Flags I Own

Kingdom of Naraka: The flag of my personal kingdom. My mother gave me a custom-made 3'x5' of this flag around 2002.

United States of America: I received a 3'x5' of this flag as a gift upon earning my Eagle Scout rank in 1993. My flag flew over the Capitol Building in Washington City, for what I've always assumed was but a few minutes.

Cascadia: The Pacific Northwest -- independent, not really; independently minded, often. My sister gave me a 3'x5' of this flag for my 40th birthday.

Washington State: My home state, evergreen. Chunlin gave me a 3'x5' of this flag in 2008.

New Mexico: The state of my birth, which thankfully has one of the best state flags in the union. My parents gave me a 3'x5' around 2003.

Texas: Where I went to college and the best state of them all, yee-hah! Chunlin gave me a 3'x5' in 2008.

Hawaii: A nice place to visit and a distinctive flag. Chunlin gave me a 3'x5' in 2009.

Ohio: I'd never been there till a couple months ago, but it's the only non-rectangular state flag, thus worth having. My parents gave me a 3'x5' in 2004.

New York City: I lived and worked there for a year between college senior and fifth years. At the time, I didn't like it very much, but my memory is better at keeping the good bits and forgetting the bad bits, so now I think of it fondly. Chunlin gave me a 3'x5' in 2008.

Bunker Hill Flag: The erroneous historical flag that supposedly was carried by the colonials at the Battle of Bunker Hill. I tried to purchase a flag when I visited Bunker Hill (near Boston) in 1998, but none were for sale. My parents gave me a 3'x5' that Christmas.

Gadsden Flag: Another historical revolutionary flag, but this one actually was flown back then. The "don't tread on me" sentiment was directed at the (British) government; it's a sentiment I feel like telling our (American) government. I bought a 2'x3' in 2008.

Confederate States of America: The first version of the first Confederate flag, from when only seven state had seceded. This is the Stars and Bars. My parents gave me a 3'x5' in 2010 from their trip to South Carolina, with a certificate that my flag flew over Fort Sumter on April 13, 2008, during the 147th anniversary of that first battle.

Seattle Sounders: The local soccer team. Chunlin bought me a 3'x5' of this flag for my birthday in 2013. A flag seller had set up shop in a neighborhood parking lot. Chunlin had me choose a flag. I couldn't decided between this Sounders flag and the Cascadia flag, but Chunlin greatly preferred the Sounders flag.

British Columbia: Our neighbor to the north. I've always appreciated this heraldic flag. When Chunlin and I were in Victoria in 2008, I bought a 3'x5' of this flag. At the store, I considered buying a Vancouver Island Colony flag, but it wasn't nearly as good a design -- plus it was twice as expensive.

Nova Scotia: For some reason, I am both intrigued and amused by this province. I can't explain it; I have no connection to there. My parents gave me a 3'x5' of this flag in 2004.

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: The very first flag that I bought (discounting little flags on sticks). I got a 2'x3' when I was in London in 1993.

Scotland royal banner: I've never been there, but I'm part Scottish. Clan Logan! Chunlin gave me a 3'x5' in 2009.

Wales: I've never been there, but I like the flag. In fact, this is the first flag I asked for when I wanted a flag just for its look. My parents gave me a 2'x3' in 1993.

Cornwall: My parents bought me a 2'x3' of this flag when they were in Cornwall in 2005 or so. For some reason, they were surprised when I recognized it instantly!

Isle of Man: My sister gave me a 3'x5' of this flag in 2020. She got it at the Highland Games because it looks cool, which it does.

Denmark: My sister has been there, but not I. I wanted this flag as a show of support while Muslims around the world were burning Danish flags in response to the Mohammed cartoons. My parents gave me a 3'x5' in 2006, I believe.

Luxembourg civil ensign: Not the national flag of Luxembourg, which looks suspiciously like the Netherlands flag, but one which is flown by Luxembourg-registered ships, so no one mistakes them for Netherlands ships. The stripes and lion are from the grand duke's coat of arms. Apparently the Luxembourgers are using this flag more and more at sporting events, too, for the same reason. My parents gave me a 3'x5' in 2003 or so.

East Germany: I bought a 2'x3' of this flag at Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin in 1993, over three years after reunification. It's retro-chic!

Bavaria: Only state authorities are supposed to use the flag with the coat of arms, but apparently there's quite a few common variants like this, used by Bavarian citizens. The size of the lozenges is not proscribed, by the way, so my flag has fewer than this one. My parents gave me a 3'x5' of this lovely flag in 2004.

Venice: This old city has a vast variety of flags similar to this. The ones I saw flying in Venice were like this one, but the red stripes on the right were cut separate, with more red overall than yellow, and the lion's square is a horizontal rectangle. The 3'x5' I bought there in 2005 is like the one in the photo, which wasn't flown quite so much.

Slovenia: I visited Slovenia in 2005 and searched Ljubljana for a store that sold flags, but to no avail. Chunlin bought me a 3'x5' in 2009.

Montenegro: When they separated from Serbia, disolving the final remnants of Yugoslavia, Montenegro ditched their Serbian look-alike tricolor for this lovely flag. I wanted to go there in 2005, but I messed up on the ferry schedule in Greece, thus I didn't have enough time. My parents gave me a 3'x5' in 2006, I think.

Greece: In Athens in 2005, I bought a 3'x5' of this flag, careful to choose the one that was manufactured the best. I think I annoyed the saleswoman.

Belarus old flag: This was the new flag of Belarus when I was in Minsk in 1993, just after the Soviet Union disintegrated. I bought a 2'x3'. My, weren't those optimistic days! A few years later, Belarus reverted to their soviet-era flag, minus the hammer and sickle. It's no longer an optimistic place.

Zheleznogorsk: It's a town in Russia that was founded by the Soviet Union for plutonium production, hence the atom. My sister gave me this flag in 2023.

Kazakhstan: This was one of the pretty flags brought forth by the dissolution of the Soviet Union. So pretty, in fact, that I had my parents buy me a 2'x3' of this flag in 1997 or so. I like turquoise.

Bhutan: An eastern dragon to counterpoint Wales's western dragon. My parents gave me a 2'x3' of this flag in 1996 or so.

Sri Lanka: I've never been there and have no intentions of visiting, but . . . cool flag! Chunlin bought me a 2'x3' in 2009.

China: Chunlin's native land. She gave me a 2'x3' flag in 2006, our first Christmas together.

China's imperial dragon: The flag of the emperors of China, before that whole republic thing. In 2011, my brother-in-law got a 2'x3' flag for me in China, then shipped it to Chunlin's ex-husband (who lives in China now), who brought it to us in his luggage when he next visted Seattle. It is an unusual flag since it's only printed on one side and the edges aren't stitched. Chinese craftsmanship at its finest...

Papua New Guinea: A well-designed flag for this (half-)island nation. I bought a 2'x3' of this flag in 2008.

Fiji: Not the most unique flag around, but we were there. I bought a 2'x3' flag in the Nadi airport in 2007, while we waited for our flight to New Zealand.

New Zealand silver fern: It's not the national flag, but it sure gets waved a lot at sporting events. The silver fern is a national emblem of New Zealand, right alongside the kiwi. I bought a 2'x3' in 2007 while there -- at the Auckland airport, I believe.

And that's the lot of them!