This morning my dad went with shiaw goo-goo to Austin (they stayed with my brother) with shiaw goo-goo’s friend.  I could’ve joined/supported the NAMI Walk, but instead I drove to Jacky’s apartment to carpool to .  Jocelyn, JT, and Ted were already waiting.  He asked if I could drive since I was the only one with a four-door car.  Jacky sat in the passenger seat, JT sat on the right, Jocelyn sat in the middle, and Ted sat on the left.  We got lost briefly trying to find the Metro station, where we have permission and a permit to park for volunteering.  We waited for Jacky’s co-worker Andy? then headed towards the area (man, I forgot to take a picture of the metal see-through sign over the desolate grass area).  We passed an African-American with dreadlocks who was walking and also another man who was napping under the bridge but when he saw us (we were trying to take a picture of a family of ducks) he sat up and put on a shirt. 

After registration and getting our Tshirts, we were put to work doing random setup.  Jocelyn and I stuck together for the most part, trying to adjust/move the stage, transporting supplies to the media/vip area, transporting water.  The water was initially kept in this rundown building which had cool detached drawings of buildings on the white walls with black paint (I took pictures).  Shane Chen (a female), Jacky’s coworker who invited him and thus us to volunteer at this event, gave us special treatment.  We also got Astros tickets (unfortunately they gave us entrance to tomorrow’s and not Tuesday’s game), baby sunscreen, water, vegetable buns for breakfast (I know, sounds nasty in English), and overall better volunteering jobs than the other volunteers I think. 

We went walking around to the tents so that Jocelyn could say hello to Winston and Myrtle.  Myrtle is on the Houston Heat, as is Ying Yeung, my old piano teacher’s older daughter.  She says later I’ll probably see her dad since he’s coming as well.  Other people who I also ended up seeing were Jasmine and Annie from BASIC, John Hsieh (who gave me a large bottle of grean tea with lemon as well as a bbq pork bun), Rean, Christine Fung, and Susan Zhang.  Lol, Jocelyn ended up having to paddle for Lee High School.  I was pulled for Silver Eagle Distributors “Team Bud Light” because I was told one paddler had austism and had changed her mind, but the boat had already gone ahead so I didn’t have to.  I eventually ended up being the runner, meaning I would have to call the teams from wherever they were (usually at their assigned area under the bridge/tent) to get in line for their turn.  

On one trip of mine, I saw Robert C staying a little off from the crowd, on the sidewalk not close to the water’s edge, watching the race.  I went over and said hi, but he had this confused look on his face.  Not until he said, “You got a haircut” did I realize he probably didn’t initially recognize me.  We chatted, each telling the other why we were here.  He said that Joanne Wei (met on the football field, remet more firmly at David Zhao’s Chinese New Year party) had asked him to help out.  The RUCAA (Rice University Chinese Alumni Association) team consists of some current students and alumni, Joanne being one of them.  Another alumni, whom Robert introduced me to, is Ben Chu.  We both comment that each looks familiar to the other, but we have no idea how.  He graduated from Rice in 1995.  When I asked them if they were ready, Robert came up to me and said that actually they need 7 more paddlers.  I wasn’t sure if they’d be able to participate or be disqualified.  By the time they got their bracelets (they also forgot to register) to enter into the filtered area where current teams can be (and appropriate volunteers), they somehow could.  Turned out that they grabbed Jasmine, Annie, and John, and also roped in three Rice freshmen they had spotted.  One freshman came simply to watch her mom participate with the El Paso (Corporate?) Group, but now she has her own team to cheer on.

The guys (JT, Ted, Jacky, and Denver) were assigned to be dock helpers.  However, they are in a restricted area (and understandably so, because the people in charge don’t want that area clogged).  The girls are all running around as volunteers and as visitors.  Since Robert generally has an area he keeps going back to, I kept going back there to chat in between my runs.  It made my day, because he also asked me if I wanted some of their food (they were grilling hotdogs, sausages and hamburger patties on a metal portable enclosure) and man did I ever.  He went and grabbed me a hot dog in a bun (Vickie pointed this out to be that this is above and beyond simply asking if I wanted to eat) and asked if I also wanted ketchup and mustard, which I didn’t want him to go through THAT much trouble so I shook my heard (I was really hungry anyway).  I also ran out of the two bottles of water I had brought so I grabbed their paper cup and drank some from theirs as well (which I’m sure they desperately needed since they were rowing!). 

He’s an easy guy to talk with, and always with that big grin and easygoing attitude (with a humorous streak - saying I should wear my cap this other way, which I thought was true until he jk’d).  Some of the things I picked up:  He is going to finally graduate from residency in…2013.  I think he said he’d be 32 or something by that time.  He definitely never looks tired, though (good time management, eh?).  His family is in Louisiana, but they will probably move since they don’t really like it there.  He wants to go to Boston, but that is unlikely since there is more supply than demand with physicians.  He says there are three-digit-number of universities churning out medical graduates and a lot of people want to stay in the area.  His dream is to start a private practice, probably in San Diego, with two of his friends (who are specializing in oncology and radiation).  If his parents want his house, he’ll let them have it.  Otherwise, he’ll rent out his house.  OH yeah, and he remembered I was studying OT.  Wow.  The jokester again, saying that I should actually sell the projects (crafts) that the patients make during our Task Group in order to make more money.

When we were off the hook (we got to eat some of their food, but they also asked the guy to stay longer to help move the drums), we checked out some of the booths.  Jocelyn took me to the Wheel of Fortune put on by Western Union.  You could tell the staff wasn’t too thrilled to be there, just giving us their advertisements (and of course the prize I got from turning the wheel).  We passed one selling beautiful purses, and parasols, and even a tarot reading tent.  She also showed me where I could get my Chiense name written in calligraphy.  I got one for myself, and then when I commented that my mom would like it, she told me I could ask the man to write my mom’s name as well, which he did.  They were written on Beijing Olympics bookmarks.  Jocleyn is quite the social butterfly, taking photographs and contact information with all the people she met (e.g. the teacher who helped with Lee High School).  I also stood by as she talked with Caroline Long (the emcee and co-founder of the races).  Caroline said that initally they hired an emcee just like they hired the DJ.  However, something happened, so she ended up doing–and better.  She would go interview everyone while the hired would sort of just watch because s/he didn’t know anyone. 

Our last stop, right after grabbing extra white 8th Annual T-shirts as given permission by Joanne and Robert (Jacky was desperate for one), we “ordered” not food but some balloon sculptures from Smilez 4 Kids (they also paint faces).  As they were making them (the guys got them for their girlfriends), I started chitchatting with the one closest to me.  Turns out this grey-haired man is a missionary all over the world.  The younger people (like our age) standing behind him are two of his eight? children.  The guy was born in Germany? and the female making my penguin (as requested by Tedman, who personally got a Tigger tiger) was born in Italy.  This is their fundraiser.  Wow.

Hm…seems like I did a lot more.  I guess all that running, noise, losing my neon-yellow Airshow cap, pictures with newsreporters (just Greensheet - look for the June edition), and sunshine really did me in.  But with how things turned out, I am overall very happy.  Check out the link in http://www.buffalobayou.org/dragonboat.html for the official website, where you can click to Channel 13’s reporting with pictures and videos as well as the results (Continental Airlines reclaimed their champion title since 2004, 2003, and 2002) and especially how to volunteer for October’s Regatta ;-).

In the afternoon, I could’ve participated in Hector’s Cinco de Mayo cookout, but I was way too tired.  I took a nap (from 3 to 5 pm) then got up to eat dinner while watching Coyote Ugly on TV.  Turns out my mom went to the same Chinese singer concert as Jocelyn did (must be since she said something to that extent and was asking for directions to the front of the Reliant Stadium).  I also called Inch, Nathan Kim, who referred me to Chris Sun, and Henry (who asked Charles and Elliot who he was watching a movie with) if they wanted to go to the Astros game tomorrow.  Inch says he and Sarah Kim won’t be going because church conflicts (as I suspected).  Nathan is at a ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers) conference.  Chris says he “probably won’t be going” and I didn’t press for a reason.  Henry gave generally the same answer, as did Charles, but Elliot said maybe.  We’ll see.