Looooong clinical day...

... NOT!!!

Only one of our instructors showed up today. Since it's evidently against some policy (school or hospital, I assume) for one instructor to have so many students - combined with the fact that no women happened to be giving birth on our Labor & Delivery clinical day - we went home really, really early.

We took a 20 minute or so tour of one of the LDR rooms and that was it.

No - really - that was it. That was our last clinical of the LPN-to-RN program.

No. More. Clinicals. EVAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!

As you can tell, I'm crushed...

Oopsie!

One of Obama's minions let it slip:

"As President Obama indicated during the campaign, there are just a few gun-related changes that we would like to make, and among them would be to reinstitute the ban on the sale of assault weapons," Holder told reporters.

The article was kind enough to print a prior here's-how-I-love-hyperbole comment from Holder:

"I think closing the gun show loophole, the banning of cop-killer bullets and I also think that making the assault weapons ban permanent, would be something that would be permitted under Heller," Holder said, referring to the Supreme Court ruling in Washington, D.C. v. Heller, which asserted the Second Amendment as an individual's right to own a weapon.

"Cop-killer bullets" ... As opposed to bullets that don't kill cops? What kind of bullets would those be, pray tell?

Idiot.

Nancy backpedaled:

“On that score, I think we need to enforce the laws we have right now,” Pelosi said at her weekly news conference. “I think it's clear the Bush administration didn’t do that.”

I'm not naive enough to think the Obama administration and the Democrats aren't foaming at the mouth for more gun control, but I'm not convinced they'll do it right now. Obama is pushing his political capital as it is. Far too many people are pissed-off about the specifics of the Spendulous bill and the details coming out about the budget. I don't think he's quite drunk enough with power to go that far ... at this juncture.

Mark my words. Here's how it will go down (as if this is some Nostradamus-esque prediction):

They'll sit on it for now. There will be a bill introduced, and it'll sit in committee (which may very well be done already,) and there it will stay until the next Columbine. When that happens, they'll ride the wave of support - however temporary - and they'll pass it.

It's just a matter of time ... and timing.

I'm no super-blogger, but you heard it here first, folks.

Two to go...

I had the last exam of the LPN-to-RN program tonight. I made a 92. I'll take it.

My projects are all turned in and/or completed.

All that remains are clinicals Saturday (newborn nursery ... ugh...) and the Final Exam on Tuesday.

Of course, preceptor work, internship and boards will be after that...

... but that's not "education". That's not busy-work, driving an hour each way for class to a different time zone BS.

Except for the Final, the classwork is over...

I cannot wait to get back to a somewhat normal life...

OMG

I'm watching the President's speech now.

I cannot believe he had the outright gall to make reference to a national debt he "inherited" mere days after signing the largest spending bill in the nation's history into law. Holy cow.

And then to follow that statement up by saying the Spendulus bill was free of earmarks?!?!?

Gawd, I'm going to have a stroke...

I'd get into the utterly preposterous claims he makes about socialized medicine, but I'm sure I'd blow a major artery...

Nearly there...

Next week is the last week of classes. I have an exam on Thursday, and then the final exam the following Tuesday.

I'm trying to get my "Virtual Clinical Excursions" done tonight. The busy work is about to drown me...

... but it's nearly over...

Dang...

... just 4 hours ago it was 60 degrees.

It's supposed to be 35 tomorrow and in the teens tomorrow night.

It's creativity ...

... that I don't have.

The Mighty HODAR makes "survival bracelets" made from paracord. Frankly, they're the shizznit. He had made one for me previously that didn't have a buckle, and - though it looked cool - it was a pain to wear.

His new design is a definite improvement. He's evidently selling them in his locale successfully. I'll post a link to his Ebay store ... when he gets off his duff and creates one.

Behold, the MGS Designs SHTF bracelet:


I have one. You don't. Haha!

Jefe update

Jefe continues improving. He's eating anything that's not nailed down. If you're not careful, he'll lick your plate if you leave it where he can get to it (and I can't say I'm stopping him...)

He has more energy than he's had in a long time. His color is better, with more pink in his nose and gums (indicating the anemia is resolving.)

Hopefully he'll continue on the upswing.

Strong storms

This is what it looked like out my window just a few minutes ago:






... and just like that, it was over.

It looks like our big barn sustained some roof damage:


It'll be Friday before I can get out & check out the other barns & see what needs to be fixed.

Jefe update

I brought Jefe home this morning. He seems to be doing extraordinarily well, considering the tumor weighed in at 6 lbs. Considering his pre-surgery weight was 52 lbs., that's remarkable. I hate to admit he looks like one of the abused dogs in an ASPCA commercial. The vet commented on his "indominable spirit." You can say that again.

That said, he has seemed to feel pretty well today, though obviously sore. His nose and gums are already looking much more pink than they have in months. His pulse and respiratory rate are within normal limits. He has been trying to follow me and Miss Fluffy around the house some today. His tail-wag is strong. He's peeing alot. He's eating like he's starved (which, frankly, he has been).

A sample of the tumor has been sent off. We'll know more soon enough.

He's resting comfortably now on the couch with Miss Fluffy. He's most likely pooped. He's had a tough couple of days. Hopefully he'll continue on the upswing.

El Jefe

El Jefe was the first dog that Miss Fluffy and I owned. I bought him for her as a gift. He's a rescued dog ... he had been abandoned with one of his litter-mates, if I remember correctly. Jefe is stone deaf.

I never can remember how old Jefe is, but he's been with us though 2 apartments, our first house and now here on the farm in Kentuckistan.

Jefe has always been a typical Dalmatian ... stubborn, very smart and high-energy. Our two Dals have always expressed feelings and moods to a greater extent than I would have ever expected from an animal. I imagine I'm like most dog owners, in that I've had some times when I'd have gladly killed Jefe with my own hands, and other times when I've loved him so much it brought me to tears.

Jefe has been losing weight over the past several months and had become anemic. We couldn't reverse his weight loss regardless of what we fed him, and our vet couldn't seem to figure out what was going on.

Our vet took an x-ray yesterday and found Jefe's abdominal cavity filled with fluid, which turned out to be blood. He was hemorrhaging ... from somewhere. The abdominal cavity should be clear on the x-ray, but the mass and the blood causes it to be whited-out.


He removed Jefe's spleen this morning, and found a very large tumor. We don't know if it's malignant, or if it is, if the cancer has spread.


Our vet has told us we can expect Jefe to live 6 to 8 more months.

I'm fighting back tears as I type this. When Jefe dies, I will weep openly and bitterly.

There. That's all the anticipatory grieving I'm going to allow myself.

We'll pick him up from the vet tomorrow and we'll spoil him as long as he continues living.

Brrrrr....

Yep, it's officially cold. I brought in a load of firewood this afternoon, and I had on a pair of insulated coveralls with an insulated hood and a balaclava. The only exposed skin - around my eyes - hurt so badly from the cold wind by the time I got back to the house that my eyes were watering.

Look, y'all ... I like it cold, but day-um, this is cold. I've been up Mt. Washington 3 times (I think) in winter. I've felt cold before.

This is cold.

The ground is frozen hard as a rock. Riding the Mule over cattle-trampled fields was like participating in some kind of sub-zero torture test.

Still .... I love it. Bring on the ice-age apocalypse...

Confession...

I like Katy Perry's music. Some of her lyrics are a scream. I really like I Kissed a Girl and Hot N Cold.


Is that so wrong?

Hey, she'll probably self-destruct tomorrow, but I'm thoroughly enjoying her 15 minutes of fame...

Break

I took a break after clinicals yesterday, which means I didn't do any schoolwork after I got home.

I cut some wood and then watched Alien 3 on DVD from the Alien Quadrilogy I got for Christmas. I watched the Special Edition, which included quite a bit of deleted and extended scenes. Great film.