Another year draws to a close. With memories of the the pandemic lock-down still vivid, we treasure the ability to do stuff with an extra dose of gratitude. Looking back at 2023, quite a bit happened. Here is a list of the most noteworthy events.
Run
This year I ran my very first race, a half marathon. I enjoyed it enough to sign up for another one in six months. Did both with Ken and treasured the experiences for competition and for companionship.
In between those long races I also joined the MMC team in the 3.5-mile JPMorgan Corporate Challenge. It was an absolutely massive event with lots of elite runners, and even more folks who were there just to party.
I was pleased to manage paces of 7:09 (Bay Bridge Half), 6:48 (JPMCC), and 7:21 per mile (Golden Gate Half), finishing within the top 5% of each event’s participants. For the first time in my life, I can call myself a “runner” without feeling like an imposter.
That said, each race was a mere test that reflected months’ worth of training. This year I ran a total of over 1,100 miles – equivalent to the distance between Seattle and Los Angeles, or averaging a 5k for each day of the year. Damn. The 40-year-old me wouldn’t have believed this. Neither would the 30-year-old me or the 20-year-old me. Being so athletic is such a divergence from how I’ve lived my life.
I’m not quite sure where to take this hobby (lifestyle?) forward. On one hand, I’m in love with this newly acquired ability and would prefer to maintain it for as long as possible. On the other, running does take a lot of time and can get rather dull. On top of that, I don’t think running is the most beneficial exercise regimen, given my primary objective to control my blood sugar. We’ll play by ear, I suppose, and see if I ever sign up for another race.
Enough about myself. When it comes to running, the real winner is actually Hong. A week into the year, she became the first person in the family to participate in a race. Months after the Hot Chocolate 5k, she also completed the Mermaid Dash 5k.
Even though she doesn’t do the long runs, she’s my inspiration. I wouldn’t have thought of signing up for any race without her encouragement. Not only did she get me to partake in the half marathon(s), she also inspired the kids to run. For a few months, our family did weekly training sessions at the nearby high school track. Then both Xuan (10) and Ting (8) pulled off pretty good scores at the children’s 1.5-mile Mermaid Dash.
The event did not formally time the kids’ race, but we estimated that they covered the mile-and-half at roughly a 10-minute-mile pace. Pretty good for such little people. Even more incredible considering their family heritage. I never ran a full mile until I was 15, and that was already thought to be an incredible feat.
So yeah, 2023 was when we became a running family.
Craft
Inspired first by my kids and then by Hamza, I spent a lot of time this year role playing a blacksmith. I enjoyed working with cardboard, tacky glue, and PVC pipes, turning them into a Qin sword from a movie, a light saber from the Star Wars universe, a large spear from a manhua, and a curve saber from another manhua. With each project, I learned a little more about the materials and figured out some new techniques. Now my hands just continuously itch to do more.
With more than a couple of these creations leaning against the wall in the study, I started thinking about a weapon rack. The plan got vastly accelerated when an earthquake knocked my spear and sword over, damaging both in the process. Days later, I was using my PVC pipe cutter more than the average plumber:
With 30 feet of pipes cut into tiny pieces and different shapes of connectors, I put together a not-pretty-but-stable rack for my weapon collection. A month later it was modified into v2 to accommodate the latest addition.
One thing I learned being crafty was that stuff ain’t cheap. Although I used predominantly garbage, and sourced more materials from home improvement stores than arts & crafts stores, these projects still cost me a bit.
Read
I hadn’t read for fun in many years. Then with a spark of inspiration this fall, I found and read all 3 of Mo Xiang Tong Xiu (墨香銅臭)’s novels:
- Mo Dao Zu Shi 魔道祖師 (Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation)
- Tian Guan Ci Fu 天官賜福 (Heaven Official’s Blessing)
- Ren Zha Fanpai Zijiu Xitong 人渣反派自救系統 (Scum Villain Self Saving System)
These novels belong in and are often considered representative works of the genre Danmei 耽美. This new-to-me genre is characterized by its focus on pretty male characters and gay men relationships. Media coverage of this category of literature, such as this Guardian article, tends to be unflattering and makes it seem like only straight women with a weird fetish read this stuff. Embedded in the explanation of the cultural phenomenon is a warning that people (especially men) can easily get scarred or offended by this stuff. I had to tread cautiously.
But there was something off about the fetish taboo characterization. My initial exposure to these novels was through randomly coming across official illustration and fan art on Pinterest. Then premium-bound and prominently-featured manhua, both Chinese and English editions, in a bookstore in Bangkok. Then various merch on Amazon. Before I even started looking for them (and realizing the availability of both animated and live-action TV adaptations on Netflix), these stories and their byproducts were just randomly popping up left and right. It didn’t make sense that a cult-ish novel would attain such widespread popularity all around the world.
So I read MDZS, and was glad that I did. The world building and story were both excellent. I continued to TGCF and equally couldn’t put it down. RZFPZJXT (what a terrible name) was not in the same league, but overall still a fun read.
A few observations:
- The Danmei nature of these stories is most noticeable in their excessive “female gaze” point of view. A large chunk of the text is dedicated to describing how handsome a dude looks or what clothes he has on. Kind of funny and kind of makes me mindful of how much “male gaze” is littered through conventional media
- Stories of gay people tend to hyper-focus on their comical stereotypes (e.g. Modern Family) or struggles for being different (e.g. Broke Back Mountain). It’s refreshing to see stories of people who happen to be gay, instead. These characters go on their adventures, fight for their dreams, and protect their loved ones just like “normal” protagonists would. Even though the sexuality is a clear part of their identity, it isn’t the predominate definition for who they are as people. I’d love to see more of our cultural products include gay (and other minority) characters for roles beyond their individual niches
- When the plot is interesting and the characters are written well, you’re naturally drawn in and root for the protagonists. It doesn’t matter whether their preference is a heterosexual or homosexual partner; you want their happiness all the same. Maybe this would have been self-evident if people didn’t cast danmei into a corner of weird fetishes
Travel
This year we went on a couple kick-ass trips that fully rivaled any of the best vacations that we had ever taken. For the week of spring break it was Tahiti and Bora-Bora, an unbelievable paradise that came with a hefty price tag; then during the summer we traversed four cities in Thailand and Singapore, getting some unique adventures with the kids while also hanging out with my parents.
The year also began with a few work trips, allowing me to be a BBQ connoisseur imposter.
Last but not least, we spent the final week of the year back east, staying with Vic and Brian. Our tolerance for (not even that) cold weather really deteriorated, and holiday travel was hectic as usual, but it was nice to hangout with family on Long Island and meet up with a few friends in NYC. I’m grateful to wrap up the year with loving people in our life.
Kudos to another exciting year!
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