6.6 Billion +1

Congratulations Nori and Robert! Welcome Maya. Be nice to your mom and dad. This is their first time. The rest of your family is a little crazy, but don't worry, the food is great.

FYI

Dear Professors/Advisors/Mentors,

I know that the end of the semester is rapidly approaching. And yes, I am aware that my thesis must be completed in order for me to graduate. However, the looks of alarm that you have been giving me lately DO NOT HELP. I am doing the best I can, given the situation. I don't need to be reminded that "the thesis deadline is coming up", or that I "don't have much time left", or that I "really need to get my thesis done". I KNOW.
So if you could please refrain from staring at me as if I were prey in the process of being mauled by a bear, and stop endlessly repeating your alarmist comments, I would greatly appreciate it.
Thank you very much.

Yours Truly,
Becky

Wildlife Sighting

I was driving back from Johns Island today (this is a rural part of Charleston County) and I saw something that I don't think I've every seen before. Maybe in a zoo once but I'm not even sure about that. Anyway, I was driving and I see this black thing fly down to the street. When I first saw it, it was only about a foot of the ground and it was pretty far away so I couldn't really judge its size. I thought, "Looks like someone's got a chicken loose," thinking that there were some farms nearby. Then I thought more clearly and figured it was just a crow.

But then I got closer. "That's one big crow," I thought. And I as I passed it, I realized what it was. A freakin' vulture! There was a second one that I didn't even see until I passed them. They were feasting at what looked like possum roadkill. Two vultures scavenging on some possum! Man, I wish I had a cameraphone.

Uninformed Sports Opinion

My bracket was completely obliterated by the Sweet 16. I got 1 Elite Eight team right (UConn) and 0 Final Four. This has definitely been the worst year ever. Fortunately, Mr Reik didn't have a family pool this year and I was able to save my quarter. I guess my limited knowledge beforehand methodology didn't work at all. I've got a whole year to devise a new system. Maybe something statistically based. Or which mascot would beat which mascot in a real-life fight like a tiger would beat a longhorn but not a bruin? Or maybe which team has the hotter cheerleaders? Any suggestions?

Bad Karma or Good Karma?

I guess I wasn't feeling like Ice Cube today because it just hasn't been a good day. It took me forever to get up. And just when I thought everything was copacetic, I ended up at the bus stop without my id (which works as my pass) and no cash so I had to drive to school. I hate doing that because of traffic and I'm a cheap treehugger. Of course, I couldn't just go back to my apartment because by the time I got back the bus would have left.

Then I went to the hospital to pick up my clinical assignment for tomorrow. I had a feeling I wouldn't get the wound care rotation this week, but getting it would have been nice because then I wouldn't have to preplan. What I got was the worst though. Next to my name was the word "wound," but then it was scribbled out and a patient's name was written to the right of it. Just my luck. But I guess that means I'm up next week. To add to my misery, the patient's chart was with the docs doing rounds so I couldn't look at it right then. Of course, that's the only place with the information I needed since the hospital doesn't use a computer system at all! So, I had to come back at 4 after my psych class to do my preplanning. I leave the hospital at 5 and it takes me an hour plus to go the 8 miles home.

As I re-read the last two paragraphs, I realized that if this is what I have to complain about then my life is pretty sweet. Being stuck in traffic and having to do work that I signed up for. Geez, I really should stop whining and appreciate what I have. Dang. This post even has a cheesy afterschool special message to it. Schweet!