broken, busted, bitten, and beaten

I guess I'm a proud owner of a 7'2" Isle surf board

Boy the B's sure did give me a beatin' today. I went out to coconut cliffs with the usual surf crowd (Art, Jon, Shauna, and Eric). Yesterday we barbecued on the beach, I took some USDA Costco certified beef cuts with my homemade teriyaki sauce....yummmy! However, back to today, I caught some nice fast, steep, waves (one foot overhead). After an 1 1\2 I said "laters" to the surf gang and paddled out. You have to understand getting to "coconut cliffs" takes about 15 minutes of careful, tactful walking across lava rocks, algae rocks, sand, scrambling up volkswagen size rocks, etc. So I'm on my way back to the car and BAAMMMM I slipped!! I put a big gash in my shin and a horrific dent in Jon's board. The feeling of frustration mixed with pain is unexplainable. Anyhow I'm going to talk to Jon tomorrow about how I just purchased his board for the price he was previously asking. Except now I have a jacked up shin and a defective board in desperate need of repairs of which I have no idea how to do.

ouch!

Before I loaded up the board this morning I got bitten by about 10 ants. I thought I was a fast learner until I unloaded the board (with gashed knee and defeated spirits) and got bitten AGAIN by probably the same ants!!!

On to todays soccer game:

Brian: boy Serg we're going to womp on this nerd team for sure!

Sergio: Brian don't get too confident now (speaking from experience)

later of course we suffered a humiliating defeat. We must of shot at their goal ten times more than they did to our goal. The only difference being that none of our shots were going in!!!

If you want a good burger round' here you gotta do it yourself!


Anyhow, when I got home I was cutting up vege's for dinner and poked myself with the sharp cutco knife!!! All in all not a good day at all, but I must put everything into perspective with my vet school motto: "It can ALWAYS be worse"

Hey good news: I got a B+ in avian medicine! Epidemiology is coming up on Friday so I started hitting the notes.

Three more weeks and I get to see my girls!!

Let's hope I have a better day tomorrow......one day at a time.

Goodnight

99%

St. Kitts

this is where i do my grocery shopping... no plasma screens here though!

Lab Animal Medicine is all finished! The course is offered in one month (crash course) so now we get out by 11am!!! This means maybe I can squeeze in a run or some surf time. I did my presentation on ECMO and it went really smooth. As usual I felt in control and confident at the front. I owe it all to my mother who as kids pretty much forced us to go do song service every sabbath morning for church service!! What gave my presentation some extra flare was Dr. Rojas input. Dr. Rojas is a human cardiac surgeon and he gave me some cutting edge, latest in technology, not approved by the FDA information. It was cool to talk to him because with my Respiratory Therapy background we were speaking the same language. On the other hand Dr. Bartlett also from Michigan State didn't pull through at all. This guy is the father of ECMO and is retired now but I imagine involved in some capacity. His email: "All the information you need is available from ELSO. Check thepublications on the internet". Well said Dr. Bartlett, oh and thanks very inspirational! Anyway it's the 99% like that ruin it for the 1% like Dr. Rojas. One of the many reasons I decided human medical school was definitely not for me. Why so I can develop "God's greatest gift to mankind" complex? uhh uhh.

I swear I saw these while surfing....Is that a cowphin??

Path results are back now. It looked very grim for the whole class, I usually score right on the average and my grade was 70%! On one hand I feel so bad for Dr. Miller, the class was not having any of this and they were very vocal. Dr. Miller I'm sure wanted to go home and cry because he sure looked like it.....very disrespectful on many of my classmates parts. As a class we've never behaved like this it was embarassing. On the other hand I want to learn pathology and it seems like Dr. Millers questions leave LOTS of room for interpretation and thats not good. This was only 25% of the grade, three more to go before the quarter is over so lets try harder next time around. I'm just glad he breaks it down to four test instead of having one big midterm and a final that would be really BAD!

Today I went surfing to "concretes" with Jon, Art, and Shauna. Waves were about chest high and it was a corral reef break...so very consistent. I caugt a few good waves on Jon's 7' 2" board but forgot my rash guard....OUCH, can you say chest wax job?

concrete's (because concrete company nearby)

Paul (5th semester) is my co-officer for AAEP (American Assoc. of Equine Practioners) student chapter. This last saturday he gave a demo on hoof trimming, I learned alot. Four point trims, 60/40 ratio for weight distribution, and many more.

Alright, I better get back to studying avian medicine because tomorrow we have exam #1. For the sake of Dr. McNeal lets just hope she's fair, otherwise protective gear might become standard issue I'm afraid.

dirty dog

Tomorrow I'll be doing my extra credit presentation in Lab Animal Medicine. The presentation will be on ECMO (Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation). It was briefly mentioned in one of Dr. Hankensons lectures. I decided to talk about ECMO because I know a little bit about it since I have a Respiratory Therapy background. Originally I wanted to do something a bit more applicable to Lab Animal Medicine like canine tooth cutbacks in piglets, but I changed my mind.

a little off-roading was necessary to get to the surf

Yesterday I decided to take a study break and joined my classmate Jonathan and a spouse named Art. They had an extra board for me but when we got to this beach it was riddled with lava rock and urchins for sure! It took John and Art about 15 minutes to carefully step to waste level water! I decided it would be best not to break someone elses board and took a few pics from the shore, the waves were knee high anyways.

saw these crustaceans on rocks on the shore their a gazillion years old!

these little chinchillas like dust baths

Really though chinchillas require dust baths because apparently it reduces the oils on their fur = healthy, happy chinchilla. So I decided now it's o.k. for Chump to roll in the dirt two nanoseconds after I bath him. . . . he must have a good reason!

Just had my first Pathology II exam last monday. After talking to a few classmates I guess I'm not the only one that made mistakes. On one scenario: 4 month old feedlot calf had diarrhea for four days then suddenly died with a picture of the ileum and focal hemorrhagic necrosis. I should have put BVD (Bovine Viral Diarrhea) however, I put the second best answer: Salmonella! I hope he gives partial credit because that question was worth about 20% of the total exam grade. Afterall, I did list the pathogenesis for salmonella to the T so it goes to show I know the second best response very well. It was rather frustrating however, because I could recite everything about BVD in my sleep. Oh well, atleast I have three more opportunities to improve. I better hit the sack because it's almost 1 am!

Goodnight or is it goodmorning?

Sergio

madmexican disease

ahhhhhh, nothing like a monday morning. Today wasn't too bad except for the fact that i was mad all day! i don't get like this too often (twice a year) but when i do don't you dare get in my way. It must be like PMS for men or something of the sort. Just about everything classmates were saying was pushing me on the edge ALL DAY!! Seriously though, on this day I'll rumble with anyone if provoked. Maybe it's some hormonal change; whatever it is I'm glad I didn't blow up on anyone.

Lately, I've been lifting weights on mondays, tuesdays, and fridays (run to gym) and soccer on tuesdays and thursdays. Our team is called "Rinderpest" and we won our first game this last Sunday. Here a pic of team Rinderpest in action.

All my classes seem to be interesting. Pathology II however is so subjective. Dr. Miller sometimes even repeats himself, often asking us where he left off. Our first lecture consisted of a thorough bio of each of his six children. I thought that was nice, but when he repeated his children's bio's for the third time I knew something was wrong. He couldn't remember their names, or what they did for a living. He almost forgot to mention his one and only daughter! I suppose that's what happens when one gets to the twilight years of life. We're learning morphological diagnosis and descriptions of lesions. So lectures consist of looking at various organs and describing what we see. However, (and I'm sure I'm not alone) often Dr. Miller contradicts himself and see's colors we obviously don't see. Anyhow I need to adapt to his m.o. and hope I can pull a passing grade on our upcoming exam. . . . we'll see.

even this little guy was getting on my nerves!

I hope I can get rid of this otherwise I might get in trouble. . . . maybe I should just stay home and rewash these dishes. Boy I must really want to be a veterinarian really bad! GoOdnight.

right about now

Last Fridays topic: GEM's "Genetically Engineered Mice"

I don't know what the deal is but today while reviewing some epidemiology I felt lonely. All I wanted was to be back in Oakdale with my little mocosa (Nicole) and my main squeeze Sharie. It doesn't help that I had a dream that I was tearing it up on the two-stroke on Groom's. I mean the jumps were like 10 times higher and the speed just insane. . . . then I woke up. Now I'm always thinking of my girls and that dog gone throttle...hmmmm. Look I even downloaded some awesome pics of some guys at Laguna Seca in harmonious formation down the "corkscrew". I've come down this in similar formation but instead we were all wearing spandex and going a fraction of the speed.....but just as close though.

I even downloaded this inspirational picture of some cool lookin' stranger hittin' a whoopti the right way!

And of course my little squinkledoodle taking her much need siesta with that baby that never closes its eyes to sleep.

This semester we are being taught Lab Animal Medicine by a heavy hitter research couple that teach at Penn State. Dr. Claire Hankenson is associate director of the lab animal department and also teaches residents and vet students. Her Husband Dr. Kurt Hankenson is a scientist/veterinarian doing cutting edge research in fracture healing, osteoarthritis, and osteoporosis. They are a cool couple with a little 2 year old boy and unfortunately are only here for the month long lab animal course. If back in the states I'd totally invite them over for some bruskie and tri-tip! We have some "who's who" professors here on The Rock, but this couple have the "one-two" punch in research period.

I'm hittin' the sack because I gotta get over this sore throat. Prayers for Sharie and little baby please. Little baby wants to come out at 34 weeks, but baby gotta take it down a thousand for a few more weeks atleast. Thanks for reading. Have a great week!

right about now I need this singletrack (sigh)

Sergio

trails, guns, and motopsychos

Boy that was refreshing! Started off with a visit to folks in SoCal. Mama Reyna once again enjoyed seeing us and Nicole. What is cool is that Nicole remembers all the places and people that we've visited.

What made the trip special was that for the first time we were able to spend some one-on-one time with Papa Juve in Delano. My stepmother and half-sisters were out of the country for the Holidays so my sis and I decided to crash Dads place.

Once back up in NorCal we had a dual family Uyeyama/Dobroff reunion at my father-in-laws place in oakdale. I don't know why but I agreed to be Santa for the kids, but it was worth it to see some of the kids excitement. Overall I think I talked to cousin Ron the most, lets just say we connected at the dirt level. It's amazing how many similarities exist between motocross and mountain biking.

Sharie and I went out on desperately needed and long overdue date: Aragon and mexican food. During the break I spent some time with Dennis and Matt. Dennis and I both like shopping and giving each other a hard time so the day was full of laughs. Matt let me shoot his clay pigeons with his shotgun. I also managed to try out the two stroke after an hour on the four stroke. That two stroke sure does command some respect and delicacy with the throttle. I'm definitely gettin' one of these bad boys once I'm settled.

Mountain biking was cold in SoCal and muddy in Norcal. Jen showed me Forest divide trail in Auburn.....sweet singletrack, a "beginners paradise". Jim, Billy and myself rode the Old Highway 38 trail in Angelus Oaks. I even got to ride in Hilda Crooks with el pelon y apestoso Ben. Good times I tell you......good times. Pete (father-in-law), Matt and I did a dry Mochi pounding run to make sure all was kosher for the Rancheria Annual Mochi pounding. Mochi came out a little stiff but I was nice to spend that kind of time with two great guys.

And of course the highlight was our snow trip up in Strawberry. I thought for sure the four granddaughters were going to be uncooperative and unsure of this thing called snow. To my surprise.. . .. .well a picture is worth a thousand words:

And the trail continues......

This semester: Pathology II, Epidemiology, Public Health, Lab Animal Medicine, Pharmacology I, and Avian medicine. Thanks for reading and Happy New Year!

4th semester

What a relief! I'm in Fort Lauderdale airport and just used Kerri's laptop to check. My heart was beating so fast, Edward and Kerri looking on anxiously for any hint from my facial response. I told Kerri and Edward I would either do a cartwheel or if I failed go take a few shots of tequila....I did a great cartwheel!

Many might think it's just finals, but it's a huge investment and commitment we make. No one except for like 5 classmates have the semester pretty much secured leading up to finals, but were not all brainiacs. So for the rest of us we play this game of finding out our fates on saturday by noon. Will I have to pack my bags (failed more than two courses)? Will I have to repeat the whole semester (failed one class and have a last and final chance to repeat the semester)?

So from here I can "officially" start my vacation. A layover here and another one in Dallas then a hop to S.F. It's good to be back in the states, it's cold.......a nice change.

Multi-tasking

Feline Infectious Peritonitis: Mortality 100%

This weekend was all about virology. We spent so much time together, She told me about all her diseases and I repeated them over and over. We talked about her on walks, mtn bike rides, and even on the trainer, repeating group listings: zoonotics, reportables, vesicular forming, and on and on. I'll confess half-way through the weekend I felt like I wasn't getting anywhere with viro. But today it all came together.....I started making connections and that's the key to alot of these subjects (parasitology, bacteriology, etc.). I mean come on, when you can rant off viruses while your anaerobic I'd say you know some viro!

I checked out another cane road this weekend, it was nice. I started off on the cane roads, climbed on the road to upper Cayon. Their in Cayon the pavement ended and after a series of forks I was in rainforest. After a nice descent it opened up to a cane field with the Atlantic on my right. I took some pictures but for some reason the laptop doesn't recognize my camera now that I replaced the hard drive.

This next week is the last week of lectures and then it's crunch time after that: FINALS! I'm already thinking of all the rides I want to do back in CA. History in the making here on St. Kitts, for the first time a 747 landed! The runway was extended, apparently when 737's land they only have 50 feet to spare? Sounds scary.

Sharie and Nicole and (Indie) are in Oakdale now. Nicole is so busy playing with her cousins that she forgets about her Papa :{ atleast she's have fun. But that's o.k. I let her hear me playing with her toys while on the phone!

Alright, I better study another subject before I lose balance! Have a great week!

Sergio

hard drive, hard times

Well, I've been computerless the last few weeks because our hard drive took a dump. So for now I'm reduced to using the LRC's computers to post my blogs. So I guess all the pictures are forever gone according the the computer technician. So for now please look at what I want for christmas.....

Come on Santa! It's only 6 gran!

We'll maybe a graduation present for myself. Anyhow, this is the best mountain bike money can get you, but way too much bike for an unfit vet student. Sharie and Nicole will be flying back to Oakdale this thursday. Everything has been going fine here, a few bumps on my last round of exams but nothing fatal. I'm most nervous about Immunology and Virology because when Dr. Giymah says cummulative he means it! Neuroanatomy, Physiology III, and Pathology should be too bad. I'm looking forward to visiting folks in SoCal and NorCal, especially the cold weather! Tropical climate is nice but only for your 2 weeks of vacation! Well I better go hit the books because finals are just around the corner!

Humble Birthday

sometimes I eat lunch here

Vet school has certainly surprised me. At first I thought it would be challenging and that's it, but humbling? I didn't see that one coming, as a matter of fact I experience that about every other day. Some classmates have experienced it more than others and it's not limited to academics.
For starters just coming to a foreign country where you are the minority is nice appetizer. We all share the same story of how we applied to the state side schools and didn't get accepted for this reason or that one. Trying not to wander off while hearing the sad story you've heard time and time again. However, after fightin' it in the trenches we grow closer and take it personally when one of us takes a hit. Word travels fast on the island, about how so and so failed 3 out of 5 exams or how so and so just packed their bags and left the island. We're committed now, we've jumped off the ledge so to speak. We're all in it together and we want every one to make it to the end. I relate the most to other students that have there family here on the island. When one of em' takes a hit I get down on my knees to pray for them, it's that tough.

The other day I had some time to calculate the educational debt we're incurring. I calculated that each student pays $60 per lecture for the 3.4 years of education. At the end of our education my class of 65 (assuming we all make it) will have a combined debt of 13 million big bones. But I'll tell you what we have the best instructors money can buy and of course throw in a dud here and there. Overall, I've had the best instructors here on the island. . . . brilliant, energetic, animated, excited, and passionate about their respective subjects.

It was Nicoles (chochita) birthday last weekend so we took her to the Marriot pool for the afternoon. We decided to trespass once again and play around in the pool, just a momentary delusion that we might just be back in the states. Nicole enjoyed splashing in the pool and eating ice cream and fries. . . I miss being a kid!

I'm two yrs old. . . . WOW! (look at those fries)

I can say that I'm truly proud to be in vet school, running with the best. I'm not the fastest, I'm not the slowest, somewhere in the middle. Sometimes I even fall on my face, but it's nothing I can't shake off. Sometimes the dirt in my teeth drives me that much more to try harder the next time around! Long live the Running Rossies!! Goodnight.

halfway point

old sugar can mill with caribbean sea

Can you believe we've just hit the 1/2 way point with semester three! Wow, it sure has flown by! Third semester has the task of walking the anesthesia dogs twice a day. So we split up into groups of 5 and choose a week to do our dog walking. I tell you adding 2 hours of walking per day on top of everything else had me running on fumes! My first dog walk I was matching Truffles (the fastest/most hyper) every stride of our run/walks. On my last day even Sydney (slowest dog) was pulling me along like some sack of potatoes. I lost alot of study time so this weekend was all about catching up. I have round #2 of exams coming up next week, and although I fared alright I can't let my guard down.

During one of my breaks I decided to take the wifee and little squinkles to the Marriot pool. I've heard of students getting kicked out so I was hesitant. Sharie lead the way and I acted as the bell boy. Sharie and Chochita had a great time and we didn't even get kicked out (maybe b/c it's off season?). The funny thing is that I noticed alot of Rossies while at the Marriot, so I guess we're a permanent fixture. . . for now.

AVMA came and went and the Dean filled us in on the skinny. Of course I was dog walking but I heard that we need to 1) work on the research area 2) install a large animal isolation ward and I believe those were the biggies. The research deal is gonna take a while, but hopefully AVMA will accredit R.U. before my time is up.

I'm gonna explore the sugarcane road a bit further. Today I consulted Dr. Reich about the trails and he's gonna mark a section of a trail for me....hopefully I won't get lost or abducted by some canabalistic tribe....eekkkk! Alright I'm gonna see if I can squeeze a little more material in my noggin, then it's to bed!

New Trails

Mr. Potato glasses

I've been slacking the last week. Actually it wasn't conducive to gettin' any solid study time in, group meetings, necropsy, and Sharie's Choir practice. Somehow now I've been recruited to haul the 100+ lb electric keyboard plus case (case is 90lb and I'm sure bombproof) to school on Sundays for the student worship meetings. No biggie, I'm all for helping make the good things happen, Lord knows I'm having my own issues as to why I don't feel like attending church service. I know however that I frequently think of him and appreciate whatever it is that he instilled in me that makes me remember him so often.

Is this where I should feed baby mama?

Today I put in a good solid 8 hours of studying in and decided to go trail exploring on the cross bike. I went down the usual sugarcane road to school. On the way I stopped and asked the goat herder a few questions about the trail system. I see him everyday on his beater bike, and he even rings the bell as I zoom past. The trail was reminiscent of Blue Mountain climb, wide fireroad, steep, and snakes itself up. Almost exactly as a matter of fact, a steep pitch at each turn, followed by a slight tapering of pitch. I didn't make it to the top as daylight was running out. Surprisingly I felt good, I say that because on Saturday I decided to go support Kelly Rock's first organized "Ross Swim Challenge". I haven't been swimming at all, but figured I can handle doing the 250 and 750 yard races. About 15 people showed up, and the water was murky due to the recent heavy rain fall. One guy visiting the island from Boston downright smoked us all.

Somehow I got a sand-dollar/medal

My classmate Chris Spencer broke his jaw last weekend while playing football and is now in the states recovering. My other classmate Chris Bory flew out today to welcome his first born in San Dimas, CA! Sharie in the meantime is getting bigger and bigger! We're alot better (not at each others throats) now that she is keeping busy teaching the music program at school, going to Wednesday evening bible study, and helping with Sunday worship.

small group, most of us winners!

Alright, I better get back to virology and a little pathology because this next week will be busy. . . dog walking duty! Have a great week folks!

Demigod

"say hi"

So far I'm doing better this semester. Immunology was better than expected, Neuro as well. However, my love, my passion. . . Physio I underperformed! If I underperform in like Pathology or something or other I'll just shake it off. However, with physio I take it personally because I own it, I love it, and I expect more from myself. I know I know more than my low B reflected but I must also remind myself that Reich averaged 69% on his last semesters Renal exam.

What is cool about having Reich and Hutchison as professors is the way they impart wisdom. For example for Reich he goes full throttle from the start, as a matter of fact I don't write notes anymore. . . just hang on and listen! Hutch tells it how it is and doesn't dwell on theories, or lists. . . .just the facts, what you'll actually need when you get to clinics. Speaking of Hutchison has what he calls "demigod" moments. Demigod is a being that has a god parent and a mortal human parent, so naturally this being is superhuman. So Hutch and Reich prepare us so when we join or "elite" U.S. counerparts for semesters 8-10 during clinics. They kid around how some schools (Cornell) believe they are holy and expect to be treated as such. As a matter of fact some schools are too pure to affiliate themselves with us "second" rate students (Davis, Tufts).

So Hutch suddenly goes off on a tangent with a "demigod" moment and says: O.K., so what are you going to do when your doing rounds as a student and the clinician says "how do you know this dog is suffering from trochlear nerve paralysis?". So Hutch continues: "your going to take the opthalmoscope and the residents and clinician will be wondering what the hell your doing", but you little Rossie will know that the only way to determine if this is indeed trigeminal nerve paralysis is to look at the internal vasculature of the eye!" So there you have it a demigod moment:)

Sharie is alot better now that she is keeping herself busy teaching K-8 music classes. Nicole is a big girl now because she can not only sit down and behave herself while mommy teaches but is a big sister. . . . .it's a GIRL! We've been thinking of some names, I personally like "Indie".

During one of my vending machine study breaks I was being nosy and looked into Dr. Kainer's office. I was amazed to see he had nothing to indicate it belonged to him. Maybe once one gets to that age diplomas, awards, personal interests, or mementos mean nothing. So I got to thinking about life and all it's uncertainties, how we live forgetting that we are all on borrowed time. I know that if I knew I had only a few days to live I'd live life alot differently.

Living on the island has it's share of difficulties. For example these little pesky sugar ants that smell my cereal from the other side of the island. Tonight I devised a solution for Sharie's dillema: Where can she put the freshly baked goods' for tommorows bake sale without the sugar ants devouring the cookies? Last time I checked sugar ants don't swim, so we placed the cookie sheet on top of a mini lake of water! I guess we'll see in the morning.

We'll I'm hittin' the sack because I still have Pathology and Virology exams this week. Thanks for reading!

Sergio

Real Doctor

It wasn't until last semester that I heard about this real doctor thing and veterinary medicine. I never recall hearing about it during my near decade in human medicine. Often I'd overhear someone joking around about dentist and how that was the route for those not admitted to med school. Or I'd hear about physical therapists with doctrates and how no one really cared. At the end of the day the boss had M.D. after his name and that was the last word. . . well maybe the HMO's? I've heard of people dog on chiropracters, podiatrists, or history PhD's who park in hospital "doctors only" spots. The fact of the matter is that the history professor parking in M.D.'s parking spot has more of a right to park their than does M.D..

What I found out was that in England (a loooong time ago) medical school graduates where given "honorary" doctrate degrees. This basically was implemented by prestigous schools like Cambridge, and Oxford (operated by PhD's by the way)because patients referred to them as such. So as history has it now it's a birth right for everyone to be called a doctor. As a matter of fact the meaning of doctor is "he who teaches". In England veterinarians are just that "veterinarians" not "doctors". So now I ask do I care? No, and as a matter of fact "Dr. Iniguez" doesn't even have the right ring to it. For me a doctor will always be that person that you always refer to for professional enlightment. . . . the last word. The Dr. Reichs, Dr. Bergs, Dr. Hutchisons are in my opinion the final word in their respective fields. So I devised a portrait that summarizes a veterinarian (left) from a "real doctor" on right.

It's all good as long as I have the bike and no HMO's!

So I've been thinking about starting a running club lately. It's easier than starting a triathlon club because all you need is a pair of shoes and the will to run. I think I'll even copy the Loma Linda Lopers club colors. . . Pink! Currently we are looking for a school mascot. I'm all for a turtle since we are on an island with a healthy population of sea turtles. Someone submitted a mustang? Uhhh, sorry Dorothy but were not in Kansas anymore!

Tomorrow is my first exam of the semester: Immunology, then Physiology III on Friday. Tourist season will be in full swing in about 2 weeks or so. The last few months have been uncomfortably hot, so we're looking forward to some cold weather during December break. Good quality beef is non-existant here so thanks to Matt and Cherie we had some teriyaki marinated tri-tip last night! All we thought about was Matt and Cherie. . . ...thanks a chazillion!

We'll I better get back to the immuno notes, especially if I want to become a wanna be real doctor someday!

oodle doodle

JFK doodles

A few days ago I noticed a classmate doodling during pathology lecture. I was bored too so I looked on to see his doodling. His doodling was a series of rooflines and diamonds, however I didn't see any doodling going on during Reich's class! The other day in pathology we covered a paragraphs worth of "free radical" notes. So my analogy is as follows for my classes this semester:

pathology: person bored in library, wandering aimlessly.

neuroanatomy: worlds best car salesman has you in a trance and your about to buy a car!

immunology: trying to run a marathon, oh forgot on one leg.

virology: pick up a telephone book and memorize all the names and corresponding numbers.

physiology: trying to run a marathon with one leg, uphill while a dog is chasing you!

I'm gonna try and hit all these good and not underestimate any because I heard pathology snagged a few last semester. What probably happened is that folks focused so much on physio that they neglected poor ol' path.

During my breaks I get up in the library and browse around looking at books. It's not uncommen to come by my table and find many books that I shouldn't be reading (atleast not right now). So in path we spent fifteen minutes on a topic called "apoptosis", simply this is programmed cell death. So when a red blood cell has reached it's peak performance it tells other cells "hey kill me I've had enough". Well I say a book in the stacks titled "Apoptosis"! Go figure just when I thought I knew something I was knocked down. The more I study the more I realize I don't know jack shhhh...

So AVMA is finished with their initial site visit of the campus. I haven't heard yet from the top about how it went, so I imagine we'll be infored sometime soon.

On my way to school today I was bombing down a sugarcane road. A rut in the middle of the dirt road forced me to hug the edge, mowing down 5 foot tall grass with my arms. Out of nowhere a white blur hit my front wheel. I looked back and noticed a drunk looking cattle egret getting its bearings straight. It finally flew away, but I'm sure he's got some good story to tell the little ones back home.

Carribean looks glassy today. . . can you say Nautique?

be happy you don't get flats EVERY week!!

Back in the Groove

So far this semester is alot more palatable than last semester. Out of the five courses the only one I anticipate being painful to study for is virology. The one thing I've concluded is that I'm a physiologists at heart. That is because when I hear physio I'm mesmerized and find myself wanting to hear a few more minutes. Pathology on the other hand is painful, I mean looking at the clock only 10 minutes after the lecture has started says enough. Maybe it's all in the delivery, afterall some people are born story tellers.

Somehow I thought of a great idea, a life-long perhaps overzealous idea that has my gears turning fast. That is I wondered why my alma mater Loma Linda University doesn't have a veterinary program. So I thought well I'm going to figure this out and talk to some people. So during one of my breaks I ran into Dr. Kainer getting his coffee on. You have to understand Dr. Kainer is the oldest on staff (about 87 or so), nice guy. However, I'm afraid sometimes he forgets to take his meds because he sure can get moody:

Sergio: hey! Dr. Kainer how are you doing? Taking a coffee break? (happy)

Dr. Kainer: YES!! I DESERVE IT!! (serious)

Sergio (thinking): whoa! just me Sergio, not your boss.

he was fine after he got that off his chest. So he went on to tell me that the biggest challenge would be for me to find professors. I would of asked him as my first recruit but realistically he probably won't be around by the time I get this idea rolling. It makes sense too because I just read that UC Davis is seriously considering offering a public health program. However, there problem is recruiting professors of course. Currently only four schools in CA offer such program (berkeley, loma linda, ucla, and san diego). I can already see it "Loma Linda School of Veterinary Medicine", why not we have everything else except law and engineering school. Far fetched? maybe. Lots of work? yes. Willing to do it? definitely.

Being on the island we often forget about holidays as we are in a different world. Today I saw Dr. Hutchison with an american tie and recalled the date. It's a day of reflection on all the innocent lives lost on 9/11.

We Will Always Remember

One hundred and five stories up
Two hundred yards away in the crosshairs

A brother calls for help
An enemy stands unaware

Unaware worked a sister
Aware flew the enemy

Thinking of the task at hand
Destroying lives above and below

Afraid a mother stood with her children
Afraid the enemy ran

Looking on helplessly
Not knowing where to hide

Together we remember
Alone they shall die

Together we stand

Round 3

Back from the states. . . that was refreshing. We started with a trip to SoCal to visit my sis, Jaden and mom in Loma Linda. I also got to do the Tuesday night ride with the Redlands cycling group. It's amazing how the face of the group has changed. I remember riding in it about 6-7 years ago, I guess people come and go because I only recognized a handful of faces. I also got to do my two favorite rides with Jim Baden (Oak Glen, Angelus Oaks). The strange thing though was that I found myself able to easily pass Jim on the 50mph+ descents. So this made me wonder about my weight, because before I had to pedal furiously to keep up with the taller/heavier cyclists on downhills. Fastforward a week to my mother-in-laws digital scale which revealed a studious vet school weight gain of 7 pounds. . .no wonder!!

One proud "Mama Reyna"

We also got to visist with Uncle Dave and Auntie Carol in Bakersfield, my dad in Delano, and Dr. Ed LeTourneau in Madera. Once back up in NorCal we visited Marine World with the Palitang's.

We had to feed them on stilts! j/k

Weeeeeeeeeee

Nicole and Mika got to skid on Grammy's new floor!

Afterwards I visited with my ex-coworkers at Kindred Hospital, I miss them for sure. Sharie and I then spent a day in the Bay area. I somehow talked myself into racing a circuit race at UC Santa Cruz. Of course as I anticipated I was dropped at lap 2 of 15 and subsequently pulled out by the race official at lap 4, no regrets though, just fun. Afterwards Sharie and I spent the day in downtown Santa Cruz followed by a stay at the Old Monterey Inn.

Once back in the central valley I got to spend a day at Taylor Veterinary Clinic which is owned by Dr. Brooks. He was awesome to hang out with and I feel like I've found a home at his clinic. I was not only impressed by his facility but also by his staff and work ethic. He took the time to explain what was going on and even quizzed me a little on aging horses and a navicular series of radiographs.

Overall it was very refreshing to go home. I better get ready for lecture one this morning.

Round 3 classes: immunology, virology, physiology III, neuroanatomy, pathology I.

laters,

Sergio

Star

So that's what it feels like to be famous. This last week Ross unveiled its new student catalog, school video, and alumni catalog. Check it out here:

http://www.rossvet.edu.kn/Current_Students/RossVet_2006_Catalog_56639.pdf

All my classmates are giving me grief about popping up in every single catalog and movie. As a matter of fact the Dean even emailed me today:

re: "star"

Sergio

Every time I get a new video, catalogue, promotional brochure you seem to be in it or on the cover. Now I received our new CE Alumni brochure and you are on the cover all alone. Must be that California background.... I will save a copy to give you for your scrap book.

Have a good break.


DJD

So now I'm the Ross poster boy I guess. . . royalties?? Waive tuition?? O.K. I'm pushing it, I just want to pass my classes. I was asking my homie Chris how it is that some of our classmates can finish a 125 question, 19 page final bacteriology exam in 45 minutes!!! I can't even fill out the scan-tron bubbles that fast let alone read, and reason out the questions!! I don't know about too many things in life, but I'm certain I know a good deal about a) respiratory therapy b) cycling and c) well, maybe that's it. So going into my Physiology final today I felt good about the material because it was all about minute volumes, O2 dissociation curves, and lung volumes! So I took the test and was surprised to find out only 40 minutes had gone by! Wow, that's what it feels like!

our new Rossmobile

Well, I better get to crackin' cuz I have one more final tomorrow. Then it's all about the waiting game (worst part) for grades to post on Saturday by 12:30 pm. Until then my mind will be going crazy thinking of various nightmarish scenarios.

Sincerely,

The Star (atleast for today)

1830

Today I almost shifted gears

Today I almost shifted gears,
Gripped the hoods, out of the saddle. . . perfect timing
Smooth rhythm, clenched jaw, focused look
Thinking of the pain ahead
Size up the climb and its gradual curves, don’t look back

Downhill, feeling the rush of the cool wind driving the beads of sweat away
Feeling in harmony with the bike, the geometry gone, the intuition to stay
Nothing but feel now, hang on and don’t hesitate

The next climb comes fast, the legs anticipate
But today must be a good day, there is no chain
From cloud to cloud into the sky without the pain
Climbing faster than the legends towards the heavens and away

No need to shift, not in the sky
The habit strong, checking the cog
Let go the hoods, back on the bar

Today I almost shifted gears

Sergio Iniguez

Dedicated to Alex Gonzales
1976- August 8th, 2005

Chris

Hurricane Chris missed us by about 60 miles travelling towards the US Virgin Islands and PR. Normally we experience light breezes throughout the day and night. However, when Chris barrelled offshore from us we noticed that it was errie silent throughout. No breeze or goats running around or locals playing reggae off in the distance. Sharie's and Nicoles flight got delayed so they had to sit tight until the next day. They arrived safely in Oakdale today where I will join them after I finish final exams.

Today AAEP club had a joint tap session of which I attended. It was cool to apply some of the ideas I've been learning about the equine thoracic limb. After a few trys I got some synovial fluid from various joints. The donkey's we learned on were unfortunately termimal surgeries for the 7th semester students. Like vultures we were waiting for there surgeries to end so we can squeeze out as much education out of the donkeys as we could. Afterall it would be a waste not take advantage of such an opportunity. Well I better stop procrastinating and get some more studying in tonight. Can't wait to see you all. Later