The Other New Year [Final]

The Other New Year
Stanley Shaw:


For many AHS students and communities worldwide, the year began again on Jan. 23 as the year of the dragon commenced with family reunions, sumptuous multi-course meals, and, to top it all off, red envelopes packed with new bills. This and, of course, everything else has been splashed with a healthy amount of vibrant red, a color long associated with success and good fortune.

Keeping true to the holiday spirit, senior Ingrid Jin and her family would “go out to eat at a Chinese restaurant during a date around Chinese New Years. But on the actual day, [their] whole family would stay home and have homemade dumplings and sticky cake, etc.” Freshman Brandon Sien went to his uncle’s house where all his family members were gathered. There, his relatives exchanged news and snippets of their lives over “pork and cooked seafood boiled in a hot bowl.” Of course, what fun would a family re-union be without games?

After eating “eggrolls, fish, pork foot, and dumplings,” junior Kevin Kha played “Fish, Shrimp, Crab”. According to him, “This addicting game has players place money on one of several diagrams on a placemat. Three special dices with one of the diagrams on each side are rolled. Whichever diagram shows up on the dice means that the people who betted on that same diagram on the placemat win cash. It’s a great game to play after getting red envelopes.”

One unique item that Chinese New Years has is the red envelope. These red packets have an animal from the Chinese Zodiac emblazoned on them (This year, the dragon) and are extremely valuable because they contain money. Brandon explained that the amount of money “usually has an eight in it because eight is [the] lucky number in Chinese culture and sounds similar to the Chinese word for ‘fortune.” Sophomore Andrew Dang plans on saving the money to “jump start his financial independency at age eighteen.”

Strip Chinese New Year of all the festivities and activities though, and one can see that family makes up the core of this holiday. As freshman Allison Limfat stated, “Chinese New Year is a time where you are always surrounded by people you love – whether it’s watching fireworks [explode] in the starry night sky, or watching festivals with that outgoing cousin, you learn to enjoy every moment that you have with them and never take what you have for granted.”
-----------------------------------------------

See what I did there? Eight and eighteen?

(The article is precisely 400 words if you start at 'For' and end at 'granted.')

The Other New Year (379 words)
Stanley Shaw:


For many AHS students and communities worldwide, the year began again on Jan. 23 as the year of the dragon commenced with family reunions, sumptuous multi-course meals, and, to top it all off, red envelopes packed with new bills. This and, of course, everything else has been splashed with a healthy amount of vibrant red, a color long associated with success and good fortune.

Keeping true to the holiday spirit, senior Ingrid Jin and her family would “go out to eat at a Chinese restaurant during a date around Chinese New Years. But on the actual day, [their] whole family would stay home and have homemade dumplings and sticky cake, etc.” Freshman Brandon Sien went to his uncle’s house where all his family members were gathered. There, his relatives exchanged news and snippets of their lives over “pork and cooked seafood boiled in a hot bowl.” Of course, what fun would a family re-union be without games?

After eating “eggrolls, fish, pork foot, and dumplings,” junior Kevin Kha played “Fish, Shrimp, Crab”. According to him, “This addicting game has players place money on one of several diagrams on a placemat. Three special dices with one of the diagrams on each side are rolled. Whichever diagram shows up on the dice means that the people who betted on that same diagram on the placemat win cash. It’s a great game to play after getting red envelopes.”

One unique item that Chinese New Years has is the red envelope. Sophomore Josh Tran described the envelopes as being "red [in] color with various designs emblazoned on it; including dragons, Chinese characters, and sometimes even ancient drawings transcribed from China." Sophomore Andrew Dang plans on saving the money he receives in the red envelopes to “jump start his financial independency at age eighteen.”

Strip Chinese New Year of all the festivities and activities though, and one can see that family makes up the core of this holiday. As freshman Allison Limfat stated, “Chinese New Year is a time where you are always surrounded by people you love – whether it’s watching fireworks [explode] in the starry night sky, or watching festivals with that outgoing cousin, you learn to enjoy every moment that you have with them and never take what you have for granted.”

he Other New Year (379 words)
Stanley Shaw:


For many AHS students and communities worldwide, the year began again on Jan. 23 as the year of the dragon commenced with family reunions, sumptuous multi-course meals, and, to top it all off, red envelopes packed with new bills. This and, of course, everything else has been splashed with a healthy amount of vibrant red, a color long associated with success and good fortune.

Keeping true to the holiday spirit, senior Ingrid Jin and her family would “go out to eat at a Chinese restaurant during a date around Chinese New Years. But on the actual day, [their] whole family would stay home and have homemade dumplings and sticky cake, etc.” Freshman Brandon Sien went to his uncle’s house where all his family members were gathered. There, his relatives exchanged news and snippets of their lives over “pork and cooked seafood boiled in a hot bowl.” Of course, what fun would a family re-union<reunion> be without games?

After eating “eggrolls, fish, pork foot, and dumplings,” junior Kevin Kha played “Fish, Shrimp, Crab”. According to him, “This addicting game has players place money on one of several diagrams on a placemat. Three special dices with one of the diagrams on each side are rolled. Whichever diagram shows up on the dice means that the people who betted on that same diagram on the placemat win cash. It’s a great game to play after getting red envelopes.”

One unique item that Chinese New Years has is the red envelope. Sophomore Josh Tran described the envelopes as being "red [in] color with various designs emblazoned on it;<,> including dragons, Chinese characters, and sometimes even ancient drawings transcribed from China." Sophomore Andrew Dang plans on saving the money he receives in the red envelopes to “jump start his financial independency at age eighteen<18>.”

Strip Chinese New Year of all the festivities and activities though, and one can see that family makes up the core of this holiday. As freshman Allison Limfat stated, “Chinese New Year is a time where<when> you are always surrounded by people you love – whether it’s watching fireworks [explode] in the starry night sky, or watching festivals with that outgoing cousin, you learn to enjoy every moment that you have with them and never take what you have for granted.”

The Other New Year
Stanley Shaw:

For many AHS students and communities worldwide, the year began again on Jan. 23 as the year of the dragon commenced with family reunions, sumptuous multi-course meals, and, to top it all off, red envelopes packed with new bills. This and, of course, everything else has been splashed with a healthy amount of vibrant red, a color long associated with success and good fortune.

Keeping true to the holiday spirit, senior Ingrid Jin and her family would “go out to eat at a Chinese restaurant during a date around Chinese New Years. But on the actual day, [their] whole family would stay home and have homemade dumplings and sticky cake, etc.” Freshman Brandon Sien went to his uncle’s house where all his family members were gathered. There, his relatives exchanged news and snippets of their lives over “pork and cooked seafood boiled in a hot bowl.” Of course, what fun would a family reunion be without games?

After eating “eggrolls, fish, pork foot, and dumplings,” junior Kevin Kha played “Fish, Shrimp, Crab”. According to him, “This addicting game has players place money on one of several diagrams on a placemat. Three special dices with one of the diagrams on each side are rolled. Whichever diagram shows up on the dice means that the people who betted on that same diagram on the placemat win cash. It’s a great game to play after getting red envelopes.”

One unique item that Chinese New Years has is the red envelope. Sophomore Josh Tran described the envelopes as being "red [in] color with various designs emblazoned on it, including dragons, Chinese characters, and sometimes even ancient drawings transcribed from China." Sophomore Andrew Dang plans on saving the money he receives in the red envelopes to “jump start his financial independency at age 18.”

Strip Chinese New Year of all the festivities and activities though, and one can see that family makes up the core of this holiday. As freshman Allison Limfat stated, “Chinese New Year is a time when you are always surrounded by people you love – whether it’s watching fireworks [explode] in the starry night sky, or watching festivals with that outgoing cousin, you learn to enjoy every moment that you have with them and never take what you have for granted.”

Misc. The people working at the 113th Golden Festival got back to me if anyone was interested...:

1. Can you please give a brief summary detailing the 113th Golden Dragon Festival? What will take place on that day? Street parades, performances, etc.

See attached Press Release

2. What can spectators and visitors do at the Festival other than watch the floats, bands, and other performances?

This year, we are so happy to have the opportunity of having Warner Bros. Tour Group coming in with their Scoopy-Doo Mystery Machine, General Lee From “The Dukes of Hazard” and Austin Power’s Shaguar come in. We also had, for numerous years, community activists and leaders come into our parade to represent their community.

3. How does the festival tie in with Chinese New Year?

For the festivities, the festival adds a touch to Chinatown that we general don’t see in the City. This festival gives the audience an opportunity to enjoy the parade and festival food that is not already available by Chinatown merchants.

4. Can you please describe the lion dances/ dragon dances? Will the dragons be 'piloted' by multiple people? Is there a background story concerning the lion/dragon dances (their origins)?

The lion dance is a traditional dance to start off any festivities. The Lion Dance is piloted by multiple people and requires great coordination and team-work. The Lion Dance is historic for being the OPENING for the year to bring in great wealth, fortune, and good health. It is also said that the Lion Dance is to scare away all the old evil spirits that lure around us.

5. If you have any other information that might be of interest, please mention them!

In the parade, we also have our New Miss Los Angeles Chinatown Courts ride in the floats. The Miss Los Angeles Chinatown Queen and her Court serves as the ambassadors to the Chinese Community through the year doing humanitarian works and such. www.misslachinatown.com

Nicki Ung

黄美燕

The Other New Year (309)
Stanley Shaw:

For many AHS students and communities worldwide, the year began again on Jan. 23 as the year of the dragon commenced with family reunions, sumptuous multi-course meals, and, to top it all off, vibrant red envelopes packed with new bills. This and, of course, everything else has been splashed with a healthy amount of vibrant red, a color long associated with success and good fortune.

Keeping true to the holiday spirit, senior Ingrid Jin and her family would “go out to eat at a Chinese restaurant during a date around Chinese New Years. But on the actual day, [their] whole family would stay home and have homemade dumplings and sticky cake, etc.” Freshman Brandon Sien went to his uncle’s house where all his family members were gathered. There, his relatives exchanged news and snippets of their lives over “pork and cooked seafood boiled in a hot bowl.”

Of course, some younger member are more hyped up for the red envelopes, which contain money, and are often given to the younger members of a family by the elders. Sophomore Josh Tran described the envelopes as being "red [in] color with various designs emblazoned on it, including dragons, Chinese characters, and sometimes even ancient drawings transcribed from China." Sophomore Andrew Dang plans on saving the money he receives in the red envelopes to “jump start his financial independency at age 18.”

Strip Chinese New Year of all the festivities and activities though, and one can see that family makes up the core of this holiday. As freshman Allison Limfat stated, “Chinese New Year is a time when you are always surrounded by people you love – whether it’s watching fireworks [explode] in the starry night sky, or watching festivals with that outgoing cousin, you learn to enjoy every moment that you have with them and never take what you have for granted.”