good ol' weekend

i had an AWESOME weekend. well, not *that* awesome, but more fun than the normal wake-up-at-noon-study-all-day sorta weekend. Let's start on Friday:

Fri: after class, went with classmates to Trader Joe's just to get away from New Haven. didn't need anything, just hung out with them for a bit. Got back to dorm, overate for dinner so didn't feel like going to my hip-hop class. instead, my neighbor (same guy i mentioned before) was bored too, so he ended up showing me some ballroom "hip-action" moves! hehe, he's real serious about his ballroom dancing--prob as obsessed as i was about badminton at one point! he's pretty good too, "silver-ranked". we talked a while, and for the first time, i finally connected with someone in New Haven. he has a cute friend he hangs out with...i gotta figure out how to get all of us out together! =)

Sat: Conneticut Open badminton tourney! since my old mixed parter and i had that fight, i had to find another guy. My “temporary” partner and I were slated to play #1 seed first round, and i thought i played decently, but I guess my partner thought otherwise and continued to complain about our loss for the next 30 min straight! Stuff like, “Why do you keep hitting cross-court? You know that’s a death sentence in doubles!” “Why do u clear so much?” “That guy was totally picking on you—I was like, dude, hit to ME!” “Why can’t you stay up more?” BLAH BLAH BLAH! It was driving me nuts! Especially since I personally thought he plays/played worse than me! I kept quiet for awhile, then finally had to give him a piece of my mind, which finally made him shut up. Hehe. I personally didn’t mind his “criticism”—I’m quite used to it from so many years of training with badminton guys, but it was just annoying ‘cuz I’d much rather talk about something else than a game of the past. Anyhow, he apologized, and ended up playing really awesome for the rest of our matches. We played our last two matches at 10pm (yea, long wait time) and finally won Open Consolation at nearly midnight and got $10 each! Better than nothing I guess!

Since we were near one of the biggest casinos in the world (Mohegan Sun), we decided to check that out for a bit after the tourney. It’s HUGE and GORGEOUS!! I wish I had brought my camera to take photos, but it was in the car. We ate a pretty nasty buffet, and got back around 2am.

But the BEST part of this tourney was that I was asked to play mixed by one of the best players prolly in the country! He’s HELLLLLAA good!! =) unfortunately, the tourney he asked me to play is the Pan-Am international tournament in Miami in late april..and I probably have class/exams to deal with. So…i prob can’t go, tho I’d love to play in an international tournament. that'll be a first for me! but still, it’s quite flattering to be asked! =) unfortunately, my current women's double partner also asked me to play the big Boston Open in march, and as nice as she is, i really would like to find somebody who pairs up with me better...the two of us really get nowhere in competition. =( like this one, she had an allergic reaction to her meds, missed nearly every shot (whiffed or hit out), and i ran all around her scooping up shots 'cuz she couldn't see where the bird was! plus, there are quite a few really good girls out here (better than bay area!), but i just have to get into their little ring....now how do i do that.... =P

Sun: Woke up pretty sore. Felt tired all day, didn’t do much. At night, I went to a graduate social-dinner party thing where they randomly put 8-10 grad students (we had law, med, MBA, phd in econ, finance, biochem, EE) and we have pot-luck dinner at somebody’s house. It was pretty cool—realized there’s much more to Yale than I knew, and also that I know NOTHING about politics! They were analyzing why USA has a two-party political system and why it can’t change, etc etc…as well as New Haven/NYC politics, Bush stuff—I had not a clue about anything! Haha, poli sci and history are definitely my weaknesses! So I had to stay pretty quiet through most of it, but it was still fun to eat home-cooked food and meet people. I brought a “Yale Bakeshop” cake that I ordered (‘cuz I have no kitchen to make anything, and I was assigned desserts), and it was DELICIOUS! Chocolate with raspberry preserve filling, and bit of cream cheese icing. YUM!

funny!

so my neighbor came over just now to practice lung sounds on me, and believe it or not, he actually said, "Can you please remove your shirt?" I was like, "Umm..no....that would be too odd!" hehe, what a way to get a girl to get her top off! he's this quiet, kinda geeky harvard grad, and i would never have thought that he would ask such a direct question! then again...it is those types of guys who wouldn't know how to "approach" a lady! after our pseudo-lung-exam, i looked at him, and he was sweating droplets all over his forehead! geezers!! how's he gonna manage doing this to female patients all day! hehe, i'm sure he'll improve with practice....just hopefully not on me! =)

speed dating!

ok, outta nowhere, i suddenly have this urge to go speed dating! didn't we talk about this at sharon's mystery dinner? unfortunately, most of my gfs are hooked up, but there are still a few singletons out there! i just think it'll be a blast to talk to ppl for 6-8min, move on, and then gossip about them later! heehee =). that's definitely entertainment for me! so, anybody interested, single or not??? =D i even googled "speed dating san jose" to see what pops up, and there's quite a few ops! there's even asian nite at Fanny & Alexanders on 1/29, but of course i won't be around. many however seems to be geared towards older professionals, like 29+. still, it'll be fun "girls-night-out" don't cha think? any brave souls want to take on this challenge? =P

hip-hopping to Usher!

yes, believe it or not, i'm taking hip-hop dance class! i figured now is as good of a time to learn as any...esp since while i'm in school. forget that i have a jam-packed schedule and all! so tonite, i took the shuttle to the gym (it was like 0 degrees!) for a 1.5h of hip-hopping to Usher's "Yeah!" and yea...after hearing it on rewind 25x, i am TRULY sick of it. =P so i learned that the guys in the class are quite geeky (or maybe that's just Yale?), some girls have got talent, but for me, dancing is innate. i'll keep trying as time permits, 'cuz i did have fun and learn some cool moves (DON'T ask me to demonstrate--it'll never happen!), and it was free! the instructor never took roll, so i guess i'll just drop in as much as i can. =D

wow, i did learn "something"!

so i was watching a recorded episode of ER, and they had this woman who was having DOE (dyspnea on exertion) and SOB (shortness of breath). they did some chest xrays and urine test, and found out she was pregnant. BUT, it turns out she's a transvestite and really a man, and the screen cut off there with the MD saying, "well then that could only mean one thing..."

so my brain of course got curious, and i remember one lecture last semester about how a positive pregnancy test in a man was linked to....testicular cancer? and that can metastisize to the lungs as they were embryologically developed in the abdomen (and descend after birth). so i started making these random connections, wondering if i was even headed in the right direction....and turns out, the pt did have testicular cancer!!!

oh boy, it's like the first "patient" that i've had, and i dx it right!! well, nm that it's just an ER episode, but at least i know that i did learn "something" after all.... =)

i'm BORED!

yes, believe it or not, for the first time really since i got here, i'm BORED!! i don't feel like doing anything, and i even have a 3-day wknd to do nothing! =) i woke up at 2pm today (yup, that made up for my lack of sleep last week!), went shopping again at ann taylor loft (returned $150!!), and stopped by this Italian import store 'cuz they were having 50% off everything. i LOVE their long suede sherpa coats--great quality, and half off!! too bad they didn't have any in my size, so i gave them my number and when they get more in, they'll give me a call. i *really hope* i get one of those soft, furry jackets...so pretty and comfy! and only $75-$150! =)

and then i got home and proceeded to watch over THREE hours of recorded TV! that nearly sets a record for me! finally the guilt sank in, and cracked open my notes...but no motivation. but look, i found this great website on 50 ways to propose:

http://women.msn.com/968309.armx

some are really cute and creative, like "Spell your proposal out in glow-in-the-dark star stickers on your ceiling. Get into bed, turn the lights off, and wait for the inevitable gasp," and other pretty generic. oh well, first things first--find me a guy! =P

for di or any others, you can look at http://women.msn.com/weddingguideindex.armx for more insight. tho i'm sure you all have it down by now =).

ok...no more dilly-dally...guess i'll hit the gym!

crazy schedule once more

ok, i just organized my binder, and here's what in store for me by the end of january:

physiology
hematology
clinical lab medicine
medical interviewing
physical diagnosis
intro to research
medical ethics
pharmacology
digestive diseases
endocrinology
pathology

By february, we will have added:
oncology
Ob/Gyn

March schedule isn't up yet, and i'm afraid to look....=(

breast exam!

haha, that got your attn, or at least the few guys that read my posts. last night i did my first breast exam on another girl. actually, i did two! first i thought it would be tougher for guys to do a breast exam on a woman, but then at least they've seen women with tops exposed before. it was just....strange...to have the teacher lecture to you, and 5 min later, drop her top naked. very very odd. but when it came to actually doing the breast exam (which involves observing her chest and movement of her breasts, which i've never seen a dr do before; checking her armpit lymph nodes, and finally palpating her breasts thoroughly), it wasn't that bad. one girl, she's a nursing student in her 20's, claimed she had "small breasts"....if you call that small, i have no idea what mine are!! =P this other girl was skinnier, and claimed she had "pendulous breasts" (aka droopy breasts). and yea...they were...like water balloons. sorry for the bad analogy! she said she used to be a double DD, lost wt, and so now she has stretch marks on them. we had to practice first on a silicon-filled practice breast that had lumps hidden it it, and see what we could find. it was funny looking at guys put the fake breast on their chest and feel around it. =) in a month, you will get to hear all about the gyne pelvic exam....lucky y'all!!

so tired!

ok, apparently i'm still on west coast time, cuz i can't seem to adjust! and i'm sooo tired--not used to 5-6h of sleep anymore. i need my vacation norm of 8-10h!! the first lecture we had felt like it was two hours instead of the one it actually was. and the day just dragged and dragged...4-5 classes/day, by 3pm all i wanna do is sleep. i've napped through EVERY lunch, and nearly every class as well. and i can't get myself to really study either. everytime i start, i end up dozing! and naps mess up my sleeping schedule, but i can't help snoozing during the day. oh well, i'll adjust soon enuf.

it snowed on tuesday. i had a dr's appt that day, so i was gonna hike thru the snow for 30 min to the clinic. class ran overtime so i ended up taking the shuttle bus. turns out i took the wrong bus which dropped me off somewhere too far north, so i had to walk back down. i finally found the clinic, late, and covered in snow. the receptionist then tells me that i don't have an appt today--it's next week!! sigh, i'm retarded! so i decided to vent by shopping, and went to ann taylor loft (my fav store in new haven) and spent $150. they are having a huge addn 40% off sale! i already bought $300 online, prob returning most of it 'cuz they don't fit or look worse than i thought. buying online is a great idea (no tax, no shipping), but hard to tell how it actually looks. so now i'm broke again, but very happy!

back to school... =(

i had an awesome vacation. absolutely do-nothing, think-nothing, eat-everything, sleep-everyday, vegetative state kinda vacation. it is so unlikely me to like to do-nothing, which just shows you how school can change your personality! so for the first week, i just watched movies, spent time with family, sleep, nap, eat. i can't really even recall what i did 'cuz i don't think i did anything! =) felt soooo great!

but by week two, i began feeling guilty for not going out, doing stuff i wanted to do, seeing friends who have been calling, being lazy and unproductive. so to quickly summarize again, this is what i can recall of what i did:

new years eve potsticker party
new years murder mystery
dinner out with parents
shopping, shopping, shopping
badminton 3x
saw "incredibles" (highly recommended)
saw "I, robot", "love on a diet" (hilarious chinese movie), "terminal", "day after tomorrow"
saw last eight episodes of "sex and the city"
baked cookies
cooked post-xmas thai dinner with friends
cooked dinner for family
ate out with friends
highlighted hair with friend
opened up a textbook (for 10 min before i shut the book)
bought digital camera!! (my xmas gift from parents)
read
walked chopin
finally saw my first optic nerve in the eye with my bro's $700 pan-optic opthalmoscope

what i didn't do (but wished i did):
go snowboarding (rained 2 weeks straight!!)
get a tan (rained 2 weeks straight!!)
get hair straightened
eat dim sum
read enuf books

can't remember what else. it was a busy but fun week. and then of course, i had to head back....2nd and final semester! 5 more months to go of didactic work!