Have you seen the new PSY music video?
You might be thinking: What in the world? Mother Father Gentlemen? What the heck is that? Because that’s what I thought the first time through. But I did have to admit it was catchy. So I watched it again….and I think I get it. At least what it means to me.
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So... this video has gone viral. I even saw a short clip of it being talked about on CNN. CNN!!! Anyway, I'm not a huge fan of Psy or anything but I think the video is hilarious. I laughed out loud when the camera zooped out to reveal him sitting on a toilet. What is it with Koreans and the toilet? I remember the guy in the Wonder Girls video of Nobody being on a toilet too. On a side note, my boys are 3 and 5 and talk about poop non stop. They think it's the most hiLARious thing. I guess I'll have many more years of that?
Anyway, if you haven't seen it yet, enjoy!
- Mary
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Jang Dong Gun is starring in a Hollywood film called The Warrior's Way with Kate Bosworth! I'm a little bit excited. Are you going to see it?
He was a lead actor in two huge Korean films, TaeGukki (Brotherhood of War) and Chin-goo (Friend). He tied the knot with Go So Young, a beautiful Korean actress, earlier this year and they had a baby couple of months ago. I hope it's better than Ninja Assassin... I didn't watch that one but I heard it wasn't that good. Sorry Rain!
- Mary
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"Simon says it's best not to invest too much of one's identity in ethnicity."
I am an avid listener of NPR and think that they are the best source of news, most of the time but this story was just... just... so... biased and bad.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129301982
As some of the commenters already pointed out, this story breaks the #1 rule of journalism, that the journalist be objective and have no bias. I guess journalism gets meshed with a bunch of other kinds of writing nowadays and this isn't the biggest problem I have with this article but... ANYWAY.
That quote up there. That pressed a button. My first thought, who the hells is HE to tell ME that it's not best to invest too much of my identity in ethnicity. DUDE. Being Korean is one of the most important things for my identity. When asked to draw a picture of "me" in a high school art class, I drew a big picture of the Korean flag as a part of the collage. Being Korean isn't THE most important part of my identity but it's certainly more important than a bunch of other things and I certainly do invest a lot of my identity, time, energy, and money into being Korean.
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Love at first sight... is what I felt the moment I laid eyes on Kim Yu-na (김연아).
Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images
Mesmerized was what I was... during both of her performances... I think even my 3 year old son was crushing on her.
Hands down, she was the highlight of the 2010 Winter Olympics for me. Way to go Yu-na!
This Kimchi mama (+ the rest of the world) loves you.
You make me a little more proud to be Korean and I sure hope that all of your endorsements (she's the highest paid in endorsements among all celebrities in South Korea) help close the largest gender income gap in the developed world. (Thank you Hyon Bin for the heads up about the great article!)
- Mary is a little sad that the Olympics are over and still a little pissed about all of South Korea's missed metal opportunities in short track. *sigh*
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Rain has joined the ranks of Daniel Henney and Lee Byung-hyun to be featured in a major Hollywood motion picture... well, I guess Daniel Henny and Lee Byung-hyun weren't really "featured," more like supporting roles. =)
Rain's seems like he'll be the main actor in Nina Assassin... yes, still the stereotypical kung-fu fighting role but hey, looking this good, I say bring it on!
Yum. heh.
I just saw a commercial for the DVD release of G.I.Joe and Lee Byung-hyun's English is actually really good! (At least in that one line it was... )
- Mary can't wait to see this movie.
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(I titled this post "This Kimchi Mama's WTF of the Week" because what I have to say may not stand true for the other KMs.)
Yesterday news sources stated the LPGA (Ladies Professional Golf Association) announced they are going to require ALL LPGA members to speak English by 2009.
My first reaction upon reading the story was "WTF?" ?
According to the article, there was a mandatory meeting last week of South Korean players that outlined the new requirements. Basically starting IN LESS THAN 5 MONTHS, members who have been on the tour for 2 or more years must be able to proficiently speak and therefore PASS an oral exam . . . if not, their membership could be suspended. This new policy becomes effective immediately. South Korean players make up the majority of the International contingency - there are 45 South Koreans out of 121 total International players from 26 countries.
The LPGA's tour's deputy comissioner, Libba Galloway said "an impression must be made that communicating effectively in English is fundamental to the tour’s business".
So nobody panic - this is a BUSINESS decision.
One of the things I found most disturbing from the article was this:
"Kate Peters, executive director of the LPGA State Farm Classic, supported the news. “This is an [American tour]. It is important for sponsors to be able to interact with players and have a positive experience.”"
Because it's AN AMERICAN TOUR? WTF?
And I take offense at the idea that sponsors wouldn't be able to have "a positive experience" because their player doesn't speak English. (At many Pro-Am events a player is paired with a small group of sponsors - who pay big bucks - who get to play alongside, take photos with and talk to their pals about playing with the likes of Angela Park, Christie Kerr and Hee Won Han.)
To be fair, the article also cited several Korean players who said they support the policy . . . but I can't shake the feeling there's still something amiss.
This is still a fresh news story, so I think I'm going to need a day or two to really get into this . . . But I just wanted to share with ya'll my INITIAL gut reaction.
-Angie in Texas threw her clubs into a water hazard once after missing a 5 foot putt - three times, but still loves the game of golf.
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CNN is running a series called Eye on South Korea, including a story on the Korean Wave. Check it out.
(Via Angry Asian Man.)
--Weigook Saram
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