March 17th, 2011

I suppose I'm still getting used to it being 2011, since I seem to continuously put 2010 or 2009 by accident. I'll get used to it eventually, but probably not before the next new year.

Anyway, I've given up trying to write in an actual diary, because by the time I force myself to pick it up and write, I get bored and put it back down. And so, here I am, typing it all up instead.

I am still waiting to receive my tax returns from the IRS so that I can pay for my one class in the spring. It's going to cost approximately 1200 for one semester unless I go to Washtenaw, which is almost half the price. I'll need to make sure it transfers first, though. The last thing I want to do is pay 600 for a class only to find out i have to take it all over again because it didn't transfer. But I did find out, through one of my class mates, that you can apply to Washtenaw Community College as a guest student. So I might do that. On the other hand, if I do that then I won't be with my other class mates and so I won't have their help. I don't know, there are plusses and minuses on both sides. I'll probably just end up staying with Eastern.

My goal is to pay off my class and then pay my mom back for class this semester. Then, over the summer I'm going to save up my money to go on vacation with Chris, Holly and Steven next spring break. My mom and dad won't be happy about it, but I think a vacation will be nice after two years of nursing school. This stuff's hard! Although, maybe I won't go, because it might mean more if we go together in our last year of nursing instead. Speaking of our last year, I'm not going to be able to graduate with everyone else because I still have so many gen eds to get out of the way. I'm probably going to be going year-round next year and I'm going to try and take as many on-line classes as I can. I don't think I'll be able to add classes in with the other classes I'm taking for nursing, simply because I did that this semester and I had to have mom help me pay for it. So next semester it will just be the classes I have to take and then I'll take the rest over the summer.

I'm also concerned about the ATI tests that we have to take at the end of this semester. The practice tests alone are freaking me out with how specific they are! We have to take one in Med-Surg and one in Pharm. I need to study a lot more than I have so far. The more people talk about the NCLEX, the less I think I'm going to survive it!

No time to worry about that now, though. It's hard enough paying attention to what's at hand!

Anyway, I found a dress that I want to wear from a bridal website. I'm hoping to get the dress made by someone else because I can't afford a dress that's 300-400. I'm hoping to spend between 3000-4000 for the total wedding. I don't want a reception, although my mom doesn't like that idea, but neither Chris nor I want one. But, I suppose if we're having it out of state, we'll need to have one, just to make it worth it for people to come out here, get a hotel and what-not. I don't know, I guess we'll figure it out when we get there. I do want to start making invitations soon though. I want to make enough for everyone we know we want to invite right now, such as family. I can make then without the date and time on them and fill that out later and leave a space to put an engagement picture in.

The places that I'm thinking about having the wedding are either Mackinac Island or the Sara P. Gardens in NC, and possibly on the beach at the ocean. For now, though, Chris and I think we're just going to go to the court house and get married that way and save up for a wedding and, after a year or two, we'll have the actual wedding AND we'll already have the hardest part of the marriage over with. And by then, hopefully, we'll have enough money to go on a honey moon trip to Japan. Although, with current events going the way they are, that may not happen.

Just a week or so ago there was an earthquake in Japan that destroyed towns and the earthquake made a title wave that took out whole villages (10,000 missing in one village) and that title waves made two reactors at a nuclear power plant go amiss and now they're on the verge of exploding and they've been evacuating all the people and checking them all for radiation. It's scary over there right now. I told my mom that it's sad how we tried to help Haiti even though not as many people died, and yet we aren't doing anything for Japan. But my mom said that it's because Haiti was a 3rd world country and Japan is considered a 1st world country. I think that's shitty. Japan may not be hurting for money but they're sure as hell hurting for help. The news says that they're finding hundreds of bodies amongst the rubble washing up on shore and they don't have the man power to gather more than 18 a day. And the amount of sick and wounded just keeps going up as time goes by. I wish I had my degree already, I would go over there and try to help as best I could. I've always wanted to help people like that, people who are truly in need. You don't need to be poor to need help.

However, on the news yesterday they talked about three days after the disaster, workers heard crying from the rubble. They were confused but then, when the crying started again, they followed the sound and found a four month old baby in the wreckage. She was perfect, not even a scratch. Also, a man and his wife, who were helping the sick and wounded, gave birth to a perfect baby boy amongst the commotion. The man, a doctor, stopped only to help his wife through labor before going to help more people. And then there was a dog who ran up to the rescue workers and then lead them back to another wounded dog. It's just so sad to see a country that was already suffering, suffering even more. We all need to pray for them all.

The school is holding support gatherings here at Eastern but I'm working on the day they're having an information meeting. I won;t be able to go. I know that Beth and her group are holding a cupcake party in support. I wish I could do something, but currently I can't even take care of myself, let alone other people. All well, we will see how things work out.

Anyway, Katie has been doing an amazing job trying to loose weight. I forgot how much she said she's lost so far, but it's in the double digits. She's even started going to the gym with one of her friends (I don't remember if she said Dan or Ben.) And Laura's been loosing weight too. You can really see it on her. I'm glad to see them both worrying about their health. So much I can say for myself. I really need to learn to start exercising or at least doing SOMETHING. Even if I just start walking to work, I'm sure that would help a little. I was thinking about starting up the JM again. Wish I could afford a treadmill. I know it's not really worth the money, because I could just go outside and walk, but I like being indoors instead. Outdoors I would get bored and probably stop unless I had someone there with me walking (other than mom because we argue too much.) I might start going to Kensington during the summer after work. Alisa says she'll go with me when our schedules allow for it. That'll be nice. I can walk around the park and then spend some time sitting on the beach studying.

So I got home and I was all excited because everyone got home at once, until I got inside and realized that everyone had gone out to diner without me... again. I'm so sick of this. They spent most of my life telling me how I can't even stat eating without everyone being at the table, and now they can't even call and be like "hey Liz, you on your way home? We're going out to diner." Is that so much to ask? They haven't gone out to diner in months and STILL no one tells me they're going. They just bring me home their leftovers. w/e, guess I'm not hungry anyway.

So we have a test next week in Med-surg and my teacher doesn't know if she's making a study guide or not because some of the students railed on her for how bad it was. I told her I liked it and that they can suck it. Anyway, I'm going to go make note cards for that. no more typing!