Thang Nguyen 555

Cultures on Collision Course

recent posts

about

With some short-term relief work in Asia/Africa and long stint in Telecom, Thang also earned a B.A. at Pennsylvania State University. M.A. in Communication at Wheaton Graduate School, M.A. in Cross-Cultural Communication at Gordon-Conwell Seminary, Boston. In addition, he earned a CELTA – classes taken in Hanoi for cultural re-immersion.

Tag: United States

  • Human ingenuity

    When you see population growth which doesn’t equate with starvation, it’s a testimony to our human ingenuity. The US has less than 2 percent of its labor force in agriculture, yet no one is without a hamburger (even when it’s thrown out by McDonald). From Malthus to Moore, we have moved up the value chain.…

  • last leaf

    Skyline of West VA presents quite a scene and makes a case for Fall foliage. We used to play King of the Hill on top of a heap of dead leaves. Reminds me of the Last Leaf, a story about a terminally ill patient looking out the window and said “when those leaves all fell…

  • Get fat, get fit

    I was crunching, when the PA system announced “free pizza at Planet Fitness, 1st Monday of the month”. Might as well. Indulge.  After all, it says “No judgment zone.”  Get fat, get fit. Carrot and then Stick. In a blog I recently subscribed to, I found : ” the extent that we help fulfill other…

  • Coke, enduring and endearing

    The verdict is in. Marketing folks all know by now that top of the list reigns COKE. My first wage (selling Vietnamese worthless currency in Subic Bay on my way to the US a few days after the war had ended) was spent on Coke, from a vending machine. I remembered til this day the…

  • daring swim

    I was privy to not once or twice, but thrice, work  in non-profit capacity with displaced Vietnamese. My first time was at IndiantownGap, Pennsylvania as a Child Welfare interpreter. Later, in Hong Kong as a relief worker. And latest was in 1983, in the Philippines, where Cambodian and Vietnamese awaited their flights to the US.…

  • Eroded confidence

    Huffington is coming out with a book titled “Third World America”. As she makes the case for America’s shrinking middle-class, I can’t help notice a striking contrast with Vietnam (Third World which wants to become America), whose nascent credit (system) and (middle) class are almost non-existent. Yet it made the top list of World Happiness…

  • The three towers

    Tower Records and Twin Towers. All came down. I remember watching it over and over in disbelief. My “where were you when Kennedy was assassinated” moment. My friend even commented on my being so upset. And I remember blurting out that a culture with Howard Stern throwing bagels at cream-cheesed butts on TV  was in…

  • the infrastructure bills that come due

    Infrastructure improvement could cost billions. Kids need to drive someday. And as Mr Buffet wisely put his investment dollars into railways since containers need to be offloaded to the Wal-Mart near you. Those who travel recently can recall “boarding by zone”, “e-ticketing”, etc.. All sorts of gimmicks , except for the limited runways and slots allowed…

  • reverse culture shock

    After a transitory lay over at a third country, I found myself in one of the entry points, in this case, Atlanta: Southern hospitality, chicken recipe, and of course, airport price tagd. Ten bucks, with no drink. Welcome back, Mr Nguyen. I prepare my breakfast now. No longer a Saigon sitting down on a low…

  • transitory stage

    I once got a 12-hour lay over in S Korea. The airport boasts itself as ” a world best airport hub”, w/ picture of a janitor-on-duty in men’s bathroom. Every hour, there were a  procession of some sort, complete with traditional gowns and ceremonial hats. Passengers-turn-shoppers (the airport was designed as a Mall) paused and…