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So, on my first day in the hospital, I came across a patient that had been riding a bull for a $10,000 prize and he missed it by one second. He was bucked off and after landing in the dirt, the bull's hind legs came straight down ONTO HIS JAW! His lower jaw was almost completely torn from his face, save a little section of skin attaching it all. The before pictures were gruesome. We walked into his room expecting the worst, but found him alert, somewhat happy, and more than willing to share his story using a small white board and a dry erase marker. My favorite line from his whole written story, "That's every cowboy's dream -- to go to Vegas." Doesn't that sound like a great line from a movie? He's been riding for 32 years and he plans on riding a few more after his recovery.
 
The second patient that struck me was a young man that had multiple gun shots to the abdomen and right arm. He was very depressed, as you can imagine. Picture this... a young man with various tattoos peeking out of his hospital gown looks up as we enter the room. He seldom smiles but his teeth make an appearance after seeing two young, burnt orange-clad nursing students.  "You guys must go to UT," he sarcastically remarks. "Yeah, how could you tell?" my buddy asks. He starts chatting away, as if he had never taken a round of bullets a few months ago. He tells us about his family and life, making sure we know that he knows we're in an "accelerated" program; he keeps telling us how smart we must be and instilling confidence in us. Then the senior nurse uncovers his stomach to change a dressing and the mood slightly alters when we see his wounds. I thought something my Mom would think, "Oh, he's so young." He gets a little embarrassed but plays it cool.  After wound care, we leave him a little more animated than when we came in and that is why I am doing this -- his face.
 
That was last week! Today I spent the entire 8 hour shift in the hospital pretending I knew what I was doing. I was assigned to work with only one patient; she was very gracious and understanding. She had surgery and her mother was helping her recover. I gave her meds, inserted a catheter (I did it! Yeah!), helped her change, and wrote, wrote, wrote in the chart about her condition. It was a learning experience, alright. Good times. I came home and took a 3 hour nap.
 
This is such a long post! I want to show off pictures of my favorite little baby, Wilder. He's so precious. He's pictured here with my sister's interim bunny, Thumper.