Restive State

Thought it was about time to change from dark to light, so as to quote the Beastie Boys, "Dark is not the opposite of light, merely the abscence of Light."

Will be back soon with new stuff...just got back from the holidays so there's lots to do, only not enough time to do it.

'Til later...

That's right, finished. The last Final is in the bag, at least for this semester that is.

And here's how long I have left:


4 months...4 weeks

That's right, not long at all, May 12th will be a great day indeed.

But we were sitting at breakfast the other morning studying for our Maternal and Pediatrics final and I had a total flashback to earlier in the semester. As nursing students, nothing really seems to phase us when it comes to bodily functions and secretions, although everyone has their own secret weakness, like Kryptonite. One of my friends handles diarrhea with aplomb, but can't deal with lung butter (i.e. mucus), others have difficulties with vomit, the list goes on. Now many have said it before, and I'll reiterate it, far too often we classify drainage/secretions in terms of food. Nowhere is this more true that in the realm of STDs. While this wholesome topic is unsettling for some, when you combine it with colorful descriptions, people kind of start to lose their appetite.

Here we were sitting at a big table in the middle of the dining room of and establishment here in town adn of course we are going over signs and symptoms of various STDs. So yes, this is in public, in earshot, and did I mention that it was during the breakfst rush?

C: OK, now is that gray, frothy and fish? Or white cottage-cheese like drainage?
T: Naw, that's the one that is green with pain when you pee.
C: Right, so which one has the bumps?
T: Warts...you know, "French tickler? Hell no girl, thems warts..."

The converastion lasted in this vein for quite sometie, as it is really quite amazing the critters, bugs and general nastiness that you can get when looking for love in all the wrong places. Monday, I added that little conversation to the list of "things I'm going to miss about nursing school." You never really forget those days, even if you want to.

Oh yeah, found these 2 tidbits of pan-politcal shenanigans for all you last minute Christmas shoppers out there.

Stratego for Democrats
Gifts for Young Conservatives

via allnurses.com

Enjoy...'til later...

The wife and I went out to find our Christmas Tree today. Yeah, I know, stupid move. As I have come to learn living in a small mountain town, if you don't go early, don't count on getting the selection you thought you should get. But being infected with a bit of holiday cheer and a sense of community we decided to give a local nursery a try in selecting our tree. Having driven past the previous night, we saw that they had a decent selection with prices to match.
As we pulled into the lot this afternoon however, our disappointment began to grow. Either the selection had magically disappeared overnight, or we had been mistaken. After walking around, being shocked by the prices and not at all pleased about the trees themselves (which looked like they had been cut weeks ago and were being kept alive by the barest of measures), we left. We said, "It's ok, maybe it's like this everywhere." Not a chance.

Next stop, Home Depot. Their trees were even more dismal, many of them still wrapped up from transport. And their prices, while better were still a ways from where we wanted to be, especially when you considered the state and quality of the trees. After wracking our brains, we realized our only hope on the rapidly darkening evening was Wal-Mart.

Yes, the leveler of small local businesses, the scourge of low prices and just about the only place still open that might carry trees. So we went in to see. And there it was, the only thing lacking from the moment was an angelic choir and a light shining from the heavens when my wife exclaimed, "That's it, that's the one!" So we took it home, decorated it and captured the moment on film. Of course, being a town full of moron and jerks, while my wife was waiting with the tree in hand for me to pull the car around, some jerk-off pulled up right in front of her, blocking easy access to the car, when there was plenty of extra room just 10 feet down the curb for him to move. But like I said, it's life in a small town.

I think the moral of the story today is thus: even when infected with holiday sheer and good intentions of supporting locally owned business, unless you get there first, you're out of luck. But yes, had we found a tree that we liked at the local place we would not have bought it, y'know why? Because it was $15 more than either Home Depot or Wal-Mart. That's dinner money right there...

Until later...The ride home was fun though!

That's what it looked like this morning. Tuesday on my way to clinicals is was 8 degrees outside, before wind-chill. Now we're not as cold as Denver (clocking in at -15 today), but this is Arizona. But at least there's no snow...yet.

An update to stupid people...
The day after I wrote about stupid people and mail order, I found more fodder to illustrate the inanity of people in our world.
With all of our mailers come envelopes that postage is paid by the company. You don;t have to spend a dime to send us anything. But what really freaks me out is what people will send back in those envelopes besides their orders. In the last week, I have received coupons from Washington DC, coupons from JC Penny, a brochure for a credit card and several empty envelopes. But the winner this week happened to a buddy of mine who was unpleasantly surprised by a centerfold picture of the extremely explicit nature. Nothing says good morning like a steaming pile of porn.

Until later...

Tis the season to be getting ones Holiday err, Christmas cards. I work at a mail-order* company that specializes in Christmas cards this time of year. It sucks. We get extremely busy, the customers get extremely rude and they expect you to have their card in stock, even though you have been selling them since July, and this is the last week of November. For some reason people expect to be catered to, inspite of their shortcomings. I've been yelled at, called "interesting" things, hit on - by men and women, told I was stupid and generally treated like a Al-Queda operative who was also a pedophile. Of course, being a customer-centric environment, I have to be pleasant, polite and understanding...of course you should hear the things we say after you've gotten off of the phone with us. But I digress.

After doing this job for awhile I came to a realization, actually several of them: 1. People are just stupid. 2. People who own their own business are the stupidest of the bunch**. 3. People believe that just because you are on the phone with them, they can abuse you anyway they want.

So in regards to these stupid, or at least, mis-guided folks, I present a Christmas offering from the Wall of Shame, which is tacked to my cubicle wall to the great enjoyment of my fellow cube dwellers.

Let me set the stage...
Our Christmas card catalog is sent out to businesses, not individuals. As such, in deference to our PC overlords, we manage to leave out almost any mention of religiosity. So there are no cards proclaiming "Merry Christmas" or "Happy Hanuakkah" or a simple mention of religious root of the holiday. Mind you though, as one of options for personalizing the "Holiday" cards, there are verses that reflect a very Christian Christmas sentiment, even beyond that, you have room to add your own personal lines to the card at no cost.
So we get a piece of mail in which is just the order page of the catalog. Scrawled across in big black Sharpee scrict reads to following:

Just read this on Portland Indymedia and was absolutely appalled. You can view the article here.

Previous to my self-imposed exile to Arizona, I lived in Portland, OR. At that time a small coffeshop in the town of Astoria on the Oregon Coast opened. Named "Sambuck's" after the owner, it drew the ire of the coffee baron that is Starbucks, who claimed copyright and image infringement. Mind you, the logo was nothing like Starbucks, nor would any self-repsecting person ever confuse the two. Sam Buck went to court to defend her right to name her business after herself against the corporate overlords, but in the decision handed down today, lost that fight. This stands as another erosion of our personal lives by those that control the world we live in. It also shows we have no recourse to defend our names against the corporate aggressors. All she wanted to do was make a living and some corporate thug had to destroy that.

So to sum it up, to hell with Starbucks, may their horrible over-priced coffee rot on the docks, their baristas walk away, their milk curdle and yuppies realize there are many other outlets to get an actual good cup of coffee in this world.

peace...

Came across a great article by Pete Townshend about hearing loss related to music. I, for one can really relate to this. I know that by the time I hit middle age, hearing loss is going to be a big problem for me. Having suffered many bouts of otitis media as a child and numerous other infections, my hearing is already characterized as damaged, especially in my right ear. Having not one, but two tympanoplasties along with other repairs probably didn't make things better.

So what did I do? Go to work in the airline business. There's really nothing like a 747 spooling up to taxi without ear protection first thing in the morning to clear your head. Something like 120dBs or so, bare ear to the world. In the article it mentioned that average volume of ear buds range 100+dB...which just makes me cringe. I can't imagine anymore putting my head through that anymore. Sure, I remember blasting the headphones to drown out the world and the rambling stinky guy sitting next to me on the bus, but I can't do it anymore, it hurts. I can't imagine losing the ability to hear music and sound. It makes sense why Beethoven went crazy in the end. His passion was taken from him in a very abrupt manner, while he could still compose and direct, he could no longer hear his compositions. But I digress. Read the article, your ear drums will thank you.

As for other stuff...

• Sony decides that it's ok to install software (the root kit fiasco) on your computer, and then the RIAA says they did nothing wrong. But leave to Texas of all places to lead the charge and file the first lawsuit against Sony for this transgression. What's next is for Congress to get in on this and mess it up for all of us...

• Yes! Only 4 days to Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving), that wonderful day of madness and consumer insanity perpetrated on us by the retail behemoths. For those of you who can't wait to see what is for sale, well you're already too late. I mean Gotta Deal's Black Friday site has been getting notortiety since the beginning of November, and Black Friday 2005 has already received at least 2 cease and desist letters. CHekc them out to make your list. Then go here to plan your attack on the stores. I go to watch little old ladies suplex each other over a $5 pair of pajamas. Myself, I plan on being at Wal-Mart in the hinterlands of Arizona, watching the Mormons and the in-breds fight over the deals. I may even pick up something nice for the wife...

I've had the last 2 weeks off as a result of family issues, which are slowly resolving. In the last day or two though, whether by chance or luck, or a concindence of a greater power, I've stumbled across some good stuff once again.

• Good 'ol Pat Robertson is up to his tricks again, condeming a town for denying "intelligent design" by giving their school board the boot. The reality is that he doesn't want anyone to think for themselves or question the Book that he has based his life on. I do believe that there will be a special surprise for him when he departs this realm... (via Poplicks)

• Having spent a lot of time under a great deal of stress, Lifehacker posted up today a guide on how to meditate (from Discovery Health). I started to a while ago, but had fallen off and realized that I really need the time to get my head together and this article came at the right time. (via Lifehacker)

• Last, but not least, I found a great article dealing with Thanksgiving and vegatarians/vegans. As my wife and I are vegatarians (I'm what I term a "dysfunctional vegartarian*") I'm always on the look-out for helpful tips, tricks and recipies for feeding us and found this informative and inspiring. (via Lifehacker)

Lately life has been difficult, in more ways than one. There's too many personal things about this to describe in a public forum, but suffice to say that there was a death in the family that will forever effect my wife and me in a very deep and personal way. It wouldn't be fair or right to say more than that.

Yeah, right. Unfortunately, the madness has alreday begun. Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of Christmas, I'm a son of Claus*, but it gets me every year when the retailers push back the launch date for Christmas shopping. In fact, I was at the mall 3 weeks ago, and Bath & Bodyworks already was decked for that special seaon, playing holiday songs as well! It makes me ill to see the commercialization of the holiday in this fashion.

I remember growing up that the stores would only start on the day after Thanksgiving for their wonderful promos. No longer. The earlier, the better is the new motto. Granted this is a very special time of year for retailers, they stand to make a lot of money, and with all the problems we've had this year, I understand why they're making the push early. But it still rubs me wrong.

The only good thing about this is that the sales are shaping up to be rather spectacular, or at least not-so-craptacular. Perusing the deals at Gotta Deal's Black Friday page, found some that even the sternest grinch would smile at. Even the all-mighty Wal-Mart is getting some great action including a $400 laptop, sure to bring the great unwashed masses out of the trailers to get on "that them-thar interweb with our new lap-top from the Wal-Mart." And I admit, I might even have to join them this year...

*my father works as Santa Claus in the malls where I grew up, and even though it is a seasonal thing has made it his philosphy in life. He looks the part, white beard and all with a tendency to wear red or green shirts the rest of the year. My poor kid is going to be very confused, (the one in the picture is not mine, merely a promo of the pops).

or, 10 Things I Hate About Flagstaff Drivers...

This is an example of pure disconnect to reality. I watched as the gentleman who drove this beast had to lift his wife and daughter out of the truck, or they would have had to mount a climbing expedition to do it themselves. The daughter, was not even as tall as the "tars" on this monstrosity. Some has referred to those that drive these as Elmer Fudd's, but I think a better word is in store, not very bright. I mean really, what do you need such a large and ungainly vehicle for? Hauling things? Off-Roading? Getting 3 gallons to the mile? Please. Point is, that in the world of Peak Oil, these things do nothing but drive the ever increasing reliance on foreign oil, thus leaving us open and vulnerable to influences by those controlling that oil and leading to a whole mess of problems in the realm of geopolitics and economics. But I digress...

I now look at living here as an exercise in surviving traffic, if we leave Flag-town without having an accident, I will be very suprised. Why, do you ask? It is very simple, the drivers here are horrible, I mean terrible. I've driven and walked in many great cities of our country and world and never have feared for my life more than I do here.
So here are 10 Things I Hate About Flagstaff Drivers: (in no particular order)

• never, ever drive at an appropriate speed; we go 40mph in a 25mph and 25mph in a 40mph, drive 75mph in a 55mph construction zone with no shoulder.
  
• we are in such a hurry (see speeding above), but it takes 5 minutes for the guy at the head of the line to realize that the light turned green, leaving the person 3 cars back dealing with yellow.
• believe that a yellow light means that at least 5 more cars can make it through the intersection, even if traffic on the other side is stopped, thus backing up into the intersection, blocking it for those with the now green light.
• when you stop ahead of an intersection so as not to block it, turn right in front of you, effectively cutting you off (and further blocking said intersection).
  
• come to a complete stop before making any turn, especially when turning into a driveway.
• follow so closely that you can't see the grill of the vehicle, merely the hood and maniacal driver inside.
  
• drive so fast that when you are sitting stopped at an intersection/light, you don't think they will stop, but instead plow into your back end.
• believe that pedestrians are targets and that it is ok to drive in front of or directly behind them in the crosswalk, nevermind that the pedestrian has the right-a-way, especially in a crosswalk, and has to clear the lane of traffic before you can go.
• believe that turn signals are really non-functional car ornaments and that there is really no use for them.
• learned to drive in CA, Phoenix, the Res or other area that breeds these bad habits, then bring them here to drive up anxiety, frustration and insurance rates.

My wife and I just had our second ultrasound and I am just blown away by it all. Scared as hell, but excited. It is incredible to me how amazing the whole process is and that we can see it on ultrasound, watch him growing and seeing what he looks like while still in the womb. For so long we thought this would never happen and it finally did.

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I'm mad as hell and not going to take it anymore!

It's about time that someone in the Democratic party decided not to roll over for the GOP. Are Dean's remarks a bit abrasive? Yes. Are they a little impolite? Yes. And it's about time.

The Dems have been called everything from communists to pornographers and by inference religion-hating liberals, yet have never come back at the right wing blowhards, dittoheads and ideologues that have been heaping it on them for long enough. It's not like he told someone to "F*ck off!"

Finally someone has the balls to call the kettle black and ignites a shitstorm for it. The worst thing is that he's getting it as much from his own party as he is from the GOP. Most people believe that there really isn't much of a difference between Dems and Republicans and this proves it. While Dean may have his own agena directing his antics I'm all for it. This country has been blinded by the neocons and their servants in the GOP and it's about time someone who's visible and powerful started questioning the status quo presented by them.

That we drink milk. Not from our mothers but from cows, specially bred for and hopped up on hormones and antibiotics to produce mass quantities of the stuff. So this article published today, makes me laugh and go, "well, d'uh!"

You think that drinking milk is the healthy thing to do , but the research shows that kids who drink more than 2 glasses a day are more prone to be obese. They don't mention if that is the effect of the milk itself, or the latent hormones and other chemicals lurking inside the milk that is causing the effect.

Can't wait to see what the Dairy Farmers have to say about it!

I've just started a nursing externship and Sunday was my first day on the job. The hardest thing for me was to make the transition between a student, where you can do pretty much anything, to an extern who has limitations, but greater responsibilty in their scope of practice. Throughout the semester I have been giving meds during my clinical rotations, but now as an extern I can't. It takes a great deal of energy to keep yourself in line and only do what you are allowed to do. Failure results in termination and being reported to the board, thereby effectively canceling any possiblity of ever working as a nurse when you finish school.

The other thing that is hard is talking about my experiences without breaching patient confidentiality. And it's not just here, but even in town. I don't live in a very large town, sooner or later you're going to run into a patient or the family of a patient and if you happen to be talking about the patient, the damage you can do is devastating.

That has its upside as well. The last rotation of the semester I went to both the Health Department and to the Jail to get a perspective on community nursing. Being a small town, when I was at the jail I saw people I knew, and met a lot of people who I would later remember. So I was out with my wife at Blockbuster one night not too long ago, when I saw a guy who looked too familiar. But I just couldn't place him. I was deep in thought as we kept going through and checked out. The moment I walked out the door, the lightbulb came on. Ohhhh, I know where I knew him from: the jail. Not that it is a big deal in a smaller town to run into people in this way, but running into someone outside you frame of reference sometimes sets you back on your heels a bit.

And speaking of law enforcement, to all those who say crime never happens in Flagstaff, I have a bit of news for you. First, in property crime per capita we lead the state. Yep, we have more property crime per captia than Phoenix, Tucson or anywhere else. The highlight of this is that twice in as many weeks, the DPS helicopter has been overhead tracking someone. I moved away from the city to get away from seeing the cops in my neighborhood everyday, and now I have them shining the Nightsun into my window. It goes without saying that you're never really safe.

Until next time...

According to this article, kids who drink caffinated beverages are less attentive and generally have higher Connor scores (a standard measure of ADHD/ADD) than kids who drink decaf. And it took a big study to figure this out. If you walk into any Wal-Mart in the US on a Saturday you see the effects of this right in front of your eyes with kids bouncing off the aisles hyped up on Coke and Super Sugar Bombs. One good thing to come out of it though is the assertion that kids need to be looked at on multiple levels, including diet, for diagnosis of ADHD/ADD.

I guess Mike Judge got it right 10+ years ago!

Some people just don't get it. I mean taking care of yourself should be a given, but most people don't (myself included for the most part.) But hey, I look at it as job security. The worse shape people are in, the better my propects as a nurse are going to be. It's just a sad fact of life.

In relation to that check these stories out:

Type II diabetics refusing to take insulin, even the newer inhaled variety.
Noncompliance of Type II diabetics getting worse. Scary statistics in this one.

After taking a full day of computer training for my internship, this one caught my eye. Like it or not, electronic documentation is the charting of the future. And the message from consultants, doctors and it seems like everyone elese is: don't worry about the standards, just do it!

See you next week!

Yes, it's been a long hiatus, but it was good. I'm fresh and ready to go again. Anyways, on to the headlines...

So you thought Katie Couric and Rudy Gulianai endorsing testing for cancer was a good thing? Apparently not according to an article, posted today on both Medpage Today and Wired News. In fact, getting testing may be detrimental in the psychological and emotional sesnse and may even detract from more serious concerns a patient may have.

And in the just when you thought it was safe to go back to the hospital department, a new study shows that safety in US hospitals, while increasing is still abbysmal. And it's worse if you're poor...go figure.

Until later...

Blockbuster is getting sued for its No More Late Fees campaign. The NJ Attorney General says the ad campaign fools consumers into thinking there are no repercussions for returning the movie late. Which there is, laid out in fine print. But they're claiming the end of late fees which really doesn't jibe with the real deal.

Would really like him to get a load of crap that our local Blockbuster is pulling. While nationally the No More Late Fees program is being implemented, our local franchisee has "decided not to take part in this program." What?! Oh so you can choose whether too or not? The only reason why they won't is because they can make a ton of money off of late fees here in town. It does them no good to implement the program due to the loss of great revenue they get from late fees. So they didn't. Another wonderful thing about living in this damn town.

Stay cool...

Unless you're a very creative thief who masquerades as a legit company. In this story, ChoicePoint reveals that thousands of records have been accessed by identity thieves posing as the real deal. Wait a sec now...a company who collects our personal information, supposedly keeps it secure then sells it to thieves. And we have no recourse, and unless you live inCalifornia, no way of knowing about it.

So if this can happen at a private company, whatt happens when the government (anybody remember "Total Information Awareness"?) gets involved? It goes to show that we have no privacy and no right, in the minds of corporate America to that right. Our information, things that directly affect our lives, can be bought and sold like a prize pig at auction. In the age of information where every decision is based upon you credit rating, including employment, seeing such breaches of trust and security as this is not only outrageous, but devastating. The real question is if this is possible, how can the validity of any of the information presented be verified? Who is it really that you say you are?

As a wise man once said, the only defense against identity theft is having an identity that no one wants...

It seems that our lives outside of work are no longer safe. Weyco Inc. just recently fired 4 employees over their refusal to quit smoking. Not because of bad job performance, mouthing off to the CEO, or smoking while on the job, but smoking at all. Their CFO said something to the effect of "they can smoke, but not smoke and work here." To me, this brings up huge warning signs. The question of where the employee's privacy ends/begins and how far into that realm the employer can reach is paramount. What's next? Banning beer and alcohol? Maybe fried chicken and low-rise pants.

What realy irks me is the reasoning behind it all. While the company maintains that they want "healthy" workers, the things that are hidden from view are the real reason. First, smokers cost more. In terms of insurance premiums and average costs of care they are more than non-smokers. Second, along those lines, they can be less productive due to lost time due to illness. So what it really boils down to is money. Cold hard cash and the bottom line. The company really didn't care about the workers, they cared that they could reduce the expenditures for health care premiums and costs.

Our sciety has become so obsessed with social engineering that we've lost sight of essential rights. It is our right as individuals to do stupid things, right or wrong. Too many places are enacting legislation that does the social engineering for us, call it social engineering by proxy. People, given the opportunity are smart enough to do the right thing, although they usually don't because it is never the easiest thing to do. But what you and I do when we are not at work shouldn't matter. If I come to work and do the best job I can, but eat red meat, smoke heavily and engage in unsafe sex outside of work, that's my deal and I'm going to have to deal with the consequences of my actions. It is not my employer's right to tell me that I can't do those things. Especially if it is only to help their bottom-line. If I'm negligent or incompetent at my job beacuse of it, then yes, go for it, if not, leave me alone. Losing my job because of those things shouldn't have to be a major worry on my mind.

Tell me what you think...

I realize that it has been quite a long while now since my last post. School is more than just insane, work about the same and free time is relatively non-exisitent. Now I should be doing homework, but I can't. There is no way I can do that right now.
The perfect analogy I have heard to describe it all was this: in a 4 year program it's (the information) like drinking from a garden hose. In a 2 year program it's like a firehose. The sheer amount of information that is coming in does no justice to it all beacuse you barely have time to digest it. It becomes a random jumble of facts, figures, patholigies and medications. But when the light bulb goes off, there is a moment of clarity where it all makes sense, if only for a moment.

That moment came to me twice this weekend. The current study topic is cardiac & vascualr disorders. So between the actual disorders and the study of the circulatory system we're having in Anatomy, my head was swimming in information about that system. Friday night I'm checking out my assignment for Saturday clinicals and things are starting to click. I'm looking at the meds going, "ok, that's a diuretic and that's a beta-blocker, where's the ACE inhibitor" and thinking what these drugs were doing to the body. And the light bulb was burning bright. The pieces fell into place as I understood the diagnosis, the treatment and what was going on with the patient. For a moment, the clarity of vision and thought overwhelmed the aching burning of exhaustion.

Of course, when I arrived the next morning, my paitent had changed and all that work was for nothing. The clarity was a farce, nothing more than a glimpse of what could happen. But something far greater happened as a result of that. Too often you have so little time with your patients that you almost become robotic and job focused. You forget that instead of just treating the disease you are treating the person, the whole person, not just a collection of symptoms. That is more important that anything else. If we can't treat our patients, mind, body and soul, we're doing little more than assembly line nursing. It's not always easy or possible, but it should be a goal. My instructor said that we should always try to be present with our patients. To give that little bit of ourselves and our time to let the patient know that we are present with them, regardless. I came to the realization that I hadn't been doing that as well as I should have. Call it one hand on the door sydrome, or whatever, I realized there that I had not been doing that, and my patients could tell. So now it becomes my burden, no, my responsibilty to my patients to be present with them, even if it's just a little.

p.s. this was written over several days and may not be as coherent as I had orignally hoped, but at least something is out there.

The trip to Veags was pretty good. I mean hanging out in Sin City with one's parents is not exactly the most exciting thing, but hey, it got us a free place to stay. As alwasys, there is never enough time to do everything you want to do. There is too much to do there, so much time to waste and so many tacky white trash things that it really blows the mind.

But the trip is done, the hangover is here with the grim reality of a new semester. Say good-bye to free time, good-bye to sleep, and sanity. Once again there is Anatomy which will dominate my waking moments until May with dreams origins and insertions and more. And Nursing is a whole other ball game. I'm not sure if overwhelming is word enough right now. But hey, there's only 3 semesters left...

I've been looking for scholarships to put myself through nursing school and to put it bluntly, the search is a waste of time and is relatively futile. Unless I was disadvantaged, of a different color, or willing to give 2 years fo my life to California there wasn't jack out there for me. I am a firm believer in equal opportunity and all of that but this is a bit disheartening. I work my tail off to live and go to school and because of that I can't get any help. I'm not asking for much, just help to get through school.

Just blowing off steam...

2 days 'til Vegas though!

So it's countdown time...1 week until we hit Vegas. It's going to be strange this time, we're staying with the folks in a time share off the Strip. So we'll actually travel to different parts of Veags instead of staying focused on the Strip. Sure, we'll go to people watch and maybe get some eats, but I'm not dropping a dime into the casinos on there. They took enough last time. But hey, it will be fun and a good trip. The real bummer is that we have no camera as it was stolen on our last trip (to Seattle). I had a strange thought and thought it might be cool to do the trip Ocean's 11/Rat Pack style, but then I realized that I was too normal and large to pull that off. We've got the list and checking it now to see what and where we're going to do....