EEEK-KG

Ever since this guy became my new physician, I've been doing a lot of EKG's.  He's been ordering EKG's on all patients with hypertension, some with muscle pain near the heart, and I've even run one on a guy with GERD. (GERD: gastroesophageal reflux disease)  I really appreciate that he cares so much for his patients that he wants to double check their hearts, but it gets exhausting really fast! Though the bright side is they no longer take me 10 minutes to set up, run and remove.
This right here is our clinic's machine.

It's a beauty, ain't it?

The most uncomfortable thing about running EKG's on people is getting them to take their shirts off.  Luckily with a woman, you hand them a gown and step out of the room for a minute.  with guys, you ask them to take off their shirt, they sigh and pull it off. Low and behold they've got an undershirt on too.  So you ask them to take that off as well.  This provokes an even deeper sigh and they slowly shed that layer to reveal...
Gorilla Chest.
Yuck.

Gorilla Chest means I have to shave little spots on their chests for the sticky probes to attach.  This leads to the most awkward conversation ever. "Um, I'm going to have to shave your chest." "Seriously?" "Yeah, the hair will block the electrode signal." "Ugh, fine."

I've always been a fan of hair-less chests. Gorilla Chest?  It's disgusting.

~Courtney

Some Big Pupils!

Did you know that when a human sees something they like, their pupils dilate?  Yes, it's true.  Way back when, women in Italy used to put a drug in their eyes to dilate the pupils, so their suitors would find them attractive and pursue them. That drug they used is commonly called Deadly Nightshade, or Belladonna as the Italians put it.

So women made their eyes huge to trick men into thinking the women liked what they saw.  Some ladies died from the effects, 'cause Deadly Nightshade is appropriately named for it's deadly consequences...
Anyway,

That practice has stopped since then, and dilated pupils usually means someone's just spent a few hours having bright lights shined directly into their eyes. Ah, how those opthamologists torture me.

But hey, I sure can see sharper now!
~Courtney

Being Blind

I had an eye appointment with Hoopes Vision on Tuesday.  It was a crazy morning and I got there without bringing my glasses.  I took out my contacts within the first 10 minutes of being there, and was forced to spend 2 hours completely blind.

When I say completely blind, I don't mean I can't see anything. When I see someone, They usually look like a blurry blob.  So when people walked in to check out various things with my eyes, I couldn't tell you anything about their features.

Eventually the ophthalmologist dilated my pupils to take a better look at my optic nerves. Everything looked fine, he gave me a new prescription for glasses, we left.

A Death In The Family

Maxwell Rodeo Izuzu 

1.1.2001- 10.17.2011

I got in a large car accident on my way to chemistry class last night.  

I really can't give an account of what happened.  I'm stopped at the light, the light turns green, I wait a few seconds, I start to drive, a large Semi- Truck fills my windshield view, I scream, throw my hands in front of my face, and wonder if that would be the last thing I ever see.

The air bags deployed and hit my face really hard.  I thought my nose was broken and I was expecting cuts all over my face.  Amazingly there's not a single scratch on my face, and though my nose is tender, it isn't broken.

I do have airbag burns all over my arms, and I have clear imprints on my abdomen of my seat belt, ID badge, and stitching of the airbag.

My car is totaled.  It's not 'insurance official' but I figure nothing can be done for Max.

I was crying at the scene because I was scared, yes, but mostly because I killed my car.

Now my parents are driving me around and I already hate it.

Not to mention, I'm scared to drive again.

There is no car that could ever replace the hole in my heart Max has left.

I'm so grateful to be alive, but I really wish Max was alive too.

{Disney Auditions!}

Today was the big day!

One word to describe how I feel: TIRED!

I slept at Leslie's apartment last night, and we both go to see each other's morning routines when we got ready at 7 A.M. I got ready earlier than I had expected, so we headed over early. We got to The Dance Club around 9 and check in wasn't scheduled until 9:30.  We were super surprised to see about 30 other people already there so early. Finally the Disney people had us sign in. Leslie was 33 and I was 34.  There were over 200 people auditioning in total.  

I don't think Disney was prepared for that many people. The building they had rented (The Dance Club) could have held maybe 150 at maximum.  So they split us up in 3 big groups.  Tiffany the choreographer taught us the dance that was quite easy.  We performed it for the reciters, I was picked for the next round, and Leslie wasn't. :(  

Then I spent 30 minutes talking with others in my group who made it through while they auditioned the other 2 groups.  Then we all went in to the main dance room and did the dance AGAIN.  Surprisingly, I made it though that round, and about 50 more people were sent home.  

This is when the recruiters measured me (60.5 inches) and took my picture.  Tiffany then taught us another dance that was much more difficult.  I was bare footed and it made most of the dance hard to do.  Spinning bare footed is extremely difficult for me.  I wish I had my dance shoes, but they were tossed a while ago without my knowledge.  It started out totally simple. step clap step clap grapevine clap clap.  As the dance went on, she started throwing in potaboras and 'foot flicks' as she titled them.  I kept a huge smile plastered on my face, and did an okay job of keeping up with the 'pro dancers'.

We 'animated' planting a tree and washing a dog.  Pretty straight forward there.  I really wanted to animate meeting my favorite character, but oh well.  Washing the dog was really difficult because I was crouching most of the time, and I felt very closed off to the recruiters. 

All in all, I had a really entertaining time.  My face hurts from smiling, and I really don't care if I am cast as a character or not.  Either way, I'm going to Florida with my dear friend Leslie.  I do wish Leslie would have gone farther in the audition.  I know she would be an AMAZING princess.  Oh well, I can't make the recruiters do anything.  Blast.

The auditions are over, and they are officially off my mind now.  I am proud of myself for exceeding my personal expectations, and it just felt really good to get my heart pumping though dance.  Leslie and I will hear the results by November 20 and until then, I have other things to focus on.  Like school.  Dreadful, school is.

~Courtney

Pricey!

Fees: $ 304
Flight: $210
Hotel: $50
Working for Disney: Priceless


While I am totally excited for this experience, It has really taken a dent out of my bank account!
The fee to do the program has risen in the last few semesters (from reading other blogs).  $100 of it went to program activities (like grocery bingo) and the other $200 went toward my first few housing payments (i think).
I'm flying Southwest Airlines, and my flight is January 8th.  Leslie told me about the perks of Southwest and I was hooked. They check 2 bags for absolutely free!  Oh my goodness that will be so helpful!  I also added $10 for Early- Bird Check In, which will confirm my seat 12 hours before everyone else, meaning I'll get a great pick of the plane. Now I'm anxiously awaiting Leslie's decision on what airline she's flying.  If she goes with Delta, I'll be flying all on my own for the first time in my life, which terrifies me.  I'm not looking forward to a layover with a airplane switch on my own.
While the hotel is not booked, it looks like Leslie and I will be spending the night before check in at a Disney Value resort.  All- Star Music or Sports.  When it's split between the 2 of us, it'll come out to be roughly $50 each.  Disney provides transportation from the airport to the hotel for free, which is so great for 2 20-year-olds who can't rent a car.  Now all I have to do is contact the hotel in the near future to see if there is transportation available to get us to Vista Way Apartments the next morning for check in.

Audition on Friday! EXCITED!
~Courtney

I'm In!

I've been accepted to the Spring 2012 Disney College Program!!!!!

I was so worried about being accepted, But then, in the middle of my work day yesterday, I got the most amazing email!

It was funny, really.  I was totally busy doing EKG's and I just had this thought "Wow, I haven't checked my email all morning!  I doubt it's there though."  I finished the EKG I was currently doing (on a woman no less. Talk about awkward 10 minutes) and opened a new web page and TA DA!  There was my acceptance email!
It was so hard to keep a straight face, and act normal for the rest of the day!  I slipped away for a few minutes to call Leslie and scream under my breath about my excitement.

Today I paid my fees ($304) and selected my arrival date: January 9th!  Leslie and I are both so excited!

Disney character auditions are next week!  Such excitement!

~Courtney