The Beauty Of Prejudice

I have been meaning to post this for a while now, but I either forgot or got too busy.

First, let me say that I think the word prejudice has gotten a bad rap. I think now when someone uses the word they mean something like this:

an irrational attitude of hostility directed against an individual, a group, a race, or their supposed characteristics

instead of this:

preconceived judgment or opinion

If I am prejudiced against drug use, is that necessarily a bad thing? But I digress and that isn't really the point I want to make today. I am referring to the former definition, not the latter.

I feel like I have been a victim of prejudice... and I am glad. Living in Hong Kong, I am now part of the minority. Now, in no way does mean I completely understand what is like to be an African-American, a first-generation Mexican immigrant or even an Asian-American living in the U.S. However, I do realize I am on the outside looking in, maybe more so in some ways, especially linguistically (I can't imagine how many Chinese people I pass by that think, "why don't dem for-ay-NERS leant to speak ar langwage?! If ther gonna come here, dey oughtta learn ar langwage!"

But here is my point... I ride the MTR (subway) to work everyday and most of the time it is fairly crowded. Now most people prefer to sit if they can, but there are about 45 seat on an MTR car and 8 cars on a train and more than 5 million people using the MTR daily. Do the math. There is usually a rush to see who can get to the seats first and there is a method to the madness; end seats go first, then inside seats, leaving a spot in between. When the train is full, though, all the seats are taken.

More than a handful of times, I have been sitting when people entered the MTR walked toward the seat, saw me and decided to stand. Now I don't know if it is because I am white, overweight, ugly or what, but whatever the case is, it is too much for them to consider sitting next to me. Now if it is because I am overweight, fine. I do take up more space than most of the local and I will give them that. However, if it is because I am white, I could care less. I can lose weight, I can't not be white. But frankly I don't care, because their prejudice isn't hurting me, it's hurting them, because I am sitting (with more space) and they are standing. So you can think bad of me all you want because I am white, in the mean time I will be sitting... comfortably.

Summer Adventures: Roaming around HK

After spending 3 weeks in the U.S., it was time to head back to Hong Kong. Shortly after we arrived, guests started showing up one day after another. The first to arrive after a bumpy flight was Jon. He was a little sick, tired and hungry so I took him somewhere familiar for his first meal in Hong Kong.

McDonald's added the Quarter Pounder with Cheese to the menu a few months ago and I was very please. With the exception of one burger, I would say that they taste even better here than in the States.

The remaining photos are out of order because blogger isn't very user-friendly on Mac- sorry. This was actually the night before the wedding. Jon, Gade, my dad and I all took a ride on the Aqualuna junk boat (it's a style of boat, not a garbage vessel) during the famous Hong Kong light show. It was a little pricey, but also pretty cool too.

After a week of sight-seeing and wedding prep, we were all in need of some sleep before the big day.

Goofing around at the Avenue of Stars. It was so hot this afternoon!

I think this was on the Star Ferry at the pier. Here is Jon messing with his camera and my dad... well, I don't really know what he is doing... gang signs?

Before we set sail on the junk boat, we went to Soho for dinner. I had planned to take them to Pepperoni's for some great pizza, but it was gone! There was a new restaurant (Soho No.8?) in its place. After a brief moment of panic, I rerouted the gang to Caramba's for Mexican food. Jon enjoyed the break from the local cuisine. Gade looks excited and my dad... well, I don't really know what he is doing...

A shot of the Star Ferry Pier in TST with the IFC and Hong Kong Island in the background.

Classic shot of Gade on the star ferry.

It was really great to have friends and family in for the wedding. Jon was my best man, my dad was my legal witness for the wedding and Gade was proudly representing the Kingdom of Thailand after His Royal Highness the King couldn't attend.

Sanuk sanuk!

Summer Adventures: Miscellany

And now a word from our sponsor...

Thai Coca-Cola ad courtesy of the World of Coke Museum.

One of the best things about being in the States was seeing friends and family...

Above is a group of friends that stayed with us until the very end of our wedding shower in Atlanta. It was the only photo I took the whole night (thank goodness Rufina's sister was there to capture the rest of the event). Below is a shot from the Cracker Barrel with Nana.

This is a photo with my paternal grandparents (on the far right) and some of their friends. We had lunch at the Officers' Club at Redstone Arsenal.

Hey, look I am back working in TV as a photojournalist... or am I?

Uh-oh, Anderson, I pwn3d you!

Summer Adventures: Georgia Aquarium

Another stop on the Hot'lanta Tour was the Georgia Aquarium.

Here is a shot of the GAquarium's famed whaleshark.

After the whaleshark got tired of swimming in the tank, he hopped out for this photo op with Rufina's parents.

Below is one of my favorite shots I got in the underwater tunnel.

Unleashing the family on the Georgia Aquarium. No fish were harmed (or eaten) during this segment of the trip.


One of the ways the GAquarium tries to squeeze more money out of you is by taking a picture of you in front of a green screen and then superimposing it on a background photo of the main aquarium. The photo usually turns out better than anything people can do on their snapshot cameras. We noticed that one of the guys in their promotional photo bears a striking resemblance to yours truly.

Summer Adventures: Atlanta History Museum

While I was in Atlanta for the summer, we took Rufina's family around town for some sightseeing. Our first stop was the Governor's Mansion, but they were having an emergency meeting about the court's decision to stop Atlanta from using water from Lake Lanier. Thus, we traveled down West Paces Ferry to the Atlanta Museum of History.

I was surprised how much there was to see- including a farm that was transplanted from it original location near North Druid Hills. Here are Rufina's parents contemplating a move from the big city out to the farm. Green Acres, anyone?

The farm also included an outhouse. Got a match?

While we were inside the main building- a modern facility, not some old farmhouse- we spotted this snake in the elevator. We have no idea how he got in there... we took the stairs.

One of the exhibits was for the '96 Atlanta Olympics. Here I am zipping across the length of distance that Olympic long jumpers soar.

Rufina tries out power lifting. No work on any offers from Beijing.

And finally, Rufina finishes strong at the hurdles.