Rain is dumb.

So, we've had an interesting week. 

Last tuesday, Melissa was taking 2 practicals. A practical, if you don't know, is a test of your lab skills and ability to identify muscles/bones/cells. One practical was over gross anatomy (bones and muscles), and the other was histology (erm, not exactly sure what that means). From all accounts, both practicals were stupid hard. I think the average score between those two tests was about a 55%. Melissa, feel free to correct me if I'm off.

But that's not all! Because the very next day, Melissa had another mini! Well, technically it's part 2 of the first mini, but that doesn't mean you study any less for it. And then, like clockwork, all of the first-semesters exited the testing centers, took a deep breath, and started planning how they were going to spend the rest of their free day (most students, especially firsties, take most or all of the rest of test day to relax and reload for the next wave).

Then the rain came.

'Luckily', it waited just long enough for us to get down to the beach and get comfortable before it started pouring. And it came hecka fast. As we were scrambling up the stairs to get under shelter, Melissa took a dive and did a number on her knees/palms. It looked worse than it ended up being, but she was not a happy camper that day. On the plus side, we got a free ride all the way up our hill! 

On a sidenote, it has rained for both of the semester 1 minis so far. I'm going to keep a close eye on the weather for November 3rd (or 2nd. Again, Melissa: correct me!).

The next day, we woke up to a torrential rainstorm. Not much wind, but WAAAY too much water. And thus, Melissa took her first sick day. Slept in until 11 (the meds they gave her for her injuries must be CRAZY), then she got to work. Luckily, she's allowed to Mediasite (watch lectures from home), so she didn't really miss too much. She was back and ready to go before class the next day, but it was nice to be around her on a weekday. 

Meanwhile, still raining. 

Saturday: RAIN.

Sunday: STILL RAIN.

Today: ...no rain? ABOUT TIME. 

The worst side effect of lots of rain is that the water stops when it comes down too hard. Consequently, I took my first sponge bath of my life on Saturday. And hopefully, I won't have to do that again. Gross.

But now the rain has stopped, the sun is back out, our laundry's getting washed, and things are back to normal. I'll try to get some pictures of our apartment (inside and out) up tomorrow or Wednesday, but I need to get my camera first. 

Hope you're all staying dry!

-Eric

Pardon my negligence

Apologies, apologies. 

I have been somewhat lax recently in updating my blog stuff. No real good reason; I just kept forgetting to sit down and do it. But NOT TONIGHT! I am blogging! HaHA!

Anyway, things are getting busier and busier for me (relatively speaking; I can't hold a candle to Melissa's schedule). I knew that I should be careful about over-committing at the start of the semester, but I think I'm getting into a rhythm that works.

On Wednesday, I had a training session for Standardized Patients. They taught us how to log into our grading system. In other words, they were basically testing to see if we were halfway competent at opening Internet Explorer and following 3 directions from a slip of paper.  But at least it means more hours!

No joke, the coordinator told us that we could come in later to practice if we wanted. But we wouldn't get paid for that extra time to "learn the system". I think if I couldn't figure it out from the time you showed us, and then gave us step-by-step instructions, I would stop taking any money you were offering. It's super easy.

So that was Wednesday. On Thursday, I subbed for the math teacher I've been volunteering with. It went pretty great; even the class that she was worried about didn't give me much trouble. Granted, I did play the "quiet game" with them to much success (although only 2 kids were left by the end of it). I can't believe kids will still do that. It's awesome. 

Then, it turns out that the science teacher needed a sub for Friday (and the regular science sub was already busy), so I got another day of working! When it rains, it pours, you know? So that was a fun week. 

Yesterday we had our second softball game of the season (our team's called the Free Agents; I'm not sure why, but I think it could maybe be a medical thing - wait, that's free radicals). We lost again, BUT a)we only lost by 4 [15-11], and b)we only had 6 players. Yes, that's right: we used the classic defensive formation of 2 infielders, 3 outfielders, pitcher, and catcher-from-the-other-team. I had some pretty good hits, including one that got over the center fielder's head! That's kind of a big deal for me, since I tend to line/ground out a lot. Got some serious elevation.

Oh, and I discovered later yesterday that I got the slightest of burns on my collarbone. No big deal. Waaay better than last week. Yeouch.

So, Melissa is getting ready right now for 2 things. Tomorrow, she has her first Anatomy practical, and Tuesday she has Mini 1 part 2. Here's my positive spin for her: no class for 2 days!!

From what she's told me, here's how the practical works: the anatomy lab is set up into a bunch of stations with various cadavers with pins in them pointing to different things, and there is a question attached pertaining to the indicated part. You get 50 seconds at each station. Sounds crazy to me. But Melissa has been studying the crap out of the cadavers, so I don't think she's worried. Fun note: if she can get the grade requirement for it, she's going to apply to be a TA in the anatomy lab! She just loves the smell so much! 

Anyways, she's been studying really hard all week. But she wanted me to share some pictures with you of her study area, just because it's amazing:

 So here is what her "study zone" looks like. Nice big table to spread out, but where's all that natural light coming from?...

 Oh yeah, she's outside! With a ridiculous view of the ocean! How could I forget?

 Here's another shot of the view. This particular study area that she studies on is called the "Upper Seaside Deck" (aptly named in my opinion)

This is a shot of the "Lower Seaside Deck". They do yoga and stuff here.

So there you have it. Super Long Update! Again, I hope you're all doing well, and I hope you're enjoying the seasons changing. Take care!

-Eric