Last week on May 16, 2014, I went to my second book signing
event and got the chance to meet one of my favorite YA (young adult) authors,
Susan Ee, who is the best-selling author of the “Angelfall” series. There are 2
books in the series so far but good news to hear that book 3 is coming out this
summer 2014! At the signing, she actually showed me the first page of the draft
she wrote for book 3 which I’m really anticipating to read. The autograph
session took place at the San Jose Marriot Hotel in Downtown, San Jose. It was
really sweet of Susan to sign 2 of my books since some authors only prefer to
sign 1 book. She also gave out free tattoos which were images taken from the
covers of her books! I like how her novels’ settings take place in the San
Francisco Bay Area, which is the place where I grew up and this familiarity makes
it easier for me to picture the setting very well in my mind. At first, I
thought Susan resides in Palo Alto but she actually lives in San Jose. How cool
is that! This means that I can attend her next book tour since she lives in the
same area as me and is very likely to hold a book signing here in San Jose.
A little description of Book 1 in my own words:
After angels descended from heaven to take over the world,
Penryn, the human girl and protagonist of the story, must cooperate with one of
the “good’ fallen angels, Raffe, to stop the “bad” ones from wiping out the
human population. Penryn also needs to save her sister, Paige, who got
kidnapped by the angels when she tried to prevent Raffe’s wings from being cut off
by his evil counterparts.
Overall, her novels were a very good read that I remember when
I started reading Book 1 of the “Angelfall” series, I was hooked to the point
where I didn’t want to put the book down until I finish reading to the end. As
a result, I ended up finishing this book an entire day, from morning to
midnight without getting any eyestrain at all. The end of book 1 left me
impatient and wanting to know what happens next in book 2. I have also finished
reading book 2 and now waiting for the release of book 3.
Hollywood will also be making a movie for the Book 1,
“Angelfall” which is currently in production. I’m very curious about who the
cast will be. While I wait for book 3, I will also be on the lookout for this
movie and updates about the cast.
2 years of piano lessons really paid off. I’ve learned how
to read almost all of the notes very well. In fact, I’ve learned how to play
plenty of songs which includes classical music, Jay Chou’s music, and a Disney
song, “Let It Go”, from the movie, “Frozen.” I would say that I have mastered
playing “Let It Go” because I can play it by memory without looking at the
piano sheet which is due to my efforts of practicing it every day. I have also
become fond of the lyrics that whenever I’m playing the music, I would also
sing along to it…. Let it go, let it go…. A few of the classical music I can
play very well is Beethoven’s “Fur Elise” & “Moonlight Sonata,” Chopin’s
“Nocturne,” and Pachelbel’s “Canon.” I can also play plenty of my idol, Jay’s
music pretty well especially the ones from the “Secret” soundtrack. In fact, one
of his music I memorized is “An Jing” (“Silence”).
Here are a few videos of me playing some of the songs:
Last week, I had the wonderful opportunity to take a picture
with a celebrity for the very first time. His name is MC Jin, the only
American-Born Chinese (ABC) rapper to become famous in Hong Kong due to his
ability to rap in freestyle effectively in both Cantonese and English. Although
he is illiterate in Chinese, he speaks Cantonese-- his native tongue-- very
fluently. I would say that he is like the Justin Bieber of Hong Kong. It was a
pleasure to see MC Jin for the first time at the Asian Heritage Festival in San
Francisco, California on May 17th, 2014. I actually took the train
with my sister to get to the festival since we haven’t took public
transportation for a while and it was really fun. During MC Jin’s performance,
he sang 2 of his renowned Cantonese songs, “ABC” & “It’s Hip-hop” which I
both sang along to since I’m quite familiar with the lyrics. In addition, he also
performed a few of his English songs such as “Brand New Me,” “Shoot for the
Moon,” and “You Might Not Know Me.”
Autographed by Jin
The thing I liked the most about the show
was how he interacted with his fans very well, making everyone feel like
family. The surprising moment was when he suddenly jumped off the stage and ran
towards a random guy fan to bring him up to the front so that they can sing
along together. I think it was really nice of him to do that since doing so can
make his fan feel closer to him. He performed for a total of 30 minutes before
he got off the stage to hold an autograph session where fans also got to take
pictures with him. Other than photo ops and signing CDs, he was also selling
his latest English albums as well as other merchandises which my sister bought.
There were no lines formed for the autograph session so everyone had to try to
squeeze through the crowd to get a picture with him. When it was my turn, I was
a bit nervous and speechless when I approached him but he was very
accommodating and acknowledged all of his fans by answering all questions and
asking for our names. I didn’t know what to say besides “Hi, can you sign my
CD?” and “Can I take a pic with you? Anyways, I was very glad that he signed my
“ABC” CD, which I brought along with me; his ABC album was actually his first
Cantonese album to be released in Hong Kong. This event was a dream come true
for me since I have always wanted to take a picture with a celebrity. Thanks
Jin for fulfilling my dream. J
On December 1, 2013, I went to my first Cantonese concert--Eason Chan's LIFE Show-at the Event Center at San Jose State University. One word I would use to describe this concert is AMAZING. One thing I liked about Eason is how he is able to appeal to so many Mandarin-speaking fans since he was originally from Hong Kong and most of his songs were sang in Cantonese. I guess it was because he has released a number of Mandarin albums in the past. Also, I did not expect that the major audience would be youths (people around my age) since Eason has been a singer for many years ever since 1997; thus, i expected that most of his fans would be people in their 30s' or so. Another thing that surprised me is how famous Eason is in America to have 2 nights of his concert to be sold out quickly like pancakes. I thought he was famous only in Asia--Hong Kong. Who knew that he would gain fame all around the world as well? There was originally only one show at San Jose State University but due to popular demand and the first show being sold out, a second night was added in to accomodate the people who did not get the chance to buy their tickets, including me. Therefore, I was glad I was able to get decent seats for the second show.
English lyrics on the screen
The concert lasted for a total of 2 and a half hours, including 8 minutes of encore; most of his songs he sang were in Cantonese and a few were in Mandarin which were all very easy to sing along to. In my opinion, I think his voice sounds better live than listening to it on the CD. For the benefit of the non-Cantonese speaking audience, Eason spoked in 3 different languages: Cantonese, Mandarin, and English. I liked how he encouraged the Mandarin-speaking fans to learn Cantonese if possible so that they can be able to understand and appreciate his Cantonese songs. In fact, I'm glad I'm Cantonese and can also speak Mandarin and English very well despite being born in the United States. He also cracked alot of jokes which made the audience very high. A surprising moment was when a guy fan sitting on the front row suddenly jumped up on stage to give Eason a hug which was not allowed but Eason still gave it to him, making everyone full of envy. It must have been a dream come true for him to have the lucky opportunity to hug his idol. If I got the chance to hug my idol, Jay Chou, then my life would be complete and I will never wash my clothes that I was wearing during that moment. It was also really funny when Eason said he wished the person who hugged him was a girl instead of a guy; this kind of proved that he has more guy fans or the girls were just too shy. Near the end of the concert, I seized the opportunity to get up from my seat to run up near the front of the stage to have the chance to get a glimpse of him up close. By doing so, I was satisfied because this opportunity have fulfilled my money's worth.
My close up shot of him near the stage
Some of my favorite songs he performed during the concert was "Eliminated", Time is Like a Song", "Tomrrow of Next Year", and "Backpack". The first song I have ever heard from him was "Time is Like a Song" (Sui Yuet Yu Gor), the theme song from the TVB drama, "Triumph in the Skies", which I have watched during my middle school years. "Eliminated" was his first mandarin song I have heard from Eason and was composed by Jay Chou who was my original source for this song.
Overall, I really enjoyed this concert and would likely give it another go if he comes back. :D
I first found out about these awesome piano shoes when my sister told me that she saw them on display in front of the Reebok store at the mall a few months ago. At first impression, I thought the front part looked a bit awkward but the back part with an image of the piano keyboard looked really unique and trendy. When I tried them on, I realized that the front part did not look that awkward after all. It's hard to tell if anything looks good unless you try them on; as a result, I have tried them on and it does fit and look good on me. The store did not have my size but I was able to find the correct size online at Amazon.com. I actually got them on sale for $29.99 on Amazon compared to the ones at the Reebok store which cost $39.99. These shoes are definitely a must-buy if you are a piano lover like me. :)
I have never felt so victorious in my life before until a week ago when I won my first trophy from taking part in a table tennis tournament at my school. Thanks to my schoolmate--who invited me to be his partner for the Mixed Doubles--for giving me this opportunity. We ended up winning a third place trophy but I thought we could've done better if we had practiced beforehand but my partner canceled our practice appointment at the last minute so we did not have any time to prepare for the game. Despite that, we still did pretty well. Most importantly, I had a lot of fun because I got to play with people of different levels and also with my tennis table teacher who remembered me really well. :) By the time I got my hands on the trophy, it felt like I had won the lottery. Therefore, I have to give myself a pat on the back for setting such a great milestone. This is a good way to end the school year with since I will be graduating in one month. The thing I'm going to miss the most from school is my table tennis class and the people I have met in that class. I actually did not realize how much I missed playing table tennis at school until the end of the tournament when I did not feel like leaving. *cries* I wonder if I will have the opportunity to come back after graduation to take part in future tournaments again. If so, then I will come back next time prepared with my goal of winning first or second place.
Ever since I started learning the piano, I began to learn about the world's most renowned pianists. The first pianist I came to admire is Lang Lang, a pianist from mainland China who is also popular in other countries. He is the fastest piano player I have ever seen. I admire the classical music he plays especially his "Nocturne" covers. The first time I saw him was on the Mnet awards.. He had also cooperated with Jay Chou by appearing in his music video, "Dreams Start".
Look at those piano fingers!!
Another renowned pianist from mainland China is Li Yundi. I liked how he plays the piano with a lot of emotions which can be seen on the expressions on his face during his performances. Like Lang Lang, Li Yundi had also cooperated with Jay Chou on the same stage in the past and I think they make a really good partner. Hope to see them cooperating again soon!
Li Yundi
The PianoGuys is a American music group which consists of several musicians but mostly, they only have two people---one playing the piano (Jon Schmidt) and the other playing a cello (Steven Sharp Nelson) ---in their music videos. The first music video I saw from them is their cover of One Direction's "What Makes You Beautiful" which shows 5 guys hitting, rubbing, and banging on various parts of the piano to accompany the piano guy, Jon Schmidt. This is pretty cool because it's the first time I have ever seen something like that. Their other music videos are done very beautifully and filmed at interesting locations with unique elements and background.
Yiruma, a renowned pianist from South Korea, is another pianist who I also became fond of. His music, "River Flows In You" and "Kiss the Rain" are both really popular that they have been used in a lot of Chinese dramas. I have heard "Kiss the Rain" for the first time a few years back when I was watching a TVB drama so every time I hear it, memories of watching TVB dramas would come up in my mind. "River Flows in You" is a really beautiful and melancholy music which I want to learn how to play later on.
I saw my first Bollywood film entitled "Bhagg Milkha Bhagg" with my friend, Martha, and her friend Daisy, who are both from El Salvador. I had no idea that Bollywood movies are that popular in the United States until I walked into the auditorium to realize that most of the seats are already taken. We arrived 30 minutes late so we had to sit at the front on the second roll which was too close but regardless, we could see the screen really well. The movie is based on a true story about a really successful Indian track-and-field runner, Milkha Singh. I was really inspired by the story because the message behind it is that hard work and dedication is the most important when you want to accomplish something in life. In the movie, Milka Singh started out as a poor kid who had to steal to make a living. Later, due to his ability to run really fast, he got recruited onto the Indian track-and-field team. Then he enters the Olympics and encountered some setbacks---losing the first race--- but despite this problem, he was able to get back up by training day and night until he became confident that he will win in the next race. As a result, all his hard work and effort paid off, which helped him to become the most famous Indian track-and-field runner at that time. After watching this movie, it inspired me even more to dedicate my time to the piano so that I can accomplish my goal of playing proficiently.
After taking time off piano lessons for 5 months (from January to May) due to school, I was able to resume these lessons during the beginning of June. The good news is that I have recently upgraded to Level 4. Now that I'm currently on summer vacation, this means I have more time to practice on the piano. 2 more levels to go until I can be able to play effectively. Now looking at piano sheet music gives me less of a headache compared to when I first learned the piano since I am able to read most of the signs/symbols. From the last lesson, my teacher introduced me to the arpeggiated chords where the lowest note had to be played first followed by adding the next higher notes one at a time until the chord is complete.
Learning a classical music is a must when playing the piano. During my leisure time, I have tried playing some classical music and one of them I was able to play decently is the simplified version of Frederick Chopin's "Nocturne". As a beginner, it took me quite a while to memorize all the keys and try to play as smoothly as possible. The most frustrating part was trying to get the timing right but after much practice, I was able to get the hang of it. I have to admit that learning a new instrument is difficult and requires a lot of time and commitment but perseverance is the key to success. Since I have already started, I won't give up when I run into difficulties because if I do, then all my efforts would be wasted. My piano teacher told me that a lot of people have given up by the time they have reached levels 5 and 6 because they find it too difficult to handle but I promise myself that I would not be like them. As long as I'm committed to the piano, difficulties will not be a factor for me.
To end today's post, here is a video I have recorded of myself playing the simplified version of Chopin's "Nocturne":
"The Rooftop" pose is a combination of martial arts and dance
For the past few weeks, I have been keeping track of the latest news from Jay Chou's upcoming movie, "The Rooftop" which will be released in Asia on 7/11/13 and in North America only in selected theaters on 7/19/13. I'm so excited because the movie will be shown at a theater near my area. Also, it will be shown at the New York International Asian Film Festival which will be a great opportunity for Jay to promote his movie to international audiences and to get more people to know about him in America. "The Rooftop" is actually Jay's 2nd self-directed and self-acted movie since the release of "Secret" 6 years ago. "The Rooftop" is about a love story between a poor, young man named Lang Zi Gao (Jay Chou) who lives on the rooftop and Li Xin Ai (herself) who belongs to the wealthy class and lives below the rooftop. Both of them face many hardships trying to be together because of the differences between the two classes. Basically, this movie shows the differences between the people living on the rooftop who lives a normal and carefree life and the bourgeois class who lives more of a complicated life surrounded by money and fame. The setting takes place during the 1980s', which is Jay's favorite time period. Something unique about this movie is that it will have some musical scenes inspired by India's Bollywood; this will be Jay's attempt in introducing a Chinese-style musical film to international audiences. All the genres you want to watch is incorporated in this movie: romance, musical, action, comedy, drama, etc. I cannot wait to watch this movie and definitely looking forward to it! :D Here is the link to the awesome trailer of "The Rooftop"!
Something new I have tried was going to a karaoke place for the very first time. I went with my sister and 2 of my former accounting classmates. Since karaoke is a popular activity among Asians, the karaoke places are usually located in areas with high Asian population. There are barely any Karaoke places near my area so we had to travel down to the city of Cupertino. The place was "Arirang Music Studio", a karaoke bar operated by a Korean. I'm glad that they have Chinese music but those songs are quite outdated but the English and Korean songs are updated. I was only able to find about 6 or 7 of Jay Chou's older songs in the selection booklet. I sang 3 of his songs, "Cute Girl", "Simple Love", and "Can't Open Mouth" and was able to receive scores in the 90s range with 97 being the highest for "Can't Open Mouth". The song I really enjoyed singing the most was "Simple Love" where I couldn't help but got up to dance along to the opening part. Since it was my first time singing in public and not an experienced singer, I was really happy to receive high scores and had a really great time. However, I wasn't used to singing American music because I barely listen to them so I wasn't quite familiar with how the rhythm and beat goes. Each American song I sang placed me in the 80s range. This means I need to practice singing American songs more.
However, it was quite expensive with the price starting at $30 USD per hour for a small room. We ended up spending 1 and 1/2 hours there so the total price went up to be $45 USD. I'm thinking of investing in a karaoke machine someday so that I can build up my vocal skills and it's better than going to a karaoke bar. As seen in the dramas, people in Asia do go to karaoke often which is a really fun thing to do. I think one of the first things I would do when I move to Asia is to go karaoking first. In fact, my favorite singer, Jay Chou has opened up his own karaoke place in Xi An, China called "True Love Fantasy" where customers can sing his songs and remember his name in the foreseeable future.
After taking ping-pong for 2 semesters at San Jose State University, I have to admit that I fell deeply in love with the sports. Now that the classes are over, I realized that I miss playing it with my classmates. I don't really have friends that are into ping pong; most of them are into badminton. I wish I could join the table tennis club at school but I'm not able to attend the meetings because my dad expects me to come straight home after school. I have a table at home but no one in my family would play it with me due to lack of interest. Thus, sometimes I would play it alone but it's more fun if I get to play it with someone. Sometimes I wish I live in Asia because the sports is popular there especially in China so I could always find someone who is likely to play it with me.
Anyways, in today's post, I would like to share some of the movies I have watched about ping pong. After some research, I found out there are a few movies about table tennis. These movies include: "Ping Pong Playa" (Chinese-American), "As One" (Korean), "Balls of Fury"(American), "Ping Pong" (Japanese) and an anime series, "The Ping Pong Club".
The first one I watched was "Ping Pong Playa", a sports and comedy film written and directed by a Chinese-American. Actually, this is a really funny movie about Chinese stereotypes such as how Chinese are only good at table tennis and how Chinese are bad drivers. Jimmy Tsai, a Chinese-American actor, plays the main character, Christopher Wang, who is only obsessed with basketball and held the dream of becoming the first Asian American to enter the NBA (this was before Jeremy Lin entered the NBA). However, he never accomplished that dream because he wasn't as good as his black counterparts so he blamed himself for his genetics. Basically, his whole family's life revolves around ping pong; his dad owns a store selling ping pong stuff, his mom teaches ping pong classes, and his brother, Michael, is the championship of table tennis. However, later when Christopher's mom and his brother got into a car accident, Christopher is forced to take over in teaching his mom's table tennis classes and also to enter the table tennis championship on behalf of his brother. Overall, this movie is worth the watch because it's full of humor and makes table tennis fun to watch. Two thumbs up for me!
Another movie I watched that was about ping pong was the Korean movie, "As One" starring Ha Ji Won and Bae Doona. I liked how the movie is based on a true story in which North Korea and South Korea united for the 1991 table tennis World Championship in Chiba, Japan where they won gold, thus defeating China for the very first time. Ha Ji Won plays the role of the South Korean team captain, Hyun Jung-Hwa, who had to team up with North Korea's Ri Bun-Hui (played by Bae Doona) for the doubles competition to defeat their rivalry, China. It was quite a touching story where friendships were formed between the North and South table tennis players but they were forced to be separated after the championship because close relationships between the 2 countries were strictly forbidden. I am glad that Korea was able to film this story with such a painful history. Overall, another two thumbs up for great acting, great plot, and great story!
Here is a still from the movie. On the left is Ha Ji Won and on the right is Bae Doona:
Here's the real Hyun Jung-Hwa and the Ri Bun-Hui who defeated China at the 1991 World Championship in Chiba, Japan:
I have always been much of a squeamish person, avoid doing things that I feel will become a threat to my body. But slowly, I am trying to overcome my fears by trying to expose myself to them more frequently and learning how to manage those fears. In fact, about a month ago, I have conquered my fear of biking, which I was hesitant to learn at first for fear of falling off the bike and hurting myself but the good news is that I ended up learning how to bike. If I have never gotten on the bike that day, then I might have never experienced that feeling of accomplishment. Most people would take up to days or even weeks to finally be able to bike on their own but surprisingly, it actually took me about 15 minutes to finally get the hang of it--balance is the key to success in biking. I also want to say thanks to two of my accounting classmates and friends who have taught me how to bike and provided me with words of encouragement. Without their encouragement, I probably wouldn't have that much courage that day. Although I have fell down once, I have actually learned and gained alot from that because I will try not to make the same mistake next time. Thus, the saying, "No pain, no gain" is very true.
Since there was only 3 of us with only 2 bikes, we had to take turns on the bike while only person had to walk. Thus, we spent about 4 hours taking turns biking all the way from San Jose to Mountain View and then another 4 hours biking back the way we came from. It was a very tiring day with sores, injuries and a red, sunburnt nose but nonetheless, I had a really great time. Also, my legs tire out pretty quick because I wasn't used to biking so I had to stop and rest a bunch of times. This reminds me that I need to get rid of my lazy, sedentary lifestyle and try to do more exercise in order to become more fit.
A few weeks ago, I had my first booksigning at Barnes and Nobles with Jenny Lawson, the New York Times bestselling author of the memoir, "Let's Pretend This Never Happened". Jenny Lawson is actually well known for her blog which she updates constantly with alot of followers. You can check out her blog at: www.TheBloggess.com
Here is a little description of her book:
In her memoir, Jenny thinks that everyone should try to find humor in life because it is one of the sources contributing to our happiness. For most of her life, she has been suffering from a number of issues such as anxiety, depression, OCD, and mental illness. Despite these problems, she was able to reclaim her life by attending therapy and finding the things that have the tendency to bring her joy such as collecting preserved animals and writing a blog. It was hilarious when I read about the part where she wrote about her taxidermy father who used to collect dead animals' skin to make something out of them such as a hand puppet. The definition of taxidermy is the art of preserving the skins of animals and of stuffing and mounting them in lifelike form. Due to influence from her father, Jenny learned to appreciate preserved animals and so she decided to follow in his footsteps by collecting every taxidermy item she could get her hands on which includes preserved mices, rats, lizards, cats, etc. The funniest thing is that she likes to dress them up just to make them look pretty. On the cover of her book, you can see the preserved mice she has dressed up with a cape. People may think she is weird for doing so but this sort of activity is the source of humor and happiness she found in her life. I'm really glad to know that doing all these things have helped her get through life easily.
My experience:
30 minutes before the event started, Jenny Lawson's fans have already occupied all the chairs the staff at Barnes and Nobles provided. They really underestimated the size of the fanbase because there were less than 10 chairs at first but when more and more fans started to show up, they had to add more chairs. However, there wasn't enough chairs for everyone so most of them had to stand including me because by the time I arrived, all the seats were already taken. When the event started, Lawson read a chapter from her book and then shared a really touching story on how she had been suffering from extreme anxiety disorder that it was difficult to be in the crowd or even to engage in conversations with strangers. She was so shy that she didn't want to talk to anyone and the only way she could express herself was by writing and blogging. Today, although we are unable to tell, she is actually still feeling a little anxious when presenting in front of us. She also mentioned how she is now leading more of a positive life compared to the past because she is slowly breaking out of her shell with the constant battle against anxiety. In the end, she taught me that living life to the fullest is a top priority even if there are issues that are preventing you from doing so. I also appreciate the fact that she was able to write about her personal issues with a smile and laugh because not much people are strong enough to do that without having the urge to burst into tears. I remembered my first impression of her when she walked in was a really positive person with a beautiful smile. After the reading, she signed books for all of her fans and then we got to take a picture with her. An emotional moment occured when the person first in line cried because her dream came true after having the opportunity to meet her favorite author. Here's my picture I took with Jenny Lawson:
Final thoughts:
This is probably not a book to be reading in public because it will definitely make you laugh out loud to the point of snorting. In fact, the purpose of the book is to make her readers happy by making them laugh. Also, it's to let the people who are suffering from anxiety and depression know that they're not alone. In her writing, Lawson uses alot of profanity so do not read if you get offended by curse words easily. For me, I am totally ok with the swearing because I'm not made of glass and will not break if I heard or read the "F" word. Anyways, I think this book is definitely recommended to the people who have a great sense of humor or have the habit of laughing even for no reasons. :)
The title of this book, "Fresh Off the Boat" caught my eye while I was browsing through the shelves at the front of Barnes and Noble a few weeks ago. Call me weird but I'm currently in love with the term, fresh off the boat (FOB). If you are not sure what FOB stands for, it's a term used to refer to someone who just migrated to the United States from another country but have not yet assimiliated to the host nation's custom such as culture, language, and behavior. Another thing about the book that was eye-catching was the color of the cover, pink, which is my favorite color. Kudos to the author, Eddie Huang, for coming up with such an attractive cover
Anyways, this book is a memoir written by a Taiwanese American named Eddie Huang who is the current proprietor of Baohaus, a Chinese restaurant that specializes in selling Taiwanese-style steamed buns such as xiao long bao, char siu bao (BBQ pork puns), and many more. Eddie grew up in America and was raised by a family of FOBs from Taiwan and China. Growing up, he was always trying to fit into the American culture. Although he was born and raised in America, he felt like he didn't really belong there because of the discrimination he faced from his peers. People tell him that his face will not get him anywhere in the States. However, despite these discriminations, he is able to prove to America that he does belong by burning his way into the American culture by doing the things that gave him a feeling of belonging: taking interest in football/basketball, designing streetwear, and idolizing the rapper, Tupac. When he grew up, Eddie learned from his past and took into account the values his parents instilled in him about working hard and being capable. Therefore, he studied hard in school and earned his way into law school, where he received his bachelor's degree, making his father proud. However, he later found out that lawyer was not his thing after he realizes that Chinese food is his true passion. Thanks to the influence from his mom's cooking, his dad's restaurants and encouragement from various Food Network channels, Eddie has successfully opened his own restaurant with a combination of his love for hip-hop and food. The restaurant is called Baohaus; some of his famous dishes include pillowy steamed buns filled with a flavorful protein of choice, cilantro, crushed peanuts and Taiwanese red bean paste, and sweet bao fries. The menu also includes Jeremy Lin Bao! Sounds very yummy, eh? If you are interested in trying some of Eddie's signature steam buns, the place is currently located at 238 East 14th Street in East Village in New York City. Check out the restaurant's website for more info: http://www.baohausnyc.com/
Eddie writes a food blog and constantly posts videos on his website which is mostly about food and his identity. You can check out his blog at: http://thepopchef.blogspot.ca/
My thoughts on this book:
I really enjoyed reading Eddie's memoir because I found him to be a really fascinating person. His experiences have proved that anyone can transform their life with hard work and education. Eddie also introduced me to various Taiwanese foods such as soup dumplings and also the Taiwanese Dan-Dan Mian which is a spicy noodle with peppers, onions, and pork. The writing style of this book is also very interesting because it's written in a hip-hop voice with a combination of Chinese. However, readers should be forewarned because of the street language that some may find awkward and hard to understand. Nevertheless, I really recommend "Fresh Off the Boat" and wish Eddie continued success in his restaurant, his book, and his blog. :)
Growing up, I have never really been fond of any kinds of sports until I learned how to play ping-pong also known as table tennis at school two summers ago. I have tried playing badminton in the past but it doesn't really appeal to me as much as table tennis which is probably due to the reason that badminton is too simple for my liking. Before enrolling in the beginner's level table tennis class, I had played the sports with my dad at home who had previous experience and I have always lost to him. With no previous experience myself, I didn't know how to serve nor use the paddle the correct way. However, after taking the class, I learned alot of the basic techniques such as serving, slicing, and slamming with both forehand and backhand positions. Now, I'm able to beat my dad who used to go a bit easy on me before but now he doesn't have to do that anymore. This semester, I'm currently enrolled in Intermediate Level of table tennis which is a great PE class to end the year with. Many of my classmates say that I play really well especially using the forehand position but I still have troubles with the backhand position. But practice makes improvement! For the next class, we are going to play the singles tournament which is going to be very fun and of course, tiring since the class is going to be 2 hours long. Someday, I want to challenge my Vietnamese next-door neighbor to a game because they also love playng table table as well. Last summer, I heard them playing almost everyday with alot of ping pong balls flying over to my backyard which my dog has collected.
The next Jay Chou merchandise to be added to my collection is his 12th album entitled “Opus 12” which was supposed to be released on December 28, 2012 on YesAsia.com but the release date has recently been postponed to January 4, 2013. Since I’m a devoted fan, the wait is totally worth it! A very nice thing Jay is going to do for his fans is to release all of his 12 new songs on the radio before the official release of the album so that everyone can be able to listen to them first. I have already listened to all 12 samples of the songs and I have to say that I’m quite impressed with album. Every single song in the album suits my tastes just perfectly. I’m also glad that Jay have persisted with including at least one zhong guo feng (Chinese style) song in each of his albums. The first zhong guo feng which has already been released on the radio a few weeks ago is called “红尘客栈”or “Red Dust Inn“ which will be included in this upcoming album. In the music video, I really like his intensive use of Chinese instruments, such as the erhu, combined with R&B and a bit of other Western elements because it makes the song sound really beautiful. He just knows how to mix the music well with different instruments. That’s because he’s Jay Chou. Here is the official music video of “Red Dust Inn”. The MV is really sad like most of his other zhong guo feng MVs, but nevertheless, it’s really touching and worth the watch!
Another zhong guo feng song which will also be included in his upcoming album is called "公公偏头痛" or“Enunch With A Headache” which is a hip hop song combined with Chinese instruments. The MV was officially released a few days ago with a lot of positive feedback from fans. Notice that the zombies in the MV are supposed to belong to the Qing Dynasty and not the time period shown in the MV but Jay did that on purpose to make it more fun and creative. The storyline is very humorous and may be difficult to understand at first look but after watching the MV a couple more times, I believe that you will start to get the gist of it. The story actually talks about a corrupted enunch in the palace who pretends to be good and honest whenever the emperor is around but the truth is that he steals and lies behind the emperor’s back.
Another special fact to know is that Jay actually choreographed some of the dance such as the shoulder up and down part.
The first ballad song Jay released is called “明明就" or “Obviously”. The melody sounds really beautiful. At first, I really thought the MV was filmed in San Francisco, California because the bridge shown in the MV bears a striking resemblance to the Golden Gate Bridge but further research proved I was wrong. Parts of the MV was actually filmed at Scotland. Notice that Jay’s hair is dyed blond which I find to be very cool. I was surprised when I first saw him with the blond hair because I haven’t expected him to dye his hair. The last time I saw him with blond hair was the year he released “Ye Hui Mei” album which was way back. It’s definitely a huge change from Jay and I’m expecting more of his surprises coming our way.
Another MV that was also released a few days ago was "大本钟" or “Big Ben”. I thought this song sounds different from Jay’s style of music but it’s great to hear something new. The MV features Lara, who plays the female lead. It’s great to see her again in the same MV with Jay ever since “Coral Sea”. Here is "Big Ben" MV:
Lara is also featured in another of Jay’s newest MV called "比较大的大提琴" or
“Big Cello” along with Gary Yang. I really enjoyed watching this MV because Jay’s choreography is definitely moving at another level. His dancing is getting more and more sharp than ever! The MV is not officially released on JVR Music yet but here is the fan cam of the MV that Jay had shown at the press conference yesterday. It’s very DIAO! http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XNDk0MzU1NjU2.html
Growing up, I have never really taken any interest in anything that is Western-related such as Western movies or music even though I was born in America. The things I only found interesting is if it’s Asian-related. I guess the reason why I’m Asianized is because I grew up being surrounded mostly with Chinese movies, dramas, and music which my parents would watch and listen at home. However, thanks to a friend, my view towards Western media has recently changed as I started to become interested in Western music. It’s good to try something that you were never really interested in because you might end up liking it. My interest in Western music initially sparked from a blog post my friend had written about in which she talked about Barry Manilow, a legendary American singer who was really famous back in the 1970’s, when I didn’t even exist yet. She had talked about how one of Barry’s song “Somewhere Down the Road” was very memorable to her. Like always, curiosity got the better of me so I decided to google up this guy and tried listening to a few of his songs on Itunes. I find his songs to be very romantic, something that would remind someone of their first love. My personal favorites are his hit songs, “Can’t Smile Without You”, “Copacabana” and “Somewhere Down The Road”.
When I heard Barry Manilow is going to come perform at my hometown, I decided to give it a try since I wanted to learn more about who this legendary singer is and also on behalf of my friend who was not able to make it to the concert. On the day of Barry’s concert which was held at HP Pavilion, San Jose on December 6, 2012, when my dad and I arrived at the HP Pavilion an hour before the concert started, the line was already formed with a lot of people from the older generation. I was probably one of the youngest fans there. Well, you’re never too young to listen to Barry Manilow, right? Age difference doesn’t really matter; what matters is doing whatever makes you happy. They were selling Barry Manilow merchandises: CDS, T-shirts, etc. I would’ve bought something if the line wasn’t so long. Also, they were selling green glowsticks which I find interesting since glowsticks were very unusual at a Western concert. I wonder why Barry chose green; maybe it was to match the Christmas theme?
The stage was covered up with a red curtain which reminded me a Broadway play. When the concert officially started, the curtain opened up with Barry Manilow appearing in the spotlight; everybody was screaming, cheering, and throwing love out to him. I was touched by how many people of the older generation is still a fan of him after all those years. I don’t recall what Barry’s opening song was but I remembered it was a very romantic song. He first appeared in a red suit which goes along with the color of the curtain and the green glowsticks. Ha, I guess I was right about the Christmas theme.
One of my favorite songs from Barry is “Can’t Smile Without You” which he has performed at the concert. This was actually one of his top hits from back in the days and is still famous as of today. Almost everyone was familiar with this song since they were singing along to it, including me! The song brought a smile to my face when a happy face appeared on the screen during the performance. I liked how Barry said that he likes to make positive and uplifting songs to lift up people’s spirits since he thinks life sucks and it really does. He was full of energy and enthusiasm and was able to interact well with his fans. If I didn’t know he is 69 years old, I would think he is in his 50s since he still looked very handsome as of today. Another thing I liked was how he cracked some jokes to make the audience laugh. The one that really got me was when he said he was the Justin Bieber of the 70’s which I have to agree with him on. Here is a performance of "Can't Smile Without You". Look at all the green glowsticks!
Another one of his hit singles I liked was “Copacabana” which was the cha-cha dancing song. Everybody became more livelier when he performed this song. Here's a fancam of "Copacabana":
There were a few songs he played on the piano and on the keyboards such as "Weekend In New ngland", “Trying to get the feeling”, “I’m your child”, and “Mandy”, which were also his top hits. He played all the songs very beautifully and smoothly. Here is a fancam of his performance of "Weekend In New England" at HP pavilion:
The part that was very enjoyable to watch was the part where he and his band took turns playing the piano, rotating after one another. When he played “Mandy” on the grand piano, at the same time, a video clip was shown on the screen of him performing the song back in 1975 during one of his concerts. I thought he looked really handsome back then with the long hair and his prominent, sharp nose. With his good looks, I bet a lot of fan girls fell for him. If I existed during the 1970s, I would probably went crazy over him too.
Another interesting thing was when Barry showed us some of his previous album covers on the screen. The first album cover showed a picture of him in his 20s when he first debuted. It was hilarious when he said a lot of people thought he looked like Mona Lisa in the picture. Another thing Barry talked about was how his grandfather was the one who had made him into a musician. It was his grandfather who first saw music in him. In dedication of his grandfather, he played a song on his piano with a picture of him and his grandpa shown on the screen. Some people are just born talented; I wish I had that kind of talent too.
A very nice thing Barry did was starting a charity to help music schools to get more instruments. He told us that if we have any instruments we don’t use anymore which is lying at home and collecting dust, then we should do a good cause by donating them to his charity club. This reminds me, I have my older keyboard lying at home which I will probably donate later on. Overall, the concert was very satisfying. Although the concert lasted for only an hour and a half, which was shorter than expected, it was still a very satisfying experience. I have to admit that I have learned quite a lot of Barry Manilow now than before I attended the concert. The next time he comes back, I would be very likely to go again!
After being on hiatus for about 4 months due to school, exams, and piano lessons, I finally found some free time to write today’s blog post. I’m glad most of the midterms are over for my accounting and business classes which leaves only the final exams to be the last stressful thing on my mind. There’s a month of school left until winter break. Following winter break will be the spring semester and then after that, it will be the biggest accomplishment of my life because I will be officially graduating from San Jose State University with a bachelor’s degree in Accounting. Time sure flies. 4 years ago, I was entering college fresh out of high school but now in a blink of an eye, I am all grown up and about to graduate from college, take the CPA exam, and then enter the real world of accounting. In the real world, I can imagine life becoming more busier and complicated compared to being in school. Well, it’s hard to say what the future will hold for me so I will just have to wait and see what happens…
As for piano lessons, I have learned quite a lot after taking it for 6 months. I’m currently on Lesson 2 and enjoying it even more than Lesson 1. The things I have learned and enjoyed the most is being able to change to different hand positions, moving the fingers up and down the keyboard, and using the pedal to preserve the sounds. Since I wasn’t born a pianist, it’s difficult to play as smoothly as a professional. However, I believe that I can be able to play more smoothly probably in the future when I have master the skills. I noticed that the more time I spent practicing on the piano, the more drawn to it I become. Now I find myself playing the piano more than when I first started.
I just like the feeling of playing a song over and over again until I know how to play the entire song because this makes me feel like I have accomplished something big. This motivates me to practice even harder to try to master another song which I want to play and show off to my family and friends whom I can imagine being amazed by my piano skills. A month ago, I have purchased an electric piano at Costco for a very affordable price which includes a pedal as well as chair. What’s unique about this piano is that the keys are heavy-weight which feels like the ones on a grand piano. As for my old electric piano and dad’s old brown piano, they have been put aside for future use. The brown piano needs to be tuned up but piano tuning is a bit costly, so buying another electric piano is more worth it. Here is the electric piano I have recently purchased. You can see the heavy weight keys and the pedal on the bottom right of the picture:
Also, my interest in reading have grown in the past few months because I found myself purchasing books even when I haven’t even started reading the ones I already have. Maybe I should put a halt to my excessive spending until I have finished the ones I haven’t even started. A book I have recently finished reading is “Total Recall”, a biography on Arnold Schwarzenegger. Overall, the book is pretty interesting and very motivating. He pretty much talks about his life growing up in Austria while carrying the dream of going to America. He accomplished this dream through bodybuilding. After arriving in America, he worked as a trainer in a gym and later on, film companies hired him as an actor which then brought him to fame in Hollywood. You might’ve first saw him in “The Terminator”. He also talks about his experiences succeeding Grey Davis to become California’s governor and how that has changed his life.
I admire the fact that he had put a lot of time and effort to have succeeded in the position he is in today. There are many people who says that something can’t be done but Arnold is able to prove them wrong. For instance, in the book, he mentioned how his father didn’t believe that he will succeed in bodybuilding but Arnold was able to prove that his father was wrong by becoming a championship in bodybuilding. Also, when some people did not believe he will become a politician, he proved them wrong with his victorious winning in becoming a governor. I learned from Arnold that everything is possible if you just try.
Now, to end the day, here is a line from the book I find to be very motivating:
“The only way to make the possible possible is to try the impossible. If you fail, so what? That is what everybody expects. But if you succeed, you make the world a much better place”.
