Polygamy. Do Not Judge.

Up until today, I have chosen to not write about anything the least bit controversial.  There are many reasons for this.  The main one is that I'm not an overly opinionated person.  Everyone is entitled to their own opinions and I am fine with them keeping them to themselves.  Hot button topics are not something I readily bring up with friends or family.  In my opinion, there is much more entertaining things to talk about.

But, last night I watched the season finale of Sister Wives and I've decided to write about it.  I am not a polygamist nor do I ever intend to be one.  I wouldn't want Nate to have coffee with another woman, let alone marry one, or two, or three.  My personality would not work well in that situation.  I also would not be the best as a nun, or a teacher, or a professional athlete.  I am not meant to compete in marathons or juggle in a circus.  Everyone has their "thing" that makes them unique -- that makes them "them."

Some people never want to get married.

Some people want to get married but are not allowed to marry the person they love.

Some people get married and live happily ever after.

And then there's the Brown's.  Kody is only legally married once but has four wives.  Throughout the two seasons of Sister Wives, viewers have gotten to know him and his family in their home in Utah.  They have birthday celebrations, prayer time, family vacations, dinners with friends and many other "normal" family events.  All the kids are very well mannered and seem to do well in school.  They have friends at school and are friends with each other as well.  They help with chores and seem to rarely fight.  They have a very strong sense of family.  Unfortunately, their lifestyle is not accepted and they are being investigated.  Because of this, last night's episode focused on their move to Las Vegas.  It was heartbreaking.  All the kids, the wives and Kody were crying.  No one wanted to leave but the alternative was to stay and risk being split up as a family. Fearing the negative outcome, they packed up, in tears, and moved.

When I was little, my sister and I cried when my parents sold their old couches to update to new ones.  I have pieces of my curtains and wallpaper from my childhood bedroom.  We never moved out of our original house, let alone moved to a different city.  This family was forced to move because of their lifestyle, which wasn't hurting anyone.  Aside from their unique family situation, they were just like us.  Solid, grounded people wanting to raise responsible individuals and now they live in fear of being separated.  I'm frustrated for them because I like them, or at least I like the version of them portrayed on TLC.

If you read this and get mad because you disagree with their lifestyle, I'm guessing you've never seen the show.  I understand not wanting to give the show a chance, but don't judge the situation if you don't know anything about it.  Judgmental people and laws have caused this family (and many others in similar situations) a lot of pain.

It's moving day!

Well, I have a few exciting updates!

Sadie (my sister) had her baby!  She was 12 days early but everything is fine.  She's home now and adjusting well.  We all spend a lot of time over there, taking turns holding Stella between feedings.  Despite my general lack of knowledge about children, I believe I do quite well holding her.  We'll have to see if my skills in other "baby areas" improve over the next year.  It's a very exciting time for everyone.

My next bit of good news is that I found a place to live!  It is located in Park View, Iowa which is 10 minutes north of Davenport and 10 minutes from my job in DeWitt.  It is a three bedroom, 1.5 bathroom townhouse.  There is a little yard that is going to be fenced in for the dogs.  It's funny how I struggled for so long to find a place that even ALLOWS dogs and now I found a place that not only allows them, but has a little fenced in yard for them!  I moved yesterday with the help of my parents.  I couldn't have done all this without them!  They were so supportive of helping me find a place and then stored all my stuff in their garage and basement before we had a chance to move.  We managed to move all my belongings and it wasn't too terrible actually.  The worst was carrying my desk and dresser upstairs.  The couches were tough, but not as bad.  These couches have been through a lot!  Nate and Evan found them for $30 back in Dubuque.  One stayed with their friend Joanie at Emmaus Bible College in Dubuque for a year or two.  I think they were then used in Dubuque at another friend's place before making the trip to Ames and now to Park View.  I upgraded them last year with new microfiber covers but the heart of the couches is still there.  

Tomorrow I am going home after the utility people come (yes, no heat or hot water here!) so I can see Sadie and Stella more before I have to start work.  It's hard to live Dubuque behind again.  I'm very thankful that I'm going to be closer than the last four years.  I don't want to be left out of events in Dubuque any more-- especially family stuff with Stella growing up!

Here are some photos of my new place.  If you want to see more, follow the link!

https://picasaweb.google.com/107708578056300246499/Townhouse?authkey=Gv1sRgCObwieuq9tvUggE&feat=directlink

Still house searching...

As graduation draws near this Saturday... a still have a few things to figure out.

1)  I do not have a place to live in DeWitt.  Although I have a job, and for that I am very thankful, I will be living in Dubuque and commuting at this point.  OR!!  I will be living in my Rondo!  Addie finds the back very comfortable but I'm not sure that I will.  It might also get a bit cold, especially since we have been having "frost warnings" in May.

2)  Important paper documents to complete post-graduation: license, accreditation, DEA license (optional).

3)  Sell my trailer!!!  Although I have had a vast amount of interest and one accepted offer, the trailer is still in my possession.  I try to not take this personally, but it's a bit difficult.  I put lots of hard work into making the trailer a home -- even though it's a mobile version.  Actually, if the trailer wasn't from 1970 and was actually "mobile," I could take it with me to DeWitt and solve items 1 and 3 on my "to do" list.  I believe the not-so-mobile home would fall apart somewhere between Ames and Cedar Rapids on Highway 30.  My hard work would be scattered about in pieces of nicely painted panel and decoupaged wallpaper.  New appliances, fresh paint, nice deck, the list goes on and on.  What more can you want!?  With a 5 minute walk to your other home for the next 4 years, i.e. the vet school, with no scraping of wind shields in the winter or trudging through flooded Ames streets next spring, it sounds like the complete package to me.  As long as the next offer isn't totally unreasonable, this mobile HOME is yours!

So as I work on the above list, I am also doing fun things such as wedding dress shopping!  I believe I found "THEE" dress but I want to keep looking because it's so much fun!  I also made a new phone purchase.  Below are some photos from this new phone that I'd like to share!  Enjoy!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/62450956@N02/sets/72157626518006699/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLrFoKX1c2o

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8q8nhMCp9I

DeWitt Veterinary Clinic has a new vet!

I am very excited to announce that I have a job!!!  I will be the newest addition to the DeWitt Veterinary Clinic family.  I will be working with the small animal side of the practice.  There are four additional veterinarians who do beef, dairy and small animal medicine.  After two interviews and two long days of anticipation, I got the phone call I had been waiting for!!

 

Backing up a bit –

I received an email from our school administration office with the job listed.  It sounded like what I was looking for so I emailed my CV and cover letter immediately.  After about a week, I was invited for a day-long working interview.  The interview was amazing.  I felt right at home and had a great time meeting the veterinarians and even pulling a calf!  After another week, I was asked to do one final phone interview.  The phone interview was on a Friday and I felt it went well.  (Although I beat myself up afterwards for not specifically mentioning a parvo SNAP test when testing for parvo virus!!!)  I expected to hear a “yes” or a “no” the following weekend.  Saturday was a great day – it was the day I got engaged!!!  It was a perfect distraction.  Sunday, on the other hand, was full of anticipation.  I hardly was able to eat supper.  The phone call came at 8:00 pm and I readily accepted the position.  I’m still shocked sometimes that I’m actually graduating and will be in the working world!  I’m a bit nervous, but very, very excited!

Here’s where I will be working:

http://dewittvetclinic.com/   

Come visit me with your animals!!!!

Another bit of exciting news -- Nate and I set our date!  Our big day will be May 19th, 2012! Let the 

planning begin!

Nate and I are engaged!

Here's our engagement story:

3/23/11 -- Skype Conversation with Nate:



[3/23/2011 10:52:36 AM] Natey: do you want to go to trader joes on saturday?
[3/23/2011 10:52:44 AM] Emily Meyer: always!

Nate claimed he was having a cheese craving.  Trader Joe's became one of my favorite places when living in Los Angeles.  Susie opened my eyes to the wonderfulness of aged Gouda.  Trader Joe's was my favorite place to buy aged Gouda so I did not hesitate to go on a little road trip.

3/24/11: Email from Ellen Broich

Hi Emily!

Hope you’re having a good week! Any news on your trailer or the job yet?

So, I found out that Jasper Winery in Des Moines does a wine and chocolate tasting!  Would you and Nate be interested in doing that with Adam and me sometime? I know you guys like wine too (and obviously chocolate!) and I thought it would be fun for a double date! Are there any weekends coming up when you’ll be free? Adam and I are free this weekend except for Sunday, then the next weekend (April 1-2) we’re moving, and then after that I think we’re free again.

Let me know what you think!  We had so much fun seeing you a few weeks ago.

Ellen

A couple weeks prior, Nate and I had visited Ellen and Adam in Des Moines.  During dinner, Ellen opened a bottle of wine she had purchased from a wine tasting at Jasper Winery.  She had mentioned how much fun it was and I thought it would be a fun thing to do together sometime.  Nate was not involved with my conversation with Ellen, but I knew he would like the wine, so I emailed Ellen back and said yes!  Of course I didn't read into the invitation at all because we had discussed getting together again sometime soon.

3/26/11 -- Trip to Des Moines

Nate and I packed some snacks and headed to Des Moines around noon.  We arrived in Des Moines about 20 minutes early and decided to play a game of Life on my iTouch.  When Ellen and Adam arrived, we headed inside.  We were seated near a wonderful fireplace at a table for four.  We started with a white wine and white chocolate.  A nice lady taught us how to taste the wine and the chocolate.  I didn't think I needed helping knowing how to eat chocolate, but apparently I did because I learned a lot.  The second round was a pink wine and milk chocolate.  Another great sample.  At this time, Ellen and I headed to the bathroom.  I volunteered to go with Ellen because she acted like she had to tell me something in private.  No secrets were told in the bathroom -- just some redoing of the hair.

After we left the bathroom, Nate asked if I wanted to go see the room where they make the wine.  The wine was just a little bit off the room where our table currently was located.  I was hesitant because I thought a different group was having a party in there.  Nate was insistent so I followed.  When we entered the room, there was a spread of two dozen, multi-colored roses on the tablet with numerous pictures upside-down on top.  Nate asked me to sit down.  I started going through the pictures and reading the messages on the back.  The pictures walked through our relationship, from the first time we went snowboarding in Washington to our most recent trip to Montana for Nate's family reunion -- and everything in between.  Nate and I  have been to the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Seattle including numerous concerts and beaches.  The second to last picture was of hot air balloons that we saw in Las Vegas at the Bellagio.  The caption said "Now it is time for our hot air balloon ride."  Nate and I have had an inside joke that he was going to propose in a hot air balloon.  I am very afraid of heights and did NOT want to go in a hot air balloon and Nate always did, so... a picture was a compromise.  The last picture said "Addie has a question for you."  The picture was of Addie (looking quite cute) wearing a charm on her collar (well, actually my swarovski crystal necklace) that said "Will you marry daddy?"

Nate then got down on one knee, said some very sweet words and proposed.  :-)  I was shaking so bad but I managed to get myself under control enough to say "Yes, of course."  The group of people that were waiting to use the room for their shower started clapping and Ellen took lots of pictures.  We later found out there is a video of our proposal that the winery is going to email to us!  I'm very excited about that because everything was a big blur!  I was very shocked and confused.  Even though I knew it was coming sometime soon, I had NO  idea it was going to be that day.  I thought Ellen really wanted to go to a wine tasting, but it was actually Nate's idea.  He involved Ellen and Adam because of our close friendship over so many years and to help distract me!  The plan worked and it was wonderful!

We still went to Jordan Creek and did some shopping and then went to Trader Joe's for our cheese.  The TJ's worker asked how my day was and I said, "Pretty good actually, I just got engaged."  He was excited and told me to pick out some flowers for myself on him.  So now I have two dozen roses and a four large sunsflowers decorating my dining room table.

It was a wonderful day!  I'm so glad Ellen and Adam were involved.  Nate filled the day with all of my favorite things -- friends, chocolate, Addie (in the form of a picture) and Trader Joe's.  My ring is absolutely perfect and I can't stop staring at it!

Job Searches and Trailer Selling

My "end of rotations" countdown is currently at 58 days!  I can't believe how fast time is going.  Only four rotations left after Friday.  It's just as exciting to think about graduation as it is scary.  I am still looking for a job in Iowa, hopefully eastern Iowa.  At this point, I'm not even being picky about what I will take, unless only considering small animal jobs is considered picky.  It's not that I'm getting interview but no offers... there really just isn't any jobs out that to interview for.  One job wanted a person with orthopedic surgery experience --- not me.  One job wanted a person that could start sooner than May --- not me.  The job I am currently applying for sounds like me, but we shall see.  There are many people in my class in the same boat so I'm trying not to panic about the situation.

The other task I have right now is selling my trailer.  Lots of visits but no offers yet.  I'm hopeful about this weekend.  I'll have mixed feelings about signing the trailer over to a new person.  They better take care of it!  I built some great memories here and I know the next person will as well.  When I see the incoming class (when they view the trailer), it's crazy to think what they have ahead of them.  All those labs and tests and late nights of studying!  AHHH!  I'm glad I'm moving onto a new phase in my life but I'm so thankful for the four years I've had here.

Another day of derm tomorrow. Then oncology.  Then small animal medicine (for the third time). Then necropsy.  Then public health.  Just have to take it day by day at this point and keep trying to build a future.  If I do end up finding a job, I have a list forming of things I want to purchase as graduation presents for myself (is that bad?!?)

1) Apple Ipad (2nd generation-- to be released)
2) Trip for two to Houston, Texas
3) Weekend in Chicago if Houston isn't affordable

Must find a job!

77 Days Left

So I haven't written anything for a very long time.  There were times when I sat down to write but couldn't find the energy to put my thoughts into words.  There was actually one time when I began to write and then deleted the entry.  There really isn't any particular reason why I haven't written anything for awhile.  It definitely hasn't been due to lack of material to write about.  I never even wrote about finding out that I passed boards.  The results came early so it's a bit hard to believe that it's true -- but, the results are true and I did pass.  Thank you to all those who wished me good luck on the big test day!

Sometimes the positive things like passing boards get pushed aside when rotations get crazy.  I'm currently on a very busy rotation that has long hours and a large amount of patient care.  I enjoy spending time with my patients and getting to know the owners.  I've been fortunate to have nice dogs and nice dog-parents.  No bite wounds for me in the past three weeks.  Unfortunately, some of my rotation-mates have not been so lucky.  Some dogs can be quite unhappy in the hospital and lash out at the nicest people.  I was so exhausted Friday night after another 13 hour day but I came home to a pleasant surprise.  Nate had dinner on the table with a bottle of wine and orange roses to accompany it.  I'm so thankful to have his support.  I wouldn't be able to get through the past three weeks without him.

Tonight I'm enjoying a little relaxation.  I hope everyone has a chance to relax a bit now and then.  Life can get so crazy.  Always something to worry about.  I try very hard not to let my worries overcome me.  Worrying about finding a job in Iowa City or starting an actual career could really be a full-time job.  As long as I keep looking and blanketing the area with my resume, I feel like I'm doing all I can do.  If I focus on things like orange roses and nights of relaxation, I'll keep my head on straight and not go insane with worrying.