I Was Moved By Jeff Chang's Commencement Speech

Hip-hop journalist Jeff Chang gave a
commencement speech for Asian Americans
at UCLA on 6/20/05.

I was checking out AngryAsianMan.com and happened across Jeff Chang's—author of Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation—commencement speech for UCLA's Asian American Studies department.

I don't think I've ever read something that speaks so directly about being an American of Asian descent.

I remember he was a guest speaker at an Asian American studies class I was taking at UC Irvine. He spoke about how he started Giant Robot magazine.

I Haven't Laughed This Hard in a While

Ryan comforts himself with whipped cream, after
realizing he "missed a great opportunity."

CryingWhileEating.com. People cry for specified reasons while they eat. I read an article about at latimes.com.

Here's an excerpt:

"Yet the site's appeal is rooted in something deeper than the absurd; the effect of the clips is actually visceral. The scenes evoke the kind of unself-conscious, shame-free expressions of psychic pain that few have indulged since childhood. They capture people at their most vulnerable, taking childlike refuge in another primal experience: eating. Yet the food fails to comfort, creating a wacky incongruity. Put simply, it's at once funny and disturbing to watch someone sob uncontrollably, break for a mouthful of éclair and resume sobbing."

I laughed hard when I saw the "Ryan" clip. Mind you, I don't laugh easy.

Richard Roeper and Confessing Secrets

I was reading Richard Roeper's commentary last night at SunTimes.com about people mailing in their deepest, darkest secrets on postcards and then having them posted on this website.

Good stuff.

About spilling secrets, Roeper says telling someone in person is the ONLY way to come clean. "Anonymous confessions don't count."

Physical Activity and Mo' Better Blues

Denzel, Wesley Snipes and Spike Lee star in this 1990 film.

Today was a difficult day for me.

I had interviewed for a copywriting job at the National Notary Association last week. It went well. My interviewer gave me a writing assignment to complete in two days: a sales letter and a magazine space ad. I did both. And emailed them to the hiring manager on the alloted day. I haven't heard from him since.

I went to the gym later on in the day. It was hard to drag my body to the fitness center, knowing I didn't have a job.

I used the elliptical machine for 35 minutes. I ran two miles on the treadmill. I burned a total of about 820 calories. I usually run three miles and do some resistance training. But I had eight slices of Costco pizza yesterday.

I watched Mo' Better Blues at my apartment.

I admire Spike Lee films. Mo' Better Blues is emotionally involving, and has a stirring musical score.

For some reason, death crosses my mind quite regularly. I don't mean in a morbid way. But in the sense that I know I'm a temporal being who'll one day expire. I've read in the Bible that one of the criteria Jesus will use in judging us is whether we used our lives to serve others in some capacity.

I will be volunteering at the Los Angeles Mission beginning in August. They're located near 5th street in downtown.

The other day I drove down there around 11 'o clock at night, just to see where it was. There were derelicts on the streets. I gave one guy a loaf of bread I had in my car. He was black, possibly in his early twenties.

Toe Nail Bled After Basketball Accident

While sprinting downcourt, I hit my foot on another player's heel and my left big toenail lifted (Lamisil commercial style) — blood oozed out, staining my sock and preventing me from playing in the next full-court game.

Accidents are commonplace in street ball: a jammed finger, bruise above the eye, scraped palm, rolled ankle. It's part of the game.

It's the second time I've suffered a toenail lift (on the same toe). Pus was oozing out of it today. A new nail will grow in completely in about five months. Looking forward to peeling away the dead nail.


On this person's foot, a new toenail is about 2/3 grown.