DumplingDudez

Apparently people think the vaccine is going to turn me gay now.

Well… how much more gay can I get? Lol

Is there another level, how do I level up?

My vaccine photo has apparently been circulating around anti-vax communities and pages for the last couple of days, and wow… people are ANGRY.

Conspiracy theories. Racist comments. Homophobic comments. Threats. Bots everywhere.

And apparently this is all part of my “left-wing agenda.”

Meanwhile, I posted a picture of myself getting a vaccine.

That’s it.

I didn’t tell anyone what to do.
I didn’t tell anyone what to believe.
I shared a choice I made for myself.

And honestly, this kind of reaction isn’t new to me.

People already love to bash where I live — Portland.

People have opinions about how I live, what I post, what I believe, and the choices I make.

And somehow complete strangers feel deeply invested in all of it.

At first, it’s easy to laugh.

Like… why are you minding my business harder than I am?

But the more I think about it, the more I actually find it sad.

There is just so much anger out there.

And I say that with compassion because I’ve been angry too.

There have been points in my life when I was hurt, scared, disappointed, lost, and looking for somewhere to put all of that emotion.

And sometimes it really was easier to blame the world than to sit with myself.

Easier to judge.
Easier to criticize.
Easier to point outward than to ask, “What is actually happening inside me?”

I’m still learning that.

I’m still learning not to let fear run my life.

Not to let other people’s opinions decide how I feel about myself.

Not to spend my energy fighting battles that were never mine to begin with.

That’s probably why this whole thing hits differently now.

I don’t really want revenge on these people.

I don’t need to convince them.

I don’t even need them to understand me.

I just hope they find whatever part of themselves is underneath all that anger.

I hope they eventually realize that the prison in their head doesn’t have to become their whole life.

Because I’ve built some of those prisons for myself too.

Fear.
Comparison.
Needing approval.
Trying to control things I couldn’t control.
Thinking my life had to look a certain way before I could finally be happy.

And I’m still learning how to walk out of them. I think it is a lifelong practice

So yes, I’ll block the hate.
I’ll protect my people.
I’ll keep my boundaries.

But I don’t want to carry their anger with me.

I’ve worked too hard to find more peace in my own life.

And these days, I’d rather spend my energy on the people I love, the city I call home ( Portland ) , the experiences I’m lucky enough to have, and becoming more of the person I actually want to be.

They can keep minding my business.

I’m finally busy living it.

Chih

The first bite of Hapa Pizza immediately reminded me why Mike and I started Dumpling Dudez.

And I don’t mean that in some big dramatic way.

I mean that feeling when you taste something and you can almost feel the person behind it.

The first time we had Hapa Pizza was actually through Uber Eats with our friend Lynn. She ordered the Phở Pizza and Bánh Mì Pizza to surprise us and we pretty much immediately went:

“OMG… where has this been all our lives?!”

And this time we finally went in person with Dana and Scott, and I think that’s when I really fell in love with the place.

We got to meet Natalie and chef Sam, hear more about their story, and talk about how some of these pizzas came to life.

And Sam’s limited-time Kaprao Pizza???

Blew us away. Again.

But honestly, what stayed with me most wasn’t even just the pizza.

It was the story.

The experimenting.
Taking something familiar and making it your own.
The “let’s try this and see if people love it.”
The way food slowly turns into community.

It reminded me so much of those early Dumpling Dudez days.

We were just making weird colorful dumplings, trying new ideas, laughing a lot, failing a lot, and somehow… people kept showing up.

And I think that’s one of the things I love most about Portland and the places around it.

Yes, the food is incredible.

But sometimes the best part is finding out WHO made it.
Why they made it.
What part of themselves they put into it.

That makes me love the food even more.

So yes… Hapa Pizza gets a BIG recommendation from us.

Have you tried it yet?

And what’s one Portland-area restaurant you love not just because the food is good… but because you love the story behind it too?

❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

Chih

Flu + COVID shots: because getting sick sounds even less fun than this.

You don’t have to get them if vaccines aren’t your thing.

But the ONE year I skipped my flu shot… I got the flu during a two-week vacation in Vegas and California!

Lesson learned.

So yes… two shots, two Band-Aids, and hopefully one healthier fall.

Who else is joining me and getting your shots?

Chih

Almost 20 years together, and I think I’m finally understanding what long-term love actually asks of us...

As I’ve been building “WTF Do I Do Next?”, I’ve been thinking a lot about my own life… especially my marriage.

My husband and I have been together for almost 20 years.

Austin → Houston → Portland.

We’ve watched each other climb the corporate ladder, burn out, quit jobs, build a business together, close chapters we thought would last forever, move across the country… and now somehow find ourselves asking again:

Okay… WTF do we do next?

And I want to say something that doesn’t get talked about enough:

A long relationship isn’t 20 years of being happy together.

There have been seasons where we felt incredibly connected… and seasons where we barely understood each other.

We’ve hurt each other. Disappointed each other. Changed in ways the other person didn’t always understand. We’ve had moments where the future felt exciting—and moments where it felt really uncertain.

Because the person you married 10 or 20 years ago isn’t going to stay the same.

And neither are you.

I think one of the hardest lessons I’ve learned about love is that you can’t build a relationship around trying to keep someone exactly who they were.

Sometimes love looks like giving each other enough space to become who we’re becoming… while still asking:

Do we want to keep choosing each other in this new chapter?

For us, the answer has continued to be yes.

Not because everything is perfect.

But because after almost 20 years, underneath all the careers, businesses, moves, mistakes, arguments, dreams and reinventions…

I still look at him and think:

I’m really glad I get to do life with you.

And maybe that’s part of what “WTF Do I Do Next?” is really about.

It’s not only careers.

Sometimes the next chapter is about figuring out who you are now—and learning how to love the people beside you as they become someone new too.

❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

For those of you who have been in a long relationship:

What has love taught you that you wish you understood earlier?

Every Costco trip starts with the same lie: “I’m just grabbing a few things.”

It had actually been a while since I’d been to Costco — shocking, I know — so today I made the pilgrimage from Portland out to my favorite Costco in Hillsboro.

Naturally, the gas station wasn’t working.

Welcome back, Chih.

I walked in thinking I needed just a few things.

$400 later…

My wagon is overflowing, I’m carrying groceries like I’m feeding a family of 14, and somehow I’m still telling myself:

“But the $5 rotisserie chicken saved us SO much money.”

This is Costco math. Spend $400. Save $5. Feel financially responsible.

And apparently food wasn’t enough, because I also walked out with new hoodie AND flannel — so PNW of me!!

Tell me I’m not alone: what do you go into Costco for "just one thing” to buy… and what do you somehow ALWAYS leave with?

❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

Chih

I want to get very personal for a bit.

And if you’re uncomfortable with vulnerability, this may not be the post for you.

Over the past two years, especially before we left Texas, I blocked and stopped communicating with some family members and friends.

Yes, many of them were MAGA.

But for me, it was never just about who someone voted for.

It was about what they were willing to tolerate, defend, excuse, and normalize.

Racism.
Homophobia.
Sexism.
Using religion to justify discrimination.
Dismissing science when it became inconvenient.
Excusing corruption when it came from “their side.”
And a lack of compassion for people who look different, love differently, come from somewhere else, or simply have less.

Some of the hardest people to create distance from were family.

People I truly believed would accept me as family, love me as family, and see me as one of their own.

That loss hurt.

Because sometimes you are not just grieving people.

You are grieving the relationship you thought you had with them.

For a long time, I stayed quiet because I wanted to keep the peace.

I told myself, They’re family. Let it go.

But at some point I had to ask myself:

How much of myself am I willing to abandon just to keep belonging somewhere?

And I think Portland changed me.

Or maybe Portland gave me enough space to finally hear myself.

We’ve been here for over a year now, and I’ve experienced what it feels like to hold my husband’s hand walking down the street and not constantly scan the room.

To meet people who are curious about you instead of immediately judging you.

To feel different and not automatically feel like different means wrong.

Portland didn’t magically heal everything.

But it showed me another way of living was possible.

And once you see that, it becomes really hard to go back to shrinking yourself.

I still forgive the people I walked away from.

Not because what happened was okay.
Not because I’ve forgotten.
And not because forgiveness means they automatically get access to my life again.

I forgive because life is short, and I don’t want anger to own the next chapter of my life.

I genuinely wish them peace.

And I’m also choosing something different now.

More compassion.
More curiosity.
More courage.
More people who lead with heart.

Maybe that’s part of what this whole “WTF do I do next?” season has taught me too.

Sometimes figuring out what’s next isn’t about having the perfect plan.

Sometimes it starts with getting brutally honest about:

What no longer feels like me?
What am I tolerating because I’m afraid to let go?
Where am I shrinking just to belong?

I may not have every detail of my next chapter figured out.

But I know who I am now.

I know what I value.

I know what I will no longer tolerate.

And I know the kind of life I want to build.

A life with more truth.
More love.
More freedom.
More courage.
More room for people to be exactly who they are.

I’m not walking away from my old life because I’m lost.

I’m walking toward the next one because I finally trust myself enough to choose it.

Chih

A year into calling Portland home, I still get excited every time someone says, “The mountain is out.”

There’s something about seeing Mt. Hood in the distance that gives me this little burst of joy every single time.

But this trip was different.

For the first time, I wasn’t just seeing the mountain.

I was in the mountain.

And one of my favorite moments wasn’t a big hike or some grand adventure. It was a quiet morning in the hot tub, meditating in the rain, surrounded by trees.

For a moment, the world got quiet.

The fear faded.
The overthinking softened.
The constant noise in my head finally shut up for a minute.

All I could hear was the creek, the rain, and the trees moving around me.

And I felt at ease.

Which feels especially meaningful right now because I’ve been researching, building, and creating my “WTF Do I Do Next?” workshop.

Yes, I still have doubts.

I still question ideas. I still wonder what will work, what won’t, and whether people will connect with what I’m creating.

But I’m also more certain than I’ve been in a long time that this is work I’m meant to explore.

Not because I have life figured out.

But because I’ve lived through reinvention. I’ve started over. I’ve changed careers. I’ve built businesses. I’ve walked away from versions of success that no longer felt like mine.

And I know how hard it is to be standing in that space between who you were and who you’re becoming.

That’s the space I want this workshop to help people navigate.

This past year in Oregon has been a lot of learning, unlearning, experimenting, and finding my way back to myself.

And somewhere between the rain, the trees, and the silence on Mt. Hood, I remembered something I already know:

I don’t need the whole path mapped out. I trust myself to take the next step.

For one quiet morning, I wasn’t searching.
I wasn’t fixing.
I wasn’t trying to prove anything.

I was just there. And I knew I was moving in the right direction.

When was the last time you got quiet enough to hear what you already knew?

Chih

So many of you recommended Trillium Lake, and it only took us a year to listen.

It had been raining, but we went anyway—and just as it cleared, a rainbow appeared ( you can see in the photos)

Was it because we’re gay? I’d like to think so. Lol

But honestly, you see rainbows everywhere in Oregon—in the sky, on flags and window stickers, on cars, on water bottles and, most importantly, in people’s hearts.

After living in Texas for 30 years, I still notice every single one. Each feels like a little reminder that we are welcome, we are safe and we belong here.

Maybe this one was Oregon saying, “Welcome to Trillium Lake. Took you long enough.”

You were right. It was magical, and I hope I never lose this childlike wonder of experiencing Oregon for the first time.

Where should we go next?

❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

Chih

Rice for breakfast??? Yes, I did. So many of you suggested Sweet Bacon Cafe on NW 21st, so we finally checked it out today!

I ordered the Yakuza Katsu Curry—an omelet, crispy chicken, curry, and a big pile of rice.

Was it a slightly unexpected breakfast? Yes.

Was it delicious? Also yes.

I guess this is all part of my “Keep Portland Weird” journey— and I freaking love it!

What’s a food you absolutely love, even though other people might think it’s weird? Also where to try next that's a little weird but good!

❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

Chih