I don't know if my wife and I are going to be able to hold out the news of our pregnancy to our friends. For, what seems like the millionth time, my wife was almost called out in front of everyone because someone asked if she was pregnant. We are trying to wait until we tell our family before telling our friends, but each passing day (and each drink passed on) makes our friends more and more curious. And on top of all of this, we are going to a friends lake house for the 4th and that typically ends up being a 36 hour drinking game (with a few moments of clarity here and there). Hopefully I can distract everyones' attention away from my wife while we're there....I don't think we're going to make it another 3 weeks. My wife is going to be pretty upset if all of our friends here find out before we can tell our families. But even though she'll be upset, I'm pretty sure that she'll understand how hard it was to keep it from them....on to other news....
Had a student athletic trainer workshop allllllll day long. It was actually quite fun. This was the first time that I had to get up and teach something in a classroom-like setting. I don't think I did too bad. I usually get pretty nervous talking in front of large groups and end up with a bad case of the "um's" and "like's". I think held both to a minimum today and the kids seemed like they had a pretty decent time....I only saw one girl dozing off :o) It was really good to get something like that under my belt so I know how to improve it for next year and to work on my communication skills a little more...I just need to learn to be a little more concise when I talk- tend to ramble a bit when I get nervous. Hopefully this will be something else that I can put on my resume when I am interviewing for PA school....crap, just remembered that I have to take a picture of my wife's stomach tonight....I'll try to be more proactive with the whole "blogging" thing....not that anyone is paying attention anyways!
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Big surprise!
I figured I could post this on here since my wife posted it on her blog (which means I won't get in trouble)...we're pregnant! My wife thought it was going to take longer to conceive and I thought it was taking FOREVER! We found out about 8 weeks ago and have already been in to see the doctor and have our first ultrasound. We were able to see the heartbeat, which was an incredible feeling. When we took our first pregnancy test this time around, I wasn't too optimistic. We did the test at around day 10 - a little earlier than the recommended 12-15 days - but we were too antsy to wait any longer. Of course, I didn't see anything and went about finishing the house cleaning that I had started. "I see a line!" (wife) "Yeah, but it's BARELY there...you have to hold it at an angle to see it.." (me). Well, as it turns out, "a line is a line".
So January 15th is our estimated due date. I am so happy and thankful that we're pregnant, but at the same time I'm also bummed because we won't be able to go home for Christmas. We have never missed a Christmas with our families and it's going to be hard to accept that when the time rolls around. Maybe we'll get some visitors from back home to come down here, but I'm not sure if that will happen. I suppose we'll just have to make the best of it and think of it as our first Christmas as a family. We haven't told our families yet because we wanted to be able to do it in person. So next month we're flying home for my little sister's (my wife's little sister) graduation party. We're trying to think of a creative way to tell them, so if anyone has any ideas let us know! We have told a few friends, but I knew we would....unfortunately, I didn't think we were going to tell one in particular because she has close ties with the family and I'm not sure she can keep it a secret long enough....but she kept asking my wife if she wanted a drink, and after about the sixth time of my wife refusing, she asked if my wife was pregnant - to which my wife replied "...uuuhhhhh....don't tell ANYONE!" Haha. I think that caught my wife a little off guard. So, hopefully we can sneak around our friends for the next few weeks and then make it home to tell the family....a tall order.
So January 15th is our estimated due date. I am so happy and thankful that we're pregnant, but at the same time I'm also bummed because we won't be able to go home for Christmas. We have never missed a Christmas with our families and it's going to be hard to accept that when the time rolls around. Maybe we'll get some visitors from back home to come down here, but I'm not sure if that will happen. I suppose we'll just have to make the best of it and think of it as our first Christmas as a family. We haven't told our families yet because we wanted to be able to do it in person. So next month we're flying home for my little sister's (my wife's little sister) graduation party. We're trying to think of a creative way to tell them, so if anyone has any ideas let us know! We have told a few friends, but I knew we would....unfortunately, I didn't think we were going to tell one in particular because she has close ties with the family and I'm not sure she can keep it a secret long enough....but she kept asking my wife if she wanted a drink, and after about the sixth time of my wife refusing, she asked if my wife was pregnant - to which my wife replied "...uuuhhhhh....don't tell ANYONE!" Haha. I think that caught my wife a little off guard. So, hopefully we can sneak around our friends for the next few weeks and then make it home to tell the family....a tall order.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
PA school is already hard....
...and I haven't even applied yet! I have figured out what school I would like to attend and what prerequisites I need to fulfill prior to applying. Because of certain circumstances (of which I will divulge at a later time), my wife and I are firmly planted where we live and I will be applying to just one PA school. Fortunately, it is one of the top PA schools in the nation- which makes me excited and very nervous at the same time. Who am I kidding, though? All I have is time and there is never a bad time to go back to school. What happens if I don't get in? I apply the year after. I feel like I have found a career that really allows me to use all of my abilities and also gives me the freedom to have a life outside of work.
As of right now, I think having that freedom is what is most important to me. Working as an athletic trainer is great, but continually having to give up your weekends and holidays is starting to wear a little thin. Not to mention that the pay is not all that great. So I guess I'm just going to keep plugging away for right now and get my stuff together so that I'm not scrambling around later when it comes time to apply.
As of right now, I think having that freedom is what is most important to me. Working as an athletic trainer is great, but continually having to give up your weekends and holidays is starting to wear a little thin. Not to mention that the pay is not all that great. So I guess I'm just going to keep plugging away for right now and get my stuff together so that I'm not scrambling around later when it comes time to apply.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
PA school a strong possibility
Well, after attending an informational session about a PA school that I'm interested in, it seems like a good possibility that I'll be able to do this. I think the thing that I feared the most about all of this is the financial burden that it would place on us. Fortunately, after speaking to a current PA student, the cost of living expenses are covered in the loans that I would be taking out. So now the question is am I going to be able to keep my sanity with the amount of time that I will have to devote to the program. Having classes from 8-4 every day and then having to study for a good 4-5 hours after is quite a commitment. I think I'm ready for this. I know I'm ready for this. And as long as I have the support of my wife, I think we'll both be able to make it through. We just have to wait and see how her job is going this time next year (when I'll be applying) and then I think we'll have a better idea of if I can start next year or if I'll have to postpone it for another year. We'll see....
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Decisions
So I have been thinking about going back to school. Jeez...I never thought I would actually say those words out loud and mean it. It's not that I don't like my current profession, because I really do. It's something new every day, I enjoy the people that I work with but I am probably the most bored that I have ever been in my life. I guess I should say that every day is different when something actually happens- I'm an athletic trainer and for the most part, we sit around and wait for an injury to happen. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy that I don't have a lot of kids getting hurt, but I just don't feel like I'm being challenged enough in my current position....not to mention that I don't make a lot of $ doing it. And that would be completely fine to not make a lot of money doing something that you completely love- I would never want a job simply because of the money.
My next step is going to be trying to get into PA school, which I hear is very hard. I am hopeful, however, because I have already gotten my Masters and I have quite a bit of work experience in the healthcare industry. I am also going to wait about a year to apply to make sure that I have all of my ducks in a row, crossed the t's and dotted the i's (blah, blah, blah). But I have to admit that I am very nervous...not just about going back to school, but about what my wife and I are going to do. We made it through grad school ok, but I think this may be a little more difficult with the amount of time I have to put into studying. Add to that this wonderful economic climate we're in and you can probably see where most of my worry lies. Which is another reason why I need to wait a year to apply. I wouldn't want to apply now, get into school, quit my job and then 2 months later have my wife lose her job.
So I guess for right now I'll just get as much information as I can about school and then see where I stand a year from now. Hopefully everything will go as planned because while I may be really nervous, I'm just as equally excited about the prospect of having a career that will use my full potential.
My next step is going to be trying to get into PA school, which I hear is very hard. I am hopeful, however, because I have already gotten my Masters and I have quite a bit of work experience in the healthcare industry. I am also going to wait about a year to apply to make sure that I have all of my ducks in a row, crossed the t's and dotted the i's (blah, blah, blah). But I have to admit that I am very nervous...not just about going back to school, but about what my wife and I are going to do. We made it through grad school ok, but I think this may be a little more difficult with the amount of time I have to put into studying. Add to that this wonderful economic climate we're in and you can probably see where most of my worry lies. Which is another reason why I need to wait a year to apply. I wouldn't want to apply now, get into school, quit my job and then 2 months later have my wife lose her job.
So I guess for right now I'll just get as much information as I can about school and then see where I stand a year from now. Hopefully everything will go as planned because while I may be really nervous, I'm just as equally excited about the prospect of having a career that will use my full potential.
Here is one of our fur children
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Where do we belong?
I am not trying to make this a philosophical post, but it's just something that I think about from time to time....
Most of us are trying to figure out where we want to be in five years, ten years, later tonight... or where we were last night. Job security in this economic climate has many of us nervously twitching, hoping that the clock will make it to 5:00 before the manager calls us into his/her office. What's more, is that we all-too-often strive to earn more money so that we can purchase things that will make us feel good in that moment. The sound your LCD makes when you turn it on for the first time. The sound and smell of the new leather interior in a car that just came off the assembly line. Looking at the new DVD player on your ride home and imagining how much 1080p entertainment is going to bolster your every moment sitting in front of your television.
There are so many things that we constantly have to worry about (education, finances, children, politics, etc.) that we never take the time to come up with an explanation as to why we need to worry. Lately I have been caught up in books and videos about the universe. Much of my fascination with the universe comes from not knowing. Not knowing what is beyond what I can see standing on my balcony. Not knowing why those things that I can see from my balcony exist. Only knowing that there has to be some significance to the enormity of the universe. The Hubble Ultra Deep Field picture was something that is almost too much to wrap your head around, and too important to ignore. In 2003, scientists decided to aim the Hubble telescope at a seemingly empty area of deep space. The size of this area is about the size of a dime that is placed about 75 feet away. (Obviously the area that the picture actually covered was much greater than that of a dime, but this is just to be visualize the amount of space compared to the entirety of the universe itself). Within this picture, scientists were able to isolate over 10,000 galaxies. 10,000!
I know I personally would think "yeah, I know the universe is big, but how big could it really be?". Think....no, look up how big the Earth is in comparison to the Milky Way galaxy. It's akin to pinpointing a grain of sand on a beach. We haven't even begun to chart the seemingly endless reaches of the Milky Way galaxy and scientists have discovered another 10,000 galaxies somewhere in the vastness of space. While looking through many websites, I've come across a few estimates by scientists that put the number of known solar systems in the Milky Way galaxy at around 70. These are the solar systems that have been identified thus far, but scientists believe that there could potentially be many billions of solar systems within the Milky Way galaxy. This is where it tends to get a little tricky to try to visualize the universe in it's entirety. I wouldn't recommend it unless you have a couple Tylenol lying close by.
So with a small patch of sky revealing roughly 10,000 new galaxies and scientists estimating that there could possibly be billions of solar systems in our galaxy, how can anyone believe that there is not life beyond our solar system? Which I guess leads back to the title of this post: Where do we belong? Could we really be the first intelligent species to evolve from a singularity billions of years ago? I am not saying that I do not believe in God, because there is something far greater than any person at work. The fact that scientists have yet to determine the precise conditions just before the Big Bang occurred let's us know that we are missing something important....what that is may not be realized for many years after my generation has passed. But to think about all of the possibilities that could come to fruition from the research that has been accomplished to this point is what keeps the wheels churning in the science department.
For everyone else, it's back to the grind. Waking up early to make it to work on time, putting in your 40 hours (sometimes more) each week. Cashing your paychecks in order to make the car payment, the mortgage payment, the seven different credit card payments, and having just enough left over to put gas in your over-priced and continually depreciating vehicle (with the leather interior that smells oh-so-good) to make it back to work. I suppose a more appropriate question for this post is: Why? Why do we feel the need to work tirelessly each day? Why is the universe expanding and not contracting? Why have we found no other signs of life in the universe? Why have no other beings found us? Maybe it's all one big "Truman Show". Hopefully we can find some answers sooner rather than later.
Most of us are trying to figure out where we want to be in five years, ten years, later tonight... or where we were last night. Job security in this economic climate has many of us nervously twitching, hoping that the clock will make it to 5:00 before the manager calls us into his/her office. What's more, is that we all-too-often strive to earn more money so that we can purchase things that will make us feel good in that moment. The sound your LCD makes when you turn it on for the first time. The sound and smell of the new leather interior in a car that just came off the assembly line. Looking at the new DVD player on your ride home and imagining how much 1080p entertainment is going to bolster your every moment sitting in front of your television.
There are so many things that we constantly have to worry about (education, finances, children, politics, etc.) that we never take the time to come up with an explanation as to why we need to worry. Lately I have been caught up in books and videos about the universe. Much of my fascination with the universe comes from not knowing. Not knowing what is beyond what I can see standing on my balcony. Not knowing why those things that I can see from my balcony exist. Only knowing that there has to be some significance to the enormity of the universe. The Hubble Ultra Deep Field picture was something that is almost too much to wrap your head around, and too important to ignore. In 2003, scientists decided to aim the Hubble telescope at a seemingly empty area of deep space. The size of this area is about the size of a dime that is placed about 75 feet away. (Obviously the area that the picture actually covered was much greater than that of a dime, but this is just to be visualize the amount of space compared to the entirety of the universe itself). Within this picture, scientists were able to isolate over 10,000 galaxies. 10,000!
I know I personally would think "yeah, I know the universe is big, but how big could it really be?". Think....no, look up how big the Earth is in comparison to the Milky Way galaxy. It's akin to pinpointing a grain of sand on a beach. We haven't even begun to chart the seemingly endless reaches of the Milky Way galaxy and scientists have discovered another 10,000 galaxies somewhere in the vastness of space. While looking through many websites, I've come across a few estimates by scientists that put the number of known solar systems in the Milky Way galaxy at around 70. These are the solar systems that have been identified thus far, but scientists believe that there could potentially be many billions of solar systems within the Milky Way galaxy. This is where it tends to get a little tricky to try to visualize the universe in it's entirety. I wouldn't recommend it unless you have a couple Tylenol lying close by.
So with a small patch of sky revealing roughly 10,000 new galaxies and scientists estimating that there could possibly be billions of solar systems in our galaxy, how can anyone believe that there is not life beyond our solar system? Which I guess leads back to the title of this post: Where do we belong? Could we really be the first intelligent species to evolve from a singularity billions of years ago? I am not saying that I do not believe in God, because there is something far greater than any person at work. The fact that scientists have yet to determine the precise conditions just before the Big Bang occurred let's us know that we are missing something important....what that is may not be realized for many years after my generation has passed. But to think about all of the possibilities that could come to fruition from the research that has been accomplished to this point is what keeps the wheels churning in the science department.
For everyone else, it's back to the grind. Waking up early to make it to work on time, putting in your 40 hours (sometimes more) each week. Cashing your paychecks in order to make the car payment, the mortgage payment, the seven different credit card payments, and having just enough left over to put gas in your over-priced and continually depreciating vehicle (with the leather interior that smells oh-so-good) to make it back to work. I suppose a more appropriate question for this post is: Why? Why do we feel the need to work tirelessly each day? Why is the universe expanding and not contracting? Why have we found no other signs of life in the universe? Why have no other beings found us? Maybe it's all one big "Truman Show". Hopefully we can find some answers sooner rather than later.
Monday, May 3, 2010
The background, I suppose
So this is my first blog. I don't know if this is typical of people who create their first blog(s), but I'm not sure exactly what to blog about. Maybe everyone has an idea in mind before creating their blog site and I'm the exception. So I guess I'll just start with my background and we'll see where it goes from there.
I am married to a wonderful woman who really makes my life better. While our personalities differ in some dramatic ways, I think that is what I love most about her. She is one of the most sensitive, creative and loving people that I have ever met. We had been friends for quite a long time, but never dated until college. I would love to say that it has been perfect ever since, but we have had our difficulties (big and small). We have, however, managed to stick it out through the bad times and it has definitely paid dividends. We are closer now than we have ever been and are very much looking forward to the future.
Our biggest issue these days (as I'm sure it is the same for most people), is money. With the uncertainty of job security, it has been a little more stressful than usual. My wife is amazing with organization and has created a spreadsheet dedicated to our finances. I tend to be a little oblivious to our finances, but we're trying to get on the same page and have been going over the spreadsheet together so I can understand where all of our money allocated. We finally made the decision to cut our cable and get rid of the Blackberry's [well, I have...I think the wife keeps making excuses as to why she hasn't canceled hers :) ]. In order to save a little extra, I thought I'd take it upon myself to make my own long-range antenna for our television. My advice...don't. While it only cost around $20 to build, it looks ugly and only gets about 3 more channels than my old-school rabbit ears. Plus, if you live in an apartment, there is really no good place where it can be hidden. So now, instead of saving money, I've spent $20 to find out that I need to spend another $70 (or so) to get all of the over-the-air channels. So I guess the question is: In the future, do you spend a little money and cross your fingers that your little contraption works, or do you suck it up and fork over your wallet to the stores?
Maybe I just want to believe that I'm a little handier than I truly am. I know that there are times that I just need to leave certain things to professionals, but the man-gene gets the best of me a lot of times and I just can't help myself.
A couple of my favorite hobbies, are chip carving and the guitar. Because the apartment doesn't allow me to use some of the power tools required to build things out of my carvings, I'm restricted to just carving for right now. If anyone has had this same dilemma and has figured out how to get around it, please let me know! I've been dying to actually build things like humidors, jewelry boxes and eventually some small furniture to start off with. The guitar is a little easier to manage, but I've gotten to the point where the self-teaching has reached it's plateau. So if anyone has a suggestion about how to advance guitar skills without spend money (on lessons), that too would be great.
I guess I'll end with that. I'm not sure how interested people will actually be in my background, so I don't want to go on forever, but I can add some more later on.....until then....adios!
I am married to a wonderful woman who really makes my life better. While our personalities differ in some dramatic ways, I think that is what I love most about her. She is one of the most sensitive, creative and loving people that I have ever met. We had been friends for quite a long time, but never dated until college. I would love to say that it has been perfect ever since, but we have had our difficulties (big and small). We have, however, managed to stick it out through the bad times and it has definitely paid dividends. We are closer now than we have ever been and are very much looking forward to the future.
Our biggest issue these days (as I'm sure it is the same for most people), is money. With the uncertainty of job security, it has been a little more stressful than usual. My wife is amazing with organization and has created a spreadsheet dedicated to our finances. I tend to be a little oblivious to our finances, but we're trying to get on the same page and have been going over the spreadsheet together so I can understand where all of our money allocated. We finally made the decision to cut our cable and get rid of the Blackberry's [well, I have...I think the wife keeps making excuses as to why she hasn't canceled hers :) ]. In order to save a little extra, I thought I'd take it upon myself to make my own long-range antenna for our television. My advice...don't. While it only cost around $20 to build, it looks ugly and only gets about 3 more channels than my old-school rabbit ears. Plus, if you live in an apartment, there is really no good place where it can be hidden. So now, instead of saving money, I've spent $20 to find out that I need to spend another $70 (or so) to get all of the over-the-air channels. So I guess the question is: In the future, do you spend a little money and cross your fingers that your little contraption works, or do you suck it up and fork over your wallet to the stores?
Maybe I just want to believe that I'm a little handier than I truly am. I know that there are times that I just need to leave certain things to professionals, but the man-gene gets the best of me a lot of times and I just can't help myself.
A couple of my favorite hobbies, are chip carving and the guitar. Because the apartment doesn't allow me to use some of the power tools required to build things out of my carvings, I'm restricted to just carving for right now. If anyone has had this same dilemma and has figured out how to get around it, please let me know! I've been dying to actually build things like humidors, jewelry boxes and eventually some small furniture to start off with. The guitar is a little easier to manage, but I've gotten to the point where the self-teaching has reached it's plateau. So if anyone has a suggestion about how to advance guitar skills without spend money (on lessons), that too would be great.
I guess I'll end with that. I'm not sure how interested people will actually be in my background, so I don't want to go on forever, but I can add some more later on.....until then....adios!
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