Gotta check out my close friend and former roommate getting busy on the canvas.

Kadar Brock’s second solo exhibition at BUIA gallery in Chelsea opens Thursday, May 1. Details below.

HEAVEN IS A PLACE ON EARTH
Kadar Brock
www.kadarbrock.com
May 1st – May 31st, 2008
Opening reception: Thursday, May 1st, 6-8 pm

BUIA GALLERY
541 W 23rd St
NY NY 10011
www.buiagallery.com

I recognize this propaganda 6000 thousand miles away.

The Moleskine has not been replaced by the mobile. Some bits from the pages of my black book.

TV in Japan is definitely the best. A couple of examples:

1. Professor derives a formula that proves you can find the most beautiful woman in any given country by finding one beautiful one and then asking her to introduce you to someone more beautiful than herself. Do this 14 times and you’ll have her. These two woman, sisters (and hideous looking), tried it out in India. First woman was super hot…the quality was really declining, picking up only a little on numbers 10-12. Finally, 14 was hot, but still second to the first, in my opinion. Only on TV in Japan. Also, these sisters go to “the best Indian restaurant in the world”. The guy makes this super huge piece of naan (no, not dosa, I know the difference). He tried to hand feed one of them and she totally gets the “kowai” face. Classic.

2. Wasabi is a root, basically. It gets turned into that green paste by being ground against a rough surface, traditionally shark’s skin. Yeah, you guessed it - a show’s host chartered a boat, a fishing crew, and caught a shark, pulled it halfway on board, straddled it, rubbed wasabi on it until it turned to paste, let the shark go, and then ate sushi (with the wasabi). Classic.

3. Classic beauty playing a school teacher. 3 young guys from uber-famous j-pop group SMAP playing students. Electronically monitor her heart rate while each student takes a turn trying to seduce her, in line with the teacher-student role play theme. Highest heart rate wins!!!

And everything has an えろい element to it, which you gotta love. Sooooo addictive!!!

The bento boxes that mothers make for their kids are fantastic. Super creative. Makes me really wonder… a brown paper bag, half-rotten apple, PB&(no J) sandwich, and 25 cents for a chocolate milk…is that what you call love, Ma?????AAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!

Wondering: Can the appearance of a person, food, building, etc. nourish us?

On time: Everyday, 430 AM delivering the papers…hear the motor scooter vrooming up. stop, kickstand, opens mail slot. squeak. needs oil. speeds off. all less than 7 seconds.

Are the women too perfect? A local said it: like vegetables growing indoors.

Living in NYC is like lying in bed with the woman you love - you don’t wanna get out. You think it is the best there is to offer…and your right, but…

Tokyoooooooooooooooo: the love that was lost or that never was in the first place?

Ran across this pic - one of my favorites - and wanted to share. Haircut. NYC throwback. I learned “gaman dekimasu ka?” (can you be patient?) that night, among other things.

One of my favorite Japanese “kotowaza” (proverbs) is “binbou hima nashi”. It basically means that poor people are those without time. I’ve always applied a measured sense of urgency to living my life, but before moving to NYC, it was not in minutes. But anyone who has worked in public accounting (or any other number of “professional” professions) knows that being ingrained with the by-the-hour mentality and pulling all-nighters in windowless rooms makes each free moment all the more precious.

Boarding the subway car closest to my exit was one of my daily missions; the extra minute I’d save walking home was invaluable. I would put the rice on as soon as I got home, before changing my clothes, so it would be ready 3 minutes earlier. Eating out of the pan saved me time on dishes (well, I’ve always eaten out of the pan. And I also like to use tupperware lids for plates. If you don’t believe me you can ask my Mom, and any ex-gf). I’d brush my teeth in the shower (well, I have always done that, and whether it saves time is debatable). That’s no way to live, folks.

But thanks to one man - a colleague named Rich C. (I called him “RC Cola”) - I was inspired to make a change. RC was a super-laid back dude; but he was deep. Not a stoner or anything like that. He gave me some of the best professional advice I could ever get. He told me, “Don’t work five days to live two”. It really hit me. After that, it was on. I started going out during the weekdays, taking the ‘A’ train to Harlem for Jazz and catching Amateur night at the Apollo. Took it to West 4th for Comedy shows. Dinner at a new restaurant, walk in the park. Something to break the vicious cycle of work-sleep-work. I was all over the place, enjoying my NY life. Visine was in my pocket and time was on my side.

And since leaving the States, things have only gotten better. I would say that 35% of the time I have no idea what day it is, 60% of the time what date it is. It feels damn good. Yes, I want to have, will have, so much cash I can’t count it, but I think a more accurate measure of my success will be having so much control over my time that I don’t feel the need to count it.

“I’m bringing Racists back
Them boys don’t know how to act
Come let me make up for the things they lack
Cause your burning up I gotta get it fast”

So here I am, Ohio born and raised, sitting in China, eating gai jiao fan (with chopticks). Chairman Mao is outside waving to us. I’m walking the line with Johnny Cash on my iTunes, while chatting with my Filipino born friend about a Japanese website. We’re trying to get this money - Yen, Yuan, Dollar, Euro, Rupee, you name it. And I get a call from an AP reporter asking me to comment on this “Why I Hate Black People” thing. I told her I had no idea was she was talking about, so I had no comment, but asked her to explain. She did and this is my comment, my remix of all things sex(y) and racist. Quote me.

This blog is so provocative. It must be the MSG. My “ABCs” post actually started a National controversy. On the heels of that blast, Asian Week, “The Voice of Asian America”, published a response by writer Kenneth Eng titled, “Why I Hate Blacks”.

Check it out, below:

==========================================
“Why I Hate Blacks” by Kenneth Eng
Here is a list of reasons why we should discriminate against blacks, starting from the most obvious down to the least obvious:

Blacks hate us. Every Asian who has ever come across them knows that they take almost every opportunity to hurl racist remarks at us.

In my experience, I would say about 90 percent of blacks I have met, regardless of age or environment, poke fun at the very sight of an Asian. Furthermore, their activity in the media proves their hatred: Rush Hour, Exit Wounds, Hot 97, etc.

Contrary to media depictions, I would argue that blacks are weak-willed. They are the only race that has been enslaved for 300 years. It’s unbelievable that it took them that long to fight back.

On the other hand, we slaughtered the Russians in the Japanese-Russo War.

Blacks are easy to coerce. This is proven by the fact that so many of them, including Reverend Al Sharpton, tend to be Christians.

Yet, at the same time, they spend much of their time whining about how much they hate “the whites that oppressed them.”

Correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t Christianity the religion that the whites forced upon them?

Blacks don’t get it. I know it’s a blunt and crass comment, but it’s true. When I was in high school, I recall a class debate in which one half of the class was chosen to defend black slavery and the other half was chosen to defend liberation.

Disturbingly, blacks on the prior side viciously defended slavery as well as Christianity. They say if you don’t study history, you’re condemned to repeat it.

In high school, I only remember one black student ever attending any of my honors and AP courses. And that student was caught cheating.

It is rather troubling that they are treated as heroes, but then again, whites will do anything to defend them.

==========================================

It’s funny that he referred to the Japanese as “we” when referencing the Russo-Japanese War. The name “Eng”, if I am not mistaken, is Chinese (originally from Guangdong province, but just a guess). I’m (no history) buff, but I do believe it was the Japanese who SLAUGHTERED the Chinese. Besides, it’s no secret that Japanese are admired, hated by all other Asians because of their economic and cultural superiority, so why he tries to align “we” with them, when “they” couldn’t be any more different than “him”, is a mystery to “me”. Got that? By the way, do the Japanese even consider themselves “Asian”?
Actually, I don’t believe Asian Week should retract this article, issue an apology, or suspend this writer (or anyone). Why? Well, because true to Asian Week’s motto, they are “The Voice of Asian America”. And, in fact, I believe what Kenneth Eng wrote is, generally speaking, the Voice of so-called “asian-Americans (aAs)”.
Note: Small ‘a’ because maybe they are a little Asian. Big ‘A’ is reserved for the real ones, as you’ll read later.

It has long been FACT that Asians are used as a tool against Blacks and Latinos in America. My girlfriend in college, an “aA”, introduced me to a book by Vijay Prashad titled, “The Karma of Brown Folk”. Here’s a copy/paste summary:

“How does it feel to be a problem?” asked W. E. B. Du Bois of black Americans in his classic The Souls of Black Folk. A hundred years later, Vijay Prashad asks South Asians “How does it feel to be a solution?” In this kaleidoscopic critique, Prashad looks into the complexities faced by the members of a “model minority”—one, he claims, that is consistently deployed as “a weapon in the war against black America.”

Mr. Eng’s comments, essentially, are the same as those Whites make. These are just reflections from his rice bowl in Chinatown, while those from Whites come via the plate of a Hungry Man dinner. Read the book, it has some good arguments, but this is my blog, so I’m gonna put forth a different perspective.

Mr. Eng’s article is not about Black and Yellow. It’s about Pink. This is about Pussy.
The truth is, “aAs” are scared of Blacks. Not because the Black guys can knock them “the f@$$ out” (after all, these guys know Kung Fu, Tae Kwon Do, and Karate, right?) but for the same reason White guys are - because chicks dig Black guys. That is why Mr. Eng is verbally assaulting Blacks. My guess is that Mr. Eng’s nice, suburban-bred “aA” chick left him for better endowed, city-bred Black guy. But I gotta say, be cool homey, my girlfriends have left me for an assortment of men (and women) - Black, White, Indian, Chinese, mixed, etc. If you ain’t packin’, they got procedures for that. Or just work on your technique. I’m an average dude, some say below average (lol), but my technique is flawless. Ask “your women”.

Which brings us to a personal story:
When I was in High School, the majority of my girlfriends were Black. I had Black friends - you know who you are - who almost exclusively dated White girls. But I can never recall serious mention about it between each other, and certainly never any protectionist policies. But with “aAs”, it’s completely different. I have countless stories from University, when I was dating an “aA”, where I experienced blatant, aggressive racism at the hand of “aAs” (not Blacks, not Whites, not Latinos). But maybe this recent, more passive encounter is the funniest because of how my friend broke the psychology down for me.

I had an Asian girlfriend in NY. Not American at all. Born and raised somewhere else. One day, we were at her apartment. She is on MSN messenger with one of her “aA” friends. I’m sitting right beside her, and her friend, who I’d never met, starts to go off like, “I don’t like the idea of them taking our women”. I had to give him a big ’sad-face’ emoticon for that. What is this guy talking about? First of all, his parents were not the same type of Asian as my gf. Second, he is not Asian at all (he’s American). And third, most importantly, can he really monopolize all Asian women? If so, does it include “Cauc-Asians”? If guys like this had their way, Blacks,White s, and Latinos would be without sex altogether. And if he thinks people making fun of him now is bad, wait until he meets some horny White guys who want to be his “friend”.
I was pissed, perplexed, so I told one of my “aA” friends about this story and he said, quite candidly, the following:

“Jesse, let me teach you an important lesson about the mentality of Asian guys in America. The truth is, most of these guys can’t get with any girls, except Asians. Well, not that they can’t, but they don’t try. They don’t have the game. Look at me, I’m the ghetto Jackie Chan, so I’m rockin’ four at a time, all from different continents. My only limitation is the population - I’m just trying to find a chick from Antarctica to make it complete. So, if they see a White guy or a Black guy with an Asian girl, they feel threatened. They think you are taking from their (limited) pool of options. Why do you think they have their own parties, organizations, etc.? It’s not a culture thing - it’s not that they have some special way of partying - a native music or way to drink - special needs or concerns. Don’t believe that ‘community’ crap. They want to hoard all those hot chicks.”
Yo, I wanted to laugh, cus I thought it was soooo phunny, but he was dead serious, so I just nodded my head and appeared to be in thought. But on the inside I was exploding, because I knew two things that he didn’t. First, that there are actually 7 continents. And second, if you’re really into Asian women, the USA IS NOT the place to find one.
But the oddest thing is that this phenomenon only exists in “aAs”. All my A (big A = Authentic) Asian friends seem overwhelmingly supportive if I am dating someone from their country. I’ve been told, on multiple occasions, by different people, “I think this is a great way for you to understand our culture better. By dating a (enter country here) woman, you and I can build a better friendship, because now we share the same painful experience!” Now, that is the spirit. That is the American spirit. And it is coming from non-Americans.
Another odd thing is that Mr. Eng is in NYC, “the melting pot of the world”. In fact, the biggest shock I encountered in NYC was the fragmentation of races. In my opinion, people in the mid-west are way more open-minded than those in the so-called “international” cities. But maybe I’m just bias.
I’m so Gwen Stefani right now, so let’s Wind it Up!

1. Real Americans aren’t hyphenated. We’re all the same. We’re all from somewhere else. That’s what makes us Americans. We share a common identity - as foreigners. I really don’t know any Blacks or Whites that are crying to be called “African-American” or “European-American”, respectively. We’ve put in our time, we founded this country, together (albeit not voluntarily on the part of Blacks). Our people have assimilated. Pay your dues, and your taxes (yes, I know why no one in Chinatown takes credit cards). Don’t give me the talk about culture or ethnicity versus nationality. It’s absurd. Being an American is more than a nationality. It’s not just about holding the passport. Truthfully, you’re not racist, you’re ridiculous, ignorant even. Do we really want to go there? If we do, I’m gonna have to bust out all my “ethnicities” and you can no longer refer to me as “White”. It will be something like, “Italian-French-Canadian-Irish-English-Native-and maybe a little Appalachian-American”. Why “aAs” avoid it beats me. Are they really Asian first and American second? What happens if/when we go to war with China? N. Korea? Japan? To be an American, simply an American, is the highest honor afforded any human being. Give it up or get out!!!
OR
as J Timb says, “Get your Racist on / Go ahead, be gone with it”

2. You can date beautiful White, Black, and Latina women too, if your game is tight and you just try. Don’t limit yourself. Take me, The Ambassador, for example. I’m in Chengdu, home to the most beautiful women in China…but I can’t speak Chinese. Well, I know how to order food, but the girls might get offended if I keep asking them for chao fan. Besides, they heard that in America, the guy either cooks or takes the woman out to eat, so that would not be a good image for me to present. Anyway, I don’t get mad when I see some dude with funny hair walking past with a Lucy Liu x 2 on his arm. I just know I have to step up my game. I was lost for a minute, but SbookP straightened me out. He said, “Focus on your competitive advantage, young grasshopper. Turn your weakness into your strength. You’re an American godammit, use it. Take them to Pizza Hut.” This guy is a genius, because here Pizza Hut is high-class shit, and the menu has pictures.

3. You’re White, you’re really White, you’re really really White. Yes, you are an ABC - Asian But Caucasian. You’re in the BURBS, watchin’ Friends, ghost-ridin’ through the culdesac, drinkin’ lattes. Me, on the other hand…

4. I’m in your Parent’s country. I’m rockin’ on your dimez!!!!

P.S. Nothing gets me more pumped up than race. I really love talking about it. In America, you can tell more about a
person by discussing race than anything else.

P.P.S. I would have still wrote this post if I was at work in NYC. Thankfully, I’m not, so the client isn’t being billed hundreds of dollars for the time. I’m so economically rational.

An old friend sent me these pics (neither of which I remember being taken; well, maybe one, but vaguely) this morning. Make me a little nostalgic for those Brooklyn loft parties and times when we put the pencil down from auditing and picked up a few pints of Stella.

Cheers to Joker smiles and kisses on the Chen,

The Damnbassador

Thanks to Jocelyn and Em for taking the great shots and posting them. Missing you two. Hayaku kite kudasaiiii

08/06/05 - http://ikiko.com/gallery/jesse

05/06/06 - http://ikiko.com/gallery/sestito

06/17/06 - http://ikiko.com/gallery/jessebbq

Dear Friends,

It is with a heavy heart that I bid you all farewell.

As you may know, I have decided to change the course of my life and will be pursuing new opportunities around the world.

It has been a distinct pleasure to be associated with each of you, first as individuals, then as a cohesive units, and finally as a firm. All respect due to past, present, and future employees of the firm that have created and will build PwC, not just as a brand, but as a family of professionals who provide exceptional client service and serve an integral role in the
functioning of the world’s capital markets.

I eagerly anticipate the future where a confluence of personal, political, and business relationships await us.

Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your lives, even if for a brief moment. I wish each of you only the best in your personal and professional endeavors, knowing that you will achieve success and happiness in all that you pursue.

Adieu,

Jesse A. Sestito

Regrets, I’ve had a few
But then again, too few to mention
I did what I had to do and saw it through without exemption
I planned each charted course, each careful step along the by way
And more, much more than this, I did it my way