Tae Yoon: Life from 2006-2021

it sure feels good to come back home.

don't get me wrong, i had the most amazing time in wisconsin, but all that eating, drinking and schmoozing was getting really tiring after a while.

now it's back to real life and i've got to prepare for an upcoming busy workweek. the good news is, all i have to do is make it through the next five days of work and i'm on a one-week vacation, fuck yeah.

i did want to mention one thing about my business trip. my colleague and i were treated with the best amenities by the company, and i was able to attend every single event i wanted to and socialize with some of the greatest culinary talent in the country. from gift baskets to complimentary everything --- i felt very lucky and a bit spoiled by it all, and loved every minute of it. however with all the great stuff that happened, there was also an incident which really pissed me off. and i'm only writing about it because i think it's worth mentioning, but it in no way reflects negatively on all the million amazing moments i had.

on my last night in wisconsin, my colleagues, some of the event's talent and i were having drinks at the best restaurant in town, which happened to be in our hotel. at about midnight, everyone says they're tired and that they're retiring for the night. i was the youngest of everyone and the only one that wanted to stay out so i decide to hit up the local pub for a nightcap, which is also inside the hotel. i just wanted to get one beer before i went to bed, so i sat at the bar alone and ordered my local wisconsin draft on tap. as i'm sitting at the bar, there isn't really anyone else at there except for a group of three guys to my left. the bartender brings me my drink, and as i'm drinking my beer, i hear a guy in the group to the left of me say, "FUCKING FOREIGNERS." i immediately look to them and see the guy turning his head after making the racial statement. then at that moment, a group of 3 girls come out of the bathroom and come in between myself and the group of guys.

now, i'm pretty fucking pissed off after hearing this. i will be the first to say that i am a big pussy and don't enjoy fighting, but there are some things that you just don't and can't let go. especially coming from this ignorant motherfucker who assumes i'm a "foreigner" because i'm asian. i ask one of the girls if those guys were their friends, and she says no. so i lean over and get the guy's attention and ask if he just called me a "fucking foreigner." he seemed pretty surprised at my reaction and went on this whole bullshit tangent and assured that he wasn't talking about me, but about a beer instead. all i did was laugh at him, finish my beer, and go back to my hotel. i swear, stupid ass racist idiots in the country. if you're going to make a racial slur at me, don't fucking act like you didn't, man. you just embarrass yourself.

on our hour-long drive back to the milwaukee airport, i asked my colleague, "since this is how 95% of americans live, do you think rural america is reality, or living in a melting pot like new york is a reality?" she answered that they're "alternate realities." that really made me think about how lucky i am to have been born and raised in nyc --- i love this city and this is where my life and reality is.

anyway, here are some pictures i took from my trip. fyi, whenever i travel, i'm always obsessed with watching the local news and seeing what's going on in these places i've never heard of before --- so much fun haha. enjoy.