01-29-10

This is a picture of my EMT class minus the teachers....and me!! I was hiding behind the tallest guy in the picture...in the back row! I'm kicking myself now but I just hate having my picture taken...but yeah...that's my classmates. We had a great group.



This is a picture of 3 of my instructors, (somehow we never got our lead instructor in any of these!) one of my classmates and me. I did not want to be in the picture cause I was eating! But they dragged me in and had me laughing so it is a very unflattering picture of me but I'm glad I have it. The instructor next to me (with the glasses) is the one who is my absolute favorite. I have taken a few classes with him and he has become a great friend of mine and Sam's. He has helped me from the beginning. He met me when I was fresh in the fire company and still scared of everything. He's the one who taught me there's no reason to be afraid of fire...respect it...but do not fear it. He helped me every step of the way with this EMT class. Just a great guy and we are glad to have him as our friend.

Well tomorrow is my New York State final exam. Wow! I am feeling so overwhelmed right now. Regardless of the outcome I know in my heart that I have given this 100%. I have studied pretty much every day since about a month before the class started and have done all the homeworks, extra credits, study groups and extra help from the instructors that was available to me. I know that I know the material but the only reason that I'm extremely nervous right now is because I cannot even tell you how many firemen (including my husband and he's been in the fire company for about 15 years) have told me that they took the class and failed the final. So that is nervewracking. I know and totally understand that they need to make this test hard because you HAVE to know your stuff. I mean....as an EMT you are literally dealing with life or death situations. So you have to know all the technical stuff like how many breaths per minute for an adult, for an infant, etc. You have to know all kinds of diffent facts and numbers and bones and the heart and skin and I could go on and on. So. Yeah. I'm trying not to be negative about it and everytime I say..."well if I fail then when can I take the class again?" and my instructor keeps telling me...."no. You're not gonna fail so we don't talk like that" But I want to prepare myself emotionally...just in case.
Anyway. Gotta get back to studying. Today is the last day I can study. So....back to it.

Here's my new shower curtain I wrote about last night. I just think it's so cute and happy!!!

Well it's after 11pm on Sunday night so I guess I can safely say that the weekend is over. It was really really nice spending the weekend with my honey. On Friday night we went to Walmart and it was nice to get out. I bought a very cute shower curtain (I will post a picture in the next day or 2) Our bathroom walls are purple and we had a real pretty lacy white shower curtain but it was just getting to the point where it seemed to be too much purple and white. So I bought a polka dotted shower curtain and it looks cute! Then we did a little switch-a-roo in the house. Moved our bedroom to the spare room (so now our bedroom is in the bigger room....love that) And we will make the room that was our bedroom into something...not sure what yet...maybe a reading/relaxing nook, maybe my excercise/sewing room....not sure but we have a few ideas) And....I guess that's all but it sure felt like alot while we were doing it!! That was alot of work but I'm thrilled cause I was able to scrub down both rooms and clean them very very well....so....much better!! But now.....it's back to studying. 4 more days till my final exam.
Hope everyone had a great weekend!

TGIF!!! I love the weekends cause that means 2 days to spend with my honey bunny!! Can't wait till he gets home from work today! We don't have anything special planned this weekend but Sam said he just wants to get "out" together so that will be nice for sure! I'm taking tomorrow off from studying to give my brain a little break here but then Sunday it's back to it. Our last study group is Sunday afternoon. The study groups have been very very helpful....especially when our instructor pops in cause he is a huge help to us. And then our last class is Monday night....then it final exam time and it's all over. I have so many different emotions about this class ending. I'm obviously happy cause I accomplished something major. Something I worked so hard for...I finished. I will be relieved that I don't have to drive 45 minutes each way every time we have class or study group. But very very sad cause this has been such a big part of my life since the beginning of September. When you are in a group and just working very hard toward a common goal, you form a special bond and there are some people in my class that I will really miss. I'll still keep in touch with them through Facebook and whatever and if I do get hired by an ambulance service chances are I will be working with some of them or seeing others of them on 1st aid calls so that will be nice. And I just have gotten really close to all 4 of my instructors. They have been extremely encouraging and always there when/if you need them. And again...I will keep in touch with a few of them on facebook and the others I'll either work with at Twin City or at their 1st aid calls. So I guess it's never goodbye....but I'm just feeling really sad about it all ending. So anyway.
Guess I'll close for now. The dishwasher just stopped running so I suppose I should get the dishes put away so that will be done for the day! Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!!

Last night I took my 2nd final exam....and I passed! Woohoo! This was the one I was most nervous about...but the past few days I was feeling strangly confident. I am not used to feeling that way and it was a great feeling!! I just felt ready. I knew I had done everything I possibly could to prepare myself for it. The one last night was the practical exam. We had 6 different scenarios and you had to stand in front of an instructor (different instructor for each one) and verbalize as well as show them from start to finish what you would do on that particular ems call. (and you had a certain amount of time for each one) You had to get it correct and could not miss much. I was so nervous cause I was just so intimidated cause these were people who have been doing it for years...some of them longer than I've been alive so it was nervewracking for sure. But all the instructors were great. The first station I had to do was with my absolute favorite instructor. Sam and I are good friends with him so I'm actually glad I got his first cause that just calmed me down for the rest of the stations. I'm pretty sure they did that on purpose and I appreciate that. So....I'm glad that is over and now I have to focus on my big New York State written examination that I have next Thursday. So....if I pass that one....then I am officially an EMT!!! I really hope I pass cause this has been a dream of mine for a long time.
I am no longer at my job at the pharmacy. (and boy...what a relief that is) Long story but I will make it very short. My boss basically made me choose between my job and this EMT class and I am just too far along in this to give up now. So Sam told me there is no discussion....I've worked too hard on this class to give up now. He told me I hate my job anyways so there's no reason to let her bully me around like this. So I put my notice in last week. And I feel so relieved to be gone from there. I have hated that job from day 1. So that's that.

Anyway....my instructor told me to take the day off from studying so I just wanted to update my blog a little.

So I took and passed (yay!) my 1st final exam for my EMT class last night. Still 2 more to go. My next one is this coming Monday (1/11) and from what I hear....that will be the hardest one. That makes me nervous because the one last night was supposedly the easiest one and I had a hard time with that one. So that makes me a little more nervous. Anyone who fails the one on Monday is done with the class. They are not allowed to take the last final exam. So that's quite nervewracking too!! So a bunch of us from the class are getting together Saturday and Sunday afternoon to study together so I'm sure that will help alot. The one Monday is our "practical exam" where there are, I believe, 6 or 7 different stations and you have to go to each one and do whatever it requires. For instance, the first one you have to simulate coming on to the scene of a trauma accident and go through all the steps from start to finish on what you would do. Second one is what you would do if you went to a call of someone having a heart attack, then the others are a little easier. For example, you have to simulate shocking a patient whose heart is stopped, splinting a broking joint, etc. Anyway....it will be nervewracking for sure because each station has "critical points" and if you miss even one of them you fail. So needless to say I am going to be a wreck come Monday!!
Sorry that was very "rambly" but I just wanted to share what's going on and as I said in my last post this is kind of therapeutic so it helps ease my nervousness a little to write about it.