Tuesday, February 22, 2005

New York trip

New York City was fun... for the one day that I was there. Many thanks to Andrew, who generously let me stay with him. And many thanks to everyone else I met up with... it was like a mini high school reunion.

Oh, more pictures are available. Just email me.

Fresh snow and orange gates... how fun!

Just a cool picture of a cool building.

A picture of "The Gates" in Central Park, NYC.

Medical school sucks

So, someone found this site through typing in "medical school sucks." How cool is that? I guess not very cool, but whatever.

Right now, it's sucking because I can't motivate myself to do anything and I just want to forget that I'm in medical school and sleep all the time.

Tuesday, February 15, 2005

Other things to look forward to

So, Valentine's Day has come and gone and I'm still a bitter, single woman.

However, there are better things on the horizon. First, my friend (and faithful commenter), Eric, is coming to visit me in Boston! How exciting. I love it when people come to visit me and kick me out of a rut, especially when it's not right before exams.

Secondly, I'm going to NYC this weekend, just in time to see The Gates! How exciting. Rather, not all that exciting, but really, my life is rather dull at the moment so crossing the street is exciting to me.

Thirdly, well, I guess there is no thirdly. That's it.

Thursday, February 10, 2005

I hate pharmacology

Really. I just stepped out of an exam where on a good 50% of the questions, I had no idea what the question was asking nor did I know what any of the answers were. And yes, I'm barely passing pharmacology (65% is passing and I'm at a 67%).

It was the first exam where I wanted to stand up, rip the test into pieces, throw them over my head, and walk out.

Tuesday, February 8, 2005

Sick Day

Today was terrible. Well, last night was terrible. I went to bed, barely able to breathe and had to sleep with several pillows under my head (which is a sign of congestive heart failure... just what I need). I woke up in the middle of the night, and stayed awake, because of fevers with chills. Needless to say, I was not feeling well this morning. Also, my shoulders ached like I was carrying a cartful of carrots through the fields all day.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for tomorrow... I need to go into the hospital tomorrow to see patients. Argh. I think medical school is not just bad for your health, it's very bad for your health.

Have to spread the word

I just have to spread the word about an awesome new artist that I have just discovered. Her name is Madeleine Peyroux and she's absolutely amazing. She's going to be in Boston soon and also San Francisco. You'd have to listen to her music to understand, but her music demands attention.

Visit her at www.madeleinepeyroux.com. Tell me what you think.

Friday, February 4, 2005

Pre-Valentine's Day Rant

I'd like to start off the Valentine's season with a rant about men and women. As I was looking around class today, I realized that most of the men in my class (upwards of 90%) were either married, engaged, or seriously committed to someone. On the other hand, I find that the majority of the women (about 70%) were not any of the above.

Why is this so? I have a theory. Men in medical school are seen as attractive to women. They are seen as having earning potential, intelligence, and are goal-oriented. All are admittedly attractive and I can see that. On the other hand, a woman in medical school is intelligent, but likely she won't let you push her around and likely has an opinion on things. [Side note: the women who are married, engaged, or otherwise committed tend to be more of the docile type, at least at my school.] Granted, these generalizations do not hold true for everyone (hence, generalizations), but that's how I see it.

Someone please prove me wrong. Tell me that either you're not afraid of an intelligent woman that wants to put her personal advancement ahead of baking cookies for classrooms. Then, and only then, will I stop telling people I meet that I'm a public health student and start admitting that I'm a medical student. [I have had guys just stop talking after I tell them I'm in medical school.]

Wednesday, February 2, 2005

State of the Union

So, the state of our union right now just sucks. We are disliked abroad. We are divisive internally. And we have an idiot as our president.

Here are some excerpts from the speech and my response:
* "Environmentally sound energy alternatives" - Yeah, subsidizing the oil industry, invading countries for oil, and not supporting alternative fuel shows just how much you believe in the environment.
* "Preserving the institution of marriage" - It's funny how he ends this and starts a conversation about "the vulnerable in our society" (i.e. unborn children) without realizing that he could also be talking about gays and lesbians.
* Laura Bush being appointed head of some gang-prevention initiative - Oh, come on. Has she ever "been down with the people"?
* HIV/AIDS - Finally, someone is focusing on the fact that it strikes unevenly in terms of race. However, ignoring the fact that it still spreads through SEX (the big 3-letter bad word).

After this, I could not pay attention. It's funny because he did not mention anything about international collaborations. He did mention the "threat of other nations," but nothing on cooperating with others for common goals. Or at least not for a large extent.

And bringing out an Iraqi and grieving parents of a dead soldier is nice and touchy. But what are his long terms plans for peace in Iraq? How come soldiers are being forced to extend their stay and paid so little for their great sacrifice?