Minutes in a Day

Are we sure that every day is really comprised on 24 hours? I want PROOF because honestly, you could have fooled me about the amount of time that we are given every day. My mom always says that we have just as much time as the President of the United States. However, I feel that it is easy as we move through our week to forget this common fact that time is there for all of us to use and not just something that is given to select people in abundance and withheld from others. The question is what are you going to do with the time you have been given?

I started blogging when I was living in Santiago, Chile. Every day I was experiencing new things and I felt like if I didn't write it down and share it with others--especially those still in the US--my head would explode...or less dramatically...I would forget those experiences in the blur of that kaleidoscopic passage of time. Now that I am back in the US in lovely Santa Barbara, I realize that I have been severely (s)lacking on my blog entries.

I have mixed feelings about this. First, something tells me that the internet is too open of a forum to post entries that may have personal thoughts and emotions in them. THIS is not really a good excuse because honestly, the hard part would be getting strangers to read these blogs. They are really for my friends and family...the select few who do make their way to this page from time to time. Also, I tell myself that I am just too busy with everything else to write it all down. But don't we ALL say that we are just too busy? I, for one, love being busy. I fill my days as much as possible and push myself from morning to night to get all that I can accomplished DONE! I don't think that the human being thrives under conditions that promote laziness and a lack of busyness. That is my honest opinion.

I HAVE started to make better priorities in my post-college, work-filled life. One of those was getting to the gym in the morning before the hecticness of the day sets in. This has proven to be an awesome decision that has improved my mood and energy level all day AND let me enjoy quiet time in the evenings where I can do other things besides bemoan the need to walk to the gym and get my cardio done. Of course, I still have things that I need to prioritize into my day-to-day routine. Of course, keeping up with this blog would be one of those. It is not so much that I feel I HAVE to be blogging but more so that I experience so many things that would inspire others on a day-to-day basic that I feel there would be power in sharing those things in an open forum such as this.

So if you are reading this, you are awesome and I appreciate your continued support. I would not trade this time in my life for anything. It is pretty amazing being a 22 year old college graduate living in SB and experiencing all that is the post-college life. My views of others have changed dramatically as I surround myself with more and more interesting, diverse people. I absorb their stories and hear their life experiences and share in their trials, and in the end of it all, I realize time and again that WE ARE ALL HUMAN.

We are all going to hit hard patches. No one has it all figured out. We choose different paths and different professions. Some of us have children. Some of us are single and happy. Some of us fall in and out of love. Some of us are Christians. Some of us are high schoolers in need to guidance. We all have SUCH diverse perspectives on life that have been shaped by the different life experiences we have endured/enjoyed....and yet we all manage to interact. I could have a 20 minute conversation with the lady at the physical therapy clinic about who-knows-what.....and all the while it is irrelevant that I am 22 and she is 40, I am chronically single and she was married for 8 years to a man who recently passed away from health complications, I lived in Chile for 6 months but she was born and raised in the Phillipines for the majority of her life, she had shoulder surgery and I have never had surgery. The list goes on and on.

As I enjoy the working life and find that in both of my jobs I am surrounded by doctors, that is also a great learning moment for me. We see doctors in a certain way...I think a good way to categorize that view would be: praise-worthy, intimidating, and basically all that goes along with having such a superior profession. But that is something I have totally had to get over fast because there doctors are now friends. My office mate Katya is going to be practicing in two years after she serves her residency and she is brilliant...but we are just friends. She is just human. I know it sounds funny but it is true that I had to overcome those preconceived notions that I held about people with such demanding and intimidating professions.

Even the physical therapists that I work with are some of the nicest guys that you would ever meet. They work 10 hours days around people EVERY DAY. They are kind and patient and complete professionals. And they still are able to make jokes and have joy about their job and take on new cases every day. At the end of the day, they are also still able to say: "Thanks for your help today. We wouldn't be able to do what we do without the help of the aides so thanks a lot." And they are still able to go home to their loved ones and just enjoy a nice dinner and relish in the joys of family. I am seeing that most of what we have to overcome in life is our own personal struggles with issues. We have to overcome our own thoughts more often than not...thoughts that lead us into dangerous thoughts that influence us in negative ways. And in my experience, I have had thoughts about professions like those in medicine that these people are different than others....more "bad ass" and "daring'" to put in colloquially. Basically I have thought that they are doing something that I would "never be able to do".

But it is so NOT about that at all. Anyone can do anything. They just have to WANT it and not take no for an answer and work REALLY hard to get to that place. This is reassuring to know when it comes to physical therapy because for the past two years as I have struggled with choosing this profession, I have thought that is was just too elevated for me and that for some reason I could not make it through the hard work that would be required to get there. But that is not true. All of the doctors that I am surrounded with all go there...and you know how they did it? Step by step. They slowly and consistently worked towards their current profession, not thinking about the long term as much as they were thinking about the day-to-day: "Take that anatomy course. Get through that crazy internship. Gosh this day was hard at the hospital. Pass those hard exams." And little by little they got there.

So that is my wisdom for the day. Now I am going to get ready and head to the office to do some stuff for Ready2Move....which is going really well by the way...because that is what I am dedicating my energy to and because I love those students. I do not know what profession I will choose to purchase when I finally take on the challenge of grad school, but hopefully as you can conclude from this blog, that is not the most important decision in my life right now. It is about getting through THIS day and all of the priorities that I have set and remembering to smile and to let change happen because there is still going to be a constant in my life and that constant is God. Thanks for reading!! :-)

Never the Same?

Do you ever wish that things could simply stay the same? (Read Revelation 1:1-8)

An ancient Greek philosopher said, "There is nothing permanent except change." But amidst the changes of life, if you listen very carefully, you can hear the voice of God speaking comfort to your soul: "[I am] the same yesterday and today and forever" [Hebrews 13:8).

Though our friends may change, though our job situations may be in flux, though our parents may have failing health, though circumstances may be unsettled, we can trust in the truth that our everlasting God never changes.

John's final book in the Bible, Revelation, tells of the changes that lie ahead. But John is quick to remind us that we have one constant in our lives: god. He is, and he was, and he is to come. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. He bookends time. He is able to provide stability amidst the transitions of life.

If your legs feel unsteady because of the changes you face, look to God. He started everything, and he will finish what he started. His character never changes, his love never fails and his power never wanes. Yes, it's good to know that some things never change.

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"In a threatened world, in the kaleidoscope whirl of our life patterns, it can be enormously reassuring to remind ourselves that God is unchanging." --Gini Andrews

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For more guidance on this topic, you can also check out my friend Queenie's blog that is directly towards teenage girls who are struggling with their physical, mental, social and/or spiritual health. It is full of blogs about topics of all types! I found this one particularly pertinent to the topic of how life is always changing but God is our constant. It is about forgiving others so that we ourselves can move on with our lives and cast off the negative energy. Here's the link: http://queenielongley.blogspot.com/2010/11/more-on-forgiveness.html

Staying Healthy in Santa Barbara

Hey everyone! My last update was the newsletter than I sent out through email. I wanted to thank everyone for their comments about that because it made me happy to know that you all enjoyed reading it. I can't take credit for the design because it was a template on my new Mac Book Pro. I just filled in the blanks. But they sure do have some fun templates to choose from! :-) This update is full of pictures that I wanted to share with everyone. It has been a busy October so far, but every day brings new experiences, new challenges, and new reasons to smile. So check out this photo blog and thanks for taking the time to read through this. Hugs, Rose

As project coordinator at Sansum, I run the Ready2Move teen health group at Santa Barbara High School. We meet Tuesdays and Thursdays after-school, and we just finished week 5 of our 8 week fall challenge. I have 10 students thus far and they are so much fun to work with. Can't wait to see all that this school year will bring. The picture below is after one of last week's meetings when we made a Rainbow Salad together (romaine/spinach base with tomatoes, orange bell pepper, yellow squash, avocado, blueberries, and red onion--which is actually purple). Once we had cleaned everything up, I found that one of my students had made me a paper rose and left it on the desk for me. How nice. :-)

This is Jillian who helps me out on Thursdays with the teen group. She is great with the kids and I am really lucky to have her help. I helped Teri out with the group for about 6 months before I became project coordinator so it is cool to have a "me" helping me out now that I am running the group.

Melody, Kassy, and Fatima cutting up their portion of vegetables to add to the Rainbow Salad

Tobby and Jess hard at work to get their veggies cut up too!

These are two of my freshman members whose names are Jose Garcia...and Jose Garcia. They are so funny and they are always the first students to arrive after school. Hopefully you can see how goofy they are just from this picture. The Jose on the right was crying over the red onions he was cutting, but still managed a smile! :-)

Dad came to visit me on Thursday night and took me out to a great dinner at the Sojourner Cafe in Santa Barbara. He was coming down the coast after a vacation in Yosemite! Us vegetarians had so much fun choosing our dishes at the cafe because it has vegetarian and vegans dishes galore! We ended the night by walking State Street, telling funny stories, exploring Borders, and admiring the courthouse (as you can see below). Thanks for being such a supportive and loving dad to me, Dad! Love you so much.

A nice copa de vino...the Cabernet Sauvignon to be more specific...at the Sojourner Cafe! Nice choice, Dad. And now we know that those flowers on the menu apparently mean nothing. lol

Dad with his copa de vino, his Gingered Tofu Wonton Pillows (yum!),

and the beautiful Santa Barbara view at dusk!

Another one of my cooking adventures...this time it was the Salmon en Croute. The term "en croute" describes food that is wrapped up in pastry and baked. I used Trader Joe's whole wheat pizza dough for the recipe and it turned out great. If you want the recipe, just let me know and I can send it to you to try. Check out the evolution of this dish through my pictures so you can see how EASY it was to prepare this beautiful and healthy dish.

Salmon filet on pizza dough with cropped olives, tomatoes, soy cheese, and olive oil

I used the rest of the dough to make a healthy pizza topped with mushrooms & bell peppers

My first time painting egg onto a dish...it was fun!!

Always take a photo of yourself in the kitchen after prepping your dish! You can think of it as an evidence shot in case you need it...but I think about it more as a tool for encouraging others to get back to the kitchen and rediscover how to cook simple, affordable, nutritious dishes.

Taking my creation out of the oven after about 40 mins...

Such an action shot!! haha kidding...but isn't it pretty!?! It tasted as good as it looks!

Close up! :-)

Fresh from the oven

Those are the pictures that I wanted to share with you all. I am looking forward to the next coming weeks because there are a lot of exciting events coming up. This week will be a busy one with both of my jobs: one at Sansum and one at the PT clinic. Also, I am meeting with a woman from Santa Ynez who has been in the fitness industry for over 30 years! She spends her time and energy also running a program for at-risk teenage girls, teaching them about the importance of their physical health as well as their emotional health. She sounds like an amazing person and I am so excited to talk with her about her work with teenagers to get ideas for my own teen group. Then my best friend Megan will be in town hanging out with me for Wednesday and Thursday and she is going to give a presentation to my students about outdoor adventures and her hiking experiences and what not. On Thursdays I have my Spanish conversation group that she is going to join me for. And then on Saturday, Healthy Family Home (at the YMCA) has its 5th program meeting which I always look forward to. I did a presentation at this past Healthy Family Home meeting and the director told me that it was "amazing". He also said that "good teaching is more natural than nurtured". Basically, he told me what people have been telling me more and more these days...that I have a gift for teaching others and that my presentations are always effective, engaging, entertaining, and educational. Well...I love teaching. And I love hearing the positive feedback so it is a win-win. OK that is my life update. I love you all and I will be in touch again soon! Love, Rose

A Life To Be Celebrated

Hey Everyone! So I was crossing the street today after having coffee with an old friend, and while walking across the crosswalk, a huge red truck turned left across the intersection and right into my crosswalk. For some reason, I was looking up and was alert enough to realize at the last minute that she was not going to stop before turning left. And I was lucky enough to jump out of the way of her truck in time. It was a very scary yet eye-opening experience. And it made me realize how lucky I am in my life because it can happen THAT fast. If one thing that been different in the situation, who knows? So I wanted to make this photo blog entry to show all of the important people in my life how much they mean to me. I have been so lucky and blessed in my life...especially in these past four months after returning from my study abroad experience. I have never felt so loved and surrounded by friends and family than in these past four months! I hope that this blog post helps to convey that to all of my loyal readers! Much love, Rosey


I got back from Chile in January and got to spend just a week with my family before having to move up to Santa Barbara and start classes for winter term! Talk about a short recovery time!!

Then it was back to life in Santa Barbara which...let's be honest...isn't TOO hard to re-adapt to since 1) it is paradise on earth and 2) I had been living here for the past three years before my experience in Chile. As you can see in this picture, it is a quite bucolic little piece of earth.
My first visit up in SB was my mama who came up for a night with the author of a great book called Enrique's Journey. We both read it and then got to see the author give a talk about it. Such a fun night...and I'll never forget sipping our yummy Chai Tea Lattes with you and walking around my campus before the big show, Mama! :)

Then I was graced by the presence of my best friend Ashley! We got to celebrate her golden birthday today which coincidentally was her 21st birthday! It was a big night that needed to be celebrated in style so as you can see, we really had a good time....



Illegal fountain swimming. Only recommended if it is 3 in the morning and your best friend's 21st birthday. Plus we felt like reliving the scene in Under the Tuscan Sun...haha


I also got a visit from my Lee Lee who stayed with me for the Valentines Day weekend! We made yummy meals, took hikes, went to my favorite cycling class together, chit-chatted, and just had such a great time. But what's new, Lee Lee? We always have a good time, my little gata'. (Meg, don't get jealous...you are my gata' too. You know how I have those words that I associate with love so I use it on all the people that I love. Ex. hijita haha)


THEN Will and Caitlin paid me a visit! It was great to see them up in Santa Barbara...especially because they will be moving to Portland at the beginning of summer. So every minute I get to spend time with them is time to be cherished. Thanks for the fun visit guys!! :)


After successfully finishing classes for winter term, I headed home to San Diego for Spring Break. During that 10 day vacation, I was able to do some soul searching, take some long runs to keep on track for my half-marathon training program, and also see two friends that I made while I was over in Chile whom I found so much support in. I hung out with Gary who goes to UCSD and who was my neighbor and dear friend while I was living with Maggie in La Reina all those months. I also got to see Karen who met me for the first time limping home from my first day of classes at the Universidad de Chile with my booted cast and an unhappy look on my face. We become immediate friends and she has been a huge support for me since the day we met.

Fun times with Mama in Walmart! hehe My mama was able to finally print out her best photography shots. She was many breathtaking shots that are worthy of contests if you ask me. Keep shooting, Mama! PS: I finally bought some of these inserts and I love them!

Karen and I in Carlsbad after getting lunch at the harbor and talking for hours. Karen is easily one of the smartest and eloquently stated people I have ever met in my life. That girl knows everything about everything and can say it in such a pretty way...she is just really cool. haha I am lucky to know her and be able to sit at the harbor with her and drink Margaritas and talk about life. :)

Then Leigh Anne and I hit the road for Moreno Valley to spend time with our Dad at his work. We got to see him give a presentation on a very complicated unmanned aircraft used in the war called the MQ-1 Predator. Our dad is an expert on this aircraft and he spoke in front of a full room of people and then gave a tour. He invited Leigh Anne and I to the meeting to act as translators and basically Public Relations Peoples because the presentation was for...get this...the Mexican Air Force! haha So I got to translate questions they asked me during the tour to my dad and then we would give the answer and I would relay it back to the Mexican officer. After the tour, we got to see our dad teach his students at March Air Reserve Base about a simulation test they would be doing that day. All of the acronyms and jargon was foreign to me, but it made it that much cooler to be able to see my dad in action. You are so cool, Dad! Thanks for such a fun experience! Not many girls can say they were translators for a USAF MQ-1 Predator presentation for the Mexican Air Force at March ARB. :)

Oh and when we got to Dad's house late the night before the big presentation, of course Dad had the whole house set up for us with a warm dinner, dessert, and even the DVD player opened up for us! I know, I know...we are some lucky daughters!!

THANKS AGAIN, DAD!!!

Continuing, I got back to Santa Barbara after my relaxing Spring Break and started classes for my final term at UCSB. My classes aren't too challenging, so I was able to leave my first weekend back to join Leigh Anne for a wedding in Phelan. We drove back to our hometown and got to see old friends and make new memories. The coolest thing is that we have pictures because we had both forgotten our digital cameras...dun dun dun...so we bought disposable wind-up cameras and it ended up being so much fun to use those little things! Here's the pictures to prove it:

Ever so studious Rose....

Serious model behavior at the Travelodge.

Nothing comes between sisters...well sometimes a random
hotel post might....but that's beside the point.

I also got to see Shauna and her Grandma Nancy who is as healthy as ever! Both of those ladies are fighters and such great people to be around! :)

Shauna just found out that she not only got hired at the job she applied for but also got officially accepted into the DUAL Masters Program at her Cal Baptist University. I am SO proud of all that she has been able to accomplish in her life!! You go girl!

So the epic Phelan odyssey was a total success and now I am back in Santa Barbara enjoying my last term. I am spending lots of time with friends and trying to plan things out for graduation, the coming summer and, equally important, the coming year! I plan on staying in SB and take all of the prerequisite classes so that I can apply for the Physical Therapy Doctorate Program in like a year or two. That's the plan for now. And the fact that I can even have that as a goal is due in large part to two people: 1) My father for his amazing contribution of his Veterans Association benefits. Dad, that money has influenced my future plans drastically and made it possible to reach for the stars. Thank you so much. and...2) My mother for her constant positive reenforcement of all of my dreams and hopes. She is one of the most positive and true people I have ever known and I find myself constantly checking in with myself to make sure that I am living by her example. As I become more of an adult every day, I see what great role models both of my parents were, are, and will be for the rest of my life. And that is no secret because every single one of my siblings as well as myself are some of the most trust-worthy, polite, dependable, respectful, intelligent, funny, and down-to-earth people you will ever meet.

Thank you for raising us all so well, Mom and Dad. Thank you for our sound morals, innate politeness, acute consciousness, and of course...our amazingly good looks! hehe We are lucky kids and as I said at the beginning of this blog entry, I am an especially lucky girl...something that I have always known but, after my experience with the truck, I have never been more than today. Thanks for reading this entry and I love you all! CHAO!! --Rosey

Back in a familiar neck of the woods

I started my day by going to my CPR class, but then I drove out to Goleta to meet someone for coffee. The trip, while seemingly simple, was quite eye opening. By being in Goleta, I am always overcome by all the memories from last year...before I had gone to Chile, after my crazy sophomore year, and while I was loving life living with my sister. I will never be able to walk into Costco, Albertsons, or even the laundry place without thinking of last year and how memorable it was. Gosh, I am just so thankful for all of those amazing memories.

But now time has passed. I have been to Chile and back again. I know more about the world. I know more about myself. I have new memories that are layered on top of the old ones and even though I am back in Santa Barbara, I am living a totally different live. I am downtown...without my sister...in new classes...close to graduation...etc etc etc. Life is funny like that. Even though I feel so different inside, I am, at the same time, the same person that I have always been. I think that I have been a little too hard on myself these past three months that I have been back. This is for many different reasons, which I will not go into detail about. But I have to keep reminding myself that after all the changes that I have been through...all the times that I have had to adapt to my surroundings no matter how difficult it was...I am always there to support my inner self. I have to always be strong to support myself because in the end, it is us against this world.

The last thing that I want to add is that I have come to the realization that thinking too much can easily breed sadness. Sometimes it helps to just not think too much...to not beat ourselves up about every little thing...to just veg out from time to time. I have to remember that. OK well the nostalgic smell of coffee beans mixed with smooth jazz has successfully overwhelmed me. Thus I shall retire with a nice cup of tea while I await my friend. My new friend. One amongst the many that I have already made within these three months of being back. Oh this life is unpredictable. With a positive attitude and a smile, I will continue to push forward and let myself be surprised by all the things I can discover. Chao!

I am a thinker. I want to learn about everything and be an educated member of society so that I have something to contribute to the common good. I am on the brink of becoming an actual 'adult' because I will be graduating for UCSB soon with a major & two minors. Life without school will be different because it is what I have known for the past 16 years of my life without pause! However, I can't wait to live for ME for a while and learn all that I have not had the opportunity to learn thus far.

I am currently trying to readjust to life in the states after my 6 month study abroad experience in Chile. While I was living in Santiago, I saw, felt, lived a plethora of experiences--many of which were the most challenging experiences of my life. I am convinced that over the last 6 months, I did things that not many people would be able to do. I thank God for the abilities he has bestowed in me. I also have my family and friends to thank for their unwavering support.

I am worried for and ever-vigilant of the generation that we are growing up in. There have been so many changes in our society due to the overwhelming and rapid advances of technology. I have seen enough futuristic movies to know that we are following in the footsteps that directors have laid out for us time & time again. I know that I can be dramatic with my thinking...but what I see is that we don't listen to each other as much anymore. We don't touch as much or look at each other as much. And often we don't appreciate the present moment enough. I feel like we are becoming a disconnected world. As Linda Stone says: "One's full attention will be the aphrodisiac of the future."

Awareness is the first step to being the positive change. I recommend the movie 'Idiocracy' if you want an eye-opener to what our society COULD become one day. So...get off the cell phone, take off the huge headphones, give people the respect they deserve, hold the door open for ladies, offer your seat to someone on the bus that is less able than yourself, don't tell lies, LISTEN instead of talking, and just be content to walk down the street with nothing but the sound of life to keep you entertained.

I Love Words!

will-o'-the-wisp (noun):

1 : a light that appears at night over marshy ground

*2 : a misleading or elusive goal or hope

*=Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence):

Example: Though her friends think she's chasing a will-o'-the-wisp, Alexis is determined to quit her job and follow her dream of becoming a pop music star.

Cool Facts: The will-o'-the-wisp is a flame-like phosphorescence caused by gases from decaying plants in marshy areas. In olden days, it was personified as "Will with the wisp," a sprite who carried a fleeting "wisp" of light. Foolish travelers were said to try to follow the light and were then led astray into the marsh. (An 18th-century fairy tale described Will as one "who bears the wispy fire to trail the swains among the mire.") The light was first known, and still also is, as "Ignis Fatuus," which in Latin means "foolish fire." Eventually, the name "will-o'-the-wisp" was extended to any impractical or unattainable goal.