Goodbye October

October 31st is a fun holiday. Halloween is just crazy if you think about it, people dressing up, knocking on strangers' doors, and asking/demanding candy, and if you don't comply it is implied that you will be sorry. As fun as this holiday is and as fun as decorationsand such are, I have to say Halloween is kind of a sad day for me because it marks the end of October.
It certainly has been a wonderful one this year: fall leaves, hiking Waterfall Canyon, Big Cottonwood Canyon, (snowballs one week, hike up Donut Falls the next), Moab, River Walkway, Alpine Loop, General Conference, peaches galore off of Jeff's trees, Arches, birthday celebrations, crafting, zombie 5k, the opera, family parties, fall break, and so much more. All in all it was just wonderful. So long October, it's been great.

We Thank Thee O God For a Prophet

We had Regional Stake Conference today and it was wonderful. There were a lot of good messages and things to take from it and I have to say it is always nice to hear from the prophet. The main message from both Elder Andersen and President Monson was the need to look outside of ourselves and go to the rescue of those around us be they the widowed, lonely, from fractured families, neighbors, friends, strangers....to help those who need it or to find a way to serve those around us. I think it can be easy to get wrapped up in our busy lives, and trials and not look outside of our narrow point of view and see those around us in need of a smile, hug, listening ear, plate of cookies, visit, phone call, dinner, because we are all dealing with something. President Monson's remarks on battalions and loss of war in connection with loving those around us made me think of a quote that I love from Sister Marjorie Pay Hinckley (wife of President Hinckley): "Be kind. Everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle." Note on the picture: some may think this a weird choice, but the last time I heard President Monson speak at the Dee Events Center it was at my graduation, which I think is pretty neat.

Dumb Student.

I have had to get my blood drawn weekly since probably June 2010 when my body got really really angry. While the test may change the steps don't. I know where all of my good veins are, as well as the scarred ones from over use. I usually know the people's names and personal information such as kids, car troubles, ex-troubles, etc due to the frequency I get to visit. That said, I had a student today. I understand that we all start somewhere, but this students was a complete idiot. Here is my case as it unfolded: #1 Feels for vein in the wrong spot #2 I inform student that is not a vein but a tendon-big difference #3 Student ignores me and shoves a butterfly needle into my tendon and into a nerve-yes a butterfly needle used for shallow veins as in on the surface nowhere near my precious nerves #4 I begin crying and am not sure why #5 notice student is still fishing for a vein within my tendon but I am unable to feel anything....at all, but my body obviously does or I wouldn't be crying right? RIGHT? #6 Nurse comes around corner and exclaims "WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU DOING TO HER!?!?" and shoves student out of way-yay! she removes needle and asks me to pinch fingers which I can do if I am looking but can't feel it and can't if I am not watching my hand #7 nurse has to go through the top of my hand due to my arm being destroyed on the oppostie side #8 stupid student asks if I am just senstive-I gave a not so nice reply along the lines of being insensitive to people who don't listen to their patients especially when they have blood drawn as frequently as I do #9 leave with three areas wrapped in brightly colored coflex and still unable to feel arm, grasp, write, open pens, hold cassettes, type, etc #10 15 minutes later I am going to throw up, I am sick, dizzy, and nautious, our nurse notices and figures I am having a sympathetic reaction to having my nerve poked and twirled around #11 3 hours later tingling in the fingers, I can pick up a paper #12 4 hours later feeling starts coming back #13 evening pain is so intense in my arm that has been dead since 11:00 AM I am forced to take pain medication to get any relief #14 I don't like students, especially dumb ones. #15 never again

Bookstore Ban

Fairly certain that JD and I should be banned from all bookstores until further notice, as in until we have completely finished pharmacy school, paid off student loans that will come from pharmacy school, and pay off our future home that we don't even know what state it will be in. Why? Because we go into bookstores and we can't come out and when we finally do, we have huge lists of books we would like to have on our shelves that are already packed full. Outside of that, between applications and a daunting thesis, when do we read.....for fun at least?

Free Run Foliage

I took my camera with me for a quick jog by the river today. Wow it is pretty. I love this time of year!

Christmas Craftiness

Tara and I got crafty today and made some blocks for Christmas. She made super cute presents and I made the Grinch. It has been a very long time since we have done anything and it was fun to finish a project together. The foot print happens to be in a pile of rogue glitter that escaped the container as Tara bedazzled her presents, everything was quite sparkly by the time we were done, but the finished products are very cute.

X-Ray

JD and I attended a health informatics dinner tonight that was held at Ogden Regional Medical Center. After the forum I ran up to imaging to get a case study for school from one of the girls I used to work with there. It was so fun catching up with the two techs there and see how they were doing. I slaved away 1,500 hours for free at that place with the group pictured left over the course of 2 years. Since then, I have gotten married and will have my Masters degree soon, Megan has had a baby, Ser moved to Korea, Melissa is now in Washington, and Nick is an adjunct professor at Weber State. We had a lot of fun and were an amazing group because we were all smart, all worked really hard both at the hospital and for school, and we weren't afraid to use things like pizzas as object lessons when studying physics or radiobiology. Who could ask for better memories than all nighters, learning how to make oragami frogs and cranes, ab work out routines using your basic office chair, experiencing the taste of barium, CSI marathons on holidays, learning what it means to be 'like a banshee' and the list goes on.