being part of the 3% of the population is hard

My big goal of February was to donate blood. I came back from the ordeal. Obviously I'm OK...since I'm typing away. But I am going to throw a temper tantrum. Sally got to see my first one when she picked me up-- I burst into tears as I babbled about the experience. My mom and Tina/Gene experienced it via telephone (a more subdued version). I shall throw my last temper tantrum via blog. Perhaps exaggerate and add some drama.

This blog entry is going to take forever to write because of my band-aid. Apparently, three out of 100 Americans donate blood. I bragged to Suah that I was going to be part of 3%...not 97%. I like how the sticker they gave me says "I make a difference," rather than "I made a difference."

So I went into the private little cubicle for my mini-physical. I miscalculated when I had traveled to Korea and Japan when she asked if I had been out of the US/Canada in the last twelve months. When she entered that I had gone to Korea...a malaria alert (for SOUTH KOREA) popped up. She said due to risk of malaria, I couldn't give blood. I keep forgetting S. Korea is so ghetto.... bahs. I told her I misspoke and that it had been more than thirteen months. She gave me a stern look and asked if I was 100% sure. I told her I was 100% positive.

So that was a minor hurdle. The major hurdle was...according to the "nurse," the size of the "veins I brought" her. She gave up on my right arm quickly. Then she searched for a vein on my left arm. She looked worried and then saw my panic. She said, "Honey, it's not that you don't have veins...it's just that they're tiny!" She brought another woman for a "second opinion" and they discussed the state of my veins without taking into consideration that I could hear their discussion. I especially did not appreciate when she said to the other woman, "I might want to try this one...but it's the size of the needle." Um...I have a high threshold for pain (people who give me facials always tell me so), but like Sally, once you express something I can visualize, I go nuts. Panic set in.

I wanted to shout, "I don't need to make a difference! I don't want to! Let me out!" But I just closed my eyes shut as she inserted the needle into my vein. (Later my mom and Gene told me that it probably wasn't my vein that was problematic...but the "nurse's" lack of expertise at finding veins...and unfamiliarity with Asian ppl's bodies). I think she used a bad vein. After awhile, the blood didn't seem to flow out...so she added a lot of pressure to my arm...to squeeze my blood-juice out like an orange. Yuck. I totally felt like an orange.

The last time I gave blood was when I was a junior in high school (7-8 years ago!). I fainted. Back then I had a "high school sweetheart" who came and held my hand as I laid there like an invalid. I was horrified that I had fainted...but also horrified that he was there because I had not washed my hair that day. I remember that feeling of shame so well. Minor detour. Funny how that is one of my fondest memories of that year.

After I was done, the woman escorted me...but I became faint. She let me lay down and put a brown paper bag over my mouth. After awhile, I was totally fine. But it was such an emotionally overwhelming experience. Just because of that one phrase..."the size of the needle." VOM.


I called Sally and asked her to pick me up at the law school. I sat on the steps...and out came Judith and Tad. It was so nice to see familiar faces. They worried about me and told me to go inside since it was cold. But I stayed outside...and when Sally came, I jumped into the car...and burst into tears!

That is all.

great thing about being single: None.

sad thing about being single: no one holds your hand when you're throwing a temper tantrum...!

lazy sundays

Sally and I decided to give up on our ambitious dream of attending the 9:29am service. Instead of being let down every Sunday by our laziness, we made the decision to shoot for the 11:11am service. Goals that are obtainable are wonderful.

Pastor Steve Hayes is actually...really wonderful. He might be my number 2 after Tim Keller < 3 .
random thought #1: as I've been watching a lot of movies/dramas starring Miura Haruma, I've decided that male actors (or maybe, all males) peak (looks-wise) at age 17-20. After that, it's pretty much downhill (probably true of females). I've realized how old I am by noticing that these new and coming actors (in Japan, Korea, ...the US) are all younger than me. They have these blossoming careers...and they're all younger than me. Woes.

random thought #2: I don't believe in being born again (except in the Christian-context), but if given the choice of choosing which gender to be born again in...I would definitely 100% choose to be born as a male.

great thing about being single: (borrowed and modified) I don't have to go to places where I don't want to go...and/or I don't have to wait for someone to finish looking at a painting (it always takes me less than 1 hour to view the entire collection of most museums).

sad thing about being single: (borrowed and modified) I don't get that somebody's perspective on a painting, movie, or...whatever. Also, I have yet to see Avatar. No movie dates (actually, this might be due to being in school rather than being single).

what I will do on V-day: I will go see Avatar on my own. It will be the first time I go see a movie on my own!

Every Sunday, I regret how I wasted Friday, Saturday...and most of Sunday. When will I learn?

buffets < / 3

I woke up this morning (10am?) to a text from Tina. We arranged to eat lunch at Raja Rani's. I think we're both sick of the Asian restaurants on S. University St. (except, I think we should start eating at those places again). I went back to sleep and then woke up again just in time to make it to lunch. Sally and I walked there-- which I regretted when I saw parking spots at the restaurant. The walk was so cold! We were fashionably late...about 2 minutes?

When we got there, there was a lunch buffet going on. The last time I went to a buffet was at Bellagio during winter break...our family vowed to never go to a buffet again. The buffet is in the beginning an attractive alternative to the menu (especially this one since it was dirt cheap!)...but after awhile, because I was eating so many different types of food, I felt like a trash chute at the end. Too many different types of food becoming sloppy soup in my stomach.

Here are pictures! The pictures look much nicer than the taste. But I did satisfy my Indian food craving. I have recommitted to never participate in a buffet ever again.




plate 1




plate 2




love these Indian donuts!

The three of us walked back and Tina invited us over for a tasting of her ice-cream. It was pretty fabulous, I had to admit.

Two random pictures:




Stalking Dr. Kim





My favorite drink at Starbucks. Shaken Iced Tea Lemonade - unsweetened, passion tea...maybe one of my top 5 favorite drinks in the world.


great thing about blogging everyday: I am forced to account for every single day ... even really dull ones (I spent most of today sleeping).

bad thing about blogging everyday: Added stress in my life.

to my huge readership: sorry about the shredded old passport picture. < 3

my old passport came back!

Ugh! My old passport picture came back! (please refer to this post for details of what's wrong with the old passport). Liz was right. They send it back to you with two holes punched into it.



For those who have requested to see my "terrorist-looking" picture, here it is:



Leave it to your imagination. But even with my face covered, you can tell that this is a terrible, terrible picture.

In other news, the state of Michigan sent me the following letter:



I had filed my tax returns...and Michigan, I think...thought I was too poor to afford heating. My 2009 income probably shocked them. So they gave me a $215 credit! But they also didn't trust me with the money...so instead of sending it to me via tax refund, they sent it directly to the gas company. Hilarious. Michigan cares about me. They don't want me to freeze to death. <3 As for burning my old passport...I am having second thoughts. Instead, I will shred it! I can't afford the possibility of setting the whole apartment on fire!

thinking a lot

I'm thinking too much to have anything clever(?) or coherent to say today. So here are pictures of my desk area!

First picture: 2007 in my Water St. dorm at NYU




Second picture: 2010 in my room, today at Ann Arbor.



Not much has changed. I like the LSAT timer in my picture from 2007. I took the LSAT when the timer was banned! Same picture from Far East 2004 in both desk areas.


current thought (not random): I have two areas of law I'm interested in. There's a saying in Korean that if you chase two rabbits...you end up not being able to capture either. More on my pondering later. But I do want to end up in Washington, DC. I think.

great thing about being single: I can be emotionally promiscuous...emotionally unfaithful? I don't owe emotional loyalty to any boy as far as I know. No one expects emotional fidelity from me! Please send me a pigeon with a message if I owe you any emotional loyalty. I'd like to know!

sad thing about being single: while it could be stifling...loyalty in a committed relationship might be not a negative thing at all.

I no longer look like a terrorist in my passport picture!

I renewed my passport and got it in the mail today. My previous passport hadn't expired yet. I had three years left before I had to get a new one...but I had to get a new one for different reasons. I totally looked like a terrorist in my passport picture from 2003. I was having an awful day when my mom dragged me to take that picture. I didn't even try to look half-decent. It was a disgusting picture. I was so embarrassed of it every time I went through customs. I had to hide it from my friends when we traveled together. Nick asked me to post it on my blog. I would never ever do something like that. Plus, I had to send it in to get my new one! Hopefully the government burned it.



You know when you see people missing or dead and on the news? Sometimes the most unflattering pictures are used. Your passport picture is semi...the most official picture the government has of you. So if I were to commit a crime while my old passport was in effect...or if I was abducted by the North Koreans, people would so use that terrorist-looking picture of mine. If I died...it would be that picture too. I know this is ridiculous but for some reason, that is not how I want to be remembered or talked about. It's not quite vanity. It's just that...that picture was extremely ridiculously unflattering. So yay! New picture. I look mad chubs and snippy in it but I don't look like a terrorist!!

free lunches < 3

so I'm actually not a cheap person...or at least I don't think I am. I like spending money on myself and on people. Generally. But sometimes, there are moments when my cheapness surprises me. For instance, I love to attend meetings of clubs that I don't belong to because they give free lunch. Today, I went to the Federalist Society's meeting to eat a Panera-box lunch. This was one of the best lunches I've had at a club meeting. A whole Panera sandwich, a huge cookie, and a bag of chips! That club must be so rich! APALSA could never afford to feed the mass such an expensive lunch!

So as everyone knows, there is no such thing as a free lunch. In order to enjoy this lunch, I had to listen to a constitutional law scholar (I think he was one) talk about the Constitution and what he thinks Obama thinks about the Constitution. I'm sure he was knowledgeable and renown in his field but his delivery didn't quite capture my attention. Because I have some sense of shame and duty, I try to stay and listen to the whole spiel during these type of lunch meetings even if the speakers are boring and I'm done eating. If there's one thing I don't like, it's people who don't keep formalities. Even though my main motivation for attending the meeting was free lunch, I wanted to at least sit there for as long as possible and hear out the message. Thankfully, today I had a reason to leave early-- CLASS! Last time, my sister ditched me after finishing her pizza while I stayed to listen to a really boring speaker talk on and on and on. For a slice of pizza.

Also, another instance when I know I'm being uber-cheap...my inability to spend money on post-its. After having worked, I cannot bring myself to purchase post-its. They were free and abundant at work! I always tab my textbook with post-its when I'm at the library...because those post-its are free! How do people spend real money on post-its? Strange.


great thing about being single: I can have many male friends. I can also have crushes on professors without feeling weird (sort of).

sad thing about being single: after my male friends get girlfriends or go on dates, I have to make sure their girlfriends/dates think I'm either asexual/interested in someone else/unattractive in order to escape any possibility of wrath. Or...stay away from the male friend until he's single again. Girls are insane. Every girl thinks every other girl has a crush on their boyfriend.