Kimchi Mamas

Korean Movie Night: The Man From Nowhere

Hi Everyone,

Don't fall over stunned on seeing my 3rd post in a week!  This arrived in my inbox today, from a Korean Adoptee maillist I am on for the San Francisco Bay area:

To read more about the movie, click here.  I have not seen it yet, so can't offer a review, but there are some on the bottom of the page.  The short storyline here is that a man gets pulled (back?) into a drug crime situation when a neighbor and her daughter get kidnapped.  The star is Won Bin, and he is, ahem, attractive.  It sounds fairly violent, so not for the whole family.

For those like me, whose Korean is weak, the movie is subtitled in English.

The movie is actually playing in Cupertino tonight through Thursday, November 4th.  To see movie times, click here and select "AMC Independent" and the date for which you want showtimes.  The gal who sent out the email said all are welcome at the AKASF event, whether adoptees or not, so consider coming to their times.  I may try to make it, but can't commit.

Let's do this like the Book Review this summer.  I'll try to see it this week.  If you've already seen it, let us know your thoughts.  If you have not seen it, then come back and comment when you have.

Have a great weekend everyone!

--Jomama

 

Holiday cards anyone?

Hey hey! It's ho ho time... in about two months that is...

Now, I'm one of those people that don't even do cards. Full time job, two kids and a husband, 'nuff said. I'd much prefer to hang out with you one on one than write you a lame card that says "Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. I hope you have a year filled with joy, peace, love blah blah blah..." or give you a cheap gift that you'll probably feel guilty about tossing in the trash around February because it gives your kid a rash.

Click here for more info.

- Mary

Sacred Paintings of Kim Ki-Chang (Woonbo)

I have a great book of postcards showing a "Collection of Sacred Paintings by Kim Ki-Chang", published by the Israel Cultural Center in Korea.  I bought it over 20 years ago while in Seoul, at the Kyobo Building basement bookstore most likely.

I apologize to non-Christian readers--this is not meant to be a post about religion, but just a sharing of art by a Korean artist.  A link to a brief biography of the artist is here.

These beautiful paintings depict the life of Christ from "The Annunciation" to "The Ascension."  Christ, and all other personages are painted as Koreans, in traditional garb from the Chosun era. 

The Birth of Jesus:

Nor Cal Kimchi Mamas Meet-up #4

The earlier posts about Chusok got my salivary glands going, so what to do in a houseful of non-kimchi eaters?  Organize a Kimchi Mamas Meetup so I can eat Korean food with like-minded Mamas--that's what!

To see pictures of the delicious eats, click here.

Here are the details:

Sunday, November 14th, at 6:00pm
Sahn Maru
4315 Telegraph Ave
Oakland, CA 94701

If Stefania has not chosen a name for her pending son, we may work it out over dinner. 
There is a norae-bang nearby as well for those inclined after.

Informal polling has a pretty good crowd assembling for this event: 5 bloggers (4 Kimchi Mamas!) and a reader.

To RSVP please email or join the google group [email protected] so we have a big enough table the day of.  Thanks!

Also, I believe we've had a request from a reader in Portland looking for a further North Meet-Up.  Anyone in Portland or Seattle want to get the ball rolling up there?

--Jomama

 

Ask A Korean (Community): What Should We Name Our Boy?

In the summer, I found out that I was unexpectedly pregnant. After the initial, "What?", we've settled into being overjoyed and excited and can't wait to meet our little baby boy due in early Spring. With our two girls, we've given them names that either reflect their unique heritage (Korean-Italian-Irish-English-German mix) or family names as a tribute to a beloved relative. This means that each of our girls has two middle names to accomodate our crazy naming criteria (but so do I and so does my husband).

We'd love to give our boy a Korean middle name, but having grown in Hawaii, being half-Korean and being a 5th generation American, I don't speak Korean. Nor was a raised with any cultural understanding of how Koreans are named. My relatives have names like Wilbert, Catherine, Esther, Miriam, Evelyn, James, and Flora—arguably traditional English names. And my family surnames are Kim and Choi. I don't want either of those to be a middle name for our boy.

I know that Korean names can be loaded with meaning. I know people might consult naming specialists to ensure the best name possible. I know Koreans give their children names of virtues they hope their children will have. I know families have a lot to say about it. That's all well and good, but not so important to me. We just want a nice name with a meaning that speaks to us.

Can you help? What are your suggestions for a boy's middle name? Do you have any favorite combinations of words? Any favorite virtuous names that won't be too much a burden for a boy to carry? Please help or else we might be naming our boy after Rain/Bi. (I don't mind the association, but my husband might!) We'll consider them all, I promise!

—Stefania Pomponi Butler