25 Things About Vong Sundara, Facebook’s Cool New Viral Sensation

February 22, 2009 by vongsundara · 2 Comments 

This new “25 Things” viral sensation spreading across Facebook is a great example of how social networking can enrich our lives. I’ve learned so much about my friends that I would not have known otherwise. Below are the rules being sent around on Facebook:

“Rules: Once you’ve been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it’s because I want to know more about you.

To do this, go to “notes” under tabs on your profile page, paste these instructions in the body of the note, type your 25 random things, tag 25 people (in the right hand corner of the app) then click post.”

Now, I’m going off the ruleset a bit and writing my 25 Things note on my blog instead. Feel free to leave a comment below as you would have on Facebook or comment on my Facebook status where this note will be showing up.

1. I always have a jar of pickles in my fridge to ward off emergency headaches (most headaches are caused by lack of salt or water).

2. I have never learned how to swim despite several valiant attempts.

3. I am lifetime banned from separate gay bars in both Calgary and Winnipeg.

4. I spent the first three years of my life in a Thai refugee camp.

5. I had five bicycles stolen as a child and now refuse to ever ride bicycles again.

6. I shattered my knee in a tragic badminton accident (yes, badminton).

7. I was diagnosed as being clinically obese (over 30 per cent body fat) after gaining 20 pounds following a year of inactivity after the knee accident.

8. My parents’ house in Winnipeg was robbed seven times growing up and another four times last year alone.

9. I’m a huge sports fan. I used to host an annual Super Bowl party in Winnipeg but have been unable to find a new group of sports fans to hang out with since leaving Winnipeg.

10. I wrote the obituary section for both the Winnipeg Free Press and Calgary Herald for many years.

11. I moved to Toronto specifically to pursue my dreams of becoming a stand-up comedian.

12. Everything I speak about including all stories in my comedy routine is true and reflects my actual life and opinions.

13. It’s been almost four years since my last actual romantic relationship.

14. My hero is Leonardo da Vinci because he showed the world that creative ability as an artist and technical ability as an engineer can be complementary and reside in the same mind.

15. I built this entire website myself by taking a week off of work and catching myself up on all the new advancements in the website design and build world.

16. My favourite movies of all time are Beauty and the Beast and Scream.

17. I captain the SuperPowerBottoms volleyball team but am not actually a bottom. I’m actually celebate. I just thought it was a great cause.

18. There was only one white kid in my elementary class, so I never felt like a visible minority growing up.

19. My entire wardrobe is from Club Monaco and Banana Republic (yes, every single piece).

20. I worked as a freelance photographer early in my newspaper career.

21. I compare my current career as Project Manager in Toronto to living a real-life version of Donald Trump’s The Apprentice (it’s really not that far off of reality).

22. I owned and operated the number two Street Fighter website on the internet while I was in high school. I also travelled to different cities to take part in multiple Street Fighter tournaments.

23. I worked as Long & McQuade music store after school in high school and can play alto sax and euphonium (a.k.a. baritone).

24. I had a stalker in university and sent him to jail after discovering he was on Winnipeg’s most wanted list.

25. I am absolutely inept at household duties and have paid people in the past to do my laundry, cook my food and clean my house.

Filed under: Living
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A stand-up comedian’s Christmas can be a lonely affair

December 25, 2008 by vongsundara · Leave a Comment 

Another year, another Christmas spent alone, thus is the the life of a stand-up comedian. I ended up having a somewhat boring day, but at least there was some great NBA basket ball on television; Celtics vs. Lakers is always a fun matchup (unfortunately, my Celtics lost).

I suppose a bit of loneliness is never too terrible a thing. Being alone today reminded me of the sacrifices I’m making to pursue my career out in Toronto and be separated from my friends and family. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m having a great time in Toronto, but today reminds me that I have to focus on why I am here in the first place, otherwise I’m separating myself from my family for no good reason at all.

I got quite a few updates done to my website. I re-intregrated Twitter feeds and fixed a few of the WordPress and Facebook interactions. I’ve also been researching Podcasting and will be introducing those into my blogs hopefully very soon.

The most important part of today, though, is that I’m finally going to get off my ass and start writing again. I’ve been resting on the material I wrote while in Calgary, and as proud as I am of that material, I know I can be much, much better.

I’m sure everyone makes lots of New Year’s resolutions, but I think my re-dedication to comedy in the new year will stick. All it took was a bit of loneliness to remind me why I’m out here.

Filed under: Performing
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Facebook to fame, how free ads have resulted in good traffic

November 7, 2008 by vongsundara · Leave a Comment 

I received $50 of Facebook advertising credits when I recently switched my web host to GoDaddy.com. I never really thought about advertising on Facebook before, but now I am totally hooked. In fact, I’m already starting to budget some money toward Facebook advertising each month after my free credits run out.

The great part about Facebook advertising is that I can target specifically the audience I want to reach. It’s amazing how much detail people will give in their Facebook profiles. This information then helps advertisers like me target our audiences specifically. For instance, I can have my ads served only to people who have listed “Stand-Up Comedy” as one of their interests. This way, I know that I am not wasting my advertising dollars on people who aren’t comedy fans.

To coincide with this new campaign, I have also started a Facebook page at the below URL. The Facebook page allows my fans to follow my career by clicking “Become a Fan.” If you haven’t done so, please visit my Facebook page and “Become a Fan.” The more fans I have, the more chance that my page can spread virally throughout Facebook.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Vong-Sundara/38315545624

My first target is to reach 100 fans. After 100, I’ll re-evaluate my goals and hope to move up in the listings. The great part about having fans is that I can send messages directly my those who sign up regarding upcoming performances and television appearances. This way, I know that the people who are supporting my career are going to be the first to know about important information regarding my career.

Filed under: Performing
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Super flattered that someone started a fan club for me

October 16, 2008 by vongsundara · Leave a Comment 

I’ve been video blogging on YouTube for a while now, and a little while back I got a few comments from a couple of my fans who decided to start a fan club for me on FaceBook. I was so ridiculously flattered and completely speechless. You can find the group at the below address.

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=29850870682

What’s more amazing is that the awesome fans who started the page are from all around the world.

So this entire post is to thank them all, especially Alfred Jook and Peter Choumvong, who are administrators on the group.

Filed under: Performing
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