Now that's a proposal!

It's kinda hard to do but this guy puts me to shame in the elaborate marriage proposal department.

I'M IN !

I have been accepted to the UC Davis school of veterinary medicine. The number two school in the nation has chosen me from 1142 people that applied this year (they totally bought the "Batman" thing). This summit, 12 years in the making, has not even begun to sink in. Part of me feels like it won't for a very long time. Nearly every decision made for the last decade centered on how best to inch myself closer toward reaching this point. The heart-ache of disappointing grades, rejection letters, and watching peers pass me by while I continued to slowly make my way, is now part of a whole set of emotions I can completely let go. I made it, and like everyone else always said it was worth it.

I still don't know how I got here other than to say I wouldn't have been possible without the love and support of all my family and friends. The journey towards one's goal is often most difficult at the point at which you are closest to achieving it. Without Carolyn as my constant cheer-leader providing me with an shakeable foundation of support and love I could not have gone this far. Without all the teachings and values instilled in me by my parents I may not have even had the courage to begin this journey much less make it this far. Dad, all of those cheesy kung-fu movies we watched, believe it or not, gave me the idea that no matter the size of the challenge; no retreat, no surrender. You didn't believe in letting me win in chess or basketball, teaching me to not fear challenge or failure in the face of my best effort. You wouldn't allow me to be satisfied with any form of half-assery,and an indefatigable work ethic followed.
Mom, you were always such a kind ear and someone whom I could always lean on. From you I have gathered the importance in fighting for what you want out of life even if the wind blows against you. Your emotional strength knows no bounds and it was this strength you gave to me that carried me through many difficult times. Somehow you are always able to strike the right tone of encouragement, empathy, and reality.
Without all of the fabulous individuals I have worked with over the years I may have lost my way perhaps forgot why it was I set out on this path. From each of the doctors I have worked with I have learned so much. Watching them work was constant motivation. Thank you for all your support Drs. Thank you all my tech homies that made the journey bearable. I have learned a lot from all of you as well and have been deeply heartened by comments like: "when you become a vet, I will be your tech". For those who still want to become vets, you now know it is possible for you to do it as well.
[I would like to thank the academy....the director,..] If this were an award show I would have played off stage by the orchestra ten minutes ago. The list could go on forever but the point is this: WE did it! Please share in this victory with me as part of your own success. Use this moment to reflect on your own goals and realize, as Paulo Coelho writes: "when someone wants something bad enough and follows their own true personal legend (purpose), the entire universe conspires to assist them".
For now I will enjoy the moment and weigh the decision between UC Davis and the Colorado State vet prep program carefully.I cant believe I have a choice to make. Crazy. (Lets see, agenda for this month: decide between top vet schools in nation, finalize wedding plans with girl of dreams, party butt off remaining days of Santa Barbara residency. Seems like becoming starting point guard for the Kings should be next on this list of incredulous to-do's). Colorado is much cheaper than Davis and offers a masters degree in addition to my DVM. However, I don't get to actually start vet school for another year making it a 5 year program in Colorado. Davis is close to almost all of our family and friends and would graduate me in 4 years. The schools swap spots between #2 and #3 in the nation so education quality and program prestige don't really provide a differentiating factor. As master Yoda would have undoubtedly said in this instance, "Have much to consider we do, hard decision it will be. Visit Colorado we must". And Visit Colorado we shall...

By the Numbers

In 4 days I turn 29.
In 2 months Carolyn and I get married.
In 10 days I'll find out whether I've been accepted to Davis, making me one of 138 members of the class of 2016 out of 1143 that applied
In 9 days I'll take my finals, worth 30% and 40% of my grades hoping to hold on just enough to pass my classes and move on.
Over those 9 days I must read roughly 263 pages of material covering 6 chapters and 500 lecture slides.
4 of the next 9 days will be 12 hour work days (i got Sunday off luckily)
.....and when I'm done next Thursday the 22ND I'll have at least 10 celebratory beers and use 1 out of 5 of my fingers to salute my biochemistry text book.
Wish Me Luck

In case you missed it!!

Last night Jeremy Lin brought the Knicks back from way down in the fourth.In an awesome display of what I can only describe as "fearlessness" he hit the game winner to make it 6-straight wins. Rumble young man rumble.

LET'S GO!!!

Ive got an hour before biochem starts and I feel compelled to bring to your attention a man by the name of Jeremy Lin. If your like me; busy and only casually following basket ball this season you may have missed the best thing to happen in sports in a long time. Meet Jeremy Lin, #17, starting point guard for the New York Knicks. He wasn't always the starter, in fact before last Saturday he was fourth string and calculating his next move when he would most likely be cut from the roster. Due to injuries Lin got the chance he needed last Saturday and what has transpired over the last week can be described as LINSANITY! Ok so a back-up having a couple of good games may not be all that exciting, that is until you find out this guy's story.
To start Jeremy Lin is one of only a handful of Asian-Americans to ever suit up for an NBA team. Lin was born and raised in Palo Alto to Taiwanese parents and was a basketball standout early on. His dad discovered basketball as a adult for the very first time and instantly fell in love with the game. He taught Jeremy by recording the greats on tv and teaching him fundamentals. In high school Lin started for the varsity team as a freshman and put up impressive numbers. He lead the team in several categories, received several awards, and local recognition for his superior play. However, Lin was completely passed over by college scouts and was never offered any scholarship opportunities despite being one of the best point guards in the state. Despite his success he faced an unfair stigma of Asian-Americans and was often treated to racial taunting at games. Unfazed by the lack of respect for his game Jeremy decided to go to college at Harvard. The first in his family to go to college Jeremy decided to make it count by going to Harvard and playing for their historically lackluster team. Though they are a division I school, Harvard traditionally has not garnered much attention with their basketball program only turning out one (ONE!) NBA player in the 1950's.
As you might have guessed Jeremy continued to play at a high level all the while earning a degree in economics. Though basketball was forever his dream the question remained: would he ever get his chance? Again the talent scouts inexplicably passed over Jeremy Lin with no one drafting him. Lin would, however, not be denied his chance earning a fourth string spot on the Warriors last year as a undrafted Harvard grad.He was cut before his true talent could see the light of day.
This year Lin worked his way on to the Knicks roster has the 15th guy on the team. On Saturday several injuries had cleared the way for Lin to make his first start in the NBA for one of the biggest, most storied, franchises in all of professional sports. A week later ESPN is the Lin network. In 5 straight games the Knicks have not lost. In 5 straight games Lin has scored over 20 pts and dished 8 assists. In fact no other player except LeBron James has even come close to his numbers for his first 5 games. Reports are that Jeremy lives on his brothers couch in NY with no money and no contract to secure his own place. He was prepared to be cut in the next three weeks and now he is leading the Knicks! On Friday he out-dueled Kobe Bryant to score a team high (for the year) 38 pts! From zero to hero in one week. The injured all-stars (86 million in contracts) are on the bench watching this guy lead the team to 5 straight victories. Read more of his story here:
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/columns/story?columnist=oneil_dana&id=4730385

I think we can all learn a little something from number 17. This last week I had a similar though less publicized breakthrough. After 12 years of hard work and patience I took a big step by getting an interview at UC Davis. I am so grateful to have made it to this point. My grades and test scores don't compare well to many of the candidate in the applicant pool and I may not eventually make it into Davis. No matter, because at least this interview gives me an opportunity to show those admissions folks that I deserve a spot on their roster. All of my cousins, siblings, family, friends: It doesn't matter where you come from, it doesn't matter what you look like, it doesn't matter what other people think of you. Jeremy Lin believed in himself as a basketball player, he laced up his sneakers and went to work. What matters is belief in yourself and dedication to the work that will get you to where you want to be. Jeremy may not end up the MVP of the league but he has already accomplished way more by inspiring millions. I may not make it in this year but as Lin has showed me, IT DON'T MATTER. Gimme my chance to shine! I believe! LET'S GO!!!!

watch him fearlessly attack the champion lakers

Humble hero from Harvard

Lets GO!!

Fed up political rant (read at your own risk of being offended)

Ok so I generally think its a bad idea to discuss politics in an open area where you run the risk of offending someone. I get especially heated when discussing politics which no doubt negatively effects the conversation. Despite that general guideline I feel I must rant. If you are a conservative look away.
The news just reported a new plan put forth by Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich. The basic idea as I understand it is this: Fire all school janitors working in inner-city schools save one "master-janitor". Revise child labor laws so that you can then hire the children to do the janitorial work. The benefits to this plan that "combats poverty" is that the young welfare sucking, lazy, ghetto children can learn the value of hard work all the while the state can save money by not having to pay unionized adults. I kid you not. Go, go right now and read it somewhere online. If you're not outraged on any number of these points, stop and consider what the consequences and implications of what he is saying. And by the way may I remind you that this man is LEADING IN THE POLLS for the republican nomination for president. My head wants to explode.

Last week the front-runner was Hermain Cain. This guy was a successful business man. Bottom-line is the guy sold pizza. Personally I can't think of something that would be an easier sell in this society than pizza, given you're not completely inept. The guy has no experience in governing, no foreign policy knowledge, and a 9-9-9 plan that is absolute non-sense. Forget the fact that he may or may not have sexually harassed several women, the guy has a plan that would deal the final blow to the middle class. Did you see him flat mock foreign policy or flub a softball pitch on Libya. Ow ow how bout the one where he blames the unemployed for being unemployed. Classic.



Don't even get me started on Bachman or Perry, each of whom, despite a 4th grade understanding of both the world and our country, were at certain points leading the polls. What kind of a nation promotes these people to power positions and encourages ignorance. Oh its folks-y or straight-shootin, or hey he's kind of an idiot like me I'll vote for him. Personally I want the president to be smarter than anyone I know. I want a leader to have defensible opinions and nuanced approaches to issues. HEll at least be able to pick out Libya on a map.

And then you've got the wonderful congress. The super committee failed (this is my shocked face). Whose fault is it? Obamas obviously, if you ask republicans. They say we tried to compromise by offering billions in new revenues (taxes). The reality is they offered billions in tax increases in exchange for making the Bush tax cuts permanent which would add TRILLIONS to the deficit in the next ten years. The same deficit that they all campaigned on in 2010 that reducing was "critical to America regaining its spot atop the world". What a crock. The taxes were fine so long as it didn't touch the millionaires and billionaires that buy their congressional seats. And they certainly don't care about the decifict because not only did they compound it with two wars that were unpaid for (all the while lowering taxes, something never, NEVER done in war time) they continue to push to expand it with tax cuts that only benefit the wealthy and corporations.
I hope at some point people will wake-up and reject these sleazy degenerate scumbags and their sinister policies. How long can this obstructionist strategy go on before the people call them on their crap? Rush Limbaugh sounded the call on day one of Obamas administration when he unapologetically said "I hope he fails". He knew the full consequence and implications of his words and has stood by them and so have every single republican law maker from that day forward. Democrats are part of the problem too. They are spineless and unprincipled. Willing to compromise everything in return for nothing, essentially selling out their constituents. They fail to adequately expose the shenanigans their counterparts pull time and time again. They are weak and wishy-washy more concerned with re-election than accomplishing anything of consequence. Democrats don't make stands because they're too afraid it will be held against them. Republicans take unyielding and sometimes reprehensible (NEWT) stances then quickly set to work bludgeoning the dems like defenseless baby seals. And it works.
While the government distracts and abuses power my tuition goes up. Financial aide shrinks. Services, classes, and benefits are cut. Gas goes up as well as the cost of living. And when I want to express my dissatisfaction with all this I can go to any major population center or university and get pepper-sprayed while peaceably protesting. I hope everyone has watched the UC Davis incident. I am not saying that I strongly identify with the Occupy movement or that there aren't yahoos that are acting out-of-line. In large part I support peaceful demonstration as a right that I am given as a US citizen, regardless of what it concerns. If the crazy church groups can protest gays at military funerals untouched explain to me why students who are getting brutalized by the current system cant sit in a park without fear of police dong this. Surely if child-labor and implying that all poor people need is work ethic doesn't upset you this must.

I Heart Halloween

For as long as I can remember I have loved loved loved Halloween. When I was 8 I won a costume contest at my boyscout troops Halloween meeting making a killer Darth Vader costume using stuff around the house(with the help of mom and dad). I remember trick-or-treating from sunset to 9 at night on streets packed with other sugar crazed kids looking to fill pillow cases full of candy rations that would last well into the next year. Sadly (at least in my opinion) it seems like the tradition of trick-or-treating has died out. I don't know if parents think its just too unsafe or if church and community sponsored events are preferred but these days trick-or-treaters are sparse. I have decided that when I settle into a house somewhere I'd like to see the hood on Halloween night and use the level of Halloween spirit to gauge the sense of community, safety, and personality of the area. Call me crazy but living between the guy with a chain-saw dummy on the porch and the house with the hanging witch might be ideal. If people bring their kids to your neighborhood its because its safe, fun, and you don't give out candy corn. I haven't been able to trick-or-treat for a while now with my last trick-or-treat eligible year being tragically robbed from me by strep throat. But the great thing about Halloween is the post-trick-or-treat-era adult fun to be had is almost unlimited. This year Halloween was a ton of fun and despite having to work over the weekend I still managed to enjoy my favorite holiday.
Thursday night was our pumpkin carving party. Ever since the "Gould Method" of pumpkin carving was introduced to me in 2009 my pumpkins have been freakin awesome and this year I attempted my most elaborate pumpkin yet. Check out a few from years past.






This year Carolyns wicked witch and Quentins PinHead we're impressive. The zombie girl from The Walking Dead one was mine.


On Friday night a group of us went downtown to see Evil Dead: The Musical! The live stage show is an off-Broadway touring musical that features elements of all three Evil Dead movies with colorful and campy musical numbers intermingled. We had tickets in the "splatter-zone" where we were continually sprayed with stage blood as the demon killing action unfolded. Good times.
Saturday night a group of us drove up to Solvang to visit the Theatrefests' Haunted House. The line was long but it ended up being worth it. As we walked through the maze of grave-yard scenes and all-too-dark hallways I was sure to gently nudge Carolyn uncomfortably close to any scary character actors that we encountered. After that, we headed over to Sort-this-out cellars to check out some live music and have some wine. Carolyn and I had our palms read at the party and (spoiler alert) the fortune teller predicted 2 maybe 3 kids for us. She seemed kind of iffy on vet school telling Carolyn we wont be leaving Santa Barbara for a while yet. According to the fortune teller Carolyn will achieve great success as a writer and go on to do book signings and reading all over.
Seth dressed up as an old man and I was quite proud of the make-up job I did. I was Johnny Cash and Carolyn was stunning as a swing girl.


Sunday was Zombie night with a new episode of "The Walking Dead" on AMC if you haven't seen the show you are missing out, its awesome. Sundays at 8:30 on AMC.
Monday night Carolyn and I are heading down to LA to see her favorite author read some of his scary stories while being accompanied by his wife, a musician. We are going in costume and it promises to be a great end to an epic Halloween. Here's a few costumes from years past in case you missed them. Happy Halloween!!! Mu ha ha ha ha.