During my freshman year in high school, my science teacher assigned us to interview people in the community about how they use science in their careers. Although I don’t remember most of the people I spoke with, I can tell you that I spent meaningful time with a local community pharmacist who changed my life.
What I saw was a man who loved his career and truly cared for his patients. In an instant, I knew that I wanted to become a pharmacist, and I never wavered from that goal throughout high school.
Knowing what you want to be when you grow up at age 14 is unusual, but it is very liberating. I simply had to work backwards to figure out how to achieve my goal of becoming a pharmacist.
After high school, I chose to attend Ohio Northern University (ONU) because it had a unique pharmacy program. Rather than attending college for 2 years and then applying to the pharmacy program, ONU students were admitted to the College of Pharmacy from day one.
Although it was expensive, being in pharmacy school from day one and avoiding the risk of rejection made it worthwhile for me.
In college, I spent a lot of time in the library. Although the classwork was difficult, I did well with one exception: organic chemistry.
I did fail organic chemistry—a notorious “weed out” course—but I successfully retook the class over the summer and graduated on time with the rest of my classmates. Failing a course is a difficult stumbling block, but I stood strong and persevered.
Today, I’m thankful for the wonderful pharmacy profession for so many reasons.
First, I’m thankful that community pharmacists are the health care professionals most accessible to the public. If my local pharmacist wasn’t accessible to me, then I likely would have taken a different career path.
Second, I’m proud of the work we pharmacists do, the diversity of our career options, and the relationships we share with our patients and fellow health care providers.
Pharmacy is a profession that makes a real difference in people’s lives. It certainly has made all the difference in mine.
Bizarre, Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, Retail, Spouses & Partners, USA | Romantic | April 7, 2018
(My store has a loyalty program with no card or keyring tag; we look customers up by their phone number. In cases where people are shopping for gifts and are not in the system or not interested in being in the system, we encourage people to give us the phone number of the parent of the child they’re shopping for, so they get the points for the purchase. For the sake of this story, we will say my husband’s phone number is (123) 456-7890.)
Me: “And your phone number for your rewards?”
Customer: “(123) 987-6543.”
Me: “Hmm, nothing under that number. Could it be under your home number?”
Customer: “Oh! It’s probably under my boyfriend’s number. He has kids! (123) 456-78—”
(At this point, my brain stops. I’m thinking, “This can’t be happening. She’s giving me MY HUSBAND’s phone number as her boyfriend’s. What are the odds of this happening?!”)
Car, Charlottesville, Health & Body, Spouses & Partners, USA, Virginia | Romantic | April 4, 2018
(I’m in hard labor with my first child, who is two weeks overdue. After early labor all day, it’s now past midnight and the contractions are unbearable. My husband is driving me to our hospital, forty five minutes from home. I’m in the passenger seat, eyes tightly closed, counting my breathing and the miles under the tires. The car finally comes to a slow stop, and I’m ecstatic that we’ve arrived.)
Me: “Oh, thank God. I can’t take this much more! We’re there, right?”
Husband: “Uh, well…”
Outside The Car: “Welcome to [Tex Mex Fast Food Place]. Are you interested in a combo meal?”
(Two meals ordered, and we were back en route to the hospital ten minutes away. Nine years later, we still joke about being the couple that showed up in the labor and delivery ward with a duffel bag and Tex Mex.)
Australia, College & University, Extra Stupid, Flirting | Romantic | March 30, 2018
(I’m in a college tutorial class, where instead of a large seminar room, about 20 of us are sat in a smaller room with a few group tables. There is a table I’ve sat at because I think one of the guys is cute; however, I don’t say a word to him. The lecturer wants us to refer to our textbook for the tutorial, but I haven’t bought it yet. The guy I like has taken a picture of someone else’s book on his iPad.)
Guy: *glances over* “Do you want the picture?”
Me: “Uh… Yeah. Sure.”
Guy: “Okay, what’s your number? I can send it to you.”
Me: *being super clueless* “It’s okay; don’t worry!”
(I legitimately go to take a picture of his screen with my phone.)
Guy: “Er, I think sending it to your number is better.”
Me: “Huh?”
Guy: “Jesus. I want your number!”
(After the class, he messaged me and said I made his ploy to get my number quite awkward!)
Extra Stupid, home, New Zealand, Spouses & Partners | Romantic | March 29, 2018
(My wife and I are together after she’s spent the day with her close friend. Suddenly, her voice becomes sad.)
Wife: “Babe… Ugh… I stood on [Friend]’s scale today.”
(I mistake the sadness in her voice and think something bad must have happened to occasion this sadness. Desperately thinking what it might be, I latch onto the phrase “stood on” and take it to mean “accidentally stepped on.”)
Me: “Oh, did you break it?”
(She was speechless, and I came to the horrifying realization of what I’d just said. Cue several minutes of her laughing her head off while I desperately apologized repeatedly.)
It was my birthday and I had planned a fancy dinner party for a few close friends, to celebrate. This was also the night I was going to introduce them to the man I had been dating for a couple of months.
He was supposed to come over a few hours early to help me get everything ready. I didn’t hear from him all day, and when he wasn’t there by three, I texted to see where he was and received no reply. He didn’t show up at all, and there was no word from him until the next day.
I asked him what happened, and he said he didn’t know that the dinner party was on that night, that his phone was out of battery, and that he had missed the last bus to my place. He even said that he would have walked the three hours it would have taken, but he had my birthday present with him and it was too big and heavy to carry that far.
I was pretty angry, but I knew he wasn’t the brightest spark, so I explained to him how I felt and let it go. He showed up a few days later with my birthday present: a VCR that he was planning to connect to my VCR to double-tape his favourite movie for me. The movie in question was a horror movie that was discussed in a conversation we had about how I couldn’t handle the sight of blood.
It was my birthday and I had planned a fancy dinner party for a few close friends, to celebrate. This was also the night I was going to introduce them to the man I had been dating for a couple of months.
He was supposed to come over a few hours early to help me get everything ready. I didn’t hear from him all day, and when he wasn’t there by three, I texted to see where he was and received no reply. He didn’t show up at all, and there was no word from him until the next day.
I asked him what happened, and he said he didn’t know that the dinner party was on that night, that his phone was out of battery, and that he had missed the last bus to my place. He even said that he would have walked the three hours it would have taken, but he had my birthday present with him and it was too big and heavy to carry that far.
I was pretty angry, but I knew he wasn’t the brightest spark, so I explained to him how I felt and let it go. He showed up a few days later with my birthday present: a VCR that he was planning to connect to my VCR to double-tape his favourite movie for me. The movie in question was a horror movie that was discussed in a conversation we had about how I couldn’t handle the sight of blood.
It was my birthday and I had planned a fancy dinner party for a few close friends, to celebrate. This was also the night I was going to introduce them to the man I had been dating for a couple of months.
He was supposed to come over a few hours early to help me get everything ready. I didn’t hear from him all day, and when he wasn’t there by three, I texted to see where he was and received no reply. He didn’t show up at all, and there was no word from him until the next day.
I asked him what happened, and he said he didn’t know that the dinner party was on that night, that his phone was out of battery, and that he had missed the last bus to my place. He even said that he would have walked the three hours it would have taken, but he had my birthday present with him and it was too big and heavy to carry that far.
I was pretty angry, but I knew he wasn’t the brightest spark, so I explained to him how I felt and let it go. He showed up a few days later with my birthday present: a VCR that he was planning to connect to my VCR to double-tape his favourite movie for me. The movie in question was a horror movie that was discussed in a conversation we had about how I couldn’t handle the sight of blood.
home, Oregon, Silly, Spouses & Partners, USA | Romantic | March 27, 2018
(We live in a two-level house, where one level is basement-level and the other is ground-level. Our bedroom is in the basement level, with the living room directly over it. One night, my husband is staying up watching a movie, and I’ve decided to go to bed. Right before falling asleep, I remember that I made fresh hummus and he put it in the freezer to chill a few hours before. Worried that it may be frozen, I send him a message.)
Me: “HUMMUS! It must be saved from the ice caves of Fridge Island, or it shall be doomed to never be cherished and savored again. That would be a loss for us all.”
(I count twenty seconds between sending the message and hearing him jump from the couch above me, jog to the kitchen, rip open a bag of chips, and get the hummus from the freezer. Ten minutes later I hear him sit back down. I get a message back.)
British Columbia, Canada, Grocery Store, Silly, Spouses & Partners, Vancouver | Romantic | March 26, 2018
(A customer calls my store to place a cake order for the following week. When I ask for a name for the order, this happens.)
Me: “And can I get a name for your order, please?”
Customer: “[First Name] [Last Name #1 ]. No, [Last Name #2 ]. [Last Name #1 ] is my maiden name.” *the customer starts laughing* “I can’t believe I said that.”
Customer’s Husband: *in the background* “We’ve only been married 35 years.”
Best Friends, Fights/Breakups, High School, USA, Washington, Young Love | Romantic | March 25, 2018
I had a tough time keeping friends as a kid because of my temper and my dark sense of humor. By middle school I was pretty much a loner. By pure chance, that ended up being the year I met the girl that would be my best friend. She was (and still is) a quirky, innocent type, sweet, kind, and really funny, but she also didn’t always get why her jokes were funny. She also wasn’t an aggressive person, always choosing to let something go rather than risk starting a fight over it. Even though we were really different, we got along great and I feel like I really grew as a person with her by my side.
In sophomore year, I started dating a guy I really liked. He seemed really nice and we had a lot of fun together. After we’d been dating a year, I stupidly agreed to sleep with him, since I was sure that we were in love and had a real chance for a future together someday.
Something changed afterwards. We still hung out like normal, but he didn’t seem as into our relationship as he was before. He would show more interest if sex was involved, but it was always a temporary solution. My friend suggested that my boyfriend and I go to an upcoming school dance together, along with her and a few people we knew. It was going to be a fun night of fancy outfits and partying. When I brought up the idea to my boyfriend, he seemed okay with the idea, and plans were made to meet up there.
When I got to the dance, I was doing great. I looked good, I felt good, and I was pumped to have a good time with people I cared about. And that’s when I walked into the dance hall and saw my boyfriend dancing and kissing his new girlfriend. I yelled at him for a bit before I had to run away in tears.
I made it to the entrance hall before I collapsed into a corner. I just wanted to die, I was so upset. My friend arrived, saw me huddled over in tears and ran to me, asking what was wrong. She gave me a blank stare as I explained. When I finished, she pulled me in for a hug before she stood back up, told me to stay put, and began walking away. Confused, I decided to follow, anyway.
In a fantastic moment I wish I had recorded, she walked right through the gym doors, straight up to my now ex-boyfriend, and slapped him. As he stood there in shock, she stared him dead in the eyes and said, “You are a bad person, and you should be ashamed of yourself.” She then turned around and walked back toward where I was standing, grabbing a cup of punch and a cookie from the snack table for me on her way. That was 15 years ago, and we are still best friends to this day.
Awesome, Chicago, Health & Body, home, Love/Romance, Spouses & Partners, USA | Romantic | March 24, 2018
(I’ve been suffering from chronic depression for most of my life, and my husband has been exceptionally patient and loving to me through my episodes. With his help, I’ve built a system that allows me to work through many of these episodes without medical or chemical help, which is especially important as I am currently nursing our infant son. Part of this system is warning my husband when I’m feeling especially emotionally raw, which we call a “blue day.”)
Me: “Love, I just wanted you to know I’m having a blue day.”
Husband: *concerned* “You okay, sweetheart?”
Me: “I’m just… stuck in this loop. I don’t even know what triggered it. I keep thinking, ‘Just go for the knife,’ and I can’t snap out of it.”
Husband: “Want me to dull the knives for you?”
Me: *caught off guard* “Wait, what?”
Husband: “Seriously! By the time I’m done, you’ll be asking, ‘Why won’t these things even cut butter?!'”
(I had to laugh as he acted out the impossible knives that couldn’t cut room temperature butter, and then got our toddler in on the fun. I’m so blessed to have someone like him!)
California, Extra Stupid, home, Language & Words, Spouses & Partners, USA | Romantic | March 23, 2018
(I’m reading an article debating how humans would act if we ever actually found alien life. After finishing it, I look up at my husband who has just walked into the room.)
Me: “How do you think humans would react if they ever found proof of the existence of intelligent human life?”
Husband: “What?”
Me: “How do you think humans would react if they ever found proof of the existence of intelligent human life?”
Husband: *looks confused* “One more time?”
Me: *getting exasperated* “How do you think humans would react if they ever found proof of the existence of intelligent humaaah…” *I suddenly realize what I’ve been saying* “…alien life. I meant alien life.”
Husband: “Oh, thank God. I thought I was going crazy for a minute! First we’d deny that it’s intelligent, then we’d try to eat it.”
(My husband has a YouTube playlist running, and the current song is by a singer with a surprisingly high vocal range. At this point, Ireland and Britain are in for a few days of serious snow and minus zero temperatures.)
Husband: “You know, if he didn’t have a wife and child, I’d say he was castrated.”
Me: “What does being castrated have to do with having a wife?”
Husband: *to daughter, pointing out the window* “Look! Snow!”
Bad Behavior, Blackburn, Coworkers, England, Exes/Old Flames, Fast Food, Non-Dialogue, Revolting, UK | Romantic | March 21, 2018
I work at a fast-food place with my friend. It’s mid-summer and my friend has just had a messy breakup with his girlfriend of three years, after he caught her having sex with another friend. Four days post-breakup, we are working the grill area when in walks his ex and the guy she cheated with, clearly showing him off as her new boyfriend.
She makes eyes with my friend and then orders her food. It’s all grill items, and my friend knows it’s her order because she ordered the same unusual alterations to her food when they were together.
It becomes apparent very quickly that both she and the guy intend to humiliate my friend by making him make them their food. He looks around and notes several things.
1) It’s the middle of summer and it’s over 35 degrees Celsius [95 degrees Fahrenheit] in the kitchen.
2) His crotch and rear have been within three feet of a 180+ degrees Celsius [356+ degrees Fahrenheit] grill for several hours.
3) The managers on duty are all either doing office work or customer facing, and can’t see him.
4) His ex can only see him from the neck up, due to how the kitchen is built.
My friend then decides that his ex’s order needs some extra sauce. He proceeds to work his hands down his pants and, after a bit of wiggling, brings from the depths of his crotch enough sweat to drip it onto first the ex’s and then the new boyfriend’s burgers before sending them and wandering off to wash his hands. Throughout all of this, I have neither intervened (because she did kind of deserve it) or assisted (because I didn’t want “sweat sandwich” as my dismissal reason), but I have kept a straight face and so has he. His ex doesn’t realise something is up, and once she gets her food, she looks at him again and smirks before wandering off to sit down.
At this point, I fulfil my obligations as a normal human and tell him he’s a maniac, he laughs it off, and we carry on about our business, stopping briefly to watch his ex and her new boyfriend leave the store.
Other mutual friends and coworkers of ours inform me that this event repeated on no less than five other occasions over the next four weeks, so the two of them got quite the dosage over time.
So far as I know, she never discovered that she ate a diet very high in ball sweat for several weeks, but it’s remained an amusing story within our friend group for the better part of a decade now.
The lesson to be drawn from this is: don’t go rubbing things in the face of someone who’s making your food. Who knows what “extra ingredients” you might end up with?
The guy is a prison warden now; God help the inmates
Boyfriend/Girlfriend, Fights/Breakups, Gym, Jerk, Pennsylvania, USA | Romantic | March 20, 2018
(My boyfriend and I have been going to a gym regularly for the past several months, so we have a pretty well-established routine. I’ve been stretching for maybe a minute after getting there when my boyfriend comes up to me, an odd expression on his face.)
Boyfriend: “Hey, we need to talk.”
(I’m not usually one to jump to conclusions, but anyone in a relationship that hears those words combined with an odd expression on the other person’s face is bound to have a little heart attack. But, seeing as how the past few weeks have been wonderful between us, and he hasn’t given any indication of anything amiss, I figure he might be about to ask to stay at my house, since it is snowing very badly and he lives more than half an hour away. He leads me to the gym lounge that’s right next to the entrance of the building, and breaks up with me. In a gym. Not even after we’ve finished working out, but before. In a very public setting. I go to the bathroom to process what had just happened, and to bawl my eyes out for a bit. After a few minutes, I text him about taking me home, since I don’t exactly feel like working out right now, and he is the one that drove me there.)
Me: “Hey, can you please take me home? I’m not exactly up to doing anything right now.”
(A few minutes pass without response.)
Me: “Did you start working out?”
Now-Ex Boyfriend: “Yeah, but I can take you home.”
(So, to recap, he broke up with me, in a gym, not after we did what we came there to do, but beforehand, and still expected to go on like nothing happened. Am I being sensitive, or was that basically the relationship equivalent of polishing a crystal vase with a sledgehammer? And, on top of all that, the snow was so bad that he did end up staying the night with my family and me. I think it was a real contender for awkward dinner of the year.)
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