Monday, January 31, 2011
New Photos!
So, in case you have not noticed, I have uploaded all of the photos from this last Christmas visit in AZ with Kristen and the family. I failed to mention that in my last post. Anyways, today our lectures were cancelled. We were supposed to have three ophthalmology lectures but apparently the lecturer has the flu. I had to be at the university for one practical though. The practical was on urinalysis, which I have done MANY times. They had the urine dip sticks out and the refractometer so that we could practice doing that, but I've done that so many times before that I didn't even bother with it. I focused more on reading the urine sediment cytology, which was much more fun than staring at urine dipsticks. We finished the practical and I caught the bus back home. I have yet to start on any notes...but eventually will. I hope the weather is warmer in AZ than here! It has been a wee bit nippy this week, but not horrible. So, on with this study thing... I hope everyone is having a good week so far. Talk to you all soon!
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
No Resits For Me!!!
So the university finally submitted our grades. They released the Clinical Foundations Course grades on Friday and I passed the written exam along with the suture and hand washing practical. Grades for Pathology were released today and I passed that as well. So I will have the entire summer break free without having to be back in Edinburgh to resit any of those exams! So relieved! Those were the toughest exams I've ever taken in my life and I feel so sorry for the people that didn't pass. Studying for those again will take up the entire summer break! We do have one exam before the Easter break and its a multiple choice exam that's worth 20% of the Integrated Dog and Cat course. The remaining 80% is on the exams right before we break for the summer. Hopefully that one won't be as difficult...
The weather has been getting nicer here and the days are getting longer. The sun has been out for the past few days with small bouts of rain, which isn't so bad. I started carpooling with a friend from class and it is so much nicer than riding on a bus! Plus, I get to class and have a plethora of seats to choose from rather than showing up late on the bus and having nothing but first row neck breaking seats to choose from! I've gotten my ticket to come back for Easter break and will be back in AZ for a little over a week and then heading up to Washington to see Kristin, Mike and Michelle! Then, when I'm finished with that trip, I'm going to be in Canada for two weeks to see Kristen and her family! What an amazing Easter break I have to look forward too!
I've also started physical therapy for my right shoulder now and it seems like it is getting better. The pain isn't as intense as it was before physio. The physical therapist told me that my posture is bad and that because I've been studying and sitting in a hunched position, my scapular muscles have become weakened and cannot support my shoulder like they should be. When she pressed against my scapula and told me to raise my arm, there was no pain. When she did not do that and I raised my arm, there was pain. So I have been working on my posture and doing my physio exercises as well as going to the gym and working on building up my scapular muscles and back muscles to help with posture. Hopefully this all pays off and I can go back to playing racquetball and lifting weights.
So sushi was on my mind this last week and I decided to have a go at making my own sushi rolls. The first sushi roll I made was a spicy tuna roll. I made it with too much rice though. The second roll was much better. I had three days of sushi and my rolls kept getting better and better. I've decided to hold off on making any more before I get too sick of them. I had baked haddock with a tomato sauce for dinner tonight that Kristen gave me the recipe for and it was DELICIOUS! Well, I better get going so I can get a restful sleep for tomorrow's TWO lectures! I have two dental lectures from 9am - 11am tomorrow and then finished for the day. Hope everyone is having a great week so far! Talk to you all soon!
The weather has been getting nicer here and the days are getting longer. The sun has been out for the past few days with small bouts of rain, which isn't so bad. I started carpooling with a friend from class and it is so much nicer than riding on a bus! Plus, I get to class and have a plethora of seats to choose from rather than showing up late on the bus and having nothing but first row neck breaking seats to choose from! I've gotten my ticket to come back for Easter break and will be back in AZ for a little over a week and then heading up to Washington to see Kristin, Mike and Michelle! Then, when I'm finished with that trip, I'm going to be in Canada for two weeks to see Kristen and her family! What an amazing Easter break I have to look forward too!
I've also started physical therapy for my right shoulder now and it seems like it is getting better. The pain isn't as intense as it was before physio. The physical therapist told me that my posture is bad and that because I've been studying and sitting in a hunched position, my scapular muscles have become weakened and cannot support my shoulder like they should be. When she pressed against my scapula and told me to raise my arm, there was no pain. When she did not do that and I raised my arm, there was pain. So I have been working on my posture and doing my physio exercises as well as going to the gym and working on building up my scapular muscles and back muscles to help with posture. Hopefully this all pays off and I can go back to playing racquetball and lifting weights.
So sushi was on my mind this last week and I decided to have a go at making my own sushi rolls. The first sushi roll I made was a spicy tuna roll. I made it with too much rice though. The second roll was much better. I had three days of sushi and my rolls kept getting better and better. I've decided to hold off on making any more before I get too sick of them. I had baked haddock with a tomato sauce for dinner tonight that Kristen gave me the recipe for and it was DELICIOUS! Well, I better get going so I can get a restful sleep for tomorrow's TWO lectures! I have two dental lectures from 9am - 11am tomorrow and then finished for the day. Hope everyone is having a great week so far! Talk to you all soon!
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Back in Edinburgh and attempting to get back into the study groove...
So after an amazing 3 weeks back home, I am finally back in Edinburgh. I had such an amazing time with everyone and had a great time with Kristen coming to AZ to meet the family. I took her up to Sedona and the Grand Canyon and it was so beautiful when we were there! The red rocks of Sedona and the snow / sunset combination at the Grand Canyon made for some amazing photos! I can definitely say that while I was back home, I had my filling of food! I went out to so many restaurants and had a lot of great dinners at home from mom! Sapporo was by far my favorite place that I ate because the teppanyaki table was awesome! There sure was a lot of food that came with the meal though! I was sad to leave on Thursday, I really was and I miss everyone so much.
I finally got in to Edinburgh on Friday morning 8.20am. I nearly missed my flight in New York. I got off of my first flight and made my way to Terminal 1, however, I managed to take the wrong train so I was going backwards away from terminal 1. I noticed this right away and got off of the train and got onto the right train. I made my way through security and while I was standing in line, I heard an announcement for final boarding call for flight AF023, which was my flight! Okay, so I had about 20 minutes before departure and I still hadn't made it through security, let alone up to the person checking boarding passes/tickets! I was so stressed out! I got through security and quickly put my shoes on, grabbed my laptop, coat and backpack (didn't even bother putting anything back in my backpack) and RAN to my gate. I finally got to the gate and there were about 5 flight attendants waiting at the gate looking towards me. I walked up to the ticketing desk and before I even handed over my ticket, the man said, "hello Mr. Fonza"! Wow, I've never been greeted by name at the gate before! I guess that means they were definitely holding the gate open for me! Thank god!
I made it to Paris and then on to Edinburgh with no problems. Arrived in Edinburgh at 8.20am and got through customs and made my way to baggage claim. I walked up just as I heard my last name being announced. So I walked up to the lady and confirmed that she said my name. Apparently, my baggage and the baggage of some other people was lost in transit to Edinburgh. So we had to give out our information and they said the bag would be delivered between 4-5pm or the next morning. I dropped off my backpack at the flat and took a bus down to the city. I walked around a bit, picked up some groceries and stayed out as long as I could so that I wouldn't be too tired. By the time I got home, I had been awake for over 24 hours and the lack of sleep was getting to me. The bus rides were putting me to sleep each and every time I got on. By the time I got home, made dinner and wound down from a hectic journey and busy morning, I was absolutely knackered! I went to sleep around 7.30pm and at 8.45pm I received a phone call that woke me up. It felt like I had been asleep for 5 hours when it had only been a little over an hour! I answered the phone and it was the courier with my bag. He showed up 15 minutes later and I slowly made my way to the front door, grabbed my bag, signed the device the guy had, closed the door, went back to my room and fell into bed, where I was to sleep until 12pm the next day! I guess I really needed the sleep! I was so tired the next day. Because I waited to sleep, I did not get jet lagged and was caught up on the time change by the next day.
So I am now catching up with the notes on the lectures that I missed and am halfway through. I have class tomorrow until noon, so will be able to get a lot done tomorrow. I hope everyone is having a great weekend and I miss you all already! Sorry I was unable to get to see some of you, it was a busy 3 weeks I had in AZ and did not have much time to see every person I wanted to. Hopefully I will be back in Easter, if not, I will definitely be back in the summer for a month and a half. Talk to you all soon!
I finally got in to Edinburgh on Friday morning 8.20am. I nearly missed my flight in New York. I got off of my first flight and made my way to Terminal 1, however, I managed to take the wrong train so I was going backwards away from terminal 1. I noticed this right away and got off of the train and got onto the right train. I made my way through security and while I was standing in line, I heard an announcement for final boarding call for flight AF023, which was my flight! Okay, so I had about 20 minutes before departure and I still hadn't made it through security, let alone up to the person checking boarding passes/tickets! I was so stressed out! I got through security and quickly put my shoes on, grabbed my laptop, coat and backpack (didn't even bother putting anything back in my backpack) and RAN to my gate. I finally got to the gate and there were about 5 flight attendants waiting at the gate looking towards me. I walked up to the ticketing desk and before I even handed over my ticket, the man said, "hello Mr. Fonza"! Wow, I've never been greeted by name at the gate before! I guess that means they were definitely holding the gate open for me! Thank god!
I made it to Paris and then on to Edinburgh with no problems. Arrived in Edinburgh at 8.20am and got through customs and made my way to baggage claim. I walked up just as I heard my last name being announced. So I walked up to the lady and confirmed that she said my name. Apparently, my baggage and the baggage of some other people was lost in transit to Edinburgh. So we had to give out our information and they said the bag would be delivered between 4-5pm or the next morning. I dropped off my backpack at the flat and took a bus down to the city. I walked around a bit, picked up some groceries and stayed out as long as I could so that I wouldn't be too tired. By the time I got home, I had been awake for over 24 hours and the lack of sleep was getting to me. The bus rides were putting me to sleep each and every time I got on. By the time I got home, made dinner and wound down from a hectic journey and busy morning, I was absolutely knackered! I went to sleep around 7.30pm and at 8.45pm I received a phone call that woke me up. It felt like I had been asleep for 5 hours when it had only been a little over an hour! I answered the phone and it was the courier with my bag. He showed up 15 minutes later and I slowly made my way to the front door, grabbed my bag, signed the device the guy had, closed the door, went back to my room and fell into bed, where I was to sleep until 12pm the next day! I guess I really needed the sleep! I was so tired the next day. Because I waited to sleep, I did not get jet lagged and was caught up on the time change by the next day.
So I am now catching up with the notes on the lectures that I missed and am halfway through. I have class tomorrow until noon, so will be able to get a lot done tomorrow. I hope everyone is having a great weekend and I miss you all already! Sorry I was unable to get to see some of you, it was a busy 3 weeks I had in AZ and did not have much time to see every person I wanted to. Hopefully I will be back in Easter, if not, I will definitely be back in the summer for a month and a half. Talk to you all soon!
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Stuck in Edinburgh...
So I woke up at 5.45am this morning and finished my packing and started walking to the bus stop. As I was going to the bus stop, I was thinking, "Hmmm, today is Sunday and the buses don't run that often, GREAT...", and sure enough, the next bus wasn't due for 30 minutes. So I started walking to the airport bus stop, which would have taken me 40 minutes at the least. So a taxi approached and I flagged it down. I got down to the airport bus stop and managed to catch the 7am bus to the airport. I got in line at the airport, checked in and made my way through security. So it was smooth sailing the entire morning and then my flight was delayed by an hour...
I waited about a half hour and all of a sudden it was white outside. A huge snow storm moved through Edinburgh airport for the next 4 hours and the entire airport shut down. One person I knew from class managed to take off right as they closed down the airspace. I waited until 2.30pm and when that time came, the flight status on the board said "Cancelled". I was so angry (and still am). I do not want to deal with this right now, I would just like to go home. The weather in Paris was quite bad so they shut that airport down as well because of bad weather. Now I have to work on trying to rebook my ticket and I was unable to get through to Air France because of the high volume of callers.
They open at 8am tomorrow morning, so I have my alarm set for 7.45am to prepare a long morning of trying to get through to someone because I'm assuming there are going to be thousands of people trying to get through to rebook their cancelled flights. I called Travelocity and they are going to try and get through to Air France and the guy with Travelocity said they have a direct line to call Air France so they should be able to come up with alternative dates for me to come. I'm really hoping they have flights available before Christmas because I will be quite upset if I don't make it out of here in time for Christmas. If I can't get through tomorrow or don't hear from Travelocity, then I'm heading down to the airport to the ticket check-in and talking to someone in person. I'm sure they can book tickets from the check-in counter with no problems. I officially hate snow...
To make things worse, I had to wait 30 minutes for my luggage and then buy another 6 pound return bus fare and then I picked up a city bus and managed to get on a bus that I thought went down all the way to my street, but it didn't. Let me tell you, pulling a suitcase in boots that have no traction (they are completely flat on the bottom) in slushy snow for 40 minutes is not my idea of a good time...
I spoke with a guy from Travelocity (after being on hold for an hour) and he told me they would call Air France via their direct line and arrange some different flights that I could choose from. He said to expect a call within the next 24-48 hours on that. So, I'm going to attempt to call Air France all day tomorrow, they open at 8am so I have my alarm set for 7.45am to wake up and get ready to start redialing all day long because there are going to be MANY people calling tomorrow morning to try and get a new flight. If I wasn't flying into Paris today, I would have been able to leave. Stupid snow, that's all I have to say. After all of these stressful exams and nothing but studying the last 3 months straight, this is not what I really want to deal with at this point, I really don't. Snow is only good for one thing, skiing, and that's IT! Even now, because of what the snow has done with the flights, puts me out of the "skiing mood" that I have been in for a while. Oh well! I guess things happen for a reason, so I'm just going to sit back and relax tonight and start frantically calling all over tomorrow and possibly heading down to the ticketing desk at the airport tomorrow. Hopefully I will be back for Christmas! I'll keep everyone posted! Wish me luck!
I waited about a half hour and all of a sudden it was white outside. A huge snow storm moved through Edinburgh airport for the next 4 hours and the entire airport shut down. One person I knew from class managed to take off right as they closed down the airspace. I waited until 2.30pm and when that time came, the flight status on the board said "Cancelled". I was so angry (and still am). I do not want to deal with this right now, I would just like to go home. The weather in Paris was quite bad so they shut that airport down as well because of bad weather. Now I have to work on trying to rebook my ticket and I was unable to get through to Air France because of the high volume of callers.
They open at 8am tomorrow morning, so I have my alarm set for 7.45am to prepare a long morning of trying to get through to someone because I'm assuming there are going to be thousands of people trying to get through to rebook their cancelled flights. I called Travelocity and they are going to try and get through to Air France and the guy with Travelocity said they have a direct line to call Air France so they should be able to come up with alternative dates for me to come. I'm really hoping they have flights available before Christmas because I will be quite upset if I don't make it out of here in time for Christmas. If I can't get through tomorrow or don't hear from Travelocity, then I'm heading down to the airport to the ticket check-in and talking to someone in person. I'm sure they can book tickets from the check-in counter with no problems. I officially hate snow...
To make things worse, I had to wait 30 minutes for my luggage and then buy another 6 pound return bus fare and then I picked up a city bus and managed to get on a bus that I thought went down all the way to my street, but it didn't. Let me tell you, pulling a suitcase in boots that have no traction (they are completely flat on the bottom) in slushy snow for 40 minutes is not my idea of a good time...
I spoke with a guy from Travelocity (after being on hold for an hour) and he told me they would call Air France via their direct line and arrange some different flights that I could choose from. He said to expect a call within the next 24-48 hours on that. So, I'm going to attempt to call Air France all day tomorrow, they open at 8am so I have my alarm set for 7.45am to wake up and get ready to start redialing all day long because there are going to be MANY people calling tomorrow morning to try and get a new flight. If I wasn't flying into Paris today, I would have been able to leave. Stupid snow, that's all I have to say. After all of these stressful exams and nothing but studying the last 3 months straight, this is not what I really want to deal with at this point, I really don't. Snow is only good for one thing, skiing, and that's IT! Even now, because of what the snow has done with the flights, puts me out of the "skiing mood" that I have been in for a while. Oh well! I guess things happen for a reason, so I'm just going to sit back and relax tonight and start frantically calling all over tomorrow and possibly heading down to the ticketing desk at the airport tomorrow. Hopefully I will be back for Christmas! I'll keep everyone posted! Wish me luck!
Friday, December 17, 2010
Finished with exams!!!
I am officially FINISHED with exams (for 2010)!!!!!!!!!! This day couldn't come any faster! I am so exhausted from the grueling days of studying that have taken place for the last 3 months and the last 2 weeks straight! We had Pathology today, the written portion, and it wasn't too harsh. I was able to answer the majority of the questions with confidence. I went to the pub at 3pm for a well-deserved pint of lager with a bunch of course mates. I'm going to head to Glasgow tomorrow to check out the Christmas market there and see what they have good to buy! I will be arriving in Phoenix at 9.30pm and I am really hoping that the flights here in Edinburgh will be unaffected by the snow that is about to arrive. Apparently London is experiencing issues with planes taking off and landing with all of the ice and snow they are getting. Apparently Paris is backed up, but I never got the full story on that so I am unsure of flight conditions in Paris right now. Darn snow! It's only allowed to snow when I am skiing in it...
Before I go, I have an interesting observational fact:
Why is it that if you blow in a dogs face it gets mad, yet when you take him on a car ride he sticks his head straight out the window?
I came across that on the internet earlier, I thought it was amusing. I do have an answer for the above question though, it's the same reaction someone gives you when you blow in their face and it smells like you have just eaten an entire loaf of garlic bread! I'm sure dogs feel the same way and their sense of smell is 50-100 times more sensitive than ours. Can you imagine smelling someone's garlic breath with a sense of smell like that? Blah!
Before I go, I have an interesting observational fact:
Why is it that if you blow in a dogs face it gets mad, yet when you take him on a car ride he sticks his head straight out the window?
I came across that on the internet earlier, I thought it was amusing. I do have an answer for the above question though, it's the same reaction someone gives you when you blow in their face and it smells like you have just eaten an entire loaf of garlic bread! I'm sure dogs feel the same way and their sense of smell is 50-100 times more sensitive than ours. Can you imagine smelling someone's garlic breath with a sense of smell like that? Blah!
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Second practical exam over!
Today was the last of the two practical examinations and it was on hand washing and being able to demonstrate the proper way to wash your hands, which I am quite confident that I passed with flying colors. At times, the examiner was not even watching my hands and was talking to me about the weather and we were talking about me going back home for Christmas. You see, I had a strategy, and that strategy was to get the examiner interested in a conversation and she would pay less attention to what I was doing with my hand washing. It seemed like it was working too! Hehe, now for tomorrow...
Tomorrow is the Pathology spot exam where they will project images of pathological conditions/lesions up on the screen and we have to describe any changes/abnormalities we see and diagnose the condition as best as we can. As long as I can describe the lesion/condition I see, the diagnosis portion is worth a very small fraction of the total points for each question. The majority of the points are given on your capability to describe any changes you can see. Anyway, off to bed I go so I can get my full 8 hours of sleep in for the morning! Wish me luck! I'll post an update on how I did tomorrow. Only three more days and I will be done!!!
Tomorrow is the Pathology spot exam where they will project images of pathological conditions/lesions up on the screen and we have to describe any changes/abnormalities we see and diagnose the condition as best as we can. As long as I can describe the lesion/condition I see, the diagnosis portion is worth a very small fraction of the total points for each question. The majority of the points are given on your capability to describe any changes you can see. Anyway, off to bed I go so I can get my full 8 hours of sleep in for the morning! Wish me luck! I'll post an update on how I did tomorrow. Only three more days and I will be done!!!
Monday, December 13, 2010
First practical exam over!
The first practical exam is finally over! I had my exam at 10.40am today. I went to the hospital for small animals at the campus and I signed in and was told to read instructions on the wall for what we were to be doing. We had to tie a simple interrupted suture pattern in a fake wound that was draped off with a fenestrated drape while maintaining the sterile field. So I went in and was told to put a pair of gloves on (just plain nitrile gloves) and then approach the surgery table. I approached and grabbed needle holders and rat-toothed thumb forceps and tied my suture. I thought I would be shaking but I really didn't shake all that bad. I cut the ends and laid the instruments back onto the table. The man that was grading me asked if at any point did I break the sterile field? To which I replied, "no I did not", and I am 99% positive I did not. The entire process took about 2-3 minutes and I walked out. Woohoo! One day down, four to go! Tomorrow is another practical (either gowning, instrument identification or handwashing). Whatever it is, I will rock it! Anyway, I should be off so I can study some more. Talk to you all very soon! Oh, and in just 6 days I will see most of you (granted that the snow that is supposed to arrive doesn't halt flights)!
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