SFMA

In an attempt to remember more things, I've decided to write about them. That way, the information may go through one ear and out the other, but at least it'll go to the brain as well!

Today was our first "brown bag lunch" (guest speakers are invited to share about a topic of choice). SFMA, or Selective Functional Movement Assessment is a physical exam used to detect a person's functional stability and mobility in a few quick and easy steps. Apparently it is the hot new thing; even Real Madrid is using it. The patient goes through a series of movements, each rated functional (can be completed) or dysfunctional, and with pain or w/o pain. If the patient cannot bend over and touch his toes, the PT will use a flow chart to determine if it's mobility vs. stability, and the muscles involved: hamstrings, gluts, core, etc that is the culprit. Ex: If the patient had hamstring tightness, "reciprocal inhibition" (toes on towel roll to stretch the gastroc/soleus, knees squeezing towel roll) is used to fire the quads and core, and relax the hamstrings. Miraculously! said patient now can touch his toes. Albeit, he still needed to stretch to relieve that hamstring tightness.

And voila. SFMA taught in 30 seconds. The workshops take 15 hours...maybe one of these days.

In other news, fall break just ended. With FYI & HCC, we made over 20 mini-pizza's and 300 dumplings. Food coma. :)

A Poem

Carrie and Mindy surprised me right before my first anatomy written exam with their encouraging and humorous good-luck package. :)

Mindy's Poem titled "SMART"

Bart would say don't start with a fart.

He would say do your part, throw it in the cart,

Do your art, throw it like a dart,

You're as smart as a tart and close to our heart!

P.S. If confused by words of wisdom, consult creator.

A weekly highlight is our roomie dinners :) Things made thus far:

-Chocolate Beet Cake w/ cream cheese frosting by Carrie

-Enchilada's with white sauce by Mindy

-Vietnamese Spring Rolls by Tracy

-Enchilada's with green sauce by Kelly

-Chicken & Stir Fried Veggies by Me

MMMMMMMMmmmmmmmmmmm

Physical Therapy

It'll be the 1 month mark since I've moved up here this Friday.

Things I am grateful for here @ UPS:

• my supportive, goofy, lovely, smart roommates & our dinners together
• walking 20 minutes to/from campus
• my 35 other classmates- so kind! as well as 2nd years
• intramural volleyball
• intervarsity fellowship
• dragon boat racing
• living 1 block from the grocery store
• studying w/ cadavers!
• living 1 hr away from home - so near :)
• remembering God is good in all times

Our Lord's Prayer

"Our Father in heaven, may your name always be kept holy. May your kingdom come and what you want be done, here on earth as it is in heaven. Give us the food we need for each day. Forgive us for our sins, just as we have forgiven those who sinned against us. And do not cause us to be tempted, but save us from the Evil One." - Matthew 6:9-13

Praise: Jesus' prayer begins with thanks for who God is.
Petition: Jesus requested help by sharing personal needs.
Confession: Align ourselves more with God.

Prayer is simply asking God to play an active role in your life. Share with God and ask Him to make your will more like His.

In other news, Selina, Richard and I went on a short trip to beautiful Victoria B.C. I have a soft spot towards that place, because it's always been so relaxing, beautiful, and hilarious. I experienced high tea, fish & chips, a high-larious street show, and good conversation. :)

Summer Happenings

I cannot believe my 6 months of vacation is almost over and school will be about to start. Everything fell into place in regards to school. The school, the housing + roommates search went smoothly.

This past month at home has been trying, both emotionally and personally. Emotionally for my mother as she saw her father go into the hospital time and time again to get treatment. God has provided though, in that He has made the treatment free and more importantly, He has given my grandpa a second chance of life. Personally, my relationship with my little cousin has taught me how impatient, un-loving and shallow I can be towards those that are very different physically. I am trying to be less superficial and reach out, because what is it that makes us deserving of Jesus' love?

Summer in Recap:

-Cassandra & Matt got married! (professional photos coming) & the trip to Beth's Cafe to follow with HCC

-Zoo & Aquarium with Mei

-Scavenger Hunt with HCC

-too many awesome games of ultimate frisbee

-Bachelorette Party

-Hiking Mt. Si (I'm officially a Washingtonian now :D )

-Getting to know my regulars by name & actually establishing relationships with them

-Celebrating Grandpa's birthday for the first time & seeing the joy on his face

July 4th Week-end

I haven't spent more than a few minutes on the Burke Gilman trail in my 4 years @ UW. Sheepish no more! On July 4th, HCC went on a 25 mile bike ride from UW to Redmond, a BBQ @ Gary & Amy's and a fireworks show in Bellevue.

On July 5th, not quite recovered, our family & John's family went to Lake Chelan and Leavenworth. It is amazing how fast time has past. I realized our family has not travelled together in over 3 years, and I appreciated the time we had together. I especially liked that Alvin & I experienced our first jet ski-ing together, and that he enjoyed himself. He was afriad of getting wet, but the sunshine solved that problem very quickly. With every jump and huge splash, with every laugh...I was happy. Leavenworth was quaint and I enjoyed the beer and bratwurst. I think we all did. :)

Summer

School is OUT.

I get to spend quality time with those I love. :)

Lately, I have been thinking of the gifts He has blessed us with. I have spoken with the junior highers about the body of Christ, and told them that we are designed to be different parts (hands, feet, mouth, heart) in order to effectively reach others. However, it didn't dawn on me that I should apply these concepts to my life as well. This ministry has taught me humility, when to be serious and when to let go, and that if something can go wrong it will, so do not stress out about it.

Draw near to the Lord and remember His words; it has strengthened me when I was weakest, and verses memorized months back may not seem applicable then, but may be now.

"What does the Lord your God require of you but to fear the Lord, to walk in His ways, to love Him, to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul, and to obey his commandments." Deut 10:12

Summer To Do List

When I finish my 15 page Hepatitis B Virus Paper I will:

-get a new pair of glasses
-do PT hmwk
-buy an ICE-CREAM maker & make frozen yogurt!!!
-plan a biking trip
-read a lot of books
-spend time with family, freshly flown in from China
-sleep
-smile

Joy Day

Birthdays should also be called Joy Days.

J & M scoured the stores for an "out of season" flavor aka pumpkin cake and it tasted like love & friendship. So good.

J with the help of his baker gal friend made lovely little lemon cakes filled with pudding, in the shape of presents.

HCC prayed for me. It was emotional, and I felt so blessed to absorb these prayers.

In the evening, we had a mother-daughter date night to Swan Lake. I love the ballet because you just have to watch the faces and actions of the dancers to understand their story.

On Monday, I woke up to the special parental birthday card. Alvin bought a scrumptious chestnut cake. D made a pumpkin cheesecake. It was nom nom.

My 22nd year has been good to me thus far.

Nutrition

As a future health care worker, I really need to get these down, for my patients sake and for my own as well. This information is summarized from Nutrition for Life.

• Lipids:
  

Made of C, H, O. Include fats. Good fats =unsaturated fats. Mono-unsaturated fats 1) raise the level of High-Density Lipoproteins (HDL), aka "good cholesterol," which carry cholesterol from the tissues back to the liver. 2) develop less free radicals when heated, during cooking. Free radicals damage cells/tissues->disease.

Poly-unsaturated fats include Omega-3 & Omega-6 essential fatty acids.

Lipids form cell membranes, are a good energy source, aid in insulation and absorption of fat soluble vitamins from foods.

• Protein:

Made of C, H, O, N. Every cell in the body, whether it be apart of the bones, skin, muscles, organs has its own unique set of proteins that help it perform its necessary functions. Proteins provide cell: structure, growth, repair, maintenance. It can be an enzyme, hormone, antibody, etc.

Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins. 9/20 AA are essential. Essential=body cannot self-synthesize.

• Carbohydrates:

Made of C, H, O...chains of sugar molecules. Great source of energy. Glucose used by most cells, including brain cells for energy. Used to build the nonessential amino acids, process fats, build cartilage, bone, nervous system tissues.

Simple carbohydrates have 1-2 sugar molecules. Monosaccharides (ex: glucose-in blood, fructose-in fruits, galactose-in dairy). Disaccharides (ex: sucrose, lactose-in milk)

Complex carbohydrates, aka polysaccharides include starch-in potatoes, glycogen-body's stored energy source, dietary fiber.

Dietary fiber is obtained solely from plants. Soluble fiber (dissolves in water) slows the breakdown of complex carbs; blood has less dramatic sugar spikes and you feel fuller longer. It binds cholesterol to the stool thereby reducing cholesterol levels.

Insoluble fiber is not easily absorbed by the body. It cleans the GI tract and promotes regular bowel movements, by drawing water into the stools, making them larger and easier to pass.

• Vitamins:

Naturally occuring chemicals, found in all foods. Essential for normal growth/development, and for chemical reactions in the body. Processes proteins, carbs, fats; builds cells/tissues/organs.

Some vitamins are antioxidants (neutralizers of free radicals).

Ex: Vit A, Riboflavin, Niacin, Folate, Vit E.

• Minerals:

Found in rocks, plants (b/c they uptake soil), meat (b/c they eat plants). Aid in make/break body tissues, regulating metablosim (body's chemical reactions). Stored in bones and readily released during dietary deficiencies.

Ex: Calcium, Phosphorus, Zinc.

• Phytochemicals:

Protective chemicals found in plants. Decrease risk of heart disease, diabetes, certain cancers. Similar to antioxidants.

Ex: carotenoids, flavonoids, lycopene, phenols.

• Sources of All of the Above:
  

1. Bread/cereal/grain: contains valuable source of carbohydrates and fiber

2. Vegetables: vital source of vitamins, minerals, fiber

3. Fruits: good source of carbohydrates, fiber, vitamins, phytochemicals

4. Milk/dairy: important source of protein, vitamins, minerals (esp Ca2+)

5. Protein sources (like meat, poultry, fish, plant proteins-peanuts): for protein's sake!

My Happiness includes Food

Spring Break 2009:

• First Greyhound bus ride to visit C and her cooking. Worth it
• Successfully made crispy crust pizza w/ JJ. Woot! ..made me nostalgic for NYC
• Musashi. Trophy Cupcakes. Laughing it up with SY
• My favorite chewy rye bread @ Cheesecake Factory with high school buds
• Talking about God with little J while celebrating big J's bday
• Brother treating me to Cafe Ori :)
• Listening to the quiet crackley crust of a baguette @ Pike Place, with HCC.
• Hanging out w/ YH for the first time. A brief hike & making ice-cream sandwiches

A Season to Read

Spring Quarter started yesterday, but I am not taking any classes. I finally have a butt load of time on my hands to do whatever I please, which is mainly to stuff my mind with books that I actually want to read.

SY gave me the book The Complete Human Body over Christmas. The basal or bottommost layer of skin has the Melanocyte skin cells. These cells produce Melanin: the pigment that absorbs UV and determines skin/hair color. Melanin gets packaged into structures called Melanosomes which travel to the epithelial or uppermost layer (visible to the naked eye) and settle in comfortably. The more Melanosomes & Melanin you have, the darker your skin.

However, if you're fair skinned, you may, evolutionarily speaking have adapted to protect yourself from repeated sun exposure by FRECKLING!

Severely burned patients are threatened by dehydration -> kidney failure, I believe because the lack of skin allows water to evaporate? Scientists take 3cm or less of a patient's healthy tissue and grow it on a sheet of fabric, that'll dissolve when placed over the wound. In T minus 3o days, enough "new" skin is grown to cover the whole body. This is a Cultured epithelial autograft (CEA).

In HCC, PJ brought up a profound point. Evolution is a purposeless set of actions over a long period of time. It has no sense of good or evil. It has selected species based on their genetic predisposition. But where does our sense of purpose...our conscience come from? These things cannot have come from nothing. These things come from our Creator.

PJ is also pushing the limits of our philosophical thinking by engaging us in The Four Loves by C.S. Lewis. I found my copy in the used book-store Magus, on the Ave...almost had a sneezing fit from the musty smells. Climbed on a small stool to reach the uppermost bookshelf, and did not see it. Said a brief prayer, and saw, hidden from direct view, stacked on top of the other books the one I coveted. God is good. :)

Living an Authentic Faith

"When God's cooking, you do not need to stir the pot."

"Honor God and He'll honor you."

Am I reading the Bible for myself? Am I willing to commit, and have a genuine relationship with God, to provide me the strength to withstand all opposition, distress and temptation?

These are the things PL asked us to ponder on this snowy Sunday morning.

I have many distractions in my life. I want to de-clutter, and wean off: People.com, blog surfing and facebook. I want to consistently do Daily Devotions, talk to my family members more, and start walking...because Spring is almost here!

Trust & Obey

I worry, I struggle and I fret about my future. Such are the woes of a college senior.

At the end of the day, getting down and sincerely praying is the only thing that's important, because He rules. Monday morning, as usual, I was doing all of the unneccessary things listed above...I love it when the Daily Bread addresses exactly what's on my mind. "Consecration is not the giving over of the calling in life to God, but the separation from all other callings and giving over of ourselves to God, letting his providence place us where He will." Instead of praying about grad school, I prayed that He would use me as he saw fit.

God is humorous.

I got a call within the hour, telling me I'd been accepted to grad school. Here I was in the clinic, crying tears of joy, scolding myself for crying at the clinic of all places, and I forgot to thank God first...He was third or fourth on the list. I have much to learn, and much to prioritize. However, I am grateful and humbled, and look forward to three more years of school...especially the cadaver's...I have been waiting so long to appreciate the human body in its fullness.