A Dear Friend

Our last encounter in DC, October, 2007


I have known my dear friend Mike for 20 years.  I struggle knowing what to write as nothing I put down in words can do justice to the beautiful person that was and always will be Mike Su.  

Mike and I met at UC Berkeley where we lived in Wurster Hall, "The House of All Nighter" as it was known on campus, trying hard to create the perfect design.  We worked hard but never forgot to have fun too.  I recall one incident that portrays the prankster side of Mike very well.  We were in a physics study group together, trying hard to pass a class we knew very little about...the blind leading the blind as they say.  I recall endless hours talking about cars, who brought what to snack on, who was dating whom, baseball, our next road trip to LA and so on and so on.  Why we called it a physics study group I do not know.  It was final exam time and needles to say, we were all scared and worried about passing the class.  So, instead of getting all worked up, we decided to have some fun with it.  We all walked into the gymnasium filled with hundreds of tense students and sat down ready to take our punishment.  However, we all had one of those little cans that mooed like a cow when you turned it upside down.  We sat in different places in the gymnasium so as not to get caught.  In the middle of the exam it started...one mooing cow at one end of the gymnasium followed by another mooing cow at the opposite end.  You could imagine the Professor's dismay when the whole gymnasium erupted into laughter, immediately breaking the tension in the room!  I can't recall how we fared in the exam, or much about physics for that matter, but I will always remember Michael and his mooing cows! 

As I reflect back on Mike, I am reminded of all the things he loved.  On the top of the list is his love for cars.  Mike would spend endless hours sketching cars, reading about cars, talking about cars and of course driving his precious BMW.  He even convinced me to buy his white Toyota once he was ready to give it up.  It was a very good reliable car, just as Mike had promised.  Mike loved cars so much that he even decided to take an independent studio one semester to design his own car.  I recall how much he enjoyed his studio...I know that must have been his favorite semester at Cal. 

Mike, our friend and classmate Mae and I decided to spend new year's eve in NY's Time Square.  We were all so excited to travel to the East Coast and finally spend a real "white Christmas".  Mike was especially excited to visit David Letterman's Studio.  He was such a huge fan, always making sure he was home in time to watch David Letterman's Top 10 list. During our visit to NY, we roller skated in Rockefeller Center, visited Central Park, visited the Seinfeld Diner (yes, Mike was a huge Seinfeld fan!) and ate NY style hot dogs.  On new year's eve, we made our way to Time's Square and watched with frozen faces and hands as the ball and the new year fell upon us.  What an amazing time we had.  The funniest part of the whole trip, however, was Mike's

 whining.  Yep, for some reason, he decided to walk a few steps behind Mae and I mumbling "I'm cold....I'm hungry....My feet hurt...the subways are dirty".  We teased him all day long and I still laughed at him years later.  I never would have guessed in a million years that he would end up going back to NY and making it his home away from home! :)  Needless to say, that will be a trip and a New Years that I will never forget.

        Mike and his Letterman Sweatshirt...he was so excited!

          New York Tourist :)

Mike always found his way to a Micky D's.

Mike in a Subway (this must have been one of those whining moments) :)

 

Mike was always encouraging me to go online to find dates and I was always hesitant for the usual fears that people have about going online.  I was going to visit Mike in NY one year and he decided it would be a good idea to place an add on Craigslist for me...without me knowing!  My plans changed and I wasn't able to make it to NY so he fessed up and told me all about the add.  I have no idea what the add said but apparently I was getting some hits and Mike was busy screening them for me.    I couldn't believe it, he was always playing matchmaker, ever since college days.  Some years later, Mike's persistence payed off and I signed up on Match.com.  I remember Mike guiding me through the process telling me what to say and not say and within a month of signing up, I found my future husband!  Here is a picture of my husband, Carlton, and I during our very last visit with Mike in DC.  

I feel very blessed to have known Mike for so many years.  I will never forget his kindness, sense of humor, passion for life and his everlasting friendship.  Mike was like no other...I miss you Mike and I will hold you in my thoughts and in my heart forever.  Your Friend,  Gladys