I found this video a few weeks ago that I helped me and I wanted to share it, but didn’t get around to it. Then today I saw an episode with Joe Rogan and James Nestor talking about breathing and that reminded me.
They talked about all kinds of things related to breathing: deviated septum’s, athletics, tumo breathing, anxiety, asthma, co2, oxygen, nitric oxide and basically how to breath better.
I found the below video to be quite helpful.
Years ago I had seen some videos of Patrick McKeown and the butego method which is like plugging your nose, nodding your head and holding your breath and then releasing, but that wasn’t that helpful for me.
How to unblock your nose
I found this one and I’ve been doing this daily for probably 2 months or so now. It definitely helps.
It makes more sense to me as you physically manipulating the airways more.
A word of warning…
When you do the last part when you blow hard out through your nose (5 times) you might want to get a tissue beforehand because you are likely to blow snot everywhere :=/.
But I definitely recommend it. I think you will notice a difference. He recommends doing it twice a day for 3 weeks I think. I would do it more than that if needed. I sometimes do it 3 times a day.
I don’t think it has straightened my nose, but it has helped my breathing at least temporarily.
I’ve often thought that if the septum was made crooked by basically being pushed out of shape (struck) then maybe it could be pushed back into shape somehow.
Can you pry it open?
I bought a killian’s speculum about a year and a half or so ago and dabbled a bit with trying to pry my nose open more based on this. But it’s painful and a little sketchy.
I noticed on my right side I can’t insert it as far as I can on the left side.
I remember when I went to the ENT in SF and he used one to look inside my nose and when he did I could instantly breath better. Pushing my nose to my right where it deviates has a similar effect.
Another idea I had was to make some sort of nose guard (out of friendly plastic) at night that would push it back in place or DIY nose dilators. The later would be easier to do
I had surgery (septoplasty) in Taiwan back in maybe 2006, but it wasn’t very helpful. Actually I don’t think it did anything except cause a whole lot of trauma and bloody discomfort following. About 3 years ago I saw a couple surgeons in San Francisco and was considering it again.
One talked about removing a piece of cartilage from my rib or ear to use.
Recently started looking into it again. I remember reading once about using laser to heat and remold the cartilage instead of surgery and found the above video by Austin Goh.
I also learned in SF that I had an allergy to dust mites when I was living in an old apartment with carpets. So if you have an allergy that could affect your breathing problems too. If you have carpets and a stuffed up nose you might want to get rid of them.
Doesn’t matter if you clean them or vacuum.
I don’t think that is going to get rid of them. Dust mites are tiny and it’s not them but their feces that causes the problem so I was told.
I’ve got a crooked nose. How about you?
I broke my nose for the first time when I was 14 years old at St. Johnsbury Academy in VT. There I was standing in line in basketball practice waiting my turn and then suddenly the back of someone’s head came flying into my nose.
Lots of pain, black and blue eyes, a crooked nose and like 30 years of bad breathing habits followed.
Since I’ve had breathing problems mostly in my right nostril. And at least one more broken nose since.
Mouth breathing might have actually changed the shape of my face too and made it longer. I do have a long face. There is research out there that says this happens with mouth breathers.
About 2 years ago or so I started taping my mouth at night time when I sleep.
Research also shows that mouth breathing can also change your teeth, make them crooked, cause an open bite and even affect your posture.
Also as far as sleeping goes it’s better to sleep on your side. Sleeping on your back will make your mouth open or cause snoring.
When I was 25 I started doing something that will help your breathing…
When I was 25 (circa 2000) I started practicing yoga. Initially I trained with several different teachers 3-4 times a week for a year. Then after that I I have practiced it daily for close to 20 years. I do about 15 minutes a day or so.
That helps my breathing, because in yoga most of the time you are trained to breath through your nose not your mouth. Certain positions also open up your chest and airways too.
Then when I was about 32 or 33 I started practicing meditation which was actually inspired from a book I read that talked about tumo meditation mentioned in the Rogan video above.
Simple meditation is to either sit still or lie down on the floor (without a pillow) and breath through your nose and focus on your breathing.
You can try:
Slow and steady breaths and maybe…
Holding your breath after you exhale for maybe 5-10+ seconds and then slowly and deeply inhale and continue.
6 seconds in 6 seconds out (or vary the number)
I didn’t really learn how to do the tumo meditation, but I have learned some basic meditation practices since and do it everyday for at least 20 minutes. Again it’s breathing through your nose.
Breath through your nose.
Breath through your nose.
Breath through your nose.
One of the things they talked about was that some people may need surgery to correct a badly damaged or deviated septum like Rogan did. But Nestor also had a deviated septum but said he forced it open through breathing.
Bad habits like mouth breathing may shrink your nostrils.
I notice often during the day at times I can walk around with my mouth partly open. It’s a bad habit.
Mewing might also help your breathing
Another thing I’ve been doing is called mewing.
It’s a relatively new thing named by fans of the orthodontist or dentist Michael Mew. It’s basically about changing your posture, head, neck and tongue position.
You can also look up exercises to improve your posture or “text neck”. Yoga includes many of these exercises.
Some basics…
Look up more
Squeeze your shoulder blades together
Tuck your chin
Do sun salutations
It’s hard to change your habits, but if you do you’ll likely see various benefits. It takes discipline and practice like anything.
Conclusion
To breath better you can…
Do the exercises above by Austin Goh (you might notice immediate improvements)
Close your mouth.
Breath through your nose.
Correct your posture.
Get rid of the allergen (mites, pets, food).
Do yoga, meditate and/or exercise with your mouth closed.
There are also breathing strips or dilators you could use which I haven’t tried yet.
Mew: tongue on the roof of your mouth.
Surgery is an option too, but if you get religious about the exercises then you will likely see an improvement.
I need to practice exercising with my mouth closed more. Bit by bit. Practice makes perfect.
And one thing you can do is strengthen the surrounding muscles. Ironically the knee that I tore was on the flatter foot side. It’s weird my lower right leg and foot is weaker than my left, but my upper right leg is stronger than my left…
Have asymmetry in your body?
Anyways here’s a yoga video I made that will help your lower legs (feet, ankles, calves), balance and focus. Also there’s a pose in there where I bend forward that also will work your hamstrings and glutes (1 side at a time).
If you do this 5-10 minutes a day everyday you will notice a difference because I have.
I’ve always practiced yoga – well for 20 years, but about 1-2 months ago I started to set a timer for 10 minutes for the second half of my yoga routine and just focus on one legged balancing exercises.
You’ll feel it in your feet.
I am sure you will notice a difference in how your feet feel in a week. The benefits of doing poses like this vs. normal exercises such as curling a towel with your toes is that it’s more engaging for your body and mind.
You’ll use your whole lower leg, improve your balance and focus at the same time. If you just do towel exercises, well I think they are boring and they are kind of isolated – at least the ones I’ve seen.
Try.
My feet feel stronger from doing this and I noticed I can stand still and type on my computer for longer periods of time.
My feet feel more like they are gripping the floor vs. being flattened out.
That video above I made near a park (Momochi seaside park) near my home in Fukuoka. It was a bit rainy and windy that day. They have some big stones that you can sit or lie on and that was what I was standing on.
Occasionally I will go and do yoga there. It’s nice the ocean meets the river there.
5-10 minutes?
What if my feet get tired? They will. Then just switch sides. I focus more on my right side since that is the weaker side.
How can you balance?
Focus on a point in front of you. This is harder outside since there is more space. But if you are inside just find a point on the wall or something in front of you.
And focus on your breathing.
Last words…
Will walking in the beach sand help?Somewhat, not as much as I thought, but if you do it daily… Since I currently live near the beach for the last 30-40 days I would walk maybe a half of a mile in the dry beach sand barefooted. But the yoga exercises above are more efficient.
Will toe shoes help? Maybe a little, I’ve had a pair for maybe 4-5 years or so. Back when I was street performing I would wear them all the time or now in the summer sometimes.
Will doing toe raises help?Yes. Back in high school I used to do these a lot. I played basketball and wanted to be quick and able to jump. I think these strengthened my feet.
Will foam rolling help?Indirectly it could as the surrounding muscles may have an effect on your flat feet. I have been rolling on my tight IT bands, calves and glutes because I saw a few videos on Youtube that suggested tight muscles there and in your calves could cause you to be duck footed.
Will doing box jumps help?Yes. Box jumps are a good full lower body exercise. They will work your feet up to your glutes. I noticed my feet felt stronger when I was doing these.
Will doing squats help?No. Squats are primarily an upper leg and glute exercise. They don’t work your feet. Box jumps are a much better full lower body exercise that will work your feet+.
Will jumping rope help?Yes. Although it tends to other one of my knees.
Here’s a little more yoga that I did on the beach.
I’ve had in my mind that over the next year or so I will do 12 or more creative video/music types. And here is one that I completed recently.
Well, it’s never really completed, but it’s enough for now. I got tired of working on it. Because I had some problem with the clipping and then I would lower it and it was fine in the software (old Garageband) and then export it and then it was distorted and I went round and round with that.
And just decided it’s good enough for now considering my computer and software is like 11 years old.
Maybe be too many tracks for Garageband.
But anyways here is the slow version.
I started off with a song that was one of my favorites from when I was around 12-13 and then took a bit out of it. I changed the speed and then created a new loop and added some samples from elsewhere.
Then the video I had lying around for a long time which seemed kind of fitting and a few pics of old paintings I did. I actually have a bunch of video, kinda creative stuff lying around that I plan on using in the future.
You know I was reading the other day that Google search results are biased. True, everyone is biased including the search engine and what it chooses for you.
Why does it choose the sites that it does?
I’ve learned a lot about that since I started a website about 10 years ago.
But some say Google is politically biased. Google owns Youtube and I’ve heard stories of people’s videos being taken down because they discussed sensitive PC topics.
I think I also read most news media sites out there are left-wing leaning. So that’s maybe something you want to ask yourself.
How objective is this news that I am reading?
I found the article mentioned below about Joe Rogan.
I don’t bow hunt or find myself interested in everything Joe Rogan is or agree with everything he says, but I am interested in many things that he is such as:
health
jiu-jitsu
yoga
nutrition
psychedelics
comedy
art and music
learning
etc.
I think the coolest thing about him is that he’s himself. He’s not pretentious and he can talk about a diverse range of topics including some stuff that’s “taboo” for many.
He’s like a normal guy. He’s not uptight, swears and smokes weed on his show with some of his guests.
He has had many guests on his show like 1,400+ people including: actors, musicians, psychologists, scientists, astrophysicists, fighters, and a whole lot of people with interesting stories.
Some recent shows:
Tony Hawk (He’s like 52 and still skates awesome!)
Jordan Jonas (Lived alone in the wilderness for 77 days with 10 items)
Edward Snowden
Mike Tyson
Dr. Rhonda Patrick
Bernie Sanders
And speaking of Bernie…
I saw this post I mentioned earlier on Vox where the writer Zack Beauchamp quotes Joe Rogan from a video.
I was completely open and liberal about it — until there was a case where a man who had been a man for 30 years became a woman for a little less than two years and then started MMA fighting women. Beating the fuck out of these women, and then not proclaiming that he or she used to be a man … if you ever watch the fights, she wasn’t winning because she was skillful. She was fucking manhandling these women, it was ugly.
Then Zack says…
“This very short paragraph contains all the classic tropes of transphobia: a denial of the authenticity of trans people’s identity, an insinuation that they’re a threat to cis folks, and a claim that they’re using their gender identity to somehow get ahead in life.”
Haha…
I remembered that video. I’ve heard him talk about that and I don’t think that is transphobia. That is just being objective. He’s an MMA commentator and black belt in BJJ and Tae kwon do.
Give him some credit.
He knows something about athletics and fighting.
Why do they have female and male divisions for all kinds of sports?
Is that sexism?
There’s a reason.
Men are typically bigger, stronger and faster. That’s not a mentality that’s a reality.
Call yourself what you want, but don’t tell people what to call you or try to make some rule as to what you should be called.
Your idea is just an idea (or idealogy) and who is to say you are right? There are many people out there in the world that don’t think like you.
And something I read once that I thought was pretty insightful.
Don’t believe everything you think.
That Vox article suggested that since Joe Rogan had some “right-wing” people on his show like Alex Jones, Ben Shapiro, etc. that he was a bigot.
But he’s had a lot of people on his show that aren’t considered “right-wing” not only Bernie Sanders, but Andrew Yang (thumbs up from me), and what’s her name…
Tulsi Gabbard.
A lot of people with different viewpoints.
IT’S MY WAY OR THE HIGHWAY.
That’s how I see a lot of feminists, SJW’s or “activists” think. They’re religious.
“It’s still a totalitarian way of thinking… If people don’t comply you’re going after them. That’s everything against being a liberal progressive thinker. Exactly.” – 2 people referring to SJW’s
It extends to food too.
The my way or the highway diet
What?
What’s the most politically correct diet? Would it be the vegan diet? Because you might as well be a savage if you are eating animal products.
But the vegan diet includes carbs and according to the keto (ketogenic) folks…
“CARBS AREN’T FOOD.”
Someone actually replied to me once with that comment. I said to go look up the Blue zone diet.
Food is one example and…
Religion is another
I once read that “brands” are like religions in a book by Martin Lindstrom. The same part of the brain that lights up with religion is associated with brands (on an MRI).
Your political party, favorite supermarket, sneaker brand are like your religion.
So maybe “keto” is a religion and feminism is a religion and ___ is a religion too.
Different people think differently.
Joe Rogan has had vegans, people on the ketogenic diet, atkins diet and carnivore diet on his show. So I say give him some credit for not excluding or censoring people who are not in “his circle” whatever that may be.
“All forms of violent extremism are rooted in this form of in-group versus out-group thinking.” – source
Oh and by the way…
If you were born with a penis and think of yourself as female or want to be called ___.
Or, if you were born with a vagina and think of yourself as a male or want to be called ___.
Then I am black.
And 30% Asian despite whatever my genes say and the fact I might look like a white man.
Nope.
I am not white.
Better make a new box for my ethnicity on that application. I am still working on what I’ll call this new ethnicity.
So I recently completed 21 days with no caffeine. That’s no green tea or cacao for me. It was hard in the beginning. But I realized just how powerful these things are.
You just don’t realize.
Until you stop. Then you’ll see. The 2nd day was the most difficult for me and then it got progressively easier.
But now I have since been drinking tea over the last 3 days, but each day I am drinking less as I see how it is affecting my sleep.
You sleep better without caffeine.
The first day back on caffeine I noticed the effects. Adrenaline. More stress from cortisol. Faster, stimulated, a little more flighty and scattered and more positive feeling.
I also thought I looked better.
It’s a mixed bag.
But once you’re in the habit you don’t notice. It’s the usual and then you might start drinking more and more.
I love green tea.
Before the fast I was drinking a lot of green tea – like for half of the day. I noticed my sleep seemed deeper not on caffeine. I slept better about 90% of the time.
The internet would still eff with my sleep if I use it too late. That’s my next fast.
Previously I’ve done 1, 2, 3, 4, and a 5 day fast.
Day 1 I felt a little less energy and a bit more moody.
Day 2 I felt a lot less energy, very foggy and hungry.
Day 3 and beyond was better.
The good they say (of no caffeine)…
Better sleep
More grounded
Less scattered
Less stress
Less anxiety
I agree with pretty much all of these now. Anxiety I don’t think I get much, but I can see how other people may be affected.
The bad (of no caffeine)
lethargy
depression
headaches
complexion?
dullness
I didn’t get any headaches this time although I have in the past when I went off caffeine. But I definitely felt lethargy and definitely in the first few days.
I found myself more grounded feeling but I bit more depressed feeling actually. On the other hand I felt a little more dull. Towards the end of my 21 days I was asking myself if I was starting to feel more positive. Not sure.
I also noticed my complexion didn’t seem to look as good without caffeine. Actually green tea contains more than caffeine, but also theanine, theobromine, catechins and other stuff.
I also didn’t eat cacao which I don’t everyday because I’ve noticed that is definitely addicting and stimulating.
I think the effects of fasting from green tea and cacao is subtle. I think you will notice how it affects you if you go off of it for a long time and then go back on it.
Initially I was only going to do this for 7 days, but it turned into 21. I think I will do more cycling in and out of using tea in the future as well as varying the amounts I consume.
The effects of it felt quite noticeable after the 21 days and again interrupted my sleep. It also tends to go hand and hand with using the internet for me.
Before I tell you about my fast I’ll tell about my day at the beach today. So I’ve been disciplined lately about going to the beach to walk barefoot in the sand to strengthen my feet.
I was tired from the previous week of fasting, but it was sunny and I am doing 30 days of this at least despite haven’t slept well for the last 3 days. After I got a few food items from the market I rode out to the beach and complained the whole way about the damn wind blowing in my face.
I guess I start losing it when I get tired… complaining, etc.
Then I get out there try to lie down for a bit and decide to take out my mushrooms I bought so they can get some vitamin D too (you know they absorb D like we do? Paul Stamets told me so).
And they stank like these kinds sometimes do when they are wrapped tight in plastic. Hate that smell! So I continued complaining to myself, lied down in the sand for a moment until a big gust of wind blew a bunch of sand in my face.
Then I got up, and I dropped my stinky mushrooms in the sand, picked them up and continued down to one end of the beach. After I got to one end I turned around to go get my bike to head back home.
Then WTF…
As I was walking back all of a sudden something big hits me from behind and my arm.
It was fucking hawk!
It wanted my mushrooms!
I couldn’t believe it. This is a big bird. It’s like twice the size of a crow maybe more.
That’s what I get for complaining!
After he hit me he kept circling above and watching me. I thought he was going to come back. He must of smelled those mushrooms.
I looked it up and maybe it’s called a black kite or honey buzzard and looks kinda like this.
And you know what? I should have just given them to him because they smelled so bad that I threw them out later!
So that’s nature it’s natural state is starvation.
Ours too, but…
It’s supermarkets and comfort foods nowadays. Yet, when you start going back 100 years, 200 years ago, etc. your ancestors were starving at times just like that bird was.
In reality we are all scavengers, just times changed for many of us.
Wow, I got bum rushed by a big ass hawk.
5 days no food.
Previously the longest I ever fasted was about 4 days a couple of months ago. But Sunday I finished 5 days without a bite of anything to eat. I did all right, I just drank tea and lied down when I felt tired.
The last time I did the 4 days I was going for 5 days, but started feeling sick and quit and then made a soup, but was fine.
I will probably post a video about my 5 days in the future, but I did alright then Sunday night I ate things seemed okay but didn’t sleep well again.
Then last night I don’t know… But I got really sick like thinking I was dying sick. I threw up my dinner which was pineapple, grano padano cheese, spinach and fried eggs.
All things I ate the night before without a problem.
So I don’t know why.
That cheese though I think didn’t taste right to me. It was a different kind than I bought last time.
Saturday night the last night of my fast I slept like 4 hours (that time partially my fault for listening to a podcast late at night), then like 5 hours on Sunday and then like 4 last night after like 2 hours of nausea and then finally throwing up.
I don’t know if it was bad food that I ate and a combination of fasting changing my gut or making it more sensitive or the dairy?
Yet earlier in the day I made a curry dish with raw milk, cauliflower, cashews, mushrooms. etc and I was okay.
Plus aged cheese contains almost no lactose so maybe it was bad cheese or you know the pineapple the second time wasn’t so fresh tasting it kind of had that smell like the mushrooms did a little – like it was aging
I don’t know what’s going on though it seems like the food I am buying recently is going bad fast. Maybe I will stop going to the cheap store.
Even this morning my stomach was a little sensitive. On my second cup of tea I started to feel a little nausea so I just went back to water. Since I’ve had a few meals now and seem to be okay.
5 days.
I did it. Hoping for a good night of sleep tonight.
Going to bed hungry is tough. However, days 2 and 3 of this fast were fine for me and I slept well. It was that last night listening to that podcast that disrupted my sleep.
That’s what you get for staying up later on the computer or even listing to a podcast in the bath. You stimulate your brain when your body wants to sleep. My fault.
Perhaps this is part of the reset button of the fast. Let’s see how I feel in a few days.
Despite being difficult there are a lot of benefits to fasting. And more so to prolonged fasts like 5 days or more:
Decreased inflammation
Increased autophagy (which decreases as you age)
Increased stem cells
Increased growth hormone
Increased vascular growth factor
Increased fibroblast growth factor
I have injuries to heal (the above reasons) that’s why I did it.
But people fast for different reasons. Lots of science out there.
Weight loss
Neurogenesis – reduce alzheimers risk and improve brain function
You’ll live longer and healthier if you do it and it’s the same with other living forms: yeast and mice
Valter Longo has a 5 day fasting mimicking FMD diet that’s steeped in science. His stuff is pretty interesting. I might try that in the future or some sort of longer term calorie restriction.
Some of his studies were with cancer patients doing the FMD diet 5 days a month. That would be easier than no food of course.
I think it’s good to cycle in and out of fasting.
It’s like regeneration and renewal.
So I am experimenting. I have done 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 day fasts and alternate day fasts, but really I think if you want results, well it depends on what results you want you have to make it a part of your life.
I got up did some yoga as usual. Turned on my turntables. Did a little scratching. Drank some water.
Then around 11am I rode my bike to the beach (Momochi beach). I did a walk down the beach as I thought it would be good for my feet and a good workout.
Then started my little workout with some leg ups and abdominal exercises then I hopped back on my bike and found a spot with some stones and started the leg part of my work out.
I did some lateral split squats, one legged balancing and box jumps or rather today I jumped up on these rocks. Then I peddled down a little further to the playground and did a bunch of pull ups.
Yes!
Work out was done and it was super sunny.
Next I got some food and went home to cook.
This meal was inspired by…
NT-020.
It’s a supplement said to help proliferate stem cells and help neurogenesis in aged rats. Not an aged rat, but the study sounded convincing to me.
It includes blueberries, green tea, vitamin d3 and carnosine.
So I made a stirfry with mushrooms (D3), eggs (D3), chicken (carnosine), and cilantro.
Then I had some ground peanuts, cocoa, ground spirulina, a little stevia and blueberries.
And MATCHA!
That’s green tea.
It was fantastic.
Got some new ideas for my website and started on those and then more ideas on how to make a mask (not for the stupid coronavirus, but for fun) which I am going to start now!
Awesome, it was a great day.
I wonder why?
Was it the music and scratching?
Was it the beach and getting grounded by walking barefoot?
Was it the workout?
Was it the NT-020 inspired meal?
Was it the cocoa?
Was it the new idea?
Was it all the above?
I don’t know, but I am going to try something similar tomorrow (maybe without the cocoa^^).
I went walking today at low tide on the sand and after I looked at my foot steps. They were rather duck footed (more than I remembered).
So I googled:
how to fix duck feet
The guy said they can be caused by flat feet or tight hips/glutes. One of my feet is flatter than the other and I’ve noticed lately over the last few years that my hips and pelvis area has become more creaky, tight or sore especially when I roll on them.
How to fix FLAT FEET (if you have flat feet you probably want to watch it!)
Been rollin on my feet with my tennis ball in a sock and aluminum water bottle (works good for massage).
I realized…
My feet are a neglected part in my workout especially considering it’s a weakness. I’ve had quite a few knee injuries.
I need to work on them more.
Ian’s upgrading his workout!
Need to level up my feet.
For a long time I’ve done squats for my leg workout, but they don’t do much for your feet. Lately I’ve been doing box jumps where I’ll jump up on a bench or some platform 1-2 feet tall and then step down. Then do that 40-50 times.
And more recently frog jumps with my hands clasped behind my head.
It’s pretty good.
It will work your glutes, quads, hamstrings, calves and maybe feet a little. I like them better than squats as squats hurt one of my knees (not the more recently injured one though).
It hurts the one that also has a tight sore hip.
So got to fix that hip and THOSE FEET.
MASSAGE.
And as I am writing this I am standing on my tennis ball.
It’s really good for foot massage actually. If you put it in a sock it won’t roll away.
It’s kind of interesting how your feet (foundation) can affect your whole body. I used to wear orthotics as a kid, but those don’t work.
I need to strengthen my foot.
Also the flatter foot my right one is more difficult to balance on like mentioned in the video.
Back in high school basketball I used to do a lot of toe raises. And probably had stronger feet then.
Considering this fact that the foot is the most distal part of the lower extremity and acts as a support point through which the body maintains its balance, even minimal biomechanical changes at the support level can affect postural control strategies. If a change occurs in foot alignment, the pelvis changes its position in order to maintain the body’s center of gravity.
I was listening to the Joe Rogan podcast the other day and I learned that the question “where are you from?” is considered a micro aggression.
Fuck you whoever came up with that. Some retarded American SJW.
GO GO GO.
I understand why you did, but it’s really stupid.
I’ve lived in 7 US states, in 4 other countries (7+ years) and traveled quite a bit. Where are you from has been part of my story.
Even if you make it some rule you won’t change what they are thinking.
I’ve lived in Asia for more than 7 years total. And then after around 6 years I went back to the states and I remember asking some people this question.
Where are you from?
And they’d get all touchy and say, “AMERICA“.
No kidding.
To me it’s a conversation starter right up there with how are you?
The whole thing has to do with race.
But isn’t this like the pot calling the kettle black?
The person who has issues with this question has them because they think this is about race, but what if I was the same race as them?
So for them to get offended by me is them taking my race into judgement too.
“Ohh, another stupid ass white boy who thinks I am from Mexico or Asia. No muthafucker I am AMERICAN!”
It’s just a question.
Get over it.
Even if you try to control what they say you didn’t change their mind. You just censored them.
If you were really clever maybe you could start a conversation with them.
No one seems to get offended here in Asia when I ask that question.
When you live in another country people ask you that question too. And let’s say you are white. Some people are going to assume that you are American even if you are not.
I’ve known some people from other English speaking countries that were offended by that.
And some of those people are going to be offended by the word “America” too. I used to say the USA and then many would say, New York, Los Angelos?
Sometimes it could be about your race, but so what… You are not going to change anybody by censoring them.
