RAVE HERE thread

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
Hey, now... I love the cranberry-slab-in-a-can! :laugh:.

Yup, and when you can get it out in one piece and put it on the table shaped like a can, well that just makes my Thanksgiving.
 
I think I always found the a/d least offensive... can't speak to the taste, though! :laugh:

The grayness and weird texture of canine k/d scares me a little.

I was told of a guy who backpacks a lot and always brings a can of cat food with him in case he gets lost.
 
Yup, and when you can get it out in one piece and put it on the table shaped like a can, well that just makes my Thanksgiving.

Right on. :laugh:

I was told of a guy who backpacks a lot and always brings a can of cat food with him in case he gets lost.
😱!

I can think of a lot of cheap and far less horrifying foodstuffs one might find in a can. Like, say... tuna. Or fruit. Or gelatinous cranberry sauce. Or maybe even Spam. (I'm not quite that adventurous.) For the love of dog, why cat food?
 
Last edited:
I'm making excellent progress on my honours thesis :soexcited:

I am learning sooo many cool things about parasites!

The only downside so far is that there isn't much literature on the topic I chose... there are lots of papers from China and India, but little from Atlantic Canada... or even North America.... and when I do find an excellent article, it's usually published in an obsure little journal which I can't get my hands on.

It would be pretty neat if I discovered a new species, which is slightly possible considering the lack of experimentation done in my region.

I'm probably getting a little ahead of myself, but you never know.
 
Yup, and when you can get it out in one piece and put it on the table shaped like a can, well that just makes my Thanksgiving.

....I think I just threw up a little....
 
Got accepted to a summer internship at a wild horse sanctuary! Super excited about it! I'm gonna be like ten hours away from my friends and family on my birthday (for which my mom will kill me, most likely), which will be kind of a bummer, but I think it'll be worth it.

But now I'm nervous about being that far north. :laugh:
 
Yup, and when you can get it out in one piece and put it on the table shaped like a can, well that just makes my Thanksgiving.

I love that stuff! I'm usually not big into canned stuff, but that's always been my exception. As a kid, my uncle used to get me a can of cranberry sauce for my birthday as a gag gift. Every year. 😀
 
As a kid, my uncle used to get me a can of cranberry sauce for my birthday as a gag gift. Every year. 😀

Ha ha! Is your birthday even around the holidays? That would be super funny say, in July.
 
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
Way to go EvilShoe!! :luck::luck: (1 for each interview 🙂)

My rave is simply two words: Thunder Snow!!!! 😀
 
I dunno if I've ever experienced thunder snow here in OK. Sorry to disappoint, cowgirla...

I kinda just wish it would snow again. BUT... not until at least Monday.

(I realize that there is entirely TOO much snow up North in some places, so I'm just offering to share the load a bit. Some nice, thick white snow and maybe a day off from school and work... sounds nice. I want to build a snowman.)
 
My rave is simply two words: Thunder Snow!!!! 😀

So. Jealous. I don't think I've seen thunder snow since I lived in Maryland (half a lifetime ago).

If you happen to live on the eastern seaboard south of southern New England... send some of that my way! 👍
 
Waah? I've never heard of thundersnow. But I'm jealous, it sounds really cool just from the two words combined!

Oh, and I must add, I had the most ridiculous day at work. I was working reception and had my chihuahua hanging out at the front desk with me. Hospital kitty comes over - they usually ignore each other, but he starts petting/tapping her. Moves on to licking her, and then picks up her scruff in his mouth. She didn't seem to mind at all. It was so crazy to see.
And earlier in the day, we had a woman come in who was all stressed out over her dog eating chocolate, so she held my dog to comfort her while she waited. She came back later to pick up her dog, but her son took the dog home and she spent probably 30 minutes cooing sweet nothings to my baby and saying that she would take her to coffee with her when she walked by in the mornings (she lives nearby) and that she could dogsit for me anytime and send her dog away somewhere while mine was there. It got a bit excessive. I usually have several people who threaten to take her home with them, but this lady.. wow..
Oh, and before that, we had this weird woman who couldn't get her little dog out of the car for some reason, so she came in, scooped my doggy off the counter, and took her out to the car to .. who knows what.. point her at her dog? I don't get it. I just picked up her dog and brought him inside. Twas odd. And my girly had quite the day!
 
Last edited:
Having a GREAT day. Anatomy quiz was easier than expected, spent an hour learning different types of sutures and knots in the VTH, won a stethoscope (a day after I buy myself one!), and I got all my studying done this afternoon so now I can have a nice relaxing evening with a glass of wine!

And as an additional plus, learning "practical" skills in the teaching hospital helped to reaffirm why I'm here and why I want to do this. It was a needed change from the nonstop studying and lecture classes. 👍
 
I love that stuff! I'm usually not big into canned stuff, but that's always been my exception. As a kid, my uncle used to get me a can of cranberry sauce for my birthday as a gag gift. Every year. 😀

I get made fun of by my in-laws because I love that stuff too!

Yup, and when you can get it out in one piece and put it on the table shaped like a can, well that just makes my Thanksgiving.
:laugh:
 
Took the GRE this morning. I have a cold, plus I'm still recovering from an emergency wisdom tooth extraction. But, I managed to reach my goal as far as the score was concerned, and I'm feeling confident that I can up my score if I decide to take it again when I'm healthier and better prepared. Now it's time for a celebratory nap.
 
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
My rave is simply two words: Thunder Snow!!!! 😀

It sounds like some kind of 1980's cartoon super-hero character.
 
I have an interview invite for this AWESOME giant emergency hospital/shelter that I have been trying to squeeze my way into for the last 2 years! SO EXCITED! If they schedule it for next week, that means Tufts interview and potential job interview in the same week 🙂
Congrats, TheEvilShoe! Please keep us posted on how it goes!!!

Took the GRE this morning. I have a cold, plus I'm still recovering from an emergency wisdom tooth extraction. But, I managed to reach my goal as far as the score was concerned, and I'm feeling confident that I can up my score if I decide to take it again when I'm healthier and better prepared. Now it's time for a celebratory nap.

bee83, for my personal experience, my testtaking skills suck! (standardized anyways). Nice outlook - definitely take it when you're better! (The stress of the GRE might have not helped your immune system much...I know I always get sick around standardized test time!) Best of luck with GRE prep & taking!
 
I couldn't even tell you why I let myself get so worked up over VMRCVM yesterday. Sure, I want to go there but really? I wasn't even expecting an interview invitation this cycle, and I ended up with one! Not to mention that everyone that I work with now and everyone at the small animal clinic I was at for like, three years are all excited for me and happy for me and ugh it's just sickening how wonderful the people in my life are 😀
 
I just gotta say that I LOVE my class. We get along so well and it still feels very much like one big family - couldn't be happier with them as a group! Also, one of them finally gave me the perfect idea for the boy's Valentine's present - LEGO Star Wars set! 😀
 
Just got an interview for a PhD program! I would much prefer an acceptance from a vet school but it's nice to know that someplace wants me 🙂
 
Jealous 🙁

So. Jealous. I don't think I've seen thunder snow since I lived in Maryland (half a lifetime ago).

If you happen to live on the eastern seaboard south of southern New England... send some of that my way! 👍

Sorry to bring on the jealousy. If it's any condolence, as awesome as it was, I ended up standing in the middle of the main drag near my apartment at 6:15am yesterday morning in HIGH hopes a plow or state vehicle would come along to get me to work. Oh the joys of being 'essential' personnel. Thankfully all worked out - even though it took almost 2 hours. And CT, I think it did head your way; but only with a mission to just DUMP on NE. Sorry!!

Waah? I've never heard of thundersnow. But I'm jealous, it sounds really cool just from the two words combined!

It IS really cool!! I LOVE a thunderstorm with snow. The lightning that flashes while the snow is falling is an amazing weather phenomenon!!

It sounds like some kind of 1980's cartoon super-hero character.

:laugh: This was the closest thing I could find: http://dcist.com/2009/12/kneel_before_thundersnow.php
 
I just signed up to volunteer at an exotic pet store/rescue. They were soooo nice. And I actually found the animals there to be somewhat cute (although I think I'll stick to SA). Anyways, I'm kinda kicking myself for not doing this sooner since so far I only have SA experience. If I don't get into vet school this round, though, my application is going to be rocking next year! Might as well lay the groundwork now! 🙂
 
I just signed up to volunteer at an exotic pet store/rescue. They were soooo nice. And I actually found the animals there to be somewhat cute (although I think I'll stick to SA). Anyways, I'm kinda kicking myself for not doing this sooner since so far I only have SA experience. If I don't get into vet school this round, though, my application is going to be rocking next year! Might as well lay the groundwork now! 🙂

I'm so envious!!!!

RAVE OF THE DAY: I love cows. I love the LA vet I was shadowing. I love reading. I love deep breaths & endorphins at the gym. (My positivity is driving me crazy.....ahhh!)

Also: if anyone knows how to ride horses, I really want to learn. any advice?? (I might wait til I get to vet school or when I have time off!)
 
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
Also: if anyone knows how to ride horses, I really want to learn. any advice?? (I might wait til I get to vet school or when I have time off!)

I've been riding for almost 13 years, have two horses, and am on the Ohio State Hunt Seat Equestrian Team. My biggest advice to you would be to find a GOOD barn with good, quiet lesson horses to learn on. Perhaps go to a local tack shop and ask who they recommend. Nothing will turn you off to horses faster than going to a barn that puts riders in dangerous situations by overmounting them or being lax on safety measures.

I am a TOTAL safety stickler, so this is really important to me. Riding is a dangerous sport, and the key to making it fun is keeping the rider safe during the learning phase, when they're getting comfortable on horseback, getting their balance worked out, using the muscles you use for riding that you didn't even know you had, and developing what we call "feel." Gaining that initial confidence is key to later success.

Also, I tell everybody who is starting out riding that I would suggest learning to ride English, and then later if you decide you'd like to ride Western switching to that. Technically good riding is good riding and you shouldn't do TOO much different between the disciplines, but I've seen a lot of riders who have only ever ridden Western use end up using the saddle as a crutch, and then you put them in an English saddle and they have a really hard time. That's compared to the English riders I've seen go Western that have a very easy time making the switch because they've developed more of an independent seat.

Finally PLEASE, no matter what discipline you do, wear an ASTM/SEI certified helmet. I have ridden thousands of times and have only fallen off about seven or eight times, but each of those times I knocked my head on the ground/a fence pretty good and would have seriously injured myself if I hadn't had a helmet on. People complain about them being hot/heavy/uncomfortable (which I've never had any of these problems, and you shouldn't with a properly fitted helmet), but I just don't think it's worth the risk-this noggin's gotta get me through vet school, dangit!

If you have any other questions, let me know-I'd love to help!
 
Wow, thanks so much for the advice 😀 If more questions arise, I will definitely ask them 👍 I've always wanted a horse & to have riding lessons, but money & time has always been an issue. But I think horses are amazing creatures (just like about all other animals on the planet for me!) and I would love the opportunity to learn more about them! Is there an average cost for lessons/what isn't too high of a price? (I know this may be a silly question...I don't want to go for free but I don't want to be swindled 😱)

I've been riding for almost 13 years, have two horses, and am on the Ohio State Hunt Seat Equestrian Team. My biggest advice to you would be to find a GOOD barn with good, quiet lesson horses to learn on. Perhaps go to a local tack shop and ask who they recommend. Nothing will turn you off to horses faster than going to a barn that puts riders in dangerous situations by overmounting them or being lax on safety measures.

I am a TOTAL safety stickler, so this is really important to me. Riding is a dangerous sport, and the key to making it fun is keeping the rider safe during the learning phase, when they're getting comfortable on horseback, getting their balance worked out, using the muscles you use for riding that you didn't even know you had, and developing what we call "feel." Gaining that initial confidence is key to later success.

Also, I tell everybody who is starting out riding that I would suggest learning to ride English, and then later if you decide you'd like to ride Western switching to that. Technically good riding is good riding and you shouldn't do TOO much different between the disciplines, but I've seen a lot of riders who have only ever ridden Western use end up using the saddle as a crutch, and then you put them in an English saddle and they have a really hard time. That's compared to the English riders I've seen go Western that have a very easy time making the switch because they've developed more of an independent seat.

Finally PLEASE, no matter what discipline you do, wear an ASTM/SEI certified helmet. I have ridden thousands of times and have only fallen off about seven or eight times, but each of those times I knocked my head on the ground/a fence pretty good and would have seriously injured myself if I hadn't had a helmet on. People complain about them being hot/heavy/uncomfortable (which I've never had any of these problems, and you shouldn't with a properly fitted helmet), but I just don't think it's worth the risk-this noggin's gotta get me through vet school, dangit!

If you have any other questions, let me know-I'd love to help!
 
Also: if anyone knows how to ride horses, I really want to learn. any advice?? (I might wait til I get to vet school or when I have time off!)

I would absolutely, 100% start with lessons. I would research facilities and visit them (preferably unannounced) before signing anything or paying any money. It would be good if you could observe a lesson and see what the instructor is like. Horses should be healthy-looking (well fed, especially) and preferably happy looking. Ask how frequently schooling horses are used, how riders are evaluated and what kinds of instructors they have. The facility should require EVERYONE to wear a properly certified helmet and appropriate footwear. Like EllieG says, safety should be their #1 priority in regards to their clients. If you see people riding in shorts and sneakers and helmetless, whaling away on their pony with a stick while their instructor screams bloody murder at them, it's probably not a good place. Trust your instincts.

As for price, I'm currently paying $35 per one hour group lesson. Prices generally don't dip below that but can go far higher! Private lessons are more expensive and it all generally depends on the facility and the quality of horses, instructors, etc. While you should be careful not to get swindled, you should also be careful not to pay very little and get poor quality in return.

Anyway, good luck to you. I've been riding English since 7 or 8 and its such a peaceful, happy getaway from real life. PM me if you have any questions 🙂
 
That's compared to the English riders I've seen go Western that have a very easy time making the switch because they've developed more of an independent seat.

How weird, my experience is almost the exact opposite. I've noticed a lot of English->Western riders have issues sitting the canter (English saddles can hide a rider's tendency to polish the saddle, but it becomes really obvious in a western saddle) and they tend to lean forward when they get into the western saddle. I will say though that I agree with you in that I see a lot of western riders who use the saddle as a crutch, but they tend to be riders who are self-taught, not ones that took lessons with a reputable instructor.
 
For those of you with horse riding experience, how often do you ride/take lessons? How often would you recommend for a beginner to take lessons?
 
For those of you with horse riding experience, how often do you ride/take lessons? How often would you recommend for a beginner to take lessons?

When I was just starting to ride as a kid, I took a lesson once a week - more in the summer at camp, and went along like that for many years. During college I rode nearly daily, and took lessons once a week or every other week or so. For a while, I owned 3 horses, so I was riding at least one horse a day 5-6 days a week, or sometimes all three. Similarly when I was working in various barns, I rode a number of horses a day.

Now I ride 3-5 days a week, with lessons generally once or twice a week. I am down to one horse (which is OMG so much easier to deal with).

For beginners, I'd recommend starting out with one lesson a week. Make sure you actually enjoy it, and that you like the barn you're at and the instructor you're riding with. As you get better, if you love what you're doing, you may be able to pick up free rides on horses during the week to practice what you're learning in your lessons, or increase the number of lessons you're taking.

Lesson prices vary WIDELY depending on what part of the country you're in. I ride with a Grand Prix jumper rider who has absurdly low prices, but typically $40-45 is minimum for a private or semi-private lesson.
 
How weird, my experience is almost the exact opposite. I've noticed a lot of English->Western riders have issues sitting the canter (English saddles can hide a rider's tendency to polish the saddle, but it becomes really obvious in a western saddle) and they tend to lean forward when they get into the western saddle. I will say though that I agree with you in that I see a lot of western riders who use the saddle as a crutch, but they tend to be riders who are self-taught, not ones that took lessons with a reputable instructor.

That might be true, but the stuff you're talking about mostly is minor equitation flaws. I'm talking about, I've seen people who have only ever ridden Western have trouble riding AT ALL in an English saddle, because there's pretty much nothing there, whereas a Western saddle kind of holds on to YOU. Even if you aren't consciously using it as a crutch, just the nature of the saddle itself is far more forgiving than an English saddle. I even speak for myself with this-I started out riding English, that's how I learned. Then when I got my first horse I rode her Western for a long time, and when I got back in an English saddle it was a lot to get used to again. I felt really insecure for a while. Now I have no problem switching back and forth, but I would always advise a beginner to learn English first. Anyway, cowgirla is right, English is more fun 😛

As for prices, currently with the OSU team I'm paying $36 per group lesson. I'm lucky enough that there's only one other person in my lesson, so that makes it actually semi-private, but usually there are 4-6 people in those lessons. As a beginner, I HIGHLY suggest starting out with private lessons before you get into lessons where you have to worry about not running into other horses along with everything else. Riding is the ultimate test of multi-tasking. To get private lessons at a good, reputable barn where the horses are happy and well-schooled and everything is clean and cared for, I'd expect to pay probably around $50 a lesson. Not to say you can't find it cheaper, but I would probably expect that to be average.

Riding time for me has been really low lately. Anymore I'm only riding once a week at my Eq team lessons, and when I go home I might ride each horse once on a weekend. In the summer I ride a lot more. A couple years ago when I was working at a breeding farm doing pretty much everything under the sun I was cleaning stalls then riding a two year old and an older horse, then going home and riding my three. So I was riding five horses about five days a week. As soon as I stopped that I got fat. lol But as a beginner I would say once a week lessons should suffice. Every other week you would probably forget a lot of things and would end up sore more often, whereas if you ride every week it's not too much to be cost prohibitive but it's still enough time to hone your skills and gain confidence.
 
Found an awesome internship to apply for (zoo)! Alsoooooo, started volunteering with the techs at the shelter I've been with for four years and it turns out that the veterinarian is there the day I'm working! So it counts as vet experience (I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to count it because the vet wasn't technically overseeing me, it was the head tech)!!!!! SOOOO EXCITED! And I'll probably be able to get a letter from her! :soexcited:
 
RAVE: I love this network/forum so much. I'm so glad I found out about it and am even happier I started posting over just lurking. These past few days, my fellow SDN-ers are the only people who really understand my situation of vet school & the app process. Short story for people who haven't seen my recent posts (not everyone's a creeper/stalker like me :laugh: I'm j/k by the way....): I received my 1st (and maybe only) acceptance :xf: from Oregon. I knew by odds going into this and am so grateful & honored to have gotten an offer. Anyone outside the forum essentially has just said "Congrats, but we knew you would get in. Gosh, you just like to worry." From what the forum has taught me, this isn't true. I'm my own worst enemy but I know there are many applicants WAAAAAY better than myself (I'm not looking for an ego boost, just being humble & honest). So, moral of this post: :biglove::biglove::biglove: to everyone on SDN. Thank you. You all keep me swimming above the waves rather than drowning. Each of you is awesome and I wish you the best luck forever ad infinitum (?)/"to infinity & beyond!"

I would absolutely, 100% start with lessons. I would research facilities and visit them (preferably unannounced) before signing anything or paying any money. It would be good if you could observe a lesson and see what the instructor is like. Horses should be healthy-looking (well fed, especially) and preferably happy looking. Ask how frequently schooling horses are used, how riders are evaluated and what kinds of instructors they have. The facility should require EVERYONE to wear a properly certified helmet and appropriate footwear. Like EllieG says, safety should be their #1 priority in regards to their clients. If you see people riding in shorts and sneakers and helmetless, whaling away on their pony with a stick while their instructor screams bloody murder at them, it's probably not a good place. Trust your instincts.

PM me if you have any questions 🙂

I'm especially worried about falling prey to swindlers 😀 I will take you up on the PM offer once I do some research & figure out WHEN I can fit lessons into my schedule & budget 👍

Found an awesome internship to apply for (zoo)! Alsoooooo, started volunteering with the techs at the shelter I've been with for four years and it turns out that the veterinarian is there the day I'm working!

WOOOOO! Congrats, NStarz! That is awesome news. I'm envious 😉
 
Anyone outside the forum essentially has just said "Congrats, but we knew you would get in. Gosh, you just like to worry."

A lot of my family has this attitude, and even though I haven't even applied anywhere yet, some of them seem surprised when I mention that I haven't been accepted anywhere. This bothers me, because instead of actually realizing what an insanely busy and hard-working person I am who is still struggling to be a competitive applicant, they just assume I will get in because they think I'm smart! I know they think they are being supportive by assuming it's no contest, or by introducing me to other people as their "niece who is a veterinarian," but it's not! It just makes me feel pressured and feel like they don't understand how difficult of a task it is to be doing what I'm trying to do.
Sorry, that's a rant not a rave. I love this forum too 🙂
 
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
Ben Folds rescheduled his Tulsa show, so I don't have to worry about trying to make it down the turnpike in my Civic to see his show. Also, he responded to me and another 'Rhiannon' (my friend from OSU, life bonded by our stories of terrible pronunciations of our name) on Twitter... we were tweeting about wanting to come but not being able to drive in that much snow, and he said that they "can't play a show low on Rhiannons." SOOOO CUTE! I love him.

Still not a single flake has fallen, but I'm assuming the weather people are serious about this 100% chance, 8-12 inches, blizzard warning. Suppose we shall see. 🙂

Also... squeeeeee Ben Folds!

screenshot of tweet 🙂
 
Ben Folds rescheduled his Tulsa show, so I don't have to worry about trying to make it down the turnpike in my Civic to see his show. Also, he responded to me and another 'Rhiannon' (my friend from OSU, life bonded by our stories of terrible pronunciations of our name) on Twitter... we were tweeting about wanting to come but not being able to drive in that much snow, and he said that they "can't play a show low on Rhiannons." SOOOO CUTE! I love him.

Still not a single flake has fallen, but I'm assuming the weather people are serious about this 100% chance, 8-12 inches, blizzard warning. Suppose we shall see. 🙂

Also... squeeeeee Ben Folds!

screenshot of tweet 🙂

That's awesome TT👍
 
Ben Folds rescheduled his Tulsa show, so I don't have to worry about trying to make it down the turnpike in my Civic to see his show. Also, he responded to me and another 'Rhiannon' (my friend from OSU, life bonded by our stories of terrible pronunciations of our name) on Twitter... we were tweeting about wanting to come but not being able to drive in that much snow, and he said that they "can't play a show low on Rhiannons." SOOOO CUTE! I love him.

Still not a single flake has fallen, but I'm assuming the weather people are serious about this 100% chance, 8-12 inches, blizzard warning. Suppose we shall see. 🙂

Also... squeeeeee Ben Folds!

screenshot of tweet 🙂

That is pretty amazing!

When is the snow/ice supposed to start there? 10 pm and later tonight is supposed to be when the fun stuff starts. We got some preliminary rain earlier today... which will freeze. I'm excited.... Except they are predicting power outages for STL so that's not so cool.
 
Does snow move North like that? Uh... hm. I thought weather... I dunno. My meteorological cluelessness is showing.

Are you getting a different storm then the one hitting the Eastern seaboard? I thought I heard the weather forecast tonight say something about this gigantic storm that's effecting half the continent.

Whatever New York/Boston gets today, we get tomorrow, without fail.
 
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
Top Bottom