The Yang family has been running a takeout restaurant in this northeastern New Jersey town for 17 years. They have a daughter Lisa who's a 15-year-old and a son who's 10. When Lisa was born, the Yang family couldn't afford a babysitter. Lisa spent all day in the kitchen of the little takeout restaurant with … Continue reading In Six Languages (Flash Fiction #42) →

Image by Stefan Keller from Pixabay "I'm afraid I need to return this." Penni stands at counter of the vacant little grocery store. "My store has a no return policy for any package that's opened." Leong, the store owner says sternly. "It's opened, but I couldn't use it. I got cold feet and dropped the … Continue reading The Herbal Medicine (Flash Fiction #41) →

Photo by Alexey Savchenko on Unsplash Ada and her husband Taich are the managers of an Asian restaurant in northwestern part of New Jersey. They are new in the business. When they need a chef, one is recommended to them. It is said the chef has great skills and has worked in the most prestigious … Continue reading The New Chef (Flash Fiction #23) →

"Look, Yinla is declaring her intention to run for the board of county commissioners." Pammy says. "What is that? What does it do?" Pammy's perpetually gentle but disagreeing husband Pan says. "I don't know. A political position of certain kind. We should donate to her campaign, shouldn't we? We need to show our support." Pammy … Continue reading The Opportunist (Flash Fiction #14) →

Although Pammy and her husband Pan live thirty miles away from Manhattan, they rarely go there during the weekend. Traveling through the Holland Tunnel and the forever congested lower Manhattan will dampen the most vivacious spirit and exhaust the energy of the best athlete. However their friend Fei and her husband Fang almost go there … Continue reading A Trip Like No Other (Flash Fiction #13) →

"You know Pammy. I think your Pan is such a good husband. He is straightforward. His likes and dislikes are clearly displayed. He won't pretend to agree with you on the surface and sulk silently afterwards. He is a little nerdy, interested in eating good food and watching soccer. He is happy when he's satisfied. … Continue reading The Difficult Decision (Flash Fiction #12) →

Introduction: There's a little bit of history involved in this story. Currently there are about 10 million Manchu people and very rarely they speak the Manchurian language. Manchu are descendant of Jerchen people who in 1115 AD established Jin Dynasty, which was replaced over 100 years later by the Mongolians--my ancestors--who established Yuan Dynasty. Then … Continue reading The Manchu Prince (Flash Fiction #11) →

Arjian is a local hairdresser, but his true passion is poker. He's very skilled in women's hair and very good at following the latest trend of South Korean singers and actresses. Consequently he's always in high demand. There are women who would travel all the way from Eastern Pennsylvania to come to Edison, New Jersey--about … Continue reading The Gambler (Flash Fiction #10) →

"The reason our team's sales volume is low is because many people use our flexible hour to take care of their family or even take a second job. This is unacceptable. If you are not concentrating on your sale, how can you produce?" Hana can still remember her sales manager's words as she is changing … Continue reading The Second Job (Flash Fiction #9) →

Finally Yuet's little boy starts to speak. Yuet and her husband are so happy that they phone everyone. If you don't pick up their phone call, they will text you with their happy news and wait anxiously for your reply of congratulations. If you don't reply within a short span of time, Yuet will text … Continue reading He Speaks, Finally (Flash Fiction #8) →

"I can't go to a friend and say to him, 'your wife is crazy', can I?" Pan, the husband, says. "You need to point out to him to get his wife some psychiatric help. At first I thought she's just peculiar and now she is getting worse. Last week, out of blue she invited me … Continue reading The Crazy Argument →

Pammy says, "Your mom is taking little Sam to the park around the corner. I finally can say this to you." "What? What are you trying to say?" Pammy's husband Pan asks. "She talks about my friend Jia in a very belittled way. So Jia went to South Korea to get her lips and her … Continue reading The Mother-in-law (Flash Fiction #7) →

They've been engaged for a year and the wedding has been planned for a lucky day this summer--lucky in its number in both the regular calendar and the lunar calendar. However she has a little something, probably a little blue bird, in her heart that she can't hush up. She's tried to silence it, but … Continue reading The Dilemma (Flash Fiction #6) →

Lil, a retiree and a widow, is talking with her daughter Dana. Lil: "I am going to Nepal with my friend Su next week." Dana:"Why, Mom? You are wasting your retirement savings. Why Nepal? You are not thinking of climbing Mount Everest, are you?" Lil: "Oh, Dana, just a tourist. It's said Nepal has the … Continue reading Mount Everest (Flash Fiction #4) →

I just know it. He said he's going to come back by this hour, but look, where is he? It's because of his friendship with Doo, who's a liar through and through, and who's going to influence my little honest gullible Dragon. What a nice little nickname--Dragon--I got for him? I love dragons. Men learn … Continue reading He Is Home (Flash Fiction #3) →

They are two brothers. Forty-three years ago, when they were five and six-years-old, their family became refugees after the Vietnam war, floating on a boat in Southeast Asia, not knowing where they would land and where their next meal was. They were lucky to land in the refugee camp in Hong Kong. Five years later … Continue reading Two Brothers (Flash Non-Fiction #2) →

"Where are you going?" Armei asks. "Relax. I'll be back in two hours." Armei's boyfriend Lee says. "No, you are not. Liar. I will shoot you if you leave me." Armei pulls out the new gun Lee just bought from a gun show in New York City. "Hi, be careful with that. That's not a … Continue reading The New Purchase (Flash Fiction #1) →

Armei and Lee were college sweethearts, but they separated after graduation. One day, Armei found that Lee had not been posting pictures with his girlfriend for a while. She decided to plan an accidental meeting with him at the popular dim sum restaurant, which he and his girlfriend used to frequent, and post their meal … Continue reading Lovers’ Chance Meeting →

"Cindy, we need to wear the white funeral dress and cry in front your Grandpa's coffin." Cindy's mom says. "Mom, how can I cry? I hardly know him. I can't just shed tear on command." Cindy says. "Your Grandpa's will says that everybody has to cry. Anybody who doesn't cry is not going to get … Continue reading The Whimsical Grandpa →

"I've never known that cape means a smaller peninsular. Cape Cod is where there used to be a large amount of cod fish." Lulu says while staring at the google result. "Look, I didn't come here to talk about geography or food." Brother Yi is a little impatient. "And Henry David Thoreau wrote a book … Continue reading A Trip To Cape Cod →

Prehistocial man P and H are roasting several big sweet potatoes on a camp fire. Soon it is done. The aroma is irresistible; the skin is charcoaled and broken here and there with tasty sweet texture exposed. It's a bet. P would circle the tribal ground twice while H is supposed to eat the biggest … Continue reading The Argument →

Lulu the customer: "Don't you think I need to change the rear view mirror? I somehow cracked it with the back of my snow brush." Maahi the auto mechanic:"No need to do that. It's cracked a little on the edge and it won't bother your vision." Lulu: "Don't you think I need to change the … Continue reading The Reverse Psychology Expert →

Snow and romance, two completely different concepts, share the same central theme of being very beautiful in your dream and being very messy in real life. This is what Lulu is thinking when she is stuck behind a string of cars trying to get into the TJ Maxx shopping plaza. The snow storm three days … Continue reading Snow And Romance →

Alia only wanted to make things a little bit fun and less didactic. However once she unplugged the fun bottle, things started to get weird. This morning, she found a little piece of paper on her desk, saying "I don't know how to spell because I am not a witch." Anybody could have entered her … Continue reading The Boy Who Cries “Fire” →

Lulu: "He hasn't been moving for the last ten minutes, his eyes closed. I don't know what he is doing just sitting there. Meditating probably? Is he a Buddhist?" Ivy: "He does that before he starts anything serious. Don't worry. He will open his eyes and you can start the session. You have three hours, … Continue reading An Afternoon With Champ →

Click Here For Difference And Similarity (1) Lulu doesn't know why Cindy wants to Iowa. Can't she just find a writer's workshop in New Jersey or somewhere close by? Lulu doesn't want to ask in case it is a common knowledge and the very inquiry reveals her ignorance. Lulu's proud that she's read a lot … Continue reading Difference And Similarity (2) →

Lulu wants to scream, "How could you do that?" But she checks herself and produces a smile instead. Cindy, in the meantime, digs into her fried rice with a spoon. Cindy asked for a spoon when they ordered their entries, and Lulu, observing the raised eyebrows of the waiter above his face mask, felt faintly … Continue reading Difference And Similarity (1) →

Armei: "Every long term customer can choose a free gift pack for 2021. Pammy, the biggest gift pack is for you." Armei is the shop assistant of a popular cosmetic store in Edison, New Jersey, which sells Asian cosmetic items. It used to specialize in Shiseido, the overpriced Japanese brand, but in recent years, due … Continue reading Battle For Gift →

has been practiced by Pammy quite successfully for years until Lulu spoils it. Lulu, the unemployed anthropologist who can't land a job anywhere except in the local tutoring school, arguably the best after school program in Asian immigrant communities in New Jersey. It's a place where anxious parents send their unwilling offspring for extra lessons. … Continue reading Compartmentalization →

The scene opens to the interior of a restaurant, all tables and chairs piled up to one corner, except one table with a white table cloth and scattered mahjong tiles on top. Mr. Wei, the owner of the restaurant "Pacific Palace", is playing mahjong with Chef Li and two waiters. On one side of the … Continue reading The Beginning Of 2021 →