So, who am I?
I am a senior in the psychology program at Appalachain State University in Boone, North Carolina (where the winters are frigid and snowy, and the summers are still too warm). I love living up here and would not change it for anything right now. I am expecting to complete my degree in May 2011, which is very exciting. I already have a degree in EMS and love working as a paramedic. However, I ultimately want to be home more than my job currently allows and thus I have returned to complete my psychology degree. I am looking into a Master's of Art in Teaching program and may begin that as early the summer of 2011.
As I mentioned, I am a paramedic. I love my job very much. People often ask me if my job is hard. It is. It is difficult and sometimes very sad. But it is also very rewarding. People have to do this job because when you have an emergency and dial 9-1-1, you want someone to come help you. Most paramedics (there are those few exceptions, just as in any field) love what they do and want to do the best they can for you. We have a 5' X 9' mobile office that carries a lot of equipment and medications. We will do everything we can with the tools we have to help you feel better.
The newest development in my life is getting engaged to my wonderful (now) fiancé, Jon. We got engaged on December 30 of 2010 and are planning a summer wedding for this year. It will be just over 5 months between engagement and marriage. There is a lot to do for the planning process between now and then but I think we can get it all done.
I grew up in and around the Raleigh, North Carolina, area. I love that part of the state. It is, and always will be, home. Most all of my family (my parents, 5 grandparents, an uncle and other relatives) live there. My immediate-extended family lives within a county or two with only one exception. Distant cousins are spread across the country.
I love working on little craft projects. I find it fun to attempt to be creative (sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't). I enjoy school for the most part (an odd-ball, perhaps?). I am doing things I really like and am learning more about people through my psychology classes (and have applied some of these things to my current work). I love kids. When they are not deathly-ill, they are probably my favorite patients (a really sick kid can be a very scary thing). I love cooking. A lot. Jon likes it quite a bit as he usually gets at least one home-cooked meal a week while here at school (usually, it is two or three). I used to be terrified of thunderstorms, but I enjoy them now! That is, as long as I can watch them from inside where I can stay nice and dry.
My favorite TV show is Criminal Minds. I enjoy SuDoku puzzles. Ironically, I find the "harder" ones easier. I have a difficult time with the "easy" ones. Some of my favorite foods (I have many) are pasta, soups and stews. One of my favorite movies is "UP". My favorite book might between "A Paramedic's Story: life, death and everything in between" and "Blood, Sweat and Tea". Both of these are different stories from two different paramedics, one in the southern part of the United States and the other in London, England. If you want to see a glimpse into a paramedic's life, either of these might be able to provide that for you.
My dream job is to be a wife and mother. But if you are looking for the paying kind, I don't know what it would be. When I was little, up until a few years ago, I wanted to go to medical school and be a doctor. I think I would really enjoy it. However, I do not want that kind of schedule (I'm working on getting out of EMS, remember?) nor that long-term of a commitment to school. People have asked me about nursing. I don't think I could do that. Nurses need to ask to give medicines and do any interventions. They have very few things on standing order. Me? I don't have to call and ask permission to do anything to my patients. If I think they need it, I do it. Plain and simple. Now, I always have the option to call, particularly for those patients who did not read the textbook, but it is a judgment call. Mine. (And I have a fantastic medical director who backs us up.) I think I would be likely to just start doing things to patients and forget to ask. (Or, not forget to ask but commit the "crime" and ask forgiveness later.)
So, I am going to start working toward a teaching licensure, probably in elementary education. Kids seem to fall-down-go-boom a lot and I can use my infinite knowledge of treating boo-boo's and make them all better. I can be around kids (and send them home at night!), teach (which is also something I enjoy) and get to go home at night -- every night, to my family (which is most important for me). That is something that I am very excited about.
The joke I continue to make is that someone is going to look at my resume and think that I was very confused about what I wanted to do. EMS --> psychology --> teaching. Not exactly the way I would have let things flow, but it works well. I am excited about these upcoming opportunities and what life has in store for me.
