I wrote this beautiful song last night in my dream. I really liked it. And now I can't remember it to write it down. It even had clever lyrics. I have no idea what it sounded like.

This happens to me every so often. I hear this beautiful dream music that I know is my own creation because it sounds like nothing I have ever heard. Then when I wake up all inklings of it are gone.

Anyone else had to deal with this problem? Ever been able to overcome it and remember the music? Any recommendations?

<3 Jenny

Dear Benjamin,

I don't really know how to tell you this, but I dislike you. I think I realized it last year when I threw up in women's clothing and I saw you carve your initials on Manchester United's goalkeeper. I'm sure you're cowardly enough to understand the middle east. I'm returning your love letters to you, but I'll keep the results of your blood sample as a memory. You should also know that I will tell the authorities about our senility.

Best Regards,
Jenny



RULES:
Do the "Letter MEME". Tag no less than 5 other people, and leave them a comment, informing them that they have been tagged. Then copy the "How-to" Letter Meme, and finish your Journal entry.

I tag
volvita
ladybugginout
estahazy
leideigh
princesscarrot
carolynjane4
aaaaaaaaand misscapitalista!


Dear (the last person who left a comment on your journal):

I don't really know how to tell you this, but ___1___. I think I realized it ___2___ ___3___ and I saw you ___4___ ___5___. I'm sure you're ___6___ enough to understand ___7___. I'm returning ___8___ to you, but I'll keep ___9___ as a memory. You should also know that I ___10___ ___11___ .

___12___,
-Your name-

1. What's the color of your shirt?
Blue - Our romance is over
Red - Our affair is over
White - I'll join the monastery
Black - I dislike you
Green - Our horoscope doesn't match
Grey - You're a pervert
Yellow - I'm selling myself
Pink - Your nostrils are insulting
Brown - The mafia wants you
No shirt - You're a loser
Other - I'm in love with your sister


2. Which is your birth month?
January - That night
February - Last year
March - When your dwarf bit me
April - When I tripped on sesame seeds
May - First of May
June - When you put cuffs on me
July - When I threw up
August - When I saw the shrunken head
September - When we skinny dipped
October - When I quoted Santa
November - When your dog ran amok
December - When I changed tennis shoes


3. Which food do you prefer?
Tacos - In your apartment
Pizza - In your camping car
Pasta - Outside of Chicago
Hamburgers - Under the bus
Salad - As you ate enchilada
Chicken - In your closet
Kabob - With Paris Hilton
Fish - In women's clothing
Sandwiches - At the Hare Krishna graduation
Lasagna - At the mental hospital
Hot dog - Under a state of trance
None of the above - With George Bush and his wife


4. What's the color of your socks?
Yellow - Hit on
Red - Insult
Black - Ignore
Blue - Knock out
Purple - Pour syrup on
White - Carve your initials into
Grey - Pull the clothes off
Brown - Put leeches on
Orange - Castrate
Pink - Pull the toupee off
Barefoot - Sit on
Other - Drive out


5. What's the color of your underwear?
Black - My best friend
White - My father
Grey - Bill Clinton
Brown - My fart balloon
Purple - My mustard soufflé
Red - Donald Duck
Blue - My avocado plant
Yellow - My penpal in Ghana
Orange - My Kid Rock-collection
Pink - Manchester United's goalkeeper
None - My John F. Kennedy-statue
Other - The crazy monk


6. What do you prefer to watch on TV?
Scrubs - Man
O.C. - Emotional
One Tree Hill - Open
Heroes - Frostbitten
Lost - High
House - Scarred
Simpsons - Cowardly
The news - Mongolic
Idol - Masochistic
Family Guy - Senile
Top Model - Middle-class
None of the above - Ashamed


7. Your mood right now?
Happy - How awful I've felt
Sad - How boring you are
Bored - That Santa doesn't exist
Angry - That your pimples are at the last stage
Depressed - That we're cousins
Excited - That there is no solution to this.
Nervous - The middle-east
Worried - That your Honda sucks
Apathetic - That I did a sex-change
Ashamed - That I'm allergic to your hamster
Cuddly - That I get turned on by garbage men
Overjoyous - That I'm open
Other - That Extreme Home Makeover sucks


8. What's the color of your walls in your bedroom?
White - Your ring
Yellow - Your love letters
Red - Your Darth Vader-poster
Black - Your tame stone
Blue - The couch cushions
Green - The pictures from LA
Orange - Your false teeth
Brown - Your contact book
Grey - Our matching snoopy-bibs
Purple - Your old lottery coupons
Pink - The cut toenails
Other - Your memories from the military service


9. The first letter of your first name?
A/B - Your photo
C/D - The oil stocks
E/F - Your neighbour Martin
G/H - My virginity
I/J - The results of your blood-sample
K/L - Your left ear
M/N - Your suicide note
O/P - My common sense
Q/R - Your mom
S/T - Your collection of butterflies
U/V - Your criminal record
W/X - David's tricot outfits
Y/Z - Your grades from college


10. The last letter in your last name?
A/B - Always will remember
C/D - Never will forget
E/F - Always wanted to break
G/H - Never openly mocked
I/J - Always have felt dirty before
K/L - Will tell the authorities about
M/N - Told in my confession today about
O/P - Was interviewed by the Times about
Q/R - Told my psychiatrist about
S/T - Get sick when I think of
U/V - Always will try to forget
W/X - Am better off without
Y/Z - Never liked


11. What do you prefer to drink?
Water- Our friendship
Beer - Senility
Soft drink - A new life as a clone
Soda - The incarnation as an eskimo
Milk - The apartment building
Wine - Cocaine abuse
Cider - A passionate interest for mice
Juice - Oprah Winfrey imitations
Mineral water - Embarrassing rash
Hot chocolate - Eggplant-fetishism
Whisky - To ruin the second world war
Other - To hate the Boston Celtics


12. To which country would you prefer to go on a vacation?
Thailand - Warm regards
USA - Best regards
England - Good luck on your short-term leave from jail
Spain - Go and drown yourself
China - Disgusting regards

I sang in the cemetary today. It was raining. Just right.

This is my 13th year of singing in the synagogue choir for the high holy days. Every year, there is a cemetary service for those who have lost loved ones. I think it is cool singing in the cemetary because it is more emotional. It added a touch of passion to the music.

Last night, I sang my duet also for the selichot service, and I was happy because it was preceeded by upbeat bluegrass, and my parents and the guy I'm dating were all there to hear me. I am also supposed to be singing a new duet in front of the gazillion people on rosh hashana this year, but I'm not sure if me and my partner will have it together by then .. :-/

Anyway, I love singing in the choir. :D I miss music in my life with all the busy-ness from dental school, but at least I have choir every year.

My best-friend-in-the-whole-world's away message today said, "Do something you love today."

But I did actually do something I loved today. My beautiful, red-headed, Indianapolisian friend from Wash U came down to Louisville today to go to a baseball game today. Her city's team was playing my city's team. So, since I hadn't seen her since she moved to England for her PhD program, I figured I could meet her for the game.

Now, I don't always love baseball, especially not in 100 degree hot, sticky humid weather, but all things considered, besides the heat, the day couldn't have been better.

2 GRAND SLAMS AND A DOUBLE-ARCH RAINBOW!!!

I mean, wow, can you beleive it? the Bats won 16 to 1 with the two grand slams, several doubles and a triple, etcetera. We had perfect seats in the shade, and I got there early enough to cash in on the $1 beer for Thirsty Thursday. So after the first grand slam, my friend, Adam, pointed up to the sky, and there was a perfect, full-arch rainbow.

Rainbows are my favorite natural phenomena because they are so colorful and beautiful and I always think of them as gifts from G-d (especially when I see one on my birthday). So, I stopped watching the game and started watching the sky, and it got brighter and brighter. Then the second grand slam was hit, and a second rainbow started to form next to it. I almost jumped for joy when I saw that! Nothing is more exciting to me than a rainbow, and a double arch!? too good to be true. Malcah's mom wondered aloud if there was going to be a rainbow for every grand slam. It was funny.

Unfortunately the second rainbow never really came to fruition, but oh well, the inkling of it was exciting enough, especially when coupled with the awesome baseball game. No better times than good friends, pretty skies, and exciting baseball games!

I am having fun with this,
I made up this GRE buzz-word sentance:

Although he and I held antithetical beleifs about evoution (which I think should be axiomatic), I regaled his specious argument with my own cogent acumen by ebulliently apprising him of an apotheosis of evolution: antibiotic resistance of super-bugs!

Oh yeah, I forgot one other piece of good news from the week, (from last night): I am a published author, and apparently have been one for a year!

Our article:
Grimston SK, Screen J, Haskell JH, Chung DJ, Brodt MD, Silva MJ, Civitelli R. Role of connexin43 in osteoblast response to physical load. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2006 Apr;1068:214-24.

Well they got my middle initial wrong, but that's me. That was the project i worked on in college on bone physiology. It makes me so proud!

Here is the abstract for you science buffs who care to read it!

Gap junctions are hexameric transmembrane channels formed by connexins, and are responsible for direct cell-to-cell communication. The most abundant gap junction protein in bone is connexin43 (Cx43), although connexin45 (Cx45) is also expressed. In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that bone cell responses to mechanical stimulation are dependent on the type of gap junction communication provided by Cx43 in vitro and in an in vivo model of physical load. Application of cyclic stretch to calvaria osteoblasts results in a modest but detectable increase in PGE2 levels, and the amount of PGE2 produced was lower in cells isolated from Cx43 null mice. Mice with an osteoblast-specific deletion of the Cx43 gene were subjected to an in vivo four-point bending protocol on the tibia. This resulted in fast and exuberant formation of woven bone at the region directly below the loading fulcrum in both osteoblast Cx43-deleted and wild-type mice. However, indirect measurement of endosteal bone apposition suggested a less pronounced effect of physical load in Cx43-deficient than in wild-type mice. Taken together, these results indicate that deficiency of Cx43 in osteoblasts attenuates but does not abolish anabolic responses to mechanical strain.

Accomplishments this week/today:

1) extracted my first tooth with no help except verbal coaching.
2) observed passover
3) took a 3-hr exam on oral pathology that I studied my butt off for two weeks strait
4) turned in a grant proposal

And to celebrate all these accomplishments, and now that passover has ended, I went out for pizza and beer and ice cream at Graeter's. We saw other Jews therewith the same idea!

Hey People!
I know it has been a long time since I have updated my journal. I have been so overwhelmed with my work that I didn't even have time! I am working on masters, being president of my frat, and working on real patients in the clinic. But now that the annual convention has come and gone, I am no longer an international officer! I have been replaced as the end of my one year term has come. I went to Las Vegas for the Convention. I had a pretty good time. But it got old with all the extremely crowded spaces with exremely rude and zombified people.

Here are my New Years Resolutions:
1) Get better at stress management: I am suffering some physical signs of stress including tense, sore shoulders, headaches, and random shooting pains. Dental school is hard, and I need to have better ways of dealing with it, including,

2) Get better time management skills. I have the capability, I just need to get more organized.

3 Lose five nine pounds, dance more often.

4) Donate hair to Locks of Love when winter is over

5) Try to do some creative outlets: music, art, etc.

Hey everyone,
I know it has been a long time since I have written! I basically said I was busy, then seemed to fall off the face of the earth. Well I am still clinging to the sides of it, I haven't quite fallen off yet. Last weekend, I went out of town for a cousin's bar mitzvah and an Alpha Omega leadership seminar. Both took place in DC. It was so nice to get to see my family. The bar-mitzvah boy, Erik, is my 2nd cousin, as he is my dad's first cousin's child. (Same generation means 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc. Different generation is removal.) So my dad's first cousin is my first-cousin-once-removed. There were a lot of those at the event. They were all my grandma's siblings' families. It was nice to get to know everyone there because my grandma Shirley passed away when I was pretty young, and I didn't get to know her as well as I would have liked. She has always been very special to me, though, I have very fond memories of her, and I think I really take after her side of the family a lot. She has always remained in my memory, and I often am sad that I can't get to know her any better now that I'm older and she's gone. (My dad's mom). So her younger brother and sister are still around, and they were both at the bar mitzvah. Aunt Francis and Uncle Melvin.

Aunt Francis is the grandma of Erik, my 2nd cousin, and Uncle Melvin is a genius inventor who a few of his accomplishments include: revamping some major mistakes in quantam physics over the last couple years, developing a stomach staple that is less traumatic to the tissue, and developing all sorts of lasers, one of which is involved in the security system of all ATM's. Uncle Melvin's children I have been around to know my whole life pretty much, because my dad has always been close with this side if his family. In fact, it's due to them that I can't eat raw onions!

ANyway, it was awesome seeing everyone, I will post some pictures on facebook. WHen I got home, it was horrible because all this work had piled up, like fixing my car, going to see a doctor, leading my first Alpha OMega meeting as president, and dealing with professors yelling at me. Along with too little sleep and a foggy brain. It was pretty miserable, but I am back on track now. I got a nice massage last week, and everything has turned around since then. Gotta run to class now!!

My interests collage!!

( My Interests Collage! )

That is to say:
alpha omega, antique furniture, art, art history, artists, bars, batik, being social, belly dancing, biking, biology, boating, bone physiology, books, camping, canoeing, capitalism, ceramics, chai, clouds, clubs, coffee shops, cooking, cure for cancer, dancing, david bowie, dogs, drawing, dreaming, edward gorey, evolution, family life, fish, fishing, flaxseed oil, flouridated water, friends, friendship, geeks, glass art, good health, halachic law, healers, health, hiking, hillel, hodgkin's disease, ice cream, insomnia, interesting cusps of carabelli, interesting people, israel, jazz, jazzyfatnastees, jewish artists, jewish campus life, judaism, karaoke, kentucky, kites, lakes, libertarianism, louisville, malocclusion, marc chagall, men, metal, muppets, music, napping, nature, nerdie boys, non-conformity, nutrition, oceans, old volvos, outdoors, painting, paul gauguin, photography, pit and fissure caries, plants, playing the viola, rabbis, radiography, rain, reading, rivers, science, singing, sisters, sky, sleep disorders, smallville, social interactions, streams, string quartets, sushi, swingsets, tanakh, tea, the beatles, the supernatural, tim burton, torah, tzadikim, viola, violas, weight lifting, your mom jokes.

I. Am. Exhausted.
Too much work, no time.
And I got back together with Stephen, as a pleasant side note.
He is my official serious boyfriend.
All is well with that.
But Work. Is. Killing. Me.
*sigh*

My birth-order predictor quiz was wrong. I am the youngest of three. But it's interesting b.c other people have guessed incorrectly that I am an only child. I suppose, though, youngest and only have some similar things about them.

You Are Likely an Only Child

At your darkest moments, you feel frustrated. At work and school, you do best when you're organizing. When you love someone, you tend to worry about them. In friendship, you are emotional and sympathetic. Your ideal careers are: radio announcer, finance, teaching, ministry, and management. You will leave your mark on the world with organizational leadership, maybe as the author of self-help books.

Well, I had one of the BEST birthday weekends EVER!
First off, on the day of, Max took me out for brunch at Sweet and Savory for my birthday. It was a very nice celebratory atmosphere, and I saw Katy there with her out-of-town friends who came in for our co-birthday-bachelorette party. See, it was primarly her bachelorette party, but since it was taking place on my birthday, she graciously agreed to let me celebrate my birthday there too, and even invite some of my own girlfriends. But that was at the end of the night. Let me get there.

So after brunch, Max and I picked up the cake from Jessica for out dinner cruise. It was double chocolate. Jessica finally met Max, and she said he was nice, but we kinda look alike. OKAY!? The dinner cruise was a boat ride on my dad's house boat with my male friends since I couldn't invite them to the party that night. So I invited Doug, David from class, Max, and Bobbo! So yay! He is largely better, and will be completely recovered in no time! I picked him up from his parents' house, and took him to target to buy a gift for Katy's bachelorette. And of course, my best friend in the whole world, Emily K came into town in time for the dinner cruise. I love it when she comes for my birthday! Last year she came to my shabbat dinner birthday party.

The dinner cruise was amazing. The weather was perfect, all my friends got along well, and we went swimming in this new inlet they made on the indiana side. The water was so fine and warmish and actually clear!! It was very nice and relaxing. Mom served cold cuts and salads for dinner, then we had birthday cake and everyone sang to me! I really felt so special! The evening ended a little abruptly when we docked because I had to get home immediately to get ready for the party.

So Emily and I got ready and left. But on the way to Gemma's, we got pulled over!! I had no idea what was going on, why I got pulled over or anything. But the lady police-offer told me i had run a red light! I thought it was yellow! for real!! i try never to run red lights. Fortunately she let me off with a warning.. but she wasn't very nice about it. I think she was impressed that I have never had any citations. I have been pulled over lots of times, but never gotten a ticket. And I have never been pulled over for speeding! it's always going wrong ways or red lights r whatever. Emily says I don't get the ticket b/c I'm so cute and innocent looking! Ha ha!

Anyway, the party was really fun. We played pin-the-hose-on-the-fireman, which I won, *blush*! And we played "pass the cucumber" (with legs only). I won that one too! Jessica and Gemma did a great job planning the party. My favorite gift for katie was a shirt that had all these mens' names on them, and when we went out that night, she had to find men who would eat the life-savers off her shirt under their names. It was very funny! Especially the ones over her boobs! Some "Ben" was lucky enough to get that life-saver.

We went to fourth street live and had a lot of fun dancing. But it was really crowded, hot, and loud. And two big men fighting got pushed into me and hurt my ankle! Those assholes! When i told Max about it, he said, had he been there, those men would have been SORRY!! Emily C bought me a shot of tequilla and herself, and we did it together. It was fun! But I don't think I actually got drunk all day.. I think the most intoxication was a little buzz from the sangria at Gemma's house. Even though my total drink count for the day was 4. It was spread out over several hours..

So overall, wonderful birthday! Emily went home today. I love her. Only downsides were mean cop lady, and fighting men. But poop on their heads! They can't rain on my parade!

Well, it's my birthday again. I'm 24 now. No more "almost 24" crap. Why am I getting so old? I guess the good part is I'll be a doctor in less that two years! Yay!

Three more days! Only three more days to study until the National Boards!! AHH !! Help!

No it's ok, I actually feel pretty somewhat prepared.

Just a bit more to do, then I'm ready!

THen I can finally play with my friends again! Yay! Sorry I have been neglecting everyone.

Well I went and played around on my viola some. I am way out of practice, but I didn't do too badly, I could tell that the muscles still had their memory of what to do.. but had atrophied from lack of use, and couldn't keep up with what my brain was telling them to do! yarg. Now my finger tips are killing me too, after not even an hour of playing, because the calluses went away too. How can I claim to be a violist still :( ?

But on top of that, I took out my old aria books from my voice lessons in college. I couldn't hit the high notes anymore! True, I didn't warm up, but still... I wasn't expecting it to be this bad. I want my musical talent back! Come back!! I used to be able to sing high A. when I was a little kid. with the phantom of the opera song. And in college I was just barely able to sing queen of the night aria. Now? who're you joking if you think I still could :(

Mope mope mope mope. I think I'll join voces nove, a great choir in town, and see if my old youth choir director, Frank Heller, can whip me back into shape!

I have been listening to the classical radio station while I study for boards... it helps me focus. Anyway, a piece just came on that I have played before in an orchestra, and I was suddenly swept away into a nostalgic, wonderful bliss. I think this is a sign that I need string ensembles in my life again! And fast!! I miss playing my viola. And solo pieces alone don't fulfill me the way ensembles do.

When I was in college, I was in a string quartet, and even though I didn't get along wonderfully with my quartet-mates, our practice times are some of my favorite memories from college. Because creating beautiful music is a feeling that compares to none. As soon as my boards exam is over, I am definitely going to seriously start looking into forming or joining a quartet or orchestra. Oy! I need music back in my life!

This is a fun game! Thanks, volvita

1. What's the first word that comes to mind when you think of me?
2. Go to http://images.google.com/ and search for that word.
3. Reply to this post with one of the pictures on the first page of results (don't tell me the word). Use an image tag, <*img src="your pic's url here"*> without the asteriks.
4. Put this in your own blog so that I can do the same.

Today I presented about my dental fraternity to the incoming new dental students at my school. I think I was a little nervous because my voicec kept quavering. It is so annoying. I pretty much have chronic post-nasal drip due to allergies, so whenever I try to project, it always cracks and quivers! Plus I have crappy verbal skills to begin with. So all in all, I have lousy public speaking skills. I would like to see a video tape of me giving the presentation.

Ah well. The cool thing about today was that I met two people in the incoming class that I know! One was a girl who goes to my synagogue, and who I know to be very very nice. And the other is a girl from my highschool, who I don't remember very well from back then b/c we weren't in the same social circles. But she seemed very nice and happy to see me! So, great! I am excited to have a fellow classmate from highschool at my school. And another Jew! Yes! I hope I can get them to join my fraternity.

You all know how the ice cream diet was the big fad a while ago? Like basically it claimed that increasing your calcium intake increases your metabolism and makes you skinnier? Well I think I just stumbled across the mechanism for this. When your muscles contract, they require calcium, and the concentration in the blood of calcium increases during muscle contraction. This stimulates the energy-making enzymes to make more energy because it assumes the increase in calcium is from the muscles working, and working muscles need more energy. So maybe eating more calcium, and increasing your calcium blood level that way is tricking the metabolic enzymes into thinking you're lifting weights?