If you’ve ever been to Locke, California (sometimes known as the last self-contained Chinatown in America), it’s an easy place to miss from the roadside partly because the town’s buildings are so unremarkable. More than anything, you remember the combined sensation of heat, fog, and the persistent presence of mildew from being so close to the Sacramento River. One result is that the place has an ethereal quality that photographers and painters often pick up. Thousands of Chinese passed t... Read Full Story

Here I thought all these sex scandals were going to end with Monica Lewinsky. I don't know what to make of Mark Sanford, Governor of South Carolina, or any of the many politicians who have gotten caught up in these things. I'd say only a fool would claim that it's a Republican or a Democratic or a liberal vs. conservative thing to get caught in a sex scandal. The only difference is that when the Democrats get caught, they either get impeached, resign, or otherwise lose their jobs. For s... Read Full Story

I should probably wait a bit, but I won't. I liked much of Michael Jackson's music and thought that he was a terrific performer in his prime. I'm sorry for the loss of those things and I do find his death sad in that sense. I am, however, not going to mourn the guy. In fact, I'm glad he's dead.Despite the not guilty verdict, I still believe that Michael Jackson was a child molester. No, he probably didn't lock his victims in a basement and rape them, but he was still a child molester who... Read Full Story

After more than forty years of going to a variety of barbers and hairstylists who never learned my name, I started “going steady” with a hairstylist ten years ago. It was my wife’s idea. She’s not Asian, but was convinced that hardly anyone at those ten dollar haircut places had any idea how to cut Asian hair. Most of the people who cut my hair has this knack for doing it in such a way that I looked like Ed Grimley within a couple weeks. One day, my wife and I were shopping when she said ... Read Full Story

Well, I finished my short story collection, at least for now. Next step, I need to write the perfect query letter, come up with a 30 page sample, and find an agent. My wife tells me that the whole process sent me into an emotional tailspin. After I had a draft that I “liked”, I found myself more frustrated than satisfied. While those of us who write never say such things, I think many of us dream that people will see it and immediately tell you how wonderful it is. It does happen once in... Read Full Story

Carrie Prejean was recently spotted out with Ryan SeacrestI’m still trying to figure out why Adam Lambert dressed up as K.D. Lang the other night. While Randy Jackson kept assuring America how great this year’s singers are because they hit all those notes, I kept wondering why they had a Disco night and the only person dancing seemed to be Paula Abdul and her inner-goddess. Just a reminder, in pop music it’s not the notes, it’s the beat especially in Disco. Let me translate, “This is our mo... Read Full Story

It was nice to see Jennifer Hudson come back for results night on Idol. Her voice still sounds great; whatever issues there were about her wardrobe and look are smoothed out (though I liked the original Jennifer Hudson); She’s more comfortable doing patter. I doubt that her coming back for the round of 7 elimination was an accident. She’s both the only Idol contestant to win an Oscar and the most infamous early exit in the show’s history. As it happens, Jennifer Hudson went out in round 7... Read Full Story

From the Sacramento BeeIf you’ve been looking for my most recent American Idol posts or (God forbid) looking for any new posts from me on other topics, you’ve probably noticed that I haven’t been around as much. First, I’ve been very busy with regular life, but I’ve also been working very hard on a short story collection that I’m submitting for publication. Picking the stories is one thing, editing nearly 300 pages of material so that it’s coherent has turned out to be a huge task.Second, ... Read Full Story

The scary thing for me is that 2 of the biggest mass shootings in the US in the last couple years had Asian gunmen. The Virginia Tech shooter was Korean and the Binghamton killer was Vietnamese. So much for the model minority club. I'm also used to reading shooting stories where hundreds of shots are fired, but surprisingly few people actually get killed. One of the disturbing things about the most recent shootings has been how efficient the killers have been.One of the NRA's argu... Read Full Story

Last Christmas, my local radio station played a recording of David Bowie singing a duet on Little Drummer Boy with Bing Crosby. It should have been beyond strange, but it wasn’t. Idol theme nights frequently present those sorts of situations. It’s often hard enough for a young artist to master one genre. Most of the winners have found some way to adapt and even flourish when forced into unfamiliar musical waters. Carrie Underwood did Heart. David Cook did Billie Jean. Chris Daughtry di... Read Full Story