(cough, cough)

Hello.

It's August. I started writing this post in July. Early July, in fact. The real post I wrote was in April, and I think I made some comment about trying to post more frequently since I would have less free time than ever.

At least I was half right -- on the "less free time than ever" part.

The last four months were pretty intense. A month each of Pediatrics, OB/Gyn, Neurology, and Psychiatry. I thought Peds was fun and worth considering, and Neuro was interesting but probably not my future path. Psych was fascinating, but not in a wow-I-would-like-that-career sort of way. And my month of OB/Gyn, despite my best efforts to like it, made me feel primarily like I were being flogged. I was lucky to deliver a half dozen babies during this time, but it wasn't enough to make up for the rest of the experience.

Anyway.

I'm now on a break from rotations. We have 4 months to do research during third year, and I was lucky that I got my research block during the summer months. I don't have to start my next set of clerkships until November.

Let's see what has happened since I last posted...not that much, really. Except for...

• going to two weddings on opposite corners of the country (San Diego and Maine)
• taking out yet another outrageously large student loan
• moving into a new place with Karen
• starting a garden
• getting screwed by my ex-landlord (re: security deposit) and making plans to take her to small claims court
• training for a marathon
• buying a kitten!

I think that's about it for now. I'll try to get some photos of the kitten online at some point.

Time flies!

What a busy month! I took the boards, vacationed in San Diego, and tried to mentally prepare myself for life in the hospital. And after just a week and a half as a 3rd year medical student, I can say with confidence that I had no idea what I was getting myself into. That isn't to say I'm unhappy -- in truth, I've loved my first real exposure to working in the hospital. But it's just such an enormous change from anything I've done before.

"It's like an 18-month job interview," said one of the speakers at our orientation last week. And she was right. Try getting to know your coworkers, while knowing they're responsible for evaluating you, and do it in a completely new environment, with completely new software, with a completely new schedule that is often revealed to you just days beforehand. Also, remember that your responsibilities are not clearly outlined, they change according to who is supervising you each day, and you should always try to anticipate what will be expected of you.

So far, though, I'm having a blast. Now I just need to get to sleep earlier. I have a relatively easy schedule this month -- getting up around 5:45 am, in the hospital by 6:45, done most days by 6:00pm. My friends on Neurosurgery, though, are waking up at 3:45 am to be in the hospital by 5:00 am. Or earlier.

Anyway, sleep time. Now that I have less free time than ever, I'll try to start posting again. :-)

Mood: optimistic
Song: The Killers, "Read My Mind"

Coming Up For Air

I'm back. For as long as it takes me to write this post. I'm in midst of my preparation time for the USMLE -- the United States Medical Licensing Exam -- and I frankly don't know how I'm going to keep studying. I finished class more than two weeks ago, and in that time I have been studying. All the time. I did take one quick trip to California for a full 48 hours, but other than that weekend I have been studying.

How much studying? I'm aiming for 12-14 hours/day. I usually get in about 9 to 10, maybe 11 if I'm really on top of things. The schedule is pretty simple:

8 am: Wake up
9am - 12pm: Study block 1
12pm - 3pm: Study block 2
3pm-4pm: Magical afternoon free time for errands, recovering my sanity, talking to myself, etc.
4pm-7pm: Study block 3
7pm-9pm: Eat, go to the gym, eat, sit around in a stupor.
9pm-12am: Study block 4
12am: Bed.

Now, let's be honest. Am I really following this schedule? No. But am I trying? Yes. Sort of. Keep in mind that it's 2am now and I'm just finishing for tonight. Eh, so it goes.

And this is what I aim to do between now and March 7th. On March 8th, I will do my best to relax. On March 9th, I take the exam. And the next morning, I'm on a flight to San Diego.

For now, though, it's time to sleep. Tomorrow's Study Block 1 is rapidly approaching, and neuroanatomy is on the schedule. Good times.

Mood: determination, mixed with a little cabin fever
Song: Boston, "More than a Feeling" and David Gray, "The One I Love"

Merry Christmas!

Hi all --

Here is the obligatory Christmas post. Merry Christmas! I'm thrilled to be home, rested, well fed, rested, with family, and rested.

Time for another snack!

401 and counting

This is my 401st post. Not bad for a little over 4 years.

When I look back on my 2nd year of medical school, I will probably think of this period. We're hitting on all cylinders -- or at least we're being asked to -- with lectures, class exams, clinical sessions 2-3 days per week, and board preparation....all at the same time. As we get closer to the USMLE, class starts to matter less and less. As it is, I've spent probably half my time in the last two weeks focusing on the boards instead of on class material (endocrinology).

Now I'm off to another Physical Diagnosis session. Another afternoon gone.

Song: Quiet Riot, "Come on Feel the Noise"
Mood: autopilot

24 hours

Just another 24 hours until I have a break. A full week to sleep, read, relax, study, and set my own schedule. Of course, between now and then there is an exam, and I haven't been 100% confident in my studying recently. I'm putting a lot of time, energy, and effort into it...but I'm not sure how much I'm actually learning.

Fortunately, I don't have a choice about the pulm exam. By lunchtime tomorrow it will be over, and I will be packing for my flight back to Portland on Saturday. Hallelujah.

With the exception of 1 or 2 days of federal holiday, I haven't had a break in months. And the sad thing is that I just want to study for the boards. Sure, I want time to sleep and have some fun, but I don't really resent being busy because it distracts from my social life. I signed up for that. I resent being busy because it means I have less time to study for Step 1. And, now that I have scheduled my exam date, I want to study even more. March 9th is rapidly approaching.

Enough whining. Time for more practice tests.

Mood: dug in, so to speak
Song: A set of Baroque pieces, mostly choral, I just bought off iTunes. I just finished Bach's Concerto No. 1 for One Harpsichord. Now listening to Palestrina's "Stabat Mater," performed by the Schola Cantorum of Oxford. It's the perfect music for translating my caffine high into productive work.

Post-election and pre-Thanksgiving

I'm finally returning to normal life after the election. The biggest news around here was that our smoking ban passed (by a wide margin!) and that Ohio citizens were smart enough to reject the smoking "ban" backed by RJ Reynolds. Amazing. Oh, and yes, the Democrats took the House and the Senate. That was pretty exciting too. :-)

Otherwise, I now find myself with three days before an exam. And four days before I go home for a week! Can I push myself to the end of this week?