Blog #4

 Blog #4

        It's Thanksgiving holiday which means shopping and eating. I survived Black Friday by sleeping in and going grocery shopping with my mum. Black Friday never really appealed to me. I wouldn't want to wait outside in the cold for hours just to grab the most "doorbuster" deal. I would prefer shopping online. I did find myself looking through websites to see what kind of deals they had online, though I made sure to stay away  from the "add to cart" and "checkout" button. Going through this challenge kind of changed my perspective on shopping. I am more aware of those who buy excessively and I always wonder if those purchased items are items of necessity. There was this time when I was talking to my friend about the holidays. She told me that she was looking for a job because her bank account was depleting. She told me that she would buy an item or two every single week. She thought that it wasn't much at the time, but it added up. She then said that she was going to stop spending and save as much as she can because she wanted to buy presents for her boyfriend for Christmas. I was relieved that she realized about her spending habit problem and that she was doing something about it. Moreover, I began noticing the spending habits of my other friend. Let's name this other friend as Monica. I would always see Monica post up pictures on Instagram of the things she purchased online that week. There was this one time where my other friend told me that Monica's spending habits influenced her to spend more money and buy more clothes. I would go into Monica's room and her  closet is packed with clothes with no room to breath. I've also heard stories about people buying all these expensive clothing and never end up wearing them. It bothers me to hear stories like that. Why can't they save their money instead of spending it on things that they're not even going to use?       

           Perhaps it's the different cultures that we were all brought up in. In the article, "The Ao Dai Goes Global: How International Influences and Female Entrepreneurs Have Shaped Vietnam's 'National Costume.'", it talks about the "Ao Dai" and how its meaning is interpreted in it's home country and on a global scale. Even though the Ao Dai is a traditional Vietnamese costume, it's meaning has been altered throughout the years because of globalization. I've also seen another example of this at the clothing store, Cotton On.

Cotton On is an Australian based store that has recently expanded to the United States. When I first found out that there was a Cotton On in my local more, I was estatic. When I was younger, Cotton On seemed to me like a store with expensive clothes. It was a store that I wasn't able to shop at yet because I was still young and had no money. It seemed classy to me. I would always go inside and admire their clothes. Comparing the Australian Cotton On and the Cotton On in the States, the Cotton On in America has decreased in value. In other words, it's not as classy as I remembered it was. There are so many sales going on all the time, and because there are so many sales going on, it's always a mess in there. However, the quality of the clothing is still great. In the article, " Cotton On Creates 500 jobs in Geelong", the author stated that "Cotton On now has 1000 retail stores in 11 countries, 650 of which are located in Australia...Mr Baillieu said..."It's a global business, it's a fresh business, it's a cutting edge business and it's a successful business," he told reporters in Geelong. "The company is going to grow and there will be more jobs, more business here from this area."" I think that it's great that Cotton On is expanding internationally. They're bringing the Australian culture to the States. The one thing that I don't like is how the brand is being represented in the States.

- Nicky Lei

Inside Source

• "The Ao Dai Goes Global: How International Influences and Female Entrepreneurs Have Shaped Vietnam's "National Costume." Reorienting Fashion.

Outside Source

•   "Cotton On Creates 500 Jobs in Geelong." The Australian. Theaustralian.com.au, 16 Nov. 2012. Web. .

Kenny Saechao

Be Green Blog #4

  Black Friday! CHEAP STUFF ! WHOO ! I thought really long and hard about this green challenge and what it meant in terms of Black Friday. So Black Friday is always the day after Thanksgiving and it is when most stores open at midnight and sell a majority of their items for “cheap”. I think the general mood for this class and for this challenge is something along the chants of “die, consumerism die!” which made me question how bad Black Friday is. I love this meme:

  And it gave me a real chuckle as well as a sad reality check that people really hurt each other over materialistic goods. I thought about everyone buying things they don’t need just to buy more again later. But then I started thinking about when I went Black Friday shopping. To me, Black Friday was not about buying ME new things, it was a day I got to shop, after saving up all year, and I was able to afford presents for my family members that I normally wouldn’t be able to buy them. Black Friday is not only a time for greed, but also a time for giving. It is a small window of opportunity for financially struggling people to be able to give their loved ones something. They are warriors, fighting through the crowds, the long lines, and the rude and dangerous people just to return home and wrap up their gifts a month early. People think Black Friday is so bad but maybe that’s from a financially stable standpoint. I know what it is like to eat ramen noodles on Christmas, and I know what a tiny gift on a Christmas morning can do for a poor little boy.

            This Black Friday was broke, so despite temptation to spend I really could not. There was only one thing I wanted, it was a dollar bottle with a cork top. Anyone who has ever played an RPG game with mana and health potions would have seen this exact type of bottle. It was gorgeous to me, the epitome of my childhood- for only a dollar! But I remembered this challenge and I thought about it. I really wanted this bottle for what? I don’t have any mana potions to store. It made me realize that even someone as excluded from mainstream society as me still has the urge to buy things without any real purpose. It made me sad to walk away from that bottle but I knew I really didn’t need it, I wanted it.

            This weeks reading was about how Japanese teens create their own style of fashion. Their style is not handed to them from some elitist company that only hopes to change the style afterwards. No, these schoolgirls have the power to decide what they think is beautiful. Although seen as garish though an American lense, I applaud these schoolgirls. When I was in high school (in the ghetto) I got bullied a lot for wearing bright, colorful, flamboyant clothing. Everyone I knew conformed to some mainstream idea of style and I wish I went to school with these girls because maybe we could have shared fashion ideas.

Inside Source: Yuniya Kawamura. "Japanese Teens As Fashion Producers of Street Fashion." Reader

Agents of Japanese Fashion

            In this week’s reading of “Japanese Teens as Fashion Producers of Street Fashion”, Kawamura argues that the Japanese fashion subculture play a huge role in shifting the traditional order of disseminating fashion to a bottom up approach. She claims that those who are consumers are also the producers of fashion with the example of the Japanese subcultures. For instance, the Japanese high school girls she describes are the agents of fashion. Agents of fashion mean that these girls are the one that produce the trends. Kawamura says, “Japanese street fashion does not come from the famous professional Japanese designers, but is led by high school girls who have become extremely influential in controlling fashion trends.”(784). I agree with Kawamura on this because these Japanese school girls are making a huge statement in the way they dress to create their own identity and they are also making a silent movement within the fashion industry. Japanese schoolgirls choose to dress up as Harajuku girls, Gonguro girls, Kogals, Manba girls, etc. to show society that they are young, creative, and influential. They are slowly forming their own niche within their country. I think their fashion goes against society because Kogals, Gonguros, and Manbas show that pale white skin shouldn't be the beauty standard in Asia. Their clothing and makeup goes against social norms and has established a strong foothold in fashion. When I was a teen, I felt like makeup was the only form of change I can do to make a statement. So if I were a Japanese high school girl, I would most likely explore other forms of fashion because it is fun and it would make me feel liberated.

              The fashion subculture of Japan has spread over to America by way of celebrities and influence in the clothing line industry. For instance Gwen Stefani utilized the Harajuku trend to her advantage in selling her Love. Angel. Music. Baby. album in 2004 and as well as starting her own Harajuku Lovers named clothing line and perfumes. Stores like Uniqlo and Superdry that sell practical clothing are slowly opening within America as well. The continuous pop up of Japanese clothing stores show that there is an increasing acceptance of fashion from around the world.

Update:

The biggest hurdle of November has finally past and it was a struggle I only hope to live through once. I did not follow through with my plans for the break. On the last update, I stated that I would keep myself busy with physical activities and possibly attending museums, but I am a complete flake on my own plans. The only physical activity was shopping in downtown San Francisco with my sister and my cousins. Everything went downhill since Thanksgiving dinner when i found out that stores opened at 12AM and Urban Outfitters was going to 50% off sale prices. We started at 12 AM, took a break at 4AM, and then resumed at 12PM. I'm very picky when it comes to clothing so I ended up only a few things. My haul consisted of: $5 H&M Sweater, 2x $15 sweaters from Urban Outfitters, and 2 candles from Bath and Body Works. I was going to buy a few other items like a pj set at Target but I already did so much damage so i refrained myself from it. In my defense, I bought practical clothing to accommodation the weather. I think the damage I did this Thanksgiving weekend will put things into perspective for the next week. 

Mable Ng

Blog Post #4

Inside Source:

Yuniya Kawamura. “Japanese Teens As Fashion Producers of Street Fashion.” Reader.

Outside Source:

Fox, Imogen. "How Superdry Quietly Took over the Fashion World." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 14 July 2011. Web. 25 Nov. 2012. .

Blog 3: The Ao Dai and National Costume

In Ann Marie Leshkowich’s article, The Ao Dai Goes Global: How International Influences and Female Entrepreneurs Have Shaped Vietnam’s “National Costume” discusses the history of the ao dai and how it has changed itself over time. When I was reading the article, and read the words national costume, I thought that ever ethnicity had one that came from the roots from their culture. I did not think that there were other influences from other cultures woven into the threads that created them. She writes, “charting the ao dai’s distant and more recent history provides and instructive example of how global processes construct supposedly local cultures” (Leskowich 89). Which in this case, she goes on and describes that Confucianism has a strong authority over how the ao dai was constructed with it’s long sleeved, long dress over pantaloon construction. Or as my Vietnamese housemate describes it as, “fancy silk pajamas”.

In the article featured in talk.onevietnam.org called Ao Dai: History and Significance in Vietnamese Culture, Isabella Nga Lai talks about the anatomy of the ao dai, and where it is worn. Many women wear it for special occasions, such as weddings and holidays. Lai believes that, “this dress is a national symbol of femininity”. And I would have to say; the body hugging tailoring and the use of soft colors depict the social construction of what feminine is.

Traditional Style

Source: http://www.visaforvietnam.org/blog/vietnamese-culture/ao-dai-the-vietnamese-traditional-dress/

Modern Style

Source: http://davidchungphoto.blogspot.com/2009/05/vietnamese-ao-dai-by-nancy-le.html

Be Green Update: I am having terrible withdrawals, I see all of these ads on TV saying how they are opening Black Friday at 8pm now, and these door buster deals will go quick after the first 4 hours of this epic event. I am trying really hard not to buy anything at all, and these TV ads are shouting my name! But so far, so good, I have not bought one piece of clothing since this whole experiment began, and I’m even donating some of my old clothes that I don’t even wear anymore, so I can make my half of the closet more organized.

-Krizia

The dilemma of Christmas and Happiness

Racheal Rhee

Blog #3

Inside Resource: Holstein, Palmer, Ur-Rehman and Ito. "Santa's Sweatshop: In a Global Economy, it's Hard to Know Who Made Your Gift- and Under What Conditions." ASA 4 Reader

Outside Resourse: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kV8U2ArrXXs 

[Factories Hard at Work for Christmas]

Jingle bells are ringing, Christmas lights are beautifully decorated with warm lit fireplace. Next to it is a desk that has an plate of leftover cookies that Santa could not finish. Parents are wrapped warm around their sofa blankets drinking morning latte while watching children filled with excitement to open their Christmas gifts. Christmas is a Holiday is known to be a day where people find joy and happiness hanging out with their beloved family, friends and lovers. Preparing Christmas can be stressful and hectic. Buying gifts, preparing for parties, etc. Almost everyone's best memories of Christmas is probably when they opened the gift early in Christmas morning. While happiness gets spread through gift exchanges, is Christmas really a joyful day for everyone? Minority workers who work in factories get underpaid while working full time to produce the exceeded amount of produce orders for Christmas. While the minority workers work with unfair wages and hours, they raise money in order to support their families, and to hope for a better tomorrow for survival in America. The dilemma of happiness for Christmas is that not everyone gets to enjoy the sweet warm Hot Cocoa in the couch while spending quality time with families. Some have to wake up early in the morning, or even work night shift to get to work in order to raise money so that their children can have food to eat for the next day. It may be physically tiring, but that may be the only way that the parents of minority household to wish for their happiness.

Consumerism Part 3

Hue Thao

ASA 141

Today was any other typical day in terms of consumerism. I haven't bought anything besides food. But I feel like I am wasting too much money on it. The past few days has been food, food, food. Maybe if I can somehow keep my hypothalamus from functioning so much...haha that's not possible. Regardless, of the matter, it is almost time for Christmas!!!! Its sad to say that I won't be able to participate in buying anything from Black Friday - even though Valverde tries to guilt trip us about our ways of consumerism. For me personally, I began my Black Friday career (or so I say) when I was a senior at High School. It has always been a tradition for my friends and I to stand outside of Best Buy. The very first time was somewhat terrifying for I had to lie and say I was sleeping at my friends house - otherwise my mom would have probably killed me for staying up all night at the streets. That morning I brought back a mini laptop, which made me extremely happy. Of course, in the end, I got yelled at by my mom because I had to tell her the truth of how I got my laptop. She was mad, but at the same time, impressed. :)

Going back to Black Friday, I realize that I won't mind too much if I don't buy anything. That doesn't mean I can't go waiting outside Best Buy again for the 4th time in a row. For some reason, we always get the same spot over and over again - we called it, "the place where it all started." I thought I should note that I went to Arden Mall today and saw such a huge crowd of people Christmas shopping. It's sad to say that I too will have to shop after this event ends. Of course, the shopping is not for my own personal gain. I am going to spend my money on my brothers and sister once again. More or less because I want them to be warm and cozy for the winter. Yes, Christmas can be very tragic in terms of sweatshops and labor intensity. However, it doesn't mean its a bad thing to have some sort of consumerism to provide for your loved ones. Even if the items came from extreme backgrounds, at the least I can actually afford to give somethings to my family for Christmas.

Don't you just love the adrenaline from waiting outside of Best Buy. :) Something crazy always happens, like people yelling at each other for cutting in line or meeting random strangers for the first time to play some card games. :) Good or bad, its always FUN! What's the point of life if you don't take risks?

How Asian is Miss Asia?

Mai Moua Vang

Blog #3

Inside source:

"The Ao Dai Goes Global: How International Influences and Female Entrepreneurs Have Shaped Vietnam's "National Costume." Reorienting Fashion.

In this week's reading, it focuses on different interpretations on how ao dai, a traditional Vietnamese female wear, became a fad in its home country and on a global scale. I thought it was interesting how fashion is institutionalized because I didn't think too much of how much power beauty pageants had over the fashion industry. Historically beauty pageants consisted of white women, but as the world shifts into globalization, beauty pageants are located in many countries. Even though they are located in many countries, white people still determine what is fashionable by picking out the national outfit for countries. In this way, non-white countries are homogenized, simplifying the nation to one dominant group of people. Vietnam consists of many ethnic groups, i.e. the Hmong, yet people outside of the country will never know.

Outside Source:

http://www.sacramento365.com/event/detail/441576815/2012_Miss_Asia_Sacramento_Pageant

I always find it interesting watching Hmong pageants or contestants. A lot of the time, they would wear Hmong clothes but they would wear outfits not from their region or country. All of the Hmong people in the U.S. are originally from Laos so they have a unique outfit. If you look at the picture below, the Hmong contestant is wearing Hmong clothes from China. I can tell that it's from China because of the head piece. So it makes me wonder, after reading this week's reading, if she is homogenizing Hmong people in China? Exotifying the Chinese Hmong? Giving a false portrayal of her Hmong identity? I don't know. But it's something to ponder about.

Update on the compact challenge:

So far I haven't purchased anything. Davis makes it really hard for me to buy anything when majority of the places are food. I've been really busy with school so I've noticed that I've been buying more take outs. Even though the challenge focuses on materialistic things, I think that take outs should be a part of it. Our food, in general, is commodified. Moreover, I think that service has been commodified. With these two, exploitation can exist looking at it from a globalization point of view. An example would be McDonalds. They are practically everywhere in the world and they don't treat their employees all that great. They are paid minimum wage but they don't get any benefits even though they work in a fast past environment, where it's prone to get hurt. I like cooking for myself since I have more control of what I consume but as for now, I'll have to buy take outs. 

Visual: