MySpace-May 22, 2010-Wrapping It All Up

Eight days ago, I became a veterinarian. This was my lifelong dream and I was lucky enough to have it realized.  And lucky enough to have a fantastic boyfriend to share it with. Vet school had lots of up and downs and Joe (as well as I) had our doubts about my ability to finish it. Watching TV versus studying sometime came to a very close match and tough choice. But in the end, I am a veterinarian. In the end, I will be licensed to practice veterinary medicine in not one, but two states. In addition to sharing my feelings about all of this, I think its time to update you all on my life plan.

For over a month, I have been laying around the apartment waiting on something to happen. Waiting on a job offer, waiting on a place to live, waiting to graduate. I’ve watched a lot of TV and did a whole lot of nothing, which I enjoyed to a point.

Ultimately, the job offers came and I was faced to make a very hard decision between two jobs. I could chose Wisconsin which promised me a fantastic offer, vets that understood what I would want in my future and great farmers and cows. OR I could chose going to Pennsylvania which promised a great offer, great diagnostic tools and toys and Amish and Mennonite farms. Ultimately, I chose Pennsylvania knowing that even if I didn’t like or love the job that ultimately this was the right career move because Pennsylvania has been for three years of vet school where I wanted to be. Additionally, Pennsylvania is warmer (comparatively) and I have a group of friends on the east coast/Northeast as well-Jenn Savini and Laura Goldman as well as many of my Cornell SDI friends as well. Eventually, I would get my contract signed and feel comfortable with declaring that I, Leslie Pope was the new associate at (drumroll please) Farrell Veterinary Associates with their two clinics-Newville Animal Hospital and Holly Pike Animal Hospital. I will be a mixed practice vet. Even though I don’t know a lot or really much of anything about how my schedule will work, I am very excited about starting my job.  As that there are two clinics, I will be working in two towns-Newville and Carlisle, Pennsylvania.  I’ll be sure to keep you all updated as to how the job goes.

After finally, being offered a job, I graduated. Its bittersweet. As I said before, becoming a veterinarian was a lifelong dream but graduating and getting a job means that I have to leave Columbia and leave so many friends. So many friends have already done this and through the miracle of Facebook, I can keep in contact with everyone. I’ve lived in Columbia for nearly nine years. There are so many places that I have left to explore. I’m going to miss hot air balloons and Rock Bridge State Park. I’m going to miss Sparky’s and Flat Branch. I’m going to miss Hy-Vee and walking around campus. I’m going to miss the fantastic expanse of Ellis Library and seeing my old apartment on College. Sigh. But there are things that I’m not going to miss-football, traffic because of MU sporting events, the bridge being out, traffic on campus, crowded grocery stores. Sigh.

Its hard to think that the people that I have spent the past four years with are now spread to the wind. We’re all going our own ways and will we stay in touch? Its hard to tell. Facebook allows it luckily. I’m sad that as all of these great things go on I don’t have someone right there to share them with.

Joe and I have a ring picked out and its on layaway at the store. Joe still owes quite a bit of money on it because it was quite a bit out of his price range. Hopefully, we will figure out a way (a lot of this plan rides on him getting is 401 K check ASAP!) to pay it off before we move. Otherwise, I don’t know what we’ll/he’ll do. It’s a fantastic ring. Big and shiny. Joe went and asked my dad if it was okay if we got married. Dad is a man of few words but he approved. Joe did this when my mom wasn’t there. And quite honestly, its something between Joe and my dad and no one else. Now for Joe to get the ring and to actually ask me to marry him. We’ve been getting along royally since we picked out the ring. I think we both have been trying very hard to think of the other one’s feelings. I can’t wait to be engaged. Its going to be wonderful.

My mom and I went to Pennsylvania to look for a place to live. We looked at about six places. One of the places was a house built in 1737. It was the second house built in that town. It was neat but in the end was too far from Newville as well as there being no place to walk the dogs. We also looked at a house built in the 1850s. The woman that owned it had done a fantastic job decorating the house. It was beautiful and had beautiful gardens and outbuildings. I loved it but it wasn’t going to be ready when I needed it to be and was a little too expensive. Additionally, the dogs would have inadvertently torn up the gardens and it would have taken lots of time and money to furnish the house. Neither of which I have. Ultimately, I decided on a three bedroom duplex in Carlisle. It is on a quiet street with a large front and back yards. It has a carport and storage shed. There are three bedrooms on the upper floor. On the main floor, there is a dining room in addition to the kitchen and living room. There is also an enclosed porch which I am going to make into the dog room. The basement has a finished room and a place for a washer and dryer. All of these things mean that Joe and I have to purchase fairly quickly a microwave, washer, dryer and lawnmower. The house could use some more landscaping work and I have some great ideas for the dining room. That’s the only room that I have gotten to yet.  I’m excited to make this place our home.

That about wraps it up I guess. I have a job, I’ve graduated (even if PA is giving me the run around  about a  license, which is sort of a lie because its actually MU that’s the hold up), I have a place to live, I have a great boyfriend that’s soon to become a fiancé and everything is going great!

[EDIT-Originally published to Blogger on May 31, 2011]

MySpace-May 17, 2010-Crazy Neighbor!

I don’t care much about my neighbors. With the exception of my friends from vet school that live in my apartment complex and occasionally Miss Kitty’s dad, I don’t really talk much to the people that live near me. I do my thing; they do theirs.

Occasionally, my path may have to cross with that of my neighbor. An occasional note about parking or about a rat found in the parking lot. Sometimes, these crossings aren’t nearly as pleasant.

Next door to us, in A, there once lived two girls-Katie and Megan-as previously mentioned in Before He Food Cheats. One day, Megan just disappeared with little fuss. Whatever. Its not my place to ask. Joe may have known why. (He did. Just a personality conflict.) Then just as rapidly, this older woman-early 40sish shows up. Her name is Dodie.

Joe unfortunately was sucked into conversation with her more often than I was. I also tried to avoid her as much as possible. Joe one day finally got to the bottom of why she was here-she was Katie’s aunt-well sort of-she had raised Katie essentially. I had hypothesized that she was either Katie’s mother or sister prior to that so I sort of right.

Some other random people showed up and seemed to be gone after a weekend. Luckily.

Then some other shady things started happening such as Dodie always showing up to bum a lighter or a cigarette often at 10:30 in the morning while holding a tall boy of Mike’s Hard Lemonade. Classy.

One night, Dodie frantically knocked on the door. She had just woken up and couldn’t find her phone but was certain that the apartment had been broken into because some flowers in the front window had been moved. Katie wasn’t home. Joe went over there and eventually figured out that most likely, Dodie had blacked out and had woken up not knowing what was going on.  

We’d find empty bottles of vodka outside the back door.  Dodie continued her mooching ways and always appeared to be drunk. This is in addition to all of these horrible things happening-someone was always in the hospital, someone’s girlfriend of 10 years was leaving them, someone had broken something.

One day, Dodie comes out in the morning and needs to be taken to get Katie’s car because Katie was at the boyfriend’s  (who turns out to be sort of a jerk) and Dodie had an appointment.  Joe took her to get the car. That evening, Dodie comes by and asks if we can let the dog out because she has to stay with her dad at the hospital and Katie is at the boyfriend’s. Sure. We do that and in the morning, its clear that no one has come home so we go to check if the dog needs to be let out again but Katie is home. Katie now tells us the whole story. Dodie totaled the car the night before by crashing it into a tree while she was plastered. Dodie broke her ankle and collarbone and once out of the hospital will be charged with grand theft auto and a DWI. Also, Katie didn’t know Dodie her whole life. Katie had freaked out about school earlier in the year and had checked herself into a psychiatric hospital and meet Dodie there. Apparently, Dodie just showed up with a sob story one day and begged Katie to take her in. Katie did and now unfortunately has paid the price. Also Dodie was suspected of stealing and selling anything she could as well as raiding Katie’s medicine cabinet. Crazy bitch.

[EDIT-Originally published to Blogger on May 31, 2011]

MySpace-May 7, 2010-Update

I haven't been doing much lately other than stressing out which is somethng that I love to do. Worry, stress...those are the two things I do most.

So an update.
I accepted a job offer in Pennsylvania. I haven't signed a contract yet so I won't go into any more details than that.
I've been looking for a place to live with little to no success. I keep stressing out about it. Three dogs is apparently a lot of dogs. Next week, I totally have to hit this hard. I have to have a list of places to visit because I'm trying to schedule a trip out to PA to find a place. I haven't decided between flying and driving. My mom might come with me if I drive. If I drive one of the corgis will come with me.
My friends and I had a shopping spree down in Lake of the Ozarks at the outlet mall looking for graduation dresses and shoes. All of us came away with dresses, no one with shoes. My dress is bright pink, strapless and short. Joe and I went to Penney's yesterday and I got a short sleeved cropped white jacket to wear with the dress. And I bought some shoes which gave me blisters when I wore them for pictures.
So speaking of pictures, Joe and I had Rachel Ray take pictures of us. We did it on campus, Peace Park and at Shelter Gardens. I think they turned out good. Joe thinks he looks fat.
I am purchasing insurance for me and Joe. Its expensive. And the insurance lady may think that I am a lesbian. I asked her if there was a way that I could include my significant other on my insurance if we weren't married. She said yes and proceeded to ask lots of questions about Joe and when we planned on getting married, etc. I told her his full name was Joseph which should have eliminated the question of his sex. Then I noticed on all of the notes she had made for me, Joe was spelled without an E. Clearly a more girly way of spelling it. Then I get the domestic partnership paperwork. The first thing is a statement that we are of the same sex. Wait a minute. Eventually, she said it was okay. Joe thinks it might be insurance fraud.

I  know I have tons more of stuff to do but I don't want to. I prefer being lazy

[EDIT-Originally published to Blogger on May 31, 2011]