Colorado Academy of Audiology

Last weekend was the Colorado Academy of Audiology (CAA) Convention.  It was located in Breckenridge, CO.  I must say, that was one of the most gorgeous drives I have ever been on.  It started on Thursday and went through Saturday afternoon.  I had a great time.  I took a really great class that was 6 hours long on cerumen management (essentially an ear wax removal course).  The last 2 hours of it were hands on practice with all the different instrument options for removing wax. 



This dress in NOT as short as it looks - it's actually very appropriate... usually. 
And you should be looking at the fancy head gear anyways. 





Inserting the speculum (and as you can see the dress length looks better now)

 

The serious microscope - this is what our ENT uses to do wax removal

Cerumen management is a part of my scope of practice for audiology (at least in most states it is).  However, in my audiology program, we do not have a single class providing training on how to properly remove wax from the ear.  Yet, once I graduate, I am free to perform wax removal on my patients and say that I am a professional and licensed to do this procedure.  Is it just me or does that sound ridiculous to anyone else too?  Aside from being familiar with the anatomy of the ear and outer ear pathologies, what makes me any more capable of removing wax that the "average Joe" on the street without training?  Therefore, it was very important to me that I got into this class.  They only allowed 30 participants, but luckily I was one of them. 

There was only one down side to the class.  During the hands on section, we got to practice removing wax from the other people in the class.  We practiced on each other, but nobody in my group had enough wax in their ears to bother removing.  Needless to say, it is hard to practice removing wax from the ear when there is no wax in the ear to begin with.  But, because I took the class, my supervisors will allow me to start doing some wax removal in clinic, with their supervision of course.  So I will still get the proper hands on training I feel I should have before graduating! 

Surprisingly, this wax removal course was my highlight of the convention for me.  Since the course took most of the day, there were only a couple of lectures I got to see after it was done and the next morning I attended an interesting lecture by Chuck Berlin.  Thursday and Friday nights were both eventful.  They provided a couple of free drinks each night for some socializing.  On Friday night a bunch of us went out to downtown Breckenridge for a late night.  It was a great time!  It is a very cute city too, and of course the scenery was beautiful. 

Out in downtown Breckenridge with one of my favorites!



Sweet view from the ski resort the convention was held at



The colors are starting to change!

My Family Rocks!

My family rocks! 

My excitement has been building all week long for this past weekend to arrive.  Boyfriend has been hinting to me all week that something wonderful was going to happen.  I was given strict instructions to call him when I got to my car to come home after clinic on Friday.  From there I would be given further instructions.  I was instructed to go to Kohl's for 10-15 minutes to "look around for awhile and see if there's anything I like." From there, I was told to go to the grocery store for a 12-pack, some 7-up, and to pick up a little something for myself (I would be lying if I said the thought of us "celebrating" something that night never crossed my mind).  From there, I was told to call on my way home and Boyfriend met me outside to help bring the groceries in. 

When I walked inside, I immediately emptied my hands so I could throw my arms around MY DAD!!!!!  I walked in to find him hanging out in my kitchen!  Several hugs and kisses later, I finally made my way to the livingroom.  I could not believe my eyes when I saw GRANDPA sitting around the corner by the patio door!!!!  BEST SURPRISE EVER!!!! 



My reaction to seeing DAD!!!!!



G-pa came too!!!!!

Dad and G-pa have both had surgeries recently, so apparently they decided to come out here to visit before Dad had to go back to work!  Friday night we kept low key and just went out for a nice dinner.  On Saturday we went out to breakfast at a place called Rosie's that Dad really liked the first time he was here.  Then we went to the Coors Brewery.  We were able to take a modified tour that is shorter and uses the elevators so my visitors wouldn't over-due it on their legs. 

Coors Brewery

   

Harvest Moon



From there we did a little sight seeing and Boyfriend and I took them to see the beautiful view we had from the trail head of our most recent hike.   

 

Happiness!

 

Downtown Golden (and Down Denver in the distant background)

On Sunday we went to Garden of the Gods.  There was a part of the park we didn't go to the first time Dad was here and it didn't involve too much walking around so G-pa could handle it. 



Balanced Rock



G-pa!

We went to the US Air Force Academy on the way home.  We all know how much G-pa loves planes.  We caught one last dinner together and then I went back to the hotel with them to squeeze in a little more Dad and G-pa time before they had to go home in the morning. 

It was a FANTASTIC surprise!!!!!  LOVE YOU DAD and G-PA!!!  Please come again! 

Externship Update

I am loving my externship!  I the hospital, I love the Audiologists, I love the work atmosphere, I love the many awesome friends I've made through working ("working") here, and I love this city!!!!!!

The first month and a half of my externship was spent doing hearing evaluations and working with hearing aids for the most part.  The great thing about learning at this clinic is that we see a large variety of patients.  About one half day each week I found myself working with developmentally delayed patients who can be very difficult to test.  We also see a lot of interesting ear disorders that you wouldn't typically see at a smaller clinic as well as asymmetrical hearing losses.  Although I will have rotations in the different specialty areas of audiology throughout the year, I will continue to do hearing tests and hearing aid clinic part time the entire time I'm here in order to keep my foot in the door of some of the basics in audiology. 

About a month ago, I started my first rotation.... the vestibular (balance) rotation!  I was so excited to start this rotation because vestibular is the area of audiology that I think I want to do more with when I graduate.  I was also nervous though because I have not had much experience with vestibular testing before coming here.  Another bonus to this externship placement, is that they know that vestibular is an interest of mine, so they put me in it first and mentioned they will probably keep me doing at least one half day of vestibular testing each week for the rest of my time here so I don't "lose" anything I'm l learn during the rotation.  The last month or two of my externship I may be placed in it again to get me the most of what I want to do in audiology right before leaving.  The best news so far..... I am getting some very positive feedback on my performance so far in this rotation!!!!!  In the first week I was told I exceeded their expectations.  Now they are getting picky with the things they want me to work on and are merely "fine tuning" my testing and interpretation skills for VEMPs (Vestibular Evoked Myogenic Potentials) and VNGs (Videonystagmography).  I have only done the rotary chair test once and posturography once, so those skills still have a ways to go.  I also work in the BPPV (Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo) clinic every Tuesday morning with one of the neurotologists.  I love this clinic.  If we suspect a patient has BPPV we schedule them for BPPV clinic instead of doing the full VNG evaluation.  If they are positive for BPPV then the neurotologist (with my assistance) does the modified Epley maneuver to get rid of the dizziness right away.  It is so much fun to "cure" the dizziness because this is the only type of dizziness we can cure! 

This past weekend I also helped out at the Hearing Health Fair put on by Cochlear.  I helped with the hearing screenings for a few hours, and then joined the UCH booth for a few more hours before going home.  Not the best way to spend my Saturday, but... I guess I'm already volunteering 5 days a week, why not throw in the occasional Saturday too! 

My most interesting/memorable patients so far: 
*A developmentally delayed patient who very much looks and acts like a developmentally delayed version of a guy I know in Wisconsin.  I haven't told this person I met the DD version of himself... he may not like it. 
*A patient without a middle or inner ear!  No eardrum or anything.  It looked like a long curvy tube that never ended. 
*A patient with the outer ear closed off.  Imagine the ear canal pinched off about half way in, before reaching the eardrum. 
*Fitting a "VIP" couple with a set of hearing aids each. 
*Trying to sell a set of hearing aids to a 14 year old girl who has never worn them before.  Once she saw them, she instantly decided she could hear "fine" and doesn't need any help.  Time to bring out the big guns because this girl's education would have suffered had she not gotten hearing aids. 

I'm sure there are some more interesting high points and interesting patients, but I can't think of any more right now. 

Coming up at the end of the month is the Colorado Academy of Audiology in Breckenridge!  Can't wait! 

Our Second Adventure

Boyfriend and I went on our second hike last weekend. My goal is to go on one hike every weekend. We'll see how long it lasts, but so far we're 2 for 2.

Mesa Trail

Boyfriend and I took off on Monday (Labor Day) morning for Eldorado Springs for our second hike. We stopped by the trail head to find out which trail(s) to follow. This area has a ton of trails that meet up with each other, so you can choose how many miles you want to hike and then find a combination of trails that will make it work for you. The main trail we followed was called the Mesa Trail, but we actually followed Homestead Trail up the foothill (What I consider to be a mountain the locals here call foothills. Apparently the mountains are the really, really big ones behind the foothills), met up with Mesa Trail and followed Mesa Trail back down.

The trail head warned us that we were in rattlesnake country. Prairie rattlesnakes to be specific. They apparently habitat in abandoned prairie dog holes. If we get bit, don't panic and seek medical attention immediately and "do not attempt to suck out the venom via another person's mouth!" I want to know who thought that would be a good idea!

In addition to rattlesnakes, there are also black bears and mountain lions in the area. A list of what to do should you come across one of these animals followed. It had crossed my mind that this may not be the smartest or safest place to hike, but the large number of people that seemed to be hiking in the area convinced me that the black bear and mountain lion sightings must be somewhat rare. Otherwise, I don't think the trails would have been so popular. So, on we went.

A view from the beginning of the trail leading into the foothill

Officially in the foothills, the trail continues upward

A view of "Devil's Thumb"

One of the many views along the way

View of the city from the peak of our trail. Other trails continue much higher up the foothill, but we're new at this, so we decided not to get too carried away just yet.

The trails we followed totaled a distance of about 3 miles. I give Boyfriend a props for putting up with my constant stopping along the way to take pictures. He was very patient. Finally, we made it back to the car. We looked back at what we had just hiked only to be surprised by....

Smoke! A wildfire had started off in the distance!

We were completely shocked to see a big cloud of smoke (I suppose most people would be). Our first thought was, "It's not supposed to storm today! Then we realized what was going on. I think we were in awe for a few minutes because neither of us had never seen a wildfire before, at least not in person and we never really expected to see one. Also, we had a view of the edge of that foothill for a good portion of the hike and the sky was bright blue with not even one cloud in the sky the whole time we were hiking. In fact, here is a picture of the same view maybe 20 minutes earlier...

Notice the clear blue sky - minutes later it would be filled with a huge cloud of smoke

It was another great day for hiking and another great trail! More to come later on the wildfire.

I leave you with one question that Boyfriend and I have been debating on since starting the trail. Would you rather come across a black bear or a mountain lion while hiking and why?

I would much rather come across a black bear, because they are not naturally aggressive unless provoked, startled, or if you are between a cub and it's mother. Otherwise, it they hear you coming they usually leave the area to avoid humans. Boyfriend, however, is on the side of the mountain lion claiming they'd be easier to fight against since they weigh so much less than a bear.

Happy Trails

One of the adventures I have been looking forward to most since moving to Colorado is hiking on the numerous trails Colorado has to offer. Finally, 2 weekends ago, Boyfriend and I got off our butts and took off early in the morning for our first hike!

Horsethief Falls

Our first trip was to Divide, CO. Divide is a small town about half an hour west of Colorado Springs. It took about 2 hours to drive there (which was completely my bad, it did not look like a 2 hour drive when I was looking at the tiny map on my computer), but at least the scenery was nice to look at. From the time we left the house to the time we arrived, the temperature had dropped approximately 20 degrees. We had gone up in elevation during the drive, but neither of us had realized just how much higher we actually were. We finally found the trail head which is a sign indicating the beginning of the trail and it provided information including a trail map, animals/plants we might see along the way, precautions, and rules/regulations of the trail.

The worth-the-drive view directly across the street from the start of the trail.

Wow. There are no words for how ridiculously worn out I felt only a couple minutes into the trail! The thin air in higher altitudes is no joke! I was huffing and puffing and feeling ridiculous for being so tired so early in the hike. At the same time, though, it felt great! I was out there, in the fresh air, in nature, taking advantage of all Colorado has to offer me and it was so beautiful! I think I've discovered one of my new favorite hobbies!

A couple minutes into the hike, lovin' nature

So, the trail started off pretty tough. It was labeled as a "moderate" hike. Luckily for us out of shape, not used to the thin air, new to hiking "adventurists", it was only a steep incline for about half the hike and then leveled off making the remainder of the hike nice and relaxing stroll through the woods. There were a couple of spots throughout the trail that gave some nice open views.

The first opening in the woods with a random pond

The second opening in the woods - beautiful!

The majority of the trail was alongside a tiny stream and it ended at a cute little waterfall! When I say waterfall, I literally mean and small amount of water, dropping only a couple of yards. But it still worth it to see. We were told by a coulple we ran into that where we were standing for these pictures taken below was approximately 10,000 feet above sea-level. We (I) putzed around for a while taking pictures before turning around and heading back to the car.

The very small white-ish "drip" in the middle of this shop is the waterfall

Close up of the waterfall with the sun peaking through the trees

It's been too long

I have been a very busy girl these days, so I have a lot of catching up to do. First order of business is to answer the question I asked last week. There may only be 2 of you awaiting an answer, but gal darn it you're going to get one!

Truth be told, there are a couple of acceptable ways to clean your ears. Many people have no need to do more than wipe off the outer portion of their ears with a towel or cloth. Wax naturally works its way out of the ear. Some wax is actually a good thing, as it helps protect your ears from bacteria and foreign particles. Many others, though, find it necessary to do more.

One way to clean out your ears is to use a baking soda and water solution. Mix about 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda with 2 ounces of warm water. For convenience, put the solution in a dropper bottle and put several drops into your ear. This will help soften the wax if it is hard in order to help it work it's way out of the ear better.

Another way is to drop hydrogen peroxide in your ears. Only drip a few drops at a time. It will tickle and bubble for a little while, and then tip your head to get the peroxide back out of your ear.

You can also purchase over the counter ear drops used to soften the ear wax to help it move out of the ear canal naturally.

*Warning: Do not use these methods if you suspect you may have a hole in your eardrum. If the drops get behind the eardrum, you would be at risk for infection.

Another option is to see you local ENT or physician for wax removal.

Do NOT use Q-tips people. I know, it is a ridiculously hard habit to crack, but it actually makes the wax situation worse. By using Q-tips, some wax is removed. The wax that touches the Q-tip comes out, but the rest of the wax is actually pushed deeper into the ear canal. This impacts the wax making it more difficult for the wax to work its way out on its own. If you "must" use Q-tips, only use it on the very outer portion of the ear canal to remove what has already working it's way out of the ear. Otherwise, try to steer clear and "don't put anything smaller than your elbow in your ear."

Also, to answer navyguy/navygirl's question: Will wearing ear protection all day do any damage to your ears?

Well, I am going to say, no. Of course I'm sure there are a few random people out there who would love to prove me wrong. At the worst, ear protection worn on a daily basis might stretch your ear out a little. Not a noticeable difference though. It would be no different than wearing hearing aids with a custom earmold for years and years. Occasionally, a new impression may need to be taken to be sure the molds or plugs are fitting well in the ear and are creating a good seal (due to the slight stretching of the ear). Also, you might notice ear wax builds up faster because there is something in your ear blocking the wax from working it's way out. Other than that, there is nothing to worry about. The benefits of custom ear protection is that it will always be inserted correctly in your ear, and therefore will always attenuate sound to the degree that it claims it will (the foam ear plugs actually attenuate sound better when inserted correctly, but when inserted incorrectly do a poorer job of attenuating sound).

Audiology QUIZ

Time to change things up a bit. I am thinking about doing a weekly quiz (and we'll wait and see how long it actually lasts). I like to think of it as Audiology awareness! Once a week I will attempt to post a question related to Audiology in some way. If you want to play along, post your answers in the comments section. A few days later I will post the answer.

• Question #1

What is the best way to clean the wax out of your ears?

COMPASS Clinic

As promised, it is time to talk to you about COMPASS clinic. COMPASS Clinic (or team clinic) is a multi-disciplinary approach to caring for a patient. My placement offers this clinic once a month, every second Friday of the month. COMPASS clinic stands for Colorado Multi-Disciplinary Program for Assessment, Strategies, & Support. K-Mo's and my job is to coordinate the whole day. We arrange the families that are invited to attend the clinic and make sure they are dedicated to showing up for it. There are usually 3 children who attend the COMPASS clinic. We mail them some forms to fill out regarding their history, family history, health, professionals they work with (for example: teachers, family physician, speech pathologist), etc. When they send it back, we contact the other professionals to get any relevant info they have on the child and write up a summary. Then we send the summary out to all professionals the child sees the day of the COMPASS clinic. K-Mo and I schedule the appointments and send the family their schedule for the day, a list of what to bring and some info regarding what to expect the day of. We each stay with one of the families throughout the day and act as their support for the day. We coordinate and assist. The day of, they see some or all of the following: an audiologist, the ENT who is a neurotologist, a developmental pediatrician, a genetics counselor, a psychologist who specializes in Deafness and Autism, and a parent and a patient advocate. We go with them to each appointments and make note of their concerns for their child and their goals for their child's future. Over lunch, we all meet in the conference room to discuss the children seen in the COMPASS clinic and review the findings of the morning appointments. Then, at the end of the day, we all get together again to review the findings of the afternoon appointments. Finally, K-Mo and I write up the recommendations from each professional seen that day and get it to the child's family in the next week. By the time we're done, we get to start preparing for the next one!

So... it's a lot of work, but this clinic is pretty awesome. I learned so much in only a single day, and the families who need it had the opportunity to have their child cared for in a more well-rounded fashion and they get all of their questions answered. The day itself can be overwhelming, but the families leave feeling truly grateful! I still can't believe how much I learned during this clinic. I am thinking about using the little guy I accompanied for my next grand rounds project, so you will probably hear all about him in the near future.

Weekend Update

The Milwaukee Brewers were in town, so we had to hit up a few of the games! We left as soon as I got home from clinic on Friday and headed for the lightrail. For $7.00 round trip, it sure beats dealing with traffic and paying for parking downtown. We made it to our seats (in the nose-bleed section) just in time for the game to start. It was a good game, but unfortunately, Brewer's lost. Coors Field is a nice ball park though. All the seats are angled towards home plate and the Rockie's fans are civil! Of course the random "Brewer's suck!" comments are expected, but that was the extent of the hassling we got from the home team fans.

Sweet hat some girl we met at Swanky's made.

On Saturday, we went back for more! Another night game, and another ride on the lightrail. This time the Brewer's walked away with a WIN! Ready to celebrate, we headed to Swanky's! Swanky's is a sweet Packer bar just down the road from Coors Field. There was Packer paraphernalia everywhere, and it was packed with Brewer fans after the game, AND some Brewer's themselves. None of them were familiar to me though (in other words, they were not the hot shots). We had a fantastic waitress who served me what might be the greatest drink ever... a dreamsicle. So delish, and they were on special... so I had several! Probably the most awesome part of Swanky's is their "No Brett Favre" rule. They took down all things Brett Favre related from their wall and no Brett Favre jerseys are allowed. HA! There was actually a guy there who was wearing a Favre jersey, and they made him turn it inside out in order to enter. What do you think? Best rule ever? I think so too!

We won! Go Brewers!

Finally, on Sunday, I did nothing (with the exception of driving to T-Bell for some greasy awesomeness), and it was wonderful! The Brew-Crew did have one more afternoon game, but we are too poor to do 3 in a row I guess.

The "don't walk" sign we saw on the way to/from the game

(I know... inappropriate... but also kinda funny)

Anyone else do something fun this weekend?

Pet Peeves

Earlier this week, I discovered that I have 3 huge pet peeves when it comes to clinic. I have experienced each of these many times before, and they weren't that frustrating. But this time... they were back to back to back. Patient #1: The literal clicker This is the patient who when you say "click the button every time you hear the beeps" ACTUALLY does one click for every beep heard. Normally, I present about 3 beeps in a series, and the patient clicks the button one time demonstrating that he/she heard it at that level. This patient hears the 3 beep series and click 3 times very fast. Beep, beep beep --> "click, click, click" Beep, beep beep --> "click, click, click" Beep, beep, beep --> "click, click, click" Patient #2: The uncontrollable clicker This is the patient who can not stop clicking the button, even when no stimulus was presented. Many patients have a hard time with this since they often mistake their tinnitus (ringing in their ears) for the tones or beeps I present. Therefore they think I'm presenting a tone so they respond, even though I never played the beeps. Usually a simple reminder to only click the button when they're sure they heard the beeps and not the ringing in their ears is enough to get the clicking under control. Well, not this time. I reminded this patient 4 times.... 4 TIMES... to try and control her clicking. No change. It may have been one of the longest puretone checks I have ever done. It went something like this: Beep, beep beep --> Click.............................. click..................,,,....... click................................................

....................... click ................................click ..................................................ckick ................click Beep, beep, beep --> click .........................click ..................click ...................................................click Get the idea? How am I supposed to know what is a true response and what was a click that coincidentally came just after I presented the beeps? Patient #3: The let me tell you how to do your job patient Really? You went to school for 8 years to study ears/hearing aids/etc too? No, I didn't think so. You gotta love the patients that come in complaining that their hearing aids aren't working or their earmolds don't fit right and tell you exactly what they think you should do about it. Individually, these patients are not that bad. But having each of these scenarios 3 patients in a row makes a girl want to scream! Thankfully, I got through them all and had the patient leaving happy and satisfied. What are your work pet peeves?

Grand Rounds

Every month, the Audiology Dept. at my hospital holds grand rounds. Grand rounds is every 1st Thursday of the month during the lunch hour (lunch is provided!). All the audiologists, neurotologists (our ENT doctors are neurotologists), and residents are invited to attend, while the 4th year Audiology externs (K-Mo and myself) present interesting cases to them. Basically, the presentation consists of choosing an interesting case study (typically a patient presenting with an uncommon disease or disorder), and supplementing it with research articles or books sharing information about the disease/disorder and supporting the care or treatment given to the patient. For my first one, I choose to present on Otosclerosis! Otosclerosis is a common form of hearing loss in adults. It is essentially a bony growth in the otic capsule (the bone surrounding the inner ear) and results in the fixation of the stapedial footplate (part of the 3rd tiny bone, aka "stirrup", of the middle ear) in the oval window (the opening leading from the middle ear to the inner ear). This prevents the ossicles (3 middle ear bones) from vibrating, and transporting sound from the middle ear to the inner ear resulting in a conductive hearing loss (a loss which may be correctable by surgery and is not related to the hair cells in the cochlea). In more serious cases, the bony growth can grow into the inner ear, ossifying the cochlea and resulting in sensorineural hearing loss. This type of hearing loss can not be corrected with surgery. Throughout the presentation, the audiologists and neurotologists chime in with lots of discussion and questions. I will admit it. I was scared. It is a very intimidating environment. But, all in all, a very good experience. K-Mo and I both present every month and we learned a lot from the process, the research and especially from the enticing discussion that took place. One down, eleven to go!

Last week

...was not the best. I was pretty much sick the whole week, so everything I did was a bit of a blur. But, I still managed to go in everyday and not get anybody else sick (knock on wood). Nothing too exciting happened this week, but here are the highlights.

1) I had my first "go" at the hearing screenings in the nursery all by myself. All my babies were very well behaved and sleepy - just the way we like them. We (myself and the volunteers) tested 7 babies and 4 of them passed their screening. The other 3 were referred on one ear and will need to be screened once more before being discharged from the hospital. We have a high volume of non-English speakers at this hospital, so I was thrilled about not having to make an attempt at using the language translator phones.

2) It was the last week for the exiting 4th year student. She has been terrific! She trained me in the nursery, gave me the low down on team clinic or "compass clinic" and on what's to be expected of us at grand rounds. She has introduced me to a lot of wonderful people, and the list goes on and on. We will miss you!!!

3) Boyfriend took me on another surprise trip! This time we went to the Rocky Mountain Nation Wildlife Refuge. It is not too far from our place, near the airport. Basically, it's a 2 hour tour around the refuge on a bus looking for wildlife. Not the most exciting trip, but not a bad way to spend a Saturday morning either. The 2 hour tour is free and we got to see a bunch of wildlife! Including, but not limited to: deer, bison, hawks, water fowl, a cute raccoon family (I know, I hate raccoons too, but they they were honestly kinda cute) and hundreds and hundreds of the most adorable prairie dogs! It was humorous to watch all the people on the bus get unbelievably excited to see birds and bunnies and raccoons. Don't they ever look outside their windows at home? A pleasant, relaxing trip overall.

One of the coons from the raccoon family! See kinda cute... for a coon.

My favorite picture of the prairie dogs. They're kissing!! Just before I took the picture they were hugging too. So adorable.

Audiology Extern Week 2

I. Am. Pooped.

Week 2 of clinic was a busy one. The week consisted of regular clinic on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, training in the nursery for hearing screenings, SIGN CLASS on Wednesday for 2 hours after clinic, and a Symposium all day Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

I was finally trained in the nursery! I am responsible for doing the hearing screenings on the newborns one morning every week. They are so tiny I feel like I'm going to break their necks turning their heads to get to their ears! We test all the babies born the day before. I love it so far. It's a nice way to start the day. The testing itself is pretty simple. We hook up the babies and the computers do the rest of the work. I just hope I don't mess up the paper work. My favorite part of the week was Sign class! I was told about this class the week before and I mentioned to the Audiology director that I was interested in taking it. She hooked me up! K-Mo and I will now be attending Sign class every Wednesday from 4:30-6:30 for FREE! I love it. This is only a beginner class and I've already taken 2 beginner classes in the past, so the material is mostly a review for now. When this class ends, there will be another class offered at the intermediate level, and another one after that at the intermediate 2 level. As the current extern, I am able to take all 3 classes at no charge! I can't wait to improve my signing skills! Since the class is comped for me, I am in charge of helping out a little during class. There is a boy in the class who wears a cochlear implant and Engligh is his second language, so K-Mo and I take turns typing everything that is said during class as he follows along to help him understand. The rest of the week was the Marion Downs Hearing Symposium. The Symposium mostly consisted of topics related to pediatric audiology. I was excited to meet Marion Downs herself, as well as many other well respected individuals in the Audiology world. It was also especially fun to meet the man who is the voice of the recorded NU-6 and BKB-SIN speech tests! Once I found out he was the voice of the recordings, I was immediately reminded of Joey from "Friends" when he thought it would be a cool job to be the voice on the answering machine (Anyone recall this episode?... "You have 2 new messages...").

Wedding Weekend

Boyfriend and I had a great time on our weekend trip back to Ohio. We just moved out of Ohio about 3 weeks ago, but two of our very good friends were getting married!!! So we flew back to Ohio to be there for them. We got into Cleveland around midnight, Friday night and stayed with some friends Boyfriend met through his old teaching job. They truly rocked. They picked us up from the airport, gave us an extremely cozy bed for the night and they went all out the next morning to make a delicious breakfast for us. They also lent us a car to use for the remainder of the weekend. What more could you ask for? They were terrific and we appreciate everything they did for us!

Our host and hostess for the night!

Saturday was the big day! The groom was the first friend Boyfriend made when he moved to Akron and they have become very good friends. They also met through Boyfiend's old teaching job. The bride has also become a good friend of ours. I got to know her better while running in the park training to run a half marathon together. They are great together! The wedding was in a church in Fairlawn and the reception was at the Fairlawn Country Club. Everything was beautiful and elegant. Oh, and the best part was the sweet photo booth they rented! I will be having one of these at my wedding... someday. The guests could go in the photo booth as often as they wanted and keep their pictures, so it doubled at the wedding favors. Also, the bride and groom will get a CD of all the pictures taken in the end to serve as their souvenir for the night. We finished our short weekend trip with lunch at Rockne's on Sunday before heading back where we got to meet up with another work friend (who is also getting married in Ohio in a couple weeks). Unfortunately, his fiance (another awesome girl) couldn't make it.

You may now kiss the bride!

Was it worth it to pay a ridiculous amount of money to fly back for 2 days? YES!!! We had a great time with the newlyweds the Imagine School crew and the Mingo Junction crew!

Can we afford to do it again in a couple of weeks? Not so sure right now. Keep your fingers crossed that the price of tickets comes down.

Week 1 in the Real World

was awesome!!! I have been at clinic for over 1 full week now. Monday morning started off with a short orientation, some paperwork, meeting a ton of people whos names will take me forever to learn, and a few observations. The rest of the week I continued to meet more of the staff, did more observations mixed in with some hands-on clinic, received my badge, got a mini tour of the buildings on campus I should be familiar with, and learned more about the requirements and opportunities I have here at the Marion Downs Hearing Center. The Highlights: 1) Finally meeting the Director of the Audiology Department - she is every bit as wonderful as I expected her to be. 2) Getting to know K-Mo a little better - we have so much in common and are becomming fast friends. 3) Meeting and getting to know the 4th year extern who's about to leave us and some of the 3rd year students - since they've been around UCH longer than K-Mo and me, they've been very helpful showing us the ropes. 4) Getting my badge - this allows me special access to the 4th and 5th floors of the hospital where the nursery and NICU areas are for screening the newborns! 5) Training in the nursery - the testing is easy, but there is a ton of paperwork to keep straight. 6) Experimenting with an E-Scope - an electrical stethoscope that a special patient brought in. This patient is a doctor diagnosed with stage four lung cancer and is kicking it's butt so far! Unfortunately, the chemo has taken a toll on his hearing and he needs an amplified stethoscope to hear his patient's heartbeat. It came with headphones, which work great, but it is also compatible with his bluetooth capable hearing aids! We need to order a special cable to make it work with the bluetooth, and then he should be all set! It was fun experimenting with the new technology! I ended my first week scooting out a little early on Friday for a trip back to Ohio for a wedding! More to come on the wedding weekend festivities soon.

A New Era

My last FREE weekday has officially come and gone. To make sure I made the most of it, Boyfriend and Baby C took me out for a surprise day trip to the Denver Aquarium! Around noon, we headed out and took the light rail into downtown Denver and walked to the Aquarium from there. It was a long walk, but alas, we made it. It took about an hour to get through, and we had a late lunch at the Aquarium Restaurant afterwards. before heading back. My overall take on the Aquarium is 1) It was a TERRIFIC way to spend my last free day. 2) Their food was delicious and in a sweet looking room with a huge fish tank with sharks along one wall. 3) Not as spectacular as the aquarium in Chicago or Dallas, but still very enjoyable!

The following Monday, July 12 marked my first day as an Audiology Extern at the Marion Down's Hearing Center at the University of Colorado Hospital!!! A new era has begun - I am now a working woman! Eight years out of highschool, I could not be more excited to be out of the classroom and into the workforce. The only thing that would make it better is if the work actually included a paycheck.

In a nutshell, for those of you who have no idea what an Audiologist is, it is a professional who specializes in diagnosing and treating hearing and balance disorders. At the hospital where I am carrying out my externship, I will be exposed to pediatrics through geriatrics, diagnostics, hearing aids (and numerous manufacturers), cochlear implants, vestibular (balance) testing including VNG, rotary chair and posturography, electrophysiology, newborn hearing screenings, etc. I will also be responsible for presenting at Grand Rounds every first Thursday of the month and coordinating Team Clinic every second Friday of the month (I will explain these better in a future post). Yikes! I feel very overwhelmed, but also extremely excited and lucky to be here.

My first day was pretty much what you would expect: orientation, paperwork, meeting the staff, and observing. I met most of the Audiologists already (there are 13!). They have been great so far and they maintain a very friendly and comforting atmosphere in the department. The best person I've met so far is my fellow Audiology Extern, K-Mo!!! We actually met the night before our first day so we would show up Monday morning at least [sort-of] knowing one person. She is awesome, we get along great, and we actually have a lot in common!

Day 1 is officially done and I am happy to say I am not afraid to go back tomorrow!

Independence Day

July 4th was a non-work, no cleaning, zero-unpacking kind of day. It's America's birthday, so we took the day off and headed out for our 2nd day trip since moving here.

Trip #2, first stop: Garden of the Gods

Baby C, Boyfriend, and myself - first picture of the 3 roomies!

Garden of the Gods is a park with many large, red rock formations and a backdrop of mountain views. It is without a doubt the most beautiful park I've ever been to. People travel near and far to walk, hike, mountain bike, or go for a horseback ride along its numerous trails. We followed the only paved trail, "Perkins," and hiked one of the shorter trails off the main drag. This park is also a popular site for adventurous rock climbers. They were all over the place! I wish I had the muscle to do that!

This landmark is a MUST SEE!!! Please come visit me in Denver and I WILL take you here!

A few words of advise: 1.) Wear sunscreen - the sun is ALWAYS out here, we are a lot closer to the sun, and there is 23% less UV protection. 2.) Drink lots of water - again, the sun is ALWAYS out here, you'll get dehydrated more easily, and headaches follow. 3.) Wear appropriate shoes if you plan oh hiking - flip flops may be okay for the main, paved path, but not for the side trails that involve steep steps and and angled walk ways.

The whole group!

Trip #2, second stop: Seven Falls

Seven Falls is also located in Colorado Falls, so we thought we'd check it out as long as we were in the area. Although it was another beautiful area, this site does not make my "must see" list. We had a long wait because the parking lot was full and we had to wait for people to leave, and it costs about $10 per person. Once parked, there is a short walk up to the bottom of the waterfall. From there, you can ride an elevator built into the mountain to what they call the "Bird's Nest." It sits about half way up the waterfall. It was nice, but unless you want to climb what looks like a thousand stairs, followed by a mile long hike to a picturesque spot overlooking the city, there was nothing else to do or see.

Another view from the "Bird's Nest" (obviously not of the falls)

I just thought this picture looked cool!

That evening, to celebrate the 4th of July, we cooked out on the grill for dinner and went back to the hotel the parents stayed at hoping to watch the fireworks from their rooms. It was storming outside and nobody was up for sitting in the pouring rain and lightening. Unfortunately, we couldn't see very much. Overall, it was a great day!

How did you celebrate this year?

Exploring Colorado

The parents came a long way to help us get settled into our new place, so we couldn't have all work and no play! We took a break to enjoy a few day trips and check out the area while they were still here.

Trip #1: Coors Brewery

I guess we couldn't resist the urge to "tap the Rockies" so we headed for Golden, CO. We had a long wait outside in the blistering heat before making it onto the shuttle to get to the brewery tour (perhaps that's why I actually drank my free samples). It is one of those self-guided tours where you listen to a pre-recorded audio, allowing you to go through the brewery at your own pace. About half way through, they tease you with a small cup of Coors, or Coors Light. At the end of the tour, the give you up to three free samples. I had Blue Moon with an orange slice, Honey Moon Summer Ale, and straight up Coors Light. Not too bad if you ask me, but if you ask anyone else in our group, coors beer is only ok. It must be the fresh, natural mountain water they make the beer with that does it for me.

Moving Day

I was so excited on July 1st because it was the day I was FINALLY going to see my new home. It was moving day! We drove into town the night before so we would be ready to meet our landlord first thing in the morning for our walk through and to hand over the keys. Our moving truck was meeting us shortly after. So happy we made it all the way to Denver with no problems, we took off for our last 20 minute drive to our new home. About 3 minutes into the drive, just before I hit the highway.... "CRASH!!!"........ F-ing semi decided he wanted to use both of the left turn lanes, and I found myself pinched between a semi to my right and the curb to my left. I guess we spoke too soon, we did not make it safely the whole way. Thankfully, nobody was hurt. I was mostly just annoyed because Mr. Semi-trucker was keeping me from seeing my new fabulous house! Dad stayed with me while Boyfriend and Baby C continued on to meet the landlord and moving company. Once the drama subsided, the work began. I finally got to see my new home and it is every bit as cute as I imagined it would be! Everyone helped unload the truck and cars. The girls did some heavy duty cleaning in the kitchen, living room and bathrooms, and the boys took care of the building/assembling and electronics. It has taken a long time to get settled in (there was a LOT of cleaning to get this place ready), but Boyfriend, Baby C and I are seemingly happy in our new home. Once we are completely unpacked and the decorations are up, I will try to get some pictures up for you to check out. ***Thanks Mom, Dad, and Momma J for all the help!!!! We are so glad you could make it out here to see our new home and help us get settled.

Goodbye Akron, Hello Denver!

Hello everyone! I am new to the blog world, but I am determined to keep family and friends updated on my new life in the Denver metro area. We moved to Colorado for a position I accepted as the Audiology Extern at the Marion Down's Hearing Clinic at the University of Colorado Hospital. My new home is located just East of Denver in the Aurora suburb. My roomies include my boyfriend and his brother (referred to as "Baby C"), my cat "Ruffy" (also known as "Orange" or "PR" by some) and my rabbit "Linus." We officially moved into our new home on July 1st. We've been here for nearly 2 weeks, and I love it! We are mostly moved in and have done a bit of sight-seeing already. Before I get to the Colorado fun, I should properly say "good-bye" to Akron. The top 10 things I will remember about Akron, OH: 10) The Polsky Building - This is the building were every class was located when on the UA campus, but let's be real... I'm not going to miss this building at all. 9) Clouds, clouds, clouds and more clouds - It is always cloudy in Akron. One of the most gloomy cities in the US. The only good thing about it was I didn't have to buy new sunglasses for the past several years. 8) Rockne's - The restaurant I was a waitress at for nearly 2 years. I will not miss the job. I hated the job. The food, however was fantastic and it will be missed greatly. I would personally recommend the cheesy ham and potato soup. 7) The JAR - We attended many Akron Zips basketball games at the James A Rhodes Arena. Gotta love those fierce kangaroo eyes. 6) The Barley House - A fantastic Irish pub in downtown Akron we visited on occasion. It is also, conveniently located across the street from the Polsky Building where I had class, so many "End of the Semester" celebrations took place there. If you ever get the chance to go, you should definitely order some pretzel bites with jalapeno cheese dip. YUM! 5) The Winery at Wolf Creek - Had delicious wine and an even better atmosphere at their charming outdoor picnic area. Good times with good people. 4) Our apartment - This was our first place together, and it was in a great location. We had some sweet views surrounding us, we were walking distance to the local pubs, and if we drove about 15 minutes in any direction we had hundreds of shops and restaurants to choose from. 3) The Valley - We frequented at the pubs in the valley of Akron. Our complex surrounded them, giving us a safe and quick walk home at night. 2) Sand Run Metro Park - A short walk from my apartment where I liked to go running. I also enjoyed driving through the river that runs over the road. 1) The awesome friends we've made over the last 3 years!!! - Love and miss you all. Please keep in touch!!! What is everyone else who moved for their externship going to miss about their old town?