September 28, 2010

I have a phone!

Its a 414 area code, so it'll be free for you to call!

Email me for the number, i'm nervous about posting it.

I should have VM on this phone too, let me know if it doesn't work.

September 23, 2010

Pumpkin

Pumpkin came into the Ross University teaching hospital with a broken leg on Halloween. The hospital treated him, but didn't know who to return him to because he didn't have any tags. Weeks went by and still no one claimed him.

Ross University is very fortunate to have a colony of dogs that they use for teaching their students. Its a very unique thing to this university, other places usually only have a few dogs, but we usually have about 15-20 at a time. This is important because students need to be able to practice techniques such as anesthesia, dental cleanings, and ultrasounds. The most fortunate part about this program is that us first semesters also get to use them to do palpations (basically learning how to do a physical exam and what "normal" feels like). Ross has a policy to start their students with hands-on animal experience as early as possible, so that by time we get to our clinical year we can concentrate on learning abnormalities instead of starting with the basics.

Its great for the dogs too, because many of the island dogs have never lived in homes before or been around people. It gives them a two years to adjust to being touched and walked on a leash. By the end of this time, they become available for adoption!!

Its a great way that Ross University helps the locals, because when people can't pay to treat their animals, they can donate them to the school and know that they will end up in a good home.

Anyways, while Pumpkin was awaiting someone to claim him, he was also used in the palpation lab. He was extremely calm and simply stood there while students lifted his arm, searched for his lymph nodes, squeezed his shoulder blades. Megan simply couldn't resist taking him home with her. After the allotted amount of time for someone to claim him, Megan was allowed to adopt him.

Needless to say, he has a pretty good life

Crater Hike

Monday was St Kitts/Nevis Independence Day, and the only holiday that Ross University recognizes enough to give us a day off for. St Kitts has some beautiful scenery, so i decided to take advantage of the extra day and attempt one of the more difficult hikes on the island, the Crater Hike.


Mt Liamuiga is an inactive volcano that spans the entire middle of the island. The last time it erupted was about 1,800 years ago, so needless to say there isn't much concern about hiking or living around it. The peak of the mountain has since collapesed a bit, forming a crater with a small lake in the middle. 

There were 7 of us in all (and one dog) and at 6:30am we piled into two jeeps for the 30 minute drive to the other end of the island. The start of the hike was off the road a bit, in a dirt road through the cane fields. The jeeps had some difficulty getting up the hill, which should have given us some warning as to what was in store for us, but alas, we pressed on. 
Most of the island is made up of abandoned cane fields, and although they aren't worth harvesting anymore, they add beauty and character to the island. Because the island does not produce anything for themselves (dependent entirely on import), most of their income is based on tourism. As a result, a lot of the cane fields are getting leveled to make room for tourist resorts.





 Eventually the terrain became more than the jeeps could handle, so we all piled out and continued on by foot. The cane fields eventually thinned out as we approached the base of the mountain, and the vertical ascent began.
Kitts urging us on
The further we went, the more the landscape turned to rainforest. Lots of vines, moss, and palm leaves
 
 .

The vines are so strong that you can swing out over the cliff on them like Tarzan
Eventually the canopy began to clear, and we knew we were reaching the summit
After four hours of hiking, we could finally see the Atlantic.
Below, on the other side of the cliff we could see the crater, and the small lake that has accumulated from rain during hurricane season. The next hike i plan to do will hike up the mountain and then go down to visit the lake in the center of the crater.

Well, the worst was still upon us. The descent was about twice as bad as the trip up. The path was mostly covered by plants which you could push away as you went up, but which disguised the slippery spots on the way down! It truly made my appreciate wearing my Keen sandals, because by the end we were all totally covered in mud!

On our way back to the main road, we were surprised to find a herd of goats and Egrets (white herons) had taken over the path! There were quite a few babies in the herd (one with the umbilicus still attached!). It was a great way to end the adventure!
One male overseeing the whole herd of females/babies


September 22, 2010

For Ethan

Today I received an email about some good friends of mine in Minneapolis, Ethan and Xena. This is a couple who is centrally involved in Barebones, the main company that makes the puppets for the Mayday Parade. Stefan and I have spent a lot of time with them, including our new year’s ski trip in the boundary waters a couple years ago, and I was looking forward to going again with them this year during my winter time off. They just bought a house and have started trying to have a baby. They have both been an inspiration to me in how to live my life organically, creatively, and inspirationally.

Ethan and Xena were in a car accident two days ago. Another car ran an intersection and collided with theirs. Ethan sustained major trauma to his brain and died.

How your entire perception of the world can change overnight. I have never wanted to be back at home so badly. I knew that moving so far away would be hard, but I never considered the fact it would prevent me from attending a good friend’s funeral. Life is so fragile!

Please say a prayer for Ethan, and especially for Xena, I can’t imagine how she is going to go on without him. I went down to the ocean tonight to release their spirits from my mind.

I do love it here in St Kitts. But it is hard to have your heart torn between two places.

http://www.startribune.com/local/103457574.html?elr=KArksLckD8EQDUoaEyqyP4O:DW3ckUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUnciatkEP7DhUsl

September 11, 2010

White Coat Ceremony

To view the ceremony online:

http://mediasite.rossvet.edu.kn/skmediasite/Viewer/?peid=2dbd1a3f7ccf4563abd6e783b6e6144e

Lara, Ninian, Michelle, Megan, Brittany, Jon, Melissa, Kristen, Kristina
With Josiah, our orientation leader
 By the way, this is on campus. We eat lunch overlooking the ocean. I keep telling myself " I live here." And then i smile.

September 10, 2010

the house




Last Sunday we went down to the beach for the last time before classes began. While eating dinner, a visitor came over to check us out. He was a little shy, but intent to sit at a distance and watch us.
Welcome to my humble abode!

mango tree on the left

The back yard is full of coconut trees!
The high ceilings are not only beautiful, they also help keep the house cool.
The house came fully furnished. 

September 05, 2010

Catamarans


Yesterday was the Catamaran trip! We split into two groups and sailed 2.5 miles to our sister island Nevis to go snorkeling.


Each boat held about 60 people, with nets rigged between each hull to expand the space. They also served free food and an open bar, so it was quite a welcome party. The sail lasted about 4 hours in all, with an hour to snorkel.
The mountains of Nevis

Basseterre, St Kitts

September 03, 2010

Bat Cave Hike


Campus is beautiful!! It is right on the water. This is me on the first day of orientation.








Yesterday orientation was canceled due to another tropical storm that was headed for our area (it barely rained 15 minutes, so we had the whole day for adventure!). We headed to "the bat cave" over at bloody peak. Our driver told us the history of the area that when the British and the French came to conquer the island they fought all the locals at this point. All the natives were killed and the blood ran down into the ocean.

At bloody point there is a beautiful river, and we hiked along it through a deep ravine. Our orientation leader brought his two dogs (a chocolate lab and a weimaraner). The river had huge boulders along it and at one point we had to use a rope ladder to scramble up. The dogs had harnesses and we used them to help hoist them up the rocks as well. The dogs loved it, they were running ahead and jumping into the water pools. It was quite an experience.