Giving Thanks

The holiday season is a time to reflect on the people and things in our lives that we are most thankful for. As this semester comes to a close for the vet students of WSU, here are a few things that come to mind.

I am thankful that WSU has a veterinary teaching hospital that does great work. Recently my girlfriend came home to find our six-pound mini dachshund’s face looking like Sloth from the Goonies. Half of his face was horribly swollen, and I was afraid that whatever makes his breath smell like a swamp had finally morphed into a giant tumor. A quick trip to the teaching hospital informed us that he had simply lost a battle with a spider, and for a very low price he was soon as good as new.

I had some worries about the idea of students doing most of the work on something that is so important to me. My dad was taken to dental students as a child for most of his dentistry and still has something just shy of a phobia of the dental chair. A family on my street growing up would often let a student barber cut their hair, and it usually looked like a slightly less stylish combination of Donald Trump and Snooki. This veterinary experience showed me that in some fields students do a great job and can be a great resource.

I’m thankful that it snowed right before I was about to pooper-scoop the backyard, thereby getting me out of it until spring. Well, for a few more days anyway.

I’m thankful that the vet students get a break, and another in a few weeks. You can always tell when it’s been a long stretch without a break. Expectedly, the students start wearing down mentally and physically. The Pullman plague starts spreading more rapidly, every conversation is about virology or pathology (instead of every third conversation), and heated fights start erupting over which flavor of jelly is best. Nothing cures a short fuse like a weekend of eating until you feel like Mr. Creosote in ‘The Meaning of Life’.

On that same note, I’m thankful to be surrounded by such a great group of people. Because most of the vet students spent Thanksgiving with their families, they are planning a second one so they can spend it together. Call it Thanksgiving Two: Revenge of Thanksgiving. The question was never “should we have a second dinner?” It was only a question of when would work best for everyone. More importantly, the vet students and their spouses put the kids at most culinary schools to shame. Macadamia nut crusted French toast? Cheese-stuffed deep-fried plantains? I’m hungry.

I’m thankful that winter is only a few months long. Wait, it lasts like seven months here? Then I’m thankful flights to Phoenix are somewhat affordable.

There is plenty to be thankful for this season, so make sure you take the time to step back and take stock of all the little things that make your life better.