Kitty Burritos & Clearance Deals

Down with The Man! My work blocked my blog and everyone else's which just BLOWS! GRRR! I did most of my posts when I was bored at work, but now I'm going to have to remember to do it at home. Because I'm so not busy right now with school and homework. Right? Riiight.

School is going fabuloso. I had midterms last week and they all went really well. I also finished up one of my classes last week which just rocks the kasbah! So now I only have three classes and I feel like I can breathe a little! WOO! I've mostly been working with dogs and basic stuff this quarter, but I have cats to...to look forward to? Maybe that's not the right wording. I like cats, but I'm definitely a dog girl. I'm just very excited to practice two cat restraining techniques called the "Kitty Burrito" and the "Squash". HAHA! I also registered for next quarter last week. I had a mini-freakout over scheduling issues, but everything worked out and I am registered for Anatomy & Physiology, Clinical Skills and a Humanities class next quarter. I'm already stoked! I also start "clinic" next quarter which is basically doing rounds once a week and taking care of the animals that come through the school. On top of that, I'm trying to decide on a volunteer route! I don't have any experience so I need to start doing things that will build my resume. I don't have a lot of desire to go into small animal medicine, so I'm trying to decide on either some wildlife work or something with horses, cows, goats, sheep, whatever... Hmmm.

That's all I've got for now. Lola is good. I bought her two massive bones that were on clearance last week from Smith's and OH. MY. HELL. - she's obsessed. Lola is super toy/treat/anything-that-goes-in-her-mouth obsessed already, but damn she looooves the clearance bones. HAHA! Oh! I also found some Nike shoes on clearance yesterday at Kohl's - $12, baby! WOO! It's the little things in life, right? :)

My auntie took this cute pic of Lola when we went down a couple weeks ago. It's very Milano-haute couture-Vogue, no? Bueno! Muchos besos! xoxoxAC

Love & Loss

The last week has been trying. One of our good friends, Josh, died on Tuesday. I’d known from when I’d first met him that he had serious health issues, but it was still very hard to lose him. I met Josh and his lovely wife, Sally, about two years ago, but had just recently started to develop a close friendship with them in the last nine months or so. Josh was one of the happiest and nicest guys you could meet, and he always went out of his way to say hi and offer up a hug every time I saw him. The last time I hung out with Josh, Zach and I spent the better part of New Year’s Eve out on the porch with him, just talking and laughing all night. He was just a happy guy that loved this life, regardless of the trials and tribulations that were thrown his way. I’m grateful that I got to say goodbye to him in the end, and to have been a part of his life. I’ll miss him you very much, Josh.

I’ve been busy with school this week. I’m two midterms down, two to go. Thank goodness for that! Being at the hospital all weekend, studying for midterms and dealing with an overall feeling of grief has made for a very long week. I’ll be happy to finish up my midterms and get back into the swing of regular class again...

My search for a vehicle came to a halt this week. I started thinking about a new vehicle because I wanted a little truck to take camping, move stuff and drive down to Monticello a couple times a year - something I could drive on a dirt road, scratch up and not give a crap! Oh and not pay an arm and leg for! Somehow that turned into me “needing” an SUV with four-wheel drive, low miles and nothing older than 3-4 years. I started looking at expensive vehicles and panicked at the idea of paying for a newer vehicle on top of paying for school AND crap-tacular gas mileage. BLAH! So now I’m back to where my original idea started: keeping my little car (that’s PAID OFF) for commuting all over the place and possibly getting a little pickup truck to take camping. The biggest problem with this plan is parking. Living with Zach in a condo complex might not work out in the parking sense. If I can make it work, super! If not, then I DON’T CARE! I’m done listening to everybody’s opinions on what I should or shouldn’t buy, what I “need” and what the “best” vehicle is! As far as I’m concerned, the Cavy and I will continue on just fine if we have to!

I wanted to write about Lola for a bit. After all, this is A.C. AND The Grizz’s blog! Lola is a great dog. She costs money, sometimes makes little kids cry (heh heh) and is a bed hog, but she’s one of the best buddies this blonde chick could ask for. Last night I was watching TV and Lola was on the floor just staring at me. I wasn’t eating or holding a toy. Nope. She was just staring at me. I looked at her and said, “Can I help you?” No movement. “Lola, what?” No response. I turned back to start watching “Lost” again when all of a sudden, a giant black & white mass was flying through the air, straight for my head. Before I knew it, I had a furry football on my head and dog tongue in my ear! AHHH! That’s right. I was dive-bombed!! Lola has maybe done this to me once or twice when I’ve been on the floor playing with her, but never just out-of-the-blue. To put in bluntly, I had to literally run for the bathroom because I almost peed my pants from laughing so hard! :D While dive-bombing is not (and hopefully doesn’t become!) a daily occurrence, me laughing or smiling at Lola is. She’s my buddy and regardless of the mood I’m in, she can makes things better. Her innocent nature and the joy she finds in the simple things, like a hair elastic or dive-bombing the unsuspecting, remind me how much I love this life. Stealing a page from Lola’s book, I’m thankful for afternoon sunshine, a warm bed and the amazing people in my life.

Hoping warm, afternoon sunshine finds its way into your life... xoxoxAC

A Favorite Picture

This is just a cute picture of Zach and I when we were little (obviously!). I believe this is my first day of school in first grade. My mom used to line us up in the front yard on our first day of school every year to take pictures. Zach is pretty cute and all, but I think I totally rock the "Farrah-flip" hair and knee socks! :D

A Great Recipe for Life

1. Take a 10-30 minute walk every day. And while you walk, smile. It is the ultimate anti-depressant.

2. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day. Talk to God about what is going on in your life. Buy a lock if you have to!

3. When you wake up in the morning complete the following statement, 'My purpose is to__________ today. I am thankful for______________'.

4. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.

5. Drink green tea and plenty of water. Eat blueberries, wild Alaskan salmon, broccoli , almonds & walnuts.

6. Try to make at least three people smile each day.

7. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip, energy vampires, issues of the past, negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead, invest your energy in the positive present moment.

8. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a college kid with a maxed out charge card! HA!

9. Life isn't fair, but it's still good. (Yes, it is!)

10. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

11. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

12. You are not so important that you have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

13. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.

14. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

15. No one is in charge of your happiness except you. (My personal favorite!)

16. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: 'In five years, will this matter?'

17. Forgive everyone for everything.

18. What other people think of you is none of your business.

19. GOD heals everything - but you have to ask Him.

20. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

21. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch!!!

22. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

23. Each night before you go to bed complete the following statements: I am thankful for__________. Today I accomplished_________.

24. Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.

25. When you are feeling down, start listing your many blessings. You'll be smiling before you know it.

The Busy Life & Jaxxon

Hey all! Yes...I’m alive. There’s nothing to remind you better that you’re loved and missed, then when you start getting emails saying, “WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO UPDATE YOUR BLOG???” HAHA!

Life has just been trucking along. I’m pretty friggin' busy right now. Everyone is, though, right?! Work has been pretty busy, which I’m loving. The mood after the layoffs was pretty somber and stressful, but we've already seemed to bounce back to our normal office hum. Given the current state of things, it’s still hard not to be stressed, though. I heard the other day that there are more than 11 million people out of work right now which just makes my stomach turn. I honestly believe it’ll get worse before it gets better, but hopefully we’re quickly headed for the upward swing of things...

School. Is. Awesome. YEAH! I seriously love school so much right now. I’m about midway through my classes this quarter and it just keeps getting better and FUNNER! :D I learned how to record charts, obtain a history and perform a full physical exam last week. It was our first, full-on experience working with the animals! Last night, our class went out to the animal shelter to learn some basic grooming techniques. The school has an agreement with the local shelter where they provide us dogs & cats and then we go out every so often and work with the animals there. We got to pick out the dog we wanted to work with as long as they had a name (which meant they had been cleared for rabies and they were up for adoption). There were so many cute, big, bouncing (“PICK ME! PICK ME!”) mixes there last night - a lot of pitbull/boxer/lab mixes - that everyone else was drawn to. And then there was Jaxxon. Jaxxon was a Pointer mix (see picture) - a pretty big dog that was definitely happy, but a little more subdued about it. He was my first choice. Everyone thought I chose him because I was afraid of pitbulls or something, but oohhh nooo...I knew what we were going to be doing and I wanted a CALM dog! We had to clean ears, clip nails, give baths and...perform the ever-so-dreaded procedure of draining anal sacs. YUM! Everyone else was freaking out about this because it’s definitely not the most pleasant of things, but I figured I have to learn it, I have to do it, so there’s no point in bitching about it. I made the decision early on when I started this program that I wasn't going to be timid about things - I was going to do what I had to do so I could learn and be the best. Anyway, Jaxxon was the bomb! He was just a happy, plucky dog that was thrilled to be out of his cage and held pretty still while I took care of him. I couldn't help but laugh when I saw the other students literally WRESTLING their happy, massive dogs in the hall while they were trying to clip their nails or get them to hold still while they worked on their back end! BUWAHAHA! When I gave Jaxxon a bath, he just stood in the tub, closed his eyes and enjoyed the warm water. I finished up pretty fast, so afterwards, I took the time to practice a physical exam on him which he seemed to interpret as even more love and attention. At the end of the night, I gave him a big hug, scratched his ears and wished him the best of luck as I put him back in his cage. He was such a good boy about everything so it was hard. I don’t know what his (or any of the other animal’s) fate will be next week. :( I love animals and I want to save them all, but when I started this I made the mental decision that I would do what I could. I can’t adopt every dog I work with and I can’t save every single life...but I can give them the best care I’m capable of and lots of love while I’m with them.

So that’s life right now - busy, but fun. I have three midterms and one final next week. One of my classes is only six weeks (yes!) so I’ll only have three afterwards. Lola is just...Lola. We had a fun little experience at the ER last week when she managed to hurt her back somehow, but she’s all good now...taking drugs and acting like a maniac! HA! I also managed to reconnect with an old friend last week which just made me extremely happy. Yep. Life is good. I’m looking into buying a new vehicle in the next month or so. YAY! Oh and I’m definitely looking forward to Spring. WOOHOO!

I hope everyone else is doing well. Don’t forget to spay/neuter your pets. And if you get the chance...love a shelter pet. Sunshine wishes for all! xoxox AC