My First "Real" Blog

I guess I should start by explaining why I live in Stockton but my husband doesn't. Dave teaches drumline at two local high schools in Bakersfield as well as at the JC, Bakersfield College. I'm attending the University of the Pacific to earn my PharmD. I'm currently a 2nd year student, and our 3rd year is exclusively experiential learning out on rotations. Most programs do 3 years "on campus" and 1 year on rotations, but Pacific is an accelerated program, so we get it all done in 3 years, year-round. Bakersfield has a rotation site, but the students are put in a lottery to determine sites to make sure it's fair for everyone. Since Pacific is so nice, they give 1 point for good grades (top 5% of the class...NOT ME) and 1 point for married couples (if the spouse lives in the city where the student wants to complete his/her rotations). The 2 point people get to pick rotation sites first, then the 1 point people, then the zero point people (this will be most of the class).

So we have a point!! HOORAY! But nothing's guaranteed...the Bakersfield site takes around 10 students each year (I believe)...and there are 200+ students in my class. And for those of you who are in Bako or have lived there in the past and are thinking "who the heck would want to go to Bakersfield??" let me just say that it's a really strong rotation site!! And LOTS of people seem to want it...go figure. We don't get to do the lottery until January, so I have to live in suspense until then...but at least I have a point!! From what I've heard, they're pretty good at keeping families together, if possible.

So does it suck living in a different city than your husband, you ask??

YES. It does suck. A lot.

But cell phones are wonderful. Dave has told me that he actually refers to his phone as "wife," and I honestly feel like he's not with me if I happen to leave my phone at home on accident (which happens very rarely since it's such an unsettling feeling).

I believe our relationship would be more strained if he lived here and we constantly felt like we didn't have enough time to spend with each other. For those of you who know Dave, you know he's VERY entertaining...I'd never get any studying done! And if I DID study as much as I need to (which is basically 24/7) and he was here getting ignored the whole time, that would be bad, too. This way we can set aside special times to spend together. Our time is quality, not quantity at this point in our lives!

Although my school goes year-round, I DO get 3 weeks off in December and August. So we make the most of that. The problem with THAT "vacation" time is that before I can sit for the board exams after I graduate I have to have completed 1500 intern hours. The 3rd year rotations count toward that, but all the other schools also have entire summers off from school during which students can work to rack up hours. At Pacific, we have to squeeze it in when we can. Needless to say, I try to work 40 hrs/week during those "vacation" times.

Please don't think I'm complaining. I absolutely LOVE what I'm learning and can't wait to be a "real pharmacist"!! And I try to get down to Bakersfield as often as possible to visit my family (including my nephew Elijah!!).

Let me finish by saying I'm SO EXCITED that after 20 years of school SO FAR (including kindergarten), there's a light at the end of the tunnel!! May 2009 will be here before I know it!! I hope...