Feature Friday: Kari (Karilynnlove)

Take a short walk down Inkwell Alley with Kari (Karilynnlove), and you'll see that she's not your typical 21-year-old nursing student just trying to get through life. Kari describes herself as a walking contradiction since she naturally chose a career path that will keep her financially comfortable...but still wants to develop her artistic side. To satisfy her "other half", she frequently takes on little projects--painting random things, drawing, writing, decorating as well as photography. She doesn't claim or acknowledge that any of her works are spectacular, but says, "she enjoys being creative and it's what makes her happy...to tame the beast within!" Kari uses her blog as a means to vent, especially when school is in session (soon to start again in August.) Forty students in one classroom can cause tension and drama--so stay tuned for those daily updates. You can find Kari at http://karilynnlove-thoughtfulconfessions.blogspot.com/ ...be ready for a front row seat to her crazy, hectic life.

"Kari says!"

>> 1. I drink coffee all day. Whether it be to help be out of bed, ease my tension, or help me study, I sip coffee throughout the day. In the mornings it wakes me up. In the evening, it soothes the nerves (which makes for better sleep). And during those dreaded 9 month stretches of pure hell (nursing school), it channels the ADHD into OCD (which isn't much better, but at least I'm focused!).

>> 2. I have a coffee cup collection. Doesn't matter what store or what I'm actually shopping for. If I see a cup I like, I have to have it. When I have my own home, I want an entire wall in my kitchen devoted to my coffee cups with each one in it's own little nook! (This is a smaller scale of what I want. As seen in the television series The Gilmore Girls)
>> 3. I can make one eye go side to side and up and down while the other stays put. I don't know how I learned to do it or why I first tried. It's great entertainment for kids!
>> 4. My only allergy is to a drug called Chloral hydrate. It is commonly used as a sedative and sleeping medication. My reaction is opposite of what is desired. My sister (who is also allergic) was given this once prior to a dental surgery. She was put in velcro restraints because of the reaction but managed to work her way out of them. As a result, I am now terrified of taking any sort of sedating medicine or sleeping pill regardless of whether Chloral hydrate is in the ingredients.
>> 5. I never forget a face. I sometimes see an old kindergarten classmate in the supermarket and still know exactly who they are even though I haven't seen them in fifteen years. I've learned not to speak to them though.

>> 6. I played Clarinet for five years (put it aside about six years ago) but can still pick it up and play from memory just like I've been doing it all along. I even have a bad habit of moving my fingers to songs, simulating the finger positions I believe would be needed to make the song I'm hearing.
>> 7. I hate touching any sort of paper when my hands are dry. I get the same feeling as when I hear nails on a chalkboard. I'm getting over it though. When I'm doing clinicals rotations for school, I wash my hands a lot and flip through papers and charts.
>> 8. I find it hard to eat some things of more than one consistency. Examples: Potato salad with onions, Jello with fruit in it. I also hate my foods mixing together, and if I feel it necessary, I will use and second plate or bowl.
>> 9. I'm always jealous. Every person I know has or does something I am jealous of. Clothes, car, money, hair, good grades, ability, favor, where they live, where they go, who they know. Absolutely anything is subject to my jealousy. But don't worry, in person you'll never figure out what it is you have that I want.
>> 10. I can deal with bodily functions (poo, vomit, urine, mucus) easily, but I can not deal with feet and teeth. Anything to do with feet or teeth grosses me out. I very nearly passed out while observing a tooth being removed.

Red Velvet Cake

It looms before me, a flashing white rectangular box that is a treasure trove of goodies. The cookies and cream ice cream in its waxy container that will put rolls on my hips; the frozen pizza that, when warmed in the oven, will sizzle and slide with grease, a sludge that will strain my arteries. And then there's Robert's leftover mozzarella sticks from our favorite diner; those thickly breaded logs of chunky cheese, a cork that will block the intestines. Pudding, divine and smooth on the palate, but a padding for the waist. Oh God—then there’s the red velvet cake, a wad that stays packed for hours in the stomach because it’s essentially a congealed mixture of dough, fat, eggs, fat, dough, sparkling sugar and, did I mention fat? Fat—I hate you; Fat—I love you; especially when you’re dancing in that red velvet cake, an enigma that is not chocolate, that is not vanilla, but the best, the most decadent of both. It’s moist and compact under a slathering of butter cream icing.

There’ only one thing left to say: Thank God I play tennis. Because I love my food.

Lung Cancer Has Opened My Parachute

I decided tonight to blog - it's 4:12 am. Because, as it happens, it is the 4th of July weekend, and although it has been quite wonderful having extra time to spend in the garden, with my family and watching fireworks, there seems to be a part of me that is missing. During the past year, I have been through different holidays...easter, mother's day, mom's birthday - but none that has affected me quite like this holiday. Why I ask? Why do I feel such sadness during this holiday? A patriotic american day-full of spirited fun...but maybe that's it. Ya know, America - baseball, mother & apple pie. Yes, the memory of mother has spawned me to want to share how Lung Cancer has changed my life. Mostly to tell you tonight that my heart is heavy. Heavy missing mom, wishing she didn't have to leave on January 28th to that beast, LC. That was the day that my life changed. My heart was broken. And then I noticed something. That when you lose someone that is such a big part of your life, your whole world opens up. You're not afraid anymore. And as time goes by, your whole life seems to shift. It's not anything that you do consciously...your life begins to take another turn. It's like being a part of a movie where a progression of events carry you through. As the days pass, they say that time heals all wounds, and I guess that's true. But I will tell you that just as a scab or a scar is left behind, there are remnants of heartache. There is a change. A part that will never be the same. Ultimately, these changes aren't necessarily bad. Sometimes it's the one thing you needed for new beginnings - to push you a little harder to progress. My mom's passing has become a pivotal moment in my life. Almost like jumping from an airplane with a parachute when you find out the engine quite. Inkwell Alley has become my parachute - and although I'm not sure where I'm gonna land, I look forward to exploring the unknown. I'm sure mom is watching and smiling knowing that I have her spunk. Deep down, I know that she would want me to use this to reach a place I never knew possible. The beast of Lung Cancer has made me angry enough to push forward. So if I can share anything, my wish would be to encourage you if you have lost someone or if you've ever dealt with Cancer in your life or with someone you love. Don't dismay for I have found that there is a bigger purpose. I know it's not easy. Take care, have faith and take one hour at a time (...hang on to your parachute until you see where you land.) It's now 5:54 am, time to rest. Until next time. sbass