27/2/2013

This gorgeous view on the way to the hospital almost made the ride home in the rain worth it. We got to do hydrotherapy today which is super cool. Generally I like life. Training is refreshing, the hospital is fun and I get to be creative, the work is fun yet thought provoking. I'm a happy Maddie. Just a little tired. ^_^zzzzxxx

2/26/2013

I think we may be headed into Autumn.   It rained today most of the day.  This wouldn't be a problem for most people but since my main mode of transport is bike it kinda stunk.  Not only did I get soaking wet I also got a flat.  Actually I got gravel in my tire and when I tried to patch it at lunch I found at least 5 holes.  I finally gave up and took it to a bike shop where I looked like a whiny girl and had them replace my tire....Cause I didn't want to.  I had more balance assessments today in the clinic.  My patient has multifactorial falls risks and I'm trying to assess all of them and come up with the most effective comprehensive treatment for her.  We also had a case conference, it was exciting when I knew the patients and terribly boring when I didn't.
I had 2 fantastic workouts today. Both my bike and my swim went really well.  I also got my official race booklet today.  If you are as obsessed as I am you can read all 44 pages.
I made it home surprisingly early and made brownies for our meeting tomorrow.  Then a bit of homework and off to bed.

2/25/2013

First day at the Repatriation hospital today.  It is much slower paced than the liver unit had been.  Today I saw 1 patient, did a balance assessment, and participated in an exercise class.  We got done early which gave me time to go ironman shopping before going to footie training.  I got more drink powder and salt tabs.  I'm not a huge fan but I hear that I will need them.  The man at the store was a jerk and gave my bike disapproving looks.  Footie training was fun.  I thought that I was going to get to evaluate an ACL tear but instead I only got to see a tight quad and a shin splint.  At this point in the season training is actually a little more exciting I get to evaluate more and not deal with as many whiny complaints.  A little homework and I'm off to bed earlier start tomorrow.

2/24/2013

One month from now I'll be running in the Melbourne Ironman.  I am starting to get quite nervous.  The training has been hard yet fun but I'm getting nervous that I'm not ready.  Hopefully this month everything will fall into place and I will do well.

White night last night was fun.  I went with some friends that i've barely gotten to see this semester.  It was fun and cultural until about 1. We went to a couple galleries and concerts Then it became a drunken mob. There were people everywhere and concerts almost every block.  By the time I shoved my way to the tram and got back home it was 3:30am. Sigh.  

Needless to say today was rather relaxed.  I did school work till 5pm when I went on a fantastic 10mile run followed by a bike ride.  After dinner I had time to do a bit more work before packing my bag and heading to bed.  I have a new clinic tomorrow.  Let's hope it's as fun as the liver transplant unit was.  

2/23/2013

I started my day by Skyping with Gillie for some hair styling.  Then I went on a short fast bike ride 55 miles in 3:30.  Swimming was going really well until I ran into some jelly fish.  As I was getting close to the end I was seeing them regularly.  I was dealing with them alright until one touched me.  I only touched the cap so I didn't get  stung but I freaked out and bolted for shore.

The Jellies are called blue blubbers and are not poisonous but they do give you a rash. 

I went for a quick run and did some work before Katie(my former homestay lady) came over for tea.  I made a delicious cheesecake and she insulted my house.

She complained about most of it, about how it was cheaply built, etc.  Luckily I'm renting so I don't care.  She had another function so only stayed for too long and did give me the money that she had owed me.

Tonight is white night Melbourne where locals can rediscover their city with free events in tons of locations between 7pm-7am.  Whitenightmelbourne.com.au  I'm going with some friends from Uni.  Pictures tomorrow:)

2/22/2013

Big shout out to my friends Christie and Doug who had a beautiful baby boy named Connor Douglas today(well 2/21 US time) congrats!
I also had a wonderful day off. I took full advantage by running at 6am then swimming at 7:15 so that after going out to breakfast I was home and showered by 10am.
Then I cooked and cleaned all day and went out for the physio pub crawl at 6. I was back and forth between not wanting to drink but still wanting to be social. I guess that's how most of my class felt as well because we were all home by 9pm. It was a terrific day all around. Hopefully more fun and productivity to come this weekend

2/21/2013

Today was my last day in the liver ward.  I also got to see PT in ICU today.  Pretty cool stuff.  We had our feedback session today since I am in a different hospital next week.  They ranked me as competent to work in most areas.  I find that quite scary since I do not feel that I have had anywhere near enough training for them to allow me to practice.  Still I am flattered and know what I need to work on.
The training today was much like yesterday except I had an after dinner bike ride.  It was again quite beautiful and there have been storms outside the city so I saw fantastic lightning while I was riding.  Luckily(and safely) the storm was far enough off that we didn't even have rain.  All the views none of the  side effects.  I get the day off tomorrow so once I finish my chores I'll be completely  free.