jyu

Thanh’s New Baby Girl December 15, 2006

Can’t believe Thanh has a baby girl.  What a surprise!

I can totally see both her and Peter in the baby.  She has Thanh’s eyes.  Probably Peter’s face.

Only 5 weeks old.

Internet Dating December 14, 2006

Internet has became the most popular way to meet people for our busy lifestyle. So many websites provide services to help match your profiles with other potential relationship candidates. Can Internet really find you true love? How do you distinguish truth and lies from the internet conversation? How do you meet people without putting yourself in danger? How do you know a good website from a bad one? How did you create a profile that will draw attentions? How would you know if the profile information is truthful since it’s easy to lie on the weights, heights, age, education, income, and etc.?

Funny mentioned her friend Vicky’s experience with Internet dating. Vicky met her husband from internet and got married for several years and then finally divorced. Vicky is back to net dating again. With her experience about net dating, she stressed the importance of not sharing too much personal information. Don’t let the guys flying to visit. It’s better for girls to fly to visit the guy. With all the rules of “NOT TO DO” for net dating, how are you supposed to find truthful relationship? Aren’t you always wondering if the person you just talks to trustworthy?

It’s clear that a lot of people net dating for different purposes, with majority looking for one night stand. After all the trials and errors, how do you maintain your believes on internet dating process? Is it really worth going through the tedious processes to end up losing your hope?

What other options do you have with a busy schedule and a narrow social group?

郭伯伯 December 13, 2006

Jen emailed and informed that 郭伯伯 passed away Monday morning.  Funeral will be held on Sunday.  My mind flashes with images of 郭伯伯 all day long.  Remembering vividly the extremly difficult Yoga poses he can perform and showed me so many of them one time when I went home.  Growing up, he is always there next door no matter what happens.  The next door mom and dad are the ones we go back to visit every time we go home after my mom and dad passed away.  Now,  feels like a piece of something is missing.  It’s hopeless since there is nothing you can do to stop people you love to pass over time. 

Everytime you go home to visit relatives and friends, chances are getting higher that it might be the last time you see them.  I hate that feeling…

Big Bro December 10, 2006

Talked to big bro on the MSN on Friday.  Haven’t talked to him for so long.  He mentioned that my attitude about teaching has changed compared to a couple years ago.  He said I wasn’t that interested in teaching after graduation a couple years ago, but now I sound more open to the idea.  I told him that I really haven’t thought about what I am going to do after I get my degree.  I will try to teach for a summer to see if I like it.  If I really enjoy it, I might consider going to the market.  If not, I will try to go for the other options.  I always thought about teaching after I retired, but I guess it doesn’t hurt to leave the option open if the opportunities are there.

He said he is busy with 6 hours teaching and running the labs.  Sometimes will offer diagnosis consulting in the hospital.  Sounds like he is quiet busy as well with work.  At least he is not traveling as much.  He said he is doing more web meetings and web conference nowadays.  Save him a lot of trips on the roads.

He said he will have a conference in Dallas at April 2009 and would like to come for my graduation at that time.  Big bro, let me pass the qualifer first, there is no graduation without passing that one first…

Yoga Classes December 8, 2006

Work is offering Yoga classes for employees.  Went to the first class tonight.  I think it’s going to help with my back pain if I keep doing it.  It also helps to release some tense in my body.  $5/class and I might be able to get the money back since Brinker will reimburse the costs up to $200.  It’s definitely worth trying…

Dr. Bass’s Funeral Service December 8, 2006

Drove 300 miles to Cuero, TX for Dr. Bass’s funeral service. It’s such a little town that he grows up. A small service with mostly family and faculty and students from school. Faculties were flew to San Antonio and then drove two hours to get there. We have to take my car down there since Vic couldn’t find a rental car in Dallas. About 6 hours drive down there and another 6 hours back. I contributed for only 2 hours in the begining and let the boys took over for the rest of the journey.

The service lasted like one hour and then proceeded to the graveyard. This is the first time I have ever been to a American funeral service. It’s a much easier service than ours. Everything is done within three days. For us, it will last at least 7 days for the whole process and 49 days for additional follow-up process. Our funeral process is so much more complicated compared to the American funeral.

I am glad I get to see Dr. Bass at the last time and thanks him for accepting me to the program. Without his admission, I will never have the opportunities to work on my PhD dream. Hope he will guide me to the end of it from the above…

Christmas Party December 3, 2006

Sleep all day today.  Couldn’t get myself up for Becky’s party.  Better come up with a good excuse for not show up.  I know I should attend since it’s a big event for the company.  It’s a good opportunity to know everyone and their family.   Probably not a good idea to  miss  this  big social  event.  Just couldn’t get myself to go alone…especially they are probably expecting to meet my date, which I don’t have……

Last couple of years, at least Jen will go with me to the company Christmas party.  This year, Funny has to babysit Julian because Christian has to attend his company Christmas party.  Since Funny couldn’t go, I struggle to get up and eventually give up to go…

Dr. Frank Bass December 2, 2006

Dr. Bass passed away this morning.  So sad.  I was just presenting my term project to him before Thanksgiving.  He was sitting right next to me on the wheele chair and looked at my powerpoints at his computer.  It’s so hard to believe that he’s gone.
He has been really sick this semester.  When I took the Bass senimar with him, he was still capable of moving through the slides and held the discussions in class.  But this semester, he was on wheele chair and couldn’t hear anything we said anymore.  He will read through his classnotes.  Sometimes he had trouble moving the mouse and had to repeat reading the same notes or sometimes will jump to the following pages.

It really breaks my heart to see him trying so hard to teach.  At his age and with his acheivements in the past, he can just retire and enjoy his life.  He continues teaching no matter how sick he is and until the last moment of his life.  It’s for the love of teaching, nothing else.  He devoted his whole life educating students.  It’s truely an honor to be one of his students.

I will never forget the last presentation I had with Dr. Bass…