Spider eats Paper Tigers

ARTICLE Paper Tigers by Wesley Yang in New York Magazine

I just finished reading 'Paper Tigers,' by Wesley Yang, a very thorough and candid article published in New York Magazine last year on the unique challenges of young Asian-American professionals in all realms of life (why it's so long).

In the end, I agree with the author's personal opinion that it is not necessary to apologize - for being too quiet, too loud, for imposing, withdrawing, for being both Asian and American. The most complimentary thing anyone ever said to me was that I was like a spider: quiet, patient, and ready to make my kill. Okay, sure.

By the Peonies

POEM By the Peonies by Czeslaw Milosz, 1945

The peonies bloom, white and pink.
And inside each, as in a fragrant bowl,
A swarm of tiny beetles have their conversation,
For the flower is given to them as their home.

Mother stands by the peony bed,
Reaches for one bloom, opens its petals,
And looks for a long time into peony lands,
Where one short instant equals a whole year.

Then lets the flower go. And what she thinks
She repeats aloud to the children and herself.
The wind sways the green leaves gently
And speckles of light flick across their faces.

Pinned up

Pinned up clothes to dry on the clothesline in the backyard today, then brought it inside.

Gardening

RANT Gardening is hard.

The track I have pursued in the past year as a professional gardener has been a difficult one. For one, the value of money has become sort of a ridiculous fact for me; I don't take it seriously. I can't. Also, my hands have become *rough enough to smooth down the splintered ends of freshly cut pine.

Anyways, I don't regret it. Being a gardener, when I get to just prune a camellia or rake up the stray bits off a gravel path, it lets me be someone I won't regret being. I get to care for a place and make it perfect, so my soul can stay intact.

Although there is surely a gap - a source of constant pressure and self-doubt - between my definition of living and the general expectations of a standard of living, I think I'm better off as a gardener or something like it because maybe that's who I am and changing for the sake of fitting in would be **awkward. I'm a gardener and I'm good at it. Time to pull ivy and pick up leaves for as long as I live.


*like sandpaper 
** or tormenting

Radio XY

RADIO XY by DJ Chaos

Indie radio stream. Been listening to this guy's show on my way to work off 103.3 KSCU (Santa Clara University). Makes my driving experience slightly less infuriating.

"Urban Farming is an Urban Myth"

COMMENTARY "Urban Farming is an Urban Myth" on Ag Professional

Urban farmer : Production farmer
Stamp collector : Postal person

In this commentary, the author expresses a concern for how urban farming can at times be hyped without question. Being very much in love with urban gardens myself, I admit that these concerns should absolutely be thought about - topsoil conservation, water efficiency, and knowledge requirements. Rural farms and dedicated farmers exist for a reason.

This year, our 'stamp collection' produced 25+ crops(!):

Artichoke
Basil
Beans
Carrots
Cherry plums
Cherry tomatoes
Chives
Chrysanthemum greens
Cilantro
Cucumber
Fenugreek 
Grapefruit
Golden beats
Heirloom tomatoes
Japanese bunching onion
Kale
Mustard greens
Parsley
Peppers
Pumpkins
Strawberry
Squash
Sugar peas
Sunflowers
Thyme
Zucchini

Jiro Dreams

HAPPY Labor Day

Labor skill passion repetition.



Watched Jiro Dreams of Sushi tonight.

Cottage Food

LAW The California Homemade Food Act,  AB 1616

Passed through the state senate, awaiting governor's approval:



"On behalf of all the bread bakers in Los Angeles and throughout California, I strongly urge you to vote in favor of this rational approach to helping launch micro enterprises in communities across the state while providing these communities with a wonderful new source of locally produced foods that are as safe as they are delicious." - Mark Stambler, Los Angeles Bread Baker