Teresa
asked
Phuc Tran:
Sorry, this isn't really a question....more of a polite demand for Part Deux. I have to know how you ended up a Latin-teaching tattoo artist! And how it went over with your family?? And what became of your brother??
Phuc Tran
Haha, duly noted—winky face. I'm not sure my college years and beyond have the narrative tensions that my teenage and early life had. Any grief that I experienced was mostly self-inflicted (stepping on the landmines of my own stupidity). There are some ridiculous stories, to be sure, but I'm not sure it's so exciting/revelatory that it would warrant a second memoir (per se). My parents were indifferent about Latin teaching (they appreciated that I was a teacher—VERY RESPECTABLE) and cried when they found out I had tattoos and was a tattooer (my mom sobbed and asked me if I was also gay...) ummm... what?! My brother is doing great—he was a mechanical engineer for a while and then got bored and went to law school. He made up for me by being an engineer AND a lawyer—clearly, the successful Tran in our family, haha.
More Answered Questions
Audrey Approved
asked
Phuc Tran:
Hi, Phuc! Did your parents ever read Sigh, Gone? If so, what do they think of their representation in the book? (Also, my Mom came over from SG in 1975 and fish sauce in the spaghetti is the ONLY way to eat it! I kept smiling when I came across little descriptions like that, such small things that were random yet also so relatable.)
Molly Anderson
asked
Phuc Tran:
Hi Phuc! Fellow '80s kid, lit nerd and Star Wars enthusiast here. I went to school with a Vietnamese-American kid we called "Yo," but his name was spelled "Du." I thought for sure it was a nickname we gave him out of laziness, but after reading the chapter in which your dad tries to teach you Vietnamese, I now wonder if we were at least somewhat close? Thanks for your time and for a fantastic memoir.
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