Inside This Mind.

09.17.2005 * 11:02 a.m.
instant smile

I put on my gigantic overalls for the first time in a long time.
I found sand in the pockets.
That's essentially equivalent to reaching into my pocket and pulling out a little memory of heaven.

09.16.2005 * 7:31 p.m.
high-five friday number 14.

The seasons are changing. I can tell because the mornings are getting darker even though I wake up at the same time. I don't mind though. I love autumn. I delight in the scent that blows in with the cooler air and the magical color changes of leaves. Not to mention that my birthday is in November and I am especially fond of my birthday.

..........
Today at work I did something new and you will all think it is disgusting- that's because it is disgusting. But the fact that I did it is exciting to me. I expressed a dog's anal glands. Allow me to explain... Dogs and cats have two scent glands around their anuses. (They're kind of related to the scent glands in skunks but they produce a less stanky stank. It still stinks though, which is why dogs have that charming habit of sniffing each other's rear ends.) If everything is going normally down there those glands get emptied with each bowel movement. But sometimes there are problems and the stuff builds up in the glands. That's when your friendly veterinary technician steps in with her rubber glove and gives a little squeeze.

Yes, gross.
The point of my story is that I stepped out of my "I don't know how to do that" zone and did something new, something working hands-on with the animals that makes me feel more effective at my job. I've been a little afraid of stepping up and doing things that I've never done before, but now I have a job where I have more opportunities and I shouldn't let them pass me by. Next I'm going to learn how to draw blood. I've seen it enough times that I know the drill, I think it's time to acquire the skill. (And I absolutely must leave that cheesy rhyme!) Right now I don't intend to keep this work as a career, but it is a possibility. I've come to learn that I cannot know what will happen with life, so I may as well be as prepared as possible. Might as well dive in and get my hands dirty. I love learning and I love gross medical stuff.

And now you may exit my bizarrely biology-loving mind. You might want to wash your hands.