wow, xanga has changed so much.  it took me nearly ten minutes to figure out how to write a new entry...  and I'm still not convinced that I clicked the right link.  I guess we'll find out after I press "submit".

I never really identified myself as a blogger, so it's hard for me to be consistent with these things.  but I like to believe that I've turned a new leaf, and i will give it my utmost (sorta).

not really sure what to write about, but I need to contribute to this xanga revival.  so I guess a good place to start is the beginning...

beginning of what?

I'm not too sure.  in a lot of ways, i feel like my life is just about to start.  I'm already two weeks into my fourth and final year at UMDNJ, and as one chapter ends, I'm scrambling to get my act together as I approach what will be the rest of my life.  I've been in school for as long as I remember, and quite frankly, I don't know how to be anything else but a student.  Sure, I took a year off to work, but my brief stint in employment consisted of jumping between companies every other month as a temp, so I'm sure all the working people out there would just scoff at my "job experience".  Now as I am applying to residency programs, I find myself (once again) gathering recommendations, writing personal statements, and sending out applications.  But this time, it won't be for interviews with schools in the fall.  I won't be waiting for an acceptance letter in the winter.  This time it's different. My decision on where to do my residency can very well determine the course of my career.  and being that one's career consumes approximately one-third of the day (and possibly more), it's safe to say that career = life.  Basically, the choices i make during this period will resonate until i'm dead.  and that scares me!  but excites me at the same time...

as much as growing up sucks, you can't escape it.  it's like death.  or is it growing up leads to death.

nevermind.

I DID IT!!!

Veni, vidi, vici.

Belly button.  As far as I can remember, I’ve always been an innie.  But during the lacrosse seasons in high school, I remember that the depth at which my button once resided had quickly diminished as it made its way towards the surface of my abdomen, forcing me to re-evaluate the important question of self-identity:  am I an innie or an outie?  It was a curiously strange phenomenon.  But as the college life has taken its toll, my belly button has once again regained its cavernous appearance, leading me to conclude that I am indeed an innie.

The perks of being a wallflower.  So, after attending several social gatherings on the weekends, I’ve observed a fundamental difference between the male and female genders.  Girls are natural born dancers.  It’s true.  I am thoroughly convinced that the differences in their genetic material, perhaps contained in their extra X chromosome, allows women to be naturally predisposed to the rhythmic shaking of their hips and shoulders in a coordinated fashion.  It’s no wonder why girls enjoy dancing with other girls while their groove-challenged male counterparts are left to stand there and watch helplessly.  Yeah, the guys definitely got the shaft on this one.

I realized that many of us put a lot of trust into the food establishments that we go to when we go out to eat.  I mean, seriously… we have no idea what’s going on in the kitchen, and only God knows what the chefs are doing back there behind those closed doors.  Not to mention that we’re also vulnerable to attack by angry waitresses (especially after multiple requests for lemons) who can easily taint your food with their saliva, mucus, bodily fluids, etc.  We make our order, chat a bit with our companions that accompany us to our meals, and then naively eat the food that’s been served to us.  It’s amazing how much faith we put in people when eating.  Or maybe this is when ignorance is bliss.

So I’ve come to the conclusion that the internet is a hobby killer.  I guess you can argue that internet surfing is a hobby in and of itself, but I think that’s a bunch of bullocks.  It’s just a one-way ticket towards love handles and bad eyes.

Wow, only one full week of classes left.  Finish strong guys.  and let's hang out

i just went into my parents' room to answer the phone, but i ended up missing the call.  so as i turned around to return to my room, i noticed a picture of my parents on my mom's dresser.  it was one of their marriage photos.  they looked really young, happy, and in love.  kinda strange to think that they were once strangers.

well, the last couple months of my undergraduate career is upon me.

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."  - Mark Twain

with that said, may my final college semester commence.

while taking a break from studying for these wretched finals, i had decided to peruse through some of my pictures.  i couldn't stop smiling...

haha, i know the last picture is an anomaly but it was just too funny.  i can't seem to escape the ubiquitous feeling of the christmas season, but i love that.  in our pursuit of indulging in the christmas spirit, our apt watched "the family man" the other night with nicholas cage (a great christmas movie) and it again triggered my fascination with the magnitude of our decisions.  can't explain it without ruining it, so go watch it.  what a great movie... on the topic of great movies, i thought Chronicles was an awesome movie.  i was moved by it so much, even more so than the Passion.  the scene where Aslan first appears... when he came out of the tent, it was so glorious.  and i was thinking how much more awesome its going to be when i see the actual face of God instead of just some CGI lion projected onto a big screen.  then i became afraid because things haven't been too good with my walk, so i'm scared that i'm going to eventually lose that ability to be moved by the gospel.  to be emotionless, cold, calloused to the beauty of it.  freak, what the heck am i doing.  after next week's over... just one more semester.  one more semester to do everything that i've ever wanted to do in college.  i'm gonna go buck.  gotta make a list though.  there's no greater feelign than to cross off something on a list.  you're only given this opportunity once right?  magnitude of decisions.  alright, deliriousness.. back to studying