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24 Hours to Live: Danny V. Nguyen

Posted by on Dec 20, 2012 in Blogs | 0 comments

Although the past few weeks have been awash in quintessentially Vegas festivities, I must plead the fifth for this entry: “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.”

Instead, I wish to discuss the end of the world. Many suns and moons ago, the Mayans predicted an apocalyptic end on December 21, 2012. That’s tomorrow. I have been fortunate enough to be a fourth year when this happens, to be able to enjoy life outside the books. However, I have also been able to enjoy being a full-time clinician and being able to utilize the skills and knowledge to better improve care with my patients and their quality of life. But I digress.

I got a segment idea from Maxim, my third favorite magazine (behind US Weekly and Cosmopolitan). It’s called “24 Hours to Live,” in which Maxim interviews celebrities about their last days on Earth. I interviewed myself…

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VEGAS BABY!

VEGAS BABY!

Posted by on Dec 7, 2012 in Blogs | 0 comments

Hello faithful readers,

I wish I could preface this entry with something that could make my life seem less awesome… but I can’t.

I recently moved to Las Vegas for my winter quarter rotation and it has been an incredible ride since.  The first night I drove in from San Diego and was greeted with an evening of festivities that lasted past the desert sunrise. A group of ICO students originally from Vegas offered me a quick look at true local hospitality, which amounts to a lot of partying without the burden of budget.

A few days later, I took an impromptu road trip to Phoenix to visit a group of recent ICO grads. I figured, why not? Veteran’s Day honors our vets and the freedom they fought to protect, so I honored them through enjoying life and spontaneity. If that weekend was any kind of representation to life after school, then I can’t wait. We ate at a lot of great restaurants, went to the Desert Botanical Garden and explored the quaint but large city. And then we ate some more.

I got back just in time for my first day at my new site, the Las Vegas VA hospital. It’s a brand new facility with state-of-the-art equipment, and with the intense workload, I’m certain that I’ll become more efficient and confident in practice. This site seems to be exactly what I’ve been looking for as I consider residencies. Great staff, great clinic, great city. My six fellow interns are also enjoying this unusually awesome experience that is fourth year. On day one, we sat down and came up with a laundry list of things to do while here. I am so happy that they are interning with me and that we are going to have an amazing time. Did I mention that they’re all females?

*high fives self*

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Fourth Year Un-awesomeness

Fourth Year Un-awesomeness

Posted by on Nov 8, 2012 in Blogs | 0 comments

I had an amazing time coming back to ICO as a fourth year this past quarter. The air seemed thick with respect for this impending doctor. I definitely noticed a kind of camaraderie between my class and the faculty that just further reinforced the awesomeness of fourth year. I grew even closer, if possible, to my class as well. And fall quarter’s got all kinds of fun school events that trump other quarters in my opinion (the picture above is from ICOlympics).

But as I was getting ready to leave for my next rotation, I tapped into something un-awesome. Not many bad things I can say about my life currently, but leaving Chicago sucked!

It was, in all sense of the word, bittersweet. Leaving my classmates, leaving the underclassmen, leaving the numerous friends I’ve made along the way, leaving the city that allowed me grow into the awesomeness that is the Danny you see today. It all left a bitter taste.

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Free Food, Free Trips, Free Stuff

Free Food, Free Trips, Free Stuff

Posted by on Oct 11, 2012 in Blogs | 0 comments

Hello readers! You have tuned in once again into the Wonderful Life of Danny, trying to get a glimpse of things to come. Well, you won’t be disappointed because things get good.

And I don’t mean good like no exams, or good like hitting the home stretch of school, but good as in FREE TRIPS.

Alcon, one of the world’s largest companies in eye care, offers to fourth year optometry students from across the nation an all-expenses paid trip to the company headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas. In order to be selected, you must show interest in contact lenses, whether through the school’s Contact Lens Society, the clinic’s Cornea Department or Contact Lens Symposium events. I was fortunate enough to be selected, and it was awesome!

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Celebration

Posted by on Sep 27, 2012 in Blogs | 0 comments

Hello there, my faithful readers!

We can talk about the replacement ref’s bogus during with the Packers-Seahawks game. Or we can talk about the wrecked car that mysteriously appeared in ICO’s Courtyard one morning last week. Or we can once again talk about the awesome life of an ICO fourth year.

Let’s go with the last option.

Since you last read, I traveled to Raleigh, N.C. with some classmates. We road-tripped to Charlotte, enjoyed impeccable Southern hospitality and cooking, and took in the sights of a downtown that smelled of cinnamon rolls. The nightlife was vivacious and the late-night breakfast buffet was a marvelous mistake. And, oh yeah: We took our National Board of Examiners in Optometry Part 3 somewhere in the mix, too.

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