So here I sit once again at my desk, looking out my tiny window at an uncharacteristically nice Oregon day. I actually managed to get ahead in my biochem lab, so I didn’t have to show up today, and since it was my only class today, my weekend has officially begun. So, in the spirit of long weekends, I decided to put pen to paper…so to speak.
It has been almost a year since my last entry, which blows my mind. A lot has happened since I left Arizona, so I’ll try to keep the recounting brief:
1) I made the pilgrimage to San Jose, CA and attended Loopkicks camp 2009. I should have written something while I was there about it but I never had time, the epic good times took precedent over my desire to write.
2) I got my job as a busser at the Lake House back that summer, and due to the new management I actually made out like a bandit. Made some friends, had some laughs, and wore a funny hat in the sun 8 hours a day; not bad for a summer job. It beats the hell out of working produce.
3) I also painted part of a house, and found a couple of real friends in the two homeowners. Not only have they referred me to their neighbor, but they also tried to set me up with their niece. Sadly it didn’t work out, but I made a new friend, which is never a bad thing.
4) My final year of undergrad started at OSU with a bang. It has truly been a challenge this year , having to make up the classes I couldn’t take while I was in Arizona has been a couple tic marks above unbelievable agony and a few below pure hell; don’t get me started on the lab I had to take winter term. I am now halfway through my last term at OSU.
5) And last but not least: Taekwondo progress. When I left Arizona I had just tested for my cammo belt; I am now a blue belt in leadership, helping to teach classes. I have competed at two more tournaments since 2008 nationals, and brought home some bling from each one. My greatest achievement thus far: I am undefeated with my nunchuck form. However, progress will have to wait until my wrist heals; I broke it in December and due to my refusal to stop taekwondo, it still hasn’t healed all the way.
There is so much to say about the events of the previous year, too much in fact for a blog. Instead, I am going to talk about the future, since thinking about it is unavoidable when you are about to graduate college.
Here is what I know for sure: I am going to California to work for E&J Gallo wineries from July to November. I am extremely excited about this; I have always known that while I love chemistry, the last thing I want to do is to actually be a chemist and work in a lab. It’s a dilemma to be sure, but I am confident that I can pull it off. Working for a winery as opposed to a biotech firm or lab somewhere is a great mix of two of my passions: chemistry and food…at least, that’s how I see it. Also, I am thrilled to move back to California, if only temporarily. This means I am closer to most of my close friends that I don’t get to see nearly as often as I’d like. And while my heart still lies in San Francisco, at least now it’s only a 2 hour drive away. That is all I know for certain.
I have no idea what is going to happen with Taekwondo. Since I am no longer a low rank, It is more important for me to stay at once school and have my training facilitated and overseen by the same people, so they can mold me into the blackbelt they want me to be. Eventually, I will need to come back to Corvallis, or at least Oregon in general, in order to test for black belt. And this doesn’t bother me, so long as I have a good reason to be in Oregon besides taekwondo, but since going to UO is my last choice for grad school, it doesn’t look like there will be one. As it stands now, I will test for brown belt when I am in California, and after that I have no idea. It becomes a question of how generous my instructors are willing to be, rather than a question of my desire to continue training.
I have no idea what is going to happen with grad school. The plan right now is to study for the GRE and apply to grad school as I am working for Gallo, and then go to grad school in the fall of 2011. This is where things get grey. An OSU student received got the same internship that I have now with Gallo, and afterwards they offered him a full time job with the company afterward. It’s a B.S. (as in Bachelor of Science, not Bull Shit) level job, but its still a job and he probably makes a lot more than I do as an intern, and since I make 18 an hour that’s saying something. I am not counting on this happening, but it is in the back of my mind, and at the moment I don’t have a plan for if that happens. If I am offered the job and accept the job, what happens to grad school, especially if I have applied already? What happens to working toward my black belt under my current instructor? If I am offered the job and refuse, what happens to my chances of ever working at that company again, even if it is for a reason as good as “I can’t accept the job because I’m going to grad school?” What are the odds that they will offer me a PhD level position once I am available to work? As strange as it is, it might be better for me if they don’t offer me the job, that way I can go to grad school on time, but if they don’t offer me the job does that mean that the door to Gallo has forever closed? It’s a mess, and sadly it’s one that can only be made right by decisions that I need to make in the next year, as opposed to a phone call I can make now.
If you feel the desire to take something away from my ramblings, let it be the following: I’ve got great friends, and I've gotten even closer to them over the last year, I have a paying job wating for me after I graduate, though it is only temporary, I’ve got money in the bank, a roof over my head, food in my stomach, and a sweet pair of nunchucks. But most importantly: I am walking my own path. I am living my life the way I want to, and I like where I’m going. Until next time, take care.
-DK
