When the Great Recession hit in 2008, millions were downgraded to part-time, furloughed or simply laid off. But if there’s one thing the recession has proven, it’s that sometimes a downturn in life can be a blessing in disguise.
ISSUE: Fall 2011
DEPT: Features
STORY & PHOTO: Shirley Lau
It’s impossible to look in any direction without seeing someone playing the Words with Friends app on their iPhone or messaging a friend on their Blackberry. Despite government-issued checks being the sole source of income for many, it’s not hard to find restaurants with people waiting in a line that goes out the door, eager to spend their scavenged cash on a nice meal. It may look like the economy is getting better, but looks can be awfully deceiving.
Being unemployed or making a career change during what is considered by economists to be the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression of the 1930s, is anything but an anomaly. As of this past summer, the unemployment
rate was nearly 10 percent, about 31 million people. And with constant fears of a possible double-dip recession, it doesn’t look like things are going to get better any time soon.
So what is one to do when she’s living off unemployment and sending hundreds of résumés into a black hole? Some may choose to make a career out of being couch potatoes, while others are just trying to stay afloat, holding out for the day when they can make a career out of what they’re most passionate about. And then there are those fresh (and once fearful) faces who’ve changed their lives for the better — and they have the recession to thank for it.
Turning Lemons into Literature
{ Kimberly Lin, 27, Chinese American }
Previous job: Hedge fund analyst
Current job: Financial analyst, writer
“You start doubting your own abilities. You always teeter on ‘Am I going to end up depressed and on a Cymbalta commercial?’ But things end up working out in the weirdest ways. You can control yourself; you can’t control the environment,” says Kimberly Lin, who, this year, made the transition from crunching numbers to putting her life down in writing.
Part memoir, part fiction, with a bit of therapeutic ranting, Recession Proof is Lin’s latest endeavor. Inspired by her own life events, Lin writes about her struggles with finding her passion during these tough economic times — all through the fictional character of Helen. It’s a drastic change from working stock market hours and being the only female analyst working at her hedge fund.
After cycling through three finance jobs in a matter of about four years, Lin was at a standstill. She hated her job and couldn’t satisfy her boss’ every whim. At one point during a bout of unemployment, she had to sublet her room and was sleeping on her couch because she couldn’t afford the $1,400 monthly rent, or the $3,000 to cancel her lease.
“I had time to really reflect what it is that I wanted and to reevaluate why was I always getting myself into these situations where I was constantly stressed and chain smoking,” says Lin. Now that the self-inflicted pain has stopped, Lin is able to write while also paying the bills as a financial analyst. Lin even has a second novel in the works, focusing on the trials and tribulations of 30-somethings. “It just never occurred to me that I could make a career out of [writing],” she says. “I look at the recession as a blessing in disguise because I truly believe that I would have not been as motivated to complete my book or had fodder for it had [the recession] not happened.”
– Shirley Lau
Purchase the Summer issue of Audrey Magazine here.
I heard somewhere that up to 70% of people receive gifts they don’t really want for Christmas. I know a gift is a gift but for those that are pretty practical, it causes the extra headache of re-gifting (which has to be very strategic, mind you) or returning or exchanging.
So the Asians may be onto something when we give money in red envelopes to celebrate our holidays.
This year, the lucky rabbit makes way for the prosperous dragon as more than 14.7 million Asian-Americans[1] prepare to celebrate the Lunar New Year on January 23rd. To mark the “Year of Good Fortune,” American Express is offering a limited-edition Year of the Dragon Gift Card that features the traditional depiction of a dragon. This is another step by American Express in celebrating and embracing diversity. The limited-edition Year of the Dragon Gift Card from American Express follows the success of last year’s Year of the Rabbit Lunar New Year, Diwali and ¡Felicidades! Gift Cards.
Take a look… isn’t it festive?
Continue Reading »
Whitening, lightening or “brightening” cosmetics lines are just starting to take off here in the U.S.
ISSUE: Fall 2011
DEPT: Beauty Kit
STORY: Anna M. Park
Lit from within? The secret is even skintone, as seen on Ming Xi in Vera Wang.
You had a glorious, carefree summer of soaking in the sun and now you’re paying the price. The remnants of your golden tan are slowly turning into splotches, courtesy of UVA rays. “Dark spots, discoloration and uneven skin pigmentation are common problems, especially among my Asian patients,” says celeb dermatologist Jessica Wu, author of Feed Your Face. In fact, for Asian skin, it’s typically hyperpigmentation that tends to be the first sign of aging, rather than wrinkles, she says, since Asian skin tends to be thicker.
In fighting brown spots, one of the most commonly used ingredients is hydroquinone, which works “by blocking one step in the skin’s production of pigment,” says Dr. Wu. There’s been some controversy over the safety of hydroquinone (though studies have yet to link the ingredient to cancer in humans), but there are plenty of alternatives like kojic acid, arbutin and soy, which, according to Dr. Wu, has been shown to reduce discoloration in patients with darker skin tones, including Asians.
A multi-faceted approach is key in fighting hyperpigmentation, according to dermatologist Ronald Moy. He recommends retinols or salicylic acid to exfoliate skin, which leads to more rapid skin growth, and then hydroquinone or other pigment inhibitors to block the production of melanin. When over-the-counter creams fail, Dr. Moy turns to laser peels, microdermabrasion, chemical peels or intense pulsed light treatments. “The best laser for treating pigmentation on Asian skin is the long pulsed (not Q-switched) Nd:Yag laser combined with a pulsed dye laser,” he says. “It causes less trauma to Asian skin and there is not as much post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation.”
While a booming industry in Asia, whitening, lightening or “brightening” lines are just starting to take off here in the U.S. “U.S. cosmetics companies have finally realized that uneven skin pigmentation, not just wrinkles, can make your complexion look older than its years,” says Dr. Wu. Here, some of our favorites.
- 1. The cheeky skincare line’s latest brightening collection inspired by their Asian customers. Benefit B.right! Radiant Skincare.
- 2. Clinically proven to even skintone in 30 days, this natural brightening system uses a superfruit complex of kakadu plum extract and Japanese unshiu peel to lighten without the usual side effects. Jurlique Purely White Skin Brightening line.
- 3. The newest discovery out of Estée Lauder’s research labs is clinically proven to even skintone in two weeks and is touted to work on all ethnicities. Estée Lauder Idealist Even Skintone Illuminator.
- 4. A unique mushroom extract breaks up dark spots for prescription strength, clinically proven results without the redness. Clinique Even Better Clinical Dark Spot Corrector.
- 5. Dr. Moy’s own line features a DNA repair enzyme engineered from marine sources in Iceland to encourage fresh, young cells, while a bleaching agent treats. DNA EGF Renewal DNA Intensive Renewal.
- 6. From the Korean cult beauty brand, a blend of medicinal herbs to protect from UV light and stimulate circulation. Sulwhasoo Snowise Brightening Serum.
- 7. Kiehl’s clinically proven Photo-Age line, formerly only available in Asia, is now exclusively in the U.S. at Kiehl’s Santa Anita Westfield, Arcadia, Calif. Kiehl’s Photo-Age Corrector High-Potency Spot Treatment.
- 8. With Korean ginseng and licorice, this targeted treatment works to regenerate elastin fibers and release trapped melanin in the deeper layers of the skin. AmorePacific Age Spot Brightening Pen
When the Great Recession hit in 2008, millions were downgraded to part-time, furloughed or simply laid off. But if there’s one thing the recession has proven, it’s that sometimes a downturn in life can be a blessing in disguise.
ISSUE: Fall 2011
DEPT: Features
STORY & PHOTO: Shirley Lau
It’s impossible to look in any direction without seeing someone playing the Words with Friends app on their iPhone or messaging a friend on their Blackberry. Despite government-issued checks being the sole source of income for many, it’s not hard to find restaurants with people waiting in a line that goes out the door, eager to spend their scavenged cash on a nice meal. It may look like the economy is getting better, but looks can be awfully deceiving.
Being unemployed or making a career change during what is considered by economists to be the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression of the 1930s, is anything but an anomaly. As of this past summer, the unemployment
rate was nearly 10 percent, about 31 million people. And with constant fears of a possible double-dip recession, it doesn’t look like things are going to get better any time soon.
So what is one to do when she’s living off unemployment and sending hundreds of résumés into a black hole? Some may choose to make a career out of being couch potatoes, while others are just trying to stay afloat, holding out for the day when they can make a career out of what they’re most passionate about. And then there are those fresh (and once fearful) faces who’ve changed their lives for the better — and they have the recession to thank for it.
Business, Interrupted
{ Alfred Fung, Chinese American }
Current job: Marketing manager
“Most people who go to business school, there’s a sense of entitlement. They think they’re going to get a six-figure salary or be the next Mark Zuckerberg. It’s almost this fantasy,” says Alfred Fung, who once chased his dream of starting his own business after he got his MBA from University of Southern California.
But that proved to be the hardest thing to do during a recession.
“Expectations were already low at the point of graduation. It was clear that there would be a rocky journey to find funding,” says Fung. “Despite this, entrepreneurs I knew pushed forward by bootstrapping as much as they could in what was our generation’s most hostile start-up environment. After all, being an entrepreneur was a much more active role than being unemployed.”
So Fung spent nearly a year in search of funding to make his idea of a new educational platform come to fruition. He sent his business plan to venture capitalists, applied for grants, and even pitched his idea during job interviews.
“I approached investors of all walks,” says Fung. “The most promising, and ultimately depressing, meetings were with the U.S. Department of Education’s Small Business Innovation Research Program director, who loved my idea. I waited several months for an answer, only to be denied. The investment environment is just not friendly to people who just have ideas.”
After exhausting every option, Fung says he decided to forgo his business venture. Now he’s working in the marketing sector of a mobile apps company. It’s not exactly what he envisioned, but he says it aligns well with his interests and he’s lucky to have the job. He keeps in mind something a former classmate told him: It’s not just your job for now; it’s undercover research for the future.
– Shirley Lau
Purchase the Summer issue of Audrey Magazine here.
Actress, model and activist Yangzom Brauen fights for her grandmother’s Tibet in her new book Across Many Mountains.
ISSUE: Fall 2011
DEPT: My Story
STORY: Yangzom Brauen as told to Elyse Glickman
Though I am lucky to have a thriving career as an actress in the United States and Europe, I feel especially privileged that what has fueled my interest in acting and politics is directly traced to the persevering attitude of my mother and grandmother, who were forced to flee Tibet in the 1950s when the Chinese occupied the country.
The early years in the life of Kunsang, my grandmother who I call “Mola,” were idyllic, surrounded by tradition, family and proximity to nature’s wonders. It was in this setting that she became a Buddhist nun, devoting her life to prayer and spirituality, while building a marriage and raising a family. (Tibetan nuns and monks are allowed to marry.) But this simple life that sheltered my family and their ancestors was shattered when Chinese leader Mao Zedong exerted his will on Tibet to bring it under his rule.
The valiant Tibetan resistance under the fourteenth Dalai Lama was crushed by the Chinese military in 1959, sending my family and thousands of other Tibetans into exile. As if it were yesterday, Mola recalls with a melancholy resolve how she, my grandfather and two small daughters were propelled into an uncertain journey across mountains and along the Pang Chu River in icy, treacherous weather conditions after Chinese soldiers destroyed the monastery they called home. They traveled with barely enough food, some clothes and blankets, as well as a heavy bronze mould for making tsa tsa, sacred Buddhist images, out of clay. They shouldered the burden with dignity, not only staying out of sight of the Chinese soldiers, but also fulfilling the responsibility of preserving their culture, now in grave danger of disappearing.
Though my family reached India about a month later, life continued to be a daily struggle for survival. There was constant shuttling from refugee camp to camp, few jobs other than manual labor, and the consistent threat of disease, which claimed my grandfather’s life seven years later. Making life even more of a struggle was the fact that the Chinese army staged invasions into India, and Tibetans were not allowed to integrate themselves into Indian society. What is most remarkable, however, is that in all of these faith-testing situations, Mola and my mother, Sonam, never gave up hope, maintained their spiritual practices and did what they needed to in order to survive.
My political activism is a byproduct of a romance that blossomed in the early ’70s between my father Martin, an ethnologist from a prominent Swiss family, and my mother, who by then was beautiful, clever and working as a waitress in western India. Martin was passionate and persistent, yet respectful. However, Sonam was understandably hesitant about getting into a serious relationship with a white man, especially since mixed marriages were almost unheard of in the Tibetan community. Tradition dictated that the suitor seek permission from my mother, so Mola turned to her guru for guidance. Eventually, the guru gave the union his blessing, but made Martin aware that he wasn’t just marrying my mother but also my grandmother and, by extension, the Tibetan community. 
Growing up in Bern, Switzerland, I had a multicultural upbringing where we celebrated Christmas and Easter like every other Swiss family, but thanks to the insistence of Mola, who lived with us, we also celebrated Tibetan New Year and the birthday of the Dalai Lama. With these influences, I grew up with a widened view of the world that, in turn, put me on a very non-linear personal and professional path. I have often put acting aside to take up Tibet-related causes. However, I truly believe I have not sacrificed anything. After finishing my studies in Europe and establishing myself in German film and television, I put acting on hold to become the president of the Tibetan Youth Association in Europe, encouraging young Tibetans and non-Tibetans to get involved in demonstrations, cultural events and benefit concerts. As a Tibetan, and also due to my father’s ongoing academic pursuits in Asia, I consider Tibet a second home country.
Though my acting career in America started gaining momentum recently, when Mola turned 89, I realized how important it was to get the stories about the old world down on paper. Through my grandmother I realized that the old ways were fading, even back in Tibet, with monks and nuns now outfitted with laptops and cell phones. It was also important for me to document how my mother came of age as a refugee in India. Then in March 2008, a huge up-rising in Tibet added to my sense of urgency to preserve the traditions and stories. The attention of the whole world was on Tibet, which by then had been occupied for more then 50 years.
I ran the idea by publishers, who suggested I go a step further by not only telling my mother’s and grandmother’s life stories, but also my own, about how their lives shaped mine. The result is Across Many Mountains, the stories of survival that defined, sustained and fortified Mola and Sonam. It turned out to be quite the journey to create, as my mother and grandmother for the first time in years had to relive many of their most painful experiences. In turn, those events opened up a near century of Tibetan history, revealing just how much the world can change over three generations. While there are definitely some beautiful memories, there was also bitterness, sadness and turmoil that followed Mola and Sonam from Tibet, to India, and eventually to Switzerland.
As I documented these stories, it became increasingly important to me that people in the West understand more about Tibet. I am surprised that I still meet people who have no idea where Tibet is, that there are not only monks and a Dalai Lama, but also nuns and farmers. I also learned more about myself — that to be Tibetan, you are automatically born into a political life. My name is so unusual that I am often asked about the origins of my name, which leads to political discussions about Tibet’s current state of affairs.
Even though my mother and grandmother endured so much pain and loss, the one thing they never lost, and passed along to me, was the ability to believe and have faith. It doesn’t matter what you believe in — for us it is Buddhism, while for others it could be Christianity, Hinduism or something else. What ultimately matters is that faith gives you the strength to survive any tragedy. I hope younger generations of readers will be prompted to dig a little deeper into their own family histories, because everybody has a family story worth telling and sharing.
Yangzom Brauen has appeared in the films Aeon Flux, Pandorum and Wilde Salome. Her next film is Escape from Tibet, due out this fall. Across Many Mountains: A Memoir ($24.99) will be released September 27.
More stories from Audrey Magazine’s Archives here.
When the Great Recession hit in 2008, millions were downgraded to part-time, furloughed or simply laid off. But if there’s one thing the recession has proven, it’s that sometimes a downturn in life can be a blessing in disguise.
ISSUE: Fall 2011
DEPT: Features
STORY: Shirley Lau
It’s impossible to look in any direction without seeing someone playing the Words with Friends app on their iPhone or messaging a friend on their Blackberry. Despite government-issued checks being the sole source of income for many, it’s not hard to find restaurants with people waiting in a line that goes out the door, eager to spend their scavenged cash on a nice meal. It may look like the economy is getting better, but looks can be awfully deceiving.
Being unemployed or making a career change during what is considered by economists to be the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression of the 1930s, is anything but an anomaly. As of this past summer, the unemployment
rate was nearly 10 percent, about 31 million people. And with constant fears of a possible double-dip recession, it doesn’t look like things are going to get better any time soon.
So what is one to do when she’s living off unemployment and sending hundreds of résumés into a black hole? Some may choose to make a career out of being couch potatoes, while others are just trying to stay afloat, holding out for the day when they can make a career out of what they’re most passionate about. And then there are those fresh (and once fearful) faces who’ve changed their lives for the better — and they have the recession to thank for it.
Back to the Books
{ Enid Portuguez, 30, Filipina American }
Previous job: Los Angeles Times staff writer
Current job: Graduate student
She’s in graduate school and accumulating debt like there’s no tomorrow. She spent all summer in Europe doing an unpaid internship. At the age of 30 and after nine years of having real jobs, this isn’t the life Enid Portuguez had in mind.
“I kind of realized it was time for something new,” says Portuguez about her choice to go back to school. “I really wanted to do something that was practical and was different from what I was doing before.”
Despite the recent debate over whether college, especially graduate school, is really worth it, Portuguez decided to not only pursue her master’s degree, but also change careers. Her bachelor’s degree was in criminology, her last job was in journalism, and now she’s getting her master’s in conflict resolution.
After falling victim to the second round of about five mass layoffs at the Los Angeles Times, Portuguez decided to return to her old stomping grounds of New York — just a week after the stock market crashed. “That was kind of a downer, to say the least,” she says. She toiled away working at a restaurant, while also freelancing and continuing to blog for the Los Angeles Times for extra income.
“Don’t count anything out,” says Portuguez. “Don’t think about how old you are; don’t think about how ridiculous it might sound. Don’t think about how outlandish or impossible it may seem. Now is the time to try what will make you happy.”
This Week’s Happenings 1.6-1.16
Happy 2012! Let’s start the year off with a live streaming of #1 iTunes pop artist Jin Akanishi’s special fan event at The Grammy Museum, LA film screenings, and the Rob television series premiere.
Jin Akanishi’s fan appreciation event at Japan’s Yokohama Arena will stream live at The Grammy Museum
Image courtesy of PLAN C Agency
When it comes to herbal remedies and supplements, especially the Asian kind, there’s a lot of skepticism out there. After all, you’re more likely to hear about its usefulness from your mom who heard it from her friend or from a late-night infomercial than from your family doctor. We wanted to see what all the hype was about, so we tested out some. Here, our no-holds-barred reviews.
ISSUE: Fall 2011
DEPT: Mind & Body
STORY: Audrey Staff
Sun Chlorella
$38.25 for 300 tablets sunchlorellausa.com
The Claim:
A huge hit in Japan, Sun Chlorella is touted to be nature’s perfect superfood — it detoxifies, increases mental alertness, and builds a stronger im- mune system.
The Review:
After I got used to the smell and taste (five pills three times a day!), I started to notice that I didn’t grow as hungry or as fatigued as I did in the past. I’m already a pretty perky person so for me to get even perkier … well, that’s a whole lot of perky. I feel like overall the Sun Chlorella pills did have a positive effect on my body, though if you were to ask me for specifics, I wouldn’t be able to name it.
“I often build a relationship with my paintings as if they are my off- spring.” — Diana Reyes
ISSUE: Fall 2011
DEPT: Personalities
STORY: Han Cho
Artist Diana Reyes, a.k.a. Fly Lady Di, brings new meaning to “art show.”
Diana Reyes is a dancer with an impressive résumé: She’s been featured in music videos for artists such as Fabolous and Fall Out Boy, and appeared in the film Honey starring Jessica Alba. Never- theless, Reyes considers herself a painter first. Better known as Fly Lady Di, the Filipina Canadian is a visual artist noted for her stylized “graffiti” art.
The influence of graffiti is clear. Reyes infuses bold, flat colors with intricate patterns and black outlines, a quality seen in most street art. However, her feminine subjects stay powerful and grounded, and oftentimes she puts herself “in almost everything that I create, much like the work of Frida Kahlo.
“Empire State.” Acrylic on Canvas. 24 x 36 inches. 2007.
“I often build a relationship with my paintings as if they are my off- spring,” says Reyes. “They are whom I have given life to.”
Reyes’ performance and art back- grounds come together in Live Art, a relatively new and little known art form. Live Art is a performance undertaken by the artist before an audience, revealing the private working processes of the artist. “When done in public within a strict time limit, art takes on a whole new meaning,” says Reyes. “Live Art inspired me because I had never seen painting pursued in that way.”
As the new assistant dance director of The Manifesto, a hip-hop art and music festival based in Toronto, now in its fourth year this fall, Reyes will be running the first-ever All-Styles Dance event in addition to exhibiting both new and old artwork, an indication of her rising success. “People don’t understand the willingness and luxuries we have to sacrifice to live as creative people,” she says. “The luxury is to live as a creative person, and not by society’s rules but by our own.”
Find out more about Diana Reyes at FlyLadyDi.com.
— Han Cho
More stories from Audrey Magazine’s Archives here.
Singer-songwriter Rachael Yamagata rediscovers her soul with her long-awaited third album, Chesapeake.
ISSUE: Fall 2011
DEPT: Personalities
STORY: Janice Jann
Those accustomed to hearing singer-songwriter Rachael Yamagata’s smoky voice breaking from all the pain and heartbreak she endured in her first two albums, Happenstance and Elephants…Teeth Sinking Into Heart, will need to take a second listen to Chesapeake, her first studio album in three years. “This record [has] a sense of humor, looseness and spontaneity,” says the Japanese-Caucasian American. “There’s still depth to these songs, but there’s sort of a jovial sense about them — it’s new for me.”
Yamagata, 33, credits her fresh outlook with the way the record was produced. “We were literally sleeping on air mattresses; I’ve got a tent pitched up outside, and we’re grilling food together,” Yamagata recounts. “It was a very camp-like, home-style situation.”
Recording in the bathtub of a friend’s house may seem like something a novice would do, but Yamagata, who
was previously with two major record- ing studios, has sung duets with Ray Lamontagne and Mandy Moore, and finds her songs taking up airtime on Grey’s Anatomy, How I Met Your Mother, and the new Muppets movie, is already a music industry veteran.
Though Yamagata is grateful for all the creative people that have championed her career, she found herself splitting with Warner Bros. Records about a year ago. “I think the pressure these labels are under to find ways for the music business to survive, it just was not the right envi- ronment for me anymore,” says Yamagata. The urge to reconnect with her fans and get new music out led Yamagata to re-team with her Happenstance producer, John Aliaga. Yamagata assembled a “dream team” of a band and began to make music right out of Aliaga’s house. Financial support for the album came through PledgeMusic, a leading online platform for musicians and fans to help raise funds. “It’s nice to know that there are people out there waiting to hear new music,” she says. “The [fans are] so supportive and the comments rolling in are mind-boggling sweet.”
Though Yamagata’s sultry vocals are the selling point of her music, the songstress’ first love is songwriting, which she picked up when she started touring with the funk-fusion band Bumpus in the mid-’90s. “The way somebody gets the acting bug and needs to delve into a character, I got it through songwriting,” says Yamagata. “You can see metaphors all over the place if you’re paying attention.”
After Yamagata self-releases Chesapeake on her own label, Frankenfish Records, she’ll begin touring October 24. Some of the places Yamagata hopes to hit are Asia, Australia and Hawaii. “I love to travel,” says Yamagata with a laugh. It sounds like Yamagata will have much to sing about.
— Janice Jann
More stories from Audrey Magazine’s Archives here.
