I'm going to do a test run to change it up. I usually write my entries in a template.  It gives me direction and keeps my life organized.  Now, I'm just going to write or shall I say babble.  There's really noone on xanga anymore, but I still want to commit to something I've started.  It's sad, but I've stopped "journaling." I have a total of  13 journals that I had written in since 8th grade.  I am contemplating whether to start again.  I'll use xanga as my training wheels to get back into it.
      I was just reading Crystalyzed journal entry about 10 year reunion.  We had one too, but I chose not to go.   The group of high school friends that I would like to keep in touch with are my close friends now.  I see  them pretty often, so going to an engagement and awkwardly talk to people I know nothing about may be a little intimidating.  I've been so anti-social lately. Instead of going out to mingle, I tend to stay home under my sheets and sleep as much as possible during my free time.  My internships had been very stressful lately. I think I've aged 4 years within the last 2.5 months.  As much as I love make-up, I don't even bother with it anymore. All I have time for is the basic hygiene routine, 1 mins for contacts, and 30 secs to brush on my  bare escentuals 30 spf sunblock.  
     This free-flowing thing is not working for me. While writing, I'm stewing up another template in the back of my mind. Sorry, I will have to conform to it.

Highlights of the week:
Monday:  I look forward to "The Big Bang Theory"
Tuesday:  I look forward to "So You Think You Can Dance"
Wednesday: I look forward to "So You Think You Can Dance" and "Glee"
Thursday: I look forward to do yoga with Jeff
Friday: I used to look forward to Snapkids.org in Berkeley
 

Health:
So I did the Nike Womens' Marathon this past October.  Since I didn't train for it and I didn't want to injure myself,  I ended up doing the half instead.  Thanks to Henry, a mutual friend, I was able to  run the race with half the price and got my Tiffany & Co. necklace for finshing.  I really like the design from last year.  If I had to design it, I would like the pendant to be a little more dainty and circular.  The one from last year was nice, except I didn't run that race.  For not training, I ran 12.1 miles in 2:31.  I know it's slow.  Therefore, I will actuall train for the next one. 

ACADEMICS: 
A first grader asked me what grade I'm in. Puzzled, I tried to answer.  "What grade?"  I haven't heard that question for a while.  If I really have to answer and count, I've just completed my 18th grade, whatever that means.  Graduation was bitter sweet.  The ceremony, which was held at Paramount Theatre was so big that photo's that my parents took didn't come out right since the auditorium was dimmed, so I appeared to look like a teeny speck of blurry colored dot among a mass of black robes.  I recalled rushing to the dry cleaners right before the ceremony.  Frantically, we found a metered parking space and ran towards the pouring crowd of people.  It was 80 degrees hot and that heavy velvet hood weighed like a cow hanging off of my neck.  I had to take it off just to get hooded again in stage later in the ceremony.  As I spotted my classmates, I finally decided to put on my cap and tassle. It was such a pain, the elastic rim of the hat kept sliding off my head.  If there's any advice, bring LOTS of bobby pins.  It drove me nuts that it wouldn't stay on.  The speech was literally depressing, the school president walked up with her hairless head and fought to hold her smile as she spoke.  She went on about  how she's currently battling with cancer, going through chemotherapy, and how we as clinicians, needs to make a change healthcare system.  My heart sunk.  I exhaled to realize that the ceremony took a serious turn to a solemn atmosphere.  The audience was quiet, except for the dozen of babies that continued to bellow and cry; they can't help it of course. Instead of writing my first and last name, I put "thank you mom and dad" as my middle name.  The announcer guy winked and read it nonchalantly. I got hooded and went back to my seat, cheered for my classmates and waited for the rest of the classes ("Nursing BSN" and "Nursing ELMS") to walk.  The "PA (Physicians Assistants)" and "CRNA (Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetis)" decided to not attend; their program decided to have their own graduation ceremony I guess.  Speaking of CRNAs' they're going to be ballers making 150K a year. If any nurses are rethinking about their careers, CRNA, is the way to to go. I digressed.  Like any other graduations, noone threw their caps, and the ushers made us clear the out.  I guess the whole cap throwing ordeal only happens on TV.  I took a few pictures with friends and family, meaning exactly 5 pictures, and I left.  For some reason I couldn't wait to leave and now I kinda wished that I took more pictures.  I think this is my last graduation for at least another decade.  *DISCLAIMER: This is a delayed description of what went on back in May. Some minor details may be slightly distorted by the nature of fading memories. 

WORK:
Starting next week, my internship site will relocate to Castro Valley.  I checked out the facility brocure; it's always glorified. There's pictures of older adults sitting in flourished green lawn chair smiling with their big sun hats.   I guess that beats the Hayward site.  I'm still with ONR and I still have to wake up at the crack of dawn to make it to work at 7am. I usually leave around 5:30 with all my paper work and documentations.  Commuting from SF every morning really takes a toll. I've been stumbling around with a flashlight to get ready in the morning.  Scrubs are the best when you're in hurry.  Sometimes, I wear them to sleep the night before and roll out of my bed, brush up and zip out of the door.  They are so comphy and I get an extra 10 minutes of sleep.  At work, I have to learn random minor but important things that I didn't learn in grad school on top of doing my job.  For example, yesterday, I had to remove a GI feeding tube before a wheelchair transfer, raise a high back wheelchair with nuts, bolts and wrenches, operate a mechanical lift with a patient in a sling, transfer a patient with non weight bearing status on an arm and a leg, and replace O2 cannister.  And like usual, I still provide services for ADL skills training, neuromuscular re-education, energy conservation techniques, safety education, cognitive skills training, therapeutic excercises, wheelchair fittings, screening, prosthetic/orthotic training, caregiver training, continued assessments, in service presentation, goniomter/dynomomter measurements, passive range of motion, adaptive equipment training, fitting splints blah blah blah.......  Time flies when you're having fun. I can't believe I am halfway done with this internship already. I can't wait till I work with the pediatrics population for Albany school district.

Stop pressuring me..

I will not join FACEBOOK!!!

Cautious:   There's a girl that has the same name as me. Don't add her as your friend because it's not ME.

ACADEMICS: 
I finally walked for my graduation, which actually happened in May (just too lazy to blog about it). It was a little short of significant.  We really should graduate after our internships. None the less, it's just an empty dimploma since I still have to complete my 6 mos. internship before they mail me my real one. The last couple years of grad school went by slowly. At least, I've completed the didactics portion.  For my first internship, I'll be working for ONR Rehabiliation at a skilled nursing faciltiy.  For my second one I'll be working for Albany school district.  I should really update my profile since I may be gearing towards pediatrics.  Who knows what the job markets going to be like in half a year?!?  It's not great for the nursing new grads; just hoping that OTs' are still in demand. 

WORK:
So while waiting for my internship to start for the last 2 mos, I've been involve with a Youth in Medicine program for at risk youth in the heart of Oakland, held by Summit Medical Center and my school, Samuel Merritt University.  This year we are educating 28 girls and 27 boys who had been referred by social workers either because of the socioeconomic background or their living conditions (ie. abused, affected by poverty, etc). Most of these kids have some sort of behaviorial issue, but scored well on exams.  The sole purpose of the program is a preventive service to help them seek their way out of hopelessness. It will be interesting.  Ahh..  It's starting tommorow and I'll be teaching the "Living Skills" segment out of a series of courses taught by other DPM, BSN, ELMS, and OT students. 

LOVE:
Jeff and I had a movie date to "UP" in 3D.  The movie is sooo endearing and that pleasantly plumped kid, Russell, in the movie is sooo adorable.  It's very sentimental and sappy in a way.  Okay, no more spoilers.  You just have to go watch it.  For all you VISA signature card holders, I found out that if you can get buy one get one free movie tickets on Fandango (may be used once a month).  We've been taking advantage of it. It definately beats my student discount, which most theatres don't have anymore anyway.

HEALTH:
Once we're done with the apartment, we're going start the P90X. Yes, the one from the infomercial (<---is that a word?).  Since we can't properly install the the pull-up bar, we're not going to start till later. I can't speak for Jeff, but it's definately an excuse for me not to work out.  It's so hardcore. I only did the Ab RipperX and I practically died. It was soo hard.  Although I think it's really worth the pain to get that 4 or 6 pack in the end. 

Oh one more thing, I'll be starting the annual Nike marathon training again. It's starting next week. Contact me if you want to join us.  The more the merrier. 

In action!  (And no, I will not order from them.)

Analyn and I finished a full marathon and ran 26.2 miles yesterday....Yay

Thank you Jeff, Hanson, Eva, Wendy, Kim, Allison, for coming out to support us. 

Pictures will be on it's way.