We might wear a mask to fit in, to fulfill someone else’s expectations, or to navigate a white-centric world. For Shin Yu, the mask was real. It was a white plaster mold of her face that hung on her in-laws’ wall, a reminder of all the “saving face” she has done trying to fit in. Last year, she decided to ask for the mask back. This is a personal interview with Shin Yu about learning how to let down the mask, while embracing vulnerability and our true selves.    Ten Thousand Things is...

Leanna Keith knew the flute was her instrument. But she was discouraged from trying it in middle school by a white teacher who said her anatomy (a teardrop lip) would not allow her to master the instrument. Today, she is a professional musician, breaking the mold with her contemporary flute performances. This story looks at the uniqueness of our individual anatomies and what it’s like to be made to feel imperfect.   Ten Thousand Things is produced by KUOW in Seattle. Our host, writer, and...

This season on Ten Thousand Things: We're back with season three! This season features the stories of trailblazing Asian American women and the resilience of Asian American communities, even in the face of endangerment. Three of this season’s stories take place in Seattle’s Chinatown-International District Neighborhood, with help from the Wing Luke Museum. Featured guests include poet and former MMA cage fighter Jenny Liou; Seattle chef Tiffany Ran; and flutist Leanna Keith; among others. New...

Before we return for our THIRD season of Ten Thousand Things on April 30th, we wanted to share a special recording. In September of 2022, we celebrated the first season of our podcast with a live event at McCaw Hall at the Seattle Center. Back then, our podcast was called The Blue Suit (as you’ll hear). We evolved to become Ten Thousand Things. But we had the same goal of telling compelling stories behind modern-day artifacts of Asian American life. Our live show includes interviews with some...

Fans of "Ten Thousand Things" might enjoy "Books and Boba" from the Potluck Podcast Collective. "Books and Boba" is a book club podcast all about books written by Asian and Asian diaspora authors.

We want to introduce you to a new podcast you may like, "Shoes Off." Join hosts Susie An and Esther Yoon-Ji Kang as they hang out with badass Asians and ask them to redefine “sexy” on their own terms.

This is a story about the way we make a statement.

Anti-Asian hate crimes spiked during the Covid-19 pandemic. And then the Atlanta spa shooting scarred a community already suffering.

Shawn Wong discovered the first Japanese American novel, No-No Boy, at a used bookstore for 50 cents, after being told by his English professors that Asian American literature didn’t exist.

During the mizu kuyo ritual for pregnancy loss, a small Jizo Bodhisattva statue enshrines ceremonial remains of a lost child. Following Shin Yu’s miscarriage in 2012, she had a mizu kuyo ceremony to process her grief.

Dylan Tomine has a passion for steelhead trout. Or an obsession. Or an addiction.

On the eve of selling her family’s house, Donna Miscolta’s daughter had a special request: Go to the stairwell and pull back the loose board on the bottom step.

Eason Yang was on an ambitious career trajectory, helping tech companies like Uber change the world. Until he got cancer.

A name is an object that defines who we are. But what if our name is wrong?

In many Chinese sayings, “ten thousand” is used in a poetic sense to convey something infinite, vast, and unfathomable. For Shin Yu Pai – award-winning poet and museologist – the story of Asians in America is just that. Introducing Ten Thousand Things, a special podcast series about modern-day artifacts of Asian American life, created and hosted by Shin Yu Pai and produced by KUOW.

The story behind the viral and historic blue suit that inspired this podcast.

The vintage Califone record player allows sound artist Paul Kikuchi to access and share songs that he inherited from his great-grandfather and other 78rpm records that were left behind by Japanese Americans incarcerated during World War II.

After his father's death, Byron Au Yong turned to paper folding.

The Blue Suit's host, Shin Yu Pai, revisits an object from her own life.

In a small clear box, Etsuko Ichikawa keeps a small piece of vitrified glass that was given to her on a tour of the Hanford nuclear site.

Tomo Nakayama usually puts his creative energy into his harmonious music. But when the pandemic hit, he found a new outlet: cooking.

Jessica Rubenacker collects plants. Lots of plants.

A chador garment worn by some Muslim women is usually black. Not Anida Yoeu Ali's. Her chador is red and sparkly.

In a world full of stuff, what is worth keeping? What do we treasure? Explore modern-day heirlooms with The Blue Suit, a new KUOW podcast hosted and created by PNW poet Shin Yu Pai.