Friday Feature: January Favorites

Can You Speak English?!

It's been a little while since I've done an experience-based-rant post, so why not bring it back?  Today, I want to start off my rant with a little story.

Last Friday, I was riding a particularly crowded bus.  Now, practically everybody who regularly rides public transportation knows that there are a few rules about riding in the front of the bus.  Mainly, that's fine if you do so, but if you see someone who needs the seat more (ie, an elderly or disabled individual) then you have to let them have it.  They announce this about every ten minutes over the bus intercoms and it is also posted graphically on all windows at the front of the bus.

As I mentioned, this particular morning the bus was packed, although this didn't seem to stop even more people from trying to cram their way on.  As you might imagine, people's patience were running quite short; I know I was repeating an inner mantra of "Stupid bus driver, stop letting more people on!"

At the front of the bus, there were a bunch of elderly women already comfortably settled, and one young Asian woman typing quickly on her phone.  Apparently the older white woman across from her couldn't handle the thought of her taking up a seat in the front, because she said very loudly across the isle, "Can't you speak English?!  You can't sit up here!"

Cue rant.

Yes, at that moment tensions were running high and patience was at a communal all-time low.  But does that make it okay to make a blatantly racist comment on a bus full of other Asians?  I think not!  This woman assumed that, because the young woman was Asian, that she was foreign and therefore couldn't understand English.

I've been thinking about this all weekend, deviating between anger at the older woman and saddness that we still have so far to go when it comes to our attitudes on diversity in the US.  Yes, I know it's 2014 and the fad seems to be pretending that we're in a "post-racial" society because, after all, haven't we elected a black man as President?  But the truth is, we're still a highly racially insensitive society, it's just a bit more implied and subtextual.

I think what made me so mad about this encounter was that I've had experiences like this myself.  Last year, I was riding the bus while reading a book by a Thai author with a picture of a little Thai girl on the front.  One of the white men in front of me tapped on my book and said, "That's cool, you're on your book cover!"

I believe my response was to blink at him and do my best not to lecture him on his ignorant statement.

When speaking of a European or Caucasian individual, we generally specify where in Europe their ancestry is from.  So why should we do any differently with people of color?  All Asians are not the same, just like all Latinos are not all the same and like even people who are African-American have historically come from many different African countries.

I guess what I'm trying to say is, if you even feel vaguely ignorant or unsure about a racial comment you're about to make, just don't say it.  That's fine if you're not sure what race of Asian someone is; that doesn't mean that you should make stereotypical assumptions that will probably end up insulting someone.

College Confidence: Body Images and Resolutions

Around New Years, most people set some kind of a "body resolution."  That can be anything from dieting, losing a certain amount of weight, reaching a certain fitness goal, etc.  I know that I personally set the goal to exercise more regularly.  For the purpose of this post, I will be focusing on the female body because, well, that's what I know.

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about why so many people feel so dissatisfied with their bodies that they plan to alter them over the course of the year.  While some people make changes for the sake of simply being healthy, it often seems that others have purely aesthetic body goals.  Of course, this doesn't really surprise me.  We live in such a visual, media-centered society in which we are constantly being presented with the "ideal body": long legs, nice curves and a small waist.  The media doesn't often portray the true range of real female bodies, and we thus feel the need to all try our best to fit the same mold.

I had never really had to deal with any of this until I got to college.  Yes, I had my own insecurities about my body back in high school, but I had mainly guy friends so it wasn't something we really talked about.  But coming to college, I was pretty shocked at just how many girls had significant issues with their bodies and just how often they talked about it.  And again, there was almost no talk about being healthy, just about being smaller, leaner, skinnier.

So I want to open this up to you all.  Have you had this same experience either with friends or yourself?  Do you set health goals or simply want to get down a size or two?  Do you think this is something more young women should be talking about?

The Cutest Little Studio in Sausalito

This weekend was the beginning of the end.  And by that I mean it was the last weekend before classes start.  So to celebrate my last weekend of freedom (and the US premiere of Sherlock!),  I took a short trip to Sausalito to stay with my friend Justine.  I've stayed with her multiple times since coming to school, but this time was a little bit different because she moved into the little studio "apartment" down below her family house this fall.

It is quite honestly one of the cutest little studios I've ever seen.  She has a really cute, shabby-chic style and was kind enough to let me take some pictures to share with you guys!

Her little jewelry/nicknack shelf.  I did the drawing on the top right for her sophomore year!

Her cute little kitchen and our breakfast.