Hengchun, TW/What changes would you want to make in your temperament/attitude?

© Jasmin Chang 2009

Answer: As you grow older, of course you hope that your temperament improves. When you're young, you're much more rash, but as you get older, you are slower to act because you consider different perspectives--you consider other people's opinions before you act. Of course, it's different for everyone's personality. When you're my age, you learn not to overreact and count points, with kids or elderly people. Kids are young and don't understand yet. The elderly need their peace and quiet and they don't have too many years left.

Question: Being Taiwanese and living in America, what are the main differences between America and Taiwan?

On a separate but definitely important note...I wanted to show you the amazing food she was making. It was the most enormous and most perfectly pan fried green onion pancake I have ever had in my life- flaky and crispy on the surface and chewy and soft in the inside.

YUM. I love Taiwanese street vendors.

Taipei, TW/If you could change one aspect about yourself (physically, emotionally etc.) what would it be and why?

© Jasmin Chang 2009

Answer: I guess it would be that I am too much of a perfectionist. I finish something and even if I do it well, there are still picky things that bother me when I look back that I really want to fix.

Question: What changes would you want to make in your temperament/attitude?

Chicago, IL/Do you think that the people in this world can live in peace?

© Jasmin Chang 2009

Answer: Yes. Do you need more than that? Well, for peace to happen, people need to be conscious and aware. It's easy for emotions to get in the way which can lead to foolish actions but if people are more conscious and analyze actions and decisions then there will be less conflicts and arguments. It comes down to what's relevant and irrelevant and if you can keep that in mine then you can avoid a lot of conflict.

Question: If you could change one aspect about yourself (physically, emotionally etc.) what would it be and why?

Rockford, IL/If you could kill anyone that you wanted to and knew you could get away with it...would you and who would it be?

© Jasmin Chang 2009

Answer: No. I would not kill anyone. No. It's not only me and the person who dies that suffers. Their family and my family would suffer, even though it's a different kind of sorrow. I used to go deer hunting but as my daughters grew up, they didn't want me even killing deer so I stopped.

Question: Do you think that the people in this world can live in peace?

Evanston, IL/What is your passion?

© Jasmin Chang 2009

Answer: I would say people and photographing them. My majors are photography and anthropology.

Question: If you could kill anyone that you wanted to and knew you could get away with it...would you and who would it be?

Sawyer, MI (Warren Dunes State Park)/If you could live your life over knowing what you know now, would you change anything?

© Jasmin Chang 2009

Answer: I would have bought some Apple stock about twenty years ago. (Laughs) Actually I wouldn't really change anything major in my life. My husband is an archeologist so we've been to lots of places and had a really exciting life. We've gone to Istanbul a number of times and spent a year in France when my husband was in grad school. Recently though, I've gotten into family genealogy and I found out that my family came over in 1692 with the Virginia Company. Most people started comingin the 1800s, but my family was here really early. I think if I'd known that when I was younger, I would've puursued studying history more. I'm a historian--my passion is learning about the situation people are in and how they got there-- but when I was a student, the grad students were always kind of cocky and very sure of themselves and I was a bit more timid. If I had known that fact about my family, it would have made me more confident-- knowing that I, personally, had roots in this history.

I got into genealogy through my sister-in-law. She was telling me about it and I found a book in a used bookstore that recorded everyone in the Virginia Settlement and my ancestor was in it. He was listed as Captain and Adventurer Nathaniel. Apparently he also married a native American woman.The company eventually flopped and then changed some more when it was owned by the King and then you know it all fits into history in that sense.

Question: What is your passion?

Jacksonville, FL/Where are you going to travel to when the first hurricane forms?

© Jasmin Chang 2009

Answer: UP! Not up to North Carolina, up to my mom's attic. She has a big fortress of a house that we call the castle. I would go up! My mom wouldn't go anywhere and I'd stay up there with her. The traffic is so bad going up north because there's one highway up from Florida and they evacuate the people in South Florida first so by the time it gets to us, the freeways are already crowded going up. It may be stubborn but that's what I would do. We'd go out the first day and get food and then just go up into the attic and watch the storm coverage. What people don't realize with hurricanes is that the water doesn't just come over the river or the ocean and flood your house. The wind causes the water to whip around to the back of your house. One year, we were at the house at 8:30 and it was fine, but by 8:35, the water was up to our calves!

I'm sure that was more than you asked for, but the short answer is, I'd go up!

Question: If you could live your life over knowing what you know now, would you change anything?