7/15/2006

Looks like I spoke too soon.

I just finished downloading the study guide for the California Law Exam (CLE) -- all 98 pages of it :0P I still think it's going to be easier than the boards but I guess it's not going to be the walk in the park that I thought it would be. But I'm not complaining, no siree. I'd rather plod through 98 pages of legal jargon than repeat studying for the State Boards. After all, 98 pages is nothing compared to cramming 2 years of study into 3 weeks :0P

Anyway, I think I'm gonna have enough time to study for it because contrary to what I thought, that all I need to do is schedule the CLE, I still need to go through a couple of steps before I get to sit for it. Steps like registering for it and waiting for my authorization-to-test letter before I can actually schedule. Anyway, it's all good. No rush.

On to other stuff -- next month's gonna be my birthday month and I'm looking forward to it, more than usual. My 28th year has been good so far and I know that with the way things are going, my 29th will be a lot better :0)

For not so good news, we finally had someone look over the damage to our front lawn. The landscaper said that it will cost us $400 to get everything cleaned up. That does not include replacement of the Junipers that was burned. Sigh. The painful thing is it's gonna come from our own pockets. The insurance can cover it but we've decided that it's not worth getting our premiums jacked up. Oh-well.

We're off to watch Pirates of the Caribbean. This movie holds a special place in my heart since it's based on the Disney ride -- and that's where my husband proposed to me :0)

7/12/2006

Thank you, Lord!

I passed!!!

Thank God!!!

I passed the National Physical Therapist Examination! All that's left to do is pass the California Law Exam for Physical Therapists :0)

(I'm not worried about that one since it's just like the DMV exam -- you know, where all the stuff you need to learn to pass is in one booklet.)

Love talaga ako ni Lord :0) Thanks for all the prayers and the positive thoughts you guys sent my way!

7/08/2006

Back to regular programming.

I finally got around to balancing my checkbook after 2 months :0P (yep, my last entry was sometime April). I'm just so glad I have an online transaction record.

Which led me to thinking that I'm really bad when it comes to pressure. When something of importance comes up, I get this tendency to overrate the event to the point that it eclipses everything else.

Really. I'm soo graceless under pressure.

Like with the exam. I was so focused on it that I didn't bother balancing my checkbook :0P Or cooking regularly. There was even a time when even doing the laundry was way down my list of priorities.

(Who am I kidding? Laundry is always low on my list :0P).

Buti na lang talaga my husband is so understanding. and kind. and handsome. and sexy.

(Hi, babe!).

Hay. But, in fairness to me, I'm learning. Pramis.

7/07/2006

Anticlimactic.

That's how the exam was. Not because it was easy (it wasn't for me!!) but because after all the worrying, the loong days, the fatigue -- it was finally over, just like that.

I still don't know how I feel about it. It was tiring, yes. Five hours of looking at a computer monitor answering questions that actually requires thinking (a lot of it) with only a 15-minute respite will obviously take its toll. But aside from that, I'm... I don't know... not really dedma but not that caught up too.

That in itself is already surprising. I've been thinking about it and as hard for me to admit it, I have to say it, I do not take failure lightly. I guess it's because I grew up believing that I have nothing more to offer than my intelligence. I remember thinking in HS that it was ok if I wasn't pretty, I was pretty damn smart anyway. Thus, I set a pretty high bar for myself when it comes to success.

I've come a long way since then. I've realized that I've got far more to offer than just my IQ score (which is superior, not to brag, but since we're on the topic anyway, I thought you should know hehe). But I guess, old habits really die hard and I'm still learning about accepting failure (in all forms) more graciously.

Maybe the worries will come later. But as of now, I'm feeling pretty cool about it, whatever the results maybe. And I know that the card that Mr.A gave me after the exam and what he wrote in it has a lot to do with my frame of mind.

Like what he said, whatever happens, I'll get there (being a licensed PT) and he'll always be right beside me.

And for me, that's what's really important.

7/06/2006

Another lesson in perspective.

I've always had a problem with keeping things in their proper perspective. I have this drama-queen tendencies to make such a big deal about certain events in my life.

Like my upcoming exam, for instance.

I've been so focused on it that life after it seems improbable.

(Told you I was a drama queen.) :0P

Well, life taught me a lesson today -- one that drove home the fact that there are more important things in life than passing or failing an exam.

Lemme tell you what happened today that made this lesson clear.

Mr.A and I were home today since we both called in sick; he was still nursing a cold and I was feeling feverish and achy. Little did we know that feeling sick today would turn out to be a real blessing.

Around 2.30pm, Mr.A and I heard a loud bang outside. I thought it was just an old car backfiring and he thought it was one of our neighbors finishing off leftover fireworks from yesterday.

We were both wrong. So wrong.

About a minute after the bang, someone rang the doorbell. While Mr.A went to get the door, I looked out the window to see who it could be since we weren't expecting anyone. Imagine my surprise, followed by panic, to see flames and smoke coming from the Juniper hedge that borders our lawn.

The neighbor across the street was the one who rang the bell. When Mr.A opened the door, he was already using the front lawn hose to try and put out the fire.

Everything that followed was a blur.

Mr.A called 911 while I tried looking for a pail -- paksyet, wala kaming balde! -- to help put the fire out. After what seemed like an eternity of thinking what the hell I could do, I finally realized that we had a hose at the backyard long enough to reach the front lawn. When I got out, 2 more neighbors were using their hoses to help put the fire out. It took four of us around 10 minutes to finally put it out. By that time, almost 3/4 of the whole length of our hedge was burnt to a crisp (as in tutong) and the fire also managed to reach the big tree in the front lawn. That's also the time that the firetruck and the police came.

I'm disappointed with the police and the firemen's response. They took their time getting here but from what I heard, there's been a lot of fire incidents the day before (4th of July) involving fireworks that they weren't that worried about this particular incident. Still, I was worried! It wasn't everyday that our front lawn bursts into flames.

Anyway, the first neighbor who saw the fire said that after the loud bang, he looked out of his window and saw a car speeding down the street but he soon was distracted by the fire and smoke coming from our lawn that he didn't pay any more attention to the car. From the looks of it, the police chalked it down to teenage pranksters.

It was only later, while cleaning the mess, that we found what looked like the fuse of a MoLOTov cocktail.

It was only about an hour after the incident that I realized how serious it might have become if we weren't home today or if someone didn't see it. The wind was pretty high and if the tree really caught fire, the fire could have reached the house.

So yeah, I'm not that anxious about the exam anymore. There's more to life than that.