My First Apartment

I just signed the lease on my very first apartment! I feel like such an adult now. It's gonna be so cool having my own place for the first time. It's near my school too, so bye-bye excessively long commute! It's so thrilling. I'm already planning what my days are gonna be like: going to school and coming back to my apartment to study. It's gonna be a challenging academic year, but I think the excitement of living in a new city is gonna make up for it.

Chad Vader - Day Shift Manager (episode 1)

This video is so funny! Check it out.

World Cup Final

As requested, here are my thoughts on the World Cup Final 2006:

• ABC did not play Shakira's performance before the game. Instead they were too busy playing their commercials. Do they not realize that the WC final is a celebration? Luckily, I flipped to the Spanish channel just in time to catch it and tape it. I still have the song in my head...and you know my hips don't lie.
  
• The game was action-packed from the beginning, with a PK in the 6th minute. A sign of things to come...
• The Italian goal was awesome, and made me think that they were a better team...at first.
• The game was going fine until Italy made a second penalty in France's box, but the ref didn't call it! The announcers said that it was even more of a penalty than the first one, but it was still not called. Interesting, considering that Italy has clubs on trial for putting refs in their pocket. If the penalty was called, Zidane would have scored another PK goal and France would have won the final 2-1.
• In double overtime, Zidane's shirt is pulled by Materazzi, the 2 exchange words, and Zidane turns around to head-butt Materazzi in the chest! This wasn't seen by the ref, and while one of his 3 linemen did see it, he did not say so until after it was broadcast on the big screen. It is against FIFA rules to give a red card based on a broadcast. Whether or not any of the linemen actually saw the head-butt (he he), Zidane was given the red card and ended his 18 yr long career. Why did he do it? What could he have gained? Was it worth it? Should he have been given the red card, assuming the linemen did not actually see it? If he had not been given the red card, Zidane would have stayed for the PK shoot out. He would have made the goal that Trezeguet missed, and France would have won the final.
  
• If France had been granted the PK I talked about in the 2 bullets ago, Zidane would have been remembered forever as the hero who scored 2 goals in the WC final to give France its 2nd victory. But instead, his legacy is tarnished, and he did not even leave the locker room to get his silver medal. I believe France should have won the WC, but a series of bizarre events in the final game prevented that.

Cristiano Ronaldo

I just want to take a moment to honor the greatness that is Cristiano Ronaldo. I know he helped Portugal beat Iran in the World Cup, but ever since then I've grown to love the spirit of Portugal's team...and Ronaldo. So please, indulge in the beauty that is Cristiano Ronaldo.



Oh, and he can play soccer, too:



Good luck against Germany, Portugal. You can do it!

Kabob vs. Oranges

VS









If you're confused by the title, Portugal is also the Persian word for oranges. Iran lost to Portugal today 2-0. The score was 0-0 at halftime, and once again the Iranians slacked off in the second half. There were two times the Iranians could have made a goal but fumbled (yes, I know that belongs to another kind of football): 1) An Iranian kicked the ball to make a goal but it hit the side of the net and didn't go in, and 2) An Iranian had a clean shot to kick a goal, but dribbled an extra couple of steps and kicked at a weird angle, missing it. What really got me was when this one Iranian stuck his foot in front of Figo in the penalty box, causing a penalty kick. Poor Mirzapour didn't have a chance against Ronaldo. The penalty kick is basically a free goal to the other team, esp. when Ronaldo faked right and kicked left, throwing off Mirzapour. But the greatest moment in the whole game was when Figo got kicked in the face by an Iranian player! It left the mark on the left. It was hilarious! The guy didn't even get a yellow card! So, Iran is eliminated from the World Cup, but still have one more game against Angola to give poor little Angola a chance for second. How sad!


Here are some quotes from today's game:

Ferydoon ZANDI (IRN) We weren't smart enough at the decisive moments. Some of our most important and influential players were never 100 per cent fit. And to be frank, the opening defeat put a damper on the dressing room, so there was no wave of euphoria for us to ride. (OK, I'm almost 90% certain the guy never said this sentence.) We weren't affected by the stories about the coach (Branko Ivankovic) over recent days, because that's what you get in Iran after every defeat. Obviously it's a matter of honour and pride for us now. We'll give it our best shot in our last game and bid the tournament a worthy farewell. We'd like to finish third in the group, but we're well aware Angola will provide tough opposition.

Mehdi MAHDAVIKIA (IRN) We're devastated at being knocked out, because we'd set our sights on making the last 16. We played well in the first half against Mexico, and we did the same again today. We have a good crop of youngsters and there's a very good team for the future coming together here.

Vahid HASHEMIAN (IRN) We looked very good indeed for the first ten minutes, but it was never going to be enough to win. Portugal were definitely the better team and they were physically strong too. It's over for us and we have to live with the defeat. We only matched them for 45 minutes. We kept it tight in the first half, but we looked very tired after half-time. Some of our best players are injured and couldn't make their normal contribution. Obviously we missed them. We have plenty of talented players in Iran, some of whom could play in Europe. Our coaches are always criticised at home when we lose.

What High School Clique Do You Belong To?

You scored as Geek/Nerd. Haha! ok. go computer geeks! Geek/Nerd 53% Emo Kid 47% Hot 40% Loner 40% Prep 33% "Ghetto" 13% Punk 13% Jock 7% Stoner 7% Goth 0% What Highschool Clique Do You Belong To? created with QuizFarm.com

Kabob vs. Tacos

vs.
Mexico beat Iran in their first World Cup game today 3-1. It was a great game in the first half, but then Iran kept making mistakes in the second and let two goals slip by a minute apart. Iran's gotta beat Portugal and Angola to go on to the big 16. Here are some quotes from the players after today's game:

Ali DAEI (IRN) Mexico were not a superior team. We were equal to them. The most disappointing thing was that we made two mistakes that led to goals. On the other hand, Mexico made two good substitutions in the second half which made them stronger going forward. The game against Portugal is vital. We have to play better than today and we need to win.

Vahid HASHEMIAN (IRN) We played two different games today. The first half was very good but we played too defensively in the second, mainly due to the fact that Ali Karimi went off injured. But if Angola win or draw against Portugal, it will be still wide open. Anything is possible in football.

Ferydoon ZANDI (IRN) It was a superb atmosphere in Nuremberg. You have to enjoy playing in front of a crowd like that. To make three mistakes for one goal is extremely annoying. We have to play better as a whole and play further up the field. Our biggest error was that we sat too deep in defence.

The Bachelorette

I graduated today! I am now the proud owner of a Bachelor of Arts with Deparmental Distinction in English and Honors in the Liberal Arts from SMU. This is so awesome! It has been such a long journey these past four years, full of ups and downs, but I am proud to say that I made it through, and I did with the support of my family and friends. Congratulations, Class of 2006!!

DC Rocks!

'Nuff said. Oh, and they have a great chelokababi.

BU/Columbia

I got into Boston University and Columbia! While its very exciting to be accepted, I really think I'm going to go with Georgetown unless I get into Tulane - at which point I will be stuck with a tough decision. I wish I knew someone going to these schools so I could ask them about it or room with them, but alas everyone I know is TX-bound. I got the official Georgetown acceptance in the mail today and my deposit is due this month! I can't believe I'm gonna go to such a top school. It's so exciting!

What Your Face Says

What Your Face Says

At first glance, people see you as down to earth and reliable. Overall, your true self is passionate and physical. With friends, you seem logical, detached, and a bit manipulative. In love, you seem mysterious and interesting. In stressful situations, you seem cheerful and optimistic.

What Do People Think Of Your Face?

Georgetown

I got into Georgetown today!! This is like an Ivy League school! These acceptances just keep on rolling in, and it is a welcome relief. Everyone says that Georgetown's program is the best, but I don't want to just fall for the name. I have to make an informed decision. But still, it's Georgetown, and how cool is that! The even cooler thing is that I was complete yesterday and got accepted today...a 24 hr turnaround!

Christiane Amanpour

I met Christiane Amanpour today! She's at my university for a lecture and held a student forum before the lecture. I got in line to ask her question, but I was too late. Then I met her right after, and I spoke Farsi with her and I got her autograph and we talked and it was soooo coool!!!! I can't believe I met the most powerful and succesful Persian woman in the world! This is so empowering. She has been such a role model for me over the years. She's amazing, and I met her. I can't get over it.

EVMS

I got into the MS in Biomedical Sciences Medical Masters program at Eastern Virginia Medical School! OK, now I am in a position to the choose (yay, power!), but I'm also worrying that I'll pick the wrong one. This program lets me take med school classes, and I won't have to retake the ones I make an A in when I go to med school. The school is in Norfolk, VA, near Colonial Williamsburg and Jamestown. Thanksgiving must be big there.

Chicago Hope

I got into the Biology MA in Medical Sciences program at Loyola University Chicago! I'm gonna be a master! Here's a pic of the Lake Shore Campus where the classes are held.

Musings

I can't believe I've seen so many bands and gone to these fun concerts lately! Music encounters over the past few weeks have included:

FALL OUT BOY - Signing at Wal-Mart Grand Opening

THE CRIBS - 3/31 at Nokia Live!


FRANZ FERDINAND - 3/31 at Nokia Live!


DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE - 3/31 at Nokia Live!


PUSSYCAT DOLLS - 4/7 at Smirnoff Music Centre


BLACK EYED PEAS - 4/7 at Smirnoff Music Centre

Fall Out Boy

I met Fall Out Boy on Friday! They made an in-store appearance at the new Wal-Mart Supercenter and I was in line for an hour to meet them. I bought their limited edition CD, and they signed the front. I got a great pic of one of them, but then their bodyguard yelled at me and said "put the camera away." The thing was, I had used my cell phone so I acted all innocent like "what are u talking about? This is just my phone" haha. They were nice guys and of course their music rocks. I also got a poster and some other stuff while I was there. When I got to my car, I saw that there was something on my windshield. It was a scratch-off contest piece, and I saw that I won something. I called the number and I won a trip for 2 to one of 80 destinations! What a great day!

Take the quiz:
What clothing store are you?

Pac Sun
You like the cute stuff...you like the beach look and a style thats all you own!

Quizzes by myYearbook.com -- the World's Biggest Yearbook!

I don't really like the result for this one cuz I don't like being called stupid, but I took it twice:

Take the quiz:
What teen celebrity are you?

Lindsay Lohan
you are a stupid red head

Quizzes by myYearbook.com -- the World's Biggest Yearbook!

Take the quiz:
wHiCh OLSEN TWIN r u??? (((pix)))

M a R y - K a T e
wOo-hOo! ur a wild and crazy cutie who know's how to par-tay! u like guys, but not tOo much! ur really smart and really slim (hope that last one doesn't become a problem!) lol

Quizzes by myYearbook.com -- the World's Biggest Yearbook!
Again, boring results:

Take the quiz:
***~*~*~****What magazine are you? Time, Vogue, Seventeen, etc?

People Magazine
You are someone everyone can count on for good advice and information. You know whats right and wrong from everything to gossip to restaurants to shopping.

Quizzes by myYearbook.com -- the World's Biggest Yearbook!

Take the quiz:
Which famous blonde person are you most like?

Britney Spears
you have a sexy style, but sometimes you can be laid back and not look as sexy as you can be....

Quizzes by myYearbook.com -- the World's Biggest Yearbook!

Your Star Wars Pickup Line

"You will go home with me. It is unavoidable. IT IS YOUR DESTINY!!"

What's Your Star Wars Pickup Line?

Which celebrity hottie are you?

Take the quiz:
Which celebrity hottie are you?

Jennifer Aniston
You are a classic beauty! You know what you want in life and your not afriad to go after it. You're life is a fairytale. You want the happily ever after, and aren't afriad of the future. You're sophisticated and conservative. You're smart, loving, caring, and everyone loves you!!

Quizzes by myYearbook.com -- the World's Biggest Yearbook!

Your Flirt Quotient

You are 47% Flirt

How Much of a Flirt Are You?

What celebrity bootay do you have?

Take the quiz:
what celebrity bootay do you have? (girls only)

J-Lo
Youre booty has a continent of its own and gets you lots of attention.

Quizzes by myYearbook.com -- the World's Biggest Yearbook!

When I retook it I got this:



Take the quiz:
what celebrity bootay do you have? (girls only)

Lindsay Lohan
No one really notices your butt because you dont know how to show it off.

Quizzes by myYearbook.com -- the World's Biggest Yearbook!

Who's Your Instant Star boyfriend?

Dang it, I wanted Tommy! Oh well, I guess Jamie's more stable anyway.

Oscars 2006

I'm so glad that Reese won the Oscar for Best Actress. She's a triple threat: a Harvard lawyer, a doctor, and an Oscar winner!
She's so cool. I love how she used that June Carter quote: I'm just trying to matter. That's so true. We just want our lives to have meaning, no matter what we do.




On the law school front, I went to a Pre-Law Forum sponsored by The Princeton Review. I sat in on a mock first year law school property class (the case had been emailed to us a few days before). The prof was a woman and I found the class and the way that she presented the material to be so enjoyable. Later we had a panel of reps from SMU, TX Wesleyan, and Berkeley law. The thing that really got me was when they said what qualities they wanted: analytical thinking and problem solving. Those were the exact qualities I had been writing about in all of my med school secondaries - finally, here is an institution that would appreciate those qualities!

I think I would be happy as a doctor and as a lawyer. I like them because it will let me help people using research and intellect, and they play up my skills. Hopefully, I can get into an SMP and then later apply MD/JD. That way I can be sure that I have no regrets about giving up on my dream of med school or regrets that I let a great field like law go unnoticed.

Hena

Here's a video by Cameron Cartio, a Persian guy who grew up in Spain and Sweden, and Cheb Khaled, the father of Rai, a French/Algerian musical fusion. Cameron sings in Farsi and Cheb sings in Arabic. Enjoy!



Video code provided by www.Bia2.com

22nd Bday

Today's my 22nd birthday. I got a whole bunch of birthday greetings on my Facebook wall, which was tyte. I thought my birthday would be more eventful, but we celebrated more over the weekend. You know, I miss how birthdays were really big deals in grade school. Everyone's bday was on the bulletin board and you brought cookies to class and people would sing. Now it's just like any day. You can't really tell ppl in class that it's your bday, cuz that's just weird. So you have to rely on Facebook to tell everyone. I hope my 22nd year on this earth will be better than my turbulent 21st. Geez Louise, talk about your emotional roller coaster. I thought it would be a good time to let y'all know what I've been up to lately:

I took a practice LSAT two weeks ago and scored a 158. Not bad, it was so good that I think I'm gonna take the real thing in a couple years and apply to some MD/JD and DO/JD programs, as well as straight-up JD. I think law is pretty cool, and it let's me use the skills I've honed as an English major to help people.

I took a practice DAT last week and scored a 14. Yeah, not so good. I had no idea the DAT covered botany and that they used science passages in the reading comprehension. This test was a lot harder than I though it would be. I have to give mad props to the pre-dents and apologize for dogging on the DAT all these years.

I want to take a practice GRE at some point and take the real one before the BIG CHANGE in October. Hopefully I'll be able to find one now that the Kaplan Test Drive is over.

I'm still waiting on 6 out of state med schools.

I'm applying to Special Masters Programs. Hopefully, I'll get into one of those. If not, hello second Bachelor's...and no, it won't be as much fun as The Bachelor in Paris.

I'm gonna try to devote more time to my neglected blog. I'll try to use cool colors and spruce it up with pics.

Skin

I have to agree with this. I have definitely been able to identify with this song with all the pain I've been through lately. I'm looking for solutions, but I just want to hide away a lot of the time. I keep going to workshops and meeting with advisors, but I just...well, let's just say that "Skin" certainly hits home. I hope everything will work out in a couple years.

And We're Back!

OK, definitely update time. I have begun my last term at SMU, yes! This term I'm taking:

• 18th Century Lit - the prof calls it Sex and the City in the 18th century; it seems like we're going to be reading a lot of old porn...I'm serious
  
• Seminar: Novels of Manners - I'm the only undergrad in a room full of Masters students
• Minority-Dominant Relations - we watch a lot of movies about how minorities in the US are put down by The Man...tell me something I don't know
• Abnormal Psychology - people are crazy...again, tell me something I don't know
• Power Yoga - Finally, something I don't know!

That's right, I have no science classes! I'm finally going to have a nice, normal college term where I can relax and have fun.

9 days till the match...I'm totally freaking out, and I hope I get in.