Trending now: All things Asian

Day/title 61

Titular explanation for those who care—but we established that we’re all nerds here so we all care right!?  Right. Ok, so I finally returned I Heart Huckabees to Netflix and was anxious to see what my next DVD would be (I don’t keep up with the cue. I live on the edge son! #freewheeling)

Pay close attention.  This Asian phenomenon has hairpin turns and is a bit convoluted:

Asian instance  #1: My movie for Friday night’s veg fest that arrived in the mail? Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (you know you’re ready to watch it again too)

Asian instance #2: Today’s name lottery result–Sasaki

Asian instance #3: Came into my shared work space and was greeted by the undeniable aroma of Georgia’s Best Bento BBQ–an office favorite being enjoyed by my office mate…who fought in Vietnam!

Still with me? Relax your pituitary for a sec and meet me back at Bibliographic Info:

Bibliographic Info:

The loom and other stories
Sasaki, Ruth A.

Graywolf Press, 1991

Shhhh. i'm looming.

Summary (Kirkus Review):

An accomplished first collection by a third-generation San Franciscan. The stories here, most set in California, reflect Sasaki’s Japanese-American background in a low-key but poignant way–not so much as a clash of contrasts but as a rivalry of claims: the customs, the foods, even the idioms of the past that still tug, even at a generation who have been spared the earlier prejudices and wartime hostilities. Though the pieces are separate, most are about the Terasaki family. In “Ohaka-Mairi,” the family goes to the cemetery to pay respect to the dead, and t he narrator recalls her father’s bitterness at the death of her elder sister in a climbing accident.

My reaction:

Yukio Mishima she is not.  And who knew Yukio was so hot (just Google imaged him)?  And who knew he committed sepuku? Love his writing but didn’t give his life the diligence due.

Lady Eloise and so much more

Day 46!!

Bibliographic info:

Rejuvenate! : It’s never too late
Kitt, Eartha

Scribner, 2001

Maaaarcus!

Summary (Library Journal review):

Singer, actress, and Broadway star Kitt (I’m Still Here) was born out of wedlock in poverty in South Carolina in 1928. In this part memoir, part exercise manual she shares, in her own distinctive voice, “fundamental ways of being, thinking, and doing” that have kept her productive, content, and free of the fear of getting old. She accepts aging as a natural process; she never yearned to stay young. Kitt chronicles her distinguished career’s ups and downs: her outspoken remarks on the Vietnam War at a White House luncheon hosted by First Lady Ladybird Johnson in 1968 and subsequent blacklisting; her concerts, TV appearances, and best-selling recordings; her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame; and her various affairs. Kitt also offers deep breathing instructions and stretching exercises and encourages listeners to make a commitment to taking care of themselves.

My reaction:

LOVED the stand she took regarding the Vietnam war! And wow! She danced with Katherine Dunham’s dance troupe before she broke into the business!?  Go Eartha ***cabbage patching*** go Eartha! Mrs.  Kitt was born  into poverty in South Carolina and was thrown out because her mother’s fiance said he didn’t want that “yella gal” in his house.   Colorism in the African-American community is deep!  Any way, Eartha went on to become the incomparable little power house of an icon that she was and in this book she gives her recipe for rejuvenation,  happiness and health.   With skin as radiant as her was in her 80’s, if she’s selling I’m buying!