New Tyres!

Ever since I picked up the pups, my car has sounded, well, a bit off. The back left tire (spelled tyre here) had begin to shake while I drove. I thought that maybe it was low, so I checked the air, but it was fine. I looked for a balancing weight which might have fallen off, but again no luck. This started to worry me, combined with my cars other quirks (stalling out after 5 feet of reversing or driving slow, the rattle sound from its seemingly empty trunk, the roof leak, the door that doesn't quite shut, the window that doesn't quite roll up, not to mention the oil leak/gush if I park on an incline).

The last straw came yesterday when I drove one of my wonderful, but ancient professors home with an equally wonderful and ancient visiting histologist/embryologist from Czech. I dropped them in town at the hotel they stay at, and as I drove back home, the wobble worsened. It got so bad at one point that I was driving 20 mph (which is REALLY slow even for here). Fortunately, my car surpassed my expectations and brought me home without fail. (It really is a good car, just a little old and rusty.)

I decided it was time, time to bring the car in to be seen (I'm convinced that mechanics are just greesy car doctors). I called my car guy, but not the one I'd originally had all my work done with when I bought it. Oh no, he got attached to a girl in my class who (bless'r heart) didn't make it. He quit his job as head mechanic at the Marriott and they left the island together. My NEW car guy is always busy, but he inspected my car (let me pull the tape off to wiggle the tail light until it blinked so I'd pass), and drove out to my house when my car faked being sick the one time. 'He' is actually a bunch of guys (father, son, and their buddies), but it makes matters simpler if I just pretend he's one guy.

It was 4pm, I asked when he could see me. He said what type of car and what's the problem? I said Mitsubishi Lancer and the wheel wobbles. He said I'm too busy. I said but Ok, but PLEASE look at it, I need you to refer me, I don't know who to go to. He said Ok, come 7:30-8am and hung up. It's the thing here, to hang up when you think the conversation is over without saying goodbye.

I arrived this morning just as he said. He looked at it and must have thought I was an idiot. There was a huge bulge on the tread of my bald tire. He said I was lucky it hadn't blown! We decided that if the tire wasn't the problem and the wheel still wobbled, I'd come back, but if he didn't hear from me, my gratitudes to him for diagnosing it! Then he gave me some options on where to go to buy a new (~$160EC) or used (~$100EC) tire. I chose to buy a pair of new ones and went down the road. They ended up being a little under $400EC ($160USD) and installation and serviced was included. Even got it done in under an hour (exactly 9am when I left).

The drive home was incredible. So smooth! I always thought it was the terrible roads, but now I know it was my car! I put the new ones on the back and there's still a bit of tread on the front. I'm tempted to replace them as well, but I'd like to see how these go for now.

Wish I'd taken a picture of that bulge! As of today there are 151551 miles on my car, of those I've driven about 1600 miles since I got it in September 2007.

The Puppy Pit

Rule #1: Don't pick up strays.

On Sunday I got a call from the clinic emergency line. Confused, I answered. It was the veterinarian I'd come to know fairly well (she put down the horse that was hit by a bus and the last mouse Mango mangled). She told me about a case they had of a dog with puppies and asked me if I'd be willing to foster and feed the pups.

Now, taking pups away from their mom, especially at 4 days old, is the last resort. Out of 11 born, 4 were left and fading fast, however it would be up to the owner to decide.

When I spoke with the owner, I repeated the above and told him if he wanted me to feed them he'd have to pay for milk (which is expensive here). He said 3 were left and he'd call me back.

Monday goes by without the vet nor I hearing from the owner, but then on Tuesday, I got a panicked call! There were 2 puppies left and he wanted me to pick them up right now!

After I called the clinician (the vet), Jossie, Rudder, Salty the guard dog, and I all hopped in the car to trek to the other side of the island. Literally the exact other side from where I live. It's not a big island, but my poor car clanks on the rocky roads!

The 2 remaining pups, mom, and another dog looks alright as far as island dogs go, but sometimes you can't really tell. I took the pups and explained to the owner that I would keep the pups if he didn't pay for my milk up front (ie before I drove off). The amazing part is that he cooperated and gave me milk money! I feel so persuasive.

So I have my first client under my future vet practice it seems! (If they live; one has a very serious eye infection, and both are pretty icky looking.)

They are "pure-bred" Pit Bulls and he will surely sell them upon their return. Both are brown and both are male. Jossie and I decided we should write a collection of short stories or poems of our island adventures.

Feeling Icky

Jossie got me sick. I have something... a bad cold (the plague). Left school early today.

I think I could have stuck it out if we'd had lunch rather than a make-up lecture. Class started at 11am, then we're supposed to get noon to 1pm off before finishing up at 5pm. Instead we had Epidemiology at noon so I had no lunch!

Oh but I tried! The local hut had potatoes instead of macaroni and cheese. Domino's was out of pizza and chicken kickers (boneless hot wings). So then I borrowed an extra $10 to go to the Snack Shack to get the totally over priced chicken caesar salad ($18EC), but they were out too!

In the 10 minute hustle I ran (sped) home and grabbed some fruit slushy from the freezer and ate it during Epi. Oh wow. Did I mention I add an entire bottle of rum to my slushies? I do! I lasted all the way through Epi and halfway through Clinical Pathology. By then (at 2pm) I was completely soused and in great need of a nap.

This being week 2 and all, we are confined to the classroom until 5pm (even on a Friday!) much to the disdain of the professors (who would prefer to get out earlier like the rest of us). So, starving to death, I stumbled toward my car, of course passing by a professor whose class I was about to miss!

He knew I'd been sick, and I think he saw me begging my fellow classmates (ie Jossie) for money cuz I was too lazy to walk to the top of campus (6 flights of stairs) and get money legitimately out of the ATM. I confessed to him that I was terribly ill and boldly asked for my homework in advance. He was pleased that I chose to tell him that I was going to skip his class, um I mean go home sick, rather than be a no show. (I left out the adult beverage part.)

He complained about class getting out at 5pm on a Friday and how that just isn't right. I agreed, but am a bit unfeeling because we do start at near noon. I also told him (as I hacked up my lungs) that Jossie had infected me with the plague; he had noticed her absence earlier in the week.

I stumbled the rest of the way to my car and drove home. Once home I gorged myself on wonderful, thick, chunky, homemade spaghetti that I'd made earlier in the week and then passed out. To make up for missing class, I took my conch soup (from the Chicken Lady) to school and studied into the night.

Fourth Semester Makes a Year

What a rough day! Class started at 9am today! It's so early. Tuesdays are more reasonable, with class beginning at 1pm. Wednesday thru Friday is so-so because the day begins at 11am, but at least we have a hour break at noon to recover. It's not all fun and games-- we don't get out until 5pm (weeks 1, 2, 5-10)... but the rest of the time our escape is at 3pm. Yes, a rough life.

Did I mention it was summer? With the blazing heat (freakin' perfect weather), I've come to making adult modified fruit beverages with the Margarator. I keep chlorine in the pool now too (keeps the frongs from growing slime). What a fabulous little yard I have.

I've been at Ross over a year now. This marks my 4th semester (of 7 on island) which is the equivalent of finishing up my 2nd year.

Already 1/3 of my class (of 86) has failed and either left island or were allowed to repeat. I think with repeaters we have about 68 in our class now. New incoming classes are 125+ and there is just no space to put them. On recollection (over the past year), the school was great at the beginning, but I'm really getting frustrated with the school politics and the huge class sizes.

I return to the states in Aug 2009. Mom says I sound like I'm in prison counting the days until my release, but it's not that bad. It's cuz I want to buy a zippy little red sports car!