Accomplished Friends

"The happiest moments my heart knows are those in which it is pouring forth its affections to a few esteemed characters." - Thomas Jefferson

TJ had it right. It's always good to applaud your friends for their achievements. So that's what I want to do. While I have many, many accomplished friends working as doctors, lawyers, engineers, Hill staffers, teachers, and military, plus friends who are amazing parents to their kids (arguably the most important work), this post will focus on a few of my more-visibly-accomplished friends.

YouTube Personality

Deena Marie Manzanares - With humor, versatility and original characters, she's proven herself on YouTube and the stage. Also, Deena is an accomplished model and TV-commercial actress.

Reality TV
Michelle Money - Love her or hate her, she made a name for herself as "the manipulative seductress from Brad's season" [source]. Though I don't watch every week, I'm happy to hear she's doing well on Bachelor Pad and in her relationship with Graham Bunn. Also, she is championing fundraising for colon cancer research through the sale of For Six t-shirts.

Published Authors

Adrian Dayton - Wrote the book "Social Media for Lawyers" in the Fall 2009, is a regular columnist to the National Law Journal and BigLaw Newsletter, and has another book scheduled to be published soon.

Quin Woodward Pu - Has made a name for herself as a prominent fashion and political DC blogger [LittleBlackBlog], recently had her memoir "Type A+" published.

Dancer

Carly Berrett - Brings pieces to life through her graceful and powerful dancing, and has also taught on various levels. I've been lucky to see a couple performances live. If you get the chance, don't miss it.

Political Researcher

Emily McClintock Ekins - As a UCLA grad student, she surveyed a Tea Party rally for sign messages and was her work was cited by various publications. In addition, multiple political TV programs interviewed her, including Stossel, Freedom Watch, the O'Reilly Factor, and Reason. You can check out her research [here].

MMA Fighter

Josh Burkman - Even in high school, he played football like an MMA fighter. So it isn't so surprising that he found his calling in the octagon. He won his UFC's Ultimate Fighter 2 Finale match in 21 seconds and has compiled a 21-9-0 record.

Entrepreneurs
Damian Dayton - If you want a creative video, look no further than his Kineto Pictures studio. Check out their portfolio and prepare to be impressed. If I needed a commercial, you can bet Damian and Kineto would get my business.

David Marble & Seth Wheeler - These guys know how to start projects and make them successful. David contributed to TheMormonBachelorette.com and has been instrumental at ConSource.org. Together, David and Seth are developing a social-networking tool currently in beta format (so I won't share the name yet).

Thanks for being such amazing individuals, friends! Keep up the good work!
Note: Some may view this post as boasting/bragging/name-dropping. That's their cynical prerogative. I prefer to look at it as rejoicing in the efforts and successes of my friends.