School is back with a brand new invention...

(Stop, collaborate and listen?)

Uh, yeah.

Anyway, school has started again, and with a vengeance. It worries me a little that after only 3 days I'm feeling just as stressed as I was halfway through last term and I've already decided that A&P is likely to be my easiest class. I mean, really? A&P?

Actually, that isn't entirely true. I do have two 1 credit classes that will be easy, but I hardly count those. Pharmacy math is only 1 hour a week and seems to consist only of conversions and calculations that would be entirely unnecessary if the US would just convert to the freaking metric system already! *ahem*.

The other 1 credit class is yoga, and it's a joke. We didn't even do yoga in the first class (a bit of a shock to the 8 of us from the tech program who are used to being thrown in off the deep end on the first day of class) and instead spent 45 minutes going over a 2 page syllabus and then learned how to breath for 15 minutes. Yes, that's right. This class is going to be paiiiiinful. I'll be sure to report back on how my inner self is progressing in learning how to inhale the life force surrounding me. No, I'm not exaggerating. She used more flowery language than that, but the reality was that I was still lying face down on a stained rubber mat that smelled like sunscreen and feet while trying to "find my exhale". Don't get me wrong, I know how important breathing is in yoga, and in life in general. But I'd like to see you try to focus on calm breathing under those conditions while the instructor tells us that "when you're born, you cry, and that's your first breath. Then, when you die...that's your last breath". I just have to make sure not to sit next to Alona because we already made each other laugh once during the syllabus reading when we saw the assignment to make a collage showing our inner growth and connection to yoga. I don't want to have to answer the "what's so funny?" question again.

As for the other classes, they're going to be hard. Really hard. I printed off the first half of my parasitology notes (all 150 pages worth) and this class is going to kick our butts. We need to know a lot of parasites, and we need to know their common names, genus and species, viable hosts including at what stage they inhabit which host, life cycles, treatments and visual identification. Oh dear lord.

Nursing and restraint is sounding slightly easier, but I know that's just my inner wishful child saying "Oh, Henson won't be such a hard ass this term, she likes us!" Ha! Of course she likes us, that's why she's going to whip us into shape so we'll be good techs. If that means pop quizzes, excruciating practical exams and auctioneer style lecturing, then so be it. We started off this week with a lecture on grooming and then had a quick demo in lab of how to use clippers. We were supposed to practice knots but the rope had apparently gone AWOL so we all need to pick up rope to practice with. Last year's students walked around with rope around their shoulders so they could practice whenever they had a free moment. I think wrapping mine around my neck might be more appropriate.

Anyway, I've been putting the camera to good use and will continue to do so. All the school dogs tested positive for giardia over break (oh goody!) so they've been prescribed daily baths for 5 days. Guess who the lucky bathers are? Oh yes. And I got assigned Drake!
Pictures will most certainly follow.


ps. Can you guess what this is?
I'll give you a hint. Somewhere, there is a very blind sheep........