Dying and selling out

So tomorrow is the last day of my Wilderness First Responder course. It has been a good time so far. We have had a mixture of lectures and practical exercises, learning and then putting to use the skills we have learned so far. I have learned more about the human body in the last 4 days than I have in the nearly 30 years prior!

Today was a mass casualty exercise. I was a victim. The background scenario is that I had brought out a group of people I met online to practice climbing for a trip we were taking to the Amazon. We weren't climbing rock, however, but trees. I was coaching people from the ground, and had four people in the tree, climbing simultaneously. The person toward the top fell, hitting all the others on the way down, who all fell on me. I was knocked unconscious and couldn't breathe.

Picture this now, four people I met four days ago were instructed to pile up on top of me. Wow. I had a girl laying half on me, and half next to me. She was screaming her lungs out. I had to be dead while someone gave me mouth to mouth. Now at least the mouth to mouth was simulated! It was quite an interesting situation, but as my gf would say, "In the name of learning".

During this simulation, I died.

Which leads me to my next topic. I sold out when I was down here. I have taken the last four days and have actually been living in a hotel room. Luckily for me I had the money saved up from being frugal enough. It's been nice though. The bed is comfy, and I have luxuries like a refrigerator and a stove. I don't even have people walking by and asking me what I'm cooking!

Oh, and I have a shower with just me in it. Pretty nice I must say. I think I might even enjoy a bath before I leave here.

So I did sell out a bit. I was going to live out of my car this week, but I decided that I didn't want to try to figure out a safe place to park in Portland, and I didn't want to subject my classmates to my week long stench. I'm sure they appreciated it, especially since they had to pile up on top of me :-)

All in all it has been a good week, and a good class. Hopefully I am doing well enough so far, and will do well on the final written exam. This really is a big step toward my dream though, and I am glad to be taking it. Check back tomorrow or Thursday to find out how I did. Also, Thursday I turn the big 3-0, so get my thoughts on that.

So all my readers, as always, follow your dreams and do what is right for you. It isn't always easy, but you will know if it's right for you. You won't want to do anything else.