grateful that i don't get paid based on how much i blog.

amanda, sonja... this is for you...

a day in my life.
an essay by robyn.

i've gone to school in arkansas for all different grade levels. at some point, i'm SURE that i had to have 2 mmr shots. however, when i tried to track down shot records in august when i started at pulaski tech, i could only find a record for 1. even though i'm only going to pulaski tech for a license program (not degree), i still had to have proof for two... but i knew that i could wait until later in the semester to complete this task. it came time for early registration, and i realized i hadn't gotten the shot yet (and had a hold on my account... seriously!?!), so i needed to get it done this week.

i had a dentist appointment this week, so i thought that while i was already gone from work, i'd kill two birds with one stone (poor birds.)

2:05 p.m.: i go to the health center close to my office. after circling the parking lot at least 12 times (this is not an exaggeration - there were no parking spots), i finally see a car pulling out and i snatch up the space. i pass a lady who is clearly pregnant smoking in the parking lot. i was sad for her unborn baby, thought, "maybe she's not pregnant." then i thought, "who am i kidding? she's at least 8 months along." i walk in the front door and there are people EVERYWHERE. i was told to take a number. looking around, i thought, "no way. this is crazy." then i might have said those same words as i walked out the door. i knew there was a health clinic close to pulaski tech, so i just thought i'd head there. i wasn't sure where it was, and i couldn't get in touch with anyone who would know, but i just went toward the school anyway.

2:15 p.m.: i call my old family doctor... some family members still go to him, but i haven't seen him in 15 years. they tell me that he can't do an immunization for me because he's not my pcp. then, i ask if he can be, and they tell me no.

2:45 p.m.: lost in nlr. find a "medical center" and i know it's tied to the VA, but i'm not sure if there is a separate clinic. i park, go in, and ask the lady who looks at me like i'm crazy and says, "this is the VA!!" and i explained that i knew i wasn't in the right place and asked if she could point me in the right direction. she gives me directions by saying, "it's down the street"

3:00 p.m.: i find a health clinic "down the street" and go in... it's a baptist health center. they don't do immunizations there, but she tells me there's a health clinic right across the street that does them.

3:05 p.m.: i get to the health clinic, sign in... they get some information and tell me it will be $5. i hand them my debit card and they inform me that they only take cash or checks. i don't have either (only $3 in cash) and the guy tells me that i can bring the money back later. i wait 20 minutes and finally get called back. i get my shot and leave. btw, it hurts.

3:35 p.m.: i am on a hunt for a bank of america atm... though, after a few minutes of searching (and not being able to connect on my phone - was mccain really the closest?), i decide that ANY atm will do. i still can't find one and decide to head to downtown lr (10 minutes away), and then, on the way, i see a boa atm. i stop for cash.

4:00 p.m.: i return to the health center to pay. the lady tells me that it was "sweet" and that i don't have to worry about the $5 fee. wish i'd known that when i was searching for an atm.

4:10 p.m.: i arrive at pulaski tech to turn in my shot record. i pull up to the "administration" building, find a parking space and walk to the door. there's a sign on the door that says the administration departments have moved to another building across campus.

4:20 p.m.: i walk into the building and go to the 3rd floor office where i was advised (there weren't any signs telling where i should go, so i went there). it was obviously the wrong floor.

4:23 p.m.: i get to the right floor... right office and all the doors are shut with signs on them that say, "DO NOT OPEN! Sign in on computer." i go to the computers and try to decide whether i need to "speak to someone" or "drop off documents." i choose the second, and then another screen comes up for me to select the type of document. immunization records are not an option, so i start over and choose "talk to someone" - it asks for my student id. i don't know my student id and there's not a computer that has internet access (all are that menu screen) for me to see what it is.

4:30 p.m.: i take my immunization record and draw large asterisks by my name and mmr. i drop it in the student services box and leave.

oh, and i never ate lunch and had a headache. and the dentist told me i had to have my other wisdom teeth out. the ladies in the front of the dental office told me that if i'd chosen a different dental plan (i had multiple options) that my visit that day would have been free, not $45 and it would cost me $16 per tooth to have the wisdom teeth out instead of the $85 it will cost per tooth under my current insurance.

but the immunization record cleared my holds and i registered for the one class that wasn't full that i can take. i have bruises on my arm from the shots (they talked me into a tetanus booster also).

the end.