playing favorites 2020
by Like most millennials, a lot of my reading these days takes the form of news and pop culture. It was a natural progression for the voracious reading habits that began …
Category: personal
how i interact with the world
the stars belong to us
camping I don’t remember the first time I went camping. I was a baby. I don’t remember the experience but I remember the photos with a vivid intensity. My family …
seeing myself on tv
Even before the pandemic, television has always been my favorite form of visual media. I worked three jobs through college and was well known for falling asleep during movies. I …
like a hammer
Jeffrey Gibson’s exhibition Like a Hammer was on display at the Seattle Art Museum in the spring of 2019. It’s one of the rare exhibits I’ve gone to see more …
the unbearable being of whiteness
In an earlier post, I shared a resource I use by Tema Okun. People suspicious of phrases like “white supremacist culture” will dismiss it immediately. But even for someone who …
intersectionality in the diaspora
I recently listened to a podcast called Intersectionality in the Diaspora. It’s co-hosted by my friend Clara. The podcast feels like listening in on a conversation between two friends. Clara …
writing my name in lower case started with y’all
Whenever I can help it, I write my name using only lowercase letters. I’ve done this since college at least. I’ve always signed my emails that way. “Proper” nouns in …
the cultural legacies of our elders
My achchi passed away last weekend at 87 years old. She and I were 50 years and a couple weeks apart. Mourning a loved one in the age of coronavirus …
the R in SARS
I started my career in public health. In school I wanted to be a doctor, but I hated memorization and preferred working to studying. My first public health job was …
boom times
“Everyone thinks they live in a boom time,” I turned the words over and over in my mind like I was polishing them for something. I was looking for hope …