Old People Smell

Published January 9, 2013 by Malia

This may sound weird, but I’ve discovered that I can tell if a specimen is from an old folks home even before I check the paperwork. If it’s from an old folks home, as soon as I open the bag, I’m assaulted by nursing home smell. If you’ve never smelled a nursing home, then you’re fortunate. That smell alone is enough to keep me from ever wanting to end up in one of those places.

While on my breaks and lunches I’ve been working my way through the Percy Jackson series. So far I’ve finished the first two books, and tonight I started on book 3. I read the first book a few years ago, after seeing the movie, but never got around to the others. I’m sorry I didn’t read them before. I think they’re a fantastic take on Greek mythology, and a really excellent introduction to it if you know minimal about it. I’m super excited for the second film to be released (which is supposed to happen later this year).

I’m pretty pumped that I’ve survived my first half a week of work. I’m struggling to wrap my head around the fact that I really am employed, and not just on an internship. I’m not sure it’s going to sink in until I’ve been there a few months. I find it really entertaining that whenever I meet another employee and they realize I’m new, the first thing they say is, “You’re going to love it here!” I’m not kidding, I’ve gotten this from everyone I’ve met (lab people, billing people, custodial people, you get the idea). So far, I really do. I love that it’s a busy job, but people are pleasant to each other and don’t seem to let the stress be building up to an explosive point.

Hipaa

Published January 8, 2013 by Malia

So, it occurred to me tonight that while I get to see and handle a lot of cool and gross stuff at work, I can’t really talk about it for two reasons. Reason #1: Most people don’t seem to enjoy thinking about blood and other things that come out of the body. Reason #2: Hipaa.

If you’re not familiar with Hipaa, here’s a quick take on it. Basically, Hipaa is something the government put into practice that’s supposed to protect patient’s and keep their information confidential. This means that I can’t write and/or talk about specifics of the medical records I see, list people’s names/personal information, or disclose things I may have heard others saying. Now, here’s where it’s a good thing my memory is so rotten. I handle hundreds of samples a day, and look at the information for all of 10-30 seconds. I couldn’t tell you, even if I wanted to, the names and other personal details.

I don’t think it’s breaking Hipaa to mention that I was super proud of myself for pouring urine out of a jug into a little container without spilling or splashing any. I really didn’t think I could manage it, but I was successful! (This is one of those gross things that I forget most people don’t really want to think about.)

Anyway, day two of my new job went pretty well. I’m definitely learning, and will be quite glad when I can do things without having to ask for help. Also, I’m super glad that my clinical pathology teacher in tech school got so in-depth in class. What I learned in that class is starting to come back pretty clearly, and helping me to feel less lost.

Final positive part of my day: one of the gals at work asked me how old I was and she was really surprised that I was 28. She was sure I was younger! I love when people think I look younger than I am. I certainly feel younger than I am.

New Year, New Job, New Me?

Published January 7, 2013 by Malia

I did it! I survived my first day as a full time employee! I don’t think I’ve ever been hired as a full timer (I worked full time for about 2 months in a previous job, but I don’t like to think about those days). I feel odd. I feel like I’ve achieved some step towards being an adult. Yikes!

I spent most of my first day reading a giant OSHA manual, and then doing loads of computer OSHA things. OSHA is mostly common sense, but I feel that they write out things the most confusing way they can think of. Anyway, after I learned all about how I can catch evil things from blood if I’m not properly handling it, and all about how to get electrocuted, I got to actually go in the lab! I ended up doing chores, but I didn’t care. I was in scrubs and a lab jacket, and I was in a real life professional lab! Ever since I was in tech school, I’ve been fascinated by the lab side of medicine. Getting to work in one has kind of been my personal Holy Grail. I have many dreams, and I feel so blessed to actually be getting to have one come true. Especially after so many years of heartbreak and disappointment.

Also, to document that my first day, I decided to take a picture of myself showing I was ready to head off into my future!

I’m not sure what expression that is on my face. Unfortunately, this was the best of the crop of photos I took. However, I really, really, love the scrub top I have on. I’m so excited that I can wear fun and pretty scrub tops to this job. There’s so many beautiful tops out there, and the last job I had that I wore scrubs for, I had to wear pretty blah ones all the time. I now have a whole assortment of pretty tops that I’m excited to wear!

Random Saturday Musings

Published January 6, 2013 by Malia

-A couple of days ago I bought a movie I had never heard of and knew absolutely nothing about. It’s called The Watcher in the Woods. Some of the acting was really terrible, but the story itself was quite good, and surprisingly scary and dark for a Disney film. Bright spots of this film were Bette Davis and David McCallum (NCIS’s Ducky). Davis was super creepy. There was not nearly enough Ducky in this film, I think he was mainly in the film to attract whatever audience Davis didn’t attract. Here’s the trailer:

-I spent tonight with my mama figuring out what the spring puppet show is going to be. I’m pretty excited about this one, and am hoping that it all pulls together smoothly.

-I’m getting really excited and pretty nervous about Monday. New job! Big plus: I get to wear cute scrubs! There’s no mandatory scrub design I have to wear, so I can wear the fun cartoon tops. Also, I’m madly in love with the Grey’s Anatomy brand scrubs. They’re the softest, most comfy scrubs I’ve ever encountered. I’m also glad that they’re making scrub tops that are much more feminine than they used to be.

-Had weekly lunch at Zemogs. Ended lunch with “I have a job” celebratory sopapillas. Here’s a picture of the deliciousness!

-This afternoon, I decided to try to be artistic, here was the outcome:

-I’m thinking of getting the Bob Ross videos and learning to paint.

-I’m not trying to brag, but I’m super excited thinking about having a real paycheck again and being able to pay my bills again!

-I love my Hello Kitty headphones. I spent more on them than I normally spend on headphones, but the whole Hello Kitty design totally made it worth it. They work fantastic, which was super surprising. Best headphone investment I’ve made in years.

-My hair is finally getting some decent length to it. I’ll be glad when I can braid it and put it up.

-I need to find a mascara brand that doesn’t make my eyes itch and burn. Thinking of trying Physician’s Formula (waiting to make some money, just because it’s more expensive than what I usually spend on make-up). Many people have told me it’s gentle on sensitive eyes. I don’t wear a lot of make-up, but I’ve found that mascara is kind of crucial if I don’t want my eyes to look terrible.

Friday Night Questions

Published January 4, 2013 by Malia

Tonight’s question comes courtesy of my cat, Howard.

Meow, meow meow meow, mew mew meow mew?

Accompanying this super deep question are some quality photos of him…

I’m pretty sure he was thinking, “I hate you.”

And here, I’m fairly certain his thoughts ran along the theme of, “Put down the camera, and I’ll show you exactly what I think of this. Also, I hate you.”

And here’s the hair clip that was just balancing on the back of his head. I was surprised he let it sit there as long as he did.

Diagnosis: Employed

Published January 3, 2013 by Malia

The rumors are true. I finally have a job. Not just any job, a full time job at a medical lab. Next to my dream of being paid to travel all over the world and get paid for it, this is pretty much my dream job. I cried when I got the official “We’d like to offer you the job” call. This really is such a weight off my mind. Knowing that I’m going to be able to pay my bills and face the future with a little more hope just makes me all sorts of happy!

And now, here’s a random picture of Aragorn preparing to do battle against my new (and possibly favorite) mug:

“I’m a whole lot hotter than I look.”

Published January 2, 2013 by Malia

For Christmas, I got the movie The Decoy Bride. Here’s the trailer, just to get you up to speed on what I’m talking about:

It’s a very predictable film, but incredibly sweet and funny, so it’s worth a watch. Plus, David Tennant is the love interest, so it’s hard not to enjoy it.

The reason I loved this film was because it felt very relateable, or rather Kelly MacDonald’s character was relateable. The first time I heard her line about “hotter than I look,” all I could think was “That’s exactly how I feel about myself.” When I’m not near a mirror, I tend to think of myself as a lot prettier and a lot slimmer. I also tend to think that I’m witty, clever, and generally delightful.

Today was a rare day when, once I got dressed and did my makeup and hair, I actually felt pretty. Not hot or anything like that, but definitely more attractive than usual. To that end, I decided to make today’s photo a first for me. I decided to take one of those infamous bathroom mirror shots. Although, I don’t think I did it right, because I wasn’t holding the camera when I took the picture. So, here’s the photo:

Now, I could’ve cropped the picture, but I thought the hair straightener sticking out into the photo was such a “classy” touch.

Whosday

Published January 1, 2013 by Malia

Alrighty, it’s 2013. Today is the first day of the rest of the year, or something like that… So, before I get to my Doctor Who weekly obsession (who are we kidding, it’s more like a daily obsession), it’s time to get the list of goals for the new year listed.

Malia’s 2013 Goals

1. Lose weight. (This is kind of a no brainer, and I’m sure I’m not alone in having this at the very top of my list.)

2. Exercise a minimum of 30 minutes 3 days a week.

3. Write a blog entry once a day.

4. Write non-blog related things.

5. Finish the blanket I promised mom I’d make her 3 years ago.

6. Read through the Bible in a year.

7. Take at least 1 photograph everyday.

8. Watch all the Doctor Who episodes, starting with the first ones from back in 1963.

Okay, so this leads into my weekly (at minimum) discussion of all things Who. It occurred to me two days ago that I can’t really call myself a true Whovian unless I go all the way back to the beginning. There are a couple hundred episodes and more than a few Doctors for me to catch up on. I actually started this monumental task on the 30th, but I figured it was better to start early than not at all. So far I’ve made it through the first three sets of episodes from season 1 (1963). Here’s my initial conclusions…

-The stories are really good. Even though there’s so much I dislike about these early episodes, I really like the plots, so it makes it worth it.

-So far, the companion Ian, does almost everything. The Doctor is pretty much this old guy-that I spend most of the episodes wondering if he’s a dementia patient-that does nothing but be a jerk and cause more problems than actually do any good. Susan, the Doctor’s granddaughter, is incredibly annoying. The first episode, Ian and Barabara (her teachers, who end up becoming the first human companions to the Doctor) both spend quite awhile discussing how smart Susan is. I’m not necessarily doubting her intelligence, but I’d like to be given some evidence of it.

-Speaking of the women, man have times changed since 1963. Basically, the sole role of the women thus far has been to scream at everything and do absolutely nothing to help themselves. Seriously. There’s one part where Susan gets tapped on the shoulder when she thinks she’s alone, and instead of investigating (like one of the modern female companions) she screams and basically has a meltdown. There’s a lot of screaming done by these two women. Also, it really bugs me that there’s this general attitude that if the young handsome men don’t do something, it can’t be trusted to be done right.

Also, I spent New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day getting mom and dad caught up on season 6 & 7 of the current Doctor. I’ve now seen the ending of The Angels Take Manhattan about 4 times, and I still bawl like a baby. I’m super excited to see the Christmas episode and the rest of season 7.

In closing, here’s today’s photos (remember, taking at least one photo every day):

So, I got this bee in my bonnet to try making these brownies I saw on Pinterest. I started with a box of brownie mix and several packages of peanut butter cups:

I then made the batter:

I then poured part of the batter into the bottom of the pan:

I then laid out the peanut butter cups:

Then I covered that with the remainder of the brownie batter and popped them in the oven. Then out came this:

Mom cut them:

And I ate one:

The brownies needed to have cooked longer. Honestly, thought they were done, but I basically ended up with brownie batter goo in the middle (the top and sides were mostly completely cooked). However, if you’re going to end up with brownie batter goo, it’s best to have Reese’s right in the middle of it. Peanut butter cups make any baking “disaster” much better.

Now, here’s some pictures of my cats. Howard wasn’t thrilled I was taking pictures:

Best picture I’ve ever gotten of Gracie (She always moves before the picture finishes taking, no matter how fast I’ve got the speed set):

Gracie also has a thing about boxes (mostly, she likes to eat them):

Then, there was sunset and dusk:

And now, it’s bedtime for Bonzo.

Any Second Now...

This will all make sense?

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