tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54948602011-04-21T14:53:45.705-04:00Alan's PageChronicles of travel tales and general exploits...with a side dish of complete fabrications.Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.comBlogger431100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1124428641091242032005-08-19T00:31:00.000-04:002005-08-19T01:17:21.146-04:00Spin:And there it is. It spins.And there it went."Where is my mind?", goes the song. Ideas free-floating and without substance start to stick onto a page. And now substance forms. The page organizes the soup. And the soup is always warm."...trouble expressing negative emotions," they say. Correct, says I. However, before you stamp it, playfully reconsider an alternate reality. Or better yet, Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1115008214579731142005-05-02T00:12:00.000-04:002005-05-02T00:31:00.386-04:00Strange But Not Awful:It has certainly been a while, I know. I have neglected you, my lovely blog, for months now, caught up in my own dealings and completely oblivious to the pain of the e-page gone unfilled. And here I am, coming back to your doorstep, begging for forgiveness, asking for another chance- again- and again and again and again. It seems that big exams drive me to you, when I am Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1107066682495318432005-01-30T00:41:00.000-05:002005-01-30T01:31:22.496-05:00Delirium Doo doo doo doo... 12:30 AM on a Saturday night and I've been at it all day. I guess technically it is Sunday morning, but who's counting at this point? My brain feels huge now, a heavy, dripping mass of knowledge, oozing facts out of each gyrus and sulcus like caramel out of a Rolo. Two tests stand between me and my first trip to Canada. Medicine on Monday and Pathology on WednesdayAlanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1105996916324678562005-01-17T15:20:00.000-05:002005-01-17T16:21:56.323-05:00Ritual : A light smattering of frost and snow peppers the small plot of grass outside of my house. It is 2:00 PM, but this is my first step outside today, and it's apparent that I've underestimated the weather. I immediately walk back into the house to grab my winter jacket; the Penn hooded sweatshirt won't be enough. Not today. I don't need earmuffs, not with my oversized headphones that more Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1105856457168455312005-01-16T01:09:00.000-05:002005-01-16T01:25:01.433-05:00Digital Comfort : Hey, it's familiar. The feel of it. The way the fingers move to their assigned places in a strange and inexplicably accurate feat of coordination. The blank space, now being filled, and growing smaller and smaller still. It comes out and is fluid and makes sense to me, to you- and here we are, author, reader, sharing a moment. We are in fact communicating, you and me. My Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1105591620984497952005-01-12T23:35:00.000-05:002005-01-12T23:48:40.206-05:00The Evolution of a Blog : Quick entry, I promise. So, I wanted this blog to be easier to navigate. For that end, I added a section on the right that lists the ten previous posts, so that you can just click on the post that you are interested in- rather than having to scroll through some that you've already read/don't want to read. It is currently still under construction. The way I like my Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1105482188912539152005-01-11T17:21:00.000-05:002005-01-12T23:24:25.426-05:00True Story : I wondered how much I cared for her. And then I wondered if it mattered... Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1105421975164917652005-01-10T23:02:00.000-05:002005-01-12T23:20:03.770-05:00Relate : So today, after a nice, relaxing shower that followed a very early dinner, I plopped onto my bed- hair in towel still- and proceeded to nap for over three hours. I write this now as I sip from a gargantuan cup of piping-hot mint tea. This glass was clearly not manufactured with warm beverages in mind, but I don't care; what I desire is the sheer volume of steaming liquid- lots of it- toAlanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1105325991258848622005-01-09T21:55:00.000-05:002005-01-12T23:24:41.156-05:00Comments : Whatever happened to people leaving comments? Would love to read your random thoughts...whoever you are! New posts or old... Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1105325732319160352005-01-09T21:15:00.000-05:002005-01-12T23:25:03.600-05:00Fortunate Christmas : Like any good fake Jew, this Christmas my mother and I stopped by a local Chinese restaurant in New York City for our holiday dinner. She doesn't really eat meat, but she cannot get enough of this particular place's Crispy Beef dish. Not possessing the most particular of palates, I went with good old faithful General Tso's, with an ribs appetizer- after all, I did want to Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1105226248537725362005-01-08T17:11:00.000-05:002005-01-12T23:25:20.586-05:00The Definition of a No-Show : Ola amigos. Your pal Alan is still little creaky, sight a little blurry, as if having woken up just moments ago. And he did wake up late today- very, very late, in fact... 2:45 PM-late to be precise. And now for your thoughts- how much did he drink last night? What strange adventure, what odd series-of-events is Alan about to indulge me with to explain why he enteredAlanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1101631417238819802004-11-28T03:09:00.000-05:002005-01-12T23:25:38.530-05:00Puff, or Poooof! : So I admit it, to you, just to you today kiddies- that I have absolutely no recollection of the last time that I last wrote to you on this forum. But that's not to say that I haven't written on my blog site, this actual blog recently. I just cannot remember. I feel like if I'd written recently I'd be able to recall that event- rather, when I picture the last time I sat here, Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1100671222275374032004-11-17T01:37:00.000-05:002005-01-12T23:25:57.066-05:00Nothing : For the record: nothing newsworthy. I have a test tomorrow I should be studying for right now and yet the motivation seems to be escaping me. Khemi came over today for no apparent reason. That was fun. We feasted on pork loins and marinated chicken for no apparent reason. That too was fun. I still have lots of boxes of Count Chocula. Still good. For the record, though, it only gets Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1099891978839752852004-11-07T23:18:00.000-05:002005-01-12T23:26:13.276-05:00Chocolate Vampires : Stress. Recently I have been very, very stressed. Health. School. Romance. All departments tanking. Each one separately might cause one undue anxiety, but all three together... So recently, I've started to crave cigarettes again. I haven't smoked a cigarette since the day I decided to quit cold turkey, March 25, 2003. Almost 20 months. After the first month, it wasn't that Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1099436569896372052004-11-02T17:02:00.000-05:002005-01-12T23:26:27.486-05:00Wanderlust : Cities. My life has always been defined by cities. Those bastions of hustle and bustle, centers of activity, at once both cold and stoic, and vibrant with life. The city doesn't care who you are or where you come from or what your hopes and dreams are; the city has its own personality that has worked for hundreds of years, thank you very much, way before you grew up and learned to Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1099254879988635252004-10-31T14:15:00.000-05:002005-01-12T23:26:43.343-05:00Pencils and Pills : Even I am a little surprised at my recent prolificness. I find myself constantly coming up with new ideas for my stories, sometimes just a starting or ending line, sometimes just a phrase, a symbol to be used as a metaphor, a plot idea, a subplot idea, a title, clever use of punctuation. As I was taking a study break, a walk to the store to purchase a new halogen bulb, I felt Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1099086939520091702004-10-29T17:49:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:26:59.010-05:00Side Note : I am feeling much, much better. I upped my thyroid treatment and immediately started feeling more and more normal. Normalcy. Beautiful, wonderful normalcy. I have a few short stories in the works, one of which will be about my hyperthyroidism. I already picked out a title, "MPoST". If you can figure out why I chose that one, I'll personally give you a smiley sticker. Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1099079549857649912004-10-29T14:39:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:27:15.240-05:00A Question of Causality : If I didn't suffer, I wouldn't have been a writer... Lately I have been experiencing extremely lucid thinking, where my thoughts and beliefs are so incredibly clear to me that I feel a little thrown off. I hesitate to get comfortable in this new state of being for fear of eventual disappointment, that is, for fear that somehow this is not an event that occured through Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1098777139987351692004-10-26T01:42:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:27:33.953-05:00Catch-22 : So another night, another night that I've found myself back here, after mindlessly surfing friendster for some kernels of interest for a few minutes, or maybe more... I just lose track of time on that website. What the hell is a "kernel of interest"? Seriously. Anyway, as I so often do in the wee hours of the morning, I have figured my life out. Yes, there is a map of my life Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1098551365073958982004-10-23T13:08:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:27:50.116-05:00Not what you think : I thought it would be comforting, but it just feels sterile, and forced... Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1098338083280746692004-10-21T01:30:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:28:04.920-05:00Block : I've been stuck with this crazy bout of writer's block for a few weeks now. Even this sentence that I am writing right now seems forced to me- the words just don't flow off of my fingers like they normally do. I am editing as I write, which as you can imagine slows down the process considerably...but I can't help it. The writing sucks. I've always had trouble expressing my thoughts withAlanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1096859245397937222004-10-03T22:54:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:28:21.846-05:00Ten Minute Break : Hello, and welcome to my ten-minute break. My name Alan Lowinger, and I am a second-year medical student. I am smack in the middle of an exam week, which strangely enough started on Friday, and extends until Wednesday. Psychiatry is out of the way, while Medicine beckons tomorrow and Pathology on Wednesday. I cannot think anymore. I cannot process another chart, or factoid, or Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1096740627257130382004-10-02T13:40:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:28:38.076-05:00Bad boy : I am a baaaaad blogger. I have been busy for the past five or so weeks since I last updated my blog, and have forsaken her. Wait, not busy. Preoccupied really. But don't worry. It isn't that I haven't been keeping up with my writing. In a little silver credit-card sized notebook, engraved in the front with the New York Times insignia, sits dozens of story ideas that I have come up with Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1093239001266945202004-08-23T01:52:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:28:52.656-05:00Home : My throat aches from a day of non-stop coughing. My eyelids are heavy from lack of sleep. My brain is spinning from the first week of my second-year of medical school. My heart longs for the one who has all of a sudden become my girlfriend. My wallet is slimmer than I'd hoped. My pants are tighter than I'd hoped. Everything is in English. I need tissues or else slimy rivers will spring Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1091692392433501482004-08-05T03:03:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:29:08.956-05:00Time : "The time has come," the Walrus said, "To talk of many things. Of shoes, and ships, and sealing-wax, of cabbages and kings." This is a quote from one of my favorite authors, Lewis Carroll. The man was a genius. As a mathematician, he was able to add layers upon layers of meaning to his books. His true genius is that people to this day still think of his books as children's books. But I Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1091506351891023532004-08-02T23:57:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:29:24.196-05:00Reminder... : At some point a few weeks ago, two friends and I went to Gwanghwamun, a business section of Korea with serpentine alleyways containing unbelievable treasures... This was supposed to be part of a Lost in Seoul segment, but never made it. See? I told you such things would happen. And you didn't even miss it. But I want you to. Because it was a notable day. And the relevance is only Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1091269348294068172004-07-31T05:13:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:29:38.096-05:00Putting on a Clinic : First things first: our program just ended, and the festivities were marked with two straight days of all-night clubbing at Hong Dae. More toast, more chugging two-liters of water at 6 or 7 AM while barely being able to keep one's eyes open from lack of sleep and from the sudden shock of light from the rising sun. Today, I fell asleep on Cerin's shoulder on a random curb. Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1090739959876521472004-07-25T02:00:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:29:56.870-05:00To the fullest : It is interesting. When you read someone else's writing there is a tendency, unsaid and without intent, to view the writing as inevitable. Those words were meant to be said, and those are the only words that could have been used to present the material. I get this way when reading some of my favorite authors. I thought this thought would go somewhere and it isn't. I am ending Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-10907350578800472004-07-25T01:35:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:30:12.770-05:00Short : Ahh... I am very tired. I have a lot to say. I don't believe that I'll be able to get to everything I want to say, not today and perhaps not ever. Keeping up with a blog is very difficult, especially when you are living life to the fullest everyday, and trying to see as much as possible before that day, that fateful scary treacherous day that will come tomorrow, or at least will seem so,Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1090046066872454652004-07-17T01:17:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:30:29.606-05:00Lost in Seoul(Part Deux) : Hello friends. Welcome to another edition of my life. I hope you have enough popcorn and soda to keep your busy hands busy as you enter a portal, and live life as I do for another 15 minutes. Blogger has added more options, and thus I have changed the font. I hope this does not throw you off too much. In addition, I have found a way to get around the censorship here, Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1089784145528531012004-07-14T01:44:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:30:43.570-05:00Censorship : This is a really short post. I have been having trouble viewing my own blog here. I can post and log in to the site, but I cannot go to alaneliot.blogspot.com and see the finished product. The only way to see old posts for me is to log in and press the edit key. I finally figured out why. My friend had concurrently been having trouble looking at her friend's page on the livejournal Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1089558285914632802004-07-11T10:38:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:30:59.296-05:00Curtosy : Tonight was the third Sunday in a row that there was a large dinner, held by some member of my family. This time, it was at my mom's older brother's house. He is the oldest of eight siblings, and my mother is the youngest, so there is actually a 20 year gap between them. As usual, aunts, uncles, their spouses and kids, cousins, their spouses and kids, and others joined into the Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1089533349878732542004-07-11T02:37:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:31:15.996-05:00Lost in Seoul(Part I) : Seafood update: Squid, Octopus, Crab, Imitation Crab Meat, Salted unknown fish, eel, Kodungee (type of fish), Nogaree (type of fish), Jimeecheh (type of fish) I first would like to start with an apology. I should write more often. But I've been busy. You'll forgive me. I am more worried that I won't forgive myself, however. These blogs are taking the place of a journal Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1088874549355623202004-07-03T11:20:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:31:30.063-05:00Stoned Me Just Like Jelly Roll (Jungle Boogie) : Seafood update: Tuna, Shrimp Chips (served in the bar called "Doors" like pretzels), other (?) x2 The city of Seoul has taken upon it a darkened nightscape, prompting the body to half expect a chill to the weather (or a nip to the air). But tonight, as every night, the body is disappointed. Ladies and gentlemen, this city is muggy. At this point,Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1088407495502404742004-06-28T02:17:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:31:45.103-05:00Food : Seafood update: Anchovies, Krill (twice), Fish Cake (unknown origin) I am exhausted. Language classes always seem to have a way of taking the wind out of me. We had our first class today, and I must report that I have been humbled, and am essentially taking the lowest-level class. We learned how to write Korean script this morning, which anyone who knows me will tell you is ridiculous. AsAlanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1088403376839188202004-06-28T01:54:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:31:59.710-05:00Food for Thought : The tough thing about keeping a journal, besides for being good about keeping up with it, is really a decision of balance: do I focus on including a laundry list of things I have done, or do I focus on the delivery of the message? Keeping the interest of the reader- in this case, you, and in other cases, a future me- is one of my primary objectives. I do this partially by Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1088150906653895822004-06-25T03:28:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:32:15.730-05:00First Day : Woke up this morning to the sound of little girls singing in Korean and English. "Santa...where are you...yeah yeah yeah...". Now, before I go on, I will be referring to cousins and relatives a lot, so here is a short description of my family. My mother has a lot of siblings. I call every aunt "auntie" and every uncle "uncle", whether or not they are blood relatives. I am living thisAlanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1088148452750074432004-06-25T03:03:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:32:29.533-05:00Anyanghaseyo : I am here! Jesus Christ I thought I was going to flip out yesterday with the long flight. I decided, shrewdly or not, that since Korea is 13 hours ahead of New York City, that I would just stay up the whole time on the airplanes. That way, when I'd get in at 9PM (the equivalent of staying up until 8AM in NYC), I'd get home and sleep away my jetlag. Yes, the trip itself would be Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1087967982612835972004-06-23T01:46:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:32:42.330-05:00Soon : It is 1 AM. I have a monster headache. I really, really hate headaches. The good news: Barring any change in plans, I will be in the air in less than 12 hours! I'm all packed- though I made it a point to pack light. Notable inclusions: 1. Blue Bandana - I cannot remember the last time I visited a foreign country without one. Perhaps my most beloved travelling companion. Khemi and I have Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1087249971032792072004-06-14T16:55:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:32:59.090-05:00Preparations : The last time I was in Korea I was a boy, chubby and pre-pubescent, who was entirely content to swim in our hotel's massive outdoor pool/water slide complex, visit Korea's awesome amusement parks (including the indoor Lotte World) and watch TV in our air-conditioned room (Channel 1, the army-run English channel). My father had packed all of the American food we would need for threeAlanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1087242959532021742004-06-14T15:45:00.000-04:002005-01-12T23:33:13.490-05:00First One : Hi everybody, I've decided to write about my travel experiences this summer electronically. I started a blog last year, but as you can see it never really got off the ground. Let's hope that I can keep this up... I am all set to travel to the homeland of my ancestors, Seoul, Korea. I have finally (after much pleading with many, many offices, and eventually with my local congressman!Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1056650377706434362003-06-26T13:59:00.000-04:002003-06-26T13:59:37.580-04:00I have recently applied to medical school in Piscataway, NJ. I also recently received my MCAT scores, and while not thrilled, pleased. I should be hearing if I get in any day now! In the meantime, I have a Physics final tomorrow- last class as an undergraduate ever!Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5494860.post-1056057935084078442003-06-19T17:25:00.000-04:002003-06-19T17:30:19.100-04:00First post- I am trying to procrastinate from studying Physics. Although a very cool subject, the breadth, depth and specificity of the material make one on wonder why it is a requirement for pre-meds. Anatomy, Physiology, Biochemistry and related courses are NOT pre-med requirements.... hmm...Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18015844033000165848noreply@blogger.com0