I don't think the Pronto Pass cards are worth the small fortune it costs to buy them. APhA has a much better study guide (APhA's Complete Review Of Pharmacy) that costs much less (free with APhA membership).

What don't I like about the pronto pass cards besides the price? Well:

• A lot of the acronyms they brag about on their site are harder to memorize than the actual facts would be. I know, you think something forced would be easy to remember, but these are very ridiculous. Many are very long and don't even make sense in the context they're being used in.
  
• Everyone who teaches NABPLEX prep will tell you that the key is not in memorizing every tiny fact or every strength or every drug. The NABPLEX is more clinical and problem solving skills (although some odd dosage forms and Coumadin, etc are the exceptions). You need to know brand generic, but you mostly need to know that in a more clinical way. You may need to know if an ACE inhibitor is IV or the odd fact like that, however, the pronto pass cards are way too much memorization information and way too little application information. The APhA book is more like the actual NAPLEX.
  
• There are way too many cards and way too many topics. You'll wear yourself out, especially if you just finished rotations. I admit that didn't even look at half of them, partly because I was disenchanted. Partly because you can never memorize and apply that much information.
  
• The cards don't actually teach you how to apply the information, which is again the most important part. When you do you give this drug over that one? Well, I hope the boards don't ask that kind of stuff (and they do).
  
• You'd think the cards would be easy to carry around and keep up with. I found that sheer volume meant it was harder to keep up with them than my trusty APhA book, which literally followed me everywhere my last few rotations. I guess after carting around DiPiro, the APhA book seems less obtrusive. The thought that you carry one subject until you learn it straight through is a good idea. However, I don't think anyone has the patience to read the same 20-30 cards for an entire lunch hour. Even you do, I think "coming back" to a topic is more helpful that repeating it over and over ad nauseum. When you get bored, you need to move on or your brain glazes over. It's much easier, and for me more effective, to carry the whole book, answer a few questions on one topic, think about those for a bit and go to a new topic, only to come back to the other later. That's the way we've been trained to learn in school. I think a book instead of 100 stacks of cards makes that easier, but you results may vary.
  
• A lot of the cards are wrong, and it's a good thing I knew enough to know that. If I had only studied the cards, I know I would have missed at least one question (it was on HIV medications).
  
• I admit I never called and ran through the cards with them. I did get the audio CD. The audio CD was laughable and not at all helpful. Had those people even been to pharmacy school? Had they even stepped foot into a pharmacy? Who doesn't know what Asthma is?!
  

Bottom line: I guess if you learned absolutely nothing in pharmacy school, the Pronto Pass cards may be great for touching up your pharmacy skills. If you are just looking for a refresher that will prepare you for your boards, they are not only overkill but poorly designed overkill at that. They are pretty and graphic and by god there's an acronym for everything, rather it make sense or not, but really not worth the price.

That is all.

It was short, and to the point, which I probably needed. Heh.

I was quite disappointed in your episode of House last night. That whole House/Cameron tongue battling crap was horrible and it caused me to throw up a little in the back of my mouth and then swallow it. I realize that the idea of an almost 50 year old drug addict pervert getting it on with a retarded little pissant 20+ years his junior titillates some sick viewers, but should you pursue this story line, it will ruin the show. Seriously, it's a very bad idea.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for House rocking the gurney, but at least have the decency of hooking him up with Cuddy or someone equally as non-weenus like. Cameron is just a useless, annoying, self-righteous, whiney little bitch and the show can easily do without her. She ain't even remotely cute or breasted. You already have Wilson who is practically the same character, just not as annoying. Killing Cameron off would be a good plan. She can commit suicide after finding out Chase knocked her up. The ratings would skyrocket and then you can finally hook him up with someone decent.

Have a heart. At least give him someone with big knockers.

Thank you for your time,

ladyx

P.S. If you could have an episode where House kills Rachel Ray on the table, that would be cool. It would easily win best episode ever.

P.S. I want to get on House...er, the show, not the character...although, heh heh heh...

• Nintendo Wii - Rocks! I think this was a great move on Nintendo's part and I'm glad to see them kicking Sony's hiney. Zelda is great and I think the "haters" haven't really realized the whole point of the system. I haven't read one negative Zelda review that convinced me the person was giving the system a full chance but I could be wrong, and LadyX wants to throw a Wiimote at my eye for saying such nice things about the Wii. Posting the photo to wiihaveaproblem.com would make it worth it.
  
• School - Sucks! Just kidding but I did get finished with my last really hard internship and it wasn't bad. Thankfully, I'm in civilization for the rest of them. The whiny post about me failing was premature. I didn't fail and I learned a lot. I could go on about that experience, but maybe it should wait until I get my degree.
  
• Rachel Ray - I only bring her up because she was talked about on a board I visit and they proclaimed she was perky, cooked healthy dishes and was easy on the eyes. Apparently her stellar [cough] performance on Iron Chef America made a lot of people realize she's a great chef. I just have to say she's perky like a crack addict, her dishes are loaded with oil and maybe I really don't know what men like if she's easy on the eyes. As for her ICA appearance, I think it made it obvious she wasn't a chef. She didn't have the knife skills. She didn't have the pacing or timing of a real chef. I digress. This isn't a Rachel Ray blog I suppose.
  
• Raon Vega - I got a new Raon Vega UMPC. It rocks. I foresee health care professionals using UMPCs as opposed to PDAs in the future when the market get fleshed out (if it ever does). They have a lot of potential but right now they do have a lot of flaws.
  
• Bobby Flay - He's still a moron. Just had to add that.
  

A Nugget of Wisdom to everyone out there: never, *EVER* work for an answering service (at least not the one I currently work for while I try to get a real job). It is the most bullshit, petty, illogical, and just plain retarded place to work on this planet. Any place that has people who actually believe that taking literally two seconds out of your "busy" schedule of staring at a goddamn blank computer screen while waiting for a fucking phone call to brush your hair so you're not yanking it out whenever you remove your headset is inappropriate is seriously pathetic and not worth the sanity you waste by being there.

God, I hate my job and I really can't wait to quit.

Those that do vote, please, please, please use a bit of rational thinkning when you do so.

You see, I've been watching Washington Journal on C-Span lately, and some of the callers frighten me. And I'm not talking in a pleasant "Boo!" on Halloween type scare either.

One lady thought that "God" would tell George Bush when we should get out of Iraq, and we shouldn't back down before this happens. Yeah, right, like George Bush has a "direct line" to God. He ain't holy, folks.

Then there are those who are basically equating a vote for Democratic candidates as a vote for terrorists. There seems to be the perception that anybody other than a republican will do absolutely nothing to stop terror threats against the United States. To that, I say this: Nobody friggin' likes to get blown up. Whoever is in power, will do their best to prevent this. (Well, after the Bush administration learned it's lesson by ignoring the previous reports before 9/11). Main difference will be in how many personal freedoms of the people they represent they'll be willing to sacrifice to do so.

Anyway, more disjointed ramblings. Enjoy.
Now go vote.

The seasons change.
(bongo drums)
Leaves fall.
(bongo drums)
And suck.
(bongo drums)

Thank you, and have a good night.

On a more serious note, read ladyx's post below and at least offer some consolation. Cause that situation sucks way more than my poem does.

(For reference, I already have a lawyer.)

I just want to add a side note to people out there that if you EVER witness an accident, no matter how minor it is, PLEASE at least do the drivers the courtesy of stopping and giving a statement to the officer. The fact that nobody else bothered to take twenty minutes out of their busy lives to stop and give a statement is what is making it so that cop and the woman rightfully and legally at fault have gotten away with this injustice for the past month.

That said, I've been playing Bully lately, and have been enjoying it greatly. 'Tis fun.

Thank you for not canceling Crisis Core. I've been looking forward to it since I first heard about it, and even moreso since I finished up Dirge of Cerberus. Even though I don't consider Final Fantasy VII to be my favorite FF game, I still like it and its spinoffs very much and would love to see this one out; especially since it may give more insight as to what Sephiroth was like before he went batshit.

I also want to say thank you for deciding to remake Advent Children. I hope you would consider changing a couple of the voice actors (mostly Aeris, but there are a couple others that could use it, as well), and maybe letting Sephiroth spear Cloud through the head and destroy the world...that would be cool...if not, I'll just be happy to have more scenes and stuff. More Vincent would be pretty kickass, too.

In closing, I would also like to submit this as my formal application for employment. Hire me. Please hire me. I have a B.S. in a computing field and would kill for the opportunity to empty your garbage cans.

~Your faithful monkey,

LadyX

P.S. Please include more Sephiroth fan-service. He is hot.

Well, welcome to my life for this month. I'm sick of it. The worse part is I'm doing all this shit, working my butt off, constantly stressed out and pushing myself to do things that I hate to do and I'm going to fail and have to repeat this process again.

I don't think I can take two months. One has been bad enough. At least I know I don't want to do a residency anymore. Hell, I want to go back to working with computers at this point. I'd rather never see another person ever again.

August:
Dirge of Cerberus (PS2) - 22nd

September:

Final Fantasy III (DS) - 12th
Voltron Box Set 1 - 26th

October:

Final Fantasy XII - 31st

All for now. More to come later (notably the new Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, which is going to be freaking awesome, I'm sure).