Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with oriental

Oriental artefact filter

lungtaworld — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 08:44:49 -0800

Asking for a friend who bought this (two pix here) at a yard sale for 50 cents. What is it? It is approx 7 3/4" square and 1/2" deep, has a magnetic compass in the center and two spirit levels at right angles to each other in one corner.
Comes in a bright red plastic case with flaps and cover. Appears to be made of lacquered wood (red on the front and and black on the back). Red monofilament line crosses and appears to hold the disk.

Oriental rugs on Ebay?

horsemuth — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 18:48:23 -0800

What is the deal with Persian rugs on ebay? I'm looking for some carpets for my house. While I would love to have high quality antique rugs at some point in the future, I have several animals, a child, and another on the way, so I'm not looking for something of heirloom quality. With those factors in mind, I have been browsing Persian rugs on Ebay and I noticed some curious things. Many of them fall into 2 categories: free shipping and no reserve or approximately $180 shipping and no reserve. Upon viewing past auctions, either option seems to amount to $175-225 for a 9x12 rug. The feedback on them looks good with regard to people receiving their carpets and such, in fact a friend of mine just got one and it looks great. I mean, I'm under no illusions about the quality (at least in the abstract), but his looks pretty good. He had no problem with the seller of his rug, in that it didn't seem to be a scam, but I noticed similarities in many of the sellers, including that most are located in Canada. Anyway, I suppose that I was wondering if anyone knew why even poorly made handknotted rugs would sell so cheaply, why so many sellers seem to be in Canada, and generally if anyone has any experience buying these rugs from Ebay. Also, if anyone with knowledge of Oriental carpets would like to give advice on what to look for, it would be greatly appreciated.

Start in the Red Chamber?

BadMiker — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 07:17:41 -0800

I want to take the opportunity of an upcoming holiday to take on some challenging reading, I'd really like to try some classical oriental literature but I dont really know where to start. It has to be portable (single paperback volume) suitably annotated and, importantly, readable! I've been recommended The Dream of the Red Chamber but I dont which edition to get or if this is a good choice. Any suggestions would be welcome!

Mothproofing wool carpets

fkeese — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 12:53:47 -0800

I'd like to know the best ways to mothproof oriental rugs short of taking them to a pro for treatment. Moths are sneaky and damage is found on hidden parts of rugs. mothballs are out, they smell too bad. Currently I use an ant/roach spray containing a synthetic pyrethrin compound. Does this seem a good idea, and if so at what frequency per year? Any one have a better method?

the gods must be similar!

mordecai — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 00:54:52 -0800

What are the similarities between Hindu and Chinese mythology? I could only find references to Yama, the Lord of Death. Both mythologies share this idea, though in Chinese mythology, he's also known by other names (correct me if I'm wrong).

However, I'm sure there are a couple of more similarities. Hanuman and Sun Wu Kong, for example. Apparently, Sun Wu Kong is partly based on Hanuman but Wikipedia wasn't of any more help than that.

I'd be grateful for any insights. Thanks!

Furniture shopping in Los Angeles

sirion — Fri, 25 Mar 2005 18:51:35 -0800

I'm moving into a new place and beginning the search for furniture. Anyone have any favorite sources of good deals on good furniture in LA? How close to a gigantic selection of good quality/looking stuff at garage-sale prices can one get in this city? Various extra stuff: Looking for some antique-ish oriental furniture as well as some modern looking furniture. Also looking for decorative objects (sculpture, vases, pots, indoor trees). Primarily looking for good deals.

Meatmen lyrics question

NewGear — Mon, 14 Mar 2005 13:16:03 -0800

Okay, so I'm looking for the name of the album a particular bit of spoken word is on. I did I search on Google, and the only match said that the bit in question is from The Meatmen. Unfortunately, they didn't say what album it was from. (warning: text is of questionable taste, so I put it in the "more inside" section) Okay, I remember this from a punk tape a friend of mine had back in college, circa 1986. It's not a song per se, but just a quick spoken bit between tracks. I apologize for the un-political-correctness of the text, but it's stuck in my head and it's driving me crazy. It's something close to: "So I went up to this hot stacked oriental bitch; I said 'hey baby, how 'bout I ride my rickshaw up your Ho Chi Minh Trail'?" Wrong on so many levels, I know, but a friend of mine was writing a paper on Asian American stereotypes in music, and I was trying to think of this source. Does anybody know what album/cd it's on?

Anybody have any tips for managing oriental hair?

Jongo — Wed, 01 Dec 2004 15:26:52 -0800

Anybody have any tips for managing oriental hair? [MI] Basically, it's straighter than straight, and stronger than steel wire. Even by my compatriot's standards, it's abnormally strong, which means that I can empty a whole bottle of gel into my mop, and an hour later it'll have sprung back to its mushroom/bowl configuration.

In addition to that, all my previous hairdressers have seemingly been unable to comprehend what goes on with my hair. Cut it too short and it all springs up like I've been playing with a tesla dome-thingy; leave it too long and it looks superflat.

Is there anything that can be done? Should I try more expensive haircare products like Kiehl's? Are there treatments available to make my hair less strong? Should I shell out more for a decent haircut? Or am I just doomed to have crappy hair?