Polar Opposites!

The first three days of last week were hectic. The first couple days of this week are slow. I guess I have to start getting used to not knowing what to expect when I set foot in my department on any given day. I guess my job is parallel with the weather. I never will know what to expect until I step outside, or in this case, when I step into my department on any given day. That's the way of the medical world I hear. So many changes. Nothing is ever the same. Different patients, different diseases, constant mental work. Don't get me wrong, I'm not griping. I love being mentally challenged. It's the variety of mentally challenging situations that I lack. I need to expand my mind in a way so that I can keep myself "sharp" mentally in all aspects. I am planning to start the UNC orchestra sometime this month. Hopefully that will diversify my exposure to life here. Maybe Ki Sun and I can meet like minded people to communicate with. This world has so many challenges that most of us don't even begin to think of coming to terms with it, much less conquering the challenges that lie ahead. I think I might start on some of mine.

Thank Goodness It's Friday!

I have never been so happy to see the weekend arrive! It really makes me enjoy the time that I have so that I can maximize it to the best of my ability. I am planning to go to a poker party this weekend! Co-workers, fellow doctors, and my technical director will be there. I am also bringing Ki Sun after his 11-7 shift at Barnes and Noble. I will finally eat pizza at the poker party on Saturday after a month of not having any! Simply because I can't afford it, and because I would like to eat a bit healthier than I have been. I plan to relax, veg out, and prepare for a fun filled week ahead. Wish me luck:-)

Finally! A Slow Day!

I never thought I'd be so happy to have a slow day at work. The past 3 days were so hectic, it's nice to have a chance to breathe during the day. Patients in and out, doctors, nurses, and receptionists calling, to find out about this and that, for the past 3 days. Today, we have had a decent amount of calls. Not too much to where 9 techs and 2 at the front desk couldn't handle. We have a lot less patients than we had earlier in the week. Change is nice. Variety keeps me on my toes! I am so relieved that I may be able to get off on time! We'll see.

Sunny Stormy Days of Summer

I'm getting very used to the weather here, of not having any consistency and not knowing what to expect. In other words, I'm getting used to not knowing anything about what the weather will be like for the following day. One day the weather can say "rain" and it'll turn up sunny. It took some adjusting at first, but I think I've gotten the hang of it:-). Besides, I like the warm rain! It's pretty cloudy and humid right now. The warm rain reminds me a lot of the tropical weather in Hawaii. Reminiscing is nice sometimes. Reminds me of the good old days when things were a whole lot simpler. The only "money problems" we had to worry about as kids is if we had a quarter for the gumball machine, and if we had a dollar to play our favorite game at the arcade. Exercising just for the fun of it, instead of having some other motive in mind were the days of being a child, and not worrying ourselves with such things. I'm trying to get that back, so I am walking more because it makes me feel better. Sure, there are health benefits, but the mood booster makes it all worth while. I'm planning to enjoy the rest of the day and all the sporatic weather that comes my way.

Craziness!

Yesterday, I witnessed my first really super hectic day on the job. I only performed studies on 6 patients, but I observed one that took 2 hours to perform. I ended up staying at work 2 hours after I was scheduled to get off. By the time I finally left, there were 6 patients still to be done at 6 pm that night. Now that, my friends, is what I call stressful. The vascular techs who had come in at 7 a.m. stayed later than I did. I felt kind of bad in a way, but since I cannot perform all of the studies required yet, I decided to let it go.

So after that hectic day, Ki Sun and I decided to take a walk. We decided that we'd make it longer than our usual 15 minute walk, so our decision was to walk to the nearest "Wendys" to split one combo meal. I took the short way the first time, while Ki Sun decided to take the longer way after we had finished our meal. It was dark outside by that time so we took the well lit areas of the road. It ended up being a 5 mile walk, which I thoroughly enjoyed! What a better way to unwind from a busy work day than taking a nice walk:-). The impressive part of this walk was that there was no sign of humidity. There was a breeze as well! Not just any breeze, but a COOL breeze. That's very unusual for these parts. So to wind up the end of this day, I brushed my teeth, and headed to bed. I slept well.

Gaining Independence

Finally, I am able to perform a lower extremity venous exam without being observed! It was a little stressful yesterday, but also a bit exciting! I am going to start on arterial examinations so that I may be certified by the end of the term. As far as work days: I am pretty used to my schedule. It is pretty easy to adapt to since it's the same time every day. Hey, at least I don't have to work weekends! Sorry family and friends. Nothing too exciting happening with me. I am, however, gaining my independence slowly but surely.

Didn't I Do That Already?

Every day, I have a "routine" as you might call it. I wake up, take a shower, watch TV and eat breakfast, I catch the bus, work and log down the studies that I performed and observed, then I go home taking the same route back on the bus. What does it mean when something within that routine gets altered a little bit? What makes a person remember performing specific minute, insignificant details that havent even happened yet? It's so specific within this routine. It's different, somehow which makes it stand out for us to remember it as it has not happened.

I have had many experiences with this very thing called "Dejavu". I have had many thoughts, conversations, and mental collaborations about this very idea and through this journey, I came up with an idea that makes sense in my mind. Here is my little hypothesis. Within every "Dejavu" is a set path that your mind has derived far before you even imagine it occuring. Now this might seem a bit confusing. I could probably say it better in person. I believe that you choose your path. The path that you choose will lead you to one destination. Our dreams may relate to this somehow in showing us what will become if we take the path that we've set for ourselves. Dejavu may mean that we are in the place that we are supposed to be. We are where our path set us for. That's the short version. The big milestones that change constantly in our lives such as moving, getting married, taking a big trip, are not often in Dejavu's, although they can be. Dejavu's, at least from my experience, are mostly about very insignificant things, like taking the milk out of the refrigerator as you were saying something, or writing something and thinking a specific thing as you write it as someone is saying something to you. Although the comfortable feeling of being somewhere that I have not been before has also crossed my mind for further collaboration. The reason all of this has come to mind is because being here seems so familiar. Just little things catch my attention as if I've already experienced them. Maybe it means something. Maybe I'm where I'm supposed to be. Anyway, I believe that the dejavu's aren't as simple as the public tries to make it. I believe there is a deeper meaning to it all and I will keep exploring all the possibilities.

Training, Training, Training

Well I've been through orientation. I was required to go to an hour and a half class explaining how to view patient files on a system two days ago. Now I'm in a 2 day class (8a-5p) oh how to schedule appointments and how to put insurance into the system. Even though I don't HAVE to deal with insurance, I am still required to take the second day of this class, which I am in now, explaining all of this. I wouldn't mind so much if it was interesting somehow. How does someone make these orientation classes something that employees want to attend? I don't mind attending them just because I get to wear my t-shirt and jeans instead of scrubs. But scrubs don't bother me so much simply because it feels like I'm working in pajamas:-). Maybe if the instructors wore clown suits, it would keep us entertained just enough to stay awake through the eight hour day of information. Maybe the instructors should also throw in some unrelated subliminal context to make sure if everyone is paying attention. None the less, just some random thoughts that might make these meetings more interesting for me. Unfortunately, I can't change these training sessions, even though it would be very encouraging and entertaining to attend if these suggestions were implemented!

The "Open Eyes Cafe"

It was Saturday night. We usually end up just going shopping and stocking up on our necessary items for the week, watching a movie or two, browse through stores for things we plan to buy to organize our apartment a bit better, and go home.

However, tonight, we thought of maybe going to a restaurant with live music. Since most of the performances required ticket purchases, we opted out of that. We looked further and found "Open Eyes Cafe" that had free live music, so we thought we'd check it out. It's a nice home like old building with a very classic look. It's as if you've walked into someone's house to listen to some music in a quiet environment. This is the perfect place to study, listen, relax, and sip coffee. I couldn't have asked for a better night. The performers, Josh and Heidi have a website called: www.heidismusic.com . They are very nice people and came together from two different backgrounds to form a group called, "Autumn in August". They write their own original compositions and have beautiful songs with voices to compliment. We chatted with them afterwards and were invited to jam with them sometime! We just might take them up on their offer in the future! As for now, I am back at work waiting for the next patient to arrive. We are just beginning to experience what this area has to offer.