fishskinfreak2008 on HubPages

OVERCOMING OBSTACLES

I believe that I’ve overcome many obstacles in my life. My very first obstacle occurred early in life as I wasn’t able to stand independently until the age of 3 and I wasn’t able to walk until the age of 5 as I had a disease called hydrocephalus, which affects mobility and fine & gross motor skills. When I was born in Shanghai, China on February 19, 1982, my head was unusually large, but doctors in Shanghai didn’t know why. I guess this was because of their conservative attitude as they only believed in traditional Chinese herbal medicines. Unfortunately, those medicines didn’t work and the doctors thought that I wouldn’t make it. However, I never gave up on myself. In 1985, I was fortunate enough to be able to join my dad who had been admitted to the Ph.D. program at Case Western Reserve University. There was a wonderful doctor there named Dr. Nelson, who is the founder of the cure for hydrocephalus. He didn’t perform my surgery because he was in his 70s by the time I went to Cleveland, but he had a medical intern, Dr. Mapstone, who had recently received his MD degree. Dr. Mapstone, with Dr. Nelson supervising, performed the surgery with precision. After the operation, I was able to leave the hospital after only 2 days instead of having to stay there for 1 week, thanks to my great appetite. According to dad, immediately after I woke up from the anesthesia of the surgery, I said “Dad, I’m hungry”. Since it was after 2300 (11:00 PM) when I came off the operating table, the doctors and nurses told me that the hospital cafeteria had already stopped serving hot food and that there were only cold cuts of turkey left over from dinner service. So they brought me some cold turkey and to the surprise, delight & amazement of everyone around me, I gobbled up the turkey like a tiger as I had to fast (no food or fluids) for more than 10 hours before the operation. I was able to leave the hospital after just 3 days since my appetite was so good after the surgery. After I went home, I went through an extensive period of rigorous physical & occupational therapy in order to gain some basic skills. This was done both at home & in school through basic activities such as counting candies & cookies to learn numbers. The reward was that I could eat my lecture if I did well which was reward enough for a 4-year-old.

My experiences at Sha Tin College were positive for the most part. I enjoyed Year 9 camp, the 1997 Shenzhen trip (specifically visiting the McKee's Food Factory, supplier of McDonald's food!) and serving as class representative and graduation ball committee member with Pippa Low are experiences that I'll cherish for the rest of my life.

My strongest subjects during the course of my Associate Degree studies were economics, business and accounting, but these weren't the most enjoyable for me because throughout the process, I discovered that I was neither able nor willing to do everything alone. Of course, I tried (and I still try) to be courageous, but I realized that I needed friends with whom I could communicate with and "let off steam", whether positive or negative. For this reason, the most "enjoyable" subjects were American Literature, psychology, PE and speech. Of course, I liked accounting, business management and economics too, but that was based more on ability and aptitude than true enjoyment.

The second instance of physical pain came in May, 2002 when orthopedic doctors decided that I would be able to walk better if my hamstrings & heel chords were fractionally lengthened. These muscles could only be lengthened a fraction because if they were fully lengthened surgically, I would have been so weak after the surgery that I wouldn’t have been able to stand up. The pain a few hours after the surgery was excruciating and I wouldn’t have gotten through if it weren’t for the wonderful medical personnel (doctors, nurses & physiotherapists) at the Prince of Wales Hospital, the teaching hospital of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. I actually asked the doctor in charge of my operation how weak I would be after the operation and he said “Weak” for a little while if I did enough rehab exercises and potentially “Very weak” if I didn’t do enough rehab or did improper rehab. So I did proper rehab like a madman and I’m “Strong” now. This was quite an accomplishment if we consider the fact that I could not bend my knees for approximately 6 weeks after the operation (I had the operation on May 24, 2002 and the cast stayed on until July 5, 2002). After July 5, 2002, for approximately 3 months along with extensive therapy at the hospital, I was allowed to bend my knees 20 degrees every week. I was able to walk independently by October, 2002. So I guess perseverance is another of my strongest assets.

So, to put everything in a nutshell, I believe that I can be "a spokesperson for the underdog" because I believe that heros are made, not born (all babies start out the same). Underdogs are the true heroes because oftentimes, they know exactly what they want and how to get it while remaining humble and I believe that I'm one of these people.

Recently (precisely, July 21), I came back from Shanghai where my paternal grandma is battling liver cancer. It was very difficult on that first day (June 30) to see her laying in that hospital bed with tubes everywhere in her body. Now, her condition has stabilized. Apparently, she has had this condition for over a year and she passed away on October 19, 2008 and it was even harder going to the funeral. That makes my relationships with everyone, hubbers in particular, even more meaningful.

I also believe that quality is more important than quantity. Some people may publish a hub simply BECAUSE it's their 100th hub. Well, I believe that what we write is far more important than HOW MUCH we write.

Yet another very important personal characteristic that I have is my ability to say "no" (I've written a hub article about this). I believe that occasionally saying "no" and not just accepting the status quo is beneficial as it challenges us to make things better, taking into account our strengths and weaknesses, of course. The important thing, however, is to do this constructively. 

In short, I believe that people should use their strengths when picking jobs. Some people might argue that we are/will be evaluated on our weakest points. To that person/those people, I pose this question: if this is truly the case, how can we deliver the goods (i.e. results)? Kobe Bryant wouldn't be doing too well if he couldn't play basketball and Ray Romano & Drew Carey would certainly not be flying as high without comedy. Also, we slow business down if we get into something or hire someone for work that they can't do. Therefore, it only makes sense to use our strengths while taking into account our weaknesses because if we can't do the work assigned to us, then it would become uneconomical and it wouldn't make sense for our bosses to carry on hiring us.

My interests include NCAA Football, baseball, basketball & astrology. I will publish blogs on the aforementioned topics as well as newsworthy events. I also enjoy watching reality TV shows, cooking shows & game shows, specifically, The Price is Right, Family Feud, Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy, Power of Ten, Yan Can Cook, Danny By the Sea, Jamie at Home, The Hairy Bikers, The Apprentice, Survivor, Project Runway and The Amazing Race. I believe passionately in analyzing news events, both American and Asian, particularly the stuff that's true and yet authorities don't want us to know. My favorite color is blue, my favorite foods are pizza and fried chicken and I hate using the microwave. 

What else? I provide English editing services at a reasonable price and so if you need any help with English, feel free to contact me by e-mail (ostrichfreak2009@gmail.com) and I'll be more than happy to help you. We can negotiate prices at the end of your project.

Basically, I believe that I am a "spokesperson for the underdog" because I've pretty much been an underdog my entire life and I've spent most of my 25+ years proving my critics wrong.

I'm just an average guy trying to make a difference/impact in people's lives. 

Another unique perspective that I have is that I don't rub salt into people's wounds. If I don't like somebody, I leave them alone, unless they bother me personally. Here's a simple example. The vast majority of us (including myself) are not gay. Personally, I don't agree with gay behavior and I'm not afraid to say that openly. So if I see two homosexuals walking down the street, am I going to tell them how wrong they are every time I see them? Of course not. Why? I don't agree with being gay, but I respect people who have made that choice/chosen that path. Life is too short to try to convince people who ADAMANTLY oppose us. Above all, people who disagree with us in principle are often very resistant to change. The only exception is when I see something that is CLEARLY wrong. Of course this is open to interpretation, both positive and negative. 

In other words, I am very independent minded. I do what's right. So I'm not exactly a conservative and I'm not exactly a liberal. Both sides have policies that I agree with and others that I don't agree with. Some liberals support gays, lesbians, bi-sexuals and transsexuals. That is something I strongly disagree with. But I accept the fact that some people may be/choose to be gay, lesbian, bi-sexual or transsexual. I RESPECT them even though I DISAGREE with them. On the other hand, the conservatives, both in the US and here in Hong Kong, have tried to play down the fact that we're in a deep economic slump. However, both sides have good ideals too. Obama has promised to get us out of the economic funk. Whether he can do this or not still remains to be seen, but his intentions are definitely good. On the other hand, the conservatives, both in Hong Kong and the US, continue to squabble when decisive action is needed. This cannot go on. There needs to be a mixture of strong government and liberalism/autonomy. So achieving the right balance is the key. 

Then there are certain people who deliberately cause trouble. Of course, the initial reaction is anger and annoyance, but then, I discovered something. I can either get REALLY angry (which doesn't help because certain people have the attitude 'This is the way I am and I'm not going to change'). So what does getting angry at these people achieve? Absolutely nothing. We can be reasonable and rationalize stuff until we're blue in the face and the next day, they'll annoy us with exactly the same activity again. Which brings us to the second option: JUST LET IT GO. FOR SOMEONE SITTING IN FRONT OF THE TV ALL DAY, IT IS A TRIVIAL ACTIVITY FOR WHICH THERE ARE SUBSTITUTES. AND THEY CAN'T SIT IN FRONT OF THE TV FOREVER. ALSO IT IS POINTLESS (all we're gonna get out of arguing with these kinds of people is more stress and inevitably hypertension). And life is too short anyway. So that's I ain't talking with them and I ain't negotiating with them either. 

Another thing is that I have a secret love/admiration for Filipino culture. OK, their political situation may be a mess right now with President Arroyo, but I have several Filipino friends who are resilient and some of the nicest people around.

What other interesting facts are there about me? I'm "single and available!" I'm open to online dating in any form (except pornography; intended for people in the US) and face-to-face contact (for people in Hong Kong). 

I gratefully acknowledge several professors whom I consider to be the best professors in the world, communication professors Nan Peck & Brenda Lewis-Holmes, American Lit Professor Jennifer Daniels, historical geology professor Erik Burtis (why don't you call yourself "Prof. Erik Burtis" instead of "Mr. Erik Burtis") and PE professor Dr. Allan Korolowicz (thanks for the humorous PE class) and the greatest friends in the world: Richard Ip, Janna Dichoso, Mike O'Connor, Julie Von, Dan Kanu, Emmanuel Awemu, Kim McCall and Jessie Firestone. They are undoubtedly the best friends that anyone could have or asked for. They loved me when I was up and even when on the darkest days (sorry for getting so emotional). Thanks also to those hubbers who have helped me out either by joining my fan club (thanks for appreciating the work of a rusty writer like me), giving me useful comments or e-mailing me and above all, thanks for all the love you showed me: Julianna Annette Evans (my "godmom"; thanks for adopting me), Patty Inglish, MS (thanks for believing in me), glassvisage (Sara Wright: you're a creative genius), Creativita, Shannon Clark, Shalini Gupta, Chef Jeff Tendick, Michelle Simtoco (Ripplemaker; you're like an aunt to me and you are an angel), Rhym O'Reison, Mike Quinlan, Tim Keeley (you can always get me to laugh at even the corniest complaints & jokes), Shalini Kagel, Fleurnegra (I appreciate your humor) and Dr. Benson Yeung (thanks so much for being my mentor) and Dr. Yeung's 3 kids: Bryce, Brent and Bronwyn (you guys are awesome). To be part of a group that includes all those wonderful people is just indescribable. ABOVE ALL, I JUST WANT TO SAY THANKS TO EVERYBODY ON MY FAN LIST AND ALL MY FRIENDS AS WELL FOR APPRECIATING WHAT I DO AND LOVING ME.