Well, so much for that idea!

That idea of posting every day, that is. Gone kaput, it has. I simply haven't had the time to sit and write anything. I'm tired - long days, hard fieldwork, bum knee. Not exhausted yet, but I can see it coming on the horizon. At some point this semester, it'll move into my brain, kick back in a recliner chair, and set up housekeeping. I can hardly wait. I had my first post-surgical patient last night. She was a very nice lady. She'd just had some abdominal surgery. She wasn't feeling well; I felt bad making her move around so I could assess her. She was feeling pretty nauseous. It was interesting and exciting to be at the hospital, though, and the nurse I reported to was helpful and had interesting things to teach me when he had a few moments. He was busy, but he was nice. One of the more difficult things I'll have to do this semester is this: I recieve my next day's patient no earlier than 10 at night Tuesday; by Wednesday at 4:30 in the afternoon, I have to have six to 8 pages of paperwork filled out about the patient, the procedure, the diagnosis, etc etc etc. Which would be one thing if I didn't work on Wednesdays... but it's entirely a different animal when I do. And I have no internet access at home, which is more or less essential in completing a lot of the pre-clinical research. Ah, frustration, my old friend! You can hang out with exhaustion when it gets here. Other than that.... the kitty has disappeared. It makes me pretty sad. I keep going out looking for him, calling him. I hope someone else is taking care of him somewhere. There are too many lost and unwanted animals in this world. I hate that people don't spay and neuter, and it's a very big pet peeve of mine (no pun intended) when people decide they're going to breed their animal. In my opinion, you shouldn't be breeding any animal unless you are specifically looking to improve the breed. I think those people are few and far between. There are far too many who think they're going to make a buck, or they want their children to "experience the miracle of birth" (can't tell you how many times I've heard that one... makes me want to say, "How 'bout having them also experience the miracle of death? Here, let's all go down to the local shelter and watch some euthanasias!"), or they think it will be "good" for the pet for whatever reason (the men want their male pets to be able to have sex - which, yeah. I'm not overly shocked, but please - stop projecting. Or they think motherhood would be a good experience for their female pet - again with the projection. STOP IT!). Or they're just too lazy/poor/cheap to get the animal neutered, and the inevitable happens. And then you know who gets to find homes for these creatures (or the ones pushed aside by yet another litter of puppies and kittens), or, more frequently, gets to kill them? The people who love animals so much that they work with animals for a living. It's twisted. ARGH. Alrighty, then. I wasn't really planning for that to come out, but so be it! On that note, please get your pets spayed or neutered (I know I've said this before - it bears saying again). Please adopt from a rescue or a shelter. Please do NOT buy your pet from a pet store, unless that store is displaying pets from a shelter. Please consider getting an older animal instead of a puppy or kitten. Please do not get a pet if you cannot care for it properly - there are places to volunteer where you can get some time with animals if you look hard enough. Pets are a commitment that lasts the whole life of the pet - keep that in mind when you are getting one. In the interest of giving you an idea of a great rescue, check this one out: http://www.ygrr.org/ I was fortunate enough to work with this organization back when I lived in New England - they do a wonderful job for a really wonderful breed. Yes, of course I'm biased... but it gives you an idea of what's out there. There are many, many unsung heroes who care for the unwanted, neglected, and abused animals in this world; most of them are underpaid or work for free. Blessings on them. Time to get back to work. Ta for now.