Kinect for Xmas

My parents usually get my brother, sister, and me one big present for the whole family to enjoy. This year, it was a Kinect, which is the newest motion control gaming system to be released. My mom had been considering getting a Wii for quite some time, but when she heard about this, she decided to go for the newest techonology. It was not a disappointment! The kinect is so fun and so easy to use. Kyle was probably the most skeptical out of all of us, but he LOVES it now. We've spent several days of our vacation playing the Kinect non-stop (and we only have 3 Kinect games!) It's so fun that the games don't get old, especially Kinect Sports, which I could easily play all day long.

The Kinect is different from other motion control games in that there is absolutely no controller. You navigate the menu by moving your hand to select different items on the screen. When you play games, your body is the controller, everything from your arms and legs to your head. Let me tell you, after a few days of playing games on Kinect, you will be sore! It's not like Wii where you can kind of flick your wrist and get by. You really have to move around. In soccer, you have to kick the ball and aim it. In volleyball, you actually have to jump to spike the ball (Kinect can tell when your feet don't leave the floor, and you will miss the ball!). The system is pretty accurate too. The soccer/bowling/volleyball actually goes where you want it to go, and your arm and leg movements are reflected on the screen as soon as you move.

One thing I really like about the Kinect is how easy it was to learn how to play. I hardly ever play video games and I hate scrolling through confusing menus or trying to push the right button at the right time. With Kinect, there's not much of a learning curve. You just move around and your character onscreen does the same thing. I know this probably sounds like an advertisement by now, but I just can't get over how cool the Kinect is! I've played the Wii before and thought that it was a lot of fun, but it pales in comparison to the Kinect. My family is usually not the first to have new technology, so to have such an exciting new system has been a blast. I highly recommend the Kinect- it's been my family's favorite Christmas present this year.

Merry Christmas

Christmas has never been the same for me since the day my youngest brother Kyle found out that Santa Claus wasn't real. Leslie and I had known for awhile at that point, but it was still exciting to hide the presents and to wake up on Christmas morning to see that all the gifts had "magically" appeared under the tree. When I was little, I could barely get to sleep on Christmas Eve because the anticipation was so intense. Although I still love Christmas, I sometimes miss the magical feeling of the holiday. I look forward to the day I can recreate that magic with my own kids. :)

For my family, holidays have become a lot more low-key, and I'm fine with that. It seems kind of pointless now to take out tons of Christmas decorations or buy candy canes that no one eats anyway. It's easier and less stressful to keep it simple. We're all together for only a short time during the holidays, so it's nice to be at home and just relax. This Christmas was nice because my dad actually had the day off! (He's a doctor, so this is rare). We had a great day opening presents, playing board games, and eating dinner as a family.

While tradition is important, I'm glad my family's flexible. Christmas has grown up with us, and while it's not the magical event it once was, the way we celebrate now is charming in its own way. I hope all of my friends have had a wonderful Christmas too, and no matter how each of us celebrated today, I hope we all took time to remember the real reason for the season. The magic is still there, when you think about it. Merry Christmas, everyone!

The Homefront

Life at home after being away at college is always interesting. Sometimes it's a little weird adjusting from being all on my own to being part of a family again. I'm not used to being told what to do or getting yelled at anymore. But I don't mind it all that much. When I'm not here I miss the honesty and the easy familiarity that comes with being around my family. One thing's for sure though- I can't come home and quietly watch tv or browse the web on my computer. There's always a constant hubbub in this house, and with Bud around, it's usually 10 decibels above a normal speaking level.

There's always something going on- and none of it involves schoolwork, which makes me happy! Some of my friends say they get bored when they go home, but around here there's never a dull moment. I have so many normal life things to catch up on- tv shows to watch, books to read, movies to watch, recipes to try- the list goes on. My mom got me a pass to the gym, so I've been going to exercise classes with her too. Also, Leslie and Bud and I got the newest Nancy Drew computer game, so we've been playing that each evening, which has been a ton of fun.

Having home-cooked meals is another great thing about being home. The funny part is that Bud has cooked a lot of them! He loves food so much and he kind of controls what we eat around here. His newest thing that he likes to make is homemade pizza on a special flatbread crust. One night we made barbecue chicken pizza and spinach feta cheese pizza and it was delicious!

We also spent an entire evening making caramel popcorn for my dad's coworkers. We made toffee, heath, dark & white chocolate, and Reese's flavors. Here's just one of those batches.

Lucky stars

Wow. All my grades are in, and I got all A's! I can't believe it. There are at least 3 classes where I didn't think I'd be able to get an A, but I worked really hard to bring my grade up. I ended up getting just what I needed, so I feel really lucky. But really, my grades were due to working my butt off the entire semester.

I'm excited about my grades, but all I need to have in this PT program is a B average. So it's not important to have the highest grades. What I'm really excited about is the fact that I've proven to myself that I can do this. I can learn this material, even if it seems impossible at first. I can work hard and bring up my grade. Some people think Liberty is a joke, but I think I got a great education there. Now I'm at the best PT school in Virginia and I'm doing well in all my classes. It makes me feel validated. I realized today that I'm going to be able to graduate as a Doctor of Physical Therapy. It's just going to take another 2 1/2 years and a lot of hard work.

The Home Stretch

One more final to go! I can't believe this semester is almost over. I was looking over my old tests today to study for finals, and I was struck by how much I've learned this semester. Now the stuff at the beginning of the semester seems so easy! I remember when terms like rostral, caudal, ataxia, and nystagmus seemed confusing, but now it's like second nature. Someone asks a question, and it's natural to respond with anatomical and neurological terms. We've come so far!

Today has been non-stop kinesiology studying. I never knew gait could be so complicated. Heel strike, flat foot, midstance, heel off, toe off.... here we go.... almost done!!

Cold days and hot showers

Today I forgot to set my alarm clock! I guess the stress of school is really getting to me- this was the first time the entire semester that I forgot to set my alarm. Thankfully, one of my roommates woke me up, so I wasn't late for class, but I did have to skip my morning shower (luckily I still had time for my morning coffee, or it really would have been a bad day!). I hate it when I don't get a shower because I feel grody and unkempt for the entire day. It's truly amazing what a shower can do for you- how refreshed and clean and good you feel after stepping out of that hot water.

Anyway, I started thinking about how I take stuff for granted all the time. Because a shower really is one of the most amazing inventions ever. I mean, you have a waterfall inside your house! And you can turn it on and off at will, and adjust the temperature to your satisfaction. Really, it's pretty awesome that I can get hot water with just the turn of a knob- without lugging buckets of water around all morning. And the thing is, it makes my day to be able to take a hot shower. When I feel grumpy or gross, all it takes is 10 minutes under the water and some moisturizing conditioner, and I feel like a new person.

In this day and age, where there are scientific marvels and new toys and gadgets being invented all the time, I think it's actually the simple everyday conveniences that I forget to be thankful for the most. I think the Playstation Move, Kinect, Ipad, and Kindle are amazing gadgets, but I could live without them. Take away my microwave, washer and dryer, or hot shower, and I don't know what I would do!

Community

This past week has been crazy. There are so many different lab practicals and final exams to prepare for, no one seems to know where to begin! I actually feel a kind of excitement whenever final exams loom ahead. It's actually more like a mix of nervousness, anticipation, and a feeling of exhilaration that this semester is almost over. It's kind of like that last burst of energy you get right near the end of a game, even if you're tired and worn out. It's easier to stay motivated when the end is in sight!

What's been kind of fun to see is how the pressures of finals week has really made our class feel like a tight-knit community. We're all stressing out and we've been helping each other through it, passing on advice and words of encouragement. Lunch break has become a study time with a sandwich on the side. A bunch of us will go into lab and practice goniometer measurements, amputee stump wrapping, and sterile field set-ups. It's kind of fun to have everyone in there laughing and talking and stressing and studying.

I've discovered I learn a lot more studying like this with a lot of people. Everyone remembers something different that's important, and when I take all that knowledge and put it together, I've just learned a lot more than I ever would have studying by myself. It's also good to feel like I'm not alone. Everyone else in my class is in the same situation, and we're going to make it through together!

T-break

This Thanksgiving break was filled with lots to be thankful for (family, friends, and a new texting plan!) but also several mishaps. My first day back home, I went to the gym to work out with Leslie and my mom. We went to an aerobics class called "Body Attack" and it was intense! My calves and lats hurt for days afterwards. Unrelated to this, my back started hurting unexpectedly my second day home. Every once in awhile I get horrible back spasms, where one spot in my back feels like a huge knot. There's not much I can do about it, except beg someone to give me a massage (which gives me about 30 minutes of relief), rub some tiger balm on it (burns in a good way), and hope it goes away soon. The thing that sucked about it was that my back hurt so bad I couldn't sleep- and I was really looking forward to getting lots of sleep when I was home. Add into the mix that I had to get up early at least 3 out of the 5 mornings I was home, and physically, this break was not exactly what I had hoped it would be in terms of rest.

On the bright side, I did have a lot of fun. Leslie, Kyle, and I finished the latest Nancy Drew game, along with a batch of homemade caramel popcorn. We always have to have caramel popcorn when we play Nancy Drew. It's a tradition. This time, we drizzled the popcorn with different melted chocolate chips. We had Reese's, Tuxedo, and dark chocolate flavors. Leslie and I also made some Christmas jewelry over break. It's harder to make earrings than you would think. We kept gluing our fingers together.

I’m the last one to head back to school, since Leslie and Kyle drove back yesterday. The two of them hadn’t driven more than an hour before they called to tell us that the car had broken down. They called a tow truck and my mom called the closest Volkswagen dealership. We were informed that there was no way it could be fixed that day, so my mom and I had to drive to Connecticut to bring them a car. My mom decided to let them borrow her brand-new Suburban until they come back for Christmas. So I drove the Suburban and my mom drove the truck to Connecticut. When we got there, Leslie and Kyle took off in the Suburban, while my mom and I were left to deal with everything.

Now I’m sitting at the airport waiting for my flight back to Richmond, wondering where my Thanksgiving break went. It was way too short, and I hate the fact that now I have to gear up for two weeks of classes and finals. At least I’ll be home again soon. But it still doesn’t seem fair that during my four days with my family, I had to get schoolwork done. Frankly, I blew it off, and now I’m going to try to get some of my essays done here at Logan. We’ll see how that goes.

Check!

I love checking stuff off a list. For me, it’s one of the most satisfying feelings in the world. I love it when I’m able to say “Check! I did that. I completed that task, and now I don’t have to worry about it any more.” So as the semester is winding to a close, and I get to check off more and more tests, quizzes, and projects, I’m almost in a state of euphoria. It just feels so great to look back and think that I accomplished all that. At the beginning of the semester, it seemed overwhelming, but now I’ve nearly made it through. I’m starting to believe that I can do this!

At the same time, I’m starting to get a little burnt out trying to get everything done. I have so much due at the end of the semester, and I’m so tired of studying all the time. Thank goodness Thanksgiving break is right around the corner. I’m flying home tomorrow and I can’t wait to see my family! Then just two more weeks of class and finals, and I'm done with the hardest semester of the DPT program (so I'm told- and I hope it's true!)

Recipe request

Ok, so back near the very beginning of my blog, I talked about how I basically rotate cooking among 5 meals (The meal wheel).... and well, not much has changed since then. Frankly, it's getting a little boring. Also, my roommates and I each cook one meal a week, and I'm running out of dinner options! So, if anyone has any good dinner ideas or easy recipes, please send them my way!

In return, here's one of my favorite dinner recipes:

Chicken Broccoli Cheese Braid
12 oz chopped chicken, cooked (I use more then this- like 3 or 4 chicken breasts)
1 cup broccoli, chopped (I use a whole bag)
4 oz shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 t. Dill mix
1/4 t. salt
2 packages crescent rolls



1. Mix the first 6 ingredients. (You can also add red bell pepper and garlic, if desired).
2. Uncurl and roll out both packages of crescent rolls so that they form one huge rectangle on a cookie sheet or baking tray.
3. Place the broccoli chicken mixture in a strip down the center.
4. Cut the edges of the crescent roll rectangle into strips and fold strips over the broccoli mixture, twisting them and making them meet in the center.
5. Bake at 375* for 30 minutes.

Mind control

In my kinesiology class, we watched a really cool video about scientists who are developing robotic hands for patients with amputated arms. They basically attach electrodes to the patient's nerves, thereby allowing the patient to control the robotic hand with his mind. The patient has to figure out how to activate those nerves in order to move the hand, which is a lot harder than it sounds! This is really fascinating stuff.

Here's the link to the youtube video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppILwXwsMng

Top of the world

When I work out, I feel fantastic. So why is it the first thing to go when I get busy and stressed? I went to the gym today and ran two miles, then did some weight-lifting and crunches. I'm still on a high from all the endorphins. This has been the first time I've gone to the gym in a couple of weeks. I really wish I could motivate myself to work out more often, because I feel so great when I do!

I'm also feeling good because I've been keeping up with all my studying. Despite having two hard tests next week, I feel like I'm well on my way to being prepared for both of them. I've definitely been in the "study zone" this week. I hope it continues!

The conversation that led to the visit

This is how the conversation actually went down, that resulted in me having a fun weekend with Tristan instead of getting lots of studying done:

Tristan calls:
Tristan: So what are you doing this weekend?
Me: Well, I don't really have anything due this week, so I'm going to get ahead on lots of schoolwork! I'm going to start my Professional Aspects essays, and I'm going to start studying for Kines and Neuro, and there are some quizzes on Blackboard that I have to take... blah, blah, blah
Tristan: oh.
Me: Why? What are you doing this weekend?
Tristan: Well, I was thinking I could come visit you, but it sounds like you have a lot of work to do.
Me: ....
Me: Well, you know, I really don't have to get all that done this weekend. You should come!

I totally don't regret that decision at all.

Surprise visit

This weekend, the social chair of my class planned a special event for Friday evening. He called it a "case race" and it involved teams of people traveling to different houses and bars and consuming a set amount of beer at each place in an effort to win. Since I can think of plenty of things I'd rather do than chug beer and run around Richmond drunk, I didn't participate. In fact, I was a little shocked that the social chair of our class would plan an event like that. Not only is it unprofessional and silly, it gives our class a bad reputation. To top it all off, a bunch of people from my class also went to a tailgate on Saturday, so they basically spent the weekend being drunk.

Luckily, Tristan surprised me by coming to visit! She called me Friday night wanting to know if it would be okay to drive here on Saturday and spend the weekend. And of course I was super excited to spend time with her again! I got some studying done on Saturday before Tristan got here so that I could enjoy the rest of the weekend. We had so much fun together. We spent a lot of time at Short Pump this weekend, which is becoming one of my favorite places around Richmond. The West End is just a very nice, pretty place with lots of fun places to shop. We looked at some townhouses there one day, just for fun, and I fell in love with them. I really want to move there after I graduate, and commute into Richmond to work. I think it would be good for me to work in a city at first so I can gain a lot of experience, but I don't want to live in the city after I'm done with grad school.

Tristan and I went to see "The Town" one night, and it was an awesome movie. It's about bank robbers in Boston, and it was based on the fact that Charlestown (a neighborhood in Boston) churns out a high number of bank robbers. It was very reminiscent of "The Departed" and "What Doesn't Kill You", which are two other movies about crime in Boston. The movie was so well acted. I loved Ben Affleck in it. He's gotten a bad rap, but he was a great actor in this movie (and pretty ripped too, I might add!) We also watched "How To Train Your Dragon", which is another movie I highly recommend!

Skill checks

I had my second rehab skill check yesterday. It involved vital signs and gait training. I was very nervous about taking vital signs, since I'd just learned how to take blood pressure, and I wasn't very good at it at first. But everything went really well. I was nervous because 3 of my classmates who went before me had to take blood pressure multiple times because they kept messing up. But I got it on the first try! I also had to demonstrate a gait pattern with an assistive device. My "patient" had a stroke, so I taught her how to use a hemicane and she ambulated a few steps.

By the way, I never expected PT terminology to become second nature so quickly, but now it's hard to use layman's terms to explain things to non-medical people. Here are just a few:

Ambulate= walk.
CVA= stroke.
Contractures= muscle tightening that can develop after a stroke.
Decubitus ulcers= bed sores.
Prone= lying on your stomach.
Supine= lying on your back.

On my last skill check, I told my patient to lie prone so that he could stretch out the contractures that had developed in his leg after an amputation. He looked at me like I was nuts.

Speak Now

Taylor Swift's new cd, Speak Now, is absolutely amazing! The girl definitely has a talent for writing songs that are extremely personal, yet appeal to millions of fans all over the world (as evidenced by the fact that her record sold over a million copies in the first week, and has been the first album this year to do so).

I absolutely love the maturity and vulnerability of her songs. I love it when songs have "moments", and there are plenty of those on this cd. I'm talking about when Taylor's voice gets soft and intense, as if to say "listen up, here's the most meaningful part of the song" or when the song builds up to a crescendo of emotion. Some of her songs give me chills, literally! I'm impressed that she wrote all the lyrics herself- her lyrics are clever, creative, and heartfelt all at the same time. She uses an interesting choice of words and analogies that create a striking picture for the listener who takes note of what she's saying. These are some of my favorite lyrics from the album:

Mine
"Flash forward and we're taking on the world together... we've got bills to pay, we've got nothing figured out"
This sends a message that it's okay not to know everything and not to have a solution to everything. What matters is that you're there for each other. It doesn't matter what life throws your way, because you're going through it together.

Sparks Fly
"the way you move is like a full-on rainstorm, and I'm a house of cards"
The idea is that someone else can affect you very powerfully. I think she's talking about those people who are so charismatic and confident, that we don't stand a chance against the force of their personality. They kind of take us by storm and turn our world upside-down. We can't help being captivated.

Back to December
"I'd go back in time and change it, but I can't. So if the chain is on your door, I understand."
In this line, Taylor expresses deep regret for making a mistake, but also realizes that she may never have the opportunity to fix it. She's gracefully accepting the consequences of her actions, while still taking time to apologize and admit that she was wrong.

Speak Now
"the organ starts to play a song that sounds like a death march"
It's ironic that a wedding march can sound like a death march, but not if you're dreading the wedding and not if you feel like the couple is making a mistake! This phrase reminds me of songs I used to like, but don't anymore because they're now associated with something bad. It's the idea of something good becoming something bad based on the situation and how it's interpreted.

The Story of Us
"Now I'm standing alone in a crowded room and we're not speaking; and I'm dying to know is it killing you like it's killing me? ...I've never heard silence quite this loud."
I love the emotion and all the double meanings. I like the irony of it.

Never Grow Up
"I won't let nobody hurt you, won't let no one break your heart, and no one will desert you- just try to never grow up"
Man, you can only protect your kids for so long. In a way, growing up is a tragedy. You have to experience all the trials and heartbreaks of life. It was easier to be little. It was easier when mom and dad could make everything okay.

Last Kiss
"I love how you walk with your hands in your pockets, how you'd kiss me when I was in the middle of saying something; there's not a day I don't miss those rude interruptions"
It's definitely the little things we miss about someone. Even the things that we might have found annoying at the time.

Long Live
"Will you take a moment, promise me this: That you'll stand by me forever- but if God forbid, fate should step in and force us into a goodbye, if you have children someday, when they point to the pictures, please tell them my name. Tell them how the crowds went wild, tell them how I hope they shine. Long live the walls we crashed through; I had the time of my life with you."

This is one of my favorite parts of the whole cd. Taylor is thanking her band, her producers, her fans, and anyone who has helped her get to where she is today. She's living her dreams. At the same time, she realizes that this might not last forever. Someday down the road, maybe only the pictures will be left. But nobody can take away the experiences she's had and the memories she's made.

Cookout in C-ville

Yesterday, two of the girls from my class had a barbecue at their house. It was so nice to relax and socialize outside of class and get to know everyone a little better. The cookout was at Chrissy and Bettina's house. They're both married and live in Charlottesville, about an hour from Richmond. Their house is really cool, because it's kind of split in half. It's really convenient for them because each couple gets their own living room, dining room, bedroom, and guest room. Then they all share the kitchen, which is centrally located. Chrissy and Bettina are the type of girls who have the house perfectly decorated, neat, and clean. It was such a pretty house!

One of the cool parts about this get-together was that I got to meet a lot of significant others. I met Chrissy and Bettina's husbands, who are both really nice welcoming guys. I also met Meike and Jenifer's boyfriends, who were hilarious and really nice, too. It was fun to finally meet people that I've heard so much about. And the great part was, everyone was really hitting it off, talking and laughing, and having a really good time. It's starting to feel like our class is kind of a big family. Maybe not all 55, but enough of us have gotten close that we can just be comfortable and chill when we're together. That's really nice to have between all the stress of classes.

Compatible or not

One of the big things I forgot to mention was the new game we played this weekend. When Tristan and Emily and I met at camp, we played this really fun game called “Compatibility” and we all loved it, but we haven’t been able to find it since. I’ve looked for it everywhere, but no store seems to have it. Anyway, Leslie found it online and she and I bought the game for Tristan’s birthday. It’s so fun! Here’s how you play: Everyone gets a deck of cards with the same pictures. When it’s your turn, you flip over a topic card, which will have a word, for example “freedom”. You and your partner each have to choose five picture cards that you think represent “freedom”. The more you match, the more compatible you are! I think I’m going to design my own set of picture cards to use when we get tired of the given pictures. Just for fun.

Another exciting event last week was that Taylor Swift released another single from her new album. It’s called “Back to December”. It’s a notable song for her in that it’s the first time she’s ever apologized in a song. Of course, I absolutely love it. It’s so honest and heartbreaking. And risky, because it’s totally obvious who the song is about, and I’m sure the guy has heard it by now. Of course Taylor, who has never shied away from putting personal details into her songs, doesn’t hold back now. She admits that she took the relationship for granted and that she was wrong. Yet she also realizes that she might have lost her chance with this guy. She can’t go back in time and change her mind. Still, she’s at least going to apologize in her song and put it all out there, for fans to love and critics to hate.

Picture for Taylor Swift's "Back to December" single

Melting Pot

This post is going to be a random mix of everything that happened this weekend.

First, Leslie's birthday was celebrated with a trip to The Melting Pot, a fancy fondue restaurant. It's expensive, but they have a special deal at the bar where you can get unlimited cheese and chocolate fondue for $20 a person. That's what we did, and it was delicious! With the cheese fondue, you get bread, nachos, veggies, and apples to dip. We tried the Fiesta, Wisconsin Trio, and Spinach Artichoke cheese fondues. Of the three, the spinach artichoke was my favorite! For dessert, you get rice krispies, pound cake, brownies, fruit, and cheesecake to dip in the chocolate fondue. We tried the Yin & Yang, bananas foster, and turtle fondues. All of them were really good. I don't know if I've ever left a restaurant feeling that full!

Emily had to watch a video for her education class this weekend, so Leslie and I went to see it with her. It was called "Waiting for Superman". It was a documentary that described the education system in the US. I didn't really know much about how the school systems worked, since I went to a private school in middle school and was homeschooled throughout high school. For people who can't afford private schools and have to rely on public schools, the situation becomes difficult. Everyone wants to get into the best public schools, but there are many more applicants than spaces available. So the schools have to hold a lottery where the spaces are filled randomly. The kids who don't get in are denied a better education... and this all depends solely on luck! Another big problem that the movie focused on was that bad teachers can't be fired when they have tenure (which is automatically granted after two years of teaching). It's really sad to me that teacher's unions are more focused on teachers keeping their jobs than on the education of children.

We also went to Scream Forest this weekend in anticipation of Halloween. I thought it was pretty scary, but I get scared easily. I didn't like it as much as Scaremare (in Lynchburg) due to the fact that they only let smaller groups go through the woods at a time and they let people TOUCH you. I didn't like that because I just felt very vulnerable and unprotected. It also didn't help that Tristan and Kyle talked about serial killers right before we went through the woods.

Sadly, sometime Saturday night I lost my cell phone. I think I lost it at Scream Forest, but I'm not sure. However, I talked to my mom and I'm due for a free upgrade anyway, so I'm going to go ahead and get a new phone. And I really did need a new phone because mine started randomly turning off sometimes, even when the battery was fully charged. So yay! I get to pick out a new phone.

Time

I come easily
Long you think I’ll last
I’m stretched out like an eon

But I leave quickly
Leaving you aghast
At how night turned into dawn

No way to slow me
To get back the past
I’m the queen and you’re a pawn

Make much use of me
For I come too fast
And am all too swiftly gone

I don't have palmaris longus!

Something I learned today: I don't have a palmaris longus muscle!
It's not that big a deal, since it's just a thin slip of a muscle that aids in flexing the wrist. But it was pretty cool in lab, because I was the only one who didn't have the muscle in either forearm. The cadaver I dissected this past summer was also missing palmaris longus bilaterally. My kinesiology professor told us that about 15% of people are missing palmaris in one arm while 9% are missing it in both.

Here's how to check if you have a palmaris longus muscle: Touch the pads of your thumb and your pinky finger together and flex your wrist. The tendon should pop up right below your palm. If you don't see a visible bump, chances are you don't have palmaris longus.

Why this could be a bad thing: Palmaris longus can be used in a tendon or ligament graft. Since removing it doesn't produce any noticeable functional impairment, it's a great muscle to remove and use in the place of a tendon that has ruptured.

Life after facebook: Studying's less fun

Facebook Update:

This is the first weekend that I’ve really missed facebook. Up until now, I’ve been busy and I was enjoying the fact that I wasn’t wasting as much time on the computer sans facebook. However, this weekend I have nothing on my agenda except studying, and FB would have been a welcome study break. I can only study neuro for so long before I feel overwhelmed and need a break- usually every couple of hours. Then I like to go and do something mindless for a while to give my brain a break. FB would have been the perfect distraction, so I miss it more than usual. Still, I’m sticking to my guns and I’m going to hold out until the end of the semester at least!

Studying neuro is a pain in the rear. The only way that I can describe it is that there are different layers of complexity, and studying is like peeling back all the layers one by one. At first, I’m totally lost and confused and I don’t know what any of the terms mean. After studying, I learn some definitions and have a general grasp of what’s going on. I feel pretty good that I’m getting the hang of it. That’s phase one. Phase two occurs when I go into greater detail and realize that I didn’t truly understand anything that I thought I did. I get frustrated. I study more and eventually sort of understand it. I realize there are 5 names for one thing and no name for another thing. I go back and re-learn some of the terms, which now have slightly different meanings to me. I’m finally understanding this stuff! Then comes phase three. Although I understand basic concepts now, I don’t have anything memorized. I’ve finally grasped the big picture, but there are a LOT of minute details that are going to be on the test. Now I have to organize the information in my head. I have to be able to visualize cross-sections of the brain stem and the pathways of tracts. I have to know every single disorder and syndrome, where the lesion is, and the symptoms that would occur. It’s not easy to get all this info into my head.

You probably got bored reading that, but imagine how I feel studying it.

Shades of gray

There always seems to be that boring stretch in the middle of the semester where classes become monotonous, tedious- almost unbearable. The same routine of classes, studying, and homework continues to keep me busy, but there’s no variety or excitement anymore. I find it hard to pay attention in class. I sit there waiting for the clock to tick down so that I can go home… where I’ll inevitably study the same material we just went over. It just seems like we’re learning a lot of boring stuff.

Yesterday, to break up the monotony, my roomies and I took the evening off from studying. We ordered pizza and watched a movie after a LONG day of classes. It was nice to take a little break, but now it’s back to the grindstone. Neuro continues to be my nemesis, so I'm focusing on it a lot, at the expense of my other classes.

At least the weather finally feels like Fall! After several depressing days of rain, the showers finally stopped, and now it’s a nice breezy temperature outside. Time to pull out the sweaters, jackets, and long-sleeved shirts!

Creativity and Glee

This weekend I took the time to decorate some cards for my friends. I'm not very artistically inclined, so I got most of my ideas from a book I have called "The ABC's of Creative Lettering". Here's a picture of two of the cards I designed:

I also started watching the first season of Glee this weekend, and I'm addicted! It's such an interesting show and the musical numbers are fantastic! I kind of cheated and watched an episode of the current season, because I wanted to see the episode with Britney Spears. I thought Heather Morris (aka Brittany) did an awesome job of performing Britney's songs. She even looked remarkably similar to the real Britney! Of course, Lea Michele (aka Rachel) was amazing as always, too.

Besides that, I've spent a lot of time studying this weekend in preparation for next week, which my class has already dubbed "hell week". We have three tests next week, the first of which is the dreaded Neuro exam. I also have my first skills check this Friday, which will involve getting patients in and out of bed and into wheelchairs. Seems like a no-brainer, but there's actually a lot of little things to remember. Plus, the session is going to be recorded and I'll be graded on it. It's a lot of pressure.

My favorite poems

I really enjoy poetry, as long as it's traditional poetry- ie, has a rhyme scheme and rhythm. Free verse poetry is not my favorite, nor do I like haikus, which seem kind of pointless. I especially like poems with a deeper meaning, symbolism, or irony. Robert Frost is probably my favorite poet, and the following are my favorite poems:

1. The Road Not Taken- Robert Frost
2. In Flander's Fields- John McCrae
3. If- Rudyard Kipling
4. Daffodils (aka: I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud)- William Wordsworth
5. Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening- Robert Frost
6. The New Colossus- Emma Lazarus (poem on the Statue of Liberty)
7. The Star Spangled Banner- Francis Scott Key (our national anthem is only the first stanza; the rest of the poem is amazing too!)
8. Sonnet 18- William Shakespeare
9. Trees- Joyce Kilmer
10. Choices For a Girl- Ramona K. Cecil

The last poem is an inspirational Christian poem that I had on a plaque hanging in my room. I would read it all the time- I loved it. Sadly, the framed poem somehow got lost when my family moved into their new house. Luckily, I had big portions of it memorized, or else I would NEVER have found it on the internet. As it was, I could only find the complete poem on one website- a blog of a girl from India- go figure! Since it's so hard to find, and since no one else has probably ever heard of it, I'll type it here on my blog.

Choices For a Girl
Your whole life is before you
A page so clean and white
All that will be written there
You must choose to write

Remember that you're special
God will always be with you
A woman doesn't follow
What "all the other girls" may do

Prayerfully consider
Every choice that you must make;
How you choose to live your life-
The husband you will take

With Christ as your example
You need never be afraid
Or have cause to be ashamed
Of the choices you have made
(Ramona K. Cecil)

Looking back

Everything seems easier in retrospect. When I think of college, I remember it being a lot easier than I know it was at the time. I look back at my childhood days, and I think of them as the best days of my life. But I know bad stuff happened, and when you're a kid, you feel like the world is coming to an end every time something bad happens. So my memories aren't reliable. I know there have been plenty of bad moments in my life, but when I look back at different time periods, I tend to remember the good stuff. It suddenly struck me that, despite grad school being tough and tiring right now, one day I might remember it fondly as the "good ole' days". I realized that I should probably try to enjoy grad school now and appreciate what I have while I have it, instead of years down the road.

I wrote a poem about the unreliability of memories and how things change from a different perspective. Don't laugh.

Reflections on the Past
Some days, in quiet reflections, I
Look back on days long past and wonder
If I was really happier then
Or did I change things in my mind’s eye
Making sunshine from days of thunder?

Because in my memories I see
Bliss and happiness and carefree days
I don’t remember tribulations
Although I’m sure in reality
They were filled with them in many ways

If I ponder long and hard, I can
Remember both the bad and the good
And I realize that life was never
Perfect, but a transient mental scan
Paints a flawless picture of girlhood

I wish I could go back and enjoy
Time with no expectations, issue,
Or worry; the past is alluring-
It’s safe, there’s nothing hidden or coy
About it; yet once, before we knew
What would come, the past was the future.

Tuesday catch-ups

I love Tuesdays almost as much as I dislike Mondays. On Tuesday, I only have one class, so it's a chance for me to get caught up on all the things I don't have time for the rest of the week. Today I slept in, got my laundry done in the morning, and finished typing up an assignment for my Professional Aspects class. After class I got some other homework done and took an online quiz, which turned out to be harder than I thought.

Dinner was great tonight. Kelly made chicken covered in some kind of buttery, crunchy coating. I'm going to have to get the recipe from her! She also made sweet potato fries and cupcakes for dessert. And this morning she made cranberry oatmeal muffins, so I got a warm one for breakfast. It was a good day.

Despite things going pretty well in school, I find myself getting homesick more than usual. I think it's because I don't have the Christian fellowship here that I did at Liberty. I have friends from my class, but they're not super-close friends like my friends from LU and camp. I just always feel this barrier, beacuse I can't talk about things like God or politics with them.

When I heard someone say that they'd get an abortion if they got pregnant during grad school, I felt sick to my stomach. When I hear people talk about their drunken experiences and hook-ups, it makes me uncomfortable. I really like some of the girls in my class, but I know they have liberal political views and live with their boyfriends, and that makes me sad. It's just a different world. I like these people, I get along with them, they're my friends- but I don't agree with their lifestyle at all. That makes it hard to be close friends. I've kind of accepted that, but it just makes me miss my family and closest friends all the more.

When Monday morning comes around...

After an awesome weekend, it's hard to get back into that "study zone". Sigh.

First, the good part! I had such a great time with Tristan and Emily this weekend. Tristan was supposed to come visit me in Richmond, but she had to dog-sit on Saturday, so I decided to drive to Harrisonburg instead. It doesn't matter what we do when we get together, we always have a great time.

Some of the highlights from this weekend:

Tristan and I went to Ross where I found a really cute dress that we decided looked like something Taylor Swift would wear. So I had to get boots to go with my Taylor Swift dress to complete the look. Then Tristan had to get boots to go with one of her dresses so she could have a Taylor Swift outfit. (We're both obsessed with T.Swift- I think we watched her new music video "Mine" and listened to "I'm only me when I'm with you" about a dozen times this weekend). We're both going to wear our outfits the next time we get together!

When Emily got back into town on Saturday night, the three of us decided to make a music video to Katy Perry's "Waking up in Vegas". We wore party dresses and did outrageous hair and make-up. Then we set up a gambling table, complete with money and dice, and lip-synced the lyrics. For the last scene, we decided to jump into the pool after-hours.

We made delicious mint brownies. (Ok, Emily made them. Tristan and I just ate them. But it was my idea!) We just pressed Andes mints into the top of the brownies before we baked them, so there was a layer of chocolate and mint on the top. They were so good!

But now it's Monday and back to classes. I miss my weekend already.

The study zone

I love getting together with a study group. There’s something about going over the material together that encourages and motivates me. I don’t feel like I’m struggling alone, because there are things that no one else understands either. We can bounce ideas off each other, explain things to each other, and come up with ridiculous mnemonics to memorize something. Sometimes I study more effectively just by getting out of my apartment and being in a different setting. It’s nice to be able to get a study room, spread out our notes and Netter’s all over the table, and learn new things together.

The best part is that sometimes I get to a place where I actually enjoy studying. This usually occurs when learning becomes more than just memorizing information and turns into a desire to really understand what’s going on. This happened for me yesterday for neuro. I wouldn’t say I like neuro exactly, but finally understanding some of the things that happen in the brain is truly amazing.

For instance, we’d been talking about the circulation of cerebrospinal fluid in class. I learned that it’s produced in the choroid plexus, that it circulates in the ventricles, and that it eventually winds up in the subarachnoid space, where it’s reabsorbed by the arachnoid granulations. But I couldn’t understand how the CSF got back to the choroid plexus, or why it was reabsorbed into a dural sinus (which contains blood). I had a light bulb go on in my head when I finally realized that there’s CSF in blood! Suddenly everything made sense. The choroid plexus “makes” CSF by filtering substances from the blood. When the subarachnoid granulations reabsorb CSF, it goes into the venous system and the cycle continues. Before this, I usually thought of CSF as a static fluid surrounding the brain, but now I realize there is SO much more going on.

I had another “aha” moment when I learned that female fetuses already have all the oocytes they’re ever going to produce. Before they’re born, females have already started the first steps of reproduction. Crazy, but kind of fascinating! Another revelation occurred when I realized that the embryo develops only from the epiblast layer of the bilaminar disc. The list of new mental discoveries goes on, but I won’t give any more boring details. Suffice it to say, I was in the study zone.

Why I deleted facebook

I finally did it. I deleted facebook. There are many reasons why I decided to deactivate my account. It was becoming a huge time-waster for me. The application and group updates on my newsfeed were getting annoying. But the biggest reason is the hardest to put into words. For some reason, it just started feeling so fake to me. Facebook is supposed to connect you to everyone, but I was feeling more disconnected than ever. For instance, when I go on facebook, I always scroll through my newsfeed to see what’s going on with all my friends. If anything’s interesting, I’ll click on it to get more info. I ended up knowing what was happening in everyone’s lives (at least what they posted on FB), but I had little to no interaction with a lot of those people, even on FB.

I had some facebook friends who got married this summer- people I don’t really talk to or stay in touch with, but I could see all their wedding pictures online. They didn’t send me the pictures or tell me about them, but the pics popped up on my newsfeed. I knew when my friends got sick, when they had a big test to study for, when they broke up with their boyfriends, even when a friend had diarrhea (that was a status update that was a little too much information). I said “congratulations” when a friend got engaged, and “happy birthday” when I got the notification that it was their birthday. I was in the loop about everything.

Yet somehow, in the midst of keeping up with all these people, I felt like I was missing out. I knew so many details about people’s lives, but I didn’t have a real relationship with a lot of those people anymore. I was going on facebook to stay connected to people, but I ended up getting too much information about friends I barely knew, and not enough about friends that I really cared about. I finally decided that the friends who matter to me are the ones I’ll stay in touch with no matter what- whether I have facebook or not. As for the others, well, some friends are meant to be in your life for only a short time, and then you move on. Facebook was a way to artificially keep them attached, even after the real friendship had long since disintegrated.

So, what am I going to do now that I no longer have facebook? First of all, I hope to have more meaningful interactions with my friends. Instead of posting a status update that anyone can see, I’ll write personal letters, e-mails, and blog posts. Secondly, I hope to make better use of my free time. I want to spend time doing activities I used to enjoy before-gasp- facebook. Things like reading, for one. Finally, I hope to eliminate the control facebook has in my life. I don’t want to go through the day thinking “oh, that would be a good status update”, or “I wonder how many people have responded to the event invitation”, or “I wonder if anyone’s replied to that funny note I posted earlier”. I think I’ve realized that facebook will never be fulfilling. We all want to have that feeling of validity and acceptance in our lives. We want to know that we’re not alone, that people care about us. Facebook attempts to offer all of the above, but ultimately it’s a fraud. Maybe we don’t even know what we’re missing. I’m about to find out.

Show me the money, honey

Money, I’ve discovered, is a constant concern in grad school. Now that I’m on my own and paying for myself, I have to be wise with how I spend my cash. Not that I wasn’t careful with money in undergrad, because I was. I budgeted my money even then, making sure that my hundred-dollar-a-month allowance would last until I got my next check. Back then my parents were paying for college, and I’m immensely grateful for that. I don’t know if I would have decided to go on to grad school if I’d had undergrad loans to pay back. Now, though, I'm on my own, and I'll have to pay back money that I borrow. In three years, I don’t want to regret money I’ve spent frivolously, as I struggle to pay back huge grad school loans. So I’m trying to be careful now and save as much as possible.

I used to play this game in college where I’d see how long I could go without spending any money at all. Usually after I’d bought groceries and gas for my car, I could go a couple of weeks without spending a dime. (Okay, maybe I’d scrounge up 6 quarters to go see a movie at the dollar theater, but that doesn't count!). Really, when I wanted to I was highly successful at not spending money. Grad school is a different story, however. Little costs always seem to creep up on me. I seem to constantly have to pay for one thing or another, whether it’s a bill, class supplies, or extra groceries (I seem to run out of food a lot quicker now- I’m not quite sure why).

Plus, living in a city is expensive. If you go downtown on the weekends, you have to pay for parking (unless you’re incredibly lucky). If I go out to eat with classmates, I can expect to pay an arm and a leg for a burger, even if we just go to a little diner. Fortunately, I’m starting to find some places that have really great deals, so that’s always a plus. Actually, the fun side of being frugal is trying to find good bargains. I love it when I can use a coupon or get something on sale. (Once I got free coffee for an entire week, thanks to McDonald’s coupons promoting their new frappes). I guess my conclusion is that while money can be stressful, it’s just another resource that God gives us. Our job is to use it in a way that is glorifying and honoring to Him. We can spend it carelessly or worry about it needlessly, but the real challenge is finding that balance in the middle- being responsible with what we have and trusting God for the rest.

Moving forward

This week in class I learned that the physical therapy catchphrase is "move forward". I think that slogan really captures what PT is all about. We're involved with helping people move, obviously, and all the muscles and nerves involved with movement; but we're also involved with helping people move on when something traumatizing has happened in their life. We help them find ways to cope and adjust so that they can move forward with their lives.

I'm speaking theoretically, of course. I haven't actually been able to do any of these things yet. Hopefully some day I will. For me right now, "moving forward" means ploughing ahead after an overwhelming first week of classes. It means accepting that neuroanatomy is going to be insanely difficult and coping by working hard and studying a lot. Neuro is going to be harder than anatomy by a long shot. Anatomy was a lot to memorize, but in neuro I'm having a hard time orienting myself and conceptualizing the information. I liked anatomy, but I doubt I'll be able to say the same for neuro after this semester. According to the second years, neuro was the bane of their existence at this point last year.

Despite neuroanatomy, my classes haven't been bad so far. The kinesiology and rehab labs have been kind of fun- we got to palpate each other, position people in a bed, and learn how to use a wheelchair. So we've already learned some useful, albeit very basic stuff. The hard part about having so many classes now is that I'm often in class from 8am to 4pm, so I'm exhausted by the end of the day. I'm still trying to work out a schedule where I can go to class, study, work out, and eat in the most efficient way possible. I have a feeling this semester is going to force me to be very organized with my time.

My best friend in anatomy

Netter is pretty amazing. We got to know each other really well this summer and have become really close friends. He's there when I need him. When I have a question about anatomy, he's got the answer. Most importantly, he doesn't bore me with non-essential information. It's just the clear, stark truth- not fancy words and complicated explanations. He's honest and reliable. Pretty much my best friend ever.

The real Frank Netter. :) He really does a great job of combining art work and anatomy!

So it begins

This week is the first full week of grad school classes for the fall semester. I'm already completely exhausted. For some reason I haven't been sleeping well for the past week. Last Wednesday, on one of my first nights back in Richmond, I went to bed at 11pm but didn't fall asleep until after 1am, then had to get up at 6am the next day. The next night I also had trouble falling asleep, although I was even more tired than the day before. This past weekend I went to Lynchburg to visit some of my Liberty friends. I wanted to visit before I got bogged down in schoolwork, and although it was an incredibly fun weekend, it didn't help my sleeping patterns (or lack thereof) very much at all. [Let me just add here that I miss my friends from Liberty so much right now! Just spending the weekend with everyone again made me realize that Liberty is a place of fellowship rarely found other places. I miss it now more than ever.]

I don't know what it is that's keeping me up, but I know I'm feeling overwhelmed. It's not the class content that has me stressed out either, but all the little things that I have to worry about. We need to order lab coats for one class, a goniometer for another, blank Sony CDs to record our clinical test, and we have to remember to order nametags from the bookstore or we won't be able to do our clinical rehabs at the hospital. Then there's rent to pay, quizzes to complete on Blackboard (they don't even count for a grade, yet we have to do them), and grocery shopping, since I don't have anything to eat in the apartment! It just seems that they're a million things running through my mind when I go to bed, and I can't shut my mind off long enough to fall asleep. So the fact that I had class from 8am to 5pm today was rough for my tired body.

I'm sure things will get better as I fall into a routine (which will involve going to bed early and drinking lots of coffee in the morning), but for now, I'm just trying to get through each day one at a time. From the looks of it, this is not going to be an easy semester.

Grad school must-haves

These are some of the things (aka foods) that get me through the day:

McDonald's frappe- These things are just so good. They're the perfect combination of coffee, sugar, and whipped cream. And there's no crunched ice left in the bottom of the cup- it's perfectly blended all the way through. Delicious on a hot summer day.

French vanilla creamer- When I do make coffee myself (which is often, because I can't afford to buy it every day, even from McDonald's) it tastes so much better with a shot of french vanilla creamer. This is my favorite flavor of Coffee-mate that I've tried so far, but I want to try the peppermint mocha and creme brulee, too.

Diet Coke- Notice the trend here? I need lots of caffeine to make it through a day of PT school. Luckily Diet Coke has zero calories, so I can drink a can without any worries. I bring Diet Coke with me to class for lunch and it's a great pick-me-up for my afternoon classes.

Grapes- It may sound ridiculous, but grapes are the perfect snack for a long day of studying. They fill me up so I don't have to pack tons of other snacks, and they're so juicy and yummy. Plus, I feel good about eating a serving of fruit every day!

Hahaha- just kidding about this last one!

Give me a break

Yesterday I drove in to Richmond. As I drove, the sky got dark and gathering clouds loomed ominously overhead. It seemed that as I got closer and as the weather became increasingly more threatening, that my summer really came to an end. As the rain started coming down, my last few moments of summer melted away, disappearing into thin air.

It was too short. Breaks always seem too short to me. I usually have very ambitious plans for vacations and don’t accomplish half the things I intend to get done on my time off. For instance, I had several books that I wanted to read on my two week break; although I started two, I didn’t finish either of them. Still there are a lot of things I did get to do, and for that I’m grateful. I got to spend time with my family, time that becomes more precious the longer I live away from home. I got to spend a wonderful two days in Maine, on the lake. And I got to visit two very dear friends. All in all, I can’t complain about getting only two weeks off this summer, because the two weeks I had were filled with such cherished memories, laughter, and fun moments.

After helping my brother move into his college dorm at Liberty, I spent a couple days visiting Tristan in Harrisonburg. We spent some relaxing time by the pool, reading and swimming and chatting. One night we decided to have appetizers for dinner, so we made quesadillas, pigs in a blanket, and spinach dip. To top it all off, we had chocolate trifle for dessert. Tristan’s six year old sister Riley was visiting her at the same time I was there and we made the trifle together, layering the devil’s food cake, cool whip, chocolate pudding, caramel sauce, and toffee bits in what was probably a calorific- but absolutely delicious!- dessert.

I spent the next few days with my friend Julia, who is going to Georgetown this fall, and therefore is only a couple of hours away from me now. Julia and I are opposites in so many ways. My major involved lots of math and science, while Julia was first a music major, then English, and is now going on to grad school to study linguistics. I’m more of a rational thinker, while Julia is creative and artistic. We have many similarities too- our values, our faith, and our analytical approach to things, but the differences are what make our friendship fun and interesting. Julia and I did so much together. We went to the National Art Gallery and the Museum of American History, and even took a detour through the Sculpture Garden, which has indecipherable works of what I’m not sure can be called art. We toured Georgetown’s big, beautiful, imposing campus and walked along the quaint downtown area. One night we went to the Kennedy Center for a free performance and got to listen to jazz music by Michael Feinberg- I highly recommend him!

We also went thrift store shopping, but that deserves its own post later on. As for now, I’m tired and need to get to bed because my first day of school is tomorrow. I know the coming semester will be stressful and hard sometimes, but right now I just feel so incredibly blessed.

Every now and then

My summer of anatomy is finally over, and not a moment too soon. With the mold and the smell getting worse every day, I was counting down the days until I was done with the cadaver lab. The last section of material was on the heart and abdomen, which are areas that physical therapists aren’t generally concerned about, so that didn’t help with my dwindling motivation. Still, I enjoyed getting to see some of the internal organs finally and I managed to motivate myself with the thought of my upcoming two week vacation from school!

The same day I took my anatomy final, I took a plane to Portland, Maine and got to spend the next two days cramming in all the fun I missed while I was in school. I got to ride the jet-ski, go tubing, and swim in the lake. I also got to go sailing in our little Sunfish. The weather was perfect for sailing on both afternoons, so I took the boat out each day. There’s nothing like the feeling of flying along the water with the wind in your face and waves crashing over the side of the boat! When my mom and I went sailing on our last day in Maine, it was so windy that we were both hiked out over the side of the boat, trying to compensate for the fact that the wind had our boat at almost a 90 degree angle. It was awesome!

My time in Maine was all too short though, and on Saturday we had to pack up and clean the house for the renters. We came back to Massachusetts and I came home to a new house. My parents finally sold their house in Holden, Mass and moved to a smaller place in Gardner, Mass that’s closer to where my dad works. He’s had a 45 minute commute for the past 20 years and now he’s only 5 minutes away from the hospital.

I really like the new place, but it’s a little sad to leave the house that was our home for 18 years. At least I didn’t have to be a part of the moving process since I was still in class when my family moved out. I’ve had enough of moving and I’m sick of it! I’ve been helping my mom put stuff away and get organized though and I sort of love that part of moving. You get to start fresh and arrange things exactly the way you want them. I’ve also been having a lot of fun going through the boxes in the basement. One of the photos I found was an old picture of me and Leslie and our next-door neighbors Danny and Ashley sitting on a rock in my backyard. Both of our parents love that picture so much that last year they got us to pose on the rock for one more shot.
Then...

...and now

What I know for sure: It’s never popular to be pure

Purity seems to be an especially rare and precious commodity these days, even more so than I thought while I was still in the “Liberty bubble” (and though I may have been pretty naïve, I didn’t exactly think the secular world had a lot of morals). I knew that drinking, drugs, and promiscuity were/are heavily prevalent in the college scene; I just didn’t know how pervasive their influence was and how far it extended. For instance, I always thought that a LOT of college kids liked to party, get drunk, sleep around, and experiment with drugs, but I also thought that there were some who didn’t participate in any of the above. I thought that some people avoided all that stuff in college and focused on their schoolwork (you know- the “smart kids”).

Now, after having talked to numerous other grad students from a variety of schools across the East Coast, I find that MOST college students take part in the college party scene- even the ones who are smart and get good grades. Drinking, partying, and sex are so entrenched in secular culture now that it’s become the normal thing to do- and everyone participates. The only real difference between students who do well in school and those who fail all their classes is that the smart kids manage their time well enough to both party and study (or they at least have the discipline to wake up hung-over and still make it to class). People just don’t seem to have morals anymore. Drugs and sex are “no big deal”

What’s more, people don’t care about their lack of morals. They’ll tell stories about getting drunk and puking all over the place, about trying drugs, about making out with a complete stranger. I know these things happen, but I never thought people would broadcast them to the world unashamedly. It’s just completely normal to them. In fact, they can’t comprehend the concept that there are some people who don’t live like that. I remember one night I was having a drink with some PT friends, and they started talking about their worst drunken moments. One of the guys turned to me and said “You must have some great stories.” I replied honestly, “not really.” His response? “Bullshit.”

Well, he may not believe me, but I’m glad it’s the truth. I’m so thankful I went to a school where I could learn and grow without the constant pressure to be a part of the secular culture. I’m proud of the fact that I’ve never tried drugs, didn’t drink till I was 21, and am going to save sex for marriage. When you give into this hedonistic culture and throw away your decency and modesty for a chance to fit in and be accepted by the world, you’re losing an important part of yourself that you can never get back. Purity, once lost, can’t be regained.

Read this article to get a better idea of the college atmosphere- and the dangers associated with it: Binge Drinking Entrenched in College Culture - ABC News

Thoughts on Inception

I saw Inception a few nights ago, and it was one of those rare movies that is a cinematic work of art- complex and unpredictable, with an intelligent story and brilliant acting. It makes you think and question things even days after you've watched it. I don't want to give too much away, but it revolves around secrets, dreams, and the birth of ideas. It raises some interesting philosophical questions- it makes you question reality and ponder what makes something "real". It also stars Leonardo DiCaprio, who I consider to be one of the best actors of our time, and it's directed by Christopher Nolan, who directed another cinematic masterpiece- The Dark Knight. Needless to say, I think this movie is a must-see!

Just for fun, here are some of my thoughts during the movie:

1. I'm so confused!
2. Wow, there are a lot of layers to this story.
3. When's the damn bus going to fall in the water?
4. They better show his children's faces eventually.
5. The top is going to fall. It has to fall! Crap.

This movie was the highlight of my week! Other than that, I'm still rolling through anatomy. The last day of new material is tomorrow, then I have the weekend to study (including Monday, which is a day off), Tuesday is a review day, and Wednesday is the final!

The piano player upstairs

One thing my roomies and I have noticed about our apartment is that it’s not very soundproof. We can hear people stomping through the hallway sometimes and we can hear people talking if they’re talking loudly. However, sometimes we hear nice sounds through our thin walls. One of the best noises that we often hear is piano music from the apartment upstairs. Somebody up there practices most afternoons and it’s so pleasant to hear the piano music drifting down from the third floor. I like to listen to it when I’m studying. Somehow it motivates me and lets me feel that something is right in the world. I love it.

I was thinking today when I heard our piano-playing neighbor, how sad it is that music like that isn’t appreciated anymore. Nowadays we have rock bands and rap, and plenty of guitar music- and I like all of that, but wasn’t it nice and peaceful when people were entertained simply by piano music? I think it’s delightful in Jane Austen’s books when the characters retire to the parlor and gather around the piano in the evenings. Musical talent was valued so highly that a girl wasn’t considered fully educated if she couldn’t play the piano.

Now, I took piano lessons when I was younger and discovered that I had very little musical talent, so I can’t say that everyone should be able to play a musical instrument. I just think that more people should make an effort- especially if they spend hours downloading music or listening to songs on their I-pods. Why not actually develop your own musical skills? It seems to me that in this day and age we’re more obsessed with keeping track of the latest celebrities rather than developing our own talents and interests. I know I'm as guilty of this as anyone, but I'm going to try to expand my musical and artistic interests because I feel like the classical arts are so under appreciated. In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy the piano music as a rare and beautiful treat.

Click here to listen to some beautiful piano music.

Zumba

Today I tried Zumba for the first time and loved it! The gym on Cary St. offers all kinds of fun classes, so I think I’m going to check out more of them (especially now that I know where the gym is!) Zumba was really high energy and a really good workout. I liked it even though I was pretty bad at it. There were three Indian girls in the front of the class who were really good, so I tried to follow them, but didn’t come anywhere close to moving like they did! Some of the steps are complicated and hard to follow, but I hope if I go to Zumba a couple days a week I can get the hang of it soon. I also really want to try yoga and a class called “boot camp”.

I found out that my bus pass expires at the end of July even though my class doesn’t end until August 11th. So yesterday I went to the office to get a new bus pass and discovered that they’d changed their policy to include bus passes for students. Instead of paying $50 for next semester’s bus pass, I got it for free! (Although I’m sure I’m still paying for it with my tuition.) I actually enjoy riding the bus to class each day because it’s a chance to just relax in the morning. I’m also glad that I don’t have to try to find (or pay for!) parking in the city. The only downside is that you have to wait awhile for the bus sometimes. One of the things I hate the most in the mornings is walking up to the bus stop just as a bus is driving by. I know another one will come by in 5-10 minutes, but it still irks me.

One of the things I like when I’m driving in Richmond is that the pedestrian crosswalks have the signal lights that count down. It’s great because I know exactly how many seconds I have before the light turns yellow. I don’t really drive that much in Richmond, but when I do, it’s not that bad compared with other cities. I’m starting to figure out how to get around, where to park, and which streets to avoid because they’re only one-way. Richmond’s not that complicated. When all else fails, I simply make my way to Broad Street and I can find my way from there!

Tonight- Flying Squirrels baseball game!