From The Peopling of New York City

Who I Am

My name is Philip Liu, born on April 16, 1990, my sign is Aries. I like long walks on the beach, and getting to know you. Well I suppose I should not talk about my relationship status anymore.

I am currently a chemical engineering major at The City College of New York. At the same time I hope to obtain a degree in physics. Science and math have always been my strong points in academics, which made engineering a logical choice for my professional career. My interest in physics sprouted from the book "Parallel Worlds" by Michio Kaku. He speaks about the infinite possibilities of the universe and I feel the need to be there to aid others in the discovery of the properties of the world around us. To fulfill my aspirations I have made my daily schedule particularly regimented. I suppose my academic life isn't all too interesting, let's move on to something else.

My hobbies include playing handball, karaoke"ing" (using slang seemingly), surfing the net, reading physics books (that's not nerdy at all), and finding time to spend with my friends.

Currently, Seminar II has been interesting. I never explored the hardships of immigration in any class before. The experiences inferred from most of the readings have made me feel closer to my heritage and my family. Seminar II does have one negative aspect, the originally assigned classroom had blistering temperatures like that of the Sahara Desert.

Where I'm From

To describe a person is simple but to describe oneself is an arduous task. One attempts to be modest in describing the traits gained by them through experience.

I am Chinese, but China is a vast landmass. Hence, I identify myself as Taishanese, a person from Tai Shan. I was born into a large family that consists of eight uncles and aunts (Father has four brothers and one sister, Mother has two brothers and one sister,) eighteen first cousins. My parents have two children and I am the elder of two. My parents raised us in a small house with the hope of giving us everything that they could never have.

My parents immigrated to America a year before I was born. In that time Mother did not have the opportunity to find a job because of her pregnancy. Hence, the first few years of my life my family lived solely on my Father's pay. But, the income was not enough to support the family and mother had to locate work. When mother found work, I had to learn to survive on my own and at the same time keep a watchful eye on my younger bother. I began to develop a sense of reasoning through the trial and error experiences I had because of not having anyone to tell me what I was suppose to do. Also, one could say I developed a maternal instinct because of my responsibilities of watching over my brother as mother and father was away from home.

My parents need to assimilate into the American culture has created the person I am today. Their hard work and determination to develop a brighter future for me has given me a sense of duty. This sense of responsibility is the driving force for my academic advancements and my competitiveness. My responsibility now is to ensure I develop an exceptional career to reward my parent's efforts.

My NY

For 19 years of my life I have lived in Bensonhurst. Although, Bensonhurst is not the center of the Big Apple it does have its own persona. The area is tranquil which offers peace and security. Those two aspects were important through my childhood and my adolescent years. I was able to explore many parts of Brooklyn through out my childhood while gaining many friends in the process. I have seen the many changes in the area and no matter how the area evolves through time it remains perfect and as my New York.