Squirrel Days: 4/10/2011

Outside my window...
***The weather has been typical Montana - sun, snow, rain and wind (and in any combination thereof). However, I honestly don’t have memory of this many ‘winter storm warnings’ being issued in April. [Fortunately, it gets warm enough in the afternoons that shoveling has not been necessary. Although the shovels are still on the porch, just in case.] Also, on 4/5, during one of our afternoon walks close to home, Mr. Squirrel and I saw our first buttercup flowers! This is a better indicator of spring than our weather!

From the classroom...
***As an overall statement towards what I’ve learned thus far... The medical world really does have its own language... and they use a lot of really big words! The words are often so big that they are abbreviated, and then used so often they dictate slang versions. [So, I guess that makes upwards of 3 languages to learn.]

In addition to learning the language, sometimes doctors speak as clearly as they write (i.e. horrible), and almost all doctors speak very, very fast when dictating. [This seems to be where doctors make up their time after caring for the needs of their patients.] Thank God the transcriptionist training includes a feature that can slow down the dictations, but even then some doctors are difficult to understand. Sometimes you also have to listen to words filtered through outside noises like phones ringing, hospital intercoms and children; or closer noises like when the dictator yawns or is eating (yeah, eating), perhaps speaking WAY too close to the microphone, or even speaking to someone other than the transcriber! Oh, and don't forget to tack on a serious challenge with speakers who have strong accents and/or whose first language is not English. [HOWEVER, giving credit where it is due, I have encountered many who speak more carefully and clearly than do English speakers.] It really is a grab-bag situation, and familiarity is the key: The more often you listen to the same speaker, the better you understand his/her speech patterns and word choices.

For a funny anecdote, I recently experienced a very difficult dictation that sent me to the student forums to seek advice. A participant in the discussion voiced her own frustrations about this particularly bad speaker whom she labeled as "Dr. McSlurry Speedypants." [I did not disagree with her... or the label. This fellow spoke incredibly fast and mumbled all of his words together, with liberal additions of "ah... um...ah...um..." mixed throughout every sentence. Yikes!]

Stewardship or projects...
***Thanks to the most recent visit to my doctor, I have a new addition to my life's list of things-to-take-care-of: Research on "pre-diabetes". As translated by my diabetic family member... it still means that I am “normal.” However, even a higher-side-of-normal glucose should still be modifiable with some lifestyle changes. As such, I’ve been trying to develop a daily habit of some form of exercise during the day. I’ve also set my mind on trying to tighten up my nutrition choices and shedding off an incredibly stubborn 10 pounds. [According to the charts, I am “slightly overweight” and 10 pounds would put me back into the “normal” range for someone of my height.] I’m hoping that the changes in exercise and diet will take care of the weight, but we will have to see. As I mentioned, those pounds have been incredibly stubborn.

Personal victories...
1.) I vacuumed the living room (Yup, I consider it a victory, even if a small one).
2.) We made time so I could give Mr. Squirrel a haircut before he ventured forth on his next round of job-hunting.
3.) I was able to gather up the courage to call my doctor to ask some followup questions (results of which are counted in blessings below).
4.) I completed my progress reports for the school biweekly reporting period.
5.) I’ve been able manage some sort of exercise for every day but one this past week. My one day without exercise was just too full of tasks and the time got away from me. Oops. [This is also one of my habits that I am trying to change.]

Note: When the weather is good, I walk with Mr. Squirrel outside. When the weather is iffy, or Mr. Squirrel is not home or doesn’t want to go, I use our elliptical walker. It’s set up in the living room so I can watch a DVD, listen to music or an audiobook while walking. Hey, whatever works! [I tried to find a photo, but our machine is pretty old, and I don't think they market them anymore. I did find the online owner's manual for our model (link above), which has a pretty awful drawing, but it gives the basic idea.]

What I am doing as Fun-time...
1.) I’ve been having a great deal of fun working with this blog again! It is a nice respite from school to think about ideas for templates and design, post ideas, as well as beginning the hunt for new pictures.
2.) I also enjoy reading, which is generally part of my relaxation-before-bed-routine. Currently, I am reading “The Dragon Reborn.” It is the third book in the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan.

Thought(s) on my mind...
***After identifying a problem, recognizing the causes and applying the solutions seems to work on many aspects of life. I just wish some of those causes were easier to figure out, and some of the solutions were not so difficult to apply.

Counting blessings...
1.) I’m grateful that my lump-in-the-throat thing (essentially a muscle spasm) is responding to home treatment (i.e. stretching and massage, sipping warm water, plus being aware of things that tighten my neck muscles like posture, watching sad movies, etc.). I'm also grateful that my doctor is willing to let me forego further investigation since I am making progress on my own. [Although we both agree that referral will be on stand-by should anything suddenly get worse.]
2.) As I have immediate access to diabetic information (via family and internet), my doctor is also willing to forego registry into the "diabetic education" provided by the hospital.
3.) Being able to forego the extra appointments means fewer bills on the immediate horizon.
4.) Mr. Squirrel (who is one of my daily counted blessings all by himself) has taken some steps towards revitalization of his pastorship, his health, and his search for employment.

A picture I would like to share...
My sister sent this photo to me in an email not long ago, and it just says "Awwwww..."



Photo source:
I can haz cheez burger