Got Hope?

It's been a while since I've posted, yet there have been some things going on.

First off, I'm taking a couple of classes at the community college this semester. Nutrition and Developmental Psychology. I'm now 2 weeks into each of the courses, and I think that Nutrition is going to continue to be super easy, and that Psychology professors are crazy! But I guess that they already know that! My psych class should be more challenging since it's definitely well outside of my major. I can't believe that I'm saying this, but I missed school. I missed learning and being even somewhat challenged on a daily basis. This whole taking classes thing is definitely going to be good for me!

Secondly, the crazy office manager at the vet clinic was fired! Come to find out, she had been completely taking advantage of and lying to everyone and doing things that were absolutely nuts for months! She just managed to manipulate and lie to get out of it once things started to get messy. In one way, it was a relief to find out that the things that were going on were nothing personal, and that the owners didn't even know about them, but at the same time, it really ticked me off! I cannot believe that she got away with all that she did! By the time that everything came out, none of us were to speak with her if she called, and she wasn't allowed in the building anymore. Wow! Nutso! Anyway, many of the wrongs at work were made right, or at least made better, and the atmosphere is a lot better. People actually laugh and are happy. Crazy how things change when people aren't afraid they're going to be fired every day!

Lastly, after another wonderful autoimmune flare up, a dozen doctors appointments, and being pushed to the border of insanity by doctors who truly don't give a damn, things might be looking up! Although I'm still feeling pretty crappy, frustrated, and "just like losing my faith in humanity," I may have found an MD who actually cares and is interested in my case. Lemme explain. As more and more symptoms developed, my mom and I started doing research into multiple autoimmune diseases, but particularly one, Behcet's Syndrome, which seems to closely match my symptoms. While doing research, we became aware that there is a Behcet's Syndrome Center in NYC. The doctors there specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of Behcet's as well as conduct research on the disease there. After years of not calling, this last flare up led my mom to pick up the phone and give them a call. They told her to email the doctor there, so she did. And he responded! He thinks that it would be worthwhile to take a trip to NY to see him. Wow. Maybe he's not going to be able to figure anything out, but I feel like he's at least going to give it a fair shot. Hope is a wonderful thing. I just can't get too excited. Don't wanna set myself up for failure yet again.

I guess that's it. For now anyway.

Is crazy really crazy?

K sent me this article a few days ago. To sum it up really quickly, it says that people with mental disorders often have a more realistic perceptions than people who are considered to be mentally sound. Check it out.

Need a Job? Better Start Packing!

I found this to be interesting and valuable given our current economic situation, yet also slightly depressing. Perhaps you will, too.

30 Best Places to find a Job:

1. Bismarck, North Dakota Unemployment Rate: 2.5

2. Casper, Wyoming Unemployment Rate: 2.5

3. Logan, Utah Unemployment Rate: 2.5

4. Sioux Falls, South Dakota Unemployment Rate: 2.5

5. Morgantown, West Virginia Unemployment Rate: 2.6

6. Ames, Iowa Unemployment Rate: 2.7

7. Fargo, North Dakota Unemployment Rate: 2.8

8. Iowa City, Iowa Unemployment Rate: 2.8

9. Rapid City, South Dakota Unemployment Rate: 2.9

10. Lincoln, Nebraska Unemployment Rate: 3.0

11. Provo-Orem, Utah Unemployment Rate: 3.0

12. Billings, Montana Unemployment Rate: 3.1

13. Charleston, West Virginia Unemployment Rate: 3.2

14. Midland, Texas Unemployment Rate: 3.2

15. Salt Lake City, Utah Unemployment Rate: 3.2

16. Idaho Falls, Idaho Unemployment Rate: 3.3

17. Lafayette, Louisiana Unemployment Rate: 3.3

18. Santa Fe, New Mexico Unemployment Rate: 3.3

19. Charlottesville, Virginia Unemployment Rate: 3.4

20. Farmington, New Mexico Unemployment Rate: 3.4

21. Grand Forks, North Dakota Unemployment Rate: 3.4

22. Lawton, Oklahoma Unemployment Rate: 3.4

23. Madison, Wisconsin Unemployment Rate: 3.4

24. Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, Arkansas-Missouri Unemployment Rate: 3.5

25. Harrisonburg, Virginia Unemployment Rate: 3.5

26. Ogden-Clearfield, Utah Unemployment Rate: 3.5

27. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Unemployment Rate: 3.5

28. Omaha-Council Bluffs, Nebraska-Iowa Unemployment Rate: 3.5

29. Portsmouth, New Hampshire Unemployment Rate: 3.5

30. Sioux City, Iowa Unemployment Rate: 3.5

Remembering Pojoaque

Here is a short photo album which I shall title simply
"Remembering Pojoaque."

Carving Pumpkins for Halloween

Almost all of the Baby Cousins

Sisters

The Original Cousins

To a photographer, not that great, to us, quite the opposite

Tiny Tree

After a 6 day stay at home in MT which started on the eve of the new year, I arrived back in NM with a better attitude about life in general. As a really long side note, New Year's Eve is an interesting day to fly. Although you'd think that the stress levels would decrease and people would start to calm down after Christmas, they don't. There seems to be a lot going on inside the heads of travelers, which manifests itself as frustration, high energy, lethargy, grumpiness. A lot of younger people, and perhaps older people alike, are anxious to get drunk and ring in the new year with old friends or new hotties they meet at the bar. It seems like, at a certain point in life, however, New Year's loses its appeal as a night to forget about the past year and celebrate the future. In fact, it may have exactly the oppsite effect. It becomes a time to dwell on misakes and bad experiences from the year past, to admit failure becasue you didn't accomplish all that you had promised yourself you'd accomplish in the past 12 months. It's an interesting process to witness after what seems like a million hours in an airport!

To get back to my point, life seems better now. I needed to take a step back so that I could look at my life from a better perspective. It was great to spend time with my family, who are wonderful, and took great care of me. I got to watch Dillon play ball, as well as all of his minions who I've watch grow from preschoolers into young men and women, which is actually a little firghtening! I also got to meet and spend some time with Dillon's girlfriend, Kelsey, and got to watch The Dark Knight. Perhaps one of the best things was getting to see my college roommate, Emily, before she leaves for Nepal for 2 years! We cussed and discussed the old and the new, how we're going to change the world, and how real life isn't necesarrily all it's cracked up to be. We also ate a wonderful beefy dinner and got to see Brad Pitt get younger and younger...nice! I saw frineds and coworkers from the raft shop in MT, and a couple of old friends from high school. I even got to decorate a tiny christmas tree on New Year's day since I didn't have a tree in NM. Sweet! Oh yeah, and I'm convinced that the family dog, Jackson, really does like me now!