How growing up Asian-American became my greatest asset — For me, growing up biracial in America wasn’t the worst thing ever, but it wasn’t always easy, and it was utterly complicated in many subliminal ways. Looking back—it was actually pretty messed up. But it’s also made me stronger and wiser. …

Put down your weapons, drop your armor, and retreat Why do we lash out and hurt the people we claim to love? Because we have given them our affection, care, attention, and trust; they seem to be the most capable of hurting us. Often, we irrationally fear any future pain…

How we can benefit from the world shutting down — The cosmic casino of life dealt us all a sour hand, albeit with silver linings, when our unforgivingly fast-paced American world came to a screeching, grinding halt during the Ides of March, 2020. It was an unprecedented event that left many scrambling to figure out a whole new way of…

The year is 2020. Surrounded by earth-scorching blazes indicative of accelerating climate change, San Francisco has resembled the futuristic dystopia of Blade Runner. Meanwhile, rampant & unregulated political advertising via social media, birthed in nearby Silicon Valley, threatens democracy. The COVID-19 pandemic has the chattering online world divided on what…

How we can move forward in the wake of the pandemic, ongoing racial inequality, and the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg — Only one in a series of heart-wrenching blows that are currently defining the year 2020, the latest threat to democracy has just sucked the breath out of every woman and humanist in the country — the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. …

Advocacy for the healthy positive future of humanity in the age of social media — By now, you’ve probably seen the documentary The Social Dilemma. To summarize, the film explains all the ways in which social media subtly and insidiously manipulates its users, to the detriment not only of certain vulnerable demographics, but also shockingly broad groups of people, at times influencing things as crucial…

Thoughts on enslaved machinery — Since reading The Guardian’s ominously-titled post “A robot wrote this entire article. Are you scared yet, human?”, my organic gray matter has been going wild with disquieting thoughts. The AI-written missive’s 1,099 words supposedly seek to dispel distrust of machines, yet its very headline threatens its presumably human reader. This…

Examining non-attachment in the Buddhist sense — With the recent deaths of both my mother and my longtime feline companion, I’ve been immersed in thoughts about mortality, relationships, and the very purpose of life. When I went to visit my mom for what would be the last time, I knew I would tell her that it was…

Why do we so often face depression, or worse? — What is it about us artists who still get depressed, even with scads of friends & admirers, exciting accomplishments & experiences under our belt; accolades & awards? How easy it is for others to look at us with envious eyes, who see only the guise of outward contentment, happiness, success…