Pretty reassuring, eh?

Nothing like seeing flames come out of a car in a crowded parking deck to get your adrenaline going early in the morning!!

Walking back from my micro test to the parking deck with Coots... stood & chatted in the deck - and out of the corner of our eyes, we saw flames coming up from this dark Pontiac. WTF! ~ So we go to call for help - because if that sucker decided to blow, it would most certainly cause some collateral damage! Ok, so I tell Coots that I've got my cell & I can call 911. She said, no, we should use the emergency call boxes. Um, come to find out those don't work!! Yeah, that's a great thought - fire, or rapist hanging out in the 7-story parking deck, and you can't even call for help.

Lesson? Carry your dang cell phone everywhere. - Oh, and know the exact street names that you are on at ALL times. (eyeroll)

Another lesson? Watching the firemen take an axe to a car so they can pop a hood is acutally pretty exciting.

Money, Hats & Turtle Pies

Monday my fincanial services counselor called me and asked me if I was Christian... I was like WTF? She said she had some scholarship money to give away, and the scholarship stipulates that the money must go toward a Christian. I answered her question - then told her, if she's got money to give away, she could ask me anything! (I think what I actually said was, "hey if you're getting me some money, ask away! I don't care if you need to know the last time I pooped; it's fine with me!") I didn't know what was going on with it, and wasn't sure what else needed to be done. Sue said she'd send some stuff in the mail for me... (btw, how bad is it when you & your financial counselor are on a first name basis?)

Which brings me to today. Today I got a letter in the mail from Queens stating that there is a change to my loan award notice. ... Instead of the full tuition being on loan, there is a scholarship for $2875 received, and the remainder of it will be on loan. HOLY MAZOLA!! Now, I don't trust everything I see from Queens - received too many bills erroneously to take this one as for sure. Way too cautious these days... and no, it's not money in the hand ~ but nearly $3k less that I have to pay back on loans sounds damn good to me!! (Keeping my fingers crossed that this is for real!)

Bought a pretty cool hat today. Don't know why I'm writing about this, but I'm proud of my hat... I definitely need to take a pic of myself in it, because it's the coolest damn hat ever. I actually think this is the first hat I've ever bought myself - other than like a ball cap or visor.

Need to start my pie-making tonight... Going to have trouble getting into the kitchen tomorrow, as Thanksgiving always makes for chaos in the kitchen. And despite the fact it's going to just be the 3 of us, no doubt this year will be no exception. I work Thursday night, but I go in late so I'm planning on keeping up with everything here in the house. I can only hope I don't collapse from fatigue!

Mom ripped out an ad with a recipe for some kind of turtle pie that she wants me to make for her... I battled the hell that is Wal-Mart in the holiday season and bought all the ingredients. (Damn expensive pie, let me tell you - caramels, chocolate, pecans... geez!) Want to make an apple one, but might just do that later - I've got all the ingredients, but why bake so many pies? Dad went out and bought some frozen ones too - so i'm sure we're guaranteed at least one Mrs. Smiths! (ugh)

Sooo looking forward to Turkey Salad leftovers!! Mmmm ... in the voice of those old muffin commericals ... Makes my mouth water!

Dear Santa

Dear Santa,
This year, I'd really like a little niece or nephew. I'd also really like a batter bowl.. but mostly I'd like a little niece or newphew.

The windows to the soul...

I have a quiz this morning for my nursing class on the eyes... so did a quick review of eye structures & meds. Remembered how when I was young, I thought that the pupil was a big hole open to the outside. I thought if you touched the front of your eye you could accidentally stick your finger all the way into your eyeball. ... guess that's why I was so grossed out at the thought of contact lenses when I was a kid.

Made some potato soup from scratch yesterday. Turned out pretty damn good if I say so myself.

That's all for now. Really want to take a quick nap before I rush off for school. So afraid I'll oversleep and not make it on time!

Cardinal Signs...

Found myself stifling a laugh during microbiology as the professor said "Redness is one of the cardinal signs of inflammation". Am sure that I'm the only one that saw the humor in this statement.

51-50

I really thought everyone knew what a 5150 was. As in she completely went 5150 and started throwing things all over the place, so now she's here in the hospital! I said something about someone going 5150 the other day at school, and they all gave me this blank look. I started to tell them, it's a legal code... they all thought I was just strange for citing penal code sections. 5150 is becomes not just a legal code, but an adjective... and is used in everyday language. It is widely recognized by most people I know (Except, as I've learned, by people here in the south!) ... its no different than hearing that there's been a 187 on Main Street. ...know what I mean?

So just what is a 5150? It's a CA penal code that allows officers to take someone in involuntarily - should the officer have "probable cause to believe that the person is, as a result of mental disorder, a danger to others, or to himself or herself, or gravely disabled." It automatically calls for a 72 hour hold in an institution so that further assessments can be made. Learn about it here.

Thank a Veteran

Do something good. Thank a Veteran today, you selfish bastard. Spare them your feelings on politics and the price of oil. Just show some reverence, and thank them....

Enchanted Trees

My thought of the day: I used to have the softest hands ... now I work at a hospital.

Today, up at the Queens campus, I got to see a spectacular breathtaking view. Tried to park on Wellesley - not a single space to be found. Should have known not to bother - thought to myself I should have tried Radcliffe St first - but soo glad I didn't! Used to keep a camera in my car at all times, and today how I longed to have it on hand. The trees were all gold and appeared to glow. Felt like I was on an enchanted street! It's a part of town where the trees from either side of the street reach up to touch in the middle. There's few places where I see this, and I have always found it to be majestic. If there is a god or deity to be seen on this earth, it's in the trees that touch - with rays of light seeping through. ... Not a "tree hugger" but always a sucker for the beauty of trees.

Oh, and as for comments - you can see I haven't stopped to erase the spam lately. Decided rather than erasing them each time, I have added the little thingie where you have to type what the picture says - eliminates computer-generated crap. So if you decide to leave me a comment - it'll just take an extra step! It's not difficult, so long as you know your ABC's & 123's. ... and if you don't... well then I didn't want you commenting anyway! *giggle*

Unconscious mutterings 11/7

It's been a while since I've done one of these

1. Deeper and deeper:: You're getting sleepy, very sleepy
   
2. Can’t help .... :: Falling in love with you (UB40 version, of course!)
   
3. Devil’s advocate:: Debates
   
4. Superpower:: Psionic Fart!?
   
5. Threatening:: Cloudy skies
   
6. Played:: Huh? Cards, maybe?
   
7. War:: Games
   
8. Violate:: This dude that molested his niece (HIPAA, can't say more)
   
9. Invest:: Financial planning
   
10. Choke:: Those tags that say choking hazard - not for children.
    

Esophagogastroduodenoscopy

I just like saying the word. It may be the biggest word I know - definitely the biggest I ever get to use! Besides, got to see 3 of them during clinicals today! :)

Don't you dare smile!

Ok, so one of the girls I go to school with was telling me that she went down to get her driver’s license renewed. Apparently at the Charlotte DMV, you can’t smile in your driver’s license photo anymore. (What the heck?) She said that right before they took her picture, she smiled, and they made her take it over again! When she asked about it, they told her that it is because if she ever got arrested, they want her license photo to look more like her mug shot (!?!)

I found this hard to believe. So I went to research it… could not find any written rules about DMV smiling regulations, but I did find this:

Last December, the New York Times reported that international passport guidelines advised people posing for passports that, "only closed-mouth, 'neutral' expressions will be allowed," so that they could be read by biometrics instruments. Throwing a bone to the irrepressibly cheerful, the guidelines state that a "smile with closed jaw is allowed, but is not preferred." So don't you dare smile with an open mouth unless you want the terrorists to win. You can read the article here.

I guess that the DMVs are following suit? Makes a little more sense than a mugshot reason. Still, I’m glad I was allowed to smile in my photo. License photos are usually bad enough as it is, and I consider myself lucky that mine isn’t too horrendous.

Dia De los Muertos

Just wanted to spend a moment of time thinking of those who have passed on this, the Day of the Dead. Not familiar with it? Go ahead, click. You may learn something new.

Dreamt the night before last that I had this super huge tattoo on my R lateral thigh with the names of everyone I've known/cared about** that had died. Every time someone I knew died, I added their name to my leg. In my dream, the tattoo just seemed to be getting bigger each time I looked at it. I distinctly remember it started out with just a little bit at the top, and then at one point I looked down and it was mid-calf. I remember thinking how I was running out of room. (Yeah, still not getting good sleep!) **Had to add the "cared about" because lately It seems that I know a LOT of people that die. Goes with the territory of hospital work, I guess. Kinda sad, but whenever I read the local newspaper, I always make a point to read the obits. You'd be suprised how many names I recognize.

Last night I let Adrienne talk me into going to Scarowinds with her. Was a lot more fun than I thought it'd be. I figured it would be some cheezy theme park with a haunted house somewhere on site. Nooo... soo not that. The whole dang park was transformed. Fog everywhere - so many zombies & other spooks coming after you, you'd think you were walking through a live version of Silent Hill! It was the Massacre Manor walk through the woods that got to me the most! (OMG, you just don't know!!)
Also, several of the roller coasters were open, and holy mazola - we rode this one Borg something ride that has you lie flat on your back. With each loop you end up belly-down feeling like you're going to just fall. Way cool in the middle of the night when it's really dark and foggy!! (increases the OH SHIT factor a notch or two!) I'm already thinking I might just go back again next year.

Got an exam in the morning for nursing - it's on psychiatric stuff. Don't know why, but I'm soo not sweating this one. Guess I feel ok with the material, because it's not "cut & dry" like the other stuff - there's not really anything much to memorize, except maybe meds, but those are straight forward. Everyone seems to be freaking out about this test, and they keep asking me if I've been studying. I almost feel guilty for not studying. I'm sure I'll pass, and I just keep saying "C means continue."
Apathy has stricken in the worst way. I've just passed the halfway point, and it shocked the heck out of me that I signed up for next semester's classes. .... Next semester I take 2 mini-mesters (or whatever) and then it's all about the preceptorship!! (wowzilla - I can't believe this!!) Keeping my fingers crossed that apathy doesn't creep up to kick me in the ass, but I'm still doing pretty well. (Crossing fingers & knocking on wood...)

Susan got me hooked on those Sudoku puzzles. She asked me if I do them, and I told her no, because numbers aren't usually my thing. I had assumed it was all math. I was mistaken. Not a lick of math involved, (100% logic), those suckers are tricky. Try one out... but be sure to have an eraser on hand! :)

Learned a new word tonight -grandiloquent. Someone who talks grandiloquently uses a whole lot of five-dollar words, if ya know what I mean. (Click on link to get to dictionary entry with pronunciation guide)

That's all for now - brain is flooded, but just not focusing on any one thought.