tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873792685355484042024-03-19T02:08:15.126-07:00Corn and CatsVannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-86021751980999899722012-01-29T15:41:00.000-08:002012-01-29T15:41:12.478-08:00Dirty HippiesSo since my friends and I are more liberal minded then about 90% of people here in Ames AND vegetarian, most people in our class have decided we are HARDCORE hippies, along with other things like secret agents for PETA. I would gladly claim some of the labels, not so much about others. So for our winterfest-which is like a winter formal party for the vet school- it happens to have a lipsync contest and we really decided to go all out. Last year we did the Anchorman version of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OpFW6xT0s2M&list=UUxgtaHomUOve-mZkISZVndg&index=11&feature=plcp">Afternoon Delight</a> complete with facial hair and didnt win so we wanted to kick up the ridiculous scale.<br />
<br />
So we <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RhNTAxiyTQ&list=UUxgtaHomUOve-mZkISZVndg&index=2&feature=plcp">ribbon danced</a> (barefoot for me of course) to The Sound of Silence by Simon and Garfunkel. <br />
<br />
I mean who would pass up the chance to do that for THREE minutes (which feels like forever) in front of their professional collegues and some professors? <br />
<br />
Not I.<br />
<br />
We didn't win but it was so greatly awkward and fun.Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-90419570783031725682012-01-24T21:15:00.000-08:002012-01-24T21:15:45.684-08:00I remember...I'm a few weeks back into my 2nd half of my 2nd year and I'm finally remembering why I like being in this spot. It got lost last semester but after some good lectures of other vets-outside of academia-that still like their jobs (one got to chop off basically 1/2 a dogs skull and it LIVED), wrestling w/ some sheep to see the babies growing inside them, and getting a decent (if temporary) grip on schoolwork, I'm back to being alright with waking up in the morning and facing down a day in the Vetmed building that defines my life right now. It also helps I had an awesome vacation away seeing all my favorite people in Tucson and getting to experience 4 awesome days in Portland through my friends' eyes. Ames wasn't such a dreaded sight on the flight in as the flight out. Plus, my Dad is walking with only a crutch now, Bart is healthy, and I have the awesome prospect in little over a months time of seeing one of my best friends marry her love surrounded by more best friends. <br />
<br />
Our schedule actually allows for some free afternoons, a sleep-in 3 times a week (until 8am babay!) and the electives are much more interesting. Its nice to feel like a human being, not a drone, and to be excited about learning. Aaaand the further I go from here on out, the more interesting electives and less snoozefests I can take! And I get to touch more animals that are intact and ALIVE. :) In the meantime, during the snoozefests, I watch a new <a href="http://www.bear.org/livecams/jewel-den-cam.php">momma bear Jewel</a> and her cubs (when you can sneak a pic) in their den-I had no idea bears were so active during hibernation! <br />
<br />
I've been having some real issues with trying to decide what to do with my LAST summer (GASP!). I applied for a cow externship for 4 weeks, had a very realistic dream that I got it (bummer to wake up to) but I don't actually find out for another few weeks. Other options include helping with a research project here in Ames which has lots of pros ($$- lots of it, mentor in school, research paper to brag about, blah blah) for my future professional career but my kid and selfish selves are having some trouble adjusting to the idea of ONE week of vacation. THE WHOLE SUMMER. Otherwise its begging for a job somewhere (literally anywhere) or bumming around and volunteering where ever I can. My lazy self is starting to think the last one is looking more scrumptious as time goes on since it requires little work at the moment. Hopefully I will find a way to make this last throwback to childhood a memorable one and join the real world like every other grown up without regrets :) <br />
<br />
Afternoons free of labs hopefully means more time for blogging :) here's to hoping for some free/ME time this semester. And ideas for what to do with my last summer are appreciated and welcomed! <3 <br />
<br />Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-31517904897621111482011-11-26T12:11:00.001-08:002011-11-26T12:50:46.765-08:00Oh crap/joy its almost December...I can't believe I haven't written anything this semester. Well I can because I've been extremely busy and lazy all at the same time. Meaning...there are some days were all I do is lay in my bed and watch stupid things on my computer and other days where I pull almost all-nighters (woo 2 hours of sleep) to study for a test that I should've been preparing for long ago. So school stuff hasn't changed, I still procrastinate and hate being in class all day in the room without windows but everyonce in a while I do a cool activity with clubs or listen to an interesting speaker that makes me think it will probably be worth all the crap in the end. This was supposed to be the hardest semester and if my grades are any reflection I suppose that is true, but last spring semester was pretty soul-crushing as well. And finals are coming up which really makes me want to crawl under my covers and never come out. But that also means it is almost over-dancing, smiles and laughter on the horizon. <br />
<br />
These past few weeks have been rough. Bart got really sick and it has been a while since any of my animals had real problems, I forgot how distracting, disturbing and frustrating it can be. Which is a blessing I suppose that I don't have to deal with it all the time. And then I got really sick, both of which prevented me from visiting a bestie in Denver for Thanksgiving which I had been looking forward to for a reeeaaaally long time. And then yesterday my Dad was bucked off his horse while riding bareback (so his pride isn't hurt- it is near impossible to stay on a horse when they start bucking and you've got nothing to hold on to) and broke his pelvis in 2 spots and had some abdominal bleeding. Which was pretty damn terrifying, my parents are approaching 60, things dont heal as well when you get that old and bad things happen in surgery, anesthesia, etc. Learning medical things has been nice since I now understand more (and can sound smarter) but also a lot scarier since I know more of the risks and how often bad things can happen. On this thankful weekend I am so so grateful that he made it out of surgery ok and is on his way to healing. I am just really sad and sorry I couldn't be there for him, my mom and brother yesterday and for the next few weeks as they try to adjust to this new challenge. It's interesting to me how normally I would rather go visit friends and do lots of other things than be home with them-I'm cutting out of Tucson on winter break a week early to do exactly that-but now, after this stuff, all I want is to be home with them. <br />
<br />
Also, Bart stopped pooing again which was one of the inciting causes of his problems before. awesome. My world now revolves around how much he shits. <br />
<br />
My life isn't a total shit show, there are plenty of happy/fun things happening around me, right now I just feel like there is a grey cloud in between them and me that is preventing me from enjoying and appreciating them. Hope it lifts soon. Sorry this is depressing after so long an absence. Here is a funny blog post about depression that makes me smile even in my worst mood (though I'm sure most of you have read it before): <a href="http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/2011/10/adventures-in-depression.html">here </a><br />
<br />
See you on the other side of finals, I'm sure life will be looking up from that perspective. <br />
<br />Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-74220052574214860292011-08-21T12:20:00.000-07:002011-09-03T15:20:59.767-07:00Summa esta terminandoOK this is going to be quick recap of summer, I was a super slacker as far as this blog goes, which is kinda funny since I had A LOT of free time but oh well! I was a lazy bum for the most part but also seriously enjoyed it, reading a ton of FUN books, watching some good and crappy movies and TV, hanging out with my family and having lots of good friend time. Highlights have been Jody's 80's b-day party with the awesome costumes, girl's weekend San Diego for 4th of July with lots of beach, little bit of partying and continuous fun for 5 days, and the last installment of Harry Potter! I'm going to miss waiting for hours in line and watching the crazy dressed up people go over ridiculous HP trivia. I got to spend a lot of time up in phoenix hanging out and staying with friends. I was a bit productive working with a dairy vet a few times and got to see a bunch of the great little towns surrounding phnx. I realized that I'm not cut out for <span style="font-style: italic;">just</span> production medicine but it does have potential for me if it can be combined with more individual animal care and treating sick animals as opposed to working on prevention. Also realized how much I have forgotten already from my first year (kind of terrifying) and if I had been smart I might have reviewed some notes but oh well, hopefully it'll come back to me quick when I need it!
<br />Ecuador and the Galapagos were amazing, as shown in my pictures on FB! Some highlights as far as vet stuff goes: performing surgery all by myself from first incision to last suture! All in all I removed 5 balls, and 2 and 1/2 uterus/ovary pairs over 2 days of spay/neuter clinics! It was terrifying and thrilling and exhausting and I LOVED IT! The conditions we did them in were abysmal (lights and electricity were sometimes available) and it was a definite learning on your feet kind of thing, so I am excited to go through surgery class and learn the technical/correct/sterile way of doing things. We got to inject caimens, turtles, tortoises, and many varieties of snakes with anti-parasitic and vitamins; pull an infected canine tooth out of a puma (really hard when you only have a few tools!) and blow dart some wild pigs to move to another enclosure! I have terrible aim w/ a blow dart (like pretty much everything else) so I am hoping I get more opportunities to work on that important skill :)
<br />
<br />For fun stuff: waterfall repelling in Banos was GREAT, exciting, a little chilly and scary but totally worth it(plus super cute guides); sightseeing in Quito and on our drives across the country was great, gorgeous forests w/ clouds and lots of agriculture and green-ess, and the Galapagos was just FANTASTIC.
<br />The animals there just dont even care about people since most evolved w/o any predators so you can get REALLY close. The big galapagos tortoises are just so awesome to see and snorkeling was a dream come true-I got to swim next to a sea turtle! I was smiling so hard my goggles and mouthpiece kept filling with water :) Sea lions were also pretty awesome to swim with, one was playing catch with us and a random flip flop int he water! And all the marine iguanas were so cool to see on the islands just chilling on top of each other, never seen anything like it.
<br />
<br />After the rest of the group left two friends and I went to the Coast and hung out on the beach for a few days, read and drank beers in hammocks, did a surfing lesson (soooo hard!) and got stared at constantly by the locals, the men liked to lift their shirts halfway up so their big beer bellies would hang out. Never figured out why that was a good thing to do? We got to use a lot more spanish here so that was interesting, luckily most of the local boys who tried talking to us loved to hear the sound of their own voices and did an awesome kind of hair flip w/ their long curly beach locks so we didn't have to add much to the conversation :)
<br />
<br />After that we went back to Quito then one friend and I went to the Quilotoa loop and stayed in this awesome ecolodge in the mountains and did some horseback riding, hiking and more relaxing in hammocks. I got to do everything I wanted to in Ecuador and the Galapagos, and I feel so satisfied and happy with how the trip went. It was almost scary how well everything turned out!
<br />
<br />Got back home, ran around crazily for about a week then headed back to dear old Iowa. Beginning of school stuff I will save for another time. Hope all your summers were as enjoyable!
<br />
<br />
<br />Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-65406984370087120992011-05-08T10:37:00.000-07:002011-05-08T11:13:43.439-07:00Summer... thank you universe for letting me get here.I finished my first year of vet school! Not that I was ever<span style="font-style: italic;"> seriously </span>doubting that I wouldn't survive, but it got pretty rough there for a while. I just think that I have never ever been that chronically stressed and exhausted. And next semester is going to be <span style="font-style: italic;">worse. </span>But I am really hoping I can study some over the summer (UGH) and maybe develop some better study habits instead of still trying to cram before exams. That really doesn't work anymore for tests the next day and for the fact that we are expected to retain this stuff for the next few years, and hopefully our lives....<br /><br />All the grades aren't in yet but I am pretty confident that I passed them. And I am just going to have to be happy with that from now on because it is not physically, mentally, and emotionally possible for me to get the kick-ass grades that I have in the past. And that is ok. And for people worrying about their vets and maybe not getting great grades...we still know a shit ton even with barely passable grades, so don't worry ;)<br /><br />I get to hang out in Ames for the next week until my brother flies here to help me drive home with the cats. At first I thought it was going to be great to just relax and do nothing, and while it has been nice for the past few days...I am totally not used to this. And it makes me nervous to have absolutely NOTHING to do. I think I'm going to go to the library to get some books to read outside in the <span style="font-weight: bold;">fantastic </span>weather before heading back to summer in the desert. Then maybe I won't feel like such a waste of space<br /><br />Ok, well I don't have <span style="font-style: italic;">nothing</span> to do...I could start looking for a job. But I'm pretty sure job hunting is one of the worst, most depressing things I have ever had to do and I am SERIOUSLY dreading it with every fiber of my being. So I might put that off a little longer. I deserve a break from torturing myself for awhile right? I earned a few days of non-stressful activities?? I think so. And the nice thing about being a financially-independent (well...dependent on loans) single girl, I have no one to answer to about job and money issues. And my own face in the mirror hasn't given me any judgey eyes yet so I think I'm good. <br /><br />I am hoping this time off can get me back to my optimistic, generally-happy attitude. I have been such a grump for the past few weeks...well probably more like months. School took a real toll on my...I don't know, outlook and such. I was just complaining all the time. And bitching about this thing or that thing and not trying to look for the good things in situations. And that bummed me out even more. So I'm hoping I can get my mind and soul back on board the happy train, I missed the ride. And I'm gonna need it for next semester...the dreaded "hardest semester of vet school."<br /><br />Also I decided I want to run a marathon in the next year or two... I would normally just say within the next year but I know how busy and stressed I'm going to be from Aug-Dec and dont want to set a goal I know I can't reach. So I'm hoping to do a half-marathon during winter break and train a bunch over this summer. Running has become a great outlet for me recently, I've always enjoyed it but I havent been doing it this regularly since I was probably in soccer in high school. I can finally run a few miles without stopping and wanting to die! There's actually a pretty big running culture within the vet students but I think a lot of them go waaay faster than me so I think I'll stick with the solo runs for now.<br /><br />Back home in a week! SO excited to see my family, friends, mountains, gorgeous sunsets, and to feel some of that sunshine. :DVannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-35113939184897651292011-04-19T06:55:00.000-07:002011-04-19T07:57:48.445-07:00Who am I???Alright so this semester has been a crazy one in regards to school. I've been in a definite funk lately from the chronic stress of weekly tests, projects, quizzes, readings and such. Also, I was also just getting really sick of most people here not accepting me with regards to the vegetarian thing. I felt like I was always having to explain myself and had to be careful what I could say because so many large animal people get all defensive the minute I say I'm not a fan of meat. I never realized that my choices about what I eat could be so offensive and such a big deal to someone else. Its totally ridiculous. So basically I just really haven't felt like myself and been cranky. The last two weekends I had some great times and a mental break and with summer rapidly approaching and the promise of some actual SUNSHINE AND WARM WEATHER is making me feel a little more cheerful. Plus things are getting green which helps, although the hail right now isn't helping anything. Ok so the last two weekends....<br /><br />Two weekends ago was TESTICLE FESTIVAL. For those of you remember my stories of the hayrack ride in the fall, this was pretty similar. We got a ride to an abandoned farm with about 20 silos, empty barns and lots of free space to run around. Vet students of all years split into teams (most named something pretty nerdy/sexual or both) and played Ag Olympics. Which for those of you who had no idea what this entailed like I did here's a synopsis: run to a picnic table, chug a pitcher of beer, wheelbarrow a partner back and forth, carry a hay barrel back and forth, hammer 2 nails, run with and egg in a spoon, and throw on coveralls, boots and a rectal sleeve :) Here are some pics:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyovLrRq9i-QEVcYAb7KoHrhL6AHD5fcybqe6MpgHbqtzmdaMJhCOLbj8Bd0GMZJudPHcCtCPnTxdhVsN7RlIPN-lPCRBZyhbgXgJelCpDiwCDMn77vffC5ZJgdQvv6XTjEUefE48eP5KP/s1600/test+fest1.png"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 307px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyovLrRq9i-QEVcYAb7KoHrhL6AHD5fcybqe6MpgHbqtzmdaMJhCOLbj8Bd0GMZJudPHcCtCPnTxdhVsN7RlIPN-lPCRBZyhbgXgJelCpDiwCDMn77vffC5ZJgdQvv6XTjEUefE48eP5KP/s320/test+fest1.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597298821910638578" border="0" /></a><br />Us racing to the beer :)<br />All the highlighter yellow shirts are the ones we got that say testicle festival and on the back have a picture of a bull with large ballsack saying "got balls?" hehe<br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4zLz54xNA0ERg56cZeo7AfkljAIFsHGeqt46-1lnlZJbG5wRpWKDZ272vEPQEELMxLLqgvQ8mix72xBWwuzP-atogxWz1CZ4ATgQ-PF_3ixpFW-dDF8bf4ub4aynUMjCP5IX_r2MaRtqK/s1600/test+fest2.png"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 186px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4zLz54xNA0ERg56cZeo7AfkljAIFsHGeqt46-1lnlZJbG5wRpWKDZ272vEPQEELMxLLqgvQ8mix72xBWwuzP-atogxWz1CZ4ATgQ-PF_3ixpFW-dDF8bf4ub4aynUMjCP5IX_r2MaRtqK/s320/test+fest2.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597299627850155842" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> Wheelbarrowing obviously<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw2JEI2AAQIpNcaiS2O-e4oXYwX8drYaiEMDweXO07_Ya9Lvr-FRXb8PfH0eXf91DDUmpKRKt24wCMIK-MyE6i-CclVcmFHBgfLERR-D939bL9Zs2z8rF_EmqaoY0Vmw8xCnnJAiX9RD0Z/s1600/test+fest+3.png"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 239px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw2JEI2AAQIpNcaiS2O-e4oXYwX8drYaiEMDweXO07_Ya9Lvr-FRXb8PfH0eXf91DDUmpKRKt24wCMIK-MyE6i-CclVcmFHBgfLERR-D939bL9Zs2z8rF_EmqaoY0Vmw8xCnnJAiX9RD0Z/s320/test+fest+3.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597301040169651586" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />the coveralls, boots and yes, rectal sleeve. For those that don't know, people wear the sleeves for palpating cows and horses (yes up the butt)<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />People who won the different rounds of this fun stuff (not my group) got to lube up their hands w/ gloves on and do an egg toss and then a tug-of-war. The rest of us just enjoyed the kegs of beer and the deep fried bull's balls that the boys cooked up. Yes, real life balls. I didn't try any despite everyone trying to shove them in my mouth (thats what she said?) but I did bring a veggie burger and surprisingly the boys grilling did not give me a ton of crap about it. :) It was a great night relaxing and running around silos and we all REALLY needed it.<br /><br />This past weekend was more fun...TRAILER CRAWL. I live in the trailer park next to vet school along with a LOT of other vet students and apparently there is a tradition of doing this every year during VEISHA. VEISHA is a university wide party week and each letter stands for some college-we are the V and I have no idea what the rest of the letters are. The whole week they have different activities, mostly on main campus and geared towards the undergrads and I didn't really participate in any. I wanted to go to a concert Friday night (Big Boi from Outkast) but it was SUPER COLD AND RAINY so I just hung out with friends instead on Main ST. Saturday I went to a horse riding camp and helped give vaccinations, do physical exams and float teeth-which involves filing down points that grow on horses teeth and pull loose teeth. Just in case you guys thought all I did was drink-I do some educational things every once in awhile :) ANYWAYS...TRAILER CRAWL. A huge group of vet students dressed up like total white trash and migrated to 6 different stops in the trailer park including 5 trailers and our tornado shelter as the last stop. I had so much fun dressing up....<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMGAI5HFtNjX3jc8NQL7FYzH6nw7lGCoRIFq7nXYORmDYnknefD2Zic_tarWHg-aFqAXyq6XBaZrvEaNTINI6tHKdL3nt5m1RgONhBJiTRIP-Pem-Y2m0k3OtKZ9SZIcXOvcAgpyu04UWG/s1600/P4161409.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMGAI5HFtNjX3jc8NQL7FYzH6nw7lGCoRIFq7nXYORmDYnknefD2Zic_tarWHg-aFqAXyq6XBaZrvEaNTINI6tHKdL3nt5m1RgONhBJiTRIP-Pem-Y2m0k3OtKZ9SZIcXOvcAgpyu04UWG/s320/P4161409.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597306023662784162" border="0" /></a>(sorry I dont know how to flip it but you get the idea)<br /><br />The shirt says HUNTING PRINCESS and I found it for $5 in the little girls section in Walmart. I know....CLASSY RIGHT??<br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinbi_obQljW0mbMFKdArS3S2TCYy9v3mfT2prFlOsPezyzBRYUKeZgWIEH2OY-2hDQrzcSsBNp68k9rxnveQuk26p7aULFvlqHDvw83aSwTb2n2-ENEH9PGsDstgc69f6DA6_YadwIQF6x/s1600/P4161410.JPG"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinbi_obQljW0mbMFKdArS3S2TCYy9v3mfT2prFlOsPezyzBRYUKeZgWIEH2OY-2hDQrzcSsBNp68k9rxnveQuk26p7aULFvlqHDvw83aSwTb2n2-ENEH9PGsDstgc69f6DA6_YadwIQF6x/s320/P4161410.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597306760097082098" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />The tatoo says slut if you cant read it...the sad thing is at least 10 people came up to me and asked it if was real. Which made me a little worried about the vibe I give off. Some dude came up licked his finger and tried to rub it off to see if it was real. :/<br /><br /><br />More pics on FB. It was a great time, at each stop they had baby pools filled with drinks to fill up our special mugs that said "Home is where I park it" :) Great times, so many funny things happened that night but the cherry on top of it was coming back to my trailer and walking in on my roommates guy friend who had been staying on our couch this weekend hooking up with his gay lover. Oy Vey. I was so pissed about them hooking up on my couch. And I got so flustered about it happening I left my keys inside and locked myself out. So I banged on my own door and started shouting "Stop having gay sex on my couch and let me in my trailer!"<br /><br />.....<br /><br /><br />How did my life become this???? hahahaha<br /><br />No, seriously though. I love it. In Iowa we can laugh at ourselves and that is what is getting me through the tough days. SO excited for summer and going back home. I can't wait.Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-29438470813201747502011-03-17T11:42:00.000-07:002011-03-17T12:58:52.601-07:00Catch upAlright, its been a while since I've posted but school has been absolute madness. And now I'm finally on spring break and ALL I want to do is sleep. I will just take <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">un</span>-planned naps <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">every time</span> I sit down, its nuts. It doesn't help that I've been eating a lot of junk food...candy bars...so I'm blaming it on the sugar crashes and the fact that I don't really have anything to do otherwise. (Even though I do have a page long to do list-which I am ignoring successfully) <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Whatevs</span>, I'm trying not to feel guilty about it, apparently my body needs a lot of sleep and it sure as hell wasn't getting it the last 2 months. So I can now finally sit down and bang out a post, if my hypothalamus will let me stay awake long enough (sorry, just had a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">neuro</span> test right before spring break so I've still got the brain on my brain, ugh bad joke- sorry again). So there were a few things I wanted to write about but I <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">wasn't</span> sure how to tie them together so is just gonna be a willy <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">nilly</span> random one.<br /><br />First off, I got to witness my first birthing experience a few weeks, maybe even over a month ago, not sure the weeks have started to blend like a fast carousel ride. I actually stuck my hands and arms up a cow's vagina and got to help push out the baby; I would've helped pull too but the Dr and 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">th</span> yr resident were both he-men and were straining with it; hopefully I wont be expected to turn into hulk to help pull a calf if/when I get into this stuff on my own. They put chains (smaller links but yes actual chains) around the 2 front feet and attach those to hand holds and just grit down and pull. It was nuts. I thought they were joking at first when the Dr. said go get the chains. Apparently it doesn't cause much damage to the calf and they recover pretty fast. Not a way I would chose to come into this world but hey, gotta get them out of there somehow I guess. The whole thing was awesome but pretty brutal; its not an easy process for momma or baby. Didn't make me in any kind of hurry to be pushing anything out of me in a while. They do perform c-sections-out of the side of the cow when the natural path isn't working well, I am excited to see one of those. <br /><br />SO after that, I was on a pretty decent high and went to check in with the horse ICU, where we learned 2 newly born (2 hour old) foals-yes plural, twins!!! were coming in. In all my years in the horse world (like 16?) I have never heard of twins being born and everyone surviving; its pretty much a miracle. Horses aren't made to carry twins, not enough room and birthing is difficult, not to mention the twins usually have development disabilities from not getting enough nutrients each, so if a vet discovers twins they usually try to abort one for the safety of mom and the other baby. Apparently their vet wasn't so great at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">palpations</span> or ultrasound because no one had any idea until 3 front legs were trying to come out at the same time. The stable owner who was trying to help mom had no clue what was going on so he just picked a leg and shoved it back and shooting out came 2 foals. They were <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">hypothermic</span> and super weak but they were alive and fighters. I had never seen such a baby horse, their hooves were still soft for gods sake. We got to try to warm them up, bottle feed and give fluids. They weren't strong enough to stand and nurse so we had to put a tube to their bellies in and left a jugular <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">cath</span> in to give fluids if they got dehydrated. These were thoroughbred horses, so they were even more legs than normal foals. Unfortunately, I <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">couldn't</span> take pictures for the clients privacy sake but I did manage some kisses when no one was looking and I will always remember cuddling with them to "keep them warm" when really it was fulfilling my dream from when I was 5 years old to cuddle with a newborn horse. Turns out the owner was a total jackass and he was running a breeding operation for race horses and since these girls were twins, they were much smaller than normal and would continue to stay small so they weren't going to be good racers. He took the mom away 2 days after and was ready to euthanize these miracle babies but the bleeding hearts of the vets, students and everyone else who saw these girls fight for their lives got involved and that day a 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">th</span> yr student stepped up and took them home. One of the vets kept asking me to do it, he could tell I had fallen in love, and I was just picturing our little trailer with Aggie the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">pit bull</span>, Bart and Marley the fat cats, Norman the bird and 2 foals running around. It would've been quite an experience. Reality won out and I'm sure they are in a good place now. :) I was so pleased to see a happy ending. And it made me realize, no matter what kind of vet I become, I will never get away from the assholes who only care about money. They own every species of animal and are in every town in America. Just something I am going to have to get used to dealing with.<br /><br />Sorry for the novel, it was just one of the coolest nights of my life and I want to remember it forever. It was one of those moments when you realize that it doesn't matter how hard the rest of the work is, you absolutely love what you are doing and would NOT trade it for anything else. A feeling I would like to hold on to when I'm up at 3 am studying for an exam or cleaning up poop after a long day of taking orders from other people. I know I am in the right place and there are few better feelings than that. <br /><br />Also, something that deserves mentioning, no doubt, is my friend Ashley and her recent brain aneurysm. I was kind of waiting to post anything to sort out my feelings and see how she was doing and after a short time in the hospital and a quick brain surgery; she is in rehab and working her right side limbs like no other. I can't even begin to explain how scared I was when I first heard, and now it is hard to explain how amazed I am by her strength and progress. Its not everyday that you get to see and hear about absolute astonishing things and I get to write about 2 in one blog post! I love all my friends and of course, respect and look up to them; but she is truly an inspiration of strength, resiliency, positive energy, and persistence. I have no doubt in my mind she will be able to get back to where she was snowboarding, soft-balling and being all around amazing with whatever she decides to do. Seriously, sometimes the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">english</span> language just fails us with words, and expressing my pride and happiness in her recovery is one of these times. Love you with all of my heart <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Ashee</span>, can't wait to hug you in person and rub that bald beautiful head of yours :)<br /><br />Also, I just turned 24 not so long ago. I realize it's not that old so I'll save the-my life is passing me by panic attack- for myself but its not so young either. I was able to go to Phoenix the weekend before my b-day for a swine conference and get money for traveling and interviewing a Dr. there so it was basically a free trip home and happened to have pretty sweet timing too. Also, pretty much the only reason I joined the club was for this trip and I think it was worth it :) I was a good student and went to a 11 hours of lectures and took notes so I feel like I wasn't totally cheating the system, but the more I heard about swine vets and their jobs, the less it appealed to me. I will probably continue to stay in the club though, there is a lot of money in swine and they are throwing it at students to get us interested, plus they pick cool places for the convention...Denver next year and I think Cali after that. Anyways, I got to stay with 2 of my <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">besties</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">Bina</span> and Jo, and see <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">Chels</span> all the time since she conveniently lives about 1/2 a block down the road. They were nice enough to cart me back and forth to the convention and hang out with me at night and threw a nice little surprise party with my <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">fav</span> ice cream, icing turtle, birthday banner, wine, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">bananagrams</span> and all around awesome times of hanging out with them! And their boy <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">halves</span> who I adore as well-but not like the creepy kind of "I adore you" Ginger was talking about. Thanks girls, it was one of the better b-day celebrations I have had, and its some tough competition-I've had some awesome parties in my 24 years. I also got to do dinner with my parents, brother and grandma who drove up from Tucson to meet me, which was sweet and nice, and had some actual good Mexican food.<br /><br />Once I got back we had two tests that week-including my least <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">fav</span>-histology- so my actual birthday wasn't the best time I've ever had since it consisted of a lot of studying but my friends up here did make it special with an awesomely decorated brownie cake (pic on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">fb</span>), cupcakes, funny cards and a harry potter balloon. I definitely felt the love that day so thanks! We did go out for some yummy Thai food after the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">histo</span> test on Thurs and they sang to me again (3rd time) :) so I definitely got to have like a birthday week. 4 yr old Savannah would be so proud-she stretched the day out to a month if she could manage it. It was awesome. <br /><br />Alright I'll wrap this novel up, I just can't believe how blessed a person can truly be. The next month and half left of school is going to be ridiculously difficult but I'm going to try to carry the love and support and good feelings I have from revisiting all these great things through with me. Still no clue what I'm going to do for summer but I'm sure I'll figure something out, if not, maybe I'll jut be a bum and soak up <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">vit</span> D to battle the frigid yellow ball they call a sun out here. :)<br /><br />Happy St. Patty's day!Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-27193869930503356972011-02-04T14:03:00.000-08:002011-02-07T17:05:08.399-08:00BOHICAThey have a saying here about finals- "bend over here it comes again" which just kinda made me uncomfortable because I'm not a big fan of people using rape or anal as a joke since it can be pretty serious stuff to people. But looking at this semester...if I were to use expressions like that...it would definitely apply.<br />Just finished my first test of the semester and have to gear up for the next one this week and the next week for that test etc...we have a test every week this semester from now on besides during spring break (yay!) and one week mid April. Which pretty much means I can never actually relax. Well thats the idea-but knowing me, I'll be able to fit in plenty of procrastination. I'm doing pretty well at that so far! I dont want to complain about school too much so I'll just say: it is ridiculous how fast you can get behind, like 1-2 days of not listing intently or studying when I get home and BAM! Suddenly I'm a week behind in 3 classes and have to study for a big ol test. Besides the weekly tests though, classes are seeming to get better and more interesting and for that I am thankful. I still absolutely love it and couldn't think of anything I'd rather be doing.<br /><br />Some highlights I've done since last time:<br /><br />SNOWBOARDING?! I honestly did NOT think Iowa had big enough hills-but it does! They are in the next town over and totally adorable and short but since I kinda(totally) suck, it was pretty much perfect. And some of my friends are new to it too so we were able to fall together and compare sweet colorful bruises. And I learned about why our bruises are the colors they are and why they change colors today in pathology-pretty cool!<br /><br />"Sincerest form of flattery party" Sharon and I came up with the idea to dress as our classmates/professors while we were in Missouri a few weeks ago and we made it happen. It was a total success with people being hilarious but not really mean about their impressions. Although it took over an hour of hardcore cleaning the next day to make the trailer livable and I had to deal with a puddle of urine on my bed/floor (from a friend who passed out in my bed I think-there was too much pee for just a cat), it was totally worth it and really fun.<br /><br />Tie-back procedure: I went to a wet-lab on Sunday at school and got to learn about actual horse-racing cases from a vet and do a tie-back procedure on a cadaver horse larynx (it is the start of the trachea) where you suture back a cartilage chunk that has been paraylzed. It was pretty awesome and made me really excited for our surgery class during the third year!<br /><br />Not so fun but definitely different-my car got stuck in snow, trying to pull back into my parking space! They do clear the roads/parking areas of snow but since I'm usually parked in the same space all the time, the snow just builds up around me and I definitely had to spend 10 minutes shoveling the snow around and out from underneath my little car to get it to move. Sometimes I miss my Jeep :(<br /><br />I think thats about it for recent exciting things, I should probably get back to studying.... :/Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-56304024195222631082011-01-18T15:53:00.000-08:002011-01-18T17:11:41.211-08:00New year here we go!Alright so I'm in my second week of semester #2 and it kind of feels like I never left. Which I guess is a good and bad thing. I loved being home for break, it was <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">sooooo</span> fantastic to get to see my friends and family and pets (although the cats were left behind) and I did a lot of things I had been meaning to. Which mainly involved eating at my <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">fav</span> places and hiking and being outside AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. Some drama with Danny on my last night gave me a little bit of a bitter taste as I was leaving but some space and time have washed that out and I can't wait to be back in 2 months for a swine conference (1st weekend) and spring break(3rd week). Highlights were: Secret Santa #8, mom and daughter quilting reunion, meeting Mr. Rowan <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Lamoreaux</span> in person for the 1st time, driving up to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">phnx</span> with my bro, and pretty much anytime I hung out with my friends for dinners/lunch/breakfast etc!<br /><br />I left right before the horrible tragedy happened. I am so thankful that no one I know personally was injured but the huge hole it ripped in Tucson's heart is going to take a while to heal. I am proud to be part of such a strong community which seems to be doing a pretty good job of supporting each other. Although it pains me to not be there, I know I'm not the only person grieving from afar and I am really hoping that positive changes will be made as a result of the suffering it caused. The public funeral and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Obama's</span> speech were beautiful and healing and I'm thankful that I was able to watch it and still feel a strong connection with my home. This is the second time my community has been ripped apart by a young man/men with a gun-I lived nearby Columbine when that tragedy happened, and I am really hoping this is the last time. I realize people around the world deal with this almost daily and so I am grateful that I can live mostly without fear and don't have a constant worry about guns and bombs and war, but still...it sucks.<br /><br />On another note....I did not realize my schedule this semester was going to be quite so crazy! Histology (2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">nd</span> semester), lg animal anatomy, pathology, immunology, animal welfare, neurology, case studies, production animal informatics, beef records (2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">nd</span> semester), animal behavior, and aquatic medicine.<br />Whew! The last 4 are electives I am taking and I don't want to drop any because I like them all and I want room in my schedule later to take even more awesome ones. So I'm going to be busy :) Still loving it though and wouldn't change a thing. Well I might make it about 20 degrees warmer, staying around freezing would be nice, as opposed to the single digits. But what can you do?<br /><br />I also attended an exotics symposium this past weekend in Missouri. I listened to a lot of very interesting Vets about their experiences and jobs and got to see some awesome pictures of wild animals being worked on-including removing huge chunks of dying flesh from inside a tigers rib cage. AWESOME! <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">btw</span> their skin is striped too, not just the fur. I have always been kind of interested in exotics and such but since there aren't many jobs in that area compared to mixed or large animal medicine I just kind of pushed that aside. But hearing about all those adventures made me all excited about it again. I don't know where I'll end up but I like the fact that I have a hard time narrowing down my interests as opposed to not having anything interesting to look forward to. Despite the fact that I was/am sick and my voice alternates between squeaking, whispers and a man thanks to my golf-ball sized tonsils, the conference was a really good time and I am going to try to attend it again. <br /><br />New years this year did not suck! Which is kind of a surprise since it is usually a let down. I spent it with some of my favorite people and had a really good time! I don't really like making resolutions since I usually <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">don't</span> stick with them for a whole year and my to-do lists are always nuts but I feel like I want to have some broad-sweeping goals to work towards that do not have a specific start or end time. So here goes my guilt-free I'll try to list:<br /><br />Not be afraid to go new places and try radically different things- even if it means looking like an idiot<br />Be able to get up and run for a few miles without wanting to die<br />Try one thing out of my cookbooks once a month-definitely includes desserts<br />Find a good place to volunteer in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Ames</span> outside of school<br />Slim Bart down to a reasonable weight (he is off to a good start!)<br />Don't let money stop me from doing awesome things but also don't dig myself into a large hole of dept<br />Be grateful for things/opportunities/people I have in my life and not let them slip away from laziness or procrastination or equally stupid reasons<br /><br />Love you all and I hope 2011 is going to be totally fantastic!Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-20580892439685685542010-12-17T14:08:00.000-08:002010-12-17T15:14:35.651-08:00First Semester-success!I can't believe I am done with my first semester of Vet School! It is so crazy to me that I've been living in Iowa for 4 months and am 1/8 a veterinarian! I was a bit worried going into finals since its been a long time (~2 years) since I actually had to study hardcore but even with my short attention span I made my way through it and actually kinda rocked it. Not to toot my own horn or anything but I am actually pretty proud of myself....Im ending up with almost a 4.0! I just made the cutoff for As in some classes but its still pretty freaking fantastic and I never would have thought I would be doing so well. Granted this was probably my easiest semester but its nice to start off on a good foot :) At about 3 am on the last night of studying for finals I realized how all my classes were overlapping, it was such an awesome feeling to finally have them all coming together. Most of the time I just study to do well on the test but now I am studying to learn, and with them all overlapping I feel like the stuff will actually stick with me, which is great! Hopefully it will continue this way...I just have no idea how I'm going to continue to shove the incredible amount of information in my brain for the next 4 years...<br /><br />Also, its all snowy here! It hasn't been too terrible so far, we had one night of a blizzard warning which was mostly because of the insane wind that caused the snow to fall sideways but we didn't get a lot of snow. Apparently the winter here is a lot worse in January and February so I'm gonna try not to jinx myself yet, but I've been handling it better than I thought. I was walking to school the other day and it was sunny and I said Oh its so nice today! and it was like 30-somthing degrees! Which is a big improvement on the few days of less than 10 degree highs but still. Didn't expect to ever hear that out of my mouth-guess I am adapting??<br /><br />I am sosososososososososososososososososososososososososoosososososoososososo excited to go back home to AZ. It doesn't really equal the universally huge excitement and relief I had when coming home from Europe but its pretty close. I have a feeling it is going to be kinda strange since most friends dont live there anymore, I wont have my car which is going to be frustrating and my cats are staying in Iowa. And my room is no longer my room (my Dad's office now) which is going to be REALLY strange. Speaking of strange...I was kinda forced to stay at home today waiting for the petsitter to come by to pick up keys etc (she hasn't showed up yet ugh!) and it was so weird to not have anything (important)to do. Even when I was avoiding school and being lazy over the semester, I was still worrying about it constantly. It feels like there is something missing haha...where has my stress gone? Its been my buddy for these past months. Not complaining<br /><br />Life is great. :)Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-35843124378502158622010-11-25T19:55:00.000-08:002010-11-25T19:55:00.159-08:00Highlights of my Thanksgiving week off!I did it! I ran 7 miles in the obstacle race known as<a href="http://www.fitnesssports.com/November_races/LivHistFarms/lhf_index.html#Make"> Living History Farms Race</a>!<br /><br />Ok my team "This isn't a 5k?!" walked a lot of it. It was (literally) freezing temperatures. And we had to wade through 6 creeks. And dodge deer. Unfortunately no scrambling over monstrous hay bales as I was hoping but it lived up to my expectations pretty well. People had some fantastic costumes so we are doing it next year and dressing up, but having warm costumes because seriously it took a full 1/2 hr for my hands to even begin to get feeling back in them. I can't imagine how the people who had bathing suits on (or less) felt. Crazies! There were some dudes who had camelbacks full of some kind of alcohol...they didn' t wade through the creeks-they did face-plants and back-falls into them-not on purpose. Soaking from head to toe in muddy (FREEZING!) water. We saw one of the guys at the end...he seriously looked like death.<br />My ankle held up really well considering the uneven terrain we were running through-aka dead cornfields and streams- and the only injuries I sustained were some bruised shins from scrambling up banks on my hands and knees and a nice scalp wound from a thorny bush I did a headbutt into. Scabs in your hair feel really weird. Not bad for someone as un-graceful as me.<br /><img src="file:///C:/Users/srmott/AppData/Local/Temp/moz-screenshot-4.png" alt="" /><br />Pics are on Facebook, I didn't bring my camera with me for good reason, it would've been broken within 10 minutes. My fav costumes included the hoard of zombies, 2 diff pacmen, and one guy had a shirt that said I have to poop and he had rolls of toilet paper all over him.<br /><br /><br />My friend Morgan came to visit for a few days which was totally awesome! I was a bit worried about trying to keep her entertained here in Iowa since I know most people don't think of it as a super exciting place. Highlights: bowling, Harry Potter, Des Moines: free art museum, ice skating outside (!!) where we were the oldest people by like 10 years who didnt have little children, yummy food and of course HANGING OUT WITH ME! :) One day I planned out a 10 hour roadtrip (I cut it down from 49 hours) around mid east portion of Iowa seeing all sorts of beautiful roadside attractions like the tallest double railroad bridge, a 80 ft tall rusty wheel structure built by a 90 yr old, largest frying pan, lg metal corn cob, dark angel in a cemetary which has a death curse when you kiss her (still waiting), big cow, 2/3 of a bridge, community of flags, and replica of a star trek ship. Ames itself has 3: world's largest gnome, largest pitchfork, and large metal woman's head (creepy). Pictures are once again on fb-I am too lazy to put them on here too :)<br /><br />Doesn't that make you wanna visit me?! If you do, theres still a TON of roadside jems I want to discover!! Most of them were really in the middle of NOWHERE and it got a little worrisome sometimes and Iowa really is kinda ugly in the winter before the snow and once all the corn is dead/chopped down but we still had a lot of fun. We weren't huge fans of the "freezing rain"-seriously if its gonna be cold and wet just snow already! I can't believe the Pac NW got snow before us!<br /><br /><br />This is my second year in a row spending Thanksgiving with strangers although this one and the last weren't even in the same universe as far as fun times go. I guess I can't even call them strangers...it was full of my new friends and fantastic food and a loooong awesome game of cranium. I am so thankful to be where I am with people here and around the world I can call my friends. And also a little less than a month til I am home, which I am really excited about! Also my cat's deserve a thank you for not pissing on anything recently and being good cuddlers when I'm missing home/company. I am starting to feel super guilty about leaving them for 3 wks during the break. :/<br /><br /><br /><img src="file:///C:/Users/srmott/AppData/Local/Temp/moz-screenshot-5.png" alt="" />Hope everybody had a great fun and food filled thanksgiving too! Thanks for reading and acting interested in my life and thoughts :)Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-67044074015722710372010-11-04T17:37:00.000-07:002010-11-05T09:31:12.239-07:00November?!It's been a while...October was an intense month but with the beginning of November I am looking at 4 glorious weeks without a single test!!! We've been a bit slammed and it culminated Thurs night-I was up til 4:30 am to get up at 6:30-I didn't have it in me to pull an all-niter studying for respiratory histology. Hopefully I did alright, but at this point I can't generate enough energy to care :)<br /><br />My favorite holiday, Halloween, is technically over :( but I get to dress up one last time today for a "Be Green" party put on by 2 clubs-they are renting out a floor in a dance club and want people to recycle old costumes. Unfortunately, my old costume parts did not make the cross-country trek with me and I don't know if I feel like being a zombie again (more on that in a bit). So my friends and I have decided to go as things we have learned about in class-I love being surrounded by people as nerdy as me!! I'm going as brush-border which is the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">epithelium</span> (lining) of the intestines- basically cells with little fringes, interspersed with goblet cells which excrete mucous for protection (water guns!!) I'll make sure to put up pics, but I am pretty excited about it! :)<br />Last weekend a group of friends and I went as zombies-it was awesome. I loved getting all gory...totally beat out the cute costumes in my book. and I am <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">SOOOOOOOOOOO</span> sick of all the slutty costumes...no creativity and chosen based on how much skin they show. Gross. And it goes for boys too, I <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">dont</span> need to see all your junk either. Plus its really cold here! So <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">heres</span> the best pictures of us I think...<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtsx1IkKNfKSlWYT5VtnU9dvLxetA5wYRTJ83zwLvO3-WDP5HqeFjWs37fiL5N5ahiBYsAlPp95IkBf9FACkoCPKXZMBuZ_DEWuiBmL1v5Kenf3j8m9NlVa_uBIJtrzE1LT9Pj-JDmonue/s1600/PA301185.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtsx1IkKNfKSlWYT5VtnU9dvLxetA5wYRTJ83zwLvO3-WDP5HqeFjWs37fiL5N5ahiBYsAlPp95IkBf9FACkoCPKXZMBuZ_DEWuiBmL1v5Kenf3j8m9NlVa_uBIJtrzE1LT9Pj-JDmonue/s320/PA301185.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536098143580765618" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6L43S0EeD2WaWDC48z1tzuE2QNWIl2u3FB-hSusoSDfTGFH1gxOwmxhp_rn6lfNpTsilIWUpu6fGo964611tHARFn6o6XKiBH5j1Bcl3mzy_Q7oOhseCtQ9vpBR5y1Lev5FE07ICe455D/s1600/PA301189.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6L43S0EeD2WaWDC48z1tzuE2QNWIl2u3FB-hSusoSDfTGFH1gxOwmxhp_rn6lfNpTsilIWUpu6fGo964611tHARFn6o6XKiBH5j1Bcl3mzy_Q7oOhseCtQ9vpBR5y1Lev5FE07ICe455D/s320/PA301189.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536098148856976530" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br />Yea we rocked those costumes! As we got out of the car some group of guys walked by and where like "Good LORD!" so <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">thats</span> when I knew we were good. The pirate was supposed to be a zombie too but backed out earlier...she did dance with a lot <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">more</span> boys than we did...zombie outfit/makeup isn't the best way to pick up boys... <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">ahah</span> big surprise I know. We had some drunk boy convinced it was real blood too which was awesome.<br /><br />I was pretty <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">disappointed</span> I missed <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Dia</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">de</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">los</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Muertos</span> since that is my favorite part of fall in Tucson but ...someday I will be back and do it again.<br /><br /><br />I got really excited the other day because I found some cheap pomegranates and remembered last year at about this time I got to pick them fresh of trees on my 6 mile hike to and from the town and my wildlife sanctuary on the top of the Greek Island. Life was pretty simple while I was there and sometimes I miss being there, it was a really beautiful place (the island, not the wildlife place) but I wouldn't trade my life right now for anything. Its just funny to think of my state of mind a year ago, there is no way I would've imagined I'd be living in a trailer next to the vet school I am going to in IOWA. NO WAY. Life can be so strange sometimes. :) Hope all of you had a great <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Halloween</span>/<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">dia</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">de</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">los</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">muertos</span> and have a great weekend!Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-87257773504910088322010-10-12T09:12:00.000-07:002010-10-12T11:10:52.260-07:00Midwestern adventures<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Theres</span> a tradition here at school that the Beef club puts on...the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">hayrack</span> ride. At 4 on Friday Vet students all grab some pudding, jump on a hay rack pulled by a tractor and eat the pudding on the hour and half ride to a professors house where there is more pudding and other food and a nice big bonfire. Then they get a ride home on a van by midnight.<br /><br />Before you embarrass yourself like I did....pudding = booze. apparently.<br /><br />So <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">thats</span> mostly what I did. And it was awesome! We had 3 tractors pulling us but the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">hourish</span> ride turned into 3 when our tire blew out on the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">hayrack</span>. It was cool though because we were in the middle of nowhere(seriously I still have no idea where we went or how we got there) surrounded by corn fields, which people used as bathrooms like its the most normal thing to do, plenty of dried corn kernels still left on the stalks to use as ammo for pelting each other and good company. And a gorgeous sunset. Once we got to the professor's farm-also NO idea where it is or who the professor is-there was indeed lots of "pudding" and a decent sized bonfire. I don't really know how it happened but the hours went by fast-mostly dancing and belting it out to the awesome <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">playlist</span>. I only had to walk away twice-once for a country song and the other for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Miley</span> Cyrus...I will NOT put my hands up or move my hips like yea...and I have a problem with 30 year old farmer boys singing along to that crap, its creepy. and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">ok</span>, maybe slightly amusing. but only slightly.<br /><br />Some 10 hours later, yes I just said 10, I found myself and a few friends waiting for the last van at 2 am. Definite time warp, but a totally awesome one :) Also I woke up the next morning with incredibly sore pointer fingers on both hands. No idea why :)<br /><br />Saturday was another gorgeously warm and sunny day so I ditched my studying for the histology test and instead spent the day walking around town and the nearby school gardens taking pictures of the changing colors of the leaves. I never understood the big deal about fall but it truly is really nice :) I would post pictures but I'm lazy and only want to post them once so check out <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">fb</span>-I'll eventually put them up there.<br /><br />Sunday I woke up at 5 am and drove over the the vet school to pick up some friends who are part of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">ZEW</span> club( <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">zoonotics</span>, exotics, and wildlife) and I drove us to the Minnesota Zoo about 3 1/2 hours away. We got to see the prettiest sunrise over the corn fields (like postcard pretty/stereotypical <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">midwest</span>) and studied a bit of histology but mostly just hung out. We also passed a big wind farm which I didn't know where out here and some girls had never seen one before. Passed some funny places like "Manly forest" and "the sexiest casino of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">midwest</span>" in what else? An old barn. I don't think they get much competition out here. We met up with the rest of our club and got a hospital tour by a vet who might have been the least enthusiastic person I have ever met. I was so close to falling asleep standing up. The one interesting thing about him was he could seriously be Emery from the future, I could NOT get over how similar they looked-super tall, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">SUUUPER</span> skinny, skinny jeans, big glasses. He was missing the mountain man/hobo beard but I'm hoping Em grows out of that by the time he hits middle age.<br /><br />We then went into the actual zoo which was a good size and pretty nice, as far as zoos go. I wasn't super depressed walking around so <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">thats</span> always a good sign. They had river and sea otters which are always my favorites. And we got a backstage tour by the keepers for the bears, tigers, and camels. I have never seen a camel as big as the bull was, he weighed a ton! Literally, a ton-2,000+ lbs. His head was like the size of a washer. Seeing the tigers close up totally rocked and the bears have a sweet set-up there. Drove back with the sun setting on our other side. Again, pics will be on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">fb</span>, I'm lazy.<br /><br />So this past weekend rocked. And I just took my 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">nd</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">histo</span> test (after our 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">nd</span> anatomy last week) and was looking through my calender-I have at least one test (usually 2) for the next month. But I refuse to be beaten down, especially with my favorite holiday coming right up, Halloween!! School can suck it, I am having way too much fun here! :DVannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-60453990785794278312010-10-12T08:30:00.000-07:002010-10-12T09:10:29.732-07:00Universe Bitch SlapSo apparently I need to stop complaining. Because the universe has delivered a few bitch slaps that my face is still smarting from.<br /><br />A few hours after my last post complaining about stalker boy, I saw him at the gym and of course, he, not being like a normal person who would rightfully just avoid the situation, decided to come talk to me. I was super rude and it worked-he hasn't talked to me since which is just fine with me but I do feel kinda bad : /<br />Apparently no one I've met so far is a fan of his and everyone calls him boyscout because of how he does his hair (like a 6 yr old going to church whose mom slicked it down and parted it on the side) and the fact that when he raises his hand his fingers are in the form of the boy scout pledge.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.pbs.org/pov/film-images/scoutshonor_480.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 299px; height: 225px;" src="http://www.pbs.org/pov/film-images/scoutshonor_480.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Reason #31 why he is creepy: my friend Sharon got his number and texted him "I like your hair and your affinity for merit badges" which we thought was hilarious until we get this back a few hours later "Thanks.....Sharon. I don't know what you mean by merit badges though."<br />We can't figure out how he knew it was her, they have never really spoke and she is from CT, and so are like 10 other people from our class so even ruling her out by elimination is a stretch. uhhh?<br /><br /><br />I was also complaining last week about the fact that my normally well-behaved cat Marley decided my open drawers were a much better place to use than the litter box, and what did I discover yesterday as I was petting Bart..........................FLEAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!<br /><br />Are you kidding me?!?!?<br /><br />I had to look up the signs on the internet because a) I have NEVER had to deal with pets having them and b) I had no clue how they would even have gotten them since their cohabitant Agnes (Kelsey's pitbull) is on preventative stuff and they have never been outside.<br />So yea, they had them, and I immediately went to the store (itching all the way) but luckily talked to my roomie before I wasted money-word to the wise-dont buy the crap in the store, go to your vet and get the preventative/killing stuff to put ON your pet and some awesome spray that kills/sterilizes the adults, larva and eggs and stays around for 200 days called Mycodex. Shampoos dont do much and the stuff they sell on the shelves isn't very strong.<br /><br />So exactly 7 loads of laundry later-I am so thankful we don't have to pay for water here-between the peeing and now the fleas I would have spent a fortune on washing and drying-pretty much all the fabric my cats have come in contact with is washed and sprayed down-including the carpet which I think is the cause of this disgusting problem. They stayed in the bathroom for the 6 hours the meds took to work and I swiffered after and felt like a terrible owner-there was a LOT of dead fleas for 2 cats to be harboring. I am hoping the problem is under control now.<br /><br />Surprisingly, I was seriously grossed out;I know normally this would be a NORMAL reaction, I know, but I dealt with fleas on a daily basis in Greece. Including being able to see and feel them crawling on my skin and clothes (which wasn't happening yesterday) and I didn't get as creeped out as yesterday. I hope I'm not reverting back to being a squeamish wimp. Does this mean I can't handle thousands of maggots in food or piles of dead bodies anymore too? Hope not, I liked being a bad ass. :)<br /><br />So long story short .....I LOVE MY LIFE! ok universe? I am VERY grateful for being able to be literally living my dream of going to vet school, having lots of great people around me, and am happy to have the company of my two cuddly cats, even if they have an infestation or pee on my stuff.Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-66041632787134953382010-09-26T15:33:00.000-07:002010-09-26T16:20:30.958-07:00Activities in AmesWe had an <a href="http://http//www.octagonarts.org/en/octagon_art_festival/">Art Fair</a>!!! It wasn't quite as fantastic as 4th Ave Street Fair but it was like a little sister, trying really hard to emulate it and almost succeeding :) I didn't get anything partly because I am broke but mostly because my brain isn't organized enough yet to be thinking about X-mas presents or other gift giving opportunities. But it does give me hope that there is enough culture in this small town to keep me happy for another 3 and half years. Speaking of culture-I found an awesome Thai place with a whole menu (ok its like a half page) of veggie stuff and had some super tasty sweet and sour tofu. Now that I have friends I can go to restaurants to try things and not feel like a loner :D<br /><br /><br />I went tailgating yesterday, even though it was freezing and rainy-see I can be a tough mid-westerner too! Well ok, by the time I dragged by butt out from under my comforter it had stopped raining and I did have 3 layers on but whatever! Apparently right before we got there some coked out guy was chasing one of my fellow students around our bus and he got tackled by law enforcement and taken away on a golf cart. Think that's classy? Just wait...<br /><br />I ended up babysitting 2 of my friends since they got toasted pretty early on and we ended up at a trailer (in my trailer park) surrounded by big-ass farmer boys who were doing a power hour(shot of beer every minute for an hr-might not sound like a lot but you work your way through a 12 pack pretty fast), smoking and blasting country music all outside. I was thinking...wow ok I'm finally experiencing what I was fearing about living in a trailer park in the mid-west when 2 of the boys started shoving each other in a race to pee in the bushes on the side of the trailer (they had a totally adequate bathroom INSIDE-like 2 steps away). Then one of them fell on me-with his pants ZIPPED UP thank god. His apology was a smile (with a missing tooth) and then he preceded to lie to me about how he was a vet student too and he was taking a class called VM 123 (all our classes are 300 level or over and no such class abbreviation as VM) called "Cow/calf" and all he did for class was shove his arm up cows butts. And when he finished chugging his beer he threw the can into the bushes in the front yard. I know what you are thinking.... CLASSY! right? I love my life.<br /><br />Update on the stalker boy from my pseudo date...still creeping. He has texted me EVERY single day asking to do one thing or another and I either ignore him or decline and my "no thanks blah excuse blah" have turned a lot more harsh and still...they keep on coming!! Luckily he hasn't tried to wait for me after class and walk me home in awhile and really doesn't try very hard to speak to me in real life so I don't know what the deal is. Seriously though, how DENSE can his head be?! Suggestions?? I don't know if I've ever had to deal with someone this bad before and normally I'd just be a bitch and make sure he didn't want to hang out with me ever again buuut since we will be in school together every day for 8 hrs for the next 3 years I dont want to make any enemies.<br />On the bright side, my roomie and other friends all think it is quite entertaining and are getting a big kick out of it. It doesn't help that he is incredible socially akward and looks kinda like a Who from Dr. Seuss<img src="file:///C:/Users/srmott/AppData/Local/Temp/moz-screenshot-1.png" alt="" /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.product-reviews.net/wp-content/userimages/2007/07/the-chipmunks-and-dr-seuss-horton-hears-a-who-movie-trailers-attached-to-the-simpsons-film.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 389px; height: 280px;" src="http://www.product-reviews.net/wp-content/userimages/2007/07/the-chipmunks-and-dr-seuss-horton-hears-a-who-movie-trailers-attached-to-the-simpsons-film.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><img src="file:///C:/Users/srmott/AppData/Local/Temp/moz-screenshot.png" alt="" />Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-68768507544792416762010-09-18T11:43:00.000-07:002010-09-18T11:57:11.214-07:00My roomHere are the pics I promised a long time ago of my room.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj69ghqPlN2UaWOqt02FZk2TCD8VgO55JwZYKBmF9MK1FwKY8ZPq_hyamsgPL_g_WvvPZt3qR3yN_wwGzwRH2vXbx0LP7jmz1THiFK7yd0DaL8c1x-yG3Mct6LxDtUTsvqjBhJ4R4JPpJMX/s1600/P9150995.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj69ghqPlN2UaWOqt02FZk2TCD8VgO55JwZYKBmF9MK1FwKY8ZPq_hyamsgPL_g_WvvPZt3qR3yN_wwGzwRH2vXbx0LP7jmz1THiFK7yd0DaL8c1x-yG3Mct6LxDtUTsvqjBhJ4R4JPpJMX/s320/P9150995.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518327203359993842" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlnGPZZOT_gl836uLeTI5QB_gUNYjuGANoKdQYEULDWSUXGxXpEFn8_WH3ECzeHgsXPLljl5FHyCSIjQebyHSLspXtY7IhN4p4HOQABPsFGrOImeEfoXIbhply5BGEeU_Fr0irhk2sIii4/s1600/P9150993.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlnGPZZOT_gl836uLeTI5QB_gUNYjuGANoKdQYEULDWSUXGxXpEFn8_WH3ECzeHgsXPLljl5FHyCSIjQebyHSLspXtY7IhN4p4HOQABPsFGrOImeEfoXIbhply5BGEeU_Fr0irhk2sIii4/s320/P9150993.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518327194116601298" border="0" /></a><br />Note-the framed and signed picture of some of my favorite people was one of the first things I hung and I look at it everyday as I get dressed(since its above my dresser hehe) and the black and white blanket is Marley's absolute favorite spot to hang out on<br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2MjTx103luXQmQcLP2NBqA8DALUxyuQItmBvIPJaC6TkK6_7qhsbvZ5RxBA2wm5FvhxlEcz6S1vV9Vr375s_GO-DSIUj5G0xqrNjELcsvPoRaHAsNpQ-BpQ__9xGOMji8eg0gtEfvw_-U/s1600/P9150994.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2MjTx103luXQmQcLP2NBqA8DALUxyuQItmBvIPJaC6TkK6_7qhsbvZ5RxBA2wm5FvhxlEcz6S1vV9Vr375s_GO-DSIUj5G0xqrNjELcsvPoRaHAsNpQ-BpQ__9xGOMji8eg0gtEfvw_-U/s320/P9150994.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518327179979100130" border="0" /></a><br />Also, I actually put pictures in the frames on the wall now so they aren't just empty. and that is my spiffy computer on the bed-it has a fingerprint scanner on it that I use to log in-how cool is that?!<br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmvJekGxppg1TQEIjj3gv_s71PZneOWYajlH7ApRMfr_8BBNhpjQLdeYWivi90JT62MHqbGI6N3Sn8i2DGaeOu_v3U6CmPHP1BCO1_VwV82wy-S88C5Z_vXXwhKl2nvK49-Ip8K0cBNMjs/s1600/P9150992.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmvJekGxppg1TQEIjj3gv_s71PZneOWYajlH7ApRMfr_8BBNhpjQLdeYWivi90JT62MHqbGI6N3Sn8i2DGaeOu_v3U6CmPHP1BCO1_VwV82wy-S88C5Z_vXXwhKl2nvK49-Ip8K0cBNMjs/s320/P9150992.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518327172332261234" border="0" /></a>I love my wall of closets-I dont think I could do without it!<br /><br />I'll take some more pictures of the other areas and post those soon too-I promise! :) Gotta get back to studying nowVannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-70390263097825395632010-09-18T11:01:00.000-07:002010-09-18T11:59:05.859-07:00C= DVMWell I survived my first two tests of Vet school! The first one was Cell Biology on Wed and Anatomy on Thurs. The bio one wasn't so bad, a lot of review but anatomy...oh my god. Every part of every bone, every muscle including its function, where it attaches and all the nerves that innervate them! And my favorite-they picked the most complicated, convoluted part-the skull-to teach us on the day BEFORE the exam! WTF! This was how I studied the night before: all my bones of my bone box spread out-I guess it was a fairly large dog haha<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk92yTW_2uxTrY0UhM9apux5GVX1xWUUer70raivVadpO4g1vl1qnOnDFgUTleG2RsoK3DhKsLG5TqRiemX7LXZcsac_pazIyUctJt3a0ukIqa0DxNh0kyznX5fCwJrSUjiHlTkU1el0f0/s1600/P9150997.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk92yTW_2uxTrY0UhM9apux5GVX1xWUUer70raivVadpO4g1vl1qnOnDFgUTleG2RsoK3DhKsLG5TqRiemX7LXZcsac_pazIyUctJt3a0ukIqa0DxNh0kyznX5fCwJrSUjiHlTkU1el0f0/s200/P9150997.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518318415772629282" border="0" /></a><br />The anatomy test itself wasn't too painful and I got a high B so I am pretty pleased with myself :)<br />It had a practical portion where they pinned certain muscles/parts of bones on our cadaver dogs and we had to identify them and then a multiple choice section (thank god). It felt very nice to get it over with but strangely I wasn't very stressed out beforehand and I didn't really cram, I got a decent amount of sleep the night before and the usual nervous stomach ache I get before a major test was absent. My undergrad self would never have believed it :) Grades finally don't really matter-a C=DVM as they told us in our orientation so I don't have to kill myself to get As anymore and its AWESOME! Of course I want to do well, getting a job/internship/residency do slightly depend on having a decent GPA but its nice to have the competition lowered quite a bit.<br /><br />Also, they have about a bazillion clubs here and of course all are super interesting and I want to join them all! I have restricted myself to only:<br />SCAVMA-big club everybody joins which is an extension of the vet association we will all be a part of when we graduate;<br />Equine<br />Cow<br />Pig<br />ZEW-exotic and wildlife-I decided to be a fund-raising chair for this one-its a small time commitment and looks good on the ever present resume<br />Shelter<br />Emergency medicine for all animals<br />Emergency equine team-I'm on call for intensive care, births, and surgeries (soo excited!!) Business-another one for the resume and I have no idea about any financial/business like<br /><br />And I am undecided about the holistic club and reproduction. The only thing that is holding me back is all these clubs have dues ranging from $10-20+ so they add up quickly and I'm afraid if I join too many they will all overlap with meetings and wet labs -which are basically different activities dealing with the specific animals or topics they are about. Decisions decisions...<br /><br />Oh and one added bonus of learning anatomy so well, I now know which muscles are injured in my still (seriously?!) swollen ankle. Not that I can do anything about it, but I thought that was kinda cool :)Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-34494897813497665262010-09-10T10:37:00.000-07:002010-09-18T11:01:28.321-07:00Farmer's Market Joy<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGiXvf5pn-l8cpVMNZTpGGblNP1cr_yj42cVAfB2z2mbUbioZlBgHba88THP0re2iMbXLpNl3uSV56X7GaD_KOEc1lLTCpR5FDBSazsAmm-AWEyy39VZrm2H6H2aeiVd5zfiS6IVZgElAu/s1600/P9100989.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGiXvf5pn-l8cpVMNZTpGGblNP1cr_yj42cVAfB2z2mbUbioZlBgHba88THP0re2iMbXLpNl3uSV56X7GaD_KOEc1lLTCpR5FDBSazsAmm-AWEyy39VZrm2H6H2aeiVd5zfiS6IVZgElAu/s200/P9100989.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518312139490876258" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7uPlRLzYP42KqkH2Wt7BruSlaGCOpkzB87c63tXKxsdp4eOuU1E0eEXY-Q2It6DINA-wFgXZJsxyWTl380RoWDR09pLCLS55jn2m9A2P7nEcNSMRSCDNDDJvhBjNjLtFT5qu_13Uy7AzO/s1600/P9100988.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7uPlRLzYP42KqkH2Wt7BruSlaGCOpkzB87c63tXKxsdp4eOuU1E0eEXY-Q2It6DINA-wFgXZJsxyWTl380RoWDR09pLCLS55jn2m9A2P7nEcNSMRSCDNDDJvhBjNjLtFT5qu_13Uy7AzO/s200/P9100988.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518312130491692786" border="0" /></a><br />Des Monies Farmers Market is AWESOME!! It is massive but not too crowded and have lots and LOTS of food, mostly produce-I have never seen so many veggies in my life! I went and got some fresh mozzarella, basil, and granola which are all <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">super</span> tasty and the other time I went I got some delicious sweet corn ice cream-which was basically like rice pudding with chunks of corn-it worked somehow. They also have some cool craft booths, it kinda fills the void left in my life from the 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">th</span> Ave street fair in Tucson. I think it will be closing up in October since it will probably be too cold to go outside for an extended period of time but I'm gonna try to go as often as I can before then!Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-64637397026129189662010-09-05T22:04:00.000-07:002010-09-06T16:16:48.065-07:00Holy crap school<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5bDEqT3_vNLr9tsdxAR9fPVX85Mki_aAWBRcFgEcoTuBuOTLydgclj425Tn-t43l9Ih5NTLtnFpXNF41acf3uVa079UdZF5145Pm0zddG-E-dz2hAyMNQv3xsJ86Of4PzdlPglQ-NBG6C/s1600/P9060983.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513941741558787874" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5bDEqT3_vNLr9tsdxAR9fPVX85Mki_aAWBRcFgEcoTuBuOTLydgclj425Tn-t43l9Ih5NTLtnFpXNF41acf3uVa079UdZF5145Pm0zddG-E-dz2hAyMNQv3xsJ86Of4PzdlPglQ-NBG6C/s200/P9060983.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1YXqhvzHyTQ7oEJtIsAKOAueD7gDQCJMlIUKWTpZGEQ49TgbAprlxNHFVQ2FzudV6JO-jnxtWqJBT7idTi1x5h8WXVYSAiSW0khteMUcx0j3ACKgYXXz8lOHl4yW5EJUMa_ZdQkotTzpy/s1600/P9060982.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513941731770593890" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1YXqhvzHyTQ7oEJtIsAKOAueD7gDQCJMlIUKWTpZGEQ49TgbAprlxNHFVQ2FzudV6JO-jnxtWqJBT7idTi1x5h8WXVYSAiSW0khteMUcx0j3ACKgYXXz8lOHl4yW5EJUMa_ZdQkotTzpy/s200/P9060982.JPG" /></a><br />Just wanted to show off my massive stacks of books and my bone box :) I wont put up my pile of flashcards-<span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">thats</span> just depressing.<br /><br /><div>So I've survived 2 weeks of vet school so far! It has been intense but not as bad as my nightmares. So far individual classes have not been too <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">difficult</span>, the hard part is just trying to swallow the mountain of information everyday. I am hoping I can get some kind of system going where I study every day...right now it has been pretty hard to try to do that, I've never been one to study much until the night before a test so this whole being prepared thing is a bit tricky and kind of a pain in the ass.<br /><br />3 day weekend <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">HALLELUJAH</span>! I <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">haven't</span> studied as much as I have wanted to but my brain is enjoying its rest. Yesterday (Saturday) I went tubing in <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_4" class="blsp-spelling-error">Eldora</span>-about an hr drive away-with my roommate and some other people. Pretty much consumed all of my calories in beer that day which made for a fun and relaxing float down a river and one hell of a hangover a few hours later. I met some trashy, <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_5" class="blsp-spelling-error">skanky</span> people who decided it was a great day for celebrating <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_6" class="blsp-spelling-error">Mardi</span> <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_7" class="blsp-spelling-error">Gras</span> and wanted girls to flash their <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_8" class="blsp-spelling-error">bazoombas</span> for some crappy beads. While I passed, I got to see some awesome saggy titties and they got some beads so everybody wins I guess. Some <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_9" class="blsp-spelling-error">BAMFs</span> made a stereo system out of wood, car speakers and a solar panel and figured out how to float it down on the river so we had some good music and like I said-interesting company. Woke up a few hours later in my car-I didn't drive anywhere just fell asleep in the seat-apparently people thought I took off with the saggy booby girls for the <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_10" class="blsp-spelling-error">bachlorette</span> party since no one could find me. :) I have some standards people! the floating/camping place had some horrible cover band playing and I took off to go home after consuming every scrap of food I had with me. No pictures <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_11" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">unfortunately</span>, those saggy gems will just reside in my memory...no reason to subject you all to that acute kind of misery.<br /><br />Plans for my last day of freedom-study my bone box, and 3 in stack of flashcards for anatomy-read a few chapters for histology and go over the weeks notes. Saved all the real good stuff for last :)</div><div> </div><div> </div><div>Oh and here's an update on my ankle-it really <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_12" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">hasn't</span> gotten any better as far as appearances go</div><div> :( </div><div> </div><div> </div></div><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513941747370911954" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisVlO06xMESTPONhSbasJOhJa64RrLycSiDPWinN6Pdi7o2jRguVLodSrVt9GTVxEdn_tA8Gl8rHnCblnyE3YV4DWfZX11kYAFnaXfuzYP6EYLLQFF9vmUexka2YrnW66lqxiFU9jQ-0_E/s200/P9060984.JPG" /></div></div><br /><p> </p><p>Bart pissed on my bed today so he is definitely on my SHIT list. I have no idea what to do with him...it <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_13" class="blsp-spelling-error">doesnt</span> make any sense.</p>Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-28854503951604676882010-09-03T22:21:00.000-07:002010-09-06T16:23:42.554-07:00TailgatingI had no idea tailgating was itself a sport. AZ peeps, you guys have no idea how serious it is over here. Camping out a full day beforehand-and paying for spots ranging from $20-50 for one night. Buses/RVs/cars are painted permanently(!) with school colors and logos, and dont even get me started on the other decorations-including clothing.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLhk0JAMMQBhgWHb8ytxkZhxM4UrHEeWDU11uVJ26w0RvAEYiiT5tz0vi14XUmRbPYkdDN0FvqTaKJSIyR9CRzpkVIUk8c6jLQhBOO4_OfuaIaJx17oUN5HCEtEv0MWiTYQ08eY11fTp3A/s1600/P9020979.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513934382410229250" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLhk0JAMMQBhgWHb8ytxkZhxM4UrHEeWDU11uVJ26w0RvAEYiiT5tz0vi14XUmRbPYkdDN0FvqTaKJSIyR9CRzpkVIUk8c6jLQhBOO4_OfuaIaJx17oUN5HCEtEv0MWiTYQ08eY11fTp3A/s200/P9020979.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzCeY0h7qsrf98pv6gRXQGq6_LVXEPOLc95seFY8dRG8pFqYgme7Q6NrqW8RL4VVSR8aNTz41zijw99yqCZ6_bybEM6gFLb-5c5bs0_l0L3K_WbZkngfnpU-45JcJXGCNPEscM1SP2ofJv/s1600/P9020981.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513934393754629218" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzCeY0h7qsrf98pv6gRXQGq6_LVXEPOLc95seFY8dRG8pFqYgme7Q6NrqW8RL4VVSR8aNTz41zijw99yqCZ6_bybEM6gFLb-5c5bs0_l0L3K_WbZkngfnpU-45JcJXGCNPEscM1SP2ofJv/s200/P9020981.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzCeY0h7qsrf98pv6gRXQGq6_LVXEPOLc95seFY8dRG8pFqYgme7Q6NrqW8RL4VVSR8aNTz41zijw99yqCZ6_bybEM6gFLb-5c5bs0_l0L3K_WbZkngfnpU-45JcJXGCNPEscM1SP2ofJv/s1600/P9020981.JPG"></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzCeY0h7qsrf98pv6gRXQGq6_LVXEPOLc95seFY8dRG8pFqYgme7Q6NrqW8RL4VVSR8aNTz41zijw99yqCZ6_bybEM6gFLb-5c5bs0_l0L3K_WbZkngfnpU-45JcJXGCNPEscM1SP2ofJv/s1600/P9020981.JPG"></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Grilling meat and corn (of course) and drinking lots of beer, I'd say more than half the people didn't even go to the game, its more of an excuse than a reason to tailgate here. Vet students get in on it too-we have our own bus! Pretty sad looking thing but its awesome and a fair amount of people showed up too.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLhk0JAMMQBhgWHb8ytxkZhxM4UrHEeWDU11uVJ26w0RvAEYiiT5tz0vi14XUmRbPYkdDN0FvqTaKJSIyR9CRzpkVIUk8c6jLQhBOO4_OfuaIaJx17oUN5HCEtEv0MWiTYQ08eY11fTp3A/s1600/P9020979.JPG"></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLhk0JAMMQBhgWHb8ytxkZhxM4UrHEeWDU11uVJ26w0RvAEYiiT5tz0vi14XUmRbPYkdDN0FvqTaKJSIyR9CRzpkVIUk8c6jLQhBOO4_OfuaIaJx17oUN5HCEtEv0MWiTYQ08eY11fTp3A/s1600/P9020979.JPG"></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLhk0JAMMQBhgWHb8ytxkZhxM4UrHEeWDU11uVJ26w0RvAEYiiT5tz0vi14XUmRbPYkdDN0FvqTaKJSIyR9CRzpkVIUk8c6jLQhBOO4_OfuaIaJx17oUN5HCEtEv0MWiTYQ08eY11fTp3A/s1600/P9020979.JPG"></a><br /><br />In other news, my ungraceful self has reared her bruised head and when I was running the other day I tripped on the edge of a sidewalk and some grass and got a nasty twisted ankle and skinned knee.<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513935807546086066" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmT1fnrisBx5yLPgVZPvB7b6tXsImPMoCqdh5RMgqDeAuIYy31r7p_P-EJFfnUfMjqtn6wDXzrQeG5nOIueNsVeHEhl3Z1p_wl-O2rwuBBu2rE0ZXtXnev-rsjF1DS4DfORlZx03Qekm4W/s200/P9010971.JPG" />I couldnt walk at all for awhile and had to have my roomate pick me up. I forgot just how horribly painful it can be...a few days later now I can walk with only a slight limp and my knee is finally done oozing and is scabbed up. heres some awesome pictures...I'll update when the bruising gets even prettier on the ankle...I'm still waiting for my foot to get back to a normal size.<br /><br /><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 201px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 157px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513935819111164194" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO_tVcpdUxRnGIMu0f_1dVXVsUTYwZfiRdILrEWRsBC5cnuNJB7hLRhhOi9AEpoOHOGldpjRf2vn2gqslSD6dA5KocmYrJmEcrDL2pBPIQMHsXdo9d8kpBxkRgyyDx-szjHxLNAk2oBV_a/s200/P9020973.JPG" />Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-71112217536530043472010-09-01T22:59:00.000-07:002010-09-05T23:06:18.628-07:00Shame<span style="font-family:verdana;">This is Bart posting-my mom is making me do a public apology for my misdeeds. I pissed on the couch. Numerous times. and then I got so cocky about it-I mean who doesnt want to smell my awesome urine??? I did it in front of Mom and the new girl-who apparently owns the couch. SO they yelled at me and my tail got as wide as I am-which if you listen to my mom is apparently too wide-and I've been imprisoned in the bedroom ever since. Which isn't really that bad since all I do is sleep and eat but still. so I'm sorry ok Mom?<br /><br />I saw that after all my hard work that you put the couch out by the dumpster which is a shame because it was really starting to smell just right. I guess I need to be more stealthy next time. I mean...there won't be a next time. Can I have my dinner now??</span>Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-26401945601006409162010-08-31T22:45:00.000-07:002010-09-06T15:58:22.441-07:00Yay for school!<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO1LsY0ZmBE1wekL4n3c1McOKQAPgTWhcjs-Bk-UOWuzX5ArT6vIQxfKZErEi44pe0Xu4LiuuiMAokiq1kmqEUAYUT5e9s3xOHBcSHuTLgS1hIm5e8epfe8iaa9fhR9lhwmmY0ZYvOIPKZ/s1600/P8220967.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 150px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513938107226519090" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO1LsY0ZmBE1wekL4n3c1McOKQAPgTWhcjs-Bk-UOWuzX5ArT6vIQxfKZErEi44pe0Xu4LiuuiMAokiq1kmqEUAYUT5e9s3xOHBcSHuTLgS1hIm5e8epfe8iaa9fhR9lhwmmY0ZYvOIPKZ/s200/P8220967.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEintZglSSj2guMZxLYsWBKVo1XcHKeCm5BkF9xuIka3VxcS8SpYwjWYxuac6-Zplpj7pnMuPdrVgJwCSvEBfm_js8gPX8ne3mfZrJCJi6R1itzqXFhyphenhyphen3LCaR7J2MK-6UJ2jlPD0Qec9AKj7/s1600/P8220968.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 150px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513938094694054962" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEintZglSSj2guMZxLYsWBKVo1XcHKeCm5BkF9xuIka3VxcS8SpYwjWYxuac6-Zplpj7pnMuPdrVgJwCSvEBfm_js8gPX8ne3mfZrJCJi6R1itzqXFhyphenhyphen3LCaR7J2MK-6UJ2jlPD0Qec9AKj7/s200/P8220968.JPG" /></a> Roomate and I on our first day of Vet School!<br /><br /><br /><div>Well I've been waiting for over a year to start school and it has finally happened! Orientation was interesting-they threw a lot of information at us and had us play a lot of silly games but it did accomplish their goal of us getting to know some people. There are 149 students in my class and I think I know the name of about 10 and probably could recognize another 20? Apparently we will get to know everyone...I guess over 4 years thats enough time :) so far I am trying to hold off on judging since I will have to spend the next 4 years of my life with these people every single day, all day.<br /><br />The ratio of girls to boys is about 70:30 and the boys hang out in little packs-its kinda cute but also totally sucks-how are we supposed to talk to them when they have their little groups? Now I know how boys feel when they want to approach a girl who is in her group of friends-it takes more balls than I have to put yourself out there.<br /><br />As far as classes go, most of the professors are totally awesome, and mostly it has been review-although they tend to go at lightspeed and review a few months of undergrad classes in one 50 min lecture. My classes are: anatomy/morphology, microscopic anatomy/physiology-bascially histology, molecular and cell biology, nutrition biochem, radiology, case study, clinical foundations and veterinarian in society.<br /><br />Anatomy is insane with the all the crap we are supposed to memorize but we get to cut open dogs and explore so its hard to hate it, and in clinical foundations we actually get to work with a live dog which is nice :) shes a cute little beagle. We also get a box full of bones to play/study with so thats been kinda cool too. The instructor who gave them to us has a German accent so when he says it it sounds like boom box-I was really confused for awhile what stereos had to do with anatomy until I saw them. :)</div><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 273px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 205px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513938110154091314" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSvNouiVJnb1gmiTStt_3OJN3IxObF_X01FN2FcEv-SrOAGMmvjnBe077Gif_CDYCdyaMGT3GgWGfHJeaMhAgBSA2rUQQ7peOa_S7F8KPBqhYtB1c_ldFKkTkoYKR612ZhSP4LQ5x99zkM/s200/P8200907.JPG" /><br /><br /><div>This is my roommate Kelsey and I after our White Coat Ceremony-we are kinda a big deal now an pretty official. I now have a white coat, stethescope and scapula (from the dissection kit) so watch out world! </div></div></div>Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-78251350997979029632010-08-21T20:35:00.001-07:002010-08-21T20:38:31.123-07:00Internet IssuesSo I've had quite a challenge getting <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">connected</span> to the real world...finally got <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error">internet</span> (permanently I hope) today, 8/21, a full 2 weeks after it was <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">supposed</span> to work. So I've got some posts that are backlogged and will be trying to catch up in a hurry so I'll try to keep it chronological but it may not be <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">awesomely</span> accurate :)Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-89080538189520674542010-08-15T16:53:00.000-07:002010-09-06T15:51:58.251-07:00Iowa State Fair<div>" I went to the Iowa State Fair and all I got was type II Diabetes"<br /><div><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><div>Too true.</div><br /><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513931625568122690" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGjmdVIWpeRzueh3hPZB_W1-akNTt-nej3SZR5vzUkSlwGxSV1ZixkQIEiVeGWdIuRUKI51xF5Gx0WaIs4uqsltEQ9qxm57GEIOHwzkJR17oQCwGEvKpnpsUuAuhbEfgjaVpC56_YOc0w5/s200/P8140882.JPG" /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><div>Iowans take their state fair VERY seriously. They camp out for an entire week, and its all they do. It is miles long and obviously takes more than just a day to see everything. They have all kinds of animal exhibits-including mini cows! (I didn't know those exisisted) and some other massive animals like:<br /><br /></div><div></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUJN2O_7itLU33YydcaW-sb27t-43H0xx2i7GJX_PbJqfAZuCy4qTBd55yA0fqdvz41SqbQuOTEt1aecMm1g0kFESqUe_dJ2BghEamMjD_O3BoLCOCK-jFR6SW5yaU8-0nBzD8ZDy5OkCQ/s1600/P8140895.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513932564065162642" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUJN2O_7itLU33YydcaW-sb27t-43H0xx2i7GJX_PbJqfAZuCy4qTBd55yA0fqdvz41SqbQuOTEt1aecMm1g0kFESqUe_dJ2BghEamMjD_O3BoLCOCK-jFR6SW5yaU8-0nBzD8ZDy5OkCQ/s200/P8140895.JPG" /></a><br /><div>Buster, a 3022 pound bull-i didn't get a picture of his balls</div><div>but trust me they were equally impressive :)</div><br /><br /><div>Also a massive pig that was about the size of a small cow but all he did was lay around</div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><div>In addition to massive animals, they had massive food and pretty much everything on a large scale. And I could not find food that wasn't deep fried, covered in grease or sugar. I ended up just eating the apple and energy bar I brought with me and some pizza. Also, they had everything imaginable available on a stick-it was totally ridiculous!<br /><br /></div><div>They pulled people around on tractors (John Deer of course) and have lots of different exhibits and shows. One famous one is the butter cow which was pretty much life size and they also did a bit of Dr. Seuss too.</div><br /><br /><br /><div></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgie1R5AKaH-8Qg9kfxRK4Ij3QbLUs3lpdsFzC3HRQ25Cb53Rgtfa-pzXfahZcpl1byz27876M-RwpXPh941ENyCPrIKDzpSNQ8PACw-eMTBoELag0GSth1JVfXYKlgpI3CLR7fxiMJ8Pkz/s1600/P8140890.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513587735422857506" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgie1R5AKaH-8Qg9kfxRK4Ij3QbLUs3lpdsFzC3HRQ25Cb53Rgtfa-pzXfahZcpl1byz27876M-RwpXPh941ENyCPrIKDzpSNQ8PACw-eMTBoELag0GSth1JVfXYKlgpI3CLR7fxiMJ8Pkz/s200/P8140890.JPG" /></a><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 201px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 170px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513931635578828882" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBt3HFjhwmIvr8C_2GpCPxaem0Ye40UpnbZTHan2xeOtgFMZu-CQ1jJnpwqkElzUaHTKUOEqRmKyif-HRiEPfdbBIxLH81RmfQ9TVbTTM1exuU5FLAqCwI7KT5jPQHwJJyORt0FVdjMHkx/s200/P8140891.JPG" /><br /><br /><br />I was exhausted after a few hours-I can't imagine doing it for a week but apparently they live off this kind of stuff so there you go! I guess if you are ever in Iowa in August you should try to see it!<br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div>Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-987379268535548404.post-28024827791069064632010-08-09T16:24:00.000-07:002010-09-06T16:41:46.052-07:00Flooding<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgqExO0OOfb9xpkqAX8J4hHHpT-__AIWNdu-o-t_x0IbyuuhVGIwWigpObCxOr5N3D5zN6tldi4Gu63cmzIZGBa-IH_3p6Bftmr4fTas_8EOlgHbtXjXrCRMnOqhtvQIs4wSkt75fKwF1b/s1600/P8090873.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513948578803440642" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgqExO0OOfb9xpkqAX8J4hHHpT-__AIWNdu-o-t_x0IbyuuhVGIwWigpObCxOr5N3D5zN6tldi4Gu63cmzIZGBa-IH_3p6Bftmr4fTas_8EOlgHbtXjXrCRMnOqhtvQIs4wSkt75fKwF1b/s200/P8090873.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvC8puqyAIP8Vlxr9YOef4kvlZnFWscSWNq_BybiVIRxd_beVDx5WpKT2PjRkLKJ0HZo-fMU0G-B-SETbn6gR9CK1NFI4KFdX9R6ULfsyrUoRZEtZwup0JUOWy1nPToMKrdo28YstM9niG/s1600/P8090863.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513948570828150002" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvC8puqyAIP8Vlxr9YOef4kvlZnFWscSWNq_BybiVIRxd_beVDx5WpKT2PjRkLKJ0HZo-fMU0G-B-SETbn6gR9CK1NFI4KFdX9R6ULfsyrUoRZEtZwup0JUOWy1nPToMKrdo28YstM9niG/s200/P8090863.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwhyewlAFG0L7ncUVgaHOrBou3AQJdYAJQaXb3GSHLZL3fVmwlm8lf6O_vnFRXxwfgsNHeZn544f4OJeA3JSiqhUx8_tW-RlQ3_OAxfWbtWWw_XnsVnxj4AG128YMswCIIB17CoD-foKmq/s1600/P8090862.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513948564185985138" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwhyewlAFG0L7ncUVgaHOrBou3AQJdYAJQaXb3GSHLZL3fVmwlm8lf6O_vnFRXxwfgsNHeZn544f4OJeA3JSiqhUx8_tW-RlQ3_OAxfWbtWWw_XnsVnxj4AG128YMswCIIB17CoD-foKmq/s200/P8090862.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><div></div><div><span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">SOoo</span> this sucks. The above pictures were taken a few days BEFORE all the massive flooding happened so it was already saturated and then it rained for 3 days straight. SO it flooded all the main roads, parking lots, highways and broke a water main which means all the drinkable water flowed out-into the river and <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error">Ames</span> has no water. Luckily Kelsey (my roommate) has been living with her sister in a nearby town so I took my cats down the only drivable road out of <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-error">Ames</span> and stayed there for 5 days because <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-error">thats</span> how long it took to get water back in the faucets. </div><div> </div><div>Lucky our trailer was on higher ground so there was no damage but some places, like the school's basketball court was up to 6 feet underwater and the rec center* was totally flooded too. </div><div> </div><div>*the gym is still closed a month later! grrr</div></div></div>Vannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18313084009314151958noreply@blogger.com0