Chapter 30: A Quick Update, Once Again

So, time for a quick update, because I am bad at this blogging thing and don't keep up with it like I should...

1. I am loving city living. There is always something to see and do. There is always people buzzing about. I am able to walk out my front door and find something interesting within a half mile.

The only complaint I have is the apartment company we chose. But, that's not a problem with city living; it's a problem with them alone.

2. I signed up for, and was approved to join Big Big Brothers Big Sisters!

I'm so excited! My "Little" (that's what they call the kids; the adults are "Bigs" or "mentors") is 14 years old, very smart, and likes sports and animals. Her mom feels more comfortable with her being in the site-based program, so, instead of taking her out to the mall, movies, bowling, etc, I will meet with her for an hour per week at her school. (If her mom feels comfortable with it, there is the potential that I will be able to take her out and do the community based program with her at a later point.) So, since I will be meeting her at school, the program doesn't officially start until September, when school starts back up. I asked BBBS if I could meet her beforehand (I don't want to wait a month!) and they set up a meeting between us at their office. During the summer, she and I will be able to talk on the phone and do pen-pal writing.

This is a program that I have always wanted to get in to, but never had the opportunity because I lived so far from the city. Now that I'm here, I'm ready to make the most of it!

3. I have lost 20 pounds since January! I am so happy! I think it's the fact that I'm out more and walking around more. Plus, warmer weather is a big motivation for me. Let's keep it up, Grizzly Girl!

4. I am in charge of updating the website at work! I get to choose the Pet of the Month, and also write articles pertaining to pets' health, among other things. I also update the work calendar with events and goings-on at the hospital. AND! I got a raise! The only person to get a raise after reviews. I am pretty damn proud, if I do say so myself! :)

5. I got a new tattoo! The "Live Free Or Die Tattoo Expo" was this past weekend, and I went with a couple of friends. I was able to get the same artist as before, and I LOVE the work he did for me!

This picture is from the day I got it. It looks better now, because all of the stringy things hanging down have been washed off.

You movie nerds out there might recognize this as the same tattoo Captain Jack Sparrow had on his arm in Pirates of the Caribbean. Correct! While the movie has a large part in my life, the design also has more meaning than just Captain Jack...

Sparrows are resilient birds. They handle things in the toughest weather and conditions, and always seem to make it out alive.

It also plays upon Jack's infamous saying, "Bring me that horizon". You can make of it what you will, but I take it to mean "there's more out than there just this. More possibilities. The world is limitless".

Needless to say, I am very happy with the tattoo.

That's it for now! I always say that I am going to try and get better at updating this, but I never do. So, let's just say that I'll see you when I see you! :)

-Grizzly Girl

Chapter 8: You Can See My Heart Beating, Oh You Can See It Through My Chest

So, what happens when you don’t update as often as you should, and a violent windstorm comes through knocking power out for 3 days? Well, I think you see where this is going…

The windstorm. Ugh. Thursday night, we had extremely violent winds come through. It was so loud and scary that B said, “It sounds like the Smoke Monster from LOST…” And it did.

We lost power around 10:30 PM, and didn’t get it back until Sunday evening. We had about 3 weeks of food in our fridge and freezer, and 90% of it went bad. We had no heat, no hot water, and couldn’t cook. (Everything in our apartment is electric…) Our landlord, however, has all of the above. Why, you ask? Because he has a generator that he hooks up to his house. Did he ask us if we wanted to chip in on gas and use the generator to help keep our food fresh? Of course not. Why? Because he’s an asshole. (Our apartment is actually connected to their house. They just built a not-so-thick wall between each section of the houses.) GR. I am so angry at everything right now. B keeps saying that I have hated him since I started coming over here, which I have, but I have had reason to hate him. I won’t go in to it, though… he’s always telling me I am too angry and hold grudges. Going in to it won’t help my mood, either. Heh.

But can I just say this? I want to move so badly!

Not much else is going on.

I’m designing our “Information Board” we have at work. It’s just a corkboard that we post animal health information on. But, I like to scrapbook and am creative, so I’ve taken it under my wing. I might just take a picture of it when I’m finished and post it here for you! :)

We went to see The Crazies on Sunday. It was really good! I thoroughly enjoyed myself. And Timothy Olyphant is pretty nice to look at, as well. *giggle*

We also got Love Actually from NetFlix last week. I hadn’t seen it, so we watched it last night. I was yelling at the TV because I was so in to it. lol It was a lot better than I thought it would be. Very romantic!

Our betta fish died. I was happy to see him go, only because, for the last couple of weeks, he had been laying on the bottom of the tank. It looked like he was having a hard time breathing, and barely moved. A few days before he died, he started to lose his coloring. I got hom the other night, and he was laying on the bottom of the tank, upsidedown, with 90% of his color drained. He was literally white with red streaks. RIP General Tso. You were a great, yet very angry, little fish.

So, I have to wear a heart monitor for a full month. Thankfully, I don’t have to wear it when I sleep, since I’m not having any symptoms when I’m sleeping. I have 2 electrodes hooked up to me. On is on my left side, towards the bottom of my ribs. The other is on the right side of my chest. If I feel any of the symptoms I have been feeling (explained in Chapter 3), I have to push a button that will; record my heart’s activity for 15 seconds. It will also go back and fully record what my heart had been doing for 45 seconds before that. (I guess it has a small memory, so it can be all nifty like that and back-track.) It’s such an annoyance, though. It’s constantly falling off of my pants (it’s help on like a beeper would be), getting in the way, and I’m always afraid I’m going to accidentally push the button that will erase everything it’s recorded. When I have up to five recordings, I need to call the hospital and tell them I need to send a transmission, then place the phone on the monitor, push the send button, and stand there for a minute while it makes that dreaded “dial-up internet” sound. It’s such a hassle, but hopefully it will tell us what’s going on so we can get everything to stop and I can go back to normal and my heart can stop being "broken"…

 

-Grizzly Girl

Chapter 6: I Love Pancakes That Have Slightly Undercooked Batter In The Middle

Sorry for my lack of writing. Not much is going on, so I don’t want to bore you with MY boredom.

Within an hour of each other last night, we euthanized 2 animals… both of which were named Jerry. How weird is that? Jerry is not a common name in the animal world. It would be more understandable if they were “Bailey” or “Max”, but Jerry? It gave Dr. S and I chills. Thankfully, they were not the same species, because that would have really been creepy. (One was a cat, the other a ferret.)

Work is going good! The only “problem” I’ve had, is one of the other technicians told Dr. S that she thought I acted like I knew everything. When I asked Dr. S to give me an example, she said, “Well, she said you questioned why we were using a certain blood tube”. Um… okay? I haven’t been telling people how to do their jobs, I’ve just been asking, “So, why do we do it this way? I’m used to this…” just so I can understand why we do things the way we do them. I don’t like doing something and not knowing why I’m doing it, you know?

I guess I should actually tell you the whole story of my job before I go on complaining or anything…

I was hired to basically re-train everyone (including the other doctor), but they don’t know that. They think I’m just another technician like them. Dr. S really wanted me to work there since I went to school for the job, and I’m certified. (In some states, you don’t have to go to school and be certified/licensed to work in an animal hospital. Sometimes on-the-job training will do, but the American Animal Hospital Association [AAHA from now on] is trying to steer away from that.) So, Dr. S wanted me to come in with my knowledge of legal procedures and medical procedures etc. and basically re-train everyone, but not let them know what I’m doing. She wants me to do things the correct way, and set an example for everyone else. It kind of sucks in the sense that people might start thinking I’m a goodie-too-shoes and whatnot, but it’s nice because if I get backlash from people, I can let her know and she’ll put whatever I was trying to do into the hospital policy.

So anyway, I hope all of that made sense. Essentially, I am there to lay down the law of AAHA. Hehe.

I love my job, though. For the most part, everyone there is great. I’m paid extremely well for my position. The drive isn’t too bad. I’m constantly learning new things… I’m really happy that I went in and gave my resume to them on the day I did.

Being vegan is going good! My body is handling all of the new and different foods I’m putting into it. I love the recipes we’re making, and I’m super happy that B (my boyfriend) is eating and liking them as well. Having that support there helps, you know?

B and I are doing great. I've been on this weird "My biological clock is ticking!" thing lately. (Don't worry, I have NOT said anything about it to him.) And I'm all "Oh my dog, everyone around me is having or has had a baby, and I want one! NO! I want three!!!" and that's all my mind is thinking lately. Gah. Stupid female hormones. Like WTF?! I don't want kids at 23, and I want to wait until I'm married, you know? (That's another thing I keep yearning for... again, stupid hormones!!!) Other than my silent mental freak-outs, we're just peachy. Hahaha!

I guess that’s it for now. I’ll try to update more often now that I’m actually starting to have a life. :)

-Grizzly Girl