Girls Night!

I can tell that I'm beginning to enter a new phase of life. Weekend study sessions are being replaced with group activities. Stressed out days are being eased by non-school related company, food and conversation. I cant get over the feeling of it. I've never experienced anything quite like it. And it feels like I'm finally living a life I want to. One that doesnt revolve solely around school. These get togethers are a breath of fresh air. They feed oxygen into my lungs. It is a calming influence and I can breathe. Even if just for a moment. I find that I am filled with a delirious gratitude for the friendships I have developed and am currently developing in Boston. I cant get over how amazing my friends are. I walk along the street and when they cross my mind I find myself grinning broadly. The future is often uncertain, but I hope it always contains the friendships I have made here in Dental School. I would choose these friends even if we werent in Dental School together. And I have such admiration for the people that they are. They individually and collectively are amazing. And I cannot forget how lucky I am to have become their friend. 


That being said, I'm not sure who's brilliant idea girls night was. I think it might have been Lucinda's (prompted by the day when I randomly did her hair). But maybe it was all of ours. It is so easy to feel lonely, and as such, when the opportunity comes to reach out and connect with each other, excitement abounds plentifully and we all rushed to make this night more than just a plan. It was funny too, because when we were making plans in front of the boys they went "You're having a girls only party? ... That means we can have a Man Night! AWESOME!" So as a group we divided into our sexes to spend time and just enjoy each others companies. 

We each planned to bring some food and any tips and tricks for hair and makeup that we had. I had spent all day making Cake Pops. Since sometimes I get very ambitious and want to impress my friends.

The food was amazing, and we spent the first couple of hours just eating and talking. We talked about so much and it was wonderful. I know it doesnt sound like much but I laughed so much and had a great time. It really doesnt take much aside from good friends, food and conversation for me to be happy and enjoy myself.

In case you were wondering, I cant even pick a favorite food item because it was all amazing. Jess also brought some food. But I didnt get a shot of her contribution (chips and salsa and hummus).

We then decided that it was time to start getting glam.

We certainly had the resources.

As an ode to girls nights before, we put on facemasks.

The group decided that my method of face mask application was ridiculous.

But I just laughed.

We watched "Teen Witch" and "Mannequin" - even though I'm pretty sure I didnt see a minute of the latter.

Our particular favorite moment was the "Top That" Rap. It was all sorts of magic.

In case you've forgotten, here's a clip.

 The facemasks definitely brought out the ridiculous.

Dee called at midnight and we were just starting to do hair and makeup, so we told her to head on over.

 Its a little silly to get ready, only to go to sleep. But it was really really fun.

I had an amazing time. I love laughing. And I've remembered that I really like doing hair and makeup on other people (My back up plan if I hadnt gotten into Dental School was to do hair school). I'd kinda forgotten about that. Its amazing how easy it is to forget how multifaceted my interests are when I get busy doing school. Because I really and truly have many interests. Just sometimes I forget that. 

It was a lovely evening. And I have really beautiful friends.

It was a wonderful evening.

And by the time we went home to bed, we wished other people would get to see the results of the nights.

So here they are.

Thanks for a great evening Ladies!

Feb 15 - Derrick's Birthday

Derrick Call is part of my study group and one of my really good friends in dental school.

He's also one of the legitimately funniest people I know.  The more you laugh at what comes out of his mouth, the more funny things he says and the funnier he gets - a positive feedback loop some might say :)

I absolutely have no idea how I learned material before I started studying with Derrick and Lucinda. I often remember material, strictly because Derrick turned it into a joke. 

So when he decided that for his big 3-0 birthday party, he wanted to go to a Trampoline Jump Place, I could think of no better way to celebrate a birthday. 

It was just like a birthday party when you were a kid. I loved it so much.

Cause who says you cant do fun things once you get older?

And boy was he excited for his party!

Seth was practicing his jumping while we filled out consent forms and waited for people to arrive.

So you fill out forms, and they give you shoes to jump in. The shoes are hi-tops and I didnt think I would like jumping in them. But they absolutely saved my ankles a million times. Cause I'm clumsy and never jump on a tramp and almost biffed it a million and one times and almost twisted my ankle. But those hi-tops. Magic is what they were. Even though when I asked for my size the boys couldn't believe how big my feet were. It was all worth it. Mocking included.

Me, Amit, Derrick, Seth, John

We did some warm up jumping.

Showed off any tricks we had remaining from childhood.

Things like that.

Then we got to the main event...

Some things about Trampoline Dodgeball:

- Dan has a freaking rocket arm (Why I was never on his team I dont know - poor planning on my part)

- Dee Gulis is a total survivor, as is Mike Rolin (they often were the last people left on my team)

- Adding flying balls doesnt make me more coordinated (which really isnt all that surprising)

 Annie and Mel were there cheering us all on.

The Call Family

Really great birthday party. I highly recommend a tramp jump to anyone looking for a good time.

P.S. Sometimes I'm a bully. And put a sticker on Seth's back where he cant reach :)

Aaron's Birthday - March 5th

Sparkling Apple Cider

I know this doesnt seem like much, but this here bottle of sparkling cider is one of the most thoughtful things I've ever been presented with. It doesnt just represent a choice of drink. No, it is much deeper than that. For me, this bottle represents my friends' desires to include me. It makes me feel such a deep gratitude for the friendships I've made in Boston. There's a lot of joking and razzing in my group, but when it comes right down to it, I know that they like me, exactly as I am. They dont judge me for not being better at this or that. Or for saying stupid things. They dont care that I dont do all the same things they do. 

So to show up at Aaron's and find that he and Sabrina made sure I felt included and had something to drink... well, it was a really nice moment. And very, very thoughtful. Making sure I had some nice mormon drinkage was completely unnecessary.

My friends are like that though.

Wonderfully accepting, accommodating and considerate.

I legitimately could not survive school without them.

But Sabrina planned a surprise lunch for Aaron. We played a couple minute to win it games, had some Upper Crust Pizza and probably the best ice cream cake of my life (from that Cold Stone homie).

After their pubcrawl, Aaron wanted people to come back over to his house to play games.

He opened gifts, and we hung out.

Sabrina also got Aaron a sweet tea pot and awesome Jurassic Park book. 

I like that I caught this action shot.

And this one.

I love this photo! 

We played some NBA Jam on Wii.

I forgot what an awesome game that is.

And that occasionally I like video games.

And yes, Derrick is completely serious about this game.

Lucinda and I played together, and we did pretty well for ourselves, considering neither of us plays video games ever.

It was a really fun night. And I was so glad I got to celebrate Aaron's birthday! He's one of my favorite people at dental school and so ridiculously funny. And any reason to get together and hang out with my friends is a good reason!

Cake Pops

Once upon a time, I took a soiree into domesticity.

I'd heard about cake pops and wanted to try making them.

We were having a girls night, so I decided to try making them.

This is what I did...

Some things I wish I knew before making Cake Pops:

1. When in doubt, freeze it out - The cake balls should be frozen before you attempt to coat them in chocolate. Because if they arent set enough, they fall apart. And after you stick the sticks in with chocolate, that should be frozen too. Otherwise as you're coating with chocolate the balls fall off the sticks.

2. Microwaving the chocolate works the best. Just microwave it till melted and then re-heat 15-20 seconds if the chocolate stiffens. I completely ruined an entire bag of chocolate chips by heating the chocolate on the stove. 

3. I didnt have lollipop sticks, but I took shish-kabob sticks and cut the pointy end off and cut them in half and they worked great

4. The back of a spoon works great for spreading the chocolate around the balls.

5. Size matters. Smaller cake balls were easier to coat in chocolate than bigger cake balls.

So they say to let the chocolate coated cake balls set stick side down in styrofoam, but I just set them cake/chocolate side down on the tray. They werent pretty by any means but they worked out just fine.

And they were a big hit at both the girl night and the book club I went to.

The hardest part was coating them in chocolate. And if I had thought to freeze them I'm sure I would of had less issues.

Cavity: A Story

A First

... Yup, you read that right.

After 24 years, I have my first cavity.

... In dental school.

Thats only slightly ironic. 

The Ups

I made my own mac and cheese.

I was kinda unaware that making mac and cheese without Kraft or Cheese Whiz was possible until just recently. I know that sounds ridiculous, but I'd never seen it done before. Of course I'd heard of it being possible. But I had no concrete proof things of that nature werent just a rumor. But I gave it a go tonite. And I'm not terribly upset at the result. I cooked my pasta, added some milk and then stirred in a bunch of cheese. And suddenly it was a cheesy sauce like concoction.

Talking to my cousin Jesse.
The thing I like most about Jesse is that when I say or ask something that sounds fundamentally stupid, he doesnt dwell on the stupidity of the question (for instance, I told him today that I really have no idea how to go about getting a job upon graduation, considering I will have never worked as a dentist). No, instead of making me feel even dumber, he talks me through it like its the most natural thing in the world. And he acts as though this next phase of uncertainty in my life, while challenging, will be completely exciting. His complete faith in my ability to figure my life out is contagious. He talks me through the process and makes the theory of it sound so simple. Add to that the fact that he relates everything to the gospel, and talking with him reminds me to take note of the blessings the gospel brings. He told me today that he got in a fight over the weekend. Some big, tough island guys started the fight, and he believes that, like the Nephites, he was able to overcome these guys, because he was strengthened by a righteous desire to defend. He didnt go out looking for the fight, but he also wasnt going to let them walk all over him. Its really refreshing to hear the gospel related to everyday life like that. And talking to Jesse is always a nice little reminder to continue working to become the best version of myself that I can. I just really love my friendship with Jess.

I ran 5 miles.
I'm trying to become a better runner. With that half mile (erm I mean marathon not mile), looming ever nearer, I want to be prepared. So I'm trying to get my body used to running longer distances. I know that if I run consistently my running improves. And it always feels great to tack on a distance that used to feel impossibly long. I hope that one day, running five miles will feel easy. But I suppose, three miles doesnt yet feel easy to me, even though I know I could get up from the couch and do it.  I think I will always struggle to feel accomplished in what I do. Its so easy to not feel good enough. But I'm really trying hard to change how I think. It may seem strange, but I have a knowledge that I dont completely suck, while at the same time I find it impossible to believe that I could be good at anything.

I got a Written Analysis and Occlusal Analysis signed.
I know it doesnt sound like much, but getting signatures is one of the most challenging thing about dental school. We have to have everything signed off. And the simple act of getting a signature, immediately leads me to feel very accomplished for that day. With the end of the semester, comes the stress of completing the required number of activities and points. And each signature is a micro-step toward it. It honestly feels great when things are approved and I get to check one more thing off my list.

Spring Softball Round 1 goes to the Ball Burnishers.
I have great friends. And I have so much fun with them. I was anxious about softball. And I had a rather trying day. But our game, well, it brought the joy bubbling back up to the surface. Its just a really fun game. And there is such a camaraderie among us. I got on base each time I was at bat, and I didnt do anything terribly embarrassing when we were on the field. I just like us.

(source)