I Prefer 'Reproduction' but..

I just got back from dropping Robert off at the airport (he's off to beautiful Secaucus on a business trip) and am already missing my annoying little man. So I thought I'd take a moment and post a couple of recent Robert-isms to cheer me up.

First up: Maxwell Caulfield. Some of you may know him as Hayley Mills' brother-in-law. Some of you may know him as Dr. Quinn's believed-dead-but-really-just-disfigured fiance David. But me? I know him from a little film called Grease 2. He was Michael, the hunky foreign exchange student and cousin of Sandy, who moonlighted as a mysterious motorcycle man to win Michelle Pfeiffer's heart. Or, as he is otherwise known, Cool Rider. C-O-O-L  R-I-D-E-R.



I haven't seen or heard much from Max since then (save his stint on Dr. Quinn, of course) but he popped up on Modern Family a few weeks back. Very excited to see him still working (though a bit sad to see he still didn't look like he did in 1982, shockingly enough) I squealed "It's C-O-O-L  R-I-D-E-R!" To which Robert replied "Who? Colored man? Who's that?" Colored man?!! Really? Really, Robert? He said he heard the C and the R and the D and for some reason that made him automatically jump to Colored Man. Cause I talk about that guy all the time.


Next up: CPR. I honestly don't remember how this came up but for some reason Robert and I were discussing how 'Staying Alive' is the song of choice for those performing CPR because the beat coincides with when you should pump. I mentioned that when I took a CPR last year (a VT program requirement) they mentioned a second song that was equally useful if a bit more morbid. But I couldn't for the life of me remember what it was. Fast forward to me blurting out "Oh! It's 'Another One Bites the Dust!'" To which Robert replied "Hey, that's actually a good one- it's related to what you're doing!" I gave him a puzzled/incredulous look and it only took him a few seconds to realize that 'Staying Alive' also, y'know, is thematically appropriate with trying to save someone's life. Go figure. He does make me laugh, though. You gotta love him. :o)


Oh, and for those of you confused by the post title, click here. It's my favorite Grease 2 song.

A Slow Return

No, your eyes are not deceiving you - this is actually a new post. Imagine! Just 10 months after the last post! That one, lonely soul that's been checking in periodically is now rewarded. As you should be. :o)

There is lots and lots to post on why there was and what happened during the long absence but that is for a later time. I keep waiting to post something until I've started my grand explanatory tome but if I keep waiting for that, the 10 months will turn into 20 or more. So I've decided just to post a teeny, tiny little something to get the creative juices flowing and the blood back into my fingers.

Robert doesn't get to do a lot writing in his job anymore; he's more of a project manager and editor these days and he misses getting to pen his own pieces. As such, he's started freelancing for a site called Secrets of the Job Hunt. His articles post every other Sunday (with the newest coming out on the 31st) but 4 have already been published and I've posted the links (in chronological order, though it doesn't really matter) below. This won't be news to anyone on Facebook since I unabashedly pimp out Robert's work as soon as it publishes but it will be a surprise to a small number of you.

Long Job Hunt? Here's How to Cope

Keeping an On-the-Job Job Hunt Under Wraps

Three Big Bad Interviewers to Watch Out For

Not the Perfect Candidate? Here's What to Do


UPDATE: Here's his post from yesterday - How to Find Career Advice Worth Listening To

Step 1: Complete!

My application to take the national VT board exam (the VTNE) has been accepted! Now I just have to sign up to take it and I'll be on the road to official certification. I still have about 10 more steps to go before I'll be an official, registered tech in California but still... One down, at least! Woohoo!

4 Days and Change

Well, the moment is approaching and it's scaring me *&^%less! I can't believe only 1 final and 4 days stand between me and the end of the program... It's crazy! And very surreal.

This past Monday we had our 'pinning ceremony,' where all the instructors gather to tell us how much they like us and how much they'll miss us and we, in turn, give each instructor a gift and tell them how much we appreciate them. Then we all recite the Veterinary Technician's Oath and are given our official VT pin. It's a nice little intimate party to mark the end of our 2-year journey.

Anna, Nathaniel, Lauren, Alisa, Kristine, and Amy

Our program dogs graduated, too! Koukla and Scramble (her son ) with their new moms.

Robin Gibb, a.k.a. Bodding

In keeping with what others perceive to be an eclectic taste in music, I am a big fan of the Bee Gees. Not the disco Bee Gees, though they're good, too; my favorite Bee Gees are the ones that made music before Barry discovered his falsetto singing voice. They have so many good songs (and wrote so many good songs for other artists to record) that it really bums me out that they're pigeonholed by kids today as an obsolete disco band! This is probably how Nora feels about Neil Diamond...

Anyhoo, as you know, Robin Gibb passed away last month, leaving Barry as the only remaining member of the group. He posted a very sweet video remembrance of his brother on YouTube and so I thought I'd share it. I'd never heard "Heart Like Mine" before but I like it very much; Robin's voice always sounds so achingly pained that it instantly adds feeling to any song he sings.

Ask Me About Periodontal Disease

Woohoo! I unexpectedly kicked my recent Dentistry midterm's ASS so I thought I'd share my fantabulous score with y'all. (We're not allowed to take our exams home so I had to snap some quick pics of my grade.) This is my first - and I expect only - 100% on an exam. I'll take it!! :D

In case you can't read that it says "One of the best essays!" And on the aforementioned periodontal disease, no less.

And, just for fun because I thought this was a cute picture, here are Linguini and I lounging on the bed. He's actually getting a little nicer!

Spay Day, Take Two

Two weekends ago, the Foothill VT program hosted another pocket pet spay/neuter day (remember the one that we did last year with all the hoarded rats?); this time around, it was rats, rabbits and guinea pigs. I signed up once again and it was a lot more fun this year, since I got to do a lot more stuff because I'm a senior. :o) I really feel uncomfortable giving people orders, though (unless it's Robert...), so I had a hard time assigning things to my two Firsties in the beginning. But after a bit we settled into a good groove and took our rat, Perry, safely through his neuter. As the senior, I was the anesthetist which, of course, intimidated me, and the fact that Perry woke up on the table during his procedure didn't help! But the doctor assured me I'd done everything just fine and that those things sometimes happen. One of my Firsties also tried to reassure me by telling me that she once woke up during an anesthetized procedure. That both made me feel better and horrified me at the same time. But! We all survived, Perry included, so the day was a success!

This is Bubba. He was THE CUTEST guinea pig in the bunch! I seriously almost smuggled him home in my bag. 

Helping Lois administer subcutaneous fluids to Perry prior to surgery.

After premeds, before surgery. Not my most flattering photo - I wish I'd realized I was in the shot!

Nat and one of Bubba's friends.

Monitoring Perry's recovery.

Isn't he a cutie?!

And this gal got a golf ball-sized abdominal mass removed. She felt SO much better!

Random Entertainment: SNL & Gotye

Okay, so this skit is a month-and-a-half old but because the song is still in regular rotation (I heard it three times today!) and I think of this every time I hear it, I thought I'd give in and post it. It's not even that hilarious a skit but @1:33 makes me laugh out loud every time! I don't know why I find it so amusing. I just do.

Movie Morsels 78: The Hunger Games Review

As a huge and obsessive fan of The Hunger Games trilogy, I went out and saw the first movie on opening weekend (as y'all knew I would). I've had a blank post in the queue since then, just waiting for me to type out my review. But, as those of you who have heard this diatribe first-hand know, I get so dang worked up about the whole thing I just couldn't find the time (or will) to sit down and type it all out. Now, there are plenty of people who liked the movie and some of those have even read the book. But the majority of people that I talked to that liked the movie had not read the books - and that's precisely why they liked the movie. Because anyone in their right mind who has read the books could (and should!) not enjoy the film. It was too rushed. It cut out way too many relationships. It did away with Katniss' narration which completely obliterated most of what you were supposed to get out of the story. But most egregious of all is it made Peeta a whiny dude who closely resembled a pussy! And Peeta is sooooooooo not that person! I know THG isn't all about the romance and blah blah blah, I get that, but the relationship and dynamic between Peeta and Katniss is pretty critical to the entire series as a whole and the movie just did not do it justice AT ALL. Peeta is a super awesome guy and my favorite character (can you tell?). In fact, he's a lot of peoples' favorite character - Entertainment Weekly polled their readers and 27.77% voted Peeta their favorite character, #2 behind Katniss. (Gale only received 1.96% of the vote while "Other" got 2.79%. Ha ha! Suck it, Gale!!! Moving on.) But when I left the theater with Robert and Maria, going on and on about the hatchet job the movie did on his character, Maria said "Who was Peeta?" Not a good sign. When having a similar rant session with Wade just last weekend, he, too, asked "Which one was Peeta?" An even worse sign. And one of the techs at my clinic actually said "I was hoping Katniss would kill him." !!! This is NOT what you are supposed to think or feel about Peeta, people!!!!!!! Oh. My heart hurts. So, of course, I trolled the messaged boards to see who else agreed with me and I found this post, which I think sums things up nicely:

Movie Peeta is scripted differently than book Peeta. In the book, Peeta and Katniss are portrayed much more as equals. The mutual benefit of their relationship is much more obvious. His motives with the Careers are spelled out. Movie Peeta is stripped of most of book Peeta's wise and humorous lines. The bread scene is botched and becomes something for which he has to apologize. Book Peeta is confident, even while accepting his death. He comforts Katniss, while she is afraid he will die and leave her to fight alone again. None of that cave dialogue is included in the movie. The actor did well with what he was given, but I feel that the script short changed the character.

So true, Whateveryournameis. So true. And, just to add to your list of character inaccuracies portrayed in the movie, Book Peeta didn't puss out and fall off the rope ladder! Ugh. That annoyed me. You know I love my IBF Josh Hutcherson and I think he did the best with was he was given but geez. To say I was supremely disappointed would be an understatement. (And I wasn't only disappointed because Josh should have had a shirtless scene 'cause there was one in the book but we got to see bupkis. Though that was pretty disappointing.)

Still, I saw the movie a second time with my fellow THG-obsessor Kristine and I actually enjoyed that viewing a little bit more, no doubt because my expectations were so nonexistent that I was able to watch the movie for what it was and not spend 2 hours and 22 minutes waiting for it to get good. And I'll buy the DVD when it comes out, which brings me to the actual point of this post: The Hunger Games DVD is coming out on August 18.

But since this has turned more into a post about how poopy the movie is as compared to the book, I will share with you a couple of links that agree with me, as well as a cute Unscripted with Josh, Jennifer, and Elizabeth.

The Hunger Games: Book vs. Movie

THG: Review By a Moviegoer Who Never Read the Book

Unscripted - The Hunger Games - Complete Interview

Movie Morsels 77: Skyfall Trailer

Well, the new teaser trailer for the upcoming James Bond film Skyfall but the only place I read about it was on LaineyGossip and she only featured its link on a French site! So... this makes me think that people aren't as excited about movie as they perhaps should be. And, to be honest, the only thought I had while watching the trailer was "Was Daniel's hair that short in the other movies? I don't like it."



We'll go see it, of course, but I hope it doesn't require any remaining knowledge of Quantum of Solace 'cause I hate that movie and refuse to watch it again! So, if that's the case, I hope Daniel looks super hot in the movie (read: his unflattering haircut is featured only in a flashback) so I have something to look at while I am confused.