HK Song

HK Song

@hksong.net

Writer, author of "Fish, Frog and the Barbarian." Korean-born, British-educated, American-resident. Living la vida loca in Orange County CA. Liverpool supporter.

991 followers756 following1.2K posts

HK Song
@hksong.net

This is an interesting take. Modern life is not making us asocial, but rather parasocial - and this includes two-way parasocial relationships. braddelong.substack.com/p/you-are-no...

braddelong.substack.com"You Are Not Taking Up Too Much of My Time": A Note from a Not Asocial but Rather Parasocial Age: CHART OF THE DAYWe follow people who'll never know our names; we trade with thousands who want no connection with us. So a personal email from a friend whose tie to me has also become a parasocial one is precious...
HK Song
@hksong.net

I never understood the romance of riding in one of these. Just an expensive way to watch a horse shit into a satchel.

Chris Sommerfeldt@c-sommerfeldt.bsky.social

New: Mayor Zohran Mamdani and City Council Speaker Julie Menin have reached a deal to abolish NYC's horse carriage industry — a critical breakthrough in a decadeslong, politically fraught effort to ban the tourist attraction. www.politico.com/news/2026/10...

politico.comMamdani and City Council strike deal to ban NYC horse carriage industryThe deal marks a major breakthrough in a long-running effort to outlaw the industry. It is also likely to inflame Mamdani’s relationship with a powerful local union.
HK Song
@hksong.net

I'm doing something a bit unusual. I'm listening to the audiobook of @anthonyhorowitz.com 's #marblehallmurders at (roughly) the same time as I watch the TV show (penultimate episode broadcast today). I don't know who the murderer(s) are. /1

HK Song
@hksong.net

But it's an interesting way to compare narrative choices between the book and the show. And it's surprisingly pleasurable and not at all confusing - even though Leslie Manville's and Tim McMullan's voices are rattling around everywhere. /2

HK Song
@hksong.net

I'm sure this won't work well for many books-slash-shows/movies, but in this case it's a lot of fun. /end

HK Song
@hksong.net

This is cute. I'm using the Drafts app to post directly to #bluesky. Really enjoy using Drafts - much more so than I thought I would.

HK Song
@hksong.net

One of the most annoying aspects of American life is price gouging that happens when you have a captive market (e.g. sports stadia, amusement parks etc). A breakfast burrito is like $30 at LAX, and $5 extra if you want bacon. WTF. Illegal in Asia.

HK Song
@hksong.net

For work, I've had to make all my documents ADA compliant. So now, all my headings have defaulted to a faint gray color, and all the colored text has been converted to a giant wedge of black-on-white. It's all unreadable by anyone, so I guess it all worked out at the end. #ada #WCAG2.1LevelAA

HK Song
@hksong.net

16 years! People put up with it for 16 years! New Yorkers are too nice. So nice they’ll pay any price.

Brad Reed@bwreed.bsky.social

The scaffolding announcement, for instance. Little annoyance but people identified with it instantly: www.yahoo.com/news/article...

yahoo.comMayor Mamdani unveils new rules to remove unnecessary scaffolding across New York CityThe 1,400 residents of Highbridge Gardens in the Bronx have been living in the shadows for years. Their day-to-day lives, eclipsed by a network of steel frames and wooden planks.

HK Song reposted

Richard Littler
@richardlittler.bsky.social

I'm getting to the point where there's no point buying new vinyl, especially from the corporates. This is the state of the latest #MilesDavis box set. I've tried 2 copies, one from the UK, the other from Switzerland, both the same. 0 quality control. They just don't give a fuck. #Entshittification

HK Song
@hksong.net

Is it me, or is there something perfunctory about this message? DT ain’t feeling it, but feels the need to go through the motions.

HK Song
@hksong.net

#Ishiguro is a big film buff, and here's his Top 10. Not a lot of surprises, really. I’ve always maintained that people who actually know their Ozu prefer Late Spring over Tokyo Story. Ishiguro does not disappoint. www.criterion.com/current/top-...

criterion.comKazuo Ishiguro’s Top 10The Nobel Prize–winning novelist shares a list of films that illuminate his artistic sensibility, including one British classic that inspired him to write his masterpiece The Remains of the Day.
HK Song
@hksong.net

The question is if this investment idea was pushed by Kushner and his ilk, and Infantino reluctantly going along, or if Infantino is the active force. I guess time will tell. #fifa

HK Song
@hksong.net

This is going to be as much fun as watching the WC. “UEFA with the ball, on the counter… Infantino trying to hold the back line…”

Nathan Kalman-Lamb@nkalamb.bsky.social

The full statement from UEFA is remarkable. Members vow not to participate in FIFA competitions unless the entire proposal is scrapped and assurances are made it is gone for good.

HK Song
@hksong.net

"AI or not, Crowne has somehow published 171 novels over the last seven years." Yes, "somehow." We need to have a discussion on the commodification of novels, and how it debases the reader as well as the writer. futurism.com/fantasy-nove...

futurism.comReaders Annoyed When Fantasy Novel Accidentally Leaves AI Prompt in Published Version, Showing Request to Copy Another Writer's StyleA scammer left glaringly obvious evidence of using AI to write portions of a fantasy novel and even tried to copy the style of a real author.
HK Song
@hksong.net

Brown paper packages tied up with string used to be one of my favorite things. Now, they're probably laundry detergent and dog food that my wife ordered on Amazon. Also, I don't need woolen mittens. And those copper kettles aren't even electric.

HK Song
@hksong.net

Korea is too hot and humid in the summer. Best to visit in autumn. Same with Japan, and overrun with tourists. Too many tourists in Europe as well, and hot, and no AC. Better in autumn. Where should I go for summers?

HK Song
@hksong.net

Where can I go that's not too hot, has a tolerable number of tourists, interesting, not too pricey, accessible?

HK Song
@hksong.net

At a Japanese ramen place. Japanese owner approaches my table. Him: You want the spicy tonkotsu? Me: What the fuck? Just because I'm Korean, you think I want the spicy tonkotsu? Him: (gives me that "come on now" look) Me: (after a long pause) I'll have the spicy tonkotsu.

HK Song
@hksong.net

Today at the hospital. Asian Nurse: Apply this topical medication at night after you shower. Me: Maybe I shower in the morning like a white person. Asian Nurse: (gives me a "come on now" look) Me: Gimme that tube.

HK Song
@hksong.net

Must admit that this may be the year for England. It felt like the Mexico match was exorcising the demons of Beckham (1998) and Rooney (2006). This match v Norway was throwing off Ronaldhino (2002) and the ghost of freakish goals. #worldcup