Burstin'

Okay, I don't remember the last time I was this excited. I'm pretty much bursting. I thought I'd check on my UCL application to see if any headway had been made on the decision, but my expectations were very low. Wouldn't they send me an email if a decision had been reached on my application? Apparently not, since I got on and saw "Unconditional offer" on the application status.
WOOHOO!! It's such a relief to be accepted to a London school, especially since the program is International Child Health. My references must have talked me up real good, since I'm still somewhat mystified by getting accepted anywhere. I mean, UCL is a great school. Not to live in the past or anything, but in 2009, this is what the world rankings looked like:

Times Higher Education-QS World University Rankings 2009

TOP 200 WORLD UNIVERSITIES

1	1	Harvard University	US	100	100	98	100	85	78	100.0
2	3	University of Cambridge	UK	100	100	100	89	98	96	99.6
3	2	Yale University	US	100	99	100	94	85	77	99.1
4	7	University College London	UK	98	99	100	90	96	99	99.0
5=	6	Imperial College London	UK	100	100	100	80	98	100	97.8
5=	4	University of Oxford	UK	100	100	100	80	96	97	97.8
7	8	University of Chicago	US	100	99	97	88	77	83	96.8
8	12	Princeton University	US	100	96	82	100	89	81	96.6
9	9	Massachusetts Institute of Technology	US	100	100	89	100	31	95	96.1
10	5	California Institute of Technology	US	99	72	87	100	100	89	95.9
11	10	Columbia University	US	100	99	97	92	28	89	95.6
12	11	University of Pennsylvania	US	96	99	85	98	82	60	94.2
13	13=	Johns Hopkins University	US	98	79	100	99	28	71	94.1
14	13=	Duke University	US	95	97	100	93	29	62	92.9
15	15	Cornell University	US	100	99	85	94	28	73	92.5
16	17	Stanford University	US	100	100	71	100	25	96	92.2
17	16	Australian National University	Australia	100	91	75	74	99	92	90.5
18	20	McGill University	Canada	100	97	92	61	67	95	90.4
19	18	University of Michigan	US	99	99	85	81	57	52	89.9
20=	23	University of Edinburgh	UK	97	99	84	65	93	86	89.3

So...yeah, I'd say I'm pretty stoked about my acceptance there. Take that, Johns Hopkins! Hopkins is number one in the U.S. for Public Health, and yet they're ranked a measly 13 behind UCL's #4 spot. UCL is the 3rd oldest university in England--that's after Oxford and Cambridge (which, in all fairness, are wayyy older than UCL). It's also the first university to admit students of any race, class, or religion. Go, progress! It's in the Bloomsbury area of London, right by King's Cross, the British Museum, Great Ormond Street Hospital, and a bunch of other awesome things.
Anywho, that news definitely made my day, plus some. Hallelujah!!

I'm protected from drunkenness

Wikipedia snippet for the day:

Amethyst is a violet variety of quartz often used in jewelry. The name comes from the Ancient Greek ἀ a- ("not") and μέθυστοςmethustos ("intoxicated"), a reference to the belief that the stone protected its owner from drunkenness.

There we go, ladies and gents! Good thing I bought my birthstone ring in Thailand--that's probably why I had supernatural abilities to refuse all of the alcoholic drinks the other volunteers were constantly drinking.

ANYONE can get money for school, as long as...

From my scholarship searches thus far, I thought I'd put together an example of the standard eligibility requirements for any scholarship of appreciable value. Here goes.

Applicants must:
-Be natives of Azerbaijan who have moved to Misrata, Libya in the past 3 years
-Be a self-proclaimed member of the LGBT community
-Be studying the uses of petroleum in the War on Terrorism
-Be applying to study at Slippery Rock University (I didn't make that up)
-Be an alumna/alumnus of Hood College
-Have suffered from eczema since age 4
-Have an older brother named Jonathan Magnus Bloomsberg

Okay, maybe that's exaggerating a smidge, but not much. I get all excited when I see grants and scholarships that cover tuition and living expenses--or even those that offer $1,000. Then invariably I realize how far off I am from the requirements. Someday when I'm rich, I'm going to create a scholarship fund, and I'm going to set my own requirements based off of my unique life story:

Applicants must:
-Be the 6th child of 8 (eliminates pretty much any Europeans or Asians)
-Have graduated from BYU with a degree in French Studies (to be used interchangeably with "Have graduated from BYU with a worthless degree"??)
-Be total unqualified for and yet have every intention of studying public health at a U.K. university
-Be a white, middle-class female with average intelligence
-Have no middle name

Take that, student hopefuls!

Cyber namedropping, anyone?

So, I'm reading the news on ksl.com, and there's this cute story about an 8 yr-old who saved his sister from being strangled by a sled rope. I was surprised to see all the comments on the story, so I checked it out. Here was one of the comments:

What a great story. I know the kids and the parents and I am so proud of them all. Roman is such a great kid and mom and dad taught him what to do. Way to go Roman, you are a hero even if you don't think you are. I will buy you dessert when I see you again.

Okay, I totally agree that this kid is the bees' knees. It's the last sentence that seems a bit off to me. How many 8 year-olds do you know who read the news online, much less the comment boards? If you really know the child and the parents, maybe your "I will buy you dessert when I see you again" comment is better directed at the child himself by way of a phone call? Otherwise it sounds a tad like you're just trying to namedrop and give yourself a public pat on the back for knowing the family and for being so appreciative of little Roman. Just a suggestion. Or maybe I'm just jealous I don't get to buy Roman dessert next time I see him.
In other news, today I saw a little reminder on campus that made me happy. It said: "To the knees, please! Skirts must come to the knee. Leggings are not pants!" Thank you, BYU. I wish girls everywhere would adhere to the same rule.
Yesterday Tim came by the house to bring my car back and to get a haircut. Twas bittersweet.

I wish I had as much hair as that kid. 

Lastly, today I'm wearing my lucky scarf. Actually, I've never worn it before, so I don't know if it's lucky. Today will be the test. Go, Wales. Cymru am byth...