The Silver Lining

I need to learn to have more faith. Too often, I forget to trust other people and to believe that things will work out on their own. I try to be too controlling sometimes in things that I obviously can't control. This whole b-school application process has been such a learning process, more so than just learning data sufficiency and grammar for the GMATs. I've had the opportunity to reflect on my life experiences and to understand what it is that motivates me and pushes me to become the person that I want to be. I've already had several bumps in the road on this journey, and I'll admit that some of them have broken me down.

But this morning, my spirit was rejuvenated by the sweetest Northwestern administrator I've ever met. Apparently, my transcripts are lost somewhere between Evanston and Northbrook and have been lost for the past 20 days. Fortunately, things are somewhat going right for me and Marissa from the registrar's office said that she would give me new ones for free and that I could go in and pick them up. Oh joy of joys!!!

Although Luke normally calls me the eternal optimist, I've let this whole application process get the best of me. I need to start having that optimistic spirit again. I can't believe that I've lost even before I've started the race. I know that I'm just as competitive of a candidate as all those other investment bankers and consultants out there. All I need to do now is truly believe. I know that I'm tough and this process will not break me down.

The best part of all of this is seeing how much Law McGraw does love me. He has been wonderful in supporting me in this whole process -- from telling silly jokes to make me laugh to stopping by at night just to give me a hug after a rough day. I don't know where I'd be without him.

Sex in the City Gals

Nothing in this world is better than good friends. Even better than good friends is good girl friends. I was fortunate enough to have a belated birthday celebration with three girls who are nearer and dearer to my heart than most other things in my life. I've known Lillian and In Young since I was about 7 years old and have shared a slew of memories, which include bike rides all over Northbrook, awkward encounters with guys, and late night heart-to-hearts. Jennie didn't enter my world until high school, but I can't imagine my high school years with out her. Though she may seem shy and quiet, Jennie is a barrel of laughs and never ceases to amaze me with her kindness. I'd like to thank all three of them for a fabulous night last night, which of course wouldn't have been a night out with the girls without its share of random occurrences. Who would have known that Cafe Iberico could be so packed on a Saturday night? Also, how embarassing can chocolate really be on a pair of pants? So for all of you single guys out there, here are three of the coolest girls in the city of Chicago...



And girls, we're going to have to get together again before Lillian's birthday. Plus, we need more pictures together. In Young's polaroid of us together is just not going to cut it.

Hot Diggity!!!

Redemption was mine today!!! I retook the GMAT and my scored improved by 70 points. Whoopppeee!!!! I scored in the 99th percentile, meaning that if I walked past 100 people on the street who had taken the GMATs, only one of them would have scored higher than me. I think that the most redeeming fact about all of this is the fact that I never ever have to take the GMATs again!!!! No more sentence correction or critical reasoning. No more reading boring passages about science or minority issues. But best of all, no more data sufficiency questions. I will admit, however, that I can now calculate the probability of flipping a coin 4 times and getting heads at least once. Hmmm....I wonder how I could use that to my advantage.

But in all seriousness, I know that I would have been able to do all this without the support of the people closest to me. So thanks to my parents, my brother, Law McGraw, and the countless friends who have provided me with words of encouragement on this long journey.

Sadly, the journey is not over yet. I now have about a month and a half to compose lots of essays. Don't these schools realize how difficult it is to express your most significant acheivement in 250 words or less? Come on, most of my emails about nothing are at least 500 words. In fact, I'm pretty sure that this blog entry is way more than 250 words. Things would be so much easier if I weren't so verbose.

While I go out and celebrate my GMAT score, I'll leave all of you with a picture of where I'd like to be next year...