Feeling Fine with New Shoes and Wine

Fifth term is picking up the pace and life is in full swing. I've been busy, but I love it.... here are a few highlights.

Tuesday: I made from scratch, pumpkin soup and cornbread with my neighbor. We then had family dinner with the roommates.  And of course I did the pre-requisite class, small groups, study time, etc.

Wednesday: I managed to buy a new pair of shoes and a cute top to wear to the Hospital.  This was in between studying all morning, reviewing 90 questions from Exam Masters and 4 hours of class. I also went for a sunset walk and swim. Not too shabby of a day....

Today: My hospital group was assigned a local GP to follow and I examined a 7 year old, interviewed a young man for his annual work physical and saw textbook anemia in a women with Hb of 5 (don't ask me how she was even walking around). I ran home to change at lunch and on my way stopped to visit my local wine store. I chatted up the owners and staff while picking out 2 bottles of wine for the weekend. I then sprinted to class for 4 hours, followed by powder puff football practice, woo hoo! I think I can manage 3 good hours of study time before I call this day done.

Tomorrow: I have the morning free to study and then my first (mini) test of 5th term. Depending how that goes I'll open the wine or hit the books again. The weekend is almost here and I cannot wait to study without distractions (yes I know I am a med school dork, but I'm okay with that because I have new shoes!)

Reflections on a Sunday in 5th Term: Hot & Humid but with a View

I love the sound of the rain on our tin roof in my new off campus apartment. I hate the humidity and bugs that come with the rain. On the upside, living off campus means a wonderful balcony overlooking Lanse Aux Epines and the marina and it is breathtaking, worth the bugs and humidity for sure. (And my room has a/c, I just feel like a hermit always running into my room to escape the heat.)

I'm here in my (cross my fingers, nose to the books) last term and week 3 is about to start. I think I've grown complacent, I still enjoy the island but the goats wandering into the middle of road and the chance to swim in the amazing Caribbean Sea whenever I want have somehow lost their luster.

Fifth term is.... well, busy.... lots of exams, small groups, plus hospital rotations and class 3 or 4 or 5 hours a day. I might have time if I stopped going to class like more than half of my colleagues but I don't really enjoy sonicing and I figure it can't hurt (well as long as I put in the study time despite the time suck) so that is about all I have to say about 5th term. I started my clinical rotations in Peds and I loved it! Physical exam and reflexes on a 3 day old, what's not to love?!?

Here is hoping for inspiration to blog more often and that fifth term flies by so I can go study and take my boards and start 3rd year already. Senior-island-itis... who me????
Happy Sunday!

P.S. I found a new favorite med blog and my title is a clue, any guesses?

A Boston Love Letter (aka- 4th Term Antidote)

So if you know me then you know that I love, love, LOVE Boston. As Dr. Boyfriend points out it was my first real city to fall in love with so it has a special place in my heart. (And bonus we met and fell in love there too.) Anyhow, I spent the weekend in the Boston area and got to relive all my favorite Boston memories with a good friend from undergrad. Drive down Charles River.... check. Blueberry Ale from Boston Beerworks.... check. Red Sox game at Fenway.... check. Hands down the best frozen yogurt anywhere (and I would know, I've looked- no one else makes carrot cake blended fro yo) from Angora Cafe..... CHECK! Rewatching "Good Will Hunting" after a local grown veggie meal and nice bottle of wine with good friends..... Priceless. (Thank you K and R!) It was a wonderful, nostalgic, blissful weekend.

And as if it can't get any better it was sandwiched between camp which deserved its own post and my family coming to California to visit. So in short, life it good.

I have not studied half as much as I had planned to but I still have 2+ weeks until I go back to the rock and there is something to be said for downtime and enjoying life outside of medical school. I'll be back to the grind soon enough so I'm really not beating myself up about not doing First Aid Questions every day as I had planned.

So here is to summer, great friends, a loving family, Boston memories and new beginnings in California. I am truly blessed. Life is good.

Sunny California

Summer Break- Day 2. I'm here with a new West Coast address. Fourth term ended without much fanfare. Five weeks to unpack our apartment, explore a new city, see my family, go to camp, and enjoy not studying (well, maybe in moderation.) Then I'm back to Grenada for a final term. With time I'm sure I'll have something to say about Term 4 but right now I'm just enjoying my new city. It's summer break, woo hoo!

Oh and another thing...

As if Forensics wasn't bad enough, it also includes physics (my all time least favorite subject, ever).

This is one of our Pathology Objectives: Describe how changing the Delta V (change in rate of momentum) can improve transportation safety.

Really! I'm not making this up. Most of what we learn in medical school is medicine, or at least closely related. And while I don't minimize the importance of safety I think this one is better left to the transportation and vehicle engineers. It is not like I'm going to be a human bumper for my patients. Though I suppose if one was fainting onto the tile floor I could use this law of physics to soften his fall, or something.... (sigh.)

On a semi-related note, this is pretty cool and since bike helmets prevent brain injury I'm safely back to the subject of neurology which I am quite happy to talk about and study.

I need this term to be over, I think I'm getting grumpy....