Summer Chill

Summer term is coming to an end. I'll be done this week, finally. This weekend has been fun and relaxing. Not much of note in my life to relate, so I've dedicated this post to an ancient film. I'm writing on my new Windows 7 system, much improved from Vista. But that's for another post.

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang may be one of the coolest lazy Sunday afternoon videos ever made. From Truly Scrumptious' lovely hat collection to Dick Van Dyke's uber-sweet inventions, the show is just full of treats. Truly Scrumptious was even made into a celebrity barbie. I really wish I had one of those egg and sausage makers in the mornings. The characters are classic. The little girl is Jemima, reminds me of syrup, and grandpa is hilariously eccentric.


Watching this movie is really a walk down memory lane. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang was one of the staples of my childhood. I watched it frequently along with such movies as All Dogs go to Heaven, Swiss Family Robinson, and Robin Hood. I will never forget the songs from the movie. Roses of Success was my favorite. I think it still is.

I'm sitting next to my friends Michele and Nero (aka Ron John) in Jose's apartment. Ron John is from Nepal and seems to really be enjoying it. Michele the hispanic brazilian wannabe keeps making faces. There's also Cassie who sings to every song, and Rachel and her friend who just giggle at everything on the show. And Korance can quote the movie extensively. A classic - All in all a good Sunday evening party.

Monster Nebo

About a month ago Blake, Stephen, and I took on the monstrous Nebo. It was a beautiful summer Saturday morning following a light rainstorm the night before.


The drive brought us almost to the top it seemed, so we had our doubts about how difficult the hike was actually going to be. The tall peak on the left was our destination.


I kept myself busy with a new found hobby of mine on the way up: picking wildflowers. I loved the red clay.







After an hour or so we made it to the ridge. The hike to this point wasn't too challenging. The ridge offered some fantastic views. That's Mt. Timpanogas in the distance. Yes, Mt. Nebo is taller than Timpanogas.






It was a pleasant stroll on the top of the world, until we got to this:



I was sucking wind within 2 minutes, dripping like a wet towel.


We made it to one peak, but had one more to go after that. The last quarter mile was climbing over loose rock along the ridge to the very top. By that time I had to stop every 15 steps for a few seconds to rest my exhausted quads.




At last we made it!


Jumping over 11928 ft (3635.7 m).


Someone had a little too much fun in the glorious sunshine!


Some friendly local folks from Utah county showed up as we were eating lunch at the peak. I kept overhearing them talk about "Spanish." Saying Spanish is this, and Spanish is that. That confused me because they didn't seem to be the type to know a foreign language. But then Blake explained to me that they mean Spanish Fork! That's local talk, that is!

On a scale of 1 to 10 for amateur hikes, I would rate this hike as a 9.5. It stretched me that much! The incredibly steep climb at the high elevation just about did me in. The wildlife and the extensive stretch along the ridge though make this hike far worth the effort. It was definitely a highlight of my summer.

Thought: Starving Student Lifestyle

Does anyone else find themselves wondering how people afford what they do? It seems that almost anyone I talk to has either recently bought themselves a new toy or gone on an extravagant vacation. Where does all that money come from? I'm sure some people really do have killer summer jobs, but not everyone, right? I can't complain, of course. I myself took a 2 month "study abroad" in Brazil. That wasn't exactly inexpensive. But that has been my one splurge. I use a car that I got for a great deal (thanks Julie!) and is practically worth about two iPods now. I have no cool phone, a practical laptop which probably isn't even worth as much as my car, and a few board games that cost me about $100 total. Those are my most valuable possessions. Granted, I could and probably should spend a little bit more once in a while, such as for my clothes that I frequently wear holes into, but I simply don't understand how other "poor starving students" have iPods, smart phones, macs or other expensive laptops, new cars, amazing cameras, attractive bikes and at least one gaming console. Are their parents paying for this all? If not, where does all the money come from? And I'm pretty sure lots of them are not on scholarship, so add in tuition to all of those expenses. Sometimes I just can't help but wonder.

Fun in the sun

Stadium of Fire

Last night I worked as security at the Stadium of Fire. I was on the job at 5 PM and started with a nice pork BBQ sandwich courtesy of the police department. From 6 until 8:20 or so I peeked in an innumerable number of purses. All of the ladies had to throw their candy away and dump their water out. Most people accepted it without complaining, but a few people weren't very happy, and I even got sworn at once.

I got to go in to watch the show soon after.



About 600 scouts, 500 dancers, Jenny Oaks Baker, the Five Browns, and some others took the stage. When they finished Carrie Underwood was on. I think she put on a great show. I'm just not a big fan.



Once Carrie was done, the real show began. The fireworks were some of the best I've seen. I tried to get a couple photos, although the pictures do not represent how great the show was. In addition to the big fireworks, they shot some straight into the middle of the stadium! That always got a gasp from the crowd.



There was a big USA chalked onto the field. The scouts lined it with glowsticks at the end and the dancers filled the map with sparkling lights.

Earlier in the day I wasn't looking forward to giving my whole evening to the event, but now I'm glad I did. The work was really sort of fun, and it was pretty much a free show. I would recommend it.

Lagoon

Tuesday I met up with my family and cousins at Lagoon. I invited a few friends to go along too. I didn't get any very exciting pictures, but at least you can see what my mom and dad do when they're at an amusement park! Wicked is their best coaster. You are shot straight up, crest a peak, then go straight down. It's a pretty nice ride. I also really like the Samurai. You get thrown around in every conceivable way. My favorite part of the park though is Lagoon a Beach. I really enjoyed cooling off for one, but the environment is just really relaxed and fun.

Moving On

Team USA was a big disappointment yesterday. The World Cup ride has been a fun one, but it ended on a low after they failed to show up against Ghana. And this one they can't blame on the refs. I'll still following the matchups, but I'm learning the frustration involved in being a fan of USA Futbol. Rumo a hexa-campeao Brasil!

I can't think of anything of note that happened in this past week that is worth sharing. There was a bit of irony in my Advanced Writing class on Friday. My teacher, who is really just a primary teacher teaching grownups, was talking about the importance of using the active voice and not the passive. She had us do some practice exercises where we eliminated "to be" and replaced it with an action verb. The first sentence was "A good author is aware of his verbs." She asked us how we would change it and my classmates responded with the verbs, "uses, knows, understands" and so on. I decided to share my opinion and said, "I wouldn't change it unless there was a good reason to use a different verb, because each way has it's own particular meaning that differs from "is aware of"." She immediately rebuffed me and responded that we had a good reason to change it. Anyhow, she continued her teaching but not 30 seconds later I caught her saying "are aware." I glanced at my friend and we smiled knowingly. And she was only getting started. At least 5 times in the next 15 minutes she used the phrase "are/is aware." So much for using those verbs.

I've learned a few things about myself in the past week. It is really HARD for me to work full-time. It is really hard for me to work just part-time in my current employment. I had cut my hours to about 10 per week over spring and the end of winter. After all I had the MCAT and shadowing I had to do. Well I've been wanting for money recently and decided to pick up my hours to at least full part-time, 20 hours per week. That means 4 hours per day, but I can hardly last an hour straight without needing some kind of break. I know a lot of it has to do with my job, but I also know that part of it is just who I am. I love to have variety to my day. I handle the variety of school pretty well, with work and research time mixed in, even if the days are long. But tell me to work 8 hours straight at one thing and I'll languish and lose my focus quickly. I hope medicine will give me that daily diversity that keeps me engaged.

World Cup Fever and Such

The games are on! The World Cup has definitely taken me by storm over the past week and a half. I'm particularly emotionally invested in Team USA, although I've really enjoyed watching the powerful European teams lose and tie to all of the underdogs. I love the World Cup! The last USA match left me feeling robbed, but relieved at the same time. And though I hated the goals we allowed, I couldn't help but laugh at the way the Slovenians celebrated their goals. Take a look at the highlights if you don't know what I'm talking about. Hilarious!! A win this week is what we need. Go USA! I've got a fever and the only prescription is more World Cup. USA, unfortunately, does not have a realistic chance of winning the whole thing, but luckily I can cheer for Brasil in that regard. I watched their opening game with the BYU Brazilian Association. It just made me laugh. Brazilian spontaneity is priceless.

The mundial did not effect my grades thankfully. I pulled A's in both classes this spring and enjoyed a brief 3-day respite. Tomorrow I'll be back in the trenches with an advanced writing course (dreadful) and a statistics class. My goal is to start strong and never let off. It's a definite plus that after this term I'll have finished all of the classes I don't want to take but have to anyway. Graduation se aproxima.

I took a fun little hike yesterday with Jose Carlos, my El Salvadorian friend. Jose e gente fina. We went to the top of Y mountain. Jose really knows how to enjoy the moment. We got to the top and we stayed there not for 20 or 30 minutes, but for an entire hour. I owe the little bit of sunburn above my knees to him. Hablamos bastante. Unfortunately my memory card was not in my camera and Jose left his phone in my car, so we had zero pictures. Well we actually had one that we asked a stranger at the top of the Y to take with his camera and send to us later. The hike was beautiful and hot. I made a collection of wildflowers as I went along, and now they're sitting in my kitchen in a tupperware.

The flowers adorned the table today while we ate dinner. I made a deal with Dallan, my roommate, a few weeks back: we eat well every Sunday, and we take turns on cooking duty. It was my turn today, so last night I decided to make Orange Chicken. I found this really simple recipe online that only asks for chicken, salt and pepper, onion soup, and a can of OJ concentrate. I put the meal together this afternoon, with rice and a pan of stir fry thrown in as well. The food turned out rather delicious. It's likely to be a sort of last supper with John. He's leaving this week. I enjoyed the meal, but at the same time I couldn't help but think, "Man, they're eating a ton!" I myself didn't hold back either. I guess that's a compliment when they eat my food, but I can't help but be jealous of what I make sometimes. Thankfully I've got two lunches worth of leftovers for this week.

The EMT class ends this week. It will be ending without me. I've attended pretty much every night I have been supposed to be there, but I have not made hardly any effort on assessments (100 required, I've done 30) or the readings and quizzes. I just did not want to do it I found out. I did have some time and I likely could have pulled it off, but I really lost my respect for the class about a week into it. I made myself continue attending for the learning experience, but honestly I would hardly feel qualified with the training I received to be an actual EMT. For example, the day they taught CPR they showed us how to do it, had us practice with a partner, take a quiz as a group, and put us in line so they could hand us our certificates. It was bogus. No one at any time actually observed me to see if I was performing CPR correctly. Not that I think I learned it incorrectly, but when the training is done that way over and over again it does not build any confidence in me. So the 700+ dollars I've put into the class will be mostly for naught. I have learned some significant things, such as taking vitals and the essentials in an emergency situation, so it wasn't a complete waste. I finally gave up on any idea of finishing the course some time last week, and the truth set me free. I'm glad I can move on.

Dumb Ideas

Have you ever heard about something and thought "That is just about the dumbest idea I have ever heard!"? I have a couple of those I just can't keep to myself any longer. If these things didn't keep coming up I could ignore them and move on, but since they do...

My roommate just got off the phone with his brother. He picked up this idea from him of running barefoot. So about every time he goes for a jog he leaves the shoes behind. The other day we went to play some soccer with friends. As we were wrapping up he asked me to take his stuff home for him, including his shoes. Unsurprisingly everyone asked me, "He's doing what?" I could only shrug my shoulders and say that I think he's crazy too. He says he does it because it lessens the impact on his knees and because its fun. I think he does it because it makes him feel like a man. So today I come home to find him limping around the house. He had just got back from a run and, surprise surprise, he had some painful blisters on his feet. I've already told him my mind. I'll just try to close my ears when I hear him talking about it in the future.

As for the other dumb idea, in the school newspaper I am continually albeit unwillingly updated on the progress of a family on a pioneer trek across the United States. This family decided they would go back in time, but not really. The last update had a picture of their 3 or 4-year old son sitting exhausted in a lawn chair. Poor kid! Apparently they are walking across the Great Plains pulling a handcart, but they still get to stop at the local gas stations for a shower and a bite to eat. At times I like to reminisce on and smile about the family road trips I went on as a kid; this family can do the same with their pioneer trek. What were Mom and Dad thinking! I suppose I shouldn't judge. After all, it could be that this is a family-saving outing. I can't help but think though of any number of alternatives that could be just as beneficial to a family without making your kids march for an entire summer. So when I see these updates I'll just shake my head and try not to let it get to me.

I don't know why these ideas bother me so much. It's not me that's risking my bare feet or suffering from the crazy idea of my parents. So why does it get under my skin? What do you think?