Chinese Teacher/Martial Arts Instructor/Music Teacher/Composer/Session Musician.
gay/grey-ace/polyromantic.
Married to Baian.
08/13/1996.
28.
Background
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
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Post by Minglong Lin on Apr 8, 2016 22:26:08 GMT -8
Minglong listened through Remi's play through. He was generally quite impressed with how much better Remi sounded with just a little bit of a push in the right direction. He nodded and said, "That was much better, stop tensing up your shoulders and it will be even better."
He took a minute to place his fresh reed in his oboe and blow a couple of test notes, then he counted the two of them in, playing the opening notes that Remi would come in after. He devoted half an ear to Remi's playing, but he still had to focus on his own part because the breathing for oboe required focus no matter how long he'd been playing the instrument.
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Violinist for Seoul Philharmonic Symphony.
Pansexual/Aromantic.
Single.
01/27/1998.
26.
Ox (Korea)
Authored by Redeim.
Offline.
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Post by Remi Young on Apr 10, 2016 8:11:34 GMT -8
Remi took a deep breath, still tense from their conversation, still deep in thought about it, but trying to concentrate on the task at hand. He waited for his cue to jump in to the song, feeling unexpectedly confident now that there was a leading sound to go by. Used to practicing alone, minus in class, he didn't expect to appreciate the sound of the oboe. He tried not to show his nerves as the part he was having difficulty over was coming up, but even that went much more smoothly than usual because of his proper positioning and having another sound to focus on. As the finished the song, he nodded, "Yeah, okay. That was good, I think?" He said, glancing to Minglong at the last minute for confirmation.
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Chinese Teacher/Martial Arts Instructor/Music Teacher/Composer/Session Musician.
gay/grey-ace/polyromantic.
Married to Baian.
08/13/1996.
28.
Background
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
|
Post by Minglong Lin on Apr 11, 2016 23:56:50 GMT -8
Minglong nodded encouragingly and said, "Each time you play it, it is getting better. Keep working on making sure that your shoulders are relaxed and that you are holding the violin right. And of course, keep doing the practicing."
He glanced at his watch. He was pretty sure that they had gotten through about as much practice as would be useful, but he had the suspicion that Remi kind of needed some company, or at least an ear to listen for a little bit longer. He asked, not entirely sure what the response would be, "I think we have probably covered about all we should in this time. But if you would like, maybe we could go to the bubble tea, the one that is near here?"
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Violinist for Seoul Philharmonic Symphony.
Pansexual/Aromantic.
Single.
01/27/1998.
26.
Ox (Korea)
Authored by Redeim.
Offline.
|
Post by Remi Young on Apr 16, 2016 20:02:22 GMT -8
Remi nodded, carefully placing his violin back in the case, though not really closing it yet. He glanced up, almost as if happy, at the mention of bubble tea. He straightened up and cleared his throat. "Uh.. yeah, there's one just a couple blocks down." He said knowingly. It was one of his favorite places to escape when his family was bugging him too much, but he didn't want to talk to people. Most people tended to avoid talking to someone blasting loud rock music and a good, solid glare, even if just wanting to ask for a chair. "I often go there to study, they're pretty good, in terms of cold tea." He said with a slight grimace. When he could make himself think of milk and regular tea as different, it wasn't as bad, though some places where the flavoring was too strong was also an annoyance because flavor was something his tastebuds often didn't get right on good days.
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Chinese Teacher/Martial Arts Instructor/Music Teacher/Composer/Session Musician.
gay/grey-ace/polyromantic.
Married to Baian.
08/13/1996.
28.
Background
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
|
Post by Minglong Lin on Apr 16, 2016 21:53:49 GMT -8
Minglong smiled at Remi and tucked away his oboe, carefully stashing each piece where it went in the case, and then making sure that his violin case was properly packed up. He said, "Hm, I usually go for the tea that is hot at bubble tea places. It is more what I like. But the tapioca it is tasty. I am still not entirely used to going to sit down places for it though because I usually got it from a little street cart on the way between school and where I lived when I was back in China. I am honestly still not used to places having so many possible flavors on it, though there were shops where I lived, I just never went to them."
He hefted the instruments up on to his shoulders, doing a quick check that he hadn't forgotten anything and said, "I am ready if you are."
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Violinist for Seoul Philharmonic Symphony.
Pansexual/Aromantic.
Single.
01/27/1998.
26.
Ox (Korea)
Authored by Redeim.
Offline.
|
Post by Remi Young on Apr 18, 2016 8:28:55 GMT -8
Remi made a face, "I like hot tea, obviously. It's what I'm used to. But tapioca and hot tea just doesn't... go well for me. Melted tapioca really isn't my thing. Besides, if I get it hot, I have to acknowledge it's the same thing as the tea I drink at home." He shut his violin case once everything was in it's place, and raised an eyebrow curiously at Minglong. "That's a thing in China? I mean, I knew about street stalls, my cousin talks about them all the time. That's cool though, seems very convenient, that way." He mused. He scrunched up his nose. "Some of the flavors are ridiculously weird, or the flavor is too different from the tea, but some are pretty good. I've.. tried a lot of the ones at the shop we're going to go to, but my favorite is the honeydew." He said with a smile. "Unfortunately, my actual favorite tea, earl grey, taste too much like familiar tea to get it cold, but when I'm not feeling like having tapioca, they do make very good regular tea there as well." He assured Minglong.
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Chinese Teacher/Martial Arts Instructor/Music Teacher/Composer/Session Musician.
gay/grey-ace/polyromantic.
Married to Baian.
08/13/1996.
28.
Background
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
|
Post by Minglong Lin on Apr 18, 2016 22:20:24 GMT -8
When Remi mentioned melted tapioca, Minglong wrinkled his nose and eyebrows in somewhat adorable confusion, and he protested, "Tapioca balls should not be melting in hot drinks unless you have cooked them very very wrong or you are doing something very very strange to your drinks."
He nodded about the question and replied, "Yeah, the stalls, they are not like fancy shops, they usually have a plain black milk tea, qimen or maybe yunnan, and a plain green milk tea, usually maofeng, and they will do the serving them without milk also, and they have tapioca balls cooked with a lot of honey. Maybe if I am very lucky, they will also put coconut cream in the teas if they have it because that is the most delicious. They usually do not have it iced, or if they do they charge much much more for the iced because they do not have much of the ice. It is very different from the sort of way that I drank the tea at home mostly but it was a nice thing for a treat. Most of the stalls would also sell some sort of steamed buns or egg tarts or something as a snack. So they were good breakfast."
He looked thoughtful and said, "I have heard of the earl grey, but I do not think that I have actually had it."
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Violinist for Seoul Philharmonic Symphony.
Pansexual/Aromantic.
Single.
01/27/1998.
26.
Ox (Korea)
Authored by Redeim.
Offline.
|
Post by Remi Young on Apr 21, 2016 21:51:54 GMT -8
Remi raised an eyebrow, "Really now...?" He hummed in accusation. "Maybe that store's not as good as I originally thought. You'll have to tell me, mate." He said, nudging Minglong in the side a bit.
He listened to the other man's explanation of the street stalls. "At the boba shop, they have pork buns and simple meals you can get, but they're usually ridiculously salty, so I tend to not get them. The buns are alright, but there are definitely better options besides the boba shop." He explained, wrinkling his nose at a memory of the taste of the food. He usually only ate there because it was cheap and he was hungry. "Yours sounds really good though. " He murmured as an after thought.
He was about to go off on him about 'how can one not know about earl grey,' but then remembered all the stories he'd been regaled with of how his father had been the same way. "It's probably my bias towards it being British style, but I'd say don't try it at the boba place... It's good though, although it's nothing like green tea." He explained simply.
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Chinese Teacher/Martial Arts Instructor/Music Teacher/Composer/Session Musician.
gay/grey-ace/polyromantic.
Married to Baian.
08/13/1996.
28.
Background
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
|
Post by Minglong Lin on Apr 21, 2016 22:37:49 GMT -8
Minglong frowned for a second and then said, "I have heard that some of the oil based flavors and some of the drinks with coffee in them can melt tapioca. I would not have ever experienced those because I do not drink the coffee and the fancy flavor ones, they are not a thing I like too much."
Minglong made a bit of a face at the mention or pork buns and said, "If it is just pork buns, I would not be interested anyhow. I do not eat very much of the meat, mostly just seafoods and some bird meat. But too salty, it does not sound good either. If we want some of the food, then we can find another place maybe."
Minglong rolled his eyes just a bit and said, "It is not like all that I drink is green tea. I drink wulong and pu-erh, um, the tea that is fermented, and hongcha, red - no black in English - tea. It is just not usually served with the milk except for things like bubble tea. I will be interested in trying the earl grey though, if you would ever have a chance for me to try good versions of it."
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Violinist for Seoul Philharmonic Symphony.
Pansexual/Aromantic.
Single.
01/27/1998.
26.
Ox (Korea)
Authored by Redeim.
Offline.
|
Post by Remi Young on Apr 25, 2016 20:54:43 GMT -8
Remi furrowed his eyebrows, only just now wondering what he was drinking if there was oil based drinks. "Interesting," was all he said, though he decided if he remembered, he'd look it up when he got home.
He nodded, wincing a bit as he looked up, not initially realizing how bright it was outside. "I know of pu-erh, my cousin brought it for us over Christmas, along with a couple other traditional Chinese teas. And hongcha I've heard of, but never tried. It seems like it's be really good." He mused. "We tend to use that if we decide to have afternoon tea, because unless we can get tea imported, it's the only one any of us can tolerate that isn't an Asian tea." He explained with a small chuckle, "So I've gotten very used to Earl Grey. And I'm sure we have some, I can give you a bit, though it's loose leaf, maybe we have a small container somewhere you can borrow."
Belatedly, he reacted to Minglong saying he didn't really eat meat. "Really? I love red meats." He shook his head. "You're weird, mate."
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Chinese Teacher/Martial Arts Instructor/Music Teacher/Composer/Session Musician.
gay/grey-ace/polyromantic.
Married to Baian.
08/13/1996.
28.
Background
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
|
Post by Minglong Lin on Apr 26, 2016 0:10:23 GMT -8
Minglong scrunched up his face, trying to keep up with the way Remi talked, and said, "No, no, hongcha, it is just the Chinese word for what in English it is called black tea. I just get confused with the English name because hongcha, it literally means red tea, not black, black is what we call fermented teas like pu-erh. Though I have heard that England style tea, it is much more from India type teas, so still a little bit different."
Minglong scrunched up just his nose again and said, "I am always confused when someone, they say that they have tea, and then it is in bags. Tea does not go in the bags. So loose leaf, that is a good way for trying it. All my teas are loose, though most of them are just whatever my waigong, um, grandfather, mother side grandfather, what he sends from where I grew up."
Minglong rolled his eyes a little bit at Remi calling him weird an replied, "I grew up in a temple, what are you expecting? Also, what is 'mate' in this context?"
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Violinist for Seoul Philharmonic Symphony.
Pansexual/Aromantic.
Single.
01/27/1998.
26.
Ox (Korea)
Authored by Redeim.
Offline.
|
Post by Remi Young on Apr 29, 2016 9:14:34 GMT -8
"Weird, I could've sworn I'd seen it as a name somewhere..." Remi muttered, furrowing his eyebrows as he tried to remember where he'd seen something titled "Hong Cha." It must have been a Korean store, because that was the only place he could imagine finding it.
"America is backwards when it comes to tea." Remi agreed, shaking his head and tsking. He smiled crookedly, "waigong? that's grandfather? My cousin always just says um.. lao ge?" He questioned, curious about it. Though he knew Eden probably had a more colloquial understanding of Chinese than most native Chinese speakers.
His smile widened more at Minglong reaction to his word choice. "Mate. It's like a friend. Another word for friend. Pal, buddy, mate. It's not like I want to sleep with you or anything." He smiled mischievously, "that can be reserved for your math-y boyfriend."
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Chinese Teacher/Martial Arts Instructor/Music Teacher/Composer/Session Musician.
gay/grey-ace/polyromantic.
Married to Baian.
08/13/1996.
28.
Background
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
|
Post by Minglong Lin on Apr 29, 2016 22:10:49 GMT -8
Minglong nodded to the comment about America being backwards on tea. Then to Remi's question his said, "Waigong, it is mother side grandfather, and Laoge it is father side grandfather. My grandfather who is still living and who is a monk, he is my mother's father."
Minglong rolled his eyes again at Remi when he mentioned Yongji being hot, considering he knew that Yongji found Remi to be a somewhat frustrating student at times. He said, "If you want to try hitting on my boyfriend, you are welcome to, but I am not sure you would be getting very far considering he thinks that you are a difficult student at times. I know that he is very pretty, but somehow, I suspect you are not cuddly enough to be his type. You would probably have better luck with BaiAn. And no, that is not an encouragement."
He added as an afterthought, "Thank you for the clarification of the term though."
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Violinist for Seoul Philharmonic Symphony.
Pansexual/Aromantic.
Single.
01/27/1998.
26.
Ox (Korea)
Authored by Redeim.
Offline.
|
Post by Remi Young on May 2, 2016 1:09:51 GMT -8
Remi nodded slowly, looking like he was thinking over the information. "That... makes sense, since it's his dad's side of the family that's Chinese." He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Man, Korean, and apparently Chinese too, are ridiculous when it comes to family." He shook his head. "I can barely keep up in Korean, and I've low-key grown up with it. I couldn't imagine learning Chinese." He paused, saying that, but liking how challenging it seemed. "I think I will sign up for it next quarter." He stated simply.
He nudged Minglong in the side, smirking playing, "Alright, alright, you're right, I'm not cuddly, but what's BaiAn look like then? He's not cuddly, is he? Can he cook?" He asked, his eyes going wide at the last sentence.
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Chinese Teacher/Martial Arts Instructor/Music Teacher/Composer/Session Musician.
gay/grey-ace/polyromantic.
Married to Baian.
08/13/1996.
28.
Background
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
|
Post by Minglong Lin on May 4, 2016 9:29:58 GMT -8
MingLong laughed at Remi's decision making process and told him, "Well, if you do, then I might be one of your TAs. If nothing else, I do the hosting language lunches some days in the dining hall, and do language labs which are open to all the levels. I am mainly the TA for the upper level courses though because I am good at the essays."
MingLong thought about how to describe BaiAn in a way that Remi would recognize him, since he didn't stand out quite as much as Yongji did, not that many people stood out as much as Yongji did. He finally just pulled out his phone instead, and pulled up a picture of BaiAn smiling at the book of Chinese poetry that he'd been reading after MingLong leant it to him. He told Remi, "He works in the library a lot of days because he is in the library sciences program. He sometimes wears glasses, but not always. His hair, it is a little longer than that now though because he keeps forgetting to get it cut. And yes, he can cook. His family, they own a restaurant, and he grew up helping with it, and he makes very delicious foods."
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