White Christmas!

I'm not sure whether this is really exciting and fun... or what? I do remember the storm of 1991. We had a snow day. My little brother almost got lost in a snow drift.

Issued by The National Weather Service
Minneapolis, MN
4:26 am CST, Wed., Dec. 23, 2009

... WINTER STORM WARNING NOW IN EFFECT FROM 9 PM THIS EVENING TO 6 AM CST SATURDAY...

THE WINTER STORM WARNING IS NOW IN EFFECT FROM 9 PM THIS EVENING TO 6 AM CST SATURDAY.

* TIMING... SNOW WILL BEGIN LATE THIS AFTERNOON INTO EARLY THIS EVENING... WITH ACCUMULATING SNOW MOST LIKELY AFTER 9 PM TONIGHT. THE SNOW WILL CONTINUE THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT. SOME SLEET IS ALSO POSSIBLE FROM LATE WEDNESDAY NIGHT INTO THURSDAY AFTERNOON... MAINLY IN EAST CENTRAL MINNESOTA AND WESTERN WISCONSIN.

* ACCUMULATIONS... SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS OF SNOW WILL OCCUR WITH PERIODS OF HEAVY SNOW LIKELY AS THE STORM INTENSIFIES THURSDAY AFTERNOON INTO FRIDAY. SNOW AMOUNTS BY THURSDAY MORNING OF TWO TO FIVE INCHES ARE EXPECTED. TOTAL SNOWFALL ACCUMULATIONS BY SATURDAY MORNING WILL LIKELY EXCEED ONE FOOT IN MANY AREAS... WITH SCATTERED TOTALS IN EXCESS OF 20 INCHES PROBABLE. THIS EVENT MAY BECOME COMPARABLE TO THE HALLOWEEN SNOW STORM OF 1991.

The Donegal Break!

Girls' weekend away!!!

ACE Reflection - Christmas Time

So... As promised, here's the reflection I read at the ACE Fellowship mass last night.

Peace,
~L

Christmas Reflection

The Holiday season means many things to many different people. In fact, it can mean many things to each person. For example, the doctor in me knows that the Holidays are notoriously bad for health. Highest rate of heart attacks falls between Thanksgiving and New Years, highest depression and suicide rates in December, homelessness, burns and house fires, theft, vandalism, and don't get me started on the alcohol. The Minnesotan in me knows that December means about seven hours of day light, subzero temperatures, and shoveling a half foot of snow every other day. The days are getting shorter, darker, colder, and the weather here... well, it can be abysmal. So, in this winter of more than just season, we surround ourselves with the warmth, family, spirit, and celebration of Christmas and the New Year... And HOW!

Everyone has their own holiday traditions, borne of their family, friends, peers, country, and church. But inevitably, they involve gifts, food, decorations, celebrations, and a spirit of joy. So, for the sake of the little kid in us, I just want to imagine fulfilling these traditions.

Shopping for presents. At home, the day after Thanksgiving is THE day to do about 50% of the Christmas shopping. Packs of humanity swarming around sales that pop up and change hourly at the retailers. I need to pick up a gift for my brother, and his new wife. My roommate, my boyfriend, my best friend, my little brother, my mom, my cousin that was married last year... oh wait, they've a new baby too, what the heck am I going to get for my dad? He says he doesn't need anything... hm... And there's the office secret santa/white elephant party, and do I have to get something for my boyfriend's little sister? I think that's everyone. No wait, I forgot my aunt is coming to dinner next week. Speaking of dinner...

Make a huge meal. At least one huge family meal. It might be on Christmas Eve, or Christmas day, or even the eve of Christmas Eve or St. Stephen's/Boxing day, whatever is your tradition. But you need the huge family meal. And probably about three separate dinner parties, or office parties, or festivus for the rest of us, all events requiring you to prepare soups, hors d'oeuvres of Christmas theme, Ham, Goose, Turkey, minced pies, mulled wines, fruitcake? Christmas crackers, candy canes, chestnuts roasting on an open fire, egg nog, yule logs, and of course trays and trays of cookies. And as your home is filling with the scent of freshly baked cookies...

Decorate your house. I want a tree, preferably recently living, with tinsel and lights, ornaments, garlands, and a star on top, or an angel or a Santa, whatever floats your boat. I want stockings hanging from the mantle, I want a wreath on the door, I want candles, I want fairy lights, I want mistletoe, I want snow flakes, I want reindeer, jolly weird garden gnomes, and there darn well better be a manger scene in the bay window. Don't forget to decorate the outside of the house too. And with all that done, bundle up against the winter chill, grab about ten of your mates and head outside...

Go Christmas carolling. Wander up and down your street in a gang of wolly scarved merrymakers, armed against the jack frost's nip with a thermos of hot chocolate (perhaps with its own special bite) and mittens, use the big brass knockers, ring the ding-dong merrily on high doorbells, and sing to whom ever will listen. Tell them about the little drummer boy away in the manger in royal David's city where, Hark, I hear an angel singing. And the glowing reindeer dreaming of white tannenbaums and talking snowmen decking halls with figgy pudding. Do they know it's Christmas time at all? Jingle some silver bells there, Wencelesslas, dash through the snow, and have yourself a merry little Christmas. And when your cheeks are rosy and your fingers have lost sufficient circulation, you head back inside, 'cause baby, it's cold outside. May now it's time to think about those who don't have some place warm to thaw tonight.

And this is the month when more people donate to charity than any other time of year. We bring in our food to stock the shelves of local kitchens, drop our spare change into the red bucket for the salvation army, sure the poor fellow stuck outside ringing that bell looks cold enough for the both of you. Purge closets of big puffy sweaters that may be a little out of fashion but sure are warm and could well serve someone else that needs them. We give to locks of love, and toys for tots, coats for kids, St. Vincent de Paul, unicef, Focus, Oxfam, Bothar, and Simon. We give and give and give and to do our duty properly, we give until it hurts. We give of our money, our time, our hearts, and in this season charities have to turn away volunteers. So we slip in the good deeds where they're hard to notice, like buying charity Christmas cards.

Speaking of cards, I want you to write cute, clever, and touching cards to anyone you've ever known, but be sure to make them personal because at the end of the day, they all know each other and they'll be comparing notes. Also, I hope you've updated your address book so that you can mail those letters... Lord only knows where your next-door neighbour who used to share your tree-house has moved in the past 15 years. Also, you'll need boxes to ship the wrapped presents for friends and family that don't live next door. This season keeps the post office in business.

And then... somewhere in all of that chaos... We are supposed to carve out time to worship, time to give thanks, time to wait in wonder and awe for the birth of the Lord. It feels like running around, juggling snowballs, while holding your breath... and a partridge in a pear tree.

Now think about doing all of that in the middle of August. Or on July 15th (hey, that's my birthday, I hear Hobbits give everyone else presents on their birthday). Or what about May 7th. In that context, it sounds almost ridiculous. How far we stretch ourselves this time of year. How much we give and we fit into the short days. How willing we are to say yes to friends, to family, to food, to parties, to wrapping paper and ribbons, to cards, to caols, to cooking, to wanting and to giving. And how obliged we feel to attend mass for Advent.

Advent is a time of waiting. A time of anticipation. A time of expectation, excitement, and hope. A time to take stock of what we have to be thankful for as we count down the days until our Lord is born. When he brings this light and joy into the dark days of winter. There's a fresh, clean (and somewhat full ) feeling that comes with this time. And I suppose my small bit of advice is to hold onto the sense of wonder, the sense of joy, the attitude of giving. Carry it with you. Bring it into the new year, into the spring. Anticipate the beauty of all times of the year. Expect joyful surprises. Be excited to give of yourself. And at the advent of a fresh canonical calendar, allocate, dedicate, spare a moment or two for some quiet reflection, for peace, for prayer, and for God.

Revisiting

So... I'm going to post my Christmas Fellowship reflection here tomorrow (I figure it's only fair to wait until I've actually given it before putting it up here). In the mean time, I've been a bit lax in this blog. Mea Culpa. Not gonna lie, final med is way busy. I've been burning the candle at both ends (and in the middle too). Basically haven't slept much in the past 3 weeks. Running around like crazy. And when I actually had a day off, I slept till noon. And think about it. When do I EVER sleep until noon? More on that later.

For now, I was cleaning up my room and came across something I haven't seen in ages. It's a song I wrote maybe 6 years ago. I'd forgotten that it was something I enjoyed. Maybe it's about time I get back to that. I think I'll have to wait until final med is over to really give it any time... So until that happens, here's one from the archives (and yes, it's very God-ish. But it's one of the better things I think I've ever written... really ought to put it to music).

Dancing in the Trenches
I stumble and I fall, but your Simon picks me up
He shares with me the Body and we drink from Your cup
Lost and blindly wandering I hear you calling me to be
A child in the journey, faith realised in me
When all is forgiven in infinite true love
No matter how I falter, you are there to pick me up

When I am witness to your glory
Fill every corner of my soul
Your Grace will cure my stumble
Your Love it makes me whole
And I fall down to my knees
The beauty of your Truth
The gift of being human
Heaven comes to life in you

Your Love is an ocean, let it wash on over me
Crash into the shores, drag me out to sea
I'm not afraid of swimming, I'm not afraid to be
A member of your family, the hands of His community
When all around is darkness, let me reflect your Love
Glowing like a stained glass, shining in the night

Here on Earth
We will praise your name
Dance along the trenches
Light the darknened way
We will share you Love
We will swim in your sea
We will teach your Word
We will bring you Peace
By Word and by Land
By Song and by Sea
Dancing in the trenches
As we are called to be

Celebrate life
Live in the Love
Dance in the trenches
To the songs of heaven above

Dance in the trenches
To the songs of heaven above

Deep Breath!

I'm on the down stroke of energy as I've just finished a one month elective at Children's Hospital in the ED. It was a fantastic elective. I saw a great many things, and everyone I worked with was lovely (very willing to teach and offer constructive criticism and they were great). I can't say there was anyone I didn't get on with.

I am now about 98% sure I'm heading into pediatrics. Now... that's not exactly a complete decision since there are just about a million specialties within peds. And I'm not saying that surgery is off the table... but... well... I dunno. I really really love ED. It seems to fit so well. Almost as well as peds fits. So lord only knows what I'm going to do now.

I'm wrapping up my life here in the States and gearing up to head back to Ireland. Final Med... bring it! I'm going to have to hit the ground running on this one since I'm a week late. But, I think I can handle it. Play like a champion... play to win.

Fark this!

While I have many MANY opinions on this "health care reform" debate, I'm not going to lay out my own personal plan as of yet. However, I did see this on Fark dot com and thought I'd share it... because it makes me laugh in a good way (not the way that Fox news makes me laugh... which is a bad way).

"This morning I was awoken by my alarm clock powered by electricity generated by the public power monopoly regulated by the U.S. Department of Energy.

I then took a shower in the clean water provided by a municipal water utility.

After that, I turned on the TV to one of the FCC-regulated channels to see what the National Weather Service of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration determined the weather was going to be like, using satellites designed, built, and launched by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

I watched this while eating my breakfast of U.S. Department of Agriculture-inspected food and taking the drugs which have been determined as safe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

At the appropriate time, as regulated by the U.S. Congress and kept accurate by the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the U.S. Naval Observatory, I get into my National Highway Traffic Safety Administration-approved automobile and set out to work on the roads build by the local, state, and federal Departments of Transportation, possibly stopping to purchase additional fuel of a quality level determined by the Environmental Protection Agency, using legal tender issued by the Federal Reserve Bank.

On the way out the door I deposit any mail I have to be sent out via the U.S. Postal Service and drop the kids off at the public school.

After spending another day not being maimed or killed at work thanks to the workplace regulations imposed by the Department of Labor and the Occupational Safety and Health administration, enjoying another two meals which again do not kill me because of the USDA, I drive my NHTSA car back home on the DOT roads, to my house which has not burned down in my absence because of the state and local building codes and Fire Marshal's inspection, and which has not been plundered of all its valuables thanks to the local police department.

And then I log on to the internet -- which was developed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Administration -- and post on Freerepublic.com and Fox News forums about how SOCIALISM in medicine is BAD because the government can't do anything right."

One Month Countdown

I can't believe that it's now less than a month until I'm back in Ireland, back at school, back for FINAL MED! AH! It's kinda scary. But somehow, I feel like I'm ready for it. Big decisions though, this year. Lots and lots of decisions. Some I'm not sure I'm ready for.

I started at Children's on Monday. After a bit of culture shock (a bit = head spinning), I feel like I've got my feet under me again and can be productive. Because I'm not actually attached to any one Attending, I've trying to get a feel for what each one wants in a presentation. It's hard since a few just want the problem and my differential (like, forget HxPC/PMHx/Meds blah blah blah). So to them I say, "Room 4, 12 year old girl with a bad migraine." Others want the whole shebang, which I'm much more used to. The strangest thing, in my mind, is the way that we discuss the differential, the diagnosis, the plan... then I magically type the plan in the computer and it happens. I don't actually have to DO anything (no bloods, no lines, no samples, nothing). Granted, probably more efficient... I feel a bit removed though. Oddly enough, there's a Surgeons Doc that works in the ER with me. She's cool. And she's going to sit down for a chat at some point so I can get a different perspective... maybe figure out my life.

So far, I've seen a few interesting cases, a few zebras. Yesterday was intense. Slow to start in the morning, learned rapid sequence induction, then spent the ENTIRE afternoon on one total heartsink case. It was a "Good learning experience" for me (I thought my attending was going to kill someone, probably herself), and it put one mark in the '-' and one in the '+' for peds. The '-' was the 3 hours on what should have been a simple case, complicated by a PCP threatening to call CPS, parents being unreasonable, culture mismatch, and practical issues. We had our social work involved to mediate and it all worked out in the end, but it was insanely frustrating. The '+' is something that I've know about peds for a while. And that is that through this entire annoying situation, I was never once frustrated or angry with the child. It wasn't her fault that she was sick, it wasn't her fault that she was in the ER, it wasn't her fault that her parents and the docs were having these issues. Not being upset with the patient helps me stay level. Because no matter how annoying parents are, you still want what's best for the child. In adult medicine, I sometimes lose that perspective, because it sometimes IS the patient's fault that they're sick, it IS their fault they're in the ER (say, instead of the GP office), and it IS their fault that they're a difficult bastard that won't listen to you. (and yes, clearly, sometimes, it's is the doctor's fault too).

I will tell you this though: "My child doesn't want to..." is NOT a valid excuse. Parents, please, for the love of all that is holy, if your child is 4 years old it is NOT their decision. You are the PARENT. This means that sometimes, you have to force your child to do things they don't want to do. That's your JOB. It includes things like making them go to school, making them brush their teeth, making them bathe occasionally, making them eat vegetables (Oh the HORROR!). They might not like it. They might not like you. Too bad. A little ire at 4 will be easily overlooked when they don't have scurvy at 12.

Ok, I'm done with my soap box... if anyone else needs it, have at. I'm on an evening shift tonight, so I have the morning to collect myself. Good thing too. I've a touch of gastro. It seems that just about all the Residents have had it in the past 2 weeks, and now I have it too. Welcome home, Liz.

Home Alone

This week has been weird. I'm home alone, minding the "children" (ie: the cat and dog... who are acting like little brats. Apparently, they do that when my mom is gone). It's strange being in the house alone. I don't think I like it.

Studying... is going...

I start work on Monday at Children's. I'm pumped about that. Need to get off my butt.

Speaking of... Met with the Trainer on Friday. He kicked my ass. Full out, on the ground, thought I was going to faint or hurl, butt-kicking. I can run 10k, but I'm out of shape. So I chugged some water, sucked it up, and finished out the hour. I haven't been in this much post-workout pain since the suicide practice in high school basketball (our coach was pissed at us missing our free-throws during a game and he told us that we'd have to run a suicide for every one we missed in the second half... Our point guard had an off day. My shots weren't dropping either. And we had 45 minutes straight of suicides... Resulted in one girl with a strained hammy, 2 people puked, and I didn't want to move the next day... So SORE!) Anyway. I said "please sir, can I have some more." I have another round with the trainer in 2 weeks, and I fully intend to have it go much better (and I plan on having breakfast before I go to train). The yoga is going really well too... kicked my butt yesterday, but it was HOT in the studio.

I've also been icing my knee. It seems to be helping the pain issue. Not fully fixing the clicking, but I can deal with that if I'm pain free. So... only other thing to add is the final Summer Soundtrack for 2009. It's more chill than my recent stuff, but that's because I'm not running. Workout music tends to drive things a bit faster on my itunes. Studying slows it down. But... it's great music.

Summer Soundtrack 2009:

1. Paralyzer - Finger Eleven
2. Morning Nightcap - Lunasa
3. Fireflies - Owl City
4. Next in Line - Meese
5. Show Me What I'm Looking For - Carolina Liar
6. Look After You - The Fray
7. Somewhere Only We Know - Keane
8. Sweet and Low - Augustana
9. Say When - The Fray
10. This Town - O.A.R
11. Crack the Shutters - Snow Patrol
12. First Time - Lifehouse
13. Say Hey - Michael Franti
14. Say - John Mayer
15. Time to Go - Keane
    

The low down on the knee

So... Knee problem - not fixed, but in repair. Here's the blow-by-blow of the past 2 weeks. Please disregard my sarcasm. I'm a horrible and ungrateful patient.

1) After the MRI was reported, I got a call from my Ortho. He tells me the MRI is "clean" except for "beginning chondromalacia" and I'm welcome to run if I want and it doesn't hurt. Maybe some physio to make the clicking go away.

So... his job is done and I never need to see him again. Pro: No surgery. Surgery is a bad thing, right? Con: This doesn't explain the pain pattern (being quite consistent with a medial meniscus tear) or the fact that he could pop my meniscus back and forth during exam (something he ignored when we spoke about the MRI)

2) I schedule an appointment for physio therapy and make a call to get my own copy of the MRI (you know, just in case something happens when I'm in Dublin... then I'll have a baseline, right).

MRI Report (gist): Changes of chondromalacia along mid patellar apex and medial and lateral patellar facets, surface irregularity and tiny shallow chondral fissures (no instability). Small knee joint effusion with mild synovitis [NB: no mention of this in the phone call?]. No evidence of meniscal tear.

... Ok, so this still doesn't explain the pain. Does explain the clicking and grinding and small swelling.

3) Went to physio today. I like the woman I'm working with. She's sound. Her assessment is that the chondromalacia and pain is a byproduct of running a lot (well... duh), the injury to my left foot, and my built-in body mechanics. Apparently I have ridiculously high arches in my feet (this I knew, but it's surprising to other people). But those in conjunction with little to no internal rotation from my R hip (it's like 10* on the R and 25* on the L) and the bigger sacrolumbral lordosis... This stresses the knee.

She agrees that the pain and the instability I've had is a meniscal problem, and w/dye injection, it could be picked up on scan... but I'm not sure I'm willing to risk my kidneys and knee to confirm what we already know (plus, there's be little change to management) - that I have damage to my medial meniscus that's not a full blown tear (yet).

So... new plan... I'm working with a trainer tomorrow at the gym to put together a lifting/cardio routine (must emphasize glutes/core/hamstrings). I have a series of stability exercises I'll be doing to help with the hip and chondromalacia bit. I'll keep doing alternate yoga - gym days (for my own sanity). And I'll not be running...

I dunno how long I'll be able to keep off running. I miss it, even if I'm doing other things to stay in shape. But... BUT if the pain goes away (for a consistent amount of time), a little light running should be ok. I interpret this as no races or running-training until after new years at the ABSOLUTE earliest. I dunno if I'll train for something in 2010, but the option is there. Running once or twice a week over "short" distances (which I feel is about 3 miles) when I'm back in Dublin (provided I'm pain free) is ok. And I'll need to find a yoga studio in Dublin. Any suggestions?

I have two more scheduled physio appts in August to add to the stability exercises and make sure I'm actually doing it right (cause let's face it, I'll probably cheat). I can add another before heading back to Dublin if I want, wait and do one when I'm home in Oct for the wedding, wait till I'm home for Christmas, or just not go back... We'll see. But I do like my Physio, so it won't be because of a personality clash.

So... that's the story. Chondromalacia + effusion + synovitis + meniscal damage (but no discrete tear). ... so no Dublin Marathon 2009 :(

C'est la vie.

Head - Shoulders - EFF!

Let's play a game called "What's wrong with Liz's knee?"

a) chondromalacia
b) medial meniscus tear
c) lateral meniscus tear
d) all/more than one of the above...

[initial ortho asseessment done, MRI done... vote now!]

I'll give you a bit of background if you want to play with more detail than is possible on fb status updates.
1 - We're talking about my right knee.
2 - Yes, I've run 2 marathons, including the Dublin marathon back in October. I ran the Flora 10k June 1st and that's the last time I've been out for a run. (I may or may not have been injured following my left foot getting clipped by a cab about 2 weeks prior)
3 - There was never any specific trauma to the knee. BUT, I have played basketball for about 17 years, been running for about 15 years, played tennis for nearly 20 years, and was a catcher in softball for a number of years as well.
4 - My knee makes lovely crepitations (you can hear and feel - mostly just behind the patella) whenever I extend it, and it is loud enough to be heard going up AND down stairs over the sound of flip-flops.
5 - Pain is a transient thing, but it's mostly achy, about 3 hours post run, or after 3 days without running... Or for the past 4 days straight. It's both medial and lateral along the joint margins, and it's tender over my lateral and medial meniscus.
6 - Apparently, that little moving/popping thing all the way on the inside of my knee... That's my medial meniscus (as according to the ortho)

Other things I'll tell you: It was brilliant that on my first week back in the States, I was able to book an appointment with an orthopedic knee surgeon, have said appointment, book an MRI and have said MRI. I'll probably get the results tomorrow (Monday), about 2 business days following the procedure.

We'll see what the results are. Updates to follow.

Bit more from Donegal

On Travelling

First off, I'm no longer in my flat in Ranelagh (not now, not in the fall). I have moved! So if you need that new address, let me know.

I actually spent last week bouncing between 5 different places: Ranelagh, the new flat, the flat in Mullingar, Donegal with Sinead, and IFSC with Deter. Now... it's home in MN for the next 2 months. I don't like living in a bunch of different places at the same time (I've decided it's quite stressful), so I'm going to avoid that in the near future. But on the up side, I had some fun times travelling!So first stop: Donegal! After about 5 hours in a car to get there, a heaping pile of food from Lidl, and two bright pairs of leg-warmers... Ridiculousness ensued.

(I got stuck in a bog)

(We took over a castle)
(We ate a whole cow)

All in all, great times! Thanks Sinead... And to our credit, we did find Bloody Foreland eventually.

No sooner was I back in Mullingar when I had to pack up and move on out of the flat up there to head back to Dublin... And move out of my flat in Dublin. Big mega thanks to Deter for helping me move all my shmaz and Jim for letting me litter his room. Because ND is doing work on the O'Connell house flats over the summer, my stuff is split between Jim's room and the sacristy (It's weird to leave your stuff in a sacristy). Deter and I had a slumber party the last night in town (again, thanks for tolerating me).

I woke up around 4:30am to pane shaking thunder. I was 100% confused (not being in my own room, thunder and lightning in Dublin... what gives?!). It was the start to a very long day of travel. It continued to rain all morning, so I did have to walk across the tarmac in a white tee-shirt in order to board my plane home. Clearly, there was a delay and I was a bit strapped for time when I reached Chicago. I hit the ground running and managed to just make my flight to MSP. I love getting into the MSP airport. It's like once I'm there, I don't care if my luggage shows up or if the weather is crappy... I'm home.

We had a family dinner (minus Joe, plus Kirsten). Totally the best thing ever. I was nearly asleep at the table by the time we had dessert, but I couldn't care less. I love my family.

Last night (being the 4th), we went to the club for dinner and fireworks. We've been going there for over 20 years and I can't remember ever being rained out. It's brilliant.

So... It's good to be home. Time to get cracking on the work that's piled up lately. And for the time being, you can find me in Minnesota (and can reach me on my MN cell or my Dublin mobile).

~L

Tiny Babies

There are days that being a med student is really frustrating. Frustrating because you see need that you can't help (YET), and there's so much going on that you don't understand (YET), and you find things that you've learned aren't really true anymore but you have to know them (FOR NOW), and people around you would really benefit from a second pair of hands, but your hands aren't qualified (YET).

Today was not one of those days.

We had mom with PET go into an APH at 27 weeks with a previa. For those of you that don't know, normal gestation for people is 40 weeks. In Ireland, the cut of for viability is 24 weeks (some places in the States use 20 weeks). So 27 weeks is really really early. Thankfully, it was 8am, the consultants were awake and some of them in hospital, the Regs and SHOs were on the ball, mom survived, baby survived. We had to call a transport for baby to get it down to Dublin (where they have the training and facilities to care for a baby this small). Let me tell you just how tiny this little guy was (and yes, it was a guy). He was <900g at birth, his head a bit smaller than a tennis ball. we had a miniature BP cuff on him and could only fit 3 leads of a neonatal ECG monitor on his chest. I got to see him in the SCBU (like a NICU in the States) as they were prepping for transport. As a result, I bagged while we intubated. I've never been worried about squeezing and AMBU too hard or really paid that much attention to the timing before. I did today. I thought intubating an adult, or hell, even a child was tough... this little guy's chest tube was only 7cm long. But he was very responsive, he opened his eyes, his vitals were solid enough for being 27weeks, and he peed on me. Go little man go. I think that's actually a good sign for the kidneys. After that, he was NGed, CXRed, and bundled for his first trip in an ambulance. All this before noon.

The best part about days like today is that it reminds me why I've been in school for so effing long. It makes the all nighters, the gray hair, the ulcers, the stress of exams... all totally worth it. It gives me a high (a good type of high). The worst part is that I leave a day like today and think, maybe I should be a neonatologist, maybe I should work in a NICU. (it's not that bad, but it makes me feel a little flippant about my intended specialty).

So it's 6pm now. I've been on a dinner break (we finished clinic early, woot! my consultant is awesome) since half four. I'm headed back to A&E in about 30 minutes to do another call. And I'm not tired. Really, 100% not tired at all. I love my job.

To Nancy

"I'm not sure how it's going to turn out, except I'll die in the end, she said. So, really, what could go wrong?"
I don't think I ever saw Nancy away from Boston. So the majority of my memories with her are from Humarock.

I remember when I was about 4 or 5, we went into Quincy to meet up with Nancy and she took me through Faneuil Hall to "window shop." We stopped at just about every jewelery boutique and clothing display and she would critique the style, most of them being too subtle or too boring for her taste. She would ask me my favorite colour and then set out to find something "Gorgeous" to wear that was generally too excessive (even for my 5 year old self). I do remember that by the end of that shopping trip, she had found this little plastic purple box that had a purple notebook, purple pen, purple dice (I don't know why that was in there), purple bubble necklace, and purple pin with a panda on it that said "Purple makes life bearable."

At least once every time we were down at the beach, she would come visit. And that meant one thing, and one thing only when we were younger... Lion hunts. I don't remember exactly when we out grew those. But we would all sit in a circle (even Dan and Mike loved it... Well, Mike grew to like it after he stopped being scared of the Lion. And the Gradys normally would come over for them too), and pack our bags, and walk down the road, and through the big dark trees, and across the bubbling brook, and through the tall tall grass... She normally would convince me to get "Dressed up" for dinner. And she would help me do my make-up. And everything was glitter and shiney and colourful. As I got older, we would sit out on the porch with a drink (mine normally juice and I highly suspected that hers was not). She would take a long drag on a cigarette and say "Elizabeth. Tell me about boys."

I think the last time I had a good chat with Nancy was at Dan's graduation. And we spent a brief amount of time at John funeral together. She was such a character. She was dramatic, and wild, and larger than life. I love Nancy.

Little Bundles

Work:
I'm moving from Obs to Delivery Suite this week (aka, Baby catching). The good news is that I'm on a decent shift from 3pm-11pm. It won't mess up my sleep-wake cycle too much. Plus, I'm a morning person. I'll get up, run, eat, study, nap, then head into work. The only problem is the conflict with the evening meetings (and such) that people kindly schedule for after 6pm... Oh well. Here's hoping I see some cool stuff, and deliver a few babies.

I've been struggling to set up summer electives so far, but I've recently made contact with a wonderful, helpful surgeon in Mpls... and (fingers crossed) I may get to be home for August. I'm so excited! I'm actually trying not to get my hopes up. If it falls through, I'll be up a creek. So keep me in your prayers, eh?

Surg Soc:
Managed to get myself elected for another year of running SurgSoc. The elections were far less of a disappointment than last year, and I'm thinking we can do even more stuff for 2009-2010. Here's hoping. The Inaugural is fast approaching and I'm feeling the crunch, but it should be a fantastic event! Mr. Barry O'Donnell is going to speak and he sounds absolutely brilliant.

Running:
I managed to finally find a new Running Journal and it's sitting in a post office waiting for me to pick it up (or rather, me waiting for the post office to be open so I can pick it up). It's the same one I have from last year, but I'm pretty pumped to get a new one. It keeps me honest, and it makes me accountable... It's an accountability partner without the same interpersonal guilt.

I've also (perhaps unwisely) registered for the Flora Mini Marathon (a 10k race on June 1... right in the middle of exams). But, it'll give me a reason to keep running through the stress. Here's to getting in shape!

Starting next week: The week rundown in running.

Count downs
* Days to the end of OBGYN: 19
* Days to the Flora 10k: 43
* Days to the end of Exams: 47
* Number of Exams: 7
* Days until Mullingar: 50
* Days until I go home!!!: 75

Spring is finally here!

I'm going to probably eat these words... But spring seems to have settled in Dublin. Not only do I have a horrible case of spring fever (I swear Tom, if you say anything I'll kill you), but my allergies have arrived, the temperature seems to be solidly above 7, I'm itching to clean EVERYTHING in sight, and I've picked up running again.

I actually just got back from my first run. I've dabbled on and off all winter on a treadmill with a few miles here and there, but let's be honest... For a road runner, it doesn't really count until you're on the road, pounding pavement. I've set the next goal as the Flora Women's Mini-Marathon on June 1st. It's a nice 10k that I've done in the past, and it strikes me as a good get-back-to-running for spring type of event. Plus, once I sign up for that, it'll keep me running in spite of OBGYN work bearing down on me. (let's not mention exams yet please?)

I bought a new pair of running shoes just before the marathon in Oct (No, I didn't run in them, lessons to that effect were learned in the past, thankyou), so they're being broken in. And, as I found out today... I have one page left in my running log. That means it's time for a new one. It's always exciting getting a new training log (until I fall behind in my writing...)

So... Here's to the idea of a new running day! Joy!

On to cleaning, moving, getting a car, setting up electives for the summer, Step 2s, the rest of my life... AHHHHHHHHHHHH!

Ahem. Happy Easter!!! Tomorrow, in addition to Easter, my parents will be celebrating the sale of our house (it's been a long time coming) and their 29th wedding aniversary! They're a great team. I love them very much. And I don't think "Congratulations" is really the right sentiment. But I'm very very happy for them.

On to the studying...

I'm not Handicapped...

No... no... You're not handicapped. You're an asshole.




I know it sounds rude... un-PC... a little bit like maybe I'm having a bitchy day. But I met a woman in a wheelchair today that actually created an awkward silence on a public bus by being absolutely rude (and rather racist) to a mother with an infant in a stroller.

Yes, the stroller was kinda big and the mother had stationed it in the "handicapped" cubby on the side of the bus (with her infant IN the buggy). There really was NO other place for the stroller to go. And when the woman came on the bus, she demanded the mother move (not ask, not wait for her to unlock the wheels of the stroller as she was in the process of doing, but demanded), then the stroller couldn't move far enough down the aisle to let the wheelchair into the cubby (because the arm on the elderly seat was broken and locked in the down position). So the woman in the wheelchair tells the mother to stop being stupid and move the buggy straight back down the aisle (where it clearly did not fit). The mother, who was asian, started to explain that she couldn't go back any further (and forward was out because the wheelchair was nearly ramming her infant). The woman then points to the sign that says, "Please allow for handicap access" and doesn't quite shout, but raises her voice saying, "Can't you read! You have to move!" The bus at the time was back in motion and the entire population of the lower level of the bus was suddenly fascinated with things outside the window.

The father, who was sitting in the back of the bus with a 2-year old toddler and a 5 year old child has finally managed to free himself of the children and other passengers and trades places with his wife. Then physically lifts the stroller 3 feet off the ground so the woman in the wheelchair can get into the cubby. (She backs in, btw, and stares down the entire bus). The father then sets the buggy back down and somehow manages to allow space for people to pass to get on/off the bus. You'd think that'd be the end... but no.

5 minutes later, the woman in the wheelchair looks at the father and says, "You might want to explain to your wife that this space is for handicapped people, not her bags."

I almost choked...

To his credit, the father was quite calm, and said, "No, I don't think that was the problem. There was no where for the buggy to go. She couldn't lift it like I could."

The woman scoffs and says, "Maybe if her English was better we wouldn't have had this problem."

Again... I almost choked.

Thankfully, my stop was next and I got the hell off that bus. In the back of my mind I was wondering who was going to help that woman get OFF the bus... The wheelchair ramp wasn't working and it took the driver and one very nice passenger to get her on and in the cubby to begin with, and that good samaritan had already departed.

I don't want to use the word entitled... but she was a bit of a bitch. And no, being in a wheelchair doesn't give you the right to be a racist bitch.

Swirling Dervish

I really don't know what happened to the rest of February. But I can touch on a few of the highlights that I do remember.

1) Superbowl Sunday at my place... followed by some nasty food poisoning. Boo. To be honest, it wasn't THAT great of a game, especially in light of the fact that the 1st half didn't end until after 12:30am. Most people stuck around for the ridiculous full field returned interception to end the half and to see the Boss tea-bag the camera guy during the half-time show. PS: The Boss, still rocks hard. So I curled up in my bed, feeling a little queasy (chalking it up to the two beers I'd had), and watched another quarter of football. I couldn't keep my eyes open for much more of it. Then I woke up to (vomiting, boo on bad chicken from Superquinn) the ESPN highlight reel showing a crap load of amazing in the 4th quarter. I do like Warner. Part of me wanted him to win. But again... The Cardinals? Really? On another note, it's a good thing that Ben's a big dude. Otherwise they might have had to run his name down his arms. I'm always surprised to see that Rothesburger can fit on the back of a jersey.

2) The GP case presentations were the first time I left my flat since the Sunday. Then the MCQ, which was an absolute disaster... followed by a weekend in London with my cousin Kate. Kate has been living between London and NYC for the past few years, but after getting married last summer, she and Beck have set up a permanent base of sorts in London. I was really just back on solid foods at that point and not up to a huge crazy weekend, but that's cool because neither was Kate. We ended up seeing two movies: Slumdog and Doubt. Two totally different genres, two absolutely fantastic films. Doubt just reinforced how incredible the actors are, and the writing is even more impressive. Slumdog somehow shows the worst of India for two hours and you leave the theatre feeling good and uplifted. I don't know how that works (probably the dance sequence). But what a great story-telling mechanism. It was really intense. Anyway, aside from the movies, we went out for food and slept in and walked around Hyde Park. It was a chill weekend (and cold... My flight was uber delayed due to snow everywhere), and a good way to not spend all weekend in my room sleeping, but not draining myself entirely.


3) GP OSCE... was ok. Followed by the ICC for Surg Soc (huge undertaking, so glad it's over), then a trip to Berlin. It was Friday the 13th followed by Valentine's day, and I figured it was a good idea to get out of Dublin for that kind of weekend. Plus, I hadn't seen Heather since 2002 (at her wedding)... and that's a long time ago. We did a "walking tour" of Berlin that entailed walking, getting coffee, walking, getting breakfast, walking, getting more coffee... you sense a pattern? Yeah, it was really really cold.

Yeah, I'm totally clutching a coffee... and I was a little bit cold. I didn't have much time in Berlin, but I thought it was a great city. Again, it wasn't really what I was expecting from a capitol city, but it was really fascinating. It's a strong reminder that some things I've regarded as ancient history are really rather recent... Like the Wall, which came down in my lifetime, and I do remember.

3) I came back and jumped right into Paediatrics. New rotations = ++ work. And the super scary thing that I've been avoiding happened. I fell in love with one of my rotations. It didn't happen at first. Actually, the first week was just lectures, but it happened. Anyway. A week of lectures then it was the Trauma Module for Surg Soc (that's right, Liz does not have weekends off... ever.)


Let's thank Jack for being a good sport and letting us truss him up in the board. The Trauma module was quite successful and well received. But it did take most/all of my day. I was pretty beat.

The second week on Paeds wasn't great. It was split between lectures/tutorials and team work. My team wasn't terribly available (not that I blame them) so there was a lot of wandering around and being in the way. Plus, the winter-vomiting bug hit the wards and a bunch of kids and staff were sick, so it wasn't a good time to be on the wards. Bunch of my classmates caught paeds-flu (the "I'm around kids and suddenly I'm sick all the time" type of illness. I think I shook that back when I was teaching).

Last week I was up in Mullingar (small town west of Dublin), on part of my Paeds rotation. I loved it. I took 2 extra A&E calls because I wanted to be around the hospital and hang out with these kids... hm... Now I need to look into all the Pediatric options in the states... Scary.

And that brings us up to now... March... crazy... I'm in Crumlin hospital this week, Cavan next week, and back to Crumlin before the Paeds exams to wrap up the rotation. Then it's on to OBGYN, then exams, then it's June and I'm going... Lord only knows where. AH! Anyway... I've put off work long enough. Time to get cracking.

Praha!

Since GP is just about the last taste of freedom I'll have until the end of final med exams, I've taken it upon myself to travel around Europe a bit. What good is it going to med school in the EU if you don't take in the sights, right? So last weekend, Mary and I took a random trip to Prague. When I say random, I mean it was on the list of about 20 different cities that neither of us has been to, and we both wanted to see... and the flights were cheap. (woot!)


I had no idea what to expect from Prague, save for what little I'd skimmed out of a travel book picked up at the last minute (in case I wanted a map of the underground... it was a good idea). Most of my preconceived notions came from imagined former eastern block type photos I'd seen... I don't know why, but that's what I was expecting. To be honest, after landing and hopping on a bus into the city, I wasn't really disappointed. Between the airport and the subway lies a bus ride through the concrete of state constructed housing, clearly meant to be functional, solid and warm, but not pretty. This was further reinforced as multiple billboards of a woman, scantily clad in all cameo and armed to the teeth advertising a local military supply store, zipped past the bus windows. And while, thankfully, everyone in the service industry seemed to speak English (as I know exactly zero Czech), absolutely everyone was serious. The people came off as quite dour actually. Much like the first buildings I encountered, I figured they were functional... but not all that pretty.

The airport bus dropped us off at the distant reaches of the subway system. This made me wonder why Prague had multiple layers of fully functional and efficient public transport, and Dublin was still trying to figure out the buses. So, down into the subway we went. At the airport, we had obtained 3-day travel tickets that allowed use of the subway, buses, and street cars (which sadly we never risked the journey on) and those tickets more than paid their way. After a minor detour and coffee and food, we managed to find our hotel. Now, the hotel was very nice. We had found a great deal on expedia and the location alone would have made the price, but the inside was lovely and the staff very friendly. I rarely see hotels where you leave the key at the front desk when you leave, but this was one of them. By the second day, they knew who we were and what room we were staying in. And breakfast was included (any economical traveler knows the value of an included breakfast) and was a lovely spread.

I think the first thing that struck me about city centre Prague was the architecture, the old and beautiful buildings that had clearly been around for centuries housing stores like H&M, Lacost, Sunglasses Hut, and KFC (yes... there were a lot of KFCs). It was such a strange juxtaposition that I did double takes just about every corner I turned. This is the first real thing I learned about Prague: It had been spared the massive bombings of WWII leaving the original city design and architecture untouched. And it was pretty.


We wandered around for the first day, taking in Old Town and Josefov (the Jewish Quarter), mostly gaining our bearings and trying to figure out what Prague was all about. For the evening, we found a nice little Italian place (great gnocci) and headed out for a ghost tour. Now, I know what you're thinking... what an effing tourist. But I've come to find that tours like this are a great way to learn a little something about a city (and in a way that I personally will remember it). Where else do you hear about famous defenistrations? According to the map provided by our hotel, there was a ghost tour leaving the town square at 8pm. Great! ... Then there was no tour guide... we were a little confused. Then we noticed a fellow leading a small pack of lost souls while carrying a lantern and umbrella. This screams ghost tour. I pop over and find out that he's actually just finishing the tour. (Massive disappointment!). But the next one starts at 9. Obviously, that means it's time for a drink.

I was told I had to drink the beer in Prague. I figured, hey, why not. And I will say that the beer is quite good. Now, I'm not particularly partial to beer and when I do drink beer, I tend to like the stouts and laggers rather than ale. But Czech beer is good. If you're there, try some. Even the Irish bar in town (there's one in every town) serves Czech beer... Go figure.


After our soul warming beer, we returned to the square to partake in the ghost tour. Now, for a bit of a shameless plug. If you're in Prague and you want to do a ghost tour, do McGee's Ghost Tours. There are a few good reasons for it. 1) Tyler is hilarious and brilliant. He makes the tour fun, even when you're dodging a Czech police car, furniture cart, and compact while trying to take a picture. Plus, you won't spend your time trying to figure out his accent. 2) You're going to have a good and interesting tour that skeptic and believer alike can enjoy. There is plenty of history and architecture discussion involved... and a little American College Football too. 3) You're not paying 350kr to have someone in a mask jump out and say boo. And while McGee has a bit of a flair for the dramatic (and a great evil laugh), you're not going to get a cheap scare. It's totally worth it.

(my sufficiently creepy picture of our guide)

(and a nice picture)

By the end of the tour, we were both pretty beat and kinda wet and cold (the temp was hovering just around freezing), so we headed in for the night. It only took a little while to figure out the heating in the hotel room, and I basically fell right to sleep.

The second day was spent on the opposite side of the Vltava touring the castle and surrounding neighborhood. The castle in Prague is beautiful, and a good portion of history in the castle is contained within the Cathedral. Mary and I traipsed around the grounds of the castle listening to oversized tv-remotes (audio guides) and trying not to let our fingers freeze. It was quite cold, and at one point, I actually tried to punch the buttons with my mittens on to save my fingers from the temperature.

(check out those buttresses)

We took our time taking in the sights of Hradcany and Mala Strana before crossing the Charles Bridge yet again to head back to the hotel. We changed into something "fancy" and headed out to the Opera. Now I have to give Mary all the credit here. It was her idea to take in a show while in Prague. It turns out that the government subsidises most of the arts to make them affordable to the masses. As a result, we took in Carmen for about €2. Can't argue with that. Granted, we were up in the nose-bleeds, but it was in the beautiful Narodni Divadlo so even the heights couldn't take away from that. Besides... I think Mary had wanted to take in some culture ever since Eddie and Aidan nixed the idea in Paris. Boys... (shakes head).


We set out early the next morning to get to the airport on time. We were way ahead of schedule, so camped out in a Starbucks (it's really weird to see Starbucks in places like Prague) and waited for Ryan Air to be ready for us to board.

You can see a heck of a lot in Prague over a weekend, but it's one of those cities that I'd love to go back to. I definitely don't feel like I had my fill of it in the two days. So... go see Prague. Great place.

A little light reading from my trip

25 in Mississippi by William M. Priestley

This book was written and published (through Lulu.com) by a friend of mine that managed to survive his two years of being transplanted from Dublin (in the palest of the pale) Ireland to Pascagoula, Mississippi. And in spite of conspiring fates, hurricane Katrina, American women, broken down cars, broken collarbones, and the on-going challenge of a constantly changing classroom, he somehow emerged the other side with words of wisdom.



It's a great read for a teacher. It's a great read for anyone who's giving up a bit of their life for service (ala ACE, PLACE, PACE, JVC, TFA, Americorps, Peace Corps). It's adventure, romance, drama, and comedy written tongue in cheek with (what I can only assume is) a well restrained wit.



Will - Kudos!

Everyone else - Have a read!




View all my reviews.

Obama

Speechless... I'm absolutely speechless.

Proud to be an American. A little unnerved having a president that is articulate and well-regarded. Breathing a sigh of relief as I watch Cheney wheeled out and Bush flown away.

But wow...

Predictions and Predilections

First off, let me say that I have the utmost respect for people who put their names and asses on the lines to bring us the sports predictions every week. I don't have the guts to put stuff like that in writing. And beyond saying that I'm a HUGE Boston sports fan (Thanks to my father's hometown of Quincy and my childhood summers on the South Shore), Go Sox! Go Pats!... Ok, maybe the Bruins are just getting lucky this year. And I'll admit that the Celtics are a bandwagon that I've tried not to jump on. I'm not going to risk my pride by promising wins in any sporting events.

That being said. Bill Simmons (aka The Sports Guy) went 0 for 4 on his second round NFL picks. That alone could be demoralizing, but the man came out with a column to appease even the most cynical (and now deeply in debt to a bookie) fan. Here's one of my favorite bits:

The good news: We have to redo the Mount Rushmore of Faces. I can't narrow it down to four from these seven: The Troy Aikman Concussion Face (really, the face that got this running joke going 10 years ago); either the Joel Goodson "I Can't Believe I'm Having Sex With Lana The Hooker On a Train" Face or the Thomas Hill "I Can't Believe Laettner Just Made That Shot" Face (they're basically the same face); the Mike Myers "Did Kanye really just say that?" Face; the Manning Face (bonus points because not one but TWO brothers use it, as we saw these past two weekends); the Art Shell "I Died Two Quarters Ago" Face; and now, the Jake Delhomme "Seriously, I Might Get Beaten Up In My Own Locker Room After This Is Over" Face. If you think you can top any of them, knock yourself out. You won't.

He followed it up with a solid and 100% correct prediction for the AFC and NFC championship games, and I'm looking forward to the Superbowl suggestions. (The full article is linked to the title of this blog and has an amazing list of awards... totally worth the read).

After all that, may I say that I think the Steelers are after winning another Superbowl. My only justification for this is that being from Minnesota, my wardrobe is well equipped to handle some of the worst weather when it comes to cold. And I don't think that the devil is that good to me. I mean, what is the temperature in hell right now? -10? I mean... the Cards? Really? Sure, maybe the same Arctic cold front that's hit the States and Ireland has blown through hell as well. It's possible. But a Cardinals' win would make it a permanent winter there, and I think Satan only owns a banana hammock.

Onto things that govern my life a little more than American Football (sadly, yes, there are other things). Right now I'm on a GP rotation (GP=General Practice... much similar to Family Practice in the States). As with any medical specialty, there are pros and cons to GP.

Pros: The hours are great, 9-5 on most days; there isn't much stress or emergency; the GP I'm working with lives across the street from his clinic, is raising 5 kids, and takes a few minutes off to pick up the kids from daycare and drop them back at home while most people are on a tea break. Basically, the life style is nice. The money is nice. And if you have a good office assistant to grease the wheels, the business end of things can run smoothly.

Cons: You spend about 30% of your day on small talk (that's great for some people, but not my thing). You spend another 30% of your day trying to convince people to quit the bad habits that are slowly killing them (ie: no, that's not an infection... your cough is from smoking 3 packs a day). If you do your job well, you don't see your patients very often. But I'll tell you, the ones you don't want to see are the ones that keep coming back.

I really get why people like GP... But I don't think it'll be my thing. 2 more weeks in the surgery then I'm back in the classroom. I like working with my GP (he's great and let's me be ridiculously hands on), so don't get me wrong. I'm also learning a lot. But on the heels of Psych, I'm starting to itch for "real" doing. (Don't get mad. GPs do really important things... but for a student, it's not the glitz and glamour that I'll remember on my exams).

Music for the New Year

Before you read the list, let me say that this has everything to do with my mindset on the 1st of Jan. Not all of the songs on the list are "new" per se... In fact, some are quite old. But I think you'll get the gist. And I listened to the list again last night when I was getting ready to go out... Excellent! I don't always dance around in my underwear when I'm getting dressed, but I did. Rock on.

Music for the New Year

1. Pony (It's Ok) - Erin McCarley
2. Suddenly I See - KT Tunstall
3. Live Your Life - T.I. (featuring Rihanna)
4. Lose Yourself - Eminem
5. Breathe, Stretch, Shake - Mase
6. Tequilla - Big Bopper
7. Hot N Cold - Katy Perry
8. Single Ladies - Beyonce
9. Shake It - Metro Station
10. Sex On Fire - Kings of Leon
11. Remember the Name - Fort Minor
12. Burn It To the Ground - Nickelback
13. So What - Pink
14. I Don't Care - Fall Out Boy
15. My Hero - Foo Fighters
16. Thunderstruck - Sprung Monkey
17. Stay Young - Oasis
18. Holiday - Green Day

So... there you have it. My musical attitude for the year :)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Ok. So this year I made the decision not to make any resolutions. No list of rules. No restrictions. No ridiculous goals (and no... probably not another marathon... but don't hold me to that, because I didn't make a resolution NOT to run a marathon). Instead, I wrote a letter to myself. Yeah, weird right. I know. But it was actually a fun thing to do. I took a piece of paper, addressed it to me, and wrote to me. I said some nice things to me about me. I made a few comments about how I did last year. I made some suggestions for next year. And mostly, I told me to be nice to me. Neat, eh? I thought it was cool. And no, Annie, I'm not going to kill any snow lepoards.

I'm not going to put the letter up here. Sorry, it's kinda personal. But what I will do is post my list of new years songs on the side bar. That's right, to over-shadow the summer soundtrack, there's a NEW YEARS PLAYLIST! Rock on. There's a bit of attitude in it... that's cause I've been feeling a little sassy. But I started off new years day, in the gym, rocking out to this mix. Enjoy!

In other news, my rotation on Psychiatry is officially over. I'm grateful for this. I did not enjoy it. The teachers and tutors were great, and supportive, and encouraging, and excited about psych... but there's something about having a chair thrown at me that just puts me off. I wouldn't cut it in psych. Give me blood and guts and a knife and a needle and thread. Liz would be happy. Crazy people make Liz more crazy than she already is, and we don't need that... Look, I'm talking in 3rd person.

But, because I feel the need to make a tribute to psych, here is my parting contribution.

HOW NOT TO TALK SOMEONE DOWN

Worst Suicide Intervention Ever -- powered by Cracked.com