蜂蜜脆片

蜂蜜脆片; 是我幫Honey Crisp翻譯的中文名字，是一款我愛吃的蘋果 :*) 今天跟得源、布瓜去Milk Pail Market(牛奶桶市場，好Q~) 蔬菜水果們很新鮮又便宜。逛Trader Joe's，裡頭有起司麵包冷凍巧克力可頌跟冰淇淋餅乾等，可頌是以麵糰的形式出現，要捏成一球球丟到烤箱去考，我馬上就想到小毛。

昨天是人生裡的第三次滑雪，去Tahoe的NorthStar。不禁要說NorthStar好美喔!山腳的商店街是木製的歐式房屋，屋頂都覆著薄薄一層雪，山坡地上是雪白色的，錯落著針葉樹們；天空卻是大片蔚藍的。下次一定至少要呆兩天啦，半天的滑雪怎麼夠呢!滑雪成員是得源、Sam & Kevin，我們可是很Hard Core三點半就從Stanford出發搭巴士的滑雪團 :)。

這是第一次坐纜車到山坡上滑雪(上次實在沒辦法)。坐纜車是個挑戰，要急急忙忙在纜車轉過來前滑到定點，讓纜車靠近能正好接住屁股；到站的時候又要趕緊站起來往下滑，還要小心跟同車的人不要靠太近不然會干擾XD，總之每次上下車我都有點緊張~ 不過纜車路途上看看大大澄澈的天空、底下雪白的山坡，順便晃晃腳下的ski、跟得源幼稚地用ski打架(加上莫名的低吼) 真是一種很平靜又快樂的好感覺:")

滑雪本身，我在big & easy坡(想嘗試綠色長線的時候已經三點了無法去QQ)。不過好在 big & easy就有大約四條不太一樣的路線，有的陡峭有的平緩，還有"Rolls" (連續的起伏坡)。我現在已經會控制方向速度，做大小轉彎，只是實在沒膽，一切都要低於某個速限。根本還不敢加快速度，呼~ 待我哪時候真正學會平行緊急煞車。不過必須要不怕摔倒才學得快XD

無止盡hang-out 年代

無止盡hang-out，真是很青春的標題!

我想到小時候(不就是一年多前?)在小巴，有一段時間莫名的心灰沮喪，主要是lab work太無頭緒(不是很有趣)。那段時間多虧Eleen, Victoria, Pauline, Jaclyn, Amy Clifford... AC (Asian Club) ，提供了我可以無止盡hang-out (?)的時間場所，大約是五月底。

地點是在604，我後來一年的家。時間總是晚上十點到半夜(?)，時常在玩Mario Party，我每次都選Yoshi，而且手腦反應太慢都最輸。

時間跳到2009，Eleen感恩節拜訪Stanford。首日我們去大食了一頓日本午餐@ Menlo Park :")
Hopkins朋友清楚知道，我做決定的理由和轉過的彎，知道我不想唸PHD，知道我 ... 很多事情都不必特別說。我也喜歡他share給我的 UCSD biomedical science experiences! (I think they are pretty cool and fun and I am so glad she enjoys it :)) 談話很放心，很大方自在

最近，跟很多人交談，有些用筆，有些用說。自己多想了很多，更能釐清一點方向，指向未來的箭頭。PHD現在也在選項中，不過我還是想先工作一兩年 (see if I like working life?)，也很謝謝爸媽、Polly，世青阿姨，陪我跑步的得源，還有小毛，我們可以慢慢仔細地想!

天才小廚師

今天心血來潮，蒸了五個胖胖的高矮不一的高麗菜捲。
高麗菜捲們排排坐在蒸盤上，好像作美勞。

好久前買到一顆台灣高麗菜就想做了　:)
今天只有得源是我的座上賓，我早該請她吃飯　:p

從前到現在，每次到有賣菜捲的店，我都會忍不住買，買了之後，
總是不喜歡。但是下次看到高麗菜捲，又會用奇怪的衝動買下。

我想到一家西門町的台式日本料理，很嘈雜但是美好的。
又想到在柏林跟Albert舅跟Drawing，點了包心菜捲，
於是巨大的包心菜一層又一層剝開，在深處的最深有一小丸肉，
大概是三顆魚丸大小。我們都傻眼 :")

baby talk

我發現身邊的人很擅長baby talk。

首屈一指是林楊興。
「我這個PHP都不會寫...」
「你知道不會寫代表什麼嗎? 」
「因為他們太難了。我們家哈尼這麼聰明都不會寫」
「可是我只是要花時間慢慢摸，因為語法不熟。可是快來不及了。」
「對啊，所以你不是不會，你是還需要時間嘛。這是不一樣的喲。」

類似這樣。

再來是得源。
「得源，我會改PHP字型了耶!」
「好棒喔!」 <- 其實是一件簡單都不行的事。可是我輕易得到誇大的讚美。 哈

得源真的很棒。在大家都瘋狂寫作業並且有做不完的工作的史丹丹，她是唯一總是兩肋插刀，總是全力幫我解決問題的朋友。總是讓我一直煩，卻還是幫忙我 :")

昨天與前晚，都急急忙忙在gchat上丟得源。下午在系館4樓，得源陪我(幫我)一起 trace很多細微末節的 code抓蟲子們。我真是幸運的孩子。

溫柔的夜晚?

生活除了匆忙還是匆忙。

Stanford的我，再也沒空看看英文新聞、八點或九點的電視影集，聽音樂都有些奢侈。(我究竟是怎樣?連好好安排自己的時間跟生活都忘記了嗎?)

今天九點多出門，要考第二次駕照，我又fail了。覺得真對不起逸儒阿舅 :"(

考官還是沒有考路線圖，我紅燈沒有完全停下就右轉。廈門人曾弘毅小朋友說，youtube上有"10 top reasons to fail your driver's test"，建議我把youtube clip看一看。我都快集滿了說! 好笨!!

昨晚到今早都是一種沮喪的心情，因為我的Assembly code (組語)，跑出來跟助教的結果不同。我再三de-bug，還 trace testing code，實在想不通為什麼? 心裡惦著這個想頭，什麼也都不能專心做。結果，纏著我ㄧ整天的bug，竟然是助教給的結果是錯的，我的program是好的! 他已經update新的結果在課程網，而我沒收到e-mail。

我以為我所有的Stanford email 都有forward到gmail，所以沒有時常看Stanford email的習慣，錯過好多重要訊息。我把收件人含有ylong1@stanford.edu的email全部轉到gmail，但是有很多信件，是合在一個 group email裡面的，因此不會轉寄。今晚本來報名了一個Networking dinner (CHIPS)是做 BIO相關的人互相認識的機會，結果沒收到email又錯過。糊塗加三級。

其實我本來想說的是，今天晚上的計畫，我想半夜起來把演算法作業寫好 :")
說不定可以聽聽音樂什麼的，說不定會是個久違的溫柔夜晚。

想念小巴

以前在Hopkins，很 peace，有學習也有一點點娛樂的日子，有點讓人想念。

我也想念604的家，BME的同學們，聚在一起的晚餐時光，看House的時光，窩在房間裡憂愁寫報告的 Irene，窩在房間裡瘋狂寫報告的Pauline... 等等 :

路怎麼走你自己選

今天，星期一，Database第一次Programming Project繳交。這兩天我頭很大，毛很多。想到星期六晚上的毫無頭緒，一路自己摸索，解決，卡住，困難，很多很多小小的關卡，直到今天下午還有de不出的小bug。有很多來回iteration，下午最大的夢想，是晚上能夠好好地認真地煮個飯，不再抓蟲子。

四點鐘，Karl助教敎我使用"show warning"幫我找出問題的癥結。真是太好了! 晚上好像是這個月來頭一次細心又專心地煮飯來吃。白菜梗的部份要切細，葉菜的部份可以大片，同時放下去煮可以一起熟，這是我的接觸面積理論。小毛第二次煮菜，就會把梗梗分開，先炒，真有天份!

離題了! 我今天認真地煮了香菇蒸肉，炒白菜，以及黃瓜胡蘿蔔雞肉(?)，覺得有點幸福。

寫這個project的同時，認真地想著下半年的計畫。我不像惶急地逼迫自己趕快開始了，真的。一月到五月(六月?)，看看Peter能夠給我什麼工作、或是建議我做什麼樣的功課來準備自己，在美國台灣都可以。我想把自己準備好，再來開始學習，做新的研究。想想這樣真好。

不急。

Horoscope says ...

Your idea of the future isn't based upon ungrounded fantasies; it springs directly from your common sense, combined with an unflappable determination. But you may lack precision in your thinking today which can derail your plans. Giving yourself permission to dream can be rejuvenating, but don't make any decisions until you reconsider the situation next week.

==============================================================
Definitely keep that in mind :p

迷惘

我覺得，對自己的不滿足，支配著對未來的不確定性。我一直在學校裡面，摸索著。以前做的事情，現在做的事情，在心臟電生理實驗室跑的模擬，Design Team 後半段電路與程式設計方面的缺憾(雖然我還是很認真參與，teammate也很愛我 )，使我自我感覺不良。

This is what driven me to Stanford to pursue a degree in computer science.

However ... 也許是時候做些實際的事情了呢。

包著computer science外皮的我，其實還是藏著BME骨。最想做的事情，還是許多有用的BME儀器喲。也許今年一月，我要努力找一家medical device company的internship。真的。

今天收到實驗室老師Natalia (Dr. Trayanova)的e-mail，他被選為今年Hopkins的Brody faculty Scholar。他謝謝我們對實驗室以及為她認真工作，很真心的。我與有榮焉。 :*)

I really have nothing to complain about my Hopkins experiences. Except, I really should have gained more technical background in ECE/CS back then.

Meeting Pei-Lin

I got to hang out with Wu Pei-Lin and Eugene again this weekend. I am so grateful that they again drove all the way to Stanford and took me out. We went to IKEA. :) I picked up a rug to cover the stained part of the carpet in my room.

Pei-Lin is such a lovely girl you don't normally meet. :) Luckily we were 1st grade classmate in elementary school (She was rank #1 and the chair of my class), and 1st year high school, too! I felt like life always treat fairly well to people with good nature. She is leading a good working life here.

I like how she cheered me up with her unique bright laughters. :*) I as well thanked Eugene who bore me with occupying Wu Pei-Lin for such a nice stretch of Sunday afternoon.

Meeting Makibi

Yesterday was a blissful Saturday, breezy, sunny, typical CA good weather. I got Makibi's text message around noon. He happened to be at Stanford campus. We went out for a coffee at Peet's. :") Was my first try of soy latte, and it somehow has a thicker taste than the milk version. By the way, Makibi looks just opposite with his new near-sighted glasses and sunglasses on. :p It was pretty funny. He was totally a (nerdy) study-kind person with his near-sighted glasses on.

We chatted, and had a real in-depth talk about long-distance relationship. I will remember all the advice given by Makibi (exactly what TJ has told me). Knowing it is hard to begin with, things I should learn during the long-d relationship are more than I can imagine. Easier said than done.

I was so happy to meet him, knowing that he is doing good here at CA; He enjoys his work (has been working pretty hard), takes jazz piano lessons (practicing pretty hard), cooks, learning Chinese, and seeing Lisa, his girlfriend, every weekend. :) It's different from B'more life. He gets to learn, and gets to do things alone. However, people make most progress during these transition period. This is when we learn more about ourselves and become a better person. :)

Arriving at Stanford

今天開始騎了腳踏車行走校園，我不停地不停地迷路。花兩倍長的時間到達目的地。

微風吹過的感覺真好。

我過了一個有好多朋友陪伴的週末。可是啊，就算是這樣幸福的情況，我還是很想家。我跟Eleen說，"Thanks for spending your precious SF time shopping and moving with me. I feel bad." Eleen, "why feel bad. sa gwa". 吳培琳(&Eugene)也跑來陪我，帶我買了中國食品們，去逛Mountain View一個Art Festival喝咖啡 :)

Jaclyn & Tsui跟去年一模一樣，還是不停吵嘴讓我大笑。Gao的屁股都不見了，每天騎車上坡到位居半山腰的Great SF的家(Oxford 955)。

日子傻傻地過，一下子就會明年春天了。現在這樣想家想家的日子總會過去。

There was a Child went Forth

(From Leaves of Grass, Walt Whitman )

There was a child went forth every day;
And the first object he look’d upon, that object he became;
And that object became part of him for the day, or a certain part of the day,
or for many years, or stretching cycles of years.

The early lilacs became part of this child,
And grass, and white and red morning-glories, and white and red clover,
and the song of the phoebe-bird,
And the Third-month lambs, and the sow’s pink-faint litter, and the mare’s foal,and the cow’s calf,
And the noisy brood of the barn-yard, or by the mire of the pond-side,
And the fish suspending themselves so curiously below there—and the beautiful curious liquid,
And the water-plants with their graceful flat heads—all became part of him.

The field-sprouts of Fourth-month and Fifth-month became part of him;
Winter-grain sprouts, and those of the light-yellow corn, and the esculent roots of the garden,
And the apple-trees cover’d with blossoms, and the fruit afterward,
and wood-berries, and the commonest weeds by the road;
And the old drunkard staggering home from the out-house of the tavern, whence he had lately risen,
And the school-mistress that pass’d on her way to the school,
And the friendly boys that pass’d—and the quarrelsome boys,
And the tidy and fresh-cheek’d girls—and the barefoot negro boy and girl,
And all the changes of city and country, wherever he went.

His own parents,
He that had father’d him, and she that had conceiv’d him in her womb, and birth’d him,
They gave this child more of themselves than that;
They gave him afterward every day—they became part of him.

The mother at home, quietly placing the dishes on the supper-table;
The mother with mild words—clean her cap and gown,
a wholesome odor falling off her person and clothes as she walks by;
The father, strong, self-sufficient, manly, mean, anger’d, unjust;
The blow, the quick loud word, the tight bargain, the crafty lure,
The family usages, the language, the company, the furniture—the yearning and swelling heart,
Affection that will not be gainsay’d—the sense of what is real—the thought if,
after all, it should prove unreal,
The doubts of day-time and the doubts of night-time—the curious whether and how,
Whether that which appears so is so, or is it all flashes and specks?
Men and women crowding fast in the streets—if they are not flashes and specks, what are they?
The streets themselves, and the façades of houses, and goods in the windows,
Vehicles, teams, the heavy-plank’d wharves—the huge crossing at the ferries,
The village on the highland, seen from afar at sunset—the river between,
Shadows, aureola and mist, the light falling on roofs and gables of white or brown, three miles off,
The schooner near by, sleepily dropping down the tide—the little boat slack-tow’d astern,
The hurrying tumbling waves, quick-broken crests, slapping,
The strata of color’d clouds, the long bar of maroon-tint, away solitary by itself—the spread of purity it lies motionless in,
The horizon’s edge, the flying sea-crow, the fragrance of salt marsh and shore mud;
These became part of that child who went forth every day, and who now goes,
and will always go forth every day.

河濱公園與其他

今天跟表弟楊楊去基隆河濱公園騎車。伴我長大的河濱公園，卻是久違了，久違地用卡踏車巡禮，並且是在晚上。風好涼，天空好乾淨，掛著幾抹低低的雲，河水在發亮，城市在河畔邊。夜晚的河啊天空啊草地啊燈光都那麼溫柔，迎面來的風，帶著河水的濕潤。

關於飛機的記憶。住在民生社區尾巴的我，躺在床上，偶然看見飛機的倒影，飛過房間牆壁的畫框。我也記得，撫遠街底的小房間，夏天窗子底榕樹蔭織得那麼陰涼，遮蔽地像個秘密。那裡總是可以聽見隆隆的飛機起降聲音，聽成習慣。幾次夜間搭美國國內線飛機，夜空藍的那麼純粹，我在其中航行。當飛機斜斜飛進夜空，眺望城市，燈光，方格，小車排一條條彎彎的線。降落的時候掩不住興奮，因為底下的燈光照亮了轉動的大螺旋槳，坐第三排，看的特別清晰。(下了飛機要忍不住跟來接我的振新仔細描述。) 還有還有，從LA飛Baltimore，一個早晨，告別簡停雲，告別還帶著綠意的加州，幾座山脈，飛機底下的幾朵薄薄的雲。飛進美國西部，黃沙佈滿的平原，那麼遼闊又貧脊。乾乾的沙土上刻出幾條縱橫(或曲線)，偶爾地，才有幾輛車子駛在那些土線上，很孤單也很自由。

現在飛機的記憶又多了一樣。

bye bye Boston

波波行。
人物: 張博亭，阿毛，西瓜，屁屁，高宗，Jen，Irene，Nikhil，Nimra
天氣: 濕冷多雨

不停散開的睡袋，三明治上盤旋的蜜蜂，像機房重地的電機實驗室，Charles River寬闊的風景，很多風帆，很多草地，很多慢跑的人，Berklee，西瓜的訪談，SPICE，治療屁屁胃痛的frozen yogurt。
大雨，哈佛unofficial tour有超Q導遊，大雨，medium cooked的 burger有超厚beef patty(整體還是輸給我們的burger Bro)，Irene，Berklee Piano + Bass dual，Prudential，dinner @ a Chinese restaurant with Irene N Nikhil，adventure to a porn bookstore。
Beacon Hill，brunch @Paramount，Duck tour，Museum of Fine Art，dinner @ Irene N Nikhil's place (Naan, Chicken tikka masala & Bangin?)，Once。
rainy，lobster banquet by 張博亭(JamesHook)，Newbury，Charles Riverside Park，Boston Commons 青蛙水塘，public garden，dinner with Nimra @ Petit Robert (onion soup + Effel Tower)，Tower of Power @ Double tree，暴雨，gathering @ Samuel's place。

天氣很冷，外套一直是必備的，防曬油沒辦法塗。我很喜歡這條寬闊的大河，波光粼粼流經城市。很喜歡這樣馬路漫走，很喜歡擠在張博亭的小客廳裡閒聊，舊雨新知。想念Irene，聽鋼琴演奏會睡著的Irene，還有Nikhil。中國城的蒜香雞好好味，Irene的印度菜跟Naan讓小毛驚為天人，可是卻完全無法表達極為好笑。想念Nimra，外面是溼冷大雨可是我們在Petit Robert好享受地觀賞了甜點的完整製作，我還得到巧克力艾菲爾鐵塔。Nimra說，「你的中文很爛」，標準到嚇壞大家，謝謝屁屁跟Jen帶我們出來，也謝謝小毛，超安靜小毛，下一次就會滔滔不絕。

謝謝有這麼一個walking city，有這樣大片大片的綠地的存在。謝謝很哲學，喜歡想生命中重要的東西，認真追求夢想與慢活的小毛。總是不停地讓我也得挖掘一些想法與練習表達。謝謝張博亭，a super nice host，引薦給我ㄧ脫拉庫(?)新朋友，留好多時間給我們，讓我的旅程多好多溫暖的時光。

我在威廉斯堡(Williamsburg, VA)

現在在小維(維吉尼亞州)，是久違的出遊。:)

小維的姑姑與姑丈的生活，是幸福的一種形式。理所當然，幸福的形式有很多種。三層房子有座小花園，養一隻活蹦亂跳的狗和幾個(?)活蹦亂跳的孩子(?)是一種；跟爸爸媽媽弟弟在一起對我來說就是幸福飽飽。姑姑與姑丈歷久彌新的甜美兩人世界也是一種。樸實大方的紅磚房子木頭地板，後院接著小森林，再過去有一條小小的溪，每一個點滴都是親手打造。

第一天，我們騎車到colonial Williamsburg逛了一圈，房子都是老式的，沿路上的屋瓦樹木都很別致，天然別致。第二天，逛了Williams-Mary College，跟哈佛一樣老的老學校。也是好美好美，我還是喜歡東岸學校的建築風格，學院風。晚上吃過飯，我們騎了大約20哩，先走Colonial Parkway然後沿著河到了海邊，又再繼續騎到牧場，跟幾隻牛羊打了照面。然後乳牛們在五分鐘後轉身走了，留下了屁股給我。



到海邊的路上，越過James River的橋上，沼澤托著濕地，柔柔的水與很好的天光，青綠的草。也有路過大片的草原，亮亮的。Oh I got to bike on the prairie! ^-^ I was super happy.
想停下來照張相，但我發現沒有辦法。有些美景在上坡路段，騎車騎的很使勁，停下來便爬不上去了。又有時候姑姑與姑丈騎的太快，遠遠把我拋在後頭。

今天傍晚，姑姑的好友，在WilliamsMary唸Biophysics的郝岩與男友來了，我們一起去划船。 :) 有兩種，一種是pedal boat，跟inner harbor跟碧潭的一樣，另一種就是canoing 那種。我夾在姑爸跟姑姑的中間，搖著槳。平常手臂運動太少，划一下就痠。起初的湖水還泛著陽光，我們划到對岸的樹林邊邊。接著突然烏雲就密了起來，雷聲隆隆，我們趕緊離開湖心，靠到岸邊。

上岸去，扛著許多備好的伙食，我們準備Grill。今天Grill的生鮮是banana pepper, squash, sweet potato (>"<)。拷到一半就下起大雨了，嘩啦啦地下到我們的炭火與食物上頭，然後我們為食物們撐上一把紫色的小花傘。

a trip to BMA

Anterior with Dog/ Matisse

Woman with Mango/ Gauguin

The Baltimore Museum of Art has the largest collection of Matisse in North America. :) I admired the lively patterns, the glowing color, and the vivacious atmosphere emanated from his paintings. I also admired the Cone sisters who had their instincts and continued to be the most devoted patrons of Matisse ...

Random thoughts on June 17

我有好多滿滿的回憶，在B'more這個東岸的港口城市。甚至還深刻地記得和世青阿姨坐著小玲阿姨的車子從BWI駛進紅磚建築林立的Bmore街道的樣子。一下子，就要離開囉!

這些美麗又平凡的日子，有好多朋友的點滴深深淺淺地織在裡面。這兩年，我還是過得非常孩子氣的，比從前還要孩子氣。可是我記得許多快樂的旅行的回憶，記得當時的明亮的陽光與空間感，記得傍晚回家community living的晚餐 (I miss it so much)，記得從家裡到學校的路上的大樹與藍天。記得週六早晨忙碌的農夫市場，記得603的projector和電影，記得我所遇到的朋友的善良與替人著想。我還有好多要學習。

我很高興爸爸媽媽不辭千里地來Baltimore參加我的畢業典禮 :*) 不清楚，我的下一站是會怎麼樣的，Vanessa說，if you decide to have a good time, you will have a good time. 在 Hopkins，我沒有認真計畫卻遇見這麼多美好!

A good two years - LOL team forever

LOL team stands for design team 10. It is the first, and most awesome thing I have done in Hopkins. We started in September 2007. Despite the debate of what we have accomplished and where the project will go to, I am very proud and honored to work closely with a group of great teammates, who have become my closest friends in Bmore.

Two days ago we had our last animal experiment. Quote Harry's famous words, "another day, another deliverable", the team stayed up in the instrumentation lab the night before the experiment. The prototype was "packaged" for the first time, thanks to the design team field trip to Bensville - the 24 hr electronic shop :p. We were so closed to screw up our circuit during packaging by mis-connecting 5V to 48V power supply. Somehow, we were blessed by the god of electronics, and the circuit was still functional after replacing one component.

10AM the morning, Dawn and Diana came and helped us, who are definitely the best veterinarians we have ever worked with. Without asking for any return, and helping us probably would not do them any good, they came and helped us constantly. They located the phrenic in two hours, and after switching off the ventilator, our device caused the pig to breathe by her own diaphragmic contraction, boom! :-) The pig had lived only on our device (no mechanical ventilation) for at least two hours, and might had continued to live if we continued. The pig also survived with physiological CO2 concentration and patterns of diaphragm contraction. We even recorded this cool video: the pig could not breathe and the alarm went off, and we brought the pig back to life by turning on our device.

Also, the concept of localization was the first time confirmed in this experiment. The program found the right pair of electrode (as only one pair of the electrode was inserted) at both sides (we did bilateral stimulation). Everything went so well and smoothly, circuit for the first time worked perfectly, and the program was as usual impeccable. I think the prototype is almost at the stage of refinement and testing in human. Only by that can we understand the anatomy and conditions of phrenic stimulation in human, as we aim at resuscitation in emergency setting.

Each of our design team mate has a unique, but adorable personality - they are all really great people! My life in Hopkins BME could not have been as happy without them. We went to a dinner at Thai Restaurant with our best friend design team 9 representatives, which reminded me the good time we had in the thai restaurant during our trip to Illinois. I don't know when is the next time we all gather, but I will pass in continuing this sentiment and stop here. :)

:"( so sad

After one year now I am moving out of UNI ONE. Before that, my parents are leaving B'more ...

I need to be spirited. I'll have to farewell all my friends who are leaving for their new page in life, with smile and wishes.

笑一個。

Graduation

I can't believe my labmates, Jason, Sam, Lukas, Carolyn and Yushuan came for my graduation and stood there for like 2 hour to "shout" for me~~~ I am so surprised and so happy :)


Happy graduation.



More will follow ...

A long learning process

Today, I finally submitted my thesis. I was nervous for an entire day, and was afraid that I somehow could not make it due to some unexpected reason. There was this indescribable feeling the moment I saw Dr. Greenstein filled the last blank of my form with his signature & printed name... And then, every possible printer seems not functional ... at 3:30pm, I finally got everything needed after all the running (&rushing) around and worked out the last step.

I am going to graduate from Hopkins now!

I felt like I have been through a lot in the whole thesis writing process. There was time when my PI thrown back my paper, leaving two simple, but cruel words : "confused and lost". What really bit was, the same thing occurred TWICE. I could not even cry, my tears froze. Also, for the entire time I was struggling with the schedule issues with her. So many things bounced back and forth, so did my mood. I literally had only little hope in graduating on time.

I thank a lot of people, including my thesis committee, for their efforts in reviewing/editing, and for their kindness in getting it approved even it was not perfect. I am really grateful to Molly's last minute edit. Without her help I would not be able to get my PI's permission for getting my thesis out of the door. Despite the people that I already acknowledged in my thesis, I owe special thanks to TjenSin, Lu and Vanessa. I thank Vanessa for calling and suggesting the right thing to do -- to talk face in face with my PI and express my desire to graduate. I thank Lu, who had worked with me (like 7am in the library :p) and gave me emotional support . I thank TjenSin for checking on my progress and taking me to dinner when things turned really hopeless. I thank Bryce, who has provided me with editorial or technical assistance from time to time.

The process was painful, and was, indeed, the hardest thing I've encountered. The only thing worth remember is how so many people have helped me :*) I am lucky.

笑一笑

The past few days have been miserable. I have to try recording some happy moments to cheer myself up.

1. New Toy: Earrings!
Last Sunday, VPau took Lu and I to Towson to get our ears-piercing. Sat at a piercing station at the corner of "Claire", a cute guy performed the piercing procedure for us. Like a 7-year old girl getting her first ears piercing holding a teddy bear (lol)-- we de-virginized our ears. :p It was a mixture of excitement and nervous-ness.I picked a pair of birthday stone earrings. It's for October, and has a slightly pink color. I feel different with the earrings on. :)

2. New Bag: my new travel mate
I started to use my new bag when I went to Towson with VPau and Lu. I realize that this is REAL PRETTY... and useful too. :*) Thank you guys!

3. New Restaurant: Susie's soba
TJ and I went to an asian noodle place for dinner. It is in Hampden... The noodles were made family style, but with a very strong, salty taste. My seafood noodles were salty, but ... topped with numerous mussells, shrimps, and scallops. The seafood was so, so satifying. :&) ohhh and red bean ice cream too. :")

4. A refreshing dish: Makibi's creamy stew
Yesterday was an extreme, hopeless day. I was so damaged ... my mood was so damaged to an extent that I couldn't evey talk in the afternoon. Everything went so wrong. And that evening, I had the creamy stew made by Makibi. The creamy and warmy dish brighten up my mood so that I got a little bit strength and could work for a little bit more last night.

5. New Toy: Pandora
The on-line music radio Pandora is my new favorite. Tin-Yuin introduced it to me a while ago, but I only started playing it yesterday. The whole lab was mine, so I could play whatever music I wanted. That was the good thing about working alone and late in lab. .. I had my personalized radio as Jason Mraz, the radio selected songs from Jack Johnson, John Mayer, Cold play, Five for fighting...etc. I like it a lot!

陳綺貞 Cheer - 失明前我想記得的四十七件事

Happy Birthday

I had a happy 24 birthday. :")

My birthday started with Vanessa and Alan's calls... although I was waken up by the calls :p
My first surprise in the morning was birthday wishes from Aunt Shichin and Talisa. I missed their voices so much and had a good chat with them! Then, I got phone calls from mommy daddy and goo; from Clifford, and from Ting-Chi. I was on the phone for like 2 hours in lab. :p But whatever! It's my b-day!

I had a happy b-day party in the evening. Irene baked a chicken for me! She also made roast vegi (The leek is yum!). Eleen came and fried the 蔥油餅. Lu cooked salmon+cucumber+asparagus; miso paste beef+cabbage; and pork chop carrots corn soup. VPau cooked shrimp+mixed vegi. I also managed to cook a pork rib+ tofu+ seaweed; a mixed vegi & egg dish; and bakchoy -- for my distinguished guests.Everything was DELICIOUS. The dishes filled the whole table and I almost felt like it's new year. :p

I got a birthday gift from TjenSin Lu and Vanessa. The story started from an afternoon when TJ and I were at GRO coffee hour ... I was saying that I should have a more formal/mature bag to carry to interviews/work ... And so ... I got one! They spent quite some time to look for a bag on-line... and they bought it in Towson Mall. :*) The bag is cleanly-designed and pretty! And I personally believe that it will bring me luck because it carries the love & wishes from my friends.

Irene also bought me a pair of earrings; they were little owls and were lovely. Although I haven't gotten my ears pierced ... I guess the earrings will be my motivation! The cake ... we had two dessert experts who made me really fine cake ... Irene made me her featured Tiramisu. I have taken this Tiramisu for granted for like one year and never learned from her... Nimra made me a cheesecake with Raspberry toppings ... believe me; Those cakes were phenomenal! (I am stealing this objective from Alan)

I thanked all my friends who spent such efforts in making the dishes, making the cake, getting me birthday presents, and sharing the birthday evening at 604!

The whole drinking started after dinner. I still don't know who got me 3 bottles of hj. I was asked to directly drink from the bottle ... I did not do so because it's not well-behaved to drink that way ... but I still drank 5 glasses of wine, which basically meant one full bottle... My lips ended up dyed by the wine ... they were really dark and purple. I looked like wearing an horrible make-up. :p Thanks for my friends' tolerance about my vampire-looked appearance that night. I will manage to drink with straw next time.

The cake attack routinely (?) occurred after I got out of my bathroom ( trying to get rid of the spilled wine on my shirt ...) It was a reciprocation from TjenSin ... sigh. He was so creamed on his birthday ... I couldn't help to burst into laugh whenever I see those pictures. I am glad I did not get the same level as he did... :p



I remember Tjensin asked several times "Kai xin ma?" ... Yes I really was! I thanked Irene Eleen Renee Lu Vanessa Nimra Tracy Harry Russell Nikhil Andy Bryce and TjenSin ... for the fun time we shared and for making me the happiest birthday girl :)) Pauline and Clifford were not here, but I know their love was with me. :*) (Though I did miss them)

Gray

I am not in a good mood right now.

I am not feeling well for some reason. My GI track feels weird. I almost wanted to throw up when I saw the ice cream cake this afternoon. BTW, it's for Carolyn's bday ... my favorite girl in lab.

I stayed at the library until 3pm yesterday. I don't know why but I just had this hard time composing my thesis -- the part my PI doesn't even care. While my other friends were having fun, my weekend was filled by an endless writing process.

I guess I just sucked in writing.

My personal highlight for the past week is 1) I got the birthday present and letter from Mou-zai. I seldom got to this extent of excitement by receiving mails. :p I torn it open like very carelessly right away (in a way that the envelope was badly ripped)... and couldn't even wait to go back to my apartment at 6F. I read the letter while climbing the stairs.

2) Knowing that the birthday party was cancelled, Eleen delivered her creation of rolls and seaweed salads for me in Saturday evening. I was really touched and 大心. In this lonely time for me, I almost felt like she's the only one who cared about me... I know it was an exaggeration. But literally the rolls made my day. :*)

I thank them wholeheartedly for being so considerate.

A recent update

My best friend since high school, Wu Ting-Chi is admitted into the PHD program AT U of Miami! Woohoo! It is definitely the best news for me recently. I am really happy for her, and for myself, too, since I now have one more companion in the u.s.! She visited me with Ting-Ting last February in Baltimore -- as one of the very few friends who actually visited me during my study here! We met at the first day when we entered high school. Ever since then, she is always the one who supports me, and shares my good and bad times -- even when we are oceans (and 8 time-zones) apart; And I know that I am just the one for her at the same position! I am now giving her the warmest (virtual) hugs to celebrate her great great accomplishment, and also my best wishes to her new journey starting soon in early August ~~~

As for myself, things havent' gotten really promising. I am probably going to continue an academic career in California, starting this September, which is sub-optimal -- with the cost of intensive expenses. I am also expecting an equally- intensive work load, which will doubtlessly consume a hell lot of my time and youth. :"(

I am now trying to stitch every little pieces that constitute my thesis, which is painful. The recent weather is -- endless rain, just as endless as the process of my writing. The good part is, I experienced a rain of cherry blossom at my way to school this morning (very poetic). Technically speaking, it was rain, along with the falling petals of cherry blossom. I guess that's part of the unique experiences one can get in Baltimore! My personal happiest thing lately is that -- I got my PS2 receiver (a part of FPGA project) working yesterday! Now my Xilinx xxx1000 board can display on the LEDs the key-in from keyboard! Well, yesterday I was supposed to sit in the library and do my thesis, but I ended up sticking with my PS2 for an entire evening.

I am really glad I met Jenkins in my last semester here. He seems to think that I am talented and likes me a lot -- which rarely happens between me and a professor. He even considered hooking me up with his organization (APL). However, this opportunity seems to fade-out due to my status. Most of the jobs there, especially FPGA related ones, require a citizenship to get a security clearance. :( Anyhow, I'll stop for now. I hope I can murmur more about some happier things around me next time!

To all of my friends in Taiwan: I miss you all! And for those who are in the same boat as mine-- thesis writing and hoping to graduate, wish all the luck and powers are with you!

March-ing

最近在做什麼呢。今天排了長長的隊伍，只為了得到一個抽獎的機會。貪心想要ㄧ個印著GRO字樣的玻璃杯子。杯子沒抽到，但是分享了午後三點的美好陽光，我和你和沙發都被晒得暖暖的!昨天，早上跟Girish& Lu catch up 了一下下，然後是長長的＂intense study group AT TJ's place＂。成員是Vanessa, Lu, TjenSin and me. 雖然花了一半時間在享受美食，功課沒有做，但真是幸福時光。下午兩點半的Ms. Shirley's Cafe ... 她們有我吃過最棒的Brunch，食物精巧的擺設在盤子上，賞心悅目極了。我要記得補上Salmon Benedict的照片!晚上是TjenSin, Lu and Makibi的group effort，Linda 跟Lu是西安同鄉，非常可愛。除了604 廚房之外，Baltimore's best food 的產地毫無疑問就是這裡了。有紅燒魚、味曾豬肉、炒青菜與蕃茄炒蛋，還有飯後布丁，飯後grapefruit,飯後iced slush aloe drink,飯後2nd round grapefruit ... 每樣東西都好好味\^-^/還有DJ Vanessa特選的音樂層出不窮。謝謝振新gogor

大海--张雨生

江蕙--風吹風吹

AWESOME Wisp skiing trip (02/20-22)

2009年的冬天去滑雪囉!在Maryland最西邊接West Virginia的Wisp Resort! 是BME Master student的旅行。小木屋2421號，落地窗前就是美麗的湖。結冰的大湖。

第一天，因為Pauline, Nimmy, Lu, Russell, Tracy,Meng ... Beginner level的大伙，全都選了ski，我就跟她們一起take lessons。剛開始真是好不上手(腳)，一路控制不住方向的往下衝，唯一的是跟教練學會了摔倒如何爬起來，還有就是不停用螃蟹螃蟹走路法龜速移動著身體到小低矮坡的坡頂，再忽溜溜地往下滑。到了下午3點，TJensin看不下去，就來給我們提點指導，示範90度轉彎減速。我也拉拔著蘿蔔... 喔不是拉拔鼓舞著自己，上了bunny hill。(Belly Flop;有"magic carpet"(輸送帶)拉著我們上兔子坡;但還不是纜車的等級) 在較為陡的山上，不停不停地以各種姿勢摔跤。:p很多次自己用很醜，但是有用的姿勢爬起來，很多次讓TJ拉起來，很多次把棒棒(Poles)弄掉，然後撿不回來。還有時候會不慎倒退嚕，呼，倒退嚕。傍晚七點的時候，我移動著螃蟹步想要到magic carpet搭乘處，結果竟然螃蟹步也不聽話，也許是我累了，我又撲嚕撲嚕的跌倒了，就這樣結束了一天。小木屋溫煦的大壁爐和食物，讓我十點就不支睡著，睡得香又甜，連 Cranium和Mafia都不玩了。(叫也叫不起來)

第二天，中午在湖上逛了一圈。結冰的湖好刺激喲! 雖然邊邊已經可以聽見crack的聲音，中間的冰層還是很厚的，有人在ice fishing。 於是一群人就開心的在湖上奔跑跳，丟擲雪球，snow angel(躺在冰上大力划動手腳)，拍照。我們出發去下午1-5點的ski行程。今天我還是ski，厲害的振新TracyPauline要試試snow board。下雪了，雪花還伴隨著大風，積雪很厚，很適合滑雪。很神奇，剛開始幾次還是大摔跤，有一次還翻了一圈。過了幾次竟然可以控制方向，幾乎可以帥氣90度刷地一聲停好了!兩天來的最佳夥伴就是小璐，要是沒有他跟我一起 struggle(我們可能是伙伴中經驗值~0的唯一兩隻)，我可能不會有堅持跟毅力學習。還有可愛的振新老師，傳授技巧之外還要精神鼓勵，在我划不上輸送帶的時候推著我前進。Pauline和Tracy的snow boarding也超有進境的，看起來非常酷炫 ^____^*

晚上在Accident小鎮，吃了Annie's country food，牆上寫著"Success is getting what you want. Happiness is wanting what you get" 我們挑著語病，說是要wanting what you "got"才對。吃飽了，風雪變的更大，冒著壯觀的雪，需要車尾燈都亮起來，在迷茫中前進。司機很穩。:)載著我們安全抵達Baltimore。

一次的旅行真的要感謝很多人。照片需補上。

Prime Rib 上好肉

It's Baltimore Restaurant Week!

Last Friday, We got to explore one of the fancy restaurants "Prime Rib" in Baltimore with 50% off!
Our table was reserved at 9:30pm due to the popularity.

The bar area, the band, and the more-than-half-hour waiting surprised me. It came across as a Chinese restaurant because people were sitting in round table and talking loud!

There were Eleen, Renee, Pauline, Lu, me + Bryce, Clifford, Alan, 穎俊 at the spot. And we all ordered "Prime Rib"-- which I supposed is their featured dish! Although I wasn't really a fan of steak -- it only appeared as a large chunk of meat to me, it was pretty decent. And it's not so luxurious when it only happen once a year. I ordered red wine as well. The red wine made the meal even more tastier, so as the mashed potato and spinach. And best of all, it kept me in a better mood. The post-drink ecstasy lasted almost the entire Saturday. :p I guess I should get wine regularly from now.

煮飯大成功 ?!

自從從台灣回來之後，我就變得很不會煮飯。

煮起飯來，總是忙中有錯，比以前笨拙多了。(Clumsy?)
然後一邊罵自己一邊笨拙地繼續努力。今天也是，紅燒到一半的肋排，就這樣差點生生地燒乾在爐上。還好有即時搶救!青菜要丟下去炒，才發現沒有切段 =.= 就下鍋之後再用手撕成片。說好要上菜的時間，我大概遲到了一個小時才煮好。

不過不知道是我餓了還是如何，今天的新菜很好吃喲~
是紅燒豆腐。先把某種Giant mushroom切成丁，跟洋蔥碎碎扮炒，加上一點醬油香油糖水燜煮。然後把煎好的豆腐也一起紅燒。哇!隨便煮煮也這麼好吃。洋蔥排骨味道正常，小小白菜跟小魚一起炒也還不錯。飯煮的溼了點。溼溼的飯叫做"Mushy rice"，木須飯。不知道木須龍跟這有沒有關係。

煮了好吃的飯還是會很開心~

Happy Inauguration Day

今天是美國人舉目期待的就職日，歐巴馬先生上任。11點半，不能不趕集的跟大家一起看著大大Apple螢幕上的轉播。實質、理想的與歷史傳承的，都概括在典禮之中了。:)

昨天買了一塊非常棒的東西。是Hershey's ALL natural EXTRA DARK chocolate with Cranberries, Blueberries & Almonds　無法抗拒巧克力加上各式水果的組合，充滿了Energy(?/Calories)中午買午餐的時候，開心的碰到了Roberto，我見過最友善可愛的義大利人。（其實我也只認識他一個）想起第一學期的時候，我們曾經掙扎地一起為一門課奮鬥過，有特別的感情！

昨天也是MLK日，是國定假日。家裡熱熱鬧鬧的舉行了晚餐。Nikhil (Our new semi-roomate, Irene's bf) 邀請了他的朋友Rachel & （名字待補）。呵呵我們其他人順理成章湊熱鬧。餐後到Bryce家看電影，真是過節呢我們。然後我們看了JU-ON2 (ohhhhhhhh) 還有Ｔhai Warrior（Tony Jaa好帥好能打)。看Thai Warrior讓我不停哀叫（其實是）尖叫+吼叫，因為實在太擔心主角會被打死。好暴力！佛祖在看呢，信眾們卻為了充滿價值的佛像大打出手，真諷刺。咒怨的話，我還真不知道該說什麼好，不是鬼片專家。

雪雪雪

繼前幾日的-15C 大魔王來襲之後，今天的氣候真是宜人。我想大約是零度左右，因為下雪了，鵝毛般的雪花飄呀飄，覆滿了大地。好刺激。有別於十二月第一場雪紛飛的落了一小時不到，今天的雪挺持續，圍牆上人行道，都積了一層厚厚大約有半公分，邊緣卻巧妙圓融的齊整的雪層。

從Giant走回家的路上，世界都不一樣起來。獨棟小木屋立在潔白的天地中，比平常更顯得如童話。窄路邊的小樹叢，也不再陰陰暗暗遮著光線，俏皮的小雪團参差地覆蓋其上；細細的放射狀的針葉，凝著小雪珠的顆粒;嫣紅的紅果實和地上的松果，若隱若現浮在雪裡。世界真的單純畫一，只有建築物與樹木。傍晚四點的一絲絲陽光照著我以前的家，和藍天。

Cuteness

周杰倫 不能說的秘密 MV [完整清晰版]

其實,我喜歡不能說的秘密>

小巴小巴

昨天看了The Express，黑人football player Ernie Davis的故事。非常鼓舞~

剛回家，還是要適應一下~ 此外就是渾身起的毛˙毛感，總覺得有太多事情要作，在畢業之前。應該是為了畢業!

年初去了花蓮，是爸爸媽媽也同行的旅行喔! 冬天的花蓮像北海道，休耕的稻田種滿了花，油菜花、向日葵與大波斯菊，花田散落在縱谷上。我們還去三仙台，強勁的海風吹呀吹，我們不畏艱難，跋涉過了八拱橋，到了三仙台三仙頂。(其實是二仙頂!) 燈塔上看海，感覺真是不同! 遠處浪花拍打岩石，碎成了無數條密密的小瀑布。

縱谷旁的兩座山脈鬱然挺立，陽光照射出流麗線條。小wish與Lexus穿行其中，也是件幸福事呢!

很開心有這個家人+朋友的旅行!