Progress note

November came and went like a blur. Time tends to slip away when you start to develop a rhythm. Wake, Work, Eat, Work, Home, Eat, Sleep (somewhere in the middle, you fit in studying and all the other details), Repeat.

This year is almost over, once again. Will it be completely over come Dec 21, 2012? Or did the Mayans miscalculate? Eitherway, it's not like I'd do anything special...well, things might change (as they always do, like plans for new year's celebrations and whatnot).

What do I want for next year? To be smarter, more prepared for scary things at work. To be more confident with my decisions, my actions, myself. To clean the whole house of clutter. To actually record that song. To make it to the gym...more than once. To have a working oven. To finish reading a book of many that has been gathering dust. To learn how to fly fish.

I think I can. I know I can.
We'll see =)...

Song of the day: "O Sleep" - Lisa Hannigan featuring Ray LaMontagne

First Weekday of Med School Freedom

05/09: And I spent it working on my loan repayment situation/apartment hunting.
It was quite depressing. The loan repayment situation, not so much the apartment hunting.
So far, I have organized my loans into groups according to which entities I will be making my payments to. OK, 3 so far. Not too bad. Now, comes the tricky part: which payment options to choose. Right now, I'm trying to figure out what my new cost of living will be in my new place of residence. More stuff to follow tomorrow.
Apartment hunting is going. The one apartment that I wanted, a school building rebuilt into a 2-bedroom, 2-bathroom, new kitchen with brand new appliances (dishwasher, range, microwave, fridge), washer/dryer, with hardwood/tile flooring and really good natural lighting (open floor layout with lots of windows) is $1200. Unfortunately its not in my price range. Will be looking at much more approachable living accommodations on Wednesday.

05/13: Wednesday has come and gone. And sad to say, the other places still didn't pan out. It's either too expensive or the move-in date is too late. I fear, I may have waited too long and all the good places are rented. Still, I remain hopeful. I'll try again next Monday.
In other news, I floated the idea of doing a Tough Mudder event to my girlfriend earlier this afternoon. A few minutes ago, she told me that she has a tentative team ready and would undertake the next year to train for the August event in her neck of the woods. To make things more interesting, she "invited" or rather "challenged" me to join her team. I admit I am very intrigued at the prospect of training and getting fit for such an awesome obstacle course, but it is not without some doubt that I made my mind about it.
So here's to me and my big, fat mouth. :)
Hey, I got through med school...what's a little 12-mile run with 16 obstacles, right? Right???

Song of the day: "Serpentine" - Chris Bathgate

New stuff!

OK, just an update, no specifics.
1. I got matched into a program! I will be starting this coming July for Peds! (Hot sh...ut yo' mouth!)
2. Went to go visit my lovely GF for the weekend. Quite the trip, but well worth it! I <3 her :D. I miss her already!
3. The left headlamp of my car is out. Grrr. On the upside, it held on until AFTER my car inspection. That's my little sooper trooper.
4. I start my very last rotation on Monday! 1 month of pulm. I hope it all goes uneventfully.
5. My sister is getting ready to pop a new addition to the family anytime now. Condition status in the household is holding @ DEFCON 2.
6. Lots to do for the internship! Paperwork, background checks, looking for a new place to live, starting repayment on my loans!!! $200K+ in debt is quite the kingly sum. This is me, being sad... T_T (You like that emoticon, don't you? Yea, you do).
7. There are so many things vying for my attention right now that I have more free time...(catch up on my shows in Netflix vs. catch up on my light reading vs. sleep vs...) WHAT AM I SAYING?! I have paperwork to do and I still have to hunt for an apartment! Oh and study for Step 3!!! CRAP!
8. (It's raining + it's cold)^I forgot my dinner = sad^10.
9. Warmer weather is on the way, so at least that's something to look forward to. Gotta get me that fishing license and then I'm out w/ my tackle to the lake! Here, fishy fishy...
10. Nachos. Na-chos. With ranch or 7-layer dip. Or Buffalo wings. I need.

That is all.

Song of the day: "Poisoning Pigeons In The Park" - Tom Lehrer
I've been saving this one for such an occasion. Bon apetit!

The lump on the pickle

Yep. This week was nothing but absolute uselessness and a waste of time. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed every bit of it. I'm the "Jack the Ripper" of time-killing. It's just that 2 weeks have gone by in Pediatrics (week 1 = Peds ER, Week 2 - Off with random enrichment lectures), and I've only gone through 4, count 'em, 4 chapters of the review book for step two boards. I told myself I'd read 2 chapters a week which would've gotten me all finished with the review book by this coming Wednesday, but somehow, my amazing ability to procrastinate and the lure of catching up with Doctor Who episodes were all just too much to pass up. I'm weak. I know. To make things worse, PBS just released the Royal Shakespeare Company's BBC production of "Hamlet" this past week, starring two of my favorite actors: David Tennant (Doctor Who, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) and Patrick Stewart (Star Trek: TNG). So like the dork that I am, I went on and wasted more time watching the show and re-reading the play. I guess this proves that becoming a surgeon is not in the cards for me. I have too many other interests I'd rather be doing than cutting people up and being on call 24/7.
One more thing: I feel like I'm about to pop. I ate so much today on account of my Nephew having a Confirmation party. And in true gluttonistic (that's right, I'm making up my own words) fashion, I topped the night off by eating the last red velvet cupcake (made by yours truly, of course) with a side of rocky road ice cream while watching Mayweather beat the crap out of Mosley. Quite disappointing since I wanted Mosley to shut that arrogant SOB Mayweather, up. But I suppose this only sets up the stage for Manny to knock the smile off of Floyd's cocky face later on. We shall see.

So what does the week have in store for me:
1. Doing some schedule changes with my electives.
2. Updating CV some more.
3. READ PEDIATRICS REVIEW BOOK!
4. Review Head, Neck, and Back anatomy for the 1st years (God help me).
5. Trying not to procrastinate so much for this week.
6. Do laundry.
I figure, that's about 2 tasks per day. Hopefully that's doable, even for a notorious procrastinator like myself. Ask me next weekend.

Song of the day: "Berry Picker's Tune" - T. Nile & Joanna Chapman-Smith

Quick update of sorts

Another 6 weeks down. I finished learning about Vag and preggos (Ob-Gyn) and now moving on to the ankle biters (Pediatrics). I keep telling myself "It's almost over" but somehow, it never is. Another 6 weeks of peds rotation - at least it's not as intensive as the others.

My Ob-Gyn attending gave me a very good evaluation despite what I thought. And of course, lots of good pearls of wisdom:
1. Never stop reading - suck the marrow from the bones of knowledge
2. You're a professional - Do what you're supposed to do (or have a really good excuse for not doing so).
3. Learn to walk on your own - it makes you a competent doctor and a better person.
4. Question everything - just because somebody says so, doesn't mean they're right.
5. Guidelines are exactly what they are - guidelines...and may not apply to some people. So learn them well first before you deviate from the standard.

Lots of good stuff, but quite hard to follow. Especially if you're the type of person who loves to nap. But I'm quite thankful that I had this rotation with him and of course, I will do my best to follow his advice.

Other things on the burner:
1. Updating CV
2. Letters of Recommendations - I need at least 3.
3. 4th year elective rotations - I have 3 definite ones. 4 if you count my subinternship for surgery, but I'm seriously thinking about switching that one. I've settled on what I want to do, finally. Internal Medicine - GI.
4. Step 2 Board exam - I'm slowly studying for it. Slowly. D-day: Aug. 23rd.

Oh, I had a nightmare last night. It was about the Ex. I was in the Labor and Delivery suite, in the middle of assisting a delivery when I got a phone call from her. She told me the reason why she broke up with me was that she got pregnant and had to abort the fetus, but couldn't tell me the truth at the time. Then she put me on hold - "Eye of the Tiger" was the hold song. Then I woke up. Really creeped the hell out of me.

So, I will be starting Peds ER tomorrow. Wish me luck.

Song of the day: "Again And Again" - The Bird And The Bee

This music video is INSANE!!!

Garden State

It dawns on me tonight that perhaps sometime in the future, I might move out of New Jersey and put down roots somewhere else. That's not to say that I don't like Jersey, in fact I enjoy living here (save for the high car insurance rates and property taxes...but let's face it, what state doesn't have its cruddy underbelly?). It gets hot in the summer, but nothing compared to the south or the west, it gets cold in the winter, but it ain't like freezing in New England or Northwest, and let's face it, our natural disasters don't compare to all the other states out there. In fact, New Jersey is a very pleasant place to live in, meteorologically speaking. But it's a whole 'nother thing living somewhere else...a new experience. So, in the interest of potentially pursuing the adventure of living in another state, I've compiled a "loose" list of things I'd want to do while I'm still in the borders of the Garden State:

1. Hit up every diner from Cape May all the way to High Point. This is probably the best way to get to know the state I'm living in right now. I had fond memories of the diners around our local town here. I'm pretty sure that all the other diners in the other towns carry with them the same charm that makes them unique. That and I want to know who makes the best greek salad and pastrami omellete in NJ.

2. Follow the wine trails. Many people probably don't know that NJ boasts a strong standard in terms of making wine. Right now, there are about 30 or so wineries all over the state and many of them make excellent wines as well as fruit wines. That's right, we take our own fruit produce and make them into vino, and if you've never heard of it, or think it hoaky...wait until you try the almondberry or the blackberry currant wines these wineries have in stock.

3. Walk the Appalachian Trail. Yep, NJ also is part of this prestigious trail and there's a nice span of it along the northern part of the state which leads towards Delaware (I think). Anyways, I've never really gone hiking before and what better way to get right into it than by going down this road?

4. Fishing the hotspots. I've only gone fishing twice. The first was in South Jersey by the Cohansee River where I caught a 21 inch striped bass (no lie!) among MANY other fish (yea, fishing was good in those areas - Many thanks to Mr. Piontkowski for taking me out on his pontoon at 5 in the morning.) and the second was in California (where I got skunked in a man-made lake seeded with catfish and trout). Somehow I'll take my chances along with my bait and tackle and check out the different state parks that offer fishing around here.

5. Book and music hunting. Probably there are many other places out of NJ where this activity might be more fruitful, but there's a lot to be said about the mom and pop used bookstores and music shops all over NJ. Case in point,The Montclair Book Center and The Princeton Record Exchange, to name a few that I've visited before. Both areas are teeming with awsome finds. I could easily lose all my money in these two shops alone. I'm sure there are others that are just as cool.

6. Spending time at the beach. There's still a lot to be said about the Jersey Coast. No, not the Seaside, MTV type of beach (ugh)! More along the lines of Cape May, Sea Isle City, Wildwood, LBI, Point Pleasant, Belmar, Sandy Hook, etc.

7. Hitting the farm. NJ isn't called the Garden State for nothing. There's plenty of fruit to be picked from the summer with it's peaches and strawberries to the fall with its apples and pumpkins (I'm a sucker for fresh fruit)

8. Driving through the highways. I'd like to think that someday, I could be placed in any road in NJ, blindfolded and know my way around well enough.

9. Go sky diving. It's not really related to NJ, but I still want to do it!

10. Check out the top 10 sites featured in Weird New Jersey. Need I say more?

That's a pretty hefty list. I guess I better get started.