So this is like a bad relationship, I promise to do better, but then I fall back into my same skiddish ways. It's been almost 2 months since I've last written. I really can't believe it has been that long. My life has been zooming by, but certain parts have just been moving s..l..o..w..l...y... ie this week.
So..how's 3rd year?
Hmm...3rd year is -_-
For some reason, I was under the impression that 3rd year, I would be living it up, partying, enjoying the good life, laughing at the 1st years (ok I do that). But in fact, 3rd year is just blah... maybe if I wasnt too busy randomly planning stuff for NOSA life would be less intermittently stressful. Also I manage to work a couple hours a week. I can't pay my rent off it, but it does supplement my gas money.
I work for our Clinic's dispensary. I love my job, but honestly some days stress me out more than taking a test. Speaking of taking a test, most of my grades have fared well so far. ::knocks on wood, tree, and linoleum (for good measure)::
All in all, I can say life is indeed good (intermittently).
So I do this rather compulsive thing where I label each day we have been in class and countup each day/week. Well it's week 11 and I am in disbelief. Excited, but nervous for what is ahead. Anywho... just wanted to type a few words. Hope yall aint mad.
I decided to check out the latest videos from TedTalk... The first video that I saw was quite intriguing it was only 4 minutes, and it was called, "The Demise of Guys." It addressed how men are lagging behind their women counterparts in educational arenas. In addition, he humorously addresses how men are being subjected to unlimited amounts of arousal and how they actually seem to be perferring that than the company of the opposite sex. Very interesting!
This second video is even more intriguing it is much longer, but it is truly eye opening. It is titled, "New Data on the Rise of Women." Hanna Rosin made a good point and said "Thousands of history don't reverse themselves without pain." She said "men are losing their identities and are having a hard time finding themselves"
Sometimes it makes me wonder is this why men for hundreds of years subconsciously and consciously "oppressed" and denied women true access to the work force?
I think this is definitely a phenomenon that is happening everywhere. I saw it at Emory, there were at least 3 times more women in the black community. I see it in Optometry school, there is more women in each class. Even with Optometry in general, it used to be a completely male dominated profession, but now it is mostly women that are graduating from optometry schools.
Just the other day I was talking to one of my friends about how I'm so proud of all my friends. Just this year, I have friends who started a PhD program, Med school, Pharm school, and Law school. And then we started discussing how our male counterparts don't seem to be as "motivated"... and I put motivated in quotes, just because I mean that on a surface level in terms of those seeking professional school degrees. And yes my opinion is biased of course... but it is something that I've been noticing..
How do I feel about it? Hmm... well I do think it is a backlash to many years in which women were put into a box and expected to do only, "XYZ."
::sidenote:: I dated this guy who was adamant that women should still "solely" fulfill traditional household duties, ie cooking and cleaning... as you can tell that didn't go over very well. I just didn't understand what is the point of me getting a doctoral degree, and my 'partner' expects me to still essentially be a housewife AND work a full job...umm no thanks.. ::sidenote over::
But the fact that Rosin says it is not just happening in the US, but countries all over the world, I wonder how this is going to pan out..hmm...
These two videos are in fact intriguing, check them out!
So I made an impromptu trip to Chicago for the 4th weekend. American Airlines had crazy cheap tickets, up until the night before I left. So I bought my ticket on Thursday night and flew out on Friday night. Still hard to believe. I really didn't want to spend my 4th weekend in St. Louis.
I got to hang out with 2 of my really great college friends. It all worked out so perfectly. I am so happy!!
I had the opportunity to go to Taste of Chicago, for the 2nd time. It was amazing. I love love trying different types of food. It was great!! I hope I can remember everything I tried, let's see:
Baklava
Kiefer
Connie's Deep Dish Cheese Pizza
Pralines and Cream
Oreo Parfait
Jerk Chicken and Rice
Chocolate Dipped Banana
Chicken Kabob
I even made it back to St. Louis in time to catch the fireworks show downtown. So that made me really happy.
(I'm currently uploading photos from the trip onto facebook)
For some reason, I felt especially patriotic on this 4th of July. Not sure why, but you guys know I love holidays, I love warm weather, I love fireworks, and I love food. So basically the 4th is usually one of those holidays that I love.
Something that I really miss going to is Stone Mountain...yeah I know it is really a "Confederate Memorial" but I really love the Laser Show. It basically became a summer tradition of mind, but summer is coming to a close and it's looking like no laser show. Anyways, but I really like how they usually set the lasers to music.
The fireworks show in Downtown St. Louis was especially impressive. It was beautiful. We had the perfect seats on the great lawn right under the arch. I was just so happy to be there in that moment. I actually shot a couple of videos. I will post them. Beware...in most of the videos I'm yelling something along the lines of "Wow...thats Awesome".. like the whole time. Anyways, enjoy!
[Having problems uploading this video on Blogger, I'll figure it out..lol]
Hey Kiddos! So I'm trying to catch up on the posts that I have been promising.
Things are starting to get out of order, but "better late than never." My first getaway for the summer was to Miami for Memorial Day weekend. As you probably already, I love being outdoors. Love it!! So I especially love the beach. I went with my LS and her bestie. It was a very interesting weekend. A lot of black people. A LOT! We got a great condo in the middle of it all.
I think it was one of those weekends, that you should do at least once, just to experience it. It is highly unlikely that I will be going back another year...lol. I still love Miami though. There is nothing like the beach.
I have decided that I need to live within driving distance of a beach. This whole midwest living (being landlocked) is starting to drive me bonkers! lol. I don't care how big it is, a lake is NOT a beach! lol. All in all, I had a lovely time on my trip, i'll include some pics just because!
HEY GUYS!! So I said I was going to write a quick post on White Coat Exam and White Coat Ceremony! So here we go! On May 12, 2011, I received my White Coat. So what does that mean?
In a nut shell, you are required to take an Exam that is formally called the "Clinic Privileging Exam." So this exam is the end of your 2nd year, and simply you have to give a full eye exam while being watched by one of the doctors. Ok sounds like no biggie right...umm NO!
So up until that point, you have been practicing all of your different clinical skills and learning to not only do every test, but in a efficient manner and to record it properly. So it is essentially a culminating exam that is supposed to prove that you are ready to see real patients! Yup. So my White Coat Exam was on April 21st... Needless to say, I passed and I got my white coat! Woohoo!
It's a big ceremony, my mom, dad, and aunt came to St. Louis to watch me get it! Woohoo! It was just a really great and exciting day. I felt like I finally successfully crossed over a huge hurdle. We have been looking forward to white coat, since first semester first year. It is all really surreal. I find it hard to believe that I am a 3rd year now.
This summer in clinic I have started seeing patients. It is extremely weird, because I just sometimes feel like I have NO IDEA of what is going on. Also it is weird to me that the doctors trust me enough to leave me to do all of the tests and just "report" back my findings to them. They do double check some stuff, but for the most part it is just me!! Aaah...so scary.
I have had some great patients so far. My 2 favorite have been a 9 year old boy and this lady that got into a motorcycle accident and now can't see out of her left eye. Very sad, but I am glad that I was able to help them see. Optometry has been a lot more than I have expected. Honestly a lot more complex, intricate, and REWARDING! I have definitely chosen an awesome field and I am so glad.
"We're flying first class... up in the sky, living the life,in the fast lane, and it won't change... oh the glamorous...the flossy flossy."
I have no idea why that song just popped into my head. But it did. lol. I am the opposite of glamorous, but I am right where I want to be and need to be.
I am currently taking a break from all of the "hecticness" of life. Second year was coasting along fine and then all of a sudden everything picked up all at once. So as a collective everyone has been pulling their hair out. Not only do we have to worry about actual tests, but proficiencies. Our proficiencies test our clinical skills to insure that we are compete in certain procedures before we enter clinic this summer.
The culminating proficiency is our "White Coat Proficiency"... We have to do a full exam while one of our professors watches us and grades us. It is really nerve wracking, because it is 2 whole hours with a 25 page grading sheet. My White Coat is next week. And once we pass that we have our White Coat Ceremony, and that is on May 12th. I will be smiling from ear to ear across the stage. :)
I know a lot of medical, dental, optometry schools receive their "white coats" when they first enter, kind of like a hey you made it to ___ school. But I actually like the way my school does it. They make you EARN it, so they haze the heck out of you for two years and then when they feel like you deserve it, they give it to you in a ceremony. So that is pretty awesome. As of now my parents and my aunt are coming.
I am anxious to get the rest of my proficiencies over with. I had my contact lens one today that went really well. 2 more next week and then 1 the following week. Wish me luck guys... Until Next Time..
So my Monocular Sensory Processes (MonSense) professor is apparently interested in our learning styles... Basically his class is hard and people rarely get A's so not sure how this is going to change anything. Anyways...but there are 4 basic learning styles.
1. Accommodator- Doing and Feeling
2. Diverger- Watching and Feeling
3. Converger- Doing and Thinking
4. Assimilator- Watching and Thinking
So based on the characteristics it described it basically came as no surprise to me that I was a Diverger. It pretty much describes me...kinda weird.
Diverger (Main Question: Why Am I learning this?)
Empathetic and people oriented
Sensitive to peer group
Has a vivid imagination
Has diverse interests
Recognizes problems in the environment
Needs emotional inolvement
Listens and shares ideas well
Collects information using all senses
Is artistic and creative
Likes to participate, collaborate
Enjoy brainstorming
Yeah that's me... The environment thing caught me off guard...I was like wow..that's me.
So the main question that Diverger's ask is "Why am I learning this"...it's so crazy because I asked that almost every day my first year. I just needed to know how some of that stuff would tie into my optometric career. Now that it is my 2nd week, I am already seeing my many things being tied in so that makes me a lot happier. So the other questions for the learning types are as follows:
Accommodator- What if I did it this way?
Converger- How am I going to learn this?
Assimilator- What am I going to learn here?
I thought it was also interesting to note that, majority of the class were Converger's... (yeah our prof made us raise our hands) and he said in previous years, most, if not close to all of the class were converger's... hmm...makes you wonder. Let me know if anyone is interested in seeing more characteristics for the other learning types. Well that's all for now. "Sundays are for relaxing"
So this definitely proves my free time theory...when I am the most busy and bogged down with stuff to do, that is when I find time to write on my blog. So you can deduce that, that I have lots of free time, because I haven't written on here in quite some time. It's not that I don't have a lot to say (because I have an opinion on lots of things), I just haven't actually done it. In fact I have been slacking on my actual blog reading...
So let me do the usual catchup...hmm... A couple weeks ago I went to Myrtle Beach with my line sisters...It was definitely an eventful and fun filled weekend. :-) Then a couple days later I headed to Puerto Rico for the NOA Convention. I throughly enjoyed the convention... I met lots of other optometry students from around the country, lots and lots and lots of Doctors... We stayed in the Caribe Hilton, which was a beachfront hotel, so when we weren't in meetings/seminars/CE classes I was outside by the ocean, on a hammock, or in the pool. Definitely great... No one can tell Optometry truly isn't a great profession...haha.
I am in the home stretch of summer, so I have just been tying up lose ends and taking care of business... Ok so this is a pretty boring update. I think I'm going to watch some videos on Tedtalk... You can never have too much inspiration...Until Next Time...
I came across this article on The Vyne. It was short and sweet, and it discussed how to "Stir Your Spirit" but there was one particular line that was profound to me.
Your spirit is that divinely quiet part of you that allows you to remain calm in the face of adversity, that keeps you hopeful and positive about the future, that drives you to take care of yourself and that allows you to love yourself and others.
That is such a wonderful description of the active role the spirit has in your everyday life. I have noticed that over the past two years, my spirit has been much more at peace. It has helped me achieved a better sense of serenity. And I am so grateful for that.
I love quotes... so here are a few that I came across that I absolutely adore...Thanks to Real Simple Mag again..
We tend to forget that happiness doesn’t come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.
Frederick Keonig
It’s no trick loving somebody at their best. Love is loving them at their worst.
Tom Stoppard
What lies behind us and what lies ahead of us are tiny matters compared to what lives within us.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.
Dr. Martin Luther King
Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.
Mahatma Gandhi
We come to love not by finding a perfect person, but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly.
Sam Keen
Better to do something imperfectly than to do nothing flawlessly.
So I came across an article in one of my new fav magazines, even though I have only read 1 issue.. (my sister gave it to me on the plane)..it's called Real Simple. But it's just a woman's magazine with interesting articles on home and organizing, food and recipes, fashion, work and life, and holidays and entertaining.
So during the school year, things are usually hustle and bustle. I woke up at 7 am, got to class by 8 am., got out of class around 4 or 5, took a nap, ate dinner, worked out, studied then went to sleep around 1 am. Yeah that sounds hectic and crazy...because it was. So now that it is summer time, it is the exact opposite. And I think I have really been enjoying my free time... (stopping to smell the roses). So here's the link to the article. It's a must read...basically take some time to enjoy life for what it is...
1. Banish the guilt
2. Choose the Right Role Models
3. Sketch a flower
4. Go bumbling (wondering around without a purpose)
5. Play the ukulele
6. Bring back Sundays
7. Lie in a field
8. Gaze at the clouds
9. Take a nap
10. Pretend to Meditate
So this is random (as usual), but I have a mini-obsession with hammocks. I really hope my balcony is big enough to have one, because I really really want to get one. Yes I see myself potentially falling out of it, (cause I can be clumsy at times), but it should be fun and semi relaxing..since next year is looking a tad bit hectic. Gosh why can't I just be a fourth year already?
It's my Blogaversary!! Ok well actually yesterday was my blogaversary...but better late than never. So basically it has been a WHOLE YEAR since I started this blog. Isn't that crazy?!? Like I have referenced in many other posts, I often start things and don't finish them...so I am really glad that I have kept up with this blog, especially through my first year of optometry school...
Right now it is 3:30 in the morning and I can't seem to go to sleep...ugh! (Maybe it is from all that sweet tea I had at my sister's house)...but I must say today was a good day. Hanging out with family is always great! Early in the day I saw Sex and the City 2 with my sisters...the movie was...umm...aight.. It was a little too real for me. Too much real not enough fantasy. But I enjoyed it none the less...
I have been meaning to make a new "logo" for my blog..Honestly I want to just revamp the whole thing, but it is soo time consuming, to get everything the exact way that I want it...with the right shade font and what not, so I've been putting it off.... I just need somebody to hook me up with photoshop. But honestly, if I was to put photoshop on my netbook, I am pretty sure it would stop working..lol. I have NO IDEA why I am so wired this early in the morning...
Well I guess since it IS my blogaversary I should reminisce on the past year...Hmm...well this time last year I will say I was in a much different place. A lot more apprehensive about a lot of things, and in a weird way I was "dreading" starting school, but mostly I was dreading moving away from my family and friends. But now that is out of the way, it's cool. I have grown and learned soooo much!
When I decided to start a blog I had no idea what I was going to name it...so I just started searching the internet for something that will lead me down a creative path/outlet...and from all of my randomness I came up with "Reason to Believe"... I think it was mostly because I think there are always "so many reasons to believe that everything will turn out fine." Often times I worry about what will happen next in my life or if I make one bad/good decision how it will affect something else...but honestly I feel like I have been blessed with so much in life...yes I have lots of inner battles and struggles, but at the end of it all, I still have a Reason to Believe... you might be thinking "What do you Believe?"(that is the point)...you can believe ANYTHING you want or you put your mind to, but first I think you need to believe in yourself! The world is yours for the taking... I hope that made sense...Gosh I am getting sappy, maybe cause it is so early in the morning.
Anyways...HAPPY Blogaversary to me! This is completely random, but check out "Nessa," I put her in that
cute dress, big floppy hat, with a parasol..Figured she'd look cute for the blogaversary too. *wink
1. Toms Shoes follow up 2. 1 year blogaversary (Recap) 3. First Year of Opt school (Looking Back) 4. Diversity/ Janelle Monae
5. St. Louis/Midwest
Until Next Time...
So as I sit lazily on the couch, watching Gilmore girls, with no particular plans for the day. It feels good to think that I am a second year optometry student. This past year has been a whirlwind. From moving out of the glorious south to the midwest.. (yikes), to learning an abundance of information that I knew no idea about before entering opt school. I was going to make a list of all the things that I have learned, but that would take forever. So, I'll just type freely with whatever comes to mind, hopefully you can follow:
-I feel as though I have learned just as much about myself in the past year as I learned information.
-Leaving the womb, Atlanta, helped me grow in sooo many ways, its hard to even try and isolate them.
- I know for sure that I want to raise my family in the south... the midwest thing is not happening. The neighboring states just suck...my classmates and I were looking to go on a mini-vacay and all the states were boring. There were no beaches or warm weather or fun cities or great attractions...thats ok, i'll stay in the south.
- I think it's funny that whenever I tell people how excited I am to leave St. Louis they always tell me that I will miss it, umm they have no idea. Doubt if I will miss it at all this summer...guess we will see...
- I think I learned more actual school information these past two semesters than I have learned in a very long time...I honestly am not sure why so much info was crammed into two semesters, but whatev..
- Whenever I tell someone I am in Optometry school or they know you are in opt school, there is bound to be an eye question...last semester it used to be a little weird because I kinda knew stuff, but not really...NOW I know sooo much more information. I get soo excited when I actually kinda know what the person is talking about, and even better when I can answer the question with a right/definitive answer. Yes I know I have a lot more to learn, but more information than I think...
- This semester I was able to make new friends, go to many different places, and basically just venture out a lot more. I was able to appreciate St. Louis a lot more (even though I still don't like it), but it is just a different city, it cant be compared.
- School wise, I was able to study a little more comfortably... I still wrestled with myself though...I was never really able to study effectively in my apartment, but honestly I was just too lazy sometimes to go to the library, especially when it was cold and snowing.. I didn't get the exact GPA that I wanted this semester, but it's all good.
Wow so I blabbed on a lot...basically I am a much more mature, aware, and smart person after these two semesters.. I guess that is what life is all about.. I thought a rearview mirror picture is appropriate for this post (especially since I learned so much about mirrors and lens in my Optical and Geometric Optics classes)...Whew another post down...
1. Toms Shoes follow up
2. 1 year blogaversary (Recap) 3. First Year of Opt school (Looking Back)
4. Diversity/ Janelle Monae
5. St. Louis/Midwest
