Thanks to all of you who’ve e-mailed me, sent me tweets @kathrienahn, and let me know that this story inspired you in some way, shape or form. I was really psyched to record this piece for NPR’s Marketplace (Thanks Nancy Farghalli!) and more importantly, it’s made me want to be a better actress, writer, and comic.
It’s weird that with the holidays over and 2012 on the horizon, I feel like my life outlook has changed a lot. I’ve learned a crapload about life, but there’s so much that I don’t know jack about. Which is what I’ll probably explore with my writing and comedy.
And if you’re going through some tough shit in your life, just know that THINGS DO GET BETTER. Figure out how to deal with your situation in a positive way even when things seem really bleak. Uh..trust me, my life is not perfect now, but I have things to be happy about now. I’m not a bible thumper, but prayer, running, and writing jokes have gotten me through many tough times. Maybe it’ll do the same for you.
Oh, and to all you peeps who’ve visited me at Boo’s Philly Cheezsteaks and Hoagies, thanks for being so cool. And if you wanna listen to the NPR piece, I’ve embedded it below. (P.S. Things are getting better for my family since the piece aired. In case you were wondering)
hey you guys! First, just wanted to wish you a happy belated Thanksgiving which is quite possibly my favorite holiday EVER. I mean, since the days when I used to make paper mache turkeys in 4th grade and Adam S. used to eat our table’s Elmer paste and thus I wasn’t able to create the proper turkey. See, as you can tell, I don’t carry long-term grudges. HA.
Anywayz, just wanted to show you my mom’s Thanksgiving centerpiece from church and also some pics from the Boo’s Philly Cheesesteak opening today. Thank you to everyone (friends/family/customers) who came out and we’re down to do it all again for @shopsmall biz tomorrow. Really awesome!
I’m one of those gals who are cool with being solitary as long as I have an almost infinite playlist with old and new tracks, with lots of hip hop and pop mixed in there. Music has always been a solace for me in the worst of times and even in the happier moments of my life. Some tracks speak to your soul and can be the door for you to escape into your head, you know? Whether its some embarrassing 90′s pop song, an old Wu-Tang rap, or the newest hit from a former Disney star, I’m such a music whore. But some tracks like this one, “I Need a Doctor,” produced by Dr. Dre and featuring Eminem and Skylar Grey, strike a chord.
Skylar Grey, formerly known as Holly Brook, was also the sweet-voiced siren in the chorus of Fort Minor’s hit, “Where’d You Go,” and is now back penning hits with Eminem, Rihanna, TI and Christina Aguilera. Here’s “Where’d You Go.”
Why did she change her name? Grey says, “Spiritually, it represents the unknowns in life, she says. “People seem to be afraid of the unknowns, but I’m the complete opposite. I dive into the unknown because I feel like that’s where all your possibilities come from.”
I loved this quote too! “When I was young, my voice was so strong, and I would annoy people because I had such a loud little voice. And then it changes, and I thought I wouldn’t be able to sing again, because I thought you had to sing like Christina Aguilera to be a singer. And then people started commenting, ‘No, your soft one is actually pretty cool. You should try doing some stuff with it. And then I started listening to people like Fiona Apple and Sarah McLachlan, who use their softer voices to make great music. And I thought, well, it’s possible.”
Hey there, I’m sending a shout out to the blogosphere right now to see if anyone is listening. I remember the days when I’d post every day, even twice a day, but these days, I’m spending more time with my booty in my car, hustling from gig to gig.
You know what’s weird? I’ve been doing a lot of writing whether its little tweets, jokes that suck, jokes that are sort of funny, jokes that make me go, “Geez, am I just a negative nancy?” You know when you’re going through a ton of life changes and you freak out? Um, yeah, that’s me lately. A big ball of right-brained creativity that doesn’t know exactly which path to take.
I celebrated a birthday recently which was cool, chilled with some close friends and my boyfriend. We had sushi and chocolate cake. Yum.
My last meal on earth would have to consist of some of this delicious cuisine.
And comedy! Open mics! Working on making some B jokes into A jokes. Ah!! Have a few shows coming up…would love for you to come by.
Oh, and I’m so in love with Katy Perry’s, “Firework,” song. My boyfriend tells me to put it on autoplay everytime I get down on myself or face the insurmountable obstacle of the day. It really does put you in a better mood, even when you’re singing really loudly to yourself in the car and forget that your windows are down. And the college guys in the car next to you stare at you and burst out laughing. Ew, rude.
Have you seen this interview with Amy Chua, who talks up her views on “Why Chinese Mothers are Superior,” and her childbearing technique? I watched this interview several times and had a mixed bag of thoughts and emotions about this topic. West vs. East. East vs. West. Nurturing creativity vs. Drilling math/science/piano skills into your child.
Then, all I could think about was Sarah Chang, the famous violin prodigy. She and I were childhood friends before she got accepted to Julliard when she was 5 years old. My last memory of her was backstage at a prestigious New York concert hall. We were both playing with our Barbie dolls and being giggly young girls when her father came into the practice room and gave her a stern nod. The girl needed to do one more warm-up before the dress rehearsal performance. Sarah was every Asian parent’s dream child; obedient, extremely hard-working, ridiculously talented, dedicated, and more importantly, she was exactly what her parents wanted her to be. For her Korean parents who grew up struggling in South Korea, their now-famous daughter Sarah Chang, was their reward from God. Their suffering was appeased by her success.
But as a little girl, I remember how tired she looked for a 7 year old girl. Somehow, I knew that I wouldn’t see her for a long time and that our paths wouldn’t cross for quite some time. My mother would always talk about Sarah when I was growing up, and though she made me take piano lessons, extra Academic courses, SAT courses, and basically any sort of school besides regular school, deep down I know it killed her inside that I wouldn’t ever be a famous violinist or pianist.
Amy Chua talks about forcing her daughters to perfect their piano skills through repetitive practice and nasty words, but that only breeds anger and resentment. Chua mentions how her father raised her in the same way and that she turned into a high achieving individual (A Yale Law School Professor), but at what cost? She comes across as cold, unemotional, and almost calculating. The saddest part is that she doesn’t even realize it.
I grew up with pressure from my parents to be someone that I wasn’t. I’m right-brained and artistic, but I suppressed it for many years because my parents wanted me to be more math or science-oriented. I thought that life was about never getting what you wanted. I thought that life was about a constant struggle, striving for something you could never be. It took several bad eating disorders, many difficult life experiences, lots of music therapy, and doing stand up comedy to help me realize that it’s okay to be me. It’s okay to have your own dream and to want happiness for yourself. It’s okay to dream big even if it seems to be out of reach.
I haven’t seen Sarah since I was 7 years old, and she is now a world famous violinist. Check out her below as she plays the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto Mvt.1 Part2. Wouldn’t it be awesome if we could share the stage someday? I’m not exactly sure how that would work, but maybe I can do a set that would incorporate the Asian girl violinist and the comedienne who was like, “Uhhh…yeah, I quit Violin. I was too busy watching cartoons. See, this girl actually LISTENED to her parents.”
I had a chance to go visit my boyfriend’s family in Florida for Thanksgiving weekend, and it was such a welcome respite. I actually MISSED humidity which I thought would never happen considering I survived NYC summers filled with humid temperatures and smelly subway cars.
The TSA was doing their job, and of course, there were protesters who were handing out these handy pamphlets that reminded us “Don’t Touch My Junk.” Thankfully, my junk remained untouched.
And besides eating the traditional Thanksgiving foods, there was this view. So gorgeous. I felt like I was in ‘The Notebook,’ or something.
Waiting…for my caffeine fix before our flight back. I was thinking, “Dude, how do you run out of tea?”
I’ve had a really stressful couple of days in many ways. For me, I usually deal by burying myself in work and also listening to as much girl pop music as I can. Think back to Britney, Madonna, Nelly Furtado, Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Destiny’s Child, and right now this track, “Strip Me,” from Natasha Bedingfield.
Her song, “These Words,” were on my playlist when I decided that I’d had enough of New York City and bought a plane ticket out West with the very last of my savings. The impulsive, crazy side of me usually wins when it comes to huge life decisions. Is that bad? Yup. Am I glad that I moved to LA? Hell yes.
I remember the cab ride to JFK Airport, having 2 bags next to me, crouched next to my best friend, Annie, with whom I had worked at the same nightclub at Manhattan’s Meatpacking district, for over a year. Here was our conversation: ANNIE: Are you really going to move to LA, Kat? You’re crazy.
KAT: Annie, I think I should take the subway to JFK. I’ll save $12.50.
ANNIE: YOU ARE PSYCHO! I”m not letting you take 3 huge bags on the train with you to LA. You’re going to get mugged and you can barely carry one bag.
KAT: Oh my God, Annie. I can’t believe I’m doing this.
ANNIE: I believe in you. Kat. Don’t become a crazy LA girl, get a fake tan, dye your hair blonde, and get a boob job. Or I’ll have to come out there and kick your ass.
And we pinky promised. So far. No silicone in my boobs.
I hate racism. I hate prejudice. I hate discrimination. I saw a lot of it against my parents at their store on Germantown Ave in West Philly. I saw a lot of it against my brother and I when we were at school or on the school bus. I even experienced discrimination at the local mall, and from my high school swim coach. She would say the most awful things in snide ways to me. I never told anyone because…well, I figured, “No would would care. And no one wants to hear it” In high school, my friend and I went to the King of Prussia Mall to apply for jobs at Abercrombie and Fitch. We were incredibly excited to possibly start working at this super cool new store which featured peaches and cream models with abs of steel. And then the store manager offered my Caucasian friend a job application and didn’t give one to me. I remember thinking, “Wait, what just happened? This isn’t the 1950′s. Aren’t we all equal here? I’m American too.”
So, when I went to a West Hollywood Starbucks this past weekend, I was really shocked when one of their employees mocked me by bowing down to me and saying something inaudible. (I’m guessing he was doing a fake Asian accent) I mean, seriously! This is 2010, not 1950. I was really taken aback because it wasn’t like a joke or anything, and this kid thought that he could just insult me and not be reprimanded. I’ve made jokes about racism that I’ve experienced in my stand up, but the truth is that this incident pisses me off as much as the Rosie O’Donnell Ching chong incident. (See video below)
And unfortunately, the Asian way is to be silent and just to ignore things. Why is that? I don’t know. All I know is that I’m born and raised in America and grew up knowing that you HAVE TO SPEAK UP WHEN YOU ARE WRONGED. So I am speaking up. I contacted the store manager, the Corporate office, the NAACP, and basically everyone I need to in order for this employee to be disciplined in the proper way. I don’t want anything out of this whole sad incident except people understanding that it isn’t right to make racist/discriminatory remarks or gestures.
My friends have all told me to let go of the “Abercrombie and Fitch” incident, but it’s hard to forget that. I really regret not doing anything then. I should have spoken up. Yeah, I was just a kid, but still. Anyway, I’m waiting to hear what the Corporate office will do about this disappointing incident.
So..growing up as a Korean-American girl in Philly with super conservative Christian parents, you learn a few things: 1) Your parents want you to be a doctor, lawyer, investment banker, or anchorwoman
2) You’re not allowed to watch TV during the weekdays.
3) You’re not allowed to watch TV/Movies with R-rated language.
4) Your parents think you don’t know what sex is. LOL.
5) Your parents hate that you love ‘In Living Color’
So, naturally, my brother and I gravitated towards all the TV/Movies with R-rated language whenever my parents weren’t around. We would concoct various ways of running towards our rooms when we’d hear our parents come home from work because instead of doing homework, we were watching ‘Married with Children.’
And of course, ‘In Living Color’ which was probably the most hilarious sketch comedy show ever, complete with an pre-famous J to the Lo, a young Jim Carrey, a young David Allen Grier, and of course, HOMEY THE CLOWN. OMG! These skits are still funny after all these years. Um…can I just say that my brother used to wack me on the head with a sock and say that infamous line, “Homey don’t play that.” Somehow, he would always escape me when I tried to return the hit. Freaking A.
I love this sketch. LOL! Homey the Clown or Homey-Claus- Don’t piss him off…ya heard?
Santa don’t live here anymore…its Homey-Claus. Also, yo, does anyone want to get me Compton Carlota for Christmas? Pretty please?
TGIF! And as I sit here doing work and feeling sick from too much vino, I wanted to post some pics from last night’s karaoke outing with Jessica, Andrew, and other folks from MySpace Karaoke/Music. As well as my amazing comedy friends..a special shout out to Jann Hoffman, who is quite possibly the coolest person on this earth as she broke it down when Snoop Dogg came on. Literally, the entire bar was cheering for her…she’s awesome. Anyway, here’s the latest Old Skool Hip Hop Playlist from the MS Karaoke blog, and without further ado…
My name is Kat Ahn, and I started this blog to maintain my creative sanity while working at a tech start-up. I'm an Actress/Comedienne/Writer, and have performed stand up at the Comedy Store on Sunset in Hollywood, The Hollywood Improv Lab, The Ice House in Pasadena, Comedy Union, and Flappers in Burbank. My material is drawn from having a weird upbringing and working lots of crappy jobs. Who knows where I'll end up? One thing is for sure, though...I will definitely blog about it. Fo sho.
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Watching the voice with the 'rents. This show is surprisingly addictive. I just love watching @ceelogreen
Yo @espn Knicks beat the mavs. Got any racist headlines for us? If so, please be original. We've heard the other ones before. #Linsanity
Never watched this much espn in my life #Linsanity. Loving the 3's baby!!!!!!
Dear all Asian American kids. Play basketball even if your parents try to make you become a doctor/lawyer #lintastic http://t.co/mMjR9Ls2
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(P.S. Things are getting better for my family since the piece aired. In case you were wondering)
