Sunday

well, today was nice. I went over to Paul and Kate's for "church." We watched the webcast of the service at FFPC. The quality of the broadcast is quite good, and the message was really good. It was over Col. 1(or 2):13-14. I found the message encouraging and uplifting.

Afterwards, we had lunch. Kate cooked some chicken marinated with Sun-dried Tomato Dressing which we ate with rice and salad. The food was wonderful. Another very good homestyle meal. Heh. My hope is to be able to do that someday. Still working on that...

We watched Legend of Zorro this afternoon. It was good, even the second time around. Paul just recently got into the whole BT thing, so it was cool. I don't know why, but I'm always so thrilled and excited when my friends find something good that they like that I've been doing as well... it just makes me happy knowing that they're "getting the good stuff" as well. I know I'm weird...

I think Lady, their dog, is finally (heh. I say finally, even though I've only been over twice now) slowly adjusting to my presence. She let me pet her and even play nibbled on my hands some today. I was able to really pet her and even got her to do the "thumper" move when you hit a sweet spot . That made me happy as well... Again, okay, so I'm weird... I take joy in the simple pleasures of life.

I had a good convo with Paul while I was waiting for the bus to take me back to campus. He offered some good tips on communication between a guy and a girl. Girls when a guy asks us what we want to do, or where we want to go, etc. and you really have a preference, do the guy a favor and just tell him. He may or may not choose according to your pref, but he does want to know usually. He may pick your pref because he wants to and he feels that his pref, even if different from yours, isn't that big of a deal in that matter. If you really don't care, tell him that, and don't complain or anything when he ends up choosing something you don't want to do, because you said you didn't care . here's another. if we have a problem with something, or have an issue on our minds the guy, if he really cares, usually wants to know how he can fix the problem or make you feel better. So if all you want is for him to just listen to you so you can vent, etc, just tell him. Ask him to just listen. If you want him to take an action of some sort, tell him. Tell him that you want him to do "such & such" or that you want him to "fix it." I found this rather clarifying and I'm sure our guys will appreciate us not being so vague all the time .

I've been getting emails from USC's grad school because I applied to their biomedical program for the upcoming fall semester. They've been saying how they think I'd be a great addition to their program, etc, etc. you know, the usual please apply to our program deal. But i just also got an email where they said they want me to visit and they'll pay for my hotel and everything, and that was cool. But here's the thing, and I've given this a lot of thought, while I would love to do my schooling in the states for a number of very good reasons (1. no question of accreditation, 2. cheaper, 3. a lot more convenient than being out of country, 4. closer to family and friends, etc) I've come to realize that I really don't have all the time in the world anymore. It's not like when I was 17, when I felt I had more whole life ahead of me. Now I'm 23 and have come to realize how fleeting time really is. Time is now so much more precious to me than it was before, a lot having to do with some of my future goals. If I didn't care about getting married or having children, the decision would be a lot less difficult. But since I do very much want to have a family, my decisions now will have a large impact on my future and theirs. If I were to choose the program in the states, I will not be guaranteed a spot in their med school which is my primary goal: to become a physician. And even if they could afford me that guarantee, it would add at least another 2 years to my schooling. And I don't know if I can afford those two years. My biological clock is ticking and I don't want to be in the middle of residency when I have my first child (yes, I know I have to get a man first). I don't want to have to end up making a decision between my family and my career. If presented with such a decision, I know my family is first. Always. But God is good and gracious and has brought me this far in my life. I know that I can trust Him. Time is so much more than money. I can always pay back debts and earn money, but I can never get my time back... It's quite sobering if you really think about it. Puts things in perspective. I think it's a def. step in the whole maturity thing, but I've still got a long ways to go. I love my inner wild child, but I know eventually part of her will have to grow up. I look forward to that time with both trepidation and excitement.... what a conflict of emotions...