In a MajorGr00ve

Update

2012-02-12T22:27:00.002-05:00

I've been learning a lot about myself over the past few months. The most notable thing is that I need transitions. Let me be more specific: I need more time to adjust to new situations than the average person. Last semester, the dental school had us on a miserable half class half clinic schedule. Looking back, I don't think I ever got that down very well even after months of it. Over Christmas break I spent extra time at home, effectively pushing my return to the school routine back a few days. Combine that with my inherent laziness and it's a recipe for disaster. I still have a pile of 'stuff' that needs to put away. Most of it was emptied from my backpack before I traveled home for break. This clutter is a pretty good representation of how I feel about my life right now. There's a big pile of junk that I trip over every day as I try to get the meaningful things accomplished. I'm trying to prioritize as best I can. Clinical responsibilities are always at the forefront of my thoughts, even during hours I'm supposed to be enjoying my sleep. I worry about patients, their pending treatments, what I'm going to tell the one that doesn't know about the misplaced dental implant (not my fault!), and what's going to happen the next time some of my charts are audited. I'm on an extremely regular schedule, more-so than any other point in time. I suppose it'll be that way for the rest of my life, though that doesn't trouble me. This semester I theoretically could be in clinic all of the time except tuesday mornings, when we have class. In practice, it's relatively difficult to book enough chairs to max out on clinic time. There's a fine line between keeping busy enough not to feel like you are behind the pace and being so busy that you are stressed out, running only on coffee, as you run from clinic to clinic. Somehow, I manage to feel both of those ways every single day. On the bright side, at only a month into this semester, I seem to be in a pretty good groove. Perhaps it's too early to call it a groove, but I'm hopeful I have truly found some footing. I need the stability.

Sorry for the wall of text. I needed some therapy. You know what else would be therapeutic? Hearing from some of my favorite people! Leave a comment below, please.

Teh facebook

2011-10-03T19:08:00.005-04:00

So, I know this is entirely self induced, so before you point that out to me, I already know it. I feel like facebook is less and less about my friends, and more about how 'liking' something will enter me in a contest to win. I like the new features and how easy it is to share with different groups of people. I like the new album previews for photos. I regularly hide/unsubscribe/kabosh app privileges, but my news feed is more cluttered than I would like. Any tips on how you keep your feed clean?

Finally, the whole ticker is strange to me, because I feel like that is the more important stuff. To illustrate my point, I made the following graphic. Thoughts?

More Music --- Remains by Maurissa Tancharoen & Jed Whedon

2011-07-01T20:36:00.003-04:00

If you know me, or have read this blog, you probably know that I'm a huge fan of the TV series Dollhouse. What you might not realize is that a year and a half after the show was cancelled, it is still influencing me. I had previously mentioned a song from the show that has become an all-time favorite of mine. This time, I'm back with another song that I just can't seem to shake. Perhaps this will balance out the cheerfulness of the last post I did.

The music video is wonderful, too. Do yourself a favor and watch it. Now.

The Zune store doesn't have this song, but thankfully Amazon does.

Another Music Post - Rachel Platten

2011-06-19T18:33:00.001-04:00

I know I did a post on music not all that long ago, but I really just have to share one more artist that I've been listening to for the past couple of weeks. Her name is Rachel Platten, and her newest CD, Be Here, was just released back in April. I'll stop talking, though, and let Rachel convince you herself. Amazon has the album for $5.99, which in my opinion is a complete steal! Grab it here.

Current Musical Interests - Spring/Summer '11

2011-05-31T01:14:00.003-04:00

So, I don't want to sound melodramatic, but I am not sure I could have made it through the past year without amazing music. Either keeping me awake and pumped during a long study session or helping me fall asleep after I'd ingested more caffeine than is probably healthy for anyone, music was at the center of it all. This post is dedicated to a few of the songs that have helped me through.

Young Blood - The Naked and Famous

This song is simply amazing. I discovered it during finals week about two months ago. Since then it has become the 3rd most played song in my library, no small feat considering other songs have had years to amass plays. The lyrics are good, too:

We lie beneath the stars at night
Our hands gripping each other tight
You keep my secrets hope to die
Promises, swear them to the sky

The bittersweet between my teeth
Trying to find the in-betweens
Fall back in love eventually
Yeah yeah yeah yeah

The music video is somewhat lame, but the song is so good I can look the other way. Definitely go and listen to this song right now!

Nightwatchmen - Bell X1

Bell X1 just released their ~~second~~ fifth album (thanks to Ivan for pointing this out to me), and while as a whole it's pretty decent, this song stands out. It's a soft, romantic ballad, that builds throughout the song. I also feel that it's been ages since I've heard a song as musical as this one. It's so simple, but I can't seem to get over it.

To the girl among nightwatchmen
My other, my joy
With your oil-drum fire
You were my gentle unfolding
The wool and the dye
The needle and eye

These songs you sing
as you waltz her up the stairs

You can listen to it here.

Also, if you like their sound, I'd recommend checking out the song How Your Heart is Wired from their first album. I actually played that song more up front, but Nightwatchmen grew on me more. A lot more.

The Killers

I know what you are thinking: "The Killers are sooo 2004... or maybe 2006!" Well, I've always liked The Killers, but I think I got a little burned out on them. As such, I didn't really look into getting their third studio album, Day & Age. Over the past year, I have found that there are a few tracks that the radio stations never picked up on. The hidden gems on the album are This Is Your Life and I Can't Stay. I realize that if you are a true Killers fan you probably already know what I'm telling you. In the chance you are like me, missing a song here or there, I'm trying to get you back on track.

Gravity Happens - Kate Voegele

So, for those of you that have known me for a while, you might remember that I've had an obsession with singer/songwriter Kate Voegele for many years now. If Taylor Swift was a brunette, she'd still fall short. I've even stalked her at a concert full of teenage girls... I'm pretty sure I was the only single guy in the place. Anyway, Kate just released her third album and it's really solid. I'm glad to report that she has continued making music that sounds like her. Too frequently, a record label tries to dictate an artist's sound (like the monstrosity that was Marié Digby's second album). Her song, Sunshine In My Sky is the perfect summer song:

I want a violet bicycle
Flip flops and sand between my toes
These are the beautiful things in life

So give me that off-the-shoulder dress
The one that the boys will not forget
Well I want just a little bit more from life

Maybe I should fly my bags and fly to Costa Rica
Put a flower in my hair, a dancing senorita

I'm a huge fan of the entire album, but my favorite song is titled Impatient Girl. It's incredibly catchy! Also, I like the songs Say You're Mine, Hundred Million Dollar Soul, Enough For Always, and Sandcastles. There are a couple of sad/dark songs that I find enjoyable, too. Look for Heart In Chains, and Burning The Harbor.

You asked to dance and I got shy
And you said honey there's no time for excuses

Finally, I'll say that I bought this album on Amazon. It was $6! But somehow I had a $2 promotional credit applied to the purchase, so it ended up being only $3.99 for this entire album. I actually felt a little bit guilty, because I like Kate so much. She's playing a show in Philly with Natasha Bedingfield, but it's the same weekend as Thomas' wedding. I'm really bummed that I can't see Kate. If you are still having your doubts about how good looking she is, check out this photo.

The Way It Was - Parachute

I was really rooting for this band, hoping that they wouldn't fall victim to the sophomore slump that many musicians have with their second release. It looks like they did okay!

My favorite song is called What I Know. It's a sad song. :-(

I stop the car and close my eyes
I can see her face, but It takes a while
And it feeds it like the morning light
Slow and unfocused, So I go home and
She’s sitting on the kitchen chair
Oh a suitcase waiting by the stairs
Oh they’re both worn out from all the years
They’re ready to let go
And I realize the only thing that’s sure is

She said , I’m in love with some one else she said
I fell in love with some one else and I
I’m in love with some one and that’s all that I know for sure
She’s in love with some one else she said
She fell in love with some one else and that
She’s in love with some one and that’s all that I know for sure

Other notables are American Secrets and Philadelphia. The song Philadelphia was really unexpected, because the band is from Virginia. It's mellow and beautiful.

Amazon also has this album for $5.99. One of my fellow dental students was claiming this album to be the best pop album in recent history. I don't know if I can claim that, but it is pretty good.

Finally, if you've made it this far, I commend you. I have one final song to share, fellow listener. Recently, my sister showed me an amazing music video for a song I'd never heard before. The editing is supurb. U2 is epic. What more can I say?

Well, that's all for now. I spent a decently long time on this post, so please let me know what you think of the songs. Also, is the formatting over the top?

Photoshop Magic

2011-05-22T20:08:00.001-04:00

This was more work than you could ever imagine. The sky, bluffs, and road were all edited separately.

One of my first attempts at cloning, probably about four years ago. Check out the backgrounds.

Beer Can Chicken

2011-04-08T20:23:00.001-04:00

I'm giving this new recipe a try. I put half a can of beer, along with some butter, garlic, rosemary, paprika, and some chicken seasoning inside the chicken. Yes, the aluminum can is inside the chicken. I'll let you know how it turned out...

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Friday

2011-04-01T16:03:00.000-04:00

A strange voicemail I received about an hour ago.

Blog Giveaway!

2011-03-04T15:36:00.001-05:00

I just finished my last class before spring break, so I'm in a really good mood right now. I've had this toothbrush sitting around for a while, so I figured I'd do something with it. Basically, this is a brand new electric toothbrush, the msrp is about $125, and I'm going to give it to someone who would like it. All you have to do is leave a comment on this post to be entered. This is open to anyone who wants it, not just regular readers, so if you know anyone who could use this, tell them to come post a comment. The deadline is going to be March 21st, 2011. I will select the winner randomly.

Now that that's done, I have a proposal for my friends and family who I know in "real life." I had a friend who is interested in purchasing a Sonicare toothbrush, and as I am a dental student, I can get them at a discount. I have a Sonicare brush, and I love it immensely. So, if you would like to buy a professional model for an extremely reasonable price (less than 1/3 msrp), get in touch with me. Or, if you already have a Sonicare and would like replacement brush heads, I'm your man. Also, I can order products from Crest/Oral B very cheaply, so if you'd like to get some Professional Whitestrips, a power brush like the one above, regular toothbrushes or toothpaste get in touch with me. The Whitestrips do wonders, I promise. Basically, if you need anything dental related let me know.

Why Live In Utah?

2011-02-21T22:03:00.001-05:00

Consider the following, as per my facebook news feed:

Dreaming of YouTube

2011-02-20T17:34:00.001-05:00

A friend of mine runs a YouTube channel that is wildly popular with youngsters interested in learning origami, how to solve a Rubik's cube, or seeing his cat chase around a laser pointer. YouTube basically consumes a good chunk of the time not devoted to dental school. I decided to have a little photoshop fun with one of the pictures I found on Rob's phone.

Hubley 12

2011-02-15T23:21:00.002-05:00

A guy in my class had these made for their intermural team. I don't play, but they were so cool I just had to get one. Twelve is still my favorite number.

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Welcome to North Philadelphia

2011-02-03T13:54:00.001-05:00

So, today I grabbed lunch at the McDonald's across the street from the dental school. While my friends and I were waiting in line, I looked over to see this character living the High Life. This guy was pounding down a 40 oz. Miller while leaning against the garbage can. I don't think he was even worried about putting an order in. He seemed pretty content. Only in north Philly.

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Dentists are ______

2010-12-03T18:06:00.006-05:00

What can I say? Ouch. So this is the general public opinion. My theory is that people take out on dentists what they should possibly be directing internally. I mean, seriously, if you don't floss, then you should be angry with yourself. Dentists are just a scapegoat for the people who don't take care of their teeth. Ha ha! Take that, general public.

September Update

2010-09-28T12:55:00.003-04:00

I downloaded an app for my phone that allows me to post to my blog, so I figured I'd give it a shot. I have survived the first round of exams, and am experiencing a very brief lull before things hit the fan next month. In October I have exams for every single class. It's going to be a great time...

Recently, I had exams for both Microbiology and Pathology. Both went decently well, so I'm off to a good start for the semester. Additionally, I took my first two practical exams for Restorative Dentistry III. I had to do a crown prep and make a provisional crown out of acrylic in a three hour time limit. It went about as good as it could have, and I averaged 95/100 between the two. I snapped a quick picture of the temporary crown (its a little yellower than the other teeth, fyi). I took a photo of my friend Rob's preparation, too, which I will upload so you can picture what it looks like under the temporary.

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Current Musical Interests

2010-09-13T21:51:00.001-04:00

I just wanted to do a quick post about some of the songs I'm currently listening to. It'd be too hard to list everything that I've been discovering here, but I wanted to offer a few suggestions.

It's you know how you learn a new word, and then all of a sudden you hear it used everywhere around you? The same thing happened to me this summer with a group called Florence & The Machine. This video was the first instance, but since then it seems I can't turn on the TV without hearing one of their songs. The band is pretty minimalistic, just great vocals, guitar and some percussion. Anyway, the video below is pretty mind blowing, and has inspired me to try something similar here in Philly.

You've Got to Love London from Alex Silver on Vimeo.

Moving on, I have a couple of songs that I consider hauntingly beautiful. The first is Your Ghost by Greg Laswell. It was featured on an episode of Dollhouse a bit less than a year ago, and has literally been floating around in the back of my mind ever since. The next is Hawaii by Meiko. There is just something about these two songs that I can't get over. Creepily wonderful.

Katy Perry's got a new CD out. She's pretty trashy, but I really like the song Firework. It's catchy, and upbeat, and I've listened to it a bunch. (The previous statement is largely understated. I've listened to it a TON. In addition to still liking the song, somehow my Zune got set to repeat with that song on, and it cycled for 20+ hours. I don't think you can reset playcounts with the Zune software, so it's currently my #1 song. It also appears it's going to be in that position for a very, very long time.)

I'd also like to bring up a song called Dice that can be found on the first mix from show The O.C. The artist is Finley Quaye. Run and listen to this song. Run along...

Finally, I'd like to highlight a song that I lost. But first, it's storytime... It was sophomore year of high school, and I was taking Fitness For Life. Linkin Park had just released Reanimation, an album of remixes of tracks from their first effort, Hybrid Theory. Anyway, that CD was the one that was in the player in the school's weight room. I remember hearing the song My December and absolutely loving it. Another memory I associate with the song My December is having my best friend Thomas help me ask a girl out to Jr. Prom. We were in his 4Runner getting all of the little folded stars together when it came on the radio. I remember it like it was yesterday. Anyway, fast forward a couple of years later when I was in college. I had bought my first (and last) iPod and I was building my music collection up. I downloaded My December, and I recall feeling very disappointed because it just wasn't as good as I remembered it. Well, last fall, I found the version of My December that I associated all of those high school memories with. It was actually spelled differently, as in My < Dsmbr. When I heard it, I all of a sudden knew I had downloaded a different version all those years ago. It makes me happy to have found it.

D1 - First Year Summary

2010-08-28T19:19:00.000-04:00

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know I'm really bad at updating the blog. I've scraped together some photos to share with you all. Hopefully, this will give you a pretty good idea of what I've been up to for the past year.

I don't really have much to say about the classes that weren't Restorative Dentistry, despite them being 75% of my class time. You all probably don't care that much about Histology, Biochemistry, Neuroanatomy, etc. Not to mention, I don't have any cool pictures to go along with this post. BORING.

So, Restorative Dentistry is the most important class in dental school, so much so, that we have it every semester for a very long time. As such, these classes are affectionately called "resto" (rhymes with pesto) or "RDI" (or RDII, RDIII, RDIV...). The first semester is RDI, and I had such a great time. We spent the majority of our time doing what is called waxing. Waxing is a step in the fabrication of a crown, but it is really helpful when you are learning the shapes of teeth and how they fit together in the mouth. During our first week, we were given a fractured maxillary central incisor and told to recreate the missing portion out of wax.

Here is what mine looked like:

By the way, the fake mouth is called a typodont. The teeth are interchangeable, so we can easily replace them if we mess something up. Trust me, we replace a lot of teeth. We waxed up all sorts of teeth during the first semester. Here's a shot of the waxing instruments as well as most of the waxing projects before I turned them in:

We also got our first opportunity to work with amalgam during the first semester. For those of you that don't know what amalgam is, it's an alloy consisting mostly of mercury, silver and copper that hardens when it is shaken together. It's one of the most biocompatable materials we have available, and it is close to the natural hardness of teeth, which is important, too. It is also relatively inexpensive.

This was definitely one of my first amalgams. Nothing special, anyone can do something this easy. We also did our first provisional crowns during the first semester, but I have better pictures of my second semester stuff, so you'll just have to wait... The following restoration is a bit more complicated, but it is still first semester material. In fact, this one was supposed to get turned in, but I wanted to bring it home and take a picture of it and it never made it back. I still got my A in the class, so I think I'm in the clear.

So, that's pretty much all of first semester. I personally felt that it was a very easy introduction to the shapes of teeth and a few common dental materials. Oh, yeah, this was also in December:

Second semester (RDII) was much more difficult. Dr. Boberick pushed us very hard and I always felt like I was behind on my labwork. The course focused primarily on restoring decay i.e. drilling and filling as well as fixed prosthodontics (crown and bridge) and boy was is long. We had class from January to June, for a total of six months. It was intense, but I learned a lot. Most importantly, I had a great time doing so. I've definitely chosen a great career.

Anyway, getting back to pictures, here's some of my first cavity preps:

Here are a couple of shot of large amalgam restoratations. We did a lot of these, but a bunch of upperclassmen have said that these types aren't very common. Good practice, I suppose.

Once we moved onto crown and bridge, we spent a lot of time doing crown preps and then making provisional crowns out of acrylic. Acrylic is basically a polymerizing plastic, which is also used in fake nails. You've probably smelled the inside of a nail salon. Imagine how it would smell to have 128 people in one big room mixing their own acrylic. It was awesome... Can you tell which of the two teeth below are temporary crowns? One is much better than the other one, but I'd bet they are both clinically acceptable.

The final project for RDII was quite intense, but left me very satisfied once it was competed. We were required to to turn in two preps for a bridge, as well as a provisional bridge for those preps, a crown prep, and a provisional crown and gold crown that fit on it. Here's the three unit bridge:

For the gold crown, we didn't use gold because it wasn't going in a patient's mouth. That said, it still polished up quite nicely. I was very proud of the quality of work I was able to turn in for this project. The first picture is my roommate Chris polishing his crown. The next two photos are my finished products.

That's it. Let me know what you think. If you have any questions, ask!

My Sister, The Scientist

2010-05-18T22:28:00.004-04:00

Despite claiming to not enjoy science, my youngest sister entered a few science fairs this year. She did quite well, and I am proud of her. Her project had to to with the chelation of metal ions by insulin to increase its shelf life. She was awarded a $20,000/year scholarship to Westminster, and the honor of representing Northern Utah at the International Science and Engineering Fair sponsored by Intel. At that fair, she received an $8,000 scholarship from the United States Army. Please join me in congratulating Frances for her hard work, and my parents for their continued support.

I took this photo last summer, but never got around to editing it until now.

P-Chem Throwback

2010-05-09T16:06:00.006-04:00

So, I've been pretty bad about this whole blogging thing, and I want to get back to it. I've taken a whole ton of pictures from my first year of dental school, mostly pertaining to the things we have been up to in our restorative dentistry class. I hope to get those things up in the next couple of weeks. Also, I've got a few scanned items that I want to put up, hence this post, which I am dedicating to my senior year of college. Being a chemistry major was pretty demanding, especially the last two semesters. Even though I had spaced out my generals, I still had a ton of upper division chemistry classes to take. Physical chemistry almost did me in. I was a bit rusty on my calculus, since I had taken Calc 3 in my first semester of sophomore year. All things considered, I made it though P-chem. However, I ended up having to take biophysical chem in place of the second half of P-chem. The class was relatively small (no more than 25) and apart from two other chem majors, was entirely populated by Bioengineering hooligans. There was no TA, the lectures were exceptionally dull, and although the professor was quite brilliant he was very much interested in making the class as hard as he remembered it. Our homework assignments were all doozies, and I remember being at or slightly below average on all of them.

This is why this scan of the first page of one of those assignments is such a gem. You might look at the score, shrug, and think it's not that great. But, when I found this paper in a hidden pocket of my backpack last semester, I was quite pleased to recall how proud of this score I was at the time it was handed back.

So, here's to all of those science majors, who struggled through some tough classes in the pursuit of their educations. Being a chemistry major really prepared me to continue my education in dental school. I'm glad to be a part of the next generation of health care professionals.

Just Messing Around

2010-04-20T22:35:00.001-04:00

Tidbits of Life

2010-02-15T19:37:00.008-05:00

I got a call from my mom on the 4th telling me that my grandmother had died. Over the weekend, my dad sent me an email with the obituary and some photos. I found the above portrait to be just stunning, however it was in desperate need of some help. It had been scanned in at a low resolution, and never properly processed afterwards. There was dust evident, not to mention the desperate need for some color correction. And just to prove how picky I am about photography, I took issue with some of the shadows. I opened up photoshop earlier tonight and spent about a half an hour cleaning the picture up. I'm so pleased with the result, I thought I'd post it here. Blogger seems to have butchered the photo, though.

I did actually make it out to Montana for the funeral. It was really great to see the family, even though the circumstances weren't the best. I decided to try and make the best of the situation, surprising everyone by making it to Billings. I ended up getting to spend an extra day with my Grandpa when my flight back to Philly was canceled due to the 'Snowpocalapse' as it is being called on the east coast. I have seriously never seen so much snow. Ever. Check out what the car looked like, even after a day of melt.

In other news, Angels & Airwaves released their third (and hopefully not last) album, LOVE, over the weekend. It's a free download. I think it is definitely worth your time to do so. On some of the tracks, their sound has changed a bit going back to the Blink-182 roots, but on a majority of the album, they sound very much the same. I like the songs Shove, Hallucinations, The Moon-Atomic, Clever Love (which is perhaps my favorite track), and Soul Survivor. Awesome. It made my weekend, and laundry more enjoyable.

Oh, and last but not least, I think I nearly aced my Dental Materials II midterm. Unless something horrible went down, I think I only missed one of forty-one questions. It's actually kinda funny how it came about. Last night when I went to bed, I wasn't super confident with my knowledge of the material, so I ended up getting up at 6:30 am to get a couple of hours more. I can't remember the last time I got up to study before an exam. I am not a morning person, so when I go to bed, I'm usually not getting up until I HAVE to.

That's all for now.

U2 in Giant's Stadium 9/24

2009-10-10T23:39:00.008-04:00

"We've never played here before." Bono told the crowd. "Okay, that's a lie. We've been here 27 times before"

The concert was the perfect end to a hectic week. I drove up, with Dave and Steve (two fellow pro-dentites) right after a practical exam for Restorative Dentistry I. I was a bit concerned about traffic and being able to make the two hour drive in two hours. It ended up being just about perfect. We pulled into what might have been the last open parking lot "close" to the stadium.

After we got into the stadium and located our seats, we went and got dinner: cheesesteaks and beer, which hit the spot and got the night off to a great start. Muse was the opening band, and I knew all but one of the songs they played. That really says something, because I don't really know all that much of their music. I was disappointed that they didn't play Undisclosed Desires from their latest CD. It's a really great song that I think everyone should check out. Go, now. Here's a couple of Muse Photos:

U2 came on stage at 9:08 pm. At which point, I took a picture.

Then, U2 proceeded to play two hours of really good music. Mixing up old and new stuff, they played a lot from No Line On The Horizon. There was also plenty from The Joshua Tree, but Atchung Baby, All That You Can't Leave Behind, and How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb were well represented too. Here's the set list:

Breathe
Get on Your Boots
Mysterious Ways
Beautiful Day
No Line on the Horizon
Magnificent
Elevation
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
Unknown Caller
Until The End Of The World
Stay
Unforgettable Fire
City of Blinding Lights
Vertigo
I'll Go Crazy - Remix
Sunday Bloody Sunday
MLK
Walk On
One
Where The Streets Have No Name

The music is why we go to shows, but that's not all of it. U2 always has the most unbelievable stage set ups. They truly outdid themselves. I can't imagine how much they spend on that LED screen, and all of the lights. Seriously, there were lights/LEDs on everything. Heck, the microphone that Bono swung around on during the encore must have been pretty expensive. But it sure was cool.

Beautiful Day

Unknown Caller

City of Blinding Lights

With or Without You

My Room

2009-10-03T16:38:00.007-04:00

Okay, so here are some photos of my room out here in Philly. It's pretty nice, if I do say so myself.

Orientation Update ---> I survived

2009-08-29T22:55:00.010-04:00

It's hard to believe that in two days I'll be attending actual classes for dental school. Thursday and Friday were both orientation. Thursday included lectures from the Dean of Admissions, as well as Dean Ismail (who is over the whole dental school). I got the feeling that Dean Ismail is extremely interested in listening to the students, and more than willing to make changes when the need arises. This is the kind of progressive mentality that I think will make Temple a great place to be. The dental school is going to be going through some major changes over the next few years (including some significant renovations to the clinics) which will be both exciting and stressful. He also mentioned that the school will be up for accreditation review in 2011, so I'm sure there will be some added pressure for excellence relating to that.

We got our pictures taken for our student IDs during lunch. When I got my ID card, I was completely appalled, because they had cut my chin off in the photo. How do you do that!?! I'm tempted to "lose" my card, but I'm worried that they'll just print a new one with the same pic.

The rest of day one was pretty much a wash. We had various guest speakers, some of which were absolutely horrendous (read: Office of Sustainability, as well as a community organizer...) while others teetered on the edge of moderately amusing (a librarian from the health sciences campus, who was pretty much how I envision Greg in a few years).

Thursday night was a party hosted by Temple Dental at the Summit Park clubhouse (where I live). There was a DJ that seemed allright, and the bar had open draft beers from 7-11. I didn't drink much after the beer went back to normal price, so I was able to drive some of my friends to the house they are renting in Manayunk, a mile or two down the road.

Friday, for orientation pt. II we had more lectures, this time from the people in the financial aid office. The material would have been more helpful about three or four months ago, when I actually was working through the loan process. I can't imagine it was helpful for anyone, but then again, perhaps there are a few UBER procrastinators in my class.

This year is the first year the dental school is going to have a dress code. To tell you the truth, I'm a little bit relieved that we have to wear scrubs. It'll simplify everything. Plus, the scrubs we'll be getting will have our names on them. The only downside is that we have to wear business casual attire until they come in. Oh, I might need another pair of khakis.

The biggest part of the day was the unpacking of our dental kits. Our job was to verify the contents of two large boxes of supplies and instruments, about $6500 worth. Before we could unpack, we had to get our pre-clinic lab assignments. Southpaws i.e. lefties get moved out of alphabetical order so they can sit on the ends of the rows, so I didn't get quite as an early start unpacking as some of my classmates. Additionally, there were a lot of 3rd year students there to help, but my "buddy" didn't show up. I got a bit behind, but then a guy came and helped me out, so I was good.

I also joined one of the dental fraternities, mostly so I could get a discount on their collection of back-tests. For $110 you can purchase all of the exams given by professors to D1s in the last 10 years or so. It's crazy, here's the proof:

Welcome to Philadelphia

2009-08-25T16:20:00.002-04:00

So, it's been an interesting few weeks here. The humidity seem to have broken for the most part, which makes it more than bearable to go outside in the daytime. It also makes my gum less gooey. In Utah, my gum would dry out if I didn't chew it soon enough after opening the package. Out here, it absorbs water from the air. I learned not to carry gum in my pocket on humid days, and was complaining to Eric (a fellow first year who also lives in Summit Park) about the result. His response: Welcome to Philadelphia.

My Utah license plates stand out like a sore thumb. Yesterday when I came out of the salon after getting a haircut, there was a teenage girl taking a picture with her phone of my license plates. I didn't notice what she was doing until after I went to unlock my car. I think I scared her to death. I could tell she was embarrassed, so I attempted to flash a reassuring smile.

So far, people here have been very nice to me. At Home Depot, a fellow noticed I was from Utah, and walked over to welcome me to the city. He asked where I was going to be attending school, and was excited to tell me that Temple was his alma mater. And last, but not least, the night I rolled into town, some of the people in my apartment building were out playing bean bags. They pretty much unpacked my car and carried stuff into the apartment in 5 minutes flat. When I thanked them for their help one of the dudes told me, "No problem. That's how we do it in PA."

That's all I have time for now. I'm going to take some photos and post them in the next couple of days. I have my first day of orientation on Thursday, and then classes start on monday!

2100 miles to Philly - In Photos

2009-08-11T21:58:00.016-04:00

So, I've finally got my desk set up in my room, along with my external hard drive. Now I can start posting some pictures and such on my blog. I didn't want to get ahead of myself and post anything until I got the roadtrip pics up here. They aren't as cool as I was hoping they would be, but hey, I tried. Basically, there is a picture about every 100 miles, taken by whomever was sitting in the passenger seat.

"Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end"

2009-07-25T03:19:00.003-04:00

Summer Grilling

2009-06-21T21:21:00.004-04:00

Even though it's been raining a lot over the past month I've still been grilling like it's going out of style. Kristen gave me a fabulous cookbook titled "Mastering the Grill" and I've been getting a ton of ideas from it. At pretty much any given time in the past week, there has been something marinating in the fridge. In any case, I wanted to share a quick and easy recipe for a chicken marinade. Mince some garlic and cilantro and mix it with half a bottle or so of Zesty Italian salad dressing. Pour into a ziplock, add a few chicken breasts, and toss it in the fridge overnight (don't tell Whitney, though). The next day, fire up the grill to high heat, and sear each side of the breasts for about three minutes. Then turn the grill down, and cook until the juices run clear. The result should be juicy and delightful. Give it a try!

Higher Education FAIL

2009-05-30T01:40:00.003-04:00

I'm a regular subscriber to FAILBlog. Some of their posts are pretty hilarious. I saw this while driving home the other day. My mother was kind enough to hang out the window and take the photo.

Dental School Woes

2009-05-28T02:55:00.004-04:00

I've only just begun to look at the full cost of going to dental school. Temple's tuition runs somewhere in the middle of all of the schools I interviewed at. While it's not nearly as expensive as University of the Pacific (in San Fran), and the fact that becoming a Pennsylvania "resident" is rather difficult (so, no in-state tuition unfortunately) it ends up looking about "average" tuition for an out-of-stater like myself. And, of course, tuition isn't the only thing I'll be spending lots of money on. The cost of living isn't terribly outrageous in Philly, but it's nothin' like the midwest, either.

I've been running spreadsheets for about the last week now, trying to estimate how much money I'm going to need to take out in student loans over the next four years. If you take out too much, you'll be the last person from your class to pay back the loans. If you don't take out enough, you eat Ramen six nights a week, and Mac & Cheese (not the kind with Gruyere) for your fancy meal of the week.

In any case, I'm hoping to have my loans paid off within ten years of graduation, if not sooner, and i'm totally prepared to drive my Camry until the wheels fall off in order to make that happen. Eeek. It sure is scary to see how much it's going to cost me, in sum. $300K, less if I'm smart about it.

The photo is a screenshot of a part of one of the spreadsheets, which shows monthly payments, as well as the fraction of interest and principal balance paid.

A bit of handywork

2009-05-14T16:55:00.005-04:00

Two of my three Xbox 360 controllers have been unhappy recently. The buttons on one stopped popping back up after they had been pressed down. The other controller had the misfortune of being the one I was using when I lost my 10th straight game in Halo 3's fiesta double experience playlist a couple of weeks back.

I had two controllers in need of repair, so I bought a special tool online so I could undo the screws that Microsoft uses (tamper resistant Torx, size T8, just in case you care). Long story short, when I was putting the controllers back together, I realized I could mix and match the pieces from the different colored controllers (white and black) to make a unique look.

I was so pleased with the result, I took a couple of photos.

Dental School: Not For Me

2009-04-01T04:41:00.002-04:00

So, I've been thinking a lot over the past couple of days. I'm not sure I'm ready to take the plunge and go to dental school quite yet. I guess I've got a few months to decide. Actually, I'm pretty sure that if I don't show up for orientation, then they'll just call the next person on the wait list at that point. That means I have until the 27th of August to decide for sure. It feels so great to finally get this off my chest. Amazing, really!

Spring Cleaning v3

2009-03-12T03:35:00.005-04:00

If you can't tell, I'm having a pretty good time here... More photos! This time we have a selective desaturation and an abstract.

U2 Tour Thoughts

2009-03-12T01:54:00.005-04:00

So, the other day U2 announced the dates for the first leg of their worldwide tour. I'm really excited. I just wanted to make a quick comment on something I noticed. The tour is sponsored by Blackberry. This is interesting to me because to me it seemed that U2 always had a pretty tight relationship with Apple. I mean, remember when U2 had their own limited edition iPod? Anyway, it's just at thought I had running through my mind.

While we are on the subject of U2. I just wanted you to see how cool the stage set up for this next tour is going to be. Check it out!

Spring Cleaning, v2

2009-03-11T02:25:00.006-04:00

These photos didn't really work well with the last post's somewhat unintentional nature theme. The previous photos just so happened to come from the same folder (surprising, I know) and I felt that a new post was appropriate.

Spring Cleaning

2009-03-11T01:24:00.007-04:00

So, here I am, once again, looking through my hard drive and finding some pretty cool pictures that I've taken in the past. It is an unfortunate occurrence in this digital age, that after taking hundreds of photos and then dumping them on the external disc, many get forgotten and never get to be shown the love of photoshop. Hope you enjoy a couple of old ones I found.

I'm not a cookie cutter Utahn

2009-03-06T17:28:00.003-05:00

Another slightly annoying Facebook request:

La Perrita

2009-03-02T23:04:00.003-05:00

Gotta Love the F-Book

2009-02-09T03:03:00.004-05:00

I've been meaning to get posting for a while now, but it's been so long that I don't want to start with something totally mind blowing, or anything like that. I plan on easing all two of my readers back into things again (Yes, I know there used to be three, but I'm pretty sure that someone quit).

I figured that the following would be a good ice-breaker. One of my friends on facebook recently updated their status, and has apparently been studying some Organic chemistry. I took a couple of minutes to offer some study tips:

Dental School Update Map

2008-09-18T12:42:00.003-04:00

View Larger Map

Google is so handy! In just a few minutes I was able to make a map of all the places I have heard back from, just so you guys can be in the know about how things stand with my applications for dental schools. I'll update after each interview with my impressions about the school, city, people, etc.

My first interview is next week at University of Florida!!!

I feel lame for posting this

2008-09-02T13:15:00.005-04:00

I saw this on post secret. It's definitely a scary thought. And I love the infinity symbol, oh so nerdy, no wonder this poor chap feels this way.

Summer Fair Entries

2008-08-09T16:40:00.009-04:00

So, every year I enter some photos in the Davis County fair. I'm not going to lie, I have a love/hate relationship with the judges. They really make me angry. Last year, I entered one of my favorite photos ever, but someone gave me the wrong ribbon (first place was clearly circled on the paper). A few years ago, I didn't have a single photo place, but I somehow managed to win the special prize for the best macro photograph of the entire fair. The prize was given out by an independent judge from the Nikon corporation. For the record, one of the judges told me that he didn't like my use of depth of field in the photo. I think I'll dig around on the hard drive and find a copy of it...

In any case, that's all in the past. This year, I'm pretty proud of my entries. Here we go!

The final result for this photo was a third place. The judges said they liked my execution of the image, but that the cropping wasn't tight enough. They wished I had cut and inch or so off the right side so that the half leaf wasn't there to detract from the composition of the picture. Very sound advice, if you ask me.

This photo did not place. I was told that the focus wasn't sharp enough, and that the lighting was too flat. Also, it might have been too much of a close up.

This photo received a second place. As I predicted, the judges wanted to see a longer depth of field. One judge told me that the photo was "heavily unbalanced" with the left side of the bottle out of focus like it was. He suggested showing both sides of the bottle to add more balance to the image. I was also told, even though I think it is a cop out, that images are judged on subject recognition, and that it was difficult to determine what this photo was. What does it look like, fool?

Seriously, have you seen this!?!

2008-04-28T18:59:00.002-04:00

Okay. I'm officially creeped out by the people at Google. I'm beginning to believe the rumor that they are trying to take over the world. If you don't believe me, try the following:

1) Click Here.

2) Type in your address.

3) Click the "Street View" button up at the top of the window.

4) Clean up the wet spot where you were sitting.

Things I've Learned in Four Years of College

2008-04-27T23:50:00.003-04:00

This list is by no means comprehensive, and I hope to keep adding to it. I hope you find it enlightening!

1. Googling your professors can sometimes yield scary results.

2. Construction on the Marriott Library will never, ever be finished.

3. The second class of the day is always the easiest one to fall asleep in.

4. Three slices of the Mountain of Meat pizza from The Pi will make you sick. There is just no getting around it...

5. The best time to get a spot in the stadium parking lot is at 9:32 am.

6. You can paint a wall with a hammer, but it will take you a long time, and it will look like crap.

7. Always park close to a light post so you can easily find your car. (When this fails, keyless entry can be of help, but you have to walk up and down the lanes. If that doesn't work, start smacking the panic button for all you are worth.)

8. Physical chemistry is of the devil, and Schrödinger was possessed.

9. Boogers are a fact of life.

10. A textbook will always be required if the professor wrote it.

11. If your professor wrote your textbook, get on amazon and buy a different one.

12. Carbon only makes four bonds, but a Texas Carbon is special and can make five...

13. If at all possible, don't use any of the restrooms in any of the physics buildings, as it must be department policy to never flush.

14. Math is easy when there are more letters than numbers. When there are more Greek letters than Roman letters it starts not being so much fun. You can completely ignore anything that comes past delta, except maybe pie.

15. To keep the universe balanced, any professors that you enjoy during class lecture time you will hate outside of class when doing homework and during exams.

I don't need a song like this right now...

2008-04-19T19:43:00.001-04:00

I heard this song the other night at about 2 AM as I was driving home from the library. I can't even begin to tell you how much it is exactly how I feel right now. So incredibly frustrating... ugh.

I'd just post the video here, but the formatting looks really crappy because the YouTube box is like 3 pixels too wide, and I cant figure out how to make it smaller...

I'm Not Over - Carolina Liar

It only look 4 months...

2008-04-08T18:03:00.000-04:00

Yeah, so I just applied to take the DAT. The application itself isn't very difficult, but the hard part is deciding what schools you want your scores sent to. It's the first step in a long journey. Here are the schools I picked, based on admission requirements, last year's acceptances of U of U students, and of course geographical location (yeah, I guess you can tell that I'm not a big fan of the south).

Arizona School of Dentistry
Boston University
Case Western Reserve University
Indiana University
Loma Linda University
Marquette University
Ohio State University
Temple University
Tufts University
University of Connecticut
University of Florida
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
University of Pacific
University of Pittsburgh
Virginia Commonwealth University

Girls w/Guitars are Hot!!!

2008-03-29T21:51:00.000-04:00

If you know me, then you probably know of my seemingly undying love for chicks who sing and play the guitar. Let's just say it's a weakness of mine... A couple of weeks ago one of my favorite artists stopped in Salt Lake City for a show. Kate Voegele is an amazing musician, that I have really come to appreciate. I'm really disappointed with artists that don't write their own music (just about any pop singer), or that don't actually play the guitar as they would have you believe (ahem, Colbie Caillat). In any case, I had an amazing time at Kate's show. The first opening guy, Kelley James, played a few songs. At first, I wasn't sure if there was going to be enough room for his ego and all of the dreamy eyed teenage girls. It turns out there was, but just barely. Kelley had a style that reminded me of Jack Johnson's music, mixed with Jason Mraz's quick witted lyrics. For one of his songs threw down a verse completely improv (based on a sorority and peanut butter, which were just randomly thrown out by the audience), that I enjoyed. I really liked his song "In Between," and would recommend taking a listen to it.

The second band, was completely forgettable in my opinion... I think their name was "The Whitest Light" but I can't be sure. In my opinion, they were a bit too loud for the kind of concert. I'm fairly certain that had they been playing with bands more similar to their style I would have payed more attention. Not that it really matters, because as they played, I was having a Corona in the bar.

I don't really want to harp on how much I enjoyed Kate's music, so all I'm going to say is that my favorite songs were "I Won't Disagree" and "Devil In Me" although I really do like all of her music. Honestly, her CD is just ones of those that I can listen to it all the way through and not get bored. It's fantastic!

I hung around after the show and got Kate to sign her CD for me. Her concert manager (or whatever his official title happened to be) was kind enough to take our picture. Actually, he was kind enough, to take three photos: one of his finger, one of Kate looking the other way, and the following one. I look like an idiot, because I'm in the middle of saying, "No, you just have to push the button down harder!" Isn't that always how it works!?! But, hey, I figure that Kate more than makes up for how bad I look.

Old photo, new tricks

2008-02-25T11:13:00.000-05:00

So, I took this photo about three years ago. However, at the time I was completely clueless about all things having to do with photoshop and photo editing. It doesn't matter how hard you try to take *amazing* pictures straight out of the camera, because in reality no matter how good your photo is, you can always make it look better in photoshop. I decided to revisit my old photo, and use some of the tricks I've learned to see what I could come up with.

Happy Presidents' Day!!!

2008-02-08T19:38:00.001-05:00

I'm very glad to have a long weekend (even though it isn't until next week), courtesy of Washington and Lincoln. Kudos to those dudes, I appreciate the extra day of sleep. In light of this wonderful holiday, I'm uploading a photo that I took this afternoon while working on an assignment for my photo class. I'm not really sure how it happened, but somehow I got this amazing photo. For me, I think the coloring makes this one fantastic.

Back to Business

2008-01-25T01:30:00.000-05:00

My original intention for this blog was a place to showcase some of my photos. I haven't really done as much of that as I'd have liked to... but today's a new day, and I'm going to post a couple of photos.

This semester I'm taking a digital photography class so I can fulfill the fine art general education requirement, otherwise I wouldn't be able to graduate this May. Our first assignment was due on wednesday, and we'll have a critique on everyones' photos tomorrow. I'm really excited for this, and I'm not exactly sure why. I definitely got out of my comfort zone for this project. We were supposed to use depth of field to help portray the emotions of disdain, distrust, and resistance. Emotions are hard to portray, whether you do it abstractly, or have your friends come over and make faces for you to take pictures of. Usually, I take photos of things that are pretty, don't move around a whole lot, and most assuredly don't express emotion. (Not to say that you can't use an object to illicit an emotion from someone.) Nevertheless, I think my photos turned out pretty well. Please post a comment and tell me your favorite one, and why.

Big Plans...

2007-11-14T01:08:00.000-05:00

I'm not so good at this blogging thing. In any case, school keeps me excessively busy.

I'm currently listening to this song called "Down" by Something Corporate, and for some reason it's describing exactly how i'm feeling right now, so I thought i'd share a section of the lyrics with anyone who cares...

Wish upon a star but
Do you know what stars are?
Balls of fire, burning up the black space
Falling from the landscape
Exploding in the face of God

Let's get crazy,
Talk about our big plans
Places that you're going
Places that I haven't been
Build my walls up
Concrete castle
Keep this kingdom free of hassle, yeah

Quick update...

2007-10-16T00:06:00.001-04:00

I'm not dead... just super busy. At least that's what i keep telling myself. I spend nearly every hour of every day at school, either studying or tutoring other students. It's exhausting.

Last week was technically supposed to be a break. I spent the first few days of the break writing a lab report for my advanced organic chemistry class. Even though I put quite a bit of effort into it, knowing the other people in that class, my attempt is bottom-of-the-barrel material. It's a shame, as i really enjoyed the actual class and lab time.

The rest of the week was filled with tutoring and Halo 3. My Xbox 360 is actually in Texas having a new optical drive put in. I was thankful that my friend Alex was willing to lend me his 'box while he was out of town.

Today I met with a representative from Case Western to discuss my possibilities of getting into dental school there: Outlook Good. Mr. Aftoora gave me some literature about the school, which my dad enthusiastically read over after dinner. A couple of minutes later, my dad came to tell me that, "Dental school looks fun." My reply: "Dental school is going to be difficult and scary, not fun. Fun? Fun is pwning noobs in video games."

Download iTunes... again

2007-09-23T00:50:00.001-04:00

Today was a milestone. Not in the fact that I did something great, or that something I've been waiting for a very long time to happen finally came to pass (ahem, Halo 3 in two days). No, today I downloaded the billionth iTunes update. I've been using iTunes for years and years, but I've always been annoyed at how frequently they release new versions. I also believe that the program is more buggy now than it ever has. iTunes hasn't been the same since version 7.0 came out. My biggest gripe is that the newer versions are memory hogs, no longer playing nice with other programs. Sure it has a lot of cool features, but if you think about it, they really aren't all that functional: cover flow = cool to watch yet utterly useless. I'll stop griping, only after I say one last grievance. I liked the green icon better than the new blue one.

Unexpected Fortune

2007-09-15T23:44:00.000-04:00

I was pleasantly surprised by the outcome of today's football game. My Utes completely walked all over the UCLA Bruins, who had a very close game with BYU last week. The final score was 44-6, a real spaking. I will admit, that I went to the game expecting a score similar to that, just the other way around. I do feel somewhat guilty for having those thoughts, but I think I made up for it with all of the cheering I did. I was a bit hoarse after the game, and even now I'm still feeling quite raspy. At any rate, this is what Fox had to say on their website last week:

"As if fate wasn't unkind enough to Utah, now UCLA is coming to town. The unbeaten and nationally ranked Bruins find a wounded animal in Utah and, this week, the perception will be that the Utes are too crippled to fight."

Wow... that's pretty harsh.

Just as I arrived at the game, the Utes scored a touchdown on a 53 yard play. UCLA answered with a field goal in the first quarter, but that was half of the points they would score for the rest of the game. For the majority of the second quarter, the Utes worked on stopping UCLA in their tracks. I actually wasn't comfortable with the lead the Utes had built up until late in the third quarter. I kept expecting something to come from the offensive side of UCLA, but it never did. The fourth quarter was everything a Ute fan could ever hope for: I wanted to see a score over 40, and my friend Ken wanted to see no touchdowns scored by UCLA. You can put a check mark to both items on that list.

The only other thing I wanted to highlight, was the play in which UCLA almost scored their only touchdown. It was a passing option, perhaps from around Utah's 40 yard line, caught maybe about the 20. Just when I thought they had scored, a Ute came barreling over, snagging the dude from UCLA. As they both fell to the ground, the poor chap from UCLA tried to reach the football over the line for the touchdown. Instead, he sputtered and choked, dropping the ball into the endzone, giving the Utes a touchback.

For more details this article is pretty decent.

Go Utes!!!

A is for Apple

2007-09-07T00:38:00.000-04:00

So, there's all sorts of buzz about the new iPods and all. Especially about the price drop on the iPhone and the the $100 gift card that will be going out to all of the people who bought the iPhone before the price drop.

I saw the following comment left on an article on engadget, and thought it was worth sharing it with the 3 people who read this blog.

"Funny thing is: Apple store is now selling a limit edition t-shirt that reads 'iSucker' for $100. In 7 forgettable colors."

An ongoing offensive against neighborhood evil...

2007-08-31T02:36:00.000-04:00

Ha ha ha. I just finished watching Disturbia. It was a really cheesy movie, but that line made my day. If you haven't seen it, I'm sorry you're missing out on all the fun.

And while I'm at it, I think I'll add another song to my official Buttshakin' playlist. I often refer to putting a song in the infamous Buttshakin' playist, but in all actuality, it's fairly scattered. In any case, the song I promised you is:

Taper Jean Girl by Kings of Leon

One of those days...

2007-08-30T00:00:00.000-04:00

Today was a horrid day. Lectures were boring, and my Advanced Organic Chemistry lab didn't go so well. I suppose it could have been worse... On the drive home, I was coming down 4th south when I noticed something on my windshield. Closer inspection revealed it was a headphone: a headphone that was still attached to my iPod, which was sitting on top of my car. I'm really glad I've got one of those silicon skin cases, or it would have been long gone. Cheers to these guys.

Summer, where hast thou gone?

2007-08-22T16:26:00.000-04:00

Well, here I am, nearly done with my first week of classes. It's always hard to get back into the swing of things. That said, I feel as if I should reflect on my accomplishments of the summer.

Right after finishing up spring semester I drove to Albuquerque with my Dad. My sister was competing in the Intel International Science Fair. She did quite well, placing 3rd in the Biochemistry category. The major reason I wanted to go to New Mexico was because I wanted to visit White Sands National Monument to take some photos. I took a day trip down to White Sands, and took some excellent pictures. Later, I was disappointed to find that I had inadvertently left my camera's ISO setting at 400, which resulted in some excessively noisy photos. I originally planned to watch the sun set from White Sands, but I decided to head back earlier and save that for a later date. Really, though, it's an incredible place:

As soon as I got back from New Mexico I immediately downloaded the Halo 3 Multiplayer Beta, and proceeded own n00bs. I felt that the beta build played really well, and took a little bit more skill than Halo 2. The new weapons and gadgets made for new and exciting gameplay situations, where ingenuity frequently ousted the standard run 'n' gun feel of the Halo franchise. I also found myself so thankful to spawn with an Assult Rifle, as compared to the traditional starting weapons of Halo 2, the SMG and Battle Rifle (underpowered and overpowered, respectively). My only gripe in the Beta was that the respawn system seemed to have a few kinks: the guy you just owned spawned about 30 feet from where you killed him, and is chasing you down before your shields have finished recharging. Spanking the same guy over and over again gets a little boring after a while... ;-) In any case, I throughly enjoyed the Beta, achieving the rank of Major.

While I played Halo by night (my personal motto is Carpe Noctem), I went to class during during the afternoon. After having the most wretched experience imaginable while taking a lab class during the summer of '06, I swore I would never do it again. Unfortunately, I realized that I should take a couple of classes to make my senior year at the University of Utah a bit easier. I ended up taking a ceramics class as well as intermediate writing. I rocked them both. Ceramics was incredibly fun. For the final project we needed to make a three dimensional object out of slabs of clay. Everyone in my class made a box or cube, that is, everyone except me. I made a dodecahedron. I think my classmates hated me, however they had the last laugh: I spent about three times the amount of time in the studio.

The rest of my academic time was usually spent sitting in front of my laptop plunking away at the keyboard or perusing sources I was using to write my papers. The theme of my writing class was Wealth and Poverty. I had just finished the book Bono: In Conversation, in which Bono spends a great deal of time talking about African debt and poverty. Following his lead, I chose to reseach, report, and argue on this topic. I couldn't have picked anything better to learn about. I did struggle with the large amounts of information, much of which was highly politicized, and the depth of the issues on the African continent. My final paper focused on the current debt of African nations. I was pleased to receive a perfect score on this paper. Thanks to my friend Megan for helping me with the editing (sorry, Megan, but I didn't take out all of the passive voice you underlined).

I was also able to take off on a few trips this summer. Most importantly, I was able to hang out with my friend Thomas, whom I met in Zion National Park. Along with Tommy's dad, Brian, we hiked the narrows, 16 miles down the canyon about half of that in the Virgin river. As if that wasn't enough physical activity for the weekend, the next day we went water skiing at Lake Powell, and then spent the night at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. It was an incredible three days. In addition, I went to Montana and Washington. Good times.

I've already touched on this, but I wanted to go back and talk a little bit more about my experiences a a photographer during the past couple of months. This summer, I have really been able to come to terms with my camera, especially with my macro lens (100mm f/2.8 for those of you who care). My familiarity with my equipment has allowed me to get some great captures in situations that previously would only have resulted in a poor photo. In addition, my skills in using Photoshop are constantly getting more refined. Last year I told myself that I wouldn't get another lens until I had built up a significant gallery of photos that I was truly proud of. While I never actually defined what "significant" was, I have definitely made progress toward that goal this summer.

This post is much longer than I anticipated, however, I've barely scraped the surface. The best parts of summer have been the little things: weekly lunches with friends, unlocking xbox achievements, halo parties, going to concerts, hanging out with friends until 3 am, slurpee runs to 7-11, and most importantly sleeping in until noon. It was an awesome summer!

Forks and La Push

2007-08-19T16:55:00.000-04:00

It just so happened that I was in Forks, Washington on August 7. In case you are in the dark on that one, it was the day that the third book in Stephanie Meyer's series, which takes place in Forks, came out. While I'm not obsessive about the books (like a few people I know), they are a decent read. While in Forks and the beach at La Push (perhaps near La Push would be more correct) I took a bunch of pics for the more obsessive of the group. I also make no apologies for not visiting the local high school and hospital, or for going all artsy fartsy and taking photos of rocks and flowers on the beach. Somehow, I think you'll all survive.

Looking toward La Push from Realto Beach

Looking north on the beach

Wild Pea Blossoms

The only picture from Forks (not much else to take a photo of)

Seattle Pics Pt. 2 -------> Downtown and San Juan Island

2007-08-19T14:34:00.000-04:00

These three are from the outdoor marketplace that Seattle is famous for. Have you ever seen the flying fish market on TV? Yeah, it's at this place. I'm going to refrain from posting a photo of the space needle, 'cuz everyone knows what it looks like.

From San Juan Island, we took a boat whale watching. It was pretty tight. I took a ton of pictures, but they all look very similar, so I'm only posting one. 300 mm of zoom has never been so useful!

There is also a Lavender farm on the island. It was another prime opportunity to bust out my macro lens.

Seattle Photos Pt. 1 - - - >Kubota Garden

2007-08-12T22:20:00.001-04:00

The first stop in Seattle was Kubota Garden. It has a very interesting history, which you can read here. It's a beautiful place, and the overcast weather made for the perfect conditions for my macro lens. For your viewing pleasure here are a few of my favorite shots from the day.

I'm counting on my friend to post a comment and tell me what this one says...

Seattle Vacation

2007-08-12T21:49:00.001-04:00

I've been back from my trip to Seattle for a few days now, and I'm finally getting around to post some photos that I took. The one above is the crappiest photo you will probably ever see on this page. I don't know exactly how a photo taken in bright sunlight could end up as blurry as this one did. In any case, I also feel the need to say that this photo is a picture of someone else's artwork. I figured it'd be the best photo for the opening of my Seattle post.

A Bad Show? 'Frayed Not!

2007-08-01T14:01:00.000-04:00

So, last night The Fray came for a concert at Usana Amphitheater. I'd never been to Usana, and I must admit that I went intent on finding something to gripe about. However, when it all comes down to it, there isn't anything worth being grumpy about. The band sounded great, the weather was nice, there were no bugs, and the fans... well the only thing I can complain about were the fans. That's not anything different from usual, as I hate people, especially in large groups. What I didn't understand is why people felt the need to stand when it would have been easier for everyone to sit back down on the grass. Eventually, about three songs into the show, common sense began seep into the masses: "Oh, man, standing up on your own is a lot harder when you aren't packed together like sardines!" Obviously the seepage of common sense moved much slower in places due to the density of certain individuals. I took it upon myself to heckle the dude standing about 10 feet in front of me. "Hey, you! Sit Down!!! Yeah, you! Hey! Sit!" When he actually realized that he was blocking the view of about a hundred people he removed himself from our lines of sight, allowing us to concentrate on the show.

The show itself was quite amazing. Simply put, it sounded as though they could have put on a CD of their music and pumped it through a couple hundred thousand watt speaker system. Because Usana is an outdoor venue, there wasn't that terrible distortion that occurs when sound bounces inside a closed area. I also love it when a band does a cover of another artist's song at a concert. I believe it shows the depth of their musical abilities when they can take a different song, play it in their own style, and have it sound decent. They played a version of Shakira's Hips Don't Lie, and ended Over My Head with a portion of Wonderwall by Oasis. In addition, there were a couple of songs that definitely sounded a bit U2ish, which I appreciate tremendously.

All, in all it was a great first experience at Usana. Below, are some pictures I took using my phone, from a very long way away (I was seriously angry at myself for not bringing my camera). The photos are basically free from any details, but you are encouraged to use your imagination and picture what it was like to be there...

2007-07-18T17:50:00.000-04:00

Huzza! I now have a blog. It's been on the to do list for a very long time, but as I'm sure you can relate, it's just happening now. I wanted a place to tell my thoughts about everything, as well as share some of the pictures I've taken. Hopefully this will do the trick.