Gothchyld's Diary

Midnight
winds; relished thoughts
revel like oasis
wounded memories metamorphose
new start

The challenges and joys of a writer

Sunday, Nov. 24, 2013 @ 4:32 a.m.

I am happy to have started this blog in 2002, but overtime as I expand into various creative projects, I think DD does a much better running a personal blog than I do.

I usually come back to blog about more intriguing topics/give credit to my amazing creative team, so this time, I will talk about the joys and rewards of being a creative. By creative, I mean artists, writers, musicians, actors and in some cases, athletes.

As a writer, I am very privileged to have the keys to 2 worlds: the creative world of infinite possibilities, and the practical world that we live in. However, the gift of creativity comes with huge responsibilities - on one hand, creativity can touch lives and change the world, and on another, it means that we get questioned, A LOT, about our emotions and creative pursuits.

Let me take you back to my journey as a writer, ready?

10 years ago, when I was still in high school, I repressed my emotions to prepare myself for the corporate world. But deep down, I was empty and depressed, because I could never be who I am.

So I escaped back to the creative world as I posted my first poem online. A year after that poem, I met my creative partner, who was my exact opposite in terms of personality. But despite such differences, he recognized my plethora of emotions as gifts in creative writing, pushed me to my creative limits and stood by me when my story got censored. (Let's say I have had my stints of writing 50 shades of grey-ish literature)

However, at the peak of my creative writing career, a civil war broke out in his country, Lebanon. While I was celebrating my high school graduation, troops of armies marched into Beirut in tanks and started shooting bystanders. While I was happy that I finally got my high school diploma, he and the rest of my creative family were running for their lives. When I was getting ready for my grad trip, they were fleeing to the countryside in hopes to live.

Fortunately, they all survived. But by then I have made the decision to embrace my creativity than try to curb it and fit into the practical world. Why? Because money cannot buy lives, friendships or happiness. However, words can touch lives. And words can change the world.

Overtime, as I expanded from poems and stories to non-fiction blogs, I have witnessed how words can touch and inspire lives, and perhaps, truly change the world - one life at a time.

I will tell you that money and practicality are still important. I will also tell you that my emotions are always questioned, that my creative self is constantly misunderstood and that my political controversial articles may be censored.

Nevertheless, my biggest joy this year is being able to touch the lives of my readers, and hoping to better the world with words.

Until then, see you at the creative arena.
 

 

Wrestling with interracial relationships

Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2013 @ 10:52 a.m.

Sometimes, I think that if I date a foreign born Chinese/Caucasian who is jock or guy next door, life would be very straightforward to the outsider.

When I met my creative partner (we never dated, but collaborations made us very close), I love his exotic but smart bad boy streak (FYI, he finally ditch his bad boy ways after he got married.)

Little did I know, I love exotic x intellectual guys because I am also that type. While I am always questioned about my interracial relationship, I won't have it any other way.

According to Patti Stanger, author of "Became your own matchmaker", "exotics" are girls who define their own beauty and are anything but the standard ethnicity. They tend to attract opposites and work well with mates of a common culture or opposites, if they can only get past their boyfriend/husband's mother.

Meanwhile, intellectuals are the girls who are sexy b/c of their smartness. Their challenge is to share "power" as they tend to date cultured males who are equally smart.

I will tell you that boyfriend and I poke fun at each other w/ puns and sarcasm all the time. And if we don't dissect Jane Eyre symbolism/social issues once in awhile, something's wrong. As brain consuming as it sounds, I love my verbal ping pong, but it takes someone who is equally smart and compassionate to pull it off and make it fun.

Had one of us been Eurasian or white Caucasian, I bet the prejudicial society of HK would ask me less qs. Between both of us, there's at least 4 cultures (ethnicity/place of birth/upbringing-wise) and 4 languages. But as much as I wrestle with questions about racial stereotypes, if it wasn't for him, I wouldn't have known about the awesome town of Manipur in India, where everything is dominated by Korean culture after a media ban, or the recipe to South Asian curry. I secretly think he wouldn't pay so much attention to K-Pop songs, or the video where a Hong Kong girl slapped her boyfriend 14 times in public if it wasn't for my love of K-Pop/being in HK.

This isn't to say that jocks and guys next door are lack lustre and boring. It doesn't work for me simply because I have not yet seen a jock who can banter with me intellectually, and guys next door are too nice to question (e.g. my fave topic - Middle East massacres).

Therefore, even though a quiet, sporty guy next door or extrovert jock may be your ideal match, while I face many questions about my interracial relationship, I would much prefer sticking to my exotic x intellectual other half.  

 

:: A Cooling Heart ::

Saturday, Oct. 19, 2013 @ 11:47 p.m.







Norah Jones, I need Happy Pills...

- DD 

 

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