UglyDolls – UglyCon2008

why are we angry? because we were told to look angry =P the guy from the store was taking random pictures. there weren’t very many asians there in a store that’s probably run by mainly asians.

we were at Giant Robot. it’s a store that sells japanese/asian like trinkets and toys and such. they were the host of last year’s UglyCon

UglyCon is basically an excuse for people who love UglyDolls to get together and purchase various UglyDoll merchandise. Some are limited handmade editions and others are pre-releases, before they go on sale to the masses.

and of course they had uglydoll related merchandise. like paintings, and prints

before we got to uglycon we weren’t exactly sure what to expect. and really didn’t plan on buying anything in particular, but in the end we gave in and got some stuff we wanted

due to some unfortunate (but very fortunate for us) mixup regarding the prints we ended up getting some prints for free!!

We’re hoping to frame these and put them into the baby’s room. hopefully she’ll enjoy them as much as joseph and i like them

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korea – day 10 – Gumi, Kimcheon, and NamDaeMoon

As I mentioned in the previous korea post, I MUST FINISH THIS.

After the trip to GyeongJu, we spent the night at my uncle’s home in Gumi.

It’s a small and modest house in what most of us would consider a very rural area. this is where my dad’s family’s land is. most of it belongs to this particular uncle, since he was the only son to stay in korea, while the other two sons went off to the states. he built this home from “scratch”. he and his wife saved their entire lives in preparation for retirement.

americans typically think of retirement as moving to florida, hanging out with other old people and going to denny’s for the senior grand slam special. koreans have a different view. my uncle and aunt spend their time farming the family land. the grow their own soybeans, and other vegetables. they do everything organically so everything is cooked simply and the flavor is amazing! they make their own soy sauce, tofu, soybean paste (dwenjang), red pepper paste (ggotchujang), and a number of other things.

On basically what was our last full day in korea, my uncle gave us a tour of his home. extremely proud of what he’s been able to provide for his family, and also to show us that he’s taken care of our family land. he pointed to some of the dried greens that were hanging from the garage and said that it was my dad’s favorite vegetable. so he dries plenty of it each year hoping my dad comes for a visit. he showed us the mill he uses to grind the beans.

before getting ready to take us to kimcheon, he wanted to show us one more thing. my dad’s best friend’s burial/memorial site and the buddhist temple the man had built and worshipped at. though my dad’s family is catholic, they were good friends with this man and also proud of his acheivements.

i don’t know his name, but my dad showed me pictures. he was the provincial wrestling champion. but also a devout buddhist. he would go to a local cave and meditate for days without food or water. later he became a famous buddhist monk and raised money to build this temple. along with the temple he had a deep desire to serve the disabled and mentally handicapped. there is an adjacent home to the temple. we didn’t get to visit the facility so no pictures. unfortunately, my dad’s friend was murdered by one of the mentally ill. he was buried next to the temple.

we then decided to take a quick trip to kimcheon. there’s a park there that features different types of art. including some very interesting statues like these:

the first is joseph pretending to play a children’s game where you attempt to hop on someone’s back and play a game of rock, paper, scissors. next joseph was told to rub the buddha’s belly so we would have good luck in trying to have a baby. i proceeded to touch the belly button instead. the last two were all in good fun of course

there should be no vacation/travel posts without the gluttonous amount food consumed! we went to a pork bbq place. instead of the usual vents that are fixed on the ceiling, you could pull these vents down towards the table and then push them back up and out of the way to eat. this basically concluded our trip to the kumi area. before we left my uncle proceeded to say “i’m sorry if they did anything wrong”. after this lengthy post of the hospitality and the family love they showed, suffice to say there was NOTHING wrong that they did. in fact, joseph and i probably should’ve said what they had said instead. we intruded on their quiet lives and they welcomed us with open arms.

my aunt and uncle put us on a high speed train back to seoul. this by itself is a treat. it’s like taking the acela instead of the regional train. time difference between the two is a few hours because there are also far fewer stops in between.

it actually dropped us off not too far from namdaemoon. so guess were we went next?

this outdoor street market is HUGE. it’s a maze. i tried to be as diligent as possible to make sure we either knew where we were going, or at least know how to get back to where we came from. it’s a sea of wholesalers of all different types of stuff, of everything from clothes, socks, bras, pots, knives, computers….you name it, they probably have it. apparently there are alot of tourist from china and japan looking for korean ginseng. all the sales people kept yelling at me and joseph in cantonese, mandarin, taiwanese, japanese and korean – unsure whether we were one or another.

lastly, the last nite of being in korea meant that we finally got to spend some time with my cousin. usually he’s the one i spend most of my time with when i’m in korea. but this trip was obviously different. he’s also far busier now, running the furniture company that my uncle built. it used to be living room, bedroom and dining room furniture company. my cousin decided to change the direction of the company based on his research and noticing the fair share of furniture companies in asia. it was a smart investment and business strategy for him. the new direction was to build wardrobes for apartments. much like in the US, the real estate market BOOMED all over asia, with new buildings and renovations happening all over. guess who was building new wardrobes through many of korea’s new/remodeled homes?

we ended up starting at a chicken place. like i said before, joseph was so smitten with kyochon, we looked for every opportunity to eat more of that kind of chicken. my cousin ended up taking us to this place where one of the owners looked like my aunt #6. we had some beer and chicken and caught up. instead of staying after we finished eating though, we headed off to a second place. some japanese place to eat more food and drink some more. by this time we get to this second place, i’m already a little tipsy, on the verge of drunk. i don’t think joseph was, though he did get quiet and looked very happy with a huge grin on his face. this is probably why there aren’t many pictures of our time spent with my cousin. man koreans can drink.

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Pregnancy – Second Trimester

Some people have asked how my pregnancy has been going. Well, it’s been going. It’s been both great and very bad at times. Here I’ll share mainly about my second trimester. (first trimester shared here)

second trimester was better than the first. for sure. only one incident of diarrhea and vomiting. and my appetite slowly came back. at the last doctors appointment of the trimester I had finally gained back 2.5lbs of the 10lbs i had lost.

that was really the most scary thing for me. everything i read and from other people’s experiences they had all GAINED weight during their pregnancy, nearly from the beginning. meanwhile i gained nothing, only lost. it scared me. i was definitely trying to eat more and more frequently. third trimester has been better. more on that in a later post.

i started to feel the baby move around. the fluttering feels a lot like GAS. but as the baby got bigger we could start to feel her kick. i found it sort of amusing and cute most of the time. joseph thinks it’s a little creepy, because it’s like a little alien in my belly.

the most amazing part of the second trimester is the sonogram. lying on the table and watching the screen. it was fun to see the face and body. and finding out that it was a girl!

i’m a little afraid to have a girl. i guess my “preference” was a boy. but only because i’m not sure if i know how to raise a girl. friends will have to put my daughter’s hair up for her. cos i have no clue, other than the basic pony tail. and what to do if she wants to wear a dress? how about make-up?!

thank goodness for god parents. we’ve selected and asked 4. two men and two women. their responsibilities are:

1. to love our child
2. to pray for her
3. perhaps protect her
4. to care for her
5. (optional) braid her hair

here’s some gifts from some of the god parents. how fitting =P:

headphones for the concerts baby tsang will go to in the future. she’s already been to at least 2: snow patrol and the killers.

these are really fun cds. the U2 one we got long before i got pregnant but i’m still applying it since it’s from one of the god parents.

no… the god parents are NOT required to begin buying things for our child. that is not one of the responsibilities as mentioned above.

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Pregnancy – First Trimester

Some people have asked how my pregnancy has been going. Well, it’s been going. It’s been both great and very bad at times. Here I’ll share mainly about my first trimester.

Joseph and I figured out around the annual Vision retreat that I might be pregnant. I’m fairly regular, but my period hadn’t come when it was supposed to. So once we got back home, we went to the pharmacy and got some tests. joseph shared about the experience here via some pictures. let me just tell you, trying to read and understand those lines was confusing!

Once I was sure, I started doing the research on hospitals and doctors. In NY, it’s a bit mind boggling. You’re basically choosing between the best Children’s hospital, best NICU, best pregnancy/birthing hospital, best high risk doctors, etc. It turned out, whatever hospital I chose would be either the best or at least ranked top 10 in the country in something or another.

Next was down-selecting the doctor. My criteria was:

1. Recommended by a friend or more
2. Takes my insurance
3. Delivers at one of the better hospitals, per my previous paragraph

I made appointments with about 4 doctors after getting a list of about 20+ doctors from various friends and doctors. Only a few actually fit my 3 criteria. But then I canceled the rest of my appointments after having seen the first doctor. She was great. Joseph and I didn’t feel the need to see a bunch of other doctors after her.

Beyond the research and administrative stuff, my body was freaking out on me. Lack of appetite basically caused me to lose about 10lbs. Weird. Most people gain weight, instead I lose weight. I didn’t want to eat anything really. Meat was a definite turn off and actually still is, but I forced myself to eat it for protiens sake. However, almost anything spicy would be eaten no problem, just not a whole lot of it.

Morning sickness was more like ALL-DAY sickness. At one point I had both diarrehea and vomit coming from my body at the same time! (sat on the toilet with a trashcan in front of me)

The good is that I’m definitely eating better. I eat far more vegetables and my want for korean food is stronger than ever (perhaps to joseph’s chagrin =P)

And the GREAT is how loving and supportive joseph has been through all the ugliness, grossness, and pickiness.

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25 random things

this seems to be a facebook thing, but i dont’ like things that are only permanent in facebook. facebook will one day fade away like myspace and xanga. i hope agapeshack never fades.

1. joseph and i were married on july 26, 2003. i was 23. the next day i turned 24. there were about 1000 people at the wedding, with 4 receptions. but no limos. just friends..lots of friends

2. i like cooking for friends and family. i took amateur classes at FCI to make sure i wouldn’t feed them crap. but i have no aspirations in becoming a professional chef.

3. i like stupid movies. joseph calls it the “theresa network”. i’ll watch 13 going on 30, notting hill, and love actually whenever it shows up on tv and i’ve got free time. but some stupid movies will make me gag – most recently “enchanted”. but i also have a love for smart movies.

4. i used to go karaoke alot back in college. i like to scream into the mic, so i usually sing korean rock ballads. my favorites are lee seung hwan, and kim kyung ho

5. at church, i like to sing at the same octave as the guys when singing worship songs. sometimes it scares the people around me.

6. i love to drive. i miss having a car. my first car was an electric blue nissan altima, after college i bought an acura tl. i now own no car, but part owner or many buses and subway cars.

7. i like to play golf, but i’m not very good anymore. i’m a better coach/caddie.  in middle/high school school i used to play alot and actually had a decent handicap.

8. i grew up in inner city baltimore. alot of the stuff that happens in the Wire seems familiar to me.

9. i dislike curry, but will make it for friends and will eat it.

10. i LOVE rice. my comfort foods are rice with kimchi and seaweed soup on the side. it’s actually the first meal i ever remember eating. i hope this will be an early food for our daughter too.

11. i like to do crafts. i like papercrafting and knitting. i’m currently in the middle of doing a papercraft of pee-wee herman for a coworker, and i’m trying to knit a baby blanket.

12.  i ran into a coffee table when i was a kid. i now have a scar immediately underneath my left eye. most people can’t see it because my glasses usually help hide it

13. i’ve lived in 11 different homes in maryland alone (does NOT include dorms). 2 in nyc. for a grandtotal of 13. (how fitting…)

14. i’ve had the same cell phone number since 1998.

15. i don’t like chocolate. i had a traumatic incident in elementary school where i had some chocolate milk and shortly thereafter threw up all over my and my friends lunches. i’ll eat white chocolate sometimes tho.

16. i have a large family. 26+ “cousins” just on my mothers side. 26+ “cousins” on my dad’s side as well. i haven’t met everyone yet, so i’ve stopped counting. the ones i’m closest with are those i grew up with, and helped take care of as i was growing up myself.

17. i’ve always dreamed of owning my own business. i’ve already thought through my business plan, financing and 5 years worth of goals with high level milestones every 6months. my parents have owned at least 8 businesses that I am aware of/can remember.  most of my aunts and uncles own(ed) their own businesses as well; ranging from a furniture company to a cafe.

18. i scare most people the first time i meet them. it’s usually me being friendly, they just don’t realize it.

19. i hate the heat. when i vacation, i like places that are usually cooler and no beaches please.

20. i’m skeptical about alot of things.

21. i don’t like people who have a problem with or complain about something but don’t have suggestions on how to fix it.

22. i can drink heavily, but choose not to. my tolerance is hereditary.

23. i like offal meats. hearts, gizzards, feet, tongue, ears, marrow, intenstine, tripe, sweetbreads, livers, etc. i don’t eat them often tho. they are not good for you in excess.

24. i’m strangely good at dealing with customer service and getting what i want either over the phone or in person

25. joseph is my favorite person in the world. right behind my halmuhnee =P

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“The Wire” – My Wire – Charles Carryout

so i’m a big fan of this show called The Wire. I’ve only finished seasons 1 and 2. But I’m hooked! I’m curious as to why it only lasted 5 seasons, but perhaps the remaining 3 aren’t as good. In any case, this is a great show. For those of us who grew up in and around Baltimore, it’s a magical show; bleak but magical.

I recently read an article on CNN about The Wire and the overly bleak picture the show seems to display regarding the youth in Baltimore. [ref: http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/TV/12/22/the.wire/index.html] And it made me sad.

Is growing up and living in Baltimore that hopeless? No. I know. I’m a college-educated, 20-30something asian american living what most probably consider “upper-middle-class”. But I grew up/worked in some of these neighborhoods.  Whenever I mention that I grew in these neighborhoods, people are shocked.

I was far privileged than many of the characters on the show, but what made me different? Joseph says that sometimes he can’t understand what I’m saying when I’m back in Baltimore talking to some of the “urban locals.”  So it’s definitely not the way I speak.

So what makes me connect to show? ….

My parents used to own a store called “Charles Carryout”. Thanks to Google Maps, I think I found it:

across the street used to be an abandoned lot. People used to park their cars there with no rhyme or reason.  My dad used to park our beat up 12yr old station wagon there. And next to the lot, i don’t remember ANYTHING as nice as the building that is there now, which sort of looks like an office building.

My parents lived above the store. My brother and I lived there on the weekends and summers. It was just a block or so from the projects and the schools were horrible. so my brother and i lived with my grandmother during the week (more on that in a future post perhaps).

what i remember most was running from the station wagon to the store to avoid potential gun fire, lewd comments, and getting harassed. entering the doors, and still being told to run to get behind the bullet proof glass doors that were locked at all times.

my favorite memories were playing ms. pac-man and centipede with some of the neighborhood kids. the guy who owned the video game machines would give us 20+ free credits when he emptied out the bins. other memories included playing/sleeping in tents that fit over the twin sized mattresses our parents bought me and my brother. the huge dogs that lived in the backyard. i only ever got to see them from afar since they were so scary.

just a little insight into my strange but fun childhood

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Papercraft: Lone Wolf and Cub

I like to papercraft. It’s basically taking paper, cutting it and then putting it together to make something. At bare minimum, you just need a printer, paper, and scissors. I usually use a cutting mat, steel rulers, an exact-o knife and some paper glue.

In this case it’s Lone Wolf and Cub, japanese comic book characters. These were super easy and I basically finished in a day between doing other stuff. I picked these because I know joseph has a collection of the Lone Wolf and Cub manga series at home.

I got the plans from cubeecraft.com.

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where’s baby?

play this like “where’s waldo?”

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korea – day 9 – GyeongJu

i am embarassed, but i MUST complete this series.

day9 of our korea trip was a trip to GyeongJu.  Joseph had read in the travel books about this place as the place to go to see Cherry Blossoms in korea. I briefly mentioned it to my uncle and next thing you know, that’s where we were headed.

Unfortunately, the day we decided to go it rained. Most of the days we were in Korea it didn’t rain. Just bad timing I guess but the views and the drive was still great. just look at some of the pictures above. plenty of trees to look at and just a beautiful place to be.

since most of korea was about food, for me at least, i must also share about the food we had there. for lunch my aunt had planned to take us to a very popular and good restaurant, but once we got there it was ridiculously packed. the way was far too long, and since we had planned to see a bunch of things that day we went to another place next door.

needless to say, they thought the food wasn’t that good. i didn’t really mind it. i think i’m too used to korean food that is just mediocre. My mediocre is the equivalent to bad in korea >_<.  i’ll skip on describing the mediocre food. not worth my time or effort

next up was a trip to one of the oldest buddhist shrines in korea. by now it was pouring. my uncle bought us each a plastic poncho and thankfully they had some umbrellas in their car. one of the nice things about doing touristy things while it’s raining is that there are so few tourists it almost doesn’t matter

Joseph was able to sneak this blurry picture in before we got into any trouble when told we weren’t allowed to take pictures of the shrine. you can sort of make out the gold buddha behind the pillar.

the rain made us all a little miserable. walking around the dirt paths, in the rain was not ideal. our pants were soaking, we were cold, and the risk of falling while walking up the hills and stuff was much greater than we would’ve liked. so we left shortly thereafter. maybe one day joseph and i will go back when the weather is more manageable.

like the korean fried chicken, these gyeongju-bbang pastries were a trendy food for a while. it’s basically a thin flour pastry filled with redbean paste. it’s a not too sweet, small dessert. i’m not a big fan of these types of desserts. mainly because i don’t really like my redbean to be on the drier side. still tasty tho. i think joseph had a few.

next up was a museum. it’s now been way too long for me to remember the name of the museum, but it’s the main one in gyeong ju. here we saw more statues, and old relics. it was also a nice break from the pouring rain.

the highlight of the day for me was dinner. look at this spread! all these little dishes took up the entire table. fish, meats, pickled veggies, stir fried this and that. plethora to choose from. a great meal to end the day.

here’s a nice little aside:

all of us in the states complaining about gas prices, can now stop. in korea this WAS the price of gas back in july (only a little into the rising gas crisis we’re going through now). it’s about $1.60 per LITER. that equates to about $4.50/gallon for the cheapest gas. i’m curious as to what the gas prices in korea are now. i’m imagining my aunt’s family in korea taking the bus or subway instead of their 2 huge audi sedans or the gas guzzling volvo. ok.. yeah..probably not likely.

hopefully my next korea post won’t take 2 months to write =P

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ninja rollercoaster…bull fighter rollercoaster?

so today we were at 6 flags. great day for an amusement park.

one of the rides was called “the ninja“. the coaster was ok, the park definitely had some better ones. but the line was nice and short. but the best part of the ride was when the “host”/operator kept yelling “hi-ya”. at first, i was disturbed because it seemed racist, and then i realized it wasn’t racist, he was just doing the grunt that most people learn when they do martial arts. but it made me think. “does the theme park expect the operator to yell ‘hi-ya’ everytime a set of cars leaves?” if it does, man that sucks for the operator. i’d totally get tired of saying ‘hi-ya’ without getting to smash something to bits.  i know i’d also lose enthusiasm after a while.

but the funniest thing that came to mind was different variations of rollercoaster names and operator shoutouts – what if there was a soul rollercoaster? what would the operator say? maybe something in jive? or how about a bull fighter roller coaster? perhaps yell “ole! ole!”. the funniest one i thought of was “the tantra” and the operator can yell “NAMASTE!” (the tantra is a set of hindu scriptures, also known as “weavings” or “looms” – finally my high school world religion class comes in handy)

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