Wow...

Tomorrow will be my 17th exam of the semester.  Wowza.  Where has the time gone?   We only have ~3 weeks left of school and I will be through two semesters of PA school!!!  Absolutely crazy.

I'm so excited for Spring semester.  We start interacting with real live patients, taking History and Physicals and just generally putting to use what we've learned so far.  Everything is conceptually more demanding, but the work load supposedly is a bit easier...regardless, it will be nice to learn procedures such as suturing, casting, etc.  The FUN stuff!

Now I just have to make it through tomorrow and I'll be set until after Thanksgiving!  A little break is going to be so nice...

Great Weekend!

Fall is my favorite season.

It could be because of the weather or the change in seasons and surroundings.  I like to think it's because to me, fall represents new beginnings..

I'm so excited for everything new that will be happening in my life soon!  Granted it won't be for another 6 mos before I start on rotations, but part of me can't wait to leave the town where I was born and move elsewhere.  I'm just excited to see where life takes me :)

I got to see my older sister this weekend for the first time in several months!  It was so nice to catch up,  laugh, and basically find ourselves in interesting situations.  We attempted to get ice cream after seeing my aunt's play and added about 30 minutes onto our total driving time after a closed Chick-fil-a and a successful Mcflurry purchase. 

Weekend highlights: witnessing two arrests in South Carolina, being told by the GPS to make several "diagonal right turns", our search for ice cream near downtown Charlotte at 11pm, my mom asking if I had any of that Justin Bieber's music on my ipod (nope! sorry mom!), my lovely and talented Aunt Catherine's play, making my mom listen to Katy Perry's "Peacock" song in the car, and seeing sparks fly (literally) in an intersection. 

I love my family!

Growing Up

With each year that goes by, I've found that the things that used to bother me just don't seem relevant anymore.

Case in point:  I used to wear makeup most of the time, try and "cover up" imperfections/blemishes etc.  Now?  Class at 7:15 am every morning has a way of whittling down the important things in life...5 more minutes of sleep, or makeup.  (definitely sleep)

In high school I rowed (crew) and my lightweight 4+ went to Nationals.  Being lightweight I was expected to weigh in for every competition at <130 lbs.  As a 5'9" athletic female, this was a little difficult.  My lowest weight was 127 lbs and I felt horrible the entire time!  Now, I hardly ever weight myself but instead base how I feel on my level of activity, sleep and how healthy I'm eating.  It's working so far :)

More and more I feel that people are afraid to share their feelings for each other.  I don't mean boyfriend/girlfriend confessions or even "liking" someone.  I mean friendship, love and trust.  I'm trying to live my life without worrying what others think, and I apply this to the people I value.  In the past it's been difficult for me to really open up to others, on a deeper level.  I use humor to defuse every situation in which I feel uncomfortable.  But I'm trying to be better.  I'm attempting to let others know what a huge difference they make in my life each and every day. 

"The ones who mind won't matter and the ones who matter won't mind."

It's been awhile!

Where to start?

It's been almost a year since I've posted, and so much has happened!  Here are some of the highlights:
     Back injury, no 1/2 marathon and PT for 8 weeks
     Made some new friends, lost some old :(
     Turned 23!
     Sophia & I moved into our new place
     Started PA school in June (made it through cadaver lab)
     Wonderful family cruise during my two week break
     Fell in love with Contra dancing! (again?)
     Fall semester is currently in high gear, in the month the faculty has termed "Sucktober"

Overall life is going really well.  It's amazing to work so hard for something and finally achieve it.  PA School has been challenge for me both mentally and physically, but I feel like I'm learning more about myself each and every day.

I think the goal of this blog now is going to be keeping the people I love updated on my life, those near and far.  So here's a quick look at what I've been up to!

                                         

                                                                                       

                                            

                                                  

And I'm back to running and have a few events coming up in January!
Ragnar Relays
Warrior Dash!
And one contra weekend so far:
Florida Snow Ball 2011

The Recovery Sock Review

So I recently bought myself a pair of "The Recovery Socks".  I have read about recovery socks on several different blogs and wanted to try some out.  The recovery socks seemed to be the cheapest option $34.90+s&h.  The total was around $40.  For someone who doesn't know a thing about recovery socks, I sure think they are awesome.  My legs feel fresh the next day and I love the support that they give my feet & calves (I have pretty large calves).  Anyways, I like them so much that I'm definitely going to take them with me on my skiing trip in March.  My legs always get so tired those first few days of skiing.  I want to order another pair or two just so I can rotate them :)  Aaaand I think they'll be great for long days spent in the OR as a PA-student!  My mom (a nurse anesthetist) wants a pair for christmas!  Final verdict: awesome socks :)

Go to http://www.recoverysock.com/ to pick up a pair.  I got the hot pink ones ;)

Update

Well I haven't been on here in quite some time...
But half marathon training has been going quite well. There have been a few (long) runs during which I stopped a mile early due to knee discomfort. I think my body is slowly getting used to the distances and the strain. With proper nutrition and recovery plans I think I'll be fine to make it through the half mary.
Thanksgiving was wonderful, the newlyweds plus grandparents and my aunt came down! We ended up cleaning out the jungle that is my mother's front yard :) It was great to hang with my family for 4 days.
I have recently purchased a pair of The Recovery Socks. I haven't tried them yet because I'm in ATL this weekend, but I'll review them when I get back.
My aunt purchased a tech4o watch for me for Christmas which has also arrived while I was out of town! I'm excited to try it because I've been limiting my half training to the treadmill. I was using a Nike+ but its totally inaccurate. I tried calibrating it on a track and re-calibrating on a treadmill but nothing helped. We'll see how accurate the tech4o is.
I also did a 30 mile bike ride on the Silver Comet trail. It was a really nice trail! Paved, open but with some good tree coverage. It was a little bit chilly for this Florida girl but I was covered head to toe in long running pants, two layers on top +windbreaker, gloves, hat, and a neck warmer :) The only part of my body that was cold were my feet...darn toe-cages. I don't have clip-ins :) It was nice to be back on my bike though after almost a year absence.
I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Update from Thursday's workout and Today!

So, due to my completely blah day on Weds I did not get my run in.  The set called for "speedwork" 5 mi (inc warm/cool) 2x1600 in 9:36 with 800 jogs.  It was a fun workout that I did on Thursday night.  I felt great throughout, and had no pain in my left heel which is always a plus :)

Today's workout was actually meant for Saturday.  It was 6 miles, long run at a slow pace (11min/mile).  Felt horrible.  Not quite sure why.  And I currently have a huge headache!  I might be dehydrated.  I am also having some pain on the outside of my left knee usually during the first half of my run only.  I'm going to ice this evening and see if that helps.

Ahh off to bed.  Night :)

Wednesday Slump

Oh wednesday...

The only productive part of today was finishing two (much needed) loads of laundry.  It all began with a late start (10am...woohoo!) and progressively went downhill from there.  Oh well.  It will be a better day tomorrow!

On a totally unrelated note I feel like I have been missing out on new music.  I don't know if it's the radio station I listen to or what, but everything seems to be the same lately.  Then I happened across this band: Mumford and Sons.  Check 'em out here>>> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLJf9qJHR3E&feature=channel

Off to watch an intramural tennis match :)

Still in NC

I woke up at 8am this morning happy that my hotel room door didn't look like this...

That is the hotel room door of the Econolodge that we stayed at Thursday night in SC.  If the picture was any taller you would notice the lack of chain on the door.  It was completely broken off so we decided to "barricade" ourselves in.  I don't really think it would have stopped anyone trying, but it made us feel better.

Back to this morning.  I woke up in a nice warm hotel in Southport, NC ready to complete my 6 mile training run.  I've mentioned before that I'm training for a half-marathon in February of next year.  Training officially began this past monday and has been going well so far.  I'm ready for cooler temps in FL though, training in the heat does not agree with me.

So this guy came into the "hotel gym" (more like a closet with one treadmill, stationary bike and elliptical machine) about 18 min into my workout.  Mind you I was running 6 miles, slowly as an endurance training run, and it was going to take me over an hr.  Well he fiddled around with his ipod, tied his shoes, and stretched for about 10 min.  I began to get the idea that he wanted to use the treadmill.  Sorry, dude.  After 4 miles in I paused to get a drink and pick up my towel that had fallen.  He got all excited and jumped off the elliptical only to have me say "oh sorry, I have another 2 miles to go".  Eventually the poor guy just got bored and gave up.

Oh well, at least I got my run in right???  

 

My sister is married!

Currently in NC, after my older sister's wedding at the courthouse :)

Introductions

Welcome!  I've been a follower on numerous blogs for such a long time that I've decided to start my own.  I'm not sure how this will play out, but at the very least it will allow me to comment on others blogs :)

I am a 22 year old college grad who is on the path to Physician Assistant school.  I've been working and taking pre-req classes since I graduated in Summer '08.  I will be attending PA school beginning next summer.  Can't wait!

Until then I am working, saving money (sort of) and having a good time!  A wonderful friend and I have decided to train for a half marathon.  In addition to sprint and oly triathlons I have completed in the past, this will be my first "true" distance running event.  I have competed in local 5 and 10ks in my hometown.  I'm looking forward to it!

I hope to travel more before I begin school in the summer.  I am contemplating visits to Bremen, Germany where my cousin is staying and France where one of my best friends is working as an au pair.  I would love to make both trips a reality!

I hope to continue this blog through PA school to give others an idea of the path I took and also how to apply/attend/interview etc if there are people interested.

I think that's all for now.