golden girl gabs

Well, last week I had hope. I believed in Auburn and proudly supported the t-shirt and yard sign, gearing up for game-time. I knew the odds, I knew we were facing a #1, undefeated team, I knew we've already lost 6 games, and the chances were slim for a final victory, but still, I was optimistic! I went with my family to the game yesterday (since I've been to every Iron bowl since I was 10) still feeling excited about this heated rivalry. Decked out in my orange, my AU face tattoo, shaker and rain gear in tow, I climbed to the top of the endzone in the clouds of mist that continued throughout the game. I love the spirit of the competition. Well, we all know how it went down...it was sad. I thought we would at least score a few points and keep their points down...but we didn't manage to do either. I really didn't have that many expectations, but it still was depressing.
Ok...on to the annoying bama fans - over the last few months, most bama fans I have encountered have been reasonably nice with comments like, "we've been there, we know how it feels." etc. While I am not a supporter of their team, I'm ok with the fact that they have been successful this year, good for them. I have not been taunting with things like 7 in a row or anything... I have come to grips with the fact that it is not our year.
Well, the bama fans around us were just plain awful! They were SO rude to us. They rolled their eyes when we would say a single cheer - funny was the fact that they were sitting in the AU section. I was simply trying to be a fan and be an encouragement for my team. The guy in front of us was so bad that the cops came up there and threw him out of the stadium. Obviously about the 3rd quarter, most AU fans started leaving, but not us. We stayed until the bitter end to show them what a true fan is like. I continued to cheer and support my team. The Au fans near us sang once, "It's great to be an Auburn Tiger" and the bama fans said "I don't think its great to be with Auburn." But no matter, win or lose, it is great to be a fan, a true supporter through the good and the ugly. So I am proud to say that IT IS great to be an Auburn Tiger!

Last night we had a girls night and went ice skating in Pelham - it was SO fun!! Here are a few pics...

So there's not much exciting to share with you this week...I have been slacking again in my blogging entries, but here's a re-cap of my week:

• Sunday: entire family home, lunch at the C Club for Will's birthday, parents bought Mario Cart for our Wii.
• Monday: First day of 5th rotation, HSP (health system pharmacy) at Baptist Princeton, learned how to fill the pixis machines with drugs. Spent about 1 1/2 hours of my afternoon blowing the leaves in my front yard into a gigantic pile...afterwords finding my arms shaking all night from holding the heavy blower (and the fact that I'm out of shape) - but I feel accomplished!
• Tuesday: Volunteered at M-Power (an indigent medical clinic) in the pharmacy after work and went to bible study in which I'm really enjoying my new group! We are studying 2 Peter - learning a lot.
• Wednesday: Worked in the IV room all morning putting stickers on IV bags (how fun!) Visited and played with Miss Campbell in the afternoon - she loves her Aunt Jess! (especially when I bring her candy...). Spent the night with Kimmie since Steven was out of town.
• Thursday: More IV room at work. Amy and I began our preparation for the Clinical Skills competition coming up in 2 weeks. Made Baked Potato Soup for the roommates and it was SO yummy!
• Friday: Blogging at work. Girls night tonight with Lauren, Amy and Jessica Jones!!
• Looking forward to a relaxing weekend in Bham...decorating for Christmas, applying for residencies, hanging out with friends and resting!
• WAR EAGLE....WE BELIEVE....GO TIGERS.... (gearing up for Iron Bowl :-)

My little brother turned 20 today!! (I feel old...) He was home this weekend in Auburn and it was great for our whole family to be together. I hope you had a blessed day Will - Love you!

My biggest project of the year is tomorrow! I have been working on my platform for weeks now and I feel pretty good about it. The presentation is at 3pm tomorrow so please say a little prayer and wish me luck!

So...I have an opportunity to go to Rwanda in March with Kanakuk Colorado!! The minute I heard about the trip, I signed up to be a chaperone because I was so excited. I have been praying about the opportunity, but still do not know if it is a wise choice based on how much this trip will cost. The trip works out perfectly with my Spring Break so that I would not have to miss any school/rotation work. I would be helping chaperone 30 kids on possibly their first international mission trip...and the best part is what we will be doing: working in an orphanage where Miss Gabby Braner (daughter of K-CO directors) was adopted from and helping to lay the foundational work for KAA - that is KIDS ACROSS AFRICA!! Yes, they are building a Kanakuk Kamp in Africa! So, as you can see, I am super excited about the possibility. Now to the possibly limiting part...I have to raise half of my cost by Dec 1st! And that just happens to be $2000. Now, I completely believe that the Lord will provide for me if He desires that I go. I am just not sure if it is wise for someone who is on student loans and has racked up over 100,000 of loans to be raising support and spending some of my loan money right now. I think it is an awesome opportunity and one I am dying to be a part of. So, please pray that I will bring this before the Lord continually and follow His lead - not my own desires. I am willing to sacrifice whatever necessary to make this happen - I'm just not sure what that looks like for me and my situation. I'd appreciate an insight or encouragement you have. Thanks for your prayers over this opportunity!

P.S. They also need one more Female chaperone - who wants to go with me??

My classmate, Jigar, came up with this yesterday as we were finishing moving all of Auburn/Dr. Kelley's stuff from Carraway to our AU pharmacy office in Vestavia. That phrase describes my last few weeks at Carraway - yesterday was the official last day of Carraway, the doors are closed, no more patients... So sad! We saw several patients this week who were extremely distressed to hear that the hospital where they were born at and have gone their entire adult life was closing its doors. They didn't know where they should go. They wanted to follow my preceptor, Dr. Kelley, but she doesn't know where she will be. It was hard to explain it to them and then watch them walk out the door, just hoping they will follow-up with someone and get adequate medical care. While my learning experience has been a little different than expected, it has been a good lesson on something that rarely happens! I'll spend the next two weeks seeing patients at Kirklin Clinic downtown and working on my platform which is Nov 11th!!