This October has surely been a busy
one! My dad came in town and took me to
a Saints game (Who Dat!), I participated in another Habitat for Humanity
project, my mom came in town to visit, and we’re finishing up the month with
New Orleans’s biggest holiday after Mardi Gras, Halloween (okay, so maybe the
third biggest holiday if you count the time the Saints won the Super Bowl as
one).
The Habitat
project I participated in this month was very different from the other projects
we have participated in, where we helped build homes for people to eventually
live in. This time, we worked in the warehouse, organizing tool sheds, testing
power tools, and throwing away the tools and equipment that no longer worked.
This definitely isn’t what most people think about when they think about
volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, but definitely an area where lots of
help is needed. Where they store all of the tools and equipment and building
materials is definitely a very important part of Habitat, and without a functioning,
organized, efficient warehouse, Habitat builds wouldn’t be possible. Although very much a “behind the scenes”
activity, we had a lot of fun. I learned what a lot of different power tools
were and how they worked, and I have to admit, testing out saws and drills is
kind of exhilarating. They make loud noises, are heavy, and in the right hands,
can be very effective at doing lots of work. Maybe not my hands just yet, but
one day!
While that
wasn’t a day to enjoy the beautiful weather we’ve been having, I surely have
been taking advantage of all of this wonderful sunshine before “winter” comes
to New Orleans. My mom and I spent lots of time last weekend walking all around
the French Quarter and going to some of my favorite places, and trying out some
of hers that are still around from when she was a nurse at Charity Hospital
back in the day (Croissant D’or is always a winner). While enjoying the picture
perfect day, my mom and I were discussing the medications she takes for
hypothyroidism and blood pressure maintenance. I knew all about lisinopril and
could tell her all about its mechanism of action. She had no idea that it was
an ACE inhibitor or how exactly those work. It was really neat to be able to
apply what I’ve been learning to casual daily conversation.
I’m very
much looking forward to this spring, when we will be learning about endocrine
pharmacology. Thyroid malfunction runs in my family, and I was diagnosed with
Graves Disease at fifteen. I have been fascinated with the thyroid and treating
thyroid disorders ever since. Apparently there are issues with taking generic levothyroxine
vs. brand name synthroid, and I very much look forward to learning more about
what the differences between the two drugs are.
