Culture

DISCLAIMER: Before you read through this post, I must warn you that this was/is completely unplanned and may include many off-topic ramblingz.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Okay. Today in English class we were discussing songs with which we could compare the tragic relationship of Pip and Estella of *gag* Great Expectations. Some people were asking legitimate questions when a certain friend acquaintance class mate of ours asked if she could choose a song in a different language. Now, in most circumstances this would be perfectly all right. For example, Lynda was also planning to use a song (MY song) which is in Chinese. This is okay due to these three-ish rules:

a. If you can actually speak the language. <-- I'm totally fluent in Chinese...

2. You aren't just asking the question to show off that you can "speak" another language.

III. You actually don't know any songs in English.

• Oh, also, by the way, our teacher sort of looked annoyed and was like, "We've already gone over this" so why are you asking me this AGAIN?! 

This girl was talking about using a song in German. I'm normally okay with that, but just the way she said it made me cringe.

I just realised this isn't really about culture at all.

Moving on to the actual culture-y bit.

You may think that you know your Chinese friends and their culture...until you visit their houses. For example, on my adventures in (mainly) Lynda's and (a few times) xiy's houses, I noticed some stuff.

1. They are very clean and white.<-- Except where small children have discovered that markers + walls = oodles of fun.

b. They let me use really comfy Croc sandals so I don't tread dirt everywhere but still don't have to, like, be barefoot.

• FOOD! Ohmygoodness do Lynda's parents enjoy feeding me!! I LOVE FOOD! Whenever I visit xiy/Lynda's houses someone always seems to be cooking or preparing food. I like that quite a lot. Also, I don't think I've ever eaten rice at either...

IV. Everyone in the China watches soap operas. Duh.

I have spent a rather significant amount of time in Germany in my life, and I also noticed some stuff:

A. If your feet/legs up to the knee are not covered at ALL TIMES in winter, you must be quickly ushered into the nearest insane asylum until you realise that your feet must be frozen and that your thin socks must be covered with at least 4 more inches of wool to be remotely warming to the feet...even if you feel perfectly fine.

• Baking/cooking/setting out pretty plates/making and serving tea/cleaning is all that a housewife should focus on. EVAR. Oh, and her chilluns.

* Hiking and traveling is good. Especially if it is in a place where one can pose for pictures for a homemade calendar. <-- I don't know if it's just my family and friends, but we ALWAYS seem to get homemade calendars for holidays. I can see four from where I currently sit.

4. Bread must be present at all 4 meals of the day and one may not repeat the type of bread. One may save bread in boxes for other days. If one has rolls for breakfast, the rolls may not be eaten until the next morning. Even if they're dinner rolls.

V. Grocery shopping is done daily and kept in itty bitty fridges that blend in with cupboards so that visitors can NEVER FIND IT. If there are leftovers, the men must eat more.

Wow. That was interesting.

Secret Message: Babies in Germany are orange. No lie.

~MooMoo~

P.S. This may not be entirely accurate, tell me of any necessary revisions/additions in la comments.

EUROPE! YEAH!

Hey y'all.

I'm typing this on Saturday, March 19th cuz I'll be in EUROPE! YEAH! on the day of this post. So I have a couple of things to mention in this lovely post. One, the experience of being in this "Park to Shop" Chinese store* (wazup w/ the name, yo?), two, JAPAN (it's connected to the shopping experience, sort of. Plus it's a super hot topic right now), three, EUROPE! YEAH! (*squeal*).

         O my, I just realized that ^ the above is probably a huge run-on sentence, and xiy, House, and Momo are freaking out right now. Sorry y'all.

'k, number one! Park to Shop is this lovely big Chinese store*, and we (my family) have never gone to it, because some dude told my dad the stuff isn't fresh. But recently, we've realized that, "hey! it's fresh n' cheap!" Hence our visits to it. So when I went this weekend, I noticed a couple things. I was on the lookout for good post material, because I felt bad for having a tiny post last Thursday. Anyways, I'll go in chronological order. We were looking for Hot Pot** ingredients, and we couldn't find this one kind of tofu that I lurve, and so my mom went and asked this store employee. He goes and finds this other store employee, and I'm like, "yay, this'll take a while, *yawn*" So I leaned on my cart and listened to the pretty music, which btw, was "Home" by Daughtry. One of my favorite songs, go and listen to it here. After a while, the employee comes back, and with him, a different employee. I glanced at him, and then I do a double take. Cuz he's hawt! Like, wow! It's been...never since I've seen an Asian boy who looks cute in America! (It's like the cute ones stay in Asia >.<) So I'm fanning myself, and trying to be inconspicuous about it, though I think I ended up looking sort of like I had fleas...NEXT! I'm walking around and see the ice-cream thing. Which gives me an idea. I know Americans are used to flavors of ice-cream such as chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, and variations of those with toppings. I'm about to tell you the ASIAN flavors***: Red bean (yum, I love red bean stuff), mango, lychee (this berry-ish thing), coconut, and milk n' peanuts. Not what a typical ice-cream truck in the US has in stock, eh? On to the end of the trip. As we were walking out of the store, there are a couple Japanese and Chinese people holding signs saying "Show Your Love for the Tsunami victims of Japan!" I'm happy to say that my dad donated a couple dollars (which was basically all he had in his wallet...*sigh* the credit card fad). Unfortunately, I did see this white family come in to the store and basically shove away the people, and this white bitch was shaking her head and rolling her eyes like, "ew, get away, these people are so eww, they're asking for money from us, ewww" So if that lady is reading this post of mine, please note that I think people like you are a disgrace to the human race, and are absolutely disgusting because if you don't feel for the people in Japan, fine, but to push away people and act like that is just beyond sickening. I hope karma actually works on people like you.

Japan. Subject number two. We all know (I hope) that there has been a 9.0 earthquake in Japan, causing a tsunami, and several nuclear power plant mishaps. The people in Japan have showed remarkable stoic and calm, and it's helped a lot, as they go through the search and rescue, clean-ups, and desperate cooling of the reactors in the nuclear plants. I think I type for all the Curly Fries when I write that we hope the people of Japan will be able to recover fully, and that the partial meltdowns can be dealt with. As I type, CNN reports that 7,653 have died in Japan, and some 10,000 people are still missing. The number may have grown by the time this post is posted, but for now, I wish those 7,653 people's family and friends well as they cope with the loss.

On a happier note, I'm in EUROPE! YEAH!, which is why I'm writing this so early. EUROPE! YEAH! =D Our school's orchestra and choir are going on a 9 day tour through Geneva, Switzerland; Nimes, France; Carcassonne, France; and Barcelona, Spain. It's actually more than those 4, but they're the main places we'll be hitting. EUROPE! YEAH! So, as you read this, I'm in EUROPE! YEAH! maybe giving a concert, as I'm not sure when the concerts are scheduled, because I'm getting the final itinerary and stuff on Monday (remember, I'm writing this on Saturday) for our last meeting and a mini-concert in anticipation of EUROPE! YEAH! I've packed today, and I'm excited cuz I packed capris and T-shirts! IT'S WARM IN THE SOUTH OF FRANCE, AND IN SPAIN!!! YEAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!! I think I might bring sandals *bliss* I love having my toes free to wiggle in the sunlight =D WHICH I'LL BE ABLE TO DO, CUZ IT'S GETTING WARM! Though it's supposed to get colder where the 6LCF reside, but hey, I'll be gone, and in EUROPE! YEAH! HAHA! YES! Soooo....I'll write more about EUROPE! YEAH! when I get back. Which reminds me, I get home on next Thursday, but it'll be in the late evening, and I'll be dead tired (we're gettting up at 6am in EUROPE! YEAH!) and there will be jetlag, so I probably won't post then. I might actually plan ahead and set up another post, for that day, but don't count on it. Soooo....Happy Early Spring Break! (well, for us)

Luv,

Lynda-who's-in-EUROPE!YEAH!

P.S. EUROPE! YEAH!

*I say "Chinese shop", but it's technically an Asian store, because it has Japanese, Vietnamese, Thai, and stuff. But my family just refers to Asian stores as Chinese stores, cuz it's where we get the ingredients for our non-American dishes :)

**Hot Pot is like this food thing where everyone gathers around a pot full of spices and boiling water, and then swish raw food around in it (or stick it in the pot for a while, and let it cook) until it's cooked, and then dip it in sauce. It's really good, and my description didn't do it much justice, but you get the gist.

***Asian flavors, I say very loosely, I kind of mean the stereotypical Asian countries (i.e. China, Japan, the Koreas...) but I also don't, like, I don't know about India, Thailand, and Vietnam. And I definitely don't know about Russia, Kazakhstan, and all the other "-stan" countries. Even with the countries that I do mean, the flavors are probably not all present, and some are probably off....sooo...I'm just emphasizing the difference between cultures. Sorry if it's misleading.

lynda loooooooves the world! lynda is a happy, happy girl...

...unless she is in Global Studies with a pack of ignorant fools. *:(

Draw a circle; that's the Earth.

Draw a circle; that's the Earth.

I'm Heeetttaaallliiaaa!!!! :)

Global Studies....we started the China unit today, and omigosh, I knew the people in my class were annoying and relatively dumb, but they really overexerted their "dumb" brain cells today. But...ahh...don't have much time. Lotsa homework. xiy and  I just made an "Apple Tarte Tatin". Looks kinda ugly. Hehe

Well! Gotta go, bye!

Luv, Lynda

P.S. Greek tomorrow...*groans* Lynda neeedddddsss slllleeeppp...

P.P.S. Honestly, I was going to rant about my gl. st. class...but I don't have time. Poopy.

Hello everyone.

The topic of my post today was inspired partly by something I heard in English, and partly by my personal life...which is not a happy topic! You can just forget about me expounding on it.

Sidenote: I'm currently listening to "Starstruck" by Sterling Knight...It's somewhat weird, because I'm positive I heard a 4th grader squealing over how "hawt" Sterling Knight is....*shudder* It's not like he's not cute, he is, it's just....I don't remember having hormones in 4th grade. Did I? (that is to Momo+xiy, who knew me best back then)

A General Overview of the Stereotypes about:

China, China, China. Chinese ppl, Chinese ppl...jeez, when will people stop talking about them every frickin' time they think about the "less fortunate", the "smart", the "censored", the "Communists"? It's not like we're the ONLY less fortunate. There are rich people in China too, you know? There are stupid Chinese people too, but hey, y'all (please note I am not talking about the Curly Fries when I go and generalize all people. They've been well trained to not think of China/Chinese people all the time as said stereotypes...) don't even THINK about that when you're talking. Censored? Come on. Sure, we aren't that "free" in our web searches, but hey, that doesn't mean we're living in a frickin' cement block. Just cuz these couple o' anarchists in China are stuck in jail with a speedy trial, doesn't mean that y'all should go like, "awwwww". Whaddya think your government does? Give them a teddy bear and a room at the Ritz-Carlton? NOT. Lastly, so we're a Communist country. Big deal! You're a not-exactly-capitalist-not-exactly-socialist country. It's not like Chinese people criticize y'all for that... And then BLAMING. YOU GUYS ARE BLAMING THE CHINESE because your country is in DEBT. YOU OWE CHINA A TRILLION FRICKING DOLLARS. Well that's just great, print out a trillion dollar bills in a couple hours, and just hand them to China! But hey, isn't that kind of mean because the dollar is worth so little now? The value of the trillion that China lent the U.S. is so much more than what the U.S. would be giving back in a trillion dollars. It's just so...idk...I'm giving up on this topic...

Ok...that last paragraph was maybe a bit of biased ranting...But seriously, I'm TIRED of it.

Things I am SO F***ING TIRED OF:

1. The "ching-chang-chong" phrase. CAN YOU GET ANY LESS CREATIVE? IT'S NOT EVEN CHINESE!!!!

2. Making inappropriate remarks just so you can see the Asian's reaction. Well I've heard worse(Chinese people are vulgar on the streets, even when I was little), and I don't give a damn about what you say. I don't CARE if you've got one of two balls.

3. "Can you say something in Chinese?" I'm fine with it if you're innocently and curiously asking. I just don't feel like it. But when you say it in a voice that implies I'm an illiterate non-English speaking creature, I HATE IT.

4. STARING because I'm Asian. DUDE, YOU'VE SEEN AN ASIAN BEFORE.

5. "Are you two sisters?" (refers to xiy+I) Just because we're both of the same race does NOT mean we're related. That would be like me asking African-Americans, "Are you brothers?"(I changed the gender, cuz it's more often the boys who ask this)Or asking a Caucasians,  "Are you sisters?" (more often the girls...blondes, a lot of the times :))

Phew! That was a lot of ranting and pent up frustration/anger/tears all piled together into one huge post...Oh well. It was fun to write :)

NaNoWriMo wordcount: 8300 :D (STILL AHEAD OF VIRGIL!!!!!!)(Edit from Virgil: Actually, as of when you posted this, I was at 9,583 ^_^ muahahaha)

Last sentence: Her calico fur rippled, and some places began showing a pale, hairless, human skin.   

Love,

Lynda

P.S. I had to copy this from my blog as I forgot I was signed into my account...grr

Fencing, Politics, Picnik, and Glee

(But not necessarily in that order.)

So today's fencing session was punctuated with  a lot of talk of politics. Or, to perhaps put it more correctly, one of the scary-fencing-eleven-year-olds' ideas of politics (and/or how to fix the United States's copious debt problem). You see, the scary-fencing-eleven-year-old (we'll just call them SFEYOs) is of the opinion that the United States should somehow buy up the Sahara desert and then get people to build a giant solar panel across it. This would generate lots of energy for the US, which would then presumably be sold to China (it's always China, China, China; never anything else) so that the US can pay off its debts to that same country. It's a terrible plan, but he seems convinced of its greatness, and no amount of dissuasion seems to have done any good.


Much of footwork was spent discussing the monumental flaws of the SFEYO's plan, and so we didn't actually do all that much exercising today. :)


Oh, and speaking of China, it's so stupid that people think that it's China's fault that the US's economy is screwed up. I mean, really. China is not "stealing jobs"; in the words of Virgil, China was merely doing what was good for China, and that's really all that it should be expected to do. The United States screwed itself over by depending so much on China.

And, lastly, on the topic of politics--Ohio, where we 6LCF live, is now apparently entirely Republican. And apparently the Republicans are going to cut money from schools/libraries/things that matter. How lovely. >.>


Politics, in my opinion, is just a very silly business.
--
In other news, today, in a fit of hilarious juvenility (I just made up a word!), Momo, Lynda, and I made a quite hilarious picture on Picnik. It was originally supposed to be the cover of Lynda's NaNo novel, but it turned out, er, well.
I'll just let you see for yourself, yeah?

:D
--
Darren Criss apparently now has a role on Glee, which is wonderful news for the Darren-Criss-loving and/or Glee-loving Curly Fry community.
I was originally going to watch Glee and write my first impressions of it in this post, but there was an unfortunate event called piano practice which I must do, meaning that I will, sadly, be unable to watch said show during the time in which it is airing.
I guess I'll watch it on Hulu if/when I have the time; perhaps my first impressions will come next week.
--
And, finally, the NaNo usual. . .


Wordount: 26,741 (I haven't had the chance to write much today, but I will.)
Last sentence: “I will,” replied Ellie, clutching the scribbled-on piece of paper like her life depended on it. Her brain was rapidly churning out random, disjointed, highly panicked thoughts.

Tra la la la! It's Thursday

Wow, there's 4 1/2 days of school left!!! OMIGOSH!!! Now, I know today is the 3rd, so I'm writing this...a bit belatedly, but HAPPY INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN'S DAY! June 1st was Children's day, so yay!!! I'm going to give you a big ol' list of countries, and their Children's Day dates. The list only goes up to Pakistan, so if you want to know more, just go to Wikipedia! :P That's where I got most of this!

Let me ask my questions, and then if you feel like just skimming through a couple of the dates, click "read more". I feel so happy that I get to use it!

1.If you were a worm, how long would you be? 

2.What would you want to be written on your tombstone?
3.When you looked in the mirror first thing this morning, what was the first thing you thought?

4.If Superman is so smart, why does he wear his underpants over his trousers? 

5.Why doesn't glue stick to the inside of the bottle?

6.Why isn't there a special name for the tops of your feet? 

Luv, Lynda

Thumper Thursday

Hi again! It's me, Lynda. I have named the day after my bestest/favoritest Disney character!!! Thumper! That awesome thumpin' rabbit from BAMBI!!! (Though I never did like Bambi. Dang how stupid can ya get? The forest's on fire, run away!) OK, so that was a bit random wasn't it? I was just trying to find a word that alliterated with Thursday. It worked!!! Now to the school related crap that I'm just dyin' to get to (No, I'm not country). 1. Gym. I have never ever ever ever ever seen such an old lady trying to teach gym, and wears....*dun dun dun dunnnn* miniskirts!!! Oops. I'm being mean aren't I? Ah well. we'll let that one slide right? 2. English class. In that particular class, I get to do something amazing called "recitation of your sonnet"!! YES!! I wrote a sonnet, and I, the cowardly stage frighted person shall be acting out that sonnet very professionally. Any shaking, forgetting of lines, jitters, buckets of sweat, and nervous giggling, are purely the imagination of the audience. :P Anyways, ummm. Once again, I have nothing, absolutely NOTHING to discuss.
Today's Children's day in Korea! Isn't that AWESOME??? Yesterday, on that lovely CCTV4 that us Chinese people receive in America, I saw this amazingly fun thing in the town square/city park area! They were getting their face painted! Although we all love this wonderful activity of face painting, there are these things called safety guidelines that you need for your benefit. The top ten safety guidlines ARE! 1. Just cuz it says "non-toxic" does not mean it's safe for the skin. It merely means that if you accidentally swallow it, you'll just be in pain, and NOT dead. Keep acrylic paints, watercolor markers or pencils away from that gorgeous face alright?
2.I know that there's a girly-girl inside of you that is just dying for lots of glitter on your face, but NO! The only safe glitters for face painting are made of polyester, and should be .008 microns in size or smaller, that's what the FDA says!
3. Cleanliness. Clean that brush and those sponges! You don't want a dirty brush on your face! (Or anyone else! Don't pick face painting as a way of revenge, ya don't wanna get sued.)
4. If you think you're allergic to nothing, you could possibly be wrong, so check to see if the ingredients have something in it that's a possibility! If you're one of those people who are allergic to everything, umm, seriously, check that label!!!
5. Wash your hands. You don't want your dirty germs getting on your face do you?? Then don't do it to others!(Same note on the no-revenge policy) After you go to the bathroom, your hands are dirty wash 'em before you face paint yourself, or others, assuming you wipe of course. If you don't, then just keep your hands well away from the butt, and you should be fine...
6. Dudes and dudettes with hair. Lice is something you've heard about, oui? Oui. If you hold someones' head in place to paint, umm, you might wanna check to see if they have lice before you touch that head. No offense to the people who pride themselves on being clean, I'm just saying, lice is BAD. >:(
7-10 are for business people(one of them), and kinda common sense. Such as, get a lisence before you go painting someone's face! Also, make sure you have their parent's permission, if they're under 18. You do not want an angry parent yelling at you, especially not mine(they be angry when they're angry!) Also, eat before you set yourself to the task. Ya might get hungry.
OK then, hope you'll be safe now, face painting. This has been a safety and health lecture from Dr. Lynda! ;) Didja know? Korea's Children's Day may be today, but the International one is on June 1st! Another day to milk your parents for presents! :D
Luv, Lynda