How Hard Do You Crush?

"It's Just...A Little Crush..."

Sure, you might have your eye on that hunky quarterback on your school's football team, but that doesn't mean you're sprinting with pom-poms to join the pep squad. "You know what's important to you, like friends, family and after-school stuff, but you keep your crush as just that -- a crush," says singer Jennifer Paige, who knows all too well about those heart-pounding moments; her hit song, "Crush," was inspired by a former relationship. So although you and Mr. Hottie mutually complain about Mrs. Friedlhofer's cooking class, you wait until after he's left the room to high-five yourself for keeping your cool. "If you and your crush feel comfortable talking to each other, then a date might not be too far off in the future," predicts Paige.

Which Spring Trend Was Made for You?

Dots

Polka dots perfectly express your timeless (but fun!) style. Sure, they're a little retro, but they're also very hot and one of spring's best trends. Right now, you can find them on everything from basic belts to formal dresses. Besides traditional all-white or all-black dots on a solid fabric, look for patterns featuring dots of several different colors. This graphic design is cute, cheerful, and also classic! Another trend to try: Floral.

Affirmation

Guess what? I proved myself with great benefits. Hooray!! I actually have a weekend this week thanks to Easter. I'm off today for Good Friday and there's no TPR this weekend (although there'll be a review this Monday). A crazy thing happened today. I was walking out of my Italian Humanism class at 2 when I realized that my Victorian Lit paper was due today at 3. I was like, "Dammit, what am I gonna do?" Then I remembered that I had emailed my professor a draft during spring break so I ran to the library and opened up my email. I checked out the sent email folder and sure enough, my paper's Word document was there. Thank God!! I opened it and my professor's email response and proceeded to correct the paper (meaning adding a paragraph). I printed it, but the library printers were acting up and they had to call a tech to come figure it out so that I could get my paper printed. I was like, please hurry, I don't have much time. It finally printed and I ran out of the library back to Dallas Hall. I made it just in time and turned it in to the professor's box. WHEW!!! Thank God above I remembered and was able to turn it in in time. Otherwise I would have been screwed.

Rewind

So all day, I've been doing the whole "how could I have said that better?" thing. I was in a situation this morning where I was defending myself and in the end I "won," but I wish I had said a little more on my behalf, so that I could show my true self to the other party (who knows me in a very limited capacity). I think I may later on meet with this person privately so that she can know me better and my actions won't be such a surprise to her. This is why I prefer to interact with people in this capacity that I have interacted with before. They already know what I'm capable of so they don't judge as quickly.

My Celebrity Soulmate

I only say "woohoo" because I know that my real celebrity soulmate is Ben Affleck (Who else loves the "Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" as much as I do? He wrote a freaking TV series based on him!), and Matt Damon is the closest celebrity to him. Cool beans!

On another note, my MCAT score is improving with a new 24 composite. Yay, now I just have to go up 1 pt in VR, 2 in BS, and 3 in PS. Must study now...

Which Housewife Are You?

Susan

You always mean well, but somehow things don't always work out as you'd planned. It doesn't matter. You take your tumbles with good grace and always come up smiling. But try to remember you're the grown-up in your family.

Take the quiz here.

Spring Break (?)

So it's been Spring Break since Saturday and what have I done. Well, here was my checklist when I started the break:

1. Physics HW and reading
2. Physics reading and lab
3. Write med school essay and print photo for Health Professions Recommendation Committee
4. Study for Physics Test on 3/22
   
5. Write Victorian Lit essay (on the Mill on the Floss) due 3/24
   
6. Nutrition Assignment due 4/1
   
7. Study for Nutrition Exam starts 4/2
   
8. Write Children's Lit essay (on The Persian Cinderella) due 4/7
   
9. Write Psych Paper due 4/8

So I've done numbers 1-7!! Yay! Now I just have to write my children's lit essay and my psych paper. Good deal. My strategy was to finish all my assignments up to the MCAT so that I would be free to study. So the whole Persian Cinderella thing happened because I was sitting in my children's lit class and we were talking about minority representation in picture books (at my school when they talk about minority anything, they mean African-Americans). So we had a couple of African-American students in the class saying, Yeah we were never in picture books. But the thing was, we were reading 8 picture books in class that featured African-Americans, esp. children: Corduroy, Meet Addy, Uncle Jed's Barbershop, Ben's Trumpet, Snowy day, Amazing Grace, etc. So obviously, as a group they are represented in picture books. So I was talking about one aspect of one of the books and said in the middle of something, "There are no picture books about Iranian-American children, so I really never saw myself in picture books growing up." My professor said, "Oh, I think there are books about Iranian-Amer's and you should look them up on Amazon. I was planning on telling y'all later, but your next paper topic is to critique a picture book. I want YOU to write your paper on an Iranian-American picture book." I told her that they are all Arabian Nights tales, not about American children of Iranian heritage, but she told me to do my paper on it anyway and just address that in the essay.

Thus, I got the most popular picture book regarding Persian culture, The Persian Cinderella. Why? Because there are no picture books about Iranian-American children! Here's a link to all Persian/Iranian related picture books. I searched for hours and all the books have a common theme that they take place in medieval Persia after the retreat of the Arabs but before the Mongolian invasion (roughly 9th century) and there are princesses/genies/thieves AKA Arabian Nights stories. They aren't about the lives of Iranian children growing up in America and what that means like books about Hispanic or Asian-American or African-American children. There are lots of memoirs about this (Funny in Farsi for example), but not picture books or books intended for children. Researching and going through all this makes me think that I should write a children's book for Iranian-American kids. Why not? This will be a great work-in-progress for me.

How Well Do You Know Your Inner Social Climber?

Social Climber-at-Large

You're good. You know what you want and you grab it. And when things go wrong? Well, you know how to make it look good. Even when you're caught red-handed. And because you're more direct than diabolical, mostly people sympathize with you when you do let the social climber out. You're just doing what everyone wants to do. But to really be a tour de force, you might do a little more calculating. After all, social climbing is big business. Ask Paris Hilton.

Find your inner social climber here.

21

Hey you're 21 girl, that's all right. Tell me if a shake comes with those fries. If so, baby can I get em supersized!

Today's my 21st birthday everyone!! It's so fun to finally be a full-fledged adult. Now I can actually do stuff in Vegas instead of gorging myself, swimming, and lounging at the spa and I can rent cars. I finally got what I've been asking for for 2 years. I told one of the head nurses in the hospital that it was my birthday and he goes, "Lemme guess: 21?" I said yeah and he said, "You make me sick. You're so young." Then he paused and said, "When are you gonna stop working for these people?" It was so funny cuz I've been working there longer than he has, and he's already seen so many scribes come and go. I told him another year if I get into med school this cycle. He was like, "Good, get on with your life. Then come back here and boss me around as a doctor. And bring your own scribe."

There's this girl who works with us who' s known across the campus as a big drunk, and she was like, so are you gonna hit the bars? I said, "No, I don't drink." Then she looked at me like I had just slapped her across the face, then she looked at our office manager who had a look of approval on her face and said, "Uh, I guess that's good..." Then she said, "Well, how about just one drink?" I politely said, "Naw, I don't think so" and left. I told my friends about it at school and they were like, "Why didn't you just tell them it was against your religion?" I told them how I don't feel like I need to shove my faith down everyone's throat, especially in the workplace.

Then one of my buddies came in and, as usual, told us about how he got stoned again. I swear, every sentence out of his mouth starts with, "Man, I got so wasted last night. I don't even remember what happened." Today he had a deep bite mark on his arm and he didn't know where it came from. We were like, um that doesn't look like your mouth. He goes, Man I wonder whose it is. It was pretty funny. Then he was describing what he sees when he's tripping and he's all like, You're know what I'm talking about, right Maryam? Everybody goes, "How would she know? She's the most non-stoned person on the planet." He goes, "of course she knows. She's a premed. They know all about drugs. " He's full of crap most of the time, but he's still hi-larious.

Diag 3

Hey y'all! I got a 22 on my third Diag. I am feeling good cuz it was sooooooo hard. Everyone in the room was just freaking about it. The G Chem was all acid/base and pressure. I couldn't believe it! This can't be indicative of the real thing because the read MCAT mixes up topics, not concentrating all on the same question. Good thing I know my acid/base pretty well since I was a G Chem TA for a year after taking the course. And I got a 9 on the Verbal! I am moving on up. Our next 2 diags are gonna be AAMC, not TPR so they're going to be as close to the MCAT is we can get. Thank God, cuz I'm sick of asking the teachers about problems I've missed and them saying, "Oh it's just a crappy question. The real MCAT wouldn't have this on there." I'm feeling pretty pumped and motivated right now. Last night I officially became President of Metro Mustangs. All the old and new officers had dinner at Macaroni Grill (score!) and then we went to Starbucks. But I made it home in time to have a good night's sleep so I could take my diag. I can't believe I'm improving! Monday I'm turning 21 and my birthday wish is make at least a 30 on the MCAT. I think I can, I think I can, I think I can...

Sighting

I saw him yesterday. In front of Hughes-Trigg, he stood. Yes, it was my beloved French boy. I hadn't seen him in 3 months. I wanted to run up to him and see how he was doing, how his Christmas trip to France went, if he's really graduating this spring. But I couldn't...it was like I was on this moving walkway peddling quickly past him. Like I was on a moving train, banging on the windows, but he can't hear me from the depot. Why does it have to be like this?! I feel this emptiness without him. He was so dependable. Three times a week like clockwork he was there and a part of my life. He was my chance to change things, to start a new chapter in my life. But I didn't go through with it because I couldn't deviate from the path. I have to make sure the medicine part of my life is cinched before I can even think about my personal love life. I didn't start with him because I know I'm too passionate and love consumes me. Once I start the snowball, it grows and grows and I can't control it. He's a very passionate person too, so I knew the two of us would be awesome, but too consumed with each other to notice the rest of the world. And I have to be consumed with medicine right now. I can't deviate to be with him. I just have to hope and pray that once I know that my future is secure career wise (meaning after I hit submit on my application this summer), my chance won't be lost and I can finally indulge a part of my life that I've had to suppress for so long. He made me break the chains, but one can lead a horse to water, 20 cannot make her drink. He got me where I needed to be emotionally, but I couldn't go through with it until the circumstances allowed me to. I just hope I won't be too late...

Diag 2

Today's was my second diagnostic MCAT exam at Princeton Review. I scored 8 BS, 4 PS, 5 VR, meaning my composite is still 17, I went up 2 points in BS, down 2 points in VR, and stayed the same on PS. This bites. I'm glad I improved on BS, but how did I go down 2 points on VR! I'm a frickin English major! Well, I'll just have to keep studying and try harder next time. Our next practice is in 2 weeks. I think I can, I think I can, I think I can...

Super Bowl Sunday

OK, so February's here and it seems like a good time to update y'all on my life. Work is a tad stressful considering that there are a lot of scribes working one day a week and I'm stuck working 2-3. You know, we were supposed to be hiring the new scribes so that the scribes taking the MCAT would have a break, but that has worked out so well since they hired only PM scribes! My first test this semester is tomorrow in Abnormal Child Psych. It's a really fun class, and I'm not too worried about the test. I'll be studying my notes during rounds tomorrow. I keep getting these messages from guys on Facebook that say for me to add them as a friend, and when I do they send me messages saying they wanted me as a friend cuz my picture is hot. It's a little creepy. I wonder if there's a way you can delete friends on there. My other classes are going okay. I just hope I do as well in Physics as I did last semester. Studying for MCAT is really hard when you're taking 19 hours. I picked classes that aren't too stressful. Most of my stress comes from the fact that I haven't written my personal statement yet. I know it's not due till March 31, but that's really not that far away. 19 hrs + 15 hrs work + 9 hrs MCAT class + med school apps = Maryam freaking out, hopped up on caffeine, and sleep deprived, you know the usual.

You Are 24 Years Old

24 Under 12: You are a kid at heart. You still have an optimistic life view - and you look at the world with awe. 13-19: You are a teenager at heart. You question authority and are still trying to find your place in this world. 20-29: You are a twentysomething at heart. You feel excited about what's to come... love, work, and new experiences. 30-39: You are a thirtysomething at heart. You've had a taste of success and true love, but you want more! 40+: You are a mature adult. You've been through most of the ups and downs of life already. Now you get to sit back and relax.

What Age Do You Act?

The weird thing about this is this girl in my physics told me last week that she thought I was 24. Spooky...

Is It Over Yet?

OK, so I've been in school for 2 weeks, and I already want it to be over. It just seems like my classes aren't grabbing me as much as I thought they would. Children's Lit turns out to be my least favorite class, followed by Later Victorian Lit. Not a good sign for an English major, but it's not my fault none of the good professors are teaching the classes I need this term. Abnormal Child Psyc is cool because I know the prof, and I absolutely adore my Early Italian Humanism professor. She is soo cool and very European. We actually have real Italians in our class...like, from Italy...with accents! But alas, no hot Italian guys, sigh. It's weird, but none of my friends are in my SMU classes. I have friends in my MCAT class and at UTD, but in my SMU classes, it's like I'm a freshman starting from scratch.

UTD physics is the same, but now I have lab Thurs at 7-10 pm after my lecture from 5:30-6:45. Usually, I finish lab after 1/2-1 hr, but the TA this term is a lot harder than the one last term. I don't get why we don't just to keep the same TA. She spent an hour going over how to draw a graph. I mean come one! We're all juniors and premeds who have taken mounds of science classes; we don't need y = mx + b explained to us again after we learned it in 8th grade. Plus, this is the second semester of the course, so we don't need tips on how to survive physics. We have survived, hence the second term. So I got out of class at 8:30, meaning I did finish the actual lab in 1/2 an hr so I would have been out at 7:30 if she had not chatted so much. My online class General Nutrition is gonna be a lot easier than A&P was since there's no lab. We just have 3 assignments we complete at home and 3 tests we take on campus. The third test is the week after I finish my SMU finals, so I only have to worry about 2 tests during the year. Speaking of finals, Italian and Psyc don't have them, so I'll just have my Physics final at the end of April, then 2 finals in early May, and end the term with my last Nutrition test. Ain't life grand?

I need to keep myself motivated. It's been a lot harder to keep on top of my reading assignments so far. But I'll do it. I just need to remember to clear my mind and focus on one thing at a time. Before I know all my assignments will be done and so will my MCAT passages.

Spring 05 Schedule

Here's my Spring 2005 Schedule:

Sunday: 2:30-8:30 MCAT class
Monday: 6:45 am - 12 pm Work; 1-2 pm Later Victorian Lit; 2-3 pm Abnormal Child Psych
Tuesday: 9:30-11 am Children's Lit; 12:30-2 pm Italian Humanism; 5:30-6:45 pm College Physics 2
Wednesday: 6:45 am - 12 pm Work; 1-2 pm Later Victorian Lit; 2-3 pm Abnormal Child Psych
Thursday: 9:30-11 am Children's Lit; 12:30-2 pm Italian Humanism; 5:30-6:45 pm College Physics 2; 7-10 College Physics 2 Lab
Friday: 1-2 pm Later Victorian Lit; 2-3 pm Abnormal Child Psych
Saturday: 2:30-5 MCAT class OR 9-4:30 MCAT practice test
Plus I'm taking General Nutrition online (3 tests and 3 assignments total)

So as you can see it's a pretty busy schedule, but I think I can make it work. I'm taking one less hour because Nutrition doesn't have a lab like A&P did. It's the most important semester of my college career because it's my last one before med school apps this summer plus I've got the MCAT. I need complete concentration and as little distraction as possible. Of course, I happily relish the idea that I have a high chance of becoming Metro Mustangs president and I hope I win. It's the organization I care most about at school and I would love to run it. I can balance.

Happy New Year and Goodbye Noghte Cheen

Wow, I'm getting really lazy with this blog. I check it everyday for updates, as if I wasn't the one writing the entries, haha. It's a new year and my resolution is to make a 30 on the MCAT. Of course, I haven't studied all break, with the exception of MCAT class. It's pure sloth plus all the stuff that's been going on. I went to a Persian-Pakistani wedding on New Year's Day. It was the first wedding of one of my really good friends that I grew up with (the Persian bride). It was really cool, but her sister, who I'm more tight with, is having her wedding in Iran this summer. She's begging me to get tickets, but I don't know if I'll be able to.

My favorite Iranian sitcom, Noghte Cheen (or as everyone calls it, Bamshad) just aired its final episode on Jame Jam satellite last Tuesday night. They had 2 crappy "Crossfire" type specials and then one good "behind the scenes" special. The last episode actually aired in Iran in July, but they started airing the show on the satellite for Iranians abroad afterwards. They replaced it starting New Years Day with Kamarbandha ra beband, which roughly translates as "fasten your belts". The show sucks, and we stopped watching it. I miss Bamshad so much! I only got to tape the last 2 episodes, the 2 crappy specials, and the behind the scenes specials. I miss Bamshad butchering English words: "Amrikayeha megan 'neber'", "Dar Italia, espegetti-getti mekhoran" and of course I miss him singing "Bevafaee, bevafaee, delleh man az ghoseh daghoon shodeh" and "vafa daree, vafa daree, vafa daram, vafa daree, hamammoon vafa dareem" and when he translated "bevafee" to English: "Unfaithfulee, unfaithfulee, my heart is daaaaaamaaaged." And don't forget Mehran Modiri as Ardal. He was so great. I love when he corrected Bamshad, "Nah, begoo chee goftee...chap room! chat roomeh, IQ! Chera rajeb cheezhaee keh nemidooni harf meezani!" and when he would sweet talk so that he could get what he wanted "beya azizam, ghorboonet beram, to kojaee? dalam vasat tang shodeh, cheghat doosetdaram". He could just make you feel all tingly, especially when he said, "manam hassaas!" The wives were great too. I love it when Mozhdeh would say, "Maneeeeezh, hamcheeni namooneh" or "Maneeezh, yeh cheezi meegee ha" or "Bebeen Bamshad, man asob masob....nadaram." It was so funny when Manizh would say, "Vay, cheh Romantique o Parvanehee" and talk about her dental unit. Oh God, please let Noghte Cheen be released on DVD! I'm going through withdrawal symptoms without any prospect of syndication like American TV. It was one of the greatest Iranian sitcoms, like Italia Italia and Daee Jan Napoleon. Why did it have to go away, why?????????????? If you want to check out clips of Noghte Cheen, go here and there's a Noghte Cheen photo gallery here. Bamshad is the fat guy and everyone's favorite. Noghte Cheen truly was genius and brought the whole family together. I hope Modiri goes back to the set and creates another great sitcom.

Santa Cleaned My Toilet

I hope y'all had a nice Christmas. I woke up Christmas morning, headed to bathroom, and what did I find? Blue water. Being as I was still groggy from sleep, I started out thinking, "Wow, the famous blue pee of Santa Claus..." Then I was like, "Wait a minute...Santa Claus doesn't pee blue!" So I thought, how could this Christmas miracle have occurred when I was the last to go to bed at 2 the night before. Then the real explanation struck me: Santa Claus cleaned my toilet. Yup, and may I add that over 24 hours later the water is still blue in only that toilet and no one knows why.

As far as presents, I received 2 sweaters, 2 shirts, 1 pair of pants, 1 pair of earmuffs (#1 on Xmas list), 1 Juicy Couture Horseshoe charm, 1 pair of boots, a bag of LifeSavers, and car window cleaner. I gave to my sisters 2 Coach purses, 2 sweaters, 1 pink velour sweatsuit, 1 shirt, and 1 pair of pants. Yup, Christmas is a fun time of year. Then we watched a marathon of OC episodes I had on tape, including Chrismakkuh! Then we went to go see The Aviator, which was really good and I highly recommend it. It's amazing how much Howard Hughes accomplished in his lifetime and if he didn't have OCD he couldn't have been that great. The OCD gave him the motivation to be a perfectionist, even though there was obvious emotional cost. Leo better get an Oscar this time, and Cate Blanchett too. They were both great, but Leo was just astounding. He so deserved a nom for Catch Me If You Can. What we failed to realize was that the movie was 3 hrs long (I don't think the film was, but there were a lot commercials/previews b4 it started so I think that took up a lot of time). When we got out of the theater we were hungry so we drove around looking of a restaurant open after 10 on Christmas and we found one: Bennigan's! That's right, Bennigan's was open till midnight on Christmas Eve and till 1 on Christmas! It was pretty busy too and the food was great. It was a nice atmosphere to end our nice Christmas day.

Arctic Blast

Yesterday was the first day of winter (since Tuesday night was Shab-e Yalda, Persian homies!), and there was no doubt about it. Here in Dallas we had the first snow fall of the season, and it was real snow, not ice! Of course my biggest fear was about going to work this morning. So I spent yesterday driving around town to get used to driving on icy roads. All night the news had cheesy "Arctic Blast" graphics and kept a play by play of all 500 accidents. I barely slept cuz I was so freaked out. So I got up this morning and kept my eyes glued to the news. It seemed our fair city was doing its job and sanding all the ice on the streets. But, to be cautious, I accepted by dad's offer to drive me to work. So off we endeavored in our Winter Wonderland. It was beautiful, but there was a lot of ice on Preston, esp. around LBJ. I made it to work safe and sound, where I totally rocked and doctor said that I could get into med school I wanted to because I'm super duper qualified. We had really cool cases too in neurosurgery and GI/gyno. My job's awesome; I learn so much.

After work, my mom and sisters picked me up and we went to Northpark Mall for Christmas shopping. While we were there, my mom suddenly says, "Hey isn't that guy famous?" I look over and I see it's...Barry Watson! It was so cool!! My mom was like, "grab your phone and take a picture; let's go talk to him!" I was like, "Mom, that's so not cool. Let the poor guy shop in peace." She was like, "No, he's sad that no one is running up to him." Well, I finally convinced her not to bother Barry. See, my family and I have had this indirect relationship with him for a while (meaning 6 degrees of separation). My really good friends (they're 3 sisters and one of them is getting married Jan 1 and the other just had her engagement party last month to the brother of one of my guy friends at SMU and is getting married in the summer) all went to the same middle school as him (Park Hill Junior High). Yes, Barry Watson moved to Richardson from Michigan when he was 8, the same age I was when I moved out of Richardson to Plano, (otherwise I would have gone to the same middle school as him and then gone to high school with Jessica Simpson). My sister and I's high school geometry teacher Ms. Blakely dated Barry Watson's dad for years and was always going off to his lake house. And last night, my mom and I were watching the 7th Heaven episode where Matt (Barry) tells his parents he wants to drop out of med school to save his marriage. Can you believe it? I'm getting chills. Celebrity sightings are few and far between in Dallas, but the only ones I've had (other than concerts) are:

1. Michael Irving when he visited my elementary school in 5th grade for Texas day (That same year I went to a party where Nina Shahravan was, the woman who later that year would get Irving sent to court)
2. Deoin Sanders when I trick-or-treated at his house in my neighborhood
3. Troy Aikman driving and jogging in our neighborhood. When his house burned down he bought another two streets over.
4. Katherine Helmond (Mona from Who's the Boss?) at III Forks. Boy, did she draw a crowd.
5. Kay Bailey Hutchinson on the airplane on my way to Juarez to get my green card in 4th grade. I was a huge fan of hers at the time.
6. OK, so this wasn't me, but my mom saw Fabio at DFW airport on her way to England. This was when he was cool, ie before the bird bit his nose.
   

Finals: Day 3

I'm so happy!!!!!!!!!!!! I took 2 finals today, British Authors 1 and Victorian Gender. Extremely writing intensive and equally rewarding. My A was guaranteed in BA1, but VG could go either way. I had it calculated that if I got an A on either the last paper or the final exam I would have an A in the course. After I took the VG exam, I got my paper and I got an....A!! She wrote all sorts of great stuff on it about how she read my paper with such excitement and how it's exemplary. I couldn't believe it. Do you know what this means? This means I have done the impossible. I've taken 20 hrs of course work in one term from 3 different colleges in 3 different cities and made a 4.0 in all the classes. How do you turn down someone with that on their transcript? This is one of the happiest days of my college life. All together now: WOOHOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!