Well, the day is over. I finished my paper and it turns out I don’t have a quiz in AN SC 423. Nice. I’m taking this time to look up information on vaccine use in Netherlands poultry production and information on cheeses I want to eat. The main scoop is that I am NOT taking my laptop on the trip. So… no posts until next Saturday! 
Fortunately, I AM taking a journal so I will still be blogging–but low tech! I will be taking a lot of pictures too.
When I get home I’ll post my journal entries and pictures to share the experience. I’m excited now. Have a great week and I will post next Saturday.
Ta ta!
Hammie
March 5th, 2010
I finished my epidemiological paper! Now time to revise it and revise it and revise it until I leave for the Netherlands tomorrow. It is 40 words under the limit. That means I should cut information and wordage if I plan on adding anything new. I am NO epidemiologist so I have a couple of questions when I get to class at 1:00pm. We’ll see if I was even on the right track. However, I see this class as a HUGE learning opportunity. No matter what I get on this paper I want to see if I can fix my mistakes and have him review it again… not for more credit but for my personal improvement and knowledge. This paper really made me think. It was like a half-marathon for my brain.
I’m not done yet! Besides revising and potential rewriting of this paper, I have a quiz in AN SC 423 tomorrow morning and I have to read for Spanish tonight. Packing for the Netherlands… Hah! Maybe I’ll just fall onto the bus with my euros, passport, camera and toothbrush. At least I was very productive and finished my literature posts last night… er… this morning. Ok, so I was still up at 3am last night this morning but I was surprisingly alert and awake when I work up at 7:20. I really do think that I am more awake when I get less sleep.
I drank coffee last night and I felt horrible. This morning I was shaky so I decided to make myself a hard-boiled egg sandwich for breakfast. It hit the spot and I felt much better afterwards.
Well, time to get ready for class. I think I’m going to make myself some coffee… I know that is a bad idea but I can’t chance falling asleep in class.
I’m off! Have a great rest o’Thursday!
Hammie
March 4th, 2010
I’ll have to post more tomorrow… I’m work, work, workin’ on my epidemiology paper right now.
Have a great Thursday!
Hammie
March 3rd, 2010
Good evening! Only 2 more days until the Netherlands trip. Still working on the STAT paper… and trying to get everything else finished so I can pack.
Today I spent most of the afternoon working at the lab. I finally got my positive controls to show up again! Yes, I lost them for a while but now they are back like a stray cat looking for food. Thanks to Dr. K for helping me get the protocol straightened out. Time to move on with the testing. Fantabulous.
For lunch today, and I wish I would have taken a picture, I had an amazing egg sandwich. It was spelt bread, mustard, 2 hard-boiled eggs, and spinach. It sounds dry but it wasn’t. The yolks of the eggs smooshed with the mustard and made an instant egg salad. I didn’t add cheese but sometimes I like to just eat the cheese on its own.
Tomorrow is turning out to be a much busier day than anticipated. I want to go back to the lab in the afternoon to talk again with Dr. K and to thank her for her help, I have to run 1.5 hours, I have to finish writing my STAT report, and more! In fact, it is almost tomorrow already. Time to get back to work. It’s tough not having coffee to help keep me awake. So far I’m making it.
Have a great Wednesday!
Hammie
March 2nd, 2010
Happy March 1st!
Five more days until the Poultry Science Club leaves on the Netherlands Study Tour. I am not packed, and I am not ready but I am excited. I have a lot to get done before I leave for the Netherlands.
This morning I ran 1 hour and 15 minutes during jogging class. Well, 10 minutes before jogging, 25 minutes during jogging, and 45 minutes after jogging. As I circled the track in Rec Hall I got to see my class come and go and the next class begin. Unfortunately, I forgot my earbuds for my ipod so I couldn’t listen to music. I was still able to run an hour and 15… and I think I may have liked it more?
This is the first jogging class that my legs did not fatigue, fall sleep, and cramp up. The improvement observed in the sides of my calves may be due to one or all of several changes:
- I am drinking more water- I was dehydrated from all the coffee I was drinking. I was told to drink half my body weight in ounces of water everyday.
- I stopped drinking coffee. The caffeine was dehydrating my body and making my heart beat too fast. Apparently coffee is the root of all evil? At least large amounts are… cutting back last week to one cup per day really made me feel better.
- I’ve been massaging my calves twice a day to allow the lymph to drain back towards my heart.
After jogging I dashed to my physiology class and then met Dr. Dunn to go on a farm visit to collect samples for my URP. I really liked the farm we went to and the service person was really nice and very helpful. It was really motivating to get out and talk to service people/farmers and to work with birds. I really do enjoy doing what I do!
We got back into State College at 6:00 pm and I had some leftover stuffed pork chops, sauerkraut, and mashed potatoes that Mom sent back to school with me. Mom’s stuffed pork chops were very good and her mashed potatoes were as amazing as always. Thanks Mom for the quick dinner!
I’ve got another packed day tomorrow: lab to work on my URP then an exam in Spanish. Whew! I’m falling asleep at my desk. I think it is time for bed.
Have a great Tuesday!
Hammie
March 1st, 2010
Here it is. I’m not sure if I wanted to say just yet because I still have to send in my offer acceptance letter (and I’m going to fax it too–Monday). However, I’ve made my final decision. Now you will know why I was flying/driving all over the country. 
No more secrets. Here it is:
For vet school in the fall… I am going to…
Yup, you guessed it. Actually, my advisor said it was a surprise. If you had been in my head a month ago you would see a totally different school below.
Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine
This school is amazing and I know it I will enjoy it. There are several reasons for choosing this school.
- The faculty-I know many very knowledgeable doctors who work at A&M both in the Poultry Science Department and in the College of Veterinary Medicine.
- The College has a phenomenal reputation for producing professional, knowledgeable, and accomplished DVMs. It also has one of the best pathology residency programs in the country–one of my goals is to obtain a pathology residency and take/pass the pathology boards.
- The cost- I won’t say too much here but it is MUCH lower than most other schools and A&M offers a very generous scholarship to out-of-state students. To have the opportunity to get out of vet school with $100,000 less debit is wonderful.
- The location-I LOVED living in Bryan-College Station last summer. The weather was nice, the people were nice, and the food was N-I-C-E. And, although Spanish is becoming a very common language all over the country, I will have a greater chance of continuing to practice Spanish in Texas. I am hoping I may even have the chance to work with one of the several native-Spanish-speaking doctors I know, from whom I would like to learn more medical terms that I can apply in the field.
There. It’s official. The journey of applying to vet schools is finished. It started in June and 9-months later, like a having a baby, it is over–and the REAL work begins.
Hammie
February 27th, 2010
Who turned State College into Detroit? It is SO cold and SO windy. We only have 1-2 inches of snow but the weather outside is frightful because of drifting snow. Brrrr. It makes me want to crawl into a heated blanket and toast into a marshmallow. I’m not easily disturbed by snow or cold but I’m not a fan of wind. It is too… gusty. Poor lil’ goats. I know they are protected for the wind and out of the snow, snug in their barns but it just seems so cold. I wish they could all some inside with me.
HAPPY 21st BIRTHDAY ARIEL!
After Spanish this evening, Jacob and I met Jolie at her appartment and we all went to Ariel’s appartment to celebrate her birthday. Ariel is one of my friends from P sci (and Ohio) who is one of those great, friendly people everyone loves–thanks for inviting me! Unfortunately, we all have a quiz in comparative physiology tomorrow so we didn’t stay long. But it WAS fun eating baked pasta, cake, ice cream, and Krista Moser’s chocolate-y goodness cookie thing. I took pictures but not with my camera. I left it in the car before we left with Jolie. Hopefully I will get to post those pictures later.
Speaking of cake… on Tuesday the Lion Ambassadors were hosting a birthday party for Penn State in the HUB. Penn State originated in 1855, so this year it is 155 years old…
HAPPY BIRTHDAY PENN STATE!!! (This is a link to a Collegian article about the celebration.) I happened to walk through the HUB saw this cake… amazing. It’s a bit better than my drum cake.
I know, I promised a special announcement but it will have to wait until tomorrow. I want to make it a good post and not hurry through it.
Have a GREAT Friday and stay safe out there in the wind!
Hammie
February 25th, 2010
Hi everyone!
Sorry, no post tonight. I’ve had an unexpected amount of extra work. I will try to post tomorrow.
Hammie
February 24th, 2010
Good evening! I hope your Tuesday was fantabulous!
My Tuesday was ok. I think I’m getting sick because I could NOT think at all today. Plus, I had a headache, and felt cold and nauseous. Maybe that means time for bed. I have a long Wednesday ahead of me–a lot of meetings in the afternoon.
And then perhaps the announcement of an important decision…
Have a great Wednesday!
Hammie
February 23rd, 2010
Even “protective” shaving razors are dangerous. Last night as I was reaching into my toiletry bag to get out my soap and facewash for a shower I shaved off a piece of the skin on my finger. Ouch! I had blood running down my elbow for a while until I could find a bandage. Everything is ok but it doesn’t look very good. I’ll “shave” you the sight so I won’t post a picture.
Good evening!!! I hope you had a great Monday. My Monday wasn’t so great but it is almost Tuesday, so I get another try.
Since this is a flog (a foodblog) let’s get back to food. Lately, breakfasts have been cold cereal, a banana, milk and almond butter. It doesn’t seem like I ever have enough time in the morning to make oatmeal, so it’s better to just eat something fast and move on…
This morning I was on the campus shuttle at 8:07… that’s Dorothy’s shuttle! Dorothy’s shuttle is like a therapy service. If you have a problem, one loop around campus and she’ll make you feel better. Someone made the comment that she’s probably saved hundred of jobs (and possibly even lives) by listening to people who just get on the shuttle to get away from work for a moment. Taking a breather is often necessary to prevent someone from saying something that shouldn’t be said, especially if they are going to say it to someone who has more power/is higher ranked than themselves. What’s nice is… “what happens on the shuttle, stays on the shuttle.” So… that’s all I’m going to say.
I ran for 15 minutes outside before going inside Rec Hall for jogging. I finished my 1 hour and 15 minutes inside on the track. The track may be boring but at least I can still get some of my running in for my half-marathon in April.
Lunch was super-fast (like the muscles in the larynx of a bird) so that I could get to the lab and home before it started to snow/ice. I made a lamb-pita with spinach and Hungarian paprika. It was good and kept me full until 6:30 pm.
Dinner was unique. I sautéed cabbage, onions, leftover green beans and grits until tender. Then I added some halibut… It looks strange but it was good. My favorite part: the almonds that were with the green beans. I would LOVE to have toasted, sliced almonds in a pasta sauce with lots of fresh veggies. They gave a great nutty, crunch to the dish. (There’s that sexy word again–”crunch.” If something has crunch it has to be good, except for the things that are not supposed to be crunchy–like applesauce.)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY JJ!!!
(JJ is my youngest goat, she was born as I was on my way home form a California judging trip last year… my mom found her by the water bucket. The temperature was in the single digits that night… she wasn’t stupid. JJ knew where it was warm–by a warm water bucket.) LOVE you Lil’ Tater.
Well… time for a bit more studying and then time for bed. Have a great Tuesday!!!
Oh, and stay tuned for an important announcement on Wednesday/Thursday. More to come on that later…
Hammie
February 22nd, 2010
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