I have been really proud of the fact I can use chopsticks well. I think chopsticks are a great invention. Of course, Chinese are used to use them and so are other Asian countries like Japan. Mastering chopsticks needs practice. In fact, I spent many year using them in a way that, while not entirely wrong, took more effort to get food. My mom can’t bear that anymore and asked me to practice a better way. Finally, I got it when I was in junior high.

After I came to the US, I found in cities like San Francsico, where there’s a really diverse population, people use chopsticks surprisingly well.

There are different kinds of chopsticks. Those I use most have similar thickness on the two ends. In Japan, you’ll see chopsticks with one end much smaller than the other. Both can be used with the same hand gestures.

There are metal chopsticks. But most are made of wood. I personally favor wooden ones better, because I think the metal ones are sometimes too slippery to hold sometimes. There are rumors that they are healthier though, because they are much easier to clean, like forks and spoons.

In terms of cleaning chopsticks, the drying process of wooden ones might be sometimes problematic. If you let your chopsticks and other wet silverwares dry in a small basket for water to drop, remember to transfer the chopsticks into its original storage as soon as possible. Wooden things can easily get trapped in those dripping water and develop an unpleasant smell. Lessons learned.