The countdown is on

For about a month, there have been several changes looming. We are excited that within the next week, many of these changes will be finalized and we will be able to announce them to everyone. I haven't been blogging because all of my energy has been applied toward these things. You'll understand better in a week when all things are announced why we couldn't say anything for a long time. Stay tuned.

Our family is getting bigger!

No we aren't pregnant. Settle down. We are getting a puppy. We went to visit the puppy yesterday for the first time. She is about 4 1/2 weeks old this weekend. The breeder bred 2 champion goldens so that she could get a female for herself that would be one of her next show dogs. The litter had 2 females and 1 male. She is going to choose the best female for herself and then we will get the other one. After playing with them, we don't care which one it is. they are both adorable and both seem to have the same temperament. They were both cuddly and playful with both of us. Even the breeder said that she has no idea which one she will pick. She goes back and forth every week as to which one she will pick. For now, their names are "pink girl" and "purple girl". We had to apply to be able to buy a dog. She had a specific application that we had to fill out to see if we would be good owners. She feels very strongly that she has an idea of what type of home her dogs go to and that they are good ones. After passing the application phase, we were invited out to visit. Then after playing with them, seeing the parents, and talking it over, we put the deposit down to reserve our puppy. She will be coming home to us on July 9th. She will be 7 1/2 weeks old. I think I'm hoping we get "pink girl" and Natalie is hoping for "purple girl".

Purple Girl

Pink Girl

Paging Dr Google

Here's a tip for anyone that goes to the doctor. Don't ever tell a healthcare professional that you looked online and you think you know what's going on. It's more annoying than you can imagine...and it's also insulting to us. Let me give you an example. I had a patient just yesterday that did this to me.

What the patient said: "So I looked it up online, and I pretty much know what's going on. I just wanted to make sure you agree."

What I hear: "By reading a couple of random things online, I know as much as you do, even though you have your doctorate and hold multiple medical licenses."

Here's the thing about the internet - anyone can write anything and post it for the world to read. For example, this blog. The thing that the internet can't do is syphon through your individual situation, history, current symptoms, and evaluate symptom patterns.

Here's another thing that comes to mind when someone says something like that to me - this person already thinks they are right and they don't completely think that they need me and my expertise - therefore, they probably aren't going to be completely compliant with what I want them to do because they think their way is better.

Another thought when looking up medical issues online. The stories that make it online are usually the horror stories, because it's not worth posting the thousands of cases where everything goes as planned. It's far more interesting to post the 1 case out of a million that went completely wrong.

As for websites that list symptoms of different conditions - they just list symptoms. They don't explain the symptoms. In any given week I can have trouble sleeping, have stomach pains, experience nausea, and be very tired. All of these are symptoms of cancer. Does this mean I have stomach cancer? No. Each of my symptoms can be explained. People without medical training don't rationalize these things though. They just read them and freak out.

Take home message: be careful what you read. It's not a bad thing to learn all that you can, but think about what you're saying when you go see a medical professional. If you're seeing them for their expertise, trust their expertise unless something really tells you otherwise. If you think you know better, then don't waste our time. Stay home and hope you're right.

My inspiration has been lacking...

If you couldn't tell already, I've been a little absent. Not because i've forgotten about it, but because I really haven't been much inspired by anything, or at least not anything that I've been thinking of sharing. I have been staring at the tab in my internet explorer that shows my blogger dashboard. I also downloaded an app for my iphone where I can post blogs straight from my phone...ya know, for the small things. As you know from recent activity in my life, a lot of things have changed, including the type of things that I get to share my thoughts on. One of the fun things about working with people is that everyone is different. Sometimes that's a good thing...and sometimes it's one of the most annoying things you can imagine. As for the blog, it's a great thing, because there are new things to talk about every day. When it comes to people's health, they can get a little nutty. For instance, I've already had a patient tell me that he consulted a veterinarian about his therapy and his vet had some advice for how I should be treating the injury. You just can't make this stuff up. So more of these stories are yet to come. Don't worry, all HIPAA rules will be followed, and no patients will be harmed in the making of this blog.

Wait...I'm not in school anymore...

While being in vigorous programs like my doctorate program, you just kinda put your head down and charge through it, knowing that if you take the time to look up and try to figure out where you are, you'll either fall behind, or something will hit you in the head. Keep your head down! After doing that for so long, you get in the habit of keeping your head down, hoping it will all be over soon. After graduation, I don't think the habit had yet worn off. This past couple weeks I've finally stopped once in a while, looked around, and thought, "Hey, I'm not in school anymore. I'm actually working...for money. This is fun." It's been quite nice. Unfortunately I can't say that the process is complete and I've figured out this whole, being a grown up thing, but I'm getting closer all the time. When putting life on hold for 3 years to go through grad school, I've put everything else on hold. Since graduation, it's taken a few months to restart everything that was put on hold and figure out what plates are teetering helplessly in the air, about to fall, and need some lovin' to stay spinning. I think I've just about figured that out and things are working smoothly again. And you know something that's weird - I finally started sleeping full nights again for the first time in a long time. I'm falling into a nice little rhythm and currently loving life. As long as I don't look at my student loan balance, I think that this feeling might last.

I'm back...and employed.

Ok, I know I've been away quite a while. Hopefully I am now back to regularly posting. So to catch up, I graduated with my Doctorate (you probably knew that), I passed my board exam for physical therapy and my law exam (practice laws) and I am now a licensed physical therapist.

On Spetember 30th I accepted a job and signed a contract with Foothills Sports Medicine. It's a great company that has 12 clinics around Phoenix. I am currently working in their Ahwatukee clinic, which was the first clinic in the company and is still the corporate headquarters. The owner of the whole company and the billing department is at this location. The opportunity with this clinic came quite unexpectedly. I was actually planning on working for a different clinic. When that one fell through, the Arizona Diamondbacks' medical staff pointed me towards this company. After observing in their South Gilbert clinic for a day and working a couple of athletic training side jobs for them, I decided to send my resume to their owner. Less than a week later, I was signing my job acceptance letter.

It has been 3 fun and interesting months since I started. It has been interesting in that I have learned a lot about myself, my job and about different injuries. I'm starting to truly believe that experience accounts for a lot. I hate to admit it, but these first few months have kinda been blindly going by instinct with some cases. Over time I've learned to trust these instincts and fit all the pieces together, connecting the dots from learning in grad school to now treating a patient. I've made my mistakes so far, and I will continue to do so, but I'm getting better with every patient and picking out more things that I missed before.

With this new job, Natalie and I are learning new schedules and bracing ourselves for more schedule changes as the possibility of a better job for her lingers. I think with all the schedule changes, this last 3 months have gone faster than any time period before it. It's hard to believe that Christmas is only 3 days away. So since I have more Christmas preparations to complete, I will get back to that and I will update you more after this whirlwind of an approaching holiday is over.

Doctor Shaun Palmer

I have to admit, I got tears in my eyes a few times during the graduation ceremony. I still get teary-eyed when I watch the videos, both of me walking across the stage to get hooded and when the president of the school confers the degree of Doctors of Physical Therapy on my class. You would get teary-eyed too if you went through what I did. To tell you that those 3 years were no big deal would be an outright lie. During those 3 years: I was almost set back a year in the program, I was diagnosed with a cyst in my brain, I struggled with light-headedness, difficulty concentrating, and on-going flu-like symptoms, I spent more than a year trying to figure out medical issues that are still being looked into, I worked sometimes up to 25 or 30 hours on the weekends and attended class full-time during the week, one restaurant that I worked for was shut down and I had to transfer to another location, I volunteered with the Milwaukee Brewers, I moved...twice, I lived in Oakland, CA for 6 weeks, I failed one class and had to retake it, and then I was newly married and had all the other normal stresses of life to deal with. On the scales that measure the most stressful life events, I think I covered most of them...some of them multiple times.

So to hear my name called and to have the degree and title of Doctor of Physical Therapy conferred upon me is something that, at times, I didn't think would ever happen. As I sat up in the front of the auditorium watching the graduation proceedings, my mind wasn't completely on what was happening. I was thinking about the last 3 years. I was thinking about all of those events that took place. I was thinking of all the times when I thought I wouldn't make it - including the times I didn't think I would be alive to make it through.

It still doesn't seem completely real that it's over. It mostly seems that way because I still have things to accomplish before I can practice as a physical therapist. I still have two exams to take and pass in order to become licensed to be able to practice in this state. Then comes the problem of finding a job. Until all of that hits, I will continue to savor the moment and remember what I accomplished and what I went through to finish it.

The Inspiration of Our Nation

As political battles have been heating up over the last couple years, the morality behind the issues that face our nation has come into the spotlight. One side will say that this country was founded on Christian principles. The other side refutes this and is offended by it. I will let the words of our founding fathers speak for themselves.

"Having undertaken for the glory of God and the advancement of the Christian faith."
-The Mayflower Compact

"This nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religion, but the Gospel of Jesus Christ."
-Patrick Henry

"We recognize no sovereign but God, and no king but Jesus."
-John Adams and John Hancock

"The constitution - a system which, without the finger of God, never could have been suggested."
-Alexander Hamilton

"God, who gave us life, gave us liberty. And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their basis?"
-Thomas Jefferson

"To the distinguished character of patriot, it should be our highest glory to add the more distinguished character of Christian."
-George Washington

"The birthday of the nation is indissolubly linked with the birthday of the Savior."
-John Quincy Adams

The inscription on the Liberty Bell says:
"Proclaim liberty throughout the land and to all the inhabitants therof." Leviticus 25:10

James Madison said that he conceived the three branches of government by inspiration from Isaiah 33:22:

"For the Lord is our Judge [Judicial]. The Lord is our Lawgiver [Legislative]. The Lord is our King [Executive]."

Seeing these quotes from the founders of this country, how can anyone say that this country was founded on anything other than the principles of the Bible? I find it especially interesting to read Thomas Jefferson's quote in light of what's going on in the nation right now. Our liberties are being taken away at the same time that the country is trying to disown the principles we were founded on. Our founders understood this. In the wake of immorality and the struggle for power and control, our current leadership has ignored this.

What will it take for this country as a whole to return to our values that made us great?

Ashton Kutcher Blames Republicans for Oil Spill...really?

Exhibit #1 - Ashton Kutcher opening his big, dumb mouth

Exhibit #2 - Ashton's Car - a Navistar CXT featuring a 70 gallon gas tank, putting out an impressive 7 MPG.

So yes he should be happy that the republicans want to drill for more oil since he drives a car that uses up as much gas as several SUV's combined per fill-up.

Or let's put it in terms of my car, a 2004 Nissan X-terra. Keep in mind that left-wing nut jobs like Ashton would call me evil for driving an SUV. In city (so at worst) my car gets 16 MPG on a 20 gallon tank. So if I were also to have a 70 gallon tank, while getting 16 MPG I could drive 1,120 miles before I had to fill up. Ashton has to fill up his abomination every 490 miles.

So...say I wanted to drive all the way out to Beverly Hills, CA where Ashton lives. I could drive the 391 miles to get there, leave a 21 gallon gas tank on his driveway and drive the 391 miles back to my house in Phoenix using the same amont of gas as he does in one fill-up in his truck.

What does he think that thing runs on? Unicorn tears?

Wow...that's all I have to say...

At this point I'm embarrassed about how long I've been away and how little you all currently know about my life. I know I've promised you things before, but this time it is most certainly nearing. In 11 days I will be completely done with all work required for me to graduate with my Doctorate in Physical Therapy. In 12 days I will be done with my last clinical. In 54 days I will shed the title of Mr. and will adopt the title of Dr.

In 12 days I will have more time and energy to fill in the blanks. I'm so close now. Just have to finish these last things. With so little left to do I'm finding it harder and harder to do them. So I have to push on, otherwise I might not do them at all.

12 more days...

The Beginning of the End

***Disclaimer: So I just read my wife's most recent post and our blogs start off almost exactly the same way. I had written the vast majority of this post a few days ago, but didn't publish it because I wanted to add more when I had time. Meanwhile, Natalie wrote hers and I guess great minds think alike because we both intro'd our posts the same way. Either way, I will keep my original intro regardless.***

No I'm not talking about the end of the world. I'm talking about the school years of myself and my wife. I'm talking about the era of class, homework, tests, weekends spent working in restaurants, overall being poor, having little to no time with my wife, having little to no money to do anything fun with my wife, the constant anxiety centered around wondering if I will pass the next test and make it to the next quarter. It's all coming to an end. The countdown has started and the number is getting low enough that we can actually feel it now. Last Friday, Natalie passed her exit exam at Apollo, which is the last hurdle she had to pass in order to graduate with her RN on March 23rd. Yesterday she completed her last clinical shift in the hospital. Next time she treats a patient in a hospital, she will be getting paid for it. This weekend she begins a study course to prepare her for the state nursing licensure exam that she will take at the end of March. Then she's eligible for hire in April. I'm so proud of her. I remember when she timidly started the degree, looking at the mound of books, looking at the daunting task before her. Now she's through it, more mature, more educated, and ready to be a healthcare professional.

For me, the countdown has begun as well. When I laid out my clinical schedule for my last year, I purposefully put the two clinicals I would like at the beginning of the year, followed by my off-clinical (10 week break), then my favorite clinical (16 weeks with the Milwaukee Brewers). Well, I finished the first two clinicals in mid December. I only have a week left of my break, and on March 6th, I start with the Milwaukee Brewers. On March 5th, I will work my last shift in a restaurant. It will be the first time in almost 8 years that I will not be working in a restaurant, no longer be working while going to school. My transition into my career has started, and I can feel it. I no longer really feel like the little student that is fighting for grades and trying to stay sane through my busy schedule, balancing wife, school, work, sleep, and trying to relax. I no longer feel like that intern that is at the bottom of the todem pole, wide-eyed and in awe of all I see, with a distant hope of one day maybe being considered for a position in MLB. Now all of that work, all those years of school, and the countless volunteer hours I spent, are starting to come together. I feel a better sense of who I am and what I have under my belt. I don't mean at all to sound cocky because every opportunity I've gotten and everything I've been able to accomplish has been an undeserved opportunity given to me by God, for which I can't be more thankful. But from all of these things I have a sense of pride in what I have done and how I've made the most out of all those situations to get me to where I am now. I've worked extremely hard and have been very strategic in forming my resume to look like it does, and now I'm very proud of what I've accomplished and I'm excited to see what God will make of it now and what offers will come my way when I graduate. It's like an automaker that first makes all of the individual parts, then puts them together until the parts are in place and it's time to see the car run. I've made the majority of the parts, and I'm putting enough of them together that I can now see the what the car looks like. I'm just waiting for the last few pieces to fit into place before I can turn the key and set it into motion. These last few months especially have been really exciting. Within the last couple months, I've now made great contacts with medical professionals from two more major league baseball teams, and have been asked for an interview when I graduate with one of them. I've received an informal job offer from one great clinic in town that I've been involved with before, and what's even more exciting about that is that the owner of this clinic knows my future goals and dreams and wants to work with me until I get there and to help me get there. Each of these offers and meetings are so exciting because they each have their own unique stories that could only have been weaved together by God. I'm beginning to see pieces coming together and people come into my life that can help me achieve my dreams - people that I could never have gotten a hold of by myself. Seeing God working and knowing that He is doing something puts me at ease and makes my last few months of school very enjoyable because now I get to just do my work, finish what I've started, and see what else happens. I know that the other details are being taken care of.

So as the clock continues to wind down and these new opportunities continue to creep closer, I just continue on, being thankful for all that I have and all that has been given to me, excited to see each new day and what it brings.

My Wish For 2010

"There was once a king who offered a prize to the artist who could paint the best picture of peace. Many artists tried. The king looked at all of the pictures. After much deliberation he was down to the last two. He had to choose between them.
One picture was of a calm lake. The lake was a perfect mirror for the peaceful mountains that towered around it. Overhead, fluffy white clouds floated in a blue sky. Everyone who saw this picture said that it was the perfect picture of peace.
The second picture had mountains too. These mountains were rugged and bare. Above was an angry gray sky from which rain fell. Lightening flashed. Down the side of the mountain tumbled a foaming waterfall. This did not appear to be a peaceful place at all. But, when the king looked closely, he saw that behind the waterfall was a tiny bush growing in the rock. Inside the bush, a mother bird had built her nest. There, in the midst of the rush of angry water, sat the mother bird on her nest. She was the perfect picture of peace.
The king chose the second picture. "Because," he explained, "peace is not only in a place where there is no noise, trouble, or hard work. Peace is in the midst of things as they are, when there is calm in your heart. That is the real meaning of peace."

"Portrait of Peace" by Linda Spitzer

This story was emailed to me several years ago. At that time I just saw it as a nice little idea to keep in mind, but as the last couple years have unfolded I've found this story to have more and more meaning to me. Peace can be extremely elusive. The way life is structured today, peace does not readily come to us. It must be found and tightly held onto. Very few times will our lives look like the first portrait, where peace surrounds us and there are no worries - no constant stream of emails, phone calls, health problems, bills, deadlines, fears, frustrations, etc. Our lives will almost always look like the second portrait. With the storms of life always encircling us, it is up to us to find peace within ourselves in the midst of any situation. The thing that has become increasingly clearer to me is that it is our choice as to whether we allow ourselves to get caught up in the storms or to find peace within them. If we wait for peace to just happen, it will never be found. The problems of this world cause worry and unrest. It's a vicious cycle that keeps repeating itself, continually breaking us down unless we choose to step out of the cycle, examine our thoughts and feelings, and choose peace over anxiety.

I know I know. I'm trying

I fully realize how long I've been away from blogging. The truth is I've been exhausted. Too exhausted to write something meaningful. Meanwhile I know what I want to write about, but I need enough time and energy, and for those two things to exist at the same time, in order for me to get a blog together. I'll at least tell you what I've been up to lately.

I've been working hard in my first clinical rotation. I've been at Phoenix St. Lukes Hospital for the past 5 weeks and I have 3 weeks left to go. It isn't at all the setting that I want to work in, but it's necessary in order to graduate. I have learned some things that I hadn't planned on learning and I've met someone who will hopefully be very influential in getting me my dream job...more about that at a later date. I know this is where God wanted me to be at this time because of things being put into place that I could never have thought I would run into at this hospital. After this rotation, I will be doing my next rotation at Healthsouth Valley of the Sun rehab hospital. It's a unit that sees a lot of spinal cord trauma, stroke, and amputee patients. It will be a very challenging rotation for me, but I know it will stretch me and teach me.

Away from school, Natalie and I are moving in 2 weeks! We are staying in the same townhome complex that we are in now, but we are upgrading to a bigger townhome. We love this place so much and the location is so perfect that we couldn't justify leaving this area right now, but at the same time we are bursting at the seems in our current place. Our current townhome is just over 8oo square feet and it's a 1 bedroom/1 bath. Inside that one bedroom is our bed, 2 desks, 2 book cases, and our dresser. If you're imagining a tight fit, you're right. The new place is a 2 bedroom/2 bath, and is a little over 1200 sq ft. It also has a 2-car garage instead of just a 1-car garage. So my car can be parked inside now too! We started thinking about moving about 2 months before I left for Oakland. I talked to the front office and told them what we wanted to do, but we had a very specific idea of where we wanted to move. We had a block of about 4 townhomes picked out that we would want to move into if one came available. So we knew our odds weren't great for getting one that we wanted. But a couple days after I got back from Oakland, I happened to be going to the front office to pay rent and our sales lady took me aside and told me that one might be coming open, and it was right in that area that we wanted. Within the week it was finalized that it would be ours. So now we move in 2 weeks. It's at a perfect place in the complex. It faces the pool and is right by the mailboxes. I feel so fortunate that we get to move there. We are so happy that we can now have an office that is separate from our bedroom.

Besides that we both still work on the weekends at Fox Sports Grill in Scottsdale. We are both in our last year of having to work in a restaurant on the weekends. Natalie graduates in 5 months and I graduate in about 10 months. We can't wait. It will be so nice to work in our professions and actually be getting paid for it.

Debriefing

I know. I know. Now that I'm back, you all want to know what happened at training camp. Maybe interesting stories, funny athletes, pictures, etc. Well...It's coming. I think. I'm busy. I hit the ground running when I got back. So I'm coming up with inspiration and deciding what I can and cannot tell. There are rules about what can and cannot be said about things that are seen and heard at that level. So as I decide what to post and get more pictures hopefully, you can just keep checking back.

In other news:
Natalie and I are moving into a bigger townhome. It's something we've wanted to do for a while and we have held out for a really good one in a specific area of the complex, and we finally got it. We will be moving in mid October.

I am in clinicals in the hospital. It's definately not my setting, but I'm learning some interesting things. Better than anything else, it's going fast.

I graduate in less than 11 months!!!

Almost There

As most of you know, I have been a medical intern at Oakland Raiders' Training Camp since July 26th. It's weird to think that I've been away from home for so long. I've been so busy here that it has seemed to go by really fast. I am now in week 5, which is my last week here. Saturday night will be my last night with the team as they have a home game in Oakland against the New Orleans Saints. Then I fly home Sunday morning. It's been a great experience. There have been some problems and frustrations along the way, but overall I have had a lot of great experiences and great stories that I can't wait to share. The NFL is definately a different operation from anything else that I've ever experienced. It has been a lot of fun to be a part of something like this though. Being on the sidelines of an NFL game is incredible. I can't wait to tell everyone about it. Until then, I have part of a week left to go. We move from Napa back to Alameda/Oakland on Thursday and Saturday is my last game here. Then no more living out of a hotel. I haven't seen my own bed in way too long. Most of all I've missed my incredible wife. I can't wait to see her and I'm already getting excited just knowing that it's close. I will update you all more soon and hopefully I'll have many pictures for you.

I'm leaving on a jet plane...

Well...I know when I'll be back, but it won't be for a while. This is my last post from home. Tomorrow morning I fly out to Oakland where I'll then drive up to Napa for a tour of the hotel, practice fields, and the town. Upon arriving I will also be meeting the guys that I will be spending every waking hour with for the next month. I hope to be updating this as much as possible. I'm told I will have internet on night duty in the hotel when the players are in their meetings. I'm hoping to have pictures also, but we'll see. I don't quite know what the situation will be and what the day-to-day activities will look like. If you see a sportscenter story on the Raider's training camp, be sure to watch the sidelines to see if I'm wandering around somewhere. Hopefully I won't be doing anything stupid. I have a tendency toward bad timing.

I will really miss everyone. The realization of what is happening still hasn't set in. I can't believe that I'm leaving for this long. Please keep me in your prayers for safe travels and that my neck/head symptoms will not hinder me at all. That is my biggest worry. I'm going to have very long, hard days out there and I don't want those problems to get in the way.

So until later (don't know when), I will leave you with the fairwell from my favorite TV show that I will also be missing while I'm gone.

"Goodnight. And big balls."
-John Henson / Wipeout

Does this look right to you?

I got this ad in the Valpak that comes in the mail. I usually just throw the envelope away without opening it, but I'm glad I looked through this one. When first looking at this ad I thought, "Oh, that looks like a pretty cool school." Then I continued to read. I want to point your attention to the fact that this is a high school that offers free child care. Well that would explain why it's a fun high school. Apparently there are a bunch of easy high school girls prowling around the campus. It's unbelievable that a high school is actually offering free day care because they think there are really that many high schoolers that have kids. I really don't have anything else to say about this. This is the first time I've seen this concept and I hope I never see it again. I wonder if sex-ed class is part of the standard curriculum there.

What Do I Know of Holy

I was taking a nap on the couch while XM satellite radio was playing in the background. As I woke up this song was playing. The words are chilling to think about - to look inward and determine if we really know what holy is. Would we really know who God was if He stood before us?

What Do I Know of Holy
by Addison Road

I made You promises a thousand times
I tried to hear from Heaven
But I talked the whole time
I think I made You too small
I never feared You at all No
If You touched my face would I know You?
Looked into my eyes could I behold You?

(CHORUS)
What do I know of You
Who spoke me into motion?
Where have I even stood
But the shore along Your ocean?
Are You fire? Are You fury?
Are You sacred? Are You beautiful?
What do I know?
What do I know of Holy?
I guess I thought that I had figured You out
I knew all the stories and I learned to talk about
How You were mighty to save
Those were only empty words on a page
Then I caught a glimpse of who You might be
The slightest hint of You brought me down to my knees

(CHORUS)
What do I know of You
Who spoke me into motion?
Where have I even stood
But the shore along Your ocean?
Are You fire? Are You fury?
Are You sacred? Are You beautiful?
What do I know? What do I know of Holy?

(CHORUS 2)
What do I know of Holy?
What do I know of wounds that will heal my shame?
And a God who gave life "its" name?
What do I know of Holy?
Of the One who the angels praise?
All creation knows Your name
On earth and heaven above
What do I know of this love?

(CHORUS)
What do I know of You
Who spoke me into motion?
Where have I even stood
But the shore along Your ocean?
Are You fire? Are You fury?
Are You sacred? Are You beautiful?
What do I know?
What do I know of Holy?
What do I know of Holy?
What do I know of Holy?

I'm Speechless

This is not a joke. I repeat, this is not a joke. They really are selling Chia Obamas - and you can get them with the facial expressions of "happy" or "determined". I'm not quite sure whether to laugh, cry, shake my head in disbelief, boycott the chia company (which I already do as a matter of fact), boycott television for even running the ridiculous ad, or resort to heavy drinking in order to attempt to forget that I live in a country where people are so ridiculous that they would even consider selling this product - let alone follow through with selling it. Or even worse, let's not forget that some people actually buy this thing - yes they spend their hard-earned money on it. Or maybe people are buying it with the money they get back from the taxes that they didn't pay. I'm guessing that fantastic trinkets like this are the reason why they're poor. I would give you the website to go see it for yourself but, (1) refer to my boycott of the chia company, and (2) I think you could find it on your own if you really try hard enough.

Two Years

Two years ago I stepped onto the campus of A.T. Still University for the first time. A week of orientation started it off and then we hit the ground running with a blur of information being thrown at us week after week. For two years I drove 30 miles to school every morning and 30 miles back at the end of the day. For two years I spent the majority of my time reading and studying the human body and all that can go wrong with it and how to fix it. For two years I spent full days (sometimes 8-10 hour days) at school in classes only to come home and spend my nights on the computer studying. For two years I endured a constant stream of tests, quizzes, and projects. I spent two years in a constant state of stress, focused on surviving to the next quarter in the curriculum. Then after two years, I got my white doctor's coat symbolizing that I was in the last stage of my curriculum and about to enter the profession. After two years, I closed my computer, packed my stuff, walked out of the building, walked out to the parking lot, and drove off campus for the last time. After two years of graduate school and six years of college in total I said goodbye to the classroom. Now I step into the world of clinicals where I test how much information I actually retained and will work to put that knowledge to use toward trying to heal people. Now in one year, I will drop the title of Mr. Palmer and will adopt the title of Dr. Palmer.

It was a strange feeling on Thursday when we ended our last formal class at A.T. Still University. Everyone closed their laptops, stood up, packed their stuff, and looked around as if they weren't quite sure what to think or say. We were done. It was as if after two years of being submerged under water we got to come up and breathe fresh air for the first time. After all that time of having our heads down and fighting to survive in the program we all finally got to look up and realize that just as quickly as it had started, it was now over.

Words can't fully express what those two years meant to me. They were the hardest and most trying two years of my life. They challenged me and broke me in every way possible. To be done with those years is the biggest relief I have ever experienced. I never have to step foot in a classroom for a formal class again.