Every year my best friend and I always watch Love Actually around the holidays. If you haven’t seen it, it’s basically the perfect Christmas movie: good actors, sappy story, lots of love. There are also a couple of musical gems in there.

Olivia Olson singing All I Want for Christmas better than Mariah (in my opinion):

and Bill Nighy’s “Christmas is All Around”

Take it easy. And if you’re like me and aren’t celebrating…go see Avatar (awesome female characterization)…or It’s Complicated (support Meryl at the box office)!

And all I can say is…holy crap, I love you guys so much. The debate on that post is insanely amazing and was fascinating to read. I’m glad so many people found it interesting and that people all over the world were able to hear about Chris Pesto’s amazing activism.

But I also want to say I’m really sorry that so many of you had to wait that long to have your comments approved! They’re all up there now — I was NOT trying to silence anyone, which a few people seemed worried about, I just didn’t have access to the internet.

Anyway. Thank you guys for an awesome welcome home =)

The Student Diversity Leadership Conference (SDLC) is a multiracial, multicultural gathering of upper school student leaders (grades 9-12) from across the country that focuses on self-reflecting, forming allies, and building community. Led by a diverse team of adult and peer facilitators, participants will develop effective cross-cultural communication skills, better understand the nature and development of effective strategies for social justice, practice expression through the arts, and learn networking principles and strategies.

I applied for this for my own benefit (because it sounds pretty rad, no?) but also because I think it will help me to better run the fbomb and make it the diverse community it can and should be. I try to have the posts here reflect as many different kinds of people and experiences as I can, but honestly I feel like I limit myself because I don’t want to be offensive due to lack of knowledge of other people’s lives. I want that to end, and hopefully this conference will help that.

Unfortunately, I won’t be able to blog this week, so I’ve lined up a bunch of guest posts. This also means I won’t be able to approve comments, so if yours doesn’t go up right away that’s why.

I’ll be back next week, ready to report!

isn't that special

Thanksgiving is probably one of my favorite holidays, partially for the food (nom nom nom) but also because it’s one of the only holidays that has meaning I can really identify with. Of course, it’s origins are kind of crappy, considering some think that the Pequot Massacre of 1637 spurred the first Thanksgiving (an interesting article on that here) but I think the meaning that it takes on today is really nice. We live in such a materialistic culture and taking time to give thanks for what’s real in your life seems like a really nice to tradition to me. Of course, that’s hoping you don’t take part in Black Friday madness…that kind of cancels out repenting for materialism on Thanksgiving.

Anyway…what am I thankful for? Well, I have a pretty amazing life. My family rocks. They love and support me, which is evident when they tell people with pride that I have a blog called “The FBomb” which, without explanation, makes me sound like a hooligan of epic proportions. Of course, they always explain further, which sometimes leads to even worse reactions as not everybody in the world is open-minded. For that, and many other reasons, I am thankful for my family.

And I am thankful for you guys. You all teach me so much. You support me when I’m right, call me out when I’m wrong (sorry) and basically just make me a better person. Seriously though, starting the FBomb is by far the thing I am most proud of in my life and now am most thankful for. It’s been great for me, and I hope it’s been as great for you.

In the thanksgiving spirit, please feel free to leave what you’re most thankful for in the comments. If that’s not too sappy for you.

Now…SOME THANKSGIVING RANDOM FACTS! History.com is totally my go to site on holidays.

Sarah Josepha Hale, the enormously influential magazine editor and author who waged a tireless campaign to make Thanksgiving a national holiday in the mid-19th century, was also the author of the classic nursery rhyme “Mary Had a Little Lamb.”

The National Turkey Federation estimated that 46 million turkeys—one fifth of the annual total of 235 million consumed in the United States in 2007—were eaten at Thanksgiving. (Let’s hear it for those of you who are going for the Tofurkey!)

According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the largest pumpkin pie ever baked weighed 2,020 pounds and measured just over 12 feet long. It was baked on October 8, 2005 by the New Bremen Giant Pumpkin Growers in Ohio, and included 900 pounds of pumpkin, 62 gallons of evaporated milk, 155 dozen eggs, 300 pounds of sugar, 3.5 pounds of salt, 7 pounds of cinnamon, 2 pounds of pumpkin spice and 250 pounds of crust. (I am proud to be an Ohioan)

Snoopy has appeared as a giant balloon in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade more times than any other character in history. As the Flying Ace, Snoopy made his sixth appearance in the 2006 parade.

Happy Thanksgiving (American) FBombers!

I know, I should really shut up and stop complaining. But nevertheless that’s where my whiney ass is at.

So here are some links for you to peruse while I attempt to stay afloat.

2012 Prophecies Sparking Real Fears, Suicide Warnings: Oh good.

Teens Suck: How to parent this generation of lazy, selfish teens. I don’t know how people get to be “parenting experts” but apparently it’s not that hard.

Jezebel on Sarah Palin’s book and on Oprah

I don’t know why I find this so funny…maybe it’s because I know people like this? I think the word is hipster.

And no big deal, but I just want to be Gabby Sidibe’s best friend.

vagina does not equal sandwich maker

You know what I’m tired of? My boyfriend immediately looking at me when he’s hungry. Like I’m supposed to be this huge sandwich machine and just because I have a vagina it must mean that I make super sandwiches. He complains about how he can’t make anything that isn’t in a box. Well guess what, I didn’t either until I picked up a god damn cook book and slowly taught myself to cook a decent meal. My mom has always raised me to be proud of who I am and I can do anything that I want to do. She took charge and fixed up our whole house with her own tool box and stubbornness. So here I am fixing my heater when it’s broken, teaching MYSELF how to cook because I want to and my boyfriend thinking that he can get away so easily. How did it come to this, how did my own grandmother take to the kitchen and ONLY the kitchen when her then husband was hungry? How did she manage to make a whole meal herself???? I except help when I’m cooking a meal, it’s not just me that’s going to do all the work… NOPE.. I done.

Dude, I tried to start one of those lunch room fashion shows. It didn’t go so well. Could’ve been because kids were preoccupied doing WEIRD shit like doing homework…or, even weirder, eating? Iiiiiiiii know…wtf, right? Oh also, we’re sane and don’t think soaking up each other’s hotness as we strut in moderately priced clothing, weaving between plates of sloppy joes and “salisbury steak”while we do so, is the best idea ever. 

Rockstare. Blingatude. BFFAEAE. so in touch with the youth, KMart is. Them kids and they’re cuhrazy text language! 

Also, I asked my mom for Kidz Bop when I was 9. I just thought it was a compilation of songs kids liked. When I got it for my birthday and found out kids were actually singing I about flipped a shit. I believe I said something along the lines of, “What the HELL is this? If I wanted to hear this I’d record myself this is BULLSHIT!” 

I was cool. Moving on. 

Miley Cyrus’s Party in the U.S.A. video came out.

Oh, heyyyyyyy Miley’s cleavage. I was wondering when we’d get fully acquainted! I like the short shorts too. Miley wants you to know she’s not all Disney. She can be another artists who sells music based on her sex appeal, too. THANKS FOR THE HEADS UP MILES! 

Anyone else twitch on that “yeaa-aaa-aaah” note? KILLS me. 

Glee? Anyone? Football single ladies dance…amazing. Fast forward to 2:30 for the start of the dance.

Also, Kurt came out! And his father accepted him! YAY! 

And thank you MTSS for this beauty. Before there eHarmony, match.com and my personal fave, JDate, there was video service. Probably incredibly effective.

Jaaaaaaa

And Fired Up. The best movie of all time. Probably.

I JUST LOVE WASHING DISHES!

You know, I kinda wanted my debut at the FBomb to be intellectual and interesting and all that, but somehow my first article has turned out to be one of those feel-of-the-moment snippets.

Anyway, recently I’ve moved up from the Junior/High School group at my church to the College/Not Married Yet group, and it’s a big change – lots of outings, more mature stuff… and with more mature stuff comes more societal influences. It’s always been there, but gender responsibilities are stronger than ever. And I don’t like it.

Last week my church group made dinner at somebody’s house, and when we all finished, I got comments like “the women are supposed to go in and do the dishes now.” Oh, by the way, we’re all Korean, which makes it regular sexism x2. Regardless of anything, though, at that shocking comment, I was just like “what?!” and shot back a middle finger, but they kept coming at me! And they treated me like I was WRONG for rejecting the job of washing dishes because I was a girl! In the end I really had to wash the dishes, because the pastor’s wife was doing it and I felt really sorry for her.

I wouldn’t be talking about this unless my mom (whom I’m sure is in the midst of menopause right now) didn’t just burst out at me today for refusing to wash the dishes. I mean, I’m just not that sort of person! But then today, all of a sudden, she’s like: “you’re eighteen! How are you going to get married if you don’t know how to do the [%$#%@] dishes?!?!?!”

I bet she won’t tell my brother that when he turns eighteen.

It makes me wonder. A lot. What could possibly have gone wrong in history that it’s turned out like this? 1. Man brings money. 2. Woman shops for food. 3. Woman makes food. 4. Man eats food. 5. Woman washes dishes.

Duuude! That’s just not fair!