Author Archives: Jasmine Lee

Giving Shoes

Nationality: Chinese
Age: 80s
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: February 22, 2011
Primary Language: Chinese
Language: English

You can not give shoes away to someone as a gift.  Doing so gives them the means to walk out of your life.

Lucy lived in Taiwan for most of her life and moved to Hawaii in the 1980s when her sons moved there.  She learned this folk belief from her parents when she was a child.  She does not remember from what context she learned this in, however, she believes in was in regards to a birthday gift for a family relative.  The idea is that by giving someone shoes, you are telling them to walk away from you.  This belief is very popular in China and is guarded against very carefully.  She strongly believes in this belief and proudly told me that she has never given someone a pair of shoes before.

I have also heard of this folk belief.  My cousin told me it one day when she asked me for a dollar.   When I asked her why she wanted a dollar, she told me that it was because she had a pair of sandals that she wanted me to have because she bought a pair that was too small for her.  When I asked her about the dollar, she told me this belief.  I find this belief to be a great indicator of how much our culture believes in the fates and making our own luck.  While I don’t like the idea that I will never get a pair of shoes as a gift, I like the meaning behind it.  I feel like it means that people will avoid any possible cause for friendships or relationships to end or be broken.

ABCs

Nationality: French
Age: 20
Occupation: Civil/ Environmental Engineering Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: March 22, 2011
Primary Language: French
Language: English, German

Anything But Clothes

Alcoholic Beverage Consumption

American Born Chinese

The acronym “ABC” has been used to describe many different things.  When I talked to Helene about these, she explained that she had never heard of some of these until recently. Helene was born and raised in France with her mother and her sister.  Her father currently lives in Toronto, Canada.  She came to America for the first time in 2008 when she was moving into her dorm room at USC in Los Angeles, California.  She told me that she had heard of the acronym “ABC” being used to describe “Anything But Clothes,” but had never heard of “Alcoholic Beverage Consumption” or “American Born Chinese” until she had spent some time on the college campus.

She thinks that the first time she heard “Anything But Clothes” was when she was in our equivalent of high school in France.  She said she thinks it was only a couple years before she came to USC and that it was a party that she had been invited to.  The concept of “Anything But Clothes” is a theme for a party where people are encouraged to dress up using objects and items rather than clothes.  For instance, Helene said that she dressed up by using caution tape and wrapping it all over her body in order to cover her private areas.

I have also heard of this party theme before as well.  I too did not hear about it until I arrived at college.  The rules I know for the theme are the same as the rules Helene described to me.

Helene told me that she heard “Alcoholic Beverage Consumption” for the first time at her in her dorm room.  She said that she was talking to a few of her roommates about a party they were going to go to and heard them use the acronym.  Thinking they meant “Anything But Clothes,” she asked what they would be wearing instead of clothes.  The miscommunication was quickly realized when her roommates explained their confusion for her question.  That was when she learned the new use of the acronym.  According to her roommates, “Alcoholic Beverage Consumption” refers to the amount of alcohol an individual has consumed and is typically used to describe an excessive consumption of alcohol.  For instance, “He better watch his ABC; he seems to be getting pretty tipsy.”

I had never heard this form of the acronym before Helene told me about it.  I find it interesting and kind of silly.  It doesn’t make much sense to me.

Finally, Helene told me she heard of “American Born Chinese.”  She told me she heard this when she was with some of her friends.  One of her classmates was describing herself as an ABC.  Confused, Helene asked her to explain.  Her friend explained that often, Chinese people born in America refer to themselves as ABCs in order to easily differentiate between those from America and international individuals.  Helene told me she finds this categorization amusing and silly.  She then began to joke, “You’re an ABC! You’re and ABC!”

I have heard of this use of the acronym before; in fact, it was the only form of the acronym that I knew before this interview. I learned it in high school through other Chinese peers who asked me if I was an ABC. I find the classification silly, but I suppose it is convenient when trying to quickly learn about people when meeting other Chinese people.

Toothpaste

Nationality: Chinese
Age: early 50s
Occupation: Vice President/ Bank Manager
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: February 11, 2011
Primary Language: Chinese
Language: English, French, German, Dutch

Put a small dime-sized amount of toothpaste on blemishes and acne at night and it will either disappear or greatly diminish in size by morning.

Pauline was born and raised in Taiwan. She moved all around the world as a child, living in countries such as Germany and France.  After her college years, she moved to  San Francisco where her sister moved to after she  got married.  There she went to graduate school at  the University of San Francisco and got her master’s degree in business.

Pauline says that when she was in college, her sister taught her to put toothpaste on her blemishes whenever she got them.  She said that it would always work, and that by morning, after washing the toothpaste away, the blemish would be either nearly or completely gone.  She says it has something to do with the toothpaste forming an airless cover over the blemish and forcing it to suffocate and dry out.  She says that this trick has never failed her and that whenever she does it, it reminds her of her college days and spending time with her sister.

I have personally used this trick and have always had very successful results.  I was taught this trick by my mother and use it every time I get a blemish.  Through association, whenever I get a blemish, I think of my mother and remember this trick.

Steamed Egg

Nationality: Chinese
Age: early 50s
Occupation: Vice President/ Bank Manager
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: April 8, 2011
Primary Language: Chinese
Language: English, French, German, Dutch

Scrambled eggs and chicken broth in a large bowl. Seal with plastic wrap. Place in microwave for 20 minutes or until mixture has risen into a solid, light, and airy consistency.

Pauline was born and raised in Taiwan. She moved all around the world as a child, living in countries such as Germany and France.  After her college years, she moved to  San Francisco where her sister moved to after she  got married.  There she went to graduate school at  the University of San Francisco and got her master’s degree in business.

Pauline loved living in San Francisco and said that whenever she was sick, she would make steamed egg.  She says she was taught this recipe by her sister when she was in college.  It is very simple and utilizes a microwave. She said that it was the best cure for being sick.  Whenever she makes it, she thinks about when her older sister would make it for her when she was younger. Pauline says that her older sister was her best friend and that the dish always reminds her of her.

Personally, I have had this dish when sick, and I completely agree that it is the perfect comfort food when feeling sick and weak.  It is light and literally melts in my mouth.  I think this dish is a slight variation on chicken noodle soup, retaining the chicken broth and adding egg.  Whenever I think about this dish, it brings back great memories of my mom taking care of me.  My mom would always make it for me whenever I was sick.  She always had the same ritual every time I was sick: she would make steamed egg for me, tuck me into bed, put in a movie, and then tell me to dig in.

Chinese Custom

Nationality: Chinese
Age: 80s
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: February 17, 2011
Primary Language: Chinese
Language: English

When present for the celebration for one’s birthday, all guests must consume at least one long noodle in order to wish and ensure longevity in the birthday person’s life.

Lucy lived in Taiwan for most of her life and moved to Hawaii in the 1980s when her sons moved there.  She told me this custom was a very popular in China and Taiwan.  What this custom means is to wish the birthday person a long life symbolized by the long noodles.  She told me that if one does not consume at least one long noodle at the birthday person’s celebration, he or she is wishing the birthday person a short life.

I knew of this custom from when I was a child.  While I do not believe that one who refuses to consume noodles on a person’s birthday is wishing that person a short life, I do understand the Chinese folk belief that wishes for long life.  It is simply a physical representation of what they wish for the birthday person.

This custom is also seen documented in Birthday Customs of the Newborn and Elderly on About.com:

Quinfa, Y. (2011). Birthday customs of the newborn and elderly. Retrieved from <http://chineseculture.about.com/library/weekly/aa021901b.htm>