Yesterday I went to visit my great aunt, who has recently been forced to take up residence in a nursing home after suffering a stroke. She is more mobile and more verbal than she was initially and continues to get better, although she is now confined to a wheelchair. She is still very much with it, she just can't get the words out sometimes ( Read more... )

Sophia was my cadaver for anatomy this past semester. As such, the following post contains descriptions of a real human body and dissections of that real human body. I have left out any graphic details, but if this is going to offend or really disgust you, stop reading now. Because it will not be any better for you from here on out.

( My Time with Sophia )

So as of last Friday, I have survived my first quarter of grad school and I will be back for more in a week. Woo-hoo. Would be nice if I actually had a schedule though. Don't even know where I am supposed to be on the morning of Monday the 17th. I know they were waiting to make sure things were coordinated with other programs, but still.  Sometimes ( Read more... )

I have taken my embryology midterm (which was a bitch), gone for a run, taken a bath and shaved my legs for the first time since arriving in North Chicago. I have three days of no class ahead of me. I should be happy, and for the most part I am. I did just learn that I kind of sucked it up on the medical terminology midterm. I felt like I knew the ( Read more... )

Today was my first day of classes. We didn't do much in anatomy, but it was still pretty stressful with 150 people trying to change and get to the same lockers at the same time. I need to find a way to by-pass that, cause the crowds really get to me.  I also left my newly-purchased box of gloves in there and that means they are gone. I really think ( Read more... )

This is directed at all of the medical people out there. Under what circumstances is consent required to do an arterial line ( Read more... )

I’ve loved you for a long, long time.  I know this love is real. It don’t matter how it all went wrong; that don’t change the way I feel.  And I can’t believe that timeis gonna heal this wound that I’m speakin’ of.

There ain’t no cure, there ain’t no cure, there ain’t no cure for love.

I’m aching for you, baby. I can’t pretend I’m not. I need to ( Read more... )

One Tuesday night in Cleveland, I found myself attending an Amon Amarth concert at Peabody's. How I got there went something like this:

I arrive at friend's house in Parma Heights.
Friend: I am going to an Amon Amarth concert on Tuesday. (pause) Wanna come? We might have an extra ticket, I'll check. (pause) Oh, do you like Viking metal?
Me: Let me ( Read more... )

I just finished The Revenge of Gaia: Earth's Climate Crisis and the Fate of Humanity by James Lovelock. Lovelock developed Gaian theory in the 1970's. Basically, it is the idea that the earth is living and acts as on giant organism to regulate temperature and chemical concentrations at levels optimal for life. He uses examples such as the oxygen ( Read more... )

As of last night, I am back in Minnesota for the longest chunk of time since freshman year of college. I am looking forward to my chunk of unstructured time. I will use it to run, learn me some anatomy so I am not screwed in June, see some family/friends and generally get my shit together.

My week-long, semi cross-country road trip was good. My ( Read more... )