Archive for 'Culture'
Oped in Hartford Courant
Posted on August 26, 2008, by Hanna Ingber Win, under Culture, Media, Politics, Religion.
Check out my personal essay in the Hartford Courant this Wednesday. It’s about driving cross country and learning about the presidential campaign and American culture from the radio shows along the way.
My husband and I just finished driving from our home in Los Angeles to my parents’ in upstate New York because I will be taking a job on the East Coast. The trip was a great success: We slept in a budget hotel each night and never got bed bugs — just one night with a spider — and we made it to New York without crashing or getting a speeding ticket. More important, we learned about this country we live in, yet know so little about.
Neither of us had ever been to most of the places we visited along the way. My husband was born and raised in Burma, and I have never traveled in the South or much of the Midwest. We got to check out the vistas in the Grand Canyon, art galleries and jewelry shops in Santa Fe, beautiful brick mansions in Tulsa, Cardinal fans in St. Louis and cornfields in Illinois. But what was most interesting to us about our trip was listening to the radio.
Throughout the entire country — between Los Angeles and New York — we couldn’t flip through the radio stations without finding multiple shows dedicated to people talking about Jesus. Some were singing songs about him; most were discussing how their lives had changed since they had accepted the Lord into their heart. On one station a host was interviewing a child about which Biblical verse was her favorite.
Read more.
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Fun Times on Craigslist
Posted on July 14, 2008, by Hanna Ingber Win, under Culture.
My husband and I are selling some furniture on Craigslist, an activity that always leads to good laughs and strange stories. Here are some of the emails I have received in the past three days:
My favorite, from Tommy:
yo id like to buy that sweet papasan chair if you still have it. i can pick it up tomorrow.
A thoughtful one sent from Manuel after he and his family picked up the TV:
Thank you very much for the tv, this tv is what i was realy looking for. thank you again.
From Rhonda:
I would like to buy your plants. waiting to hear from you, thanks, Rhonda………(I will give them a very good home)
And, as always, ones that are a little off and therefore a little suspicious:
Thanks for your mail,i will like to make fast payment for this item,so i will like to send you certified bank check and once the check have clear at your bank my shipper will come for the pick-up at your place,so get back to me with the name to be on the check,your full address,state and zip-code and you phone number.
Get back to me asap.
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Doonesbury on Iraqi Refugees
Posted on July 10, 2008, by Hanna Ingber Win, under Culture, International.
The Doonesbury comic strip has long been known for its willingness to take on heated political subjects, and now it is addressing the Iraqi refugee crisis. And what do you know, the Iraqi refugee character is named Hanna, spelled correctly. Check it out here.
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Burmese Water Festival in Monterey Park, LA
Posted on April 17, 2008, by Hanna Ingber Win, under Culture.
These photos are from Thingyan (Water Festival) to celebrate the Burmese New Year. The festival was April 13, 2008, in Monterey Park, Los Angeles.
In Burma, all businesses, shops and restaurants close for the week to celebrate the holiday. Burmese society is typically conservative - except on Thingyan. Young people wear Western clothes, girls look sexy and all rules are ignored. Children run through the streets throwing water at anyone they can find. Or they wait by the windows of their apartment, ready to dump a bucket of water on the next passerby.
In Rangoon, teenagers and young people load up in cars or trucks and ride by stages set up in the streets with people spraying water hoses. Kids scream, sing, dance and try to find a police officer to taunt. Normally, being rude to a man in uniform would get you in serious trouble in this totalitarian country. But on Thingyan, anything goes.
Photos by Hanna and Aung Moe
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