Tomorrow I start my week of shifts with one of the ALS paramedic crews in town. I really enjoy spending time seeing things from another health care providers perspective. My experience is so limited to emergency departments, I find it fascinating to see what goes on in the pre-hospital setting before our worlds collide in the hospital.
Always thought I'd want to do trauma medicine (especially flight medicine when I was working up north). So this will be another exposure for future consideration. Most of the time I think my emergency stint is over, but...who knows?
Hopefully I will get some pinches to the old adrenals over the next few days to get me out of this holiday stupor!
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Spicy-Boyfriend-Is-Away Burgers
Tobie is, a bit of a picky* and somewhat regimented eater. For example, he'd never cook burgers if we didn't have green lettuce to put on them.
Tobie's Law--all burgers must have one or two crisp slices of lettuce on them or they shall be deemed inedible.
He thinks chicken on pizza is an abomination, won't eat any meat unless it is cooked to hell (I told him what chefs think of people who order steak 'well done'), he hardly touches left overs, and is lukewarm toward Mexican food.
I, on the other hand; love things bloody/nearly raw, hate to throw out food, could happily survive on Mexican food alone, have fairly loose rules on what foods ought to be eaten together, and think chicken on pizza is a nice way of getting lean protein into a meal.
Yet, we somehow make it work.
But ground turkey is a major point of contention between us. I LOVE cooking with ground turkey. I used to make shepherds pie, burgers, meatballs, lasagna, chile--all with ground turkey.
Tobie loathes it. To the point where he practically gags when he tries it.
So I am back at the homestead alone now for a week while Tobie and his family cavort in Dublin. I had to stock up on groceries (I have a car for another 2 weeks until Terrence gets back and reclaims it) so naturally I bought some ground turkey breast because Tobie wasn't there to stop me!
[Cue maniacal laughter.]
Anyway, I frittered around with it and came up with this killer (IMHO) recipe. Enjoy!
Spicy-Boyfriend-Is-Away Burgers
-1 egg
-3 inch piece of dried chorizo sausage, peeled and finely diced
-handful of bread crumbs (if you are making your own dice them very small, or grate frozen bread)
-2 tbsp chipotle chile flakes (or one med. sized chipotle chile in adobo sauce)
-1 tbsp chile paste (or dried chile flakes/tsp cayenne)
-1 tbsp garlic powder
-1 tbsp chile powder
-salt and pepper
-2 green onions, diced
Mix everything up, form into patties, cook on heated/oiled pan or in the oven until salmonella/E.coli risk free!
I ate mine with pita bread, radicchio, salsa, purple onion and a bit of mayo. It was pretty damn delicious. Also, I wasn't really measuring things so all of that is a rough estimation. If you're worried about spice level then put in 1/2 the spices and fry up a spoonful to test it. I like a pretty strong kick.
--
*He is definitely going to disagree with me that he is a "picky eater" if he reads this post. Sorry Tob, I calls them as I sees them!
Tobie's Law--all burgers must have one or two crisp slices of lettuce on them or they shall be deemed inedible.
He thinks chicken on pizza is an abomination, won't eat any meat unless it is cooked to hell (I told him what chefs think of people who order steak 'well done'), he hardly touches left overs, and is lukewarm toward Mexican food.
I, on the other hand; love things bloody/nearly raw, hate to throw out food, could happily survive on Mexican food alone, have fairly loose rules on what foods ought to be eaten together, and think chicken on pizza is a nice way of getting lean protein into a meal.
Yet, we somehow make it work.
But ground turkey is a major point of contention between us. I LOVE cooking with ground turkey. I used to make shepherds pie, burgers, meatballs, lasagna, chile--all with ground turkey.
Tobie loathes it. To the point where he practically gags when he tries it.
So I am back at the homestead alone now for a week while Tobie and his family cavort in Dublin. I had to stock up on groceries (I have a car for another 2 weeks until Terrence gets back and reclaims it) so naturally I bought some ground turkey breast because Tobie wasn't there to stop me!
[Cue maniacal laughter.]
Anyway, I frittered around with it and came up with this killer (IMHO) recipe. Enjoy!
Spicy-Boyfriend-Is-Away Burgers
-1 egg
-3 inch piece of dried chorizo sausage, peeled and finely diced
-handful of bread crumbs (if you are making your own dice them very small, or grate frozen bread)
-2 tbsp chipotle chile flakes (or one med. sized chipotle chile in adobo sauce)
-1 tbsp chile paste (or dried chile flakes/tsp cayenne)
-1 tbsp garlic powder
-1 tbsp chile powder
-salt and pepper
-2 green onions, diced
Mix everything up, form into patties, cook on heated/oiled pan or in the oven until salmonella/E.coli risk free!
I ate mine with pita bread, radicchio, salsa, purple onion and a bit of mayo. It was pretty damn delicious. Also, I wasn't really measuring things so all of that is a rough estimation. If you're worried about spice level then put in 1/2 the spices and fry up a spoonful to test it. I like a pretty strong kick.
--
*He is definitely going to disagree with me that he is a "picky eater" if he reads this post. Sorry Tob, I calls them as I sees them!
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Fracking Insomnia!!!!
Why? Now of all times?
No exam stress. No noise. Adequate exercise. Normal meal times. Darkness. Early morning waking. Dim lights in evening.
AGHHHHH!!
I wish I was in my residency now. At least I could be putting lack of sleep to good use.
[Shakes tired yet wired fist at sky!!!]
What the hell, body??
No exam stress. No noise. Adequate exercise. Normal meal times. Darkness. Early morning waking. Dim lights in evening.
AGHHHHH!!
I wish I was in my residency now. At least I could be putting lack of sleep to good use.
[Shakes tired yet wired fist at sky!!!]
What the hell, body??
Another Boring, Eye-Rolling Year in Review
I was getting excited about doing a year in review post until I read Michelle Au's blog this morning which said;
Don't worry, I'm not going to do an actual "Year in Review" post, because I do think that treads the line between boring and inviting people to kind of roll their eyes at you, because for God's sake, no one wants to hear your blow-by-blow of the year when you already keep a blog, for chrissake.
Which is probably a good point and should have steered me away from doing one (as I could probably take a tip or two from the superwoman-queen-blogger-extraordinaire-specialist-mother-of-two-sarcastic-hilarious-book-publishing-Asian-woman).
But screw it.
If you want to be bored and roll your eyes, please, read on! Or if you are new to the blog, consider this a mini-montage to bring you up to speed without having to sift through countless whiny posts about studying.
I actually don't see Jan 1st as the great big marker of time in the sky like many people do. But this year, I was by myself on New Years Eve (a first). This allowed some time to really reflect, and gave me the self indulgent space to read through the last year of posts to see what things I ought to keep a little more in the forefront of my mind when I think: 2010.
Because in a lot of ways, 2010 was a really exciting wild ride of a year (even though most of the time while I was in it, life seemed quite mundane). I don't want to look back and only remember one long study session.
The Highlights:
--Becoming an auntie to TWINS! On Jan 1st my brother and his wife had two lovely, healthy twins named Maximus (Max) and Ella. And though they are Gerber quality, they are not 'designer twins' despite the trend.
--Hearing Dr. Robert Gallo speak. Crazed Peta People and boundary-less audience members aside, it was a thrilling lecture. He's pretty much the equivalent to a medical deity, yet he comes across as a very humble, curious, sincere gentleman.
--Seeing one of my favorite artists, Hawksley Workman perform. It was a rush, amplified by the small venue size and cluster of Canadians (despite London location). Sometimes you just have to say, "screw the budget, let's fly to England to see one of our favorite musicians". Life is short, after all.
--Having my choice in medicine reaffirmed by seeing a woman with Parkinson's discuss deep-brain stimulation therapy. A big rescue lecture for me when I felt like I was drowning in self-doubt and frustration at deciding to come to medical school.
--Getting to perform my first surgical assist! Ok that was a big one so it deserved a bigger font. And thus my choice in medicine was reaffirmed this summer again and again. I completely lucked out this summer, getting to work with some of my favorite nurses and docs one last time. It is such a joy to actually look forward to going to work.
--The other big one, catching my first baby! I know it is cliché to be all wide-eyed and full of enthusiasm as a medical student, but wow those were some hair raising moments of wonder. I know that with time all these firsts will fuse into the routine of day to day practice, so I am going to try very hard to remember and embrace some of the magic that practicing medicine can hold.
--Moving into a lovely apartment with my lovely Manfriend, Tobie. So moving in together was a major event, especially since we hadn't even been dating a year--but the leap of faith for both of us has proven to be a wonderful choice. One of the things that isn't so much an event, but an unfolding, is getting to live with this stellar human and learn more about him and how we function as a unit. That is actually one of the most amazing parts of 2010. [Warning: sap alert.] Tobie is such a quality man and partner that every night (except the ones when I am fraught with pre-exam thoughts) before I fall asleep I give thanks for this relationship and all that it has brought me. It's true. I am so lucky in love. [Sappy portion of post over.]
--Going to a Canadian city I've always wanted to see--Montréal--and getting to eat (among other outta sight meals) my first, real Poutine. The other wonderful part of that trip to Tobie's homeland was spending a spectacular day at Le Nordik spa (I think music comes on with that link so be aware office cubicle readers). If you ever go to Québec you must visit at least those two locations. I will suggest that you do that in the opposite order, however.
--Spending some quality time with my BFF thanks to a last minute flight and aeroplan points.
--Riding in my brothers newly built AC Cobra. I am so *not* a car person but WOW WAS THAT EVER FUN!!!!
The Lowlights
Naturally, the year had some low points. In fact, as I read through a lot of the winter/spring posts I see that I was somewhat unhappy (disillusioned? highly stressed? homesick?) for a few months there. I think a big reason for that was the gleam of adventure and starting a new life here had worn off somewhat right around the time when my dear friend and mentor, Nancy, died. What else can I say about this? Losing a loved one is hard, and it is only made harder when you are thousands of miles away from them while it is happening.
Course when I think of that time and those events all the other lowlights sort of pale, but I suppose that all things are relative and other difficult challenges presented themselves throughout the year. I lost more patients this summer in the ED than I am used to---some were stranger, sadder deaths for some reason. Most of them I didn't write about but sometime I will. There was my anatomy spotter debacle, living in ant infested hospital lodgings, not getting to spend much time with my family this summer, and missing Tobie for our months apart.
But how about not dwelling on the negative? Yes, I'd hate to end on a downer note. Taking stock of the year I see that 2010 was a year where I celebrated births and mourned death. I jumped in cold rivers and hiked on hot mountains trails. I kissed and cried, drank beer, sweated on a weight bench, celebrated and ruminated. Spent a night wearing a plunging neckline and more days than I'd like to remember in sweatpants. Cooked and walked, plucked the mandolin strings, and watched movies on airplanes. In a year, isn't that the most one can hope for? I'd say so.
2011? Bring it.
P.S Next January I promise not to do a Year in Review post!
Don't worry, I'm not going to do an actual "Year in Review" post, because I do think that treads the line between boring and inviting people to kind of roll their eyes at you, because for God's sake, no one wants to hear your blow-by-blow of the year when you already keep a blog, for chrissake.
Which is probably a good point and should have steered me away from doing one (as I could probably take a tip or two from the superwoman-queen-blogger-extraordinaire-specialist-mother-of-two-sarcastic-hilarious-book-publishing-Asian-woman).
But screw it.
If you want to be bored and roll your eyes, please, read on! Or if you are new to the blog, consider this a mini-montage to bring you up to speed without having to sift through countless whiny posts about studying.
I actually don't see Jan 1st as the great big marker of time in the sky like many people do. But this year, I was by myself on New Years Eve (a first). This allowed some time to really reflect, and gave me the self indulgent space to read through the last year of posts to see what things I ought to keep a little more in the forefront of my mind when I think: 2010.
Because in a lot of ways, 2010 was a really exciting wild ride of a year (even though most of the time while I was in it, life seemed quite mundane). I don't want to look back and only remember one long study session.
The Highlights:
--Becoming an auntie to TWINS! On Jan 1st my brother and his wife had two lovely, healthy twins named Maximus (Max) and Ella. And though they are Gerber quality, they are not 'designer twins' despite the trend.
--Hearing Dr. Robert Gallo speak. Crazed Peta People and boundary-less audience members aside, it was a thrilling lecture. He's pretty much the equivalent to a medical deity, yet he comes across as a very humble, curious, sincere gentleman.
--Seeing one of my favorite artists, Hawksley Workman perform. It was a rush, amplified by the small venue size and cluster of Canadians (despite London location). Sometimes you just have to say, "screw the budget, let's fly to England to see one of our favorite musicians". Life is short, after all.
--Having my choice in medicine reaffirmed by seeing a woman with Parkinson's discuss deep-brain stimulation therapy. A big rescue lecture for me when I felt like I was drowning in self-doubt and frustration at deciding to come to medical school.
--Getting to perform my first surgical assist! Ok that was a big one so it deserved a bigger font. And thus my choice in medicine was reaffirmed this summer again and again. I completely lucked out this summer, getting to work with some of my favorite nurses and docs one last time. It is such a joy to actually look forward to going to work.
--Moving into a lovely apartment with my lovely Manfriend, Tobie. So moving in together was a major event, especially since we hadn't even been dating a year--but the leap of faith for both of us has proven to be a wonderful choice. One of the things that isn't so much an event, but an unfolding, is getting to live with this stellar human and learn more about him and how we function as a unit. That is actually one of the most amazing parts of 2010. [Warning: sap alert.] Tobie is such a quality man and partner that every night (except the ones when I am fraught with pre-exam thoughts) before I fall asleep I give thanks for this relationship and all that it has brought me. It's true. I am so lucky in love. [Sappy portion of post over.]
--Going to a Canadian city I've always wanted to see--Montréal--and getting to eat (among other outta sight meals) my first, real Poutine. The other wonderful part of that trip to Tobie's homeland was spending a spectacular day at Le Nordik spa (I think music comes on with that link so be aware office cubicle readers). If you ever go to Québec you must visit at least those two locations. I will suggest that you do that in the opposite order, however.
--Spending some quality time with my BFF thanks to a last minute flight and aeroplan points.
--Riding in my brothers newly built AC Cobra. I am so *not* a car person but WOW WAS THAT EVER FUN!!!!
The Lowlights
Naturally, the year had some low points. In fact, as I read through a lot of the winter/spring posts I see that I was somewhat unhappy (disillusioned? highly stressed? homesick?) for a few months there. I think a big reason for that was the gleam of adventure and starting a new life here had worn off somewhat right around the time when my dear friend and mentor, Nancy, died. What else can I say about this? Losing a loved one is hard, and it is only made harder when you are thousands of miles away from them while it is happening.
Course when I think of that time and those events all the other lowlights sort of pale, but I suppose that all things are relative and other difficult challenges presented themselves throughout the year. I lost more patients this summer in the ED than I am used to---some were stranger, sadder deaths for some reason. Most of them I didn't write about but sometime I will. There was my anatomy spotter debacle, living in ant infested hospital lodgings, not getting to spend much time with my family this summer, and missing Tobie for our months apart.
 |
| Quality accommodation, courtesy of your local hospital. |
But how about not dwelling on the negative? Yes, I'd hate to end on a downer note. Taking stock of the year I see that 2010 was a year where I celebrated births and mourned death. I jumped in cold rivers and hiked on hot mountains trails. I kissed and cried, drank beer, sweated on a weight bench, celebrated and ruminated. Spent a night wearing a plunging neckline and more days than I'd like to remember in sweatpants. Cooked and walked, plucked the mandolin strings, and watched movies on airplanes. In a year, isn't that the most one can hope for? I'd say so.
2011? Bring it.
P.S Next January I promise not to do a Year in Review post!
Friday, December 31, 2010
An Irish Toast (or two)
To ring in 2011 I thought I'd supply the blog world with something to say at midnight (other than happy new year--which is soooo 2010).
"That your patch of trouble may not cover the hole in a leprechauns breeches."
Or after a few drinks you could tackle this one:
"God spare you the years to smoke your dudeen, drink your cruiskeen, flourish your alpeen to wallop a spalpeen".
Ok, I can't help myself...Happy New Year everyone!
"That your patch of trouble may not cover the hole in a leprechauns breeches."
Or after a few drinks you could tackle this one:
"God spare you the years to smoke your dudeen, drink your cruiskeen, flourish your alpeen to wallop a spalpeen".
Ok, I can't help myself...Happy New Year everyone!
 |
| Was there ever a bad year for Guinness?? |
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Ghost of Christmas Past
I was reading through posts about the holiday season on my old blog and I found this one from 3 years ago. It made me realise that it's been a long, long time since I've been home for Christmas. The theme of being away seems to keep coming up, which was a big part of why I started blogging. It was an easy/exhibitionist way of keeping a diary, an account of things.
I will post soon about my most recent Christmas, but in the meantime...a little trip down memory lane.
---
A marker in time. Christmas.
When I was a kid I was allowed to sleep in the living room, next to the tree. I always loved falling asleep to the blinking lights and the sounds of cards and laughter coming through the glass door that separated our living room from the kitchen. Even now, sometimes when I can't sleep I try and imagine myself back in time feeling that sense of anticipation and security as Christmas danced on the horizon and family were every where I turned.
Last Christmas John and I were in Morocco and it was less than ideal, though we did try to make the best of it. It was cold at night and the Riad we were staying at had no central heating (which was the norm) so at night the owners would bring a smoking stove with virtually no ventilation into the common room where we'd oscillate between freezing outside breathing fresh air and smoke inhalation in the warm-ish common room. I was homesick and calling home made it no better, listening to my families enjoyment of their rented cabin in Fernie and freshies on the mountain each day.
It reminded me of when I called my father on Boxing Day from the west coast of India in 1999. I felt a million miles away from everything and everyone standing there in the suffocating phone booth, sweating, rings of dirt around my neck. I was crying and he just said, "why the hell don't you come home then?". It makes me laugh now...you can't call your parents crying on the other side of the world and not expect them to say such a thing. But at the time it was as ludicrous a suggestion as "why the hell don't you join the Spice Girls and go on tour with them?"
I searched online for some way to get home from Morocco but of course it was Christmas and it would have been impossible to change flight and go home without losing my money on the return ticket and likely losing my boyfriend in the process. So I stayed and we spent a shivering, coughing, Christmas eating tagine and scrambled eggs with the chain smoking Czechs, the hilarious Germans, and the hospitable Moroccans.
So a year passed and it seems that life again had it's own plans for me this Christmas.
After successfully finishing a semester in Kelowna I was excited to return to Revelstoke to see friends and then be on my merry way to Red Deer to see my brothers, sister, nieces, nephews, brother-in-law, sisters-in-law, mother. It rarely happens that all four of us kids are in the same country at once.
I made smoky sweet potato soup, bought all kinds of organic veggies for a roasted winter vegetable pasta (with fresh pasta from the Italian deli in Kelowna). I had to make several trips to the car to pack the Petit Syrah, the Champagne, the food, the mandolin, clothes, ski gear, and camera.
Got about 50 km down the highway and after being tailgated by an asshole in an SUV on the black ice I decided to turn around.
Now I was trying to negotiate the black ice while sobbing and snotting all over my steering wheel. Okay enough with Christmas and crying I say!!! I unpacked all the food, the drinks, the instrument, the clothes, the books, etc. and put on my snow pants. Tobogganing in the alley with Carlos, Ruby, Polly, Nelson, and Sophie cheered me up.
And thus the Revy Christmas whirlwind began.
I will post soon about my most recent Christmas, but in the meantime...a little trip down memory lane.
---
A marker in time. Christmas.
When I was a kid I was allowed to sleep in the living room, next to the tree. I always loved falling asleep to the blinking lights and the sounds of cards and laughter coming through the glass door that separated our living room from the kitchen. Even now, sometimes when I can't sleep I try and imagine myself back in time feeling that sense of anticipation and security as Christmas danced on the horizon and family were every where I turned.
Last Christmas John and I were in Morocco and it was less than ideal, though we did try to make the best of it. It was cold at night and the Riad we were staying at had no central heating (which was the norm) so at night the owners would bring a smoking stove with virtually no ventilation into the common room where we'd oscillate between freezing outside breathing fresh air and smoke inhalation in the warm-ish common room. I was homesick and calling home made it no better, listening to my families enjoyment of their rented cabin in Fernie and freshies on the mountain each day.
 |
| Photo booth near Todra Gorge where we were staying. |
It reminded me of when I called my father on Boxing Day from the west coast of India in 1999. I felt a million miles away from everything and everyone standing there in the suffocating phone booth, sweating, rings of dirt around my neck. I was crying and he just said, "why the hell don't you come home then?". It makes me laugh now...you can't call your parents crying on the other side of the world and not expect them to say such a thing. But at the time it was as ludicrous a suggestion as "why the hell don't you join the Spice Girls and go on tour with them?"
I searched online for some way to get home from Morocco but of course it was Christmas and it would have been impossible to change flight and go home without losing my money on the return ticket and likely losing my boyfriend in the process. So I stayed and we spent a shivering, coughing, Christmas eating tagine and scrambled eggs with the chain smoking Czechs, the hilarious Germans, and the hospitable Moroccans.
So a year passed and it seems that life again had it's own plans for me this Christmas.
After successfully finishing a semester in Kelowna I was excited to return to Revelstoke to see friends and then be on my merry way to Red Deer to see my brothers, sister, nieces, nephews, brother-in-law, sisters-in-law, mother. It rarely happens that all four of us kids are in the same country at once.
I made smoky sweet potato soup, bought all kinds of organic veggies for a roasted winter vegetable pasta (with fresh pasta from the Italian deli in Kelowna). I had to make several trips to the car to pack the Petit Syrah, the Champagne, the food, the mandolin, clothes, ski gear, and camera.
Got about 50 km down the highway and after being tailgated by an asshole in an SUV on the black ice I decided to turn around.
Now I was trying to negotiate the black ice while sobbing and snotting all over my steering wheel. Okay enough with Christmas and crying I say!!! I unpacked all the food, the drinks, the instrument, the clothes, the books, etc. and put on my snow pants. Tobogganing in the alley with Carlos, Ruby, Polly, Nelson, and Sophie cheered me up.
And thus the Revy Christmas whirlwind began.
Monday, December 27, 2010
Surprisingly Wonderful
Last night I finished "The Elegance of the Hedgehog".
It was not an easy read and many times I got frustrated with it and wanted to throw it against the wall. Ok, not that violently frustrated (I did want to do that to Bryce Courtenay's Tandia when I got to the end). But I did feel rather exasperated by Elegance on more than one occasion. I wanted to lose myself in a book, something non-medical and gripping. This book made me think about philosophy and sociology and frankly, I wanted a romp.
But as the chapters wore on, it grew on me and the characters really came to life. And then the last 50 pages enthralled. Ohhhhh...and the end. The END! I couldn't sleep. I just lay there, head-lamp on, reading the last few pages again and again, crying.
No sleep. More crying.
It was a good book, in the end. I think I'll have to tackle it again from the beginning, less standoffishly.
Biochem Anyone?
I had been out of university for about 6 years when I decided to go back and take the missing, magical pre-requisites that would be my ticket to passing the MCAT and getting into medical school.
It was a full year and a half of inorganic chem, organic chem, physics, microbiology, and health sciences. It sucked. For a lot of reasons.
Once I was done that I was able to apply to several schools in Canada/abroad and had enough of my bases covered to write the MCAT so I opted to not go back in the fall for another full year of calculus, stats, and biochem--doing that would have given me the pre-reqs to apply to U of Alberta and UBC. But I was getting close to 30 for crying out loud! How many more 1st year courses did I have to endure??
I was living in my friends' parents basement doing o-chem when my 10 year high school reunion rolled around--which I obviously skipped. What was I going to say? Yeah, things are going well...I am in the process of getting dumped, I am doing a second year chem course, unemployed, and keeping my fingers crossed on getting into med? Riiiiiiggghhhhhht.
I just couldn't face it. I'd drained my RRSP's and my relationship. I thought that if I couldn't get in somewhere with what I had then I'd figure out a plan B.
Turns out maybe a little biochem would have come in handy after all.
They barely touch on it in my program, yet the USMLE seems to care if you know what a g-coupled protein receptor is.
I took the kaplan diagnostic test last week and found that my (major) areas of weakness are medical genetics, biochem, and molecular biology. Shocker! I never have taken any classes in those areas!
When we did our little kaplan pep talk a couple weeks back the lecturer said that wherever we have weakness we should spend 30 mins a day from NOW until the exam chipping away at it, "If your weakest area today is your weakest area on exam day then you aren't studying correctly".
Taken at face value it's pretty basic/obvious, but I think it was absolutely sound advice.
I've plowed through the first few chapters in the review book of medical genetics. Tomorrow the autodidact begins biochem.
This is going to be an interesting little educational diversion.
Wish me luck.
It was a full year and a half of inorganic chem, organic chem, physics, microbiology, and health sciences. It sucked. For a lot of reasons.
Once I was done that I was able to apply to several schools in Canada/abroad and had enough of my bases covered to write the MCAT so I opted to not go back in the fall for another full year of calculus, stats, and biochem--doing that would have given me the pre-reqs to apply to U of Alberta and UBC. But I was getting close to 30 for crying out loud! How many more 1st year courses did I have to endure??
I was living in my friends' parents basement doing o-chem when my 10 year high school reunion rolled around--which I obviously skipped. What was I going to say? Yeah, things are going well...I am in the process of getting dumped, I am doing a second year chem course, unemployed, and keeping my fingers crossed on getting into med? Riiiiiiggghhhhhht.
I just couldn't face it. I'd drained my RRSP's and my relationship. I thought that if I couldn't get in somewhere with what I had then I'd figure out a plan B.
Turns out maybe a little biochem would have come in handy after all.
They barely touch on it in my program, yet the USMLE seems to care if you know what a g-coupled protein receptor is.
I took the kaplan diagnostic test last week and found that my (major) areas of weakness are medical genetics, biochem, and molecular biology. Shocker! I never have taken any classes in those areas!
When we did our little kaplan pep talk a couple weeks back the lecturer said that wherever we have weakness we should spend 30 mins a day from NOW until the exam chipping away at it, "If your weakest area today is your weakest area on exam day then you aren't studying correctly".
Taken at face value it's pretty basic/obvious, but I think it was absolutely sound advice.
I've plowed through the first few chapters in the review book of medical genetics. Tomorrow the autodidact begins biochem.
This is going to be an interesting little educational diversion.
Wish me luck.
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Dublin
Merry Christmas Blogistan!
Someone please come save me from this very intermittent wifi and my sudden lack of gastronomic restraint.
It is 2000h and I need to go and brush my teeth because I've eaten so much sugar today that it feels like every tooth is covered in a mini blanket.
Missing my family large, numbing the pain with mulled wine. Ok, not overly adaptive but hey, whatever gets you though the day.
Failed at getting Tobie a present so will try to claw my way back to 'best girlfriend ever' status after my fall from grace today. What can I say? The man has expensive taste and I am a talentless pauper!
Hope everyone is well loved and well fed.
ABB
Someone please come save me from this very intermittent wifi and my sudden lack of gastronomic restraint.
It is 2000h and I need to go and brush my teeth because I've eaten so much sugar today that it feels like every tooth is covered in a mini blanket.
Missing my family large, numbing the pain with mulled wine. Ok, not overly adaptive but hey, whatever gets you though the day.
Failed at getting Tobie a present so will try to claw my way back to 'best girlfriend ever' status after my fall from grace today. What can I say? The man has expensive taste and I am a talentless pauper!
Hope everyone is well loved and well fed.
ABB
Monday, December 20, 2010
What Study Hath Wrought
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| Ok so that is a radial nerve injury. When was the last time I showered? |
Ever wanted to know what medical school looks like? Well here at Asystole I am willing to show the ugly truth. It involves a lot of sitting. At a desk. And reading/memorizing/cramming/blogging/gnashing of teeth/flash card writing/ and questioning your decision/capabilities/intelligence/motivation for medicine.
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| I've been wearing these pants for so many days I'm surprised they haven't created their own blood supply from me. |
It also involves choosing outfits that are a combination of comfort and warmth, borrowing clean clothes from your boyfriend and not buttoning them up properly. Medicine makes you commit the biggest fashion faux pas of all (yes something worse than scrubs)--socks with flip-flops. When it gets down to the wire, one also goes around with self-made flash cards in hand so that the boyfriend can 'quiz' you while you make dinner. And by 'quiz' I mean 'fail to read your handwriting, comprehend your shorthand, or pronounce 'natriuretic' properly'. Proof that three of my loves cannot be combined: medicine, Tobie, and cooking.
You will get up before the sun and go to bed after it. And most of the time there will not be a paycheck or excessive alcohol consumption involved (the two main reasons I'd be up early or in bed late when I was in my early twenties).
The garbage closest to you for the month approaching finals will look like that. Note *one* item from Canada's food guide. Seriously, I was so aghast when I saw this I had to take a photo. I have been a pseudo-health-freak for many many years and this image is but one more plot on the 'demise of healthy living' that is medicine.
And that is just the beginning.
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