South Beach Miami & Orlando

  My gf Vy and Me at South Beach Miami

Her and Me sipping on a drink at South Beach Miami

Vy and Me with our friends Leo and Heather at the Delano Hotel in South Beach Miami

Once again Leo, Heather, Vy, and Me at the Delano South Beach Hotel

Vy and Me with my friend, Kristine, and her boyfriend, Cat, at Club Mansion in South Beach Miami

Roshni, Kristine, Me, Vy, and Sandra at Club Mansion in South Beach

Vy and Me at South Beach

Vy and Me at Disney World Magic Kingdom

Vy and Me in Fort Lauderdale after riding the Jungle Queen tour boat

Vy and Me in Fort Lauderdale in front of the real Curious George

Me and Vy at Downtown Disney

Vy and Me on a boat tour in Fort Lauderdale

Me and Vy at my favorite restaurant in South Beach, Emeril's

Vy and Me with her all-time favorite character Eeyore at Magic Kingdom... why is Eeyore always so sad?!

Me and Vy with the Lego family at Disney World

Me and Vy at Dolce Vita in South Beach

Me and Vy at Mansion in South Beach before Ashlee Simpson's performance

Me and Vy in front of Disney World Magic Kingdom

Vy and Me at Magic Kingdom

Vy and Me in front of Universal Studios

Vy and Me posing with Jaws at Universal Studios

Vy's artwork at South Beach

Me at the Deauville Hotel in South Beach after a night of partying

Gotcha!... This is Vy after getting splashed with water by me

  This is Vy noticing that she's about to get splashed with water

Our view of the Atlantic Ocean from our hotel room at the Deauville Hotel in South Beach Miami... The Atlantic Ocean was right outside our room

Where we watched Ashlee Simpson perform

Me with my two best buddies, Rob and Alex, and with my twin brother, Jason, in Houston

David, Me, Shawn, and Vy in Houston... The New and Improved 4 Horsemen (with Vy replacing Alex)!

Me and Vy at a party in Houston

Me and Vy in Austin with my little cousins, James and Justin

7:30 AM at her place… Gotcha Sleepy-head!... Vy… after the alarm clock went off, the cell phone alarm rang, and various attempts by me to wake her up in time for her clinics. I even took her pillows away! It takes her an hour and a half to get ready, and 30 minutes to drive there. Her clinics start at 8:00 AM… I’m no mathematician, but it doesn’t add up!

And finally, Vy and Me at Deco in Houston...  El Fin.

My girlfriend Vy is in the same optometry class as my twin brother Jason, but no, I did not meet her through Jason.  I met her 4 years ago in Biometrics class in undergrad.  Yet not until now did we know that we were meant for each other!

The little patient with the precious, lovely eyes...

In all seriousness, today, I had the chance be in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the Texas Children's Hospital with a neonatologist.  The ICU there was not the feeling of any other ICU.  It was of brilliant colors across the walls and a general amicable atmosphere.   Plus, there were little babies everywhere!  But the little infant that I will remember most is a tiny, little girl.  The baby was three weeks old and born a premie, at less than a pound.  She had Trisomy 18 and almost all the classical clinical manifestations of it: facial dysmorphology, scalp and skin defects, loud heart murmur, and it was as if her miniature arms and legs were all in spirals.  Still, she was so beautiful in my eyes.  It's so much different from seeing a patient first hand then actually studying and seeing pictures from a book.  The known morality rates for patients with Trisomy 18 are: 30% death by 1st month, 50% death by 2 months, and 90% death by 1 year.  The doctors estimated that the baby would live no longer then 2 more weeks.  After knowing this, all I could do was look into her precious, lovely eyes.

While I was preparing to leave to go home, the alarm code sounded off and white light started to flash across the ICU, and I asked the doctor what was occurring.  She explained to me that this emergency code indicates that a baby in the unit is in a very critical position that could be lost at any second.  I see almost tears starting to flow in her eyes.  I know it still hits her hard even now after many years whenever she loses a patient.  Instantly, I see about five people run towards the noise to attend to the miniature patient, and the doctor tells me, "I think I know who the patient might be, and this time, he probably can not be saved."  As the people scamper into the background, I think to myself of all the future innocent patients whose lives I will not be able to save.  Then, however, I realize the opportunity of being involved with the most intimate aspects of people, their fears and hopes, in addition to caring for their well-being is truly special and worthwhile.  Then as I walk off, I think to myself that I will see that little, beautiful girl, with those precious, lovely eyes, again the next time I'm scheduled here in one month.