The Hyphenator!

Found this Web site for the Panmunjom Travel Center, which has info about the DMZ and tours. Also has some interesting info (and photos) on the North Korean tunnels.

"Measuring two meters high and 2.1-2.2 meters wide, the arch-shaped tunnel--large enough to move such heavy weapons as tanks, field artillery and armored personnel carriers--is capable of letting pass 30,000 troops moving three to four abreast, or a division strength, per hour. Bored through 3.5 kilometers of bedrock at a depth of 50-160 meters from ground surface, Tunnel Ⅱ intrudes 1.1 kilometers south of the Military Demarcation Line at a point 101 kilometers from Seoul. A spacious troop assembly area was carved out in the tunnel, which has three exits."

Bored through bedrock and large enough to move tanks!

Some cheesy copywriting but this ad campaign for Bean Pole International has some lovely photos of Daniel Henney. Click through "Daniel's Story" and just try to ignore Gwyneth and the annoying Flash.

A New York Times article on North Korean defectors in the South ...

"North Korean Defectors Take a Crash Course in Coping"

Soon after landing in South Korea, all North Korean defectors come here to the South Korean government's main resettlement center, called Hanawon, or to an annex, for a three-month crash course on life south of the demilitarized zone.

"When they arrive here," said the center's director general, Lee Choong Won, "they realize they've been living like frogs in a well."

"Adoptees Join Football Frenzy"

So I was listening to NPR this morning and had to shake my head at a statement by the general consul for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce:

"I think the inclination ... is going to be to err on the side of not taking any even slightly adverse action ..." -- but he pronounced "err" like "her" instead of as with "error."

Looking "err" up on the Merriam-Webster site, which has audio pronunciation clips for dictionary entries, I was surprised to find that "er" is actually listed as a pronunciation for "err."

I have never heard the word pronounced that way before. Then again, I'm from the Midwest.

I pronounce "soften" and "often" without the "T." Coke is a brand of pop, not a soda (although in California, I quickly realized that I needed to ask for a "soda" from store clerks to avoid having them look at me like I just spoke gibberish to them).

I think I speak without a strong Midwestern accent (as in "Fargo"), but people in San Francisco have told me I say "Minnesota" with a long "O" as in Min-ne-SOH-ta.

The other week I lugged a bunch of groceries up three flights of stairs, and as I dumped them on the kitchen table, I found myself saying, "Uff da!" I had to laugh. If my mother had heard that, she probably would have just nodded her head and said, "That's my girl. She takes after me."

A friend posted this the other day, and I had to take this quiz myself. I'm 110% Minnesotan.

How Minnesotan Are You??

[X] You've been made fun of for your Northern accent
[X] You been to an ice hockey game before
[X] You've been snowmobiling before
[X] You know how the wind chill factor works
[X] You constantly make fun of Iowa (OK, not so much anymore)
Total: 5

[ ] You own skis or a snowboard, or snow shoes (Used to)
[X] You keep an ice scraper in your back seat (I think trunk counts since I'm now in Cali)
[X] You call the childhood game "Duck, duck, grey duck"?
[X] You know what the "Iron Range" is
[X] You've built a snowman before
Total: 4

[X] You consider 50 degrees in March a warm day
[X] You make fun of Wisconsin
[X] You know where yellow snow comes from
[X] At least one person in your immediate family hates the "Packers"
[ ] You go to "the cabin" on the weekends during the summer (Used to)
Total: 4

[X] You've taken a family vacation to either North or South Dakota before
[X] You're still mad at the LA Lakers for not changing their name (Stoopid Lakers)
[X] You know what the "North Shore" refers to
[X] You or your family owns a snowblower
[ ] You, your dad, or a close friends has a snowplow on the front of their pickup truck
Total: 4

[X] You expect school cancellations and delays to happen at least twice a winter (When I was still in school, yes)
[X] You still hear/tell stories about the "Halloween Snow Storm" of 91
[X] You know whether Minnesota really is the "Land of A Thousand Lakes"
[X] You know the names of the Twin Cities
[X] You've been to the city of Duluth
Total: 5

Grand Total: 22

Take your score and multiply it by 5. Repost this as "I'm 110% Minnesotan."

An amazing pet story ...

"A Bite and Bark That Saved a Life: Cellphone Chomp Called 911 for Beagle's Owner"


And a not-so-heartwarming story ...

"Puppy allegedly killed by 3 boys, ages 6 and 8"

Hmm, isn't animal cruelty during childhood a sign of a potential serial killer? I think I'd move my family, too.

"Judge Spares Life of Lewis the Cat"

Hmm, sounds like a cat my parents had while I was away at college. I used to come home for visits and the Cat From Hell would jump out and attack me, biting at my ankles and hissing.

MTV is launching a new channel for young Korean Americans. Check out the Web site for the new MTV K. While you're there, vote for the first video to be shown on the channel -- or just check out the Korean music videos in the running (after the annoying ad). Some are quite ... uh, interesting.

Unfortunately, the site says MTV K will only be offered on DirectTV's KoreanDirect package for now.

You'll have to excuse me as I need to go harass Comcast.

The folks at Shoebox have put out a new book with the sentiments that didn't quite make it onto a greeting card.

The NPR segment reminded me of the difficult time I have buying cards sometimes, especially around Mother's Day and Father's Day. Everything usually sounds too lovey-dovey. Often, it's hard to find a plain card that wishes the recipient a happy day. No, it's usually "I looooove you! Thanks for all the wonderful memories growing up." Blah, blah, blah. **Hurl**

So I came up with some greeting card sentiments I'd like to see ...

"Mom/Dad, Happy Mother's/Father's Day! Without your love and support, I'd be ... exactly where I am now."

"Mom/Dad, Happy Mother's/Father's Day! Bet you'd like to have returned me when I was a kid, but hey, you get what you pay for."

"Mom, Happy Birthday! I always knew deep down that, despite what you said, you were a racist bigot."

"Dad, Happy Birthday! I'm so glad I married a guy who's so not like you."

"Congratulations on your new home! Glad it's 1,586 miles away from mine."

"Brother, Happy Birthday! Thanks for hitting me all those years and putting me down every chance you got. It's made me a stronger person ... who thinks you're an a--hole."

"Brother, Congratulations on your graduation and good luck at college! Don't let the door hit you in the a-- on your way out."

"Congratulations on your graduation! Here I thought you were set on a career of being a permanent student."

"Brother, Congratulations on your marriage! God help your wife."

"Merry Christmas! I'm sorry I can't be home for the holidays ... Well, not really."

"Congratulations on your new baby! Thank god she doesn't look like her father."

"Congratulations on your wedding! I have a year to buy you a gift, right? (If your marriage lasts that long.)"

"Sympathy for the loss of your husband/wife. You couldn't take it anymore, could you?"

"Good luck at your new job! And good riddance!"


Feel free to share your ideas for greeting cards.

Just realized that two of my friends are the most compatible with me in terms of Chinese astrology.

My LYLAS friend Ji-in is four years my junior, while my other friend is eight years my junior (crazy to think that for this ol' gal) -- together that makes us a very compatible threesome.

This is in addition to our compatibility based on our Western astrology signs.

No wonder why we all get along so well.

A few years back, we hung out on a regular basis and went through a period that was, for me, one of the most fun and memorable outside of college -- that is, if you overlook some of the drink-'til-you-puke incidents and the hangovers the next morning (we always had a designated driver).

Now, we're scattered all over the country, two of us are married and the other in a LTR, and on the weekends you'd most likely find me sitting on the couch knitting or doing needlework as I catch up on my TiVo'd K-dramas.

Thank god for the Internet.

This morning my hubby and I were rudely awakened this morning at 5:24 a.m. by our bed shaking and things rattling in our apartment. Turns out it was a 4.7 magnitude earthquake centered an hour south of San Francisco near Gilroy (which has a lovely outlet mall complex BTW -- my first thought when I heard Gilroy was "Don't take out the outlet mall!!").

According to hubby, this morning's quake was small, but it was the biggest one I've felt since moving to San Francisco. The other ones I felt while at work when the whole office swayed back and forth. On these occasions I'd send IMs to my hubby at work: "Earthquake!" His usual response: "Really? Didn't feel it." And I'd just sit at my desk, wondering if anyone else felt it.


My co-workers tell me I am more sensitive to the small earthquakes since I haven't lived here very long. Glad to know I'm a human seismograph.

If only I could predict them, then I'd be all set.

As if I didn't have anything better to do. OK, so I don't. Well, OK, I do but I'm procrastinating. OK, so I was tagged a while ago. Damn it, said I was procrastinating! Get off my back -- geesh!

Four people you would like to meet and the questions you'd ask them:

1. 장동건: Will you run away with me?
2. 우리 할머니: Please tell me the story of your life. (OK, so not a question.)
3. 우리 아빠: Did you know what was going to happen to our family?
4. 우리 엄마: Will you forgive me?

Four monuments/places you have seen and would like to see again:

1. Anything in Korea
2. China/Hong Kong
3. Sistine Chapel
4. El Templo de la Sagrada Família

Four favorite words:

(not in any particular order based on usage or anything)

1. onomatopoeia
2. 사랑
3. 엄마
4. whatever

Four cities with delicious food:

1. San Francisco
2. Seoul
3. Florence
4. Barcelona (especially breakfast)

Four (nonfiction/fiction) books you would recommend:

1. A People's History of the United States, Howard Zinn
2. The Rape of Nanking, Iris Chang
3. Any novel by Jane Austen
4. Guess How Much I Love You, Sam McBratney and Anita Jeram (illustrator)

Four jobs you've had:

1. corn detasseler
2. fast-food slave/grease monkey
3. third-shift data entry procezzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
4. prufreeder

Four quick answers:

1. Insomnia — Where's the remote?
2. Allergies — Kitty!
3. Road rage — A--hole!
4. Daydreams — Sorry, what did you say?

The 2006 World Cup started today in Germany. It hit me this morning that almost four years ago, for the 2002 World Cup, I was in Korea.

In Seoul, I remember seeing pictures of Korean footballer Ahn Jung-Hwan plastered all over. (Here is his official site and more info.)

World Cub souvenirs were everywhere, and I eventually bought an official soccer ball to bring back home. Getting caught up in the Ahn craze, I also bought a red t-shirt with his image on it. (I should dig that out.)

One afternoon I found myself sitting outside one of the World Cup stadiums, seeing before me a sea of red -- all the Koreans dressed in their "Be the Reds!" t-shirts in support of the Korean team, trying to catch a glimpse of a match on the large screen off in the distance.

I remember wearing my own "Be the Reds!" t-shirt and just sitting among the throng of fans, amazed at the frenzy but glad that I was in Korea experiencing this period of immense national pride -- and, probably most of all, thoroughly enjoying the fact that I was no longer a minority in a crowd of people.

Here's hoping the new "The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift" movie does even better at the box office than the previous two movies in the series did. Why? Two good reasons: director Justin Lin and Korean-American actor Sung Kang.

After seeing a preview of the movie a while back, I remember rolling my eyes and cringing at the thought of Hollywood doing a racing movie set in Japan. But Jeff Yang's column on today's SFGate.com has me wanting to check out the new film.

OK, granted the movie is set in Japan, and looks to have a bunch of non-Japanese stars (including Bow Wow??), but Yang interviews the director, who explains some of the casting decisions and changes to the original script.

"After I read the original script, they called me up and asked, 'What do you think?'" says Lin.

"And I said, 'I think it's offensive and dated, and I don't have any intention of doing it.' But Stacey [Snider], the head of the studio, said, 'Just tell us what you'd do differently.' So I said, 'To begin with, I'd get rid of all the gongs and temples and Buddhas and the visual gags about how the white guy is a foot taller than all the Asians.' And she said, 'OK, we'll make the kind of movie you want.' I was like, 'Uh, are you sure?'"

We can also look forward to more movies with Sung Kang, thanks in part to Lin who cast him as the racer who teaches the main character (white boy) how to drift ...

"When we were screening this movie, Sung tested through the roof. It was unanimous: Every focus group we threw out there, he was their favorite character. Now they're looking for vehicles for him to be in. That's what it's all about, man: opportunity. It's not a revolution or anything -- it's winning one gunfight, not the war. But it's important. Little by little it adds up."

Check out the full article on SFGate.com: "ASIAN POP: Switching Gears."

Other interesting notes:

According to IMDB, "600 Asian extras were used during the LA filming days for the street scenes," more than 100 cars were wrecked during the filming, and all of the drifting in the movie was done by professional drivers, not created by CGI and computers.

Hot.

I haven't seen the first two movies, at the theater or on DVD, but I may just have to plunk down my $10 at the theater for this one.

(Stupid Blogger site having problems!)

" A place for orphaned pets: SPCA program places animals in new homes"

"The Sido program, named for a collie-sheltie mix who narrowly escaped a death sentence in 1979 after her owner committed suicide and left a will demanding that Sido be put to sleep, finds new homes for orphaned Bay Area pets."

Animals grieve, too ...

Louisa DeRosa, Sido's animal grief counselor:

"Heathcliff here was so depressed when we got him," she said of a Sido cat currently up for adoption. "He'd put his face up against the wall and just stare at it."

"The Maine coon cat refused to eat, became anorexic and had to be hospitalized; his lifelong friend Tang, a Siamese mix, paced and cried, worrying about Heathcliff on top of dealing with the same loss...."


Another great animal organization in the Bay Area is Pets Unlimited, which rescues shelter animals who are scheduled to be euthanized or sold for medical research, and gives them a place to stay until they are adopted into new homes. Check out their Fairytail Endings page.

You may have heard of Project Gutenberg and the World eBook Library. They're planning to have a World eBook Fair with free downloads of ebooks from July 4 to August 4.

"E-Book Giving Access to 300,000 Texts"

Project Gutenberg founder Michael Hart:

"We want to give the most books to the most people.... It has been our goal since the dawn of the Internet to break down the bars of ignorance and illiteracy."

I'm sure all the poor, ignorant and illiterate people who can't afford computers or Internet access will be lined up at the computer terminals at their local libraries, or perhaps at their neighborhood Internet cafes, during the month of the ebook fair, overjoyed at the prospect of reading classic literature on the computer or downloading ebooks in PDF files to -- oh, I dunno -- their PDAs ... until the next poor ignorant, illiterate person in line gets impatient and demands his or her time at the computer. Breaking down the bars of ignorance and illiteracy -- yes, indeed.