Mai Nguyen > Quotes

“All you had to do was want it bad enough. They could take away her salon, but they could never take away the power she wielded in the flick of her fingertip.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“You think your pain and your heartbreak are unprecedented in the history of the world, but then you read.”
― Mai Nguyen, Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead

“Jessica wondered what that must be like, to be such a devoted wife who sacrificed herself for her husband like it was an uncontrollable tic. What was it that made her do it time and time again? Was it love? Loyalty? Pride? Perhaps this was the secret to a lasting marriage. If so, then maybe it was a good thing she never married Brett. She had zero desire to give up so much of herself.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“That’s why I wrote Sunshine Nails. For all the immigrant nail techs out there. I hope you enjoyed being the main characters for once.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“passive suicidal ideation.”
― Mai Nguyen, Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead

“They sever their ties to their identity, then claim it back whenever it was convenient for them. “Oh, I meant to ask about that”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“We compare hardships the way we compare our homes”
― Mai Nguyen, Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead

“They wouldn’t have to work every day. Instead, they could go for leisurely swims in the rooftop pool, ride around the city in their shiny scooters, then come back to their air-conditioned home and eat like kings. They would have lived a happier life, Debbie was sure of this.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“Are they here against their free will? Do they get treated well?’ You could be the most ethical salon in the world, but the white guilt will still be there. It’s bullshit, I know. But that’s just how it is.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“I don’t. You’re always telling me to speak more eloquently so please, my son, complete that sentence of yours.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“This was why they were always telling Dustin he should’ve gone into politics or law or teaching, a job where the whole point was to be persuasive.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“Our heritage buildings and conservation areas are under threat by our government and they think they can get away with it! They consulted tech firms, multimillion-dollar companies, real estate investors, all while completely ignoring us!”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“Plus, it would make up for all those years she phoned it in and sent him e-cards on his birthday, which she later discovered he never opened because he thought they would give his computer a virus.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“encoding (the learning of information), consolidation (the process of storing), and recall (the ability to access that information when needed).”
― Mai Nguyen, Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead

“I’m guessing. I think your parents know a thing or two about being ashamed and ostracized. That’s why they were the only people who didn’t disappear from my life. If it weren’t for them, I’d probably be dead in a ditch somewhere, rotting for weeks before some dog walker accidentally found me.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“Did he really expect her to buy any of this? What bullshit, Debbie wanted to say. He fed off people’s financial problems and then threw those same problems back at them and called it work? Secondly, it always infuriated her when people said work wasn’t everything.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“Debbie couldn’t understand why her kids were having such a hard time. Her daughter couldn’t get a job. Her son couldn’t get a raise. Wasn’t a good education a sure ticket to success? Where was the better life that had been promised? The idea that she had sacrificed everything only for her children to still suffer horrified her.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“Fuck you. I knew you people were fucking uncivilized. You think you can make something out of yourself? You’re nothing! All people see when they see you are your hands. That’s all you’ll ever be good for!”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“Sometimes we wait until it’s too late to appreciate what a remarkable thing it is to be born.”
― Mai Nguyen, Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead

“Life is an endless seesaw of things being terrible and things being wonderful.”
― Mai Nguyen, Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead

“He never felt this way about any of his previous jobs: dishwasher at a suburban Chinese restaurant, delivery driver for Swiss Chalet, janitor at a bank. Those jobs did not carry the respect and nobility attached to being an entrepreneur.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“She would have welcomed all that trouble if it meant she could finally get a faucet that didn’t spray in every which direction.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“It’s just… their mission is to help people improve their happiness and yet they’ve got people working eighty-hour weeks and burning out so bad they’re crying in the bathroom”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“Sure, a salon was supposed to be a sanctuary that left customers feeling relaxed, not emotionally abused and gouged of their money. Phil was aware that some salons operated on this philosophy, but he preferred to run his salon like a car dealership. The more you sold, the more you made. After all, business was business and you had to fight for every dollar you earned.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“It can’t be a coincidence. The same week we decide to run this promotion, they decide to run theirs? It’s obvious they’re trying to steal our customers.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“I don’t believe in getting over it. I believe in weathering it badly, in nursing the grudge,”
― Mai Nguyen, Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead

“But there was a difference between constructive criticism and personal attack. And this latest review was clearly an attack on their livelihood. Debbie”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“The kind of daughter who drank beer, got giant tattoos down her leg, and vehemently said no when her parents asked her to work at the salon. Where she came from, this behavior would have warranted a public spanking in front of the entire village. And yet, a part of her wished she had a bit of that boldness.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“Come to the opening. You’ll see what I’m talking about. It’s got everything that those other salons don’t have: modern decor, good hygiene practices, staff that can actually speak English, you know what I mean?”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails

“She felt so stupid for spending thousands of dollars on that kitchen renovation. You don’t get marble in a home you don’t plan to die in.”
― Mai Nguyen, Sunshine Nails