#fdass

[firefighterinprogress]

Spring 2014 Quarter Post-Mortem

It's been a busy quarter; I can't believe it's already come to an end. I think this is the quarter I've blogged the least about. Not that it's been boring, quite the opposite is true.

FDASS panned out pretty much how I expected it to. We did a couple of projects with suppression systems on campus. We looked at the foam suppression system in the hangars at the Air Guard base. Overall there wasn't much I learned in the class I didn't already know. I did learn about some smoke control systems, but it just felt like a repeat of stuff I learned in Firefighter I and II. The final grade was B+.

Building Construction was a class that seemed harder than it needed to be. It was an online class and I think they're still working out the balance there. The work itself wasn't hard: Every week a forum post, two responses, a worksheet, and a quiz for that chapter. It's deceptively simple. The worksheet was basically a vocabulary list with things to describe. It wasn't terribly difficult, just tedious. And doing it week after week it started to grind on you.

I actually learned quite a bit in this class. There's a lot more to buildings than I thought. It's frightening to know just how fragile buildings and roofs are built nowadays. Final grade came out to a B.

EMT-II ended up sucking about 90% of my time. Who knew the medical field was so in depth. This half was definitely a lot harder than the last. It didn't help that I changed instructors for this quarter (I had to, the night classes were killing me). Which I did like her hands-on style of teaching. It was a rough transition because she made you think about what you were doing. As dumb as it sounds, it's something I haven't really been forced to do thus far. Overall I learned quite a bit about trauma and I feel a lot more comfortable in my skills. Plus the ride-alongs were super fun. Final grade in the class was Incomplete (more on that in the next blog entry).

[firefighterinprogress]

I'm Not Dead Yet!

It’s been a while, hasn't it? I think I accurately called it last entry when I said I wasn't going to blog much. Though, to be fair, I just finished up moving. Now that things are settled down, I think I’ll be able to blog more. That is after my internet finally gets hooked up at home.

In Building Construction, we started the chapter about Wood Frame buildings. Finally, after wading through all the basics, we’re starting to put things together for practical use. As usual, I’m kind of propelling myself through the class. Eventually I’ll collide with something; I’m just waiting for it. I think the biggest problem is there are so many career firefighters in the class. Their answers are so brilliantly put together I can’t help but feel stupid by them. Even my buddy gives some really well thought-out answers. Maybe I’ll get the hang of it eventually.

FDASS is going pretty well. Honestly it’s the class that I’m putting the least amount of focus on. We started talking about fire pumps, friction loss, and pressure on fire suppression systems. Basically we’ve moved from the detection part of the class, to the suppression part of class.

EMT is where I’m actually throwing a lot of focus on. It’s also the class I’m having the most fun it. But it’s also the class that requires a lot more attention. I don’t think this is due to the class itself, just my inattention to it. When I started I was so confident in myself and my abilities, now I’m not so sure. There just seems to be a lot of terms and small things that add up after a while. I think if I reengage with the class a bit more, I should start getting it. My ride-alongs are the 16th and 27th. I’m pretty stoked. The local ambulance service is hiring, and I hear it’s a good entry-level job. I know I just said this stuff is hard, and it is, but it’s not insurmountable. 

[firefighterinprogress]

Where the Hell Have I Been Lately?

I haven’t really blogged much because, frankly, this quarter’s been a bit boring. Aside from being boring, it’s also very time-consuming. I’m gonna call it right now and say I probably won’t blog very much this quarter. Now, to demonstrate, here’s the week so far.

In Building Construction we learned about trusses and other building elements. It’s not as intimidating as I originally thought, having so many career firefighters in class, but I still have a feeling of being outclassed. We have worksheets every chapter to complete, and last week’s was obscenely complex. On the surface it didn’t look too bad, just 10 questions or so. What made it complex is two of the questions had 10+ vocabulary words that you had to define and give examples of. There are basically three elements to the class: A forum post, which takes care of the discussion/participation portion of the class, a chapter worksheet, which covers the work portion, and the chapter quiz, which handles the review quiz part. It doesn't sound like much, but I always seem to get behind myself in the class.

FDASS is turning into a decent class. A lot of it seems expanded review of stuff I already learned in the Firefighter classes. We talked a bit on Wednesday about smoke control systems, which was interesting how they operate. On Monday we break into the chapter about water. Since I’ve already done the review questions, I have an overview of what we’ll be discussing. I’m gonna have to read the chapter a few times. It’ll be a throwback to my Fire Behavior class, where we talked about the principals of pressure, latent heat of vaporization, surface area, and how water puts out fire (chemically speaking). Which reminds me, I’m going to have to do more chapter review questions to keep ahead of myself.

EMT-II. Now this is a class that I, ironically, find myself enjoying. I like the straightforward way my instructor teaches. She not only encourages, but nearly mandates, that we all participate in activities. Oddly enough this is the class I felt was going to be the hardest this quarter. I’m sometimes glad when I prove myself wrong.

But in the class this week we went over bleeding, bandaging, soft muscle injuries, backboards, shock, and different modes of moving patients. It’s been a busy week. I did take a ride in the stair chair. If you’re in an EMT/medical class and get the chance to ride in one, do it. It’s really rad, especially being taken up a set of stairs. You feel like a frickin’ Pharaoh.

[firefighterinprogress]

The First [Half] Week (Spring 2014 Ed)

Last Wednesday we started the Spring Quarter. The first class I unofficially attended was Building Construction. I say unofficially because I actually went into the online classroom on Tuesday. It’s completely online, which I believe is a first for my program. The class seems harder than it needs to be. Every week there’s a forum post, quiz and review questions due. I don’t recall my other online classes being so heavy. There’s also a bunch of firefighters from the city department in the class, so there’s the real world angle. I think once I figure out a rhythm for the class, things will be okay.

The class is more on the way buildings are constructed. It uses case studies to reinforce how important it is to know a building’s construction. This will help us to prevent disasters and safe lives by understanding how a building could collapse. Because if you know how a building is built, you’ll know how it’ll fall.

On Wednesday I had Fire Protection Systems. This class was formerly Fire Detection and Suppression Systems. I’m not sure why the name was changed, probably because it was abbreviated to FDASS. Of course this is what I’ll be referring to it as. It’s kind of like a nickname you just can’t shake. Anyway the class, no big surprise, is about different suppression/detection systems, how they work, and how you can use them to… detect and suppress smoke/fire. The book is pretty short, only about 9 chapters (compared to the other textbooks that are usually 13+ chapters). I don’t anticipate this class being terribly difficult; I’m pretty good at fire service theory.

On Thursday I had my EMT II class. I also, as a side note, had my first experience with the parking situation on main campus (the fire classes are done in a completely different building set away from the main campus). Yeah… let’s shut down half the campus, and related parking lot, to building a career center. Let’s not wait until summer break and the subsequent Summer Quarter (which barely any classes are in session) and give you a 4-5 month head start. But I’m not bitter.

Anyway, the class is more hands-on than the last one. We also get to do our ride-alongs with the hospital and local EMS service. It also sounds like we’ll be doing some scenarios on campus. There’s also some book work in there too, but I’m more excited about getting in there and getting my hands dirty. I guess I should be careful what I wish for, I just might get it.