Friends: Joey and Rachel. Awww. And the whole issue of soulmates. I, for one, want to believe in that so much. It seems so romantic, so destined. I admit there have been occasions when I thought I met my soulmate... or someone I hoped would ultimately be revealed as a soulmate. But in the end, I somehow become a little disappointed. Yet I stay hopeful. I still keep looking for signs... but I can never be sure... Maybe it really is time for me to leave Chicago...

Blog on friends. Think out loud. Be like the powder on donuts. So free.

Welcome back to the blog world Steph!

I normally don't write about stuff that goes on in the hospital, and really I shouldn't for the sake of confidentiality. But today was definitely a good day for me. It just felt different. I really really liked my experiences today with the pediatric cardiologists and the patients we saw. It's been a long time since I've been able to say how much I appreciate being in the medical profession because most of the time I feel like I'm "just a medical student" or the whole senioritis thing just keeps me fairly unmotivated. But today, I had the opportunity to do rounds (that means walk and talk about the patients) with the cardiologists by myself, and just absorb their knowledge, thoughts, and style. Plus I could ask them my "dumb" questions... which they didn't mind answering. They also had to break some bad news to a set of parents who had a newborn with a genetic disorder - a tough situation for anyone, but they did it with such compassion and patience. And the parents took it well. It was just amazing to be in the room to experience the encounter. Y'know, today, it simply felt good to just be able to learn without worrying about my status in the whole hierarchy of the medical profession. If this is what it's going to feel like as a pediatric resident next year, then I can't wait. The day was relatively long... but I just didn't mind today. Let this be a reminder to everyone that we all serve as role models to somebody else. Even if you're a young person, there's somebody out there that looks up to you. Be good. Be caring. You may be making an impact without even knowing it.

Classic TAF pic of Tiff! I just discovered it on Anna's site!

hmmm... on the eve of 228... here's the synopsis for the West Wing episode tonight: "Hartsfield's Landing" The president uses chess to illustrate tensions between the United States and China over Taiwan's testing of Patriot missiles.

I am now committed to running a workshop at ITASA 2002 down in Champaign in April. It's gonna be so nice to visit the good ol' alma mater and see some TAFers again. I'm reminiscing about all that time spent down at UIUC pushing for the Asian American Studies program and increasing awareness on various issues... I have a feeling things have changed for the better over all those years. But I wonder if the AAA is still as strong as it used to be, or if it's gone back to just being a social group. That was my baby during the college years. Well, at least they have a cool website though.

It's nice that TASC is still going strong... I was there with Rolla, Jason, Margaret, and all those other old folks trying to think of a name for the group back in the day... Anyways, I think this upcoming conference would be a great opportunity for any blogger stalker to come and learn a thing or two about Taiwanese American stuff. That reminds me - it's 228 tomorrow. Consider fasting from midnight to midnight to remember all the lives that were lost.

Motivation is so hard to come by these days. I wish to be a potato tonight.

Aw bummer... I'm a nerd.
If I was an Autobot, I'd be:

Take the Transformers personality test at android5.com!

Awww! Thanks Margaret! I got a nice hand-written card and some pictures from Margaret today! That's so nice these days, considering how dependent we are on email. And even nicer, since we already stay pretty updated with each other's lives through the Blog and AIM. So sweet of you!

Check this card trick out. I figured it out on the 2nd try. Beat that!

The blog page is 2 months old. Still a baby.

The Bioengineering group. I can't believe that 4 years has passed so quickly. It felt like yesterday that I was working with them...

Didn't quite make it to the Third Coast cafe since it was such a nice day outside. So Dave and I chilled on the deck pretending to study... Couldn't ask for a more relaxing afternoon. OK, off to dinner with the old Bioengineering lab group! I'm excited!

Click on the pic below for a close-up of my friend Dave and the street sign!

What a beautiful day! Olympic Closing Ceremonies later tonight.. yay! Well, I'm off to go do some reading, believe it or not. Destination = Third Coast. Motivation = Peds Cardio. Caucasian = DuBois.

I've been staying out too late these past couple of nights. That's so unlike me. I am completely pooped out! Anyways, today was a good day. After our local APAMSA health fair event, we met up with the APAMSA National Officers who were having their retreat in Chicago at Dr. B. Li's impressive-looking condo. They're a very cool group - the kind of people I respect, just because they care about stuff and are willing to do something about it. We all hung out after dinner and did the kitchen talk thing. Caught up with my buddy Alice and fellow APAMSA-lifer Vincent, and chatted a good deal with Arlene and Josephine, two very cool Pinay sistahs - just like our very own Liza! The evening just got better as it went along... I'm so excited because we got to watch an advance copy of the Filipino American independent film, The Debut. I've been looking forward to it, but it's only been showing in a few cities on the west and east coasts. We just had to take a pic with the videotape and synopsis sheet - I know, we are way too dorky... But, hey, that's ok with me. So, all this Filipino cultural exposure is bringing me back to my HS days when I used to hang out with my neighborhood Flip crew... They were the original Bboyz. I was just dorky then too... haha...

What you don't see is the waterbed challenged to its bursting point...

Arlene is the only one looking! The Chicago "debut" of The Debut!
So, the night didn't end there... Charlie and I had to catch up with DK for his birthday... DK is my awesome little sib from med school... But, he's much cooler than me. We hung out with him and others at a nice cozy bar for awhile. Very chill. I liked. Bonus for the evening: a second dose of Janet! I don't see this girl for ages... and suddenly, WHAM!, two nights in a row!

DK, after 1 drink too many... j/k!

It should be an interesting day... I'm off to a health outreach event in the Vietnamese part of town with our UIC APAMSA group.

Photos of APAMSA people in action are in this dotphoto album!

I haven't gone out in over a year... and now I find myself at Dragonfly two weekends in a row... I'm too old for this.

Happy Birthday Mike! And I wish you & Cat all the very best! Cheers!

Lazy-ass M4s, ready to graduate... Such an honor to be by Janet!
The rest of the pics are here!

Off to celebrate Mike and Cathy's recent engagement and Mike's bday... Congrats!

And so, with the magic of Blogger, a momentary visit to Eniwetok and Kwajalein, and a trigger-happy posting finger, my life is now complete.

I just realized it's 2-22-2002... if only I had realized this at 2:22 pm and 22 secs, my life would have felt more complete. Yes.

Uh Oh. Does this mean I'm a girl?

Which Star-Crossed Marvel Lover Are You?

A pitstop in Chinatown... I could not resist...

Sarah Hughes takes the Gold. It was a spirited and deserving performance. Her childhood dream is fulfilled at the age of 16 (Did you see that video clip of her as a kid?? "I can't wait to go to the Olympics and win a gold medal!"). Truly amazing and inspiring. I can sleep peacefully tonight.

Tonight is the deadline for the residency program rank list... It's kind of frightening. My fate and future will be sealed tonight. I find out the results of my match in exactly 1 month. And another chapter of my life will begin. Anyone else have anything to say to influence my choices before I submit my list? Want me to stay, want me to go... good luck, be off with you... whatever?

Slow day today. I'm in the mood for sushi.

Just talked to Jessica about Taiwanese independence stuff. She's writing a paper with a "thesis." Sounds so literary. I just blog. No thesis. No point. Just blabber. Anyways, I realized how little I know about the topic. So, when she's done researching and writing, she'll be one up on me. I'm flattered she even considered asking me questions about the stuff. I haven't talked to Jessica on the phone in ages... Let it be known to all that she sounds like a babe when she's on the phone! Unbelievable. She is rather cute. May she always have a following of admiring men (and women) all her life...

I went downtown to do some studying at Borders... then afterwards, I stopped by the Art Institute for the Ansel Adams exhibition preview in honor of his 100th birthday. There must have been a thousand people who made it in. I was fairly lucky to get there early enough to hear this lecture by the curator, John Szarkowski. I guess he's also famous because he was affiliated with MoMA for 30 some years, wrote some history/theory books, blah blah blah. His presentation was fairly enlightening - but I couldn't help but notice he was speaking to an audience of mostly gray haired and "upper class" looking folk. Poor little Asian boy lost in a sea of white hair... Anyways, I think they turned away (I heard) about 5,000 people. All that waiting, and I saved myself $6. Woo hoo! Plus I had some cake and sparkling cider. And then I snuck a 2nd slice when no one was looking... Check out the 100th birthday cake sculpture made completely out of chocolate! It looked so yummy! Emily wanted me to take pics of my afternoon "trip" so she could live vicariously through me since she was stuck at home. So, voila! Here ya go:



Click here for the rest of my walking tour photos to/from downtown.

Could it be a web virus or something?? Margaret's symptoms today are exactly what I had yesterday! Including the swollen left eye thing... How strange is that? No more smiley face smooching for you. It's contagious!

Taking a break from the OR. Hopefully I'm home by noon... This day has gone on too long already. I feel better today though.

Carol brings me back to my bubble tea days... so long ago... such innocent and vibrant youth... Anyways. I took a nap. Now I feel even crappier. I could use a bubble tea served bedside.

Ugh. Feeling kinda sucky today. Flu symptoms maybe. I need a doctor. Ugly gloomy weather not helping either. Aileen gave me a couple of runts to chew on. Addictive stuff. Here's a peek into my computer. Besides feeling sick, I'm slightly bored... as you can probably tell...

After watching the films, I met up with Liza to do a little light studying at Caribou Coffee. My attention span for reading material of substance now maxes out at 1.5 hours. That is so weak, I know. My brain hurts now. Here's a pic of my coffee and chocolates! And one of Liza sleeping oops! I mean, studying. Really, she was!

I'm done early today! And I'm not too tired post-call for once! So, I'm off to watch a couple AA films over at UIC east campus on Japanese Americans and the internment experience. Tomorrow is the 60th anniversary of FDR's Executive Order 9066, which sent 120,000 Japanese Americans off to internment camps all over the west coast for 4 years during World War II. Hmmm... could racial profiling and sequestering of people because of their race happen today?

Freedom.

11.5 hours to go... can the time pass any slower??

Uneventful day so far. Just the way I like it when I'm stuck at the hospital... So anyways, Margaret has been away at east coast ITASA conference - I miss her blogs... I've been reading the same February 14th posting day after day. I feel like that movie Groundhog Day... At least Frank is blogging. Em and Karen too...

On call... 21.5 hours to go... before I start my next day. Ouch.

Just got back from watching that Korean action flick, Shiri. Plenty of shoot'em up action. A little bit of romance tied in. Fairly predictable. But, overall, not too bad. Nice violent movie for a group of guys with nothing better to do. OK, time to crash. I'm on call all day tomorrow into Monday. I guess I'll be blogging from the hospital later this morning...

I've decided that Pink will be my rockstar for the week. She's one cool girl. Strong, pretty yet not so girly-girly. I like that. And I like her new song and video Don't Let Me Get Me. Someone download it for me cuz Gnutella and Morpheus are blocked from my location...

Off to NWU for the afternoon... conference & speakers on Japanese American internment.

Happy Birthday NaYoung! It's been great sharing the past 4 years with you! Who would've thought that we would become such close friends, right?? You're the best! Hugs!

Dave, Oliver, NaYoung, and me! Old skool U of I peeps!

Celebrating at Dragonfly, a new Asian themed martini bar

I wanted to go down to the MAASU conference down at UIUC tomorrow so I could watch a performance by 2nd Generation, an Asian American acting troupe from NYC that Welly (ex-TAFer) helped start. Turns out I can't watch it unless I pay for the banquet, which I don't want to attend. And now it's $50 because there's a late registration fee. I just want to watch the show! I'll pay, but not $50! Dude, can't the ex-AAA president and UIUC alum get a break? Where's the respect? I'm pissed. Let's protest!! Just like the good ol' days!

2 Gold medals awarded, yet no zamboni. It's all about media propaganda and priority.

To celebrate V-day tomorrow, female stalkers (only) or potential crushes (again female only) may send flowers or (dark) chocolates to me at 809 S. Damen Ave #1401A, Chicago, IL 60612. I will also accept invitations for bubble tea dates on select weekday or weekend evenings... Hurry. Limited Time Offer! "Oui mademoiselle... Je t'aime! Oh la la! C'est l'amour!"

Lucy is awesome! She calls me one of her very best friends. So cool... I've known her for most of her life I think... I was chatting with her about our "good ol' days," and I found a couple of old pics of me and her... plus some other familiar faces... Just ignore my long hair phase in 1995 please...

Cute smiles. Bunny ears. And a little Carrie climbing all over my face.
Ahhh. The life of a counselor.

** Spanish and Valentine's Day **
Every year at this time, I always regret one thing I did in high school. And that was signing up for that damn French class! Now, why the heck did I do that? Over the years, it has become clear to me, especially being in the medical profession, how useless French is (let me say again in my best French, FRIGGIN USELESS), especially when so many patients speak only Spanish. No one in our country speaks French except for some folk in Louisiana and our neighbors in Quebec or something. I don't plan on going to either of those places. So basically, the little French that I do know serves no real purpose. I remember back to that day when trying to decide which language to take to fulfill some bogus high school graduation requirement. Thinking how "romantic" it would be to know the language of love, I chose French. Besides, lots of people would know Spanish, and I could just ask them to translate. I didn't need to know it, because everybody else would. Yes, logic goes out the door when hormones are involved. So to this day, I can't speak more than a few words of pitiful-sounding Spanish. "Hola senora. Tenes dolor?" or something like that... So, listen to me friends - especially my young friends out there - TAKE SPANISH!! IT'S USEFUL & PRACTICAL!! FORGET LOVE & ROMANCE!! A friendly reminder as Valentine's Day approaches...

I was wrong. Busy night. Just got home. Good night. Or, I guess I should say, good morning. What a life.

Looks like it'll be a fairly light evening on call. Hopefully I can sleep a little bit... But the thing with O/B is that you never know when somebody is gonna be admitted in labor... OK, gotta run back to the OR for a C-section. Oh, in response to Margaret, perhaps you'd like your twitching eyelid excised? But then when you're sleeping, people might get freaked out seeing one eye staring at them...

I'm in and out of the OR today... feels kind of busy, yet it's not. And then I'm on call tonight for Anesthesiology... It's all about endurance and surviving the next day. Hopefully it's a calm quiet night without too many moms in labor. Maybe I'll get a chance to blog more... In the meantime, I am hungry.

LiLkArEbEaR13: maybe next yr we should pick different roles
HoChie71: i'll be the JHer
HoChie71: i wanna have some crushes...
LiLkArEbEaR13: and i'll be the counselor
LiLkArEbEaR13: haha ok
HoChie71: there's this cute girl...
HoChie71: but i'm too afraid to talk to her!
LiLkArEbEaR13: oh no!
HoChie71: what should i do miss counselor?
LiLkArEbEaR13: i think u should be brave mr.camper
LiLkArEbEaR13: and talk 2 her
HoChie71: NOOO ...you have to say "no hanky panky"
LiLkArEbEaR13: oh
LiLkArEbEaR13: ahhh
LiLkArEbEaR13: i need to practice more
HoChie71: strike 1
LiLkArEbEaR13: haha

I'm counting down... 6 more weeks of rotations before I have no responsibilities left as a medical student. Then I figure it's time to start travelling again... New rotation this morning: Ears, Nose & Throat... aka ENT. Before I leave, just a little shout out to Margaret because, well, just because...

One more blog before I leave... I'm so inspired because Celia is so inspired. Ah. The spirit of the Olympics...

Check this out... a spin around my room! Just another neat function of my digital camera... Alright... I again have too much time on my hands. Time to get out of here for awhile...

My aunt sent me a pic taken during my visit to NJ in November. Here I am standing on the campus of Princeton. Just to imagine that one of the people I admire most, Albert Einstein, walked these paths some 70 years ago... If only I could be half as smart. Well, at least I can ZAP people back to life.

This silly post brought to you by the HoCh-Cam:

I made some blueberry cornbread without following a recipe. And it actually held together... Not bad eh? That'll be my contribution to Liz & Andy's potluck dinner tonight... I am hungry! Time to go eat!

Done. Phew. Basically, if you fall over and have ventricular fibrillation or pulseless ventricular tachycardia, I can shock you back to life. If that doesn't work, I'll give you some drugs and shock you some more. "Clear!" ZZAAAPP "We have a sinus rhythm, doc!"

Ugh. I'm up early this morning for part 2 of ACLS class.

Went to the med school skit nite show this evening. Quite entertaining to say the least. However, I missed the opening ceremonies of the Winter Olympics. Boo Hoo. Cathy & Liza, lookin' so hip in their colorful scarves...

I am back! Computer problem diagnosed, thanks to Dr. Gupta.

Uh Oh. Celia is coming online... If Ms. Anti-Technology can blog, anyone can... Happy Friday everyone!

Still no computer. I'm depressed. (sniffle, sniffle) I must blog from the streets...

I screwed up my computer... I hope it can be revived in the next day or so. (sniffle)

I am ready to install Windows XP. Wish me luck... if you don't hear from me for awhile, that's cuz my computer sucks, and it died during the installation...

Late start to the day... just the way I like it. Now, if only it ends early...

Oh No! First it was "Ho Chi Minh." Then came "hoochie" in all its lovely variations. Now... "HoChi." My name is Ho Chie, and I am cursed.

OK. So I've come to the conclusion that this blogging world is way too small and that I have too much time on my hands right now. Earlier today, I got an invite from Tim to come as a workshop speaker at ITASA 2002 at UIUC, so I decided to search for some info about the conference using google. During my search, I found this interesting blogspot of some person named Jeyi, and so I started surfing around. After awhile, I started realizing there were other names I recognized, like Karina, Celia's friend from U of M. After a few more clicks, I start finding a whole bunch of other TAF names in other circles of friends like Heather, Shirley, Andri, Nancy, and others... I see friends' names mentioned in their blogs like Lynn in NJ... Then while catching up with Frank's blog, I see he's probably gonna visit her this weekend... What a small world. It's creeping me out. Anyways, I guess I don't know most of these people really well, but it's kind of weird? wierd? (which is it Frank?) to actually read about their lives, as interesting as they may be... But, I guess I am excited to discover that Nancy has a blog page too! I'll be reading you girl!

A look at the thoughts that have passed through my brain in the past 2 minutes... What to watch on TV? Any good movies out? ooguay means turtle in some language. Am I hungry or is that gas pain? Need coffee. Frank makes lots of enemies. Bumped into Phoebe and Marianne today - I need to hang out with them more. 7pm: Enterprise or That 80s Show? Need bubble tea. Too far. Too lazy. I should work out. Kim cracks me up. Gotta make time to study for ACLS. How do I rank these residency programs? I just don't know. Dr. B. Li spoke about Asian American performance on the wards - stuff he said was so true. Ugh, I won't have time to cook something for Liz & Andy's party. Wool sweaters are itchy. Settle for chocolate. I should chat with Melody.

Is it a slow day today? Or is it just me?

I rediscovered an old photo of the juniors from TAF 97. How freaky. Justin is about to get out of his seat to beat your ass!

It's a nice bright sunny morning! What a great way to start the day! Maybe I'll bring my camera around with me just for fun.

My blog page seems awfully quiet today. I'm stuck at the hospital on call. Hopefully I'll get a chance to get some sleep. Otherwise tomorrow might feel a bit painful... I'll post something more interesting tomorrow. Good night friends - sleep tight. Somebody has to.

One word: VicWen.com

HoChie71: i'm looking at vic's site.
HoChie71: and waitng for something awesome to happen.
Fuh lank: yeah, i saw the new page too.
Fuh lank: i'm watiing as well.
HoChie71: but nothing is happening
Fuh lank: yeah...it's so nerve racking
HoChie71: scary really
Fuh lank: yeah.
Fuh lank: i know.
HoChie71: just hang on tight to something. the earth is about to shake...
Fuh lank: haha

I have nothing to blog about at the moment. It's been one of those Mondays. The kind that follows the routine and nothing eventful or noteworthy happens. It's 6:04 pm, and the only interesting thing that has happened is that I chatted with Kim. So, I'll talk about Kim because she is someone that always has had energy and vibrance that has impressed the heck out of me. I clearly remember meeting her at our dads' medical conference in Chicago one summer. I admired how this girl, a young little JHer, was not afraid to do anything or talk to anyone. Not even me or my high school peers. That was bold. She wanted to be a part of everything, and had fun at it all. And I remember how much we loved (I loved) having her around and talking with her. She just brightened the day with her great big smile and shiney braces! Her happiness was in many ways very contagious. I'd see her on occasion in the years to come, and at some point, she disappeared. I can't say I really noticed. I guess we all become occupied with the events of our lives and the people immediately around us. Well, many years later, she and I have reunited, and I must admit I'm excited about getting to know her again. It's amazing to see how she has changed, and more importantly, how she hasn't. I chat with her frequently, and I'm excited to delve into her thoughts and learn what she's all about. It turns out that she's as vibrant and energetic as ever - chasing dreams, loving life, and doing the things she's always wanted to do. Not bad for a smalltown girl from Woodstock, Illinois. On occasion, she wonders about the "could've beens," like anybody else. But in the end, I believe this is the thing that drives her to experience life to the max, to leave no stone unturned, and to pursue happiness everywhere. She will always be someone I envy and admire for her strength, her hopes and dreams. Whatever obstacles she may encounter, in the end, they'll only be little distracting blips in her life. She's just that kind of person. I hope many people in the world will have the privilege of knowing her too. Or at least experience that warm and loving smile. I miss her braces, though.

Is it really Monday? Grrr.

So what do actresses Julia Stiles and Joan Allen have in common? Margaret!

The world will be conquered... BLOGS everywhere! Karen has now joined the Dark Side! I've known Karen for more than 6-7 years, since she was a little kid. She's a hip JHer now. Yet she still talks to me... I'm honored.

OK, so I have to remind myself who has joined the blogger circle in recent weeks: Carol, Emily, Marianne, Ivy (who doesn't blog enough), and Vic (page is down, so something awesome must be brewin'), in addition to O.B. (original bloggers) Frank and O.B. Margaret. And, I can't forget my dear cousin Violeta, who doesn't use blogger - but, hey, close enough...

Dinner with Judy was nice. Hung out with Carrie, Sherry, Linn, and Jason after dinner. We watched Pearl Harbor & SNL, ate cookies & milk, took pictures of their poor goldfish living in scummy water. A very complete evening considering how painful the rest of the day was.


This is how Taiwanese folk pose for pictures. This is how you kiss a fish.

Just got out of painfully long Advanced Cardiac Life Support class. Off to dinner with Judy at a Taiwanese restaurant... I am starving. Julia and Claudia say they read my blogger page often. So, here's my little shout out to Julia and Claudia! You can be a blogger too, yknow...

Oh, how could I forget? A cute little pic of Janet and Marianne! The sunshine of our dark and bleak med school lives...

Just came back from a mini-celebration party for Phil / Roommate reunion with Dave & Brenton. Pizza and beer are so nutritious together. Anyways here are a couple of pics from the get-together at Brenton's condo. Congrats again, Phil!

Janet, Charlie, Dave, Me, Marianne, Phil, Joseph, and Brenton
Is it me? or are the dudes in front holding their beers kinda funny?

Who's that BuFF Azn tHuG on the lobby monitor? Joseph!

Charlie: "Wow, are those for real??" Phil: "yeah, baby, yeah" j/k!

Welcome little blog monster! Marianne!

I added Marianne, Emily, and Violeta to my buddy link page!