Maudlin Meanderings

I have been in a very low mood of late.  Actually verging on tears for several days.

It was initially hard to see why...although apparently not so much for those who commented on my recent Facebook status: Vet school is about to end.

I have two weeks left until graduation.  Two weeks.

deep breath now...


Two.

Weeks.

I have invested so much into these past four years.  More money than I care to contemplate right now; vast quantities of time and sleepless nights; most of my energy; many emotions getting swept right along...tests both literal and figurative, blood sweat and tears (also both literal and figurative)...

And then of course we come to all my friends.  I can't quite describe the bond that something like vet school gives a group of people, except to say that they are family now.  Maybe it has to do with all that blood sweat and tears, maybe spending 5 days a week for 3 years in the same classroom, maybe it was the enforced bonding time we had in the woods of Idaho before vet school started.  Spending 60+ hours a week together in the teaching hospital and depending on each other for our sanity probably has something to do with it too.  Suffice it to say that I have become very close to some amazing people.  And among my group of friends, I now count several fabulous residents and interns as well.

My entire life has been leading towards the goal of "Veterinarian."  And it is about to happen.  And then suddenly my goal is achieved, I will need to work on new goals (jobjobjobjob), and these past four years will be gone and my friends will be scattering to all corners of the country.  How do you say good bye to all that?

I haven't figured it out yet.  If anyone else has, please let me know.

These are a few of my favorite things

Procrastination...makes it happen?

This is a post with a very specific purpose.  That purpose is to delay the "productive" part of my day.  I am avoiding this list:

• Catch up on dishes
• Do a load of laundry
• Clean out on dishwasher-load worth of disgusting containers from the fridge
• Take out the trash
• Clean one out of three litter boxes (I don't want to push it)
• Go grocery shopping
• Make tomato soup
• Clean out the drawers in the bathroom
• Pack one bookshelf
• Clean out the freezer

I think that was the entire list.  Yesterday I was able to cross off "start a good will box" and "activate debit card."  Although to be fair, I also did a dishwasher load of dishes yesterday.  But since I specifically wrote "catch up on dishes," I can't actually check anything off yet.

So instead of getting cracking on that mondo list of doom, I will now give you a brief update on my life.

• I have had one job interview.  Conclusion: no.
• I have two more interviews to set up.  One I may have come across as too desperately eager by trying to arrange for this weekend.  The other is a 24 hour clinic where the expected hours are midnight to noon.  
• I have expanded my job search to include Montana, Idaho, and Oregon.  I am toying with expanding that list to "everywhere but the south."  And probably also excluding the midwest (sorry Grandma).
• I am still considering specializing in oncology.  I am also including clin path on my list of potential specialties based on how excited I was to stay late at school on a Friday to look at some lymph node aspirates.
• Andrew got a raise, a move to full time, and benefits at his job in Spokane (yay!!) and they are hoping that we will move to Spokane after graduation.  Unfortunately, I haven't found a vet clinic in Spokane which is hiring yet.
• I am now obsessed with Greek Yogurt.  Specifically: this kind.  Because it is too yummy to be believed.  Unfortunately it is also expensive.  Stupid Greek Yogurt....
• I am really really hankering to play D&D.  Unfortunately, I am about to start my Orthopedics rotation which is looking to be insanely busy and may eat my life.  Dang.

**UPDATE:  In spite of the impressive level of procrastination I have been engaging in, I have still managed to: 

• Empty a load of clean dishes out of the dishwasher
• Replace that emptiness with a disgusting load of dishes from fridge
• Take out the garbage
• Take out two more garbage bags filled with disgustingness from the fridge containers and disposable crap from the fridge
• Empty out a garbage bag worth of odds and ends from the bathroom drawers
• Do a load of laundry (currently drying)
• Empty a litter box
• Pack 3 boxes of books

Domestic Goddess (?)

I am feeling all domestic right now. God knows why. The past three nights running I cooked dinner. Sunday night I made Northern-White Girl-Jambalaya for 7. Monday night I went adventurous and cooked Chicken Kiev - this was tricky. It involved creating an herb/lemon butter (using parsley and onions from our garden), then butterflying two breasts and pounding them flat, then putting a chunk of the herb butter on each breast and rolling them up like a burrito in the hopes that the melting butter wouldn't explode out of the chicken like a bursting dam once they got hot. Then they got dredged in flour, dipped in an egg/dijon mustard wash, and rolled in bread crumbs (during which I was praying that my pathetic chicken breast burrito-style lumps wouldn't fall apart and doom me to butterless chicken). Then they went into the oven (toaster oven since it was 400 degrees in our apartment). They definitely dripped butter for most of the time in the oven, but considering I was imagining a butter waterfall of epic proportions (you know that scene in The Shining where the elevator doors open and blood pours out? Like that.) dripping was ok. They turned out fabulous! Andrew contributed to the domesticity by making fried plantains sprinkled with lime juice and salt- which I declared he could make for me any time! Then last night I made red beans and rice with sauteed chicken breasts and corn muffins. Tonight I plan on making spinach and ricotta gnocchi with home-doctored tomato sauce.

Also, yesterday I cleaned the entire kitchen and did all the dishes.

What is with me?! I need an apron or something...

In other news, the garden was a mass of weeds when we came back from vacation and it is still in the process of being reclaimed. Our first tomato is probably 1-2 days from pickable perfection and I cannot wait! We have 6 viable tomato plants at the moment, and one replanted seedling that survived the weed onslaught. I have visions of tomatoes dancing all over my counters. Also the potato plants are falling down. Presumably this means they are now putting all the energy into making delicious starchy tubers just for me! Or they have the plague. Either way.

On the school front, I just emailed a clinic in Coos Bay Oregon about an externship there on one of my last remaining school breaks of EVER. Wish me luck!!

TA DAAA!

Sorry to all of my loyal readers (hi mom!) for the long dry spell.
Last semester was pretty hellish. A lot of dark days in Andrea's psyche. A lot more random breakdowns, crying fits, and panic attacks (yes mom and dad, they are back. It's ok, I know what they are and how to handle them now). I made it through with pretty high test scores all around which is nice. It is good to see studying pay off. Sometimes during Anatomy last year I felt like I could study all damn day and not raise my average test grade a bit. That's a little discouraging. But last semester had a lot of really interesting classes and no formaldehyde exposure. Yay!

This semester is a bit easier so far. I have had one take home test, am working on another, have a test tomorrow and another on Thursday. So we'll see how it all goes.

As for life outside of school, the cats are doing just fine. Jasper is growing and is still a little monkey. Talen has had some ugly bouts of acne but is clear right now. Luna has stopped growing and we have purchased a backpack for her to start training her to be a trail puppy. She is a lot of fun in our house, such a sweet girl! Although a bit destructive. There are some holes worn in our linoleum(before we got there) and Luna found one and expanded it. Possibly we will be redoing the floors at some point...Andrew is looking forward to a man-trip soon with several vet school husbands (another reason that we got Luna's backpack now) and we are spending a lot of time with another couple- Chris and Ashley. They are a lot of fun! Good game nights and good food...excellent. Plus man time for Andrew :)

We spent the first part of today outside in the sunshine. What were we doing? Well, I for one was procrastinating the studying for tomorrow's test. But also, we were starting our garden! We cut the boundaries and started pulling up the sod. Tough work, but I resisted the temptation to rent a sod cutter. The shovels and hoe are doing fine. Plus there is something extremely satisfying about pulling up huge chunks of grass with the claw. I did give in and we took a quick trip to get a wheel barrow. I was hoping to get by without it, but it was soooo much easier hauling the little chunks of sod to the compost pile all in a wheel barrow than two handfuls at a time. We got a good start! But are done for the moment so I can work on Parasitology (right after I finish my blog :P) We have big plans for the garden. My big sib, Kim, said they had a 5x5 garden plot that kept them and several friends rolling in veggies...and our garden is considerably larger than that. I need to order my seeds soon so I can get them started indoors and get them outside just as soon as the freezing is over! I am so excited to be able to go outside and cut myself a salad for dinner!

Although we will need to build a fence covering the entire thing because there is a pretty significant deer population here. Three of them ran past our yard while we were out there, and I saw a herd of about 7-8 once when I was up very early. Stay back from my lettuce!