Japanese do it topless on New Years Eve!

It's not what you think. It isn't exactly topless girls in school girl uniforms. Oh wait...that's what i was thinking...uh...anyway...Japan's national broadcaster (the equivalent of cbc in canada but just way cooler) broadcasted it's New Years Eve Musical Event and it had a performance from DJ OZMA who was jammin his new hit track "Bounce with me" when his creative team dreamed up this wonderful silly idea of giving the female dancers NUDE bodysuits complete with boobies to wear. I thought it was hilarious. Of course, that idea would never catch on over here in the Americas. All the Soccer Moms would freak out. That being said...ppl in Japan aren't all weird. Over 250 ppl called in to complain about the body suits.

Here's a video clip. It's a little long and if you can't stand the jap music...just scroll all the way to 2:15 and you'll see some boobies. Wait...the kicker of this whole thing is the end of the clip at 3:40 when the girls take their panties off and have this weird strap on looking thing and then this old guy turns around. WTF was that? And if you really want to change the stereotype...couldn't you use a bigger strap on?
Crazy Japanese. I love you. You make me laugh. and you make good Pocky too.

[VIA Reuters]

Proof that Asians Play way too much street fighter

When i was growing up in calgary, there was this 7-11 that had a street fighter II machine that was closeby. My cousin introduced me to the game. Little did i know that that very first quarter would be the beginning of the disease i call streetfighteritis. I went to the arcade every chance i get just to see what other white kid i could crush with a perfect score. The disease became so bad that i skipped days of school and even got into an arcade fight because this guy cheap me with a throw. I know...stupid huh? Nowadays, I look forward to nostalgic roms and emus to fulfill my need of street fighter. Some people do it differently...this video shows this couple chose street fighter as the theme of choice for their very fun to watch salsa dance.

The other is my all time favorite street fighter clip which i'm pretty sure you've seen already. Enjoy!

Sun Leen Fai Lok! What is Jooksings.com 2007 Resolutions

I hope you all had a crazy new year. From Vancouver to Toronto and New York to San Francisco there were some crazy jams and i'm hoping that all of you drove home safe and sound. It's now 2007 and it's that time of year to make your new years resolutions. What are Jooksings.com resolutions? Well...here they are.

In 2007, Jooksings.com plans to introduce

Syndicated RSS Feeds from other Jooksing Bloggers.

Ratings and Comment systems

A new and exciting Brand Identity

Quality Articles from Featured Editors

Better website layout and adoption away from the blogger program into a custom format.

POP up video blogs

Jooksings.com merchandise

Hope you are all looking forward to the new year because we know we are.

My name is Lo Fu Gee Dammit!!!

Ever notice how chinese companies translate their icons/products/mascots into an english names that doesn't make any sense whatsoever? One of these icons i'm referring to is one of my childhood favorites. I'm sure you heard of Lo Fu Gee before. He's the guy on the right in the picture above. However, in the western world he's known as Master Q. What the hell does that mean? Actually...he's not really known in the western world. But to me...he's one of the greatest icons. I just wish that they made the comic in true jooksing chinglish format so i can enjoy it properly. i'm sure that if it's translated it will screw up all the jokes and stuff. I'm going to contact them to find out if jooksings.com can do it. Heck..i'd do it for free just so us jooksings can enjoy it. You really are missing out on it. It's got everything from slapstick humour to gang fights to best friends to romantic comedy. In the mean time...I'm going to utilize youtube and other blogs to feed you the lo fu gee stuff for your enjoyment! Here's the first one!!

The Asian Christmas Dinner

In the USA, Canada, and the UK, when one thinks of Christmas Dinner, it usually consists of a Christmas Ham or Turkey with Cranberry sauce, stuffing, mash potatoes, (sounds like thanksgiving) pumpkin pie, and oh yes...egg nog, a milk and eggs based punch with rum, brandy or whiskey.

However, In the USA, Canada, and the UK, Asian families don't usually have this type of dinner. Yes, we might have the turkey..but it's usually mixed in with the Roast Pig that we bought in Chinatown. We might even have white rice instead of mash potatoes. I've even had bok choy with turkey before.

Every year at my uncles house, we have a turkey, lasagna, a badly made stuffing with a million raisins, roast Pig, char siu, pork bone soup, and white rice. How can you not have white rice?

Tonight was the first time i had a Christmas Dinner with my girlfriends family. It wasn't the same special touch as my own family but it was an experience nonetheless. We didn't have turkey...rather we had fried fish, black pepper pork chops, fried rice, cheesecake, and a fruitcake. Quite a weird mixture if you ask me.

What kind of Asian Christmas dinner do you have? Let me know at chris@jooksings.com

Happy jooksing Holidays!

Movie Review: The Pursuit of Happyness

This true rags to riches story, definitely hit the mark for me during this Christmas holiday. This feel good movie isn’t too far from reality for many people and will show both the needy and wealthy that the path to success is certainly out there should they have the urge and guts to go and get it. I suspect that fans of Dale Carnegie and alike should also like this movie.

The Pursuit of Happyness, which is purposely misspelled but explained by Will Smith who casts as Chris Gardner, a struggling business owner with a dream, attempts the seemingly impossible competitive internship at Dean Witter all while selling Portable Bone Density Scanners to scrape enough funds to keep himself and his son (played by Will Smith’s real-life son, Jaden Christopher Syre Smith) out of poverty in the bustling city of San Francisco in 1981. His unsupporting wife (played by Thandie Newton) also leaves him during this difficult time. Will Smith and Thandie Newton really work well with each other in their roles and I've always enjoyed Will Smith and his light hearted comedy. This is no exception.

The film, directed by Gabriele Muccino, captures good natural imagery and atmosphere from realistic 1981 advertisements to the no longer existing Dean Witter (merged with Morgan Stanley in 1997) to the previously successful NFL franchise of the now sad 49ers (sorry niners fans…they are killing me in fantasy sports) It also embraces San Francisco’s well known Chinatown area complete with snobby Chinese day care operator to fit. I would say that the film was directed quite well with the exception of the repetitive stealing of the bone density scanners by strangers who also happen to be in poverty state. After the second time, I started to roll my eyes. I also thought that the monologue could have been a little more advanced rather than the elementary “This part in my life is called…Being Stupid.” Couldn’t they use a better line than that? And the fact that he got a job interview because he solved the Rubik's cube is crazy. Remind me to bring a book of Sudoku everywhere i go.

The film won’t make the general public shed tears and therefore may not be regarded as a great story by many except for the ones who are either going through a similar situation and/or have been there before. It worked for me. The most memorable line in the movie must be when Abraham Lincoln was referenced for his “….life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” quote. How did Abraham Lincoln know to put the pursuit part in there you ask? The movie isn’t good enough to answer that question…but it will give you a kickstart.

3.5 out of 5

Chris Tsang

Jooksing word of the day

Hupping Day = Boxing Day

Hup means Box in Cantonese.

Japan's Nike ID Cosplay

The Japanese always have the best commercials in my opinion. Check this one out. It's for Nike's Cosplay Line at nikeid.jp. It's so wacky and takes a lot from the power rangers show. I can't vouch for all Jooksings...but i for one hated Power Rangers in North America. I think it's because I was exposed to much better japanese anime at an earlier stage. I mean...come on!!

Sing Dan Fai Lok (merry christmas)

It's the time of the year again. In Toronto, there is once again no snow on the ground. It's 7 degrees outside and it will rain for sure tonight! Nevertheless, this christmas should be a good one. I'll be with my girlfriend and her family this year but i definately miss being with my family in calgary!

There's two tricks that i recommend everybody do to their relatives on christmas.

Trick #1:

If you have a younger cousin...you can assume that he's going to get a lot of gifts because of his age. What we used to do was go to the tree and find all the gifts that were labelled "To: Sherman" We took all the gifts and we either hid them under the couch or we put them somewhere we nobody can find. When it's time for gift opening..the whole family gathers around the tree and names are called out everybody will open their gifts with excitement. Meanwhile..nobody has a clue that Sherman still doesn't have a gift. He'll mope around in the back watching everybody open their gifts with excitement. All of the other cousins are in on it so they open their gifts with extra emphasis in front of him. When the bottom of the tree is almost clear...look over at your cousin and say..."hey...were you a bad kid this year? what happened? you didn't get anything yet!" He'll certainly look like he wants to ball and will start to believe that he was a bad kid for something. When you are done toying with him...bring out the gifts and he'll smile along with you and the whole family with laugh.

Trick #2:

My cousin Jamie invented this one in the family. One year we went to our rooms looking for gifts to give ourselves and we wrapped it up and put it under the tree. On the label..we would label "To: Chris, From: Auntie Anna" It helps if the person you write down is regarded as the "cheap" relative in the family. She was the perfect victim. Anyway...when the gift giving happens...the gifts are distributed and when you recieve your own gift...open it with excitement to find your new NINTENDO system under the tree from your "cheap" relative. If they are married...it's even better. She'll say..."WHAT?!?! I didn't buy that for you!!" She'll turn to her husband or something and say "Did you buy that?!?!" Just keep your act up...all the other relatives will just be amazed at this awesome gift you just recieved! It's really funny!

Sigh..the memories...anyway...I hope all of you have a good sing dan and don't kill yourself shopping on "hup"ing day. That's boxing day.

Chris

Cool Website for Nokia

Hey Jooksing's...We all have that DNA in us that makes us love cell phones and while this cell phone may not look like the phone you've always wanted and doesn't have the crazy specs you are looking for..you've got to admit...they created a pretty cool website for this phone. The Nokia 6133 new campaign has creativity written all over it. Check it out at www.pushtostart.ca

It's freakin sick.

Chris.

jooksing word of the day

fan ban.

Fan Ban as in...counterfeit.

ie.) I wanna watch that new Cameron Diaz movie...Where are all the "fan ban" dvd's when you need them? Oh..they are at pacific mall.

ie.) this "fan ban" goochee bag...i sell for twenty dollars only!! ( in chinese accent )

Dick in a box SNL christmas skit with Lyrics!

Hahaha. This is the funniest thing i've seen in a while. My buddy chris in calgary, canada sent this to me. Thanks man. But moreover..thanks to SNL to come up with this skit! Justin Timberlake and Andy Samberg create this ultra hilarious music video that will definitely make you laugh. Here is the Dick in a Box along with LYRICS!! I hope they are correct. please msg me if you know what it is or can correct me. I actually spent the time listening to them for you to follow because i know...deep down...we jooksings...sigh...We are all karaoke lovers. Top Ten? Focus Karaoke? Twister? anybody?




Hey Girl. I got something important to tell you..so just sit down and listen.
Girl, you know we’ve been together for such long long time. (such a long time)
Now I’m ready to lay it on the line.

Wow…you know it’s Christmas and my heart is open wide.
Gonna give you something so you know what’s on my Mind. (what’s on my mind)

I’ll give you a special so take off the top…
Take a look inside…it’s my dick in a box.

Not gonna get you a diamond ring.
That sorta gift don’t mean anything.
Not gonna get you a fancy car.
Girl you gotta know you my shining star.
Not gonna get you a house on da hills.
A girl like you needs something real.
Wanna get you something from the heart. (Something special girl…)

It’s my dick in a box!!

Been thinking about you babe. It’s my dick in a box. Been thinking about what’s goin on.

See I’m wise enough to know when a gift needs givin.
And I got just the one.
Something that shows you that you are second to none.

To all the fellows out there with ladies to impress, It’s easy to do just follow these steps:

One… cut a hole in a box
Two… Put your junk in that box
Three…Make her open the box

And that’s just the way you do it!

It’s my dick in a box!

My dick in a box goin …

It’s my dick in a box…

It’s my dick in a box goin on.

Christmas…Dick in a box
Hannukah…Dick in a box
Kwanzaa...a dick in a box (thanks for the correction)

Every single a holiday a dick in a box

Over at your parents a dick in a box.
Midday at the grocery store a dick in a box.
Backstage at the CMA’s a dick in a box. Yow wow wow wow wa…

wtf? An Asian actually won survivor?

After years of complaints, asians finally have something to cheer about on watching survivor. Yul Kwon, born in queens, NY and raised in Cali won the survivor battle. He's got a pretty impressive resume if you ask me. Check out his bio on CBS site.

Too bad we don't give a crap about that show anymore. I for one can't believe that the show is still on the air. But then again..they have worse stuff on tv. cough..mXc...cough..sucks..

Asian chances were pretty good on this years Survivor: Cook islands. They had Becky, a korean hottie which made it all the way to episode 14 and a Vietnamese dude named "Cao Boi" (it's literally pronounced cowboy. hahaha) Anyway, I'm glad he won...again..his resume is pretty extensive and i don't think he'll be using it for another karaoke or netcafe anytime soon.

What doesn't help the stereotype though is "Cowboy's" biography where they actually state that his career is ACTUALLY a nail salon manager. I have lots of viet friends...i seriously don't know a single nail salon owner....is that an american viet thing???

The mall invasion near you.

When you look into any of the big Canadian malls, most of the stores have their head offices in; Vancouver, Montreal or Toronto. For a country of our size, we have a lot of different retailers that have reached the span of the country and more.

Let’s do a little re-cap here. For starters, Aldo is really successful especially branching off into the United States. Aritzia that started in 1983 by Brian Hill is eventually going to move down south because of their new investor group. Lululemon and Chip’s brilliant idea of going franchise for a few years has reached Tribeca in NYC and Asia. We have seen Roots and HBC merchandise being worn by our whole Olympic team. Le Chateau brings the world’s top male model of the moment to model in their campaigns. La Senza sells to pretty much every country in the world from their online site and now and has just been bought out by Limited brands (the mother company of Victoria Secret). Montreal based, Tristan and America has stores in America too. Club Monaco founded by Toronto’s Joseph Mimran sold it to Polo Ralph Lauren of New York in 1999. Award winning Holt Renfrew, luxury retailer is viewed and judged on the same level as other luxury retailers in the world Saks, Bloomingdales, Liberty of London, Joyce of Hong Kong to name a few.

Stores that have joined our cities include; American Abercrombie & Fitch / Hollister, Mango, Zara and Swedish’s H&M.

Abercrombie and Fitch / Hollister’s stores are always a zoo. Customers go crazy for their merchandise and I’ll bet their sales per hour are very high. Everyday is like Boxing Day. It’s no wonder they want to go for a different market. They have announced they want to expand into Japan.

H&M announced they are going to expand their fast fashion concept chain into Asia next year. They are going to open stores in Hong Kong and China.
Market share is difficult; you have to stay on top of your competition. Everyone is fighting for market share against the Wal-mart, Target and Tesco. But this whole low priced high fashion is a concept that 59 year old H&M can say they pioneered.

I’d say this is exciting news for the Asian Market. There are great opportunities in Asia for these stores to reach towards. The potential is huge. Whenever I will get my chance to be sent to Asia for business trips, I would go and find myself the H&M or Zara not waste anytime since I know how their clothes fit!

Stefani

The iPHONE??

I personally think that Asians are the largest consumer demographic of cellular phones and that we are the most frequent purchasers of them. Especially when it comes to a new model product launches that come out on the market. And what do jooksings do to be the coolest cats on the block? What we do is we always get it before that phone is ever released in North America because we always know someone going back to Hong Kong, or if we don’t we just go to Ebay (Did I mention that I overpaid like 10 times for my Razr)!

On that note, I thought I’d have to talk a little bit about the buzz product of the industry. Apple’s iPhone. No one has seen this phone yet and no one is even sure if it even exists. But the buzz in the industry is that Apple is developing its own phone that will be compatible for their iTunes. Their first iTunes capable phone was produced by Motorola, their “Rokr” model. It didn’t sell very well, nor had too many positive reviews. Could this have been a marketing tactic by Apple? I mean, release their iTunes capabilities (its just software) with an industry leader in the market (Motorola pays for the hardware manufacturing costs), get poor reviews, and have consumers begin demanding/expecting Apple to just come up with their own product that looks and operates better? My opinion….hell ya it was planned! Who doesn’t want to drive up consumer anticipation for a product, and have a growing demand for it so when the product finally comes out…it fly’s off the shelf! We see it all the time with technology gadgets…AHEMM-PS3! WHE-WiiEEE! Cough cough!

Industry experts feel that Apple faces a challenge because in North America, cellular phones are purchased usually through the service providers opposed from directly from the manufacturer. The article also notes that the possible introduction of the iPhone would effect iPod sales. That’s what Darren Chervitz says (he’s the research director at Jacob Asset Management so he definitely knows what he’s talking about).

Disclaimer: I do not own Shares in Apple (Although I should have….dammit met my broker too late!!)

Personally, I think Apple should do this. Launch the iPhone in Hong Kong/Asia. Everyone Asian will buy the next thing….I mean I know people who have an MP3 player, Ipod, Ipod Nano, and now an Ipod Video, at the same time they also own the Motorolla Razr, the Slvr, the Sony Ericson camera phones, and even the Newest Motorolla V3i (compatible with iTunes & video capable) (they’ve purchased all these in the past 2 years by the way…no joke…they really do have these). As for the challenge of jooksings getting their hands on this phone before it comes out here in North America,…it is NO challenge! Hellooo! Chinese New Year coming up! There’s like only 2 degrees of separation of knowing someone going back to Hong Kong in the next 2 months. But really, do I believe iPod sales will decline? Nope, none at all. By the time the phone hits North America (if Apple follows my strategy here *wink*) Apple should be selling more iPod Video’s than their Nano’s!

What do you think? Am I wrong on this one? Or do Asians really only care to use that same free phone offered by the service providers (great tactic by the providers by the way)? I think not…but what do you think? Leave a comment or two. Or let us know if you will be going to Hong Kong soon…maybe the iPhone will be released by then and you can hook me up!

Owen Ma

Asian Mcdonalds Commercials

My girlfriend loves Wang Lee Hom and mcdonalds french fries. It would only seem natural that Wang Lee Hom is the spokesperson for Mcdonalds in Asia!! i think he's a good candidate for North American mcdonalds too considering he speaks perfect english!! Sorry for the ADVERTISEMENT Bombardment...i just love them! It's surreal cuz it's a product that we all know yet we are usually exposed to seeing happy white kids playing hockey eating mcdonalds. Come on mcdonalds...gimmee some diversification.





Check out that RICE "BUN" that they created to appeal to the asian audience. I've had it before...I'll stick with the bread though.
Chris

chinese medicine ad

Remember that sweet black stuff that your mom made you eat when you were sick and had a sore throat and coughing? It's sorta thick and it actually doesn't taste half bad! Well...the bottle is still the same and so is the logo...however..the ad for it in HK isn't so old school anymore. It's really modernized! check it out!

Budweiser's HK Music Video

This is marketing in HK. no worries, no redtape on alcoholic products. Music and Beer. i have some idea of what they are saying...but for those that don't..it's "omg...i drink budweiser, i like the colour red...i'm hot..you can be hot too if you drink budweiser too. come party with us in the desert and we'll drink budweiser to cool off our hot bodies!!"

fire red fire hot. 火紅火熱 - 鄭中基 楊千嬅 何韻詩 梁漢文

Levi's Japan Music Inspired Clothes

Check out this new line from Levi's Japan. I love the website design. I especially love the Levi's Premium Line that are featured this year. It's actually the Fall lineup but i like how they can make something so simple and black so stylish. Check it at Levi's Japan

Seriously looking for contributors to Jooksings.com

Hi everybody. As you all know, this website isn't the prettiest one. I'm working on that. Don't you worry. However, before the site can look pretty, i'm looking for some dedicated contributors to jooksings.com. You can contribute by adding new content weekly, take pictures, take video, help design the site...anything. If there's anything that anybody can do...i would totally appreciate it.

If anything...spread the word, send me articles, write comments, suggest ideas...anything!

Thanks!!

Please email me at chris@jooksings.com

A useful invention for freezing Canadians

The Japanese are my favorite source of fresh culture as they are always ultra creative in almost everything that they do. Here's a product that I'm sure Canadians can use. It's a bit silly but it's starting to get freakin cold in Toronto and i could really use Thanko's new heated gloves and socks to help me out during the cold months. It would be awesome for snowboarding!! Now if they can only add bluetooth functionality so i can control my ipod from my heated gloves. Snowboarding heaven.

The new Gloves from Thanko are battery powered and can provide you between 6 and 12 hours of heat.

via Thanko.jp

Sassafraz Wishes it was just a burnt meal

Sassafraz, Toronto's trendy hotspot for celebs was burned to the ground and i'm sure it will be missed from all torontonians. I miss it and i've never even been there. I've always wanted to go there.

CTV reports "More than 130 firefighters battled a five-alarm blaze inside a trendy restaurant in Toronto's tony neighbourhood of Yorkville on Wednesday.

The fire was at hotspot Sassafraz, which has been a longtime favourite hangout for celebrities and scenesters alike, especially during the Toronto International Film Festival.

The blaze started at about 11 a.m. and reached the three-alarm level by noon. It quickly reached four alarm and then five."

via ctv
(CP / Adrian Wyld)

Jooksing in Adidas

Again...i love sneakers

I LOVE NIKE!!!

If you don't know...i'm a huge sneaker fanatic. Nike Transformer commercial from Japan.

Aaron Kwok Pepsi Commercial

This was a Pepsi commercial done for in Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Rejoice Shampoo Commercial from HK

Rejoice is proctor and Gamble product that is marketed in Asia. The bottle looks really similar to North America's Pert Plus. Marketing geniuses.



via pg.com

jooksing word of the day

Low Bang. = Old cracker = old man.

ie.) i'm such a low bang nowadays. i need to get out more. hahaha.

Bobby Lee at his finest

Haha...My friend Kitty sent me this. this is one of the funniest clips i've every seen. Here is part 1 of 2



And here is part 2 of 2



I really wish that there were more comedians like Bobby Lee out there. He really makes me laugh because he understands both cultures like i do.

Check it.

Something to cheer you up

Today's posts were a little depressing. This site isn't supposed to be an arena for political point of views but a celebration of Jooksings (for those who don't know..stereotypically...a term for asians born in outside of asia that typically speak crappy chinese) so i thought I'd find something a little more happier to make your day! ENJOY!!!

I love japanese commercials!!

The Asians are overlooked by American Media

Hi all! This is my first video blog. The production sucks ass. I wasn't planning this but i was watching CNN and it just got me into it. As always..please leave comments as they are greatly appreciated.

Chris

check out CNN

Rosie O'Donnell just lost over 1 billion viewers

Holy Shit...Check this out. Rosie O'Donnell is one brave Lesbian. I hope she doesn't like chinese food cuz she's gonna die if she walks into Chinatown. I mean..what was she thinking?

Chris.

you can complain to NBC at http://abc.go.com/daytime/theview/

You or the Company?

I had a meeting yesterday, and something very interesting came about from that conversation. It was actually about a viewpoint as to what may be more important, an individual or the corporation? For those of you who may not know exactly what a corporation is, I’ll provide the formal definition, taken from my good friend Webster (that’s Webster’s Dictionary ;) )

Corporation:
A legal entity, other than a natural person which often has similar rights in law as
a person.

Individual:
1. A human being
2. A single organism

Why would this come up you may ask? Well, given that we all work or contribute in some way or another to a corporation (as I am assuming we all work somewhere) what importance do you feel should come first? Yourself or the company? Should your personal viewpoints and personal feelings stand in the way of what is best for the company? Sure, your opinion will probably be based on your role you play within that organization, but to what extent will you place on the importance of oneself verses the corporation? You may ask yourself what will happen if I put myself first over the company? Or, what has the company done for me? If you set aside your personal insecurities and feelings, would the company go further and expand and become a larger entity, thus affecting the world in a more positive shape or form.

I’ll give you an example. Most PC users do not like Windows, and complain about how unstable it is and this and that, and I’m sure Bill Gates hears of this all the time (I mean, when that pop up comes up and asks you if you would like to report this error to Microsoft, where do you think it goes? Jokes). But if Mr. Gates decided to take these criticisms personally, and get rid of all his top designers and developers because they created something that is “unstable” where would we be? Would the PC have been able to become a staple tool in our daily lives? I mean, who the heck could use MS Dos before (command prompt this and that…I couldn’t load my favorite game, hang man without screwing up)? But now Windows…whoa….that made everyone’s lives way easier when navigating a computer. I mean, who can’t “point-and-click” (aside from my dad…he just can’t get the hang of double clicking and keeping the pointer arrow on that icon….but he can sure carve out a toy sword from a piece of 2x4 without cutting himself…see dad…you’re still the best!) and voila!....the application is open and ready to go!

This example is extreme, but do you see how an individual can really effect a corporation which is legally, a separate entity as well, just like an individual is, the difference I see is that the entity of a corporation serves a much larger whole than just an individual. So, I ask again, who is more important, the individual or the corporation? What do you think?

Owen
Business Editor

The Strait (Asian Gay) Games

One of my good friends who came out of the closet to me about 7 years ago told me about this competition that he went to recently. Yuan jai is a good friend and he's always willing to help you out. He definitely made my time in HK easier. Not in that way you fuckin idiots. Anyway...he's sort of a jooksing to me. He was schooled in Canada but always went back to HK cuz that's where he loves it. I guess there's different levels of Jooksingness. It just shows that jooksings exist in all shapes and forms.

The Strait Games was held in Phuket in October and i thought i'd blog about it because I've never heard of this before and I'm sure that 90% of my readers don't know either. Here's the link and a picture

The Strait Games

picture taken via beachpatong.com

Whatever floats your boat guys

I'm lost for words. Jooksing creativity and weddings and beer. This is the result.

More Funny Phrases

I got some comments yesterday on the Chinglish topic so i'd like to share some others.
I'll probably continue to update this for a couple days so keep checking back and/or leave comments to add some more.

The verbs
undingable = unable to stand it (Thanks Kitty!)
toongable = ie. is this library toongable to the cafeteria??
i'm jo-gunning = i'm doing it already
tai-ing = looking


Crappy Direct Translations
sik low = eat brains
Ho yau foh = he's on fire
that's the sze = That's the shit!!
deen wa jook = telephone congee meaning...a long telephone convo
yeet hay = hot air
say ngan jai = 4 eyes boy = boy who wears glasses
leung ngan mui = a stupid comeback to use as a kid for the glasses comment...don't use it. I've used it already. it doesn't work.
jooksing = congee star

Difficult sentences

I'm full. Can i please take these packaged buns to go? = Ngor ho bao. Ho mmho yee bao hay yee d bao bao da bao? (i don't even know if this is correct? i got lost after the second bao)

Why asian guys can't get white girls

I'm sure many of you have seen this already but i thought that this production was brilliant and i thought I'd post it here since it's totally relevant with Jooksings.com

It's a humorous story about this asian guy and his quest to find out why he can't pick up white girls. I've only had a chance to date 2 or 3 white girls in my lifetime so I'm by no means an expert. It's never really gone anywhere. I think if you watch this video, you'll be able to relate. It's jokes.

Congrats to Wong Fu Productions and Sketchbook media pictures on YELLOW FEVER. I love to showcase creative content from other Jooksings. Afterall, this is a portal for all Jooksings to become famous!

Chris.

Video On the Go

I recently went shopping this weekend for a smart phone. Something that can connect me to my email while I’m on the go. I’m telling you, the selection right now is quite good (before there was really only the Blackberry…or “crackberry’ and some like to call it) and fairly affordable. I mean, I paid more money for my frickin Motorolla Razr ($500 big ones)….and what can it do? Not much but drop really easy because its so damn thin! The other I noticed is that phones that have mp3 capabilites and camera’s are becoming the norm (these features are sooo last year!). I mean what phone doesn’t play music anymore? If you have one that doesn’t, something’s wrong (another thing the Razr doesn’t do). But what I found from comparing these smart phones and from looking at phones in general is that the newest feature is video. Yes, video so, now when you go for your weekend dim sum, you’re gonna see kids with headphones on watching their phone while mom and dad are reading their Chinese newspaper! Kids can now keep up to date with their latest downloaded clips (whatever may be the hottest thing to watch now…I fell off at Pokemon), and adults can keep up to date the latest new chapter movie while on the go or subway! Haha…..that I don’t know about, but I’m sure it will be happening soon and I do know people who would be doing that! I mean, why not…you can download movies (legal by the way ;) yes I said the nasty “L” word and I know jooksings don’t like that word at all! Disclaimer, I do not buy VCD movies from my local asian movie store) like the latest release, Superman. (I talk more about the actual downloadable video industry and where you can currently get Legal video content at my personal post, so click here if you want to check it out). I mean, sure…the memory on phones right now is not as large as a Portable video player (c’mon 1GB capability on a phone compared to 80GB on an iPod) but hey, you can still watch vids on the go! So let’s see how many video phones will come to the market this year, and see just how many will fill up at the weekend dim sum!

Owen

Business Editor

A Language we can call our own

My parents are from HK. Naturally I'm cantonese. I didn't always know how to read and write and even understand the chinese language. It basically started around grade 9. My dad had started a business in China and I had to visit there for 6 or 7 months at the end of Grade 8. I was so bored that i decided that i would just learn chinese. I drew these grids on paper and practiced all the time. My sister didn't do the same...i guess she just wasn't as interested as i was although i would have to say that next to me...all the other "kids" in our family has the best chinese skill. Anyway...a couple years later in high school i started to hang around other kids that were asian and things just started to pick up. For whatever reason, i started to listen to chinese music a lot. Oh the memories...the music back then was so much better than the crap you get nowadays..i'm talking about cho mang (grasshopper) with their "so sad" song and the "you are everything" tune. I actually even got into Lai Ming and Cheung Hok Yau. It's oldy moldy but come on...who can forget jacky's classic gee seung yut sung gun lay jow??? Or mui teen ngoi lay dor yut seh? i mean...that was the shit. Aiya....going on a tangent.

Anyway...it started with that. That's how i learned chinese. Karaoke and 1 dozen bud (sometimes green tea and chivas)

But what is really interesting is that throughout all these years of talking like this to my cousins and my friends, I've come to realize that this "chinglish" language is a language that we came up with all on our own. So commonplace that even mandarin, korean, japanese friends even say the same things.

There are certain factors that make this hilarious. Jooksing's uses the 's factor. We tend to use the " 's " everywhere we can if it's plural. We use it in the word Jooksing's, bui's (cups), deep's (plates), dung's (chairs), sau mut's (gloves), lang lui's (pretty girls) and Ju pa's (pork chop's) That to me is a new language.

Ever notice the "mm" factor?? why do we add an "mm" to things we are trying to say no to. example: mmwant ar! = i don't want it! mmcare ar! = i don't care mmjump! = i'm not jumping.

Or how about the really funny swear words that we attempt to write out on paper. Those are always jokes. Classic but funny. Some of those examples are yeet hay = hot air (which i have no idea what it means but i shouldn't eat it cuz it will give me zits), pook guy = fall on the street, ding lay gor fai = hit your lung

Till this day I still dont know what the fuck that means. you try to explain to all your white friends that it actually means fuck you...just to get them off your back when all of a sudden you had to explain what pook guy was. i had a hard time with those two. I mean....you don't wanna tell them what it really means or they'll think chinese people are retarded for telling you to fall on a street or hit your lung so they just mean fuck you. In fact...every swear word meant fuck you to me when i was young. hahahahaha...that is funny.

Anyway...How about you guys? what do you guys think? We should start our own Jooksings school and start teaching. Tell me about your stories. Please leave some comments. I'd love to hear your stories and share them.

Chris.

Peace.

my identity

Some of my readers don't know what i look like and have been asking for some pictures. The want to know whose thoughts they are reading so i decided to go an take some editorial type pictures that match my personality to post on jooksings.com Here they are. I love my adidas and my fleur de lis Jays NewEra Cap.

Camera Data:

Canon Eos 20D

17-40 mm

1/20sec

F/5.6

580EX and 430EX

What is Black Friday??

What is Black Friday? It is many things actually and it has many references such as the riot in Glasgow of 1919 due to industrial unrest, or on February 9, 1945, the largest air battle over Norway between the Germans and the British. Or because I’m supposed to write on Business, you may be referring to the Black Friday of September 24,1869 which lead to a financial crisis in the United States, which resulted in a national depression.

The Black Friday I’m referring to is the one which had recently passed. For all you Canadian readers, Black Friday is the term used in reference of the day after Thanksgiving in the United States. This day is traditionally marks the beginning of the holiday’s shopping season and is one of the busiest retail shopping days of the entire year! But why call it “Black Friday” one would ask? Well, traditionally in the retail sector, most retail business’ operate at a loss (denoted as “red” on their financial statements) throughout the entire year, namely from January to November, and it is only until the “Black Friday” begins and consequently, the holiday shopping season, where retailers begin to see the profits rolling in, thus changing their financials from red to black!

But given the new cyber age, I recently read an article from CNet News , that online retailers have been promoting the first Monday after thanksgiving as the “crucial day for online shopping” to spawn the holiday’s online shopping season, and hence the online equivalent shopping day as Black Friday. Will “Black Monday” become just as known as “Black Friday”? My guess is…..heck yaaaa!!

Owen

Business Editor

Michelle Kwan as an Ambassador of USA. Score 1 for Jooksings!

Michelle Kwan was recently named as a diplomatic goodwill ambassador of the USA. That is a huge accomplishment for her. She's already an established superstar in the sports world and this is something to be proud of. American politics aren't really my thing but this is something worth showcasing to the rest of us Jooksing's.

Congrats on all your achievements and we hope you all the best. Hopefully, she'll be a member of our website one day!! That'd be awesome.


via Reuters news

Possible new editor.

On Friday, I met up with my friend Silvana because she showed some interest in this project of mine. Jooksings.com is really a project that can only work with passionate people with passionate beliefs...or at least a real interest.(i'll take it!) She's also from calgary and now lives in toronto. She works for an airline and she gets the opportunity to travel quite a bit so i figured i'd throw out the idea that maybe she can write about her travel time and people would definitely get a kick out of that. I know i would. I mean...who wouldn't want to understand what it's like to be jetsetting across different countries all the time.

But besides the fact that Sil leads an interesting career..she's actually a really interesting person. Let me tell you a story. There was this one time in high school where i was skipping school quite a bit and i decided to go downtown. In grade 11, for whatever reason, the foodcourt in the mall downtown was a place where i could find and meet friends. Anyway...i went with my friend Daniel one time and he introduced me to these 2 chinese girls...Lillian and Silvana. haha. You have to understand that I lived in the South End of the city and hot asian chicks just didn't exist. Very few anyway. I was so nervous when i met them. Mainly cuz i thought Sil was the cutest girl i ever met. I didn't say much...but Daniel took one look at me and he saw right through me. The asshole told her that i liked her...right in front of me. I was embarrased...sigh...whatever...story of my life. Long story short...we became friends and we are still friends today. she can be distant because she's always on the go but she's awesome in person.

Hopefully she'll actually get involved in Jooksings.com I know that i'd really like that and she'd be nothing but a blessing to all you readers.

Happy 90th Birthday Vogue!

I am a self proclaimed magazine junkie. I would collect a lot more different publications if I had the means to. I hope to one day actually have my own library archive of my favorite magazines that I have collected over time along side with my art, design, architecture and fashion books



What do I love about them? First off, the glossy pages, the layout design sets certain apart from each other. I always take a note of different aspects but obviously paying close attention to the editorial features. Certain stylists out there do a better job than others, but they are all very talented. They set the tone. Along side with the best fashion photographers in the world makes these magazines unforgettable.

I can still flip thru my Vogue’s from 5 years ago. Every time I read them again, I’d pick up something new. Last week, vogue celebrated its 90th birthday. They have been in print from 1916-2006. That’s amazing.
Happy birthday Vogue! For being in print for 90 years and giving us true style and a publication to look up towards. Over the years, they have increased to different countries publications in China, Japan and Korea. I wish their sites however, were in English as well so us” jooksings” can read them.

Stefani

I love Nintendo Wii

After failing to get a PS3, i had to redeem myself and make sure that i get the nintendo wii. I'm telling you...this thing is awesome. I waited 8 hours in line to get the new wii. I drove by futureshop around 11PM and i saw that the lineup was already about 45 people deep. I was with my girlfriend at the time. I quickly drove her home and drove down to markville mall where the bestbuy and walmart were located. I drove by the bestbuy first and the lineup was at least 50 deep there too!! I had went into walmart earlier in the day to ask how many units they had and the employee said that there was over 50. I drove by the walmart and I saw that the line was only about 20 deep. I wanted to grab a bite to eat but after seeing the two lineups at bestbuy and futureshop i didn't want to risk it. Screw it. I'm waiting for this thing. I took some pictures and video of the lineups. After spending 500 dollars on the unit and some games i went home to try it out and let me tell you that this thing will blow your mind when you play it. It's super fun.

I haven't had this much fun playing videogames in a long time. It reminded me of my childhood and how i use to have so much fun playing videogames. and although this moment doesn't beat the first time i beat final fantasy for the nes...It ranks in the top 10 moments of my videogaming history. It's that fun.

Chris.

Blog no. 17

Boy, what a week. First my personal blog site will be up shortly, some serious decision making, and lastly, the release of the PS3 and the Nintendo Wii (Wee). The PS3 is THE console for gaming this year...heck, its got "Blue Ray' technology, and its twice the price of the previous consoles (PS2, Xbox,) that were initially released! But I've never really been into gaming (yes, you heard right...a chinese guy not into gaming!!) but this time, I really think I may be into the Wii. I mean, its more physically interactive, more people (non gamers) would be into it because the games are electronic activities like golf, bowling, boxing. What a way to settle a dispute with your friends. Strap on the controller's and go a few rounds!!!

Now my blog site. I've been thinking this whole week about what I had thought to be a very simple task. Which is the name of my blog site. I want the name to be a reflection of myself, even though I really like those blogs with really cool names, but as it is, I've chosen the domain for it to be my own name. What could indicate that the site is mine, than my own name. So check it out at www.owenma.com I welcome the feedback and comments to my future posts...thanks in advance.

Also this past week, myself and my partners have been contemplating about partaking in another new venture. I don't want to say exactly what it is yet, because we have not decided whether or not it is something we wish to do. This opportunity presents a few pros, and also a few cons. The cons however, are somethings that we do not have a lot of control over these. Now in life (and business) we are presented many opportunities (which is a good thing of course), but you must always ask yourself, if this
opportunity will fit you, given where you are currently at in life, what you may want to accomplish and are you able to commit 100% of your effort at it, especially when it is a start up. Its not the effort that concerns me, it is really the fact that putting in this extra time, presents an opportunity cost to something that the three of us are currently doing, and that time will be taken away from that. Another factor that I have been thinking of is what I've read from many successful entrepreneurs, which is that even though it is good to have many opportunities, it is also smart to know which ones to turn down. Because an opportunity can be a winner, but it may not be for you...but this is something that only you can decide for yourself. Decisions decisions....(sigh!), but I will let you know what we decide, either way, whatever decision we make, I do not believe we will regret it.

I'm not that crazy

I guess I'm not that crazy. I attempted to wait in line for the PS3 but i was about 25 hours too late. I had prepared a tent and warm clothing and chairs to sit and wait for ps3 but to my dissapointment, i started at 2pm on the 16th and it was waaay too late. When i got to my local futureshop, i had noticed that there were people lining up since the night before. I have to give my hats to them though...that is fucking crazy. I'm not that crazy. I just wanted the unit to fund my camcorder. I had even purchased the camcorder ready to film with it. anyway...it didn't work out. sigh....so i have to bust my ass on ebay just to fund it. Soon, jooksings.com will start to use video blogging. Keep an eye out.

Chris....sigh.

that wii better be available.

how to get a free camcorder and extra funding for your website. haha

I can't sleep. It's 3:50 AM. I must get to work on time tomorrow. I can't sleep because i keep thinking about buying a camcorder for Jooksings.com! I've been dying to buy one. I'm having the roughest time looking for one because i'm trying to stay under a $500 dollar budget. The one i settled on getting is a Canon Elura 100. With a video camera, i can do video blogs and this site would be a lot more interesting. I would like to find a web designer and perhaps even get a graphic designer for my brand. That shit costs money man.

Anyway...I love videogames and it's culture. I don't like the idea of some fat trailer trash playing videogames but i find the japanese culture very interesting. I watch youtube and read gamespot and they always show these videos of the japanese sleeping over 3 weeks on the street waiting for the first playstation 3 or nintendo wii to come out. They go crazy over the DS over in japan too. I'm not that crazy...or am i? What i am crazy about is making money right now. I want a new camcorder along with a website....that's about 500 plus maybe 1500 bucks for a website.

The real reason for me not sleeping is because i've been thinking about ways to buy a ps3 just to sell it for profit and fund my ventures...quickly. A ps3 this holiday season runs to 659.99 plus tax for 1 game console. There's no games included either. Jeez...anyway...ebay has people chopping ps3's for over 1900 dollars. I'm thinking cha ching. i'm going to buy a ps3 or two and chop it on ebay. I sell it for 2000 plus dollars and profit a minimum of 1200 for each unit. i can wait outside a store for a few hours just to make 1200 bucks....screw the unit. I'll just buy another one later when they are readily available. Right now...i just want a camcorder. My girl is getting me a nintendo wii already anyway. PS3 would be awesome..but whatever. If there's a lot of profit on that too...'ll chop that too. haha. It's not like i'm tight for the money...just wanna raise funds fast. So...i'm positive there's other asians out there that think the exact same way as me. But whatever...i've decided to make this an adventure for this blog. I'm going to make this adventure to the camcorder and cash public.

I plan to wait outside a store for the ps3. and just like those japanese crazies...i'm gonna camp out. I've never really done something like this before...but whatever. Please share in my adventure to the Camcorder.

BTW..i rather have a Canon GL2 or a Canon XL2 or i'll even take a XL1 if someone wants to give it up for the ps3.

Stockbroker Expert?

I recently had a conversation with my stock broker, but during my conversation, I had another call (or Instant message actually coincidently, it was Chris), which I had to put off until I was finished conversing with my broker. When I called (or IM'd Chris back), I apologized and told him I had been talking to my broker. And to me, his reaction was somewhat surprised (not the shocking surprise, just the “interested” surprise) that I had a stock broker. To me, I had the feeling that he thought I was a seasoned expert in trading stocks. But in reality, I am not, which is why I told him is the reason I have a stock broker. I had told him that I was always interested in the markets, but I just do not have the expertise, as I knew that stock trading has so many intricacies to trading effectively (yes, my degree in Economics IS useful, for those that believe it is not...long story, but maybe one day I will tell you about it) and that I would never be able to become an expert (I mean, I’m interested in making money, just not the precise details). You see, I started trading stocks with my own everyday trading account from my banking institution. Buying a stock here and there from those “tips” you get at dinner party, or drinks with friends and associates. But, as most experiences go, I was not making the fortunes I thought I would be making (I mean who isn't kicking themselves for just coughing up that $100/share for Google). So, I thought to get into the game and learn some more about trading without losing my shirt, I thought it was best that I find a trusted professional who knows what is going on. My track record with my broker has been pretty good so far. Since transferring my fledging stock portfolio to my broker’s care, and watchful eye, he has doubled its value in only 12mths (knock on wood..just kidding Gord)!

Where am I going with this story you are asking. It’s simple. To be successful in business, you must not be afraid to seek out the help of professionals in that particular field of interest. I mean, you cannot build a building (if you are like me, let alone a garden shed) without a credible experienced individual guiding you with their knowledge. But at the same time, you can not be as naive as to not knowing some basics (as I know I do not need a titanium enforced garden shed to store my $100 lawn mower). With business, there is always a need for due diligence, but at the same time, a professional trusted opinion will help you go further. Too often, I see (and have experienced personally) some not so positive outcomes because a person thinks they can “do it themselves.” As a jooksing, I have (and maybe most of you fellow jooksings have heard this as well) heard this my whole life. “Why would you get someone to do it for you, you can do it yourself, and save the money.” In my case with my beginnings of stock trading…it actually cost me more to do it myself. Think about this. Which business’ (or even people) do you know of that are successful and at the same time, do everything themselves? As a someone who has heard a lot the remarks that I should do things myself, I (and my partners) am constantly catching myself in situations where I need to let those thoughts go. And as a jooksing, it is not an easy task to do, but I feel I will be better off in the long run for doing so.

P.S. Chris, your Grade 4 nightmare sounds just like mine! Except I didn't get my glasses until Grade 9. I guess I'm the millionth and one story. Boy, memories of growing up in the south of Calgary.

Owen
Business Editor

The Bag Bra.

Okay...usually i leave all things fashion for stefani to talk about but I have to step in on this one. I've been dying to blog about this bra that I saw on Reuters.com. Reuters is a very respectable website for news so i just had to laugh when i saw this product.

Like all jooksings out there...when i see this stuff on the internet and/or tv...you have to sometimes just be a little embarrassed at all these dumb ideas that come out of asian minds. Azn pride just doesn't work in this situation.

I gotta give it to the inventor though...way to make use of fashion. The part that really makes me scratch my head though is the fact that "Triumph", the wonderbra of asia, uses french bread to showcase the bag. I was thinking...you couldn't fit some make-up or even a freakin playstation 3 in there for example? you just thought that french bread that produces crumbs was a much better example of the everyday use an asian woman would use it for. What kind of woman like bread crumbs in her bra? So that's what the ladies in japan do...ahh...sooo....

Crazy man...crazy.

Chris
Editor in chief - Jooksings.com

Grade 4 nightmare

In Grade 4 I had a very memorable time. My school was full of culture and there was chinese, black, brown, white kids everywhere. The community was just known for it's diversity. In the beginning of the year I looked forward to seeing this girl named Kelly Roncin. I loved this girl. She was this sweet girl whom i walked to school with. I remember i used to carry her home and we even held hands a couple times. That's right baby..grade 4 baby...grade 4. (stretch arms)

Transformers was the hottest toy and I had collected quite a few over the years. I owned Optimus Prime, bumblebee, Starscream, Grimlock and Soundwave. Come on....those are some sick transformers! I even got a hold of my first gadget...the dictaphone. I traded Jazz ( a transformer that was a porsche) for the dictaphone and even recorded my teachers lesson. Of course...I thought the dictaphone could record the whole class. Limitations of this new technology were quickly discovered. The damn thing started to beep after 10 minutes.
That year i even learned how to play 4 square. It's this playground game that you play with a rubber ball.
Grade 4 started out great!

Cut to December. My Dad comes home one day and tells us that he found a new job and we'd have to move to the south end of the city. I was excited at first...then as the days grew closer to moving...i felt scared. I remember crying one day because i had to face for the first time in my life...loss. I was leaving this house...this house where i have had so many great memories...gone. No more playing in the backyard with the sprinkler...no more jumping down the stairs in which took years to perfect...no more climbing the kitchen counter to steal chocolate bars.

My dad talked to me so i felt better. Then i went to my last day of school before my transfer.
I cried so much because i was no longer able to see these friends ever again. I could no longer walk the love of my life home from school, i could no longer sit at my desk in which i kept my lucky pencils in, i could no longer play by the bike racks which i grew so accustomed to. School that day was not fun at all. My parents came to pick me up that day and I remember seeing Kelly in the back window...walking home by herself. My parents didn't stop the car. We drove off into our new life.

If you live in calgary, you know that when you live in the south, it's predominantly white and you just have to live with it cuz the closest school with more than 1 asian in your classroom is downtown. Anyway...after the christmas holiday was the first day of school. Holy shit! This was a shock for me. In grade 4, i would experience my first taste of racism. What the hell does chink mean? Pots don't sound like ching chang chong when i throw them down the steps...what the hell is this guy talking about?! I don't know....but i don't like it. I tried to make friends with these kids but this was not easy for me. The only people that accepted me was the teacher and the principal. They expected that i act like everybody else...but they didn't understand. I just know they meant well. I had to take the school bus like all the other kids and let me tell you right now...being the only asian kid in a school bus isn't good news. Who knew that being asian was going to be this tough. I spoke the same language as them. I was wearing the same clothes as them. I quickly found out that i wasn't the same. I no longer had any friends to play with in the playground. I definitely didn't get to hang out with these hot white girls.( i knew how to distinguish hot girls in grade 4) I was picked on and I was humiliated daily.

As if my year wasn't going downhill enough that year...In march, my mom figured out that i now required to wear glasses. Holy fuck. First...i'm the first asian in the school...now i'm the first asian to wear glasses. Just kill me now i thought. I went through so many lonely recesses and lunch periods and it wasn't till grade 8 that my life started to change.

Whew!! I'm just gonna stop there. I'm actually a happy person now. lol. Grade 4 was a nightmare..that's all i have to say for now. I'll tell you about Grade 8 another day. My life has changed drastically since then and I just wanted to share a part of my life with you. I know that there must be a million stories just like mine from other jooksings as well. I'd love to hear them from you. Post a comment or email me at chris@jooksings.com

Chris
Life editor

So I have a couple friends that are going to HK this week. One is already there. The others are staying there for an entire month.

I really really envy them! My brother was there all summer doing an exchange for his school program, and seeing his pictures really made me want to go there. Considering I haven’t been back since, sigh…ages ago, shortly after the China take over in 1997.

So why else do I want to go there? Other than the obvious of Shopping galore…Hong Kong is all about the lights, the shopping and the food. All things I love. I was thinking to myself that this time, when I go I want to engage myself in the culture.

So I can’t wait to check out Gucci, as they opened their largest 11, 000 square foot flag ship store in Hong Kong yesterday! They also held a savvy fashion show and party for Hong Kong's fashion elite. This store is Uber Cool looking, located in the Landmark shopping complex in district called “Central” of Hong Kong. It is also their 85th anniversary this year, so opening this huge store also marks another great milestone for them. One of the things that I love about fashion is how it marries art, architecture, design and culture. It has such a strong influence with everything else. For example; store design and architecture/merchandising. All these aspects ties in these mega brands together.

The building looks great photographed primarily due to the fact that it consists of giant prism cubes. Designed by architect James Carpenter it seems to leave a warming glow on its surroundings. Word has it the façade of the building designed by Nancy Lorenz draws inspiration from bamboo. Well for those of you who don’t know, Bamboo is one Gucci’s icons for designs. Most of their shoes, handbags, prints from time to time feature bamboo. But in this case, I guess the bamboo ties in so well and would have relevance to the Chinese in Hong Kong.

Stefani

xoxoxo

The flagship store of Holt Renfrew of Bloor Street in Toronto is going to be open until 10:00 pm tonight (November 7, 2006). Customers will be able to be the first to shop for the holidays and see what has been hidden behind their windows for several weeks.

Their mighty talented and creative visual merchandising team has been working hard to put this up for everyone else to enjoy. Remember, they have to work non store hours with an array of materials. They are indeed the most innovative in window display and design. But, COM’ on now, it is Holt Renfrew.

I don’t know if it’s only me, but I always notice all the materials and objects they use in their windows. How they create fake doors, hinges to make drawers appear 3d out of the wall. Or their family of corrugated cardboard dogs they had 2 summers ago. Last month, their theme was a launch of Ralph Lauren Men’s wear. They had mannequins dressed in nothing else but a horse “polo” club theme. Over sized Balenciaga coats and hats plus tails. Yes, tails. The sort of reminded me of Elizabeth Hurley’s Project Catwalk. One of the contestants Ricardo, made a body hugging cat suit in black, it was sexy but had a tail coming out of it. Julian MacDonald hated it.

Well Anyways, I am going to go and check out what the fuss and rant is about and tell your more about it later. Stay tuned for what’s behind their windows. I really wonder what they are going to do. Gold, silver, Trees, fireplaces we have seen it all. Hum…….

I always love their award winning windows; they are magical and really tell a story behind it.

Stay tuned for pictures and more tomorrow. Thanks for reading.

Stefani

Xoxoxo

Contrast.

Red, Black and white is a frequently sighted color combination for fall 2006 collections. We’ve seen it from haute couture to street wear labels like Diesel. Designers for this current season have placed their bid on these bold colors. It’s easy to wear, chic and modern.

Accessories I love this Fall 2006

One of my favorite things this season is the red lipstick. I love seeing it on other people.

Second, this season is my black nail polish. I am still wearing my “Lincoln Park after dark” by OPI from last season fall 2005. But it still works like a charm. It’s not totally black; it’s got a tad of purple in it, which makes it great.

This fall Chanel has come out with a black nail polish (Which, by the way has been sold out for weeks and you have to be on waiting list for)

The sweater dress; you throw it over leggings and boots and you’re out the door. It’s a no fuss easy to wear outfit. Zara currently has these thick chunky knit sweaters for $ 49 a pop. They also have thinner versions, which come v-neck or turtle neck, these are great so you don’t boil inside your office.

The waist cinch belt is great to update a tired blazer or an empire dress. Urban outfitters, currently has a variety in white and black. For the splurge, head over to Holt Renfrew were you could snatch up their private label version for $ 98.

The patent shoe is great. And comes in an array of colors this season. Once again, I like the red, and black. All of the shoe stores have their own version at various prices.

These colors are going to follow through out the holiday season. Red & White are known Christmas colors, but paired with black spins some modern chic feel into it. This Holiday 2006, throw in some black to punch up some home décor. Deck holiday decorating with the inspiration color palette shown below.

We’ve seen pink, orange and even purple—colors which have tried to break into the holiday seasonal market with little success. This bold contrasting contemporary combo would sure bring more mass appeal to the masses and to “jooksings”. For Christmas I would mix it up with some Japanese hand thrown pottery and host a chic festive soirée. Don’t forget to mix texture with luxury and personal charm.

One of the best-designed window designs in retail is at Holt Renfrew. They are going to reveal their “magic” and their holiday visual merchandising November 7^th. Let’s wait and see what they have instilled for us public. I have a feeling it’s going to be magical and filled with glitter and gold.

Go ahead, look around, be creative and let’s start decorating for the holidays.

Stefani

Fashion Editor

I wanted to talk about Stefani. You see, Stefani is a great gal. I don't know how else to say it. She just doesn't know her own skill level...and she's not confident enough. I know that she has great dreams and aspirations and all she needs is a great vehicle.
She tends to frustrate me sometimes by not being clear in her life. I've been hearing her bitch about issues for the past 3 years. They always seem to be the same thing...lack of friends, lack of a good guy, and an abundance of backstabbing people. Trust me...it's crazy talking to her and because i care, i get frustrated too. In anycase, I can be a little tough on her at times but it's because I think I see something that even she can't see. I believe in her. So...I hope that all of you readers can read her articles and understands that it comes from her heart. Enjoy.

BTW, Are there any other cool jooksings that live from missisauga/oakville/brampton area?? Hustle and move to Toronto Steffy...GEEZ.

I've been thinking about abandoning Blogger/blogspot because it's actually really annoying. I've had some problems with it and ppl over there just don't respond to my questions. If you googled jooksings you'd know. Blogger help is non existent.

In anycase, I've secured hosting so you should see a major upgrade to this blog soon.

Chris.

Why I work on my own

Some of the readers may be wondering why I decided to leave the security and potential high earnings associated with working for a large corporation. I mean, my parents came over to this country with a few hundred dollars in their pocket to make sure that their children would have opportunities such as job security. I sometimes still question that myself when I see some of my peers who are now beginning to reap the rewards of from paying their dues at these large companies. I mean, they work only Monday to Friday 9 to 5 (so they can go for Saturday or Sunday morning dim sum with the whole family) are guaranteed 2 weeks vacation out of the year (so they go visit family abroad and have morning dim sum with them everyday while on vacation), they get dental benefits, and are guaranteed a pay raise of at least 3% every year and to top it off, most even get a pension plan with where they work. Now compare that now to working at least 12 hours a day (I don’t care what anyone says, on your first venture, you are going to be working a minimum of 25 hours a day, 8 days a week), guaranteed to not have any vacation time (so where’s the time for your dim sum…McDonalds it is or generic brand instant noodles if you’re a little less westernized!), putting off the dentist until you have extra money, a pay raise…how about even getting a pay cheque, because you have to pay your rent and staff first (hence more McDonalds or Generic brand instant noodles), and a pension, you only get a retirement fund when you get your business profitable enough to sell, but until that time comes, everyday is an uphill battle. Sure there is also “stress” with a job, but they never have to worry that if a deal or sale does not go through, they still get a pay cheque at end of the week. So what is so wrong with a job? The answer, is nothing. But for myself, those are the very things that scare me about “getting a job” (Don’t get me wrong, there are many things that is scary about being an entrepreneur also, but we can get into that at a later time).

The decision to really follow the path of an entrepreneur was that there is a certain desire I found within myself that my life is in my own control by being an entrepreneur. By being in control, I’m referring to that fact that I would never be subject to a company downsizing, and losing my job. My ability to advance, and earn more money is not in the fate of someone else’s opinion of me or my work ethic. If I put in the extra effort, my reward is not merely an extra time and a half of pay (which after taxes, amounts to maybe a dinner and a movie) or banking overtime hours for some extra time off. There is also the fact that there is a degree of flexibility when you own your own business. For example, if an emergency situation arises (such as family emergency’s) you are able to really put what’s important to you first. You do not need to worry about “taking too much time off” because you will be in trouble at work. You do not need to ask permission to be with a loved one in their time of need.

Another thing, despite that we are jooksing, we are still very much truly “Chinese”, it has been engrained in our being that we must care for our parents when they get older. Sure, we may not all be living in the same house together (thank the god they came to Canada!) but we must still make sure they are financially cared for, have a roof over their heads (or else they will be living with you FOREVER), make sure they can go have dim sum whenever they want and be their personal driver wherever they want to go (which is usually to a friends place to play Mah Jong, where oddly enough, our parents have their own drivers licenses…and their own cars!) After all, life is really about the ones that matter most in your life, and ultimately, a job in my opinion should not be a deciding factor to those moments.

So that is the main inspiration for me to pursue the life of an entrepreneur. The desire to take my life in my own control, and to be able to have some flexibility in life for the things that really matter to you! And yes, paying for a second mortgage, and being your parents personal driver is really one of them! But don’t worry, the positives of this is that when you have children, your baby sitter is free! Your parents would dis-own you if you sent their grandchildren to a day care!

Owen Ma.

The Modern Jooksing Businessman