May 21, 2011
new york, new york
Done with first week at work! My project is underway but the coolest thing I’ve gotten to do so far is scrub into several surgeries. They were all plastics cases — two reconstructive (tracheoplasty and rhinoplasty) and one cosmetic (breast implant/lipo/abdominoplasty). I even got to hold tools/flaps of skin/cut stitches. Seriously cool stuff. Although after being on my feet all day, I realized that doing surgery takes a lot of feet/leg stamina. I was wearing comfy shoes and my feet still killed at the end of the day. Just something you have to get used to I guess.
Now that its the weekend I’m faced with the problem of having absolutely nothing to do. It’s a problem because usually my weekends were spent studying, and now with all this free time I don’t quite know what to do with myself. I kind of just wander around aimlessly and watch way too much TV than is good for me. This is totally ironic because I’m in a city where there’s supposedly a million things to do, and yet I still complain of being bored. Heh…
May 7, 2011
1 down, ? many to go
I’m done with first year of med school!! Was actually finished this Tuesday, but I’ve been too busy being a couch potato to write anything. It was only recently when I was looking through graduation pics of senior friends that I was like “holy crap! It’s been one year since I graduated.” It certainly doesn’t seems that long at all, but seeing younger kids in cap and gown impresses on me the time that has passed since I was in that position. Of course, that inevitably takes me back down the road of nostalgia, and I can only say that I’m glad I’m going back to Old Nassau this year for Reunions.
But First Year, yes you are done. All in all, it was a good time. I did very well in my classes, made some good friends who I love hanging out with, and found a church where I love the pastor’s sermons. Plus, our small class of 34 has really become like family to me: meaning in it, there’s the crazy one, the lazy one, the one you know you’ll always have a good time with, the chatty one, and a couple of oddballs. But we’ve all bonded this past year, and I’m excited to move on to 2nd year with these people. I’ve really come to see how doing med school in Bloomington has been a blessing. Nevertheless, I’m super ready to have a blast this summer, the last big break I’ll get for who knows how long…
March 30, 2011
it’s official
i’ll be in NYC this summer, studying cranio-facial abnormalities at Mt. Sinai. i was soooo excited when i got it cause this was my #1 choice for summer stuff, and i usually never get my #1 choice, more likely a #15 or bottom of the list choice… plus i’m super-excited because this is SO relevant to reconstructive surgery, which i eventually want to do. so i’m hoping that this program will be the start of the right path towards that goal.
so now: who needs a roommate in NYC?
July 27, 2010
almost a real person now…
i’m no longer homeless or carless!! praise God i have both now…i found a roommate through our med class’ facebook group, and the great thing is she happens to know/be friends with one of my friends from high school. plus, she’s asian which makes living habits a lot easier to figure out. we just signed a lease to an apartment last week. i’m totally excited to move in cause it looks awesome! we rented a furnished unit which means we don’t need to buy anything! and i get a big queen size bed 
. the last few weeks i’ve also been looking for a car. at first, my parents were just going to buy me a used one, early 2000′s for under 10K. but then my mom became hesitant about used cars for safety reasons so i’m getting the car they’re driving now (2007 toyota corolla, silver), and they’re buying a NEW one! possibly a prius which would be soooo cool. so yay, my two big things i had to take care of for med school are done! just need to finish polishing up my thesis to submit for publication (keeping my fingers crossed) and then i’m home free until school starts in 2 weeks. i’m actually heading out to NYC tomorrow til monday so if you’re in that area, i hope i’ll see you!!
June 25, 2010
World Exp(l)o(sion)
While the experience was definitely worth it and some of the countries’ exhibits were really cool, the forefront thought in my mind as I left was that having the Expo in China is possibly the WORST idea ever. Here are my reasons why (and most complaints are echoed by my parents who grew up in China and should technically be “used to” this):
1. Air quality sucks. I don’t mean this for breathing purposes, but purely for the aesthetic value of the architectural designs. The atmosphere is so hazy that one can barely see the really really neat looking structures from a good picture-taking vantage point. Plus, there’s so much pollution/dirt in the air that even though it’s barely been 2 months since the Expo opened, the buildings look like they’ve been around for years, they’re so dirty and worn-looking.
Case in point:
China Pavilion
2. Lines are ridiculously long. In the recent weeks, daily attendance at the Expo hovered around half a million. Ok yes, China does have a bajillion people and most of them would never have a chance of seeing other countries in person, so going to the Expo is a great way for them to learn about other places. But that also means it felt like the whole of China was trying to pack into the park. To give a few examples, a few of the most popular pavilions saw a wait of over 5 hours. Saudi Arabia, by far the most popular, averaged a 7 hour wait. Waiting in line 3 hours was commonplace, even at the lesser popular ones. And the thing is, long lines didn’t necessarily mean better exhibits. When we were walking around and asked people what they were lined up for, many did not even know which pavilion their line was for! (My family didn’t want to do any long waiting in line, so we went to all the countries which had short lines. Still saw some pretty cool stuff though!!)
3. Crowds (un)control. This is my guess, but long lines in any other country (though long) would still be manageable and maintain some sort of dignified appearance. That was totally not the case in Shanghai. It really stems from the culture of Chinese people…the concept of “lining up” to do/get something didn’t really exist until the appearance of McDonald’s in China (someone once said). And the country has always been so poor and has so many people that in order to receive anything, you had to fight the crowds and jostle your way to the front. Even after the advent of China’s expanding economy (gai ge kai fang) people still have this mentality, which meant that the crowds at the Expo behaved as if they were fighting to get the last bit of rations during a famine.
Here’s a mental exercise to help you imagine what its like: Think of Disney World and waiting in line for rides. While some of those lines can be pretty long, there’s always a good personal distance maintained between you and the next person. And anyone who dares try to cut you is automatically wrought with personal shame and kicked out. While you wait, you can leisurely lean on the rails, chat with your family/friends, stretch, etc. Now imagine all the empty space in your nice Disney World line being filled up, every single nook and cranny until you’re literally crammed like sardines into the narrow space the rails delineate. Add to that people behind you pushing to get forward, and you have a sense of what the Expo in China is like. If there’s even a tiny gap in the crowd, people behind you will mercilessly squeeze past you to get further ahead. (In the beginning, my parents and I were completely shocked by this behavior, but we soon learned that the line-courtesy we have in the US needs to be quickly thrown out the window if we expected to get anywhere. So I started jostling people too and when they pushed we pushed back.)
waiting to get INTO the Expo
Anyway, so those were my major peeves about the whole thing. But I’m still glad I went! The crowds notwithstanding, the exhibits were really cool, with Morocco and Chile being my faves (both short lines). France was the largest one we went to, and although that one is also really popular, the line moves very fast and we didn’t wait that long. A few more pictures (since fb doesn’t work here):
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- China Pavilion
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- waiting to get INTO the Expo
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- Japan
June 11, 2010
helloooo world
well, it’s the beginning of the summer, and (if i dare say it) the beginning of a different life. moving back to the Midwest means going back to the old but also probably something new. i’m not a person that deals well with unwanted change and i also easily get attached to places and people that hold special meaning. the past 4 years at princeton will soon be a memory, and i’m scared and sad for what that means. i’ve said bye to almost everyone that has been important in my life these past years, and as i soak up my last days on the east coast, my heart breaks for what i will leave behind. so far, this heavy sense of nostalgia has prevented me from moving forward. medical school should be exciting but i’m still hard pressed to feel excited. this old world’s pull on me is still so strong…i feel as if i will see my friends again tomorrow, even though half of them are scattered around the world by now. i feel as if i will soon take the train back to princeton and set up residence again in spelman. this end does not feel like and end yet. but perhaps that’s what the summer is for. isn’t summer kind of like a limbo state: between two school years, two places, two worlds?
i love this place too much to say goodbye. or rather, it is the people who make the place…so i make a promise to myself, my friends: as long as the people i love are here (east coast, princeton), i’ll be back.
