When To Hug Someone. And Why Asians Don’t Always Hug

Posted on 24 July 2014 by Mabel Kwong

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Hugging. Some of us like to be hugged, and some of us don’t.

I don’t mind being hugged. Don’t mind giving hugs either. Crushing bear hugs. Soft two-second hugs. Group hugs. One arm hugs. Whether we hug someone or not depends on how we feel about them. And how they feel about us.

Post-proposal. Marriage, hugs, and kisses are containers of happiness, warmth and trust | Weekly Photo Challenge: Containers.

We hug someone we barely know when we like them and feel like we can be friends or more. If we have a nice conversation going and maybe share a laugh hanging out with someone we don’t know well, we might hug them when saying hello or goodbye.

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Why It’s Odd And Okay To Be Alone

Posted on 29 May 2014 by Mabel Kwong

“Why are you going out alone?”

That’s what my mum said when I lived at home and headed out by myself for some “me time” on the weekends. No, it’s not because she’s concerned for my safety. Melbourne is a pretty safe city in broad daylight.

Bird twisting its neck, fluffing up its feathers. Alone. Nothing obscene, just twistedly beautiful | Weekly Photo Challenge: Twist.

Rather, my parents – and many of my friends – think it’s odd and twisted that I like to spend time with me, myself and I.

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Asian Girls Linking Arms: A Cultural Thing?

Posted on 18 April 2013 by Mabel Kwong

Fact: many Asian girls link arms when they are out and about.

When I lived in Malaysia and Singapore, I saw Asian girls and women walking in pairs through shopping malls with arms linked around the elbows, touching skin-on-skin. Sometimes I saw them even holding hands, walking and chatting with one another. Today whenever I troop down to Melbourne’s Chinatown, my eye will never fail to spy similar scenes.

What does it mean when Asian girls link arms or hold hands? Drawing by Mabel Kwong.

Just what does it mean when Asian girls link arms, and why do they do it so frequently? Googling this trend, it seems Asian men in certain Asian countries do this as well.

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