A Plague on its Own.

For the first time I found myself mixed in the corral of medical personnel. I looked at nurses finding ways to juggle two patients at once, observed doctors dictating their surgery notes to whoever they were dictating to on the phone, called in EKG and XRAY people to do their job on their respective patients.

I was in the mix of it all with orders from nurses coming from left and right.

"Scan and stamp this for me please."

"Can you call bed control and 5 west and tell them that patient X is coming in a few minutes?"

"Can you order an EKG for this patient?"

"Stamp me a rhythm sheet"

"Let us know every time when someone calls for a bed for a patient."

I found myself making mistakes. Not huge mistakes, but small ones that make me irk a bit as I know I could've prevented it if I was focused enough on it.

Busy busy day. But I think it was a fulfilling day nonetheless. I get to watch first hand the ratio of nurses to patients (with patients trumping nurses). I semi-watched a patient went under as a procedure was done to find out the rhythm of their heart right in front of me (I wish I had the chance to watch it more, but I was pre-occupied with the papers and the phoning that I needed to do).

I wish there were more of these days. As one of the nurses said, "its either a famine or a plague in here; we find ourselves sitting around waiting for the next one to come out and then we find ourselves wanting for them not to come out until we're done with the one that we're taking care of still".

During this time

"During a period of darkness, faith and hope must always prevail upon you. "

--This is what the priest said earlier during his homily.

I was also watching Castaway earlier and it just reminded me of the exact same thing. Chuck Nolan got stranded in a deserted island with no food, no one to talk to and little resources at his disposal. Despite the odds, he remained hopeful and faithful for 1500 days. He remained resilient in spite all the odds that were against him and in the end he prevailed only to find himself changed for possibly the better.

Two Weeks and no coffee in the system..

- I've lasted two weeks now without downing any sort of coffee-related drinks.WOOT!

- Fashion month is coming to a close and so far Gucci and Balenciaga are the only ones that stood out to me. Everyone else is either a tad plain or a tad over the top.

- I've been thinking about internships at magazines, but I remembered that magazines are not immune to economic meltdown.

- Right now my whole brain is up in the air. Honestly, I do not have the complete motivation to go about the things that are happening right now. But I guess this is what you are suppose to feel when you are going through a rough patch. All that one can do is to just hold their chin up high and just move along and hope for the best.

The Personal Statement that got me into UW

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2005

It's the PERSONAL STATEMENT, y'all! (FINALLY!)

In the two years of studying in Shoreline Community College, I have come to appreciate things that really matter.

At the start of my educational career, my parents have instilled upon me that I should do my best to get high grades. They expected a lot from me; if somehow a not-so high grade prints out on my report card, they get all antsy and tell me that I should do better next time. At first, I wasn’t too keen on them putting a lot of pressure on me, but I started to grow into it. I vied for the highest grade that I could possibly get in every subject. I wanted to be in the 90-100 percent range of the grade system, any number below 90 was just not good enough for me.

When I became a senior in high school, I started applying for colleges. As I look through the requirements and the expectations that each college application have written out, I was a bit surprise or rather shocked to find out that “good” grades was not enough for an admission to a reputable/respectable college. I stressed on and on about why universities need to see community work and extracurricular activities, when I have a CGPA of 3.6. I angrily ask every person I talked to then, “isn’t good grades not enough of an evidence that I’m a good student who deserves a spot in the admitted students list?”

When I started studying at Shoreline Community College (SCC), I began to experience the trauma of getting low grades. I became hard on myself and I got stuck in a black hole known as “self-pitying”. Then one day I had an epiphany, one that I had when I, along with a group of friends, performed for a group of elders at a nearby nursing home. I realized then that grades that I get from every courses that I take are not that important but what is more important is applying what I have learned in each subject into real life experiences. It was more of sharing what I know and what I’ve learned to the community that is around me. After that time, I made one of the most liberating and intelligent decision, I decided to not pay too much importance on the number that I receive, but rather appreciate and apply the vast information that I have learned in a four cornered room to the immeasureable world out there.

After I’ve realized that real world experience was more important, I started to volunteer more openly and without the notion of “I have to volunteer, in order for my college applications to look nice”. I’m currently a member of the Asian Pacific Islander Club at SCC and whenever an opportunity to get myself involved in the community arises during our meetings, I sign my name up to join in. I, along with the other club members, have participated in the Christmas food drive of St. Mark’s Church, located here in Shoreline, for the St. Vincent de Paul charity. We also participated in the toy drive that was held at the Child Haven Center, located in Downtown Seattle. We also performed Christmas carols for a group of elders at the FOSS home located in Greenwood, Seattle. Such volunteer opportunities that I participated in has given me a sense of what I really love to do, which is helping people.

We all started to think about what we want to be when we grow up when we were only five years old. But during that time, we were naive and innocent little kids. We didn’t know what the “real world” was really about. But as we grew older, the world started awakening us more, consequently making us think more seriously about what we really want to be. I chose Biochemistry as my major because I know I can do so much with such broad major. It can be a stepping stone to medical school or a background for a job application to a biotechnology firm, both of which can be a good way to help people out. However, I haven’t formally decided on what I’m going to do once I earn my degree I still don’t know how to choose between going to medical school or just apply to local biotechnology firms to do research work.

I choose to apply for transfer to University of Washington because I feel certain that I can choose my path in life once I start exploring the curriculum in Biochemistry. The program gives its students the opportunity to explore ways to apply the knowledge that they have gained from their courses through research studies in the university’s own research facilities or the biotechnology companies that surround the school. As for the students who are taking Biochemistry as a stepping stone to medical school, they have an easy access to the Children’s Hospital that is near to the university, where they can volunteer or work to gain clinical experience.

I may not have a decision on what I’m going to do my life in the next ten year or so. But I know that my admission to University of Washington will help me decide on what my path will be.

This Photo is what I will call : "I don't give a rats ass as to what everyone thinks of what I wear"

Carine Roitfeld, Paris Vogue EIC, wearing Rick Owens Jacket (?)

by: Scott Schuman for Style.com

I heart her. In this picture she gives off the vibe of a really really cool middle age woman who doesn't give a crap about everyone around her. Examine her facial expression too .. that face!!

o mi gas I die..

I heart Scott for capturing uber cool photos like this one.

She's my role model.. So is Scott.. Bless their hearts ...

40 DAYS

I've never done forty days before so I will start this year. 

This year, I will give up COFFEE. 

Since I literally drink it almost everyday of the week I think it's the best thing to give up for 40 days. 

Some people need to get off their freakin' high horses..

Nothing pisses me off more than a doctor who files a complaint against a person whom she has never seen, treated or talked to and is only basing this "complaint"  through the interviews and TV spots that this person makes. I am talking about Dr. Carole Lieberman, who has nothing better to do with her time than judge, Ms. Nadya Suleman. 

I mean really? She calls herself a doctor, she's supposed to be a  psychiatric expert, well I say she's full of crap who probably wants some attention to herself. Did she even really learn anything in med school?

Read The Story.

Sex and the City Movie Part Deux?

Why?

Seriously, Why?

I thought making the first one was done to serve the purpose of "closure" for fans. 

But a second movie? REALLY? It just defeats the purpose of ending the TV series. 

And I also wonder what kind of story the writers are going to concoct? 

What's it like for Carrie to be married with BIG? 

Samantha and Smith getting back together? 

Charlotte getting pregnant again? 

Miranda leaving Steve for good? 

Hmmm.. Maybe I'll just watch this one for the sake of the clothes and shoes. 

Rewarding

Nothing beats going to work than getting free money for coffee. WOOTT!!! 

Thanks MANAGERS! =)

Also, 

SELLING = CONFIDENCE

HONESTY = TRUSTWORTHY

They go hand in hand. 

Also here's a cool story I forgot to write about:

I was helping out a lady last Saturday morning pick out some new jeans for herself since, according to her, she went down a size. I had her try one of our new styles and boy was she surprise about how she looked in it. She looked very chic and sexy. She was adamant about it at first but I told her that it really looks good on her (which it truly does if you've seen her  yourself). I told her that the most important thing for me is that she feels and looks comfortable in what she had on and that she should tell me if she needed another style. 

In the end, after contemplation in front of the mirror, she bought it, changed into it and walked out the door beaming. 

One of the best things about my life is when I help someone get the perfect fit and have them walk out the door super duper happy. I feel like I'm Stacy London or Clinton Kelly.

Devil Wears Prada Life Lessons

I've watched this movie twice in a row and I kid you not this movie teaches everyone a lesson or two about your life and the people that surrounds it. 

1) Never let anybody put down your choice of career path. 

2) Ditch the people who do not understand that you need to stay late to do your job. 

3) If you missed their birthday, schedule a celebration way in advance, or better yet do an impromptu celebration when your both free. That way, no one gets hurt or mad when you missed their special event. 

3) Leave the boss if they don't recognize your work effort at all. 

4) Don't whine if you feel like things are not going your way. 

5) Be happy for the people who clearly succeeded before you did. 

talent vs. experience

It makes me wonder why talent becomes second place when it comes to picking the right candidate. 

Why is experience more valued? 

or the million dollar question... 

How can one gain experience, if one can't get the chance to gain the experience? 

A Little Motivation..

You Can't Have It All

We can't have a job that pays well and have a good work environment at the same time. We can either have one or the other. But we can't have both things at the same time. One has to give in order for the natural order of things to remain balanced. 

Tell me about someone who had it all -- money, power, love, stable life, good education -- and you can banish my opinion. I believe that not everyone has what they want in their life. 

------

Skills that I have gained to date:

1) Strong - willed - I wasn't one before. 

 

2) Resilience - The ability to bounce back from one rejection to another and I am developing a strong and thick skin and I will continue to develop it until the day I die. 

3) Attentiveness - I still have the quality of making sure that others are well taken care of, whether directly or indirectly.

4) Great attention to detail - I become really obsessive when a shirt in a pile is wrongly folded. I mentally slap myself whenever I make a mistake on a simple thing that I could've avoid in the first place i.e. checking if tags are correct or not. 

5) The ability to maintain composure in the midst of chaos and aggressiveness.  

6) The ability to move fast when the need arises. 

7) The ability to finish a task that I started. 

-----

TIP FOR THE DAY:

ALWAYS READ THE FINE PRINT IN EVERYTHING!

How freakin' cute are they??????

(credit: the budget fashionista)

S.o.B

I am a little frustrated right now. I spent probably 15 minutes just solving a simple Chemistry problem. ONE effin problem. I know the equation to use and the only thing the made me take so long in completing it is the stupid effin ALGEBRA MATH!

ugh!!!!

I HATE CALCULATORS!!!!! WHY DID MY PROFESSORS AND MY TEACHERS ALLOWED THEM DURING CHEM AND PHYSICS CLASSES? WHYYYYYYY??????

or better yet, WHY WERE THEY EVEN INVENTED!?!?

50:50

The ratio of right vs wrong in my Biology practice questions without using any timer. 

Cold Blues

I am OD-ing on post holiday sales. I hate working in retail this time of the year. Oddly enough I realize I enjoy post holiday sales more than end of summer sales, maybe because during this time of the year the weather is so crappy that I have nothing else to do but shop/window shop/internet shop -- aside from studying of course.

Windy/Rainy this week. I have sniffles too. 

Givenchy and MCAT

I tried this on last weekend when we went to Downtown and boy did this pair made me wish for smaller thighs (for the first time in my lifetime). Anyway, I am still averaging 3/5 with my verbal practice. Reviewing concepts gets boring that my head floats around while I'm doing so. I should do questions later.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JAN JEN!

Verbal Reasoning Practice

On average, I score 3 out of 5.

It's frustrating. I always thought I could do well in this portion. Argh.
I practiced on 3 passages today. They were not that long to read but somehow they contain information that is hard to grasp in the span of 2 minutes. I tried the Kaplan approach of mapping the passage but somehow I feel like it doesn't work.

I think I should buy the Examkrackers Verbal practice. I hear it's a reliable one compared to Princeton or Kaplan.