Student Blog
Living in LA

Student by Day, Athlete by Night ⟩
September 28, 2011, by Kimberly

Living in LA School/Life Balance

While in the OT program, our time is taken up primarily by either being in class or studying/doing projects related to class. But for those of us who need to get out and be active and were previously athletes in high school or college, finding time to work-out is essential. Last year a group of my fellow students trained and ran the LA Marathon. Others take classes through USC, surf, do yoga, or form their own running groups on the beach for example. This year, in order to keep myself on a work-out schedule, I decided to train for the LA Triathlon. I have done all three sports (swimming, biking, and running) throughout my life, so it wasn’t too big of a jump to combine all three.

The race was this past Sunday and it was a blast! We started in Venice Beach and swam in the Pacific, then biked up Venice Blvd and Olympic Blvd to downtown LA. The final run was right through the middle of the LA skyscrapers. It was neat to be a part of something so huge and with people who were as crazy as me to sign up for the race. Of course there were also the professional triathletes who do this for a living, and those who had the thousands of dollars’ worth of gear. But the rest, like me, were just interested in trying something new and completing it for the sake of doing so. Overall it was an awesome experience and one to definitely go down in the books.

Though school is our main job right now, many of us in the program do make sure to take time to enjoy the outdoors and get active. Some call it finding balance, others say we are “OTing ourselves” and making sure we don’t get too overloaded with reading. Either way, LA is the perfect place to explore all kinds of options to stay active. Just get out there and give it a shot!

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Another week of delicious-ness! ⟩
September 15, 2011, by Floyd

Living in LA School/Life Balance

I just had another fun-filled weekend! On Friday I went to a Gourmet Food Truck festival in Santa Fe and ate everything in sight! I got this delicious Mexican and Filipino infusion burrito that composed of garlic rice, chicken adobo, fried egg, and topped off with some Vietnamese rooster hot sauce, and it was delicious. I got a side of carne asada fries from a Mexican truck and a roll of tempura crunchy California roll from a Japanese truck. For dessert I got a basket of sweet potato fries and washed it down with some mango juice that I got from an Asian dessert truck. My friends and I ended the night relaxing in the hot tub with glasses of white wine, homemade chocolate chip cookies, lemonade tarts, and tiramisu. What a delicious night!

On Saturday, I went to a concert of variety of punk rock bands and indie bands at the House of Blues in downtown Disney. Since I have my annual pass to Disneyland, my friends and I hopped on over to the resort and saw the fireworks eating our jumbo turkey legs and drinking Disney’s Dole Whips (Like a root beer float but instead, it’s with pineapple juice and pineapple whipped ice cream).

Sunday, I ended my week for some “me time.” I went to Chinatown for some dim sum (Asian food that are miniature sized), and got a full body massage at my favorite place. Then I went home and lay on my bed and relaxed with some articles for class (I have to get some homework done sometime!). I canceled the rest of my other plans for the evening because sometimes, it’s just nice to be by yourself to reflect.

Ok, if you haven’t noticed, my world seems to revolve around eating good food and going to do fun stuff. That’s me!

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People-Watching in LA ⟩
September 13, 2011, by Kimberly

Living in LA What are OS/OT?

I will be the first to admit that I enjoy people-watching.

Before you think I’m completely weird, you have to know that I take public transport all over LA all the time; and when you are sitting on a bus for 45 minutes across town, it’s hard not to observe the people around you. People-watching for me is more about wondering where they come from, where they’re going. I guess you could say I am an OT at heart, just trying to figure out who a person is from a few seconds we happen to be sharing the same mode of transport. The best part about LA is that it is so culturally diverse and rich. The individuals I have met on the train, bus, Metrorail, walking or even riding my bike all have a different life-path that has brought them where they are today.

My favorite part of riding public transport is when a conversation is actually struck. During OT month last April I had a pin that said “I Love OT” on my backpack and the guy next to me said he had to ask why I loved “overtime.” After a laugh I corrected him and pointed out that OT really stands for occupational therapy and proceeded to have a conversation about the profession. Before we were finished 2 people next to him had joined in and the whole bus-load was educated on what a great thing OT is.

People who ride public transport range from the smallest baby, to the man who can’t afford dinner, to the businesswoman carrying groceries, to the student riding to class. It is really a snapshot of our community and provides an opportunity to get to know others we might not see driving from point A to point B on the freeway. Sometimes I wonder what people think my story is. Well, all they have to do is ask . . . but for now I am content simply observing and smiling at the complexity of human life through the lens of a simple bus ride.

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Back to Reality ⟩
September 13, 2011, by Chris

Community Living in LA School/Life Balance

Well, the first week of class has come and gone, which means it’s back to reality.

Although the return to class may not be at the top of my “things I enjoy” list, it was actually really nice to hang out with friends I haven’t seen since May. The start of fall semester also means the start of football season. This Saturday marks the Trojans’ season-opener against Minnesota. I’m looking forward to meeting up with some friends at the unofficial OT tailgate. I’m anticipating an excellent second year in the program (which will hopefully help me make a decision about the OTD).

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Main Campus is Officially Awesome ⟩
September 13, 2011, by Alix

Living in LA

I just started the second half of the OT program here at USC, and this year I’m taking three of my classes on the main campus. Amazingly, I had never been to the main campus before this week (I know, it’s terrible) because all my classes were on the health sciences campus last year. So, why didn’t anybody tell me how awesome the main campus was? I love the health sciences campus and everything, but it really doesn’t compare. The trees and sculptures are beautiful, there are fountains everywhere, and I love the bustling energy and all the happy undergrads riding around on their beach cruisers.

Another great fact about the main campus: I started teaching free outdoor yoga there this week in Alumni Park underneath the trees. The OT Faculty Practice is sponsoring free yoga classes on both campuses all semester long, and I’ll be teaching every Tuesday at 9AM. Before I found out about OT, I wanted to become a yoga therapist, so I’m happy to be teaching other students and thinking more about how I can use yoga in my practice as an OT. It’s also just nice to spend time outdoors in the morning while the campus is still quiet and peaceful.

In light of the unexpected awesomeness of the main campus, I decided I’m finally going to come out for a tailgate. (Usually it’s virtually impossible to drag me out of Santa Monica on the weekend.) Stay tuned for the full report on tailgating. I’ll make sure to take good notes. 😉

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