Does the Grinch send Christmas cards?

Twizzle's holiday post got me thinking maybe I could blog about my traditional pre-Christmas stress/anxiety/guilt-fest.  Right after pulling off Barley's small but successful, at home, no frills birthday party, instead of feeling happy and relieved, I was overwhelmed by dread and stress.  All I could think about was this monster holiday list looming ahead of me in the post-Thanksgiving season. 

I'd like to complain that it is Barley's fault, for depriving me of the long weekend to get started on Christmas to-dos, but I must admit I have always had this holiday stress. I remember being anxious even back in grade school, when my plans to make presents for everyone had me worrying about getting done in time.  I stressed out in college about studying for exams before Christmas, only to arrive home with a scant week to get all my shopping and cards out.

What is it about this season that makes me want to be Martha Stewart?  I have long ago accepted that I am not a neat housekeeper, not a decorator, not a gourmet chef (though I am a 5-star gourmand), and frankly, don't have time to be the idealized 50's housewife.

But at Christmas, I want to be.

I wrote out my list of Christmas chores and reviewed it:

1. Hangs greens on staircase
2. Write Christmas letter
3. Take Christmas photo
4. Order Christmas photo prints
5. Print Christmas card labels
6. Assemble Christmas cards
7. Mail Christmas cards
8. Get Tree
9. Install Tree in living room
10. Put lights on Tree
11. Decorate tree
12. Hang outdoor lights
13. Set up lawn reindeer and tree
14. Bring out Christmas plates and cups
15. Go see Vasona Lights
16. Hang Christmas stockings

Did you notice that 6 of the 16 things stressing me out are related to sending out my Christmas cards?  This is a huge part of my stress.  I brought the topic up at a Christmas gathering of close friends, and some offered the good news that when your children are older, the need for photos and annual letters dissipates.  There is less interest in the ongoing health problems, and once kids are in college, they don't change so much year over year.

I also realized that more than half the people I am sending cards to, are also connected to me on Facebook, so they have been seeing pictures of my kids all year, and heard about some of my adventures.  If I could just post my annual Christmas letter there, and upload a photo, I would be done already!

But there are still many friends on my list who are not on Facebook.  If I am going to do a mailing campaign for 30 people, I might as well do it for 75, right?  Or am I kidding myself?  A home birthday party with 6 kids was WAY easier than 22.  I should probably analyze how many non-FB friends I have, anyway.  Maybe if there is under 20, I can just order extra wallets of the school photos next year.  Getting a good holiday photo is always a large part of my stress, since waiting for Christmas decorations to go up somewhere prevents me from getting this requirement done way ahead of time.  There is a similar time constraint on writing the Christmas letter.

On the other hand, I could have printed out the labels months ago, and didn't.  Can't explain why, other than being busy or intimidated because I forget the steps to do it every year.

I tried Twizzle's idea of trimming the Christmas card list, so I reviewed my 75 names, and got it down to...64.  It would make sense to remove people I haven't heard from in the last year...except that this is the one time per year that I can validate that people are still at the same address I last heard.  And I know how busy I get, so I hate to hold that against people who might be happy to hear from me and just don't have time to write or call much.  I love getting Christmas cards myself, and use them as part of my decorating.  I even save some of them to use again in the future.

I also worry that skipping them this year might mean losing contact with them forever.  They are on my list because we had a connection in the past--I hate to let go.

Then there are the people who I am sending cards to out of obligation.  They send me one every year, so I send them one back.  Or they are part of a group of 10 families who know each other, and I would be embarrassed if one saw a card on someone else's fridge that they did not receive.  I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings.

I know I am way overthinking this. I am open to ideas and suggestions for next year.  The photos are already printed for this year, so I am committed to the card-photo-letter plan for 2009.  I would love to figure out a way to make it all easier next year, though.

Kimchi Mamas Meet-Up (Part 3 of 3: Karaoke)

Welcome to the new site, folks!  Please remember to bookmark this page or follow, or however you were tracking the posts on the other site.  This is the new home for my blog.  Looks the same, right?

So, what happened at the NoraeBang, (translation = "song room") anyway? Mary persuaded 4 of us to go with her to the Korean Karaoke place across the street. I'd never been to one of these before--so I was interested to see that instead of being in a smoke filled bar, like the Acapulco Lounge in Santa Clara, we got to rent a private room with a TV and karaoke machine.  There is a window into the hallway, and video cameras to the front desk, but the only people to hear us singing would be us.

I believe the singers in attendance were Mary, Twizzle, Karen the Californian, Julie, and myself. Click here to read about the dinner that preceded this escapade. 

They did not offer us any drinks, not even water or soda. Seems like the kind of place where booze would be called for, and a lot of it! Not a drop in sight.

Now, I am not musically inclined. At all. This was a major source of stress for me in high school, when your entire social strata can be defined by what kind of music you like. I liked country, because my parents and brother listened to that. My tape player was one of those cheap shoebox dictaphone types they used in elementary school for read-aloud books. Not exactly high fidelity sound there. One blessing was that country music was actually cool when I was a teenager, so much so, that the "real" country musicians even wrote an anthem , "I was country, when country wasn't cool"



I remember one traumatic outing when we were on a field trip, or class picnic, or something. A teacher made some sentimental speech, and all the students started singing the song, "Up Where We Belong", and I had NO IDEA what the song was or the words or tune or anything. I felt like an idiot trying to pretend and lipsynching along with everyone. Of course, the people closest to me knew I wasn't singing...but hey, it's just like church today. Unfortunately, this all plugged into feelings of being an outsider that I felt my whole childhood. As the only Asian in my mostly white graduating class, and one of the few minorities in the school, I wanted to "fit in" just as desperately as most teenagers do. My race precluded that, and music was one of the areas where I felt out of place most acutely. I had found my nerd friends by junior high, but every teenager spoke music--except for me.



So, decades later, here I am with a bunch of women whom I have only just met, and I am feeling a little stressed out. I don't sing well, have a poor sense of pitch, and these ladies were NOT drinking at dinner, so no cover there!

As we flip through the book looking for songs, they are organized by song title, not artist. We put aside the Korean songlist, which was a relief, since the only Korean songs I know are "San Toki" (kids' song) and the Korean national anthem, "Arirang".

Already stressed out from the pressure of having to sing in front of people I have just met, I suddenly cannot remember a single title of any Indigo Girls song. These are the gals I have on CD in my car, and I am most likely to sing along to, and actually know the melody and words. I keep flipping frantically--no luck. OK, how about Billy Joel--fellow New Yorker, I should be able to sing to him, right? Again--my mind had blanked and I can't remember a single song title--nada. Alzheimer's had kicked in early...by luck I stumble across Piano Man. But I can't remember the tune or how the words go!

I am frantically trying to remember ANY artist, ANY song that I can sing--the selections the other gals are making are not songs I know, and I am having flashbacks to high school! My lipsynching trick is probably not going to work in a small room of 5 of us sitting right next to each other!  While I did see some Kenny Rogers songs in the book, it has been decades since the 80's, and I wasn't so sure country was still cool anymore.

In desperation, I plugged in  Huey Lewis's "Heart of Rock and Roll"



and Chris de Burgh's "Lady in Red"



Mary and Karen had done such a great job on the previous songs, that I almost thought there was some vocal soundtrack that I could sing on top of...but no, when the songs I had chosen came up, I missed a few bars while waiting for someone else to start singing. Once I did start singing, well, let's just say it's a good thing Karen was a music major in college, and she is a great sport too. Phew. I hope they couldn't tell how much I was sweating from embarrassment.

I suddenly had much greater empathy for poor DH, who had chosen to sing to me at our wedding. He got the bright idea after attending his friend's wedding and seeing him serenade his bride. Only thing was...his friend had his groomsmen back him up. DH got a friend to play guitar for him, but he was the only one singing at our wedding. My little brother was supposed to do a reading just before the song, but he got all emotional and started all of us crying instead (and that is a story for another day...since I am seeing him soon, I will not tell it now out of self-preservation).  DH then stood to sing to me, and I had tears running down my face, and he got all emotional too... and well...it was sweet that he tried, anyway.  I can't say I have been kind over the years when we reminisce about that part of the ceremony...but I usually stop laughing when he glares at me.

I understand our November Meet-Up is also going to be situated near a NoraeBang as well. I wonder if I can sneak my son's MP3 player in my purse...

Kimchi Mamas Meet-Up (Part 2 of 3)

At the speed with which I am cranking out these posts, I should be done by the time we organize our NEXT Meet-up--in November!

Work is looming large, and while I am on target to hit all my MBO goals, it's been a lot of late nights and working weekends to get there. Not much "me" time this month, which translates to not much time for you, my blogging audience. I am sure all dozen of you are waiting with bated breath for the next Kimchi Mamas Meet-Up post! (9 of you were there with me!)

My first impression of the NorCal Kimchi Mamas group? Well, first off, we really put the "Mamas" in the Kimchi Mamas. If I kept count right, there were 3 pregnant moms, 2 of whom are in their 9th month. And 2 moms of nursing newborns. 2 Moms brought their daughters with them, and one brought her accommodating husband along so as to have both family time and Kimchi Mamas time. Now *that* is efficient use of time. The poor man had no idea the conversation immediately flipped to discussion of vaginas whenever he left the table.

Some of us (ahem) were more experienced Mamas, with older children, but we all connected pretty easily. No loudmouths in the group (I was on my best behavior). We all had made some effort on appearance, though none of us was polished enough to go grocery shopping at a typical Korean grocery store. You can tell the "real" Koreans from us Americanized versions by the high heels--YES, for getting groceries. In that context, the pink parking spaces in downtown Seoul do make a warped kind of sense after all.

The Meet-Up was at Sahn Maru in Oakland, which I learned had been reviewed on the KQED show, "Check, Please!". Our organizer, Mary Choi, in all her pregnant glory, is even ON the show--watch here. It is a good review of the restaurant. I would definitely go back again.

We did think it was odd they did not mention the buttock sculptures hanging on one wall of the restaurant...it was an interesting piece of...well...art. Yeah. If you want to see OUR feast, click here. Following are short descriptions of who I met that dinner--the introductions were funny as we gave our actual names, then had to explain our online identities as well.

Mary Choi, our organizer--I pronounced her name "Choy" when I came in, the host clarified it to the Korean pronunciation "Chey"...it brought me right back to Seoul. Mary is lively, funny, mother to a newborn (why does she still have so much energy)? And persuaded several of us to go to karaoke with her after...more on that in my next post. Read her at:

http://so-yun.livejournal.com (personal blog)
http://www.perfect.etsy.com (jewelry hand made by yours truly)
http://twitter.com/so_yun (follow me on twitter!)

"Twizzle" - one of our founders--I sat too far away from her during dinner, but she did sing with us at Karaoke, so that tells you something. Not sure what, but something. I hope to get to know her better in the future. Read her at:

http://baboonmag.blogspot.com/

Eleanna: blog reader (Thank Goodness we have some!)--again, other end of the table--though she did share a funny story about her name and people mispronouncing it as she was growing up. Eleanna not being a typical Korean name, in case you couldn't tell.

Karen the Californian--new Mama--I sat next to her at dinner and at karaoke. She looked great, except for the flip-flops. Definitely no pink parking spaces for her! Read her at:
http://karenthecalifornian.blogspot.com

Julie Kang, the one I had read the most, of course ended up completely at the other end of the table from me. At least she did come to karaoke, so we got to hear her pipes. She also posted a picture of me in her blog, but I won't tell you which one is me. Read her at:
http://geishaschooldropout.com

Shinyung Oh - I had already read some of her excellent posts--her journey to motherhood is chronicled here: http://shinyungoh.blogspot.com/

Glennia -- we sat too far away--it was a looong table. She writes a travel blog, and that makes me jealous, since I love to travel but have not had time or $ since having kids. Sigh. Glennia may also have been the only one of us to go to BlogHer, but I might have that wrong.
@glennia on Twitter
Personal/Family Travel Blog: The Silent I: http://glenniacampbell.typepad.com
Political Blog: MOMocrats: http://momocrats.typepad.com

Min Jung brought her very quiet, well behaved baby to the dinner, and told us about Captain Poong Poong, a "magical farting children's program hero in Korean" to quote her Twitter feed. Not being one to shy away from body talk, I noticed she posted this very funny, poignant, and completely accurate post about the relationship between a baby and a nursing mother. Or, I should say, a baby and her mother's boob. Mom's really just there as a bonus.

http://minjungkim.com/2009/09/22/all-about-my-boobs/

Eingy -- One of the new moms, Eingy sat across from me. She was very nice, and said some clever things, but I've taken so long writing this post, I can't remember details anymore. She has written a very good post on interpersonal communications. You know, the stuff you wish you could staple to someone's forehead when they just don't "get it." (Ooops, that might be my PMS hormones talking there...don't mind me)

Twitter by eingy
Her blog is at http://inciteariot.helava.com

So, lots of sharing, lots of laughing, not nearly as much vagina talk as one woman's husband thought there would be, and hopefully, the start of some long friendships.

Next post, sometime before the end of the year...Karaoke. Yes, dear readers, I sang. If you can call it that...

Kimchi Mamas Meet-Up (Post 1 of 3: Anticipation)

I can't believe it has been a whole week since my last post--school has begun, which mean Cub Scouts is organizing, and so is the annual Cub Scout Popcorn Sale. If anyone in the SF South Bay wants some, let me know, I would be happy to deliver!

In the meantime, end of quarter is coming, work is piling up on top of my evenings and weekends, and I've just been plain old BUSY.

Not that this stopped me from meeting up with out-of-town friends when I get the chance! The Kimchi Mamas Blog group had a Northern California Meet-up, which I attended, and I am GLAD I did! If you want to see pictures of the AWESOME food we ate while we bonded, click here.

I'd been looking forward to this for a while, ever since it was proposed weeks ago. I have been reading the blog for months, and even started reading a few of the affiliated blogs, like Julie Kang's Geisha School Dropout. I found her through her hilarious post on Kimchi Mamas, and discovered a really humorous, witty voice.

As I left the house for the hour long drive to the designated restaurant, I ran through a mental checklist of preparations:

• Shower, hair, & make-up? Check
• Clothing: nice enough to look like I cared, but not like I was trying too hard? Check
• Shaved pits, legs below the knee? Check
• Brushed teeth? ooops, not since the morning...but hey, we were going to be eating kimchi, who would notice?
  
• Energy level? doing OK...DH made me some coffee to perk me up on the road...I think I'll keep him.
• Friendly, open attitude? Check
• Ready to meet some new people? As an extrovert, GOD, Yes!!

OK, so setting aside the pressure of being charming and witty to a bunch of gals I've never met before, but who I think I kind of know a little bit from stalking...er...reading their blogs, I started to wonder what the dinner would be like.

A table full of a dozen bloggers...several scenarios came to mind:

• We might be loud and boisterous. Some of the Mamas write brash personas, I read "balls to the walls" in one post. Would we all be loud egotists (blogging requires some narcissism), each person trying to top the next in funny stories? And where would I fit in? I can certainly be loud, and know how to verbally elbow my way into a conversation to grab some spotlight if I feel like it. Would I be the loudest? Funniest? Or would I say something really stupid, insensitive, or just weird? Would the person sitting next to me move her chair closer or further away as the evening progressed?

• We might be really intellectual. We are mostly writers (and some readers) after all--we must be a wordy bunch.

• They might all be way more Korean than me. I think I was the only adoptee that responded to the invite, so everyone at the table would have a more authentic Korean upbringing than I do. Korean parents, perhaps even Korean in-laws. While I have lived in Korea for a year as a language student, my childhood was pretty white. I thought I had immersed myself in enough Korean culture that I would fit in fine--some yellow dye for the twinkie/banana inside, but there are certainly cultural parts of raising a Korean child in the US, that my Irish/Newfie upbringing did not impart to me.

I pulled up at the address, 25 minutes early, and looked around. It did not look that impressive from the outside. I waited, and waited. By 5 minutes to the hour, still alone, I suddenly realized they might all be on "Korean time." Just as I was thinking that, the first couple of arrivals showed up. Whew. I went in to join them at the long table, and was pleasantly surprised to find it was a very nice restaurant once inside.

More about who I met, and why I had a wonderful time, in my next post. Soon, I promise!

Hot Topics by Email

I got an email this week that gave me pause. It was from someone in our cub scout pack, urging a long list of families to call in to protest SB 572 which would create a "Harvey Milk Day" (not a "Harvey Milk Gay Day" as the email called it).

Now, I don't mean for this to become a post about Gay Rights, though I don't hide the fact that DH and I are solidly in the PRO column on that topic. I have experienced too much discrimination and prejudice in my life to distinguish the reason for it. Race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, age, weight, hair color, height, national origin, physical condition, whatever. Discrimination is never acceptable.

What got me thinking was the mixing of audiences. I myself have sent out email blasts requesting support on political issues to friends, and asked them to forward. Usually, these are really black and white, like "more money for public schools" or some such.

Then again, to some folks, homosexuality is black and white. And in scouting, which has a history of anti-gay policy, perhaps she assumed she was among like-minded folks. Maybe she was, and I am the exception. If Harvey Milk Day were to become an official holiday, with requisite discussion in public schools, I can see why some folks would be uncomfortable with that.

Not that that this potential discussion needs to be graphic. Elementary school kids can be taught that some people "love" people of the same gender. There is a LOT of harassment and outright persecution related to homosexuality that happens in schools. I remember the words that were thrown around when we were growing up. I am sure they are still being used to insult and bully kids who are "different," regardless of actual sexual orientation. Our son has seen friends (boys) singled out and ostracized for the cardinal sin of playing with a girl. So a little education on tolerance (or even *gasp* acceptance) does not seem amiss to me.

In living memory, there was a time when the idea of a Martin Luther King Jr. Day would have seemed equally appalling to some people. Once upon a time, interracial marriage was illegal in parts of this country. There is even a word for this: "miscegenation" and this was preached against in some churches as a sin against God. So, while I get that some of those who are extremely agitated about homosexuality believe they are protecting their children from some heinous lifestyle, I must disagree with their premise.

The email situation has made me uncomfortable. I like the woman who sent the thread. I believe she has good intentions, though I also believe they are misguided in this case. I am sure she would say the same of me if she read this blog. Should I just ignore the email thread? Reply All with my opinion on the matter, and brand myself as one of those "flaming Liberals." If I did that, would I just be engaging in the same act that the originator of the email had--shoving my policy in the inbox of people whom I only know marginally? I was tempted to send a pointed email reply, but I don't even know most of the people on the mail list.

When the email thread grew to 5 responses, I did reply all with a simple request to be removed from the thread. Without an explanation, people are free to assume it is due to political views, or a desire for less spam, or simple apathy.

What about Facebook? I am linked there to people from all walks of life...high school, college, family, past jobs, current social groups. The only group I intentionally exclude is people I work with right now--coworkers or customers.

I have posted, and likely will post in the future, some gay-friendly political comment in my FB status. I wonder what impact this future left wing liberal posting will have on my relationship with this woman. With such a diverse audience pool, I am bound to post something sometime that will offend somebody.

Going back a few years, this would probably have never come up, since there is little room for political discussion in that "Hey Neighbor" type of quick recognition we have on the schoolyard playground as we drop off our kids in the morning.

Then again, go back even further, say our parents' generation, and everyone in the school would probably know what church I attend, what political party I vote with, and where I shop for groceries. Social networks grow and contract, and the medium changes with each generation. The back fence and the front porch have been replaced by FB, Twitter, blogs, and email lists.

What's the old saying...never discuss religion or politics? All this social networking makes it challenging--you have to remember how wide your audience is when posting to things like blogs and FB. So, I guess mundane stuff about camping, kids, and daily life will continue to be the main content of what I post to FB. As for this blog, well, now that you know my left-leaning tendencies, you can choose to come read it (or not), so I may take more of a position on things here. Other views are welcome, but bullying or snarkiness will not be tolerated.

I'm not one to back away from a political discussion...but I will choose the time and place for it. Preferably live, so we could have real civil discourse. Email blasts to FaceBook acquaintances is not the forum I would choose.

Social Media Revolution video

This is pretty impressive stuff:

The Best Guests

It has been almost a week since I posted--we have been really busy around here! I'll blog more about the weekend's activities....um...soon, I'm sure.

In the meantime, I just want to point out that I have discovered there are 2 types of guests who come to visit:

The first type are FRIENDS: lovely people who contribute to the meal; bringing salad, pasta, and gifts. Close friends who love us and remind us by their very presence why we love them so much. It was great to see them and share our big event.

The other type are...FAMILY. And apparently these also come in two types:

The GOOD Type: They bake soda bread, and scones, and share BBQ recipes involving foil, diced potatoes, and onions. They sneak into the kitchen when I am not looking and make it look clean and inviting, so the next meal is that much easier. They help with whatever task is needed, when the 8-arms I was issued as a mother are still not enough to feed the 18 people celebrating the day with us. As my brother always quipped to me growing up, "You're not a guest--you're family!" (Usually followed by, "Get it yourself, Sis!" I'm pretty sure he was just teasing...)

The OTHER Type of Family, we won't speak of, other than to pity them and the poor decisions they have made for their lives.

Fortunately, we were very blessed to have the Good Type of Family come and stay with us. It was like having my very own secret dish-washing fairies! Who knew they lived in Oregon and New York too? That blows the whole Left Coast theory my nephew keeps talking about!

Great post on the impact of Twitter, Facebook on writing

Hi All,

In lieu of an actual post today, I am recommending my friend Jeff Powell's post on why he doesn't tweet: http://www.bangtherockstogether.com/blog/2009/07/no-i-dont-tweet.html

For me, the jury is still out on whether this would improve my life or not. But yeah, me staying within 140 characters? I'd have to send out 10 Tweets at a time to finish a thought...

She's alive and well...

Capping off my week of bonding with friends both near and far, I met with an OLD friend from high school. She was out on a business trip, and we'd been trying to find a time we were both available this week for dinner, coffee, whatever. We managed to agree on breakfast this morning, and had a lovely time catching up on major events in each other's lives. She's had a few more catastrophes this last year than I have, but there have been some silver linings to all the changes.

It was good to see her, hug her, hear in her own words that life is moving along the way it does, regardless of our opinion on the matter. I wish we lived closer, and that old history had not whittled away our relationship back when we graduated. She's a beautiful person, and brilliant writer. And she laughs at all my jokes--what more can you ask for in a friend?

She's my antithesis--maybe that is why I like her so much. Unlike me, she is quiet and reserved. She writes more poetry* than I do, I suspect in part because she actually sits still long enough to hear thoughts form. Like watching birds in nature, you see the most if you can be tranquil, so they forget you are there.

I am more like my 7-year old, who shouts to everyone in the house, "There's a bird in the birdbath!" so loudly, that the bird flies away before anyone else can see. So it goes with any poetry that might light on the edges of my mind. Wry comments and observations on the nature of boys are less easily perturbed. They hang out waiting to be blogged, and come back again and again.


---------------------
*(Actually, you can read her poetry online through this link. This is another internet reunion story--I found her on Google because of this page. There is a link to a recording of her reading a poem out loud. What a miracle it was when I found this page, and heard her voice online more than a decade after we had last parted ways.)

I am hoarse, how about you?

I had a great evening tonight hooking up with work friends from years ago. We're not going to tabulate the exact number of years, but there are 11 year-olds among our progeny whose parents weren't even married yet by the time we stopped working together. Not that we're getting older...just the kids are!

We had fun remembering the excitement of our past lives together, and enjoyed the relief of knowing those adrenalin-inducing projects and deadlines were in the past. What a pleasure to see how people are growing and changing. The most exciting news was that our chief reunion organizer is moving to India. That's going to make next year's reunion really hard to plan! We missed friends who were not able to join us, but we shared what insights we had on what they were up to these days.

Facebook was a big topic of discussion. Some of us are loving it, some are mystified, some are leery, and one is quitting cold turkey. I am one of the proponents, but I have to admit I have not figured out what role it should have in my life. There is a huge time sink potential that we all try to manage.

This is a big week of reconnecting for me! Last night, my sewing group assembled with all six local members showing up--this only happens a few times a year when the stars align properly. Tomorrow, I get to meet an even older friend from high school days.

I love re-connecting with people I care about, and just wish we all lived together in one big commune. A short walk and a borrowed cup of sugar away, so we could share all the details of each other's lives. I've never been into watching soap operas on TV, but somehow, I do enjoy the inane trivia we are all sharing on Facebook. I guess that is the attraction for me...the virtual neighborhood we are creating. Howdy, neighbors!

I would love to Friend Hillary...

In lieu of a real post, one of the blogs I read (Tech for Luddites, on right side) shared this link to PCWorld. They've created fake FaceBook pages for famous people, like Hillary Clinton, Shakespeare, etc. Click on the picture to get to the full page. I thought they were very funny!

Cooling Sushi Rice

So, I've been volunteering to help with cooling the sushi rice for the Obon Festival for a few years now. I've been adopted by my best friend's family as the "4th Sister" and get included in family events like Sunday hikes, and the family reunion picnic in May. It seems only fair that I join in the more mundane activities as well.

The rice is cooked in huge quantities, and seasoned in the kitchen. Then it is brought out to the cooling tables, where it is spread out on netting, over wire racks, with fans blowing on either side of the table. The job of the volunteers is to spread out the huge mass of cooked rice, so that it cools as quickly as possible. We break up big clumps, but gently so as not to smash the individual grains, which would just turn them into rice paste goo.

For about 10-15 minutes, we keep turning the rice over, so it does not stick to the netting. Once it is totally cooled, it gets added to a huge mound of cooled sushi rice on 2 long tables, and covered with damp cloths. If any of the rice is not completely cooled, it will mold overnight, ruining the entire pile. This happened one time a few years ago, and all the rice had to be thrown away, wasting the efforts of all the volunteers the night before.

This huge pile of rice(photo) rests overnight, until the ladies who make the actual sushi, come in at 5:00am. They roll the sushi to sell at the festival that day. This is a fundraiser for the San Jose Buddhist Church's women's group and elder group. Actually, the entire festival is a fundraiser, of course, with every church group involved in different activities. There are girl scouts, boy scouts, the basketball team, taiko club, etc.

Both nights were cool, so we actually got done around midnight. In years past, we've finished up at 2:00am. Some of the others had started around 6--I got there at 8pm. The upside is that they cook us a midnight meal. Curry stew Friday night, and teriyaki sausages on Saturday night. You get pretty hungry flipping steamed rice for 5 hours!