Christmas in Albuquerque

     I am not sure which is harder to believe--that I have already been in Albuquerque for over a month, or that Christmas is less than one week away!!  These past few weeks have flown by and I apologize for not having posted anything recently.  I have the greatest intentions, but we all know how far that can get you.
     I have adapted and transitioned quickly into my work at Lovelace here in Albuquerque.  As I mentioned in my last post, there is a huge number of travelers on staff in the therapy department.  This originally had me worried, but I have come to enjoy the culture that we have created together.  We are all in similar situations, alone and away from home.  Most of us are single, and our ages are diverse.  I have already made some quick friends with other single female therapists.  We have enjoyed some of our free time together, running errands, going to church, exploring the sights, and just hanging out.  Four of us got together for Thanksgiving and went to brunch at one of the local casinos.  That was different!  Being together helped us all cope with not being with the ones we love during the holiday.
     Many of my coworkers are venturing back home for the Christmas holiday.  I have been blessed with two parents who have driven across the country to spend last week and this week with me.  They have been exploring Albuquerque while I work, and we have enjoyed being together again in the evenings.  Sam, my brother, flew into Albuquerque Thursday night and we had a four-day weekend together, an early Christmas.  We had a wonderful time together, venturing up to Santa Fe one day, down to Old Town Albuquerque the next, and playing our new game which was delivered early from 'Santa.'  Sam flew home this morning, but mom and dad will be here with me through Christmas Day.  Then they will head off to Tombstone, AZ and San Diego, CA, stopping back in Albuquerque on their drive back to Ohio after the first of the year.
     In addition to making plans to host several of my fellow coworkers for a New Years Eve party in a couple of weeks, I am also super excited to have Val, my grad school roommate, flying from Dallas for the festive weekend.  I can't believe it has been two years since we have seen each other!!  I wonder what crazy things we will get into?!
     As you can see from the photo posted above, I am still having fun honing my photography skills.  I have been working through material from the New York Institute of Photography.  My first photo assignment is 2/3's of the way done.  I am still trying to capture a picture relaying 'speed.'  Ugh!!  I am very excited to be traveling to the far east in a couple months with my friends from Denver, meeting up with women working cross-culturally in far east countries.  (If the wording in this statement confuses you as to what I mean, please feel free to connect with me via email or phone and I would be glad to clarify.  Due to the nature of my trip I cannot expound further in this format.)  I will be taking on an new role with the team going, as the trip's photographer!!  I am thrilled about this new challenge and chance to use my new skills and talents.
     But the biggest news of the last few weeks.......In one month I will be returning to school!!!!  I have decided to get my DPT(doctorate of physical therapy) through an online study program with the College of St. Scholastica in Duluth, MN.  Good new is it is 100% online, so no trips to cold northeastern Minnesota for me!  This transitional program is designed to bridge the gap between the degree I earned 12 years ago and the DPT programs that current graduates are completing.  I realize that going from a masters to a doctorate will not drastically change my income or clinical jobs.  But I have always thought that one day I would like to possibly teach PT on a collegiate level.  In order to do that I need either a PhD or a clinical degree equivalent to the students I would be teaching, a DPT.  It made more sense to me to invest the time and money in the transitional DPT to get my foot in the door and decide if I truly like teaching before I even consider the dreaded PhD path.  The thought of a PhD program makes my stomach bottom out!!
     Well, that quickly sums up my last few weeks!  I miss all of you, my family and friends, this Christmas and New Year's holiday season.  I pray that God will continue to bless you richly and keep you safe in the year to come!

Another Day One

And so another rotation begins!  I started at Lovelace Medical Center in downtown Albuquerque today.  It is a large, non-trauma center hospital with around 255 beds.  They recently acquired the Heart Hospital of New Mexico across the street, which has another 55 beds.  I shadowed another traveling PT today, getting the lay of the land.  The main hospital is a ten-story building so it will take a little extra to figure my way around.
I was floored when I looked at the staff pager list and there were 37 names on it!!  It is a huge staff, including some prn(as needed) staff.  And there are multiple traveling therapists.  I'd guess 8 or 9!  Having all of the staff(I counted at least 27) in one small room at lunch today was a little overwhelming, but it will be good to get to know some of them and to talk 'travel'.
Dad and I are thinking about taking the train up to Santa Fe on Saturday and do some abbreviated sightseeing before he returns to Ohio on Sunday.  Hopefully I will have some fun pictures to post after that trip.

Chick(plus 1) on the move to Albuquerque

 I am officially on the road to Albuquerque!  I was absolutely floored that I was able to get everything packed into the car.  Pictures are the proof!  I thought for sure I would have to strap some stuff onto the roof rack.  Have you ever thought about how you would pack everything you would want with you for potentially upto a year?
I have attributed the packing success to three things:
     1--getting rid of the large Rubbermaid bins I use to pack in coming to Springfield.  They were too bulky and inflexible when it came to actually putting them in the car
     2--taking home lots of stuff I realized I didn't really need, and purging through and giving away more 'stuff'
   3--Having the Master Packer with me!

Number three was certainly the key!  Dad is my plus 1 on this trip across the country.  He is an excellent packer that Sam and I have learned everything we know about packing, but Dad certainly ranks above our skills put together.  He is keeping me company during the long drive and we will get to do some sightseeing when we get to Albuquerque before I have to start work at the end of the week.

I am looking forward to another new adventure!!!!

Better late than never!

Overlooking the reservoir at Buck Creek State Park

Well, I only have two more weeks until I complete my first three month contract as a traveling physical therapist here in Springfield Ohio.  And yes, I am just now getting to that blog that I promised everyone I would do before I left Athens.  There is a multitude of excuses, from not having internet to a fear of creativity, that have gone into this delay.
I am hoping to use this blog to share with all of my family and friends what is going on in my day to day life, what is on my heart, and what fascinating pictures I capture with my camera.  This first post is short and sweet, mostly for fear that it may not load right and I don't want to lose a huge post the first time around!  So as I learn more how to handle things in Blogger, I hope to make this site fun, informative, and a way to not feel so separated from the ones I love.