Weekend Meme: Chinese New Year Meme

So Chinese New Year is really close by, in fact I think it's this coming Monday. Friday night I went to my friend's house for a lavish 15 course end-of-year meal that spanned out for hours. We just cook and ate as we go, a few course at a time and it was delicious and left me gut-bustingly full. The so called"End-of-Year" is also called the coming together meal, where you're supposed to get with your friends and family, sort of like the Chinese Thanksgiving. So it's also understandable that it the time of the year that I miss my family in Hong Kong the most.

I'm still worried about my grandma and her stroke incident. My family has a culture of always being over-critical of each other and since my grandma had been through a war, she is stringent and a bit of a hoarder. Most of my family brought up by her had been tired of her ways. I'm sure with her 6 remaining children, somebody is bound to be taking care of her, but I'm not there. And I wonder if I'll ever get the chance to see her while she's still alive.

Well sorry for the holiday blues. No, my life is not about being sad all the time. Most of it is stuffed up with work and hanging out with friends. I just went to my friends for a meal that start on early Friday evening and we played mahjong all night until the sun came up Saturday morning where I went out to a thick blanket of snow and got home to sleep until late afternoon. Tonight, there's another Chinese New Year dinner with another group of friends. Life is good.

Today I decided to write up my own meme. There seems to be a lot of meme about all other holidays, so I'm gonna try asserting my culture here and hope some other people will follow.

Chinese New Year Meme

1. What is your Chinese zodiac sign? 
I was born on a year of the rabbit.

2. What are the traits and do you identify with any of them?
Rabbits are supposed to be clever and friendly. I think I'm pretty friendly.

3. How often do you order Chinese food? Where from?
About once every two weeks I have some Chinese food in Chinatown somewhere.

4. What is your favorite Chinese dish and what is so good about it?
Crab meat on snow pea shoots. Snow pea shoots being my favorite green vegetable ever (only in season during winter). And the creamy crab meat just add to the whole silkiness of the dish.

5. Look around for the closest thing around you that says "Made in China", what is it? (Made in Hong Kong, Taiwan or Macau would also count)
My alarm clock.

6. It is customary that during Chinese New Year we wish others "Prosperity in the New Year" or "Better Health". What is the one aspect in your life that you wish could be better?
Right now I'll go for prosperity.

7. It is also customary that kids receive red envelops with money in it for good luck. What's the best gift you've ever gotten? From whom?
I think it's the keyboard I got one year from a good friend. I took piano lessons with it so I enjoyed being able to be artistic. Another friend gave me an $100 giftcard for my birthday during my unemployment years which helped me out quite a bit. I thought that was really thoughtful of him.

8. What do you associate with the color red?
Blood, passion, loud, bold, attention seeking.

9. Look around for the closest red thing, what is it?
My red and white polo shirt, my curtains.


10. If you ever own a Chinese restaurant, you'll name it? (I'm expecting some cheese here)
Golden Dragon. It sounds traditional.

11. Name the Asian person who you have the closest relationship with and his/her role in your life.
My grandmother. Enough said.

12. Name your favorite Asian movie.
I think it's the Wedding Banquet. It's this movie about a Gay Taiwanese that had to pretend to be straight for his parent's sake.

13. Have you ever been racially discriminated? What happened?
Not blatantly. Although this one time a couple of kids were riding in my college campus and yelled out for directions, when I approach them they said "Not you, where are you gonna get us to? China?"

14. What observations/stereotypes are Asians that you believe to be true?
We are usually meeker and smarter.

15. How many languages do you speak?
English, Cantonese, Mandarin, a bit of Spanish and French.

16. If you're ever getting a Chinese Character as a tattoo, what do you want it to mean?
Brotherhood

17.When's the last time you traveled abroad? Where to?
I think it's to Mexico about 4 years ago. Just crossed the border to Tijuana, didn't fly or anything.

18. Have you ever had sex with someone Asian? Would you?
Yes. On many occasions.


I guess that's it. Have a great weekend!