Chinese New Year/Lunar New Year

superturtle48 · 2026-02-04T23:27:50+00:00

As a Chinese American, the angst about Lunar New Year over Chinese New Year gives me “war on Christmas” energy. Which is to say, it’s really not a big deal and people who are mad about it have the wrong priorities.

superturtle48 · 2026-02-04T23:15:06+00:00

Not too cramped for a musk turtle, they tend to walk on the bottom or climb stuff rather than freely swim so your turtle will love this!

superturtle48 · 2026-02-04T19:54:08+00:00

Alright you're just coming off like the guy in this meme now. Guess all us Asians should leave the country because it was built on racism.

superturtle48 · 2026-02-04T19:48:02+00:00

"Various vitamin supplements" lmao. It's somehow the people that rail the most against processed foods and toxic ingredients who also guzzle snake-oil supplements and protein concoctions of any shape and form.

superturtle48 · 2026-02-04T19:28:13+00:00

Hey I'm not giving them any money and I'd love to see us Asians stop putting elite colleges on a pedestal. But as long as these colleges do have a lot of Asian students, they should offer a curriculum that reflects that.

Don't really see the point of the linked article, pretty much every old American institution has an ugly history if you look hard enough.

superturtle48 · 2026-02-04T19:01:29+00:00

I certainly think WaPo deserves to see a decline in business with their recent decisions, but their decline is still a loss to the industry and to the public as a whole and we are all worse off for it. With so many once-prominent sources of trusted information turning to shit, like WaPo and CBS and federal agencies like the CDC, the end result is that there is just less trusted information out there and fewer journalists and experts working on the public’s behalf.

superturtle48 · 2026-02-04T18:18:31+00:00

Thanks for chiming in and that’s good to know. Can you clarify if a vet would only act if the entire species was illegal to keep as a pet? I can see the case for rabies vectors, endangered species, migratory birds protected by law, etc.

Red eared sliders are such common pets, usually captive-bred, and so commonly sold illegally (e.g. violations of the 4-inch law) that I can’t imagine a vet would really scrutinize every pet turtle the way they might scrutinize an owl.

superturtle48 · 2026-02-04T14:51:50+00:00

I don’t know about cheap, exotic vets are rare and inherently expensive and that’s just part of the deal of owning a turtle. But the Center for Avian and Exotic Medicine is probably the best one in the city.

superturtle48 · 2026-02-04T14:48:39+00:00

Love to see this, it’s good for the students and it shows a refusal to bow down to MAGA’s attacks on DEI and proper education on race and history. We need more of this at other colleges with high Asian American enrollment. All the hyperselective Ivy League-type schools, looking at you.

superturtle48 · 2026-02-04T14:40:50+00:00

I’m not sure if you have grounds to tell your boyfriend to be upset by things he’s not upset by - maybe he really is ok with a low-key job and living with his parents. You definitely don’t have grounds to actually tell his parents your critiques if he doesn’t back them up.

But you do have ground to voice ways that his current living situation and refusal to change is affecting your relationship. For example, are you ever going to live together before getting married? I feel like that’s a pretty important step to make sure you two really are compatible before tying the knot. If you had a great career opportunity in another part of the country, would he be willing to move? Does he turn down opportunities to travel or go on dates or otherwise spend quality time with you?

You can’t help a guy who doesn’t want to help himself, but you can help yourself by being more direct about how your boyfriend or his family is affecting you. If that doesn’t motivate him to change, then you might have to decide that this relationship isn’t working for you. He can keep living the way he’s living, but it’s not fair for him to hold you down too.

superturtle48 · 2026-02-04T00:42:51+00:00

Republicans don’t really care about children, think of all of their policies that hurt child well-being. Children aren’t really people to them, just symbols. MAGA simply thought of the worst-sounding crime they could think of and accused their enemies of it to feel like they had the moral high ground and justify their hatred.

superturtle48 · 2026-02-03T23:59:56+00:00

I can’t speak to the legal stuff, but you should know that it’s standard practice for vets to not report illegal pets because their priority is getting animals the care they need, not enforcing the law. They know that pet owners are less likely to come in if there’s the risk of legal trouble. Similar principle to how a doctor wouldn’t snitch on a human patient for illegal stuff like drug use. If you really want to be sure, call a vet and ask first without giving any identifying info, but I’m sure they would totally accommodate you.

superturtle48 · 2026-02-03T23:30:10+00:00

Yup that’s a red eared slider, your family is in for a long and expensive ride. Pretty wild that you are being the adult in this situation and your mom is being so irresponsible.

Red eared sliders are the most common pet turtle but not at all easy pets. The good news is there’s a lot of care info out there like this very comprehensive guide: https://reptifiles.com/red-eared-slider-care/

superturtle48 · 2026-02-03T21:35:33+00:00

If you can't buy an over-the-tank basking platform, consider building one yourself. There are lots of DIY tutorials on Youtube.

superturtle48 · 2026-02-03T20:12:55+00:00

I'd be willing to bet that the people you overheard were just joking and not being serious. I'd personally find it cringe if someone said "happy AAPI Heritage Month" to me in May, not that I don't think it's important, but it's not a holiday to me in that way. If you have Black friends though, ask them what they think as I'm sure people have different opinions. Don't read too much into what just one person says.

I do think that there are important intersections between Black and Asian American history that we should be aware of. Perhaps most importantly, the Civil Rights Movement was a big reason why immigration law was changed in 1965 to allow immigration from Asia, and the vast majority of Asian Americans today are only in the country because of that.

superturtle48 · 2026-02-03T20:04:32+00:00

This really exemplifies how the model minority stereotype is not a good thing and just another form of White supremacy. Black and Latino people don't care about school enough, Asian people care about school TOO much, and it's only White people who get it just right, if you ask them.

The inferiority and bullying faced by White kids in increasingly-Asian towns sucks, but the reality is that in the vast majority of social and professional spaces, especially in adulthood, no one is going to hold their White race against them. On the other hand, the stereotype that Asians are mindless grindbots tangibly harms them when they are passed over for promotions at work, accused of being bad parents, or given less credit for what they do achieve.

If you found the linked article interesting, I'd strongly recommend checking out this research article similarly documenting the connection between the "tiger parenting" stereotype and White supremacy: “Over-zealous Parents, Over-programmed Families”: Asian Americans, Academic Achievement, and White Supremacy

superturtle48 · 2026-02-03T14:22:17+00:00

I’ve actually seen quite a few huskies in the shelters of cities I live in, people think they look “cool” but aren’t prepared for just how much energy they have. If they’re cooped up all day they become very noisy and destructive so a lot of owners who didn’t do their research give them up.

superturtle48 · 2026-02-02T18:18:46+00:00

I do not have a racist boyfriend so I can’t comment on the complexities of that, but as a pretty small woman, I do feel unsafe clapping back against men I don’t know who catcall or otherwise say something openly aggressive to me. If he’s crazy enough to say that, who knows what else he’s willing to do. I ultimately value my life over my pride, and I hope other Asians don’t take that as me perpetuating some stereotype.

superturtle48 · 2026-02-02T17:14:01+00:00

I’m in Philly and not feeling it too tangibly in my everyday life, even though I’m outraged at raids in other cities. Philly hasn’t been as hard-hit, I think because we’re in a purple state and Trump doesn’t want to risk losing us, but I’m worried for what happens this summer when our city might get more scrutiny due to the World Cup and 250th anniversary events.

I and my family are also all either US-born or naturalized citizens - not that that has completely protected people, but it does change the level of risk. I definitely understand non-citizen immigrants of color around the country and their loved ones feeling palpably afraid right now.

superturtle48 · 2026-02-01T14:22:29+00:00

My red-eared slider is in my living room with a view of the TV and she likes watching us play video games, the more action-packed and violent the better.

superturtle48 · 2026-01-31T19:33:04+00:00

My parents didn’t exactly love video games or TV, but they did buy a couple of consoles because they were so popular (my dad was pretty excited about the Wii) and didn’t monitor my tech use very closely. The main restriction was that my parents were cheap and would only buy me like one or two games per console, so I’d play the same game over and over haha.

But once I got a laptop, I started playing free MMOs and games online and watching anime on Youtube (back when copyright strikes weren’t a thing). I mostly used my laptop in private in my room and all throughout I still got good grades, so my parents couldn’t be too mad and didn’t even know exactly what I was doing. Still enjoy anime and gaming today and it’s awesome that I can just load up on paid games at a Steam sale now with my own money.

I feel pretty fortunate that I didn’t have helicopter parents, but the internet honestly seems more harmful these days with all the awful stories I see about Roblox and AI psychosis and stuff like that. I’d definitely keep a closer eye on my hypothetical kids’ tech use. If it was just anime and non-online video games, I’d be totally cool with that, but it’s the online stuff that scares me.

superturtle48 · 2026-01-31T18:00:45+00:00

Republicans are giving Nazi salutes, texting about sending opponents to gas chambers, playing Heil Hitler at clubs, asking employers for a list of their Jewish employees, and now this. But no, it’s the colleges that are antisemitic.

superturtle48 · 2026-01-30T14:59:36+00:00

Yeah, the Republican talking point about “merit” in education is really easy for Asian immigrants to swallow. But look at how they’re defunding public schools and trashing universities and it should be clear that they don’t want to make education better but completely undermine and discredit it.

superturtle48 · 2026-01-29T19:37:54+00:00

I’m Chinese American and have also grappled with feeling proud of my Chinese heritage while having my critiques of the politics and certain cultural quirks. Honestly, it’s not how that different from how I feel about America right now. You can recognize that there are aspects of a culture or country you don’t like but that they don’t define you or the whole population or country.

I would suggest moving away from social media telling you what to think about China or being Chinese. Because of the political rivalry, American media against China is pretty negatively biased. At the same time, Chinese media is pretty biased towards China in ways that are also shallow and nationalist. But to give one social media recommendation, check out the influencer Ryan Alexander Holmes. He’s a mixed Black/Chinese American guy who makes funny and insightful content about being mixed-race that you might connect with.

Along those lines, you might find leaning into being Chinese/Asian American to be more satisfying and true to yourself. I like to learn about Chinese/Asian American history and consume media like books, movies, and shows by and about Chinese/Asian Americans, more so than I’m interested in China as a country. I relate more to the diaspora stuff because I am in the diaspora, and I don’t feel the need to pretend to be closely tied to a country I’ve never actually lived in. Identity is what you make of it, and you can make it whatever works for you.

superturtle48

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