Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The Asian reporter. (Portland, Or.) 1991-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 6, 2014)
OPINION Page 6 n THE ASIAN REPORTER October 6, 2014 Volume 24 Number 19 October 6, 2014 ISSN: 1094-9453 The Asian Reporter is published on the first and third Monday each month. Please send all correspondence to: The Asian Reporter 922 N Killingsworth Street, Portland, OR 97217 Phone: (503) 283-4440, Fax: (503) 283-4445 News Department e-mail: news@asianreporter.com Advertising Department e-mail: ads@asianreporter.com General e-mail: info@asianreporter.com Website: www.asianreporter.com Please send reader feedback, Asian-related press releases, and community interest ideas/stories to the addresses listed above. Please include a contact phone number. Advertising information available upon request. Publisher Jaime Lim Contributing Editors Ronault L.S. Catalani (Polo), Jeff Wenger Correspondents Ian Blazina, Josephine Bridges, Pamela Ellgen, Maileen Hamto, Edward J. Han, A.P. Kryza, Marie Lo, Simeon Mamaril, Julie Stegeman, Toni Tabora-Roberts, Allison Voigts Illustrator Jonathan Hill News Service Associated Press/Newsfinder Copyright 2014. Opinions expressed in this newspaper are those of the authors and not necessarily those of this publication. Member Associated Press/Newsfinder Asian American Journalists Association Better Business Bureau Pacific Northwest Minority Publishers (PNMP) Philippine American Chamber of Commerce of Oregon Correspondence: The Asian Reporter welcomes reader response and participation. Please send all correspondence to: Mail: 922 N Killingsworth Street, Portland, OR 97217-2220 Phone: (503) 283-4440 ** Fax: (503) 283-4445 News Department e-mail: news@asianreporter.com General e-mail: info@asianreporter.com SUBSCRIPTION RATES (U.S. rates only) Individual subscription (sent bulk rate): q Half year: $14 q Full year: $24 q Two years: $40 Individual subscription (sent first class mail): q Half year: $24 q Full year: $40 q Two years: $72 Office subscription (5 copies to one address): q Half year: $40 q Full year: $75 q Two years: $145 Institutional subscription (25 copies to one address): q Half year: $100 q Full year: $180 q Two years: $280 NEW SUBSCRIBER / ADDRESS CORRECTION INFORMATION FORM: Subscriber’s name: Company name: Address: City, State, ZIP: Phone: Fax: E-mail: Mail with payment or Fax with credit card information to: The Asian Reporter, Attn: Subscription Dept., 922 N Killingsworth Street, Portland, OR 97217-2220 Phone: (503) 283-4440 * Fax: (503) 283-4445 q q q For VISA, Mastercard, or American Express payment only: Name (as it appears on the card): Type of card (circle): VISA Mastercard Card number: American Express Security code: Expiration date: Address of card: The last four issues of The Asian Reporter are available for pick up free at our office 24 hours a day at 922 N Killingsworth Street, Portland, Oregon. Back issues of The Asian Reporter may be ordered by mail at the following rates: First copy: $1.50 Additional copies ordered at the same time: $1.00 each Send orders to: Asian Reporter Back Issues, 922 N. Killingsworth St., Portland, OR 97217-2220 The Asian Reporter welcomes reader response and participation. If you have a comment on a story we have printed, or have an Asian-related personal or community focus idea, please contact us. Please include a contact name, address, and phone number on all correspondence. Thank you. MY TURN n Wayne Chan On this tennis court, a different kind of love game y weekly tennis match with the guys was just the other day, and believe me, I was prepared. No, I hadn’t practiced my serves, my ground- strokes, or even my volleys. I wasn’t even trying to build up a psychological edge to overcome my opponents. Actually, my preparation had very little to do with playing tennis at all. Instead, most of it involved coming up with friendly insults to spew forth at the most opportune moments during the match. You see, as most guys know, whenever a bunch of married men get together, particularly if the occasion involves sports, pizza, or beer, the bulk of the evening is spent less on the stated activity itself and more on our ability to degrade each other in the most inventive ways possible. It helps that we all like each other. Our tennis evenings usually entail the following series of steps: 1. Play a point as best we can. 2. Follow up the point with a witty insult, usually involving someone’s manhood using repartee as visually descriptive as possible. 3. Play another point. 4. Follow the insult with a creative way to link your opponent’s poor play to the lack of said manhood as described in step number two. 5. Repeat process until someone is declared the winner. To some, it may sound like a bit of misguided machismo in action by a group of middle-aged men trying to escape the daily grind of life. I’d love to debate that point with you but, what can I say, it’s kind of hitting the nail on the head. But my last tennis outing was different. Since my wife Maya was travelling on business and my son Tyler was busy with an early evening class, I had no one to watch my other son and daughter, Ethan and Savannah. There wasn’t enough time for me to find a babysitter, so instead of cancelling on the tennis group, I decided to bring Ethan and Savannah with me. As some of you know, Maya and I have triplets. Ethan and Savannah are autistic. Tyler is a typical 16-year-old. Ethan and Savannah are two of the most good-natured and gentle kids you’ll ever come across. They love music and swimming and usually go through the day with smiles on their faces. They certainly have their challenges, but the ability to love life isn’t one of them. I had taken Ethan and Savannah out before to M see if they liked playing tennis and they did not show much interest. I suspect it has something to do with the inherent need to be competitive when you’re playing tennis. As far as I can tell, neither Ethan nor Savannah has any impulse or need to beat someone else at anything. Having said that, I knew Ethan and Savannah would be just fine watching their dad play tennis for a couple of hours, just enjoying the cool evening breeze. That night, our group played on three courts — four players on each court. I was on the middle court; Ethan and Savannah were sitting one court away near a fence on some folding chairs I had brought for them. As I walked onto the court, as I sometimes do when I’m entering a social interaction where I’m trying to avoid any possible misunderstandings or mixed messages involving the kids, I mentioned to one of the guys that Ethan and Savannah are my kids and they are autistic, so if he spoke to them and they didn’t respond or didn’t respond appropriately, he would understand why. My friend smiled, looked at me, and said, “Oh, I know! Hi, Savannah! Hi, Ethan!” — easy enough. For the next hour, everything was routine and we played our matches. There was maybe a little less witty repartee seeing as there were impressionable minors on the court, but that was to be expected. It’s what happened next that came as a surprise. Being a special needs family, I’ve noticed a typical reaction when we’re in a social setting with people who have not had experience with it; they tend to show compassion and patience, but do not interact much. I can understand it; they don’t know exactly what they should do, so they keep their distance. It’s almost a cordial indifference. But in the middle of my match, as I got ready to serve a point, I looked over to the court next to me and saw Ethan and Savannah on the court, holding racquets, with two of the guys standing behind them, clapping and cheering them on. “Go, Ethan! Hit the ball! You can do it!” “Way to go, Savannah! Hit the ball!” Two of the other guys were across the net, with big smiles on their faces, just as eager to cheer the kids on. Ethan and Savannah, for their part, were laughing with glee and jumping up and down, not knowing exactly how to hit the ball, but happy all the same just to give it a try. Turning back to start our game again, I missed Continued on page 7 Opinions expressed in this newspaper are those of the authors and not necessarily those of this publication.
