East | East
Feb.06.2013
SAN FRANCISCO--"Dear Mr. Lam. I loved your essay, 'The Palmist,' but I can't figure out what the main theme is. Is it dying and being all alone? My teacher suggests I read more of your writing... I'm glad I found you online.... Thank you very much for your help."
The e-mail from, let's call him, "...
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Aug.23.2012
SAN FRANCISCO--When I was young, I used to eat food taken from a supermarket's garbage bin. We first came to America from Vietnam in the mid 70s as refugees, and my eldest brother got a job working in a supermarket across from our crowded, ramshackle apartment. Among his many chores he...
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Aug.21.2012
Buddhism made a bleep in the news early this month when the Times of India, citing an unnamed source, reported that Bill Clinton, has turned to Buddhism for mental and physical well-being. The former US president went as far as hiring a Buddhist monk to teach him the arts of...
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May.12.2012
East and West far apart when it comes to egosCreated: 2012-5-9Author:Andrew Lam
IN the age of Twitter, Skype, YouTube and Google, the space between East and West seems to compress and shrink.
But in the area of self-perception, there remains a psyche gap that can often be as wide as the...
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Jun.15.2011
In the age of globalization, there’s a caveat that often rings true: “You know your culture is a big hit when somebody else is trying to sell it back to you!” Nowhere is this more obvious than the example of the run away box office smash, Kung Fu Panda, and its sequel. A wildly successful animation...
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Mar.13.2011
SAN FRANCISCO--What everyone’s been saying for a while about the Bay Area, the 2010 Census has confirmed. The East is acquiring greater weight in the life of the region because the Asian American population is surging. Politically and culturally, the result is something of a rumbling mid-Richter...
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Feb.17.2011
1. Feb. 20th, 2011. Fresno
Valley Wordfest: Sunday, February 20th, 7:00 pm, Alice Peters Auditorium
http://mfafresno.wordpress.com/2011/02/15/valley-wordfest-sunday-february-20th-700-pm-alice-peters-auditorium-2/
Please join the San Joaquin Literary Association in kicking off SJLA’s first...
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Dec.10.2010
Growing up in New England, in the tiny state of RI, east meant water. Narragansett Bay.
South also meant water. The Atlantic Ocean.
Then I moved to San Francisco. And lost my directional bearings.
Here the ocean lies to the west. But the Bay still sits to the East.
In RI, you can always drive...
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Dec.10.2010
I try not to think too hard about the cardinal directions. North, South, East, West—just don’t talk to me about it. If you’re giving me directions, I’d much prefer left, right, right, right, left, you can’t miss it over west, north, east, south, east, am I talkin’ too fast fer ya?
Even as a Boy...
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Dec.08.2010
I spent a few months in Maine in 1987, but I never returned, and it's all their fault. I'm not sure I could ever find my way home again.
That year I was teaching a summer course at the University of Maine in Portland. One of the graduate students asked me if wanted to join him and some friends who...
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