In my absence...

My little pet project has been neglected!   Just for those of you who have been keeping up (and I am surprised to see there are quite a few- so thank you!), in the last few weeks I have been keeping busy.

In the middle of August I finished my first (and hopefully only round) of summer school. I completed two courses and kicked some academic ass to raise my GPA for applying to good ol' vet school.  Then, I went back to my employer of the last 5 years and worked a little bit/full time for a few weeks before the Fall semester kicked into full gear.  Meanwhile, I was working on my application to veterinary medicine.

Here's a little side note: applications suck. BIG TIME.  They want to know your life story essentially, and allow you to use anywhere from 600-3000 characters, depending on the application and the school.  Then they want you to pay for it. I am basically paying anywhere from $0.05-$0.25 PER CHARACTER PER SCHOOL I am applying too.  Cool right?  No.  It adds up FAST.  So here's hoping I get in this year.  Send positive vibes my way please!

Then, the first week of September rolled in, and with a little insider help, I landed a wonderful job at an emergency veterinary clinic in the city.  Before starting my newly acquired position, I went to the cabin for a week of boating, lounging and drinking.  Refreshed and ready to start my last year of school, I went back home the weekend before classes started and participated in some ringette tryouts, in which I was placed on a new team than the one I played with for the last few years.

Side note on ringette: if you don't know me, school, ringette, and work rank fairly evenly on my list of priorities, and they shift only slightly depending on the day.  So, changing teams was a HUGE deal.  I am leaving behind coaches that I have been coached by for about 10 years, and teammates that I have known my entire ringette career, and now I am going to a new team with a new coach and new teammates.  Scary!  Here's to a fresh start on my (potentially) last season.

Then, I started school!  On my first day of my last year of my undergraduate degree, I began my semester of 5 classes, and my new job at the new clinic.  It was a jam packed day.

So now, approximately 4 days into my new semester and my life for the next 8 months, I am running on caffeine.  I have worked everyday for the last week, at both clinics, been at school, doing readings for school, and have been squeezing in sleep when the schedule allows, and ringette hasn't even really started yet!

Truth is:  I love it, the chaos and everything. But now, I need to start working on my neglected blog before I forget everything!

PS- Here is a photo of a lion cub from Antelope Park that was born there after I left and is cute as a button.  For your enjoyment!  Photo Credit to Lauren Waterfield (who is another dedicated Antelope Park junkie and an honorary member of C-Unit, which you will read about later!)

Follow up (November 4, 2012)- As a follow up to this post and anyone who was drawn to this post because of the picture of this beautiful lion cub, I regret to inform them that this cub, Disa, passed away recently.   Antelope Park issued a statement with regards to her passing and I have attached the comment for those who are interested.  The circle of life is often sad, but she was a very special lion and will be missed.

"We have one last piece of sad news to advise you of from the Park, it has been a tough few weeks:

We are deeply saddened to inform you of the death of the little cub, Disa. We noticed that Disa’s feeding levels were becoming inconsistent. A wildlife vet was consulted and a 14 day course of antibiotics was prescribed. Disa started feeding well again, but towards the end of the course Disa lost all interest in feeding. The decision was made to take Disa to the vet in Harare for tests, contacting National Parks to obtain the required movement permit. Test results showed a high white blood cell count which suggested an infection and a problem with her liver. An x-ray also showed that one of her kidneys was larger than normal. The vet injected her with Vitamin B to bring her appetite back and injected saline under the skin to keep her from getting dehydrated. She was also injected with an antibiotic for the infection. The next day Disa’s condition ha

d deteriorated; she was put on a drip and some more blood was taken to see if the white blood cell count had come down. The count was in fact higher which suggests that the infection was getting worse. That evening, 19th October, she passed away. During a post mortem it was discovered that her liver was a light pink colour which suggested that there was either no blood flow to the liver or there was a bad infection. Samples were taken from her various organs and were sent for histopathology - results are still pending. The enlarged kidney suggests a birth deformity.

Disa was a wonderful, gentle little soul and although we had not known her very long, she will be incredibly missed at the Park. Thank you for your support and understanding during this time. Should you have any further questions, please contact the Antelope Park Lions Manager, Leigh-anne Webb on: leigh@africanencounter.org"

-As posted by Laura Goble on behalf of African Impact Antelope Park-