Coincident Cupcake?

Friday after school, a student stopped by my classroom to submit some assignments. He gave me one of his birthday cupcakes. It's also the end of a grading period. Coincidence?

Gift from My Parents

My father, who recently retired, took my mom to Asia for a long and well deserved vacation.  They brought back this magnet for me.  It resembles the traditional street signs in Hong Kong.  "No. 1" means "number one" in Hong Kong's British English.  While I'm no "number one" teacher, it's reassuring that my parents know what I do as a profession.

More GHS T-Shirt

On a Friday, I bought my two helpful T.A.'s breakfast. They have been awesome all year, saving me many hours of work. At lunch, they came back and gave me this cool shirt - adding to my GHS shirt collection. Thanks Joe and Moises.

Lets Get Together

I just had dinner with my former high school badminton coach on Wednesday night of our spring break.  On Thursday night, the roles was reversed.  My former students and badminton players invited me to dinner.  It's such an honor.  All of these students are now attending college.  I had a great time.  Thanks Valerie, Itzel, Jocelyn, Kalene, Elida, and Tony (who set up the invite) for adding to my spring break fun.  My belly still hurts from eating and laughing so much.

GHS Dance Team

I'm a proud supporter of our awarding-winning GHS Dance Team. Just a group of kind, creative, and energetic kids who do what they love, and love what they do. They often steal the show at our school rallies.

Surprise Visitors

Two former students and badminton players paid me a surprise visit on a Friday afternoon. What a way to kick off spring break! Thank you, Elida Mendez and Tony Stark. You guys are so sweet.

Support Cheer Leaders

Showing some GHS pride! I display these ribbons to support our cheer leaders, who in turn support GHS sports!

Early Breakfast

William, a student in my 6th period, stopped by my room before school and gave me an apple this morning. The green sticker is from Daisy and Araceli.

Geometry Tool Set

An elegant and niffy geometry tool set, a gift from the talented our school's band director Mr. Yi Chen. Made in Japan, shipped from Hong Kong. Thanks Yi.

Easter Egg 2013

An early Easter gift from my students the Hsu's sisters. Jamie quickly suggested that I use the green confetti at the bottom as a wig. Thank you.

First Singles Title

This past weekend, I won my first singles title at the San Diego Dave Freeman Open.  I won four rounds in two days to capture the D-level mens singles draw.  In 2012, I've lost in the first round, lost in the semis, and lost in the finals.  Winning was very satisfying.  It wasn't easy.  In the final, I lost the first set, and was down two match points in the third set before winning 25-23.  It is the best result that I've had in singles.  I've very proud.  At the same time, I am humbled by the experience.  I know how fortunate I am in many regards.  There's much room for improvement, as evident by losses in the first round and in the consolation finals of the C-level mens singles draw.

For the past 18 months, I've been reshaping my body.  The two years of graduate school was hard on me physically.  I ate junk food and slept insufficiently for two years.  Just when I completed my masters program, a badminton club opened midway between my school and my home.  I rekindled my love for the sport.  With the help of my personal trainer/coach/friend Alistair Casey, who is a world-class singles player, I've trained hard to improve my singles game.  Although 18 months isn't a very long time, I felt that I've put in much work.  I've lost over 20 pounds and have improved my conditioning tremendously.  The training sessions were exhausting and grinding.  But I've enjoyed the process. Now, it's time to set new goals and work towards them.

I've shared this experience with my students.  They were very happy for me.  I've shared with them the power of writing down goals.  I hope that not only can I teach them math skills, but they can also learn other lessons from me.  Mainly, take care of your body and work hard towards pursuing your personal dreams.

Link: D-Level Bracket/Result

Link: C-Level Bracket/Result

Renaissance Rally 2013

On Feb. 20th, our school put together a Renaissance Rally celebrating students who achieved academic excellence.  I joined several other teachers in a flashmob dance.

Link: GHS Teachers/Students Flashmob Dance

A Neat Gift

I received this while tutoring after school. It's a Chinese New Year / Valentines Day combo gift. Very cool, very versatile. Thanks to Daisy and Sergio.

Not my first Hello Kitty gift, btw:
Gifts from my TAs.

Hand-Made Card

This totally made my day! On a Tuesday morning after a three-day weekend, I found Rebekah's beautiful hand-made card in my mailbox. Rebekah was in my Algebra 2 class last year. I remember her as a wonderful student and a very nice kid. She's also on our school's tennis team.  But I don't think I treated her any better than any other students. In fact, for bright kids like Rebekah, I often reflect and wonder if I've done enough to challenge them in the classroom. In any case, I'm so grateful for this treasure. (L-cover, R-inside)

Rebekah also gave me this card:
Xmas Card 2011 from Rebekah.

Year of the Snake

Yesterday was Chinese New Year. It's the Year of the Snake. I gave out some of these CNY ornaments to my private tutees and their parents. They contain traditional cultural symbolisms, yet neatly designed with a contemporary touch. My personal favorite is the fierce dancing lion.