aedun's Xanga

Saturday, January 12, 2008

Sat, 12 Jan 2008 19:29:39 GMT

Believe it or not, life is not all chocolate and sunshine here at Grandma and Grandpa's. I guess you could say there are pros and cons. For example,

Pro: Cheerful ol' GM always has a song in her heart.
Con: That song happens to be "76 Trombones Led The Big Parade".

Saturday, December 22, 2007

Sat, 22 Dec 2007 23:49:18 GMT

GM: "Ooh, where'd you get the food?"
AP: "Korean Market World."
GM: "Good. Right here in Torrance. Let me know how much it cost and I'll pay you back, ok?"
AP: "Twenty bucks."
GM: "I'll put a check in the mail."

Friday, December 21, 2007

Fri, 21 Dec 2007 05:05:24 GMT

AP: "We had a vendor in today that was training us on some new equipment we bought. The training is supposed to last three days."
GM: "That's crazy."
AP (nodding): "Loco."
GM: "Loco. But not El Pollo Loco."
GM: "Say, you know where that 'loco' comes from?"
AP: "Spanish for 'crazy'?"
GM: "It comes from the loco weed. Horses would eat the loco weed and start acting, you know, off a little bit."
AP: "Hmm... You haven't been eating any loco weed have you, GM?"
GM: Nah, I don't need to. I'm like this naturally!"

Sunday, December 09, 2007

Sun, 09 Dec 2007 05:46:00 GMT

Does everyone already know that Nadia cheats when she plays scrabble on facebook? I'm sure it's old news by now, but just in case...

Happy half-birthday, Ale.

Saturday, November 24, 2007

Sat, 24 Nov 2007 03:00:35 GMT

Episode 4 has just been released...if you don't get it as a podcast from itunes, you can just download it from the ifland.net server.

Find the music of Kavdragon and Myster_EE here.

Friday, November 23, 2007

Fri, 23 Nov 2007 09:18:20 GMT

Happy Thanksgiving

In truth there is a lot to be grateful for this year. I have had my job for a little over a year now. I have dear friends in many places. I have enjoyed good health too, and so have most of the members of my family. But I think that choosing the definitive entry in my thankful list this year is easy-- I have two roommates who love me, who take care of me, who do not seek to create drama, who seem immune to the rashness and fitfulness of youth, who are chock full of family legends and the wisdom of experience, two roommates that--and this blows my mind--I have a real relationship with.

Reflecting on this year, one of the points of personal growth that I find most striking is something that perhaps comes quite naturally to many...it is simply sharing life with those who are close to me. It is coming home from work and talking about my day, my projects, my plans and my goals. It is listening to how Grandma's day went, and asking about the details. It is seeking Grandpa's input on anything from car insurance to job applications to investing. It is cooking together, telling stories together, and laughing together. I hope and pray that the rest of my life will in some way look the same as this past year.

Monday, October 08, 2007

Mon, 08 Oct 2007 00:41:45 GMT

I'm making dinner tonight, so kimchi is on the menu. But this is acutally cucumber kimchi. The best way to describe it is tabasco-pickle-beer. I can't think of a better way to bug Grandma .

Thursday, October 04, 2007

Thu, 04 Oct 2007 23:59:21 GMT

One year ago today was my first day as an employee of Air Liquide. I remember it quite vividly, because I took a bus, a train, and another bus before disembarking a 'little' bit early and getting hopelessly lost (on foot) for almost two hours. I bitterly regretted not having my boss's business card, but there was nothing for me to do but wander...

My boss laughed it off when I finally did show up. I don't know if he even remembers that day. Later, he introduced me to a Vietnamese woman who insisted that I was on the way for her, and would I tell her what city I am from? Of course, I am not 'on the way' for anybody anymore than L.A. is on the way to New York. I mean, unless you're from San Diego.... Anyway, she was determined to give me a ride. As it turned out, if I live in LA and work in NY, then Thuan lives in Chicago. But she still had her way and picked me up the next morning.

A year ago, I had identified that finances was a weakness that I would need to face sooner or later. Today, I have saved and invested about 40% of my pre-tax, pre-tithe income. I also own a car (praise Jesus!), am reducing my school debt, and am building credit. A lot can change in a year...

Sunday, August 19, 2007

Sun, 19 Aug 2007 02:32:56 GMT

You've waited for months--Now it's HERE!!!

Podcast 3

Thursday, August 09, 2007

Thu, 09 Aug 2007 02:33:07 GMT

This is an application essay. Tell me what you think.

    I have had the dream of becoming a doctor since the ripe age of twelve. It was at that time, as I recall, that my grandfather first took me on a tour of the burn unit at Torrance Memorial Hospital, of which he was the director and chief surgeon. As I timidly and self-consciously followed him through doors marked "Authorized Persons Only," the confidence and leadership I saw in my grandfather provided me with a clue--intelligible even to a child--about the knowledge and power possessed by a doctor.

    When it came time for me learn about the responsibility of using such knowledge and power, it was Grandpa again that was there to teach me. What he demonstrated, in both word and deed, was an absolute passion for saving the lives of his patients, and giving them the highest possible quality of life. For his burn patients, this meant not only providing life saving skin grafts, but also using techniques that would allow joints greater range of motion after healing and minimize grotesque scarring. He never stopped searching for better means of treatment, visiting hospitals as far away as Russia and China in search of new procedures, and even inventing some himself. His desire to help people in the most practical ways was coupled to a lifelong pursuit of learning.

    These principles were modeled at home by my parents as well. Thanks to my mother's philosophy of education, learning and living became inseparable. Vacations were synonymous with field trips, chores were 'home-ec', and even entertainment was educational (from toys like Cuisenaire Rods to TV programs such as Square One). Furthermore, both of my parents took pains to tangibly exhibit care for strangers. We held marimba concerts as a family at local nursing homes, and afterwards visited with the elderly residents there, some of whom saw my family more frequently than their own families! I also recall making up care packages for homeless people and spending Christmas Eve on the cold streets of Seattle, rather than at home. In these and other ways, my parents taught me that learning is not restricted to schooling, and that caring is not restricted to family or friends.

    As I've matured, I've carried these ideals with me, both in the academic decisions I've made, as well as in the extracurricular activities I have become involved with. By teaching and tutoring, I have been able to cement my own learning while assisting my peers. During even my busiest years at university, I was able to contribute as a volunteer to the chapel music program. Through my involvement with the International Student Programs team, I formed life-changing friendships with international students as our team sought to help those students become more integrated on campus and in North America. Due to programs like Habitat for Humanity and Street-E (which gave me the opportunity to share hot chocolate and visit with homeless people living in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver), I have been continually reminded of both my privileged position and the basic dignity that unites us all.

    There is another noteworthy facet of my interest in studying medicine. My grandfather has been involved in medical missions to several Latin American nations. Not only has he been able to use his medical skills in those places, but he has also made a more lasting impact by passing on those skills to local doctors and hospitals (one favorite story is his experience of teaching Mexican doctors to use normal saline to hydrate burn patients, rather than pure water). For my part, I have fallen in love with the countries of Asia, particularly China. While teaching English in Shanghai two years ago, I had the privilege of meeting and speaking with a doctor, a New Yorker who was practicing full time in China. He encouraged me greatly that my dream of pursuing medicine and my love of China were not at all incompatible, that in fact these two interests may greatly complement each other.

    Many influences have contributed to making me the person that I am. Because of those continuing influences, I am confident that medicine will satisfy my passion for helping people in practical ways, will help me fulfill my quest for life-long learning, and will give me skills that I can take with me, wherever I go.
---
    I have been asked to use some of this space to offer "commentary on significant fluctuations" in my academic record--my second year at Trinity Western University certainly qualifies as such. I received failing grades that year for the first time in my life, and, also a first, I struggled with depression for most of the year. One fact that I continue to cling to in the wake of that year is the fact that, having struggled with depression for nearly a year, I am able to empathize with the downtrodden in a way that most 'successful' people cannot. To this day, the root causes or "why's" of that year elude me somewhat. However, one thing is clear to me: I do not in any way regret that year, for it is the year that I gained what author C.S. Lewis calls a "chest", a vital and human connection between the belly's visceral, animal appetites, and the mind's clear, cold intellect. That year shattered for me the ability to pursue academics idly, as a game. Now, what I pursue academically is precisely what I am most passionate about.