Saturday, December 28, 2019

Things you need to know about Roger

Roger, too, celebrates his birthday on December. Challenged by the lovely Ma'am Ginger in a random Facebook comment, here I am, writing yet another birthday post, and as I click away and words form into sentences, I'm beginning to feel like an unpaid, overworked member of the class's yearbook committee, using up all the adjectives in my limited thesaurus, digging up my memories subconsciously tagged as "funny" or "hilarious." But the last part is only partly true. Having worked with him for five years, give or take, it is easy to conjure memories of Roger—I call him "Raj" when I ask him to get me a cold glass of water on hot days. He has a heart of gold and is "a man for others," depending on the time of the day. Calling him a dear friend has been a great privilege of my life.

Some things you may, or may not yet know, about Roger:

1. He likes having his photos taken in front of walls. I took a long time orchestrating this scene just before we entered an old palace in Seoul.

Roger in Korea

2. He is so passionate about photography even if it means crossing the street and posing behind someone else's bicycle. I maintain that I take his best portraits. This was taken in Seoul.

Roger in Seoul, parang Amsterdam!

4. He likes taking pictures, even of grammatically incorrect statements. His photos of sunsets are beautiful to behold.

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5. When he travels, he has a pastel-colored Herschel bag in dire need of washing.

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6. He was the poster-boy of the Korean Society of Medical Oncology for these reasons: (1) he literally appeared in the promotional poster, and (2) he presented six studies for the conference. He would later win a travel grant. He would also bag the best poster award at the European Society of Medical Oncology - Asia conference in Singapore, bringing pride and honor to the Division and the nation.

Thailand 2019

7. His feet are a constant source of jokes for us.

Thailand 2019

8. He smells good, especially when he goes to humid cities like Bangkok. Rich clearly loved the scent.

Thailand 2019

9. He likes eating. He sports a trim figure. One wonders how he burns his calories.

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10. Despite being an introverted person who likes to keep his privacy, he sacrifices his time to meet up with friends. However, he almost declines my lunch invitations. This photo was taken in Taiwan, where we celebrated the end of Internal Medicine residency, in a coffee shop beside a university. Roger never drinks coffee.

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Where would we be without Roger? Happy birthday, dear Roger! Remember, I have worse pictures in my album!

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