Hell Week (Pain Is Good) in My New Life

Anatomy & Physiology has been a good class all in all. It has been a rough summer with one of my jobs being null through the slow season. I feel like I am becoming friends with my Prof. He isn’t too much older than myself, and we share some similar interests, hobbies, and ideas. Anatomy is a thorough, and large subject. I enjoy it, but I am more stimulated by cell, and microbiology which I am lined up for in the Fall. My Prof. is a freshwater ecologist outside of being an insanely literate anatomist. Ecology, forestry, and mycology are generally more interesting, and rewarding for me, yet, anatomy really brings out my interests in medicine. My great, great maternal grandfather was a doctor in Hollywood when plastic surgery was the open frontier. It makes more, and more sense to me as I have always been interested in biology, health & wellness, psychology, and yoga. Actually, one of the first books I checked out as a child was a book on hypnotism.

We are having a small wave of Covid, and upon learning of one of our wards catching Covid, I immediately decided to get a booster shot. I was out hard all day the following day, but I woke up feeling fresh, and clear. I may have had a small dose of it before, because I have been in a head fog all summer it feels like; waking up clear made me realize how foggy I had been. Getting mentally prepared for Anatomy has been rough all summer. Or, it could be long-Covid, which I do believe I had/have. I have been exercising at the hot studio, but it comes and goes in waves. I’ll hit the hot studio vigorously for a few weeks, and then become easily fatigued, and lose the drive. It has been as such since I contracted the Omicron variant almost 2 years ago. I need to lose about 23 pounds to be in my best shape, but between two jobs, school, and long-Covid, this has been difficult. It has been humbling, because I am chunkier than I like to be, and serving tables I can feel the judgment. I bike everywhere, and eat mainly beans/lentils, and rice on average. I am mainly vegan, but with my budget (paying for school out of pocket), I can’t afford the fruits, and vegetables I ate for years in my best physical condition. I have been focusing more on ab work, hot rowing, and upper body strength more recently since I generally stick to yoga, legs, and flexibility. Muscle confusion.

Things are good, all in all. My work group at the hospital is growing together more. I am generally well liked, and we are forming a work family there. Charlie, my favourite nurse, and I are hitting it off. He is a 75 year old African American hippie from the 60s & 70s. The Nurses in general like me, and I am fitting in. Charlie is hilarious, and it’s my type of humour too. It’s intelligent humor full of satire, and literature. He is exceptionally well read, we have a lot to talk about when it comes to books, science, and life in general. He says he likes me because I have an (educated) opinion. He says he can’t stand dull folks who don’t form their own opinions.

I am glad my other serving job is starting back. They too are a lot like family, and it’s hard to decide which one I like the most. The main workers are mainly Latino, and Guatemalan (obviously Guatemalans are Latino, but there are prejudices between Mexicans, and Guatemalans, and so I am distinguishing some subgroups. A Mexican I worked with once told me, “You all think you have it bad with illegal immigration at your border. We have the same problem with Guatamalans at ours! That image has always stuck with me, and has provided a lot of entertainment for me in my brain). I speak enough Spanish to be able to communicate pretty well with Latinos who know broken English. I enjoy diversity, and speaking in different languages. I grew up working with hired Latino help on our family farm, and so I do feel a closeness with our Latino workers similar to family. It could be the bit of Cherokee I have in my ancestry. The other night, Maria was watching some spanish flick on her phone, and the elder Juana (not too much older than me I think), and I were sitting in the break room. Maria speaks little to no English, and Juana speaks broken English. I began adding in humorous captions to what Maria was watching. I had to use Google translate sometimes, but I was making them laugh pretty hard with my Spanish interpretations of the events on the flick. It would be a violent shootout going on, and a lot of action with gangs shooting each other, and I exclaimed in Spanish: “!Donde est le pollo!” or “Where is the chicken!” (with one of those fake rubber chickens in mind as a murder weapon) in English, or the police would show up all pointing their guns at the gang members, and in Spanish I said, “Now drop your pants!” And it made Maria squeak; she laughed so hard. It reminded me of the time I watched the Twilight vampire flicks with my ex-girlfriend, Molly, her mother, and her sisters. I was so bored with the show that I began making up humourous dialogue for characters in the show. Molly, and her family laughed, and laughed so hard at what I made the characters say through my boredom. It really took me back to that time, but in Spanish, with Maria, and Juana. Molly, and her family have Creek Native American ancestry where I feel like whatever tribe in Guatemala Maria, and Juana are from are similar to the Creeks we have here in Alabama. I actually have a book on Native American Humor on my bookshelf here as I write.

Anyway, I have a Lab Final, and Lecture Exam Finale to prepare for. I am putting off a facetime time group as I write.

TTFN,
or
Ta ta for now!

Last updated July 26, 2024