Fall break is too far away so I stayed home...

This is me right now.

Good morning,

Today I decided to take a sick day. Yes, I probably could have gone to school with a sore throat but since I'm at the point where I want to cry just thinking about all the things I have to do this week I elected to take the day off, rest up and then take it on with gusto tomorrow. I have not decided whether this is a smart thing to do or simply baby-like. Nevertheless, here I sit. So I thought I would write since it's been a while.

Things to update you on.

It's a uphill climb.

Grades: I got back 3 out of 5 midterms. Marks were 82, 88, and 80. The two 80 marks were in the same class which is very frustrating to me because I felt like I did so much better. This is what being a pre-vet turns you into, you feel like shit when you get 80's. Oh well, there's still time to fix those.

I went to talk to Dr. Clover Bench about applications and pre-reqs etc. I left feeling pretty terrible. It is so overwhelming to be attempting to "do it all". I was volunteering at a Spay and Neuter clinic in Hobbema from 8:30am to 9:30pm this Saturday and all the while I am worrying about my large animal experience. But you do what you can do, right? My biggest red flag is that I don't have a vet to use as a reference yet! Those of you that are prevet reading this may find this shocking and assume I am hideously unorganized. Maybe or maybe not. I have been very flip floppy on my desire to go to vet school since first year. As such, I have what I feel is a (relatively) wide range of experience but I have no one vet that I have worked with for longer than a few months. So I am up the creek. Not sure what to do about this one...

I also feel like there is somewhat of a barrier with other prevets that I am trying to break down. I know that it is competitive but I for one would love to have open and honest conversations with others about our different backgrounds without the judgmental edge. It feels like if you ask someone what they have been doing in preparation for the applications, you are challenging them. I really feel strongly that we should be dismantling this convention. (Is it just me?) I would love a friend to talk to who is going through the same thing as me. As a caveat to this, I did talk with one acquaintance over the weekend who was very helpful and willing to share information, so I know its not everyone...  

The big picture is pretty nice, its just all a little massive!

I had an interesting talk with my mum about this whole process. I am lucky enough that, and this was news to me, my parents are willing and able to support me through school. This opens up possibilities about applying internationally. However the price jumps from $8000-$12,000/year tuition in Canada to $20,000-$50,000 internationally (the most expensive being in the States). That is not including air fare and cost of living! Yikes. It raises questions for me about how far I'd be willing to go to become a vet. The best part about talking to Dr. Bench was that she let me know about an after degree at U of A that I could get in the faculty of ALES if I am not successful this year. This really appeals to me because it would likely only take one more year (since I am a science student) and it would allow me to continue to upgrade/enhance my application.

I will hit the ground running tomorrow! Right after I take a nap... ; )

 So those are some things running through my head at the moment. I did want to write a blog post about adoption and pure bred dogs but I guess I will save it for another day. Hope everyone is doing well with exams. Keep on trucking!

Happy Halloween!