Friday, August 31, 2007

GETTING MAD FIRST
Jason and I were talking about this last week and yet I'm still thinking about this: It's become our nature to get upset first when we receive poor customer service.
Instead of trying to explain ourselves, it's much easier to get upset first and demand to speak to a supervisor just to speed up the process of getting things done.
The problem is that I believe this is no way to treat people. Maybe I'm just feeling this way more because I have to deal with all the irate patients at work since I am a supervisor. And since I often get the brunt of people's anger, I find myself turning that anger right back at other people. My temper has gotten much shorter in recent years.
I wish people would understand that just because people are supervisors, they don't deserve to be yelled at for something they didn't do.
Besides, when has yelling at somebody made them want to help you more?

Tuesday, August 28, 2007








SAYING "SEE YOU LATER"

Along with getting older, comes having to say goodbye. Or maybe just "see you later." I've had to do that twice this week.

This past Saturday, we had a small gathering to send-off Eunice to begin her journey in a seminary in Vancouver. Jason and I were priviliged enough to come up with a game. Instead of making her play some mean game (you know Jason can never get into any trouble), we opted for having 3 groups re-create 3 of her favorite movies while using certain words or phrases that describe her. These were some of the best recreations I've ever seen of "The Sound of Music", "Beauty and the Beast" and "Clueless" while being forced to use words like "mint chip ice cream" and "Monterey Park" and "dark skin tone." Richard reminded her (and everybody, I guess) to "be strong and courageous," as it says in Joshua. With her continually putting her faith in the Lord, I'm sure she will.

Then, just a few days later, I had to say "see you later" again. This time, to my cousin Jonathan who will be beginning his first year at Yale in a few days. A transition like that onto the East coast is surely a big one -- different climate, different culture, different friends, different situations. But if there's one thing I'm sure of about him it's this: He's a genius not just in book knowledge, but also in street knowledge. Sure, all people make mistakes growing up, but I know that God is continually watching over him. And I know that Jonathan has a good head on his shoulders from a solid up-bringing and a good strong foundation. I think Yale better watch out because Jonathan is going to dominate! Still, I'm feeling a great sense of loss knowing he's not just down the freeway.


Sunday, August 26, 2007
























I PULLED A KEVIN BROWN

"Don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry." Those words were classically uttered by Dr. Bruce Banner just before he turned into the Incredible Hulk from the '70s TV show I loved so much as a kid.
Suddenly, with the stresses of work and the frustations of life getting to me, I seem to be turning into the Incredible Hulk.
Last week, after spending more than 30 minutes on the phone with an irate patient's daughter arguing, I lost it. Wanting to yell back at her, but trying my best to bite my tongue, I was filling up with rage. And after slamming the phone down and rushing to begin treating my patient (who I was now very late for), I slammed my fist into the doorframe.
Later that day, I noticed my hand getting black and blue and it began to hurt. I put ice on it and that helped. Now, it doesn't seem like I broke anything (thank goodness), but I realize just how stupid I was.
See, I pulled a Kevin Brown. Kevin Brown was a pitcher who was a renowned hot-head. He would lose his cool constantly and end up being a poor teammate. One year, while playing for the Yankees, he was counted upon to help lead them into the playoffs and an eventual championship. But after getting angry, he punched a wall, broke his hand, and was unable to pitch the rest of the season. Needless to say, the Yankees were not pleased . . . and they didn't even come close to winning the championship.
It took pulling a Kevin Brown for me to hit rock bottom. I gotta keep praying for strength and wisdom from Above to deal effectively and compassionately with patients at work and all the other stresses that life brings.
No more Kevin Browns. Or Incredible Hulks for that matter.

Saturday, August 25, 2007




SOFTBALL CHAMPS

Today was going to be a tough day. My co-workers and I were scheduled to play a softball tournament with other Kaiser PT facilities today. But I was also scheduled to work.
But luckily for me, I have some co-workers who are also good friends who were willing to help me out. Three of them arrived at 7am with me so that we could take care of the patient caseload so we could all play in the games.
We made it to the park just in time for the first game.
It was a lot of fun batting, running the bases, catching some pop flies, and meeting other PTs. But when the championship game came along, we cruised to a 18-5 victory.
And even though I feel really old because I'm hurting ever, I had a blast.
Oh, by the way, we got nicknames on the back of all of our matching baseball T-shirts. Mine was supposed to be "Princess" because of the story where Aaron and Luong caught me watching "The Princess Diaries". But I opted for the more fun and better suited "Victorious."

Thursday, August 23, 2007

HOT WATER
When I was 10, my family and I went on a trip to China during the summer. c It was extremely hot and humid. So, I couldn't believe I saw so many people drinking hot tea to cool off. I remembe asking my parents why anybody would do such a thing.
But now, apparently I do something very similar. Even though the summertime weather has been extremely hot, I still take a near scalding hot shower every night. In fact, it's so hot that afterward, my skin is pink. Karena always questions why I do that since after I get out, I have to sit in front of a fan to cool off. She insists things would be different is I just took a shower with cooler water.
But I refuse.
I guess I'm very much like al lthose Chinese people I saw back then. They drink hot tea to cool off. I take hot showers to cool off.

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

LEE FAMILY REUNION

Karena has always been proud of her Lee surname. So much so that she decided not to change her name when we got married. Plus, she's always telling me, "Lee is the best last name ever!"

So, I found it interested to hear that there is a Lee Family Association that hold an annual convention including a parade where many Chinese Lees from all over the country gathered toegher in LA's Chinatown.

Check out the LA Times article about it from Monday's newspaper.

I guess it just goes to show that Lees everywhere find their last name the best last name ever!

Monday, August 20, 2007











FAMILY BBQ


Since I was fortunate enough to get some people to cover for me at work, Karena and I were able to attend our family BBQ in Valencia.

Since Jonathan is about to fly out to Connecticut to begin his college career at Yale, we knew we had to get the whole family together at least once more this summer. And my aunt's house proved to be the best place.

Since it's an hour north of LA, it made the drive for Sandra and Gabe and Caleb that much easier. And we got to swim in the pool and partake of some excellent BBQ.

But the highlight of everybody's weekend was seeing Caleb get into the pool for the very first time. He seemed to enjoy the water, although he still seemed puzzled that someone could jump, dive in, make a big splash, and then come up again. Needless to say, it was hilarious and so amazing to watch him in the water.

Sunday, August 19, 2007



MY CO-WORKER'S FAREWELL

Tomorrow, I start the first day of the rest of my life. See, my co-worker John and I started about a month apart from each other. So, we've been working together for pretty much the entire 4.5 years I've been at Kaiser.

I used to always say, "Every class has a class clown" and he was ours. He would crack jokes, do perfect impressions of celebrities (including their accents), and keep the mood light-hearted so that we could all get through the grueling 10 hour days. In short, he was a morale booster.
But he's going back to school to pursue another profession. So, he will be missed. And hopefully, we will stay sane despite John's infectious humor being absent from our workplace now.

On a happier note, we gave him a pretty nice farewell. My other co-worker got these things from Office Depot where you can print photos onto a transparency that you later iron onto a shirt. I didn't even know they made those things! Anyway, we ironed on some pictures of all of us onto a shirt and signed it. That was one of the best going-away gifts I have ever seen!

We also ended up eating all-you-can-eat Korean BBQ ribs at Tahoe Galbi in K-Town. Delicious! And trust me when I say that we more than got our money's worth!

Saturday, August 18, 2007


TALKING TO MYSELF

Karena couldn't believe that I talk to myself.
Before I head out the door for an important event where I have to look good and/or make a good impression (such as a wedding, job interview, Sunday morning service where I'm the worship leader, etc.), I talk to myself. I get dressed, fix my hair, and stand in front of the mirror.
I look myself over while I extend my hand for an imaginary handshake and say out loud, "Good morning. It's nice to meet you." Or, "It's good to see you again." I also take a look at my smile for that day and check out my laugh. I make sure it's not too teethy and yet still genuine.
I do this to make sure the look and impression I'm giving off is exactly the one I want. My clothes have to be right. My hair has to have as little of a cowlick as possible (sometimes, an impossible task for me). And I have to have the right handshake, the right smile, the right laugh, the right voice, the right look. Bottom line? I want to make sure the entire package is there whenever I need to be on.
Am I crazy to do talk to myself like this?


Thursday, August 16, 2007



O, CANADA

I have to start by saying that when we went to Canada, I was a little wary about how the average Candian would treat us. I have heard that many Canadians are down on Americans, especially nowadays since we are a part of an unpopular war.

But all the Candians we ran into were especially friendly. In fact, many were more friendly than most people I know here! We were sitting in our car looking at the map to help get us back to the Calgary airport, when a stranger approached. I quickly got defensive and thought about what I'd do if he pulled out a gun or threatened up or tried to carjack us. But instead, he simply asked if we needed help getting to our destination. That's it.

I felt horrible that I had thought the worst about him and other Canadians. It was a good wake-up call for me as to how I treat people and view them.


Wednesday, August 15, 2007



WHAT WILL I LOOK LIKE WHEN I'M BALD?


A few weeks back, the Kaiser I work at had a big celebration for the opening of its new tower. One of the perks was having your picture taken outside the new building.

But somehow, with the way the sun was hitting the top of my head, my Polaroid picture came out with me looking extremely bald, as if the picture captured me 20 years in the future.

So, if you're wondering what I'll look like in my 50s, take a look.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

RANDOM QUESTIONS
Here are two questions maybe you always wanted to know but never dared to ask:
1. Is it "scrap paper" or "scratch paper?"
2. Is it "butt naked" or "buck naked?"

Sunday, August 12, 2007

























THE CANADIAN ROCKIES
This is just a small portion of some of the 500 photos we took.
To be honest, I have seen many of the world's greatest scenic places, but there really isn't a place quite like the Canadian Rockies. In fact, I feel like these pictures don't even do it justice. Gary and Regina also were there just two weeks before us and got some better pictures. Still, I feel the scenery there is so beautiful that a camera simply cannot capture its awesome-ness. God definitely knew what he was doing when He created this place!
While we were there, we saw colors I have never seen before, including the bluest blue to go along with their icy glaciers and some of the bluest-green (and yet crystal clear when you look up close) water in various lakes.
Even though we were tired from putting almost 900 miles of driving on our rental car in less than 5 days, I couldn't have been happier about getting a chance to see these beautiful mountains. We also saw some big horned sheep, deer, chipmunks, squirrels, etc.
This place is a definitely must see if you're ever near Calgary or in Alberta.
















RUSH HOUR 3 DAY
I mentioned before that many of my co-workers and I love the Rush Hour movies. So, for the last 8 months or so, we've been looking for to August 10 -- the day Rush Hour 3 was set to come out.
As the day approached, we set up our all-day Rush Hour 3 Event. We'd start in the morning having Dim Sum at Oceanstar. We'd follow that up with a 1 hour foot massage (they work on your whole body too while your feet are soaking) for only $15! We'd cap the day off with seeing Rush Hour 3.
We had 1o people show up for the all day event and we all had a good time. My co-workers couldn't believe that all that delicious dim sum only costed everyone less than $10 a piece including tax and tip. And they really couldn't believe that the one hour massage was just a measy $15. They were really impressed and many of my co-workers said they'd come back with their wives or friends again.
As for the movie, we had heard the bad reviews about Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker saying all the same jokes for a third time. But we loved it. I don't think it was as good as the first two, but it still had several laugh-out-loud moments. And that was perfect for us.
Now, we have some new material to quote from while we're at work.
Do you understand the words that are comin' out of my mouth?!?

Friday, August 10, 2007















WEST EDMONTON MALL
We visited the largest mall in North America, and the sixth largest in the world. The mall portion isn't so thrilling. I mean, the stores are like stores in any other mall. There's just more of them.
The thing that separates this mall from the rest is all the other stuff they have inside, including an ice skating rink, petting zoo, indoor beach area (with waterslides), an amusement park with carnival games and roller coasters, man-made lakes with seal lion shows, boats to have private parties (we saw a wedding taking place there), etc.
It's a must-see at least once in your life. But after spending all day there, we ended up not buying anything, but we still had a great time.

Thursday, August 09, 2007









NATHAN AND DORIS' WEDDING
The main reason for our trip to Canada was for Nathan's wedding. To be honest, I thought it was quite an honor that he would ask me to be his emcee, so I gladly accepted.
The wedding went on without a hitch. Nathan was romantic (yup, you read that right), Doris was beautiful, and the ceremony was very much a worship service. Everybody had a great time. And even my announcements in Mandarin came out okay.
I enjoyed getting to know a lot of their friends and family. They are all awesome! Since I was announcing the wedding party, family members, and out-of-town guests, I knew many of the names and only had to match faces with them. That made it easy to meet people and to get to know them. We also enjoyed spending some quality time with Mike & Emily and their daughter Caroline. She is a ball of energy. And even though she started out being shy, she warmed up and gave us hugs before leaving.
I have to admit that even though I had served as an emcee for two previous weddings, I was really nervous about this one. I wanted to do a good job and I didn't want to offend any of the Canadians who were present. That why, I canned this joke: "When I heard that the banquet was being held at the Edmonton Petroleum Club, I was afraid the food would give me gas!" Still, a part of me wishes I had said it anyway. =)
Anyway, things at the banquet couldn't have gone better. Even the crowd warmed up to the two games I made them play. And hopefully, I embarassed Nathan just enough to keep the crowd laughing. All I know is, everybody seemed to go home happy.
The most amazing part was someone at our table asked Karena if I do this professionally since I did such a good job. That made me feel really good to know that I had helped make Nathan and Doris' special day that much better.
Congrats to the happy couple!

WE'RE BACK
We've actually been back from Calgary, Edmonton, Jasper, Lake Louise and Banff for a few days now, but I've been sick and haven't felt like blogging. I'll give you all a full recap of Nathan's wedding and our adventures tomorrow (including pictures).

Thursday, August 02, 2007




TOUGH WEEK

After yet another tough week at work, my mind is wandering . . . and thinking about beautiful scenery.


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