Happy New Year!

Well, it's already 2011.  I remember starting vet school and thinking how far away that year sounded, and here it is already.  2010 did not end the way that I really wanted it to, and 2011 did not start the best, either.  Calvin and I went up to my parents' house on Christmas day, and had a very nice day with my family.  As part of my Christmas presents, my parents agreed to get my car painted.  The batch of paint that my car was painted with originally was apparently a faulty batch, and has worn thin and dull too quickly, so it is pink instead of red.  My mom and I went to take my car to get painted, and when we got back home, that's when things started going downhill.  My grandma (my mom's mom) lives with us in a mother-in-law suite attached to our house.  When I walked in the door, I found her standing in the back room, very confused.  As I helped her back to her house, she proceeded to have a medical event that involved her collapsing into my arms, and unresponsiveness all while remaining conscious.  It was extremely frightening, and we called the squad to check her out.  She was then taken to the hospital where she remained for 3 nights for monitoring and diagnostics.  They believe that she experienced some sort of small vascular event or internal seizure (where the brain seizes, but the body does not).  After all of that, the doctors said that they feel that it is in her best interest for safety and monitoring that she be placed in a nursing facility.  This comes as a major blow to our family, as she has been living with us for 16 years.  She is now in a pretty nice place, but it's very hard to know that she's not home.  Around that same time, the flu went around my family.  First my mom got it, then my dad, then my little sister, and then Calvin.  Becky (my little sister) got it on New Year's Eve day, and therefore couldn't come with us to our previously planned event.  Calvin, Barb (my older sister), and I went without her instead, and had a really nice time.  The concert was in Cleveland, and it was the Cleveland Pops Orchestra with Stephanie J. Block and Erin Mackey as guest singers.  It was amazing and I'm glad we got to go.  We got back down to Columbus on Sunday, and I was supposed to start my "holiday" rotation (Equine Surgery) today.  Instead, I woke up with the flu.  Also, I found out that I've been turned down for three internship positions.  In addition to all of that fun stuff, I also hopped back on the scale, and found out that I now need to lose 54 pounds to get down to my goal weight.  Lovely, right?  Oh well, as Joe Brown said, "A challenge is an opportunity to prove your ability to yourself and others."  I just need to remember that in these upcoming months, because I'll be facing challenges left and right.  So, for now, it's time for bed, so until next time, goodnight!