Kimchi Mamas

100 Days

In a few days my youngest son will be 100 days old. We will celebrate with our immediate family, taking tons of pictures and enjoying the company. This being our third child, everything is old hat now and we realize it's not always necessary to have elaborate celebrations with tons of people and lavish surroundings. We appreciate family, our healthy children, our family. It will be a happy celebration.

Media News

I was shocked when I read about the apparent suicide of Korean actress Choi Jin Shil. I'm not really in tune with Korean pop culture these days but I remember watching her in Korean dramas back when I was in highschool. She is/was considered one of the most popular actresses of our time. Apparently she was reeling from a divorce as well as rumors that strangely linked her to a fellow actor's recent suicide.

Korea has one of the highest suicide rates in the world and it is sad but sadly, not shocking, that it has afffected every facet of their society, from the rich and famous to the most common citizen. This just demonstrates that no one is immune to the pressures of living in a country so focused on competition, success and ones reputation.

- Linda

I'll take sanity for $500, Alex

So. I'm still here. Still pregnant. Still waiting. This third pregnancy has been subsequently harder than the first two - physically, I"m a wreck and I'm a ball of hormonal rage (you should feel badly for all those around me. Very badly. heh) but there's one big thing that will be different this time around - My Mother-in-law won't be here to help me afterwards.

And you know what?

Japanese Curry - a quick and easy meal

 

For five months, I was fortunate to have my MIL around to cook meals for myself and my family while she was looking after the two kids. I would come home from work and dinner would be ready on the table. After dinner, she would insist that I play with the kids while she did the dishes. After all, I had been away from the kids, working hard. She wanted me to have some downtime. Despite my MIL's annoying habits quirks, I do admit that I was spoiled during the time she was with us. So when she left to go back to Korea, the duties of housewifery fell back to me. Luckily, after working for most of my children's lives, I was ready to stop working and experience life as a SAHM.

After I quit my job, I went a little crazy with the domestic duties of a SAHM. I cooked tons of meals, cleaned every corner of my house, rearranged the pantry, dusted the pictures, etc. However, now that I am in the third trimester of my pregnancy, I am starting to feel the adverse effects of coming out of the gates running. The pantry has gone back to its usual disarray, sometimes the toys don't get put back in the correct place and I am now too tired to cook dinner most nights.

Hello there

Hi. It only took me five tries to log in to typepad, which is pretty good considering I can't even remember the last time I posted here. I've been absent from all blogging for quite a while but I've continued to read my favorites, including this awesome blog right here. A lot has happened during my sabbatical, including having my MIL here for another extended stay. My favorite topic of discussion, it seems. I've got some pretty good stories saved up for y'all.

Anyways, I just wanted to drop in and say "Hello! I still exist!"

Update

Dry Cleaners win in $54 million suit for pants

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19414287?GT1=10056

I really don't think this should have even went to trial but am satisfied to see the judge pay for his actions - literally!

- Linda

Those must be some expensive pants

I read this article and couldn't believe it was a real news story. A man, a judge nonetheless, is suing the owners of a dry cleaners for a pair of lost pants. Pants that were eventually found. He is suing for pain and suffering and time, oh and renting a car that he now needs each weekend to take his laundry to the cleaners. All of it adds up to a mere $65 million.

I am NOT even kidding.

In the middle of this lawsuit are the owners, a Korean-American couple who emigrated to the US 7 years ago.

Am I so different?

I had a very interesting time at a shower I attended last week. I wrote about it in more detail here but basically, I felt very conspicuous as I was the only non-white person in a houseful of about 50 people. I don't have to energy to write about it again so I apologize for the linking. I thought about the shower all weekend long and I feel like I'm already beating a dead horse. Reading Mama Nabi's post, I felt my head nod in agreement and my face flush with anger as I imagined myself in her position, feeling such blatant disregard because of her ethnicity.

I have to wonder, as she wondered in her post, is this something I am creating in my head, manifesting my own insecurity by whipping up these gross generalizations about  people? Or is it really and truly a fact that in the year 2007, people still can't seem to see beyond the color of ones skin or hair or the shape of ones eyes?

- Linda

Sick? Find yourself a needle and thread.

Like many Asians, I have major digestive issues probably stemming from my love of all things extra spicy and extra salty. Normally, my M.O. is to take two Tums with an Alka-seltzer chaser because there is no way I would give up the spice.

At a young age, I also learned how to poke, or ddah, my finger to relieve major indigestion. I am not sure if there is any medical research or proof as to the effectiveness of this technique, but it is a very old school, Korean thing to do. Apparently it is a pressure point that will relieve the build up of gas in your stomach. To start, have someone pound your back with the flat of their palm, in a downward motion. Then repeat in an upwards motion from the shoulder blade up towards the shoulder. By doing this, you are getting the blood moving. Then run your hands down one arm to send the blood down to your hand. Wait, it gets even more weird. Thus comes the tricky part. You have to wrap your thumb with thread so that you capture all the blood at your thumb tip. Then you skillfully and quickly jab the area right below your nail bed with a needle (I prefer a sewing needle, with the string attached to it). Hey, I didn’t say this wouldn’t be painful. The prick will slowly start to bleed and if the blood is a deep red, it is usually an indication of severe indigestion. Then repeat on the opposite arm/hand. The more blood, the better.

I’ve explained this to my non-Asian friends before and all I get are crazed, incredulous looks. But I swear it works! Five minutes after I poke my thumb, my indigestion subsides. Has anyone else heard of this? What other seemingly crazy but effective techniques to people use to cure ailments?

-Linda

Still Life with Rice, In the Absence of Sun

While on maternity leave, I had a chance to re-engage in one of my favorite hobbies, Reading. For so long, I had just sat in front of the computer reading blogs, articles and gossip (not that there is anything wrong with that!) but I found myself aching to delve into a raw, thought provoking story. I was able to pore through many books during my time off, but by far my two favorite books were written by the same author, about the same subject.