hyphenated american

At my high school newspaper, I learned that when you use "Asian American" as a noun, there's no hyphen (I see many Asian Americans), but when you use it as an adjective, we insert the hyphen (This is an Asian-American value.).

I was reading over one of Cyrus's papers, and I thought I'd found a typo when I saw a blank space between "Asian" and "American" being used as an adjective. "You need a hyphen here!" I said. But it turns out that things have changed since high school. It turns out that the standard usage takes out the hyphen altogether because the hyphenated adjective connotes a time when "hyphenated Americans" were considered a lower status compared to just Americans.

Have you ever heard that term before? "Hyphenated American?" I haven't, and I guess that's why I never thought twice about the previous rule.

So, Asian Americans, remember that when writing a paper about, say, the Asian American identity or Asian American immigrant history...no hyphen!

i love npr

NPR has made me a better person. Jkjk. But seriously, I started listening to National Public Radio in 2008 when I realized that I couldn't engage in conversation with Cyrus about what was going on in the world because I had no idea what was going on in the world! So I started off with listening to Morning Edition while I got ready for work and on my way there. Then I started listening to more and more programs, and realized how awesome NPR is!

Some more of my favorite shows:
- All Things Considered
- Science Friday
- Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me
- Car Talk

I know how bad it feels not to be able to contribute to a conversation about politics or world events. (And I'm only at the point where I can sometimes throw in an intelligent question here or there.) And I thought I was doomed to be ignorant for the rest of my life because the newspaper is too bulky and I'd rather watch what was on my DVR than sit and watch the news. But NPR presents stories in such an interesting and accessible way that it's easy to learn about what's going on in the world!

So find the NPR station in your city and start listening!

Also, take the quiz of the Faces of NPR! I got 5/12 right, but really - how are you expected to know what the people look like when it's a radio station??

less sarcasm, please

It started in college when someone pulled me aside and told me these three fateful words: "You're kinda mean."

After that, I vowed to do my best never to let my sarcasm, if taken seriously, offend anyone.

I didn't really force my views on anyone else until I became a deacon at my church and saw the potential damage sarcasm could do, especially when sensitive matters were being discussed at a meeting.

One example: Our worship service broke off from the youth group worship service for a few years because our pastor thought that the college-and-up people needed to come into their identity as adults. Totally legit. At a planning meeting for a joint retreat, a high schooler asked, "So...why do we have separate worship services?" And an older person replied, "Because we don't like you!"

Everyone laughed, and it was fine, but imagine if someone in that room wondered if there were some truth to that statement. How hurtful!

Also, sarcasm sometimes results in really awkward situations. A guy was telling a girl about how he only had one final that semester. The girl's response: "Die. Just die." What do you say to that? Isn't it just better to say "Wow, that's great!" Everyone feels good.

So I think if we get rid of sarcasm that could possibly hurt people, we could save a lot of hurt feelings and awkward moments.

Are you in??

my idea for a tv show

Please welcome special guest blogger... Cyrus!

Here’s my idea for a TV show. Don’t tell me you could resist the appeal.

Everyone knows about American Idol. There’s the singing, there’s the judging. There’s the crushing of a would-be starlet’s hopes, and the vindication of a diamond in the rough. By most people’s standards, people with singing talent generally win the show.

This, of course, is not true in real life. People become famous singers for all sorts of reasons, many of which have more to do with their marketable images than their ability to stay on-key, while true talents are sidelined by the most random of circumstances.

In music, the great equalizer is that masker of incompetence: Auto-Tune.

It’s the omnipresent safety net for singers today. T-Pain, of course, is the most prominent user. But others have joined in: from the Dixie Chicks, to Maroon 5, to Avril Lavigne. Glee is obviously, obviously full of Auto-Tune.

How do you know if they really have talent? When Auto-Tune the News can be just as in tune as the greatest perfect-pitch singer ever, thanks to the advent of the pitch-correcting software, computer software can stand in the place of real, human talent.

The object of the TV show? To find out whether the accolades and the Grammys bestowed upon some of today’s “talent” are actually deserved.

Multi-platinum artists of the day would compete in a sing-off elimination tournament Idol-style. The prize would be $20 million dollars. Or a giant donation to their favorite charity. Or pick a number high enough to entice them — and post the names of the people who chickened out. The pilot episode of Lost cost $10 million. I think a season of this show would be worth enough to offer a significant prize, plus a significant bonus to the artists just for having the testicular fortitude to show up.

The twists?

No Auto-Tune. None. No production, no backup dancers, no fireworks. Just a voice on a stage. Let the Grammy winners be judged on the grounds they should be: their voices.

Judges. I could envision three possibilities: 1. You could keep the Idol judges. 2. Bring in ordinary people, with TV-size personalities, to critique these singers’ abilities. 3. Bring in real classically trained voice instructors who, by virtue of their occupation in the classical music world, are unfamiliar with the famous singers.

Songs. If you can really sing, you should be able to sing anything. Rihanna, for example, would have to sing something that has more than a 6-note range. Chad Kroeger must sing anything other than a rock ballad.

Trust me. It’d be awesome. Some would go home in shame. But who knows – maybe T-Pain is a fantastic singer underneath all of that Auto-Tune! You would want to know, though, and that’s why America would tune in every week.

Isn’t there someone you’d want to put on the show?

music monday: a fine frenzy, "one cell in the sea"

Alison Sudol is one of the few poet songwriters left in the pop genre. When the Rihannas and Ke$has (don't get me started) fade away, there will be Alison Sudol. And check out her cool red hair!

Actually, I don't know how much life she has left with her band, A Fine Frenzy. She doesn't necessarily have a timeless sound, but her two albums have gotten great reviews. I love how not all of her songs are about ex-boyfriends and going out to party tonight.

Take "The Minnow and the Trout" for example. This song is about a young, naive minnow offering to help a trout feel young again, and an eagle asking a dove for help. Not what you'd expect but "Please, I know that we're different / We were one cell in the sea in the beginning / And what we're made of was all the same once / We're not that different after all." Good stuff, huh? Other songs I love are "Come On, Come Out," "You Picked Me," "Rangers," "Lifesize" and "Almost Lover" (okay, this one is about an ex-boyfriend~).

And let's talk about the sound. It's kind of like a girl-version of Keane (whose debut album is one of my favorites!). Heavy on the keyboards with very melodic themes and and easy-to-swallow melodies. She doesn't show a lot of vocal range, which only means that it's really easy to sing along to. :)

She has a newer album out, "Bomb in a Birdcage," but I haven't listened to it yet. But check out "One Cell in the Sea" and let me know what you think!

Official website
Listen to samples and buy the MP3 album on Amazon for $4.99!

lousy tippers

Have you ever been to a restaurant with a group, and when it comes time to pay the bill, everyone claims they paid their share including tax and tip, yet you're still short of even paying the bill on its own? How does this happen? Answer: lousy tippers! ...Or, people who can't do math.

Check out yesterday's blog post from one of my favorite food critics in Boston, MC Slim JB about Shaming Lousy Tippers Into Better Behavior. I went wide-eyed when I read about how he handles confronting a dining companion who tipped poorly. I don't think I could ever give someone an ultimatum so straightforward like that. Yikes! But that one restaurant's innovative receipt idea is pretty great. I'd like to see more of that.

Have you dealt with friends who are lousy tippers?

j.crew

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I try not to look at the J.Crew catalog when it comes in the mail because it's just too tempting, but I just couldn't resist this time. There must be a $2,000 J.Crew shopping spree I can win somehow, right?