New Year, New Opportunities!

Forgive me! I know its been since October since I've blogged, I've just been dreadfully busy! So, I'll catch you up on what's happened.

11/7/2011: God blessed me by allowing me to pass my ASCP! THAT'S RIGHT! Call me Erin Cook, MLS (ASCP) CM! Did you ever see so many letters behind a name?! :-D It feels so good to finally be a medical laboratory scientist! This is what I've been working for since I graduated college in 2008! God heard my heart, and true to His word, gave it it's desire! Praise be to god, for He is so good!

October- December, 2011: I have figured out that there are certain stereotypes that come along with the letters behind my name. I was hired by a doctor to be his medical lab scientist and run his lab for him, all.by.myself. Sounded good at the beginning, and everyone was so sweet. However...as soon as I got the letters behind my name, their true colors started to show. The doctor that hired me didn't trust medical technologists. How could he? The man went through 5 med techs within the 2 years his lab has been opened. And I was willing to help him out, but he was very distrusting of me. It didn't matter the knowledge I knew of governmental standards, it didn't matter what I knew about maintenance, nor did it matter that his son, who deemed himself worthy of doing my job, showed up late and drunk to work on several occasions , I was always in the wrong. "Erin, did the controls come in today? Because if they didn't, you just wasted $400. ... Erin, we're a COLA approved lab, not CLIA (the governing association of all medical laboratories [COLA works under CLIA]), so we're more lenient with our QC here. You don't have to use controls everyday. That's wasting our money. ... We don't need to keep a log of that. COLA allows us to be lenient with that." ... Really? Well, I can't work for an employer that doesn't trust me. Truth be told, I think he just wanted to hire a "Yes, sir" type of person, which he already has (his son).
             And if the doctor wasn't breathing down my neck, his wife was, coming into the lab (and the woman has no medical experience what-so-ever.) and throwing away specimens that haven't been ran, being upset at me because I'd type on the computer with my gloves on, and limiting the amount of gloves that I used per day because I have a latex allergy and can't use latex gloves (which are cheaper than the gloves I have to use). At first, when I took this job, I thought that he just had incompetent techs work for him in the past. After I worked there, I realized that the techs that had worked for him were smart to get out, so I did too.
    The Lord provided for me without me having to even ask. There was an opening at Health Park, 1st shift medical lab scientist, and glory be to God, I got the job. I went through 3 interviews in one day (2 in person, one on the phone), started at 9am, and ended at 5pm, accepted the job offer, and immediately began writing my 2 week notice. And before I could even give the doctor my 2 week notice, I was called by the company that hired me for that job, to inform me that I wouldn't have to go back to work.  Easy peasy, lemon squeezy, thank the Lord!

Christmas: ANDY GOT ME A PIANO, AND ITS ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS!! EEEKKK!!! :-D

Present day: I've been working at my new job at Health Park Medical Center for a week now, and its been absolutely fun! I love my coworkers, I love helping patients,  I love finally having a job that includes all the areas of the lab, and I love having a job that challenges me to be my best! God is just so good!

There is a cure for cancer!

‎*******TAKE A MOMENT TO LOOK AND READ WHAT I AM TELLING YOU!! ********


There is a cure for cancer, and its called antineoplastons, which are naturally found in the urine and blood of healthy persons! Dr. Stanislaw Burzynski, from Houston, TX, has found it, without help from the FDA and grants from the government. Although he still needs to do phase 3 trials, his cure is natural, he has a higher outcome of patients in remission from cancer, and the treatment doesn't have any side effects of chemo or radiation.


 Our government, including the FDA, won't let him do phase 3 testing because his cure could take down the pharmaceutical industry. Do yourself a favor, take time to watch this movie, see for yourself what I am talking about, and if you're diagnosed with cancer, go to Dr. Burzynski!


 Health care reform? No! We need governmental health care agencies reform!


Please visit http://www.burzynskimovie.com/  for more information!


God speed, Dr. Stainslaw Burzynski! Thank you for not giving up your fight!

The world I've created on Facebook is not reality

My very smart friend sent me a text message this past Monday saying she was going to deactivate her Facebook account for a little while. She said she was doing this to 'fast' from Facebook, and the world we've created. I didn't give it much thought. I've known a couple of friends who have deactivated their accounts for different reasons, but her reason has had me thinking the past couple of days.

I used to think I couldn't deactivate my account because it's quite literally my ticket to any information going on back home! Ever since being here in Florida, I've learned of several important issues going on back home from Facebook, like learning my sister and a couple of friends were pregnant, finding out engagements from several sorority sisters, events for both occasions; just being updated on other people's lives. But lately, everything that I've posted on Facebook seems to be bringing out the worst in me, and I think my friend has a very wise point.

Maybe its my fault for treating Facebook like Myspace, where I could post anything I wanted and not really reap any consequences, but the things I've posted haven't been too inflammatory, in my and my friend's opinions. However, other friends would tend to disagree. For example, I wrote a status earlier in the week that said how irritated it makes me when people don't go to the doctor and complain about the results, or think they know more than a doctor. Being the child of a doctor, would you expect anything less of me? I'm also in the medical field with several good friends and family members there right along with me! Its stupid to refuse you body of the health it deserves, and a doctor is key to that health! However, you should have read some comments that were posted!
"When my doctor only tries to prescribe me medication as the only treatment, yes we will have words... Ask her I have proven here wrong before. If its about surgery than that's a whole other ball game"


"I'm Mr. Know-It-All... so of course I know better than the MD that went to school for so long he forgot to think...If I'm Mr. Know-It-All, then unless someone didn't say what I was thinking, then they must not be thinking..... now while I step away from being Mr. Know-It-All... some people in general spend so much time in school they may forget to think for themselves"


"I'm just used to our current system of the doctor seeing me for a total of 2 or 3 minutes then scribbling something on a pad of paper and saying next. Then I get the prescription and it doesn't work and I'm still sick and out a couple hundred bucks."


"Erin,I kinda hope you don't have boys. Their mantra is scars are tattoos with better stories. :-)"

And while I understand some of these view points, it irritated me to no end that someone would disagree with saying you shouldn't assume you know everything about your body considering your doctor went to school for so many years to study the body! Why on Earth go to the doctor if you don't like them, and for that matter, why post on my status your different opinion? Normally, I'm okay with different opinions, but lately, I've felt attacked by them! And I know that when you have a dissenting opinion, you're not necessarily attacking the other person, but sometimes, its just irritating! Sometimes I need someone to say, "You know, Erin, you're right!"

I was so frustrated with that stupid status update that I allowed it to frustrate my ENTIRE DAY! Really! I was a force to be reckoned with the entire day, and what was said shouldn't have upset me so bad! I had created drama in my life because I allowed this made up world to consume my reality! And as soon as I realized that, my friend seemed wise beyond her years!

As much as I love interacting with my friends on Facebook, I never realized how much it consumes my day! Its on my phone, and whenever I'm bored, my phone is right here to ease my addiction. During the morning, my routine is coffee, breakfast, SATC, and Facebook. Its there to keep me from studying, its there to create unnecessary drama, its there to take my attention off things that really matter! While Facebook has a lot of great qualities, like catching up with classmates, family, sorority sisters, fraternity brothers, etc., its very potent! To quote my friend, who is taking a hiatus, "I feel cut off and don't really know what's going on in my friend's lives. It's sad, Erin! I think about status updates in my head!" But really, how important is it to know every little thing going on with everyone else? If they want me to know, surely the illusive phone call will come back into style, or at least a text will do.

So, as I have a mere 25 days till my life may end again (ie the ASCP examination), I might take a hiatus too. No status updates for 25 days, no commenting for 25 days; only posting pictures IF need be. Hey, can you blame me? Better yet, can you join me? Lets get back to reality!

I got the message loud and clear!

So, even though I've deleted my other blog, Sweet Southern Smile, for some of its depressing content, it very much has a play in this blog. Let me give you the back story.

*April 2009- Momma diagnosed with breast cancer and starts chemotherapy.
*November 27,2009- Moved to Bonita Springs from Murfreesboro, TN to start work at Specialists in Urology and be with my boyfriend, Andy.
*January 2010- Momma done with IV chemotherapy, but is doing pill chemotherapy while taking care of Ging-gi Martha (who in the following months will break her hip, and be diagnosed pre-dementia)
*Feburary 13, 2010-Andy proposed to me
*May 10, 2010- Started Clinical Laboratory Science program at Florida Gulf Coast University (8 hour internships at DSI/ NCH Labs, and tried to figure out how to be full time at SIU. Ended up creating a night shift to work, which didn't work)
*July 16, 2010- Fired from job at Specialists in Urology because of Clinical Lab Science program and change of management
*June 2010-April 2011- Planning wedding (bridal showers, bachelorette party, engagement pictures all done in  TN) doing night shift (11-6) internship at DSI, taking online classes for the program, in which projects are due during the day.
*April 29, 2011- Passed CLS program
* May 1, 2011-Schedules ASCP examination for August 1, gains temporary license and starts looking for med tech jobs. God blesses me with many job offers.
*May 14, 2011- Marries Andy
*July 2011- Gains job offer at NCH (the hospital she's been dying to work at), which job will start after passes ASCP; Cousin goes through really depressing time in his life, and calls upon me for support, which I'm happy to give him.
*July 26, 2011- Ging-gi Martha passes; Erin and Andy travel to Kingsport, TN for the funeral that weekend.
*August 1, 2011- Erin fails ASCP examination, and life starts sucking badly! Loses perfect job, and really is shaken spiritually and emotionally to the core. Reapplies for the ASCP, Nov. 7th, and tries to recover from the fall, but just can't.

Since living in Florida, life has certainly not been easy. Its like the entire time I've been down here, I've been in a constant state of transition, and I don't do good with change. My attitude tends to get very bitter and selfish. Especially when I failed the ASCP examination, I felt like God had ripped out of my hands what was rightfully mine! I had worked hard to get through school, to be the perfect bride, the perfect friend to my mother and other friends, to be the perfect med.tech employee. How could He do this to me?! What was the lesson?

 I remember around June 2011, just before my cousin needed my help, I had a feeling, a desire, that I needed to read Job. Well, I tread through it, over and over again, and the story goes like this:
God allows Satan to test Job spiritually by afflicting his health, his family, his possessions, and even his friends. God was trying to show Satan that even if you took all the blessings away from Job, Job would still praise God. Satan, of course, wanted to prove God differently, was given the opportunity to do so (when will Satan learn? He can read, right? Doesn't he know his future? Why does he even try?!). Job miraculously survives the horribleness that is only capable of Satan, and has 4 friends come to his aid. The following chapters are Job asking why, what happened, what did Job do to deserve this, and his friends trying to lead him in the right direction, in which 3 friends do a horrible job. The 4th friend, who isn't mentioned until later in the book, has the spiritual perspective that Job needed to see, and God starts to rebuke Job for questioning and being angry in his circumstances. But, after all that happened, God blessed Job immensely, and Job lives out the rest of his days within the full blessings of God.

...WHAT IS THE LESSON IN THAT?! Frankly, I got mad reading it! Job had proven himself loyal to God, before the disasters, and all because Satan taunts Gods, Job has to walk through all this mess, only to prove himself loyal to God! The entire time, the bible says "Job did not sin". But I certainly did when reading it! I was mad at God for allowing that to happen, for allowing Satan to do crappy things to His people, and the only verse I could think of while reading this was "God works the good of those who love Him.", and in the end, yes that happens. How and why did God allow Job to go through all that, only to get mad at Job for asking "Why"?

Well, I think the overwhelming desire to read Job, and not being able to see the pearl of wisdom in it, was God was trying to tell me I was getting ready to step on shaky ground. And He was right. For several months, I was bitter, and angry, feeling like a complete failure, and not being able to be the perfect Erin that was needed by my husband, my family, and friends. I tried praying about it, but it just made me angry. I tried blaming God, but it wasn't his fault that I could have studied more. I made my bed, and God let me lay in it. I was constantly embarrassed by anyone asking me how my test went, I was embarrassed that I couldn't have a job in my field after working so hard. I was embarrassed to confront my family, both Andy's and mine, about what had happened, especially because I knew that when my father learned of this, he would automatically assume it was his fault. I was discouraged, disheartened, and even while I'm writing this, I'm crying from all the feelings of inadequacy I felt, and still feel to this day! Failing the ASCP rocked my faith, my marriage, and my strength to the core. What could I do but sit there and cry, screaming at God "WHERE IS THE GOOD IN THIS?! IF ONLY I COULD SEE THE GLORY YOU'RE RECEIVING THROUGH THIS!" I don't mind walking through this, I really don't! I just wanted to be able to see where and why God had me walk through this.

2 months later, I'm starting to be okay in my skin, because my friends didn't judge me, my family tried to comfort me, and both tried to pick me up and help me walk. I'm still kind of numb, but I'm trying to talk to God again, and I know He forgives my sin during this time, but as soon as the storm came, I was blown away, and that was the issue. I wasn't strong enough to withstand the storm because I allowed this valley to shake my faith.

I went to church with some friends this past Sunday at New Level Church, which is not the normal church Andy and I go to, but it was a nice change. As soon as the pastor starts his message, "Embracing Your Season" Joshua 1:1-11, he starts talking about transition periods in our lives and what should we do with them. The message was about Joshua; about how he was the son of Nun, then became Moses' assistant, and after Moses's death, becomes Israel's leader into the promise land.
     1) There are seasons to our life. Just look at Joshua! The bible specifically mentions his seasons; being a son, then an assistant, then dealing with his leader's death, then filling his shoes.
      2) Each season is for a purpose.  And there tends to be 3 seasons involved with leadership: Divine foundation, Development, and Action. God lays your foundation (Joshua was the son of Nun). God then begins to develop you into the child He wants you to be. (God allowed Joshua to be Moses' assistant.) God is in you, and working through those around you do develop you. God then allows you to act (Joshua becomes the leader of Israel.) God is working through us because God is in you.
     3)Transition is usually prompted by a major event. (In Joshua's case, it was Moses' death.) The aftermath of that major event tends to cause confusion, and doubt.
     4) Periods of transition can be unnerving. HOWEVER, God doesn't stop directing you through that period! When Moses' death occurred, God told Joshua what He wanted Joshua to do, and then encouraged him to "Be strong and courageous!"

Now, let's look at Joshua and see how he handled this period of transition.
      A) He stayed in the book, just as God directed him to do! "...Carefully observe the whole instruction My servant Moses commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right or the left, so that you will have success wherever you go. This book of instruction must not depart from your mouth; you are to recite it day and night so that you may carefully observe everything written in it." (1:7b-8)
      B) He surrounded himself with wisdom. He didn't take this role on by himself. Joshua had counselors from Moses!
      C) He stepped into his role CONFIDENTLY! Joshua immediately begins to command the people of Israel to march on! "Haven't I instructed you: be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9

After the message, I felt completely rejuvenated, and grateful to hear the message. I started praying, and I heard a whisper say "This transition period was for you to learn to be married." PRAISE THE LORD, I FINALLY HEARD HIM! Had I passed and gotten that job, it would have been night shift, so I wouldn't have been able to see Andy very much, and get to know him as my husband! Marriage is such a huge transition, as you are shedding the clothes of being single to enter into a union which makes you 1, our marriage wouldn't have survived with that night shift job right away. I needed to learn to lean on Andy, to use his strength when mine was weak, and he needed to learn how to encourage and support me when things didn't go our way.

























Thank you, God, for allowing me to hear you, and thank you that you never left my side, no matter how ugly I was. Thank you for a strong, loving husband, and thank you for your lessons! I pray that whomever reads this  would find comfort, and Your amazing love, during their turbulent time. Help us all to "Be strong and courageous." You are amazing!

Troy Davis' execution...I finally have an opinion.

Ever since a sorority sister brought the Troy Davis case to my attention, I've been kind of obsessed with it because I could never let an innocent man be put to death, which is what the world, and even he, said. I even signed two online petitions to reexamine his case. But the more I looked into the case, the more I agree with the verdict.

"We are all Troy Davis." No, I am not Troy Davis. First of all, I would never pistol whip a homeless man for beer, and second of all, I don't own a gun. Troy Davis had 20 years after the incident to prove his innocence. If anyone failed, it was his lawyer because he couldn't prove differently, and I'm sure he tried his hardest; what person wouldn't if they were fighting for someone's life? If the case specifics were enough to convict Davis of murder in 1989, how could they have changed so much over the past 20 years?

 There was a quote by one of the witnesses who said "If I knew then what I know now, Troy wouldn't have been on death row." And what that says to me is #1, you didn't tell the whole truth, like you swore you would during the trial, or #2, you're upset that a man is going to be put to death based upon your testimony, and you're trying any way possible to get out of the blame. But guess what? You're not to blame! All you had to do was get on that stand and tell the truth of what you witnessed, and if you did, then it is not your fault. What did Davis in is the shell casings from the murder matched the ones from Davis' gun from a previous shooting. And if the case is #1, you ought to serve jail time for perjury, and yes, you should feel like you were to blame. No matter who is bullying you, or what the case may be, you always have the choice to tell the truth.

There was another thing about the case that I read that said that the man that was with Davis that night said he shot the officer, and not Davis. Well, if he truly meant that and was remorseful, he would have told the authorities what he knows. And if that man wasn't remorseful, and was saying that to prove what a bad@$$ he is, the people should have went to the authorities immediately, instead of going to the media. Yet again, it looks like another plea to clear someone's conscience.

Davis upheld his innocence, even until his lethal injection and death. That, to me, is the most creepy thing about this case.  If he was truly innocent, then he is in a better place, and this whole matter is put to rest. He had a very peaceful execution. Davis didn't have to die a cruel and unusual death, like hanging or electrocution. He simply went to sleep on a gurney. The officer that was shot didn't get die in his sleep and wasn't offered his favorite meal as his last, even though Davis refused his last meal. No, the officer simply was doing his job, even when he was off duty, and coming to the aid of a man who needed help.

I fully support the death penalty. Reason being, if you let murderers live, you're not punishing them for their crime and you're not making them an example of why you can't murder people. Life in prison is not only expensive for us tax payers, but its not a punishment! "You get to live even though you brutally murdered your victim."- does that sound fair and just?!

 No one will ever know the truth behind this case, but apparently the judges that reexamined his case think the verdict was correct. As an outsider, I have to believe the justice system was correct with their verdict. And as sad as it is for a human life to end, murderer or not, sometimes it has to be done. We constantly expect the justice system, filled with imperfect, unjust people, to be perfect. I have seen and personally experienced the justice system fail, which sucks, its heartbreaking, and revolting, but I've seen it succeed too, and more often than not, it succeeds. No, I'm not saying that Davis' death was a success, but I'm not saying it wasn't warranted. All I'm saying is that justice was served to a family who had been waiting for 20 years for justice to give them peace.



*If you are going to comment, please be respectful. Being disrespectful will cause your comment to be deleted.*

Skinny girl trapped in an uncomfortable body

If someone says they're fat, I'm the first person to say "Absolutely not!" because I don't see fat people. I see beautifully and wonderfully created people! In fact, I've told several people that "To believe you're anything but beautiful is direct violation of the word of God" because people are made in God's image, and God made them to look a certain way for a certain reason. So, why can't I get that to translate into when I look in the mirror?

When I look in the mirror, I see a cute face that through the years, I've been able to make gorgeous via makeup. I see the imperfections others don't or they do and are polite. And I finally get to where I'm happy with the way my face and hair look, then I have to get dressed! Normally, not an awful thing, but lately, this has been a struggle for me! In highschool, I was 125 lbs, and I had to starve myself to get that way! But, I was also cheering, so I was always working out. In college, I gained 45 lbs freshman year because I wasn't working out as much as I did in high school, but I still had my tone and curves, thanks to cheerleading! Well, now, I'm 26, and I'm noticing changes in my body I don't like, and I can't seem to get rid of.

My main problem, my weight! I weigh as much as a guy, and that drives me nuts! I know that I'm tall, and because of that, I will always weigh more than the average woman because of that, but I see these girls on America's Next Top Model, or Project Runway, and they're my height, and they are at least 40lbs lighter than me. That is discouraging! I don't like my body when it weighs over 150. Lets just put it this way, I haven't liked my body for 5 years now. And it doesn't matter what I do to workout, it doesn't matter keeping a food journal, my body seems to refuse to be controlled by my wishes, and I will forever be above 160. Now, my friends have had amazing success with Weight Watchers, and I would love to do Weight Watchers, but with my current situation, we don't have enough money to do it. I was on LA Weight Loss, and that was working, although it was incredibly difficult to keep up with the diet. But several people mentioned how well I looked! But for the life of me, I can't remember what my diet was. I seriously just need to follow the cartoon.

Luckily, all I have to do is wait for 2 more weeks, and I can work out, and thus, feel better about my body. Our new place has a great gym, with really friendly people! And, if its too packed during the day, there is a gym just down the street that's $10/month! And I have friends that want to work out, which is really important, and maybe with their help, this skinny girl can break free from the cage she's in.


So, I have the following goals, and hopefully I can meet them within the next year.
1. Tone up.
2. Be a cardio fool.
3. Lose 30lbs.
4. Be comfortable in my body.

So, what is your body trying to tell you?

For those of you, like me, who have to look great in a bathing suit year around and are dieting, or you're just craving food (as all of us do from time to time) do you ever wonder why your body is craving certain foods? Totally stumbled upon this today! Check it out! (via http://www.naturopathyworks.com/pages/cravings.php)

If you crave this...	What you really need is...	And here are healthy foods that have it:
Chocolate	Magnesium	Raw nuts and seeds, legumes, fruits
Sweets	Chromium	Broccoli, grapes, cheese, dried beans, calves liver, chicken
	Carbon	Fresh fruits
	Phosphorus	Chicken, beef, liver, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy, nuts, legumes, grains
	Sulfur	Cranberries, horseradish, cruciferous vegetables, kale, cabbage
	Tryptophan	Cheese, liver, lamb, raisins, sweet potato, spinach
Bread, toast	Nitrogen	High protein foods: fish, meat, nuts, beans
Oily snacks, fatty foods	Calcium	Mustard and turnip greens, broccoli, kale, legumes, cheese, sesame
Coffee or tea	Phosphorous	Chicken, beef, liver, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy, nuts, legumes
	Sulfur	Egg yolks, red peppers, muscle protein, garlic, onion, cruciferous vegetables
	NaCl (salt)	Sea salt, apple cider vinegar (on salad)
	Iron	Meat, fish and poultry, seaweed, greens, black cherries
Alcohol, recreational drugs	Protein	Meat, poultry, seafood, dairy, nuts
	Avenin	Granola, oatmeal
	Calcium	Mustard and turnip greens, broccoli, kale, legumes, cheese, sesame
	Glutamine	Supplement glutamine powder for withdrawal, raw cabbage juice
	Potassium	Sun-dried black olives, potato peel broth, seaweed, bitter greens
Chewing ice	Iron	Meat, fish, poultry, seaweed, greens, black cherries
Burned food	Carbon	Fresh fruits
Soda and other carbonated drinks	Calcium	Mustard and turnip greens, broccoli, kale, legumes, cheese, sesame
Salty foods	Chloride	Raw goat milk, fish, unrefined sea salt
Acid foods	Magnesium	Raw nuts and seeds, legumes, fruits
Preference for liquids rather than solids	Water	Flavor water with lemon or lime. You need 8 to 10 glasses per day.
Preference for solids rather than liquids	Water	You have been so dehydrated for so long that you have lost your thirst. Flavor water with lemon or lime. You need 8 to 10 glasses per day.
Cool drinks	Manganese	Walnuts, almonds, pecans, pineapple, blueberries
Pre-menstrual cravings	Zinc	Red meats (especially organ meats), seafood, leafy vegetables, root vegetables
General overeating	Silicon	Nuts, seeds; avoid refined starches
	Tryptophan	Cheese, liver, lamb, raisins, sweet potato, spinach
	Tyrosine	Vitamin C supplements or orange, green, red fruits and vegetables
Lack of appetite	Vitamin B1	Nuts, seeds, beans, liver and other organ meats
	Vitamin B3	Tuna, halibut, beef, chicken, turkey, pork, seeds and legumes
	Manganese	Walnuts, almonds, pecans, pineapple, blueberries
	Chloride	Raw goat milk, unrefined sea salt
Tobacco	Silicon	Nuts, seeds; avoid refined starches
	Tyrosine	Vitamin C supplements or orange, green and red fruits and vegetables

1. Lectures, Cheryl M. Deroin, NMD, Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine, Spring 2003 (healthy food recommendations)
2. Benard Jenson, PhD, The Chemistry of Man B. Jensen Publisher, 1983 (deficiencies linked to specific cravings and some food recommendations)