Rainnnnnnnn

Last night/early this morning is rained incredibly hard. It had started rumbling with a little bit of lightning about 930 last night, and I was so tired that I put a movie on about 1030 and unplugged the internet. I had to have fallen asleep by 11 because I have very little recollection of much of the movie.  Toll! for sleep :P. I was woken up about 245ish by the LOUD rain and thunder and I also had to go the bathroom. I get into the bathroom, and I'm knocked over by this absolutely PUTRID smell. Water (and anything and everything suspended in the water) was backing up through the drain into my shower. My shower looked disgusting this morning. I dumped bleach in it and rain it on scalding hot for about twenty minutes before I even thought of getting into it this morning...I love Dominica. . . 72 days and COUNTING!!!

Just spent twenty minutes...

...shuffling through my notes trying to remember which form of viral pneumonia children tend to get versus adults. For the three people who care: children tend to get viral pneumonia cased by the Respiratory synctial virus (RSV),  a paramyxoviridae (eveloped, pleiomorphic, ss-(-)-RNA). Adults, you will be delighted to know, predominantly develop viral pneumonia from influenza A&B, orthomyxoviridae (segmented, evenloped ss-(-)RNA). Woo?? Somebody pull the plug...This better show up on the test!

All this goes out the window however, when BACTERIAL pneumonia shows up (now I know you're REALLY excited, bouncing in your seats yet?) That delightful disorder is caused by the wonderful little creatures (in order of prevalence) 1. Streptococcus pneumoniae, 2. Hemophilus influenzae, and 3.
Moraxella catarrhalis....you can sleep better tonight right??? RIGHT???

Sooooo.....still not wanting to study, but I'm actually being fairly productive. Amazing how that works isn't it? My eyes, however, are KILLING me. The delightful combination of fluorescents and staring at a computer screen for HOURS on end have accumulated into a painful and uncomfortable periorbital THROB!

This morning at yoga, I was sweating so bad, my hands were slipping all over the place. Didn't help that every other position was a downdog! I was sliding and slipping, trying not to faceplant. It was probably the most challenging session I've gone to yet! Ugh, back to studying. Boo!

Mini's around the Corner...

...so what am I doing...not studying right now of course. As much as I love what I'm doing I despise studying for hours on end. I always have. I've never been a big proponent of endless studying. PROPER studying wins out always in the long run.

Today I was eating lunch with Canuck, Yauser, and Pillow Pants. Yauser's repeating this semester, sadly :(. Pillow Pants and I got into a somewhat involved conversation with a fellow student who was having a very difficult time coping with the class load and stress that all this induces. We were trying to talk to him about how we dealt with. Now, I've had nights where I'm so wound up that I could not fall asleep, so I can certainly sympathize with him. Though they have been rare thankfully, they always come more toward the end of a semester. Anyway, we were talking to him, and I just felt really bad for him. You don't even do it on purpose, but you just get so wound up. Sometimes you just have to put the stuff away. I remember one evening my first semester (and by evening I mean an hour that would have allowed me to call a friend in London and not wake them...) I was studying, and I read the word "roller coaster." About a minute later, I realized that I had indeed read it, and I went back, and the word I substituted "roller coaster" for was "varicella zoster." For those who care that's the virus that causes chicken pox. Then and there, lesson learned or unlearned, it was time to put it away. Perhaps we'll see him at yoga tomorrow trying to relax, I really hope he gets the help he needs.

Try a Little Bitterness...

The title of this post is a bit of a play on words on the song "Try a Little Tenderness," for those who care. I've noticed--and it certainly has been pointed out to me--that I've been incredibly touchy/quick/short/irritable/crabby/cantankerous and just downright unpleasant the past week or so. I'm somewhat sorry to be taking out my frustrations on others, even if they are only a very small part of it. Sorry, but as much as you love them, your friends can irritate the hell out of you. On the flipside I'm not sorry because I'm done bottling all of my emotions. It's unhealthy and stressful. With three of them it's downright aggravation and lack of any more capacity for an ongoing situation that just reeks of a sixth-grade mentality. With another it's more of a reflection of my general state of pessimism, unfortunately. When you're already aggravated the "flaws" you normally overlook in people because you see the bigger picture just irritate you simply because you're irritated. Is there a manual to this machine??? Do I kill the chicken or shatter the egg????!?!?

While we're being honest and reflective...I would have to be completely transparent and say my overall bad mood is probably twofold in cause: 1) a nasty case of loneliness and 2) stagnation. Despite it being second on the list, let's address stagnation first. It's my blog if I want to be inconsistent I shall! Being here in Dominica is like watching the flight you were ticketed on depart from the gate without you on it. We have to deal with emotions and feel like that much more so than students not stuck on an island. Dear God please let the 89 days go quickly. I feel like I can't do anything with my life while I'm here. Most of the people I care about/am interested/want to be around/want to be with are all back in the states. Yeah you make some friends here, but then you go back to the states with no promise them again because the schedules and locations of your rotations might vary. On top of that you see them every day, so you don't necessarily miss them. I probably will in the future when I don't see them, but that is not causing the problem. It just feels like we're in limbo here, and people at home are just as busy and just as slammed, but they don't feel nearly as isolated.

Case 1, well, let's just say some of the most concrete steps I've ever made were taken toward amending that particular problem. I had a great time over break thanks to a certain one or two individuals. That's all on that.

this...just...happened...

Me: You like my new picture (it's a Dexter promo)
E: lol, you suddenly got a lot hotter
Me: You saying I wasn't hot before?
E: You know my present feelings about your hotness.
Me: So, what I'm hearing is that I have to look like somebody else to be hot??

Annnnnnd we're back

So, back on the rock (currently listening to LeAnn Rimes screaming "How Do I Live?" in my ear). It's rather apropos. How does one live here?? It is MUGGY, and my AC is raining... If all goes according to plan this should be the last three or so months I have to be here. woo for that! As usual I had my whine fest on Sunday. Everything was "BOO!". Also, sick and tired of childish drama involving three of my friends. Over it, and done. I'm going to try to stay away from them as much as possible. Just can't deal with the bullox. That's all.

I had a great break. I spent a few days in Phoenix and San Diego with Steele and Jules. I loved it. San Diego was so beautiful. It was also a bit odd feeling cold in August in Southern California. Phoenix was actually quite pleasant as well! Yuma and El Centro on the other hand...well let's just say that they're good for what we used them for -- gas and a drive through -- and no more! I met a few cool people while I was on break too :)

On the way back I got upgraded to first class at the gate. Woo, gin and tonics and wine. The flight attendant made me laugh, she asked if I wanted more wine. I told her, "You don't need to ask that again. Just keep it coming. I'll tell you when to stop!"