Just plain crazy....

Another, completely different, crazy....

I was just checking my sitemeter (see bottom of the page)... which I do from time to time and I saw this:

(click to enlarge)

Apparently the good people at Google Notebook (blog) found my Christmas wish list and put it in as a link on their blog. Crazy.

Also interesting: number of hits for "zombie picture" has been steadily decreasing.... still, how many people actually need pictures of this at any given time?!?! We were taking a majority of my hits in any given day (which, considering I average about 60/day is not a lot, but still).

New favorite referral: "histology quotes", not nearly as funny, but still fun.

Oh, and to all you clicking here from HighlyTrainedMonkey (to who I owe a huge thank you for the reciprocal link)... thanks and welcome!

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Favorite Quote/Trivia from yesterday's renal class:
Dr. R: "Gatorade is just reconstituted pee. The guy who made it was a nephrologist, who now is in a psychiatric hospital. But that's off subject, back to the loop of Henle"

A friend's response to "Ode to PCR"

If I knew how to make it an embedded file I would, but click it and listen to an amazing song on glucose... everyone's favorite carbohydrate.

p.s. you should be able to play it in the pop-up "snap preview".

Oh PCR

My friend sent this to me on facebook... it made me laugh SO hard. My favorite parts: the guy hugging the thermal cycler and the line "when you need to know who the daddy is... PCR (Who's your daddy?)"

Amazing...


And yes, I have used PCR many times (my research in undergrad involved isolating and amplifying mitochondrial DNA from turtle toenails... yeah, don't ask."

Welcome to the new me...

While I might not be completely different, some things have changed over the last week. These are things that I would consider good things (i.e. doing ok on the NYE resolutions):

1. I am cleaning up my language, but it's still hard when I'm around people who swear to not slide back a little... still a work in progress

2. I have been working out more consistently -- I'm starting to go curling on Sunday nights with some of my friends (yes, like the thing with the ice and brooms and big stones) and I got a PR today on the elliptical (4 mi in 30 min -- that's a 7:30 mi!). It's actually worked out quite nicely... right before I go down I start downloading the next lecture, I work out and listen to a sermon from an amazing church in TX (Village Church), and by the time I'm done I've gotten my mind off of studies and and ready to jump back in.

3. I have finally seen the benefit of streaming - even though my mother thinks that streaming lectures is bad, it really isn't. In fact, I feel like I'm getting WAY more out of watching lectures than actually going to them. Why? I can pause and re-listen to concepts I miss/don't understand and I can watch them on 1.8-2x normal speed (and yet the lecturers still seem to talk at normal speed --- this is the primary reason for streaming, in class by the time the lady finished her sentence I forgot what she was talking about, not so with the modern marvels of video streaming). I actually wake up and go to the first two hours of lecture because the guy is crazy (we're talking old dude running up and down stairs, jumping around, and throwing candy at people.... he does a good job of reinforcing ideas while making it seem like a circus act).

4. I've been a bit better about reading my Bible

5. I stood up for something that I didn't agree with... basically, without going into detail, I sent off an email in response to an email from my counselor about one of my test grades. I explained the situation from my point of view and while accepting part of the blame, made sure that it was clear that there were some problems with the content of an exam. He replied that he thought my response was a good analysis of the situation and forwarded it on to the course director and to the dean of students. (let me clarify that it was the worse written exam I've ever seen and a solid portion of the class did poorly).


Now, looking at the above things you would think that I was in a good place. However, this week has been rough (to say the least). I've really been struggling with "imposter syndrome" and trying to convince myself that I do actually belong in medical school. Nonetheless, anxiety has taken it's toll; yesterday the weight of it all got to the point that I had to call my mom and just get it all of my chest.

What it comes down to is this: medical school is hard. And that's not necessarily just the material, there is the whole emotional side and physical side. Emotions run thin in everyone (we're all just really good at hiding it, but given the right initiator and we will all explode) and the lifestyle is physically demanding (which seems counterintuitive because I find myself sitting and studying more than anything else... maybe it's just mental, or the hours necessary to put in).

However, there are somethings that I'm looking forward to over the next week:
1. Volunteering at a food bank tomorrow
2. Sunday school and church
3. Curling on Sunday night / watching the med school hockey team with my dental school friend (she's from church and dating one of my med school friends)
4. Being done with the clin med exam (shouldn't be bad, but just an extra stressor in an already stressful life)
5. Paige's birthday (tonight we celebrated Kara's -- mom, you should know that I stayed home in order to get rest instead of going out to the bar with everyone else)
6. CMDA retreat this weekend!
7. Getting kittens

Happy New Years!

Well, it is officially the new year... and has been for a few days now (yet somehow I'm only just now getting to this).

I thought I would add some pictures from Christmas and New Year:

Trivial Pursuit - played both on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day

Christmas ornaments... have lots more, I'll upload them to Picasa at some point

Merry Christmas to me.... I have a new car, and its pretty. It also feels very adult as it's the first time my name is on the title (and I'm the one paying for it)!

NYE party... canceled and then back on due to weather (so we wouldn't have to drive to the burbs)

Jacki and me studying Clin Med (aka rewatching lots of lectures.... lecture is on the big screen, notes/outline is on the small screen). We brought in the comfy chairs to enhance the studying environment (best idea ever!)

If this was facebook I would take the following 1) streaming lecture, 2) coffee (thanks to my awesome roomie) and 3) big binder of notes

And now to follow the precedent set by other blogs, firstly the NY Resolutions:

• Consistent quiet time (kinda got lost in the shuffle of the last few months)
• Clean up vocabulary (especially when driving)
• Work out 3x per week (helped by the fitness challenge 2008 between friends -- you win and you get a prize!)
• Pray more

Secondly, my past year:
January
-NYE in Thailand, complete with bomb threat and a new boyfriend
-teaching animal and human biology to my HSers

February
-came back to the states for interviews
-saw boyfriend for the first time since january

March
-got accepted to med school
-celebrated birthday
-spring break = dad and brother in thailand

April
-spring break = phuket and phi phi islands

May
-umm, did anything happen in may?? maybe just some crazy pictures in the night market
-staci pretty much living with brooke and me = amazing

June
-finish up a teaching stint.... year went by crazy fast
-come back to states to see mom's final show of 1776
-go to Texas to visit boyfriend

July
-break up with boyfriend
-find amazing apartment in detroit
-relaxing before the start of med school

August
-welcome to med school
-meet your classmates and cadaver
-learn how to balance life with med school

September
-more anatomy and histology -- head and neck (shot me now)
-labor day at traverse city, beautiful orchards!

October
-still anatomy and histology -- at least the things are big (GI, Resp, major organs, etc)
-jeremy camp concert, oktoberfest (tiger's game) and halloween parties are the only things keeping me sane
-hannah gets married -- crazy but so good to see her again
-start attending my (new) church

November
-are we done with anatomy yet?!?! fricking leg, pelvis, and perineum (let me out of here!)
-finally paint the apartment!

December
-physiology and biochemistry -- I miss anatomy and histology (completely true reaction); WTF?! 1500 pages of phys notes!? Are they serious?!
-women's fellowship starts
-chicago trip = highlight of last few months
-christmas with the fam and finally a break