I was surprised at how sad I felt to hear about Patrick Swayze's death. He's just an actor. And not one I particularly followed. So I was curious why I had such a poignant reaction. I think it's because he played roles that filled young women's dreams of romance. I mean, who didn't want to be Baby in Dirty Dancing? Or have someone so dedicated as in Ghost? He portrayed the modern knight in shining armor.
And, man, it was nice to watch him move.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Saturday, September 12, 2009
$100 for 100 strips
I had to buy test strips for my glucose meter the other day. They were $100 for 100 strips. ?!?!?!?!
We have the money to spend on these. But what about people who don't? What do they do? Granted, test strips are not drugs that you're required to take or you die (although I know there are those cases, too), but they are required for monitoring the condition so you can change your diet and exercise as needed. And for people who have to take drugs to control their sugars, these strips are necessary to ensure they're taking the right amount over time.
The strips are not covered by insurance (at least, they're not covered by mine, which seems to be better than most), and they are $1 per strip. So every time you test your sugars, it's $1. I want to charge the company every time I get a bad strip and have to redo the test with another strip.
But that's not all . . . They expire. So if you don't use them in time, you get to throw away all those dollars.
I wish I could take this $100 and buy some shoes or earrings, something that I can enjoy. Or even put it toward a family vacation -- $100 is about half of a Southwest ticket to just about anywhere from KS.
Instead, I get to buy strips.
We have the money to spend on these. But what about people who don't? What do they do? Granted, test strips are not drugs that you're required to take or you die (although I know there are those cases, too), but they are required for monitoring the condition so you can change your diet and exercise as needed. And for people who have to take drugs to control their sugars, these strips are necessary to ensure they're taking the right amount over time.
The strips are not covered by insurance (at least, they're not covered by mine, which seems to be better than most), and they are $1 per strip. So every time you test your sugars, it's $1. I want to charge the company every time I get a bad strip and have to redo the test with another strip.
But that's not all . . . They expire. So if you don't use them in time, you get to throw away all those dollars.
I wish I could take this $100 and buy some shoes or earrings, something that I can enjoy. Or even put it toward a family vacation -- $100 is about half of a Southwest ticket to just about anywhere from KS.
Instead, I get to buy strips.
The Purr
The other day, I did 15 minutes of yoga after my walk. I ended with shavasana (corpse pose), where you lie on your back and relax everything. (Aside: it's really cool. I can feel my energy pulsing all around me. I keep waiting for someone to tell me I'm glowing while I do it. :-) )
During my yoga time, Mushroom (my little black cat) was rubbing all over me, standing up against me -- basically doing everything she could to get my attention (and she's typically one of those aloof cats who will only deign to let her pet you). So when I did shavasana, lying there on my back, she climbed up on me and lay down on my chest, her tail at my pelvis and head at my neck.
And she was purring. Not so you could hear, but I could Feel* it in my chest. It was such a magical feeling, this rumbly purr echoing from her to me. It made me feel so connected to this other creature, so connected to life. It was wonderful.
* I did not intend to capitalize this, but decided it was appropriate.
During my yoga time, Mushroom (my little black cat) was rubbing all over me, standing up against me -- basically doing everything she could to get my attention (and she's typically one of those aloof cats who will only deign to let her pet you). So when I did shavasana, lying there on my back, she climbed up on me and lay down on my chest, her tail at my pelvis and head at my neck.
And she was purring. Not so you could hear, but I could Feel* it in my chest. It was such a magical feeling, this rumbly purr echoing from her to me. It made me feel so connected to this other creature, so connected to life. It was wonderful.
* I did not intend to capitalize this, but decided it was appropriate.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Not so good
So it turns out I'm not so good at keeping a blog after all. :-) So now that I'm ultra busy, I'll try again. I've always been better at getting things done when I don't have time to do everything.
So why am I so busy? Because I've decided to go to nursing school! I have about a year of prereqs to finish so I started those at the local community college. All the classes are online, which is probably the only way I could do it.
So I'm taking Statistics, Anatomy and Physiology, and Human Development. Statistics is awesome. It was the class I was most afraid of as almost everyone I've talked to has said it is horrible. But I am enjoying it very much. For one, the instructor is uber-organized. We have a spreadsheet showing exactly what we should be doing each day of each week, and we can get as far ahead as we want. The math part is a bit tedious, and it really sucks when you make one stupid mistake that messes *everything* else up (I set up spreadsheets to avoid that problem), but I really like the precision of it all. Maybe I need more precision in my life. :-) And, it stretches my brain. I have to work at it ... but not so hard that I hate it.
A&P, on the other hand, I thought I would love. And I do find it incredibly interesting. However, the professor is totally uninvolved. I know what chapters the tests are over and that is it. So I am reading and memorizing ... all on my own. Fortunately, I know how to learn and I have a photographic memory. But I feel sorry for all the students who don't. There's no direction at all. Which is totally unprofessional.
As for Human Development, it's booooooorrrrrrriiiiiing. And the class doesn't make it any more interesting. Nothing more to say on that!
As for why I want to go to nursing school (cause this post isn't long enough yet!) -- I have always been fascinated by the human body. Thought about medical school a few times in my life, but something always came up to prevent it. So one day I realized that I didn't want it enough; if I did, I would have made it happen. But I do want to be involved in health care. Thus, nursing school. And as soon as I made that decision, things started falling into place. It was like the universe had agreed with me. If everything works out, I'll start in fall of 2010. And since I want to be a nurse practitioner, which will require a PhD as of 2015, I'll be in school for quite awhile. My dream would be to work with a naturopathic physician. I think. There's so much choice, I need to learn more.
Oh! And I'm taking the Jewish community conversion class, which lasts a year. But more on that later. :-)
So why am I so busy? Because I've decided to go to nursing school! I have about a year of prereqs to finish so I started those at the local community college. All the classes are online, which is probably the only way I could do it.
So I'm taking Statistics, Anatomy and Physiology, and Human Development. Statistics is awesome. It was the class I was most afraid of as almost everyone I've talked to has said it is horrible. But I am enjoying it very much. For one, the instructor is uber-organized. We have a spreadsheet showing exactly what we should be doing each day of each week, and we can get as far ahead as we want. The math part is a bit tedious, and it really sucks when you make one stupid mistake that messes *everything* else up (I set up spreadsheets to avoid that problem), but I really like the precision of it all. Maybe I need more precision in my life. :-) And, it stretches my brain. I have to work at it ... but not so hard that I hate it.
A&P, on the other hand, I thought I would love. And I do find it incredibly interesting. However, the professor is totally uninvolved. I know what chapters the tests are over and that is it. So I am reading and memorizing ... all on my own. Fortunately, I know how to learn and I have a photographic memory. But I feel sorry for all the students who don't. There's no direction at all. Which is totally unprofessional.
As for Human Development, it's booooooorrrrrrriiiiiing. And the class doesn't make it any more interesting. Nothing more to say on that!
As for why I want to go to nursing school (cause this post isn't long enough yet!) -- I have always been fascinated by the human body. Thought about medical school a few times in my life, but something always came up to prevent it. So one day I realized that I didn't want it enough; if I did, I would have made it happen. But I do want to be involved in health care. Thus, nursing school. And as soon as I made that decision, things started falling into place. It was like the universe had agreed with me. If everything works out, I'll start in fall of 2010. And since I want to be a nurse practitioner, which will require a PhD as of 2015, I'll be in school for quite awhile. My dream would be to work with a naturopathic physician. I think. There's so much choice, I need to learn more.
Oh! And I'm taking the Jewish community conversion class, which lasts a year. But more on that later. :-)
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