boy has this past month or so been somewhat of a rollercoaster.  i don't even know where to begin...

let's start w/ someting happy...so i was sad that i couldn't be a counselor for pd this summer b/c of the mcats and such.  but i was still able to be a friend of pd, teaching some of the counselors and campers a body worship to "who am i" that i learned in acf.  i didn't have much time w/ them, but i was so impressed how fast they picked it up!  and i was so proud of them when they did it for family nite.  the guys were so smooth w/ their turns haha.  and i thought the kids' dulcimer performance was so cute.  another blessing was that i was able to see some of the old campers from last summer.  my had they grown!  some of them were taller than me now.    but what was really awesome was to see all my small group girls from last summer, anna, hoi man, and jenny at twr (friday nite fellowship for middle school kids) one nite.  it was pd nite and it was great to see anna and hoi man there, and it was a wonderful surprise to see jenny there who didn't attend pd this summer.  that was something i prayed for last summer, and it was so awesome to see it actually happen, even if it was a summer later.  praise God!  i just pray that they'll continue to go to twr and church.  i loved seeing my girls! 

now for a bunch of new experiences i've had recently:
1.  had my first alcoholic drink - most ppl are excited to do this as soon as they turn 21 (if they haven't already).  me on the other hand had it 4 months or so late.    my kind "uncle" peter and chia chi treated me to dinner at a nice restaurant called the elephant walk.  he asked me if i wanted a drink and i said i had not yet had one before so he thought this would be a good time to try it since i would be under his supervision.  so i ordered a strawberry daiquiri since i thought i should start w/ something really fruity while they had glasses of wine.  the verdict - i don't like alcohol.    i dunno why, but it just tastes so bitter to me.  they told me i should have a sip of their wine, so first i tried her white wine, and while it was sweet at first it quickly turned bitter.  then i tried his red wine and that was just disgusting.  haha.  he could totally tell that i would have preferred a virgin strawberry daiquiri, but it was too late and i did my best to try to finish it.  i guess i just don't have the taste for it.  since then a few friends have tried ordering me or making me a drink, the really girly ones too.  i keep telling them they're just wasting their money, but they try nonetheless (and usually end up having to finish it for me) b/c they wanna find something i like.  i've tried a malibu cranberry, a screwdriver, a rasberry flavored wine cooler, and some concoction made by a bartender when specifically asked for a drink that hides all the alcohol (you can bet he had a really confused look on his face and i was pretty embarrassed...but i could still taste the alcohol and i didn't enjoy it).  and i've had a sip of beer, but that was gross.  so far i've liked the screwdriver and wine cooler the best, but that's probably b/c there was hardly any alcohol in them.    my theory is that i have such a strong sweet tooth that it makes the alcohol taste so bitter and yucky to me.  alas, i think i would just prefer soda or water.  i guess you can always count on me to be the designated driver! 
2.  went to many great restaurants in boston for the first time - armani cafe on newbury, elephant walk, top of the hub, and maggiano's.  all for different reason's, but all had delicious food.  starting to appreciate the fine dining available in boston, but it's not like i'm gonna go to places like these very often since it requires lots of mula, which i don't have to spend. 
3.  went clubbing on landsdowne st. - rite after the mcats were over, some friends and i went to celebrate by going to dinner and clubbing.  there were actually 3 of us who had never gone before, so it was fun sharing this experience w/ them.  we went to embassy since a few ppl in our party were under 21, and i hafta say, i really enjoyed myself.  and it was really funny b/c as we came in they were playing "promiscuous," which had a special meaning to me, sarah, steffers, matt, and alex b/c of our fun car ride the other nite.  we had pretty good numbers, 7 girls and 4 guys, and thankfully it wasn't too crowded (there's lots of other clubs along the street), so not too many sketchy guys (although one guy did approach regina...i was so impressed at how lima just casually swooped rite in and made the guy back off).  the music was pretty good, although there were times when everyone was ready for the next song and other times when they only played a clip of a really good song.  there were some really really funny moments  and memorable ones too.  and of course there were the "bump and grind lisa b/c she get's so uncomfortable and laughs and runs away" moments.    thanks girls, love you guys.  can't beat a fun nite w/ great friends and dancing.  i'm up for going again, definitely not for the alcohol or sketchy guys, but just b/c i love to dance.  we'll see. 

speaking of dancing, who was an obsessed fan of "so you think you can dance" and watched every week this summer?  ::me raising my hand, jumping up and down::    i'm so glad benji won.  i never voted, but i would have voted for him.  although i really liked travis, donyelle, allison, ivan, and musa too.  gosh, i would love to be on a show like that.  not that i am at all qualified since i have no training whatsoever, but i would just love to learn all those amazing styles of dance and choreography.  i just watched step up last nite, and although i wish there was more dancing in it, what they did do was awesome!  i enjoyed it, although i'm not the best movie critic since i pretty much like everything except a few here and there. 
my favorite songs of the summer:
1) "sexy love" by ne-yo (especially after this...i just love dances w/ props and the ending is soooo cute)
2) "promiscuous" by nelly furtado
3) "buttons" by the pussy cat dolls. 
now that i think about it, all 3 songs were performed on the show.  and i really like the new snow patrol song "chasing cars" too, even though it doesn't fit in w/ any of the other songs i mentioned.  i'm sure the step up soundtrack has a lot of good dance hits on it.

anyway, as i mentioned before, i took the mcats for the second time.  and again it was mad hard.    but this experience was a lot better than the last time that's for sure.  last time they booked the same room for 2 things, we ended up starting the test an hr late which meant we got out really late too, there was an annoying light, and it was just an unpleasant experience.  this time the day flowed smoothly, the proctor was this really funny indian dude, and i got to sit beside a girl i knew.  i dunno why, but for some reason this time i wasn't as stressed about the test.  maybe b/c i'd done this before, or b/c i had other stuff on my mind, or b/c i know God is faithful and was w/ me the whole time.  i think it was a combination of all three.  but it was a miracle b/c 2 weeks before the test i got sick (along w/ everyone else from church it seems like), but during the weekend of the test, i felt completely better, and then i got sick again on monday.  so God answered my prayers and healed me for those few days when i needed it.  as for the scores, i just pray it improved a few points.  i'm so scared that it's gonna be worse...that would be a nightmare.    but whatever, it's over w/ and all i can do is wait and see 2 months from now.

something else that's been keeping me busy is my med school apps.  gosh, so complicated and annoying to fill out.  i'm applying to 14 schools, and rite now i'm just praying i'll get an interview.  to be honest, my gpa isn't great and i don't feel like my writing skills are up to par either for my personal statement, but what's done is done and now i've gotta work on the separate texas application and secondary apps.    so not fun. 

and in the midst of all that we're moving.  ahhhhhhh!  so much to do!  we've already started packing and moving stuff into storage today since our lease ends the 31st.  currently i am sitting in the one chair left in our apt, surrounded by a sea of boxes and random stuff lying all over the place.  for real it's a disaster area.  and since we moved our beds and tv, i'm looking forward to these next few nites of sleeping in a sleeping bag w/ my laptop as my only source of entertainment.  but i guess i'll be busy after work anyway since we've got a lot to clean up.  and this is how i will be spending my last week of summer...working, packing, moving, and cleaning.    but i guess i shouldn't complain since some of my friends have already started school. 

which brings me to another thought...this is my last year of college.    the other day when i went to the bookstore to buy textbooks, the guy who checked me out asked me what year i was and when i told him i'm going to be a senior, i was kinda sad.  is it bad that i'm already sad about the upcoming year?  i can't help but think that this quite possibly could be the last time we do this, or do that.  this year senior large group is for us.    omg, i already know the senior slideshow is gonna be really bad...there are just too many embarrassing and funny moments w/ our class.  i'm gonna be laughing so hard and probably crying at the same time.  but this is gonna be a great year.  i'm excited to be a small group leader for west campus, and i'm excited to meet the new frosh.  amy and i have already started choreographing a new dance, and you can bet there's gonna be more.  God's gonna do some amazing things, i just know it.  ::sigh::  class of '07...we gotta live it up this last year.  and yell OH-SEEEEEEEVEN even louder. 

can't believe the summer is almost over...it's been a good 4 months.  lots of good laughs, experiences, and memories.  God is good, all the time.