Some Pictures

Here are a few pictures from my adventures this last week:

This is a picture of the lovely Noah's Ark wallpaper that is on the walls of my bedroom.



The Harvard Medical School campus. Beautiful white marble and stone everywhere. They were setting up for graduation, which would take place in the white tent in the middle.




The walking bridge between Brigham and Women's Hospital on the left and Children's Hospital on the right. These two hospitals are in the Longwood Medical Area near Harvard Medical School.


A beautiful walkway in the Charlestown Navy Yard, where my school is. I love this place!


The Admiral's Quarters at the Navy Yard. Currently for lease!


View of one half of the cool bridge, TD Banknorth Garden (where the Celtics play), and some of downtown. My school is close to here. You can also cross over to the other side of the Charles River (downtown) using the moving sidewalks you see in the foreground.


Some really funny signs on newspaper stands.



More adventures and pictures to come!

The Beginnings of a New Beginning

So I made it to Boston! I had quite the trip, taking a redeye and having to travel across the country with three large, heavy bags and a back pack stuffed as much as possible. A young student that goes to Tufts was nice enough to help me carry my bags on and off buses, so one of my first interactions with a Boston native proved wrong the warning from many that most people will not help you out here . I was very thankful for his help and was also quite embarrassed by the extremely difficult task he got himself into when he volunteered to assist me in the beginning!

My apartment is the upper two floors of a very nice house in Somerville, which is the city that borders Cambridge (where Harvard is) and Charlestown (where my school is). There is a Target about 5-10 minutes on foot from our house, which is absolutely WONDERFUL! I went there yesterday afternoon after catching up a little bit on sleep, and it felt good to be in a place I semi-recognized. It is about a 3-5 minute walk from the bus stops for 4 buses, which go to all different areas of Boston. Unfortunately, it is pretty far from a T-stop (the T is what Bostonians call the subway, people look at you funny if you say the subway...), so you have to take a bus into one of the main squares near us. The closest T stops are Sullivan Square, Union Square, Kenmore/MIT, and Lechmere. I have been warned and have already become a believer that the green line of the T is the worst line ever, even though it is the closest to us. It goes down to Harvard Medical School and would probably be the shortest distance commute for me in the mornings, but it has a TON of stops and drives really slowly. I am still researching to find out which route will be the best to take.

Our house has 2 rooms downstairs, a very large and nice kitchen, one bathroom, and a good size living room. We are planning to convert one of the downstairs rooms into an office space. Upstairs, there are two rooms which will be mine and my roommate Nicole's rooms. I am a little bit wary of having only one bathroom with three girls, but it hasn't yet been a problem with only two of us in the house. And the bathroom is really nice. Everything is in really good shape in the bathroom and kitchen (they have very obviously been remodeled), even though the rest of the rooms all definitely show their age. My room has lovely Noah's Ark wallpaper on it, which makes me feel like a kid every time that I see it! So I'll probably leave it... NOT! As soon as I can, I plan to talk to the landlord and ask if I can remove it. I am not sure if my queen bed will fit into my room, as my room is just about as big as a queen bed, so I will probably sell it. Anyone looking to buy a really nice bed? I just love the style of the house, lots of wood paneling, wooden floors throughout, it is absolutely beautiful.

Right now I kind of feel like a little fish in a huge ocean, but I am becoming more and more familiar with my surroundings and understanding a little bit more of what is required in order to travel and live efficiently and cheaply. People have been giving me tips and teaching me a lot, especially my roommate Nicole. My other roommate, Janna, just got back from a trip home to Utah today, so I am excited to get to know her better! Last night, I went to my new singles ward's FHE activity and got to meet a couple of really nice people! One of the guys in the ward is from Rancho Penasquitos in San Diego! He is a few years older than me, but it is fun to talk about familiar places to the both of us, both in San Diego and in Provo (he did his undergraduate study there). I met another great girl who is doing a graduate program in Biology at Harvard! Right now she is doing an experiment that analyzes the mechanics of bird flight! The experiment is hoping to shed more light on how man-made flight machines can be more efficient, as let's face it birds are a lot better at flight than us humans! It is so interesting to talk to her about it! There really are so many different applications in the field of biology!

I really love the fact that the church is a comfortable place for me to go to, where I can find people similar to me in religious beliefs, academic discipline, and moral standards. Last night, I got invited to go and play some soccer with a group of people from all three singles wards tonight! I will be playing on the Hahhhvaahhhd Yard fields with a bunch of crazy smart Harvard nerds! :D Whoda thunk I'd ever be doing that?

This morning, I went to a really cool exhibit at the Mary Baker Eddy Library, a Christian Science Library dedicated to the life of Mary Baker Eddy, one of the developers of homeopathy and one of their most revered disciples. The exhibit is an ENORMOUS map of the world! You walk into a room that is surrounded by a three story map made of different colored stained glass! The map was made back in 1935 and so it is the world as it was back then, with all of the borders and state lines as they existed in 1935. It is also to scale, with one inch equal to 22 miles! Here are some pictures I stole from their website, since we weren't allowed to take pictures while inside:




Well, I miss being at home a whole lot but I am having such a blast and I am excited to keep exploring the city for a few more days before my schooling starts!

What is this world coming to?!

California same sex marriages possible in June

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/05/28/same.sex.marriage/index.html#cnnSTCText

The Art of Photography

I spent ALL day on Saturday helping breakdown an amazing photography exhibit that is produced by a couple of very good family friends. It was held at the Lyceum Theater in downtown San Diego, in the historic Gaslamp District and part of the Horton Plaza mall. We spend hours repackaging very very expensive artwork from artists all around the world (46 different countries) and moving the packed boxes into a huge truck. They will all eventually be shipped out to owners and buyers. This collection included pieces from a Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer and other world-renown artists.

This last Thursday, my mom and I were able to go down to the show and tour the exhibit with a few of the photographers and distinguished guests. An overview of the exhibit can be seen at the show's website. Check it out!

Main Website:
http://www.artofphotographyshow.com/index.html

Pieces in the show:
http://www.artofphotographyshow.com/2008photos.html

More pictures of the theater, reception, and show:
http://www.artofphotographyshow.com/Reception_Images_2008/

Massachusetts General Hospital

The school that I am going to is ranked in the top 5 for physical therapy programs in the United States! It is the educational branch of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, MA. Here is some more astounding information I found online about the hospital, in particular. It is simply incredible. Immediately below is a picture of the hospital's campus.


MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL

Founded in 1811, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) is recognized as a world leader in academic medicine and has made pivotal contributions to the advancement of medicine throughout history.

In 1846, MGH was the first to use ether as an anesthetic, demonstrating to the world the performance of surgery without pain. In 1896, MGH produced the first X-ray image just 30 days after the technique was discovered in Europe. Then in 1925, MGH founded the nation's first tumor clinic, advancing a "specialist" approach to the study of disease.

Ranked 3rd for overall excellence by U.S. News & World Report in its "Honor Roll of America's Best Hospitals" for demonstrating high levels of competence in 12 major medical specialties. The MGH ranks among the "Top 5 Hospitals in America" for excellence in treating Digestive, Ear Nose and Throat, Cardiac, Geriatric, Gynecological, Kidney and Orthopedic Diseases, as well as Respiratory, Neurological and Hormonal Disorders. MGH was ranked among the "Top 10 Best Hospitals in America" for excellence in Rheumatological and Urological Diseases. (See U.S. News & World Report, July 18, 2005)

MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS

• 1945: Developed the Pap smear, a definitive tool in the diagnosis of cervical cancer
• 1960: Used proton beam radiation to treat eye, neck, and brain tumors
• 1962: Performed the world's first reattachment of a severed, human limb
• 1964: Pioneered technology to support the long-term storage of blood
• 1969: Developed the intra-aortic balloon catheter, the world's first temporary, aortic-assist device
• 1970s: Developed Positron Emission Tomography scanning (PET) and Magnetic
• Resonance Imaging (MRI), providing for the noninvasive imaging of internal organs
• 1981: Developed artificial skin made from living cells, with MIT and Shriners Burn Institute
• 1993: Discovered genes responsible for Huntington's disease
• 1995: Performed first cartilage transplant operation in the United States
• 1998: Applied molecular genetic analysis to classify and treat brain tumors
• 1999: Demonstrated efficacy of a new, less toxic regimen for bone marrow transplantation
• 1999: First to induce spinal cord growth across injured site without use of implanted cells

The Short Relationships of Life

I was thinking today about how relatively short most of our relationships with people are. We meet them, talk with them in our limited language, we share embraces, we learn and teach with them, we develop a love for them, and then the subtle decisions in our lives drive us apart from most as time goes by. The only institution designed for this not to change exponentially with each decision is the family.

A few years is really not a long time, but I wish it were an eternity. I have so many friends that I will miss so much from my last few years at BYU! I met some friends that live close to my home in San Diego recently, but I am constantly reminded that these relationships will change and likely fall into lesser strength when I move to Boston. Even the small interactions that you have with people throughout life, such as the smile or exchange of a hello you give to someone when you are running or shopping at the grocery store, are usually over within minutes! Each person then moves on in their own directions. The Lord has blessed me with the ability to make friends, but I am one of the worst at keeping them because I am always so busy!

Hopefully blogging will help a little with keeping friendships, however fragile they become. But I am sure it will be other more important forms of communication that will be most instrumental. I saw the latest Chronicles of Narnia movie last night, and as cheesy as I hate it when people use movie quotes to speak about significant life experiences, I am going to do that very thing now! In the movie, there is a little cliche given a couple of times, "things never happen the same way twice."

My mom and I watched the UEFA Champions League Final between Manchester United and Chelsea, two English Premiere League teams that managed to make it to the culminating game! This is the first year that it has ever been an all-English final! The game was so exciting! After a tie, the game went to penalty kicks, and then Chelsea had a chance to win it all on a PK, with the most consistent player in place to take the kick, John Terry, but he slipped on the wet grass and missed his!! It was so crazy! Manchester United came back and their goalie made an amazing stop to win them the championship! What a quick change of momentum! All of the haters out there who dislike soccer/football because they think it is not exciting enough, needs to watch Sportscenter tonight!! You will not be disappointed in the excitement department.

Mother's Day

Sunday was fantastic. My mom and I had a pleasant morning and I enjoyed going to church in the afternoon. After church, I spend a great evening with both my parents and I realized how much I am going to miss them. Boston is pretty dang far away from San Diego! I love my family so very much!

Lately, I have been organizing my life; this has included throwing many things away, replacing old and non-functioning items, buying new essential items, and attempting to record memories more efficiently. It has been really therapeutic to spend time analyzing where I am at in my life, setting goals, purging poor habits and beginning new ones. In my efforts to organize my photos and to write in my journal and blog more regularly, I have gone back and reminisced about many of my favorite past-times and monumental events in my life. Life goes by way too fast.

Today I worked on the roses all day. I worked in my swimsuit to try and obtain a suitable tan. People will not believe I spent my summer in San Diego without any tan to show for it! I think I am going to be burned tomorrow, but it is a great feeling! I love the warm weather here!

I will plan to finish up the roses tomorrow, and then I will start on cleaning the carpets! That will take a long time, but my mom is paying me for it, so I am excited!