Identity issues

A huge topic I'll comment on later is: cultural identity.

Last week being the Lunar New Year (commonly referred to as Chinese New Year), I didn't know if I should broach this subject. It's not a significant occasion, for me, but I imagine other people may assume it's meaningful, given my seeming pro-Asian bent. (pro-Asian, or just anti-oppression?)

We started observing this event in the past few years. My mother and I went out for dinner - that was our 'big celebration.' We also ended up visiting with my step-grandmother, a few days later, due to her recent upset with her tenant-roommate.

Christmas is our main family gathering - although I missed three out of four recent celebrations, due to my surveillance, depression, anger, and feeling seriously misunderstood. We've started doing Kris Kringle (each person receives one gift, and gets a gift for someone else), which is nice: it keeps things simple, so one can enjoy the spirit of the holiday season (Chanukah, Kwanzaa, and so on). I try not to accept monetary gifts. Being unemployed is bad enough; I don't need to feel more ashamed, obligated, and dependent.

Four key reasons why I had a major falling out with my relatives are: surveillance and harassment, my emotional unwellness, politics of gift-giving, and chauvinism. Loooong story.