interesting little drabble - you should make it whole story someday - has potential. Thanks for the update re: this tale. I look forward to a Christmas prezzie update.

Good luck with Vet School! Hope you feel better soon (emotionally, physically, RL-ally).

take care!

Hi MEL,
(Now that I know your name and can mosy over to read at your LJ...)...
Sorry about life getting you by the short ones....know how that is...don't let 'em getcha down too long, 'cos speaking as one who knows, you will be soooo surprised how fast time flies by til it's gone (@ 46, I must as myself that at least once a day).
I know that college life is hard, and frankly, it and health and sanity arethe big big big priorities. If writing keeps ya sane, more power to it and ya, but if it starts to drag on you or what's really important, well readers will get over it.
I know how much I had to just let go when in college, and how much over the years things that I tried to hang onto, especially during the rapidly changing college time (and even post grad job time or family time) pulled me in too many directions at once for my own good.
Vet school...SOOOO awed. Years ago, one of FL's first avian certified vets (might have been one of the first 3 in the US) tried to convince me to go to vet school (and THEN I was only 27!) but I thought I was too old, or too dumb (have trouble with algebra, maths, etc, flunked it 5 times but did manage Statistics, go figure, therefore barely got thru chem by the skin of my teeth) Having been a nurse, I know Med school, to which vet school is comparable, is hard on the students in way more than an academic way.
What I have learned about animals I have learned from good (and bad) vets and techs, old breeders, GOOD research books and school of hard knocks, trial and error, and some fly by the seat of my pants. I've relied on my nursing skills a LOT with animals, especially emergency and pediatrics experience. I became an animal breeder and really can't recommend that enough for learning about their natural behaviours and translating that to captive/domesticated animals. My best vet, who went to U of F 's vet school and teaches there sometimes told me that your parents (or the student) goes in debt $40 grand ( I think that was the yearly quote) a year to get you thru vet school, and you get out not knowing squat about (fill in the blank, with her it was birds, her chosen specialty, to which she said, i believe, they get a 4 to 8 hr class max)______. Then, she said, you have to go in debt another $40 grand to travel all over the place taking classes, seminars, etc and studying for six years while in practice PLUS crank out a study and publish/present a paper to get board certified in a specialty. She pretty much compared it to indentured servitude....
But she's so great. And so willing to impart knowledge, not treating it like it's a big secret only the paying can get tidbits of... She doesn't have the "GOD" doctor attitude complex either....
Was just gonna suggest along the way you might learn bunches from other sources like specialty (species) breeders, breeders forums, and techs who've worked the ropes. Don't know if you have a specialty in mind yet even.
Again, if you ever need any help I can give you in the birds dept, feel free, plus with limited knowledge I've raised fowl, sheep, goats, had way too many cats and some dogs, forgot what I knew about fish (my fiance won't let me get started with those, afaid I'll fill the house up like with birds....LOL...tho' when a lil' kid I raised fancy guppies as well as mice... and had a ton of geckos, house and Tokay running loose in my farm house (pest control)....
and I just added two MORE kittied to the zoo (somebody stop me!) as a friend ran into some "crack" for a former addiction of mine....manx/bobtailed/tailles cats....I uaed to have a houseful, and they are so unique, totally different personalities, but lost them all in a housefire that burned down my farmhouse 4 yrs ago....anyway, these two babies are so cute, about 8 wks old I'd guess, eating on their own...female is white with torbie (tabbie-ish) stripes on calico-like patches here and there on her white exotic length hair, tri-colored. The little male looks just like my alpha female that I lost did---grey/tan tiger striiped, white underchin blaze and paws....He's the shy one, she gently head-butts for attention. And she mothers him.
Very sweet. We'll be getting them fixed as soon as they're old enough. I think they'll be a joy,, big lovers.
Anyway, enjoying your fic, hang in there, study hard, BEST of luck, sorry to run on, and don't worry about the readers. If they really are interested they'll keep checking back. Life and priorities change. Hopefully we'll get to read the end of this fic, but if not, hey, that's life.
Liked the ficlet, drabble...almost blew on the keyboard when I realized it was the bot. Quite a reasonable "plug-in" to the canon story (no pun intended)....
Enjoyed it, Congrats, and good luck...
Kara
shakkaed@aol.com

Thanks for being forthright about when you miight get the chance to update. The fic is terrific, and hope that RL works out well for you. Good luck with school & everything else.

I will look forward to reading this again when you do start posting again. If by chance you relocated for school to the boston area I could give you some tips about the area, email lovesbtch@yahoo.com :)

Good luck with school and I hope you are feeling better.

I'm sorry things didn't get much better after your accident, I remember you mentioned it sometime ago after I discovered this story. I understand how this one takes a lot from you emotionally; it really got to me when I first read it. I hope things stay on more of an even keel for you. In the meantime I'll just have to look forward to an extra Christmas present!

I hope you do continue with this fic because I've just discovered it and I love it. I really want to read more.