I grind my teeth

flashing 12:00’s

My brother’s in Santa Monica and my sister’s in DC, so I’m a little bored.  Visits to my site are way down, so I guess that means it’s time for an update!

Last week was Bible School, so I didn’t have a chance to update.  Now, not a whole lot is going on.  The power has gone out in this house so many times the last few weeks.  So I’ve been pretty busy resetting all the clocks and everything.  I can’t stand to have any flashing 12:00’s.  Resetting clocks is one of my hidden talents.

On Tuesday, I went up to Purdue to register for wine tasting this fall.  (I have to refine my palate before my big move to California.)  As I was doing that, I ran into Dr. A— and he said he’d help me get a residency there.  And when that man says he’ll do something, he makes sure it gets done.  I think it was a phone call from him that got me in pharmacy school in the first place.  I promise, if that man were any nicer, well, I don’t even think that’s possible so I don’t know where I’m going with this.

That night, Ryan and I were sitting on the front step being eaten alive by all the mosquitos (thanks Mitch…), and Ryan mentions, “It’s so funny how differently our minds think.”  And it’s true, but I love it.  We do have radically different approaches to thinking about things.  And I was just thinking how crazy it is that two people whose lives are so different could somehow converge into the same city on the same front step.  It’s all such an amazing Plan!  For the first time ever I’m actually really excited about living arrangements for next year.  Ryan has hard core arranged his room and it looks really good.  Everything matches and it has a very rustic New England feel to it, I think, complete with lobster cage.  It (almost) makes me want to put at least one chair in my room to make it a little more inviting.  But even if his whole room didn’t match his bedspread, I’d still be just as excited.

And while I’m thinking about it, I want to mention one of my pet peeves.  I can’t stand it when people say the phrase “this next.”  It really annoys me.  OK, I just googled that phrase, and I’m going to use this sentence as an example:  “The Gibbon won the G-race to be our engineering mascot for this next release, but it was a close run.”  Which release are you talking about?  This release, or the next one?  They’re two different releases!  But so frequently people use the phrase “this next” when they can just say “next.”  It’s redundant!  I don’t know why this bothers me, but it does.

And you officially know I’m between semesters because… I have to go to the dentist tomorrow.  Meh

misoprostol

I had the most bizarre conversation with a customer last night, and I can’t seem to get it out of my head.  Friday nights in a 24-hour store, after all the other pharmacies have closed, are when the crazies come out.  OK, so this guy comes up to me and says his wife/girlfriend needs a medication.  He can’t pronounce the name of it, so he hands me his cell phone and has the woman on the other end say it for me.  I take the phone and say, “OK, I’m ready.”  She says only one word, “misoprostol,” I hand the phone back to him, and he shuts his phone without even saying goodbye to her.

Misoprostol, a prostaglandin E1 analogue, is used to prevent gastric ulcers, most commonly caused by high usage of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) such as diclofenac, oxaprozin and meloxicam by stimulating the secretion of gastric mucus which acts as a protective lining.  Another use is for induction of labor because its oxytocic effect is stronger than that of Pitocin, commonly used in hospitals today.  It can, however, also be used with or without another drug (mifepristone a.k.a. RU-486) to induce an abortion.

Thinking that she is requesting a refill, I ask him for her name.  He gives it to me, but I am unable to find her in our system.  I ask him for her date of birth so I can look her up in our central database — still nothing.  Meanwhile, he’s asking me how much it’s going to cost, but I’m still trying to locate her profile.  Finally I ask if she’s had any prescriptions filled at CVS before, and he says:

No.

Where did she have it filled last time?

She’s never had it before.  I was on your website and it said I could pick it up at any pharmacy or order it online.

Well, that’s true, but I’ll need a prescription.

I don’t have one of those.  It said online I could come and pick it up.

…With a prescription.

Is there anything else like it I could get?

No.

Well how do I get a prescription?

She will need to see a physician, and he or she can write one for her.

And then he walks away.  It was so bizarre.  Now, I’m just assuming that she was trying to induce an elective termination, but still, to not understand that a prescription is needed when you go to the pharmacy or even how to get a prescription was enough to leave me speechless for a minute or two.

unbelievable

Tuesday was my day off, so I got to hang out with my favorite aunt Kathy.  She took me and my sister to Augustino’s at Stop 11 & Emerson.  I hadn’t been there before, and it had a feel to it like an actual family restaurant in Italy.  We were greeted immediately by the owner/chef because my aunt and uncle are his best and favorite customers.  My aunt introduced us to him, and he brought us the last bottle of a particular wine that he knew she liked and that he had set aside just for us.  The food there was amazing, too; the best Italian food I’ve ever had!  The entire time we were given royal treatment, and he ended up comping the wine for us!  It seemed more like a family get-together than a night out.

Afterwards, I went to my aunt’s house and we sat in her front yard in her little bistro that she has and finished the vino as the sun set.  It was so much fun.  She told me about her travels to Italy and Napa Valley, CA for wine tours.  I told her there’s a wine appreciation class at Purdue, and she talked me into taking it this fall!  I jokingly asked my advisor if she needed to card me to get into the class, and she replied and said that someone in the food science department actually does!  So I need to go back to campus some time to get that taken care of…

I’ve opened up a new checking account with Charles Schwab, and I am thrilled with it.  I decided to leave Chase after all the ATM fees and withdrawal limits I had to deal with in Vegas.  Now I have no ATM fees and a variable interest rate of 2.01% on my checking account.  It’s unbelievable.  Thank you Nathan for talking me into getting that.

OK, and The Brothers Karamazov is getting really good.  Unbelievably good actually.  And to think, the biggest reason I started to read it (and why it actually worked this summer) is so I could call Robbie about it…

men of faith

So I recently found an old memory deep within the bowels of my computer which made me laugh.  It was something funny Mark said to me back in December of 2005 which I wrote down so I wouldn’t forget it.  We were studying at Rawls one night, I looked over at his notebook and asked, “what class is that for?”  His response is classic Mark:

The history of horticulture, so like plants and stuff.  But I’m sure you already knew that.  God, I am so stupid.

This is so funny because he wasn’t stupid at all, but he used to be privately unsure of himself even when everyone else was looking up to him.  He would only let this side of him be shown every once in a while, and I’m glad I got to see it.  But this memory gave me an idea for a new post.  I’m basing it a little bit off of the “favorite things” posts everyone is doing, but giving it a new spin.

I want to chronicle briefly the men who have shaped my life.  I call it Men of Faith.  It is a veritable gallery of the faces of the positive influences of my life.  Enjoy!

It all starts with this guy.  This is Nick.  We became friends our senior year of high school.  He practically wrote the book on cool, and so much of his personality comes out in this picture.  So changed by him was I that I decided to write a book about it, called Hard to be Humble.  The book is currently out of print, and from what I hear, it’s hard to get a hold of a copy.  Anyway, I used to be really shy and unsure of myself and Nick really helped me to break free of my shell, so to speak.  We got ourselves into trouble once on a class trip, and that is my favorite memory from high school!  We still try to stay in touch and he’s one of two of my friends from FC I can say that about.

Next comes Mark.  He was a senior when I was a freshman, and he practically reshaped my whole thinking about the world.  Moving from your hometown bubble to the global community that is Purdue was made navigable by him.  He introduced the concepts of a balanced life to me, including family, friends, church, school, work, and play.  He was always playing it cool and thought he was a rockstar, but would also show his vulnerable side every once in a while, and that’s what made him approachable.  He’s out in California now, and when I last spoke to him about 6 months ago, he seemed to be doing very well in his field.

I’ve spent more time with this guy, Brian, than anyone else on this page simply because he and I were study buddies for three years.  Though he’s two years older than me, I could swear we were twins because we have the same interests and the same thoughts on almost everything.  When I was rejected from pharmacy school it was he who inspired me to challenge the decision in front of the dean and fight for my seat in the class.  Against all odds, I won my appeal and owe him a year’s worth of tuition.  We were always pushing each other to do well in school, and elsewhere, too.  He always made time to go to mass every Sunday morning, even when he was busiest.  He helped me deal with a lot of tough personal issues when school was at its toughest, and I thought I would be lost without him when he went on his rotations.  We both made it through, and he’ll soon move to North Carolina.

I practically owe my whole life to this guy right here — my best friend Ryan.  We really started hanging out in March of 2006, and just clicked immediately, but for no apparent reason that I can figure out.  We’re practically opposites, but I guess we complement each other in that way.  He’s a man of deep convictions, and his diligent study of the Mars Hill way of thinking about all of life has turned my life completely around.  I am a much stronger Christian because of him.  And I also should point out he’s a comedic genious.  I mean, just look at what he’s wearing here!  We have our differences from time to time, and although he’s not always the easiest person to get ahold of, I’m going to stick by him until the end.  We’re going to be roommates next year and I think that will be a very positive experience.

These last two guys are relative newcomers to the scene, but are undoubtedly the most faithful.  This is Troy, and boy is he something else.  I don’t want to repeat too much of what I’ve said about him before on this site, but I do want to highlight just how genuine he is.  I don’t care who you are, whenever you meet him, you’ll undoubtedly tell him that he reminds you of someone you know.  And that someone that he reminds you of is always a very genuine man of faith that you look up to in your life.  For me, it’s my mom’s cousin’s husband Eli, a pastor out in Ohio.  He’s been more help to me than I could ever even ask for recently as I’ve gone through quite a shuffle of activities and friends at school.  He always seems to know exactly when I need help, and will always call right at that moment and let me know he’s thinking about me.  He acts about four years older than he actually is and is the life of every shin-dig.

And lastly, here’s Robbie, my mentor.  He’s my pastor at my church while I’m at school.  He’s probably the most impassioned man I’ve ever met and really has taken the time to challenge me to face the personage of Jesus, ask questions, and figure out what I believe.  He’s very smart, well-read, and extremely well-spoken.  He’ll frequently ask the question “what would that look like?” when referring to just about every abstract vision he paints while he speaks and really challenges me to think about so many different things.  He exhibits so much caring for the poor and the homeless in our community, and can also share some great stories about how he helped people in the poorest parts of LA when he lived out there.  And also, he’s just a really cool young guy, and I love it when he calls and asks me to sit and grab dinner with him.  He takes the time to really get to know his parishioners, and because of him I’ve figured out what my passions are and know what I want to do with my life and energies.

the brothers karamazov

So I think this is the third summer in a row that I have pledged to read Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov.  I’ve wanted to read it ever since my high school Literature teacher Mr. Schmoll said it was the best book ever written.  And now that Robbie’s said he agrees, I think I’m going to put in a big effort!  Not to mention that this is my last summer vacation.

Sorry guys — I’d love to write, but I’ve got to read.  More later!

character revealing moments

All right.  I’m back.  Thanks for all the comments and e-mails; I appreciate them a lot!  Las Vegas was tons of fun with my roommates.  I’m so glad Nathan and Casey will be around for another year with me this fall.

So I’m creating a new term called ‘character revealing moments.’  These are times and situations in which my behaviors and reactions give me insight into the type of person I really am.  I feel that at my age of 22, my character is pretty much set.  I may not know myself completely, but I’m not going to change.  It’s funny for me to watch little kids grow up.  When is it that they develop their personality?  Or is it innate, and not even developed at all?  Either way, I am still learning who I am through certain situations I face.  For example, how kindhearted am I really?  I find out through how willing I am to help patients at work.  Do I just do the minimum for them, or do I take things to the next step and offer an alternative solution to help them?  Am I compassionate throughout the week, or do I take shortcuts on Friday afternoons?

I’ve always hated those ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ books.  I could never decide which path to take, so I only chose after I had read both possible passages.  Life’s not like that at all, and neither are these character revealing moments.

Now notice I call them character revealing, and not character defining or character developing. There’s an important distinction there.

Troy left for his internship in Texas today.  He’ll be working at a church, and from what I understand, will be closely following a youth minister and learning that trade.  Honestly, it seems to me sometimes that he has so many spiritual gifts:  encouragement, exhortation, evangelism, faith, giving, hospitality, intercession, knowledge, leadership, and mercy — and I maybe have two:  music and some other gift that I have to cheat on the test to get.  He’s hands down had the most positive influence on me of everyone I’ve met at Purdue and I can’t wait to see him when he gets back — I know he’ll have some great stories.

I’ve got an idea for this summer, but it will take some courage.  I’ll tell you about it if I decide to pass through this character revealing moment.