bjtdevera's Xanga

THE MOST EXPENSIVE STEAK I'VE EVER HAD

Sun, 28 Sep 2008 06:47:44 GMT

It was a teppanyaki restaurant called Musashi near Paradise and Tropicana. It was $130.00, but included a small salad, soup, vegetables, and a very tiny shrimp appetizer. It was a 9 oz. Kobe Beef steak. It was the best steak ever.

I guess the closest thing I can compare it to is filet mignon; but even that doesn't really compare. The weird thing about kobe beef is that you can't really feel the muscle fibers. It's like biting into a ground beef patty, but it's a solid piece of meat.

The waitress assured us that the kobe beef was the real thing (shipped directly from Japan); and told us that many restaurants claim to serve kobe beef, but are really serving kobe-style beef from somewhere other than Japan. I wanted to mention this because I had "kobe beef" at the Bellagio buffet, and it wasn't very good. Yeah...that probably wasn't the real stuff.

Anyway, if any of you have over a hundred dollars to spare, I highly recommend trying kobe beef steak.

I'M NOT GOOD AT ANATOMY

Sun, 14 Sep 2008 05:08:34 GMT

It's not that I can't memorize anything...it's just too much too fast. Within the previous 5 weeks, we were expected to memorize 294 structures in the lower extremities, and 216 structures in the upper extremities (a total of 510 structures). In addition to memorizing their names, we were also expected to memorize their location, function, and relationships with each other. Lastly, we were expected to be able to identify these structures in various cadavers and radiological cross-sections. It's just too much for me.

It would have been easier for me if there was some sort of logical progression. Nope. This group of muscles do this, but not that. They are all innervated by this nerve, except for this muscle, which is innervated by that nerve. It is supplied by this artery, which goes alongside this vein, up until this point, where it splits off into opposite sides, towards another group of muscles. This group of muscle flexes this joint, but two muscles outside of this group also perform the same action. These two muscles are innervated by different nerves, blah, blah, blah.

It's not impossible to learn, it's just really hard for me. The bulk of memorization really turns me off; but I've really only got two options: give up or try harder.

I have an anatomy long quiz in two weeks, and I have anatomy class/lab twice a week. I promise to study anatomy Monday - Saturday for the next two weeks in hopes that I will get an A on that quiz.

I'm hoping that since I declared it to all of you, I'm more likely to stick to that promise. If ever you see me on facebook chat or google chat, please ask me if I've studied anatomy that day. I'll be very grateful for it.

HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN THERE ARE A LOT OF MORMONS AROUND?

Tue, 09 Sep 2008 00:51:12 GMT

When you see a Latter-Day Saint book section at Barnes and Nobles:

Imagine that.

While we're on the topic, here's a little something I found on google maps:

It's in Arizona. It's about 300 miles from Las Vegas. That's right, this lake does not drink alcohol.

LAS VEGAS IS LIKE AN ISLAND

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 16:50:07 GMT

Let's compare a couple of maps. Southern California:

Look at that cluster of cities

Now let's look at a map of Las Vegas under the same magnification:

How many cities do you see? Well, there's Las Vegas, Henderson, and Boulder City. Well, if you go waaaay west of Las Vegas, you'll hit Pahrump. And that's about it. It's like an island; but instead of it being surrounded by beautiful beaches, it's surrounded by dirt and rocks.

It's really weird to not have any neighboring cities. Fortunately, there's really no need to go outside of Vegas. Everything is here.

I GOT SPAM FROM ROTTENTOMATOES.COM

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 05:43:55 GMT

It was a girl (and not very attractive, I might add) who sent a message that said something about her being new to the site, and how she was browsing through profiles and found me interesting. Then she provided a link to her nudie website.

I mean, I expect this kind of stuff from myspace...but rottentomatoes.com? I was shocked.

I FOUND THREE TUMORS

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 15:47:48 GMT

...in anatomy lab yesterday. One was attached to a nerve (popliteal nerve), another was attached to a vein (small saphenous vein), and one was attached to a muscle (flexor digitorum longus).

It was cool. I had never seen a tumor before. One of the proctors (who is a surgeon) was 10 times more excited than I was.

In retrospect though, it's pretty sad. This guy has tumors all over the place. His cause of death was a metastatic lung cancer which spread to the bones and brain. He probably didn't even notice the tumors in his leg.

BACK ON TOP

Sun, 24 Aug 2008 07:59:08 GMT

The USA Basketball team has finally regained the Olympic throne. Here's my list of noteworthy players:

LeBron James: When everyone thought Kobe would take over as leader, LeBron showed them otherwise. He's just so much more vocal than everyone else. He just sticks out and motivates everyone else.

Carmelo Anthony: He's there to make the big plays.

Dwayne Wade: The spark from the bench. I don't have the statistics in front of me, but I think he's the leading scorer in the team. He hit a HUGE 3-pointer in the 4th quarter of the finals.

Kobe Bryant: You can really see the change in Kobe's playing style. He pretty much just lies low until he's needed; and he hasn't really been needed until the final game. He got a pivotal 4-point play late in the fourth.

Some noteworthy things about Spain: Their zone defense was amazing. Also, Navarro kept doing this awkward-looking running layup thing that USA just couldn't defend. It's looks like a lucky shot every time.

Now...if we can only get more NBA players interested in the Olympics. I mean, c'mon...where's Garnett, Pierce, and Duncan?

ADDENDUM TO B-DAY ENTRY

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 00:41:19 GMT

So my birthday ended up being a bit more eventful that anticipated; though from 9am - 5pm, I was in a lecture hall:

All 130+ of us spend most of our days here. We haven't had any major exams yet, so I have yet to smell any B.O.

Anyway, as I said before, both Kim and I were broke, so I didn't expect any sort of birthday celebration; but when I came home, I was greeted to a nice little bday dinner :)

Spam musubi, Filipino hotdog, ong choy, and rice. Now, this may seem like a regular dinner to you guys, but to me, it was special. We don't have a rice cooker yet, and being able to eat a meal with rice is heavenly. Also, we just recently got gas for the stove and pots and pans, so being able to eat food cooked in a pan was awesome.

Then came the birthday cake:

Or should I say, cupcakes. Yummiest cupcakes ever (except for that ugly "28"). Kim also bought me some birthday gifts that were bought by returning merchandise to Target.

Having such a humble celebration really helped me to focus on the sincere intent of the giver. Kim didn't have much to work with, but she did her best with what she had, and it turned out just as good (maybe even better) than if she had a thousand dollars to work with.

So, in conclusion, Kim is awesome.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 17:30:05 GMT

The big two-eight. Man, I'm old.

I will celebrate my oldenization by taking a biochemistry quiz today.

An "A" would be a very nice gift.

DIMSUM IN VEGAS

Sun, 10 Aug 2008 00:28:44 GMT

It's a place called, "Cathay House." We spent about $11.00 each.

Check out that scenery. This was probably the nicest dimsum restaurant I've ever been to. It felt clean and peaceful.

The food was good, but it was a little bit on the bland side. Also, the shrimp they used tasted a little off; but aside from that, it was a nice experience. I great break from the tv dinners, ramen, and sandwiches we've been eating all week.