Wednesday, February 18, 2009

my bed

is it possible for my bed to feel so good? I'm melting into it. How will I ever wake up for school tomorrow?
All I want is to hybernate for a while. A rainy Sunday would be nice, to stay all day at home. First, I would clean my house really well, and wash my sheets. Then, I would curl up in bed and read my favorite good books. Lost in the scent of fabric softener and a cloud of a comforter, I would read The Red Tent, Kite Runner, A Thousand Splendid Suns, and Strange Son.

Will a rainy Sunday actually happen? I doubt it. And even if I get a day off, I will probably wind up somewhere else, doing other things. Windsurfing or something. Which is pretty cool too.

Friday, February 13, 2009

Almost Famous

Remember any blog posts where I talked about doing a windsurfing board test for Windsurfing Magazine? I think I mentioned it.

Well, the magazine came out a couple weeks ago and to my surprise, I got a particularly sweet picture in it. Take a look!!!!

The important pages are 4 and 6. On page is also a quick little write up about me.

Click on the link, and then click "click here to start downloading". Be patient, it takes a minute... Sorry I don't know how else to use pdf files except like this!

http://www.mediafire.com/?3nymjw1b3yk

Thursday, February 12, 2009

let loose at the elementary school

Today was my first day of clinical. Up until now, I have had plenty of lecture/theory time in an over-air conditioned classroom and some decent hours in a smelly mildewing lab room. At last, we were set loose to practice our newly acquired skills on some of the cutest and funnest patients-- children!

What is it about me? Why do I love kids so much? Have I always been able to connect with them, and really identify with them? Maybe. Or it could be the last few years of exposure to my step siblings, and how I miss them so much now. Regardless of the reason, the moment I set foot at the Elementary School I felt at home and in place.

Each of us were assigned to a different classroom. My assignment: Developmentally Challenged Preschool.

I have to admit that when I went yesterday to buy my stethoscope, I was thinking about the kids. Rather than go with boring and traditional black, I went for the purple one. I could imagine myself already.... the kids would see me as fun, nice, cool blonde haired girl in teal scrubs. The one with the pretty purple stethoscope. The little girls would love me, and we would be best friends by the end of the day.

My classroom wasn't filled with the 7 year old girls like I had planned, but the new possibilities immediately perked me up. I found myself with tiny kids ages 3 and 4, mostly diagnosed with Autism and Down Syndrome. I immediately fell in love. They were absolutely adorable, and so fun. Definitely challenging, since their social skills are not the same as typical pre school kids. The first little girl I interacted with had already picked out just the right toys for the occasion: a doctors kit! She pulled out a little plastic stethoscope and I jumped to my feet to retrieve my brand new purple stethoscope. Although she could not communicate with me verbally, I could tell by her nonverbal behavior that she was as thrilled with my purple stethoscope as I was. I knew it would be a good day.

While playing with the kids, one wasted no time in attaching himself to my hip. He was totally adorable, and a little more socially adapted. He scooted closer and closer to me and before I knew it I had found myself a little shadow for the day.

My educational task for the day was to pick a student and apply the Denver II test to see if the student was following the pattern and trend for growth. We learned about this test in class and practiced it a bit. With a fairly cooperative preschooler, we hopped on one foot, long jumped, drew stick figures, counted blocks, named colors and played word games. I charted my findings accordingly, and get to write a paper about it tonight.

After lunch, my kids were exhausted. Following the teachers schedule, they watched Sesame Street and went down for a 1 hour nap. This gave me 1.5 hours to catch up on homework and cruise the school. I found myself an inviting picnic bench on the playground and settled in. As I browsed my work, children of each of the grade levels came out for recess. With each recess, came another batch of curious students to my study spot.

My favorite of these onlookers consisted of 3 first grade girls. They were outgoing and talkative, keeping me busy with questions and answers. They were very curious about my scrubs, my homework and why I was at school. When I told them I was going to be a nurse, they shot into a discussion of "what I am going to be when I grow up". Sitting live, right in front of me, was a future doctor, teacher, and a candy shop owner. I tried to suppress my laughter as they vividly described their reasoning for their picks. When the bell rang, I could tell it was hard for them to peel themselves away from the picnic table and from our quality discussion. They marched back to class with their arms locked over eachothers shoulder, best friends forever. I couldn't help but think back to that age and how it felt. I remembered my best friends, and can proudly call those girls some of my best friends still.

Overall, the day was an awesome experience. I loved everything about it and I am really excited that I was assigned to a Developmentally Challenged group rather then a regular class. I am incredibly intrigued by Autism in particular, thanks to some reading up on it from a few years ago. I am excited to learn more about it.

Tomorrow I go back and do the same stuff, and I also get to spend some time in the School Health Center doing physical exams! Looks like I get to pull out the purple stethoscope again :-)

ouch

Tonight I worked at Ale House. I trained Laura to waitress. Yay! It was pretty busy, for a Wednesday. YAY! I made good money. YAAAY!

We didn't get off work until 12am. I promised her I would proofread her essay tonight so she could turn it in tomorrow.

It is now 2:30am. Essay is done. My stuff is packed for tomorrow. I have to wake up at 6:15am for my first day of clinical. 3.75 hours of sleep. .... yay???

Goodnight.


"Real growth doesn't happen without some pains"

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

it really makes you realize

In reflecting on my last blog and reflecting on the last few days....

When things go wrong, you really realize who is around you.

My car is sitting uselessly in my driveway, now nothing more than a storage unit for my water toys. I feel like I have completely lost my independence, just by losing my set of wheels. While I find myself doing the transportation limbo, there are suddenly people all around me willing to help me out. Between my roommates, classmates, coworkers and friends I have made it to all my destinations, even early. Even some of my family are going to pull together to help me out. It may not be much, but suddenly the $20 is starting to feel like $200 used to feel. Any little bit helps, and what is even more important, I feel like people care. Somehow I have spun myself a web of a social network of friends that are starting to feel more like family.

I can't wait until I have a reliable set of wheels again. I can't wait until I graduate Nursing School. I can't wait until I am financially stable. I can't wait until I can return the favor to all of those who have helped me out along the way. And wow I am so amazed at how long the list is getting. There are so many people I have to thank for helping me out, making me the person I am today and continually supporting me to be the person I am going to be. There is a little bit of each of you that makes up "me".

So...

Thank You.

=)

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

makes you realize

The bad days happen so that you can appreciate the good days. Things go wrong so that you can remember how good it feels when things go right.

My problem, I have too many good days on Maui. So it takes the bad things to appreciate the good. Thats why my car is broken down. So its okay, because now I can't wait to get a car again. And now I will take even better care of it.

See? It makes sense.

Monday, February 9, 2009

ohhh dear

Ooooh okay what to blog about. What to write. So much.

First off, I really miss having a camera. I am always thinking about how I wish I could take pictures. I feel like a really important part of my life is going by, undocumented. So much is happening to me, particularly in school. I wish I could take pictures in my labs!

We had our first injection lab last week, and I successfully gave subcutaneous and intradermal shots to my lab partner. I learned IV care, and how to properly maintain and remove IVs. I dont actually get to start IVs on my lab partner until next year though.

I have begun to forget what the water feels like on my skin, and yesterday I spent the better part of my day windsurfing. It felt soooo sooooo good to rig my gear and trot into the water. I was mostly powered up on my 4.8. The waves were small, only the occassional shoulder high set. PERFECT for me though :-) I caught some waves and cruised around. Nitsan and Laura practiced water starts and I felt proud of myself doing laps around them. Its nice to watch people learning, because it reminds me that I have gotten better. Both of them are doing great and I am reallllly excited about it. I cant wait until Laura and I try to go out in waves together.

So, to the downside of my life right now. I am trying to be realistic, and understand that life just has its ups and downs. It happens to everyone, and I need to just deal with it. Here it is:
My car broke down last night.
Yep. Little Lucy Verde. It looks like the Heater Core is leaking. My car starting overheating last night, and now it wont even start. I am pretty sure it will cost more to repair than the car is worth. Some friends of mine are going to look at it tonight, so I will find out more. I am pretty sure its toast though.

I have no idea what I will do. I have just enough money to pay my next 2 tuition payments and pay my next rent. Work at the restaurant has been soooo slooooow. This week I start clinicals for school and its about to get really intense. I can't go on without a car, yet if I dont make my tuition payment on the 20th I get dropped from school.

Somehow it will work out, it always does. I will buy another car, and start selling body parts I guess. My kidney has to be worth something, right?

Monday, February 2, 2009

A moral dilemma

I remember how I felt when I was sat on that mini step stool/ladder thingy. The tears flowed freely down my cheeks and I became the definition of ashamed. Of course, I was only 15, and as it should be, 15 year olds make mistakes. I shoplifted almost religiously, and I finally had gotten caught. I learned my lesson and shoplifting and stealing is now my pet peeve.

So I hated to be the rat today, but its not my apart of my job description to watch others have there things stolen, and its definitely not my job to lie to cover up for them. So, after very careful debate, I made my decision and acted upon it.

In the end, I am glad I did it. He had no business stealing a $400 pair of sunglasses, and as it is, I already have been concerned with him stealing money from my books at the tables. I have a serious hunch that cash goes missing when he is around. His little episode today backed up my intuition.

I am not going to spend my shift running from table to table, working hard, and just let my money slip away a few dollars at a time, or let the other girls money disappear with them oblivious to the possibility.

After I made the decision to come forth with the truth, I found out I was not the only one to do it. Another girl did the same and it made me feel better knowing we were on the same page.

I just hope he learns his lesson the way I did. And he is still pretty young, so there is hope for him.