Sheeps

Today was a good day.  It started with our first lecture in Veterinary Public Health. I can honestly say that this part of the field does not do much for me, as crucial as it is, but the lecturer was really good.  He was an Italian with a strong accent.  I got such a kick out of how he basically added a vowel to the end of each word.  Second lecture was a kicker - embryology again with a focus on cranial nerves.  I'm enjoying this part of the course; it's challenging and interesting.  It's so amazing to learn which type of cells each of our body parts are formed.

This afternoon, we got to play with sheep for our 3 hour practical out at Easter Bush farm.  How much fun was that??  The vet school's 'shepherd', was a fantastic teacher.   Sheep are flock animals, so once you get one going in a direction, they allllll follow.  They do not like to be isoloated at all.  We were taught how to catch them - get them bunched into a group in the corner of the pen preferably, pick out the one you want and get right up next to him.  He should be in a position where he doesn't have any room to run either with fencing or other sheep surrounding him.  Then, get your hand under his chin and lift up. Voila...you have control of a sheep.  You use your whole body to get him against the corral so he can't easily escape.  We were shown how to age a sheep up to about 2years, 9 months by looking at his teeth, how to sex him/her, how to condition score him (feeling lower back, and vertebral protubrances) to determine how his overall body condition is on a scale of 0-5.  Zero is basically dead and 5 is a fatty, fat, fat. We learned how to 'flip' them.  That's not really the correct term, but it's well known.  It means to put them on their butt and have their back leaning up against your body.  They really cannot move once you get them there and it's easy to look at their mouth, sex them and generally check out their underside.  We also learned how to judge their weight....this is harder than it sounds. Different breeds not only have different fleece (making them look bigger or smaller), but also are shorter, stockier, leggier, etc, making it all more difficult.  Plus, we have to do it in kilograms, which my mind does not easily think in yet. We also practiced 'worming' them orally with water.  It was a very productive practical and I feel like just a few hours with these animals, I gained so much confidence in handling them.  They can get quite skiddish if you don't do some techniques properly and can jump straight in the air out of nowhere. Lots of fun and informative. 

I'm now enjoying the most favorite part of my day...spending quality time with my boys and having a cocktail.  They must have been awake most of the day looking for me out the window because they are both now passed out on my desk while I type.  Really good thing I bought a desk with a large surface area.  They have no clue they are dogs sometimes. 

Time for a little bite to eat then a bit of studying.  I just cannot believe tomorrow is already Friday again!  The weeks are just flying by.

Over-N-Out

Feelin' mo betta

It appears as though I've kicked some nasty stomach flu before it got to me.  Swollen, hard, lymph node is smaller and not sore any more.  Sore throat is absent.  Looks like my immune system may actually be working these days.  Whew! 

So, I must first complain. With that being said, I do promise to do a post on what I love about the UK and what I cannot fathom/stand about the UK.  As a sneak peek, I really despise the delivery system here for mail and shipped goods.  Here's the major problem, a lot of people live in tenements that have a keyed door to the outside and once you are in, has all of the separate flat doors which are also keyed. The Royal mail slots are on our private flat doors, so once the mailman is in, he can just mail through the slot. There is a buzzer/speaker system on the outside of most buildings corresponding to each individual flat (and even a 'service' one that will buzz all flats at once) so that you can unlock the outer door from inside your flat.  The problem, of course, is that deliveries and postal service are usually in the middle of the day and many times...guess what...no one is home. So, the mail or delivery goes back on the truck and you are none the wiser for the most part until you finally get it and see the delivery history.  It infuriates me to get an important piece of mail a week late stamped 4 times with 'no entry', or a package with multiple delivery attempts that I paid extra for the shipping.  The horribly frustrating part about deliveries is that they tell you they will deliver sometime between 7am and 7pm.  Great, so you really think everyone is a stay-at-home mom or a bustout hanging lying on the couch playing video games all day? 

The company that tried to deliver my much needed textbooks on Monday (while I was at university) was kind enough to leave a note outside to either re-schedule a delivery or arrange to pick up.  I would have been fine picking it up (since I don't have any days off), but the hub was about 30 minutes away, out near the airport.  So, I took my chances and scheduled it for the day I only had two lectures and got here 20 minutes before it was delivered.  Terrible system.  Terrible.

Now on to brighter things. Embryology I am finding rather interesting so far.  Things are moving very quickly, but at least we have great lecturers and the material is mostly new for me.  Tomorrow, we get our first lecture in Veterinary Public Health and do a sheep handling practical....read: flipping sheep!  I'm looking forward to the farm stuff, as usual.

So, my next post I think I will actually explain what my program is, what it entails, what I will be when I graduate (note, I did not say when I grew up) and what all the letters behind my name will mean. 

I've been really productive today and need to finish on a high note, so I'm going to look over what I'm doing tomorrow. 

Ciao. 

Over-N-Out

Two Great Nights.....

I had the best night ever last night.  I got to see an old high school friend and her mom here in Edinburgh!  We both played soccer our entire lives in VA and graduated the same year from West Springfield.  She has been living in London the past 2.5 years with her husband and two daughters.  Her husband is a federal agent for Homeland Security and got a post over here. Her kids were kind of at the end of their rope after a long day of traveling and sightseeing, so her husband stayed home with them while she and mom met me out.  I was bummed I didn't get to meet her husband and kids, but I was told it was for the best!

We met at the Filling Station (where I had been the night before) because it was convenient and I knew where to go.  We had an absolutely fabulous time catching up.  She gave me some sage advice about coping with an international move.  She was told (by her old employer who is a global kind of guy) that she'd be crazy to try and continue working once she got here and that it'd take 6-12 months to adjust to the culture shock. She said she was surprised, but her old boss was 100% right and she was thankful she listened. This made me feel soooo much better about things because I was a bit homesick and sad last week for no apparent reason.  I thought I should have been 'over it' by now, but this is just not the case.  I was reassured that it simply takes time and was given lots and lots of suggestions on how to best cope.

It seems like I'm completely going to switch subjects here, but it's so relevant. Today, we had a TWO HOUR presentation (that i thought would be a waste, but wasn't at all) on vet students' mental health and well-being.  Did you know, veterinarians have one of the highest suicide rates across the board?  Yes, it's frighteningly true.  Our lecturer is a veterinarian and did her PhD in this area of study.  There are many reasons for this fact, but basically vet and med students come from kind of the same mold - competitive, type A personalities.  No, dear brother, I am not just a carefree, wind-in-my-hair, Harley-Davidson-driving free spirit...I'm pretty sure you know this after last year :).

As vets, we will have the ability to legally cease the life of animals that are considered family to people.  And they will look to us for comfort and to be strong for them.  There will be a ton of loss, grief, long hours, compromised family lives and an enormous amount of responsibility thrust on our shoulders.  Our 'type' is to hold it all in and not admit weakness, or a mental ill-health.  The studies are numerous and the numbers staggering.

The take home message from my visit last night and my lecture today were very similar.

1.  Stay in close contact with your friends and family (I'll catch up on phone calls soon, I promise!)
2. Get involved in activities outside of the vet school bubble.
3. Exercise....or do something to clear your head.
4. Be wary of alcohol and/or drug dependency.
5. Know that being a veterinarian should not define you...continue with other interests and be well-rounded.  You WILL have bad days/months/years as a vet and must be able to associate yourself with something other than just being a vet.
6.  Get plenty of rest and get away for a weekend, if needed. 
7.  Be very careful of being too competitive with classmates - you will all become a vet and need each other's support to get there.  We are here and are now teammates.
8. Recognize when you are having difficulties and get help, if needed.

I have a classmate who lost TWO close friends this week from college in unrelated events.  She is from the US and is devastated.  It is crucial that we can be her 'family' for her now. We will all need to rely on one another to get through all that will be thrown our way over the next five years.  I think for us international students, it is all finally sinking in that we are indeed living in a foreign country and this is not vacation any more.

So, I am happy and relieved.  I had a long day today and actually took the night off from studying.  I went to the first bible study group on the Book of Isaiah led by Fr. Tim. It just so happened the postgraduate society at he church (STAGGS) was also meeting tonite in the common rooom. I joined them afterwards in the middle of quiz night.  Most of them are PhD students, so the questions I found a bit difficult (even the 'nature' ones).  But, there was a very inexpensive cash bar, so all was not lost. Not bad when you can have bible study in the basement, go up one flight and hang out in a lounge having a few cocktails, eats and laughs.  Another good night. 

I'm still feeling a bit under the weather and will go to bed NOW in order to get a good night's sleep. Looks to be a really good week.  We are getting into unchartered territory now with our lectures. Today was embryology and in about 2 weeks we start Anatomy!!!! Thank goodness.  I believe we will do an entire dissection of the dog over a few months.  YAY!

Ok, good night and Over-N-Out

the Real Mary King's Close Tour

We went on this tour last night, which was a lot of fun. It's the old underground of Edinburgh.  People used to live in a lot more confined spaces than they do today and were stacked upon each other.  Edinburgh is very hilly and the tour is mostly underground the city today, but was not such back in the day.  Here is a link to the tour.  http://www.realmarykingsclose.com/

We met at the pub first for some pints and chow.  It was called the Filling Station.  We are in there waving, but it's hard to see: 

We had to have a group photo prior to the tour.  These are all vet students (i think)....

The Plague hit Edinburgh hard and the doctors used to wear these masks because they thought it might be transmitted by smell, so they put sweet smelling herbs inside the masks.  It's also where they coined the term 'Quack' for a doctor (that may or may not be true :-))

Unfortunately, no cameras were allowed down in the dungeons, but they did take a group picture of us.  One of the students bought it, but when it was printed out, it didn't look so good.  They told her to come back with just our group and they'd take another one.  We were back at the pub and only 5 of us were left, so we got this spooky pic.  This would have been the street at that time. It was very narrow and really steep.  It was also where everyone threw their waste out into twice a day and it flowed down to the water.

This is a diorama of the close.  They ended up building the city council building on top of a good portion of it, which is portrayed in the last picture.

It was a full moon last night, which made everything that much spookier.  The moon over St. Giles church was really cool.  Too bad the picture didn't come out better, but still pretty neat.

A few more pints after the tour and it was time to call it a night.  And a fun night it was.

I can't believe it's the beginning of another week. I had a good day today. Went to Mass, played soccer with the BB, gave BB a bath, took a nap, studied some and now.........I'm going to go get ready to go see a high school friend!!!  She is in town with her family and I can't wait to see her.  Waiting for them to call and give me the 4-1-1, but it will be a pub somewhere near where I was last night. 

In other news, I cannot believe it, but I have a sore throat starting again.  I just cannot seem to stay healthy.  It's not just me though, everyone is getting sick and either not getting better or feeling good for a little bit then it starts all over.  I also am getting a bit of a fever blister, so not too happy about it right now.  At least I still feel good enough to go out.  Tomorrow may be a different story.

I have a fairly tough week coming up with lots of practicals and some pretty tough lectures.  I will need to make sure I get enough rest.

Till next time...

Over-N-Out 



I am Not tired

My sleeping schedule has been out of whack lately, thanks to me.  I stay up late because I am without question a night owl and get my best work done at night....then, I get up early....then, I go to lectures/practicals/study all day......then, I come home and take a nap......then, I stay up too late.  Thus, the cycle continues.  I feel like I'm missing out if I go to bed before midnight!  This has got to stop though.  I end up getting enough sleep, but need to wake up a bit more refreshed.  The fact that I only have two lectures tomorrow makes it easier to stay up late.  However, I am meeting with two other classmates directly afterwards to go over some difficult material and then meeting a group for coffee at 2pm.  I got accepted to Edinburgh about a year and a half ago and deferred a year.  I met a few US students online that would have been in my class had I matriculated in 2009.  I stayed in contact with them and am finally meeting one (and 4 of her classmates) tomorrow.  I haven't met her yet because her class has already been transferred out to the new teaching facility at Easter Bush (where I will be next Fall).  So, all in all, it will be a long day anyways.  Good new is, espresso tends to really kick me into another gear.  So, maybe I won't nap tomorrow and will go to bed at a reasonable hour.

I've been kind of homesick lately...just missing the usual - friends, family, warm, sunny days, stop signs, big blue Toyota Sequioa's, mountain biking in my backyard and US TV!!!  I am not even going to start on the TV here, because it upsets me too much.  All I have to say, is that if I had DirecTv here, I would not be nearly as homesick.  Seriously. 

Enough of my complaining....  So, the best news is that I just talked to some of my old colleagues and business partners.  They were all together and having an incredible dinner together. I really miss those times.  It made me sad on one note, but much more fulfilled on another.  It is so good to hear familiar voices, remember great times and share a laugh with those you care about.  So, to all of my family and friends...know that I'm missing you, thinking of you and any little bit of interaction goes a long way.  Sooooo, don't be shy and leave a comment or two on my blog so I know you are here :-) 

Exciting news of the day: dissection of the rabbit was absolutely amazing.  I'll post pictures soon.  I only took a few before dissection and then hands got too funky to use my camera, but another student managed to get some good shots and I'll pirate some of her pics (with her permission, of course).

Good Night All. Sweet Dreams. Now I'm tired.

Over-N-Out

Sorry, little bunny foo foo

Tomorrow, we finally cut!  Dissection of the rabbit...yes!  Not sure why we are tackling the rabbit and how it relates to our current lectures, but I don't care, I'm cutting away.  Hand me the scalpel.  I am pretty sure we can take picutures, so be prepared.

I am finally feeling a bit better.  I had a nasty sore throat, congested thing going on for about 9 days.  Still have a tinge of the sore throat, but felt good enough to cancel my *free* doctor's appointment today.  I have to finish up quite a bit before tomorrow, which is a jam-packed day, so I'll say goodnight.

Good Night :)

Why are they sabotaging me?

Apparently neither one of the Bingo Boyz wants me to actually become a veterinarian.  Or, they think I can do it by osmosis by reading through them.

First Harley Bones last week:

Harley must have said something to the Mugs, because now he's trying to make sure I can't study:

Then, when he figured I could still read the computer screen:

So, we had a little chat and this is what he demanded:

The fun never ends at the Flat on Marchmont!

Back to the books.....