yes. DEC.ember 1st, 2006

Night shift was a little crazy last night -
I was endorsed a woman who had already given birth (a postpartum) who had to stay the night for 'observation' because of the hemorrhage she endured while delivering. She was on her second IV and even though I only had to check her every 4 hours, she was still my responsibility, another thing taking up space in my tired mind.
At 12:05, just five minutes into december I assisted a beautiful baby boy in this world and had to deep suction his lungs out through his mouth and nostrils because of the mec stained BOW. This was my first time shoving a little tube down the throat and slowly suctioning on the way out. It went well!
and then, at 2:something AM I assisted another birth, this time, a baby girl (no deep suction needed, only with the hand-held bulb syringe). These two births completed my 10 assists. YIKES. it's MY turn now!
At 5:35, just after I had checked my postpartum's vitals, a labour came in!...my shift ends at 6am and I knew there wasn't enough time for me to handle the birth, well, MOST likely not. I checked her in though, which is so fun - takingv vitals in between contractions, soothing her, helping her work through the pain, awe man...it's amazing. By 5:50 an IE (internal examine) was needed to confirm how far along she was, but, again I was leaving at 6 and there wasn't any reason for me to 'test the waters' with so little time. That's ok.
NEXT SHIFT: Monday, December 4th
I'll be 'first UP' :D, which means I get the first labour...which most likely ensures that my first handle will come on that day. (uhhh, you could pray for that! ;))
alright na lang, i'm going to BED!, have such a great wkd everyone.

"DARlingg its BETter, DOWN where its WETter - take it from meee!"

shoot! so I'm going to get SO frustrated as I blog my day to you all, as I cannot desCRIbe how incredible it was.
One of my life-long dreams has been to be able to bREAthe under water, and today I came as close as I'll ever come in doing so. At 6:30 am sharp Jenny, Charity, Lois, Laura, and I crammed into a taxi for our 7 am scheduled introductory to SCUBA! Departure ended up being closer to 8 am, but even the boat ride to the first dive spot was worth the $16 total for the day.


We were fortunate enough to learn about this Carabou Dive Club, and the club 'members' were all going out for a dive today aswell. Among them was a surgeon, a lawyer, an astronomy guy, a FISHerman, a principal, etc...quite the diverse crowd, most of whom shared ownership of the scuba shop! Our instructors flew through the intro. to the equipment and before I knew it Laura and Jenny were 'GOING IN!' (there were only 2 instructors, therefore only 2 allowed to go at once), while the rest of us just played around on the boat, snorkling and such (again, i would have been thrilled with JUST the snorklinggg!) After consuming our bag lunches we hit up yet another location that looked like the beginning scene of a movie for the second dive spot. The owners decided to switch up it a bit, give the instructors a break, and I ended up diving with the surgeon/part owner!! [meh, just another day in the phils..breathe under water, hold a surgeons hand, ya know, the us..hah] Ya, because it was our introductory lesson we had to hold hands MOST of the time...except when he was writing to me on this sweet underwater whiteboard. He'd point out certain fish or coral, then write the name on the board. I saw some small baracuda, a scorpian fish (which he saved me from trying to touch!), slugs....which doesn't sound very exciting, but THESE slugs were INsane...such vibrant colours, and shapes, and sizes. MAN. it was awesome).

GOING IN!
The maximum depth he took me was like 90 ft :P.. and by 90, I mean 40! But we explored mostly around 30 ft. deep,, which was nuts because every time I looked UP to see the surface, it looked SO close. Fred (my diver) said I was a 'natural' diver! ahah, he PRObably just wanted me to sign up to become CERTified and be in their club...which I am definetly considering. Hopefully the pictures do some justice to what I experienced, heck- you should just come OVER here, and I'll take you DIVinggg!

OH YA. and also the fisherman went down a 100 ft. with a SPEAR and caught this TUNAfish! wow...

american thanksGIVINggg

A little bit of an organized potluck, we coordinated an amazing
thanksgiving dinner tonight- complETE with turkey, and pumpkin
pie! We all got a little dressed UP and met ono the second floor
of the clinic...here's a little taste of the buffet (above)..
and The ever-smiling filipina supervisors (below).

Taas si Jason!

This past week I had the PRIViledge of showing Jason (Christine's brother) around my city for the less-than-48-hour visit he scheduled for Lois and I between mtgs and preaching in Manila..and various OTHEr countries he's breezed thru recently. It was kinda funny because Lois and I had SO many adVENtures planned out, ya know, somewhat of a 'strict' schedule - none of which ending up happening because of one thing of another. A good time was had showing him around the clinic and introducing him to all of our new friends, and he also got to sit in on our breastfeeding presentations :) friday afternoon, and that is why is he surrounded my females in this first picture.
Lois and I had sUCh a great time as Jay entertained US with antics of the filipino culture, referring to us as "ma'am" and whatnot. Being 6'4 lends itself not ONly to stand OUT(above) the crowd, but alSO to funny looks and comments from the filipinos. Introductions USually started off with "taAS na lang..(he's tall eh)" The second picture is Jay trying to get out of our gate door, which he'd just walk straight INto, not even bothering to duck!...he's.a.funny.guy.

just SEVEN more assists and I'll be in charge of the WHOLE labour and delivery!....under supervision, of course, but my next shift is monday swing (2-10)!, hopefully there'll be more babies to 'assist'!

the alphabet: XYZA

..pronounced "Siza", it was somewhat interesting how I came about doing a prenatal for this girl, but I won't bore you with details! The cool thing is I asked her if she wanted me to be her midwife, we were both fAIRly excited! (this is my second continuity - we need five to meet the requirements of this school, but I think the more continuity's I have, the better!) Xyza is 19, this is her first pregnancy, and her bf (Marc Anthony) is 23 and drives a jeepney (public transportation). She had a slight UTI at the beginning her preg., but has since cured herself with 'water therapy' and buko juice. Buko juice is coconut juice, and i gUEss it works like cranberry juice to cure that kind of thing. Anyways, the point is she's really into looking out for herself, and will listen to advice..which is good for me, ensuring that there aren't any pregnancy risks or complications in labour and delivery. She is due February 04, 2007!

~ little 'O' ~

okay okay, so i DIDN't get the present off in time. but HAD to do SOMEthing for Owen Konkle's second birthday... I obviously wish with all my heart I could hang out with you on your birthday, but this little...triBUTe will have to suffice. I got in my head a poem would be nice, I think i'm still rhyming ahah. HAVE AN AMAZING 2nd BIRTHDAY OWEN! [who could not love that face]

Exactly 2 years from this day
November 12th, a little delayed
A precious gift right from the start..
Too see you breathe captured my heart.
I patiently waited for you to arrive,
to hug you and kiss you and watch you thrive.
Yet again stood up to my dismay:
Nursing and sleeping with no time to play.
Eyes from your mother/expressions like Dad -
They buy you sweet kicks and dress you in plaid :)
Your face lights up with wonders anew:
spotting a ladybug, or playing peek-a-boo.
I reeeally hope you enjoy your cake,
Last years chocolate was a big mistake!
I hate that i'm missing your 2nd hoopla,
HAPPY Birthday dear Owen, from aunt jenna :P
(I love you.)

the cULtivation of RICE.

FYI ;) Rice is a staple for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East and Southeast Asia. Rice cultivation is well suited to countries and regions with low labour costs and high rainfall, as it is very labour-intensive to cultivate and requires plenty of water for irrigation.
Rice is often grown in paddies. The shallow puddles take advantage of the rice plant's tolerance to water: the water in the paddies prevents weeds from outgrowing the crop. Once the rice has established dominance of the field, the water can be drained in preparation for harvest.
I got to actually see all of this last wkd. It was crazy how high the mud comes up to that guy's knees.

OH! and I assisted my very first BIRTH yesterday on shift! that's rIGht, charting's done, and I now have to assist 10 births before I am able to call the shots and catch the baby. ohh myyy. can't.wait. i miss you all - take time to enjoy a brisk morning for me!

the rIVEr is rUShin', the rIVEr is here

Photo Sharing - Upload Video - Video Sharing - Share PhotosthIS is the river beside May's house, in the video, May's pointing upstream because she was trying to explain we would bathe in the part that was less rough. It was ABsolutely beautiful there, hardly anyone around - just one girl washing her clothes and a couple little boys enjoying the cold water. this was taken at approx. eight o'clock in the morning...i'm not too sure whats up with my voice, it kinda sounds like a guy but. here it IS!

last.wkd.was.nUTs!
MayFlor, Rose and I took a van two hours south, past Digos and out of the city to the oh-so-missed country side (a much needed change!). We arrived, met Arex - May's husband, ate delicious chicken wrapped in a banana leaf and rice and then bascially went to bed around nine. Rose and I stayed at the 'big house', May's in-laws, who were already sleeping when we arrived. The guest bedroom was complete with a double bed and a bright pink mosquito net. May woke us up around five (she had been up since THREE preparing Arex's breakfast and pack lunch for work and now she was ready to make OUR breakfast!) It seems like all filipinos DO is cook, eat and work, probably because it takes so stinkin' long to prepare anything. Poptarts and instant oatmeal are few and far between. May was so incredibly accomodating, for example, she even suggested we go for a run before breakfast (i must of said sOMEthing about running in the past)..and i was like 'you run?' and she said 'no, but you do!' So for breakfast that first morning we made french toast, the most canadian thing she could come up with:)! (this first picture is Rose and May preparing it) nEXT we went to the rIVEr for a bath!...i was a little apprehensive about this, although i was also looking forward to the experience as well. It turns out 'bathing' in the river basically means plAYing in the water, it was super cold, I'll post a video. Then Rose hung out, and sang karoke (ya, EVERYone has a karoke machine!) while I tried to read - I ended up practicing my vocal skills aswell, while May did things she needed to do around the house. After lunch May inSISted that Rose and I rest. so, we had a little siesta! Rose and I then got to take Arex's motorcycle out for a little excursion, where I took pictures of all the rice fields that surround the area. We fried up a fish (whole)[this consisted of lighting coconut pieces of charcoal on fire, and suspending a wire rack between two cement blocks..the fish was amazing! i GUESS if you leave the head, tail and skin on it's more flavourful!], and had rice and other side dishes for dinner.
Dinner finished around eight, and it was time for bed again :S...i couldn't go to sleep that early, so I stayed up, read and wrote a bit. Sunday morning we had meat, rice, and so on for breakfast (stuff I would normally eat for dinner..). Then we prepared a picnic lunch and hulled all of our stuff to this resort called Le Reve.[The man in the forefront of this pic is May's 'lolo' (grandfather-in-law), he was adorable, always smiling, probably cuz he thought i was a NUT for trying to communicate with him!] Fed by mount Apo, the pools in this resort were free flowing (no need for chlorine, and still clean, and cold!). There were 5 pools, 4 waterslides, and 2 diving boards, handrails and little huts - all made out of cement! The waterslides had something painted on the surface, to make sliding possible. It was such a beautiful day. I got burnt. And then Rose and I went back in the afternoon on a big bus. SUCH a great weekend! The whole vibe of the filipinos there was very evident - everyone just kind of mills around, maybe it was because it was the weekend but, no one really has anything PRESSing on their minds. They're all about relationships with others. They don't just MAKE time for others, it just sEEMs to always be the forefront of life. It's cool.

visitng Ate May's!

I haven't seen a baby born for the past two weeks :S...and lASt night I had a birthroom night shift that bAScially made UP for the lack of deliveries. Five babies lAter, around 4am I got to take an hour nap before cleaning up and endorsing all those postpartums to the day shift midwives. It.was.nuts!
All of them were so completely different, and yet, they all run into each other. It is difficult to later chart my experiences when so many are born at once. The crAZy news is that I've finished my observes - therefORE - I get to starting charting throughout the labour and delivery of the woman, I kinda have been doing this already, when things get too busy, but I wasn't really supposed to until I had fully observed 10 births. I've acutally sEEN 15 little ones pop out, but I can only count the observes if I saw the whole process take place: the check-in, the antenatal, the delivery, AND the postpartum.
SwEEt huh!
I came home and slept for maybe three more hours, and have since then been running around trying to get ready to go away for the wkd! I asked MayFlor if I could go to her house for the wkd. She and her husband lives two hours away, up somewhere away from this noisy city, and she goes home every weekend to see him. It was really cool because she is so so excited to have me. She also admitted she was a little nervous, to see what I will think of her home, and how things are done up there, but I'm ready for anything. It'll be such a good experience to see how Filipinos ACTually live. I've ALSO been trying to study, but right after my test I am heading out with May, so everything has to be ready, plus, I am on cooking this week, so I've also been preparing a potato-broccoli soup that the girls can heat up for tonight. Eeeek! I should probably go stUdY now...

ps. i've also starting creating a 'MySpace' online. You can find it by go to www.myspace.com/jennamariekonkle, it's another spot to blog, but also easier to put pics and videos UP...the few friends i've got so far are mostly midwives here or students also going through the program, and thEIR myspaces are amazing! - an EXcellent procrastination tool, ch-ch-chECK it out.

Photo Sharing - Upload Video - Video Sharing - Share Photosso THIS is a cool couple, approx. 75 years old, still serving as missionaries even though the guy (behind the pulpit) admitted he really just wanted to retire, God had other plans...and He has blessed them for obeying. I just thought it was cool because this 'old' lady :S could speak their language so well. Here, they are singing an old favourite "How Great Thou Art" in.a.different.language!! It was awesome to hear, and hopefully you can hear the tune through this little set-up. enJOY!

protein DINNer

my apologies for not keeping UP as often as I would like.
I've actually got a lot to blog about.
Last SUNday there was a potLUCK at the church I attend, All Nations. So we signed UP and made ceasar salad, homemade dressing AND croutons and all! well, it was ACTually more of a potPLATE because the helpers just scooped whatever people brought and you got to choose a plate! I chose one with a brownie, other stuff too, but the brownie was the selling point. The church service was neat, too. October was 'missions month' at All Nations, and last sunday summed it all up. I will try to figure out how to upload a movie on to this thing, so that you can experience the diversity firsthand!
ALso, tonight we had 'care group', every third wednesday all students and midwives, and teachers get together to 'care' for eachother, there's usually a short devotional and we just hang out, and eat. but toNITE we got together a little earlier because my class, the newbies, just finished our nutrition assignment, and had the task of feeding 15 ppl on a budget of jUSt 300 pesos, $6 american. We were split into two teams and were competing to see who could pack more protein into only one dish (the rice was supplied). It was a good time, and both recipes turned out not so bad! This is a picture of us ON the WAY to the clinic, entree in hand (where we were having care group)...our tricycab driver thought we were nUts!

And this is in the kitchen of the clinic, where I eat while on shift and such, everyone's staring at our creations!..the clinic has AMAzing cooks, and it's cool because I'm really exposed to the filipino culture this way.
Birthroom Update: my last 3 shifts have seen no babies born...and I finished my assignment early so I've been mulling around, finding oTHEr things to occupy my thoughts...
more to come on THAT later.