My Best Friend

So the waiting game is over. Last Friday, I received an email from the Chapman Cross Country coach. She wanted to congratulate me on my acceptance to Chapman University. She didn't realize that she was letting the news slip before I received the official notification.

My package came in the mail on Tuesday. Getting accepted to both LMU and Chapman means that I'm most likely headed to school somewhere in California. Unfortunately in the midst of my excitement, Alaina and I finally had to face the unspeakable truth: we're going to be separated.

Alaina and I are best friends, but we're also so much more than that. After a few hours of crying and math homework at Starbucks, I can't say that we have anything figured out. But I know that things will play out the way they're supposed to.

I'm super excited for our Valentine adventure this weekend. Instead of wasting money on dumb gifts, we're headed to Pittsburgh (and the surrounding area) on Saturday to see Blue Valentine, The King's Speech, trek through Ikea, and possibly dine at The Cheesecake Factory.

UCLA

I just got back from a super nice twilight run. Literally 15 people beeped/screamed/waved at me. I'm not sure who all of you were, but "Hi! I love you!"

I'm about to go lock myself in my room and work on my summer reading. Right now I'm reading Snow Falling on Cedars, and I'm pretty hooked. It's suspenseful, sexy, tragic, and beautiful. Check it out. (Alaina, don't comment on this.)

Before I return to San Piedro Island via my too-small-for-my-growing-body bed, I wanted to write my review of UCLA.

Having spent two weeks at the University of California, Los Angeles, I feel like I know the place inside and out.

First of all, the campus is actually like a small city. In fact, it was overwhelmingly huge at first. Coming from a small town and a history of small schools, I loved this aspect.

The campus has plenty to offer - many places to study, eat, exercise, whatever. UCLA had nice cafeterias and an awesome central hub with a cool bookstore and some nice places to eat including Panda Express and Jamba Juice. Woot! Woot!

The campus is really pretty beautiful. Everything is well kept and perfect. It doesn't feel like you're in California. UCLA almost had an east coast feel. The athletic area was cool too. I liked running on the track, and the gym was huge - complete with a rock wall inside.

Believe it or not, you will most likely start to feel the grasp of the black hole at some point. In that case, you can escape to Westwood - the neato neighborhood outside of UCLA. It's fun even thought it's not as hoppin' as it used to be.

Unlike USC, UCLA is in a very safe neighborhood: Beverly Hills. The Sunset Blvd. strip is only a 30 or 40 minute drive away. UCLA is in the perfect spot for internships and access to studios.

The dorms at UCLA looked like hotels from the outside. The rooms were pretty nice inside too.

As for the film building...

It was a little run down. The equipment we used had a few issues. The hallways were white and small and made me feel like I was in an insane asylum. Compared to USC and Chapman, the facilities at UCLA needed work. But that's because unlike the other two, UCLA is a state school. California is broke.

Still, UCLA had everything you needed. What I did like was the emphasis on story. It seemed like the school focused a lot of attention and writing and creating truly worthwhile stories. The techanical stuff came last. Some of the teachers we met were cool. UCLA is definitely more of an independent film school. It felt very different from USC. The two are bitter rivals.

UCLA's film school is actually combined with the theater school. This guy is in charge: Myrl Schreibman. I actually met him last summer when I was walking through the school with Carol Anne and Danny. He told us about the U.S. Performing Arts camps. No doubt, he is an influential and helpful dude.

However, there was some negative talk about him at the film camp. From what I can gather, he lacks a welcoming and warm attitude, but his heart is in the right place.

Finally, UCLA is extremely hard to get into. And you can't apply to the film school until your junior year in college. It's a gamble.

The junior year risk, the rundown facilities, and the negativity around Myrl were enough for me to cross UCLA off of my list. But it may work for other people and is definitely worth looking into.

Warning: A Brain Explosion is Near

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! That felt good.

I returned from Cross Country Camp last night. It was bittersweet because it was my last XC Camp experience. However, it was also my favorite one. I had a blast.

Now, I leave again in two days. This time the destination is Camp Zacchaeus aka Jesus Camp. It is also another place that I can call home and one of my favorite parts of the summer. I am a CIT (Counselor in Training). My brothers Ryan and Tyler also go as campers. And for the first time, my sister Addison will be a camper too. I am super pumped to be reunited with all of my summer friends.

When I return home from Camp Z in a week, I will finally be home to stay. And then the blogging frenzy will begin. I spent today calling and emailing people. I want to make a short film at the end of August. Unfortunately, my California expedition sucked my family's money supply dry. So now I am attempting to make a kick-ass short film with absolutely no money. Can it be done? Most likely not. But baby I will try. Stay posted and we will discover the ending of this story together.

Until then, I have to backup and talk about film camp...

Toy Story 3!

For a late Father's Day gift, I decided to treat the family to a movie-going experience. The outing came with a price tag of $53 which is ridiculous, but it was probably only the second time that my whole family went to the movies together.

Anyway, Toy Story 3 was awesome! The movie opened up with an exciting reintroduction to the characters. I couldn't help but smile because I can still remember going to see Toy Story 2. Seeing Woody and other characters I grew up with on the screen was like a rebirth of my childhood.

The new Toy Story was interesting because I am now in the same boat as Andy as he heads off to college. I guess it's not all bad though. I started to gather together things for my California trip tonight, and I'm pretty excited. The message of Toy Story 3 was being able to move onto the the next chapter in your life. It also had a strong sense of family (which may bring a tear to your eye). I don't know what lies ahead, but I have my friends and family who will always be there for me, which is exciting in itself. Summer adventures, here I come.