Help!

Hey everyone,

This is just a quick appeal for prayer. I was really impressed with Pepperdine when I visited today and need prayer for direction in a school. Both Loyola and Pepperdine are great schools and I have a tough decision ahead of me. Prayer, positive thoughts, and advice are welcome. A decision must be reached in the next 10 days. This could be life altering so support is needed... 

Thanks guys!

Big Changes

Hey all!

I got a job! (Well, sort of.) I put in a resume and filled out all the paperwork to participate in the Legal Network of Orange County, which is a legal temp service in the OC. They took all my info and will be sending jobs my way ASAP. Ideally I'd like a more long-term temp offer, but right now I'm willing to take anything that pays. Still, I'm going to continue to keep my eyes peeled for a full-time position somewhere, but this should do for the time being.

I know what you're all thinking, "Why Orange County?" and, "Where are you going to live?" I decided to temp in Orange County for two main reasons. The first of which is quite logical. Orange County has less traffic, making it easier to temp throughout the county and not in a specific pocket. I wouldn't want to spend more money in gas driving to different places than I'd actually make working there. And then there's the more illogical reason, Jason's there. Don't worry. We both have put a lot of thought into this decision. Ultimately, I like spending time with him. I will be going to law school soon and this will require my full attention. Jason understands this, and together we decided this could work for the summer and allow us to spend time together before I move forward into the "great beyond" known as law school.

I didn't want to jump into this decision without putting a lot of consideration into all the options. I had many conversations with my mom and Jason before coming to a conclusion about how to handle it. As you all know, I'm not one to just jump blindly into decisions, in fact, sometimes I think I may brew over them a bit too much. Jason and I are both mature and future-focused. We both have plans of where we want to be and we are both serious about the relationship. We understand the risks of this move and hope it will only strengthen our relationship. I'm very thankful to Jeleen and her family for allowing me to stay with them through this transitional time. Unfortunately, things didn't go as I expected them to when I moved out here. I guess I figured I'd find a job right away, as usual, and I'd just remain at Jeleen's. However, I found the process to be much more difficult. I applied to many jobs in Burbank with Disney, ESPN, local law firms, local office administration jobs, and prominant PR firms in downtown L.A. Unfortunately, I heard nothing back from well over 50 applications. Orange County doesn't seem to be hit as hard as downtown L.A. in the job department and when things weren't going so well in L.A., I decided to begin searching in Orange County.

I had quite the set up with Jeleen, but I wasn't making any money. I would like to be able to save and purchase a new lap top prior to starting school in August and can't do that without a job. (Not to mention I'm beginning to go stir crazy without having something to work on.) I'm incredibly thankful for the Guttenbergs' hospitality, but at this point I need to set myself up to be in the best position for school. I'd like to work, save, and get to know my classmates. I hope I can still do this by being in Orange County. I also hope this will allow Jason and me to spend time together before I have to change gears and get back into student mode. I'm grateful for all your support and prayers and continue to pray that I'm making the right decision by heading to Orange County. I would prefer to come back to L.A. for classes (if I end up going to Loyola ~ still waiting to hear from UCI). I will have to discuss the options with Jeleen, but am open to whatever comes available. My friend back home, Khalil (who graduates from law school this April), has advised me to get to know my fellow law students and live with a group of them. He lived with his parents at the start and loved saving money and the set-up, but says living with classmates made school and social gatherings much easier. It was difficult to have people over to his parents' home as well as difficult to be motivated to go out and socialize. I've been considering his advice and will have time to stew over all the options this summer. I appreciate Jeleen being here and regardless of what happens in the future, will make it a point to remain in contact and visit when possible. It's so nice to be in a place where you know you have family support, just in case.

Jason will be coming on Sunday to help me move my stuff. I dont want to inconvenience Jeleen by leaving my crap in a bedroom. This will allow Pete to come back if he needs to and still keep their guest room free. This move will be for at least five months and I don't want to infringe on Jeleen's plans in any way by leaving my stuff there for an extended period of time. Jason has room at his place and has even offered to keep unnecessary items at his house after I leave for law school so my room isn't so cluttered. All in all, these past few months have been trying for me and I believe I'm making the best decision for me and my future. (But, as always, I'm open to suggestions.)

In other, less serious news, there has been an update to the Christian the Lion saga. For those of you who aren't avid You-Tubers, Christian was a lion cub who was sold out of a Herrod's Department Store to Ace Bourke and John Rendall in 1969. Rendall and Bourke, along with their girlfriends Jennifer Mary Taylor and Unity Jones, cared for the lion where they lived in London until it was a year old. Christian's increasing size and the increasing cost of his care led Rendall and Bourke to understand they could not keep him in London. When Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna, stars of the film Born Free, visited Rendall and Bourke's furniture shop and met Christian, they suggested that Bourke and Rendall ask the assistance of George Adamson. Adamson, the Kenyan Conservationist, who together with his wife Joy were the center of the movie Born Free, agreed to reintegrate Christian into the wild at his compound in the Kora National Reserve.

Adamson introduced Christian to an older lion, Boy, and subsequently to a female cub Katiana in order to form the nucleus of a new pride. The pride suffered many setbacks: Katiana was possibly devoured by crocodiles at a watering hole; another female was killed by wild lions; and Boy was injured, afterwards losing his ability to socialize with other lions and humans. Unfortunately, Boy was subsequently shot through the heart by Adamson after fatally wounding a man. These events left Christian as the sole surviving member of the original pride. Over the course of a year, as George Adamson continued his work, the pride established itself in the region around Kora, with Christian as the head of the pride started by Boy.

When Rendall and Bourke were informed by Adamson of Christian's successful reintroduction to the wild, they travelled to Kenya to visit Christian and were filmed in the documentary Christian, The Lion at World's End. According to the documentary, Adamson advised Rendall and Bourke that Christian might not remember them. The film shows the lion at first cautiously approach and then quickly leap gently onto the two men, standing on his hind legs and wrapping his front legs around their shoulders, nuzzling their faces. The documentary also shows the female lions, Mona and Lisa, and a foster cub named Supercub welcoming the two men. An internet video of this reunion (edited from the documentary) received worldwide attention more than 30 years after the event. Various news sources have tracked down Rendall and Bourke for their current perspective on the events surrounding their life with Christian.

I think it's a great story of friendship. It just goes to show that you don't have to be the same, or the same species for that matter, to be best of friends. Sometimes some of the most pure relationships are with an animal. Very interesting. Here is a link to their most recent interview: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/26184891/vp/29752467#29752467

I especially like the "food for thought" at the end of this little YouTube clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SnJzurn9VQ

"For many years Ace and John waited for news of Christian. They like to imagine him establishing a territory of his own. But they never heard news from Christian again. Africa's lion population has declined 2/3 since Christian's time. If everyone who has been touched by Christian's story came together to address wildlife issues, what could we acheive in his spirit?" Wouldn't it be nice if we could put aside our differences and squabbles and worked for the betterment of not only the animal kingdom, but of humanity? I think it's so easy for us to unite over animal issues because we see them as pure, and innocent, yet sentient beings. Perhaps in saving the animals, we can work to save ourselves...

Good with the Bad

Well, it's time for another update. Unfortunately this one isn't as uplifting as past posts.

I heard back from the bird job. There was an initial requirement for the job which stated that the applicants needed a degree in a scientific field to be qualified. Adam said with my experience on the island and assisting on research projects that it shouldn't be a problem and I should apply anyway. Sadly, that's not the case. In order to override the schooling requirement I need at least three years experience working in the field. The project leader said he would've hired me, but the Forest Services Human Resources Department can't give him clearance to do so if I don't match the requirements. So... as of now it looks like I will not be returning to the island this summer, which makes me really really sad. J Pod just had another new baby, J45. This means there are three little ones I need to meet! The Center for Whale Research Reported the following news on March 3:

Photograph by Ken Balcomb, Senior Scientist, Center for Whale Research

Newest calf J45 with its mother J14 (foreground), J1 (large male in background), and J30 (teenage male behind J14)

Ken Balcomb, Dave Ellifrit and John Durban encountered J pod just before sunset in Haro Strait traveling Northwest. We confirmed that the new baby J44 was still doing well with its presumed mother, J17; and, we documented another new calf J45 with its presumed mother J14 (foreground in the above photo). This is quite exciting to have two new calves in J pod within a month. Thanks to Jeanne Hyde for first noticing the newest calf on 28 February, and letting us know J pod was back in the area on 3 March.

Once again, for those of you unfamiliar with the family structure in J Pod, J17 (Princess Angeline) is the mother of J28 (Polaris). As of now, the team is reporting J17 as the most likely mother of new baby J44... meaning J28 most likely has a new sibling. This is the third known calf for J17. She currently has two daughters, J28 - the eldest at age 16, and J35 (Tahlequah) - age 11. The other female, J14 (Samish) is the granddaughter of the matriarch of J Pod, J2 (Granny). J2 is currently estimated to be the oldest member of the Southern Resident Community at 98 years old. Her family group includes the ever-famous J1 (Ruffles) who is my dad's favorite and the first orca I saw in the wild. This new baby is Granny's fourth living great-grandcalf. J14 had a baby in the fall of 2007 (J43). This calf did not survive long and she must have gotten pregnant shortly thereafter because their gestation is 16-17 months. J14 currently has three living claves, aside from the new baby, they are J30 (Riptide - a large 14 year old male), J37 (Hy'shqa - an 8 year old female), and J40 (Suttles - a 5 year old female). Hopefully this new baby makes it through the summer. Its birth has better timing in the year because the summer months tend to provide more food for the animals. This means J44 and J45 will be older claves during the winter, increasing their likelihood for survival.

I'm pretty bummed that it looks like I may not see them this year. I love these guys, as you all know, and am really gonna miss experiencing their lives over the summer. They've had a pretty profound impact on me and I hope one day I can give a little back to them...

I've decided with my mom that if I don't get a job in California by mid-April that I will return home for the summer and try to work with the Downtown Partnership again. I wouldn't mind being home to spend time with family before I head off to law school and of course it'd be nice to see Mikey's sports. If I leave in April, I will return in mid-July to begin preparing for law school and hopefully meeting members of my class. Not all is lost, but I'm still bumming over the bird job. I was pretty excited to go back to San Juan. I hope it won't be too long before I return again to a place I now refer to as "my second home with the whales."

Jai Ho ~ May Victory Be Yours

"I found a way to be everything I've dreamed of. And I know it's in me that I will become who I want to be. And I finially found it and I'm taking the long way out 'cause it's going to be, something special to me something special to me. Days go by and I grow stronger it takes time, but I'll never let go. Days go by and I'll try harder to make it mine, I know... it's something special to me. Something special to me. Something special to me..." Colbie Caillat, lyrics from the 2008 Olympic song Something Special

There's gonna be lots of news in this post so here it goes:

First of all I got in to Lewis & Clark... finally! I was beginning to wonder what in the heck happened there. Unfortunately, they did not offer me a scholarship as I had hoped. This means that so far I'm four for four (that's kinda funny to say). I am still waiting on UCLA and UCI ~ just as expected. So what is my front runner in the moment you ask? Although Southwestern gave me a scholarship, it is not a full ride and would still be a major investment. It definitely is not a major player in SoCal law and I wouldn't have as many opportunities upon graduation as the other schools who accepted me. Lewis and Clark, although a great school, is also not a player in any way in SoCal law. I see myself staying in the area for a while and therefore want to attend a school who's reputation will help me get good interviews out of school. As I have learned, connections are everything especially in an unreliable economy. I don't want to sell myself short from the get-go by selecting the wrong school. Pepperdine is currently the highest ranked school of those who have accepted me. However, it is more expensive than Loyola and housing would be much more difficult. Despite its higher ranking, the big firms in the area prefer Loyola grads to Pepperdine alums. So I think you all can tell where my interests are currently pointing toward:

Loyola law has the largest alumni base in the Los Angeles area than any other school in SoCal. They have a high bar passage rate and the 5th highest ranked professors of any law school in the nation. (This ranking is by students and rates the professors' accessibility and interest in student welfare.) Today I attended a "Meet and Greet" hosted by Loyola Law Admissions for admitted students. There was a group of 10 who attended (there were many possible dates to come so students were spread out for more one on one attention). Despite a small turnout, I met a group of five girls who were very easy to talk to and all came from diverse backgrounds. Our personalities seemed to mesh well from the start so we took each others' emails and hope to remain in contact throughout our decision process. I was extremely impressed with not only the prospective students who came, but the staff as well as current students. Because I've been accepted there, I took more interest in the classes offered as well as the student organizations I could participate in. I'm excited to look into the following groups and orgs: The Student Bar Association (the law school equivalent of student government), Women Law Association, Christian Legal Society, Environmental Law Society, and the Loyola Law Organization of Young Student Republicans (sorry grandma but it looks interesting). I am also interested in participating in academic organizations like Law Review and Moot Court (the mock trial team). As you can clearly see, there are many opportunities to get involved and I'm excited to try some out - but remembering not to spread myself too thin. Law Review is pretty much a must because it really beefs up a resume upon graduation. Law firms are beginning to expect it in their applicants. However, I love debate and mock trials, so I may have to dabble in that a bit as well. I guess I just have so many interests it's hard to choose what I want to do just yet. Please check out the list and description of student/academic orgs at the following link: http://intranet.lls.edu/studentaffairs/groups/.

I am also very interested in Loyola's study abroad program. They offer trips to Italy, London, China, and Costa Rica. I'm most interested in the trip to Costa Rica (http://www.lls.edu/programs/costa/). This trip allows students to receive credit for taking two courses in Ciudad Colon and learn about International Environmental Law, International Protection of Human Rights, and World Legal Systems. The program lasts three weeks and students are encouraged to take advantage of the study abroad program the summer after their first year. (The second summer is for internships.) I'm pretty pumped about what Loyola has to offer as well as the people I've met so far who are associated with the school.

Decisions, decisions: I must make my decision for Southwestern first. My deposit check is due April first. Lewis & Clark and Pepperdine both want the deposit check by April 15 and Loyola needs to know by April 30th. So I do have some time to decide, but I'm anxiously awaiting a response from UCI. I'm pretty much over UCLA at this point. I still haven't heard anything from them regarding visits or a time frame for admissions to get back with me. The current Loyola student who gave us the tour today also applied to UCLA and they wait listed her until she already began school at Loyola. They were expecting her to transfer after school already began! I think the atmosphere, professors, and offerings at Loyola are more suited for me than the other schools.

So to answer the looming question on everyone's minds: As of now I will be attending Loyola Law School this fall. The only school that could compete for me would be UCI. (This response is subject to change... but that is extremely unlikely.) Please continue to keep me and my decision in your prayers.

In other news, I have been asked to help work with the American Cetacean Society, on a volunteer basis. I am in contact with the president of the LA and Puget Sound Chapters and hopefully will be working on a program that goes into the local school systems to teach students about conservation, our oceans, and of course whales. I am still waiting to hear from the bird job, which should be soon. I also have some feelers out (thanks to my dad) at a local firm for a possible job there. So in essence, things are looking up.

Jason and I had another great weekend - nobody got sick, which is a positive. We celebrated his brother's 20th bday and his dad's 55th (don't tell that I told you) at Jason's grandma's house. (A side note ~ Jason's grandma is from Germany and they call her omi {pronounced oh-mee}.) Omi made a traditional German dish of green beans, mashed potatoes and gravy, spaetzle (like a noodley dumpling), and rouladen. The only way to describe rouladen is like meat in the shape of a potato that has been placed around a hard-boiled egg. It sounds kind of gross in writing, but it was actually quite good. Jason wants me to learn how to make German food, but for now I will leave that task to the expert, which is and will always be omi. He will just have to enjoy mac & cheese, chicken parm, and taco lasagna until then. hahaha. We also went to see Slumdog Millionaire. We both absolutely loved the movie and Jason thinks it's his new fav. It was such a touching story and made me want to:

A. adopt a kid from India http://www.awardsdaily.com/?p=7909

B. dance like they did in the credits

C. cry over human rights issues

D. ALL OF THE ABOVE

Poor Jason had to deal with me dancing like a Bollywood actress the whole way home shouting "Jai Ho!" For some reason I thought the lyrics to the song included the phrase mele kalikimaka, so I added that to the mix. Unfortunately, Jason informed me that is a Christmas song in Hawaiian. I knew I'd heard it from somewhere. Either way I youtubed the video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nOVggxZPL0) of the credits so I could practice my Indian dance moves and I, of course, made poor embarrassed Jason join in. If we could have been filmed (like Jo's crazy dancing) it prolly would have been pretty hysterical. I will continue to practice these moves so I can use them in a bar with Jason... who says he will pretend not to know me. Oh well. It was fun while it lasted.

Hope all is well with everyone else. I look forward to hearing from UCI soon and making a decision. Love ya!

xoxoxoxo

Give Thanks for the Little Things

"God gives everybody a challenge. My challenge is just being little and loving myself." ~ Taylor Marcello

I'm currently watching the show World's Smallest Children: My Shocking Story. The show profiles Taylor Marcello, a 13 year old primordial dwarf from Rhode Island. Taylor is 2 feet 9 inches tall and weighs just 17 pounds at a time in her life when body image is becoming paramount and being “different” is her biggest nightmare. How many toddler-sized girls do you know who are going through puberty and worrying about the opposite sex? Socially, she is becoming more aware – and dealing with the early adult world. She is at a normal school, hanging out with kids of normal size, going to the mall and the school dance, and trying to be an average kid.

The moment that really struck me was when they interviewed Taylor about her mother and she said, "I love my mom so much because she loves me. She could've given me away or not had me because most people don't want a person like me." I couldn't help by start to cry thinking about her situation. Then they cut to the mom who said, "The thing that is the most painful for me is when she says, 'Mom I don't want to be little anymore. I just wish I was normal.' As a mother you just want to take your child's pain away and sometimes I can't help but feel it's my fault. I just want what's best for her, you know?"

I guess, although at times depressing, the show was a pretty fresh slice of life. We complain about the weather, the waiter who is too slow to get our drink, the job offers that don't come in, and how we need a new outfit or toy. Taylor has trouble simply reaching food on the counter, breathing, walking, and standing up straight. Beyond that she has trouble making friends. She has to have an aid walk her to her classes after all the other kids are already there so she won't be stepped on. She gets incredibly frustrated shopping because all her clothes come from the toddler section, which very isn't stylish for high school. When she was a baby, her mother had to buy her clothes from a doll shop!

This show was a "bold fresh piece of humanity" because it put life in perspective. At least our tough times go away...

My favorite part of the show was where they showed a 4 year old primordial dwarf in Canada named Tyler. His parents want to give him a "normal" childhood and so try to take him to events his size. His favorite is to go ride the miniature horses at a local stable. They set up little bridges and poles for him to ride the horse over. The father began to cry when interviewed about it and said, "Watching him with the small horses made him look like any other kid because everything was his size."

I guess I just wanted to share this show with you because I was such a mess over it. It was so adorable and touching. Taylor's dream is to meet Vin Diesel and become a famous chef. I guess sometimes we need a little jolt to make us realize how blessed we are. I have a lot to be thankful for and I hope to use my blessings to help other people. I want to make it count. So here's to making it count...

Down to Earth

I guess I'm just a posting machine... speaking of machines:

"Hey there, autopilots. Got some bad news. Um... Operation Cleanup has, well uh, failed. Wouldn't you know, rising toxicity levels have made life unsustainable on Earth."

Jason and I watched Wall-E (Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class) the other day and it was absolutely adorable. The message was beautiful and in ways a cautionary tale. I was touched by the themes of love, conservation, personal hygiene, and hope. The director, Andrew Stanton described the message perfectly when he said the moral of the film was that, "Irrational love defeats life's programming. That's a perfect metaphor for real life. We all fall into our habits, our routines and our ruts, consciously or unconsciously to avoid living. To avoid having to do the messy part. To avoid having relationships with other people, of dealing with the person next to us. That's why we can all get on our cell phones and not have to deal with one another."

I don't know if you guys have seen the movie, but it's a keeper. It will have to be one of my first purchases once I get a paying job. The closing song from the movie was nominated for an Academy Award the other night, and although it didn't win, I love the lyrics:

Down to Earth

Peter Gabriel

Did you think that your feet had been bound

By what gravity brings to the ground?

Did you feel you were tricked

By the future you picked?

Well come on down

All these rules don't apply

When you're high in the sky

So come on down

Come on down

We're coming down to the ground

There's no better place to go

We've got snow upon the mountains

We've got rivers down below

We're coming down to the ground

To hear the birds sing in the trees

And the land will be looked after

We send the seeds out on the breeze

Did you think you'd escaped from routine

By changing the script and the scene?

Despite all you made of it

you're always afraid of the change
You've got a lot on your chest

Well you can come as my guest

So come on down

Come on down

We're coming down to the ground

There's no better place to go

We've got snow upon the mountains

We've got rivers down below

We're coming down to the ground

We'll hear the birds sing in the trees

And the land will be looked after

We send the seeds out on the breeze

Like the fish in the ocean

We felt at home in the sea

We learned to live off the good land

We learned to climb up a tree

then we got up on two legs

But we wanted to fly

When we messed up our homeland

and set sail for the sky

We're coming down to the ground

There's no better place to go

We've got snow upon the mountains

We got rivers down below

We're coming down to the ground

We'll hear the birds sing in the trees

And the land will be looked after

We send the seeds out on the breeze

We're coming down

Comin' down to earth

Like babies at birth

Comin' down to earth
Redefine your priorities

These are extraordinary qualities

We're coming down to the ground

There's no better place to go

We've got snow upon the mountains

We've got rivers down below

We're coming down to the ground

We'll hear the birds sing in the trees

And the land will be looked after

We send the seeds out on the breeze...

You can check out the song at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWzNJOfLVJ4

Putting the Conserve back into Conservative

"The old Lakota was wise. He knew that man's heart away from nature becomes hard; he knew that lack of respect for growing, living things soon led to lack of respect for humans too."

~ Chief Luther Standing Bear ~

Today was a pretty exciting day. You're all aware of my troubles finding a job and I think I may have found one...

This morning I contacted Bernardo Alps of the American Cetacean Society's Los Angeles Branch (http://www.acsonline.org/) about the possibility of working in their Education/Conservation department. I'm thrilled about this opportunity and should hear back about what they would like me to do by Thursday. I'm unsure if this is a paid position, but that really doesn't matter to me at this point. I love the mission of the ACS and believe I can help them make a difference. I'm extremely passionate about conservation and want to help dispel the rumor that conservation and eco-friendly practices are anti-capitalistic. Bradley Millar once said, "Teaching a child not to step on a caterpillar is as valuable to the child as it is to the caterpillar." I believe we can save the planet by fostering a sense of concern for the environment among children. We can work together to build a better and brighter tomorrow, today. The HQ is located in San Pedro, near Long Beach, but I would be able to do a lot of the work online and in local classrooms. I could even hold this position while working in San Juan and attending law school. This would be an incredible opportunity to test my wings, make a difference, and establish connections that will be valuable to my future in law. I can't wait to hear what I'll be doing and I can't wait to start. Bernardo will be going to Mexico to hang out with the Gray Whales in their birthing lagoons for a week and says he wants to get back with me ASAP because he doesn't, "want a good person like [me] to get away." What an uplifting way to start the day!

In other good news, I met with the financial aid director at UCI today because I was concerned with a letter that was sent out last week. According to said letter, my FAFSA didn't match up with my records at UCI and the admissions process couldn't continue until I straightened out. Of course I freaked out with the application deadline being this Sunday and the FAFSA being March 2. I decided to go into the law school and speak with the director face to face. She was incredibly personable and easy to talk to. She's from Ohio, a fellow midwesterner, and enjoys Irvine for its small-town feel with big city attractions. She said there's no problem with my application, it's just that the school sends those letters out automatically to people who haven't attended the school yet. Because I've never been a part of the UC System, I don't have a record with them to match my FAFSA to. It's nothing to worry about and I should receive a decision soon. She talked to me about my interest in law and I briefly told her about my environmental leanings and experience with the killer whales. She thought it was really cool and that'd I'd succeed in law school wherever I go ~ which is a nice pick-me-up. At the end of our meeting she asked for my name again and said, "Megan, I'll have to remember that one." I hope this is a good sign.

Keep praying that the right schools accept me and that I end up where I'm meant to be and can make the greatest difference. I should hear on the ACS, the bird job, and schools soon. Everything's falling into place, just like you all said it would. Once again, I appreciate your support. I wouldn't be here without all of you!

xoxo

"Non-violence leads to the highest ethics, which is the goal of all evolution. Until we stop harming all other living beings, we are still savages."

~ Thomas A. Edison ~