May’ would be a year from now. A year. Do ‘develop guidelines’. It’s a good thing there aren’t too many people asking why Catholics are losing their members.

[AP: Vatican suggests bishops report abuse to police]

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My apologies to everyone for the lack of activity here. Life sometimes has a way of pushing its own agenda over mine. I’ma tryin to get my sh*t together, and hopefully things will be on the upswing.

disclosure

2011-04-14T13:37:00.000-05:00

There comes a time in every man's life
when he's got to handle sh*t up on his own.
Can't depend on friends to help him in a squeeze
please, they got problems of they're own.

I don't know why I'm writing this. I need to write this. I need a release. I need to get away. Sh*t's starting to spiral out of control and I can't get a grip on it.

I'm tired. I'm tired of having to be strong for everyone. Tired of feeling I have to solve everyone's problems. I don't even know where to start on my own issues.

I've lost my center. I don't know how I got here, but here I am. Expectation and responsibility keep closing in on me. Old dreams taunt me.

I just want to hold my wife and kids and not worry about what's going to happen to them. I wish I was a better man. A better husband. A better father.

Whomever comes across this note, thanks for reading.

waiting, relief, and helplessness

2011-03-14T03:00:00.002-05:00

Unless you’ve been on Mars, by now you know about the massive earthquake and resulting tsunami that occurred off the coast of northern Japan on March 11. If not, catch up here. Since news travels at the speed of the internet these days I found out about it shortly after it occurred, but did not realize the magnitude of it all until the next morning.

Immediately my thoughts went to any friends and family that could be affected, either by the earthquake itself in Japan, or any possible targets of the tsunami at that point making its way across the globe. Particularly on my mind was a dear friend of mine – a groomsman at my wedding, godfather to my son, and as much a brother as someone could be without actually being related to me. Where was he? Where is he now? How am I going to get in contact with him?

Hours later I’d find out. He’d been in contact with his cousin in Cali, who was able to relay a status to me.

It’s funny in a way. Years ago if a tragedy like this happened you would call around. Maybe you’d be able to connect and maybe you wouldn’t. But basically you waited for that phone to ring. Sometimes you’d wait days. Today a 12 hour wait followed by a Facebook status seems like an eternity. You throw names into a People Finder hoping for something – anything to let you know they’re safe.

But now what? On Saturday we fed the kids breakfast and talked about what we need to get from Costco while my friend was at an evacuation center looking for water. I know what he’d say. “Gene, don’t worry about me. Handle your business. I’ll catch up with you when this all blows over.”

I wish I could. All the crap I’ve been stressing about lately doesn’t seem so tough right now. Work, money, still on my mind but put in perspective. I’ve been hugging my kids tighter today. Your godson isn’t old enough yet to understand why I keep praying for you and why my mind’s been wandering, but one day we can tall talk about it together, ok?

I know you won’t be reading this until later. Maybe weeks from now. Be safe. God bless.

Google Crisis Response website for the 2011 Japanese Earthquake and Tsunami.

Please donate to the Red Cross. Every little bit can help.

[ABC 7 Chicago: Japanese-Americans pray for quake, tsunami victims]
[Wikipedia: 2011 Sendai earthquake and tsunami]