Ask javabeans…

by javabeans

Um. So I’ve been really bad with emails lately, folks. Well, I’m always prone to being bad with emails, but lately stuff is taking over my offline life and I’ve been really awful, and my inbox is overflowing, and I feel stressed out about that and guilty, but most emails ask for stuff and responding to requests for stuff takes time and I don’t have a lot of time these days and OMG did I mention the stress? I do have a job and a life (sometimes) and also a pretty busy blog and somehow I woke up and it was already June. June 2009. (Anyone who’s spent a number of years in the dreaded Real World knows the horror of realizing one day that not mere weeks but months or even years have slipped by, and boy isn’t that depressing.)

Also, I get a lot of repeat questions, and maybe I should just update that durned About page or make another FAQ but like I said, have! no! time! and also this site is also overflowing with too many pages and subpages already.

So anyway, I figured, I’d make a post where you could just ask me questions and I’d answer them as they came and maybe then I could alleviate some of that email-backlog burden, because face it, that backlog is more of a wasteland about now.

Let me answer a few off the bat:

1. Are you Korean? I am ethnically Korean, but am also 100% American. I speak English. I speak Korean with the parents, but they’re fluent in English so I switch back and forth.
2. Will you feature other writers? Maybe. Got a review/rant/recap you’d like featured here? I’m open to it! Email me and let me know what you wanna write. I’ve considered expanding this site in the past more than a few times but always ultimately ruled against it, deciding I’d rather post fewer things and be more in-depth than try to be comprehensive. Being comprehensive is a lot of work, yo! But I love guest bloggers, and if you’re a pretty good writer with something to say about dramas or cinema or pop culture, hit me up.
3. Will you link to my site? Maybe. I hate being asked for links because it makes me feel guilty when I don’t. But I’m also pretty picky so I’ll usually watch a site for a while and if it’s cool, I’ll link it. A lot of really great sites I have linked or wanted to link have died out after a month or two. Of course, if I’m really missing out on a fabulous link — by which I mean well-written, interesting, relevant, and generates their own content — I’m always happy to be informed about it.
4. You’re kinda pretentious, aren’t you? Yeah, well, whatchoo gonna do… I have strong opinions and the opinionator inside my brain usually works with the wordiness-multiplyer to equal very long-winded thoughts. But you know this.
5. Can you send me the OST of __ movie/drama? If I have it, I’ll sometimes send it along. If I don’t, I won’t go digging around for it, sorry! I’d honestly like to give everyone what they ask for, but it’s that pesky time issue again.
6. In a similar vein, What’s the name of __ guy in __ movie? Here, let me google that for you.
7. Will you be watching/recapping [upcoming drama name]? I don’t know. I don’t ever decide until I’ve actually watched the first episode, or sometimes first two. If I say yes and I hate it, I don’t want to find myself stuck having committed, which either means (a) I’m stuck watching something I hate, or (b) I reneged on a promise to recap something. Easier just to say “I’ll wait and see.”
8. Will you recap City Hall? No.
9. Pretty please? It’s really good! I’ve heard that. Still no.
10. But… No.
11. Why not? Here’s the thing. I watched the first episode and part of the subsequent one, and was bored to tears. I know that it gets better and people are raving about it, which means maybe I’ll come back to watch it later. But in my mind the recapping boat has pretty much sailed. I never close the door to doing a “classic” recap, but thus far I haven’t had time to do any of the series I wanted to do after the fact. (Attic Cat, Alone in Love, Delightful Girl Chun-hyang…)
12. If you won’t do it, can I? Really? Would you? Because if you can and are willing, I am open to guest recappers! (For instance, I know I won’t have time to watch The Man Who Can’t Get Married for a while…) What you need is access to the videos, decent ability to write recaps, and the desire and commitment to stick with a series. You don’t have to be Korean, you just have to be motivated.
13. That’s kind of a big commitment. Maybe just a review then? That’s good too.
14. I read your review of __ series. You’re sooo wrong. I’m just expressing an opinion, so I’ll stand by my review/praise/mockery. On the other hand, if you want to write a rebuttal… (refer to item above)
15. When is the next recap coming of [pending drama]? When I have time. If I’m recapping a drama, trust me, I haven’t forgotten. Chances are I might even be more aware of the late recap than you! Again, there’s this thing called time, and it’s a limited entity… (I know and I’m sorry, Return of Iljimae!) If ever I actually decide to drop recaps, I’ll let you know.

 
And so on. Ask away!