Thoughts

WORK STRESS
Maybe I'm getting more cynical as I get older, but I'd venture to say most, if not all people get stressed out by their jobs. In fact, even though they're living the Christian life, it seems they're just trying to make it through the day so they can make it through the rest of the week. They look forward to the Fridays and the weekend. Now, I don't think there's anything wrong with that outlook, but I am saddened to see many people (myself included) just trying to claw my way from Monday to Tuesday to Wednesday, etc. As Steven Curtis Chapman once sang, "There is more to this life ..."
Work stresses me out. It makes me tired, irritable, and short-tempered. And the scary part is that I'm doing a job that I still love. I enjoy my co-workers too.
And now that the chief therapist (and closest friend) at Karena's work has left to start his own practice, Karena is in a pinch too. She will apparently inherit many of his duties while not getting the recognition or the reimbursement (read: $$). Plus, his absence makes her clinic that much more stale and boring. Needless to say, this is stressing her out and making her unhappy.
My patient said to me, "Life sucks. And then you die." What a sad way to go through life! Our lives have purpose and meaning. Plus, God is using these circumstances to shape our character. I need to remind myself of that on a daily basis.

THANKS FOR ALL YOUR INPUT, BUT ...
Remember a few days ago when I mentioned that somebody left their name and phone number on my car? And after looking at my car twice, I didn't see anything.
But the following day, I found it. Yup, somebody had definitely hit me. The driver side rear door was scratched and dented with a little of the damage affecting the driver door and the frame around the rear tire. After I noticed it, I don't how I missed it TWICE!
So, thank you all for your input on whether to call her and what her leaving her phone number might mean. And as fun (and funny) as all those comments were, I guess it's all for naught now.
I'm going to get an estimate from Glendale Nissan on Tuesday.
She was very nice to me and I'm extremely grateful that she left her information for me. She could have easily taken off. But still, it's a little upsetting.

CELEBRATE
My mom generously treated Karena's mom, Karena and me to lunch at Beverly Hills' Mr. Chow restaurant to celebrate our 2nd anniversary (it was yesterday).
I had to admit that I was a little worried at the prospects of getting Americanized, overpriced Chinese food that we could have gotten for a fraction of the cost in Monterey Park. But the food turned out to be very good.
I realized how uncultured I am because I felt so out of place in the restaurant. And I felt awkward doing the trendy thing in handing the waiter the menus and saying, "Just bring out what you thin is best." Actually, I was so nervous about it, Karena ordered for us. The food was quite tasty (except for the fish fillet dish, which was smothered in a rice wine sauce) and the price was decent (for Beverly Hills).
But even though we all had a great time, I'll stick to my inexpensive places in Chinatown and Monterey Park!

NOTE ON THE WINDSHIELD
After work, I jumped into my car and started to drive home (Karena and I didn't carpool today). While at the stop light, I realized somebody had left a small sheet of paper on the windshield. On it was her name and her home and cell number on it. But there was nothing else. No explanation. Nothing.
I was worried so I pulled over and got out of my car to check it out. Had she hit my car? Was there a huge dent on the other side of my car? I got nervous.
But as it turns out, I couldn't find anything.
So now, I'm extremely curious. Why would a stranger leave her phone number (two numbers, at that) on my car? Should I call it? Should I just throw the phone numbers out?
Hmmm ...

COUSIN SHIRLEY'S WEDDING
It's always a fun occasion when all the Shens get together. But this event was more special because we were able to celebrate the marriage of Shirley with her long-time boyfriend Gerald. It was a good opportunity for all of us to see Gerald's playful side. Watching him laugh and crack jokes assured me that he'd fit right in with our family.
Shirley looked amazing and the ceremony was beautiful (even though it was really cold). We even got to sit in the second row, even though that left us feeling like we weren't that important to sit so closely.
It was so much fun hanging out with Mike and Joyce and seeing Jessica. As we've gotten older (and married), it's becoming tougher for us Shens to catch up. So that made this time so special. We joked about our big calves, the red dots on the back of our arms, our wide cheeks, and our loud voices.
Congrats to Shirley and Gerald!

THE SECRET IS OUT
One of my co-workers found my website while surfing the net recently. He even printed it out and said he'd be checking it out periodically.
My first reaction was fear and embarassment. Sometimes, you don't want your co-workers to know all the intimate details of your life, what you're thinking and feeling, and other personal things I share on this blog.
But then I thought about it a little more, and realized that I am not ashamed or embarrassed or scared about what he might read or think about this site. This site has always been designed as an outlet for me to share my thoughts and opinions. All are welcome to agree to disagree with me, question me, encourage me. Whatever he thinks or learns about me can only be good in developing a stronger co-worker relationship. So, it's all good.
He also told me he wouldn't tell my other co-workers about the site for fear that the male-dominated PT department would tease me to no end. But honestly, I'd be okay if they all knew about it because it would be great for them to know more aboutme and maybe this could be used as a good ministry tool.
So, the secret is out ... and I'm glad.

PHILLY RECAP
Here are some of the pictures we took while in Philadelphia.

(1) I got goosebumps as I ran up the steps to the Philly Art Museum made famous by the Rocky movies. I felt like I could do anything at that point.
(2) Hanging out with Ko and Charice is always a lot of fun. They're very trendy and yet down to earth at the same time. That's a rare combination. But I have to admit that even though Karena is extremely beautiful, I'm still awe-struck by just how beautiful a couple the Kobayashi's are. It's a little intimidating at times.
(3) As much as I love LA, I appreciate that everything in Philly is very close together and all within walking distance.
(4) Philly's international terminal at the airport is amazing. I didn't have time to snap a photo but after baggage claim, you come out to this huge room with natural sunlight with words and signatures from the Declaration of Independence surrounding you. It really makes you feel patriotic.
(5) If you get a chance to look at the link to the picutres above, check out that one I caught of the American flag with the planes in the background. I don't mean to toot my own horn, but that is by far THE BEST photos I have ever taken in my entire life. I'm so proud of it that I made it my desktop background.

I'M ENCOURAGED!
I was happy to hear that Enoch joined our 40 Days of Purpose/Purpose Driven Life Discussion group. And now I'm extremely encouraged to see him documenting his daily thoughts on the daily chapters he's reading from Rick Warren's book. Please check it out and post a comment!
http://www.xanga.com/home.aspx?user=bruinoch

ST. MARTEEN RECAP
Here is a link to just 20 of the many pictures we took.

(1) We heard more Bob Marley songs in this past week than we have in our entire lives combined.
(2) Our luggage got lost for the entire first day so we were stuck in 88 degree weather (with very high humidity) in our pants and sweatshirts.
(3) They told us that a nearby casino had free buffet at 10pm. When we got there, all the signs said 10pm, but it actually started at 11pm and they only gave us some VERY small plates. That's a dirty trick.
(4) We had American TV so we didn't miss out on our favorite shows and also got to watch some movies: Groundhog Day, Bruce Almighty, The Fugitive, Ghost, Charlie's Angels 2, Phone Booth.
(5) We had a lot of maintenance problems: toilet wouldn't flush ... twice, leak from our A/C, smoke detector went crazy and wouldn't shut up.
(6) Met many people from Boston. We loved listening to them say, "I'm getting a drink from the baa (bar)" or "I love it here in St. Maaten (Maarten)"
(7) I always find it a little gross to swim with fish. Do you?
(8) When you're traveling, do you unpack all your clothes and put them in the drawers or do you just live out of your bag? I always keep everything in my bag.
(9) I won at Bingo and got many free dinners, a bottle of real champagne (from France), and St. Maarten's signature Guavaberry rum. Thank God he called B11!
(10) We ate at this place called Johnny Under the Tree, which was literally two BBQ grills under a tin roof that was under a tree. That's it.
(11) We didn't go in the pool once, instead spending all our time on the beach and in the ocean (actually, the Caribbean sea).
(12) Why is it that when you go to a nude beach, the only people who are there are people who really shouldn't be anywhere close to nude?
(13) They had a place called Lido's. It was so funny, I almost fell over laughing.
(14) It felt weird to walk around town holding alchohol in my hand since you're not allowed to do that in the US. I just did it because I could.

PASSPORT DISASTER
Imagine this: It's 12:30am and you're getting close to finishing your packing. Sure, it's late and you've got a long day of work that's scheduled to begin in a little more than 6 hours. But you're happy. And then suddenly, disaster strikes.
For some reason, Karena thought it'd be good to double check to see if the two passports she had were actually ours (as if they'd be anybody else's). But then, we both realized simultaneously that her passport had expired!
We ran around the house stressed and distressed, trying to think about what we could possibly do. Finally, once cooler heads prevailed, we got onto the internet and she booked an appointment at the Federal Building for 8am. She would have to cancel the first 3 hours of her morning appointments at work. Then, we desperately searched for an a 24 hour photo shop where she could take her passport photos. Luckily, Kinko's does just that.
So, there she was, putting make-up on and a nice shirt at 1:45am to take pictures. After taking the photos, the total came out to $15.02. She was mortified at the high price! She kept repeating over and over how Costco only charged $5. She kept repeating it over and over so the guy ended up charging her just $5. (It helps to be beautiful!)
So, after she only slept 1 hour, I made it to work on time and she managed to get her passport and making it to work by 10am.
And although I was upset and kept saying that this type of bad luck always seems to follow us, I later decided that this was actually good luck. It was good that we found out beforehand, even if it was only one day in advance because we managed to take care of it and still keep our plans intact. God is truly faithful and SO good to us.

GREAT VACATION!
We're back from vacation ... well, sort of. Actually, we're in Philadelphia visiting Ko and Charice. We are much more tanned (although I'm sure it'll all wear off by the time we see everybody). I'll give you all the details later when I'm back home, but here's a quick little teezer:
(1) Be sure to ALWAYS check the expiration date of your passports BEFORE you go on vacation.
(2) Even I can win at BINGO
(3) ALWAYS bring extra contact lenses.

40 DAYS
Our church is undergoing a church-wide 40 Days of Purpose Campaign where we will be reading for Rick Warren's Purpose Driven Life and focusing on a different theme each week. I have to admit that I was rather skeptical about this at first. But now that it's going to be kicking off Friday night, I'm excited.
I know, for a long-time Christian like me, it's good to see the beginnings of revival begin to burn bright within me and the rest of the Body.

U2 ROCKS!
It's very rare for a band who was recently inducted into the Rock 'N Roll Hall of Fame to still rock. They may be 25 years old, but they still sing with the passion and put on a show with vigor as if they were teenagers.
Looking around Staples Center, I was amazed to see how varied the crowd was in age. Around us were mostly people our age. But the next row featured many middle-aged people and the lower sections featured many teenage fans. Even young kids were present (Bono even brought one of stage. After the kid said his name was Jack, Bono responded, "Well, Jack. This is the beanstalk!" Suddenly, confetti dropped from the sky as the band rocked on to yet another beautiful melody).
The sound at Staples Center was mediocre at best. And the fact that it now houses two non-playoff appearing NBA teams just made the place seem glum. But the shine would be taken away from U2. Their energy and heart shined through.

DYING IN PEACE?!?
The Pope's refusal to return to the hospital during his final days (and the Terri Schiavo case) have caused a continuing minor debate on how people submit to death. The pontiff's choice was to die simply and peacefully in his Vatican apartment, surrounded by members of his inner circle. No elaborate hospital technology. No feeding tube through the stomach. Nothing to prolong his life. This brings up the moral debate between preserving life using medical technology or simply letting go. Eunice told me Friday night that she believes strongly in preserving life at all costs. If God allows ventilators and feeding tubes to be in this world, she wants any and all of those things to prolong her life. Anything less than that would be considered trying to "play God" and not trusting in the things God has provided. I disagreed, noting that if I were suffering (as I'm sure the Pope was) or was in a coma and would never recover, I would sign a Do Not resuscitate order. I also mentioned that working in a hospital for years and having a grandmother who was in a coma for months have changed my views. In general, you DO want to preserve life, but it's difficult to see them suffer and you want what's best for them. Besides, sometimes using ventilators or feeding tubes does more damage to the person than good. After debating back and forth, she still stuck by her answer of, "You're trying to play God. Your life is NOT your life." I'm a bad debater so I'll stick to what Father Thomas Reese, a theologian, said about the pope's decision to die peacefully. "After all the controversy that surrounded the Terri Schiavo death, some people might get a the impression that according to Catholic teaching you hold on to life no matter what, to the last possible moment. But ... if you are dying, you don't have to take every medical procedure to prolong your life another day, another month. At some point you can accept that you are dying as God's will and return to the Father."

REMEMBERING MLK
He was gunned down 37 years ago today. Here's a quote from the Reverend himself:

"An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity."

WEEKEND
I had to work both days this weekend. And even with that hanging over my head, I managed to have a pretty good weekend. I'm happier knowing that the sun won't have set yet when I get out of work. I was able to spend some time with Karena. I was able to spend some time with my family too. In fact, it felt like old times driving myself from work to Montebello to have dinner with my parents before church on Friday night. Koinonia's "town hall" meeting proved to be an open, honest discussion about the future of the group.
And today, I was able to make it to church in time to have lunch with Karena, Sandra and Gabe, Victoria and Jacob, and Liz (Steven was getting a haircut) at Shakas. I also attended a meeting for our church's 40 Days of Purpose campaign and got my tux measurements for my brothers wedding before having dinner with my parents and cousins.
I liked getting a lot done in a short amount of time.
And good thing too, because even though I have a lot of fun things planned, this week of work will probably be my most stressful ever. Wish me luck.

DONATING BLOOD
One of the beauties of donating blood (besides the obvious, of course) is definitely the perks. You usually get free juice and cookies and a T-shirt. Plus, everybody treats you very nicely becuase you voluntarily took time out of your day to endure some pain (I hate needles!).
But when I went to donate for the Glendale Red Cross, I was disappointed. They did not treat us very nicely -- moving WAY TOO slowly, even though they were already running way behind for our scheduled appointments. The room was WAY TOO cold and the nurse who set me up seemed very nervous since my veins are usually tough to get to. It took me about twice as long as the rest of the people there. But I didn't even get a T-shirt! There's just something about getting a free T-shirt that just makes me feel good. Oh well. Instead, I got a red Lance Armstrong-type bracelet that says "Give blood - Give life". But for some strange reason, I decided to wear it. Do I secretly like the bracelet more than the T-shirt?!? Hmmm ...

NETFLIX LIST
Again, a big thank you goes out to Daryl for giving us 3 free months of Netflix. We recently canceled the service becuase we've pretty much seen everything we wanted. Plus, seeing THAT many movies is just not healthy in the long run. (And, of course, there's the obvious reason of not wanting to pay $17.99 a month!) =) Here is the list of the movies we saw over the three months (37 movies in all!!!)

1. Elf
2. Garden State
3. Super Size Me
4. Raising Helen
5. The Terminal
6. Bowling for Columbine
7. You Got Served
8. Breakin' All The Rules
9. Big Fish
10. Philadelphia
11. Fahrenheit 9/11
12. Anger Management
13. Starsky & Hutch
14. First Daughter
15. I, Robot
16. In the Bedroom
17. Along Came Polly
18. Bad Santa
19. Better Luck Tomorrow
20. Radio
21. Taxi
22. Chris Rock: Never Scared
23. Shark Tale
24. Wimbledon
25. Honey
26. The Day After Tomorrow
27. The Butterfly Effect
28. Raise Your Voice
29. L.A. Confidential
30. The Iron Giant
31. Brother Bear
32. Alfie
33. Mr. 3000
34. Friday Night Lights
35. The Bourne Supremacy
36. Man on Fire
37. Paparazzi