#anyone else obsessed with the history of american chinese food? just me? cool | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

notjanine · 3 years

Text

2020 in books!

the only kind of new year’s resolution i made as a naive baby last january was to try to read 40 books for the year. (i read 37 in 2019, for context.) well, with all of my commuting time eliminated and an increased need for immersive escapism, i ended up surpassing that goal three times over lmao (thanks library ebooks!)

idk how to summarize my year in books in a way that makes sense but

(f) = fiction, (nf) = nonfiction, (p) = poetry.

books that rewired my fucking brain:

braiding sweetgrass by robin wall kimmerer (nf)- GOD?!?!?! good. dr. k is right. ostensibly a book about plants, but actually a book about shut up and go outside. consumerism and capitalism are doing their damnedest to fuck you up, but you can just choose to value different things. take care of yourself by taking care of your environment. etc etc.

wasp by richard jones (nf)- lissen. when i got this book, my wasp-phobia was so severe that i had to put it away face down on a high shelf because there are wasps on the cover and i couldn’t bear to RISK even GLIMPSING them. now i am like... a wasp evangelist. (also due to the bugs 101 course on coursera it’s so good.)

wag by zazie todd (nf)- i have a dog, but i am NOT a Dog Person (i.e. i love my dog, but please keep yours away from me, thanks.) this book helped me understand my little guy better, plus it gives actionable tasks and activities to do with and for your pup! plus, y’know, learning about things you’re scared of helps to lessen that fear. i’d recommend this to anyone who has, wants, or regularly interacts with a dog.

a closed and common orbit by becky chambers (f)- is this series complete fluff? absolutely. am i fundamentally different after reading this one? maybe.

the best we could do by thi bui (nf)- this is so far outside of my personal experience but somehow still made me come to peace with my relationship with my mom?? and it’s barely even about that?? idk. this is probably objectively the best book i’ve read this year.

books that were just fun as hell:

mexican gothic by silvia moreno-garcia (f)- this book made me YELL out loud

death on the nile by agatha christie (f)- i grew up on agatha christie shows, but never actually read her before this year! she really was That Bitch. read this before the movie comes out

cosmoknights by hannah templer (f)- i read this in one sitting through the worst headache i’ve had in years. it is a goddamn DELIGHT. this book has everything: spaceships. mech suits. fighting the patriarchy. a perfect otp. fun art in bright colors with clean lines. onomatopoetic WAPs from before the song gave that hilarious context. 800 lesbians. this is an antidepressant in graphic novel form.

stiff by mary roach (nf)- ms. roach is like the 4th most represented author on my bookshelf because she 1. stays writing about shit i’m interested in and 2. manages to talk about gross and ridiculous things without resorting to sensationalism. it takes skill to write a hilarious book about corpses.

black sun by rebecca roanhorse (f)- excellent sexual tension between a horny siren pirate and a hot doomed... monk, kinda? set in the pre-columbian gulf of mexico with magic and shit.

cuisine chinoise by zao dao (? n/f)- this graphic novel about chinese food history/mythology is BEAUTIFUL.

the color of magic by terry pratchett (f)- you’d think a hardcore douglas adams stan would have gotten to this sooner, but no, i had to date a nerdy white boy to get here. it’s fun though! i’m not gonna read them all, but this one was good. bonus: contains one (1) great himbo.

gideon the ninth by tamsyn muir (f)- like 500 pages of action and mystery and jokes and space necromancy. harrow the ninth gets a special mention bc it has a meme reference that took me out so hard i had to close the book, lie down, and groan for an entire minute before continuing.

other minds by peter godfrey-smith (nf)- i love octopuses. on one tma bonus ep, jonny sims says that if a creature can choose to do evil, then it’s a Person. octopuses are People. but anyway frfr this has an explanation of the evolution of consciousness that is cool af. (this one is much better than the other recent popsci octo book which i will not name out of politeness.)

the perfect predator by steffanie strathdee and thomas patterson (nf)- i read this bc my microbiology prof recommended it and it’s cool as heck! it’s got adventure, drama, mystery, Science-with-a-capital-S. i’m biased bc i’m a bit of a microbes nerd, but i had a blast with this. (but only bc we know going in that everything works out okay; if i hadn’t known that, i would have been TOO stressed!)

books that were a little less fun but still very readable:

my sister, the serial killer by oyinkan braithwaite (f)- i couldn’t find this as funny as other people bc i, too, have a beautiful sister who’s an insufferable narcissist, so it hits a little too close to home, but. it is a wild ride.

piranesi by susanna clarke (f)- idek what to say! i went into this one blind just bc it had a cool cover and title, so i guess i’d recommend that for other people too.

the sixth world series by rebecca roanhorse (f)- monster hunting! a post-apocalyptic take that doesn’t feel tired.

the shades of magic trilogy by v.e. schwab (f)- easy escapism. some ideas feel a little first draft-y, but idk, it’s also a pretty simple premise (which isn’t a bad thing). it’s a decent urban fantasy set in ~georgian?-era london. very actiony. suffers from a bit of i’m-not-like-other-girls disease, but i didn’t even notice until book two or three, so.

the only good indians by stephen graham jones (f)- starts off a little ??? (and reeks of being Written By A Man) but picks up. the pacing’s great and there’s just a super fucking cool monster.

robopocalypse by daniel h. wilson (f)- this reads like a tv miniseries so much that i can’t believe it isn’t one yet.

confessions of the fox by jordy rosenberg (f)- not my usual cup of tea, fiction-wise, but still compelling. a fresh take on the white-male-english-professor-self-insert? but not insufferable. gets weird!

spinning silver by naomi novik (f)- rumplestilstkin, but make it interesting! a great, richly-told fairy tale, but like, large scale. good to read on a cold day while you’re wrapped up in a blanket with some hot tea.

interior chinatown by charles yu (f)- compulsively readable. a couple things bugged me, but not enough to make me dislike it. a fun companion piece to how to live safely in a science fictional universe. i like this guy’s style.

cannibalism by bill schutt (nf)- COOL. mostly covers the animal kingdom (fun), spends too much time on the donner party (less fun), ends with a SPICY take on prions that i cannot get out of my head!!!

buzz, sting, bite by anne sverdrup-thygeson (nf)- BUGS! broad but not overwhelming, neither dumbed down nor overly scientific, short enough to finish in a day or two. recommend this to literally everyone.

books that made me want to read everything else in the author’s ouevre:

the time invariance of snow by e. lily yu (f)- this FUCKS but it’s too short!!!

an unkindness of ghosts by rivers solomon (f)- okay this book is SO good and so well-written and interesting and blah blah blah all the good things, but... the whole time, i was just like?? why???? why is this what you’re choosing to write about??? (i did also read the deep and blood is another word for hunger after this one, and i did like them both, especially the latter, but i think they can do better! like i think they could write a perfect book and i am gonna be *eyes emoji* until then.)

the space between worlds by micaiah johnson (f)- a fine debut novel, but i want to see her do something a little more... idk, refined? i think she overreaches here, like it’s a little... idk looper? this is how you lose the time war? there’s a better comparison, but i can’t think of it, but you get the idea. and then halfway through it shifts gears to mad max. there’s something weird about one of the central relationships, like it’s not complex enough to take as long to resolve as it does. idk idk. there are just a lot of little nitpicky things. it’s not bad! but i think she can do better and i look forward to finding out.

postcolonial love poem by natalie diaz (p)- thinky! like i tried to read this before bed, but it’s not the sort of thing to parse out while you’re falling asleep, it requires more attention than that.

books that Learned Me Somethin:

smoke gets in your eyes by caitlin doughty (nf)- i am a self-professed death obsessed weirdo, fascinated by death and mourning, but i didn’t know all that much about what happens to a body between the dying and the funeral! this book isn’t big, but it covers a lot and doughty’s writing style is engaging and honest. it’s very memorable.

queer by meg-john barker and julia scheele (nf)- i’m gonna be totally honest and say Queer Theory is above my intellectual pay grade, but this book takes you by the hand and explains the basics.

vitamania by catherine price (nf)- LMAO my fellow americans, never take a supplement. this book is great and well-researched, but normal folks don’t need to read it, just listen to season two of the dream podcast, which definitely cribbed from this.

vegetable kingdom by bryant terry (nf)- this is a fine cookbook, my favorite of his that i’ve read so far. gets a special mention bc i had a religious experience just reading one of his kohlrabi recipes. absolutely gutted that i didn’t have an opportunity to try it this year, since the pandemic put the kibosh on all family bbqs.

the best american food writing 2020 edited by j. kenji lopez-alt (nf)- this really is just a great collection.

are prisons obsolete? by angela y. davis (nf)- yes.

i moved to los angeles to work in animation by natalie nourigat (nf)- before reading this, i had basically zero knowledge of how the animation industry works. now i know like three things.

the secret lives of bats by merlin tuttle (nf)- BATS! okay this book is more about the adventures of being a bat scientist than it actually is about bats, but there are bats in there. insectivorous bats basically shit glitter, you should know this.

books from valuable perspectives:

hood feminism by mikki kendall (nf)- a breakdown of who’s getting left out of feminist spaces, why that’s happening, and why it shouldn’t be happening.

all you can ever know by nicole chung (nf)- a (transracial) adoptee’s take on adoption and learning more about her birth family. the personal storytelling of this one really stuck with me.

motherhood so white by nefertiti austin (nf)- a single-mom-by-choice’s take on the foster system/adoption process. walks you through some things i always wondered about and some things i wouldn’t even have thought about.

this place by kateri akiwenzie-damm et al (? n/f)- i, like a lot of non- native americans, only know that history in broad strokes. getting this many highly specific stories in one dense and beautiful book felt like a lucky find. and taking that perspective into the future in the context of that history is v good.

empty by susan burton (nf)- eating disorder stories are important to me bc i care about food so much. this one is so relatable- not in its specificity, but rather its generality. it’s easy to empathize with her perspective because it’s like, Oh, i don’t have that exact problem, but i struggle with different problems in a very similar way. (feels like the opposite of roxane gay’s hunger, in a way.)

obit by victoria chang (p)- this exploration of grief is... woof.

short story collections are hard to evaluate bc you’ll never read one where every single story hits but i generally enjoyed these:

a thousand beginnings and endings edited by ellen oh and elsie chapman (f)

how long til black future month? by n.k. jemisin (f)

her body and other parties by carmen maria machado (f)

books i revisited:

the broken earth trilogy by n.k. jemisin (f)- i read the series backwards this time and like... i can’t really find any faults in these books, man. they’re just the best.

everyone’s a aliebn when ur a aliebn too by jomny sun (f... but is it really?)- half of this book’s sales are from me buying it for other people bc it’s the only way i know how to say i love you. i reread it every time just to make sure it still feels right and it always does.

other honorable mentions:

white is for witching by helen oyeyemi (f)- not to pit two bad bitches against each other, but this book does what akwaeke emezi’s freshwater was trying to do. it’s a little weird, a little haunted, a little of a lot of things. read this only in the dead of winter. (and with stephen rennicks’ score for the little stranger playing in the background.)

homie by danez smith (p)- there’s a lot going on here, but this just made me crack a smile a couple times in a way that no other book of poetry has ever done.

the murder of roger ackroyd and murder in mesopotamia by agatha christie (f)- That Bitch!

blues by nikki giovanni (p)- she sure has some Things To Say

the three-body problem by cixin liu (f)- interesting concepts, but... idk something’s missing? felt weirdly soulless to me. i’m probably not gonna read the sequels. but it did make some points!

the sisters of the winter wood by rena rossner (f)- i’m a slut for shapeshifting, okay. but this is a good fairy tale, it works!

parable of the sower by octavia butler (f)- i read this in march, when the pandemic was just kicking off and boy that was not the right time. def my least favorite of hers so far, but an octavia butler i don’t love is still better than a hell of a lot of other books. no idea when or if i’ll get to a good enough headspace for the sequel.

faves:

saturnino herrán by adriana zapett tapia (nf)- i got to learn new things about my mans and see some of his paintings i’ve never even seen online! GOSH.

on food and cooking by harold mcgee (nf)- yeah yeah, i’ve already mentioned this book half a dozen times on here this year, but i don’t care. this book lives off the shelf in my home bc i reference it like every other fucking day. this book is a part of me now.

#long post #final total for the year will be 120 by the end of the day!#and i had a pretty good hit rate. would probably recommend at least half #and only outright hated four

5 notes · View notes

lovemesomesurveys · 5 years

Text

England Do you like to drink tea? I like to drink some at night before bed. Do you like to put sugar in your tea? Yeah. I just use 1-2 packets of sweetener. Have you ever explored an ancient castle? No. If you’re a Christian, are you Catholic or Protestant? Protestant. Do you live in a big house? No.

Are there a lot of seagulls where you live? No, not in my city. Do you have a garden? No. Name something you own with the British flag on it. I don’t have anything. What’s your favorite part of London? I’ve never been, but I’d love to visit. If you’ve been to England, what was your favorite city you’ve visited? If applicable, what is/was your favorite store in London? Have you ever been lost in London? Would you say your personality is British? Do you think you’d fit in there? What are some examples of a British personality? Do you have English ancestors, or are you from England? No. Ireland What is one of your favorite celtic songs? I don’t know any. Do you have red hair? Not naturally, but I dye it red. Are you Irish? I do have some Irish in me.

Name 5 redheads that you know. I have a cousin who’s a natural redhead. That’s the only redhead I know, personally. Who in your family is/was a redhead? ^^^ If you’ve been to Ireland, what was your favorite city you visited? I’ve never been. Did you have any bad experiences in Ireland? Do you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day? All we do is have corned beef and cabbage for dinner, ha. Do you like Irish food? I think they’re kinda big on soups and stews, which aren’t my thing. I’m not crazy about corned beef and cabbage, but I’ll eat it that one day a year. Now potatoes, on the other hand, I love in all its various forms. What’s one thing you like about ancient cathedrals? The architecture, the interior, the artifacts, the history. Do you like rolling hills of green? That scene from The Sound of Music just came to mind. haha. Do you like bagpipes? I don’t really feel any particular way about them. It’s not something I hear very often. If you’re Irish, what part of Ireland is your family from? I don’t know. I really want to do one of those DNA tests to find out more about all that. Do you like English accents or Irish accents better? English. China What is your Chinese zodiac sign? I don’t know. ^Do you like it? Do you feel it fits your personality? I don’t believe in that stuff. Do you like your American zodiac sign or Chinese zodiac sign better? Do you like Chinese food? I like some. It’s not my favorite and it’s not ever something I really crave. List three of your favorite Chinese foods. Chow mien, egg rolls, pot stickers. I loved orange chicken, but I can’t eat it anymore due to the spiciness. Are you familiar with the topic of footbinding? Yes. This actually has come up in 2 other surveys I’ve done recently. What are your favorite books about the Chinese? I haven’t read any. Do you know anyone Chinese? Yeah. Who is your favorite Chinese youtuber? I like this ASMRist named Tingting ASMR. Have you ever cooked Chinese food at home? I’ve made pot stickers. Are you familiar with the Great Chinese Famine? No. Do you wish your school would teach you about other countries’ history? They did. Would you ever want to go to China? Sure. Do you have any Chinese in your family? No. Japan Do you like sushi? Noooo. ^If so, what are your favorite kinds? What is your favorite manga series? I don’t read manga. Do you love Japanese street fashion? Not my thing. What color hair would you have as an anime character? Red. Are you aware of the struggles of Japanese Americans during World War 2? Yes. What is your favorite Japanese name? I don’t have one. Do you like bonsai trees? Sure. What’s one thing you think Americans should adopt from the Japanese? I don’t know. Have you ever listened to Jpop? I’ve heard some before. Do you like Hello Kitty? Yeah. I was really into it as a kid. What is something you want to know about the Japanese? I don’t know. Do you know anyone who’s Japanese? Yes. Would you ever want to go to Japan? Sure. Australia Do you have blonde hair? Nope.

Do you live near a beach? About 2ish hours away from one. Do you surf? No. Who is your favorite Australian youtuber? I don’t know of any. Do you watch The Norris Nuts? I don’t know what that is. Who is your favorite Australian fictional character? I can’t think of any Australian fictional characters. What is your favorite song by Hillsong? Not familiar with them. Have you ever tried to surf? No. Do you skateboard? No. Have you ever been on an island? No. Do you live on an island? No. Do you like Australian accents or British accents better? British ones. Have you ever heard the term, “Crikey, mate!” Yeah. Have you ever met anyone from Australia? No. Africa Do you know anyone from Africa? I don’t think so.

Are you familiar with the War on Sudan? I’m not. Do you own an Invisible Children shirt? No. Have you been to Africa? No. What’s your favorite wild animal? Giraffes. Do you prefer dancing or drumming? Neither. Do you have good rhythm? Nope. Would you ever want to go to Africa? I’d love to visit giraffe manor. What is a great African song? I don’t know any. Have you ever tried African dancing? Nope. Do you own any African jewelry? No. Ever danced to “Waka Waka”? No. What’s the furthest you’ve ever walked in one day? My friend and I have walked all over San Francisco. If you’re not familiar with the city’s landscape, it’s got a lot of hills and is very steep. Do you live in a mud hut? No. Mexico List 3 of your favorite Mexican foods. Burritos, tacos, quesadillas. List 3 Mexican names you like. *shrug* List 3 people you know who are Mexican. My family. Have you ever been to Mexico? Yes. Would you ever want to go to Mexico? I’d like to visit a few different places in Mexico. Do you think you could handle being around people all the time? I know I can’t, ha. Do you like spicy food? D: I was obsessed with spicy food and ate it all the time until I developed some kind of sensitivity to it a few years ago. It really, really sucks. How do you do with crowds? I don’t do well with crowds. Is it hot where you live? Ugh, yes. We have horrible summers. Do you like bright colors? Sure. Can you speak Spanish? Only very little. Have you ever been to a fiesta? Yeah. Ever smacked a pinata? Many times. What’s your favorite thing to order at Taco Bell? Bean burrito, no onions, extra sauce and a couple Doritos tacos. The Middle East Are you Muslim? Nope. Do you know any Muslims? Yeah. Do you know anyone who wears hijab? No. What are some of your favorite books about Muslims? I haven’t read any.

Ever been to a desert? I’ve been to Arizona. Would you want to ride a camel? I’d be too scared. Did you watch the show Legends of the Hidden Temple? Yes. Korea Have you read To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before? Nope. I haven’t seen the Netflix movie either. ^Have you seen the movie? Oh haha. Nope.

Did you know that North Korea is closed? What. Would you ever want to visit South Korea? No. Have you ever had Korean food? Yeah. South America Have you read The Spirit of the Rainforest? Nope. Name one fact you know about Venezuela. I don’t know at the top of my head. Do you know anyone who lives in Peru? No. Have you ever tried Peruvian food or drink? No. Have you ever been to South America? No. Do you know anyone from Brazil? No. Would you ever want to visit South America? Sure. Name someone you know who owns llamas. I don’t know anyone. Do you like llamas? Sure. Have you ever sewn on a loom? No. Do you own a skirt from Guetamala? No. Do you ever wonder why we don’t hear much about South America? I haven’t thought about that. Thailand Do you like elephants? Yeah. Would you ever be brave enough to try walking on stilts? Well I can’t, but also no. Do you know about sex trafficking in Thailand? Yes and in other various places. It’s a serious problem. Do you like Thai food? I haven’t tried it.

Do you know anyone who’s Thai? I don’t think so. United States If you live in the US, which state do you live in? California.

Which states have you visited? Arizona, Idaho, and Georgia.

Which states have you lived in? Just California.

Have you ever been to Washington D.C? No. What is your favorite American food? Chicken tenders and fries, chicken wings, and Big Macs. Haha. Do you listen to popular music? Yeah. Do you dream of having two kids and maybe a dog? Yes to the dog, no to the kids. …and living in a two-story house with a white picket fence? It’d be nice, but I don’t need a 2 story house. That would add additional costs for me because I’d have to make it accessible. It would be pretty cool to have a 2 story house with an elevator. I really just would like a spacious enough house for 4 adults and a dog. …and having a good job and saving for retirement? That would be great. ….where you can retire to Florida and live on the beach? Not Florida, but yes to a beach home. Did you go to college? If so, what was your major? Yes. I got my degree in psychology. Were you abused by your parents? No. Do you know any nice people? Yes, plenty. How often do you bbq? We never do anymore. Other What’s the best family vacation you’ve been on? Disneyland vacations are definitely among the top. What countries have you visited? Mexico. What countries do you want to visit? Many. I want to travel all over. Have you ever been to NYC? No, but I’d like to. Do you live in a big city, small town, or other? Big city.

Do you live in the city or country? City. What is your favorite country besides your own? Hmm. What country do you live in? America. What is your ancestry? I know we have some Caucasian, Mexican, Filipino, Irish... I don’t know what else. Like I said, I really want to do one of those DNA things to find out exactly. What currency do you use? US dollar. Do you think you have an accent? Everyone does, but it’s weird to think of me having one as just a California gal. I guess cause when I think of accents I think of like British, southern, and even like New York or midwest, etc... something distinctive, ya know. I guess they don’t really think of it either; though, since it’s normal for them. Have you ever been told you have an accent? No.

#personal #text #survey #surveys

1 note · View note