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SLANT 8: Bold Asian American Images
Friday, May 30, 8pm
Filmmaker Soham Mehta and curator Melissa Hung in attendance

This program of experimental and narrative films weaves together the humorous and the poetic.  Some films tackle stereotypes, while others travel through memory and longing.

Synesthesia | Larilyn Sanchez
Texas premiere | 2006 | Video | 2 mins
Senses come alive, creating impressions, when a woman goes dancing in the dark.

Drive | Ahree Lee
World premiere | 2007 | Video | 4 mins
An experimental take on driving turns multiple trips on the same road into a transcendent experience.

Cookies for Sale | Wes Kim
Texas premiere | 2007 | Video | 3.75 mins
A little girl selling cookies door-to-door engages in a battle of wills with a very grumpy neighbor.

Souvenirs From Asia | Joyce Wong
Texas premiere | 2007 | Video | 12.5 mins
Hanjoo feels like an alien in her suburban neighborhood. It doesn’t help that her adoptive mother is clueless about race and history.

Manoj | Zia Mohajerjasbi
Houston premiere | 2007 | Video | 12 mins
Written by comedian Hari Kondabolu, Manoj is a mockumentary about in-your-face comedian Manoj, who is more than happy to use stereotypes for a laugh.

Suicide Piece | Yu Araki
Texas premiere | 2007 | Video | 3.5 mins
It is mid-day in a major city when this performance piece begins. How will passerbys react to a man and a banana?

Released | Soham Mehta
Houston premiere | 2007 | 16mm presented on Video | 8.5 mins
Three years ago, a brutal hate crime sent Kaustabh to the hospital. Today his assailant will be released from prison and Kaustabh wants revenge.

The Nothing Pill | Yu Gu
Texas premiere | 2007 | Video | 6 mins
In the year 2110, on an Earth nearly depleted of resources, a scientist struggles to find a cure for loneliness.

Dan Carter | Alison Kobayashi
Texas premiere | 2006 | Video | 15 mins
Dan Carter donated his answering machine to a second-hand store. Dan Carter didn’t remove the tape. This story of a love affair, re-imagined and performed by the filmmaker, is based on those messages.

A Thousand Words | Ted Chung
Texas premiere | 2007 | Video | 4.5 mins
A train passenger forgets her camera, or did she leave it on purpose? A stranger finds the camera and takes a chance to connect.

Embarcadero Blues | Dino Ignacio
Texas premiere | 2007 | Video | 3 mins
In this music video, songwriter Goh Nakamura sings a love song for San Francisco and anyone who has worked in the service industry.

The Best of Slant Vol 1 features a collection of short films culled from 7 years of Aurora Picture Show’s annual Slant: Bold Asian American Images festival. Slant curator Melissa Hung is the founding editor of Hyphen, a magazine about Asian American culture.  Films in the Compilation include:

1. How to do the Asian Squat by Daniel Hsia - or is it the Chinese squat? ;-)
2. Lilo and Me by Kip Fulbeck
3. Maritess vs the Superfriends by Dino Ignacio 
4. A Little Bit Different by Lynn Okimura 
5. Profiles in Science by Wes Kim 
6. I Pie (A Love Story) by Nobu Adilman 
7. How to Make Kimchi According to My Kun-Uma by Samuel Kiehoon Lee
8. Slip of the Tongue by Karen Lum - spoken word by Adriel Luis

Talking about Asian-Americans, here are some more links:

• CNN special focus:  http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2007/asian.american/
• blog:  http://www.reappropriate.com/
• blog:  http://www.slanteyefortheroundeye.com/

Non-exhaustive, in no particular order:

1. its vision is to live a community (thus the name change from Fort Bend Chinese Church to Fort Bend Community Church), in grace
2. even with its name change and acknowledgement and goal to love people of different races, it still has a specialty in reaching those who come overseas
3. it seeks to grow God-centered believers who have a heart for missions, starting from youth
4. I can learn from the persevering wisdom and godly example of the women older than me
5. the senior pastor seeks to always preach from the Word, and use humble examples from his own personal applications and life struggles
6. it is where I grew up, it is who brought me up in the Truth
7. it is where I got baptized, to whom I proclaimed and asked for accountability in continuing to follow Christ
8. it is where I have seen new attendees come into salvation and baptism in His Name, after their friends (members of the church) extended invitations
9. it is where many people of different backgrounds (e.g. colleges, ethnicities, stage in life, journey of faith) still share their lives and stories and encouragement
10. it is where my parents serve, from the lunch service to the library to the Chinese school
11. it is where I have seen others grow from toddlerhood to maturity, and found encouragement as I see them shining their faith in their generation on their college campuses
12. it is where I have clumsily served beside another, who had so much faith
13. it is where I have been deeply hurt and yet found forgiveness and seen the change of Christ manifest in those I had grown up with, seeing how they are very much their uniques selves and yet been transformed by the amazing grace of Christ

Sunday.  My parents came back from church to provide me lunch (FBCC doesn’t provide lunch during the summers since estimation of who’s in town is futile).  Afterwards, I went to meet up with Linton, Chris, and Vickie.  They didn’t want to shoot around, so instead they decided to join those BASIC members who were free that afternoon.  I read in the car (so hot!) while I waited for them to get ready (e.g. for Chris to grab his bowling shoes).  The four of us decided to get started and played two games.  I’m not partial to bowling, but I have to admit that with the three of them I had a great time.  I just told Vickie I look at the tick marks on the bowling alley and she went from 53 in the first game to 111 in the second game, breaking 100 for the first time in her life.  It was so monumental that I found myself jumping up and down in sharing her happiness LOL.  I bowled my average (88 in the first game and 97 in the second).  Linton ended up being the top scorer in the first game (95) by ending with a spare and strike using the rotating method, but somehow he dropped to last place in the second game (87).  His usual method is like having a mini track run up to the edge of the alley and then throwing the ball until it crashes and rolls towards the pins (you have to see it in person haha).  Chris improved his technique and, with some competition from Vickie, bowled a 116 by the second game.  It was so much fun seeing how that ended (”yeah!”). 

The guys left but Vickie stayed since enough BASIC people arrived for them to start playing.  I was formally introduced to Shawn Yu who apparently used to be the roommate of Vincent Tao, George Wu, and Kenny Lew.  I read.  Then they browsed the Barnes and Noble down the street.  Jeff made a pledge at DWC to go on STIM after college, so that’s how he knows Josh Peng.  He says, “And now I’m herein the secular world.  It’s very different.”  He was browsing the management section, saying eventually he would want to start his own.  He’s moving out of Texas the first week of June.

For dinner I joined Linton, Chris, Michael and Eveline, Jonathan, and James (7:30).  It was funny, I ended up right behind James who was driving Jonathan, and they waved hello through the rearview mirror.  At first we were going to eat at FuFu’s, but since it was full we decided to go elsewhere.  Taking forever (but I can’t complain since I wasn’t making any decision either) walking down the block back an forth, Vickie decided to join us after all (she wasn’t hungry but she was hungrier that the BASIC people since they had eaten a big, late lunch).  She suggested East Wall, so we walked over.  We ordered seven dishes (8:30), and the waitress was somewhat pressing for us to order another entree.  I’m not sure if she was concerned about the superstitioun that eight is complete for luck, or if she was using that as an excuse for us to order one more dish, or if she thought we wouldn’t have enough to eat.  Peter joined us later. 

We headed to James’ condo and eventually decided to play Monopoly, with a drinking element.  I had assumed I wasn’t playing since I wouldn’t be drinking alcohol, but they slapped a handful of money in front of me.  So many people talking at once that people kept asking how many of each bill was needed, that eventually Linton a bit frustratingly repeated himself.  Eveline was studying for her pharm tech exam on Wednesday, but she ended up being the banker by the end.  Peter (hat) convinced Chris (’Das boot!’) to give him the yellow properties for a complete set, so Peter eventually won.  For a few moments I think he was thinking he may need to form an alliance, since we were ganging up on him, and tried to do so with Vickie, Jonathan, and then me.  I didn’t land on any property I could buy until near the end, with New York Avenue.  Linton didn’t have much more luck, only ending up with the Electric Company and a purple, which he ended up having a complete set after trading some railroads.  He was advocating for me so much, saying that someone rich needed to donate something for me, so I could at least build something and feel part of the game.  Awwwwww.  In response, James just suddenly said, “Here, donation” and dropped the Water Works property in front of me LOL.  Man, you just had to be there. 

Chris had no idea the consequences of his trade (he had initially wanted to make the deal sweeter to give Vickie a blue property (not cyan, as Linton pointed out haha!) with some railroads so that she would give him orange-red property, but she declined).  Eventually Chris traded with Jonathan so he finally had his complete orange-red set and Jonathan had his green set.  James had the cyan set after trading (he at first was saying how little possibility it was to end up having a complete set - been a long while since he’s played, eh?) with Michael (to have a complete purple-red set), who was quite quiet.  He didn’t drink either.  They had decided about drinking during landing on houses, hotels, jail, luxury tax, and income tax.  In the beginning, Vickie left briefly and when she returned and rolled her dice, she accidentally knocked down a couple of people’s playing pieces, so that they decided she had to drink for that (and eventually many more for others in the course of the game).  They also randomly decided for peopel to drink when people made “stupid” comments or asked “stupid” questions, when they spilt alcohol, or etc etc.  It went so out of hand that James at one point said, “Because I feel like it” and drank along with Linton and Chris, I think, hahaha.  At times they’d get so riled up, everyone would be standing, and I would try to push Jonathan and James to sit down.  Peter said, “I’ve never played Monopoly with a group that was so anal about rules and all.”  Wow, what a game. 

We decided to stop at 2 a.m.  Peter and then Chris left at 3 a.m.  James fell asleep on his bed in his room.  Vickie (loveseat) and Linton (couch) ended up sleeping over.  I read Acts 15-16 and Psalm 37 with Jonathan on the laptop.  Afterwards he checked Facebook and his email.  Then he said that sometimes when he has time or is bored, he’d check on houses so he’d get a better sense of prices, etc. when he eventually does decide to own a home.  He says that he’d like to work for this smaller company that’s located in northwest? Houston.  Finally we went to sleep on the floor (found a sleeping bag in the closet for me to use–not sure what he did) around 4 a.m. 

Monday/Memorial Day.  Vickie and Linton left for home before 8 a.m.  Linton’s so sweet, asking me if I needed a ride back.  I decided against it and tried to fall back asleep, but i couldn’t so I got up and read.  Then James treated me to a Chinese breakfast at Classic Kitchen (soup wontons, egg-and-tortilla, and warm soy milk–yeah, don’t hate because I don’t know what they’re called).  Jonathan had left in the morning as well, watching a movie with his sister Susan and then working out at the gym.  James and I ended taking a nap again at 11 a.m.  Peter came at noon with crawfish (he woke up early to buy it and not without a search, finally at Viet Hoa) as well as onions and oranges.  James provided the sausage.  James put on I Am Legend, which was when Chris arrived in his motorcycle garb.  Then they watched Street Kings with Keanu Reeves, which I didn’t watch because I was eating crawfish.  Linton did, after he came with the spicy powder and sliced mushrooms.  Then they put on Curse of the Golden Flower (from Sony, which bought Paramount Pictures) after much objection from Eve.  After seeing it, I concur.  Bea left soon after, and then Vickie left at 8:30 to head back to San Antonio (first day of summer school tomorrow).  I decided to leave at 9 p.m.  There was still a whole pile left (Braden, Brian, and Steve had to work today, but Candace and JoJo showed up for this second consumption).  Eveline was still studying (using Peter’s book he had bought in the past but never took the test).  Eveline ended up speaking with Elaine on the phone because Jacky had dirty hands from peeling the crawfish, and it was so cute and sweet that they converse in Chinese, hehe.  Eve said that her current relationship is the longest she’s had (6 months), but her parents still think that the white guy is “just a friend.”  James had to take out the trash so he asked Peter to walk me to the car.  It seemed like a lot of work (especially after last night), so I asked if he enjoyed it.  He said, “Strangely, yes.”  I reported that I enjoyed hanging out with them, especially after hearing from people that UH is a commuter school.  He said, “Yes, we miss out on the dorm like and all that, but I like to think that we’re more grounded in reality.” 

Yesterday was my last day of work!  For now, anyway, haha.  Now I need to start studying for my NBCOTE.  In the meantime, I can now participate in some Houston events:

• FotoFest Biennial - well, I missed this one.  And it was China this time.  Ended April 20.
• Lucy’s Legacy - it’s the world premiere of this exhibit.  Scheduled to end tomorrow but today’s newspaper says HMNS extended it until September 1.
• Houston International Festival - last year it was China, but this year it’s Africa.  April 26-27.
• Dragon Boat Festival - located at Allen’s Landing.  May 3.
• APAHA Heritage Festival - the Asian/Pacific American Heritage Association will host it at Miller Outdoor Theatre.  May 3.
• Cinco de Mayo Celebration - also at Miller Outdoor Theatre (May 4), and Hermann Park (May 3) by the League of United Latin American Citizens.
• Art Car Parade - from the Orange Show Center for Visionary Art.  May 9-10.
• Houston Palestinian Film Festival - at Angelika Film Center and Cafe, MFAH, and Rice University.  May 9-18.
• The Cost of Living - at Discovery Green Park.  May 16.
• Pasadena Strawberry Festival - with the world’s largest strawberry shortcake.  May 16-18.
• Celtic Festival - guys in skirts, w00t! ;) LOL.  May 17-18.
• Slant 8: Bold Asian American Images - at Aurora Picture Show.  May 30.
• Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind - by Hayao Miyazaki at MFAH.  June 1.
• Best of Extremely Shorts: Audience Choice - at Discovery Green Park.  June 27.

Plus, I can finally cut my hair!  I think this is the longest I’ve ever had my hair in my entire life (and I don’t like it, especially for my sleep).  Unintentionally, it seems each time I donate to Locks of Love, I’ve grown it out longer and longer.  Now I’ve reached their ideal (first time was for babies, and I’m guestimating my second time was their minimum of 10 inches and my third time 11 inches): now it’s longer than a foot:  http://prayriefayrie.files.wordpress.com/2008/04/04-26-08-2.jpg (for some reason I’ve tried inserting the image multiple times, over a few days, and even tried a new entry, but all failed.  I guess too long and ugly to display ;-P).

Some more Houston events:

• What’s Up, Houston? published by Brandonwood Press, L.L.C. on 2726 Bissonnet Street #240-153 / Houston, TX 77005-1352.  Email: whatsup@whatsuphoustonmag.com
• 101houston.com

I was searching for a specific missionary and instead came upon Peter Parker.  Not the fictional citizen identity of Spider-Man, but the physician, missionary, and diplomat:

• The Peter Parker Collection - http://cwmldl.med.yale.edu/gsdl/cgi-bin/library?e=q-000-00—0ppdcdot–00-0-0–0prompt-10—4—-dky–0-1l–1-en-Zz-1—25-about-eye–00031-011-1-0utfZz-8-00&a=p&p=about - the paintings by Lam Qua that he commissioned to showcase his work in China
• “Peter Parker and the introductin of western medicine in China” - http://www.springerlink.com/content/y32507563351487p/ - paints a less favorable picture of him (being recalled by both the US State Department and the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions)
• “Curiosity and Cure: Peter Parker’s patients, Lam Qua’s portraits” by Stephen Rachman - http://www.common-place.org/vol-04/no-02/rachman/

I also read about something called the Three-Self Patriotic Movement.  I don’t know if it’s something good or not, and I’m too tired to read tonight, but here are some websites:

• http://www.china-embassy.org/eng/zt/zjxy/t36493.htm
• http://www.2008olympicsbeijing.org/threeselfpatrioticmovement-tspm.htm
• http://www.amitynewsservice.org/page.php?page=1194
• http://www.chinatoday.com.cn/English/e2007/e200704/p12.htm
• http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/english/200009/21/eng20000921_51066.html

And one last tidbit:  A soft greenish-blue mold called penicillium looks like a paint brush under a microscope. The latin word for paint brush is penicillus. Years ago people used paint brushes like we use pencils today.  –http://www.thinkingfountain.org/p/penicillium/penicillium.html

Saturday, Feburary 16, 2008.  In the morning from 10 to 11:30 I did something but I forgot.  I tried to be productive by uploading pictures and comics, neatening up my room, and showering.  After picking up the Lins, we met Vickie at House of Bowls at 5:30 p.m.  She just wanted a discussion with her close girl friends without the guys for once.  I enjoyed it because it’s not often to hang out as a group of females nowadays.  Then, the guys started showing up.  Linton came, then David Kalloor, who brought his STIM friend Leslie.  They didn’t go to the same locale (she went to the Philippines), but they did the training together, as did Andrew Eng (he went to China) that year.  Much later Brad Eng and Denise (who apparently are dating right now) came by as well.  Hannah is the first to give me her Bible verse memory scrapbook page from my birthday!  I was so excited so when I came home I read it.  Along with it and a homemade card (talk about awesome), she gave me Diary of a Wimpy Kid: A Novel in Cartoons by Jeff Kinney.  I read the whole thing in one sitting.  It’s an easy read, but I found it so dejecting.  It’s a story about an immature boy who thinks he’s all that but in reality doesn’t take responsibility for any of his actions.  I guess the essence reflects the human condition.

Gladys Aylward in what is thought to be her only photograph
Courtesy of Moody Bible Institute

Inch came later all dressed up.  Apparently yesterday he and Sarah Kim had spent literally the ENTIRE day (since 5:30 a.m.) together because they drove to Austin to attend Eunice’s wedding.  It was an enjoyable day.  Unfortunately, the last fifteen minutes of their drive back wasn’t too hot.  I told him about Friday.  Jeff asked why I wasn’t playing (my ankle).  Anyway, tonight Harvest Community Church has an evening service and he was going to attend and thus he just wanted to drop by and enjoy the weather.  It really was splendid.  Andrew Eng arrived late and he came over to say hi.  He said he wasn’t playing because this is supposed to be a ministry so he’s letting the other people play first.  Inch commented on how Andrew’s shirt wasn’t as tight as he thought it would be (it’s a medium apparently).  We made other random comments, such as James Hsia climbing to retrieve the frisbee that ended up on the awning over the windows of the school.  I saw Kelvin so I went over to return the wrap that he lent me for my ankle.  Nathan Wang joined in later.

Tiffany Lin is amazing.  She struck up a conversation with me.  She asked me where I was working, and she said that actually she thinks that’s where she thinks she’s going to go for her psychiatric rotation (near April).  She expressed her disappointment in the working world and in herself when it came to God.  She said right before she started she had gone on a mission trip where she incorporated her medical skills and at the same time was able to ascertain the patient’s spiritual well-being as well.  However, now she’s so busy and on-the-go that she finds that she doesn’t have the time to do that, and isn’t even sure if it’s appropriate.  She reminded me of myself, when I went to Mexico with Nathan Kim, Lois Lim, Melvin Feng (”!esta bien!”), and Jane Park the week right before I moved to El Paso.  I didn’t even go home–my parents picked me up from Laredo and then we drove up to the Mountain Time Zone.  I was so hyped, and I really did feel like I was still in Mexico.  *Psi*  I find it also interesting that she asked if I found a church community.  It was like she got the core of my current issues.  How did she know?  I explained to her that the past year I had actually attended as many FBCC, WHCC, and HCC events I was invited to.  Somehow FBCC doesn’t plan as many or something, but the group I’ve ended up feeling the closest to has been HCC due to their weekly sports outings. 

I also asked Jesslyn to walk with me (I had anticipated Lindi was going to come so I could return her jacket, or Teresa Chii since she’s leaving Houston).  At the end she asked me if I was interested in missions.  I found that interesting; was she thinking about it?  She said somewhat, like either supporting here in the United States or teaching overseas or something of that nature.  I said that I hadn’t seriously thought of it, but I was always enamored of it even before I believed in God.  I told her how just this past Friday I had heard the descendent of James Hudson Taylor speak, and how I grew up being awed not only by him but by George Mueller, Gladys Aylward, Elisabeth Elliot….

I left early to join Phoebe, Hannah, Vickie, and Linton.  He decided to cook dinner for us since his sister was away and Vickie was in town and he usually eats with the Lins.  Vickie and he went to buy groceries, then the girls did work while he cooked.  He made lamb with two different sauces (ketchup with hoison sauce, and one with oyster sauce), baby bok choy (slightly over-cooked), sauteed onions, corn, and baked boned salmon.  Rebekah came home later.  Vickie initiated a conversation about flirting for attention from guys (doing good for the other versus leading the other on), emotional attachment (is okay), codependency (if the other’s wellbeing is wholly dependent on another), and other similar topics. 

A weekend of many thoughts….here’s a list of books about missionaries:  http://servinghimathome.blogspot.com/2005/12/missionary-stories-to-inspire-children.html

On the tenth day of the first month the people went up from the Jordan and camped at Gilgal on the eastern border of Jericho. 20 And Joshua set up at Gilgal the twelve stones they had taken out of the Jordan. 21 He said to the Israelites, “In the future when your descendants ask their fathers, ‘What do these stones mean?‘ 22 tell them, ‘Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.’ 23 For the LORD your God dried up the Jordan before you until you had crossed over. The LORD your God did to the Jordan just what he had done to the Red Sea when he dried it up before us until we had crossed over. 24 He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the LORD is powerful and so that you might always fear the LORD your God.”  –Joshua 4:19-24 (NIV)

Tonight is the first part of three that Reverend James Hudson Taylor IV is speaking on.  Unfortunately, I don’t think I’ll be coming to the next two parts (tomorrow and for Sunday’s service).  It’s part of WHCC’s 2008 Missions Conference.  As the title indicates, there will be twelve stones, and four were discussed tonight:  (1) a family dedicated, (2) the centrality of prayer, (3) zeal for lost souls, and (4) experiencing God’s faithfulness.  What really blew me away was that he was speaking fluently in high-level Mandarin Chinese (this guy is white, though is wife is Taiwanese).  An Asian man translated for him, and it was amusing because when there was a pause, Taylor would fill in for the translator, or correct the translation.  And he was humorous, making comments like, “He was just checking to see if you were awake and paying attention.”  Wow, that is amazing.

He recounted many family stories, some I’ve read in the past, such as the mother praying until she knew that her son believed in God (amazing! the power of prayer).  He told us about how his grandparents didn’t se their four children until four years later, how his relative received the exact amount of money for theology school without telling a soul, about how the day his antecedent was two hours late to his own wedding due to accepting Christ that morning and his wife was furious for not only having a late wedding but a late wedding to a Christian man (and thus there ended up being no dancing or drinking at their reception)–stories he grew up hearing about.  He tells us these stories as encouragement.  It is not some family secret, but God’s grace and years of prayer, that this sort of fruit has been witnessed in their family for so many generations.  His family motto since the beginning is Joshua 24:15.  He’s named his son Joshua.  “May the Lord put the world in the heart of the Chinese”–urging us to not only reach toward our own people but to serve others as well.  In fact, many are “racing to a Christless eternity”, or statistically, about 40 people per second for 365 days is equal to the number of people in China alone. 

He talked about the perseverance of George Stott (he brought the Gospel to a region where the Chinese dialect was so hard to understand that it was used as code so the Japanese wouldn’t interpret), Robert Morrison, John Wesley, and Antioch, where the disciples were first called Christians (Acts 11:26).  They were the first to send missionaries, and the first to not only serve their own people but the Greeks as well.  He admonishes parents to allow their children with the desire to become missionaries, because many parents encourage them to believe in God but then discourage them to “be anything but a pastor or a missionary.” He encourages parents to give their parents their blessings to do the work of God.  He told us how one person’s faith could save many (e.g. the story of Rahab saving the spies in Joshua 2:1, 14, 21, 6:17).  “He doesn’t want us to be bitter; he wants us to be better.”

But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.“  –Joshua 24:15 (NIV)