Bookbyte.com coupon

After an email exchange with my student mentor, I received advice from her that I should go ahead and order the Mosby's Guide to Physical Examination book and Lab Manual.  I found the best price to be from Bookbytes.com and after completing the order, they gave me a 10% coupon code towards my next order.  In case you are interested in ordering books from this site, hopefully you too can benefit from this coupon.  

Whew, I can't believe it's going to all start in about two more months! 

He's All Grown Up

My little brother is not so little anymore. Reaching nearly 5'10 at age 14, he now towers over me and beats me at races to the park and races to the other side of the swimming pool. He scarfs down a spaghetti meal before I finish my salad, and he loves Chinese food more than anything. Not only that, he can read a book in a day that takes me over a month to finish. I can't believe Michael is going to High School this Fall.


Last week was Michael's 8th grade graduation at St. John Catholic school. Our family decided to place him in a private school because we felt he would do better in an environment with smaller class sizes and more one on one attention with the faculty. We are so glad we made this decision.

During the graduation ceremony, Michael had a monologue he shared that made my Mom so incredibly proud. From each confident glance up to the audience to every perfectly enunciated word, my Mom was gleaming with a look that only said, "Wow, that's my son!" As the reception followed, the faculty put together a slide show that included photos of the students when they were babies, toddlers, and now young adults. It's amazing, really, how fast these kids have grown, blossomed and matured. The slide show was so touching and pretty much left everyone in the room tearing up. My mom and I had enough tears coming out of our eyes to donate to the Valdosta water treatment plant. 

The best part of Michael being a part of St. John school would probably be the friendships he had made.  Surprisingly, in the entire 8th grade, there were only 20 students.  Even more surprising is that 16 of them were girls leaving just Michael and three others the only guys in the entire 8th grade.  Needless to say, those guys were able to develop a lot of bonding since the girls all thought they had cooties and stayed away.

Next year, he'll be going to Valdosta High School where my two sisters and I have gone many years ago.  A lot has changed since we were there, though.  I heard they have a new Freshmen Academy that helps the freshmen get acquainted to high school life.  They have their own wing that is totally separated from the rest of the high schoolers.  Wow, back in the day, we freshmen had to take harassment from the upperclassmen and get stuff into lockers.  jk.  That never happened to me.  

After the reception, my mother and I thanked Michael's teachers for teaching him valuable lessons and helping him get through classes.  Almost all of them noted Michael's charm and sense of humor, which made me think...  Michael has developed a pretty thick skin to be able to still carry on a sense of humor after so much nagging from his mom and three older sisters every single day.  

I'm so thankful to have him as my younger brother.  He's brought the entire family a lot of joy and laughter, and we are so very proud of him.  I have no doubt that he will enjoy High School. 

Alice:  "All he has to do is stick with a lot of sports"

Emily:  "NO!!!  Put him in debate camp!!"

Mom:   "No!  Put him at Garden Villas!"

Dad:  "No, lah.  He can come with me to work."

I think Michael will figure out what he wants to do. =D

My first experience in a medical school

I decided to take a trip to see Benji in Sint Maarten for two weeks because I knew this would most likely be my last time to spend some good quality time with him before I start PA school in August. We traveled and did some sight seeing around the island that made me wonder how a small island could be so filled with exciting and interesting things to do.

• We got our SCUBA certification!
• Visited many beaches in St. Maarten like Orient Beach, Mullet Bay, Red Bay, Pinell Island, and Dawn Beach
• Traveled to Anguilla by ferry and explored the island and it's AWESOME Rendevous salt pond.  
• Hiked in Cul-de-Sac and searched for wild mangos on top of Pic Paradis
• Did the extreme zip lining at Lotterie Farms
• Explored Ft. Louis and Ft. Amsterdam
• Shopped in Marigot market and the area
• Sipped a REAL coconut
• Found and claimed Irene island
• Joined the Carnival parade 
• Dressed up in scrubs and acted as a TA
• Dined at a restaurant that proved that French people really are RUDE.  jk  hehe :)

I think I would have to say that my favorite thing about the island is that it's shared with two totally different countries with totally different cultures: the Dutch and French.  My favorite side is the French because it seems more laid back, clean, and the scenery seems to be a lot more beautiful.  They really try their best to preserve the beauty of St. Martin by placing recycling bins everywhere, providing clean and smooth roads, offering scenic trails along a cliffside overlooking the gorgeous beaches, and also complementing their laid back personality with nude beaches that convince me to believe that the French are free, genuine, and beautiful people.  

During my first visit to Sint Martin with Benji's mom, brothers Justin and Jason and my Mom, we traveled to the French side and dined at a totally random French restaurant in Case Grande.  Their menu was all in French and we just asked the owner for some of his recommendations.  His wife prepared wonderfully delicious plates that were both aesthetically and tastefully pleasing.  During this trip, Benji and I revisited the restaurant and discovered that the restaurant's name must be Cool Heure because it was the only sign we could find on its building.  On its menu that was entirely in French, I thought I saw the word "moutarde" that I thought was mustard, so I ordered it.  The owner explained to me that this was "dinkey."  Dinkey?  I thought he was trying to tell me donkey, so I was thinking, "oh, okay, what an adventurous dish.  I'll take it!"  He asked his wife if she could help translate the word for me.  She didn't know either so she whipped out an invoice with words that read, "kidney."  Benji and I had a really good laugh and we enjoyed our meal once again.  Cool Heure is now my most favorite French restaurant in the entire world!

 

My Dinkey Dish

So, we did all of these things before Benji started his third semester in med school.  Once it started, I joined him in his classes that included pathology I, microbiology II, and physiology II.  All classes were a great glimpse of what Benji goes through in medical school and the immense amount of information they're responsible for retaining for their professional career.  It made me so very proud of him and what he's doing for the future.  It also made me very excited to start my own Physician Assistant program and eager to start learning how to be a great team member in the field.  

While in his class, I not only listened to the professor's lectures, but also did my own thing.  I completed an employee handbook for the Garden Villas, did some work for the office, applied for a student loan, shopped for a stethoscope and apartments in Miami.  I am thinking of purchasing this stethoscope, but I'm not sure if it is good for a PA student.  Any suggestions?

Well, class is done for the day and it's time to hit the beach to go snorkeling!  

Happy Birthday Chris! And thank you so much Benji for your love, honesty, support and great time in St. Maarten!

The world's sourest tangerines!

Sushi

Sushi chef Yan creates some tasty sushi Friday night at Ichiban Japanese Steakhouse & Sushi Bar.

 

The Nine to Five

I'm not too sure what my job title is or even what my job responsibilities are, but I do know that I'm dedicating my break from school towards managing my parents' hotel and getting them on track to become successfully retired. 

I've been GM of the Garden Villas since its open in 2006, and I have a great pile of memories to share from this experience.  From guests, employees, business partners, I have so many stories to tell that at the time made me sad, frustrated, or even wanting-to-wrangle-someone's-neck mad but now I'm able to share the memories and laugh at them. 

When I began managing the hotel, I had no prior real management experience, especially with a business this large and by myself.  Since my parents were already managing three restaurants, I took this project on as my baby and gave it everything I had.  I remember when we first opened, I could never get any sleep because I'd keep myself up thinking about all the things I needed to do the next day for the hotel.  Who should I hire?  What policies do I need to make?   Should I order another inventory of towels?  Where should we put this plant?  Who's my target market and how should I market to them?  On top of that, I started my first semester of business school.  Fortunately for me, it was just right across the street and most of my assignments involved team work which I love so business school was a lot of fun for me. :)  Like starting up most busineses, the hardest part was in the beginning.  After six months, the stress had subsided and the Garden Villas' staff were trained and dedicated enough for me not to worry as much.  It was definitely a relief, and I began to have more opportunity to get to know my staff and guests more.

The Garden Villas is an extended stay hotel, meaning that guests could stay for a day to a month or even a year.  We've had several guests stay with us beyond two years and getting to know them was definitely one of the best parts of my job.  Living at the hotel only made it better.  Because of my extroverted personality, I found great comfort and happiness living around a lot of people and the guests quickly became my friends. 

So, after nearly four years of operating the Garden Villas, we have developed a pretty awesome staff.  We have an assistant manager who pretty much knows all the ins and outs of the hotel and is confident enough to make wise decisions for the hotel without my consent.  In our routine meetings, he fills me in on what's going on with the hotel, guests and staff.  Since he's been doing so well at his job, I have nothing left to do!  With all this free time, I decided to engage in some more businesses with my parents. 

My father is what I like to call an "ambitious dreamer."  I think he really enjoys dreaming about unique businesses to introduce to people just for fun, and if it fails, then he doesn't mind as long as he's created something for others to remember.  We've been working on creating a Thai and Chinese restaurant with delivery called the GARDEN CAFE recently.  Currently, we're in the inspections stage and if all goes well, we'll be introducing a new Thai and Chinese restaurant to Valdosta, GA soon! 

We've also been working on opening an oyster bar and billiard.  Cleverly, with an old Marco Polo sign, we're thinking of naming the billiard, "Mr. Pool."  haha okay maybe not so clever, but it's so funny to me and I hope it goes through.  At the moment, we're still in the build-out stage but it's making great progress.

Lastly, we've been working on creating a 134 lot subdivision called Willow Creek.  The subdivision sits on a gorgeous 100 acre lot that has beautiful old oak trees and a lake.  We've been working with the City of Valdosta a lot to make sure it complies with its ordinances.  So far, it's been a lot of fun, and it's amazing how much fun it is to start something and to make decisions that are significant to its future.

Of course there's room to have lunch with friends :)  Here's a couple of pictures of my friends at VSU having lunch at my parents' Japanese restaurant, Ichiban, and one of Valdosta's best kept secrets, Michael's Deli.

Benji told me a couple of months ago that he fears that once I start helping my parents with their business, I may not want to become a PA.  I'm pretty "Gung-Ho" about PA school, and I'm not going let my opportunity to join Barry's PA Class of 2012 up for anything!  Though it will be sad leaving my family and businesses here, I know that I'll be leaving with experiences I could never get anywhere else, and I'll be able to apply them to my future as a PA.  I'm pretty thrilled about the rest of my life.  :)

Christmas break with the Ho Ho Ho Family

This Christmas break, I'll be spending time with Benji's family in Macon, GA and traveling to Puerto Rico with Benji.  So far, we've visited Camp Leah, spent a lot of quality time with the Ho family and had brunch with friends Chen Chen and Ken.  It's a great break so far.  Wish it could be like this every day. 

End of one of the best jobs

Today was my last day at Dr. M's clinic, and I must say that I already miss it.

16 months ago, I started my search for any opportunity that would allow me to gain more healthcare experience. I applied to the local hospitals countless times and to several private practices around town, but could not land a position anywhere.  I had minimal experience, and four more months before I began my application process for PA schools.  Then one day my prayers were answered when I e-mailed Dr. M's clinic this:

Good day L.C.,

 

My name is Irene Gung, and I received your information from the American Academy of Physician Assistant's website.  Unfortunately, I am not a Physician Assistant at this time, but I am aspiring a career in this field.  Currently, I am a post-baccalaureate Biology student at Valdosta State University, and I am eagerly searching for an opportunity for more exposure in the healthcare setting. 

 

So far, I've shadowed P.A. S at the Moody Air Force Base and after my first day, I knew this is exactly what I want to do.  I find the field exciting, challenging and educational.  My favorite part about this field is that I know I'll be learning more and more from patient to patient. 

 

I've already completed my HIPA certification, shadowed a P.A. and now I am looking for more opportunities to learn about a clinic.  I am not searching for a particular position, just anything that would allow me to gain knowledge of the industry.  If you would keep my name and contact information on hand for future opportunities, I would greatly appreciate it.  Additionally, if you have any advice you could give me, I would love it. 

 

Thank you very much for your time and consideration.  Below is my contact information.

The following days, I was able to meet the staff at the clinic and Dr. M.  Little did I know how much I would be learning there in one year.  In one year, I learned how to properly do venipunctures, lab tests, injections, triage and even pulmonary rehabilitation exercises.  I gained proficiency in pulmonary diseases such as COPD, asthma, and RLDs; sleep disorders such as sleep apnea and acute diseases through their primary care patients.  The best part of my job was that I was allowed to considerably give my direct care and attention to Dr. M's patients. I would listen to why they are in the clinic today; many of whom reported shortness of breath, excessive coughing, or just their routine visit, and I would transcribe them. Towards the end of my career there, I could pretty much predict their diagnosis and plan before Dr. M saw the patient.  It was rewarding every single day I worked there, and I'd come home so satisfied with my decision to become a PA.

So, I decided to end my career there early so that I could help my parents retire from their businesses before I start PA school in August.  I've asked a friend who I met in one of the healthcare professional organizations at VSU if she would be interested in a position at Dr. M's clinic in order to gain experience before she applies to PA school.  She is so super excited about it and I'm thrilled she will be having an opportunity to gain so much experience.  I created an introduction manual for her that I hope will hopefully help make her initial period at the clinic as smooth as possible.

I am already sad knowing that I will not be working at the clinic any longer, but I am forever grateful for the experiences that I will be able to carry on in my medical career.

Procrastination

This week was dedicated to time to study for my last final exams in my undergraduate career.  I laid off all responsibilities in the office at the hotel, with my family and the family dog, my room and my diet.  I'm left with a pile of paper work in the office, missed reminders for my Mom's birthday today, a messy room with nothing in my refrigerator and skin with Seborrheic dermatitis.

This calls for less procrastination and better time management :)

Wigglesworthia and the Tsetse Fly

This afternoon, I'll be giving a brief presentation on the endosymbiotic relationship between the bacteria, Wigglesworthia glossinidia and the Tsetse fly. Funny how initially they were living part, but they've found a way to live together and help each other. The bacteria helps the fly reproduce and give nutrients to its offspring, digest bloodmeals, prolong its life, and in return, the fly provides a safe environment for the bacteria.

Life is amazing!