then there are blackbirds

once: It was my mother taught me to make dumplings, mixing together ground pork and shrimp and jiǔ cài and chopped cabbage, drizzling in soy sauce until it was just this side of brown. Dipping our fingers in the dish of water to wet the edges of the skin, we used to sit around the table, my mother and sister and I, racing each other to see who could wrap the most, the prettiest, the quickest; which of us would scrape the last of the filling out of the bowl. Sometimes we'd boil them and sometimes we'd pan-fry them, but I always loved the fried ones best, watching the wrapper turn crispy golden-brown at the edges.

(People used to complain of the smell sometimes when I brought them to school for lunch, but after a while I figured they were just jealous.)

( and once: )

[written for the 5th Asian Women Blog Carnival]

The deadline for submissions for the 4th Asian Women Blog Carnival is today! However, since RL has been pretty crazy for me recently, I'm willing to extend a grace period of ~24 hours. Once again, the theme of this edition is storytelling, or reclaiming our selves through our words. If you are interested in participating, please see this post for guidelines and further details!

Some quick notes, since I'm supposed to be haring off to do things in a bit:

- rs_small_gifts signups are open! :D Yeah, Remus/Sirius folks, I'm looking at you.

- I forgot to say that I'm doing choc_fic's 100 Days of Color! Saving Face (because this is apparently the Year of Pimpage for me), February 8th. \o/

- camelot_fleet party post is open for business!

- The deadline for submissions for the 4th Asian Women Blog Carnival is coming up! NOVEMBER 1st is... next weekend, omg. Where did October go??

- Via karnythia [here]: what. the. FUCK?

- In other news, RIP Ted Kennedy. :(

*** In other other news, the Asian Women Blog Carnival submissions post is now up at truthrages! *\o/* Details within.

( ahahaha SCREWED. )

basically, brain, i'd like you to stop faffing off now plzkthx.

ETA: wow i am LATE on pimping this, but ciderpress has announced the 3rd edition of the Asian Women Carnival! \o/ \o/ the host is Jha'Meia, and the submissions post is here; deadline is 8/15; optional theme is "Intersections between Culture and Sexism."

also, a note from ciderpress regarding the Carnival (emphasis mine):

The carnival was intended to be *about* Asian women rather than an Asian women *only* carnival. This is partly because the global issues of race, identity, gender and class etc affect everyone and I think it is important to explore and discuss (and learn about) the intersection of communities, issues and common and uncommon experiences and listen to a diverse range of voices, all of which have valuable things to contribute to the discussion. It is also partly because Asian women are daughters, mothers, sisters, colleagues and friends. What affects our lives and makes us who we are in turn affects our relationships with our brothers and sisters, our parents, our children, our colleagues and our friends and changes them. I know I have things to say about my identity as an Asian woman. I also know that my brothers, my father and my friends all think about and have things to say about Asian women and how we relate to their own personal experiences and their views on race, gender and feminism etc. I personally welcome submissions and work by Asian women, Asian men and non-Asian allies, and hope that the conversations springing from the AWC can and will include all these voices, even within the narrow focus that the carnival has. I would also like, as both yeloson and deepad have both kindly suggested, in a (hopefully soon-to-be!) future edition, to have an Asian Women Carnival based on the theme of Asian men and children.

if you, lovely flist, have any thoughts to share, i'd love to hear them! &hearts

Happy open-beta phase, everyone! As I mentioned previously, I am still hanging out mostly on LJ, with very little cross-posting thus far. It's nice to see more familiar faces over here, though! :)

There will be more fic up here soon, when I get around to finishing/organizing the stuff from my drabble free-for-all on LJ. I realize I forgot to cross-post that, so, er, if any of you Dreamwidth-only folks would like a prompt, feel free to drop one here? *headdesk*

Also, a quick PSA for those of you who may be interested/haven't already heard the news from ciderpress or oyceter: oyceter is hosting the second edition of the Asian Women Blog Carnival, and she's taking submissions until June 1st! So, so excited for this. \o/

ETA: I made a post over at LJ about swine flu, and it occurs to me that it may bear repeating over here! setissma has some useful information over here. Also, some helpful tips:

- Coughing/sneezing into your sleeve- as opposed to into your hands- decreases the likelihood of spreading your germs everywhere, for the simple reason that shit sticks to your hands (which you will forget about once your cough/sneeze is over) and it is very easy to reinfect everything around you by touching stuff.
- Used tissues should be discarded ASAP, and giving convenient surfaces- i.e. computer desks, kitchen counters, dining room tables, etc.- a quick spray & wipe-down is always a good idea.
- Avoid touching your eyes/nose/mouth, as mucous membranes are disease-friendly areas.
- Wash your hands! Everyone is saying this; everyone is repeating it for a reason. Don't just rinse, either- soap & lather, don't forget to clean around your fingernails & between your fingers, etc., and use warm/hot water if it's available. Around twenty seconds should do it.
- It's also a good idea to pop one of those Purell hand sanitizer things in your bag, for use when sinks are not convenient to you. Very easy quick-fix, believe me.

Also, please remember that you are not in danger of catching swine flu from eating pork. That is all!