this is where i write about my perspectives and experiences
this is where i write about my perspectives and experiences
this is where i write about my perspectives and experiences
if you didn't know i am half british and half chinese. have been all my life funnily enough and i think it's granted me a very unique cultural perspective.
because my dad couldn't speak mandarin (also because my mum was at home less) i didn't speak mandarin at home although i did go to a "chinese school" every week to learn the language. the school was a place where chinese families could meet and chat while the kids learnt. i always felt out of place because i was the only one who didn't have black hair (which is weird because every other half'n half person i know does) and i personally don't feel i look very chinese anyway, although according to other people and a face ai i do.
i can speak mandarin fairly well and can hold a conversation with anyone who speaks standard mandarin but definitely have more to be desired in terms of language ability because i couldn't speak it at home. this hurts how well i can connect with my chinese family - although many speak in dialects which sound completely alien anyway. of course i love them very much but i do feel slightly disconnected, not only because of my background but also because i'm not considered part of the main family line (i don't have the surname).
i had two very different cooking styles in my household: my dad served cauliflower cheese, casserole, pies and sausages while my mum brought noodles, rice, dumplings, 粥 and 粽子 to the table. i loved this and i think it really sucks that most families don't have as large a range of dishes. it also meant i didn't hate vegetables like the rest of the people in this country because i had stir-fried vegetables. COOK YOUR FUCKING VEGETABLES DON'T PUT THEM IN A SALAD.
i was able to experience both cultures simultaneously which was very cool. i know quite a few immigrant families don't celebrate a lot of festivals like bonfire night, halloween and christmas and obviously most british families don't celebrate 春节, 中秋节, 端午节 or 清明节 so i felt very priveliged to be able to both trick or treat and make dumplings with good company
i honestly don't think the uk's a very racist place, at least where i'm from. of course there's the whole 'ching chong' stuff that happens on the playground in primary school but other than that i haven't experienced anything and neither have any of my not-ethnically-british friends as far as i know.
funniest story i got from it was getting asked if i was mixed race by a drunk chinese lady at a corner shop at 3 am where i just bought some ginger beer
well this is my first post on my first website! ISN'T THAT COOL? i think i've always wanted a little outlet to just talk about stuff i love that no-one else really gives a shit about.
i initially heard about neocities from a great video about the indie web - i wholeheartedly agree that the mainstream internet has regressed and want to be a part of this lovely community. i've always been a big believer that the internet is for collaboration and sharing, especially in regards to open source software and learning resources. additionally, despite being born in the 2000s i missed the entirety of the early internet so i thought that this would be a nice way to try and experience it.
in terms of what i actually want this website to be i want it to be a place i can ramble about my interests, dump my thoughts and document my hobbies. one thing i really don't want to do is add to the pile of unoriginal trash that already exists here this should be a place which is completely, absolutely, truly mine
what will i actually do here then?
thank you neocities!
