In Response to the Everyday Mundane...

Good Morning World!

2009-07-22T06:00:00.000-07:00

Wow...I was looking over my sister's blog: www.wanderinglili.blogspot.co m and I saw the link to my own blog on her side bar, which informed me that I had not written on my blog for over 2 months. I do apologize to the people who might happen to read this and will try harder in the next 7 weeks to establish myself in the blogging community through advertising my blog on my facebook and myspace accounts and by telling my close friends to read, as well.

Now you might be wondering, "Why 7 weeks, Suze? That's an odd number." And yes, it's true, it might be an odd number for a countdown for you, but to me, it's probably one of the biggest decisions of my life.

It is exactly 7 weeks from today that I will be shipping off to Basic Training with the Army as part of the Army Officer Candidacy Program.

I am an applicant for the Medical Services Officer Corp, and am commited to this endeavor...quite literally...100%. My contract is signed and technically, you could call me Specialist Endsley, as that will be my rank when I enter into Basic Training as an E-4.

So, I am pledging today, that I am going to write this blog as an everyday(and some flashbacks of what this summer has been all about for me) chronicle of the events that are taking place leading up until the day I leave for training. Somedays might be more interesting than others, but I am excited about sharing this opportunity with everyone out there. I know that my sister will be ecstatic as well! But this will also be a chance for me to record what I'm doing to keep in shape and what all I find as I'm literally cleaning out my closets to get rid of everything. It ought to be interesting what all I find that I've forgotten about in boxes and on high up shelving!

I will also ask my sister again how to put up one of those countdown things on my blog for my shipping date!

Love to all!

Til Next Time,

Suze

CALL YOUR CONGRESSMEN!!!

2009-05-15T09:50:00.000-07:00

This is important. I talked with my brother yesterday, who is serving with the USMC in Iraq right now, and he told me about an issue they are facing over there. He said that we need to be calling or writing our congressmen to let them know about a shortage in 9mm ammunition in Iraq. He said that it is very important that they have this ammo over there and because of politics, they are not getting what they need. He said that he was not being affected by this shortage, but many of his brothers are. Please call your politicians and voice concern over this matter. Thanks!

Til Next Time,
Suze

My Attempt at Video...this could be interesting.

2009-04-25T20:48:00.000-07:00

This is taken from my experience at the Tampa Zoo...oh and I have a great new blog in the works. *Spoiler* It's about the wonderfulness of technology as it pertains to dvds...

Til Next Time,
Suze

Tampa Zoo

2009-04-07T14:58:00.000-07:00

Oh My Goodness Gracious!!! I had such a great time in Tampa this past weekend. My friend/roommate/coworker wanted to travel to Tampa to meet up with one of her best buddies, so she asked if I wanted to come along for a fun road trip. I asked, "What kind of fun things would we be doing?" She said..."Let's go to the zoo and act like we're 7 years old again." This sounded like a great idea to me, so I agreed. This are the pics of me agreeing...
This is the pic of her calling her best buddy to tell him that we're coming!!!We picked up a straggler from work who decided at the last minute she wanted to join in the festivities, so the three of us set out at 7AM on Saturday to make the 4 hour drive to Tampa. Below is the pic of us with the straggler...

Now here's where the crazy part comes in. I work at the blood center from 10PM-2AM on a good day, sometimes later if need be. But on the occasion that my friend/roommate/coworker and I decide that we want to make crazy road trips for the weekend, I will stay with her until she gets off work at a mere 6AM...just cause it's a lot easier sometimes to stay awake than to fall asleep for only 3 1/2 hours and feel awful when I wake up. This is how the night shift will warp your sense of judgment! Below is the full onset of sleep deprivation...

And so the fun begins...now we have two girls who are wide awake at 7AM to pick up the other member of our Tampa extravaganza, but she works the shift before us so she went back home to sleep, but got all the fore-mentioned symptoms of only sleeping for a few hours. So we were all packed up with everyone in the car jamming out to Justin Timberlake on I-10 to I-65. But after the first few jamming sessions, the straggler fell asleep...BOO!!! Needless to say it was absolutely crazy driving down the interstate sleep deprived but trying to keep my friend/roommate/coworker wide awake and myself wide awake with the wonderful effects of the B-12, B-6, Folic Acid, and Caffeine combination that comes from the 5 Hour Energy Shot. If you haven't tried it, please do...but do so responsibly due to the immense amount of vitamins that this drink contains. We wouldn't want anyone getting a vitamin toxicity. Yes that can really happen, and it's bad, bad, bad for you. This is why on the bottle it says that you should not drink more than 2 in 24 hours. But really, the drink gives you unquestionable energy and no crash. It's like a redbull without that yucky flavor. And since you're only drinking 2 ounces, you don't have to make stops to go to the bathroom that you would get with drinking 12 cups of coffee. So the kidneys are saying "thank you, 5 Hour."

So once we arrive in Tampa, our other team member decides to wake up from her nap in the backseat of the car and joins us for lunch at Subway, then off to the zoo. Mind you...no sleep...see below with the best buddy that we met.

So the zoo was incredible!!! We were there from about 12 noon until 4:30pm, Steadily walking around and acting like 7 year olds, who just happened to be completely sleep deprived but having a great time. Here are some of my favorite pictures that I took while at the zoo:

That tiger is my fav!!!

So after the zoo, we went back to the hotel...showered...and then went to "The Cheesecake Factory" for dinner. While at dinner we met some of my friend/roommate/coworker's other friends that live in Tampa, and we sat and chatted and laughed. By the end of dinner, the plan was to go out to have a few drinks and listen to live music, but ummmm.....when we all got back into the car, the decision to sleep was overpowering. However, we got lost on the way back to the hotel. So after laughing hysterically the whole way, none of us were really sleepy anymore...just ridiculously tired and delirious. So we got on the computer to laugh at crazy YouTube videos, and watch movies on tv until we all --one by one-- passed out from total exhaustion. All in all, to give you some perspective, I slept for five hours on Thursday night, then didn't sleep again until 2AM Sunday morning. What a whirlwind roadtrip, but it was definitely worth it! We had so much fun and memorable moments!

Til Next Time,
Suze

Saint Patrick's Day...Chaos

2009-03-17T12:08:00.000-07:00

So I don't know if you've heard, but St. Patrick's Day in Tallahassee is an absolute, drunken festival of college students who skip all their classes and start bar hopping at 6AM for free green beer.

(FYI: That pic is for my sis...Lili. I wonder if your kitties would act like this if they were Irish...Malchik is definitely African American though. And Kittistix...well I'm thinking like Dutch or Russian...what are your ideas on this?)

Back to the subject, though. Six o'clock in the morning...seriously...guys come on...that's a bit much. I really didn't realize how serious people celebrated this March 17th holiday. They give out wristbands for the pubs, so I guess that when ever you drive off, you can come back later in the day???? Please tell me...who was the genius that thought of that idea? Any excuse for a college kid or old man to drink, I guess. Don't get me wrong, I like to have a few drinks with friends, and all, but all day?? Goodness gracious. Also, good advice is to stay off the roads at all costs. The problem comes in that I have to go to work tonight at prime drinking time for these crazies. I will most definitely be on alert.

However, amidst all the chaos, I have always felt that I have some sort of Irish heritage in me...seeing as how I have the red hair and all. There's gotta be at least a little Irish in me, right?? I'm not sure, but maybe.

My brother is absolutely obsessed with all things Ireland.
He's so silly...we took a trip to Nashville over the weekend this past summer when I used to live up in Tennessee, and he literally talked with an Irish accent the entire weekend. He had all the girls in the mall, restaurants, bars, and hotel thinking that he was from Ireland. It was absolutely hysterical. By the end of our trip, I didn't even realize it was fake anymore cause I had gotten so used to it. I laughed so hard at him all weekend long, that I felt like I had done serious ab workouts!!! My crazy family...ya gotta love 'em.

At any rate, I'm feeling celebratory today, so I might have a beer while I cook dinner tonight! LOL...I feel so old...

Til Next Time,
The Red-Headed, Maybe Irish, Maybe Not Suze

Local Laundry Mat

2009-03-02T11:07:00.000-08:00

I decided that my comforter needed to be washed. Dilemma...I have tried on numerous occasions to wash my queen-sized white pseudo-down comforter in a regular washing machine and it simply just doesn't work. These comforters blow up like water balloons in the washer because they trap H2O in each of their sewn compartments. Oh...and God forbid you try to take it out to put it in the dryer. You end up with water all over the floor even after the vigorous spin cycle. Plus since my comforter is white, trying to shove all of it in the dryer is possible, but unless you want scorched parts of the comforter, you have to change the setting on the dryer to lower heat which also means that it's gonna take 3x to 4x longer than a regular full load. Which in the end means that if you have accidentally gotten ahead of yourself trying to do a good thing and started at say 7PM, then you're basically screwed outta getting to bed at a reasonable hour. And not to mention drying a comforter in a regular dryer is so high maintenance. Jeez...Louise!! You are constantly having to rearrange and flip the comforter around to get the inside of your wet puff ball blanket closer to the air/outside of the dryer. Are you getting the picture? Too much effort.

But I've always done this...dumb me. But I had a stroke of brilliancy today as I was driving back home. I passed by this really fantastic looking laundry mat. Okay, so I know you're saying man...what the heck is she talking about...fantastic and laundry mat shouldn't be in the same sentence together. And on most occasions I would have to agree with you. Laundry mats suck...but not this one...no no no. This place is fitted with flat screen tvs (improves the hi-tech appearance), free wifi (making it possible to write this blog to you right now), working candy and drink machines (for the growling tummy...very unhealthy...I didn't go near them due to temptation), uncracked and undamaged tile floors, snazzy rolling shiny metal carts to transport your laundry from washer to dryer without losing socks or embarrassing yourself by inevitably dropping a thong on the ground while everyone just happens to be watching you. Plus this place has bright lighting that isn't sporadically flickering like some cheap horror movie. Each washer and dryer operates off of a money card system. You first go to a wall ATM looking thing where you can either insert coins, cash, or credit card (yes they accept cards here for those of us who do not carry cash around because of the horrible habit of spending it) and put what ever amount you need onto the hotel key looking moneycard. Then you take your card to your machine and swipe as needed. Very simple indeed and no hassle wondering whether or not the quarter you stick in will be accepted or rejected.

I am impressed and surprised to say the least. It has exceeded my expectations. So this, my friends, is a much better time saving method to washing my comforter without flooding my laundry room, scorching my blanket, running up my electric bill and wasting my time tended to the readjustment of the dryer contents. Plus, I am washing my other clothes at home right now. Multitasking in two locations at once!

Til Next Time,
Suze

Restless

2009-02-26T02:45:00.000-08:00

There is a pleasure in the pathless woods,
There is a rapture on the lonely shore,
There is society, where none intrudes,
By the deep sea, and music in its roar:
I love not man the less, but Nature more.
-Lord Byron

Sometimes I feel like I am a restless soul. It is inevitable that I will break away from the things...things...things...things...things of this world--this "junk" society we live in that prides itself upon the crap stored between the four walls that we overpay for and stress out about. I am ready to get rid of it all. To keep only what I need and nothing more. It is inevitable that I will break away, and will do so with character and moderation. I seek nothing more than to just be. To live off of nothing and to do so with truth, pride, and happiness. I am ready to be emancipated from the false truth of material success.

"Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth."
-Henry David Thoreau

I've just really been feeling this deep down inside me. Thanks for listening.

Til Next Time,
Suze

I know...I know...

2009-02-21T00:49:00.000-08:00

Well it's been a hot minute since I posted last, but I promise that on Sunday I will stun you with a greatly fantastical post that will have you laughing your socks off. Yes I know that those aren't real words.

Obviously, it's like 3:50 AM and I only got off work 30 minutes ago. I'm really sleepy and have a busy day tomorrow. I have all kinds of news to tell the world. Get excited.

Love, Love!

Til Next Time,
Suze

Mediastinum Extravaganza...

2009-02-09T04:22:00.000-08:00

Well last Wednesday was a very exciting day. Usually Wednesdays are extremely busy for me because it's right smack dab in the middle of the week and I've already worked two night shifts at the blood center, so at that point I'm pretty tired. Plus, I have the most classes to go to on Wednesday.

However, tucked right into the folds of such a long week was a breath of fresh air when I walked into my Anatomy & Physiology II lab. Sometimes, I feel like I knew all along that this was what I was supposed to be doing. Every time I took a career assessment or personality profile in high school and college, it always said nursing, healthcare worker, social services or teacher. But today in lab I knew that my direction needed to be medical because of the fascination, intrigue, interest, and most importantly, desire to help. I was born with a strong stomach though. And that for sure is a major plus to working in healthcare. Cause...uh...it's not generally preventative. It's pretty messy!

The coolest thing is that when you have a strong stomach and the intrigue for what you're studying, and you're professor tells you to hold a human heart in your hands to study it....ummm.....ya jump right on it! I had the opportunity in lab to dig deep into the circulatory and respiratory system when I was presented with what is known as the mediastinum. minus the vertebrae and connective tissues usually associated with this region, I was looking at, touching, holding, and investigating the heart, lungs, bronchials, trachea, and just for fun the tongue from a single donor. So everything was in proportion and attached appropriately. Some people were a little freaked out about it. Being that these organs were at one point keeping a person alive, but I mean how else do you think we learn about the body? I wouldn't want a surgeon who had never known the way it feels to cut into a real body. Plus these are donations to science, not just ones they take without asking. People wanted to be of use even after death. I think it's noble.

MAN IT WAS SO COOL!!!

I'm a nerd. But I'm going to be a nurse!

Til Next Time,
Suze

What Nicaragua Gave to Me...

2009-01-25T19:39:00.000-08:00

I found a piece of paper in a box I was unpacking this weekend and memories flooded back to a time in my life that I don't look to highly upon. A time where a few stuck-up, snobbish individuals took over a wonderful church full of many truly genuine people. However, my experience did not only teach me about who I am in when faced with challenge, but also gave me a gift in the form of the trip of a lifetime. I had the chance in 2004 to travel to Nicaragua to be a part of a mission trip for feeding programs and community building construction. It changed my life in many ways, some that I forgot for a while but have resurfaced recently. Nothing spoke to me more than the children that we served, but a sheet of paper also changed my life whether I realized it at times or purposefully forgot it at others.

This sheet of paper has a prayer written on it by the Archbishop Oscar Romero. I hope that it speaks to you like it spoke to me again today.

"It helps, now and then, to take a step back and take the long view.
The Kingdom is not only beyond our effort,
it is even beyond our vision.
We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction of
the magnificent enterprise that is God's work.
Nothing we do is complete,
which is another way of saying that
the Kingdom always lies beyond us.

No statement says all that should be said.
No prayer fully expresses our faith.
No confession brings perfection.
No pastoral visit brings wholeness.
No program accomplishes the church's mission.
No set of goals and objectives includes everything.

This is what we ARE about.
We plant the seeds that one day will grow.
We water seeds already planted,
knowing that they hold future promise.
We lay foundations that will need further development.
We provide yeast that produces effects far beyond our capabilities

We cannot do everything,
and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that.
This enables us to do something,
and to do it very well.

It may be incomplete,
but it is also a beginning,
a step along the way,
an opportunity for the Lord's grace to enter
and do the rest.

We may never see the end results,
but that is the difference
between the master builder and the worker.

We are workers, not master builders,
ministers, not messiahs.
We are prophets of a future that is not our own."

Til Next Time,
Suze

New Sketch

2009-01-21T23:43:00.000-08:00

When I used to create art on a regular basis, I would start warming up and getting into that detailed mindset by drawing hands. So I figured that since I was going to be drawing more, I would go back to what helped me out so much. Hope everyone is doing well.

Here's my hand. Let me know what you think:

Til Next Time,
Suze

Pale

2009-01-19T16:31:00.000-08:00

Pale

You would be pale too if your heart was held in someone else's hands. This is the first of my illustration friday drawings. It's been a long time since I've done any kind of sketching.

This second one is just a pre-sketch before some touch up work. More contrast added and smoothing out of lines. I think each of them captures a different mood, though.

Til Next Time,
Suze

The Sun is Coming Up...

2009-01-19T04:04:00.000-08:00

The sun is coming up and I still haven't been to sleep...Creativity is born out of the deprivation of sleep, I believe. Or maybe it's my job and the inability to rest my mind at this time of day.

I found a really incredible quote that I felt like I needed to share. I am trying harder to work on my art again. It brings me so much joy. So I bought a new sketch book at Walmart at 3am and dug up all my graphite and charcoals because black and white is my absolute favorite. But this quote is what did it for me. Fueled my fire to get me back to me. I've been walking around for a long time forgetting who I am inside. Things have been pushed so far down and really only time could nurture me back to health. Nurture me back to myself. I have never felt better since my long burdened road started about 4 years ago. So I am working on me again now that I feel like my head has stopped spinning. Now that the dust has finally settled just a little bit. It's amazing how ignoring a phone call can do something inside of you that makes you feel empowered. That makes you feel like a real person again and not a shell of someone you used to be. Maybe that's why I'm still awake. I will steal back from these past four years the creativity that was stolen from me.

So here's the quote in regard to my art, well, in regard to me:

"Nothing is original. Steal from anywhere that resonates with inspiration or fuels your imagination. Devour old films, new films, music, books, paintings, photographs, poems, dreams, random conversations, architecture, bridges, street signs, trees, clouds, bodies of water, light and shadows. Select only things to steal from that speak directly to your soul. If you do this, your work (and theft) will be authentic. Authenticity is invaluable; originality is nonexistent. And don’t bother concealing your thievery—celebrate it if you feel like it. In any case, always remember what Jean-Luc Godard said: “It’s not where you take things from—it’s where you take them to.”
- Jim Jarmusch

Til Next Time,

Suze

Name Memo...

2009-01-17T00:57:00.000-08:00

I found this on a blog by clicking the next button. I can't for the life of me remember the title of the blog otherwise I'd give a shout out....................well...maybe just a link.

PS...my work schedule blows and I am showing signs of insomnia.

Name Memo

1. MY REAL NAME?
Suzanna

2. MY GANGSTA NAME: (first 3 letters of real name plus izzle)
Suzizzle

3. MY DETECTIVE NAME: (fav color and fav animal)
Blue Tiger

4. MY SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, and childhood street):
Frances Avalon

5. MY STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first name, first 3 letters of mom's maiden name):
Endsuhia

6. MY SUPERHERO NAME: (The, 2nd favorite color, favorite drink
The Green Mountain Dew

7. MY BLUES SINGER NAME: (The mood you are in now, and the last name of any PM)
Mellow McNair

8. MY WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (both your grandmothers' first names)
Edith Joan

9. MY GOTH NAME: (black, and the name of one your pets)
Black Sugar

10. MY AUTHOR PSEUDONYM (first name of favourite children's author; last name your favorite flower)
Dr. Hyacinth

Til Next Time,
Suze

A Bird Could Fly Into Your Engine...

2009-01-16T11:05:00.000-08:00

It's a bird...no it's a plane...ummmmmmm.....hmmmmmmm...now it's a duck.

Birds don't simply bounce off a plane if a midair collision occurs. A 4-pound bird exerts more than 6 tons of force if hit by a plane traveling 200 mph, according to a presentation given to Oklahoma County commissioners. Biologist Philip Robinson said some geese weigh up to 15 pounds.

Well, if this isn't as far from mundane as possible. Yesterday, there was an emergency landing by a US Airways airplane in the Hudson River due to a flock of geese disrupted the engines. Hmmm...that's the nice reporter way to put it. I can only imagine those birds being ripped to shreds. Lord have mercy. Isn't it interesting that we can try to control every aspect of a situation, but there are always ways that it can go wrong. A bird could fly into your engine.

It's strange to think that just about three weeks ago I was on a US Airways flight from Memphis to Tallahassee...oh yeah, going through the Charlotte Airport. I can't fathom this sort of experience.

I think that it's important to take from this the ability of human nature in such a crisis. How strong do you think you could be if a bird hit your engine? Every day we are tested to see whether or not our character will shine through or crack under the pressure. For the small things, one day we might stand firm and another day we might bend, but I really hope that when that big bird flies into my engine I can be strong enough to withstand the crash.

Til Next Time,
Suze

Thanks!

2009-01-15T10:57:00.000-08:00

Thanks to my technology savvy sis, and her blogger friend, Kevin, I now have an operating hit counter!! WooHoo!! Now one of two things could come from this....

1. I could be gravely disappointed by the lack of people visiting my blog.

2. I could be super ecstatic about the numerous people visiting my blog.

What will it be? Only time and my people ticker will tell!

I also must tell you of a wonderful website that I have come across: www.illustrationfriday.com

I am going to be participating in this as much as possible. I think it will only further strengthen my creative ability! Wish me luck, and check out the site.

Til Next Time,
Suze

Loosing My Dang Mind!!!

2009-01-14T11:36:00.000-08:00

How on earth do i put a hit counter on my blog!!!!!!!! AHHHH!!!! I have been looking up how to do it and the html junk for it and trying out different spots in my template, and looking to see if google offers any gadgets of the sort....

BUT NO!!! This is stressing me out! I have been going through this for two days now. So I am officially asking for help!

HELP!!

Oh and the only part of this new template that I don't like is the "undefined" on little tabs on the left side of each post. How do I get rid of that?

Quirks of Study Groups

2009-01-13T14:49:00.000-08:00

This is a post I found in my drafts that I thought was hysterical:

I'm about to explode with how much caffeine I've ingested over the past three weeks.

I laugh at absolutely nothing in hysterics...I'm talking hysterical, stomach cramping, tears rolling, uncontrollable laughing, that causes you to add more good wrinkles to your face and happiness in your heart.

I absolutely adore the fact that I have met some great friends who accept me for my extreme awkwardness, and "outspokenness", and outgoing nature.

Not Sure...

2009-01-13T12:12:00.000-08:00

I don't know about this one.

I might change it later, or maybe it will grow on me.

Check back to see. Let me know what you think, too!

Make-Over

2009-01-11T09:44:00.000-08:00

Hello! Just wanted to let whoever reads this know that my blog is going to be under construction these next couple of days. I'm going to totally re-do what I've got going on. Make it more attractive; make it full of life and energy; give it a extreme blog make-over!

The Croup

2008-12-12T08:09:00.000-08:00

So I've decided that I absolutely hate being sick during finals week. It pretty much is one of the worst things ever.

I sound like a MAN, I have the ever-constant feeling of having to sneeze, but never sneezing, so I'm constantly rubbing my nose.

The constant blowing of my nose has cause me to develop that raw skin red look that I know is all the rage right now. I'm such a fashionista!

I need me some chicken noodle soup. Who's got the goods, cause I want it!!

ACTUALLY, I just wanna go to sleep. Oh, and I don't technically have the croup, I just really like saying that word. But I guess sounding like a man and having a ridiculous cough is similar to the croup so I'm not telling a completely ridiculous fable.

I probably have the rhinovirus.

Colds are from the devil...just look at how they look, and you tell me whether you think they're from the devil or not.

For real, scary.

Could You Make It If You Couldn't See??

2008-12-06T08:31:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the St. Marks Trail!!

So sometimes you meet people that just absolutely floor you...People that make you think, "Man could I actually do that if I was in their situation?"

Since I moved down to Tallahassee, I have spent some time with the "blind" community here. But you wouldn't think that they couldn't see because of how much stuff they do. Pretty amazing. This past February, I went to Bend, Oregon to go skiing with blind people. An absolutely incredible trip. I'll write one day about that. But today is for the 22 mile tandem bike ride that I did with some blind people.

I was what you would call a captain, and my stoker was blind and was in the second spot on the tandem. It's pretty cool because you take for granted that you can ride a bike, and yet there are some people who never have. So this experience that you're helping them with is one that brings absolute joy to their faces.

We rode on the St. Marks trail in Wakulla County, FL, which has the essence of the Louisiana bayou, but the cleanliness of Florida. This type of atmosphere breathes and is full of life. It has a certain rhythm to it that gives you a crisp, fresh outlook. Taking in that salty air...there's nothing like. Plus, having the opportunity to explain the scenery to someone who can't see it, but with your words can visualize it, is an incredible experience.

This sign is for my sister and her hunt for crazy signs across the country!!

This lighthouse was our goal. It's at the very end of the first half of the trail. Once we reach there, we've reached the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, so we all stop to take pictures, admire the scenery, and check out the lighthouse.
After we get done with the ride, we had a big lunch of spaghetti, garlic bread, laughter and fun. So I go back to my original question: Could I actually do that if I were in their shoes? I still don't know, but I think it's pretty amazing!

Here's some more pictures from the area:

The goal is to finish

2008-12-05T09:39:00.000-08:00

The Seaside Half-Marathon, Seaside, FL March 1st, 2009 7am

I have to do this. I'm not saying that I'm gonna be fast, but I am going to finish. The goal is to finish. I can't wait. I've been training and running a lot lately and I finally feel like I'm back into shape where I can actually attempt doing this.

Check out the website: www.seasidehalfmarathon.com

It's not a full marathon, like my sisters have done, but it is what I feel comfortable doing. Plus, the scenery is going to be terrific!! Look how gorgeous that is. I'm pretty sure we're NOT running on the sand. Which is great news!

Busy Month

2008-11-28T13:48:00.000-08:00

Wowsers!! It's been a hectic month! I've got a couple of new blogs finally in the works. Here's a teaser:

1. 22 mile tandem bike ride
2. Nursing schools
3. Blood and guts and gore...jk just blood
4. The BFB Strikes Again
5. Moving Day
6. I get to go to my home town soon!!
7. My professor...seriously what's wrong with him?

These will all be up soon. I promise!!!

What to Cook for Supper?

2008-10-21T16:00:00.000-07:00

In the past 23 years, I've never really cooked meals. Unless those meals were for one or two people, pretty infrequently, I have waived it off as too much a hassle or ordeal. Growing up, I was never really taught how to plan, shop for, and cook meals. Well, sure, I know how to cook things like cookies, mac & cheese, hamburgers, ya know, simply stuff. But there's only so many days you can eat macaroni.

What do I do? What do I want to eat? More importantly, it is becoming ever more apparent that I must be organized and planned out before I walk into the grocery store to avoid the major blow to the wallet.

How do you being to plan meals? Where do you start? How do you make it interesting? HELP!!!

2008-10-16T14:46:00.000-07:00

I would really like for my posts to be more meaningful. I would like for them to be insightful and inspiring.

But, I am tired, so nothing like that will come from me right now. My brain hurts. My eyes continually fight me to stay open.

But hopefully this weekend I will be back to my usual self, and not so dang exhausted.

Hope all is well with those who read this.

Give and Take

2008-10-07T14:23:00.000-07:00

You know the phrase, "Take a penny, leave a penny."

Did certain people think that was actually take a billion, take another 700 billion?

hmmm....

I thought this was too perfect a picture to pass up.

Obviously that's Obama creating change.

Sorry Lili! Love you, but I had to do it!

Sometimes I think I'm the only one who notices these things...

2008-10-05T13:47:00.000-07:00

The stupidest things get on my nerves.

If only one person comments on something, the program written into the website still says this:

1 Comments

What the hell?

It frustrates me when people leave their blinkers on after they've already changed lanes...

For like 15 MORE TRAFFIC LIGHTS until they actually realize they have to turn.

keeps me driving on eggshells

It frustrates me when that little extra plastic ring on a bottle of water or Coke traps the drink when you drink and then proceeds to drop onto the front of your shirt and chin. You know what I'm talking about.

Of course you can't blame it on the engineering of the bottle. Nobody would believe you. People just look at you like, "Drink much?"

So lame.

It gets on my nerves that only if I were to walk around naked the entire day would I be able to have all my laundry done.

It gets on my nerves that I don't use public transportation more often. I should. I know I should. I can't keep feeding the oil industry.

It makes me mad whenever politicians don't answer the question that was asked. That's been happening a whole lot lately.

That's enough for now.

Guilty

2008-10-04T10:30:00.000-07:00

Oh if there ever were a better form of payback, I'd probably pee in my pants. 13 unlucky 13 years TO THE DAY that OJ Simpson was acquitted of murder, he's found guilty of armed robbery, kidnapping, and 10 other charges.

I'm sorry, but if you get the biggest break of your life, and then you screw that up, don't expect anyone to feel sorry for you. I think that for a couple of plaques, balls, and memorabilia he's really squandered any attempt for redemption.

Guilty on all charges. 5 years to life in prison. Taken away in handcuffs.

Awful, Awful, Awful

2008-09-27T07:16:00.000-07:00

Oh it pains me to write this post. I have all week long been taking and collecting pictures for my next few posts. Oh they were clever. Creative genius at work here all week.

But much to my pain and hardship, I must tell you that I dropped my camera this week. I was attempting to put it back into its case, and it jumped out of my hand and did not bounce very well on the ground.

The camera is fine, which is great news. But the memory card popped out with a little over 300 pictures of a wedding I was a bridesmaid in, a trip to Nashville with my brother and the guys he lives with in the Marines, a wonderful dinner party with my sister, brother-in-law, and family friends, and all these fun pics that I took around Tallahassee.

I just didn't realize it had fallen out when I dropped it. I don't know how I missed that. It's extremely frustrating. I called the place where I dropped it and told them what happened. They said they'll look for it, but you know how that goes.

It's tragic. Very tragic. The memory card is cheap and easily replaceable, but the pictures are not.

I am sad.

Dem Bones Dem Bones Dem Dry Bones

2008-09-20T08:02:00.000-07:00

I walked into A&P lab this week to an array of black boxes. Not knowing what was in these boxes, I sat down like usual and began to chat with my lab partner about the exam we had last week. We started talking about all that we had to learn for the next exam when our professor walks in a asks for our attention. He said that it was of great importance that we pay close attention for handling instructions. Then he asks us to open the boxes.

Now, I must tell you that it is quite a bit of shock to open a box and see real human bones and a skull. I feel suddenly guilty because this used to be a person, or several people. And that's kinda creepy. Especially the black boxes. Come On People! Do you have to make it look like a coffin? Can't they make it look a little more scientific as opposed to grave digging? It's like a halloween gag gone terribly wrong.

So what we're supposed to be doing is exploring our boxes and studying each bone characteristics. However, for me, it's a lot easier for me to study if a get the bigger picture, so I start to assemble (well, just place in their respective positions) the skeleton with mismatched bones from different people. You see, the radius and ulna didn't fit together, and the fibula and tibia weren't the same length. The femur was way too big for the pelvis and knee joints. It was a dicombobulated mess to say the least. Plus I felt extremely morbid for even handling the bones. But this is my life these days. Handling and learning about the body and its functions. Sometimes I wonder how I got here, but it's all in the name of nursing, I suppose. I know I write a whole bunch about my medical life these days, but it engulfs every waking moment of my time. How can I not write about it? So interesting!!

Snufflelufagous

2008-09-11T16:56:00.000-07:00

Man....do you remember Seasame Street? I was driving to class the other day and for whatever reason, I just remembered this one episode of Seasame Street where Big Bird and Snuf are going into his cave laughing and talking about how no one believes that Snuff exists. Everyone thinks Big Bird has an imaginary friend. He's not real to everyone else on the block.

How on earth, do I remember that? I haven't thought about, heard about, or seen Seasame Street in ages. I haven't even seen any puppets.

Tell me this, why does the brain retrieve tiny snippets of something completely irrelevant to anything going on in your life? Especially from years upon years ago? I just spent four years of my life studying psychology and the brain, but yet I cannot figure this out. Doesn't there need to be a trigger? If so, what was my trigger? I haven't seen any elephants, nor have I thought any about birds.

What a puzzle...what a random, random puzzle. The brain is fascinating!

Blow Me Away!

2008-09-05T03:06:00.000-07:00

(musically) Storms, storms, everywhere are storms. Coming to get us, creeping up on shore. The first five didn't really get a vibe, but the last five babies are really packing heat. How many more are we gonna see, cause the hurricane season technically hasn't hit it's peak. (end music)

Wowsers...can you name every hurricane and tropical storm this season? Arthur, Bertha, Cristobal, Dolly, Edouard, Fay, Gustav, Hanna, Ike, and Josephine. Living down in Fl has been pretty interesting lately with all this action. I feel like the weather channel is always on at the house.

Let the Games Begin!!!!

2008-09-04T16:41:00.000-07:00

Today is the official kickoff for the regular season of the NFL!!! I can't begin to tell you how super pumped I am about this fact because I'm such a sports fanatic, especially when it comes to the NFL. I don't know why either. I just got into it really last year, the NFL, that is, and that has led to a crazy obsession with watching all kinds of sports on tv. I have loved sports my entire life, and played sports just about as long, but I was always more of a player instead of a watcher until now. I was actually sad in February whenever the SuperBowl ended. I didn't know what to do on my weekends when football wasn't on.

I've even made charts with each weeks matchups and who I think is gonna win. I did it all last season, and got increasingly better at picking my teams. I think I might try the fantasy football free game online, but I don't know if I'm there yet. Anyway, it's fun and it gives me something to think about other than just school and work.

Pick Your Poison

2008-09-02T18:24:00.000-07:00

Oh My...Oh My...Oh My.................Wow, before I start down my little rabbit hole, can I just tell you how amazing wireless internet is!!! Oh my gosh! I'm like a kid in a candy store. This is absolutely amazing! I just finally figured out how to make it work on my computer! Now I can work online and watch House, MD at the same time! WooHoo!!!

Anyway, the title of this tale is pick your poison because today I got to play with staphylococcus aureus (Staph, cause of Staph infection) AND E. to the coli!!! That would be the awful, terrible E.coli who is known to cause outrageous diarrhea and horrible stomach pains. But I got to play with them today!!

Needless to say, I was super pumped to be in the MicroBiology lab today. Now, if only my A&P lab would be that fun...goodness I hope so cause then I will be super excited about life!

Double Dogg Dare You!!!!

2008-08-29T08:25:00.000-07:00

So I've been thinking that school is a game in which your professor gives you a task that you must complete in a certain amount of time in order to gain needed points, right? Right. Well, I've decided that I have a few professors that instead of just simply assigning you a task, they are double dogg daring you to hurl yourself off of a building in order to receive your needed points.

My friends, do you see the difference in these two philosophies? I will eloborate. Starting off, my A & P I professor claims that for the next few months, he owns us in every way imaginable. If we are not living, breathing, thinking, eating, and pooping A&P, then we concurrently are not passing A&P. He says that we are not allowed to have any other classes other than this one, and you will fail if you do because A&P takes ultimate presidence over all other information. Therefore, my previous statement is true. In order to pass A&P, one must hurl themselves off of a building in order to pass because any other way to pass the course is just as illogical as this example. Not to mention....I also have Microbiology.

Anyway, I have more fun stories coming, it is just taking me a little time to readjust to being in school. My time seems to have been zapped from me all of a sudden.

"Which Way" Circus

2008-08-21T18:44:00.000-07:00

Man I tell you people what...this place that I'm living in has become a not-so mild mannered circus. It is so dad-gum confusing to maneuver your way through town. God forbid you make the wrong turn, because every other street you come across for the next ten blocks might just happen to be one way the opposite direction that you're looking for. But if you do get lucky and find a road that meets your directional standards, watch out cause the next few roads on that street are going to be going the wrong way that you need to right yourself again from the wrong turn you made earlier. AHH!!! Plus the same street is named one thing one way and another the other direction, so by the time you're frustrated and 15 minutes late due to all the one ways blocking your opposite way, you have become so royally confused that you think you're in a completely different part of town because your streets have all changed names! UGH!!

Oh, and by the way, I know this place is prepared for hurricanes and all that craziness, but whoever created the sideways traffic light is a moron for streets downtown which are all one block apart and all have traffic lights at the exact same level of sight. These lights are tricky because you think you're looking at the right street light 10 cars in front of you but your mind plays a trick and is actually looking at the one two streets down. Which in reality is not all that far away. So you attempt to gas it instinctively but quickly realize that no one else is moving cause you're the only dumba** that was looking at the wrong light. So suddenly that panic-striken flash of adrenaline rushes through your system making your heart beat 12 times faster than normal. SO not only are you 15 minutes late and on the verge of a heart attack, you still haven't even made it back to the street that you initially made the wrong turn off of. And to only make matters worse it seems that each one of those one block traffic lights stay green for only about 10 seconds in a car accordion like fashion (which my friends is only long enough to tease you into thinking that you might make the yellow), then you must wait because inevitably you are now stuck is the arduous cycle of catch one light red, catch the next twelve blocks of lights red. Panic ensues because you realize that if you actually do make it to your destination now, you'll probably be about 30-45 minutes late

SO you just might as well turn your car right back around, head to the nearest doctor's office to get your heart examined, go to the pharmacy to refill your anxiety medicine, stop by the gas station to refill the wasted gasoline and buy a map of this god-forsaken city, run by the bank to refill your wallet from the price the gas just gouged from you, call into work with the doctor's excuse that you had the early signs of a mild heart or panic attack and head back home to bed cause this day was definitely not meant for you. Maybe you'll wake up on the right side next time, or left just in case they change names on you!

Gotta love the circus!

Awww......Hell, Bell!!

2008-08-19T05:50:00.000-07:00

What was I thinking??? How could this happen??? Why did she have to get hurt so bad???

I would like to think that Bell is in car heaven somewhere watching over me, but she's got to be stuck in purgatory for the moment. I know she's got to be scared with people all up in her grill, wandering around in her private areas tinkering with things. Not quite heaven; not quite hell. She was sold to a mechanic for a little extra green so that he could have a year to fix her up (she will definitely take that long to fix) for his 15 year old daughter who will be 16 for snazzied up Bell. They had better take good care of her, just like I did!

I guess you could say that it really didn't take me long to find a new vehicle. I had to get one. Essentially critical. So now, without further adieu, I bring to you.................................................................................................

Shenequa a.k.a. THE BFB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(in a crazy rapper beat)

Put your hands in the air for the BFB!
What! The BFB! What! The BFB!
Put your hands in the air like you just don't care!
Wave 'em around and make someone stare
At the BFB! Yea! The BFB!

(end crazy rapper beat) I could so win a grammy!

Anyway, she is the quintessential character in the diary of a mad, black woman. Like Aunt Jemimah, only more spunk. She is snappy with AT-TI-TUDE. And boy, she tell you off in a half-a-heartbeat if she don't like something.

Oh yea! She's stylin' and profilin'. She puts other roadsters in their place. And she most definitely keeps me on my toes!

Un-Uploaded

2008-08-18T21:07:00.000-07:00

Well, I had every intention of getting a blog out tonight that was witty and not very insightful to the deeper meanings of life; however, I'm having an uploading pictures malfunction that's driving me craycraycrazy! At any rate, you can't read this post i've created without the supplemental pictures, so I suppose you'll have to be patient. So irritating!

But in keeping with my promise, I needed to write a little somethin' somethin' for this space at least to explain my woes. I'm really tryin to make this a habit i can sink my teeth into so the action of writing gets my brain a'movin. That way it's in better shape for the more important stuff!

An Ode To My Sweet Bell

2008-08-16T15:44:00.000-07:00

I must say that it is time for me to move on from writing about my job at the blood center for now. I have had several more interesting events take place in other aspects of my life that fit the bill for being a response to the mundane activities that swallow our lives.

Dramatic interlude...........................................................................................................

And without any further adieu, I present Bell.

I got this car, a 2001 silver Ford Escort, during Christmas break after my first semester of college. She was a sassy thang who had a chirp in the upper vicinity of what I'd like to car Bell's private areas. She was very modest in nature and didn't go around divulging her secret talents as a race car to many people in the neighborhood. But race we did, we raced for her life!
Literally. But before I digress any further, I must explain her name. I had always heard growing up that you should name your vehicle after the previous owner's name on the title. However, Bell was obviously dissatisfied with her first owner because she had always referred to her as "The One Who Must Not Be Named". However, she was quite fond of me and sparkled as I walked by to pick her from the crowd. She most definitely caught my eye, and from the test drive I knew that she was mine. She was my Silver Bell of Christmas. And thus, her name was Bell. Perfect. Of course we'll never tell her that she was the only one I test drove, and the only suitable vehicle I could afford. Who needs to know all those details. That's like telling your husband of 50 years that he was your last choice for prom date, or that your last born child was a big mistake. No thanks. I preferred keeping Bell out of the loop. But nevertheless, she was my first car, and I loved her dearly.

However we all make mistakes....TOTAL MISTAKES!
Literally.
I'm so sorry Bell.

Spring-Loaded

2008-08-07T10:18:00.000-07:00

Have you ever heard of a spring-loaded needle? Well, my friends do not go around asking to be stuck by these things. They are terrible creations with awful consequences. See Below

So I'm in the process of learning how to handle needles and stick people and change tubes for samples, right? Cause I'm headed off to nursing school in florida in a few days, and my lovely co-workers are teaching me the ropes of this phlebotomy stuff. Well, the blood center received these new trial vacutainers needles(which are used for popping in tubes for blood samples) and they are, no joke, spring-loaded needle. Everything's great if you go into the vein very carefully and don't have to adjust your stick in any kind of manner. If you move your hand even slightly to change out tubes...BEWARE!!!!!!!! Seriously, because before you even realize it your spring-loaded needle will spring back into the vacutainer and leave a gushing vein with no pressure on it.

You see, right after you remove a needle from a persons arm, you must quicker apply a small amount of pressure onto the injection site with gauze in order to prevent excess bleeding and a resulting hematoma (fancy word for bruise).

Well, these new-fangled spring-loaded needle all of a sudden can decide to spring out of the vein and into to the vacutainer, leaving a person there in the chair, bleeding excessively because you don't realize that your needle, which was covered with gauze, has leapt away. and because you don't realize this fact, you also don't think to remove the turnicet as fast as you can, which results in blood oozing from this poor person vein as fast as lightening. They're supposed to be for safety, but I think more along the lines of SCARY!!!

So in effect, these crappy vacutainer are a bad idea all around and they make yet another bloody mess for the trainee. But my co-workers, of course, get a great kick out of it and taunt me for days on end!

A Murder Scene...

2008-07-16T09:34:00.000-07:00

So here's a terrifying story that will, I hope, capture your attention and imagination. Plus, I would love to clue you in on my line of work, as it is very dangerous business.

I deal with these things called units of blood. (See image to the left) Did you know that we use terms such as trees, burping, and cutting tubes...i will explain through a story of intrigue.

As a component tech, my job is to take the blood after it has been drawn from the arm and filter it down so that the white blood cells are captured in the filter and the red blood cells travel safely into a new blood bag through a series of tubes. In order to filter blood you must hang it up on these contraptions we call trees. A tree is like a modified iv pole that can hold up to 16 units at one time. Each unit has its own cubby hole home.

After filteration, the red blood cells, which are smaller that whiteblood cells have passed through the tubing into their new home bag. But, a major issue still remains. There is a small amount of air that has invaded the new bag from manufacturing and the actual needle stick. So when you filter, you must burp. A tech takes the new blood bag home, and then proceeds to squeeze the blood back up through the filter, which consequently pushes the air back into the old blood bag home. Then it refilters with out the air.

However, burping is tricky because you are putting quite a bit of pressure onto the unit's bag and sometimes those bags aren't made as well as all the other bags in the batch. This my friends causes problems....Unfortunately I was the victim of a brutal crime in which my unit of blood revolted against me and said that he was just fine with the air and didn't need anyone man-handling him without permission. Well, we battled back and forth, and the unti won because he was freed from his bags spattered all over my clothing, my shoes, the floor, the cabinets, the walls, and anywhere else you could see in a radius of 10 feet. It was a murder scene. Never in my life have I seen so much blood. But the scary thing is that the blood that I work with is untested. So we have to take lots of precations when the units rebel against us. The whole lab is bleached, my scrubs are thrown in a biohazardous bin, my body is thrown into a very hot shower, the leftovers from the unit are collected into a double-bagged ziplock looking contraption and sent to blood unit heaven (aka the graveyard). The whole process of cleanup is long and ardous, plus you feel ridiculously creepy and disgusting no matter how clean you try to get. Plus, you have to be tested. Yuck. all is a days work, though. It is always exciting here!

So Many Changes...

2008-06-18T14:27:00.000-07:00

First off, I have to admit that I'm a terrible blogger. I was never really good at doing something consistently every single day, but I guess it is something that I will work on.

Well, back to the grindstone, I suppose. My next topic is a brave one. I will attempt to discuss my...dondondon...direct lab supervisor. She is the reason why we are all so quirky. I will start off by saying that Elizabeth is one of a kind...I'm talking snowflake one of a kind cause there will never be two snowflakes exactly alike. If I ever meet someone remotely similar to Elizabeth, well that's the day when she spawns a twin/clone. Hell could freeze over and Jesus could come back to Earth and still there would be no one like this woman.

The best way to put it is that she's very...hmmm...let's see...space-cadet...flighty...should've been a blond..She tends to remind me of those Quaker Rice cakes. Full of air. Don't get me wrong...she's a wonderful person, but i don't think she was ever made to be a supervisor over anyone. She'd just rather be friends with everyone.

So..this week we had a major inspection for the blood center. Everybody was all in arms with each other...high-strung...anal retentive, but necessary to get everything accomplished before the FDA and "The Infamous Europeans" come. Well, Elizabeth has been designated by our CEO Joe to make sure the validation for our fairly new computer system is completed and in order just in case they want to see all of our test runs before the system was installed...a three month process that included many frustrations, lots of hours, and many many mistakes! Anyway, Elizbeth finds that our test runs about two months ago never included any "fake" distributions to hospitals because there was, at the time, no way for the computer to distinguish between "fake" and "real" shipments.

Well, finally the computer people got things fixed and set up a system that was purely for validation, and a live system that we use everyday. Well, leave it up to Mrs. Elizabeth to create a whole different set of troubles! We all have to laugh because we've all done something completely ridiculous at the blood center, but she tops the list...so far!

Elizabeth starts doing her weekly audits on Monday and is usually through with them by Wednesday morning, or so. She checks things like our register which calculated how much money is being distributed in and our of our system to hospitals and then back to us. This is her main job on mondays, and she hates mondays...they are...shall we say, mundane.

So she gets this bright idea that on monday afternoon she will take a break from the registers and work on more computer validation junk. Well, she starts to ship, pack, and receive "fake" blood to and from our center and hospitals and by the end of the day she has made remarkable progress. About 70 orders total, so she leaves for the day. As everyone piles in on tuesday morning, however, the center becomes a ruckus and everyone is in a little tizzy. Jenny, on call, I think is in major panic mode because apparently quite a bit of blood never made is to some hospitals overnight, and they have scheduled major surgeries around what they thought would be a pleasant surplus of blood products. Those products never arrived, so many a phone call were made to the distribution office overnight. Chaos ensues. About 70 orders...real, not fake...orders of chaos. Yes, my friends, Elizabeth did all of her "fake" validation in our live system, therefore those 20 O negative units that were needed in a trauma that happened overnight, those she thought were merely a test, actually appeared in on the main hospital's computer system and many many other horrible accounts of the blood that never made it to many other hospitals.

So I will say this...in short, many lessons were learned, large and painful headaches were medicated, and Elizabeth added 10 years of unneeded stress to her life. I think her hair got grayer because of this. You gotta love Lifeline.

Back in the Saddle...again!

2008-04-21T17:46:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I've been busy for a half-a-minute...but now I'm back to finish my story!

I think I left off with Kay...ah, sweet, sweet Kay. She probably has to be a little older than dirt, but she still has enough spunk in her to hallucinate and to tell you exactly what she's thinking no matter what. She is, by all means, the complete dictionary definition of "no filter". She lets it all hang out...and I mean all of it. She first introduced herself to me as Kay Mays, and yes, it's true what everyone will tell you about me, I don't wear a bra because I don't like to feel strapped in. I don't care what anyone else thinks, there are some damn chickens over there in that apartment complex, and I also think that every woman should cook for their husband." Yes, my friends, this is Mrs. Kay Mays. She is crazy. But you gotta love someone who has no fear. You know that Paula Abdul song "Straight Up"...that's how she's gonna give it to ya!

But I swear all that straight upping has got to make her tired because I've never seen a woman sleep as much as she does. We were in the break room the other day and Joe (I'll get to him in a minute...he's our CEO) had just come back from a trip (note: this will be important in just a minute) and was getting all caught up about what had be happening for the week that he was gone. Mrs. Kay Mays was at one minute carrying on a conversation about the platelet donations, which have been at critical levels, and the next minute all we heard was snoring. No joke...this woman was snoring in front of our CEO...so what did we do??? Well I think simultaneously we all looked up at Joe then back at Kay, then around to each other and busted out laughing. Of course in the ruckus she woke up and wanted to be filled in on what the joke was...well, no one could really muster up the courage to tell her that the joke's on her. It's always on her. Then the conversation resumed to the mundane topics of the blood we imported and how the new computer system was working out.

Well, I guess we will part for now, House is coming on, and I really like his sassy, sarcastic attitude. It makes me smile. I might get up some spunk to write more tonight.

Still Working, eh?

2008-04-12T23:26:00.000-07:00

I have to say that i'm still not finished with my first one person conversation from my head into this computer about my amazing yet ridiculous coworkers that i adore...so when it's not 1:30am, I will continue my diatribe!

CoWorkers Say the Darndest Things!

2008-04-01T10:09:00.000-07:00

What's Your Lifeline?

I have to start off by saying that I work in a place that no one would expect to find me; A place filled with needles and centrifuges, blood and labcoats. However, this place has become my home away from home where the everyday mundane turns into comical relief. I have found that I laugh more here in one day than I ever did for the 7 months that I worked at my first "big girl" job out of college. I can't count the number of times we are sitting in the break room laughing until we cry because someone has mentioned something completely random and out of place. Picture this scene...

Cell phone game sounds are chirping a losing battle against the only male coworker crazy enough to blend in to this fiasco of menopausal, hot-flashing women and hyper-active, silly young ladies. In fact, there are only four men that I know of that work in this entire center, and most of them keep their distance to avoid being called on to lift a box that has been stuffed with more than two-times its capacity of paperwork, or to reach that tippy-top shelf of the storage closet because the one thing that is needed out of there in the past 4 months is always on that top shelf. I personally think that these women throw things up on that shelf just to laugh at the men they must call on to reach the stuff.

My Indian lab partner is also in the background jamming out to her "Indie Pop" music and telling me how ridiculously slow I am for such a bright American. By the way, she thinks all Americans are slow, but she works at a pace that can only be described by the revving of NASCAR racecar engines. Never in my life have I seen someone work so diligently with a concentration that cannot be broken. I respect her for that.

Beside me in the breakroom is the infamous Kay. She is quite the character. This post-menopausal lady hallucinates while working on platelet counts and CBCs. She sees chickens and roosters as she gazes out the window into the apartment complex next to the center. As she gazes, she slowly drifts off into a deep sleep that is only broken up by the sounds of the invisible chickens clucking, or her own adenaline rush as she grasps for anything to grab a hold of becuase she has nodded off a little too far! Last time, she grabbed the keyboard to the CBC computer so hard that she pulled it off track...it's still broken.