K's Paradise

New Record

2011-02-11T21:47:00.001-08:00

My brother made 19 points tonight! He was making all his shots at his freshmen basketball game, the last game of the season for him. Great job, bro!!

Irony

2011-02-10T15:50:00.000-08:00

I got an interesting / funny story to tell. And I saw personally saw this incident happen on my college campus too.

A man is walking down the street, smoking a cigarette. He sees a plastic grocery bag caught in a tree branch. The man stops and frees the bag from the tree branch. Then he recycles the bag. But a few minutes later, he throws his finished cigarette on the ground.

Is the man a hypocrite?

Unknown Future

2011-02-03T21:07:00.000-08:00

So, right now, I'm in the application process for medical school. I took a shot and applied to 19 different schools all over the United States. It was my hope to be accepted in a medical school within my home state, California. And there are 5 California medical schools, so I thought I had a good chance.

But I may be wrong.

At this point, I have received twelve "no." Twelve rejection letters so far. Only seven are still in the game. And there is only one month left to this application process.

There is still hope. All I need is one medical school to say "yes." And my dream of becoming a doctor will come true.

I've had this doctor dream for a long time now. Ever since I was thirteen. As a kid, I was always changing what I wanted to be “when I grow up” – a marine biologist, a movie critic, a crime scene investigator, a basketball player, a professional golfer and so forth. But it wasn’t until I was in 7th or 8th grade, I decided to become a surgeon when I grow up. One day, there was a science lab where we had to dissect and examine a sheep’s eye, a cow’s brain, pig intestines, and another day with a frog and a worm. And I remember all the girls in the class were grossed out. Especially the girls in my group. Nobody wanted to touch that slimy stuff. I was the only one who wasn’t freaked out in any way. I was just fascinated by the complexity of these dissection parts. I was right in there, ready to take a shot at this stuff, and get my hands a little dirty. Ever since then, I’ve wanted to be a surgeon. Particularly a heart surgeon. That's a desire God had given to me over the years. That’s what I’ve been working towards all these years.

But the next step is medical school. So, I'm a bit more nervous than I would like at this point. All signs say "no" because the application process is almost over. If I don't get anything by the end of March, I won't be going to a medical school this upcoming fall.

And I'm trying to keep my hope is God and to heed towards His plan, for God has greater plans for me than I can ever imagine. One of my favorite verses keep coming to mind - Psalm 27:1. "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?"

Lord, help me to rid my endless fears. You have been so faithful for all my years. Take my life and let it be always only for my King.

I will not fear, but wait for the Lord. My future is known to Him. And I walk by faith with my Lord.

Trials

2011-02-01T15:52:00.000-08:00

Today, I got the news that my dad's dairy no longer has any feed for its cows. And unfortunately, he doesn't have any money to buy more feed. This is the breaking point we hoped wouldn't happen.

But it has.

This is a trial my dad is going through. I feel numb and sad for him. This dairy has been a huge part of his life, even though he hasn't enjoyed every moment because of his parents', brothers', and sisters' abuse over the years. My dad has endured much for this dairy in the past 35 years. Now, he may lose the only job he has ever known.

And I can't be of any help physically or fiancially. But I can pray. So, I prayed hard for my Dad and the dairy and this tough situation that's happening. I pray for my family and the uncertain future that lies ahead. And I pray, above all, that God's will be done.

I'm reminded of a quote a friend once showed me, which was originally told by John Piper. "Life is not a straight line leading from one blessing to the next and then finally to heaven. Life is a winding and troubled road. Switchback after switchback. And the point of biblical stories like Joseph and Job and Esther and Ruth is to help us feel in our bones (not just know in our heads) that God is for us in all these strange turns. God is not just showing up after the trouble and cleaning it up. He is plotting the course and managing the troubles with far-reaching purposes for our good and for the glory of Jesus Christ."

Right now, my family (especially my dad) faces a winding and troubled road.

But my confidence is in God Almighty, the King of kings and Lord of lords. He manages all things according to his perfect plan for those who love Him. I will trust Him above all.

For whatever is my lot and whatever trials I face, God has taught me throughout my life to say "It is well with my soul." I pray that my Dad will also have this confidence in this trial. He needs it now more than ever.

Six Weeks and Counting...

2011-01-31T10:01:00.001-08:00

Most of the midterms are finished. I got one more this week, plus a big ecology project. There is always some homework I have to do.

I'm happy only six weeks are left of my college education. It's a nice feeling. I'm betting that I'll be feeling something even better in six weeks.

Right now, I have no plans of what I'm doing after these six weeks. I'm not going to worry about that either. I still have six long weeks of school work, so that is my focus.

Once I have passed this "finish line," I know another one will be in front of me. And I'll be doing my best to finish the race well, just like I always do. That's how I know I'm an American - I never stop working. ;)

Time to get back to work again.

Sorting Out Priorities

2011-01-13T20:45:00.000-08:00

So my activities as of late...

Studying for Midterms: triple check!

Writing Term Papers: check!

Daily workout: check!

Cooking healthy Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner: check!

Turning on the computer and blogging: Umm...can't check that.

Also, I've haven't quite responded back to all my e-mails. If you're one of them, I'm so sorry! I want to make the time for blogging and answering a few emails, but I've just not figured out how to manage to complete everything I want to while still going to bed on time!

I always feel like I should be doing more, but I can never seem to do every activity. Every morning, I figure out my priorities. And I try hard to complete them all by the end of the day. I try.

Life has become a tricky balance of trying to do the best I can in the most important things. My lifelong prayer has become a simple line – "God, be with me in all I do and let me be the best I can possibly be." :)

Back In Action

2011-01-11T19:43:00.000-08:00

It's been a long while.

I can only offer apologizes for keeping anybody waiting. Life really did take me on an interesting adventure since I last wrote in this blog. All I can say for now ... in the summer I went "Gone Living," I learned the true meaning of "living." Since then, I have more appreciation for life itself.

So, I decided I'll take another chance here.

Maybe it's time to come back to this paradise of mine. Maybe it's time to tell my story a little more. Maybe it's time to write a little more. It is a new year, after all. I hope you enjoy the thoughts to come on this adventure ahead.

A quick life-summary, just to get you up-to-date. 2008 came and went, teaching me about strength and resilience. 2009 should be called Redemption because God brought me to a place of great blessings, both spiritually and physically. 2010 was the year of Perseverence, for I kept going and going every single day to complete the tasks before me. As for 2011 ... we'll see how God leads me in the days to come.

Here we go!

Gone Living...

2008-05-20T15:13:00.000-07:00

I'm done with school for now.

Time to head home.

Summer's here.

I made a to-do list earlier, a couple days ago. I make one occasionally. Just a way to write things down that need to be done and that I need to remember. I put it on an plain index card, so I can put it in my back pocket of my jeans and look at it when I need to.

I made a to-do list for this summer. There are just some things I want to do and try.

Thought I'll share it with you.

Summer's To Do -

1. Know the "autshop" on my car
2. Learn how to barbeque
3. Play golf everyday then swim
4. Take my family to the movies
5. Travel to the beach
6. Get in shape, tone my muscles
7. Play a board/video game with my brothers every night
8. Mow the lawn/yardwork
9. Get a new tan ;)
10. Read books/watch TV a lot
11. Play catch with the brothers
12. Learn sign language fluently again
13. Transfer all home videos to DVD
14. Videotape a lot
15. Have fun

I'll be around here and there. Staying in touch. Let you know if I completed anything or not. Three months of summer ... it's gonna be good.

'Til then ... I'm gone living.

:)

Not Yet

2008-05-11T22:41:00.000-07:00

Well, it's that time again.

School's almost over. I'm staring down the barrel of it now. Only nine days left before I finish everything school-wise for another year and get to head home again.

It's usually about this time of the year anyhow where I'll start thinking about how I've done over the past school year. Things like - Did I do my best? Did I get enough sleep? (which is always a no. *grins*) What did I accomplish? What did I learn? Am I ready for next year?

After thinking and remembering a bit, this is what I find.

I believe I did do my best. It's all I can do. Whether my grades show it or not, I know I worked hard, really hard. I got three more finals to go, so can't quit just yet. I'm still gonna study hard for those exams and get through it all. Whatever happens happens.

Oh, I never get enough sleep during the school year. One day I think I'm all caught up, only to lose it the next by getting about four hours of sleep. Weekends are just the time for me to catch up a little bit, but it's still not enough sometimes. Sooner or later though, I'll get back some of that sleep.

I completed another school year. That's a good enough accomplishment for me. Plus I turned 20. :)

I probably learned a lot school-wise. I'm thinking though that by the time I finish my finals, I won't remember much about the textbook facts I had to learn. They seem to have a way to disappear during the summer. But I also did learn to have a little more fun. What's life without a few laughs?

I don't want to think about next school year just yet. I better finish this year off first. Then I want to enjoy summer for a while. Don't have much plans for it except to travel a bit, watch TV, read some books, play some golf and hang out with my family. It should be fun. I'm really pretty sure about that.

So, nine days of school left for me. Three finals to study for. One dorm room to pack up.

Then it's home for me. My best car will get me there.

Summer's almost here.

But not yet.

Just a Number...

2008-04-30T17:13:00.000-07:00

I have certain numbers that I love. They're particular numbers that I always like to come across or have things added up to. Any other numbers are just numbers to me.

Some of those favorites are 13, 43, 7, 10, 23, 61, 5, and 313. There's a few others that I can't recall right now.

But if I get a number and I don't particularly like it, I try to change it to a number I do like. For example, suppose I get 68. It's just some random number to me. So, my mind starts changing it, right? I go something like this - 6 + 8 = 14. Still don't like it. 1 + 4 = 5. Now, that's a good number. 68's okay now.

Another example would be 1434. 1 + 4 + 3 + 4 = 12. No. 1 + 2 = 3. That's good. And I keep doing this until it works out.

:)

It's kind of random and crazy, I know. I only caught myself doing that within the last couple years. I've just been doing it automatically for years. Can't change it. But it's not that bad really. Just something that makes me ME.

People use numbers for all kinds of things - money, codes, measurements, age, etc. They're all just a number. Yet sometimes, it becomes something more.

Today, my new favorite number is 20. I've never really like it before, but I'm starting to now.

It's been an extremely good day.

Note to Self...

2008-04-23T19:41:00.000-07:00

Umm, just a little warning first - this is going to be something of a rant. I'm not one to complain most times, but this is something that needs to be said to keep my sanity in a way.

Now, I've been quiet for a while, haven't I? Hmm ... I got a good reason if that helps. Well, I try to have a good reason or at least a reason for everything I do. And I'll explain things here as much as I can.

Back to the heading...

Note to Self - Beware of Pills.

And so I begin.

During my Spring Break, I went to the doctor for a checkup on a few health issues. I was given some antibiotics to take at the time and referred to a "specialist" to see a few weeks later. I took the antibiotic as instructed. I decided to take them in the morning, for that's when I take my vitamins and the occasional if necessary Tylenol. Lo and behold, the health issue started to get better a little bit by the end of my Spring Break.

I went back to school for a week then came back home on that weekend to watch my brother in the high school play, My Fair Lady. He was good and I enjoyed it. Drove back to school Sunday afternoon. Monday morning, I woke up with a bad sinus infection. And I was taking the antibiotics at the time.

Now, around this point, I was beginning to have a slight stomachache every time I ate something. I kind of ignored it at the time, thinking it wasn't anything major. I've had ulcers before and I tend to like some spicy food, such as barbeque sauce with a cheeseburger, so I wasn't really concerned with it as I was with the sinus infection.

Nevertheless, to fight off a new health issue, I began to take some more medications, mostly Sudafed and Tylenol, but being very careful with how much I took and when I took it. After a few days, that stomach problem got worse and the sinus infection would not go away. By the end of that week, both issues got much worse.

I stopped taking the antibiotics and eventually got off the Sudafed and Tylenol as well as the vitamins. I stopped everything, being content to just let my body heal itself. At this point, I could not eat very much anymore. I mostly had to stay on liquids and take chances once in a while to eat a little something when I was hungry.

Second week went by. Much of the same continued to happen with the stomach yet the sinus infection was slowly disappearing.

I had that doctor appointment with the "specialist" coming up and that occurred at the end of the second week. So, I came back home again. Saw the doctor for a short time and got some new prescriptions to try, one of them being a new antibiotic. When I mentioned my stomach problems, he merely told me to wait a few more days before taking his prescription, but I should be alright. Heeding the doc's advice, I went to the pharmacy to pick up my new prescription to start on in a few days. I waited around a bit and they were ready. The pharmacist began giving some basic instructions about the prescriptions. When she got to the new antibiotics, she said to not to take it with any dairy products or vitamins or any other medications. I think she said something more, but I can't remember at this point.

Now, the antibiotics I was taking is the same variation of the new ones. Yet the instructions I just received were not given to me about the first antibiotics. Just to clarify, I asked if the same instructions applied. She said yes. I then asked what would happen if the antibiotics were taken along with what it was not supposed to be taken with and mentioned my stomach problem as well.

It turns out I burned a hole in my stomach.

Not a hole literally. But the insides of my stomach have been "burned" in a way. And every time I eat something, acid is produced like normal to aid digestion, but the acid keeps the wounds from healing, keeping me from being healthy again.

So, I'm now on my third week. I still have a burned stomach. I've lost over 10 pounds. I'm hungry, but cannot eat anything without pain. I'm very reluctant to take any more medication because that is what got me here in the first place. And school never stopped to allow me to take a rest for a moment.

I'm sick of the sickness that I feel. It's a mystery to me.

Note to Self ... Beware of Pills. Always!

Ahem. Thank you for listening if you stayed with me this far.

Finding "Wishbone"

2008-04-07T19:41:00.000-07:00

Growing up, I was a big fan of the "Wishbone" books and TV show, which ran from 1995-2001. I believe it was my first TV show obsession along with "Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers." I mean, I joined the Wishbone Fan Club! And I've never done that for any other TV shows thus far, though Supernatural's getting pretty close. Back then, every single day right after school, I would turn on the TV to watch "Wishbone" and sing the tune -

What's the story, Wishbone? What's this you're dreamin' of? Such a big imagination on such a little pup. What's the story, Wishbone? Do you think it's worth a look? It kinda seems familiar, like a story from a book. Shake a leg now, let's wag another tail. Sniffin' out adventure, with Wishbone on the trail. Come on, Wishbone. What's the story, Wishbone? What's the story, Wishbone? What's the story, Wishbone? *Woof!*

Wishbone took me to the center of the Earth, to old London, to colonial America, to Mount Olympus, to many Wars, to the old West. He showed me the Knights, the Indians, the Prince, the heroes and villains of old, the common man who lived long before I did. It was here that I learned to love stories as they are.

Even though I loved the show and wanted to buy its merchandise all the time, my younger brother hated it. I always tried to get him to read it, even for a little bit, but still he refused. Of course, he pulled the same thing with Harry Potter, but I won that battle shortly and now he loves the books and the movies. Anyhow, Wishbone was a great part of my childhood.

Yet somwhere along the way, I just stopped reading them. I don't know why. Maybe I couldn't find anymore new books, even though there were some out there I didn't have. Maybe I was influenced by my brother. Maybe I thought I got too old for it. Maybe because by 2001, I underwent a life-changing surgery and diverted my entire focus from the imagination to reality.

Now, I seem to have retain some of that innocent child that disappeared several years ago. (Although, some would vouch that I wasn't really that innocent, even though I tried to be. *wink*) I have started researching for the books and movie episodes that I don't have, finding a way to complete the unfinished set.

Not much have been accomplished in the last few weeks I've been looking, for the books are out-of-print and the movie episodes are rare.

But it's something I'm working on finishing. Everything in its own time, right?

Happy Cows Universial?

2008-04-01T13:43:00.000-07:00

Being on the West coast - smackdab in the middle of California - there is a general promotion to consume products primarily made in California. It's supposed to be a way to help the economy I figure and to take pride in residing in a state that generates a lot of products for the marketing world at large.

Yet there is one specific promotion I always see on TV as far back as I can remember. It has many variations on the context of the commerical, but one thing is always the same: the tagline announced at the end. The tagline says -

"Great cheese come from Happy Cows. Happy Cows come from California. Real California Cheese."

(I know it from memory now and can do a great imitation of the announcer. *winks*)

I wonder if anybody else in the nation or even the world actually have the Real California Cheese from a Happy Cow in a grocery store nearby.

Outside of California, of course. :)

A Time To Remember

2008-03-25T23:33:00.000-07:00

Nine years ago tonight, I went to sleep with tears in my eyes. I have never been the same since. The innocent child in me had slowly faded away as a more experienced one came to be.

That night, my grandfather had passed away in his battle with cancer. He was 62 years old. I was 10 going on 11.

It was the first time in my life someone close to me had died. It wasn’t the last either. In a way, it was a lesson – life is short; make the most of every moment.

Nowadays, I don’t really remember a whole lot about my childhood. Mostly pictures and home videos would make up for it. But this much I remember ...

I always called my grandfather "Papa" and he always called me "Shorty." I was his oldest grandchild and the only one he had a nickname for. He had a ranch in his country home that was on Mooney Road. He had a dog named Junior. He had a few others, but that was his favorite. He raised chickens for a living, but he always had an undying love for the beach and for fishing. He lived life on the wild side too.

I remember his beard and his smile. He always tried to make jokes. He had a good sense of humor. I don't ever remember not seeing him smile. He would light up the room on most occassions.

I remember his tattoos. On the back of his right hand, he had a wolf wearing a hat. On his right shoulder, he had an anchor. There were some words nearby the tattoos, but the meanings I don't remember.

I remember his generosity. Every time I visited his house, I always left with something - a watch, a few toy green army soldiers, a fishing reel, his cowboy hat. These have become some of my most valuable treasures.

I remember the last time I saw him. My family went to visit him at his beach house. He was in terrible condition at the time; the cancer was really taking a toll on his body, but not his spirit. He didn't look much like the Papa I knew. I remember being scared at the time, I could barely look at him. Being ten, I didn't really understand what could happen, but I knew whatever it was, I didn't want it to happen.

I remember on that trip, we went fishing with Papa. I caught a fish or two and he caught some as well. We enjoyed fishing as we did a thousand times before. It was just another day at the pier - a good day. Yet that was the last time I ever went fishing.

I remember the last words I heard him spoke. I was in the car, for it was time to go home. He gave a fishing reel to my mom and told her, "Give this to Shorty."

I remember the night he died. It was about a week later. I was in bed sleeping. Mom had woke me up at 8:31pm and told me with tears in her eyes, "Papa died." I didn't say anything as she left the room. I just took a look at the fishing reel and his cowboy hat by my bed as tears silently fell.

Papa was 62 when he passed away. I sure wish he lived to be a lot older, that he was alive today. Yet to this day, I still remember him. I try to live out some of his good characteristics. And I will always continue to have a love for the beach, for fishing and for life. It's part of my Paradise.

I suppose that's his legacy.

That's Interesting...

2008-03-20T17:36:00.000-07:00

HowManyOfMe.com

There are
0
people with my name
in the U.S.A.

How many have your name?

Huh. Guess I better make good use of my name. *;-)

Down the Home Stretch

2008-03-18T20:26:00.000-07:00

Got through an entire week of studying and thinking and praying and losing sleep and figuring things out and adding teeth marks to the end of my pens. More so than usual. Very grueling stuff, college.

And why did I subject myself to that?

One word - Midterms.

"Life or Death" Midterms.

Chemistry, Physics and Statistics; they're not subjects that I particularly like, but I have to take them and get them over with. On a whole, I think I did okay. Not sure about Math, I think I did the worst on that. But everything should work out okay. I got some more time to fix things if they need to be.

Either way, I'm in the home stretch now. Just got a few more appointments and lectures to get through before Spring Break can get here. Almost there.

Man, I'm tired.

Glorious Saturday

2008-03-15T20:10:00.000-07:00

I love Saturdays. I just do. I love it better than Fridays, but not more than Sundays. After all, that's God's day.

Today, I slept in, trying to catch up on hours of sleep that I lost during the week. Then I went golfing for a while. I just chipped around a couple of balls on a patch of grass and that was very fun. Golf is my sport and I just love playing it. I met up with my family later for lunch and a movie. We saw 10,000 BC. That was one great movie. The plot was interesting and the historical elements to the story was authentic in my opinion. I can't wait to see it again on DVD. Plus, the previews were awesome! I saw Hancock, Iron Man, Speed Racer and The Dark Knight. All these movies seem to hold great promise from what I saw in the promos and I can't wait to see them when they come out.

Getting me around the highway today was my trusty car. I just love driving it. And today was no exception. Had my shades on, the music going and a smile on my face.

It was a good day.

But now, I have to end it with some homework. That's not really a good thing.

The upside - if I get something finished tonight, I can watch golf on TV in the afternoon tomorrow with a clear conscience.

Later!

Welcome to Paradise

2008-03-13T16:29:00.000-07:00

I started up this blog to set up a place to put my thoughts, whether they be nice and formal or wild and out-of-the-left-field. It's just a simple place where you'll catch me thinking. Right now, I welcome you to my Paradise.

It's a good place to be.