By Leeland Lee
The New York Times recently published a collection of photographs by Laura Morton depicting the “entrepreneurs, geniuses, idealists” who have flooded Silicon Valley in search of vast riches.
In image after image, we see millennial techies in situ, both at work and at play. But only some of these techies are drinking beer and smoking stogies and, well, enjoying life. Those would be the white techies. The Asian techies, most of them, just look utterly miserable.
Entitled “The Silicon Valley Hustle,” the photo montage is an interesting study of contrasts. The white techies, mostly young men, are dressed in plaid or light-colored shirts. They strike animated poses, they point, they laugh, they are the cynosure of attention.
Meanwhile, there’s a photo of their Asian counterparts, an undifferentiated mass competing in a recent hackathon. These techies stare intensely at their laptops and wear boring T-shirts. They’re surrounded by human detritus and penned in like farm animals. These little techies won’t be allowed to go home tonight.
Moving back to white person world, we see a young techie coding from the airy rooftop of his Sunset apartment. We see techies chasing after venture capital tail at an industry mixer. And of course, what would this photo collection be without an image of white techies posing in—what else?—the backyard of a fraternity.
Want to see something really depressing? Scroll down a little farther and you’ll see an Asian techie asleep at her computer. Her mouth is agape, she is burnt out from hours of non-stop coding. Do white techies sleep as well? Why yes they do, as evidenced by a photo of a young man resting comfortably on fake grass.
Apparently when white techies sleep, they even do so in a way that’s vaguely photogenic.
Looking through these photos, you might wonder: Certainly, Asian techies must have some fun—sometimes? After all, remember, Asians are also human! And if you look hard enough, finally you see her: A lone Asian woman at a dinner party. She is staring up at her white techie co-worker, who just made a hilariously bombastic remark.
And so there you have it, an insider’s view of how Silicon Valley really operates. As I scrolled through these photos, I couldn’t help but think about our Asian parents, and how they groomed us into becoming academic superstars. Have we forgotten that rote memorization and perfect SAT scores can only get you so far? Have we failed to grasp the value of exposing ourselves and our youngsters to varied and unpredictable social situations to foster valuable communication skills down the road?
As these photos remind us, even in Silicon Valley some of the most crucial moments in life occur serendipitously at its ragged edges, far from the classroom, cubicle or computer.
Photo credit: Original photos by Laura Morton; compiled as a montage by 8Asians from screenshots for this piece
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Leeland Lee has written previously for 8Asians.com about two Asian Americans set up on a blind date
Symptoms: When Ken is asked to testify in court as an expert witness, a grueling cross-examination leaves his confidence shaken and threatens his effectiveness as a diagnostician. At home, Ken and Allison refuse to buy Molly a very expensive gown for the spring formal, so Dave volunteers to sew one just like it. When he struggles with the task, Allison is touched by the gesture, so she works all night to make one for Dave to give Molly. And Juan Julio, Welltopia’s valet, invites Julie and Damona to see him perform a lip-sync concert in which he dresses as Prince singing a Beach Boys song. Julie senses sparks between her and Juan Julio.
Microsynopsis: Louis injures his leg while attempting to entertain Jessica, putting him in a cast and wheelchair. This leaves it up to Jessica to oversee the new “Cattleman’s Ranch To Go” service at the restaurant while Louis stays home with the boys. Jessica finds herself at war with the staff, and the pressure Louis puts on himself to be the fun dad results in another long visit to the ER.
Bad: I’m willing to accept most of the ridiculous things Louis does to himself and to his family, but this is over the line. He’s not an idiot, and he knows where to draw the line when it comes to the boys. Letting them remove his cast is considerably beyond the line, and it’s not that funny.
Symptoms: Ken’s “favorite patient,” an old-school standup comic named Dicky Wexler, approaches Ken for medical clearance so he can perform at the Friar’s Club. Despite a chart that indicates Dicky should be in the hospital, and against Julie’s advice, Ken signs the clearance. When Dicky is hospitalized soon after, Ken is forced to choose between loyalty to his friend and responsibility as physician. 
Prognosis: I won’t pretend to understand how networks decide on series renewals, but with only three episodes left this season, I’m hoping ABC notices the recent upward trend in this show’s quality. There’s a lot of potential with this cast and these characters, and I think they’re earning themselves another year.
Microsynopsis: Now that he’s spending less time at the restaurant, Louis keeps intruding on Jessica’s time with Honey. To get him out of their hair, Jessica encourages Louis to get back into an old hobby: shooting pool. Louis jumps in with his usual unbridled enthusiasm, pleasing Jessica until she learns that his new partner is a woman. At school, Nicole breaks up with her boyfriend, which means she’s more available for hanging out with Eddie, but Eddie hasn’t yet told Alison that he used to have a crush on her. Alison turns out to be cool with it, but Eddie’s reaction, when he discovers that Alison used to have a crush on Dave, is not as understanding or tolerant.
Bad: I like it best when an episode’s stories are Eddie-centric and Louis-Jessica-centric, as most episodes were in the first season. The downside is less screen time for Emery and Evan. And this is really picking nits, but the episode is named after a line in everyone’s favorite Offspring song, which Walter even quotes, but the song itself is nowhere to be heard.
