HELLO!

This is another picture taken by my son.

Hello it's me. Today has been a good day so far. I went and picked Jamie up so that she could go and get a pedicure and a manicure in preparation for the wedding this weekend. We spent some good quality time together. Today is Jamie and Alex's 1 year anniversary. I am so happy for them. They are so cute together. I am very pleased to have Alex in our family. Tonight I have to go to the "ugly" place and work from 4-10, yuck, but I guess I will survive. The only bad thing is I close tonight and open tomorrow. I am working 5 days this week and I am going to be one tired mama by the end of the week.

I got my HEENT exam back and received a 97.1% on it. I was hoping for better but made a few mistakes that I shouldn't have. I really need to get this. My grade point is still good but I don't want it to drop any farther. Here's hoping the next exam will be better. Sometimes I feel as though I am in way over my head, then other times every thing is good. I guess that is why not everyone is cut out for this job. People seem to think it is soooo easy and it is not, but I do love it and will love it even more when I am getting paid to do it, LOL!

I think I need to go back and reread some sections in the BOS so that I get a better grasp of some of the concepts in that. I am making dumb mistakes that I shouldn't be making and it frustrates me. I know what I am doing just sometimes my brain and my fingers don't communicate real well together, LOL!

Well, time to have a bite to eat and then get ready for the "ugly" place. Until tomorrow, TTYL!

YEAH

This picture is of Alex, Jamie and Jamies' best friend, Kara and her fiance Mike, taken on Friday when we all went out for dinner and drinks. It was a good time.

Hmmm, I have been kinda lazy and not posting to my blog but now I have a few minutes to catch up and can do just that, so here goes.

Wednesday night I was making dinner. I was chopping up onions, carrots and cerlery for a swedish meatball stew that my hubby loves and I kinda caught a glimpse of a car driving in our diriveway. I thought who in the heck is here. I went to the back door and there stands my AF daughter and her hubby. They came early to surprise us!! How cool is that. We have spent a bit of time with them. They are so busy with Kara's wedding and everything that involves. I was so happy to see them. My school work has been getting shifted to the side a bit and I feel real quilty about that. I did submit my final submission for the HEENT transcription exam. I am really not sure about this one. I didn't have any major medical mistakes, but I did have some format and punctuation mistakes. Sometimes I get it and other times I don't. I just don't understand. I am hoping I did well, but time will tell.

Today I made lasagne, breadsticks(homemade), chocolate cream pie and a pumpkin spice dreamwhip pie and took it all over to my mom's house. Jamie and Alex are staying with her, she is the only one without cats(Jamie and Alex are allergic), she also has the most room. My sister and her daughter, my other two daughters and my grandkids were all there. We had a great dinner and lots of fun and laughter. Hubby took his Wii game console over and they all had a good time playing games. I haven't laughed that much in quite some time. It felt really good.

Jamie and Alex will be over for dinner again tomorrow. I am making both of their favorites. Grilled loin chops, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans and some flaky biscuits. They are loving all the good homemade food. With the way they work they barely are able to eat at home and Jamie is still learning to cook. I am trying my best to spoil them rotten while they are here.

Well, it is still early enough to get a bit of studying in so I am going to go for now but will TTYL.

Bummer day

Woke up this morning with a killer headache. I have not had one of those in ions. I cannot take anything for it so I suffered most of the day. It finally started to subside after I got out of work at 10 pm tonight, argh!! I am most definately not going to enjoy working Tuesday nights. I did get to train a new cashier tonight and that was good, means I didn't have to do it all. I had help for a change.
Despite my headache I was able to finish a few more transcriptions. I think I am really getting this. I love the transcribing part, the testing part is still not up to what I think it should be. I mean, I get it, I just for the life of me cannot test. I just forget whatever I have already learned. I know that I know it but my mind tends to blank out. I do not know what I need to do to be able to test better. I really need to figure this out before the final exam and definately need to figure it out before the RMT exam or I am screwed!!
Talked to Jamie today. Her and Alex will be home Friday for a week. I am so excited. I just wish we had room here for them to stay instead of across town at my moms. Oh well, she will take great care of them and it is only a 10 minute drive.
Went to our local zoo's Halloween thing last night. We got wet, it rained. But it was fun watching my beautiful grandchildren trick or treat. What a joy they are and their favorite place on earth is the zoo. Ethan knows where everything in the zoo is. He has been there dozens and dozens of times. We rode the new carousel, it is an oldtime one with the original animals on it. It is soooo cool. It is also Kimberly's fav thing to do at the zoo.
Well, I have a couple more HEENT transcriptions to do then the exam for this section, then on to BLOOD. Getting closer and closer to the end of this course and the demise of my job, YEAH!!!
Well, tired and sore tonight(my back has been acting up since it got cold here) So I will say goodnight my friends, til tomorrow or whenever I write once again. TTYL

Another productive day

Today was a very, very productive day. I finally took my midterm exam. I am not entirely happy with my test score, but I am surprised I actually knew alot of the information. I received an 83%, I missed 17 questions. I would have done better except for the fact that even though I try not to I changed 3 answers. I know I am suppose to go with my first instinct, but for some reason I just cannot do that. Ugh!! Oh well, that is done and behind me now I can move on and get some more of this course out of the way.
I transcribed 8 transcriptions today for the HEENT section and started on the Blood section (chapter 10 in the Med term book). So I guess I am advancing quite well. I am really done for the day. My brain is fried and my fingers do not want to work on the keyboard anymore.
Tomorrow I have to work 6 hours, then home for dinner with hubby and then we are going to the zoo for their annual event the Zoo Boo. We are going with our grandkids and their mom and dad. It should be a good time, it usually is. The kids will get to wear their costumes for the first time tomorrow night. Ethan is really excited to put his Darth Vader costume on.
Well, I think I will actually watch a bit of TV and then head off to bed, I am really tired after all the work I did today. It is a good tired, though. So many accomplishments today. YEAH!! Well, til tomorrow TTYL :)

Study, study and more study

Well, that about sums up my day today. Hubby and I went out for our usual Saturday morning breakfast and grocery trip, we came home put the groceries away and then I retired to my "office". I spent the better part of the day studying for this midterm exam. I may be close to being ready to take it. I may have to just jump in with both feet and go for it. I have been redoing all the quizzes and exams and have done alright on them. A few things I needed to look up again to remember what they were, but all in all, I think I will do ok. I am just dreading that awful clock in the corner. I really do not like that thing. It makes me rush and sometimes I panic that it is taking me too long on a question and I just pick an answer. I am very nervous for some reason about this exam. Maybe it is because I am not sure about all the information that is on it. Maybe it is because of the abundance of info I have learned so far and am afraid it is going to be just too overwhelming. I do not know. I really need to get past this, so that I may move on with my studies.
Hubby helped me build a couple macros today and I added some more expansions to my autocorrect. I was playing with all the ones I have made so far and it is so cool and will save me a ton of time. Hubby helped me build macros for -year-old and -month-old, I am so excited to be able to just type a few keystrokes and be done with it. I have all the common things in my autocorrect right now. For example: tpi for The patient is, ti for This is, all the headings, subjective, impression, objective, physical examination, etc. are in there, too. All the capital letters will not slow me down now and I will be able to whiz right throught this, WOOHOO! My list is ever expanding(no pun intended) and as I learn all of the ones I have now I will add new ones. My rule will be: If I hear a word or phrase more than twice it will be put in my expander!
Well, it is after 11:30 qnd I have a few more exercises and exams to look over before going to bed, soooooo TTYL

Productive Evening

Well, today I had to go to the "ugly" place for 6 hours. I worked very hard. Customers were real grumpy today, I do not know what it was but I had alot of angry people in the store today and you know who they take all their anger out on. You guessed it, ME. That in turn makes me grumpy. Oh well, all that is over until Monday. I start my 1 night per week next week and am not a happy camper. The boss is making me work Tuesday nights and I am going to miss webinars. He will not budge on the time I am working. He is such a tyrant. So now I have to make myself listen to the webinars. I think I have said this before, but, "I cannot wait to be done with this course so that I can leave that place." I have never hated a job more than I do this one.
On another note, I spent 2 hours studying yesterday and I was really surprised that I actually retained alot of the stuff I have been learning, LOL. I am making myself a little test so I can actually find out the stuff I know. I am going through the exercises and quizzes from Medical Terminology to Endocrine and am writing down every question that I do not get right as I read through all these exercises, etc. Example: I cover up the answers and try and do the exercises again, if I miss one, I write it down and this then becomes my test. It really helps to reinforce my knowledge. I am hoping to feel confident enought to take the midterm on Sunday, maybe. I am not going to rush this, I need to feel confident I can pass before putting myself through this test and that is what I am going to do.
I spent 2 more hours today putting together an expander list. I am impressed with myself, LOL! I have three pages of words that I have put into this list and I can actually remember all of them. I typed up an old trascription using the expander and it saved soooooo much time. I cannot wait to use it for real. I have made a promise to myself to spend at least an hour to maybe 2 hours a week, expanding my list and studying it so that I can remember all of it.
I also sat down at the computer tonight and made out a list of reference books and materials that I would like. Hubby is going to give it to the kids for Christmas, YEAH!!
Oh, it is my Air Force daughters birthday today. She is 24 years old. She said her hubby got her a beautiful diamond aniversary ring, wow! Her hubby will be 21 tomorrow and they will celebrate their 1 year aniversary on the 30th of this month. She and Alex will be home on the 26th of this month, next Friday. I am excited, even though I probably won't see much of them. They are coming home to attend and be a part of Jamie's best friends wedding. She has alot to do between now and the 3rd, when Kara gets married. She is the matron-of-honor and has planned a bachelorette party, manicures and pedicures for her and the bride, and several other things too. I am hoping I can steal them away for an anniversary/birthday celebration one night, we shall see. Well, it is getting late and I am getting pretty tired so I guess that is it for now. TTYL

YEAH ME!!!!

YEAH ME!! I am so excited about this new career path I have chosen and all the doors it could possibly open. I am right on track to finish this course and the internship in 12 months and am so very excited. I was going to post this last night but got sidetracked.
I just got my transcription exam back for the neuro-psych section and am very proud to announce that I received a 99.1%. WOOHOO! If I wouldn't have changed a couple things I would have done better. I actually think I am getting commas, hyphens, etc., haha. I didn't think I would ever get that good of a grade this early in the transcription. I really, really enjoyed the neuro section. It was fascinating and it was by far the best grades(all 100%) I have gotten on any section so far. I guess this section is my calling. I would love to transcribe for a neuro-psych doctor or facility. That would be way too cool.
On another note, I am taking my endocrine exam today and then I am going to knuckle down and study real hard for my midterm. I am oh so very nervous about this exam. There is so much info that needs to be gone over and refreshed. I hope I do well on this, then it is on to more studies in the rest of the disciplines. I received my note from Cheryl and she says I am right on track to finish this program in 12 months and then on to actually working in this profession. Well, I believe her, she is the GREATEST and without all her knowledge and kudos, I could not have done this well. Thanks Cheryl!
I love attending the prospective student webinars, I love telling these prospects about TRS and what it has done for me. I want to shout it from the rooftops. I am trying very hard to get my 2nd oldest and my youngest daughters involved. I think my AF daughter is going to try and get it together real soon and start her program. She only has 2 years(of her 6 year enlistment) left and really wants something she can do from home. She is thinking of this for when she and her AF hubby decide to have kids or if he gets transferrred somewhere else. We shall see. She worries about not being able to complete the course in a year because of her AF obligations and the hours she works. I am trying to get her to talk to an admissions counselor, we shall see.
Well, time to look over my notes and exercises and take my endocrine exam, then more study time. Of course, it is obvious, I am not at the "ugly" place today, it is my day off, YEAH!
Well, time to study, TTYL

Wow

Wow! I didn't realize how much work I can accomplish in one day, ok so maybe 1 and 1/2 days. It started late last night. I submitted the last of the Neurology/Psychiatric Transcription Practices and decided to go ahead and start the Exam. I whizzed through the exam. I hope I did well on it. I only had to look up one drug name and maybe 2 words total, other than that it was really good. I hope I did well on it. I took me about 45 minutes to do 6 and 1/2 minutes of transcription. I really do not think that is too awful bad. It was really really late when I finally got done looking it over and proofreading it(around midnight). But I was pumped and decided to start on the next section, Endocrine. Went to bed around 2am. I have not stayed up that late in forever, LOL! This a.m. I started back on the rest of this section and now I will study for the exam on this section, then, DRUMROLL, PLEASE!! I am officially half-way through this course. Next week will be a study week and then at the end of the week I will take the dreaded midterm exam. Wow, time has flown by. I hope I am on track to finish this course, including the internship in my allotted year. I do not want to pay extra for this course, I cannot afford to pay extra, so the next few months I will be pushing myself to get through this, no slacking off. Every free minute will be consumed with studies!
The closer this gets to being a reality the more excited I get. I cannot wait to be in the position of working from home! Not having to go to the "ugly" place anymore just makes me so happy! YEAH ME!!
Something else from work, my boss kept cutting my hours, which I didn't mind, but hubby said I needed to get at least 24-30 hours a week, yuck! Well, I have only been scheduled for 18 the past two weeks(before that I was getting 24 or more). I asked my boss why, apparently our newest employee needs more hours and whatever she wants she gets. She is a 21-year-old snot faced brat that for some reason my bosses just love her. She is lazy, disrespectful and just generally not nice to be around. So now because she wants to work during the day on Tuesdays, instead of nights, if I want more hours I have to take the night shift Tuesday nights. I have been there for just over a year and am older, smarter and a much better employee than this brat and because she wants my shift I get docked hours unless I want to take over one of her shifts. Not fair! So now I have to work Tuesday nights and I am not happy about it either. I cannot wait to get out of that place!!
Well, I am going to go back to my studies, so till tomorrow TTYL

Much Accomplished

Today was a very good day, not only did I not have to go to the "ugly" place, but I also accomplished alot of transcribing. I transcribed 11 reports today and I feel very fulfilled. Not only did I transcribe those reports, I actually understood most of what was being said, it was so cool!! I really only had to look up a few words and those were easy to find. The only problem I am having is that I keep thumbing through the TRSI Formatting Guidelines, hoping I am doing everything right. I may have to laminate those pages so that I don't wear them out, LOL! I am really loving the Neurology and Special Senses section, it is soooooo fascinating, I love the cosultations, the discharge summaries, the office note, etc. I think I have found my calling. I totally get this section, all of it. Some of the other sections, I learned, but didn't feel like I really understood them, this one was different. I truly enjoyed it. I learned soooo much in this section. I scored higher on the exercises and the exam and it looks like I am doing better on the transcribing. I don't know it is just a feeling I have right now. I am almost done with this section. I have a couple more transcriptions, then the transcription exam and then on to Endocrine. I am dreading this next section, not because of what it is, but because before I do the transcription for this section, I have to take the midterm and that TERRIFIES me. I know I will study hard for this, but I really don't know if I have really reatained alot of it, oh well, I guess time will tell.
On a different note, I am going to lunch with a friend I have not seen in over a year. We live in the same town, but rarely ever get to see each other. I am pretty excited. I have known Laura for over 18 years and miss her. We have alot to catch up on and I know lunch will be fun.
My AF daughter and her hubby will be home in 15 days, I am very excited about this. They will be staying with my mom. We don't have any beds for them to sleep in, except Jamies' brothers twin bed and I know they wouldn't be comfy in that. Mom has a big condo with lots of room and her basement is like a small apartment with bedroom, bathroom, and living room, so they should be good there. While they are home we will be celebrating Jamies' 24th birthday(October 19th), Alex's 21st birthday(October 20th) and their 1st anniversary. They were married almost 1 year ago in a tiny village of Italy. They were married by that towns Mayor. How cool is that? Unfortunately, I could not attend, but I do have lot of pics and am so happy for them.
Well, I am getting very sleepy, no "ugly" place again tomorrow, YEAH!! Plan to study, organize my notebooks a bit better, go to lunch with Laura and relax in the evening with hubby, so till tomorrow, TTYL

Busy day

It is truly Monday and I am just about ready to hit the sack, but thought that since I had not written in a few days, that maybe I should.
I woke up this moring really not wanting to go to the "ugly" place. I am gettig to dread it more and more. The more I progress in my transcription course, the more I dread that place. It is really hard to be cheery with the customers when you know that it doesn't matter what you do it is never right. Oh well, enough about that.
I took the nervous system and special senses exam tonight and scored a 100%, wow, I could not believe that. I really enjoyed this section, so much to learn, but it was fascinating. Of course every chapter has been, LOL! I also typed 3 practice transcriptions. So I am doing pretty good, still on track, for me, anyway. I need to finish the transcriptions for this chapter and then do the final and then on to the endocrine system and after that the dreaded mid-term exam. I am still nervous about this. I have tried to take very good notes so that I shouldn't have too much of a problem, it is that I just want to do so well. I do not like getting lower tha a 90% on anything. I guess I will just take my time studying for the mid-term and we shall see how I do. But first I need to get through the rest of the nervous system ad then the endocrine system. I guess I am stressing before I even need too, LOL!
Well, early day tomorrow, then 2 days off, yeah!! So till next time. TTYL :)

Gettin' Lazy

Ok, where have I been? I have been here everyday, but I have been very lazy lately and not keeping up with my blogging. Actually, there isn't anything really exciting happening in my life so I decided to not bore anyone that really reads this. I do have some exciting news, at least to me it is. I just got my Ortho Transcription Exam back and I got a 98.6 percent on it. I am sooooo thrilled and surprised. I thought I did ok on this one, but I never dreamed I would get that high of a grade, GO ME!! My mistakes were once again the dreaded comma and hyphen. I don't think I will ever get those two punctuation marks, ugh!! I am making good progress in the course. I am setting all my goals I have for myself and then some. I am sooooooo excited about this career.
Tomorrow I am going to attend the prospective new student webinar and try and pump up some other person and get them really interested in TRSI and the medical transcription career. Then I will glance through my notes once again and take the Nervous System and Special Senses exam and then it is on to the transcriptions for this section. I love it when I get to the transcriptions, it means I am accomplishing another milestone and moving on with the course.
This Sunday my daughter has the day off, I am so hoping she brings the grandkids over. I miss them so very much. I get a bit jealous, because my SIL mom sees the kids everyday and gets all that intereaction with them. She babysits for them on a daily basis and takes Ethan to school his three days a week he goes. She sees so much more than I do, but truthfully I think I treasure the time with them more. If I were to babysit them everyday it would be like they were my children, not my grandchildren. I guess hubby and I are going to have the kids for a couple nights the end of the month. Their mom and dad are going to Kentucky to visit a friend and leaving the kids here. I can not wait to spoil them rotten!!
Well, I am getting very tired and time for bed, I guess. So I will TTYL!!