Almost A Graduate!

Hi blog readers!

Gosh, I really have been absent from the blogosphere for awhile… I have to apologize for that, but I’ve had a pretty busy couple of months.  A previous WordPress update pretty much left my entire blog in pieces and I didn’t really have time to try and alter and fix it until now.  A few months later after the crash I finally have some time to actually do that.

Now this is a previous layout that I’ve created which I’ve used before, but it seems pretty simple and easy to work with.  I think I’ll keep this style of blog for now, but I definitely have to fix the background and such.  Until then this layout seems pretty good. :)

I hope that all of you are doing well.  I’ve gone through a lot in the past few months (some events bad, but mostly good) and I am a stronger person for it.  Maybe I’ll go into detail about it later, but for now, just know that I am enjoying my time now with some new people and that I am just about 6 days until graduation.

I’m quite excited to say the least about my upcoming graduation.  Graduation here in the Philippines is long and there is a particular veterinary ceremony in the morning and then another university-wide one in the afternoon.  My father will be flying in from NYC to see the graduation.

I have the pleasure of graduating from the University of the Philippines at Los Banos’ College of Veterinary Medicine.  Through the four years I’ve been a student at UPLB I suffered some hardship with classes, relationships, and other things, but I think I’ve grown a lot.  Being here has been a blessing of some sort, and honestly it will be hard for me to leave here.

After graduating, I plan to finally move back to NYC and start my board exam studying.  I’ll be taking the AVMA approved method of applying for a veterinary license which consists of a written and practical examination, so wish me luck.

All in all, I just want to say that I am happy with things now and will be even happier when I finally get to throw my mortarboard up in the air.  With the DVM degree in my hands I can finally start on living my dream.

I’ll update you all in the coming days, but probably after Saturday which is my grad day.

Take care peeps!

Almost Dr. Jonathan Perez~!

Back From The Dead!

Lots of snow which translates to lots of shoveling!

Okay, so not really, but it HAS been awhile since I’ve blogged and I thought that now would be a good time to update you all on what I’ve been up to.

Of course, the last time I put up a blog it was to say that it was almost Christmas time and I was about to fly back to NY. Well now I’m back in the Philippines getting back to the grind. But I thought I should summarize what I did this past break, such as:

Visiting my good ol’ high school friends.

Seeing my girlfriend.

Getting to see my brother’s show at Radio City Music Hall (he works with the Rockettes during their annual Christmas Spectacular Show).

Eating at exotic places in the city. (This picture was taken at Momofuku, known for their pork buns)

Hanging out with my cousins from Chicago (who flew in the same day I did coincidentally).

Having some much needed family time.

Celebrating New Year’s with all the people I love!

I realized that I don’t post much while I’m in New York. When I’m back there at home with my family, friends and girlfriend I tend to go out a lot and be extremely busy. And not the kind of busy that I go through here in at school at UPLB. No, it’s the kind of busy that is fun, relaxing and I guess just helps me unwind. When I’m at home I typically don’t do things that I do here in the Philippines. I was definitely not on the computer or my iTouch much at all this holiday season and I went a lot and reconnected with people I haven’t been in touch with for awhile. When I’m at school, I’m usually just focused on studying (or sometimes procrastinating) and while I do have outlets to have fun here, it’s not the same as when I’m in NY. I guess it’s the environment. The cold weather. The good food and enormous portions (which I’m not used to anymore). The people I’ve known for so long that I left about 2 1/2 years ago to start school here. Everything I’ve grown up with is in NYC, and so no matter how long I stay here in the Philippines, when I go back, I just feel… home. Subtle things happen to me that I don’t notice until I get back. Things like my face clearing up (probably due to less stress), me getting healthier, and me being happier in general.

Not that I don’t like it in the Philippines, I mean I do. There’s just something about being at home that livens me up a bit, you know? I guess it’s due to a combination of things that I mentioned above. It’s just something I’ve noticed.

Well, on another note, as I said I’m back from NYC. It’s nice to be back here. The weather isn’t so hot and it’s quite rainy nowadays. I like it. I think I like the cold weather more than I do the warm weather. I guess I’d prefer to sweat shoveling snow than sweat just walking around… haha.

Had a slew of exams this week and it will end Thursday. Just took a Diagnostic Imaging (i.e. ultrasound and radiographs) exam yesterday and today. Seeing different structures in the dog is somewhat difficult when you’re just starting. We had a practical today with only 5 minutes to identify as many organs and structures as possible. I realized that 5 minutes really isn’t a lot of time when you think about it and I was only able to identify the spleen, urinary bladder, colon, left kidney, heart, liver and such during the exam. There were definitely things I missed and next time I’ll be sure to keep on practicing since it’ll be pretty important when I start practicing. Finding the correct acoustic window isn’t hard, but it’s the manipulating of the transducer that I had trouble with.

The next part of the class will focus on radiographic imaging and I bet it will also be quite difficult. My teachers keep saying that the course requires a bit of “imagination” and I think they’re right. Just got to brush up on the orientation and anatomy of the different organs for this next part of the course.

I’ve got another exam in Large Animal Surgery this Thursday so I’m going to go hit the books now and read up a bit.

I’d like to hear what you’ve been up to this holiday break. Let me know! I’m interested in seeing how you guys spent your time.

I’ll catch you guys next time!

–JoN

P.S. — Just recently updated my desktop workstation today. Check it out!

Christmas, That Wonderful Time of the Year

Yes guys, guess WHAT TIME IT IS? It’s almost time for Christmas! Can you believe it? In just 7 more days it will be Christmas. And guess what? I’m in the airport right now about to leave for Hong Kong and then I go on a direct flight to New York City.

I’m again sorry for not posting in awhile. I’ve been busy with Christmasey stuff. Christmas parties, gift-wrapping, final exams and the like. I’ve had to deal with a lot of this stuff in the last two or so weeks and I’ve just now had the time to write a proper post on what I’ve been up to.

So I’ll be back home in NYC in just over 19 hours I believe. It’s going to be a long flight, but I think I’ll manage. I have my new netbook, my iTouch to tinker around with and my Nintendo DS to keep me company during my flight. Not to mention all the awesome movies that Cathay Pacific offers me. I think I will be alright. I just will have to figure out a way to get over that butt sore you get when you sit on a plane for more than 12 hours straight. Yeah, so I’ll just chill in the Cathay Pacific Business lounge contemplating how I’ll get around that (Yay for free WiFi and free food!)

Anyway, I don’t really have anything planned for when I get back to NY, except for just hanging out with my friends and family. I think that’s all I really go home for anyway. :)

So guys, what’s your plan this holiday season? Whether you be celebrating Haunakah, Kwanzaa, Christmas or nothing at all, I wish you all a cool, awesome and fun time. You know we all deserve it.

Take care all, and have a wonderful time this season!