A FRIEND IN NEED IS A FRIEND INDEED.  Humans have always been social animals, we depend so much on each other for help and support that our lives intertwine in the most unique ways. Lots of the time, we think that we are better off alone. But then eventually we realize that it is not realistic because we need so many outside help it is virtually impossible for us to survive alone.

*** MEDICAL ALERT ***

DURING THE MORNING URGENT CARE CLINIC,  my friend in need came in the form of an attending, Dr. TJ. After my not so good experience at the Endocrine clinic last week, I’m really fortunate to have Dr. TJ asking me to stay at the Urgent Care Clinic instead. I was really lucky to be able to see an impetigo case (which is like an infection of the skin) and a hand-foot-mouth baby (which is a disease causing rashes at those three body parts).

In RGP this afternoon, an angelic friend, Beth, offered me the chance to shadow under her. Although she’s an intern, and given the fact that she is not too familiar with the clinic, she allowed me in and taught me a lot. I even got the chance to take histories and examine the babies myself. One interesting thing we saw today was a daddy bringing in his healthy cute 4 year old boy. His 12 year old sister is also here, and she is totally like his mini-mum, telling us details about the feedings and daily schedule of his brother. This boy IS cute. He barely speaks English (they are Brazilians), but he answers every question with a enthusiastic ‘Yes!’. He smiles all the time, and is super cooperative, until the point that I want to take him home. His sister is a good role model, taking care of him like he were her own child. Daddy is also a great guy, and I believe they have a great relationship at home.

***  END OF MEDICAL ALERT ***

I WAS HOOKED UP WITH SOME OF THE TZUCHING YOUTH VOLUNTEERS HERE, and I must say that I’m really excited about meeting them. After a much heated discussion about where to meet, we decided in the end to picnic at the Central Park, while listening to a free Lang Lang concert. I was pretty surprised at the huge crowd they have there. It was as though it rained and suddenly humans popped out wherever there is soil.

Everyone bought something. There were homemade guacamole and chips, sushi, lemonade, plenty of fruits, salads and an assortment of many other things. We settled down on a good spot, chatted a little and waited for the music to start. After almost an hour into the conversation, it looks like the concert started without us knowing. Did we hear anything? Nada. There’s people talking, babies crying, dogs barking, but do we hear music? Nada. We then realized that our ‘perfect’ spot was way too far from the speakers, hence the silence. We continued our eating and talking and it turned out to be quite a fulfilling evening, with or without the music.

So, thank you to Eugenie, the teacher at Bronx who teaches music; to TLee,who goes to college near my subway stop to hospital; to Anny, the ‘youngest’ phD student of us all; to her mother, who was totally cool and hip in any standards; to Nancy, the girl who flash animate things; to Candy, who did not visit much of NY yet; to Grace, who is very talented in design; to Rong Rong, who will be a professional singing teacher someday; to the couple Lei and Jimmy and their cute baby Nana, they are such a happy family. Thanks to the friends who helped made my evening amazing! With cool new friends like these, who needs Lang Lang anyway?