Diary of a Lab Rat: Not enough cheese in this maze!

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  I wasn't able to communicate as clearly yesterday as I wanted to.  I felt like utter CRAP yesterday.  So, now I can think more clearly.

   So, a new insomnia drug is being tested on us.  Kendle wants to find out for Merck what the addictive potential of the new drug is.  It has yet to be approved by Health Canada.

    Yesterday morning, a man entered the ladies' communal bedroom at 5:30am to wake up anyone who wants their morning smoke.

    Those of us who are addicted to cigarettes, like I am, only have two opportunities to smoke, once before 6:30am (two hours before earliest dosing time!) and once at twelve hours after dosing (for me, that's 9:30pm).   So, I've had to go two FIFTEEN HOUR AWAKE periods smoke free. 

   "Oh, it must be so good for Kim to go without smoking for so long!" you're thinking.  You're wrong!

   Toward the end of yesterday, I was insane and driving others crazy.  Kim+tobacco= peace, okay?!

    Each morning, we spend 5-6 hours in the dosing room.  (No, Mom, not doZing room, there's no opportunity for sleep there!)  Yesterday and today, I entered at about 7:30am.   Each of us is dosed and tested at a time unique to each of us.

   I was dosed at 9:30am yesterday and today.  We weren't told whether we would be getting a drug or placebo.  We are dosed double blind, and they mix up who gets what on which day.

   I'm pretty sure that yesterday I got a placebo and today I got the drug!

   I actually got very nauseous.  I was drifting in and out of awareness while in the chair.  (We have to stay in our chairs for the entire 5-6 hours.)

   Before we're given our 'dose', our vital signs are taken, and we have to take tests on a little laptop, one is given to each of us.  The tests include questions about our mental states ("How high do you feel?"), memory tests, and reflex tests.  The memory tests present us with sequences of numbers we should remember.  We're given a joystick to test our reflexes.  We must 'fly a plane' over a squiggly road, and push the button when we see an X on the screen.

   These tests are taken several times a day, at set times, a couple of times pre-dose, and several times post-dose.

   When I haven't been stuck in the dosing room, I've been working hard in the communal ladies' bedroom on my netbook.

   To the people I love, I miss you!

   For this session, I'll be checking out tomorrow morning...

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Diary of a Lab Rat: Stay still, get pellet

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   Well, my first 'Diary of a Lab Rat' post is finally here.

    I checked in at 5pm yesterday evening, or at least I was supposed to.   I lugged my HEAVY suitcase into the building, near King and Bathurst.   I would have been five minutes early, if it weren't for the elevators.

    The elevator came, but it wouldn't stop on the floor of the lab!  I had never had that problem before.  I was pissed!  I can't be late...

    I waited at the 10th floor for quite a while.  The delay was really bothering me.

    I tried going up with the other elevator- the exact same thing happened.

    Finally, back in the lobby, a guy in a white lab coat was waiting.  He didn't identify himself as being an employee of Kendle.  I had to ask him questions to find out what the heck was going on.   People who don't engage in clear, direct communication drive me nuts!   See my rant on Blogcritics about it, I Say What I Mean, and I Mean What I Say!

   Anyway, he was waiting there, with a keycard to let test subjects have access to the correct floor, as this particular floor is locked at 5pm.  It would've been nice if he helped me in the first place, before I wasted all of my time!   Arrrggggh!

As I may not take photos in the lab, here's a real photo of something, courtesy of kilroysdelaware.wordpress.com

   It took until about 6:30pm until I was properly registered.  Good grief!  But they didn't consider me late.

   After having my bags searched, this netbook was registered in their laptop directory, with the webcam taped over.   Then my cigarettes were registered and put away, only to be given to me during designated smoke breaks.  I have access to this netbook whenever I'm not in the dosing room, however.  After changing into their scrubs, they took my vital signs, and another urine sample.

   Two of the women had too high of a THC level in their urine test.  They were also testing us for pregnancy, among other things..   All of the men passed (no, they were only tested for drugs!), but those two women I mentioned were asked to leave the study.  It was a bummer for me, too, I was just getting to know them!

   We had Chinese food for supper, washed down with 7up.  It wasn't bad!

   I had to wait until about 10:45pm for my supervised smoke break, it was brutal!

   Lights out time was 11pm.   Stay tuned for the next part, hopefully by tomorrow, when I start again from this morning.

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Good afternoon from the linuxcafe!

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   Good afternoon, dear readers!  I'm at Toronto's linuxcaffe for the very first time.   It's a little cramped here, but this place is great!

    The staff are very friendly.  I'm surrounded by other Linux fans, and my buttered bagel was delicious.  I don't have to check into the lab until 5:00pm, so I'd rather kill time here.

    If you're ever visiting Toronto, I encourage you to check this place out.  Even if your laptop is running Windows or Mac OS, you're still welcome here.

    I regret missing the Maverick Meerkat (Ubuntu 10.10) party that was here a couple of weeks ago, but I'll be sure to be here for the Natty Narwhal celebration that'll expectedly be here in April.

    If you're curious about this place, please visit their website: linuxcaffe.ca.

   Until my first 'Diary of a Lab Rat' post shows up this evening or tomorrow, I want to share my Halloween photos from last night.  

    Here they are!

The view from our front door, Halloween night

Here I am, waiting for 'trick or treaters'.

The coffee table is fully equipped, complete with my lil' Ubuntu netbook.  See, I'm on this blog!

A view of our front door. 

This house across the street from us is nicely decorated.  But all the houses in this neighbourhood look identical!   This city girl finds the suburbs SCAAAARRRRRY!

   I know Halloween is over for now, but I might as well link to one of the articles I wrote for Blogcritics- Halloween Dos and Don'ts.

   I modified the article a little bit for EzineArticles- Halloween Dos and Don'ts.

  Hopefully, you'll get some tips you can use for Halloween 2011!  Years are starting to go by pretty quickly for me now, and I'm still only 26 years old.

   Stay tuned, folks!  There's lots coming up, right here.  And, be sure to read me everywhere else.

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Our seniors, discarded in neglect...

  Elder abuse is an issue that hits close to home for me.  My father is a senior citizen, and my mother will become one in a few years.  They both have spouses, careers, and live independently, but there are many their age who don't.  My father will turn eighty in 2017, and that forces me to admit that my childhood is long over, and my parents will soon need my help the way I needed theirs.

  Most nursing homes and retirement homes in Ontario are well run, with excellent, caring staff.  Working as a nurse or an aid in a nursing home is tough, demanding work, and a lot of people would refuse to do what they do for a living.  If you work caring for the elderly, and you try your best every day, my heart goes out to you.

  Sadly, though, the province of Ontario hasn't done everything possible to make sure all seniors get the care they deserve.  Most elder care facilities are excellent, but thanks to a Toronto Star investigation, we know that a few facilities slip through the cracks.  And, with an aging population, elder abuse is becoming a bigger and bigger issue.

  On Friday, the Star published a story about one facility, the In Touch retirement home, near Weston Road and Lawrence Avenue West in Toronto.  See http://www.thestar.com/news/investigations/article/869045--seniors-at-risk-in-retirement-home-investigation-reveals .

  Dale Brazao went undercover for a week, posing as a new 'resident'.  What he found was horrifying.  The place wasn't supposed to be a nursing home, and more than half of In Touch's 'residents' are in need of constant medical supervision.  

  The food 'residents' would be served would not just be lacking nutrition,  but eggs and beef stew were found being stored on top of, instead of inside of, the refrigerator in the big kitchen where residents' meals are made.

  'Residents' would go without toilet paper for months, and a typical toilet would be smeared in feces, seldom cleaned.

  'Residents' would be left sitting in urine soaked diapers for days.  

  Often, when a frail 'resident' would fall, it would take HOURS for them to get any help.

  The poor people who work there are paid well under Ontario's minimum wage of $10.50/hour.

  And, according to Dale's investigation, here's the woman behind all of this, In Touch retirement home's owner, Elaine Lindo.

    

 If you read more about Dale Brazao's investigation, it appears that Ms. Lindo has also been intimidating some of her 'residents', and collecting rent from them AFTER THEY'RE DEAD.  Here's all of the articles I could find about this in the Toronto Star:

• http://www.thestar.com/news/investigations/article/869045--seniors-at-risk-in-retirement-home-investigation-reveals
• http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/869681--critics-demand-retirement-home-probe
• http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/869047
• Slideshow of Elaine Lindo and In Touch: http://www.thestar.com/fplarge/photo/868868

 If you live around Weston and Lawrence Avenue West, you might see Ms. Lindo at the supermarket or walking down the street.


 If you see her, do me a favour and confront her.  Don't be violent or do anything else illegal.  But approach her, and demand answers to tough questions.  If you make it clear to Ms. Lindo that this kind of abuse and neglect in unacceptable, she'll know that she can't hide this shit any longer.


Ontario's Minister of Seniors, Minister Sophia Aggelonitis, was interviewed by the Star, and she said she was saddened and disturbed by what's going on at In Touch. 


 I wish there was a criminal investigation into the matter.











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Nuit Blanche Toronto 2010 Photos

  Here, as promised, is a photo journal of my experience at Nuit Blanche Toronto 2010.  It's kind of extensive, so I hope you enjoy it.


  This is a photo-heavy post, so I've archived the entire post to 


http://www.kimcrawley.com/2010NuitBlachePhotos.html


 for better RSSing.  - November 26th, 2010





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I'll be Photo Blogging Nuit Blanche...

  Do you like wacky art installations?  How about thought provoking performance art?  

  I'll be photoblogging Nuit Blanche Toronto 2010.  It takes place this Saturday night, October 2nd, starting at 6:57pm, lasting until sunrise Sunday morning.  My fiance will be the photographer.  

  If you can't be there yourself, I'll be there for you, and I'll show you all the cool stuff I see!  If you WILL be there, you can compare your experiences with mine.

  Watch me attend my own funeral, and my own mock birthday party!  Watch performance artists and dancers interact with me.  See the nifty and engaging installations that blow my mind.  If you've never been to Nuit Blanche, you won't believe your eyes.  See Toronto in bold new eyes, as interpreted by hundreds of artists.

  I plan to be there from the beginning, until midnight.  When I get home around 2:00am Sunday morning, I promise to post and tweet ASAP.

  See you there!  Or, you'll see me there!

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