Decisions, decisions...

Ever since the vipassana meditation camp where I talked to the Bastyr Univ. graduate, I've been thinking about what it is exactly that I want to be doing. I know that I still want to be doing art, and I know that having my own private practice is an okay back up but not something i necessarily want. I am however very interested in the research opportunities and possible travel for 2-3 months out of the year. Well, there are only so many people to ask opinions of since no one I know has really dealt with this stuff in length to give useful advice... So, I asked one of my professors, who is amazing. He had a lot of great advice and asked a lot of great questions. He quickly saw that I'm interested in the natural side of med and how the plants have been used in the past and how they could be used in the future, he thought that ethnobotany sounded like something I should check into, and also recommended a plants and society class that's offered at the community college.

I was really excited when I left and since then have done a good amount of research in my spare time to see where those classes are offer, what careers are available, and different people whom I can study under while obtaining my degrees.

Everything sounds awesome, and there's a lot of perks. For instance, there is a lot less pressure than with med school where they wanted you in and out within 4 years of when you applied, with this if something comes up i can slow down a bit, but still be on my way without any major consequences. I also like the ides that i can study in a number of places, however, Hawaii is the only state Ive found thus far that offers a bachelors in ethnoboany - as well as a masters and PhD programs as well. And as nice and amazing as that sounds, I'm pretty sure there is no way i can ever afford to live on Hawaii; as breathtakingly beautiful as it is.. its really expensive to life there and I'm still not sure how I feel about being a long plane ride away from everything, there is no getting in your car and driving away.. but on the plus side from what i have read from the schools website is

Housing is generally quite expensive and most students find themselves in abodes that are of lesser quality than their standards elsewhere. However, there is so much to do outside and the weather is almost always pleasant, so many students find that housing quality is a minor problem. Heating and cooling are not usually needed so electricity bills are usually very low. Hawai'i is not truly tropical so the temperatures are not truly hot. Likewise, it is not truly temperate so the temperatures are not truly cold. Food can be very expensive or cheap depending upon what is eaten. Many students grow gardens because vegetables and fruits can be very expensive. Diets that consist of Asian foods tend to be relatively cheap. Diets consisting of of typical Pacific Island or American foods can be quite expensive. Transportation on O'ahu is moderately good. Buses travel to all of the major locations however connections can be slow and it can take hours to get between two places that are not very far apart.
Bicycles are highly recommended. Some students elect to use cars or scooters.
Parking on campus is very expensive and should be considered when deciding to
use a car.

So its kind of like.. the good news is that I wont need to buy a car! lol

I pitched the ethnobotany change to my folks and they were each supportive in their own ways; mom as usual being very skeptical of any changes and questioning my drive and motives, and dad who was excited and proud that I'm figuring out what makes me happy and what i want to do at so young instead of wasting so much precious time (as he says he did).

So, that's whats going on with school stuff right now. As for my personal life, Bunny and I had our one year anniversery last week, and we went out and had a lot of fun.