Finally! Details!

So we just got a bunch of details about our trip to Taiwan! I am so excited. We had our first real class in preparation for our trip and we are a bit more organized now. Our instructor went over there a few weeks ago and signed all the contracts and organized all of our nurse mentors, called preceptors. Apparently they are all so honored that we are coming and are very hospitable to having us come to their hospital. We will be housed in the apartments that the hospital has attached to it and apparently they are new and quite nice. Complete with washer/dryer, ping pong, pool, TV and internet. We are staying the town of T'ainan (southern/western side) and the hospital we will be doing our rotations is the Chimei Hospital. Its a 1300 bed hospital (bigger than any in Utah) and we will be working mainly in the ICU there.
So we go to work in the ICU Monday-Wednesday for 8 hour shifts and then on Thursday we work a half day at the orphanage, playing with cute little Asian babies! Our instructor specifically said that we couldn't adopt any while we were there or smuggle them home in our bags. So the first half of our stay we work at the ICU and then we switch and work in the community. We go with our nurse preceptor out to do home visits and go to clinics and things out in the community. I am excited to see the people in their own homes and see how they all live everyday. It is going to be quite the experience, I can already tell. Friday and Saturday are our "play days" where we are going to go everywhere and see everything. Then Sunday is church and we do it all again every week. I am beyond excited. We leave around May 1, not exactly sure, and then stay 5 weeks. The things I am most worried about are language, squatter toilets (thanks for the tips Adam!), and the food. Should be a culture shock, that's for sure. But then...Jenna is coming to meet me there!! Hopefully we will get to spend some quality time with Adam, Kay and fam, see Taiwan a little more and head to CHINA! My group that I am going with seem like a blast, I don't know them that well yet, but I will! Our instructor seems awesome and like he wants to have as much fun as we do. I will have internet access so I plan on updating my blog often with exciting pictures and stories!


Also, I got my first PASSPORT for this trip! It was way exciting.

So I just need to get through the rest of this semester, which let me tell ya, might be harder than it sounds, and then bon voyage! I am super excited and can't wait!

A home!

So its official. We finally have a place to live. Everyone has signed the contracts and written out the big checks and next year we will be the proud tenets of a fairly nice condo. I am pretty excited about our new place, definitely an upgrade from where I live now, and my roommates are pretty much the coolest ever. I will be living with Alison, finally. Then two girls from my ward now, Jenny and Marie will be our roommates. Its going to be awesome! Probably the most awesome apartment ever. Try not to be jealous. Now the guys just have to get their apartment situation figured out and we should all be living in the same ward! I am just so happy we got something figured out before too long, because it was getting dicey.

Late Night Ramblings

I can't sleep. I have no clue why because usually I am so tired I fall asleep almost instantly. However tonight, I am quite awake, can't quite turn off my brain, so I decided that maybe if I write down some things maybe I can get to sleep. That and a coughing fit really woke me and probably my entire apartment. I hate being sick.

Thats first on the list. Being sick really sucks. I have been sick for a couple weeks and it really gets in the way. Apart from the obvious perk of my voice sounding husky and sexy of course, I hate it. I can't sing, I can't talk, I can't stop coughing and it hurts. And it kicked me off the National's team for racquetball. Thats another thing. I was all on track and feeling good about going to National's this year and then I got sick. Bad timing, thats for sure. I decided to get good and sick the last week and a half before the team was decided. I tried to continue to play and challenge people to maintain my coveted spot on the team, but it was no use. I couldn't play and I felt like crap. So I took some major hits on my position and missed getting on the team. Somebody obviously didn't want me to go to Nationals. Probably for the best, right? So I am disappointed but tell myself it is probably better this way.

Another thing on my mind lately is housing. I don't know how people get away ripping off college students semester after semester about housing. It is really not right. Really crappy apartments should not cost $300 a semester. It just makes no sense. And then throw in coordinating 8 people's preferences and opinions and you have a recipe for disaster. We are having the hardest time finding a place to live that is reasonably priced for what they get us, decently close to campus and fits all our specific needs. Let me tell ya, its nearly impossible. I am about ready to just give up and live in my car. If only it had heat...

I love my mom. If you read the previous post (its not long) you might gather that I had a rough week last week. But lucky for me, at the end of the horrible week I got to get a real life hug from my mom. I couldn't have asked for a better way to turn things around. She came just at the right time and I loved being able to see her and spend some time with her. Just what I needed. So thanks mom for being there for me, physically this time and emotionally all the other times, even if it is just through the phone.

My abnormal psychology class is turning me crazy. I swear I have the disorders I read about, which just happens to be its own disorder, which is talked about in the book. Its all very confusing. And not only do I think that I have these disorders, but I am constantly afraid that someone with that disorder will just show up. Scares the pants off of me. Like right now, sitting in the dark, I am nervous some crazy person is going to show up. I need to stop thinking about it...

I found out today that I have a hidden talent. Its called Poi Balls. Those little white ball things on yarn ropes that polynesian people dance with. Called poi balls. Today in my polynesian dance class we learned a dance with them and I rocked at it. Who knew? Maybe I will quit school, move to New Zealand and live with the Maori people and become and poi ball dancer. If this whole nursing thing doesn't work out...

Well thats what was on my mind as I tried to go to sleep. No wonder I was having trouble. Hopefully I can get to bed because as hard as getting to sleep is now, waking up in four hours is going to be even tougher.

Bad Week

As far as weeks go, this one goes down as one of the worst I have had in a long time.

Nerd Date

So, I was asked to go on a "nerd date". This consisted of all of us (a pretty big group) dressing up as nerds, going to the Planetarium on campus, then getting Jamba Juice, and then playing clue. It was a blast. We all had a great time wearing our best clothes, acting super awkward and sharing the nerdiest things that we knew with each other. And at the end of the day, my date and I were the biggest nerds and won Clue. Thats right. We basically rocked.

I love this picture. This is me and my roommate Kat. Our apartment was pretty hectic as we both were getting ready for our costumed activities. We found it pretty funny that we were basically opposites. I was a nerd and she was crazy, glam rock. We figured that it was the perfect set up for a new age "Freaky Friday" were we wake up in each others lives. In any case, I think we both did a good job getting ready for our nights.

Me and my date, Brian Spencer. He was looking fantastic, with his pants as high as they could go and white ankle socks. Classy Brian.

A few people on the date with us. They all look awesome.

At the Planetarium. They gave us binoculars so that we could see some of the stars a bit closer. Turns our planetariums are actually kinda amazing. Brian and I were both excited for it, showing our true nerdiness.

The whole group getting Jambas after the planetarium. Everyone kept asking us what we were doing all dressed up. We tried to play it off like thats just how we dressed, but it didn't work out very well. All in all, it was such a fun date and we all had a great time laughing at each other and allowing our true nerds to come out.

Brown Sugar

Whoever it was that thought of putting a piece of bread in your rock hard brown sugar is a genius. I don't know how they thought of it, but it works amazingly. So, here's to you, Genius. You saved my brown sugar. Thank you.

General Authorities + BYU Basketball = Amazing

So, walking out of the BYU basketball game last Saturday, after a very fulfilling win, I come within inches of literally running into Elder Nelson. Thats right...THE Elder Nelson. From the Quorum of the 12. He was just walking out of the Marriott Center with his wife. I was talking with some friends, and I looked ahead of me just in time to stop before mowing him over. All of us in the group took a minute to realize who we nearly ran over and then not at all smoothly saying to each other...is that Elder Nelson?! We finally came to a consensus, that it was indeed the very apostle, when he walked away and left us yelling "Hi Elder Nelson!! We love you!" I know...we are real classy. He wasn't the only GA there either. Elder Oaks and his wife are also b-ball fans apparently, and President Samuelson is always in attendence. I have also been at the games with Elder Christofferson and his wife and Elder Perry is a frequent fan. They sit on the front row, just behind the announcers and directly across the court from the student section. Makes you feel a little foolish yelling and screaming like crazy with some apostles sitting polietely across from you. Oh well. But I am still kicking myself for not composing myself a little to shake Elder Nelson's hand. Maybe next time.