YAYAY

So it turns out Matt got on a flight that wasn't full meaning that he is going to be here 3 hours early. Yay! That also means I get to stop doing homework. Yay!! I got enough done though today. I decided that I could get more done out of ethics class than in it, so I got to start my studying at 3 today rather than 5. Yay!!! Okay, I have to leave for the airport soon. Probably won't update til Monday, maybe Tuesday. Yay!

I touched a lung

I am making great time tonight with my studying. Only one more lecture to do for the day, which should only take about 30 minutes or so. Woohoo! As for the question of other Prep students here, there are about 1 ton. There are at least 6 people from Spokane in the M1 year alone. It is crazy.

I actually didn't mind anatomy lab today. Before lab, we got a lecture about central lines and chest tubes. Basically, she just scared me about ever trying either and all the things I can do wrong. Yikes! It was all interesting though. In lab, we got to remove the breast plate, which meant it was time to use the bone saw and cutters. I didn't use the saw. The sound reminded me of a dentist gone wrong. I mean really wrong. I am not going to saw anything too squeamish, but if you don't want to read anything mild even, look away now. After taking the breast plate off, we cut out the right lung. Man does that thing feel weird. Our woman was not a smoker, but our neighbors had a smoker. Those were some black lungs. Warning: smokers, your lungs are gross, stop it. It is also amazing how much fat is around the heart. No, it isn't just because our lady is larger, everyone has a bit of fat around it. Also, the liver is really hard. Who would have guessed that? It was everyone's too, not just the alcoholics. Crazy. The guys stayed to study, and I asked if I could leave. Best question ever, cuz then Liz and I scurried out of there. Awesome.

Do you know how hard wet erase markers are to find? Office Depot pretty much hides them under all the highlighters. Highlighters!?!?!? Who puts those there? I decided not to work out this morning. I got an hour extra sleep instead. I slept through my regular alarm and woke up to my phone alarm, which means I am really tired. Hence the no workout. Meh. I think I will survive. Free lunch tomorrow. Plus Matt gets here. Yay!

Another long day

Today was, well, awful. Lecture, histo lab (which I hate), lecture, free lunch (bright spot). I thought after lunch was going to be pretty easy. A lecture about interviewing and then some introduction to MCB small groups. First lecture was good. This type of stuff is what we are really all itching to do. First intro was only 20 minutes. I figured we would get out at least an hour earlier than expected. But then it began. OMG. He took 30 minutes to go over 7 slides, all of which he explained in his note packet that he gave us. He gave us a break about 2/3 the way through, and I decided to split. Thank goodness. I was falling asleep. I came home to some wonderful studying though. Woooohooo?

We get another free lunch on Thursday because Dr. Kavan is talking to us about how to build a strong application for residency. Isn't that during 4th year? Didn't I just get done applying to medical school? I tell ya people, it never ends.

Good early morning workout. I got hassled by Gregg (guy I played basketball with on Saturday) about leaving early last Saturday. So I guess that means it was okay that I was there? Yes.

Matt comes in on Thursday!!!!!!!!!

Monday

It really is crazy to think that this was only my 9th day of school. It seems like it has been about 5 weeks. Weird.

I decided I need to learn some patience, especially in anatomy lab. Either that, or I need to learn to say, "Hey, I learned all I am going to. We accomplished the goals of the lab. I am heading out." Yes, I know that may seem rude not to help clean up, but the guys in the group get really curious sometimes, which delays cleanup. Plus, my knees start to hurt. I'm getting too old for this.

No other news to report. I do like the morning workouts, but then again, I go to bed at about 1030, which again, is very old man-like. Meh. I am okay with that. I do like wearing my pants around my ribs.

Success!

First house dinner made by me was, from what I hear, a complete success. I was told previously that if Katie asks for the recipe, then it is good. Katie in fact did ask for the recipe even before she sat down. Almost everyone took seconds. My firsts were way too big, and now I want to throw up. Cooking for 12 is a little tricky; the timing issue really gets me. I overshot my estimated time of eating by about 30 minutes. Whoops. I made too many noodles also. I think I could have added more broccoli. The redeeming factor of it all, however, was the giant mounds of cheese I put all over it. Cheese makes all things better.

I have done very little but be domestic today. I cleaned the living room (my area to clean), did laundry, went grocery shopping, cleaned my room, and cooked. I am tired of doing that. I decided I might want a mini-fridge though so that I can keep some drinks or something up in my room. I have no clue where I would put said mini-fridge, but that is something to be worked out later.

I really need to learn all the muscles of the arm, forearm, and hand. It is amazing how many muscles we have running through there. Eeeek. Matt comes on Thursday! Yay! I am working out in the morning. Yay! Maybe riding my bike to school? We will see. Oh wait, can't do that if I want to bring extra clothes to change into after working out. Dang it. Hmmmmmmm. Tricksy.

I win!

So I passed the quiz. Yay! Of course there is always room for improvement, but I would be more than happy to get the score I just got on all my tests. We were given 36 min for 28 questions. I finished really really quickly. Meh. I then checked my scores right away because I figured that no matter how long I waited, it wouldn't change. While the second groups was testing, they posted the questions and correct answers. 2 of the ones I got wrong, I was pretty sure I was right about. So just now, I looked up some stuff and am pretty sure I was right. Mesenchyme does in fact mostly come from mesoderm. Some comes from ectoderm, but really, most comes from mesoderm. Then again......mesoderm comes from ectoderm. Whatever. Embryology is stupid anyway. I am not going to argue about it though. It was just one question. We have another quiz in 2 weeks. Yay?

Yesterday was Betsy's birthday, which meant awful amounts of eating. We went to M's Pub and then to the Dubliner Pub, which had live music. We then went to The Jay (hole in the wall bar near school), but I was wayyyyy tooooo tired, so I asked our DD to take me home after dropping them off. I know, I am a party pooper, but the 8 hours of sleep was glorious. I then made a set of silly mistakes. I biked to school, which felt great to do, the wind rushing through my helmet hair. I then worked out for an hour. Shot around for 20 minutes. Played pick-up with a whole bunch of guys, full court. And then finally biked home. Holy smokes. I was shaking when I got home. But it wasn't too hot, which was nice.

Unlike Bo, I am going to continue to update daily. No, I don't always say good, deep, insightful things, but I don't have time to call everyone in my life (plus Bub and Bo are going to be overseas). This is a better idea in my opinion.

MDQ #1 tomorrow

So......yeah. First quiz tomorrow. I hear not to worry about it, which I am kind of doing. I am not worried about the actual grade (in truth this one is only 2% of our grade). I am more worried to see how my study methods are working. I hate the idea of changing what I am doing, but I really think I can be more efficient. My methods are just taking too long. I'll keep y'all update.

Another thunderstorm just rolled in. These things really are amazing. Scary, but amazing. Today overall was a good day. Up at 530 to workout. Strange enough, I have been less tired when I get up that early and workout then when I get up at 640 and don't workout in the morning. Weird. Today was also good, because I only had one lecture and had free lunch. And most importantly of all...we got our doctor tools. All the things in there have big fancy names I can't pronounce, but they make me feel like I am almost real. Stethoscope. I can say that one. I would totally be playing with all of it if I didn't have to study. Stupid quiz.

Also, not like I go there anymore, but Regis seems to have changed up all their parking. We have a parking lot that is about 1.5 blocks from campus, but no one ever parks there because people don't like walking. They would rather spend 15 minutes looking for parking and then park 4 blocks away on the street rather than just park in the lot. So Regis caved. New parking restrictions in the neighborhood are going to make it even harder to park, so Regis bought, as they call it, a "limousine golf kart, like the type at Disney World." Apparently, to go to Regis, your legs have to painted on. Glad they didn't have that restriction when I applied.

Brachial Plexus what????

I guess I should actually look at what we are doing in anatomy lab before we do it, otherwise I go in having no clue what I am actually supposed to be learning. Today, we were doing the brachial plexus, which is this super complicated "braid" of nerves around your clavicle and shoulder. Who would have even known it is there. Basically, we were working in the armpit all day. It was nice because we could get both sides going at the same time, but it was bad because really only two people could work per side. That left the 5th person out. That, for most of today, was me. I don't know why. I guess they just all really really really wanted to do it. Basically though, I left knowing that I am going to have to come in later down the road to actually learn it. I am still not trying to stress about the quiz on Friday while everyone around me does. We will see how I feel about that idea tomorrow night.

Worked out this morning. It was still pretty dang crowded for 630am. Stupid undergrads. Go back to bed. Went to Panera for lunch today. Mmmmmmmmm.

In other news, I am pretty sure my phone bill is going to be over $120. I blame Matt for not being in the Verizon network. Jerk.

It was like an inland hurricane

So just like Sunday was my first bat experience, yesterday was my first tornado warning. I am sitting, minding my business, doing some hw. Storm finally roles in (had been trying to during dinner), and I can see it all through my window. This was super strong wind. Eric Peeples knocks on my door asking if my window is leaking because he has water dripping into his room. My window AC unit was in fact letting water in, so I fixed that problem. The wind is super loud, but I thought I could kind of hear something else out my window. Then Katie Enemark calls my phone and says that the tornado sirens just went off and that I should get downstairs. Don't worry, it only lasted about 15 minutes, but still. There were tons and tons of uprooted trees all around town. It was crazy. If you have never experienced a storm in Omaha, you better do it before you die. This was more intense than anything I have ever seen (other than rain in the rainforest of course).

Blah to studying. I had a minor Becky crisis and rearranged how I am going to approach all my studying. We will see how the transition goes from old to new methods. I also tried the Creighton fitness center (KFC) today. Let me tell you....blow! They have several basketball courts and a track, which are totally great. And a big pool. But their workout facility is about the same size as Regis' yet they have about 5 times as many students. It was super crowded this afternoon. Sad. So I think I am going to try going in the mornings before class. It opens at 6, so it should work perfectly. Okay, back to studying!

Bat 1, Becky 0

So I had my first bat experience in the house. I had been warned of this at the first meeting and was told to close windows at dusk. Well, someone forgot to shut the 3rd floor bathroom window. Becky goes in to brush her teeth at 1130pm, toothbrush in hand, smiling face. Becky turns on light and scoots in, hears scraping, figures it is the window. Becky turns around to see a bat flying around the room, remembers it is kinda late so she can't scream, and then high-tails it back to her room without even turning off the bathroom light. The hall light is motion sensor, so I figured the bat would eventually go out there; for that reason, I did not brush my teeth last night. I then made sure I wasn't the first one out of my room up here in the morning. Really though...super scary.

Anatomy lab was so so today. One of the professors, however, did about 1/3 of what we have to do on Wednesday for us. Yay!!! I also decided I can't be a surgeon because I got tired after standing for 2 hours. Pathetic, I know. Also, we had enchiladas last night for dinner, which I am a little upset about because that is what I was going to make. Guess not now. Sad

Here again

I am pretty sure I like studying in the interactive area. Well, in one of the small group rooms. I get to spread out. No one bugs me. And I can talk on my phone without getting looks. Today is going much better than yesterday. I hit a really hard section yesterday that just blew me away mentally. I had learned it before, but I was having trouble with the spatial part of it. I was in a bad mood for the rest of the day because of it. Suck. But today is much better. I worked through lateral folding and am moving on. We have our first MDQ (multi-disciplinary quiz) on Friday. I hear that I shouldn't worry about it, so I am trying not to. All tests/quizzes are on computer here, so the second you hit submit, they email you your results. I don't know if I like the idea of that.

Last night, Meghan, Amy, Betsy, Amber, Carey, and I went to Superbad. I volunteered to drive not knowing we were going about a million miles away. Whatever. We decided we need to buy a minivan because it is hard to fit all 6 of us in one car. Superbad was pretty dang funny. Yes, a lot of high school/boy/gross humor, but still a ton of things that made me laugh. And a lot of awkward scenes. Definitely not a movie you want to watch with anyone in your family though.

In even greater knews, I hear that no one won Powerball ----- it is now up to 245 million. I am going to buy this time for sure. Okay, back to studying

Also.....Happy BDAY DAD!!!! and happy half bday manda pants!!!!

fun fun

I really don't know how to impress upon all of you how much info is coming at me right now. We have almost covered my entire developmental biology course (with a tad bit less detail) in about 5 or 6 lectures. That isn't days. That is hours. It is now Saturday, and I am studying. I have never really ever studied on Saturday. This is new. I don't think I like it. I am at school right now. I like having enough room to spread out to study, but my desk at home doesn't really provide that. So here I am being a dork.

So for anyone who hasn't heard, yesterday was our first gross anatomy lab. I have only ever once even almost kinda seen a dead body. Yesterday, I was rolling one over. And cutting into it. I have only ever cut into a frog or something like that. I will spare you all the details, but lets just say I never want to eat again. Not because it was gross but because I never want to have that much fat on my body. Ick.

After lab, I had just about the hardest/worst ride home ever. I really wanted to drive by a mail box, but there were a lot of people in the way and cars. Failure. I left my jacket on top of the car and it blew off. At least I turned around the block and got that one. Close failure. I then spent 20 min looking for a grocery store that someone gave me bad directions to. Failure. Really, it was just annoying.

Amber, Amy, Betsy, and I went over to Meghan's for dinner. She lives just about 1 block away from me. I was in charge of salad. It was a good dinner with wine and lots of talking. I almost felt like an adult. And then we shot gunned some beers and I stopped feeling like an adult. We went to Old Market bars. The thing is, bars here close at 1. That is flippin early. We then headed back to Amy's (thanks to Betsy for driving) for about 3 hours of drunk singing and dancing. Her townhouse is really cool though. Okay, I really should get back to studying.

Totally nonstop

Today all lectures were real. Well, except for ethics, but who's counting? Oh my goodness. Really, this is just a train that is going to do nothing but speed up. My only down time was dinner, which was about 40 minutes. And right now. But I am starting again in 6 minutes, so this is going to be fast.

So apparently I am now a front row sitter. Judge as you may. I don't care. I am usually a middle to front type of person. But the first day of lecture (yesterday) the people I like to hang out with were in the front. So there I got stuck. It makes texting during class hard.

I had to take notes for Note Service today. I had to do it for ethics. I got a pretty lucky draw if you ask me. They say it should take between 4-6 hours (which means between 2-4 in reality). It took me 1.25 hours. Really, how much more can you add to something she just reads off of? All I did was paraphrase her words and add a few side comments she made that weren't in the slides. Easy cheesy.

Whelp, the train is starting again.

First Day!!!

A) don't worry, I took a pic for my first day of school....wait no, I didn't
B) keeping it brief, already have tons to do

So for those who don't know, med school isn't really one of those things you can just cram for like most of us did through undergrad. It isn't that the material is hard. It is that there is about 1 ton of it. Some say it is like trying to drink water from a fire hydrant. There is just no way to ever ever ever learn everything. I "learned" (I already knew it) in one hour what took us about a week or two in undergrad. Holy crap! Put your seat belts on people.

Today wasn't awful. Several introductions to courses, a handful of lectures, free lunch. We also met our cadavers. First time I have ever really seen a dead body. The face was still covered thank goodness. She already had a name, so don't ask me what we named her. Her name is Alice. First dissection is on Friday. Eeeeeeek! My housemate and lab mate Mark has taken anatomy a few times before, so hopefully he can be a lot of help.

Ok, back to studying. Here we go!!!!! (To be said in the voice of Peach from MarioKart)

It's almost here

Today, for the most part, blew. Last night we got an email about Note Service and if anyone who knows they want to be in it would be willing to volunteer to do the first week. Note Service is a student run thing where a student takes notes for a lecture (normally 4 lectures a day = 4 diff. students) and everyone gets a copy. You pay $40 for a semester, and, depending on how many people sign up, you take notes 2 times a semester. The notes are rather standardized (font, spacing, margins), and they have a system of strikes in place for poor note takers. I, of course, am signing up because that means if I want to miss a class, I can. Then I just have to read those, the lecture notes, and listen to the lecture online (Podcast baby). I, being the dork I am, counted to when I may possibly be taking notes. I am #42 in the class alphabetically, which is weird because that was my number in basketball. Anyway, that would possibly put me at that Friday when Matt will be here. Friday note takers turn them in Monday morning, but still, I didn't want to do them while he was here (they say you should put 5 hours into making a set). So I volunteered and said no to tomorrow (Feast of the Assumption, going to mass after last class). I was assigned to our second Ethics lecture. In my head, that should be pretty easy. It is ethics, what more can you add (they want us not to just type exactly what is said, we are supposed to add stuff) without getting into the realm of opinion??

I got up to go to a mandatory thing at 9. It lasted 15 min. Blow. I then ran and ellipticalled. That was good. Another mandatory thing at 2. Holy crap. Library stuff. Don't get me wrong, I love librarians. This one was bad though. She even blinked slowly. I am now sitting here reading ahead for tomorrows lectures. I know, I am a dork. I am not as worried about Molecular & Cellular Biology (MCB) as I am about anatomy. Ahhhhhh!

We had some sort of beef stew for dinner tonight. You know, when it is 105 out, I want nothing more than to come home and eat some good and hot beef stew. Wait....no.

Ugh...I hate loan people. So it seems like I am receiving more money than I asked to take out in loans. Don't ask me how that is possible. I was awarded a lot more than I applied through my lender to take out, yet somehow magically, my lender paid the full amount. I know, more money isn't bad...except when you are paying interest on that money. Jerks.

Yay for 95 and 0

Congrats to Gramma K. for turning 95!! Wooohoooo. She also finally has someone with whom she can share her birthday. My cousin Billy and his wife Katie welcomed their first child William some time today. My mom promised me pics. We will see.

In other news. Sunday was boring. I seriously sat around all day and fell in and out of nap. We had our first family dinner. It was good. I am getting a better idea of what to cook the first time. Okay, not really. Ahhhhhh!

Today, while officially called out first day of class, really only consisted of an hour of lame computer orientation. We also got gloves and blades for anatomy lab. I then went down to Old Market for lunch with Betsy, Kerri (don't know how to spell it), Meghan, Amber, and Amy. I think those are all the correct names. We went to Old Chicago. It was good. I think I will myself about one or two more weeks of this going out and eating often with people thing just so that I can make friends and meet new people. After that, I will cut back as to save money.

I finally got to work out. It had seriously been over 2 weeks. I could tell. Not that my body changed but that running was more difficult. For some reason, the Creighton fitness center (The KFC) won't let us med students use the gym until the undergrads show up on the 18th/22nd or something like that. Ugh. In the med student lounge, however, they have a separate room with 2 treadmills and 2 ellipticals. I went in a little after lunch and ran for about 30 min. I was pretty tired, so I know I need to do it again. Another family dinner tonight. Tacos/taco salad. Always a favorite out at camp. Right before the overnight. Maybe I will sleep outside......or not.

The day after

Firstly, here are the professional pics of the white coat ceremony. I am frame #s 137-139. Don't worry, Mom ordered some.

I didn't update last night because we had a "frat party" here. The only reason I call it that is because I am in fact living in a frat. Party started at 7 with some sand volleyball (we have a court on the side of the house). It was way too warm for me to play. I didn't want to get sweaty and then get sandy. We had kegs from Upstream. An M1 works there, so she got a deal for us. I sold cups from 10-1030 and would like to say that I sold at least 10. I am pretty good. I let some of my friends (I think that is what I would call them) keep their purses in my room because it was a good safe place. And it was really nice and cool up there, so I used any excuse to go up there.

The house was sooooooooo incredibly hot. The basement was fine until the party moved from outside to in. First time I saw the basement, I was pretty scared, but they cleaned it up. It looked really good. I was doing fine on the sobriety thing until......flip cup. It started as M1 vs M2, but they quickly wanted no more to do with us. Then it was M1 vs M1. At the peak, it was about 9 people per side. In the past, I always got better as I got drunker. Not last night. Wow, I was bad at the end. Then again, we were playing with a scotch ale. Dark. Bad for flip cup. That all ended at about 1150 or so. I told most people I was going to bed because I was starting to feel sick. After putting some basketball shorts on and a short trip to the bathroom, I felt much better and rejoined the party until 250. I then fell asleep with all sorts of crap on my bed and the light on. Good times.

Last thing about the party, Eric Davies (M2 in my house) killed a bat that had gotten in to the house. He did it with a tennis racket. Ick. Mom and Dad left yesterday. They got home safe. Other than that, I sat around all day. There isn't much food in the house yet, so I didn't eat much til Mark and I went to Jimmy John's for dinner. MMMMM.

Last day

Today was the last day of orientation officially. But really, Monday and Tuesday next week are computer orientation. Today was really all about inspiration I felt like. They did a whole Jesuit Values things, which I have heard about a billion times during my life. We also broke out into our small groups (about 14 people per) and did a brief ethics thing. Pizza for lunch. Parents had a thing at 11 and then they too got pizza. After that, we headed over to Josyln Art Museum
for the White Coat Ceremony. I thought we would just get out coats and that was it. Well.......they did a really brief bio on everyone. I am glad the class only has 126 in it thank goodness. Once I load a pic or two, I will put them up for all of you to be impressed.

Tonight there was an M1-M2 get together at Upstream (place we went last night for dinner). It was a lot of fun. Not drunk crazy girl on bar fun, but socializing meeting people feeling comfortable fun. Again, I saw a horse cop pulling someone over. What can I say, this is Omaha.

People like to compare med school to high school. Cliques, gossip, drama. It hasn't happened quite yet, but it easy to see how it can happen. We are with each other every day for 9 months. People are bound to talk; crap is bound to happen. I am just hoping that I can stay out of most of it. I also learned today when talking to various people (well...girls at least) that a good majority of us are in relationships and many if not most are doing long distance. I guess we can all support each other.

Mom and Dad leave in the morning. Sad. But party at Phi Chi tomorrow night. Flip cup!!!!!!

8 years?!?!?!

So today marks the 8 year anniversary of my first knee surgery. Boy were those fun times. A former team member of mine just tore her ACL (tore the other one 2 years ago), so even though I doubt she even knows this exists, I wish her the best of luck in the coming months.

Today was day 2 and totally could have been handled/timed much better. There was just a lot of extra break time when there really needed to be more time for presentations. Whatever. We met our faculty advisors. I can't even pronounce mine's name. I know it is Dr. Olga something, but I really didn't understand her last name.

I had sometime after that, so I drove to my mom's hotel (about 1000 ft) and hung with her for about an hour. She had clothes on, which was a plus. Her hotel at the moment is overrun with a lot of girls singing all the time. Originally, she thought it might be a traveling choir or something. Nope. American Idol tryouts are in Omaha right now. Who would have thought? Mom thought about going to try out but decided to take a walk in the lovely 80% humidity.

This afternoon they had organized, optional bowling/golf (one or the other). Seeing as how I am awful at golf, I went with bowling. If you really think about it though, to be bad at golf is embarrassing, but to be good at bowling is even more embarrassing. I was in a lane with 2 other M1's and then two M2's. Everyone played two games, but not until the second game did someone take the initiative to get our lane some beer. We had Blue Moon. Sister would have loved it. I didn't bowl well, but it was a lot of fun.

I returned to Mom's hotel and found Dad there too. Don't worry, all clothes were on. Well, Dad's shirt wasn't, but that really isn't new. We sat around the hotel for a bit and then went to my house. Dad brought the fire ladder down from Spo, so everyone can now sleep a little easier. My room, although on the 3rd floor, is just above the sand volleyball court, so at least if I had to jump, it might not hurt as much. We had okay steak Upstream Brewing Co in Old Market (I called it Old Town earlier, whoops). I was hoping for more, but whatever. Also, take note all who dis Nebraska ---- the sell hard alcohol IN THE REGULAR STORE!!!! Yes, I know other states do this too, but at least we have a little bit of a plus on that one. We also had a house meeting tonight. Just a brief one. I better start getting a recipe in mind. EEEEK!

Orientation: Day 1

One down, two to go. In usual Becky fashion, I didn't sleep well because I was worried about my new alarm not waking me up. I had to run for being late to basketball; thank goodness I don't have to do that anymore. Mark and I drove to school together. Found the right place. It all began at 830, and, for the most part, was just blah. Chris Rainville (went to Cataldo and Prep) is an M1 also, so it was nice to see a familiar face. We did little wellness-n-balance type things today. Nothing too serious. We also did a tour. No offense, but my tour guide wasn't the greatest. If anything, I am just more confused now.

After the tour, we had an organization fair, which was pretty much like an undergrad one. All the different clubs and groups. I was excited to see the anesthesiology interest group because a) it is something I am interested in and b) I didn't think Creighton had one. I also picked up a lot of candy with little effort. I almost accidentally signed up for the running club. That probably would of been the worst life choice ever. Mark said he was going to eat on campus, so I followed him not only as to meet more people but as to not lose sight of my ride. Lunch followed. I met a Ferris kid. I pee'd in a cup. I smiled for some pics. I got a chair for my desk.

Mom and I then had dinner at a little sort of chain pizza place right across from Creighton. It was not busy at all (because no one is on campus), but they were super nice there. It was pretty good too. I had the carnivore calzone. It was no Pete's, but I enjoyed it. Mom and I then chilled at the hotel and drank wine. I was a little too tired to go out with people. Mom also made an inappropriate comment about not seeing Dad for a week and that they will "find something to do" while I bowl. Ewwwwwwww.

Headache

I have just about the most horrible headache of my life right now, so just remember that as you read this.

Last night, Mom and I went to this Italian place called Vivace or something like that. After parking we walked a few blocks to check out the Old Town area. During this time, I saw just about the funniest thing ever. A teenage girl pulled off to the side of the brick road getting some sort of ticket from a cop on a horse. Hilarious. She was in a little short car too. I don't think you can give attitude to a cop on a horse. You just can't. Dinner was good. Brought the leftovers home. Have yet to eat them. Mom and I then came back to make my bed (yes, I am 22 and still want my mom's help). I met the other M1 and a few other housemates.

I tried to test out my new alarm this morning, but I forgot to actually turn it on...whoops. So who knows if it will actually wake me up for orientation tomorrow. Today involved more various errands by Mom and I. We tried to walk around campus, but I was too scared to park in the student parking, so we just drove around it twice. I think she saw it pretty well. We somehow ended up back in Old Town for lunch. We kept trying to get a pedicure, but it never really happened. Sad. We then had lunch at M's Pub, owned by the same people as Vivace. It isn't your usual pub. It was pretty upscale. We sat at the bar; I got some sort of thai pizza. Mom got gross salad. Ewwww. The afternoon was lazy.

My fellow M1 housemate Mark put together a little shin-dig tonight for the class. I would say that about 40 showed up at a bar about 5 blocks from the house. About the same distance as the PI but no killer hill on the way home. I was nervous nancy as usual, but I met a few people and had a few beers. Since it was light out and I had a headache, I walked home at about 830. I am now sitting in my bed, wondering when it is okay for me to actually fall asleep and not be lame. I have a lot more to put away in my room, but I don't really feel like it. Orientation starts tomorrow morning. I hope Mark and I are riding together so that he can show me where we are going. I guess it is finally time for me to come out of my shell. Here it goes.

Moving in

Today has been a hot one and a long one. Mom and I got up early and got to my house. I decided on the room higher up but with AC. That was a great life choice. After a lot of sweat, we got everything up to the 3rd floor. The bed arrived on schedule. Yay! The TV was not fun to move, but at least I don't have to work out today. The afternoon involved the usual "I'm going off to college" stuff. Shopping for this and that so that I am not living in a complete pig sty. To my delight, I found a Chipotle and a Noodles Co right next to each other. I almost wet my pants I was so excited. Shopping was followed by Qdoba. I sadly was unable to finish the delicious queso burrito. Sad. In true Mom fashion, we went in to a wine shop and bought a bottle of a Malbec. mmmmmmmmm. It stormed in the afternoon, which only made it even more humid. Ick.

Mom napped in the afternoon while I worked my butt off unpacking my room. Blah. Met a housemate. I think his name is Erik??? He is on my floor. Most of my room is done except for all the random little stuff and desk stuff. Mom and I are going to dinner tonight in Old Town??? Should be good.

22hr in a car + mom = ????

First one...here we go.

The trip to Omaha was, in not so many words, uninteresting. That isn't to say uneventful though. After another great family party Friday night to send me off (during which my godson slept the entire time), I relaxed around the house with my parents, Bo, and Matt. Went to bed, got up at flippin 5am, and said goodbye to Matt. I then got all the little things in order for the trip. Basically, this entailed saying goodbye to my dogs and filling up a water bottle. Is it sad that I got more teary eyed saying bye to Missy than I did when saying bye to Matt? I don't think so. I am pretty sure Matt will still be a live in a few months were as Missy, on the verge of turning 18/ridiculously old, probably will not.

Mom and I set out at about 6 am. Holy crap. Early. Part way through Idaho, we notice my bike attached to the back of the car is moving a lot. We pull over on the side of I-90 (while Mom swears a little bit), check it out, get back in the car. We stop in Superior, MT for some breakfast. Rosie's Cafe, cute, french toast. Mom and I then notice that people are lining the one and only main street (only access to I-90) and children are holding plastic bags as to catch candy. We ask the waitress: "Yes, the parade starts @ 10." Mom looks at her watch: "S***, it's 9:53." We throw money down and run (yes, Mom ran) to the car parked on the main street. We made it out of there just before the parade started.

Not until Butte, MT do we notice that 2 of the 4 straps keeping the bike rack on the back of the car are not attached. Holy crap. Scary. We attach them, yet about every 150 miles, they pop off again followed shortly by various bad words coming from my mom and us pulling over to the side of I-90. MT was boring and long. Mom, it turns out, has a bit of a lead foot. MT was followed by the even more boring WY and then SD, which is much better than WY. This is the farthest east I had been on I-90. Nothing to write home about.

Sturgis, SD (and 50 miles either way) was overrun with bikers. Harley guys. Some huge festival of sorts. When I say overrun, I mean literally overrun. Mom and I got off at the wrong exit in Rapid City, SD, pure chaos ensued, possibly a little screaming. Hotel and dinner. Sleep. Off by 7 am the next day (mountain time). More boring SD. Mom almost peeing her pants when the bike "almost" falls off again. We got off of I-90 to I-29 and eventually ended up here, in Omaha. If you have never been here during the summer, let me tell you: it is flippin humid. I am in the middle of the country, why is it humid? Weird. Saw my house. Get to choose my room tomorrow. I am not afraid of tetanus but am a little afraid of fire in the house. My bed is being delivered tomorrow, so I am staying in the hotel with my mom tonight. Tomorrow will involve really sweaty unpacking and shopping for room stuff. This is just like moving to Regis all over again.

Okay. That was long. Seeing as how school starts next Monday, I doubt they will be this long usually.