...where I will also be found doing this...
...and ending each day with this...
Happy New Year!!!!
It's frickin' freezing in here.
It may be winter, but I don't have to be happy about it. It was just a short while ago that the seasonal dip in temps was welcomed by me with open arms. I lived for winter and snowfall and cold. I couldn't get enough snowboards and outerwear! What an idiot I was- being cold sucks!!! It is with bated breath and a totally unfounded fear of plane crashes that I impatiently wait to depart the frozen tundra of Southern California and go to El Salvador- where it'll be in the high 80's with water just as warm. I can't wait to be warm!!! Oh to feel the cool breeze of artificially chilled air after being in the heat and humidity!!! Secretly, I am thrilled that the surf will be on the small side- lots of waves for me! One word for you: poolside. And what is poolside, you may ask? Well, there is a lime tree for your beverage, a fridge from which to grab your beverage, a view of the ocean, WARM patio... so much you don't even know. And so, I leave the California chill for...
...where I will also be found doing this...
...and ending each day with this...
Happy New Year!!!!
...where I will also be found doing this...
...and ending each day with this...
Happy New Year!!!!
Correction
So, Thursday I accomplished the near impossible. I went to the MV Mall at 2pm 5 days before Christmas and survived. I did have to park almost out of view of the mall and glare myself safe passage across the main mall road. For future reference, if you need to cross a mall road, standing there looking completely angry works in less than 30 seconds. Not Christmasy, for sure, but results are guaranteed. I managed to hit 5 stores in rapid succession starting at one end of the mall and looping back looking for one gift. I didn't find it, but it was OK. But, I was wearing my scumbag outfit again and it is too warm for a tear around the mall at near jogging speed.
Which brings me to my correction. In an earlier post, I stated that Waldenbooks Express sucks. Well, in my whirlwind tour of the mall, I sheepishly noticed that while it is an Express it is a BORDERS Express now. Nevertheless, it had no books I was looking for and it still therefore sucks. Big Borders=good, small Borders=suck.
My cookies are done. And I need more cough syrup.
Which brings me to my correction. In an earlier post, I stated that Waldenbooks Express sucks. Well, in my whirlwind tour of the mall, I sheepishly noticed that while it is an Express it is a BORDERS Express now. Nevertheless, it had no books I was looking for and it still therefore sucks. Big Borders=good, small Borders=suck.
My cookies are done. And I need more cough syrup.
Christmas Karaoke
I have decided nothing is as infuriatingly annoying like "The 12 Days of Christmas."
But "Feliz Navidad"... now THAT will get me dancing and singing around my kitchen! Sing it, Jose....
But "Feliz Navidad"... now THAT will get me dancing and singing around my kitchen! Sing it, Jose....
Christmas Shopping, Part 2
After a careful, conscientious scientific study (over 2 days) I have determined that Christmas shopping has an involuntary cutoff time of 1:00pm. I have no focus or energy to keep on past that time. Today, I managed to convince myself that I really did not need to grocery shop after Christmas shopping because:
1- I'm cooking for myself tonight, the Tall One will be fed at Bible study
2- The thought of navigating the Trader Joe's parking lot at around 2pm made me dry heave
3- I had to pee real bad
Looks like it's soup and salad tonight!
If you're still trying to get some last minute Christmas gifts out of the way, here are my suggestions.
Best Buy
Go early, like around 10am. There is still parking, and your chance of being mowed over by a plasticized Prozac-popping catastrophe masquerading as a mom and her ark (or SUV, you decide) is considerably less. They have lots of DVD's, including WKRP in Cincinnati-The Complete First Season if your dad happens to think it's sitcom gold. Like mine.
Borders
Nothing says "I love you" like a good book. Or calendar. Or whatever else somehow manages to fit under the category of books and get sold here. Word to the wise, I dropped in to the Waldenbooks Express yesterday hoping to pick up my El Salvador poolside reading (it's a Jane Austen holiday folks- Mansfield Park & Sense and Sensibility!) and was shut down. They had like 5 Austen books in the whole joint. Waldenbooks Express sucks. But Borders... I love that place. I spent about 5 minutes determining which version of Mansfield Park I wanted. Penguin Classics? The $4.95 version with the cheap ass drawing? Oh, this $6.95 version has a lovely painting on the cover... I'm not exaggerating. And if that hasn't convinced you, they have a pocket-sized travel gnome and a travel nun-bowling game.
Target
Kicks ass. You know this unless you live in a cave.
Icons of Surf
This is a little hole in the wall longboard shop in San Clemente that has the most beautiful boards I have ever seen in my life. Reason I pick this place is because they have a huge selection of tees (for guys and the ladies) with art by Andy Davis, an artist that does cool surfy art. They're a little pricey, but if you need a girl's gift it's great. Guys too, but only if they're into the slim fit/light turquoise deal.
Lastly, go out shopping looking like a total scumbag. I wore a hoodie with a jacket over it, jeans and beat up Vans and people were nice as pie to me. Not once did I get vibed. Maybe because I wasn't at the mall. Stupid Macy's wench, I hope she snaps a heel and bumps her head on her precious fragrance display. Gasp!!!! Did I say that?!?
And lastly, 10 more days until El Ano Nuevo 2008- El Salvador. Where two grown men can sit in a patio jacuzzi and we're strangely OK with Brokeback Spa. Side note- there was no running hot water in the hotel, that's cold water in there.
1- I'm cooking for myself tonight, the Tall One will be fed at Bible study
2- The thought of navigating the Trader Joe's parking lot at around 2pm made me dry heave
3- I had to pee real bad
Looks like it's soup and salad tonight!
If you're still trying to get some last minute Christmas gifts out of the way, here are my suggestions.
Best Buy
Go early, like around 10am. There is still parking, and your chance of being mowed over by a plasticized Prozac-popping catastrophe masquerading as a mom and her ark (or SUV, you decide) is considerably less. They have lots of DVD's, including WKRP in Cincinnati-The Complete First Season if your dad happens to think it's sitcom gold. Like mine.
Borders
Nothing says "I love you" like a good book. Or calendar. Or whatever else somehow manages to fit under the category of books and get sold here. Word to the wise, I dropped in to the Waldenbooks Express yesterday hoping to pick up my El Salvador poolside reading (it's a Jane Austen holiday folks- Mansfield Park & Sense and Sensibility!) and was shut down. They had like 5 Austen books in the whole joint. Waldenbooks Express sucks. But Borders... I love that place. I spent about 5 minutes determining which version of Mansfield Park I wanted. Penguin Classics? The $4.95 version with the cheap ass drawing? Oh, this $6.95 version has a lovely painting on the cover... I'm not exaggerating. And if that hasn't convinced you, they have a pocket-sized travel gnome and a travel nun-bowling game.
Target
Kicks ass. You know this unless you live in a cave.
Icons of Surf
This is a little hole in the wall longboard shop in San Clemente that has the most beautiful boards I have ever seen in my life. Reason I pick this place is because they have a huge selection of tees (for guys and the ladies) with art by Andy Davis, an artist that does cool surfy art. They're a little pricey, but if you need a girl's gift it's great. Guys too, but only if they're into the slim fit/light turquoise deal.
Lastly, go out shopping looking like a total scumbag. I wore a hoodie with a jacket over it, jeans and beat up Vans and people were nice as pie to me. Not once did I get vibed. Maybe because I wasn't at the mall. Stupid Macy's wench, I hope she snaps a heel and bumps her head on her precious fragrance display. Gasp!!!! Did I say that?!?
And lastly, 10 more days until El Ano Nuevo 2008- El Salvador. Where two grown men can sit in a patio jacuzzi and we're strangely OK with Brokeback Spa. Side note- there was no running hot water in the hotel, that's cold water in there.
Christmas Shopping, Part 1
Only I wait until 8 days before Christmas to begin shopping. I even gave up my place in line at the bank to keep putting it off. Overall, it was fairly painless. Unless you count my left heel, which I think I may have bruised this morning while trying to exit the ocean after surfing with frozen feet. Note to self, there was a reason why there were not a lot of people out this morning and that would be the 45 degree weather without the wind factor. Anyway, my foot hurt towards the end and that was enough to get me to call it a shopping day about an hour early. But as usual, I've got some comments...
1) Just stay away from the post office. I've placed trade sanctions on the Tall One's eBay activities until after Christmas, because every time he sells something, guess who has the WIDE OPEN schedule to go stand in line at the post office? If I have to take a number, there better be ice cream at the end and not some disgruntled government employee.
2) I apparently have leprechauns sprouting from my ears because I was blatantly, noticeably given the head-to-toe (with varying degrees of disdain) by no less than 3 people today. THREE!!!! The first was at Macy's in the fragrance section. Some cow of a sales wench (obviously my bitterness has waned) looked me up and down TWICE as I waited in line and still did nothing to help me. I don't know what's worse- being ignored or being acknowledged and still denied assistance. Then, at the post office a mom gave me the once over, promptly followed by another lady who should've been paying attention to her growing pile of packages that she was assembling. Good god almighty- do I smell?!? Have I spilled on my sweater?!? Pen across my face?!?
3) No one in Orange County works. I know this because they were ALL shopping at the Mission Viejo Mall today. Amazing.
4) All malls should have a pet store (as long as they take good care of the animals) because nothing lightens up your mood like petting puppies. It's a great shopping break. It would've been all time if they hadn't removed the bunny enclosure (which better be brought back after the holidays), because the only thing better than puppies are bunnies.
Tomorrow is round two. Stay tuned and shop vicariously through me...
1) Just stay away from the post office. I've placed trade sanctions on the Tall One's eBay activities until after Christmas, because every time he sells something, guess who has the WIDE OPEN schedule to go stand in line at the post office? If I have to take a number, there better be ice cream at the end and not some disgruntled government employee.
2) I apparently have leprechauns sprouting from my ears because I was blatantly, noticeably given the head-to-toe (with varying degrees of disdain) by no less than 3 people today. THREE!!!! The first was at Macy's in the fragrance section. Some cow of a sales wench (obviously my bitterness has waned) looked me up and down TWICE as I waited in line and still did nothing to help me. I don't know what's worse- being ignored or being acknowledged and still denied assistance. Then, at the post office a mom gave me the once over, promptly followed by another lady who should've been paying attention to her growing pile of packages that she was assembling. Good god almighty- do I smell?!? Have I spilled on my sweater?!? Pen across my face?!?
3) No one in Orange County works. I know this because they were ALL shopping at the Mission Viejo Mall today. Amazing.
4) All malls should have a pet store (as long as they take good care of the animals) because nothing lightens up your mood like petting puppies. It's a great shopping break. It would've been all time if they hadn't removed the bunny enclosure (which better be brought back after the holidays), because the only thing better than puppies are bunnies.
Tomorrow is round two. Stay tuned and shop vicariously through me...
Freedom!!!!!!!
That's right all. This student nurse is off for 4 weeks, and it's going great so far after a rocky start.
Finals "week" was preceded by social function weekend and as little studying as possible. A Christmas party, a dinner with friends- I was tired and not feeling well by Sunday. I'm out of "social shape." Somewhere around Monday morning I was able to settle down and start studying. By Tuesday afternoon, I was trolling the instructor's offices in an effort to bug them while I avoided studying. As I finished my pharmacology final that day, I came to the realization that I effectively over-studied the entire semester for that class. I studied half the time I usually did for my quizzes and still managed the same grade I got every week. Sigh.
Next was my mental health final, which I studied the perfect amount for. We have this book for the class and she pulls like 10% of the questions on our quizzes and tests from it- it's like free points! Afterwards, we unlucky souls that still had a gerontology final at 5:30 went out for snacks and not-studying. I am sad to say that I reluctantly gave money to Chronic Tacos by ordering nachos. I've always said there's no way in holy hell I would ever set foot in a Chronic Tacos establishment because:
a) It's called CHRONIC Tacos for god's sakes- as in, light it up and pass it to the left!!! Yoooooooo!!
b) They have a nautical star in their logo. Nothing is more unexplainably "hip", "punk", "rock" and obviously original like a nautical star. 2 out of 5 people under the age of 25 in south Orange County have this permanently etched on their bodies, which they will totally still love when they're 50. Or so they think.
Anyway, it was an artery clogging wad of tortilla chips, melted cheese and beans. And it wasn't even soft nacho cheese- it was microwave zapped grated cheese. All for $4.79!!!!! Their only redeeming factor is that they have Orange Bang, the frothy orange whip drink that I could drink until I'm a diabetic.
And then it went downhill. My gerontology final was a wreck. A 100pt. final that IS my grade (4 ten-point quizzes do nothing in the face of this test), and I walked out with at least 16 questions circled- my way of knowing that there is a good chance I'm going to miss those. I cried on my drive home. See, I have to pass this class with a grade of 75% or greater THIS semester or I don't go on to second semester. I managed all A's, and yet this 1 unit class could hold me back. Not the ending to the semester I forsaw (is that a word???)
Well, last night was redemption. She posted grades and I passed. NOW I can celebrate. Which I have done by cleaning out my study. For any future house guests, fear not the room is now clean. The rest of the house will follow.
Now for fun stuff- I get to brag!!!!
This is half of our new backyard- just in time for 40 degree nights!!! That misty object to the right is a firepit, it does a wonderful job of sending heat straight up instead of to the sides. Don't tell the Tall One that.
This is part of my garden. In my deepening quest to be a closet hippie, I am trying to grow our lettuce for salads. Look at it all... Above are some herbs. To the left will be radishes when I learn to vanquish whatever keeps eating my seedlings. And I find the jackhole who keeps using it as their cig butt catch tray.
Lettuce to the left, broccoli to the right, herbs above. The blank space will be carrots, once they sprout big enough to leave the indoors. They're so cute.
See? They really are cute! Some people have kids, I go to nursing school and grow veggies from seed.
14 more days until the beginning of El Ano Nuevo 2008- El Salvador.
Finals "week" was preceded by social function weekend and as little studying as possible. A Christmas party, a dinner with friends- I was tired and not feeling well by Sunday. I'm out of "social shape." Somewhere around Monday morning I was able to settle down and start studying. By Tuesday afternoon, I was trolling the instructor's offices in an effort to bug them while I avoided studying. As I finished my pharmacology final that day, I came to the realization that I effectively over-studied the entire semester for that class. I studied half the time I usually did for my quizzes and still managed the same grade I got every week. Sigh.
Next was my mental health final, which I studied the perfect amount for. We have this book for the class and she pulls like 10% of the questions on our quizzes and tests from it- it's like free points! Afterwards, we unlucky souls that still had a gerontology final at 5:30 went out for snacks and not-studying. I am sad to say that I reluctantly gave money to Chronic Tacos by ordering nachos. I've always said there's no way in holy hell I would ever set foot in a Chronic Tacos establishment because:
a) It's called CHRONIC Tacos for god's sakes- as in, light it up and pass it to the left!!! Yoooooooo!!
b) They have a nautical star in their logo. Nothing is more unexplainably "hip", "punk", "rock" and obviously original like a nautical star. 2 out of 5 people under the age of 25 in south Orange County have this permanently etched on their bodies, which they will totally still love when they're 50. Or so they think.
Anyway, it was an artery clogging wad of tortilla chips, melted cheese and beans. And it wasn't even soft nacho cheese- it was microwave zapped grated cheese. All for $4.79!!!!! Their only redeeming factor is that they have Orange Bang, the frothy orange whip drink that I could drink until I'm a diabetic.
And then it went downhill. My gerontology final was a wreck. A 100pt. final that IS my grade (4 ten-point quizzes do nothing in the face of this test), and I walked out with at least 16 questions circled- my way of knowing that there is a good chance I'm going to miss those. I cried on my drive home. See, I have to pass this class with a grade of 75% or greater THIS semester or I don't go on to second semester. I managed all A's, and yet this 1 unit class could hold me back. Not the ending to the semester I forsaw (is that a word???)
Well, last night was redemption. She posted grades and I passed. NOW I can celebrate. Which I have done by cleaning out my study. For any future house guests, fear not the room is now clean. The rest of the house will follow.
Now for fun stuff- I get to brag!!!!
This is half of our new backyard- just in time for 40 degree nights!!! That misty object to the right is a firepit, it does a wonderful job of sending heat straight up instead of to the sides. Don't tell the Tall One that.
This is part of my garden. In my deepening quest to be a closet hippie, I am trying to grow our lettuce for salads. Look at it all... Above are some herbs. To the left will be radishes when I learn to vanquish whatever keeps eating my seedlings. And I find the jackhole who keeps using it as their cig butt catch tray.
Lettuce to the left, broccoli to the right, herbs above. The blank space will be carrots, once they sprout big enough to leave the indoors. They're so cute.
See? They really are cute! Some people have kids, I go to nursing school and grow veggies from seed.
14 more days until the beginning of El Ano Nuevo 2008- El Salvador.
I swear it's for cooking.
You know tomorrow is Thanksgiving when:
* You realize you didn't buy the brandy for your brandied pumpkin-ice cream pie last night so you go to the liquor store at 9am to buy the smallest cheapest bottle of brandy on the shelf. I felt like a drunk buying this small bottle and told the counter lady, "I swear, it's for cooking; I can't believe I'm buying alcohol before 10am." Because AFTER 10am it's so much more normal.
* For the same pie, you realize that you forgot to buy ground ginger and in the span of 10 seconds you have an argument in your head with yourself on if the ginger will actually be missed in the pie. The ginger won.
* Your husband is shocked that for your first official T-giving as "wife" you have chosen to take on the mashed potatoes. He so lovingly stated that:
a) The potatoes are a HUGE deal
b) Don't screw them up
c) If you do screw them up, I wonder if the family will still let me be married to you.
* The entire contingent of 1st semester nursing students in gerontology will have to be physically restrained next week from assaulting the Argumentative Quiz Question Monitor. We really need this four day weekend.
* You're already looking forward to your post-turkey nap. Sweet heaven.
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone- a safe and wonderful holiday wherever you go!
* You realize you didn't buy the brandy for your brandied pumpkin-ice cream pie last night so you go to the liquor store at 9am to buy the smallest cheapest bottle of brandy on the shelf. I felt like a drunk buying this small bottle and told the counter lady, "I swear, it's for cooking; I can't believe I'm buying alcohol before 10am." Because AFTER 10am it's so much more normal.
* For the same pie, you realize that you forgot to buy ground ginger and in the span of 10 seconds you have an argument in your head with yourself on if the ginger will actually be missed in the pie. The ginger won.
* Your husband is shocked that for your first official T-giving as "wife" you have chosen to take on the mashed potatoes. He so lovingly stated that:
a) The potatoes are a HUGE deal
b) Don't screw them up
c) If you do screw them up, I wonder if the family will still let me be married to you.
* The entire contingent of 1st semester nursing students in gerontology will have to be physically restrained next week from assaulting the Argumentative Quiz Question Monitor. We really need this four day weekend.
* You're already looking forward to your post-turkey nap. Sweet heaven.
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone- a safe and wonderful holiday wherever you go!
A brief respite from bitterness.
In the immortal words of Britney Spears, "Hey y'all!!!" Before I put my crankypants back on, I thought I'd share some random happy thoughts from the last few days.
1. The world is one more couple richer- Tyler and Tiffany Morehead said "I Do" as a pirate ship (that takes unwilling grade schoolers out to sea and makes them peel potatoes) left port behind them. High kicks ensued.
2. Praise God for Thanksgiving because I haven't had a week this nice in a LONG time. I had a mid-term today (which I think I did quite well on), a canceled guest speaker after the mid-term (is it mean that the entire class cheered heartily when the prof announced the cancellation?), and I just don't care about my remaining quizzes this week. Yeah T-giving!!!
3. How about the New England Patriots redefining the "@#$! you, in your face, we're up by 30 in the 4th and going for it" touchdown every week? If I wasn't a Pats fan, I'd really hate them.
4. While it should be unpardonable to discuss Christmas before Thanksgiving- I'm SOOOO excited Christmas season kicks off this Friday. Although, I did roll my eyes when I walked into Starbucks TWO WEEKS ago at 5:50am (caffeine makes psychotic people so much more tolerable) and the place was awash in red and snowflakes.
5. Back to Thanksgiving- does anybody else feel bad for poor Thanksgiving? I mean, it's like the red-headed stepchild holiday now, totally overshadowed by Christmas. It's like, after Halloween, bring out the red and green and eggnog!!!! Poor Thanksgiving. (Like it actually has feelings... good grief.)
6. Until Friday, I absolutely refuse to set foot in anything resembling a grocery store between 8am and 8pm. I made the unfortunate mistake of going to Trader Joe's, thinking it wouldn't be that busy. I obviously take drugs. I stood for at least 10 seconds without moving, looking at the 7 checkout aisles that were each 4-5 carts deep, contemplating if it was worth it. And since the drugs are good, I kept shopping. Don't people work? At least I have an excuse- I'm a cash sucking student!! I'm feeling quite smug about the fact I did my T-giving shopping before 8am on Sat. The night before, I had dreams that I got to the store and they were already totally out of potatoes and pumpkin. Lucky for me, they had about 1000lbs of potatoes and about 500 cans of pumpkin. Tragedy averted.
7. Just in case you were wondering- a jersey knit black dress can totally double as a shawl when you're in a hurry to get down to a wedding (on a beach cruiser, wearing a party dress, heels in the basket) and you grab that instead of your nice warm sweater. However, the ride home is too cold for words.
8. The Countdown to El Ano Nuevo 2008- El Salvador has begun. 43 more days...
1. The world is one more couple richer- Tyler and Tiffany Morehead said "I Do" as a pirate ship (that takes unwilling grade schoolers out to sea and makes them peel potatoes) left port behind them. High kicks ensued.
2. Praise God for Thanksgiving because I haven't had a week this nice in a LONG time. I had a mid-term today (which I think I did quite well on), a canceled guest speaker after the mid-term (is it mean that the entire class cheered heartily when the prof announced the cancellation?), and I just don't care about my remaining quizzes this week. Yeah T-giving!!!
3. How about the New England Patriots redefining the "@#$! you, in your face, we're up by 30 in the 4th and going for it" touchdown every week? If I wasn't a Pats fan, I'd really hate them.
4. While it should be unpardonable to discuss Christmas before Thanksgiving- I'm SOOOO excited Christmas season kicks off this Friday. Although, I did roll my eyes when I walked into Starbucks TWO WEEKS ago at 5:50am (caffeine makes psychotic people so much more tolerable) and the place was awash in red and snowflakes.
5. Back to Thanksgiving- does anybody else feel bad for poor Thanksgiving? I mean, it's like the red-headed stepchild holiday now, totally overshadowed by Christmas. It's like, after Halloween, bring out the red and green and eggnog!!!! Poor Thanksgiving. (Like it actually has feelings... good grief.)
6. Until Friday, I absolutely refuse to set foot in anything resembling a grocery store between 8am and 8pm. I made the unfortunate mistake of going to Trader Joe's, thinking it wouldn't be that busy. I obviously take drugs. I stood for at least 10 seconds without moving, looking at the 7 checkout aisles that were each 4-5 carts deep, contemplating if it was worth it. And since the drugs are good, I kept shopping. Don't people work? At least I have an excuse- I'm a cash sucking student!! I'm feeling quite smug about the fact I did my T-giving shopping before 8am on Sat. The night before, I had dreams that I got to the store and they were already totally out of potatoes and pumpkin. Lucky for me, they had about 1000lbs of potatoes and about 500 cans of pumpkin. Tragedy averted.
7. Just in case you were wondering- a jersey knit black dress can totally double as a shawl when you're in a hurry to get down to a wedding (on a beach cruiser, wearing a party dress, heels in the basket) and you grab that instead of your nice warm sweater. However, the ride home is too cold for words.
8. The Countdown to El Ano Nuevo 2008- El Salvador has begun. 43 more days...
Foiled by fire
Well, nursing school got the boot today. What should've been an uplifting 5-hr lecture about end-of-life care (complete with a movie that had the entire class weeping), was cut short when it was determined that the air quality at Saddleback was deemed too high a risk for the health of its staff and students. One of my friends drove 7 HOURS from Oceanside to try and make it for the rest of that lecture and then our Gerontology class tonight. She was in class a grand total of 15 minutes before they canceled class. AWESOME!!! While driving home from school and noting how bad the air quality was, I lost yet another battle in the War of Motivation To Study and checked the surf. Waist high, glassy and only 5 people out at Doheny.. WHAAAAT?!? What's that, ash falling from the sky? Pfffff! So, I surfed. And it was a blast. And I coughed for about an hour afterwards. The entire ocean surface was littered with teensy pieces of burned particles. On my way home, I took this picture from Pines Park on Camino Capistrano. Check that air quality... breathe deep!!!!
No, I'm not a nursing school dropout
The only current reader of my blog has asked if I've dropped out of nursing school because there has been no action on the blog. Never fear, I'm still a student. It's just how I said to another friend though, I'm still not so sure people really want to hear me rant, describe disgusting experiences or listen to me whine. Consider yourself warned. And do you like that I write this as if I have a grand audience, when really it's a grand total of 1?
School has been great, I'm entering the last week of my first nursing class. One down, FIVE more to go!! I think I just depressed myself, so I'll try to forget that. Anyway, I took my last quiz last Wednesday, I turned in my semester project that day as well and now I take my final on Tues, Oct. 30. It's nice having an "A", it means I can semi-tank the final and still pass. Always a comfort. I did pick up a new class this past week. Gerontology 101. It's my first ever 101 class in my college career. I hear it's great, the professor is a kick in the pants. She's this short, crazy haired Chinese-born woman that spent the majority of her time in Boston and New York, she talks loud, has a really dry sense of humor and constantly looks like she's scowling. The only bummer in the class is that all the "gunners" from my Pharmacology class the night before are now with me on Wed. nights. Shoot me!!!! This week, I get to sit through a 5-hour lecture on end-of-life care and then endure 3 hours of bright-eyed and bushy tailed, rose-glasses wearing, pseudo-intellectual gunners who think that we all care what they have to say? About every topic? Besides that, the PST factor for this class is off the charts. PST stands for Personal Story Time, and gunners are notorious for this. Do I care that your aunt's second cousin (twice removed) takes nitroglycerine and is your role model for how you want to grow old? NOOOOO!!! Do I care more that my butt is starting to go numb from sitting in lecture for 8 hours in one day? YES! Whatever, more on gunners in my next post. And PST sometime after that.
In an effort to not sound like a total antisocial jerk that dislikes 80% of her classmates, I'll end on a good story that sums up why I'm doing all this. Two weeks ago, I got to care for a 69 y/o man who is just sicker than sick. He's been in the hospital since the end of September and bounces back and forth between ICU and the Med/Surg floor. Anyway, I got to know his family and talk to them. They were very encouraging, thanked me for my hard work and told me that I'm going to be a great nurse. I noticed that the wife was reading the Bible and we talked about Isaiah, King Hezekiah, pretty random. A week later I was in the hospital again for my clinical class and while walking back from the lab I saw the wife again. I hadn't seen his name on the pt. board but I knew he was too sick to go home so I had hoped he was in ICU. She confirmed that he had gone back to ICU and had almost died earlier that week. He beat the odds and had recovered! But beyond checking up on him, I got the sit with the wife and ask her how SHE was coping with everything. She was so inspiring- she just said the Lord is good and He's keeping her going. Her husband is so ill, and yet she's still praising the goodness of God. Anyway, I think about them often. And this is why I'm doing this, so I can care for people when they're in the best or worst health of their life AND walk with the families. Sometimes the family members need a little bit of TLC too.
School has been great, I'm entering the last week of my first nursing class. One down, FIVE more to go!! I think I just depressed myself, so I'll try to forget that. Anyway, I took my last quiz last Wednesday, I turned in my semester project that day as well and now I take my final on Tues, Oct. 30. It's nice having an "A", it means I can semi-tank the final and still pass. Always a comfort. I did pick up a new class this past week. Gerontology 101. It's my first ever 101 class in my college career. I hear it's great, the professor is a kick in the pants. She's this short, crazy haired Chinese-born woman that spent the majority of her time in Boston and New York, she talks loud, has a really dry sense of humor and constantly looks like she's scowling. The only bummer in the class is that all the "gunners" from my Pharmacology class the night before are now with me on Wed. nights. Shoot me!!!! This week, I get to sit through a 5-hour lecture on end-of-life care and then endure 3 hours of bright-eyed and bushy tailed, rose-glasses wearing, pseudo-intellectual gunners who think that we all care what they have to say? About every topic? Besides that, the PST factor for this class is off the charts. PST stands for Personal Story Time, and gunners are notorious for this. Do I care that your aunt's second cousin (twice removed) takes nitroglycerine and is your role model for how you want to grow old? NOOOOO!!! Do I care more that my butt is starting to go numb from sitting in lecture for 8 hours in one day? YES! Whatever, more on gunners in my next post. And PST sometime after that.
In an effort to not sound like a total antisocial jerk that dislikes 80% of her classmates, I'll end on a good story that sums up why I'm doing all this. Two weeks ago, I got to care for a 69 y/o man who is just sicker than sick. He's been in the hospital since the end of September and bounces back and forth between ICU and the Med/Surg floor. Anyway, I got to know his family and talk to them. They were very encouraging, thanked me for my hard work and told me that I'm going to be a great nurse. I noticed that the wife was reading the Bible and we talked about Isaiah, King Hezekiah, pretty random. A week later I was in the hospital again for my clinical class and while walking back from the lab I saw the wife again. I hadn't seen his name on the pt. board but I knew he was too sick to go home so I had hoped he was in ICU. She confirmed that he had gone back to ICU and had almost died earlier that week. He beat the odds and had recovered! But beyond checking up on him, I got the sit with the wife and ask her how SHE was coping with everything. She was so inspiring- she just said the Lord is good and He's keeping her going. Her husband is so ill, and yet she's still praising the goodness of God. Anyway, I think about them often. And this is why I'm doing this, so I can care for people when they're in the best or worst health of their life AND walk with the families. Sometimes the family members need a little bit of TLC too.
The Inaugural Posting
I've caved. I've started a blog. No, this isn't an excuse to really stop answering phone calls and then divert you to a website so you can find out what's going on in my life (there's heaps more interesting things to look at on the internet). I mean, I'm in freaking nursing school- how exciting can it really be? It's more of a place where I can vent frustrations, tell stories that probably only I find funny and maybe make you laugh at some point. Plus, the procrastination factor is huge- on a scale of 1-10, it goes to like 11. And I'm all about procrastination.
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