Personal Statement: UCLA

When I was just a wee little sprout of about eight winters, something traumatizing

and greatly affecting happened: For the first time in my short life, I had experienced the

perennial distress that usually begins in August and ends sometime right before October.

I am, of course, speaking of the Anaheim Angels and their doomed fate. As an Angels

fan, I consider myself a curious breed: I hate it when my team loses, but, like a Cubs fan

or Red Sox fan, I have a certain perverse pride in the fact that I stay an Angel fan,

through thick and thin. Even when they gave up an 11-game lead in August to the godforsaken

Seattle Mariners. Being an Angel fan has taught me perseverance in the face of

because I have to deal with those braying, neighing donkeys who are Dodger fans and

retain my composure.

I was taught to be an Angel fan by my dad, a masochi…excuse me, a lifelong

Angels fan. My brother Brian taught me the proper way to sing “Take Me Out to the

Ballgame” (“It’s root root root for the Angels, if they don’t win it’s the SAME”) Being

an Angel fan has helped to strengthen my bonds with the rest of my family. I go to

Angel games often with my Dad and my Brothers and it is one of the few things that my

Dad and I converse about. My brothers now live away from home, so one of the few

times I see them is when they come down to go to baseball games.

Being an Angel fan has taught me that disappointment is a part of life, and that

nothing is a sure thing. When a team goes ahead by 11 games in August, it is NOT a sure

thing that they will enter the playoffs. When the Angels are leading by 5 runs in the

bottom of the ninth, it is NOT a sure thing that they will win the game. This I have

related to my everyday life. When confronted with disappointment in everyday life, like

when I get turned down by females or do poorly on a test, I remember my Angels and

how they still play every day, even after they suffer horrible defeats. This keeps me

going disappointment after disappointment.

It has also taught me to be humble before all of Humankind. The Angels are a

notoriously mediocre team, but they are never prideful after winning their one game in

every ten. This I have also applied to my everyday. When I succeed at something, I

always try to be humble and do my best not to gloat about it. This helps me in many

ways, most notably by my not getting beaten up because I was gloating about something.

Being an Angel fan is one of the more important aspects of my life. It has taught

me so many things that I apply to my everyday life. Due to my Angel fandom, I have

perseverance, a stern loyalty, and humility in my everyday life. This will help me once I

come to UCLA because I will be able to deal with my disappointments in classes,

develop loyalty and friendships with my fellow students, and have humility when I set

the curve in all of my classes.