Understanding my inherited workaholism
Off the Beat
It was all too easy for me to develop this problem because my father modeled a distorted vision of what constitutes a balanced work schedule.
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Escape to Sweden
Sex on Tuesday
My first day on birth control marked the first day of my yearlong celibacy. I didn’t seek out abstinence, or desire it. But my body had other plans.
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To be Asian and American
Off the Beat
When we celebrated and acknowledged Chinese traditions, however, it never felt like my culture. There has always been an intangible sense of displacement or distance from my birthplace.
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Anti-anticlimax
Love in conversation
That climactic release I’ve always looked for: This time, we may not be able to manufacture it. But I’m beginning to think that, just like the other kind of blue balls, the anticlimax we feel will dissipate.
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I left my depression in San Francisco
Off the Beat
My family has always been just a phone call away, and the few friends that I have would take a bullet for me. Nothing is really wrong, and yet it is.
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No, it’s not normal
Off the Beat
I didn’t know that my discomfort was valid, and I always viewed myself as the problem. I didn’t know that I got to choose who had a right to my body.
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Tuesday, Wednesday, birthday, Friday
Off the Beat
Each day blended into the next one until I couldn’t even remember what month it was. Until one “-day” happened to be my 20th birthday.
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Finding my way away from home
Off the Beat
My hometown is no European capital city — it’s small and suburban, and there’s not much to do (and no public transit to get you there).
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Anger was never the answer
Off the Beat
I don’t know, when my Mom was my age, what kept her up at night, what her favorite dance moves were, what her pet peeves were, what her worldview was.
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Brown (and bisexual)
Off the Beat
Coming to terms with my Indian American identity was quickly followed by another recognition: The world isn’t as straight as I thought it was.
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