The Good News: A supercool former supervisor of mine suggested that she might be able to work a mention of Granny Choe’s Kimchi Co. into the big time magazine she works for IF I can make the story interesting… by finding a famous person who loves kimchi.
The Bad News: Hours of bleary-eyed Googling later, the only fact that I unearthed was that Paris Hilton bought a Pomeranian while she was on a promotional tour in Korea. She named the pup “Kimchi.” This was hardly the connection I was looking for. Especially since it would practically be begging people to crack jokes about Korean peoples eating dogs.
The Good News: The editor did some Googling of her own and found a great lead–a recent Korea Times article that claimed that one of Obama’s favorite lunches is bulgogi and kimchi. Considering Obama’s Hawaiian childhood (lots of Korean and Japanese cuisine in diverse Hawaii), this is not surprising… and it would be perfect for the article. I just had to confirm that the info was accurate.
The Bad News: The White House Press Office has more important things to deal with than kimchi. My firm, but polite requests and follow ups with them were met with the firm, but polite equivalent of “Not gonna happen, lady.” Too busy with international affairs and really important stuff, I guess.
The Good News: I am notoriously stubborn. If I can’t wrestle the answer out of them, I’ll just have to find another solution. So… if you know of any alternate celebrities who adore stinky, spicy, delicious cabbage, let me know…
