She was always a bit of a wild child, a party girl. He has always been a farm boy, born and raised in the small town of Eden, New York. But when they met back in college, somehow the pieces fit. He keeps her grounded; she keeps life interesting. And at the end of the…
I don’t know who started it, calling him the godfather of Taiwanese America, but I think the title’s going to stick. Ho Chie has been involved with almost every Taiwanese American organization imaginable, and he even had a hand in creating many of them. One of his ongoing projects is TaiwaneseAmerican.org, an online portal that spotlights…
She’s amazing and gorgeous and would never admit it herself. On my visit to Los Angeles last month, I needed some help with office and editing tasks, and my friend Diana needed some headshots to submit to castings as an extra. It made for the perfect trade. I taught her how to do some things…
I can still remember her as my quiet, smart, cool little camper when I, fresh out of middle school, served my first year as a counselor-in-training at our annual summer camp. Some things haven’t changed at all since those days– Mayline’s radiant smile and her generosity amongst them– but it’s been quite the privilege to see her…
Kevin is the ultimate yes-sayer. He doesn’t doubt; he just makes things happen. So when it came to proposing to Jenny, he brewed his plan involving a fake Craigslist ad, got down on one knee, and made it happen. When it came to patching the wedding day with some last-minute errands, he hopped in the…
I’ve been cleaning out my parents’ house in Ohio. In the process of trying to minimize my stuff, I’ve come across all sorts of treasures. Here’s one gem, an essay from high school. I’m not sure what I wrote it for, but I quite like checking in on my own stories and seeing how they…
My favorite thing about our “tafLabs” room is not the ten computers or the impressive mass of wires and hard drives everywhere. It’s not even the six Canon DSLRs with all their amazing lenses scattered on all the desks. (And you know how much I love my DSLRs!) No, it has nothing to do with…
It’s been a week since the Census 2010: Write in “Taiwanese” video debuted on YouTube, and it’s already garnered over 120,000 views. Produced by Slideshow Pictures in conjunction with at least seven Taiwanese American organizations, the public service announcement is part of a larger campaign to get Taiwanese Americans to self-identify on the US Census…
Every so often– more often than not, actually– I get to spend my time working on projects I love. It’s not just a coincidence, but a conscious effort to pursue what I find compelling. And while the idea of pursuing your passions is a common enough sentiment, I think many people perceive it too difficult…
Miles driven by others: 37 Miles flown: 390 Miles driven by myself: 150 ____________________________________ =577 miles traveled, and that’s just today. Sometimes exhaustion is the most gratifying feeling in the world. In that moment when you finally sit down and have a chance to rest, you can feel the very essence of gravity as it…
I’ve been working this week at Taiwanese American Foundation, the summer camp I’ve attended since I was ten years old. I’m serving as part of tafLabs, a new program in which we develop projects to make awesome things happen in our community. To see some of the multimedia work we’ve been doing, follow out the…
Welcome to Taiwanese American Foundation 2009: Sprout! After a two-year absence on my part, I am very happy to return for my 13th year at TAF, this time as a member of the TAFMedia crew. Our first project of the week: given 24 hours, produce a video to be used as the Intro/Theme skit for…