Aknowledging Asian Americans

"Where’s my mail?" I asked Alan.
"I put it on your desk chair. There was nothing."
Walking up two flights of stairs to retrieve my mail I said,
"Your nothing may be my something."
-a tidbit conversation on
August 6, 2009

On June 8, 2009 it was reported from the Associated Press in Seoul, South Korea that “North Korea” had convicted two American journalists and sentenced them Monday to 12 years of hard labor for crossing into its territory, intensifying the reclusive nation's confrontation with the United States.

The Obama administration said it would pursue "all possible channels" to win the release of Laura Ling and Euna Lee, reporters for former Vice President Al Gore's San Francisco-based Current TV media venture.

Fast forward to this excerpted article on August 4, 2009:

North Korea will pardon two jailed US journalists after visiting former president Bill Clinton apologized to leader Kim Jong-Il for their behavior, state media reported Wednesday.

“The measure taken to release the American journalists is a manifestation of the DPRK-Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea’s) humanitarian and peace-loving policy,” the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.

“Clinton expressed words of sincere apology to Kim Jong-Il for the hostile acts committed by the two American journalists against the DPRK after illegally intruding into it,” KCNA reported.

“Clinton courteously conveyed to Kim Jong-Il an earnest request of the US government to leniently pardon them and send them back home from a humanitarian point of view,” it said,

KCNA said Clinton’s meetings with leader Kim and with his official number two Kim Yong-Nam featured “candid and in-depth discussions on the pending issues between the DPRK and the US in a sincere atmosphere and reached a consensus of views on seeking a negotiated settlement of them”.

It almost seemed that Kim Jong was more excited about the formalized photo he would have with former President Bill Clinton (that's the impression I got when I saw the photo in the newspaper). I felt that was Kim Jong’s historic moment of worldwide notoriety.

When I saw the televised media of these women disembarking from the airplane back to America it really ‘melted my heart’. It reminded me of the many Asian-Americans that we have in the USA who are a great contribution to our country.

Now that ‘Sonia Maria Sotomayor’ is the first Hispanic approved Supreme Court Justice in the USA I hope an Asian-American is not too impossible as the next ideal choice.

The Asian American population is heavily urbanized, with nearly three-quarters of Asian Americans living in metropolitan areas with population greater than 2.5 million. Asian Americans are concentrated in the largest U.S. cities, with 40% of all Asian Americans living in the metropolitan areas around Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, and Chicago. Half of all Asian Americans (5.4M) live in Hawaii or the West Coast, mostly in California (4.2M). I found this Wikipedia information about Asian Americans to be quite interesting. Check it out and read more here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asian_American


Twenty-five years ago today:

Wednesday,
August 8, 1984

Karyn Kossoff and I took BART together to get back to work in The City. I did not see Linda at the BART station (lucky me). I may see her tomorrow though. I may ask her out for Saturday night just to see what direction it will lead.

I met Bobbie Renbarger in the morning and we went to Merrill’s Drugs. She let me borrow $2.00 because all I had was a $50 dollar bill. She’s sweet. I like her. I also like when she puts her arm around me in her very subtle, friendly, affectionate way.

I do not carry any credit cards effective “today”. The credit cards are cramping my style. I need to clear up my accounts in order to have a respectable savings amount.

I shared lunch with Barbara Reynolds and Bobbie Renbarger. The three of us when to the Galleria and shared a pizza with garlic bread (and cookies). I was stuffed by the end of the lunch hour.

I went to SAFEWAY after work and bumped into Bunny Berney. I was boyfriend/girlfriend with her sister, Elisa, at one point. Bunny looked cute and we talked a bit. She is very nice.

I bought Dad a bottle of wine with a special Birthday Card for his 49th Birthday. He seemed pleased by my thoughtfulness. I stayed with Dad to eat a bit and talked to him for a while about work ‘in general’ and other nonsense.

Eventually I was back at my pad. I browsed through the mail and magazines and hopped on my bicycle for a quick ride. The constant pedaling did not agree with me so soon after dinner (not to mention the filling lunch I had).

I wrote a letter to Michael Thoennes. It was a funny card that depicted ‘Nowheresville’. It seemed suitable for his new location in Oregon. He was always so nice to me. I think he is going places because he seems so determined.

I wrote in my journal to ‘catch up’ on the happenings of the last few days.

That lady who is in-charge at the Bay Area Sperm Bank (Barbara) called me.
“I was wondering if you would continue to donate again,” Barbara said.
It’s hard for me to say no to people. I have a scheduled appointment on Wednesday, August 15, 1984 at 6PM.

I decided to go to bed fairly early tonight. The phone was ringing just before I decided on shut-eye. It was Bruce (I don’t even know his last name come to think of it!). Anyway, if I am not mistaken he just invited me to a semi-formal party on Saturday Night at 8PM.
“The party will include a lot of models and some will be meeting with agents,” Bruce said.
“Okay, I’ll go. Who knows who we could meet there, right?”