Wow. I can hardly believe it. The summer months are almost over! Where has the time gone?
My third week at Walgreens was as enjoyable as the first two. I continued with the routine retail pharmacy tasks, while also completing another patient care plan and an extra 16-page over-the-counter (OTC) medication project/review. The week flew by, and was over before I knew it!
Unfortunately, I don't have any super neat photos to post tonight...but I did have a fun weekend. This past weekend was "New West Fest" here in Fort Collins, meaning there was a huge festival going on downtown with rides, music, and a lot of art/craft booths. I spent some time wandering around, checking out the festivities. There was some pretty neat things to see, but I didn't buy anything. I did, however, find an amazing BBQ pulled pork sandwich...delicious :) Later Saturday night, Jakob, Jakob's younger sister Meghan, a friend of Meghan's, and myself when to the drive-in theater. I hadn't been to a drive-in for years! Not since we lived in Kentucky. It was fun. We took the Kiehne's Yukon, removed the back seat and folded down the middle seats, and all snuggled up with blankets and pillows in the back of the truck. We saw a double feature of "The Time Travelor's Wife" and "Harry Potter." I thought the first one was good, but way too sad for me (I'll admit, I cried). Harry Potter was fantastic (as was expected). It was fun.
Sunday was a very low-key day, and I think I needed it. I slept until 12:07pm (yes, I slept past noon...) Then I did laundry and watched a bit of the PGA tournament that was going on in Chaska. I also had to shop for groceries for the week. Like I said, low-key. Later that afternoon, Jakob and I went on a picnic by Horsetooth Reservoir. We crawled down some rocks and sat right on a patch of sand next to the water. There were a few times that I closed my eyes and could imagine myself sitting next to the ocean...and it made me really miss Oregon.
That being said, I suppose that I should announce my decision to begin the job hunt as a pharmacist in either Portland or Seattle. I really enjoyed both of those cities (especially Portland), and see myself out there after graduation. So if anyone hears of any openings out there, let me know! Ha!
This week at work has been fairly busy, which makes the time go by fast. My preceptor (aka boss)'s wife had a baby on Sunday, so he is off for the rest of the week to be with her and their new son. This means that there is a float pharmacist in for half of each day this week. It's fun, and interesting, so get to work with a variety of pharmacists and hear what they have to say about the profession. The pharmacist that I worked with last night had only been licensed for 5 days (he was brand new!), and I think he was really nervous. In less than a year, I'll be in that position. Scary! Well, not really scary. I guess I should say, Exciting!
Tonight after work, one of the technician's (Michelle) and myself attended a "Drug Dinner." This was a dinner sponsered by a drug company, promoting a new drug to treat pain called Nucynta. Basically, we got to eat a really nice meal for free and learn about a new drug that doctors would be prescribing. I thought it was cool. My meal included appetizers of chips/salsa/guacamole, a salad, pork tenderloin with rice and asparagus, and chocolate covered strawberries & flaun for dessert. All mouth-wateringly delicious. Afterwards, I took a look at the menu online...just because I was curious. My meal alone cost over $40. There were 14 people there. That's a lot of money! But anyways, now I'm fed, full, and educated.
That's about all I've got for now...it's getting late, and I want to get some sleep. Goodnight, all!
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Monday, August 10, 2009
Welcome to Colorado :)
My transition from Oregon to Colorado went off without a hitch...thankfully, everything about my experience here has went very smoothly. The lady that I'm renting a room from is wonderful - very nice and accommodating, providing me with not only a room but also my own bathroom and plenty of space in the kitchen to store food and such. I enjoy visiting with her and her dog, Shadow (a 12 year old Schnauzer). And my current living quarters are less than 2 miles from my rotation site...it only takes me 8 minutes to get to work here! That sure beats the hour and a half commute I had in Portland.
This rotation is at a Walgreens Pharmacy. I've always said that I'd never work for a Walgreens store after graduation, but I must admit that I may be changing my mind. Everything about the way the store runs is so efficient, and the programs that they have set up on the computer increase the ease of providing patient care (in my opinion, anyways). So, I'm back to thinking that I have zero clue which company I'd like to job search with...and I'm no longer ruling Walgreens out.
I've enjoyed the first two weeks of this rotation. After some initial training to get used to their computer filling software, I'm now fairly comfortable with the system. I've done a lot of filling and prescription entering, some counseling on medications and OTC items, and made several phone calls to other healthcare professionals to complete tasks during patient care. I've looked up drug interactions, and completed one of my two required patient care plans (an evaluation of the medications a patient is currently taking, dosages, adverse effects, monitoring, drug interactions, etc). The entire staff that I work with is fantastic, and the environment is very laid back and enjoyable. Only three weeks left! The time is flying by again.
As far as "fun stuff" goes, I've gotten to see a lot of the beautiful wilderness that Colorado has to offer. The first weekend that I was here, Jakob and I drove to Estes Park and explored the town a little bit - looked into some of the tourist shops, drove past the Stanley Hotel (made famous by Stephen King's "The Shining"), ate lunch at a local pizza joint. Then we drove a couple of miles outside of town and entered the Rocky Mountain National Forest. This place was fantastic! Not long after entering the park, we saw a bear cub walking along the top of a hill just up from the road...less than 100 yards from us! We didn't see a Mama Bear around, but she might have been keeping watch over her cub from the trees. Nonetheless, it was so neat to see a bear in the wild!
As we continued our drive, we saw several elk (both cows and bulls), picas, chipmunks, and a marmot. We did a little bit of hiking to see some views...boy, was that incredible! I will admit though, the high elevation was not cooperating with me. I got wore out so fast and had a bit of difficultly breathing at times because the air was so thin.
During my second weekend here in CO, Jakob and I took a camping trip up in the mountains. My preceptor (aka boss) gave me Friday off so that I'd have three days for the trip...what a nice guy :) So we left early Friday morning, stopped at Vern's for a delicious pecan cinnamon roll, drove up the Poudre Canyon, and took the side road leading toward Long Draw and Trap Lake. The drive took a couple of hours, but the views were amazing and the trip went by relatively quickly. After setting up camp, we decided to do some moose hunting (hunting includes shooting pictures with a camera, no guns). Throughout the course of the weekend, I saw 8 moose. Eight! Wow. Six cows and two calfs. No bulls though...bummer. Oh well.
The rest of our camping trip included a few short hikes to the lake and down by the creek close to our campsite. I can't get over how beautiful it is up by the moutains. Lucky, no bears attacked us. That would have been unfortunate. I will say, though, that camping in a tent when the temperatures get down to around 34 degrees F at night is not super fun. It's actually super cold and not fun. And since there was no running water, I was an incredibly dirty girl when we got home. Ha! Oh well...at least there was an outhouse, so I didn't need to stake out a special spot in the woods to use as a bathroom.
And that brings us up to date...finally. My internet access is limited here, as I can only go online where I can find internet. I'm currently staked out at a coffee shop/internet cafe located in Fort Collins' Old Town (their downtown area). It's a super neat place called 'Mugs' and they have fantastic chai tea. I'll try my very best to keep this updated from now on!
This rotation is at a Walgreens Pharmacy. I've always said that I'd never work for a Walgreens store after graduation, but I must admit that I may be changing my mind. Everything about the way the store runs is so efficient, and the programs that they have set up on the computer increase the ease of providing patient care (in my opinion, anyways). So, I'm back to thinking that I have zero clue which company I'd like to job search with...and I'm no longer ruling Walgreens out.
I've enjoyed the first two weeks of this rotation. After some initial training to get used to their computer filling software, I'm now fairly comfortable with the system. I've done a lot of filling and prescription entering, some counseling on medications and OTC items, and made several phone calls to other healthcare professionals to complete tasks during patient care. I've looked up drug interactions, and completed one of my two required patient care plans (an evaluation of the medications a patient is currently taking, dosages, adverse effects, monitoring, drug interactions, etc). The entire staff that I work with is fantastic, and the environment is very laid back and enjoyable. Only three weeks left! The time is flying by again.
As far as "fun stuff" goes, I've gotten to see a lot of the beautiful wilderness that Colorado has to offer. The first weekend that I was here, Jakob and I drove to Estes Park and explored the town a little bit - looked into some of the tourist shops, drove past the Stanley Hotel (made famous by Stephen King's "The Shining"), ate lunch at a local pizza joint. Then we drove a couple of miles outside of town and entered the Rocky Mountain National Forest. This place was fantastic! Not long after entering the park, we saw a bear cub walking along the top of a hill just up from the road...less than 100 yards from us! We didn't see a Mama Bear around, but she might have been keeping watch over her cub from the trees. Nonetheless, it was so neat to see a bear in the wild!
As we continued our drive, we saw several elk (both cows and bulls), picas, chipmunks, and a marmot. We did a little bit of hiking to see some views...boy, was that incredible! I will admit though, the high elevation was not cooperating with me. I got wore out so fast and had a bit of difficultly breathing at times because the air was so thin.
During my second weekend here in CO, Jakob and I took a camping trip up in the mountains. My preceptor (aka boss) gave me Friday off so that I'd have three days for the trip...what a nice guy :) So we left early Friday morning, stopped at Vern's for a delicious pecan cinnamon roll, drove up the Poudre Canyon, and took the side road leading toward Long Draw and Trap Lake. The drive took a couple of hours, but the views were amazing and the trip went by relatively quickly. After setting up camp, we decided to do some moose hunting (hunting includes shooting pictures with a camera, no guns). Throughout the course of the weekend, I saw 8 moose. Eight! Wow. Six cows and two calfs. No bulls though...bummer. Oh well.
The rest of our camping trip included a few short hikes to the lake and down by the creek close to our campsite. I can't get over how beautiful it is up by the moutains. Lucky, no bears attacked us. That would have been unfortunate. I will say, though, that camping in a tent when the temperatures get down to around 34 degrees F at night is not super fun. It's actually super cold and not fun. And since there was no running water, I was an incredibly dirty girl when we got home. Ha! Oh well...at least there was an outhouse, so I didn't need to stake out a special spot in the woods to use as a bathroom.
And that brings us up to date...finally. My internet access is limited here, as I can only go online where I can find internet. I'm currently staked out at a coffee shop/internet cafe located in Fort Collins' Old Town (their downtown area). It's a super neat place called 'Mugs' and they have fantastic chai tea. I'll try my very best to keep this updated from now on!
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
A Week Without Work!!!
Between Rotation #1 and Rotation #2, I was lucky enough to have a week of vacation. This isn't typical during the rotation schedule, but I had started a week early so that I could find myself in this predicament. It meant that I had a few days to just enjoy Oregon before having to leave...and I was not ready to leave. Not even close to being ready to leave. Even now, two weeks later, I just want to go back...I love the Pacific NW so much!
Anyways, here's a rundown of what I did on my week off...
Saturday - Jakob and I drove up to Olympia, WA, to visit my high school friend Lauren Langley. On the way, we stopped at the Mount St. Helen's Visitor Center...it was gorgeous! After meeting up with Lauren, we spent some time catching up at a local coffee shop downtown. Lauren took us on a tour of town - showing us the lake, the marina, downtown. Turns out, there was also a parade in Olympia that day...so we sat on the curb and enjoyed the parade (no candy though...bummer).
Sunday - Last day in the city of Portland. I showed Jakob the Rose Garden, the Saturday Market, Powell's...all kinds of stuff. Dinner was had at Huber's Cafe, the oldest restaurant in Portland. We watched the sun set over the city from across the river, and took some photos of downtown during the night. It was beautiful. I miss that city.
Monday - Jakob and I headed to the coast. I showed him the Devil's Punchbowl and other scenic overlooks. Unfortunately, it was incredibly foggy and visibility was very limited. But it is still the Oregon Coast, so it was fabulous. We looked through a few tourist shops in Depot Bay, saw the sea lions on the bay, and walked the beach in Lincoln City. For dinner, we ate at the McMenamin's in Lincoln City...such great food. That night, we camped at a state park right on the coast. S'mores over a campfire = good stuff.
Tuesday - Woke up super early to see tide pools at Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area; they were amazing...the best tide pools I've seen. Lots of starfish, mussels, anemonae...even a sea cucumber! It was slipery though, and Jakor fell into the water. Oops! Lucky it was only his pride that got hurt. That day, we also explored South Beach (just south of Newport, OR) and saw Cobble Beach (my favorite beach) at high tide when the sound of the water on the stones is amazing :) Later in the afternoon, we drove up Hwy 101, along the coast and through several small towns. We stopped at the cheese factory in Tillamook for cheesecurds and ice cream...the cheese curds were fantastic - just as squeaky delicious as curds from Wisconsin. We made our way up the coast to Canon Beach, where we walked the sand all the way to Haystack Rock. It was very sad for me to have to say goodbye to the coast, but somehow I managed it. I know I'll be back soon.
Wednesday - Spent the day packing, doing laundry, and getting ready to depart Oregon. Rather uneventful. That evening, we went to a movie at McMenamins in Forest Grove for one last show. Since it was Wednesday, I was able to get admission to the movie, a burger, and a beer all for only $10...not a bad deal.
Thursday - Time to leave :( Sadness. We left nice and early, but spent most of the morning visiting the waterfalls just off of the interstate. Beautiful waterfalls of Oregon. Where, as Allison says, "It smells happy." By late Thursday night, we had made it to Missoula, Montana - halfway to Dickinson.
Friday - Drove a long way. Drove all day. Arrived in Dickinson, ND, in the night. Slept well.
Saturday - Kari Gerbig (a friend of mine from NDSU and a fellow BA...and the lovely lady who's apartment I was occupying in OR) + Jeremy Burgard = Mr. and Mrs. Burgard. It was a perfect day for the wedding...sunny, clear skies, and a perfect ceremony. Kari kept me busy as one of her personal attendants. It was so great to get to see some friends from NDSU!
Sunday - Drove all day through ND, SD, WY, and CO. Stopped at Register Cliffs and to see part of the Oregon Trail Ruts in Wyoming...pretty neat stuff. I was excited to finally make it to Fort Collins around 7:30pm. The woman that I'm staying with, Marjorie, is fantastic. I have plenty of space for all of my things, a bathroom for my own personal use, storage for food in the kitchen...it's great. She even has a dog, Shadow, who is a great companion. I couldn't ask for a better living arrangement right now.
It was a busy, yet incredibly enjoyable, week...but time to get back to work in the morning!
Anyways, here's a rundown of what I did on my week off...
Saturday - Jakob and I drove up to Olympia, WA, to visit my high school friend Lauren Langley. On the way, we stopped at the Mount St. Helen's Visitor Center...it was gorgeous! After meeting up with Lauren, we spent some time catching up at a local coffee shop downtown. Lauren took us on a tour of town - showing us the lake, the marina, downtown. Turns out, there was also a parade in Olympia that day...so we sat on the curb and enjoyed the parade (no candy though...bummer).
Sunday - Last day in the city of Portland. I showed Jakob the Rose Garden, the Saturday Market, Powell's...all kinds of stuff. Dinner was had at Huber's Cafe, the oldest restaurant in Portland. We watched the sun set over the city from across the river, and took some photos of downtown during the night. It was beautiful. I miss that city.
Monday - Jakob and I headed to the coast. I showed him the Devil's Punchbowl and other scenic overlooks. Unfortunately, it was incredibly foggy and visibility was very limited. But it is still the Oregon Coast, so it was fabulous. We looked through a few tourist shops in Depot Bay, saw the sea lions on the bay, and walked the beach in Lincoln City. For dinner, we ate at the McMenamin's in Lincoln City...such great food. That night, we camped at a state park right on the coast. S'mores over a campfire = good stuff.
Tuesday - Woke up super early to see tide pools at Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area; they were amazing...the best tide pools I've seen. Lots of starfish, mussels, anemonae...even a sea cucumber! It was slipery though, and Jakor fell into the water. Oops! Lucky it was only his pride that got hurt. That day, we also explored South Beach (just south of Newport, OR) and saw Cobble Beach (my favorite beach) at high tide when the sound of the water on the stones is amazing :) Later in the afternoon, we drove up Hwy 101, along the coast and through several small towns. We stopped at the cheese factory in Tillamook for cheesecurds and ice cream...the cheese curds were fantastic - just as squeaky delicious as curds from Wisconsin. We made our way up the coast to Canon Beach, where we walked the sand all the way to Haystack Rock. It was very sad for me to have to say goodbye to the coast, but somehow I managed it. I know I'll be back soon.
Wednesday - Spent the day packing, doing laundry, and getting ready to depart Oregon. Rather uneventful. That evening, we went to a movie at McMenamins in Forest Grove for one last show. Since it was Wednesday, I was able to get admission to the movie, a burger, and a beer all for only $10...not a bad deal.
Thursday - Time to leave :( Sadness. We left nice and early, but spent most of the morning visiting the waterfalls just off of the interstate. Beautiful waterfalls of Oregon. Where, as Allison says, "It smells happy." By late Thursday night, we had made it to Missoula, Montana - halfway to Dickinson.
Friday - Drove a long way. Drove all day. Arrived in Dickinson, ND, in the night. Slept well.
Saturday - Kari Gerbig (a friend of mine from NDSU and a fellow BA...and the lovely lady who's apartment I was occupying in OR) + Jeremy Burgard = Mr. and Mrs. Burgard. It was a perfect day for the wedding...sunny, clear skies, and a perfect ceremony. Kari kept me busy as one of her personal attendants. It was so great to get to see some friends from NDSU!
Sunday - Drove all day through ND, SD, WY, and CO. Stopped at Register Cliffs and to see part of the Oregon Trail Ruts in Wyoming...pretty neat stuff. I was excited to finally make it to Fort Collins around 7:30pm. The woman that I'm staying with, Marjorie, is fantastic. I have plenty of space for all of my things, a bathroom for my own personal use, storage for food in the kitchen...it's great. She even has a dog, Shadow, who is a great companion. I couldn't ask for a better living arrangement right now.
It was a busy, yet incredibly enjoyable, week...but time to get back to work in the morning!
Last Week of Rotation #1
July 13th-17th was my last week at Lloyd Center Pharmacy. During that week, I was able to spend most of my time in the sterile lab making pain pumps, TPNs, injectable products, and other sterile products. It was wicked awesome. I really enjoyed my time in there, and wish that I would have been able to spend more time in that lab. I also finished up the PowerPoint I had spent the last two weeks putting together on compounding rules and regulations, and on Friday I gave the 45 minute presentation to the other interns and the pharmacists that were working. My end evaluation went marvelously, and I receive great reviews from my preceptor...yay! I was ready for the rotation to be over with...not quite the type of pharmacy I want to be practicing in, but still a good experience for a short amount of time.
On a note not related to work, on Tuesday of that week, Jakob (from Colorado) flew in to Portland for a visit. He was kind enough to purchase a plane ticket and volunteer to help me drive to ND and than to CO, so that I wouldn't have to drive by myself. What a nice guy. He spent most of the week hanging out with himself (after all, I had to work!), but Friday night we decided to spend some time in Portland. After I got off of work, we met at Pioneer Courthouse Square, then took the streetcar to the south side of Portland. We ate dinner at the Spaghetti Factory (yum!). Afterward, we found Portland's Aerial Tram....a cable car that took us up to the top of a hill that overlooks Portland, Mount St. Helens, and Mount Hood. The view was fantastic!!! Definitely worth the four bucks.
It felt great to be done with my first rotation, and to have a week off before begining my next one in Colorado...time sure flies by!
On a note not related to work, on Tuesday of that week, Jakob (from Colorado) flew in to Portland for a visit. He was kind enough to purchase a plane ticket and volunteer to help me drive to ND and than to CO, so that I wouldn't have to drive by myself. What a nice guy. He spent most of the week hanging out with himself (after all, I had to work!), but Friday night we decided to spend some time in Portland. After I got off of work, we met at Pioneer Courthouse Square, then took the streetcar to the south side of Portland. We ate dinner at the Spaghetti Factory (yum!). Afterward, we found Portland's Aerial Tram....a cable car that took us up to the top of a hill that overlooks Portland, Mount St. Helens, and Mount Hood. The view was fantastic!!! Definitely worth the four bucks.
It felt great to be done with my first rotation, and to have a week off before begining my next one in Colorado...time sure flies by!
Long Time, No Blog...Sorry!
Let me begin by sincerely apologizing for my lack of blogging this past month...I am so sorry! I guess I got busy, preoccupied, or whatever you want to call it. But I'm totally going to make up for it...hopefully...by filling you all in on what I've been up to!
Let's see, where did I leave off? After my 4th of July weekend in Seattle, I had another uneventful weekend at work, followed by another fantastic weekend. On Friday, July 10th, Justin Miedema (from Seattle) took the train down to Portland to spend the weekend chillin' with yours truly. After his train got in around 9pm, we headed to Pioneer Square (Portland's city center) and watched an outdoor movie showing of Indian Jones (it's been so long ago, I don't remember which one...maybe the Last Crusades???). The city had blown up a giant movie screen, and a couple thousand people were settled in to watch the movie. We got lucky and found an empty couple of chairs to sit in, and enjoyed the show :)
Saturday we headed back into Portland for a day of exploration. We visited the Rose Gardens, had an early lunch from a food stand selling amazing gyros, took a trip to Portland's Saturday Market, visited Powell's Book Store (an amazing place in Portland...the bookstore is huge, taking up an entire city block!), did some window shopping, ate a second lunch of wings at Buffalo Wild Wings (it's a BA tradition, and they don't have BWW in Seattle...we couldn't not stop for wings), toured an apartment (Justin is an architect, don't forget...and it was in a brand new building!), did a lot of walking seeing the city, saw a movie (Bruno, horrible, disgusting, easily the worst movie either of us had ever seen), and had a late dinner at Romano's Macaroni Grill (yes, we ate a lot that day...apparently we're glutons when we're together). It sounds like a lot of stuff to do all in one day, and it definitely was an exhausting day.
We had a little bit of time on Sunday before Justin had to be at the train station to return to Seattle, so we drove to a winery just outside of Forest Grove. Schafer Vineyards. I really, really enjoyed the wine there...they had a lot of sweet wines, and those are my favorite :) Of course, I had to buy a bottle for my collection. Before long, it was time to head to the Amtrak Station and say goodbye. Two fun weekends in a row...it was great!
Later that evening, my friend Steve (also on pharmacy rotation in Oregon) came over to hang out and have dinner. We had pizza and ice cream downtown Forest Grove. Greatness. Before it got too late, he had to head home...it was weird saying goodbye, because we are so used to seeing each other during school, and now wouldn't been seeing one another until the end of September. I really miss my friends. Oh well...the pharmacy career fair will be here soon enough, and then we'll all be reunited once again :)
Let's see, where did I leave off? After my 4th of July weekend in Seattle, I had another uneventful weekend at work, followed by another fantastic weekend. On Friday, July 10th, Justin Miedema (from Seattle) took the train down to Portland to spend the weekend chillin' with yours truly. After his train got in around 9pm, we headed to Pioneer Square (Portland's city center) and watched an outdoor movie showing of Indian Jones (it's been so long ago, I don't remember which one...maybe the Last Crusades???). The city had blown up a giant movie screen, and a couple thousand people were settled in to watch the movie. We got lucky and found an empty couple of chairs to sit in, and enjoyed the show :)
Saturday we headed back into Portland for a day of exploration. We visited the Rose Gardens, had an early lunch from a food stand selling amazing gyros, took a trip to Portland's Saturday Market, visited Powell's Book Store (an amazing place in Portland...the bookstore is huge, taking up an entire city block!), did some window shopping, ate a second lunch of wings at Buffalo Wild Wings (it's a BA tradition, and they don't have BWW in Seattle...we couldn't not stop for wings), toured an apartment (Justin is an architect, don't forget...and it was in a brand new building!), did a lot of walking seeing the city, saw a movie (Bruno, horrible, disgusting, easily the worst movie either of us had ever seen), and had a late dinner at Romano's Macaroni Grill (yes, we ate a lot that day...apparently we're glutons when we're together). It sounds like a lot of stuff to do all in one day, and it definitely was an exhausting day.
We had a little bit of time on Sunday before Justin had to be at the train station to return to Seattle, so we drove to a winery just outside of Forest Grove. Schafer Vineyards. I really, really enjoyed the wine there...they had a lot of sweet wines, and those are my favorite :) Of course, I had to buy a bottle for my collection. Before long, it was time to head to the Amtrak Station and say goodbye. Two fun weekends in a row...it was great!Later that evening, my friend Steve (also on pharmacy rotation in Oregon) came over to hang out and have dinner. We had pizza and ice cream downtown Forest Grove. Greatness. Before it got too late, he had to head home...it was weird saying goodbye, because we are so used to seeing each other during school, and now wouldn't been seeing one another until the end of September. I really miss my friends. Oh well...the pharmacy career fair will be here soon enough, and then we'll all be reunited once again :)
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