Triscribe

Author: ssw15

  • 10 Years since Hurricane/Super Storm Sandy and Other Stuff

    Past:

    10 years since Hurricane/Super Storm Sandy (10/29/12-10/30/12).

    Time flies. It strikes me as both sad and almost trivial as to how I now think of Sandy as the storm that ruined Halloween 2012, when it was much more than just that. I don’t know if we as the American society – we as New Yorkers – have fully processed lessons from it. Apparently, the COVID-19 pandemic has helped delayed much efforts to keep rebuilding and becoming more resilient from such storms.

    Otherwise, Facebook Memories reminded me of those eerie times when we had extensive subway system damage and other consequences.

    See here for what I posted here on triscribe on the eve of Sandy. Here for FC’s posts on the local gas station and the return of the subway. Here for my post on the Days After Sandy. Here’s the link to my post on the One Year After Sandy. I really don’t know if any or all of the links within the posts are still valid, but you can let us know.

    The dead tree edition of Sunday’s NY Daily News (October 30, 2022) reminded me of how we had half of Manhattan as an electrical dead zone during the immediate recovery from Sandy. (I’d link to an e-version of the NY Daily News piece, but it appears to be behind a paywall, and it’s not nearly as accessible as, say, the NY Times’s website.)

    But, eerie recollections. I’m sure looking at my posts on Facebook and tumblr from that October 2012 period will remind me how much we had to rely on community in November 2012 to keep going.

    Back then, as much as we were divided by partisanship, at least NJ’s own Chris Christie had the sense to cooperate with the Obama administration, and the Republican candidate of those days, Mitt Romney, wasn’t (and still isn’t) insane. We cancelled the NYC Marathon, but we couldn’t – and didn’t – cancel Election Day in 2012.

    Past, Present, and Future?

    See here for a link to the NY Times’s own look at an individual recovery from Sandy, and the myriad of questions of whether we’re prepared for the future. Considering the storms since Sandy and the worsening of climate change, I don’t think we’re close to figuring out anything. Certainly, our mass transit is still figuring this out, and the storm of September 2021 did not help at all.

    See here for some illuminating posts over at Gothamist about: memories from Sandy and a photographic look at now and then. There are lots to think about regarding the past, the present, and the future. Let’s keep at making things better, somehow.

    Well, More of the Present and Future:

    Anyway, Halloween 2022 is on a Monday, which is weird, but it does give a whole Halloween weekend an excuse.

    On Friday night, I saw a guy dressed as Cat in the Hat (how cute).

    Saturday afternoon: I did see some people trying to dress as something or other, but the person dressed as the Halloween movie franchise’s Michael Myers was too freaky. He had a knife in his hand, and I hoped that it was a plastic cheap kind (it did look cheap). That was a freaky sight. Outside of Halloween, this person would have been stopped by the police. I hope… I think? (sorry, I took no photos…!).

    Anyway, Election Day 2022 is coming. That’s scary in its own way. But, Vote! And, don’t vote stupidly… but perhaps it’s best that I leave it at that.

  • Taking a Moment to Pause and Reflect 2022

    Try to remember the kind of September

    When life was slow and oh, so mellow.

    Try to remember the kind of September

    When grass was green and grain was yellow.

    “Try to Remember,” from The Fantasticks.

    It feels surreal that it has been 21 years. Time passes. We say that we would never forget, but I wonder if we learned anything. If September 11, 2001, was a nightmare, we somehow came together on September 12, 2001, if my memory isn’t so hazy to recall the attempts to help each other.

    But, I fear about whether we really can overcome hate and fear, as we the people of this nation are as divided as ever.

    21 years ago, I was trying to figure out how to make any use of my last year in law school, and then that Tuesday happened. I didn’t imagine the entirely different landscape that we’ve had since. I never imagined that all the crises and calamities we’d be through.

    This morning, I watched some of the commemoration. I still feel profoundly sad for those who never came home that day, when they were civilians – just people who might have gone to work early to go vote that morning, a beautiful, blue sky of a Tuesday, when we had our primary elections for local political offices. We’re talking about just ordinary New York metro area people who were part of what made downtown Manhattan so vibrant. They were part of that odd idea that the World Trade Center embodied – that through world trade (i.e., capitalism), we could have world peace.

    Maybe my cynicism gets to me. Have we done enough for the survivors, the people who worked and lived in downtown Manhattan? What about all these terrible medical conditions that arose because of how toxic Ground Zero was? What about how we didn’t know or want to know what was in the dust that littered Manhattan into southern Brooklyn? How do we stop being a**holes to each other, because aren’t we supposed to work together to overcome all the problems? I’m asking entirely rhetorical questions, of course.

    This morning, our local television stations covered the commemoration at the World Trade Center. I’ll share this September 5, 2022, post by Bill Ritter, the anchor of Eyewitness News of WABC Channel 7, as he noted:

    I’ve been thinking a lot about that part of the September 11th story, as we approach the 21st anniversary of that horrible day. And I’ve been thinking about how divided so much of this country is now, and I — along with many others — am trying to figure out how that happened in relatively such a short period of time.

    We can debate the foundational answer to all that — and we should — as we try to figure out how to stop the hate that infects so many people, and re-visit and re-light the sense of community that sparked the peaceful coagulation of this country 21 years ago.

    For our coverage of the 9/11 memorial in the week leading up to it, I recently interviewed former New York Governor George Pataki, a lifelong Republican who has thought a lot about how we have become so divided, and how his own party has become polarized, with some of them so filled with hate.

    There are, of course, many like the former governor, who favor discussion rather than rants, problem-solving dialogue instead of diatribes. But their voices are typically not the loudest.

    There is also what President Joe Biden observed during his speech at the Pentagon this morning, as part of the commemoration:

    It’s not enough to stand up for democracy once a year or every now and then. It’s something we have to do every single day. So this is a day not only to remember, but a day of renewal and resolve for each and every American.”

    Pres. Joe Biden, September 11, 2022, per report by Zolan Kanno-Youngs and Jeffery C. Mays, NY Times.

    Just a few days ago, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom passed away, at the age of 96, as the longest-reigning monarch of the UK. Regardless at this moment of how one may feel about monarchy, our planet’s entering a transition. I think that we can learn a lot from Queen Elizabeth II about commitment to duty and service, and even believing in commitment – and maybe those are the very reasons why we have admired her, putting aside our discomfort with monarchy and love of celebrity.

    For the observation of today, I liked how this report over at the NY Times reminded how, two days after September 11, 2001, Queen Elizabeth II handled her demonstration of alliance:

    Two days after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, Elizabeth ordered a military band to play “The Star-Spangled Banner” during the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace, one of the most popular and visible public displays of British tradition.

    “Tourists and British onlookers stood silent, grasping American flags and weeping,” The New York Times reported at the time. [….]

    Last year, on the 20th anniversary of the attacks, the queen again ordered the United States’ anthem to be played as the guard changed. In a message to President Biden, Queen Elizabeth II said at the time that her thoughts and prayers — “and those of my family and the entire nation” — were with the victims, survivors, families and rescue workers affected by the attacks.

    Photo I had taken some years ago, at the Brooklyn Promenade.

    Last year, FC shared this over on Facebook, so I’m passing it along again: “Wake Me Up When September Ends” – Green Day (Cover by First to Eleven).

    See here for last year’s post, of the 20th anniversary of a day that we cannot forget. I wish you all a peaceful and thoughtful day. Thanks again for being here. — ssw15

  • The Tragedy of June 19, 1982

    I may be a day late in posting this, but the time for reflection is a never-ending one, really: it’s 40 years since the death of Vincent Chin.

    See here for Emil Guillermo’s perspective, posted June 16, 2022, on the hate crime that had occurred, and how we can reflect. There are no easy answers.

    I’ve proposed for the last eight years a national period of meditation each and every year between June 19 to June 23 to ask ourselves some basic questions. Questions like, “What does it mean to be an Asian American today?” / “What does it take to stand up for a sense of ourselves?” / “Our community? Our personal and public identity?” / “What does real equality, real justice mean today?” Those are the things worth thinking about now and in the future.

    Emil Guillermo

    Guillermo ponders on what is justice, if those who commit the crime don’t take responsibility or don’t show remorse? What is a hate crime, if the intent by the person who commits the crime leads to no admission and no reparation?

    Guillermo further notes:

    No one has to hear from the killer ever. Apology? There’s no there there. / But every year, it’s important for all Asian Americans, past, present, and future, to pause and reflect on what happened on those five days, starting on June 19th and ending on June 23rd, when we awake, inspired to take action, moved by the memory of Vincent Chin.

    The further reality is that, during the years of the COVID-19 pandemic, anti-Asian hate persists and reminds us that the perpetual foreigner trope persists, and so we keep struggling somehow for what is better, what does it mean to be American, what is equality, and what is justice.

    So, yes, Guillermo’s questions are very real.

    Significantly, in the 40 years since Vincent Chin’s death, the needs for solidarity and dialog and work persist too. See for more on the struggle of against anti-Asian hate: “Remembering Vincent Chin — and the deep roots of anti-Asian violence,” by Li Zhou, June 19, 2022, over at Vox. Zhou reports:

    Overall, activists note that while the causes of anti-Asian discrimination are enduring and as tenacious today as in the 1980s, thanks to continued activism, awareness about these biases has also increased and improved significantly. Continuing to grow this understanding, and maintaining the willingness to fight back against it, is central to moving forward, they say.

    As a closing note to pass along: Triscribe’s own FC shared, via Facebook, the link to the Vincent Chin 40th Remembrance and Rededication. I hope that I can check out videos of the remembrance later, but there’s also a guide to consider as well.

    Remember to take care of yourself too, as the struggle is real and can be tiring. Keep learning and keep trying. — ssw15

  • Juneteenth 2022

    I hope we take a moment to acknowledge the meaning of Juneteenth, the holiday to commemorate the day that the Emancipation Proclamation reached enslaved Black people in Galveston, Texas, on June 19, 1865. A lot of events are going on this weekend, and with the observed holiday on June 20, 2022, if you haven’t been on the look out and planned ahead.

    I have heard that Juneteenth can be viewed as a prelude to July 4. I’m of the view that celebrating is all nice and good, but we can and should learn from history and try to do better.

    So many great resources, like documentaries and books and so on – but so little time…! Anyway, feel free to check out the following:

    “Juneteenth, explained,” by Fabiola Cineas, Vox, updated June 17, 2021, to explain the history and meaning of Juneteenth.

    For an illuminating discussion, check out a re-broadcast on June 17, 2022, on NPR’s Fresh Air of Terry Gross’s interview with historian/law professor Annette Gordon-Reed regarding Juneteenth and Gordon-Reed’s personal perspective as a native of Texas and descendant of enslaved persons (originally broadcasted on May 25, 2021).

    Juneteenth at New York Public Library.

    “Learn About & Celebrate Juneteenth,” posted by Beatrice Alvarez, June 15, 2022, regarding PBS coverage from various PBS stations across the country.

    The local NYC PBS station, WNET (Channel 13), has some great materials and interviews for Juneteenth, posted by Christina Knight, June 14, 2022.

    Per the reporting by Brigid Bergin, Gothamist/WNYC, June 19, 2022, New York City will have various commemorations on Sunday for the holiday and Monday, the observed day.

    Here’s to keep learning and keep striving for true justice and equality. — ssw15.

    (cross-posted to sswslitinmotion.tumblr.com)

  • Memorial Day 2022, or How AAPI Heritage Month 2022 is Winding Down

    Hope you’re having a meaningful Memorial Day. Take a moment to remember those who died in service for us and this country. And may we honor them by doing better ourselves for each other.

    Meanwhile, AAPI Heritage Month 2022 is zooming by like a blink of an eye. We had parades (see here for the previous link about the info) and we have at least one museum exhibit (see the Museum of New York‘s ongoing exhibit of the work of Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya on “Raise Your Voice.”

    We are still in a pandemic. We are still struggling with the perpetual perceptions of being foreign in our own country. Plus, AAPI Heritage Month is Mental Health Awareness Month, so I suggest checking out A Brief But Spectacular Take by Christine Catipon, as a feature of the PBS NewsHour. Catipon, a clinical psychologist at the University of California, Irvine Counseling Center, has a succinct take on being Filipina and overcoming shame and teaching that self-care is important. Worth a watch/listen.

    I meant to check out the link to Barnes & Noble’s post, April 28, 2022, regarding episodes from its podcast Poured Over regarding AAPI literature. But, it’s worth checking out all-year round (and for us at triscribe, AAPI Heritage is a year-round thing anyway).

    For AAPI Heritage Month, Short Wave, an NPR podcast, explores the life of Chien-Shiung Wu: a physicist, Chinese immigrant, a woman, a wife, mother, grandmother, mentor. She should not be forgotten. The episodes are worth a listen. Part 1 is here and Part 2 is here.

    Also, last but not least, check out FC’s post, from April 2022 – but still timely because FC, as triscribe founder, is our AAPI Heritage inspiration for all he has done for the AAPI legal community in bringing us – law students and practitioners – altogether.

    As it says under the title of triscribe – “We’re still here!” Until next time… — ssw15

  • AAPI Heritage Month 2022

    If you’re up in Manhattan, today, Saturday, May 14, 2022, was Japan Day, with a Japan Day Parade up at Central Park West/81st St to 68th St., with George Takei as a Grand Marshal.

    Plus, tomorrow, Sunday, May 15, 2022, is the city’s first AAPI Heritage Parade. See more info over at Time Out New York.

    It feels a bit last minute, since it was announced on May 11, 2022 (I linked to the Gothamist piece about the announcement) and the cynic in me feels like we can have better ways to fight AAPI hate. But, visibility is a way to deal with hate.

    Our own local Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY) is seeking people to join the contingent to march for the parade. RSVP asap if you want to join us, by registering over at the AABANY website. – ssw15

    (cross-posted to sswslitinmotion.tumblr.com)

  • Farewell to 2021…

    A last minute post as we say good-bye to 2021, a strange year in which we kept hoping that the COVID-19 pandemic would get in control and yet… and yet… and yet…

    Well, if you haven’t already done all of this: get vaccinated (plus booster!), wear a face covering, maintain something that looks like physical distancing, and wash hands, and keep hoping that things will get better.

    I’m certain that the Omicron variant of COVID-19 is the worst Transformer. I know that it’s a Greek letter, but it still sounds like a Transformer to me and now you know that I spent part of my 1980s watching a certain cartoon series…

    A proper 2021 year in review may have to be done at another time. But, hey, Team Triscribe won the best screenwriting award for this year’s 72 Hour Shootout Film contest! That was some good news!

    I did do National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) this year, but it was a hard slog, with me banging out a lot of crappy writing on the last day. Lesson: do NOT wait until the last day of NaNoWriMo to get through the last 7,000 to 10,000 words. It was sorely painful!

    I remain someone who isn’t into watching Year in Review stuff around Christmas because one never knows what stuff happens at the end of the year.

    But, the days after Christmas gave us the sad news of the passing of Desmond Tutu, Archbishop emeritus of South Africa; former US Senator Harry Reid of Nevada (former Democratic Party leader in the Senate); and former NFL commentator John Madden. Such news bummed me out, let alone the usual bad news of COVID-19, environmental crises, and so on.

    And, then on New Year’s Eve 2021: the passing of Betty White – which just sad because we were all looking forward to seeing her 100th birthday celebration in January 2022.

    I’m hoping to get to a post to review my Book Reading List of 2021, since I did read more in 2021 than in 2020. We shall see. But, best wishes to all for a happy and healthy New Year for 2022!

  • Taking a Moment to Pause and Reflect 2021

    Try to remember the kind of September

    When life was slow and oh, so mellow.

    Try to remember the kind of September

    When grass was green and grain was yellow.

    -“Try to Remember,” from The Fantasticks.

    I have been in a mood this whole week, realizing that the 20th anniversary of September 11, 2001, was upon us. It feels surreal that it has been 20 years.

    20 years ago, I was trying to figure out how to make any use of my last year in law school, and then that Tuesday happened. I didn’t imagine the entirely different landscape that we’ve had since. I never imagined that all the crises and calamities we’d be through.

    20 years ago: I didn’t think that we’d be in a pandemic. I didn’t think that the progress of, say, 15 years of rebuilding downtown Manhattan would be reduced to misery by the pandemic. I didn’t think that Afghanistan would be such a regression, leaving much to be desired about our moral values as a country, let alone what moral values were in Afghanistan.

    20 years of what, as far as we went forward and as far as we have not done enough, I’d say.

    It’s a Saturday and we’re in the 2nd year of a 9/11 anniversary during a pandemic. I woke up to watch the moment of silence on television for 10:28am, when the 2nd tower of the World Trade Center fell. I let out my own moment of wondering and feeling despair.

    I managed to get out to the Brooklyn Promenade after all, earlier this evening, awhile before sunset. There was a prayer circle of a family and people just walking their dogs. It was peaceful. I didn’t stay long, but it was nice.

    I do wish all a peaceful and thoughtful day.

    This NPR piece, “How To Talk About 9/11 With A New Generation Of Kids,” Sept. 9, 2021, was worthwhile. The experts explained about being clear with kids about what happened, accepting the discomfort, and being able to share your own feelings. And, I liked how the piece closed: “And the answers — that it is possible but hard and that we have to help each other — are as relevant today as ever.”

    Dan Barry’s piece over at the NY Times, as part of 20th anniversary observations, raises “What Does It Mean To ‘Never Forget’?” Barry notes:

    What, exactly, do you remember? What stories do you tell when a casual conversation morphs into a therapy session? What stories do you keep to yourself? And what instantly transports you back to that deceptively sunny Tuesday morning? [….]

    “When I hear ‘Never Forget’ for 9/11, my next question is: ‘Never forget what?’ said Charles B. Stone, an associate professor of psychology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. [….] “Probably the closest answer is: Never forget that it occurred,” Dr. Stone said. “But it’s the little details that will be forgotten.”

    Dan Barry (see the above link).

    Barry’s piece is worth a read, because I do wonder what we’re asked to do when we’re told to not forget. Memory is a tricky thing. We’re only human; perhaps that’s the most important to remember – never forget you’re only human.

    Photo I had taken some years ago, at the Brooklyn Promenade.

    See here for last year’s post, for more photos or observations.

    Since I’m the one who brings up The Fantasticks’ lyric about September, I’ll note that FC shared this over on Facebook, so I’m passing it along: “Wake Me Up When September Ends” – Green Day (Cover by First to Eleven). As FC said: “Today’s soundtrack – ‘twenty years have gone so fast.’”

    Take a moment to pause and reflect, and thanks for being here. — ssw15

  • Team Triscribe’s “Better Than Sliced Bread”

    For years now (I’ve lost track – it’s probably more clear on the Triscribe blog!), FC’s Team Triscribe or its variants have participated on/off in the Asian American Film Lab‘s 72 Hour Film Shootout, where competitors make a complete short film, up to 5 minutes in duration, during a 72 hour period. I’ve been doing it with FC on/off and we somehow managed this year!

    This year’s theme was “Be a Hero.” I think that we keep improving through the on/off years that we’ve been doing this. This year, to our shock during the last several days since the results came out: we won the Best Screenwriting Award!

    The biggest credit should go to FC for being our director, film editor, and leader. Without him, I’m never sure how every crazy idea, odd musing, or whatever else becomes something of a fun gem! Always a good time to get laughs, a creative charge, and stress over the process.

    You can view the YouTube link to see Team Triscribe’s film for this year (5 mins. of humor and poignancy!). Check the film’s credits to see all of us credited – but a big shout out to all who have been on the Team Triscribe ride of supporting us, being in the prior films, and enjoying or bringing food or supplies, or providing other support.

    Team Triscribe’s film for this year is in honor of our friend and hero, the late Asian American photographer laureate, Corky Lee.

    Disclaimers: Dr. Apollo is not a real doctor. But, sandwiches are good, and no sandwiches were harmed in the making of the movie, even though a lot of them were eaten. They were not eaten by me. Also, you don’t need a fake doctor to save your relationships. You can still save a relationship. Hopefully! And, why, yes, isn’t that our running gag of the girl named Elizabeth Ong…?

    Also: many ridiculous clips were left behind. YKC found a lot of amazing sandwiches in Japan. My wish for a Ken Burns-style documentary on the ongoing Chicken Sandwich War is still but a near-running joke that’s kind of serious. I also don’t think we really answered in the film regarding whether a hot dog is a sandwich, but I still think it is!

    And, yes, the film is more than about food. It is about relationships.

    Also: very flattering that we got publicized on the AABANY blog! (see link here) Thanks, AABANY!

    (And, that’s the Asian American Bar Association of New York, to the rest of you not in the know, of which a bunch of us in Team Triscribe have been longtime members).

    During the Asian American International Film Festival 44th edition (hybrid – online and live – from August 11, 2021, through August 22, 2021), you can also still check out Asian American Film Lab’s 72 Hour Film Shootout online/streaming presentation of the Top Ten, and it is worth a watch for the films that made it. We didn’t make the Top Ten, but one had to wonder how close we were!

    I’m hoping to eventually put up a post on my viewing of the 72 Hour Film Shootout’s Top Ten (let’s see if that’ll happen!). I still have to get to watching my online viewing of other AAIFF offerings. In the meantime, let’s keep supporting diversity and inclusion in front of and behind the cameras and in all of the arts!

    P.S. – I did intend for the – uh – pun in the post’s title. Don’t you think that we’re better than sliced bread, after all? 😉

  • Happy May 2021!

    So, Happy May. May 1 is/was May Day, Law Day, the 1st day of Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month, and probably many other observances…

    New York Public Library (NYPL) has a great section for AAPI Heritage Month of book lists for adults and kids, and upcoming online events and resources, so check that out! (h/t NYPL’s Facebook page post, April 29, 2021).

    Also, the City University of New York (CUNY) has a great list of various events and resources that they have for AAPI Heritage Month. Worth checking out too! (h/t CUNY’s Facebook page post, May 1, 2021).

    There is a lot going on and we’re still in a pandemic. Pace yourself, stay safe, and keep learning and reading and whatever else that is good for you. — ssw15

    (cross-posted at sswslitinmotion.tumblr.com)