Tag: virginia

Virginia is the worst place in the country to drive

~ dannyhong ~ Leave a comment
Whatever a traffic sign estimates in Virginia, assume it to be double, for accuracy.

Typically, whenever I visit my old stomping grounds, I fly into whichever Northern Virginia airport has the most availability (usually DCA), and then I’m at the mercy of whomever is willing to give me rides or let me borrow cars, in order to do my business or get from point A to B on my own volition.

Over the span of the last year or so, be it for a myriad of circumstances, I’ve grown really weary over the notion of traveling in and out of the greater Washington D.C. area airports.  Old convention doesn’t seem to apply like it used to.  I honestly can’t remember the last time I had a trip where I didn’t get tragically locked in place in some leg of my trip.  Demand to or from D.C. is unpredictable and completely without logic, and I’ve had flights that looked open fill up at the drop of a hat due to weather, or some giant student group being unaccounted for until it was time to board the plane.

Needless to say, I took an opportunity to try something new during my last visit up to Virginia, because in theory it seemed like a very good idea: fly into Richmond, pick up rental car, drive to NOVA, Charlottesville, NOVA, Richmond, and leave from Richmond.  Richmond has direct flights to and from Atlanta, is a smaller airport with a smaller demand to and from Atlanta, and with a rental car, I wouldn’t have to inconvenience anyone for rides, or take time away from them.

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Preparing for the demise of Tysons Corner

~ dannyhong ~ Leave a comment

Impetus: May 27, 2014 is the estimated date in which the DC Metro Silver Line opens up the route to Tysons Corner.

Knee-jerk reaction: May 27, 2014 is the estimated date in which Tysons Corner begins its new identity as the second coming of Springfield Mall.

In other words, this is, whether people realize it or not, terrible, terrible news for Tysons Corner, and the surrounding McLean area.  A lot of people don’t want to admit it, because it insinuates a hint of racial bias, profiling and other negative connotations, but the demise of Springfield Mall and the commercial death of all surrounding area coincides perfectly with the extension of the blue line and creation of the Springfield-Franconia Metro stop.  Like Cinderella’s glass fucking slipper.

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I don’t mean this in the long run

~ dannyhong ~ Leave a comment

But right now, I kind of hate my family.  I kind of hate all Koreans for that matter.  The feeling will obviously eventually subside, and we’ll all find some sort of compromise to living again eventually, but at this very moment, I’m kind of pissed off at life, and I have only my family to thank for that.

Does this make me sound selfish?  Yeah sure, but I’m coming to the conclusion to a potential personal belief that everyone needs to have some selfish in them in order to prevent themselves from missing out on well, life.

During the tail end of my latest miserable visit up to Northern Virginia, the place where I grew up and now the place I dread going to more than jury duty or a workload of 380+ slide PowerPoints, the family was having another argument.  Typical Korean story bullshit, but then my mom pipes in that she now “gets” why the grandparents in Korean dramas are always pining for themselves to finally just die, so that they could alleviate the burden of their existence of their struggling children.

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There are times when I resent being Korean

~ dannyhong ~ Leave a comment

Sometimes I wish my parents would go back to Korea, just so they could stop using their inability to have learned competent basic English as an excuse to be irresponsible and push the burden of their woes onto my sister and I. It sounds terrible, but I sometimes believe that if the monumental, albeit imaginary, language and cultural barrier didn’t stand in front of them, my parents might be able to take care of their own bullshit as opposed to heaping the responsibilities onto their children.

I understand the value of family and that we’re all supposed to be there for one another unconditionally, but in order for things to genuinely have any remote shot at success, all lines of communication must be open, and there has to be a mutual respect and acceptance that exists from all parties involved. I have no problem with helping my family or other people in general, because I like to imagine myself as a fairly decent person at the core, but it gets to a point where people that people who don’t help themselves are beyond any external help. That’s how I feel about my family sometimes, and it makes me feel genuinely lousy.

The story goes like this: Second-generation Koreans emigrate to the United States to do some sort of blue-collar work, whether it’s something agricultural or something more mundane like dry cleaning or operating a liquor store. I can’t say that I necessarily understand the rationale behind it, but often times the justification is “for the kids,” and often times “to have a better life.” The third generation of Koreans are essentially raised as Americans with as much Korean ideals as they are forcibly engrained with. In the perfect ending to this story, they become successful and make a boatload of money to where they can support their aging parents through the remainder of their lives as well as sustaining themselves and produce the next generation and sustain them too, with hopes that they will repeat the cycle, however theoretically from a higher starting point.

But the world ain’t perfect, and we live in reality. There aren’t nearly enough happy endings.

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I don’t think I like this place anymore

~ dannyhong ~ Leave a comment

I’ve seen this sign countless times in my life, but I never really thought about it until today. Visually, it’s essentially a can with a bite taken out it. A can. An aluminum one, I’m presuming, no less. There’s also a piece of paper or something behind it, but the focal point of it is still a can, with a bite taken out of it.

Who the hell would take a bite of a can? I don’t understand it. I also don’t understand how such a shoddy display of “art” is the de facto visual representation of attempting to discourage people from littering.

The message really being sent is “we understand that that aluminum can probably did not taste vey good in that massive bite you took, Mr. Sasquatch, but please don’t haphazardly toss it aside.”

But this was one of the fluffier thoughts going through my head this weekend. Otherwise, it’s been a fairly trying and difficult few days, and I can’t really sleep right now, because all I really feel is this gloomy disappointed feeling. Naturally, out of courtesy to those who wish to look/”borrow” pictures or see what lame attempts at humor I make next, I’ll keep the more emo-y words behind a courtesy jump, for all six of you that actually read what I write.

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YES!  YES!  YES!  YES!

~ dannyhong ~ Leave a comment

This is how I feel when I read this story.

Basically, when I came across the story about these retard teenagers who went around grocery stores and filmed themselves pretending to trip, flop and flail to the ground while holding gallon containers of milk or other beverages, resulting in massive messes and startled people, I had one of those aw, what the fuck, what is the world coming to, I hate people, humanity is doomed feelings.  It’s not funny, it’s a waste of perfectly good food, and it puts innocent strangers at risk of getting dirtied or possibly slipping themselves.  Worst of all, I didn’t actually think that these guys would get reprimanded for their actions, and would probably keep on doing it, and worse yet, influence other retard trolls to do it too.

The fact that these three worthless fucks are being nailed with criminal charges for destruction of property and disorderly conduct makes me happier than when I see a single driver actually getting caught and pulled over in the HOV lane.  The faith in humanity gauge rises a little bit, upon hearing this news.  I hope their haji father/uncle goes all old country on them and beats the living shit out of them too, for having now becoming criminals.

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I’ve been in a funk lately

~ dannyhong ~ Leave a comment

And I’ve got a pretty short fuse, and just about everything in the world is agitating me lately.

I could go into further detail, but the effort required to formulate my thoughts into words to describe how much work is sucking lately, and how much it sucks to think about what it’s going to be like the next time go up to Virginia to visit family just seems so exasperating.

It’s also one of those periods of time when I feel kind of isolated from the world, and that there’s really nobody around that I feel comfortable speaking with who’s remotely available to speak with when I need it.

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