Blog Archives - oblivious nerd girlhood chronicles

Oblivious hearts Small Business Saturday!

11/27/2015

Small Business Saturday is this weekend. In honor of this shopping day, I'd like to highlight a few folks and their small businesses! What are your favorite shops? Let me know!

Genevieve Santos - Le Petit Elephant

Genevieve is an amazing artist that I can't speak enough about. She is having a Black Friday Sale on her site that is going on throughout the weekend. For folks who are in Los Angeles, Genevieve will be in town at Leanna Lin's Wonderland for the We Heart Eagle Rock Block Party for Live Drawing & Pop-Up Shop. You can pick up holiday ornaments, Christmas cards, and holiday tags!

A photo posted by Genevieve Santos (@lepetitelefant) on Nov 26, 2015 at 11:03pm PST

Cozy Reverie

Amy Watkins has the distinct honor of being my first Oblivious Interview! Her shop Cozy Reverie has several things that you can pick up for the holidays! Amy's store has a discount code below that you can use on purchases on her society6 shop!Amy is also releasing her second book this holiday season! Reindeer Potluck is available for pre-order via her etsy store today! Who knew Reindeer's had potlucks before they head out with Santa!

A photo posted by #CozyReverieStyle (@shopcozyreverie) on Nov 27, 2015 at 9:55am PST

Espacio 1839 - Imix Bookstore

Back in the day Imix Bookstore in Eagle Rock was my go to indie bookstore. When they closed up shop in Eagle Rock I was super bummed. However thankfully they have since been housed in Espacio 1839 in Boyle Heights! The space holds Imix Bookstore, Radio Sombra, and other shops!

A photo posted by Espacio 1839 (@espacio1839) on Nov 27, 2015 at 11:55am PST

Native Sol

Native Sol is an awesome artist who makes beautiful handmade pieces of jewelry. Her shop is based out of Long Beach (433 E. Broadway Long Beach, CA 90802 ). I love how she infuses batik fabrics into a lot of her pieces. If you are out in the South Bay, definitely check out her space!

A photo posted by Native Sol (@nativesol) on Nov 27, 2015 at 12:26pm PST

There is a sense of joy in giving gifts to our loved ones. I hope you all are able to find awesome things to share with those you love!

#NailalasThanksgiving

11/26/2015

I am grateful for @waxstyles & this math field day medal. Mike supports me in all my crazy adventures. Even when I'm coughing up a lung, he's by my side when we take a picture with Chewie, drives us to the 805 for thanksgiving, & enjoys me playing 2chainz in the room off my laptop since internet is shitty & this is one of 10 albums I have on this computer. Thank you for being my partner in #coloryourtroublesaway & for being my hero. #nailalasthanksgiving

A photo posted by Oblivious Nerd Girl (@obliviousnerdgrl) on Nov 26, 2015 at 12:16am PST

In honor of this holiday I'll be posting about what I'm grateful and thankful for on Instagram throughout the day with the hashtag #NailalasThanksgiving. Whether you celebrate Thanksgiving or Thankstaking I hope you have a day full of food, family, and friends. And if you have to spend it with family that you don't want to talk to, may there be enough alcoholic beverages to get you through the day. Or Adele. May Adele get you through your potentially problematic Thanksgiving meal.

I am grateful for my bbc family. this group of friends who are now family have been there through the highs & lows. Thank you for being my ride or die fam #nailalasthanksgiving

A photo posted by Oblivious Nerd Girl (@obliviousnerdgrl) on Nov 26, 2015 at 9:34am PST

Happy Thanksgiving!

#ThanksgivingWithFilipinoFamilies

11/24/2015

#ThanksgivingWithFilipinoFamilies This is a hashtag on twitter that I had too much fun with this morning. My mind is already thinking about Turkey day. Good luck to everyone this weekend. May we all survive the start of the holiday season!

When you hear your name dropped while the titas tsismis #ThanksgivingWithFilipinoFamilies pic.twitter.com/tbAYGZ8vh4
— Lainey (@OblivNerdGirl) November 24, 2015

When you can't start eating b/c Lola won't say grace until EVERYONE gets there #ThanksgivingWithFilipinoFamilies pic.twitter.com/oMk07hfaWZ
— Lainey (@OblivNerdGirl) November 24, 2015

After that 2nd plate of lechon & pancit #ThanksgivingWithFilipinoFamilies pic.twitter.com/LKrYoufCgs
— Lainey (@OblivNerdGirl) November 24, 2015

Diggin' Sunday & Color Your Trobles Away

11/23/2015

From 2006-2010 Diggin' Sunday was a monthly event that happened at Tribal Cafe. It was a chill spot where folks could spin a chill set on a lazy sunday. Mike and I spent many Sundays at Tribal Cafe, enjoying adobo sandwiches and my favorite watermelon juice from Tribal's extensive menu. Friends became family on those many Sundays.

While Diggin' Sunday has been on hiatus, other community members have found a home at Tribal Cafe. Whenever we drive by it always seems to have some band or open mic going on in the space. Many thanks to Joshua Jose, who keeps it moving over there at Tribal.

I can thank Facebook for inspiring this Diggin' Sunday and Color Your Troubles Away collaboration. Thanks to Facebook's "Memories" feature the Diggin' Sunday flyer for the final session came up in my feed. It sparked a thread that has lead to this reunion!

On December 6th, from 3-7pm, join us at Tribal Cafe (1651 W Temple St, Los Angeles, CA 90026) for music provided by Diggin' Sunday and coloring provided by Color Your Troubles Away. If you feel like spinning a few records, bring them and let us know! If you feel like coloring come by with your pens, pencils, coloring books, and good vibes. As always we will also be providing folks with coloring sheets and crayons, markers, etc, however we encourage folks to bring their own supplies! And if you want to simply chill with folks, come by as well!

RSVP here: Diggin' Sunday & Color Your Troubles Away

Oblivious meets Tani Ikeda

11/18/2015

In 2007 I was starting my 2nd and final year of grad school. It was also the year I met Tani Ikeda. If memory serves me right, Tani was one of Tuesday Night Cafe's first interns. Since then Tani has gone on to found imMEDIAte Justice, a non-profit agency that puts cameras in the hands of girls and women to tell their own stories. Tani is also an amazingly talented director and photographer.

For Sexual Assault Awareness month this past April, Tani created #SurvivorLoveLetter. A truly inspiring campaign and practice in self love for all those who are survivors of sexual assault. Tani's father wrote her a letter and it was so touching and beautiful that it brought me and others to tears.

Tani is rad. She is doing amazing things and I can't wait for you all to check out her Oblivious Interview!

Oblivious meets Tani Ikeda.

Mike Is My Hero & He Needs Our Help

11/15/2015

There couldn't be Oblivious Nerd Girl without the help of a special someone. The one that I've called "Strawberry Farm Boy," regrammed as "@Waxstyles," and who helps produce Lessons From Lola. There are many "Mike's" in my life, but only one that I call husband. And this husband does tireless work on ending Veteran's homelessness through United Way.

United Way's annual Home Walk Los Angeles is this Saturday, November 21st. Mike could use your help with his fundraising for Home Walk. If you need a reason to donate how about my top five reasons to donate to Mike's campaign?

5. Mike is silly.

Mike can always find the humor in things. From making silly puns to pretending to rock a sweater for a 4 year old toddler. He is silly when you least expect it.

4. Mike cares about our community

We live in Historic-Filipinotown and Mike is always thinking about ways to improve our local community. We have lived in Historic-Filipinotown since 2007 and worked/volunteered for several Filipino American non-profits in the area. He inspires me to do better.

Recently there has been a rise in homeless camps in our neighborhood. The work that Mike does with United Way directly impacts our community and all the homeless communities in Los Angeles and Los Angeles County.

3. Mike hearts sea otters

Sea otters are Mike's favorite animal. When he was a kid he wrote a report about sea otters where he explained why they are his favorite animal. Can you imagine little kid Mike reading Weekly Reader and then being so enamored with these mini sea bears he would write a report about them? That's adorable.

Whenever we drive along the coast to Monterey we are always on the look for sea otters. I am now trained to hear them using rocks to crack open shells. Plus they hold hands when they sleep. Come on....That's too cute!

2. Mike hearts the children

Mike is a big kid which is why mini humans aka childrens love him. Children are also mesmerized by his beard. Mike is an Asian American unicorn since he can grow a full beard. Children seem to acknowledge this by staring at him and wondering how that Asian guy has such a full and lush beard. Mike is also down to be silly with his nephew Mikey. Yes the mini human in this picture who is mesmerized by Mike's beard. Yes I will post pictures of adorable children to get you to donate!

1. Mike believes it is not fair that people do not have a home.

At the end of the day Mike believes that it is not fair that people do not have a home. It's why he works long hours, crunches data, and volunteers for the homeless count every year.

Mike is my hero & he needs our help. Instead of getting that cup of coffee from your favorite red cup shop, why not donate that $5, $10, $15, or $20 to Strawberry Farm Boy aka Waxstyles aka my husband who works on this issue day in and day out.

Click on the awesome picture of Mike watching a solar eclipse in a Lisa Frank frame. It'll direct you to Mike's fundraising page. Or you can click on the many photos of Mike or hyperlinks in this post. Many oblivious thank yous for your donation!

Oblivious meets Alice Wong

11/9/2015

I watch a lot of tv. Thankfully there are other nerds out there who watch tv too. We've found each other on twitter and it makes me feel like I'm not alone when I'm consuming massive amounts of pop culture. Alice Wong aka @SFdirewolf live tweets and covers several tv shows for @NerdsOfColor. Whenever I'm watching The Walking Dead I use the AMC hashtags as well as the Nerds of Color hashtags. I'm looking forward to this fall so I can rejoin the Nerds of Color pop culture conversations!

Beyond pop culture talk and tweets, Alice is founded the Disability Visibility Project which works with StoryCorps to take down the oral histories of folks of various backgrounds with disabilities. Many thanks to Alice for doing this Oblivious Interview!

Oblivious meets Alice Wong

Oblivious meets Jenn Santos Estacio

11/4/2015

In the early 2000s Jenn and I were Festival of Philippine Arts and Culture community builders who put a lot of time, energy, and sometimes tears (on my end, not sure about hers) into the festival! Besides her work with FPAC and FilAm Arts she is also blogs at A Bite of Soul where she shares about her delicious foodie and travel adventures! In honor of FPAC coming up this Saturday, I'm excited to share this interview with Jenn!

Oblivious meets Jenn Santos Estacio

Oblivious meets Kristina Wong

11/2/2015

Photo credit - Tom Fowler

When I was in college I did an internship with TeAda Productions. Kristina Wong was one of the people who supervised me. I was a wide eyed college student taking in all I could at this arts organization. As years progressed I would run into Kristina at Tuesday Night Cafe and other Asian American events around Los Angeles. Her work always wows me. I am so honored that she did this Oblivious Interview. And I'll give her a pass for her answer to the Wu-Tang question!

You can check out Kristina in action in her show 'Wong Street Journal' at REDCAT running from Nov 12-15th. Buy Tix Here: Wong Street Journal at REDCAT

Follow Kristina Wong on Facebook (iloveKristinaWong), Twitter (@mskristinawong), and Instagram (@mskristinawong). Check out her website for more info on her shows and dates! (KristinaWong.com). Folks should definitely check out her The Wong Street Journal at REDCAT this November!

Oblivious meets Kristina Wong