So my folks came down to visit and have an early celebration for Oldest and me as our birthdays are a week apart. My Mom, who tends to lack any kind of discretion and is about as subtle as a gorilla in a china factory, has switched tactics and has been trying to be subtle about the fact that she perceives me to be overweight.
She says things like:
"You don't have to go on a diet, you just need to stop eating."
"You're not fat, you just need to move around all the time. Like now. Stop eating and start running, jumping, jogging. Now! Right now! Get up!"
So she and my dad came down to visit, but stayed at my sister's house in Virginia because our house is undergoing "insurance covered snow storm damage repairs." Yes the snow from over 3 months ago. Don't even get me started on that.
Anyway, we go over to have dinner and my Mom gives me an early birthday present. First she hands me a large pink envelope and then a large manila envelope folded over. She then asks me not to open the folder until I get home. When I get home, first I open the manila envelope (apparently she'd run out of wrapping paper) and pulled out this little handy dandy book:
I open it and guess what's inside?
Then I open the large very pink envelope and pull out this lovely card:
When I open the card, another surprise:
Anybody else getting the feeling that I'm being bribed to lose weight?
OK guys! Since Ello's day is also Earth Day, I'm going to have a little contest and give out some prizes in celebration for it being mine and the Earth's Days - because we are both very special and share things that are big and round. So stay tuned as I come up with interesting prizes for people to try for later this week!
We went out to dinner at a very nice, very fancy restaurant. The kids oooohed and ahhhhed over the place. The chandeliers were a fancy bubble like pattern. They used cloth napkins instead of paper. They had fancy leather padded chairs and the staff wore ties. But it wasn't until the bathrooms that the kids really got excited. Burnished brass fixtures in a marble bathroom with wicker baskets, perfumed soap, and even mouthwash.
Angus announced to the whole restaurant that she'd never been in such a fancy bathroom before.
Unfortunately, the kids did not like their overly priced dinner. Some fancy schmancy attempt at gourmet pizza for kids with a Mediterranean twist that none of them liked. Youngest announced that it smelled like cat food. Angus just ate the bread. Oldest ate Da Man's food instead.
As we got up from our table and began the long trek through the restaurant to the door, the kids start to complain about their dinner.
Youngest - I'm still hungry.
Me - You should have ate more at dinner.
Youngest - But I didn't like it!
Me - Too bad.
Youngest (to her sisters) - This place is disappointing. The food is not as good as its bathroom.
Ironically, their favorite restaurants are these hole in the wall places with fabulous food and bathrooms you wouldn't catch me dead in. So is there a correlation? I don't want to even think about it.
I was going through my files on my computer and found this old clip of Angus singing with Oldest acting goofy in the background. I think they were 3 and 5. Youngest isn't on screen but you can hear her chattering behind the camera. I can't believe how fast time flies. Oldest is only 2 inches shorter than me and Angus is catching up fast. Youngest is now in kindergarten and I don't have babies anymore. I'm so happy to see them grow and yet so sad that they aren't so little anymore. It's a bittersweet moment.
One day my Mom and I were having lunch when she keeps staring at my chin.
"What is it?" I asked.
"I see a double chin," Mom said. "You'd better start exercising again." Visions of jumping in the air and smacking myself on the chin fleeted through my head.
"I am dieting, I gave up donuts," I said.
"But not brownies, cookies, chocolate, or cupcakes," she said as she pointed to my pantry. "Double is bad. Double chin, double belly, double self. Everything double is bad."
"You're exaggerating..."
"I'm not! Double patties, double chocolate, double by-pass heart surgery, double trouble. See? Everything double is bad. One day your husband will look at you and think, hmmm, I need a new wife. That would be double wife. That's bad."
"That's not fair, he's got a bit of a double chin too!"
She nodded sagely. "Double standard. I told you everything double is bad."
Last time my Mom was visiting, I walked in on her in the living room acting strangely. She was reaching up high with one arm and jumping in the air. As she landed, she'd smack herself on the head and continue to reach and jump. After 10 jumping head smacks she switched arms and did it 1o more times.
So I had to ask her.
"Mom, what are you doing?"
"I'm exercising," she said as she moves on to her 30th jump smack.
"But why are you jumping and hitting yourself?"
"I am reaching high and jumping to stretch out my stomach because I ate too much today. And I'm hitting myself on the head to remind myself not to eat too much again." She doesn't even stop as she explains this to me. "If you do this too, you would stop eating all those sweets right away."
"If I did that everytime I ate something bad I'd be in a coma," I said.
Recently Angus had a basketball game that didn't go so well. Da Man is coaching her and it is her first season with players who had never played before either. So it is a newbie third grade team. They played a team that had been playing since kindergarten. It was a massacre. The final score must have been 45 to 12 or something painful like that. During halftime, the scorekeepers in an act of mercy wiped the scorecard clean and kept tally privately instead. It was in the second half that Angus and her teammates got a little bit livelier and scored 12 points. The scorekeepers put the 12 up but kept the other teams score at 0, which surprised me and ended up confusing our players.
The coach for the other team, a really lovely and gracious coach, kept calling out to her players to let our team take shots. Plus overall, I thought her players showed excellent good sportsmanship. I applaud coaches like her, and Da Man, - they are few and far between.
But the reason for the story is afterward, Angus came over and said "Did you see Mom? We got 12 and the other team didn't get any points in that second half!"
I corrected her and told her that the other team had actually scored also, but the scorekeepers hadn't added it to the scoreboard. Angus was disappointed.
Another mother overheard me and admonished me. "You shouldn't have told her that. Let her believe that they did well."
I was a bit surprised. "But they did do well. And I'm not going to lie to her."
"You're a bit too harsh," the other mother said. "I would have just let her believe it so she still feels good about it. Now you've made her depressed."
I made a non-committal response and left but I thought about this for a long time. Did I do wrong? Should I have let Angus continue to believe that they had dominated the other team and kept them to 0 points when in fact the other team had outscored them again in both halves?
My gut screams no. First because it is dishonest. But secondly, because I believe this is a form of coddling that I just can't agree to. It's like giving awards to every team that plays, even if they didn't win. Personally, I think it is bull, but I can live with it. I'm of the old fashioned viewpoint that if you win, you get an award, and if you lose you get a hug and you go out to buy ice cream as a consolation prize. I applaud effort and I believe it is important to encourage effort, but don't reward it because then I feel you are just pushing for mediocrity. A sense of "well I tried and that's good enough." Yes and No. Try, and keep trying, and maybe one day you will succeed. And when you succeed, you'll be rewarded. That's life. To teach our kids any differently is to set them up for enumerable heartache.
But maybe I'm wrong. I'd love to hear other people's opinion.
Hey guys, I admit that I am not a good blogger lately. I feel that it is the lack of donuts that is causing me to be such a poor internet presence these days. I am just so weak these days. But I do have a bit of a scoop that I want to share with you. I have an interview up with the fabulous Stacy Whitman, editor extraordinaire, founder of Tu Books, an independent press focusing on multicultural fantasy and science fiction for middle grade and young adult readers, over at the Enchanted Inkpot. Tu Books has now been acquired by Lee and Low Books!
I'm really proud of Stacy. She started an independent press because she saw a need in the marketplace for multicultural books for children. She started it against all odds, willing to make lots of sacrifices to make it work, and now all her hard work has paid off and Tu Books is now an imprint and Stacy is the Editorial Director! Instead of just 2 books the first year, she hopes to publish 6 titles in 2011!
So please check out the interview and let me know what you think of this new publishing endeavor.
Since giving up donuts for Lent, I've found myself craving sweets like a Pavlovian dog hearing a constantly ringing bell. I go to bed thinking of sweets, I sleep and dream of sweets, and I wake up craving them. There has been only one thing that has satisfied my sweet addiction. And that is a red velvet cupcake from Georgetown Cupcakes.
So luscious, so sweet, so decadent, so creamy, so drool slobbering, fever inducing good. If I had to choose between a red velvet cupcake and a date with Clive Owen, I'd slide tackle Clive aside in my rush to cram the cream cheese icing into my mouth. I'd run over Hugh Jackman, shove Brad Pitt, and stampede over Johnny Depp. Errrrr, wait a second. Rewind. Who in their right mind would choose a cupcake over Johnny Depp? Thinking. Thinking. Thinking. Sorry Johnny. I gotta go with the cupcake.
FYI, if you are in the DC area and you are near a Georgetown Cupcakes, then follow them on twitter here because everyday they have a secret cupcake flavor. They make about a 100 of them. Once they tweet the secret flavor, rush over to your local Georgetown Cupcake, tell them the secret favor and you get that cupcake for free, no purchase necessary. But why would you go to a Georgetown Cupcake and not buy a red velvet? That's kind of like sacrilege you know.
Thought I was going to say Kim Chee, right? Well, actually I've had people describe kim chee the same exact way, so to each his own. But today I am not waxing eloquent about the hot and spicy pickled cabbage dish. No, I want to revisit my youth in painful detail with you.
Most children with Korean parents have endured being grabbed in a head lock and having their nose pinched ruthlessly by their mother as halmoni (grandma) pours a brownish/black, warm, stinky, herbal concoction down their throats. I remember letting the foul stuff leak out the side of my lips and down my neck to try and keep from vomiting, only to get smacked on the head by my little old halmoni while she shouted that I was spitting out liquid gold. Apparently gold tastes a lot like horse manure. My sister had a much better method of dealing with the han yak. As soon as they forced it down her throat, she'd immediately hurl it back into halmoni's lap, along with whatever else she'd been recently eating. After about the 10th time of being covered in puke, halmoni finally gave up on her and poured all her han yak lovin' to me. The big dummy who dribbled instead of spewed.
So what is this mysterious medicine that tastes like fresh yak poop? Apparently it is an ancient herbal medicine philosophy based on restoring the proper flow of "gi" in the human body. It relies on a variety of sources such as plants, minerals and animal parts. Depending upon what your medical problem is, they have a different mix of the three just right for you. They used to put bear gall bladders, seals testes and rhinoceros horns in the stuff before it became illegal. Now we are so lucky to have deers antlers, sea horses, bats, scorpions, centipedes or geckos instead. But at the heart of any good han yak is ginseng, the most prized Korean product. Ginseng itself is not bad. Smells like a root and tastes like a root. Nothing to vomit over. But when mixed by a crazy little old Korean "doctor/quack" with the other 20-oddball, scary, freaky, han yak ingredients, it becomes unpalatable. Han yak makes Vegemite taste like Nutella. And it gives you horrible gas, and the gas would smell just like han yak, and you would try to run away from the smell, but it would linger wherever you went cause you were now the source of the odor.
So why drink it? Well Koreans swear by the stuff. They believe it cures just about everything - migraines, menstrual cramps, hernia, stomach aches, nose bleeds, and even broken limbs. Yes the han yak is so potent it will help your bones knit itself together again. Now that's liquid gold!
But does it work? Let me put it this way. I would NEVER EVER EVER tell my halmoni that I felt sick. NEVER! I remember breaking my pinkie in the school yard and crying like a baby. But when I got home, I put on a pair of gloves and acted like nothing had happened. My pinkie ballooned to the size of a McNugget and I'd pretend it was a sausage that I was eating. Luckiy, my halmoni had terrible eyesight. To this day, my right pinkie is blatantly crooked from having set it myself at the age of 11. So as far as my halmoni was concerned, I was the healthiest kid in the world and han yak was the reason.
And there was no more effective punishment than han yak. Just the threat of the stuff would have me begging for forgiveness for crimes I hadn't yet committed. The worst part was, I'd still get the han yak.
My kids have no idea how lucky they are that I don't make them drink the stuff. They have no concept of the misery I endured... But then again, perhaps I should further explore the benefits of han yak as a punishment.
February 14th, 2010 is the first day of the first lunar month and this year we are celebrating the Year of the Metal Tiger! Hurray for the Tiger! Hurray for getting rid of that stinky old brown cow! Yes 2009 was the Year of the Stinky Old Brown Shit Cow. I am so glad that it is moving its fat stinky butt out of the way. I've got a nice big steak waiting for me to sink my teeth in as a farewell to the cow. Au revoir, you nasty old heifer! Thanks for crapping on me all year long. Even to the bitter end - leaving me this week with a leaking roof after 50 inches of snow. Yes I blame you for that nasty doritos, old socks, vomit and mold smell in the girls room where you left your nasty tracks of melted snow. I am so glad to be getting rid of you.
Welcome Old Man Tiger and bring us some good luck for a change! Yes it may be a year of ups and downs, but change is good. Change can shake things up. I'm not afraid of change... yet.
Someone recently asked me if only Chinese people celebrate Chinese New Year. I said no, most Asian countries celebrate it. And she asked me if Koreans and Japanese wish each other a Happy Chinese New Year. Which was funny because I could understand that question. So I explained to her that it was actually a celebration of the new lunar year so Asians would just wish each other a Happy New Year. But outside of Asia, most people know it as Chinese New Year. She asked if I was offended by that and I said no. Wishing someone a Happy Chinese New Year is no different than wishing someone a Happy Lunar New Year. The sentiment is the same and very well appreciated.
So to everyone out there, I wish you a Happy Chinese/Lunar/Asian New Year! May the Year of the Tiger bring about some well needed luck for everyone!
Oldest is 10, nearly 11 and as much as I'd like to protect her from the ugliness of racism, she has not been immune. In fact, all 3 of my girls have had kids pull chinky eyes at them or make up sing songy Ching Chong words, not unlike Rosie O'Donnell's sensitive use of the Chinese language.
I tell my kids to stand their ground and to let these kids know that they are acting in an inappropriate and hurtful manner. And then I ask my kids not to let these actions hurt them, but to be proud of who they are and where they came from. But no matter what I say, it is unrealistic to believe that there will be no impact to them. I can see it even now. When we go somewhere and they notice that they are the only minority present, they are reluctant to bring attention to themselves, aware that they are different. Small, subtle things that bother me because I know why they do it. Because I did the same when I was young.
So yesterday, Oldest came over to me and asked me if we could speak in private.
Oldest - I read your blog post today and it made me cry.
Me - I'm sorry honey.
Oldest - You said that as long as I study hard and get a good education, then I can be anything I want, but that's not true is it.
Me - It is true, why would you say otherwise?
Oldest - Because when I grow up I want to be an actor, but how can I when they won't give me a chance? If they'd rather have whites be Asian characters then what is left for me?
Me - (speechless for a moment)This can change. If enough of us believe it's wrong and are willing to speak up, then we can change this.
Oldest - But you said to make it more relatable, they chose whites instead of Asians. I don't understand. What does that mean?
Me - It means they think the audience will be more sympathetic to and like the characters better if they are portrayed by whites instead of Asians.
Oldest - That's stupid. I watch Wizards of Waverly Place and iCarly and they are all white but I like them just fine. And True Jackson has a black girl as the main character and I like her too. Why would they think people wouldn't like Asians especially when the setting is all Asian?
Me - It's because they don't realize that what they are doing is racist.
Oldest - But some people are saying it's not racist and that it's stupid to be upset about this. My friend said who cares if there aren't any Asian actors in the leads, she's going to see it anyway.
Me - What do you think?
Oldest - I think its wrong. There aren't a lot of movies with Asians in them and I was really looking forward to this. Ever since Miley Cyrus did that bad chinky eye picture, I've realized that there aren't any famous Asian kids in movies and television. That's why I want to be an actor, so there can be more of us out there. But this makes me think it was just a stupid dream.
Me - No honey, never think that. You have to believe that the world can change and you have to believe that you can make a difference. Every single little thing a person does can make a difference. When people shrug their shoulders and say "what's the big deal" or "who cares" or "we can't do anything about it" their non-action has consequences. They are helping to continue racism. But every time someone speaks up and says "Hey that's not right," they are a ripple that reaches out to another and another until finally there are too many waves and people have to stand up and make a change.
Oldest - So you don't think it's a stupid dream?
Me - Absolutely not.
Oldest - Ok Mom, I believe you. I won't give up on my dream then.
Over at Justine Larbelestier's blog, there is an excellent post by Ah Yuan on the importance of diversity. It reminded me of why it is that I became a writer. Because like Ms. Yuan, I kept looking for books that I could relate to, with a protagonist that shared my cultural background. And it was virtually impossible to find.
Who am I? I'm a Korean American and like so many other Asian Americans and Asians living outside their motherlands, we are seen as the voiceless minority. How many times in my life have I heard someone yell out at me "Why don't you go back home to China, Japan or Vietnam, where you belong?" Why can't they understand that we are home? Ask a Korean American who has gone to visit Korea and ask them if they felt at home? How could they? They face a different type of discrimination. The kind that says you may look Asian but you can't speak the language and you can't really understand our culture.
It's so hard to understand that this place I call home and that I’m so proud of, doesn’t necessarily share its pride and pleasure of having the world's most diverse community of different races and cultures. You won't see a lot of minorities gracing the covers of books, magazines or major movies. Not that there isn't any, just not a lot. And definitely less Asians than any other minorities. And then there's the fact that there has been a history of whitewashing in publishing and in theater that continues to this very day. The question I can't help but ask is why? We are already the minority. Why marginalize us even more?
Like so many others, I felt physically betrayed by the first cover of Justine Larbelestier's Liar and tremendously relieved to see Bloomsbury respond positively to reader outrage.
Looking at these two covers side by side, you have to wonder at the reason behind why a publishing company would whitewash a character who is supposed to be a person of color. I've read so many articles and blog posts about the controversy and the one rationale that always bothers me is the one that says people won't buy books with people of color on the covers. When they say "people" they mean "white people" right? But the thing is, do they even try? Or do they throw one token POC cover out there, give it barely any support, see that it doesn't do well, and call it a day. Change happens when we make what was once so different the norm. Representing diversity is especially important for publishers of children's books. Books are the gateways for the imagination. But the ones in North America are apparently only gateways for white children as minority children are relegated to watching wistfully from the side. We are left hoping for a token side kick or small character that we can relate to. But not the main character. Because even if the book has a POC as the main character, we can't be on the cover cause we won't sell the book. That's what this controversy meant to minority readers.
And then they did it again. See Black-Eyed Susan's post on Magic Under Glass by Jaclyn Dolamore. The fact that Bloomsbury has fixed both covers is a positive change. We can only hope that it is indicative of a larger change in the industry. But we still have more to fix.
Many of you might have caught the recent trailer for a Paramount movie called The Last Airbender. It is based on a Nickelodeon television series called Avatar: The Last Airbender which is a wonderful animated program that celebrates the diverse culture of Asia. The main character is Aang as the Avatar, a young temple disciple that is clearly based on Chinese culture. The next two characters are Katara and Sokka, based on Inuit culture. And the antagonist is Prince Zuko, clearly drawn from Japanese culture. When I heard that Paramount was making a movie version and had hired M. Night Shyamalan to direct, I was excited. But then I saw the cast list and I felt punched in the gut.
The movie has been completely whitewashed so that the rich culture of Asia that made the television series so wonderful is now represented by white actors. I can’t help but wonder what this really means. I’m sad for my children who were shocked to hear that Asian faces weren’t good enough to portray an Asian character. I’m sad for this culture that devalues the contributions of their Asian citizens. They believed that to make Airbender more relatable to the white majority, they needed to put white faces in Asian roles. At least the original casting of Prince Zuko with Jessie McCartney was replaced by Dev Patel. But notice the one main Asian actor happens to be the role of the antagonist.
When Twilight star Jackson Rathbone got the role as Sokka, he said "I think it's one of those things where I pull my hair up, shave the sides, and I definitely need a tan. It's one of those things where, hopefully, the audience will suspend disbelief a little bit."
Hopefully it won't be as blatantly racist as Mickey Rooney in Breakfast at Tiffany's.
Unfortunately, some people have responded with the fact that since these are anime characters drawn with the big freaky anime eyes, that they couldn't possibly be Asian. That because this is an American production, these characters are in fact white. I have no argument for this but one. Watch the video and you tell me. It provides scenes from the show compared to real life pictures of Asia.
What this movie and the book cover controversies show us is that the publishing industry and the entertainment industry is still prejudiced against non-whites. It's up to us, the public, to show them that this type of racism won't be tolerated. The outrage around the book covers caused Bloomsbury to change both book covers. But Paramount has refused to listen to the outcries of the fans. You can help by boycotting the film here. If you are on facebook then join this page. Help us send a message to Hollywood that whitewashing is racist.
Last year, Pat Buchanan said "This is a country built by white people." He conveniently failed to mention that it was also built on the blood, sweat and tears of the non-whites. The American Indians who were robbed of their land, the black slaves who worked this land, and the Chinese railroad workers who helped connect this land. Mr. Buchanan, we will no longer be overlooked. We will no longer be marginalized. We will no longer be the the forgotten people. We will take our place by your side and proudly claim that We are all American. You can't get rid of us and you can't pretend we don't exist. We won't tolerate it anymore. We will no longer be voiceless.
Thank you to all my blogger friends for all of your kind words and thoughts. I have been touched by them all and am grateful to have this wonderful online community.
I'm coming back with something that is of importance to me. Since I come from an environmental background, conservation is not just a word - it's a way of life. It's not easy but every little thing that we humans can do Can and Will make a difference.
Many of us have already begun using cloth bags when grocery shopping. But consider using them at any and all stores. I still see so many people using plastic bags everywhere. But if only 1 out of every 5 people makes an effort to stop using plastic bags, we will make a difference and have a great impact on our future. Please buy cloth reusable bags and take them with you to every store you go to. I have a large purse and many times I will just dump stuff into my bag to save on plastic. Many places in the world have banned plastic bags. If China can do it, then so can we. It isn't always easy to remember to do, but let's all be more vigilant. It will help us save the world.
I've never liked the Forrest Gump "Life is like a box of chocolates" analogy. While it's true that you never know what you're gonna get, let's face it, there is never a shit flavored chocolate in the box. They don't make a reality flavored box of chocolates. It would taste too bad.
I look at my life as traveling along a road. Sometimes it's a regular paved road. Comfortable, with no surprises. Other times its filled with danger - quicksand, sink holes, wild animals ready to tear you apart. Life gives you a variety of roads. I've walked on gold plated roads and ones so covered in dog shit that there's no way to avoid it. That's the way life is. We can only hope the bad stretches are shorter in duration.
Last fall it was clear that I'd left the paved road behind and was traveling along a steep rocky path alongside a cliff with no side barriers. My revisions were never good enough for my agent, my mother needed surgery, and my sister-in-law entered a long term stay in the Intensive Care Unit. My husband's only sister had a successful bone marrow transplant to cure her leukemia, only to suffer from host-vs-graft disease for nearly 2 years. But she's so strong, so tough. I'd never met anyone so determined to beat a disease. After all, she'd so much to live for. A beautiful little girl who's just turned 8 years old and possibly the most wonderful husband a woman could ask for.
In December, a small earthquake shook the road, leaving craters to carefully navigate. Isn't it always the case that right before the holidays, when you most need the extra cash, your car will break down or your garage door breaks, etc? Then the week of Christmas, with no internet or phone service, I stood in 27 inches of snow a block from my house in order to get email on my iphone. That's how I found out that once again my agent didn't agree with the direction of my revision and suggested another agent might be better for me. A week later we got the news that my sister-in-law was failing.
Last Friday, she passed away quietly in her sleep. She'd held on so her daughter could enjoy her birthday party the week before and play in her first ever basketball game. My last memory of her was when she was still conscious, grasping my hand strongly, smiling her beautiful smile and thanking me for taking care of her daughter.
Life has a way of reminding us of what's most important. Family and love and our dreams. Before she had her daughter, it was my sister-in-law's greatest wish to have a little girl that she could raise into beautiful young woman. Even in the hospital, her hopes and wishes were centered around going home and being a good mother. Going shopping with her daughter, attending her piano recital's, buying dresses, taking her for hair cuts and manicures, watching her grow - looking forward to prom. It's a dream that can't come true not because she didn't do everything in her power to make it happen, but because her body failed her. But she never gave up hope. She never stopped believing that she'd get home someday.
This is a lesson that I have taken to heart. I will not give up on my own dream. Not until my own body fails me. I will keep trying. Because she never gave up. Through the worst pain and suffering a person can endure, she never gave up hope. For her sake, I can't give up either. I will take over her dreams and see that her daughter is loved and cared for as one of my own, that I am there for my niece whenever she needs me, just as her mother would have been. I'll also see my own dream through and continue to seek out a new agent or go back to the editors who were interested in seeing a revision myself. And I hope that I'll find someone who, like my wonderful critique readers, loves my new MS. And if and when my book gets published, I will dedicate it to my sister-in-law whose beautiful and strong spirit will forever be my inspiration.
I'm sorry guys but due to a family crisis, I'll be too distracted to blog, tweet, facebook, etc. I didn't want to disappear on you all without a word and the girls, da man and I are fine. But the family is going through an emotional time and we're pulling together. I know that I feel like I'm swimming through jello right now. But I keep praying for a miracle.
December 26th was Youngest's birthday. She opened all her presents, with the help of her big sisters. I told the girls to help her take them up. This is how they helped.
The girls piled all of Youngest's birthday presents in her arms and left the Moonsand's handle by her foot.
Youngest shouted, "You guys! Help me carry my presents! I only have tiny arms, a big head and a small butt!!!"
I laughed and took a picture. Then I let small butt take her own presents up to her room.
On the last week of Christmas, Verizon gave to me .... 5 GRUESOME DAYS!!! 4 No - calling phones 3 Fried computers 2 nervous breakdowns and no phone or internet service ... because of an icy tree.
As soon as you watch it, you will know why the Oh family finds it so funny. And that is all the warning you need to know what it is about. he he.
PS - I'm dedicating this video to Mike Jung cause he didn't pick me to win his best title contest even though I had the best title for him. "The Gastacular MagnaniAnus SplendifOdorous Poopoobah Mike Jung." I was robbed I say! Robbed!!!! So I dedicate this video to the Poopoobah.
One lone, white, fluffy, white rabbit still hops around our neighborhood. The girls have nicknamed him Mimsy. The last Mimsy has graced us with a huge pile of rabbit poop on our little lawn. Hard to believe such a small rabbit could leave behind such a large pile of poo. The girls, of course, thought it was funny, until the other morning.
All three girls were eating coco puffs, letting the round brown balls get soggy in their milk.
Angus - I love coco puffs but they get soggy real fast.
Youngest - Yeah, and they look like rabbit poo poo. (she begins to laugh hysterically and smushes them down in her bowl.) See? They look just like the big pile of poo poo Mimsy left out front.
Oldest - I just lost my appetite.
Angus - Me too.
Youngest - Look, I'm eating rabbit poop! (Opens her mouth filled with brown sludge.)
Oldest and Angus silently lift up their still full bowls and scrape them into the food disposal as Youngest continues to munch on her coco puffs. That's my girl.
Pacatrue reminded me of the Stephen Colbert show's episode with Rain from last year. The background on this, for those who missed it, is that last year Stephen Colbert came in 2nd behind Rain on Time's 100 most influential people in the world. So he challenged Rain to a dance off. Even if you don't like Rain, you gotta love this skit.
Just saw Ninja Assassin this weekend. Bloody awful gorefest with some sickening violence that even made me flinch and squirm. But it was all worth it to watch Korean pop singing sensation Rain in his first Hollywood lead role of a major film. Da Man hit me a couple of times when my drooling and deep breathing got a little out of hand.
But then my friend sends me this picture of Rain at Dulles airport in DC.
I remember watching Monty Python and the Flying Circus on PBS growing up. This was my absolute favorite sketch next to Spam and the Ministry of Silly Walks sketches. And I don't know what would have happened to my sense of humor if I had never seen The Holy Grail or Life of Brian. I wouldn't be half as funny without their influence.
Pete Dudley just linked me up to USAToday articles celebrating their 40th anniversary. Thanks Pete!
Congratulations to the Monty Python troupe for celebrating 40 years of the funniest shows and films ever made!
For the past few months my blogging activity has been sporadic and my google reader has been set to 1000+ but is more accurately over 5,000 which makes me want to roll up into a fetal position and suck my thumb. I've not been really making rounds to my blogging buddies because it's been feeling a bit overwhelming. Too many posts to read. Too many people to see. Too many things to do. I should just overcome it and attack my google reader but inertia has set in.
So I've been pondering this, wondering what's going on. Used to be the highlight of my week was making the rounds and reading everyone's blog entries. And I know it isn't that I don't care anymore. I'm still intensely interested and I'll find myself clicking over for a quick read here and there. But I'm not commenting a lot, feeling like I don't have much to say. I'm just not as active as before and I don't know if it is laziness or something else.
The more I thought about it, the more I came to a realization that I'm feeling a bit lost. In part it's because I've been trapped in revision purgatory for a year, with this continual feeling of 1 step forward and 2 steps back. I just haven't had anything good to report in so very long. Yes I'll blog about something funny every once in awhile but making the rounds is a conversation. And my conversation has been one note. I can't even say I'm almost done or I hope to be done soon, because I've thought I've been done before and found that I wasn't.
So this is where I'm at. Not bad, but not great. Feeling trapped and wondering if I'll ever get free. Anyone else feel like this? Lost and a bit helpless? And it doesn't help that we are coming up on to the busy holiday season and the busy final season at school. Usually around this time I feel like I'm treading water and I know I'll be busy til the New Year. But until I can finally say I'm done revising and the MS goes back out on submission, I think I'm going to continue to feel trapped in limbo.
But it wasn't all bad. This revision process has been the greatest learning experience of my life. Working with my agent, my wonderful freelance editor, and my crit buddies, I've grown so much as a writer. My MS keeps getting better and better with each revision. I still love it. I can't even say I'm sick of it. I love it cause I basically created the kind of story that I want to read. Mythic, historic, magical, violent, brutal, tender, tragic and uplifting. I'm hoping that one day others will read it and love it too, but until that day, I just have to keep working.
Oldest had to work on her story for her 5th grade writing class the other day and she said to me, "Mom, revising is the hardest part of writing." I said, "You're absolutely right, but revising is where you take your lump of coal and polish out your beautiful diamond." I've been seeing my diamond shining through the coal. I still have a layer of black to polish through, but I know I'll make it. I just have to.
I finally caved to all of Oldest's pitiful pleading and allowed her to watch Twilight the movie. The caveat was she had to watch it with me. So I have to admit to finding the movie cheesy and entertaining all at the same time. I think it will be less painful than I thought to watch the next in the series. But there were several points in the plot that I could see Oldest getting squirmy.
Me: What's the matter?
Oldest: It's so much creepier to see it.
Me: See what?
Oldest: He's watching her as she sleeps and she doesn't even know it. That's so creepy. Plus he's wearing pink lipstick.
Me: Yeah, how embarrassing - especially the lipstick part. In fact, I think I have that exact lipstick shade. How embarrassing for me!
Oldest: I would hate having someone staring at me while I sleep. It's too weird and creey.
Me: Not to mention uncomfortable. What if you snore or fart in your sleep?
Oldest: Or pick your nose or scratch your butt or drool all over your pillow, like Angus.
(both of us begin to giggle madly before we are silent again.)
Oldest: Hey Mom, can you do me a favor?
Me: Yeah?
Oldest: Can you promise to never talk like this in front of my friends, ever?
Me: Oh no, are you saying I embarrass you now?
Oldest: Yes, but don't worry, you're not alone, all parents are embarrassing.
My favorite part of When Harry met Sally were the little vignettes of old couples talking about how they met. Two of my favorites are the "We never met" and the "I sneak into her willage" couples. Too cute for words. For years I've been quoting these vignettes all wrong. It's nice to see them again and remember their original charm.
When I was in college, there was a boy who was possibly the biggest nerd on campus. I use the term nerd in the most affectionate manner for he was a nice nerd. Needy and ugly, but nice. He was especially needy for female affection and would latch on to girls like a crack addict sucking on his crackpipe. He was a true nerd, extremely smart, coke bottle glasses with black frames, button down short sleeve shirts with high waisted pants, and a humongous Frankenstein head. He even had a suitably nerdy name - Eugene. There was no doubt that he was the smartest kid on campus, he physically had the biggest brain.
I'd gone to high school with Eugene and had tolerated him in my half nice/half sarcastic bitch manner. But in college, I didn't have a class with him again until my sophomore year. The first thing I noticed was how big his head looked, but he was still the overly anxious nerdy nice guy that I'd teased before. Not unexpectedly, he latched on to me that semester, even going so far as to take the train home with me and getting off at my station, although I knew he lived 2 stations back. He'd bring me candy and constantly ask me if I were hungry. I sympathized slightly for at the time I was madly in love with Eddie, my Cuban American lab partner in Organic Chemistry. I hated Organic Chemistry but I adored Eddie who was just about the sexiest thing I'd ever seen in my whole life. It was also the start for my love of Cuban food as Eddie would take me to these delicious little Cuban joints in the city. But Eddie was already dating some beautiful theater major over at the Tisch School of Arts, but that didn't stop me from flirting madly with him over our bunsen burners and through our steamy goggles. I never had a real chance with Eddie, his girlfriend was way too possessive, just like Eugene never had a shot with me. But I always thought of Eugene as a nice guy, no matter how irritating he could be.
Fast forward nearly 20 years later. I'm at a reception and I notice a humongous Frankenstein head. There can only be one other head that big. I wander over and lo and behold, it's Eugene. He's gotten stouter and I don't know if memory is playing me false or what but his head looks even bigger. You've got to have some pretty strong neck muscles to hold up a head that big. His glasses are thinner and more fashionable and he is wearing a nice suit, although it doesn't fit him that well. But otherwise, he looks exactly the same. Still ugly.
I smile and saunter over to say hello.
"Eugene!" I say.
His large head swivels over with an imperious twist and he stares at me down the side of his nose. "Yes," he says with quite a sharp and impatient tone."
"It's me, Ellen, from NYU. How are you?"
"Ellen, Ellen, Ellen," he says in this really unctuous tone. "How are you? What do you do now? Did you go to med school?"
"No, I went to law school," I respond, not sure how to take him. He immediately launches into how he went to medical school and has a thriving practice in the area and how his son is a genius pianist who'll probably go to Juliard and his other child will definitely go to Harvard or Yale and then introduced me to his third wife. Yes he told me she's his third wife. All the time, speaking in this arrogant, offensive and belittling manner towards me.
His ego had finally surpassed his ginormous head.
As soon as I could, I extricated myself from him and his third wife and fled the scene thinking my friendly nice nerd had turned into an unbearable jackass. This saddened me and I started thinking about how when you practice law, you come across so many assholes that you know were most likely nerds when they were younger. What caused them to change? What makes a nice person turn into a jackass? I don't know, but I definitely don't want to remember this new Eugene. I prefer the old one, with his sweet demeanor and ugly face that grew on you. Too bad that Eugene is gone forever.
I have stolen this video from the Angry Asian Man blog because I laughed so hard I cried, coughed out a lung and peed myself and then immediately wanted to share this moment with all of my wonderful faithful blog readers.
WARNING - You may need to put on a pair of Depends protective undergarments before watching the following video. And if you don't laugh in the first 3 minutes, I guarantee you will be snorting coffee up your nose when you get to 3:46 on this video. Guaranteed.
You have been warned.
PS - it's a fish not a gun. PPS - yes, I'm pretty sure he's dancing with yellow underwear on his hands.
I was completely out of ideas for a blog post when I asked the girls if they wanted to put something up. They made me take this picture and then made up a story to go with it. So here it is. An Oh girls original.
Ploppy the Penguin By the Oh girls
Once upon a time there was a little penguin named Ploppy. He had two friends named Pinky the pink mermaid and Penelope the purple dragon. One day Ploppy was thirsty and looked in his refrigerator but there was nothing to drink. Then he looked in his cabinet but all that there was was bags and bags of Funyuns and on the top shelf in the farthest corner there was a bottle of Frank's Red Hot hot sauce. So he decided to drink it.
At first he turned very pale. Then he turned bright red, then dark red, then red orange, then purple, green, blue and all the colors of the rainbow. His throat was burned and his tongue was on fire! He ran out into the snow and screamed "HELP!!!" Penelope the dragon and Pinky the mermaid were outside. Ploppy screamed "Help" again and fire shot from his beak. The fire burned off all of Pinky's beautiful pink hair.
"Quick!" Penelope said. "Eat the snow!"
Ploppy began gulping down piles and piles of snow until finally his throat no longer burned. He sighed in relief.
But Pinky was furious and hit Ploppy in the stomach with her strong tail.
Ploppy went "Ooooooof!" and then his stomach began to rumble louder and louder and faster and faster like a motorcycle. Then he said "Uh Oh!" Suddenly, the rumbling stopped and a humongous fart blasted him into the air, melting away all the snow, and burning off all of his feathers.
Pinky was satisfied and jumped into the ocean, away from the terrible smell. Penelope caught Ploppy before he hit the ground and took away his bottle of Red Hot hot sauce. Because only dragons should be allowed to breathe fire.
I do a lot of research for my books. In fact, I adore research. So imagine my surprise when one of the coolest weapons in Korean history was not discovered by me and my nerdy library research skills, but by Da Man. Da Man who hasn't been inside a library since law school. Yes him. He found this genuine artifact of Korean history. On TV. How funny is that? So what is this thing? It's the Hwacha - a Korean rocket launcher. Below is a model displayed at the Seoul War Memorial. The Hwacha is this really awesome, really cool weapon invented in the 1400s by Korean scientists. But it doesn't really look that impressive right?
It's basically a two wheeled cart with a launch pad with 200 holes filled with ammunition. Ah, but there in lies the beauty of this weapon. The ammunition is made up of small rockets attached to iron spiked arrows, each with a small paper bag filled with gunpowder attached to its fletching. Once the weapon is ignited, it fires off all 200 arrows in mere seconds with a trajectory of 500 meters. That's more than five football fields, folks. To really have an idea what it would look like, here's a very short clip of an actual hwacha in action.
Da Man caught this on The Discovery Channel's Mythbusters show and yelled at me to come down and watch it. I was blown away. Mythbusters made their own replica and tested it out to prove that it actually worked and would be deadly against a large attacking army. Score one for Da Man.
So why am I bringing it up? Well first of all, it's cool as hell! Secondly, I plan on using the hwacha in my books. I couldn't fit it into my current book but I plan to use it in the final book, where an all out frenzied battle royale will see 50 of these in play against a large demon army. Course this all depends upon selling the first book. So be patient my lovely little hwacha. Your time will come soon. And the world will know the power of your awesomeness. Cue evil laugh.
Really liking this Black Eyed Peas video with Oprah. It's quite cool. You can see she's totally shocked by what's happening. FYI - that's 21,000 fans/dancers in the crowd!
Hey everyone! Thanks for the welcome back! And to answer the question of whether or not I'm back, the answer is, well sort of. I'm so off my blogging game that I haven't caught up to touring the blogosphere - more like random drive bys when I have a moment. Part of the problem is that I'm in the throws of paper hell right now. The other problem is that my brain has taken its semi-annual vacation. And as usual, it didn't warn me that it was leaving until it was too late and stupidity was unavoidable. I'm just a tad nervous about teaching without a brain today, but not having a brain isn't always a handicap. After all, some famous no brains have even become President...
So I went to Target with Oldest and Youngest to buy a tennis skirt. Something I swore never to do because skirts accentuate my Popeye the Sailorman like legs of sausage link beauty. Especially tennis skirts which seems to work under the philosophy that shorter is better. I've seen grandmothers in skirts so short I can see their grannypanties and other things they should be ashamed of flashing. But I find that people reach a certain age in life and they just don't care anymore. I once watched as an old lady adjusted her sagging girls on line in the supermarket, fondling them like she'd fondled the tomatoes and peaches not 2 minutes earlier. I had to turn away when she slung one long breast over her shoulder and scratched under it for what seemed like 5 minutes straight. But I digress...
What the hell was I talking about? Oh yes tennis skirts. Skirts have never ever been my thing. But lately the indoor tennis court I play in has been a sauna and my cool athletic pants have been as comfortable as leather pants in the Sahara desert. So I went shopping for a tennis skirt. I grabbed a few and tried them on as Oldest and Youngest decided to critique my fashion choices.
Oldest - Why does it have a big white line over your butt? It looks like someone tried to circle it and ran out of white paint.
Youngest - I can fix it for you Mommy.
Me (ignoring them and trying an all black one instead)
Oldest - That's better but why is it so short? You want everyone to see your underwear?
Me - It's a skort, see. Shorts underneath.
Oldest - Those shorts are too short. They're more like underwear.
Youngest - I need a tissue for my boogers.
Me (wiping a huge ass booger from Youngest's nose and trying another skirt)
Oldest - That's better but still too short.
Me - Hmmm, it's a little big at the waist. I'll have to get a smaller size.
Oldest - Just get that one cause you know you'll grow into it.
Me (blinking) - What are you trying to say?
Youngest - I farted.
Oldest - I mean not that you are still growing but you know like when you eat and your belly gets too big...
Youngest (reaching over to pat my muffin top) - And it goes down again when you go the bathroom!
You seriously can't have an ego around these girls. It's just not allowed.
Finished my revisions and sent them in to my agent!!!!
WOO HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!! Oh yeah! Oh yeah! Happy Dance! Do the Hustle! It's my birthday!
So how do I celebrate? By drooling over the most beautiful man in the world, Mr. Daniel Hunky Henney. God he's beautiful. As I drooled all over my laptop the girls came over to see what Mom was fussing about and this is what they said.
Oldest - Control yourself, you're married.
Angus - He's not beautiful, Daddy is more beautiful. (Da Man, who has had the flu for 2 days and has been the biggest baby, walks by with a dazzling display of bed head at the moment.)
Youngest - Mommy, boys can't be beautiful. They're only handsome. Girls are beautiful.
Oldest - Stop drooling, you're grossing me out...
It's ok Daniel, no matter what my kids say, you're beautiful to me.
Hi everyone! Have you missed me? I'm still not back but had to break blogging hiatus for another random kids day. The girls have watched Coraline for the 10th time and were talking about the movie while I was driving to Krispy Kreme for an emergency donut run.
Oldest - So if the other mother kidnapped our parents what would you do?
Youngest - I would grab her arms and bite her really hard.
Angus - You can't! Her hands were made of metal and her arms are real skinny. You'd break your teeth!
Youngest - I would kick her in her butt!
Oldest - Um, hello! Monster, remember?
Angus - Well I would bring Daddy and a nose pin. And then I would aim Daddy's butt at the monster and put on my nose pin. Daddy would fart aaaaaaannnnnnnd. The. Monster. Would. DIEEEEEEEEE!!!! Dun dun dun.
Oldest - But Mom and Dad would be kidnapped by the monster!
Angus - Oh yeah! Well I would poop in my pants and then I would take off my poopy pants and throw it at the monster's face.
Youngest - YUCKY!
Oldest - You would be half naked!
Angus - Well, that way I could also fart as I run away. And. She. Would. DIE!!!!! Dun dun dun!!!
Oldest - You're disgusting.
Youngest - I have to poop now.
One of these days I've got to record them secretly. I can't really capture the true essence of how funny they are by words alone.
Summer is more than half over and my revisions aren't done. Since I took the summer off for this very reason, I am now kicking myself hard and vowing to focus myself. So that means, I gotta disappear for awhile.
I've not been around that much as it is, but now you may not see the little piggy at all for at least a month. If for some reason, piggy forgets and sneaks out into the blogosphere, please remind her that she will be turned into fried rind chips if she doesn't get her work done. Virtual kicks in the butt will be effective so don't let the piggy procrastinate.
School starts up at the end of August. I've got one more full month of summer to get it done! Wish me, and little piggy, luck! We're gonna need it!!!
Interview with the lovely and tremendously talented Sarah Rees Brennan over at the Inkpot by the famous, amazing, frighteningly smart, and world class celebrity interviewer - ahem - yours truly. (preens for a moment) Seriously, I had a blast interviewing Sarah because she is sweet and funny and just a lovely human being! Plus her book kicks ass!
So do take a gander at the interview and then go get her book! You won't be disappointed with either! And if you are disappointed for some strange reason, then feel free to blame it all on Da Man. Everything is always his fault, you know...
This time Oldest demanded to handle the drawing. Since she loves this book, she felt it was only fitting that she picked the winners. We wrote all the names on little slips of paper which Oldest then folded into tiny squares. We had 2 drawings. The first drawing was a smaller group of entries for those people who had provided extra promotion for Grace's book. The prize for this drawing is Grace's book, a signed bookplate and a signed picture of Minli, the main character. Oldest put all the entries into a canvas bag and shook them hard. She then pulled out an entry and read out the name.
"Cindy Pon."
"Oh boy! I hope people don't think we rigged this drawing," I said.
"Why," Oldest asked.
"Because Cindy is a friend of mine."
"Well, that's who I pulled and that's who won!" Oldest said in a "don't argue with me manner."
"Yes, ma'am." I said.
We then put all the names for the second drawing in the empty canvas bag. Oldest shook it extra hard and for a very long time.
"All right, I think that's enough," I said.
Oldest reached in and pulled out another piece of paper and read:
"Cindy Pon -- hey did you put her name back in?" she accused.
"Well anyone who promotes the book gets to be in both drawings. That's the rules for the contest. Funny how you picked her for both, huh? She was clearly meant to win this book! But pick someone else since she already won."
Oldest shook it even harder this time and read the new entry:
"March to the Sea. What kind of name is March to the Sea anyway?"
"That's his blogger name, silly. Like mine is Ello"
"How are you going to send a prize to a person who you don't know their real name? That's sort of fishy to me..."
"Well I know his name and he will email me his address."
"Oh ok, well tell Cindy and March man congratulations from me since I chose them."
So congratulations, Cindy and March to the Sea from Oldest and me! Thank you everyone for participating in the contest! And a special thanks to Oldest for making sure it was a completely fair and amusing drawing.
PS - I couldn't help myself and I sent in my entry to Jason's fantastic writing contest. The contest is open til this Wednesday and there are great prizes! My entry is here. Please let me know what you think. I always love to hear all of your thoughts and comments!
Don't forget to comment on the Contest post below! Or click here! Remember, I'm giving 2 copies of Grace's beautiful book along with signed bookplates and a signed copy of this picture:For all you writers out there, check out the Art of Pacing post I have up on the Enchanted Inkpot. Several awesome authors shared their tips on pacing for my post. It is definitely worth reading.
For everyone else, here is a commercial that always makes me laugh.
This is the trailer for the the inaugural film exhibition of the Museum of Chinese in America. I stole it from the Angry Asian Man, where I get all the great Asian stuff. Ten of New York's most exciting filmmakers present their unique vision of the mysterious, elusive, vibrant, iconic community known as Chinatown. The MOCA gallery in NYC held it's Chinatown Film Project on July 1st, but it has an online component allowing people from different Chinatowns all over the world to upload a short video. Here's the website. It's a pretty awesome project and a great look into a different world.
The trailer is a little musical tribute to Chinatown. I hope you enjoy it.
Don't forget my contest for Where the Mountain Meets the Moon!
Although I am still revising like crazy, I had to come out to celebrate the release of Grace Lin's wonderful new book Where the Mountain Meets the Moon. I wanted to let everyone know how much in love with this book I am. It is a book that begs to be read aloud to every child in the world. It's a book that is easy to love. And it is a book that is already raking in the accolades. It has just won the Parent's Choice Gold award and has a starred review from Booklist!
Minli, whose name means quick thinking, lives with her poor parents in the valley of the Fruitless Mountain.In the evenings, against her mother's wishes, her father tells her wonderful stories about the Old Man of the Moon, who knows the answers to all of life's questions. One day Minli spends one of her only 2 coins to buy a goldfish to bring the family good luck. Her mother is angered by the wasteful purchase and Minli feels sorry for what she has done and decides to seek out the Old Man of the Moon to help bring fortune to her family. Along the way, she befriends a dragon, a talking fish and other wonderful characters. The story is beautifully interwoven with Chinese folktales that add a wonderful element to the narrative.
Little, Brown has published a beautifully made book as well, with Grace's full paged and colored illustrations interspersed throughout the book as well as Grace's beautiful drawings opening each chapter. Grace is an amazing artist as well as writer. I've been a fan of her work since my girls brought home Dim Sum for Everyone from the library one day and moved on to Year of the Dog and Year of the Rat. Not only is she a multi-published author/illustrator, but she is also a fellow member of the Enchanted Inkpot community. So if you are looking for a present for that favorite kid in your life, consider this gem of a book. It is aged 8 to 12, but my 5 year old adored me reading the book to her, and I loved reading it. And to celebrate Grace's release of Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, I am having a small contest. This is a picture of Minli from the book. And I have a signed copy of this picture as a prize, along with 2 copies of Grace's book with signed bookplates. There are 2 ways to win. To win a copy of the book and a signed bookplate from Grace, all you have to do is leave me a comment. That's it. To win a copy of the picture signed by Grace and the book and signed bookplate, then all you have to do is post the contest on your own blog and link back to me in the comments here. That's it. If you don't have a blog, you can leave a comment about the contest on someone else's blog, link back to me and be entered. If you enter the contest for the picture and book, you will also automatically be entered in the other drawing so that doubles your chances.
Lastly, I will share with you two last things. I interviewed Grace for the Enchanted Inkpot and her interview will go up next week on July 8th. I thought I would share a little taste of the interview here:
Ello - How do you incorporate your illustrations with your story? What comes first? Do you envision your characters first or do they come up from your writing?
Grace - For me, the writing always comes first with any book. I usually can't draw anything until the story is finished.
However, the character of Minli did come from an image I did before I wrote Where the Mountain Meets the Moon. In late 2003, I did a cover illustration for Cricket Magazine of an Asian girl riding a flying red dragon. As I painted the image, the girl captivated me. I had painted her in traditional clothing, over an idealized Asian landscape. I imagined her full of delight on her ride in the sky, full of adventure and life. She was my first character idea for Minli. But as I wrote the story, she changed a bit and, of course, became more fleshed out with characteristics and personality. She also became younger. However, she still retained that same spirit of my original painting.
I became so attached to the Cricket cover image that it morphed into the logo for my website, and finally the cover for Where the Mountain Meets the Moon.
The last thing I have for you is the book trailer for Grace's lovely book.
So what are you waiting for? Enter my contest! Spread the word! This is one of the most beautiful books written for children's literature! Yes, I absolutely mean it. This is a book I wish I had read when I was little, but am so grateful to have shared with my children. And I thank Grace for sharing this book with the rest of us.
I do a lot of research for my books. In fact, I adore research. So imagine my surprise when one of the coolest weapons in Korean history was not discovered by me and my nerdy library research skills, but by Da Man. Da Man who hasn't been inside a library since law school. Yes him. He found this genuine artifact of Korean history. On TV. How funny is that? So what is this thing? It's the Hwacha - a Korean rocket launcher. Below is a model displayed at the Seoul War Memorial. The Hwacha is this really awesome, really cool weapon invented in the 1400s by Korean scientists. But it doesn't really look that impressive right?
