Goodbye my poor dead friend

 
I'm gonna close my eyes,
you keep driving

There's a sad face of road-kill approaching,
a singular death
squashed on the pavement
I don't want to think about it,
you drive and I'll
close my eyes until we're
far ahead of the poor dead one,
a baby fox, a starved raccoon, a feral cat

close my eyes . . .
but as it becomes
effeminate
I endure the nightmarish scene,
because a man must take big gulps of
fear and sort through his regrets

How does this sound? I'll open my eyes after I sense we've gotten
around my anguished, mangled beloved---
you are my best friend dead fox-raccoon-cat

I hope we've passed the poor road-kill
I don't want to think about it anymore
This is the road of tragedy,
let's get off it
and hide in a basement

If you don't know by now, I am entering my second year at the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine. It's been an interesting ride, which I'd be happy to tell you about in detail if only you asked.

I am trying a little harder to involve myself in the extracurriculars that surround me. I joined a fraternity, which was a social endeavor in and of itself. Yes, I mean fraternity. No, I don't mean sorority. By point of fact it's a professional fraternity, which is even more fun. But that's not the point, really. I signed myself for the job of Rush Chair, along with a few other girls. We're going to be trying to pull the newbies in. Our ultimate goal? Attract them the way that we ourselves were attracted-- Not forcing information down their throats, being friendly enough, and make a lot of margaritas and such. So far it's going well. All I have to do is find some money and plan several meals for a hundred people. Not too bad.

I've just taken on the job of Product Distribution Chair for the student government. I'll get to do blood testing for all the dogs of all the people who want heartworm medication, as well as keep tabs on everyone that wants free flea control products. I included the phrase "bring my friends down with me" in my response email to the president, who told me I'd been nominated as a "great candidate for the position". I was assured that I can. Things are looking up.

My favorite new project I've taken on is trying to solicit art from people who are obviously talented. The whole point of this already expansive daylog is that I would really enjoy getting participation from the wonderful artists here in this community in our charity auction for my vet school. The money raised by auctioning donated items goes directly into the education of a future generation of veterinarians, as well as advancing our technology and treatment capabilities for both the large and small animal clinics.

I participated in the scAVMA auction last year as a "Vanna", which was fun and rewarding. I ended the night listening to the president of my fraternity strumming Folsom Prison Blues on the guitar he'd just bought. We made roughly $15,000 dollars to put toward those things that are most important to us. What really struck me was the artwork, and the positive response that it drew. An antique portrait went for $400. A painting by a staff member's husband went for about $200. People love to buy original pieces to place in their offices and homes. I would love to offer them original pieces by people that I know to be talented and who I already know to be inspirational.

If you're interested in helping out, please let me know. The auction does not take place until after Christmas, so there is no rush on completing anything. I am not only looking for paintings, but for crafted items and perhaps sculpted pieces or things like that. I can help, to an extent, with shipping costs. I would like to be able to say that I will be able to pay all of it, but that's not something I can promise to everyone at this moment. I think that anything you donate that has a monetary value will be tax deductible, but I will have to find the paperwork for that closer to the date. I am hoping to get pieces that have to do with animals or veterinary medicine, but please feel free to send me your ideas. I will be more than glad to send you a token of appreciation afterward, because this means more to me than you know.

I don't know when it was that I fell into this profession so completely, but I find that I'm happy here. I appreciate you for listening to my plans and my ideas, day after day. Thanks to all of you, for contributing to my education, even if you can't contribute to my charity.

E2 as therapy, part 3:

Got this insightful message in my inbox from a noder who I think has me sussed better than anyone ever has. Dude fell over himself trying not to come across as a jerk, and I don't think he is, but I think he's at the very core of every problem I've ever had. GO E2.

"Okay. I think you don't have very much empathy. You want to, and maybe you think you do, but when you try to be "nice" (by your notion of how to be nice), you wind up being condescending. Your problem is not that you're too nice; it's that you think you're nice, and you're not. I think you don't deal well with ambiguity or irony, and so there are a lot of layers to what people are saying and doing that you're missing; so I think you try to compensate for this by making a lot of assumptions, preconceptions, inferences, and imputations about what other people want you to do or want you to be, and then you go looking for opportunities to "help" them according to this notion you've built up for yourself about what you're going to give them. You aren't going to get to know anyone better by making unwelcome displays of all the things you think you can fix for them or save them from, especially not when you think you're saving them from themselves. You don't get to appoint yourself anyone's big brother or protector or confidant. That's intrusive and disrespectful. If you want to connect with people, connect over common interests and values, not over what you think their problems are, or how nice you think you are."

Now, obviously this means that I should, immediately, take no interest in anyone's personal life, so expect anything I post to be nothing but pure blather disconnected from any actual interpersonal contact. That's not hostility or spite, just hey, he's right.

The further ramifications of this should be quite interesting.

EDIT: I HAVE THIS NODER'S PERMISSION TO POST THIS - I OBTAINED THIS BEFORE POSTING IT.