I managed to go the entire month of March without posting. Sorry about that. Things really get busy at the end of quarters. The workload in classes tends to pick up and there’s always the need to study for finals. It was a good quarter though. Of course, having Sleep and Dreams in my schedule didn’t hurt. Sleep and Dreams is a legendary course taught by Dr. William Dement, the guy that wrote the book on sleep disorders. He’s been teaching the course for something like 30 years. Hopefully this isn’t his last year and he’ll keep it going for you guys to enjoy. If you get a chance to take that class definitely do it—it’s really interesting stuff and applicable to your daily life.

Update on my shoulder: I managed to finish the season without any major hiccups, so it looks like I won’t need surgery… praise God. Recovery has been pretty slow, but as long as I keep up with my targeted strength training I’ll be fine. I’m retired from rugby now, so the chances of re-injury are pretty slim.

Yesterday I got back from six days in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. It was amazing. It felt like half the senior class was there for spring break. Literally, I ran into at least 50 Stanford students, and there were easily another 50 I didn’t see. It was fun to see so many familiar faces in such a different place. Since it was my first time to Mexico, I had fun practicing my broken Spanish and bargaining in pesos. But Cabo is very much a resort town so it was easy to get by without the Spanish (most speak fluent English) or the pesos (U.S. dollars are accepted everywhere, and some places prefer them). While I was there, I spent all day relaxing at the beach, sipping on margaritas, eating, swimming, riding jet skis; and then I spent all night going to bars and clubs, dancing, meeting people, and generally having a great time. It was a nice chance of pace from the daily grind on campus. Unlike every other tourist I saw, I didn’t buy any souvenirs to bring back with me. For me, the memories, stories, inside jokes, and the tan were enough.

There’s one last development I should announce before I close out. Just before I left for Cabo, I committed to work for Google starting in July. I’m not a software engineer so I’ll be working in their Adsense group. It’s really exciting to have a job lined up, especially for a great company like Google. I was getting a little nervous about where I was going to be next year, but now it’s all worked out and I’m stoked. It just leaves one less thing I need to worry about during my last quarter at Stanford.

So right after my last post I went out and messed up my shoulder during my rugby game. It’s a type II SLAP tear if anyone is interested in looking it up online (go for it pre-meds). I got to keep the films from my MRI; they are pretty sweet. Anyway, I had to sit out of our game last week to prevent further injury. Fortunately though, my recovery has been quick so I was able to play yesterday against Chico State. It felt pretty solid so I’m optimistic about being able to finish the season on a good (injury-free) note. Next week we host University of Nevada Reno and the week after is our final game versus Cal. If my shoulder gets re-injured I’ll probably have to go in for arthroscopic surgery, but I’m hoping it doesn’t come to that.

In other news, manager interviews started today. As a staff member in a row house, I get to interview candidates for next year’s management team. The different positions include house manager (HM), financial manager (FM), kitchen manager (KM), social manager (SM), and residential computing consultant (RCC). Of course, every house has at least one resident assistant (RA) although those interviews happen in the spring. As of now, row houses are strictly upper-class (with the exception of Muwekma-Tah-Ruk the Native American theme house, which is four-class) so you won’t need to worry about knowing these management positions until at least your sophomore year. On the other hand, you will have RA’s and RCC’s in your dorm so it’s good to know those resources are there. As far as the interviews go, it’s pretty competitive. We are finding it tough to narrow it down when everyone applying is so motivated and capable. Stanford kids tend to have all the right qualities, so it makes selection even that much harder. The flip-side though, is that you really can’t go wrong in selecting a staff. You know everyone can do the job; you just have to match the right people and create a balanced team.

This weekend was parents’ weekend. It’s always hilarious to see thousands of parents running around campus trying to find the location of their next seminar or info session. Heaven forbid you find one of them without a name tag clearly indicating that his or her son or daughter goes to THE Leland Stanford Junior University. They all bring their rental cars so traffic is usually pretty bad for those two or three days. Oh and good luck trying to find a parking spot. Despite the minor inconveniences, it really is nice to know everyone has such supportive and caring parents. You didn’t get in to Stanford by yourself, so be sure they know you appreciate what they’ve done for you.

That’s about all the sap you’ll ever get from me. When that starts happening I know it’s time to call it a night. As you progress towards the end of the quarter sleep becomes even more of a valued commodity, so I better cash in while I have the chance.

Damn it’s great to be a senior. Today I woke up, went to yoga class, had lunch, and then played 18 holes on the Stanford Golf Course (http://stanfordgolfcourse.com). Students pay $13 for nine holes or $25 for a full round (alumni pay $50 and $100 respectively). Or you can do what I did and buy a 10-play scrip card for $200. Anyway, I shot a 108 (par 71). Even though my golf skills were lacking, I was still able to enjoy the weather, the scenery, and the company. The sun was out all day and it felt more like June than February. I had the pleasure of meeting Peter, a doctor in his 40’s. A few years ago Peter sold everything he owned and moved to Hawaii. He and his wife stayed there for about a year and have since moved back to the bay area. I also met Mike, an elderly gentleman. Mike must have at least 50 years of golf experience under his belt because every shot he hit was right where he wanted it. When I asked him how he landed a particularly tricky approach shot just inches from the pin, he responded, “I don’t know, I just swing.” If only I could “just swing” like that.

Of all the holes, the 18th was my favorite. Between the view north all the way to the San Mateo bridge and the sunset dropping west over the foothills, I couldn’t imagine anywhere else I would have rather been on a Thursday afternoon. Of course I should have been in my Earth Systems section, but I went to a different section yesterday so it’s not like I missed any material.

Tomorrow I have Earth Systems lecture in the morning and Finance after lunch. Normally I’d have Sleep and Dreams in the morning as well, but for some reason there is no class tomorrow. Hey, I’m not complaining. I have three midterms early next week, so I’ll have to get some studying done this weekend. Of course, it’s not all work and no play. Tomorrow I have rugby practice from 3:30 until dinner. Later that night I’ll be working security at a campus party. Apparently they want a big guy around in case anyone needs an escort out the door. Hopefully it’ll be a fun and otherwise uneventful night because I have a rugby game at St. Mary’s on Saturday in Moraga. Rugby is a brutal sport so I’ll need all the energy I can get. Saturday is also my 22nd birthday, so my dad will be in town. We’re from Kirkland, WA, so it’s cool when he gets a chance to make the trek down to Palo Alto. After the game, we’re going to have a nice dinner at the Sundance Steakhouse (http://sundancethesteakhouse.com/). Great steaks, a bit overpriced, but I can’t complain when it’s my dad’s treat. As of now, I don’t have any plans for later in the night but I’m sure I’ll figure out something. It is my birthday after all.

That’s about it for now. I’ll try to update again soon. Maybe I’ll have some gnarly rugby stories to tell after this weekend.

Welcome to my blog. A friend of mine that works in the admissions office asked me to give an account of the “day-to-day” life of a Stanford student. I’m not really sure what that means so basically I’m just going to write about what I want. Don’t expect this to be a “how to survive your freshman year” or “50 things you should do at Stanford before you leave.” They throw enough of that stuff at you anyway. Besides, it’s more fun if you figure it out on your own.