brittany chew.

Britt and I go back quite a few years. (You never realize how much time has passed until you take a moment to think about it). We met our freshman year of college and were in the same small group at our fellowship. Both of us hit it off with each other, and our heritage helped us bond a bit more. ;) (She's half-Japanese!) Over the years, she's become such a sweet, dear sister of mine and we've shared lots of good laughs, she's been there for me during my tough times, but also during the jubilant peaks of my college career. Britt has such a huge heart, and it was my joy to be able to introduce you to who she is.

"Not what I do, but who I am"

{Brittany Chew. 22. P.A. Grad School Applicant.}

Well, tell me a little bit about yourself.

B: My name is Brittany. I am 22 years old. I graduated, B.A. about, almost a year ago now. Ahhh! (laughs) And I have been at home since then. I work part-time at a pharmacy, and I’m going to school, kind of taking some classes. And then I’m gonna apply for grad school this Spring! So, I am excited! (laughs)

What are you going into grad school for?

B: I’m gonna apply to Physician Assistant programs and yes. That is my dream. (laughs) or my goal.

What do you see yourself doing with that?

B: A physician’s assistants are like assistants to the physicians. (laughs) We work under the supervision of a doctor. Surprisingly enough. So I think I want to, based on my experience so far, work in a hospital, but I’m not sure what kind of specialty. I worked a lot with young kids, but then also with the older generation and I think I’m a little more inclined, or kind of have more of a heart for the older generation, so we’ll see if the Lord leads me to work with that age group.

What lead you to become interested in this thing or P.A.?

B: Mm let’s see. My dad first mentioned the idea to me. (I didn’t really know what a PA was, or that a P.A. even existed. I think it’s more of a rising kind of thing, growing more popular). I think at first since it was my dad’s idea, I was kind of like, ehhh no thanks, I’ll think of something else. But I think I’ve always had an interest more so in the sciences than in the arts, and so it kinda shows that path to start. And then basically all my family is in healthcare, so I don’t know if it was just natural for me to pursue something in that area, or also just something that’s really interesting to me because I have parents that do it, so I can kind of see what it’s like. That was really an appealing profession to me. I think just in general the idea of being able to care for people’s needs, like physical needs -- I know that’s just a piece of the puzzle to the whole person, but I think it’s a very important piece.

Was there a certain point where you were like, this is what I know what I want to do?

B: I don’t think it was like a certain moment. I think it was more of just a progression. ‘Cause at first, it was just an idea, right? It kind of was not something that I practically pursued, but I think when I was getting closer to graduating and needed to start figuring out what I wanted for myself and what I was going to do after college. So I think that pressure, in a sense, kind of motivated me to start learning more about what a P.A. exactly was, and why I would want to do it. Yeah, I just think shadowing different people who are in that profession has kind of confirmed my excitement for it; I see what they do, and I like what they do. I think it’s really interesting and exciting; it’s different on a day-to-day basis. So, I think that’s the thing that helped me on my way.

wppi part three.

I promise this is the last batch I have from Vegas! This day, we hung around the hotel room, walked some more along the Strip, wandered around the Venetian (while losing our boss. oops), and ran all the way to Serendipity 3 to find that we just missed the line to get the frozen hot chocolate. That didn't stop us from getting it the next morning. heh. :)

I'm so grateful to have met Tiff! She has been such a great friend to me over these past few months, and I'm so glad that we've been able to get to know each other beyond Photography Club at UCI. She's such a genuine and laid-back person, and she's already encouraged me so much in pursuing what I want to do! She's going off to Japan soon, but that's not until a few more months! (Thank goodness!)

Here are some pictures from my iPhone! This is kind of a recap. :) And some other places we went that I didn't have my DSLR to record with.

Stay tuned for an upcoming interview I have with one of my very good friends for my ongoing personal project! :)

faulty memory.

Aside from taking portraits of people, breathtaking views of nature, and scenes that I find interesting, I photograph because, quite honestly, I have terrible memory.

For some questionable reason, an example of my terrible memory is the fact that I have three different planners. You read that right; three. I have one on Google calendar, one on my phone (which syncs with Google calendar), and a physical planner that I write in. Furthermore, I have to write multiple to-do lists throughout the week, or else I'll forget it. I journal (almost) religiously because, as I relayed to my dad one day, if I don't write it down, then I'm bound to forget how I felt that day, or something profound that I learned.

Likewise with photography, there's barely an outing where I don't whip out my phone or camera to commemorate the event. Part of it might have to do with the fact that a lot of my friends do the first-15-minutes-is-devoted-to-us-taking-pictures-of-each-other-with-food. (I know it, and I own up to it!) Photography, to me, is freezing a moment in time. Through photos, I want to capture that moment of how I felt when I saw it through the camera lens. I want to remember the serendipity of that moment and how it felt.

I was reading an article by Eric Kim, who's a great street photographer/blogger who highlights various street photographers around the world and their work. He wrote an article about Daido Moriyama, and this quote is what got me thinking about memory:

"Photography is the capture of the very present moment. It is meaningless to regret in the future what you've missed. Therefore taking a photo of the present is to preserve it. That is the essence of photography. Your feeling is always a reflection of the photo you produce.

The past cannot be captured by the present. And the future also cannot be captured by the present. The present can only be captured in the moment." 

Although I have faulty memory, photography thankfully makes up for it.