Griffey Retires...

Right now I am feeling nothing but sadness about Griffey retiring. I would have loved to have seen him play one more time with all the fanfare that he deserves. This whole sleepgate catastrophe was a blackeye for all of baseball, and it makes me sick that Jr. retires just after that story. I wish that he could have survived this season as our DH or as a pinch hitter. Today should be a celebration of his legacy though.

I have a few wonderful memories of Griffey. As a kid I remember going to the last game at the Kingdome with my Dad. Griffey hit a monster homerun and made a leaping catch against the wall, and I remember thinking that it was a fitting way to say goodbye to the Kingdome.

I remember the weekend where Jr. came back to play with the Reds. On Friday I watched Seattle fill Safeco to cheer on Griffey. I saw grown men crying as he took the field to the longest ovation I have ever experienced (I personally had allergies). The camera flashes were blinding and the crowds roar was unlike anything I had ever heard at Safeco everytime he came to bat. On Sunday I couldn't get off work in time for first few innings and my stomach sank when he hit a homerun and I didn't see it. Of course, he hit another one after I made it to my seat and I felt like it was just for me!

I was there for the last game of 2009 where Griffey and Ichiro were carried off the field by their teammates.

I cannot thank Jr. enough for all of the wonderful memories that he provided for the citizens of this great region. I can't thank him enough for keeping baseball in Seattle. I can't thank him enough for doing his part to make Safeco a reality. Thank you so much Junior, and I wish you and your family all the best!

Mariners Update

Something has to change...

We are 14 and 24 on the season, which is the exact same record as the 101 loss 2008 M's. Our team batting average is around .230. If you subtract the two outliers of this statistical set (Ichiro .354 and Guti .298) then our team average is below .200. We have lost almost 15 games during the opposing team's final at-bat. Our starting rotation has one of the lowest ERA's in baseball, but day in and day out I watch our bullpen blowing leads or tie games. Of course, they wouldn't look so bad if we could put runs on the board.

Something has to change...

Griffey is not working as our DH. I love what this man has done for Seattle baseball. I loved watching him as a kid and I loved watching him last year. As much as I love him, I love winning more! He isn't anywhere near the Mendoza line. He has absolutely no power... to the point where a fly ball to the warning track makes the local Seattle news. He continues to try and force his way through the defensive shift that they place on him, but without any success. He doesn't have a single home run folks. His slugging percentage is the lowest for any DH in baseball. HE ONLY HAS ONE JOB! He isn't driving in runs, so he needs to be replaced (as gracefully as possible).

Something has to change...

Chone Figgins is a career M's killer! He used to smack us around and then steal bases like it was nobody's business. He's hitting .185 folks. Worse yet, he is hitting behind Ichiro at .354. The result: Ichiro gets on base and Figgy fails to move him over, or worse yet he grounds into a double play. Everyone is calling for Figgy to be moved from the two spot to the nine spot so that Ichiro can drive him in if he walks. YOU ARE ALL MISSING THE POINT! He is negating the work of our best hitter right now by hitting behind him. Get him the hell away from Ichiro so that we can keep a few runners on base!

Something has to change...

Our pitching is a mess! You think our starters are doing well? Fister and Vargas are pitching as well as any number 1 starter in baseball. Cliff Lee is pitching so well I can't put it into words. However I want to talk about Felix... Felix is a true competitor. We have seen him dominate for years, and he went ahead and signed a long term deal with us which shows his devotion. However, he has zero run support and a bullpen that blows any decent start he may have. Talk about pressure! If he gives up two runs, he is going to take a loss. If he throws a shutout through 8, the bullpen will blow it in the ninth. That goes for all of our starters. Cliff Lee is going to get traded so no need to worry about him, but Fister and Vargas can't possibly keep this up. If we lose our starting pitching... God help us. RRS and Snell have lost their starts before they even take the mound.

Something has to change...

I want to believe in this team! I want the playoffs, so much so that I will throw Jr. under the bus. I want a first basemen who can hit! I want Figgy to hit like his baseball card says he will! I want Milton Bradley to figure his shit out and play baseball!!! I want Jose Lopez to start hitting somewhere within the realm of last year's 90+ RBI season. I WANT A DH WHO CAN HIT! God help us if we can't figure it out. 2008 is not such a distant memory...

Something has to change...

There was a clear method to the madness of this M's squad. We were built on pitching and defense. Our lineup lacked power, but we were going to play the small ball necessary to scratch a few runs on the board. WHERE IS THE MOFO SMALL BALL WAK!?! I am watching sub .200 hitters swing for the fences when they should be bunting. Last night I watched Griffey (around .185) hit into a double play with runners on first and second and nobody out. A bunt would have left us second and third with one out, but NO! We end up with a runner at third with 2 outs??? This is nothing new! Guti made the third out at third base... I learned not to do that in T-ball! I just watched Casey Kotchman jog across the plate while Rob Johnson was thrown out at third for the third out (the run didn't score because he slowed down). What the hell are we doing M's??? PLAY SMALL BALL GOD DAMNIT!

P.S. For those of you calling for Wak's head... It isn't Wak's fault for not having the pieces to work with in the first place. The last thing we should do right now is fire Wak!

2010 Mariners Home Opener! My thoughts...

Spoiler Alert... We lost.

After following a horrible M's road trip and going to the home opener today, I wanted to give my first impressions.

Safeco Field: The traffic this year is BRUTAL! The Spokane St. exit off of I5 is a tangled mess of construction, as is the corner of 4th Ave and Royal Brougham. Looks like I'm going to be riding a lot of buses this M's season. The new out of town scoreboard over the bullpens is awesome! It shows the real time box score for the inning being played by every team in baseball... in color. There are also a number of new advertisements around the park. For example, the Hit It Here Cafe sign is now orange and sponsored by ING Direct. UW Medicine has also dumped a huge amount of money into the stadium this year. Thanks for keeping the Mariners in the black!

The Opening Ceremony: Death Cab for Cutie started the show off with a few rounds of 'Take me out to the Ballgame' and a great version of 'Put me in Coach'. Although the audio was a little rough, I thought that they did a great job. Then the Oakland lineup was announced to a suppressed round of booing from M's fans. I thought it could have been a little louder considering the whooping they gave us in the opening series... but alas we are all still Seattle nice. The M's lineup was announced and there were huge cheers for Felix as well as our starting lineup. Even Milton got a good ovation, but we will get to that later. The National Anthem was played by the local Navy Band and the slain officers were remembered. A few people cheered when their names were called? I'm going to assume they were just trying to show their support for the officers...

Randy Johnson's First Pitch: Randy was announced and slowly walked in from center field to a massive standing ovation. The place was rocking as he took the mound and waved to the crowd, but we all erupted when we saw that Dan Wilson was going to catch his pitch. Even with a torn rotator cuff he threw a perfect strike, and then Buhner, Edgar, and Junior walked out of the dugout to meet up with Randy and Dan. It was a meeting of the Saints who saved Seattle baseball, and trust me folks... I was reverential.

The Game: Well, we certainly had one hell of a showing on the defensive side. Jack Wilson made a great play on a ball that Lopez missed. Lopez made a good throw from deep down the third base line. Chone Figgins made a spectacular running catch in right field and with Wilson turned an amazing double play. It looks like he has been playing second base for his entire career. Oh, and Casey Kotchman made a diving stop down the first baseline and then beat the runner to the bag (because RRS failed to cover first). Then there was Milton... but he deserves his own heading. Since I was at the game I didn't get to see any instant replays, but it sure seemed like we got hosed on a few calls. Oakland had a double steal that didn't quite workout, so Rob Johnson made a perfect throw to Casey Kotchman who tagged out a diving Athletic but he was called safe. Then there was a play at the plate where Johnson got the tag down, but again he was called safe. Notice how I haven't brought up any hitting highlights? That's because there weren't any. Guti had a great double with nobody out, but was promptly left stranded on third. We are having pathetic at-bats right now. Swinging at balls well out of the strikezone. Watching the A's pitcher paint corners without even taking the lumber off of their shoulders. God help us if we don't start hitting.

Then there is Milton: Ah, Milton Bradley. On the opening road trip he flipped out on fans with words, dirty looks, and a controversial middle finger. I would be more than willing to overlook these tantrums if he wasn't batting .045. Ever hear of batting your weight? He isn't batting the weight of a 4 year old child. Then there is his defense. Today on the radio he was introduced with the caveat that 'No one was ever going to mistake him for a gold glover." Well he made a fool of himself today out in the outfield, allowing a routine groundball to roll right past him while the A's ran crazy around the bases. Through your legs is embarrassing... completely missing a ground ball in the outfield is unnacceptable. Seattle fans may be Seattle nice, but we sure as hell are not going to put up with a moody left fielder who is a dead weight in the lineup and on the field. It is early in the season, but Ryan Langerhans or Tui or Byrnes is looking much more appealing that clumsy moody Milton Bradley.

It is far too early to begin to panic, but if we can't make it to .500 by the end of April then I foresee a huge shakeup in the M's clubhouse. Prepare to say goodbye to Cliff Lee my friends! Oh, and there is no way Adrian Gonzalez would ever consider a trade to Seattle. My point? TURN IT AROUND M'S! I HAVE FAITH!!! I'll see you tomorrow for round two.

Cheers!

My Spring Break is turning into a Winter Break...

Tomorrow is my last day of undergraduate classes at the University of Washington. Today was my last business class and presentation. Today is my last day at work. Tomorrow I am getting my car fixed up like new. Saturday will be my last two finals as an Undergrad at UW. I am basically done with a final paper that is due on Monday.

I... AM... ALMOST... DONE!

Ok, so I still have to take an evening class at South Seattle next quarter but all I have to do is pass it which should be a breeze! I took an accounting class through Bellevue Community college and 4.0'd it, so this shouldn't be much more difficult.

I can't wait for Spring Break!!! Although weather.com is telling me that we are going to Arizona and Utah during a huge winter storm. I just hope it passes quickly so the M's games don't get rained out. Michelle and I agreed that if the weather is simply too much to handle, we are going to take a right turn for Vegas. It's not like we have any reservations anywhere so we can fly by the seat of our pants. Hopefully it won't come to that though, because Vegas isn't much fun when you're only twenty.

Cheers!

Please interview me?

Well folks, I applied for the Gates Scholarship and will be hearing from them on March 16th as to whether I get an interview or not. I really want an interview!!! Seeing as I headline this here blog, I'm going to tell you why.

First of all, this is one of the most amazing opportunities offered by the University of Washington Law School. On the financial end of things, the scholarship provides for three years of tuition, books, transportation, lodging, and even a stipend for other expenses. It is a full ride scholarship in every sense of the word. However it provides so much more than money!

As a Gates Scholar you become a part of a strong community of professionals dedicated to public service. You have mentors in the law school and in the law community that help you reach your professional goals. They provide financial assistance and placement assistance for an internship during your 1L or 2L summer. The program is constantly putting on programs and seminars that let scholars and the broader community gain insight into Public Service Law and where it stands today. The Gates PSL Program surrounds you with the support that law students could only dream of!

Most importantly, the program would allow me to ultimately follow my dream of becoming a lawyer for underprivileged Indian tribes and individuals. It is the entire reason I am going to law school, and with the assistance of this program I am confident that I can make a huge positive impact on their futures. If I could just get an interview I know I could get that passion across. They require 5 years of public service after law school and I would be so happy to be able to do that and so much more!

Dear Universe,

Please let me get this interview. I will take it from there, unless you want to help of course.

Sincerely,

Me

Cheers!

Final Spring Break Itinerary

Well Michelle and I have finalized our Spring Break plans and let me tell you folks, it's going to be a doozie! We are going to drive down to Bryce Canyon via Salt Lake City. Then head south to Phoenix by way of the Oak Creek Canyon and Sedona. In Phoenix we are going to see a couple of M's games and hopefully seeing family. We might even make our way down to Tucson to see Saguaro NP. Then we're off to Canyon de Chelly National Monument and Monument Valley. We go north to see Arches NP and Canyonlands NP and then haul ass home!

11 days... 4 National Parks... 2 M's games... and memories to last a lifetime!

Cheers!

Fondue, Bluegrass Festivals, and Mental Institutions!

Yesterday Michelle and I decided to use some movie tickets that had been given to her as a gift. These weren't just any movie tickets though... but movie tickets to the Gold Class Cinemas in Redmond. You sit in recliners and watch a movie as dinner is served to you! Sounds great right? Well it would have been great if we were both 21, but we're not. We worked out a refund for her gift card and decided we would make our own dinner and a movie extravaganza!

We drove into Bellevue to the Landmark Theatre to see 'Shutter Island'. I have to mention how awesome this theatre is! They have leather seats, a HUGE screen, and the slope of the seats is high enough that we could easily see over the people in front of us. The movie turned out to be really good too! The whole movie is about this Marshall who goes to a mental institution to investigate a missing inmate. However as the movie progresses you begin to wonder if he is the crazy one himself... After they tell you that he is crazy and you basically except that the entire movie was a figment of his imagination the final scene leaves it open to interpretation. I won't ruin it more than that.

After the movie we wandered around downtown Bellevue and stumbled upon a bluegrass music convention??? We questioned our sanity, mainly because we just watched Shutter Island.

Then we drove home and I talked Michelle into working out. We played racquetball and did an arm workout. We had never worked out together in a gym before, and the first experience was great! Hopefully I can talk her into another visit (for the company! She is beautiful in every way).

For dinner we made our workout worthless by going to the Melting Pot in Queen Anne. We had a cheese fondue appetizer, an extremely overpriced salad, and an absolutely delectable pot of chocolate s'mores fondue. Thank you Michelle's Uncle!

Cheers!

UW Law School Open House

Well I just got home from the first annual UW Law School Open House for the class of 2013 and I am more excited than ever! The faculty that I met were awesome. The students who spoke to us were full of stories about the opportunities that UW has made available for them. I met a ton of great people, and one in particular who had actually taught on a South Dakota Reservation through the Teach for America program. I am so excited to be surrounded with such interesting and intelligent people. After our little Q&A session we watched the final round of a moot court competition which made law school much more real for me. I could see myself in front of the court presenting the case, and I was confident enough to think I could have done just fine!

The next step in my law school saga is to hear if I was chosen to give an interview for the Gates Public Law Scholarship... fingers crossed.

In other news, I was able to sign up for the evening Spanish class at South Seattle Community College today which means that I am going to graduate! Hooray for me!!!

Cheers!

Native Law Meeting

Today I met with the head of the Native American Law Program at the University of Washington, and I'm soaring on cloud 9! He explained the program and all of the opportunities for their students. The interesting thing is that not much of it is verbalized on their website. They give a few Native American law courses, but not as many as other schools. However he said that there were so many different of aspects of Native American law that students should take business law classes, tax law classes, environmental law classes, property classes, basically everything! They don't have a Native American Law Certificate, but their Environmental Law Certificate includes Native American law? They have a competitive law clinic where students are given the opportunity to actually represent Native clients in the Tulalip Tribal court system. Not to mention all of the research opportunities and work study opportunities. I am so excited to go to Law School! I hope this feeling never goes away...

Cheers!

Exciting Two Days!

Well I have an exciting two days coming up! Tomorrow afternoon I am meeting with the head of the Native American Law Department at UW to talk about the program. My goal is to introduce myself, learn a little about him, and learn about all the wonderful opportunities that I will be able to take part in. He only has a few minutes to talk, but this is my first contact with the law school since my acceptance!

On Friday I get to have a lovely visit with a counselor at South Seattle Community College. I am a University of Washington early entrance, double major, honors student going to a T1 law school next year and I have to go speak to a counselor at a lower end community college about signing up for Spanish 103. It seems like a waste of my time, but oh well! You have to do what you have to do...

After I meet up with Michelle we are going to head to the Admitted Students Open House at UW! I am going to do my best to meet as many people as possible, be confident and conversational, and find out when UW sends out financial aid information. Apparently financial aid is doled out based on your need, and according to my FAFSA my need is "A LOT... Damn you're broke!" I also want to get a sense of where people are planning on living next year...

Man, this week is flying by...

Cheers!

Over 200 lbs!

I decided it was time to start lifting weights again, so I went to the gym last night and kicked my own ass. I felt really good about myself until I stepped on the scale and weighed in at 202 lbs! I have never had a problem with my weight and still think I look fine, but something about that damned 2. I simply can't have my weight in the 200's, at least not during this decade. To tell you the truth, my weight fluctuates quite a bit so I have probably already reached my goal of 199 today. Oh well, I'm still going on a diet for the next few days. The gym is also going to become a part of my routine for the next few weeks (before Spring Break!).

Cheers!

Grrreat Weekend!

Well I had a wonderful weekend! On Friday I headed up north to see mi novia, and the drive was great! Why was the drive great you ask? Well, because the Jetta was running like a champ and the weather was fantastic. Michelle and I went to the store and bought some goods for dinner and I convinced her to watch "Bridge over the River Kwai". It won seven academy awards in 1957 which means it has to be good... right?

WRONG! Okay, so I was entertained for most of this nearly three hour movie. The first half of the movie is completely different than the second half and the ending sucked. Here is my suggestion. They should have turned this into two movies and wrote two MUCH better endings.

On Saturday we drove to the Lummi Reservation which overlooks Bellingham and Mt. Baker across the bay. It was absolutely gorgeous, but the poverty on the reservation was disheartening. Just another reason to go to law school... Anyways, it was gorgeous. Beautiful beaches seemed to be a theme for the weekend. We also went to the Bellingham waterfront and read together. Well, Michelle spent most of her time people watching (a favorite pastime). I guess this might have happened on Friday?

Well on Sunday we woke up and went to the waterfront in Fairhaven. We got a perfect parking spot in a crazy crowded park and were able to catch some Washington sunshine. Sunday afternoon I went to see my Mom and we watched the hockey game together. It was an awesome game, and seeing my Mom get nervous about hockey was pretty entertaining. We also went over some information on the Southwest in preparation for my Spring Break Adventure. I drove home and fell asleep to thoughts of how wonderful my weekend was!

Cheers!

SO Excited for Spring Break!

I let you all know that I was going on a Spring Break road trip to see Law Schools, but I got into UW which makes all of that quite unnecessary. Heaven knows that I can't just cancel the road trip though because I want to spend this quality time with my girlfriend (and go to Spring Training!). Since this has opened up the itinerary of our trip, I have been having SO much fun looking at stuff to do in the Southwest. My big question right now is whether I can find a way to see everything that I want to see in Arizona and Utah without having to take the same road back to Seattle that we will take going in. We could always go home through California, or even take a drive through Vegas... On the other hand, we could keep the same trip itinerary as we had before I got into UW and drive home via Denver. I would just be much happier doing a loop rather than taking one road down and the same road back.

In other news, I still can't think of anything to get the Professors who wrote me recommendations... fail.

Cheers!

Pitchers and Catchers Report!

Today marks the official start of Spring Training for the Seattle Mariners. All of the Catchers and Pitchers have headed down to Peoria where they underwent their physicals. There is a really interesting article about the entire process at http://www.seattlemariners.com/.

The M's have a whole bunch of questions heading into this Season, with the biggest being who exactly is going to close out our rotation. We have Felix and Lee as the best 1-2 punch in baseball and Rowland-Smith was a joy to watch last year which slates him at the three spot. The question is about 4 and 5. I'm not exactly holding my breath on Erik Bedard... Even when he was healthy he would throw a solid 5 1/2 innings before handing it off to the bullpen. I really didn't see much from Ian Snell last year, but people with better eyes than me say he has a bunch or raw talent. I like Vargas, but again I wonder if he can stay healthy. I'm just happy that we have two potential 20 game winners pitching in a Seattle uniform this year.

I'm also damned excited because after getting accepted at UW my law school road trip has turned into a Spring Training road trip! Peoria here we come!!!

Cheers!

Law School Relationship

Seeing as this past Sunday was Valentines day, I figured I would speak about the idea of having a relationship in law school. I have a wonderful girlfriend who has been with me for almost the last two years. We met while I was playing baseball for the high school that she attended, and we have been loving it up ever since! However, right after we started dating she was accepted to a school that is a few hours away from UW. Now we manage to see each other every week and we talk all the time, so things have gone really well! Being the amazing girl that she is, she was willing to follow me to law school wherever I decided to attend. Now that I am going to UW, she gets to stay where she is. I think that in the long run this will work out best for both of us... She gets to finish her education debt free at a school she loves and I get the extra time I need during the week to be successful in law school.

Really, I don't see how anything is going to change when I start Law School. Although I will be a hell of a lot more busy it will all come down to how I manage my time, and seeing her is worth skipping an hour or two of xbox in the afternoon. It's funny how things always seem to work out for the better in the end!

I'm sure that I will have much more to say after my first year at UW...

Cheers!

Re: Accepted at UW

Now that I have had a few more days to accept the seemingly impossible fact that I will be at UW Law next year, I am more excited than ever. Apparently I wasn't the only one who was surprised because my lawschoolnumbers.com profile became a hot topic on the law school blog @ www.top-law-schools.com. A whole bunch of over confident potential law students were dumbstruck by the fact that I was accepted before them. I love this feeling of victory, and I look forward to the many victories to come.

Seeing as I hadn't even considered UW a possibility after my LSAT, I never took the time to actually gain a deep understanding of their program. They are well known for the credentials of their faculty, and the head of the Native American Law program is very respected in his field. They also offer a few courses in Native American law as well as an opportunity to work for public defenders in Tribal Courts. I have to go sit down and speak with Mr. Anderson, the head of the program, to see about the other opportunities that they allude to on the website.

UW also has a great student to faculty ratio of 11:1, and the new dean says that relationships are easy to build with the faculty. The new law building is absolutely gorgeous, and over the weekend I spent a little time looking around. Sadly, I wasn't able to access the floors with classrooms because they are for students only. It looks like I will have to take a guided tour after all. Apparently the 1L classes are pretty big (as much as 90 students), but during 2L and 3L those class sizes shrink down to 25. I am also a little awestruck with the shiny diamond that is UW Law. They are the highest ranked school in the entire Pacific Northwest, and if I want to practice in Seattle than UW is the place to be. The tuition is also a bargain right now, although that is probably going to change over the next few years.

I want to make sure and get a gift and write a nice thank you letter to the faculty that gave me recommendations, but I don't know what to get them??? I'll ponder and post later.

Cheers!

law.washington.edu

Accepted at UW!!!

My Dad just called with unbelievable news. Now when I say unbelievable, I mean that I still don't believe it's true. I was just accepted at the University of Washington Law School. That's a tier one law school folks. They are one of the top ten public law schools in the country. They are by far the top law school in the Pacific Northwest. According to lawschoolpredictor.com, I was an automatic reject. I never even considered the idea that I would get accepted, and now that I am coming to believe it...

How could I say no?

Cheers!!!

No love today...

Well I didn't hear from the UW law school today, and according to lawschoolnumbers.com nobody else did either. The difference between today and yesterday was that I dealt with the waiting much better... Let me give you (and myself) some advice for dealing with waiting in the future.

Keep yourself as busy as you possibly can. It doesn't need to be productive, but it needs to keep you from thinking about whatever you are waiting for. Today, for example, I was busy from 8:30 until 1:30 with various school things. I came home and was so hungry that I only thought about food, and after overeating I was so full that I took a two hour nap. I woke up and got ready for work, where I discussed religion, politics, and how awesome New Zealand is with another tutor. Now I am waiting at the library for a textbook that I need, so I am filling my time by listening to TBTL (www.tbtl.net) and writing to all of you (I wonder if anyone else reads this?).

In fact, my slate is absolutely 100% full until I get to see my wonderful girlfriend tomorrow! So take that anxiety!!!

Cheers!

P.S. Please let me know my UW fate tomorrow...

Almost ruined my streak of perfection...

In more than four years at this wonderful university I have never missed a midterm or final. In fact, I have never even been late to one. Today was almost the end of my streak.

Last night I set my alarm for what I believed was two hours before my test started. This allowed me to wake up and study a little, shower, eat, then casually stroll to class. This morning my alarm went off at 7:30 and all was going according to plan. I listened to KIRO 97.3 fm for a few minutes, studied my notes, and would you have known that I still had over an hour before my test started! At least, that's what I thought... I started up some video games and was happily playing along when I looked at the clock and realized that I was already a half hour late. I threw on sweats (no undies) and shoes (no socks) and raced my bike to school (without a bike lock). I blasted through the door and still managed to finish my test with 20 minutes to spare. It didn't have a negative effect, but it was still close...

This brings me to the question of 'why?' Well, yesterday I made the wonderful choice to check the status of my UW law application. It turns out the decision was mailed on Monday, which means that it should be here TODAY. I haven't been able to focus on anything else since, and the worst part of it is that I am expecting a rejection. If it was mailed on Monday than it should be there when I get home, although nobody else has received theirs yet (as I know from lawschoolnumbers.com and top-law-schools.com).

Let us raise our glasses to my momentary insanity!

Cheers!

Lewis and Clark!

I was accepted today at Lewis and Clark which is pretty exciting. I love its location, and it has a good reputation in the Northwest. Sadly I didn't really like the campus and was a bit turned off by the ultra liberal student body. There wasn't a scholarship offer in the packet and I don't know if one is coming separately, which makes it pretty expensive. We will have to wait and see...

In other news, my dad is letting my girlfriend and I borrow his Honda Element for a Spring Break Law School Road Trip. Whew... quite a mouthful. I need to come up with a catchier name to paint on the side of the car. Maybe I will print up a few t-shirts as well. This means that we can actually camp IN THE CAR! That's right folks. All 5 ft. 11 in. of me can stretch out comfortably in the back.

So far I have 5 acceptances and a waitlist. As for the last three schools I am expecting a rejection from UW (sadly), a waitlist from U. Arizona, and potentially an acceptance from Arizona State? Who knows really...

Cheers!

New Mexico and Gonzaga!

I was accepted at New Mexico and Gonzaga today! Gonzaga gave me a $15,500 scholarship as well. Sadly, in my excitement I figured I would look at how much each law school would cost. It quickly put a damper on my excitement. Then I began looking at what lawyers earn and the hours they work, and it wasn't pretty either. However!!! I am a smart young individual with motivation and passion. With my business degree I will also have a unique skill set that will allow me to work as a lawyer in the business sector and/or eventually open my own legal enterprise!

Still, I cringe at potentially $1500 in student loan payments per month...

Cheers!

The small things that make life wonderful...

I was walking through campus the other day, worrying about small things that don't matter and hustling to my apartment where I didn't have any immediate plans. As I walked through the quad I noticed that the sun was actually shining. It seems like it has been weeks since I've seen the sun, so I stripped off my coat and soaked up some vitamin D for a few minutes. As I closed my eyes and aimed my pale Northwest skin at the sky I realized that it is these little moments that make life so wonderful. When my girlfriend comes to visit and brings me a coke or some jellybeans I feel 'over the top' excited. A coke and a bag of jellybeans combined costs less than $4, and yet because it took time and effort for her to go out of her way to be nice to me it is worth so much more. It is just nice to stop every once in a while and realize that it isn't always about reaching the goal, but rather your journey getting there.

Cheers!

In at Oregon!

My Dad called and gave me the play by play as he opened up an acceptance letter from the University of Oregon today. They also gave me a $6000 scholarship that is renewable each year. I am very happy about this acceptance because it means that I now have the choice between Seattle and Oregon. I love that Oregon is close to home without being too close. I love that the law school is beautiful, the campus is beautiful, and it's in a wonderful location for me. I love that it won't be too expensive given the scholarship. I don't like that it doesn't have even the smallest Native American law program, and everyone warns that the job prospects are horrible in Oregon where the only real legal market is Portland. Lewis and Clark Law School is in Portland people!

I'm going to enjoy the feeling of acceptance though, and I pray for many more acceptances to come!

Cheers!

Time to choose the tickets...

Well, in the not too distant future my Dad's company will distribute M's tickets for the upcoming season. He graciously includes me in the process by allowing me to prioritize the tickets he chooses and I figured I would let you in on my thought process...

1. The best tickets of the entire season are division tickets during the last month of the season. For the M's, that means that I want to see the Angels, Rangers, and A's during Sept./Oct.

2. Next comes the opening series of the season against Oakland, as well as the interleague games against Cincinnati and the Cubs.

3. Then you have the games against the best American league teams except the Red Sox. I want to see the Rays, the Twins, the Tigers, the White Sox, etc...

4. Finally you have the leftovers... Kansas City, Cleveland, Toronto, Baltimore.

I do enjoy going to the Blue Jays games because they play the Canadian National Anthem as well as ours, and a whole bunch of Northerners migrate to Seattle for the game. The Red Sox on the other hand are HORRIBLE games to go to. Sure they have hall of famers to see, but the bandwagon Sox fans that come out of nowhere are the most annoying baseball fans alive. Most of them don't know the game at all, and those that do are so drunk by the end of the game that they can't stand up straight. If you haven't lived in the Northeast or even visited Boston, you have no reason to root for the Red Sox!!!

Cheers!

Mariners Fanfest 2010

This past Saturday my girlfriend and I met up with my Dad for the Mariners Fanfest. My Dad's company purchases season tickets every year, and being the biggest baseball fans in the company meant we got four tickets for early entrance to the event. We got to go down to the field and run around the bases, see the Mariners clubhouse, take a few swings in their batting cage, and just enjoy the fact that pitchers and catchers report in a few weeks. I am SO FREAKING EXCITED for this season to start! Look out Angels... here we come!

Cheers!

Law School Update

I was in my information systems class yesterday where the professor was lecturing on databases. After discussing the logic necessary to understand databases, he flashed a sample Logic Games question from the LSAT and I got physically sick. My stomach turned in knots and I began sweating as I averted my glance away from his slide. What is wrong with me? I guess the LSAT had a bigger impact on me than I thought...

I was also waitlisted yesterday at the University of Colorado. Now I would love to go to school in Boulder! They have an amazing school, an amazing law program, an amazing Indian Law program, and it's located in one of the most beautiful locations in America. I am going to accept my spot on the waitlist and begin kissing up to them as much as I possibly can without becoming annoying. They truly are at the top of my list of schools to attend... along with the University of Washington and the University of Arizona.

Now what I don't understand is why I haven't heard from some of the schools that are lower on my list. Namely, why hasn't Gonzaga written to me yet? It's not like there are people with great numbers just waiting to knock down the door in Spokane. As an almost business graduate please allow me to give you (Gonzaga) a little advice... If you want great people to go to your school than you need to get your acceptances out really early and throw a whole bunch of money at them. Every acceptance that people get from a better school is yet another potential applicant who rejects you before even hearing from you. What in god's name are you waiting for?!?

Cheers!

My first magazine in years!

When I was a younger kid I purchased a subscription to VIBE magazine. There were pages and pages of music, news, and the scantily clad women that keep a 12 year old boy going. However after a few months the magazines began to pile up. Reading VIBE slowly fell from being a priority to being a hobby, then a pass-time, then a nuisance. The large stack of print glared at me as if to say, "Why aren't you reading me you SOB?!?". When my subscription ended I didn't renew it...

Fast forward to a 20 year old me! My professor this quarter required us to buy a subscription to BusinessWeek Magazine so that we could read an assigned article each week. I am reading the textbook at the library so I figured I would just do the same with BusinessWeek. The subscription list was passed around the classroom and I simply passed it to my neighbor. It's now week four of the quarter and my professor has printed out and distributed every article that has been assigned, so I guess my frugality paid off! However, today I ended my nearly a decade long run without a magazine subscription.

My professor walked in today with a stack of FORTUNE magazines and a subscription list. I grabbed my copy and immediately began convincing myself that this was a great opportunity. The magazine only comes twice a month, which leaves ample time to actually read it. A year long subscription was only $10.00, which means that I am basically paying for a postage stamp every time they send me a magazine. Finally, I will be moving back home soon where I have a reliable mailbox and mailman which ensures that I will actually get my magazines. At the class break I went to the front and signed my name on the dotted line.

I am now officially a magazine subscriber...

Cheers!

Ever wondered what it's like to be in band?

You arrive early to get a good music stand. About half of them are wonderful, while the other half are welded masses of steel that weigh more than the average flute player. As musicians filter into the room the noise of instruments warming up grows to a mind numbing volume. Why do the trumpets have to be right behind you?!? They warm up as loud as they can directly into your ear, as if they were welcoming the King of England himself. The clock strikes 7:00 and the director steps onto the podium. The noise quickly fades into silence.

He points at the tubas who play a tuning note. First the trombones begin to tune, followed by the horns and trumpets. Then come the tenor saxes... the alto saxes... the clarinets... the flutes... and finally the piccolos. After a few adjustments the director silences us again. We pull out some pieces by Bach to warm up as a group. The director raises his baton and we all bring the instruments to our mouths. We take a deep breath as he raises his arms, gathering as much air in our bodies as we can manage. As his arms begin to drop the monstrous sound of the band echoes throughout the room. As you play your instrument it seems as if the wonderful mixture of notes is coming from within you. Each note blends with the musical lines of the different sections. The director begins waving his arms feverishly, urging the band to inject emotion into the piece. As the song nears the end his motions begin to retract which tells us to play softer. His baton slows down for the final few notes before settling upon the beautiful chord that ends the piece.

Then the waiting starts...

We bring out the actual piece that we will be performing someday and the director asks for the trombones to play a particular part. For five minutes we wait as the trombone section works itself out. Then the trumpets are added, but they are WAY too loud so we spend another five minutes getting the balance right. Finally your section gets the nod and you play for a minute or two, only to find yourself waiting for another ten minutes. Your mind pleads with the director to just let you play the damned piece. After about an hour of this he promises to let you play all the way through. After a few more false starts, he relents and you get to play! You watch as the director's emotion shifts radically during the piece. A wrong note pierces the song and he noticeably winces. We make it to the end of the piece and he tells you that it was better, but there is much more work to be done.

You pack up your instrument and head home... happy that you were able to play but wishing that you had been able to play more.

Cheers!

Where does the time go?!?

Last night I decided that before my first class today, I was going to wake up early and do the class reading at the library. My textbook was brand new and $200, so I'm just using the course reserve. Anyways, I set my alarm WAY too early and proceeded to rush around thinking I was late to my library date when in reality I was an hour early. I realized my mistake and snuggled back into my wrm covers.

After an hour kicking myself for not sleeping an extra hour, I made my way to the library where I learned that someone had beaten me to the book! I couldn't find them to propose book sharing, so basically my efforts at preparing failed miserably. I walked down and paid tuition before returning to the business school to discuss a case that I hadn't read. Thankfully, my professor is ancient and spent the two hours discussing annual reports from random businesses. The class is a waste of time so far, but it's a major requirement so I haven't a choice in the matter.

About the time that class ended I was starving! Sadly I failed to use my extra hour in the morning to pack myself a snack, so I bought some Starburst candy from the vending machine and made my way to Spanish. In Spanish we are watching 'Agua para Chocolate' which is an award winning film about a family during the Mexican Revolution. It's a comedy and my professor mercifully turned the English subtitles on, so I spent the class laughing and munching on my candy.

My afternoon was spent driving my friend to Bellevue to pick up a Slushee machine for his fraternity's party tonight. The truck was a stick shift and he can't drive one, so I came swooping down to the rescue. I always love the opportunity to hang out with him though, so it was a win win. I guess it's funny in retrospect, but the truck we were driving had a parking brake that I didn't know about. I spent a good 10 minutes trying to figure out why I couldn't get the truck up to speed? By then I'm sure the guy's brakes were toast. When we got to the party rental warehouse the air was filled with the smell of burnt rubber. The workers began frantically looking for what had caught fire. It was only my brakes, or rather some random guy's brakes who let me drive his truck. Oops...

I had a tutoring appointment that went well, and for dinner I made myself a huge bowl of meaty spaghetti. I have made a habit of cooking enough food for about 6 people so that I can eat the meal for a few days. Laziness you say? Well I call it ingenuity! I'm already looking forward to the weekend...

Cheers!

The beginning of the end... (of the beginning)

I promised myself that I would write about the untold horrors of waiting to hear from law schools while I was still in the trenches... but I couldn't bring myself to acknowledge the uncertainty. Now, I can joyfully report that I was accepted last Friday to the Seattle University School of Law! Not only is this the first that I have heard from any law school in months, but it was A) an acceptance and B) from a school I am legitimately interested in. Now I can actually plan on attending law school next year, which is such a huge weight off of my shoulders!

However the last few months have been their own sort of hell. I thought that studying for the LSAT would be the hardest part of the application process, or even writing a personal statement that doesn't say "I want to be a lawyer because...". Nope! It's waiting! Everyday for months I have checked my email religiously, hoping for any sort of contact from law schools. Hours have been wasted looking at websites like www.deloggio.com, www.lawschoolnumbers.com, www.top-law-schools.com. Everyday was another day without any confirmation that I was worthy of attending law school. All of the personal confidence that I have built over the last twenty years of life has been questioned. My parents and friends would always begin conversations by asking whether I had heard anything yet. Do they not understand that I want to know 100 times more than they could ever imagine?

I admit that I have allowed myself to fall down this dark hole, and that my overall quality of life has suffered for it. However, I am clawing my way back to health! I have taken a job as a tutor for student athletes at the UW. This is my first real job since Strikezone (batting cage) shut down, and it is a breath of fresh air. The work is positive and the pay is good. I don't quite have the hours that I need, but that will come in time. School is full of busy work in my last quarter at UW, but it helps to keep me focused on school rather than law school. Spring training is quickly approaching (THANK GOD!) and the M's seem like they have put together quite a team for next year. I am working out pretty regularly, and am reading "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" by Stephen Covey. My relationships with my family, friends, and girlfriend are all going well. Money is tight, but I'm getting by and it isn't worrying me too much. I'm supposed to be broke in college... right?

All in all I am absolutely ecstatic to have heard from Seattle University. My top choices are still the University of Washington, the University of Colorado, and the University of Arizona so the waiting game is far from being over. However I pray that without having to worry about whether I am going to law school, the wait will be much easier. As I have learned from Stephen Covey, my reaction is my own choice. Much easier to understand than to actually put into practice.