One down, Nine to go....

While break was fun, it was like we didn't even skip a beat between quarter 1 and 2.  This quarter I am taking four classes and this is what my week looks like

• Monday:  Health Assessment and Health Promotion
• Tuesday:  Pharmacology
• Wednesday:  Synthesis
• Thursday: Nursing Learning Lab
• Friday:  Clinical or Load Day

I don't have a day off like I did last quarter, but the days are shorter Wednesday through Friday.  In addition I am still at the sausage factory monday and wednesdays.  I am not tutoring any more but have picked up babysitting the boys again every other thursday.  I still manage to get into the PACU to volunteer every once in a while too.  I think I've gotten all I could out of it, but I want to maintain a relationship for when it comes to job search time.  

It's nice that some of my teachers are familiar.  My clinical instructor from Q1 is one of my health assessment teachers for Q2.  Also, my pharm teacher is the same teacher who taught me patho last quarter.  Tami and Rosita are still teaching the Lab portion as well.  Health assessment and pharm are going to be the most challenging courses, I feel.  

Synthesis is a culmination of everything we're learning.  We get weekly case studies and have to apply core concepts, pathophysiology, pharmacology and health assessment to come up with a solution. It's kinda like Law and Order where the cases are dramatized but based on real cases.  The teacher seems awesome.  She started the class by playing Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall" and bobbing her head, but don't let that fool you, she's wicked smart and expects you to work hard.  I look forward to the growth potential this class can give me in the clinical setting.  

Escape to the Cape: Spring Break (Part 2)

Dont know what day this was, but it was before one of our excursions.  We went to Jimbo's for breakfast which was kind of a greasy spoon place.  We wanted to sit outside, but since they allow smoking out there for forewent that idea and sat inside.  After we visited the Shell Factory.  It was a first for us all and based on the ads in the attraction magazines it looked interesting.  Well, interesting was not the best adjective to describe it.  The building was a giant gift shop/museum that would go from shells, to christmas to taxidermy animals, to a pirate cave to a subway to a post office. It was just random and weird.  I did learn a bit about pirates and how the most notorious pirate of them all kept spanish princesses captive on a small island with hope to get a ransom.  That is how Captiva Island got its name.  So not a complete loss of time I suppose...

Why uncle thought this was a photo op is beyond me...    

Best attraction they had...

Tuesday we decided to drive down to Siesta Key Beach in Sanibel.  One of the firefighters I was talking to at the airport was saying how beautiful it was and Aunt concurred so we decided it was worth the 2 hour commute.  While parking was a predicament, we finally set up camp for the day on the beach.  The sand was like powder, so white, so soft, just amazing!  It was pretty crowded with spring breakers so we didn't set up too close to the water, but I had the sun and my kindle and was a happy camper.  It looked like it was going to storm and got a little chilly, to the point I put a long sleeve shirt on, but it blew over right after the beach cleared.  Im glad we stuck it out.

Wednesday Aunt had book club and Uncle was going fishing with some guys.  The amount of sun I got on Tuesday was going to determine which activity I did.... I ended up going to book club!  We had a lovely lunch and I enjoyed listening about the book they read, 11/22/63 by Stephen King.  Not King's typical style, but sounded engaging.  After most of the ladies left, we hung out at Mary's who hosted and had a few martinis.  Then when uncle got back from his fishing trip it was off to Big Rib City for 25 cent beers on Wednesdays.  I couldn't believe such a deal still existed!  Fine print:  3 limit and must order a meal, but still... Awesome!  The food was delish and the beer was cold despite Uncle Al's complaint that the mugs weren't frosted.  Since Aunt doesn't drink beer Uncle and I took the liberty of drinking her share too.

Cheers to quarter beers!

Thursday we hit another beach, Fort Meyers Beach.  I went there last time I visited with Carla, it's very touristy.  This time we went further down the strip where it was less crowded, which I was happy with (am I turning into an old lady or what?!).  It was pretty much a repeat of Tuesday, a day of sun, fun, cocktails, kindle and relaxation.  On the way home we stopped at the store to pick up some things for the Cabana crawl on Friday.  We all know how aunt feels about cooking so I graciously volunteered to make the hors d'oeuvres.  I love to cook!  While I was prepping, aunt made a nice pasta dinner and then we relaxed and watched a bit of tv before crashing.  

Guess which chair was mine...

Real troopers, we were one of the last to leave the beach!

This is about as far into the water I would go.
I hate when anything touches me in the water

I made spinach and cheese swirls with pastry puff
and a sausage crescent swirl too.
There weren't too many left overs after the party.  

     Friday I enjoyed the amenities of Tarpon Point and hit the pool.  It's nice to just walk down there and not have to pack a cooler or anything for the day.  Everything is just an elevator away.  Then we went down for the Cabana Crawl.  There were about 8-10 different people that opened their cabanas for the group.  It was neat to see how each was decorated differently.  They ranged from modern city style, to cruiseship style, to Caribbean style and so on.  There was also a steel drum player which always makes things sound like vacation.  I enjoyed mixing and mingling with everyone; there are so many interesting people in their complex. I was definitely holding my own and didn't even know where aunt and uncle were for parts of the night.  It was a nice conclusion to a great trip.  Saturday I soaked up the last two hours of sun I could and we headed to Prawnbrokers for some appetizers and VTs before I flew off.  They had delicious seafood.  The oysters were from Texas (a first for me) but were so meaty and not fishy at all.  The escargot was buttery and supreme and the coconut shrimp were yummy.  With a full belly I was off.  This was just the second of many Florida trips to come!  Apparently there is a place that has giant margaritas that we didn't get a chance to go to so I'll for sure be back.  Thanks again Aunt Gam and Uncle Al!!!!

One of the many attempts at a group photo. Perhaps we should
have tried that at the beginning of the night, not the end...

Escape to the Cape: Spring Break (Part 1)

I had a fabulous time on spring break and can't thank Auntie Gam and Uncle Al enough for the hospitality and generosity.  Uncle Tom dropped me off in style with the squad car and I was off... or so I thought.  My flight was delayed so they put me on a different flight to Philadelphia instead of Charlotte.  I was suppose to only be an hour behind schedule.  When I got to Philly my plane was having "mechanical issues"  and they weren't sure if they needed to get a different plane.  That was when I decided to go to the bar across from my gate and get a breakfast cocktail.  Conveniently there were a group of NYFD boys waiting to fly out to march in a St. Patty's day parade in Savannah, GA.  Apparently they go to a different city each year.  It wasn't too shabby.  I finally got to Fort Meyers 2+ hours after I was suppose to and vacation began.  We went to Cheeseburger in Paradise and then took a stroll on the golf cart.

These are burrowing owls.  If they decided to move into your yard,
you cant do anything about it.  It's against the law to disturb them.

The next day was St. Patty's day.  It's a little different in Florida than it is in Chicago, but I'd trade a green river for nice pool anyday.  I was given to option to day drink at a pub, but I was in vacation mode and wanted to get my tan on stat.  Each drink went down easier than the first and then I met the gentleman with a handle of Crown Royal...  I graciously invited him, his wife and their friend to dinner where green beer would be a must.      

Green cup in hand for the holiday!

Shots poolside, didn't even have to get out of the water

Auntie Gam drinking a beer!
or maybe just posing for the picture...

Monday Uncle Al made arrangements to take a boat out from the boat club he's a member of.  I enjoyed following the map and then seeing all the sea life.  I literally could reach out of the boat and touch the dolphins and manatees.  Uncle kept telling me to take pictures, but I wanted to just enjoy the moment.  We preordered subs from the grocery store and beached the boat to enjoy lunch and some sun on a little island.  

Me and the captain.

Manatees playing in the water.
Don't worry we idled the boat.

It was a pleasant ride up in the front, not bumpy at all.
A little chilly when speeding though.

Dolphins!  Everywhere!

I was sitting in front to be closer to the dolphins, but then
I had to get back in the boat b/c the captain said it was illegal :o(

This is when you know I've had enough sun.
The lucky fishing hat comes out.

Part 2 coming soon.  Now I need to hit the books, I already have a test on monday....

Rhythms for a Reason

Among all the hustle and bustle of finals, I managed to extend myself to the wonderful Bear Necessities organization for the the biggest event of their year, the bear tie ball.  It was the 19th annual gala and it was held at the UIC Forum for the first time since they've outgrown the previous venue space they used.  It was a great night and as a volunteer I got a little bit dresses up, but the guests who came got a lot-a-bit dressed up.  I enjoyed the people watching, especially as the night progressed,  but the most fantastic part of the night was watching the amount of money people were donating.  One guy raises his hand and boom donates $20,000 just like that.  I was blown away by peoples generosity and the amount of disposable income they had.  By the nights end the event raised close to 700,000 dollars to help kids across the country fight cancer.  There were also some touching speeches delivered that night:  one from the founder who lost her son about 20 years ago, one from a child who has survived cancer and one from a father who had a daughter recently diagnosed.  In attendance we had Val Warner from Windy City Live, the owner of the cubs and a few other mentionables that escape my mind at the moment.

I look forward to volunteering next year and one day, when I'm not pinching pennies, I'd like to attend as a guest.  The more I work with Bear Necessities, the more wonderful I think it is.  At the end of this post is a link to a video they played at the event, I hope you watch it.  This is why I love what they do and am seriously considering taking my nursing career in that direction ....  Dreams & Reality 

A bit of a hiatus...

I know I haven't posted anything for a while, but things got really crazy at the end of the quarter with studying for cumulative finals and putting together presentations.  Going into my finals my grades were in the middle of the letter, so I either had to do exceptionally well to go up a grade or piss poor to go down a grade.  Clinging onto every chance I studied my butt off with hopes they'd go up a grade since they'd been idling the entire quarter.  It was cram city and to no avail my grades ended up staying the same.  In my core class I needed to get 3 more questions right to move up to an A.  While not satisfied with my final performance for my first quarter, I talked to my teachers, mentor and clinical instructor and they assured me that my quarter one grades won't hold me down.    Writing this a few weeks after the fact I am very calm and matter of fact, but I can't even count how many tears I'd cried over a test this quarter.  It's frustrating when you work so hard and don't see the fruits of your labor in your test score.  After a week in Cape Coral (pictures coming soon) I've cleared my head and am ready to tackle new obstacles in quarter two!

Winter Blues No More

the wonderful hosts

A while ago I thought it would be fun to have a party, just to have a party.  You know just get some friends together for a nice night of good company, good conversation and good libations for a low key night.  With the help of a friend we came up with a "winter blues" theme where everyone has to wear blue, we'll listen to some blues and of course have blue jello shots to pass.  Althought this has been the mildest winter I've can remember, we loved the theme.  I told the roommates about it, they loved the idea too!  Then Matt took it to another level....  I guess you can't expect to have a low key party when you live with a event planner.  What I thought was a joke at first quickly became a reality and when I came home on Friday night, my house was transformed into a lounge with lighting effects, feather boas and a bar where the dining room table use to be.  The party was a blast and everyone had a great time.  I loved that everyone really embraced the blue theme.  Now we have a reputation to maintain :o)

The best place to study...

... is in a bar.  First hear me out before you jump to conclusions.  Earlier this week a few friends and I wanted to get one more cram session in before our Patho test.  We started in the computer lab, but realized we were probably being too loud so we checked out the student lounge.  When we got there it seemed like some others had the same idea and it was too loud and busy.  We made to executive decision to go to Starbucks down the street.  That is where we sometimes go on our Friday nights and it's nice to get a change of scenery since we were on campus all day.  We roll up to Starbucks and it was super packed.  We couldn't even squeeze onto a table if we wanted to.  I guess Friday night study sessions aren't a hot commodity so we underestimated what a Monday afternoon study session there would be like.  One of the girls jokingly said we should just go the the bar across the street.  We laughed, but then we thought about it... no one goes to bars in the middle of the afternoon on a Monday.  It was a brilliant idea!  We walked in and the bartender told us the kitchen was closed for remodeling, to which Molly replied, "no worries, I brought my own lunch" and showed him her tupperware.  He brought us some water with nice lemon wedged on the glass, we each ordered a beer to sip on and then Nadine asked the best question of the day as we were getting situated... "Since you guys are remodeling and all, you wouldn't by any chance have an extension cord that we can use?"  Tim, the bartender got us one right away and even plugged all our laptops in for us.  I think he was just happy to have someone in the bar at that time.  We stayed there for a few hours and really hammered out renal disorders.  Then people started to actually come in so we called it a night.  The Drum and Monkey is definitely our secret study spot and I have a feeling we will be back!