In other news...

Missoula got a new radio station this summer, 103.3 the Trail. They call themselves "a station as unique as Missoula". I don't listen to any one station exclusively, but this one is great. I've randomly tuned in from time to time and heard Blues Traveler, Bob Dylan, Dave Matthews Band, Bob Marley, and Tower of Power. It's like they're reading my soul or something. It rocks.

Next week is shaping up to be relatively miserable. I have an anatomy quiz on Tuesday, a nutrition quiz on Wednesday, a psych exam and an anatomy exam on Thursday, and a european civ exam on Friday. Then the following Tuesday I have an anatomy lab practical exam. Grrr. Plus I have to work all weekend, and Saturday is our homecoming game, which I can't attend. But enough bitching, complaining about it won't make it better. :)

The forecast is calling for rain this whole next week, with highs in the 50's. It's perfect sweater weather, which I adore. I love autumn - crisp air and candycorns and cable-knit sweaters, and the smell of the changing leaves (unintentional alliteration, I swear!). I'm hoping to get a few good photos of the autumn leaves this year; Missoula is beautiful in the fall. Last year by the time it finally occured to me to take my camera out, we'd had some serious wind come through and whip away all of the pretty colors. Wish me luck for this year...

Go read a book...

September 24 - October 1 is National Banned Book Week. I suggest reading one, whether it be Of Mice and Men, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, or Captain Underpants. Take your pick. As for me, I'm going to reread Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. On her website, Judy Blume talks about censorship and her books. She hits the nail on the head:

I believe that censorship grows out of fear, and because fear is contagious, some parents are easily swayed. Book banning satisfies their need to feel in control of their children's lives. This fear is often disguised as moral outrage. They want to believe that if their children don't read about it, their children won't know about it. And if they don't know about it, it won't happen.

Censors don't want children exposed to ideas different from their own. If every individual with an agenda had his/her way, the shelves in the school library would be close to empty. I wish the censors could read the letters kids write.

But it's not just the books under fire now that worry me. It is the books that will never be written. The books that will never be read. And all due to the fear of censorship. As always, young readers will be the real losers.

I couldn't agree more...

For more information, check out http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/bannedbooksweek/bannedbooksweek.htm


Here's an interesting tidbit I got from their site:
2004 Most Challenged Authors
1. Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, author of the Alice series
2. Robert Cormier, author of The Chocolate War and We All Fall Down
3. Judy Blume, author of Blubber, Forever, and Deenie
4. Toni Morrison, author of The Bluest Eye, Beloved and Song of Solomon
5. Chris Lynch, author of Extreme Elvin and Iceman
6. Barbara Park, author of the Junie P. Jones series
7. Gary Paulsen, author of Nightjohn and The Beet Fields: Memories of a Sixteenth Summer
8. Dav Pilkey, author of the Captain Underpants series
9. Maurice Sendak, author of In the Night Kitchen
10. Sonya Sones, author of What My Mother Doesn’t Know

Dem dry bones...

Why are there so flippin' many bones in my head? Twenty-two, each with it's own perfectly forgettable name, all of which I must know within a week. Oh, but I wish that were all. No, no... each bone has it's own little map of fossa, foramen, crests, and processes to be memorized along with them. This week we're learning all of the histology of osseous (bone) tissue, the vertebral column, and the bony thorax. Oh, and the facial/cranial bones. I miss the days where the "back bone connected to the neck bone, the neck bone connected to the head bone..."

My time spent in anatomy is divided between furiously scribbling notes and fighting back the urge to cry.

On to stuff that doesn't make me want to hurl myself in front of traffic...

The teller at my bank today told me I looked really good in green. That was really nice of her to say, and I suppose it's a good thing, considering like, 35% of my tops are green. I've got a lot of orange too, but I don't know what that's all about. The orange wasn't intentional. I've been earnestly desiring a worn, faded navy blue top, but I haven't found one I like anywhere. Abercrombie is probably the place to go.

I have to go read more history. It's interesting stuff - turns out the classical Greeks were pretty naughty...

Ahh.

Finally, a little time to relax. It's been a crazy week, which culminated in an 11 hour shift at work today. I got off at 7:00, came straight home and climbed into my fleece frog-print jammies. Do I have my priorities in order, or what?

Television season has commenced, which is unfortunate, given my workload for this semester. Somehow I have to find time to squeeze Scrubs, Nip/Tuck, Law and Order: SVU, and The Biggest Loser into my schedule. Oh, and I'm particularly interested in My Name is Earl, a new show premiering on NBC. (I dig Jason Lee.) That sounds like a lot of time parked on the couch, but really, it's only 3 1/2 hours a week. Some people watch that much a day. Although I have to admit, I was guilty of that this summer -- I watched FUSE for hours on end. It was an integral part of my "summer bum" plan... but I've slowly been weaning myself off it.

Luis is out of town all this week, performing in a concert series around the Seattle area. Eating Chipotle without me, undoubtedly. :)

There's been an influx of patients coming into my work recently, all with the same complaint; "I woke up this morning and didn't feel good. I don't have time to be sick right now, so I need to see the doctor." Are you KIDDING me? I don't know any doctors who can snap their fingers and make a viral infection (read: a cold) go away. I think this says a lot about the nature of our society, but more about that later...

I still have to read about the Romans for my European Civ class, but I think perhaps a bubble bath is in order first. Or better still, maybe I'll combine the two. That could be nice, although I'm not sure about the logistics of it.

(big giant textbook + water + sleepy Mandi = big soggy textbook = no money at book buyback time.)

On second thought, maybe that's not such a great idea... Oh well.

Goodnight!

Another blog.

So today I set up yet another blog site: http://www.myspace.com/mandapanda191I haven't said anything interesting there either. :) Perhaps one day I'll have something insightful or otherwise useful to contribute to the noise that is the internet, but for now this will have to do.