2019 is now a raggedy old year, in hospice, hanging in there for another month and a half. 2019 will be replaced by 2020, the year of the visionary, a year in which all things possible will come to be. But I’m jumping the gun here.

The first snow – on my way to school (Pete gave me a ride), wisps of snow were swirling around on the road. About 20 minutes after I entered the paramedic lab, the snow was coming straight down, out of the sky. It was I’d say, a 75% - 25% mix, respectively snow and rain. And all afternoon, it just kept coming down. A far cry from September when we were in the lab and the sun was shining on the bright green grass.

Ahh. It was a good afternoon – there were, instructor included, five of us present – two others from my group and one more from another group. I think we worked well together. I have a hard time quelling my impatience – I am not used to working in groups, and so I sometimes think that I should be the first to do difficult things. And I am sorry that, in this respect, I am the odd one out.

First snow

We practiced putting each other in a KED, a device that wraps around the upper part of the body and keeps the spine in alignment. And we practiced immobilizing one another on the spine board.

On a break, I practiced sizing the cervical collar and putting the head blocks on the spine board, minus the patient. Okay, these two activities are to most really quite simple and done by most easily – this does not require much forethought. But the hands-on nature of this course has been a bit more difficult for me. So maybe it was not at all surprising that I felt elated once I figured out how to do these things. Now there exists the possibility that I might do well on the practical exam.

This has been a course in which I have had to focus on the present, and not think so far ahead. Today I learned that there will be a mid-term practical and a fill in the blanks final – and that’s it for the course. Then there is the NREMT practical.

Right up until the end, it will be one step at a time.

I have to give myself credit – last semester I sat in on the EMT class – and then I thought that actually taking this course would be way too difficult. I have now nearly done it. This is an accomplishment.

After class, I studied for a while on the bridge and waited for Pete to pick me up. I’d left Deathtrap at the recycling center a few days ago. The snow was falling way heavier when he picked me up. We then went to a BCHA meeting. There was some talk about the 2020 summer trail ride season. It seems so far away, but actually, it is right around the corner. I like it, 2020, the year of the visionary.

Next: 318. 11/17/19: Ill Prepared