A little nerdy and a little stupid

That is how I feel when one week I made an A on a test for class P and the next week I made a C on a test for class A, though both are testament to how much studying was done for each test. Both were first tests, and I hatehate the first exam because you don't know what to expect. Obviously I was well prepared for the P test, then a lazy spell hit just in time for the A test. Darn.

This is week is the last clinical lab with the talking mannequins--yes, them high tech dummies do talk and it's creepy. Next week I'll start clinical at the assigned hospital, donning my scrubs and meeting real patients with the hope that they don't reject me, a clueless first year nursing student, for testing my newly acquired skills on them.

Cee: "Mr. P, I'm going to give your med through IM injection."

Mr. P: "But you're a student nurse...."

Cee (trying her best to muffle the deflating sound of her self esteem) : "Yes, I am."

Mr. P: "Do you know what you're doing? You don't know what you're doing!"

Cee (thinking this is quite true) : "I have practiced many times, Mr. P. No need to worry."

Mr. P: "You have?"

Cee (omitting the part that says all practices were done only to the creepy talking mannequins at the school's lab) : "Of course."

Update on the study partner thing:

I am glad to say that I have found study partners that I feel comfortable with, though there is a catch to this: there were only the four of us when we studied for the P test mentioned above and all of us made A's. However, for the A test the week after, three more people joined us when they saw us in the study room and invited themselves in. As you can see, this contributed to the C as well because I can't quite focus with six other people in the room compared to when there were only three other people. I haven't found out how the rest of the group did as we got the grades for the A test only recently, I do know one of them got less than what she got on the P test, though still higher than the C I got.

Perhaps finding the right people isn't enough to form this ultimate study group, thou must find the right people and the right number of people. Le sigh, my quest resumes.....

School, out!

In the last 7 days, the school has been closed twice. 'Tis fabulous.

The first time was due to weather. The forecast from the night before was not promising, so we got a notice that there will be no classes until noon. I had an evening lab for that day anyway, I just went to work at 12 instead of 9. Huzzah for sleeping in!

The second time was due to water outtage, not a single toilet in all eight floors of the building is restroom. Now you know you gotta cancel classes when it is after lunch and you've got students frantically scouring every floor for a working toilet, only to find all toilets were backed up and disgusting. Quote of the day was courtesy of a pregnant classmate, "If you ain't got any toilet, you've got any bottle or bucket or whatever for me?! 'Cuz I got to pee every 15 minutes, dammit!" You just can't go against a pregnant woman and nature's call.

And you know your social life is borderline non existent when you're happy that school is out not because you can enjoy the rest of the day out with your friends, but because you'd have more time to study for the Pharmacology test the next day....

Have you met these study partners?

The last couple of years of pre-requisite classes were relatively easy and I breezed past the courses with mostly A's, some B's, and only two C's. But this nursing school thing is new, it's unfamiliar territory, it's just what I need to kick my lazy ass up and going. Nowadays, I could no longer get an A on a test by "studying" the night before let alone without. I actually have to study, ya know, the one where the TV is actually OFF and the iTunes is low on volume--I cannot study in absolute silent--and there is a warning on your forehead that says "Beware, studying in progress. Bother me, and I kill you" and there is a thermos full of caffeinated beverage of choice.

And then there is this thing called study group which could either boost your self esteem or burst it. It's like a beauty pageant, "Oh my GOD! She twirls fire baton, pppfft, like that could win over my pantomime! Oh no she didn't, her teeth are whiter than mine!" Yeah, not pretty. Then, there is such trouble as finding the right study partner to avoid said beauty pageant-esque situation. And you don't want to have too many of study partners either, because then you'd be discussing which country the Brangelina will adopt their next kidlet from. Oh the dilemma....

It's a trial and error process and I have yet to find the right group of people to study with. Nevertheless, I have encountered these extreme types on my quest to find the chosen ones.

The Nazi
The one who quizzes you like you have done, oh I don't know, the crime of the century. The one who asks the question 100mph without missing a beat. The one who gets pissed if you even dare to ask for a repeat of the question and the one who will deem you unfit as his/her study partner.

Nazi: "DoctororderedTagamet60mg/dayPOover3doseschild'sweight50kgonhand200mg/2ml. Howmanyml/dosewillyougive?

Me: "HUH?! What..?!"

Nazi: "What do you mean you don't know?! This is someone else's life! Someone, take her away, she's dangerous!"

And down the drain goes my self esteem.

The Detective
The one who asks every.single.details. The one who interrupts if you miss one minuscule fact that even the instructor has told us not to worry about.

Detective: "Z-track."

Me: "Pull skin, inj--"

Detective: "How many inches?"

Me: "Hu-oh, 1-1 1/2". Inject 90 degree, aspirate, inje--"

Detective: "Where are your fingers at this point?"

Me: "Two holding the needle stable. Left hand aspirate and inject slowly, withdr--"

Detective: "You wait how long?"

Me: "5 seconds?"

Detective taps fingers on the table with stone face.

Me: "8? 9? 10?"

And further down the sewer goes my self esteem.

The Snob
The one who is so unreasonably nit picky about this study group thing.

Me: "Hey, K and I are going to study tomorrow before lecture, you wanna join?"

Snob: "K? Isn't that the one who sits next to you? Ugh, annoying."

Me: "Um, oookaay then...."

Snob: "But hey, do you wanna study with me and S tomorrow before lecture? S looks really smart."

Me : "Yeah, my dog looks really smart too and he's scared of a lion plush toy...."

The Easy One
The one who agrees with basically whatever you say, even when what you said isn't entirely true and you know it.

Easy One: "Asthma?"

Me: "Can't breathe."

Easy One: "Fabulous. Emphysema?"

Me: "Can't breathe."

Easy One: "Wonderful. Bronchitis?"

Me: "Can't breathe."

Easy One: "Great, you're gonna make 100 on the test."

Me: "And the moon is blue tomorrow...."

Have you met yours? Or have you met any of these extreme ones? Or have met other extremes I did not mention here?

I am determined to find the right study partner(s) before my projected graduation date....