... scene,” and then thought about the movie Taxi Driver, and then Meet the Parents. Despite my efforts, the steam and the fog rolling down from Noe Valley, the visions of Travis Bickle, and the repetition ... blue that lacquered the scarred bamboo fl oors, the checkerboard linoleum of the kitchenette, the brass of the menorah, the matte of Adam’s guitar cases and amps, even the blue-orange coat ... father and my mother sharing a bowl of noodles in their apartment in Seoul. In the photos they have from that time, even poor lighting and com-munist fi lm cannot hide the cracked paint on the...