I miss my dad.

It's been 2 years since he passed.

Acing the tests

View of Mt. Hood from my bedroom window

So apparently, when I study less, I get better grades.

:) I thought that this last test, you know, the one I said I didn't study that much for, was pretty easy. The lab practical portion was very difficult, but the written exam was straightforward. And it turns out, I got a 94% on it. Rock on!

This week is butt and legs.....fun fun. I never thought I would say that I'm happy to be back into the muscles....but it's way more fun than the anal triangle, for example.

Sorry for the lack of updates. I need to try to write at least once a week! Oh it's so difficult.

Life in the fast lane = Medical School

I guess it's not uncommon to be busy during medical school. Did I sign up for this??
Instead of giving the usual run down of past events (it's been quite a while since I last posted) I think I'll recap my awesome week.

I have a test on Monday, so I've spent most of the day studying. I went into the cadaver lab with my roommate and we quizzed each other about various parts of the thorax and abdomen. Anuj and I tried to hit up a vegan Pho place downtown, but it was closed. There have been innumerable instances of restaurants being closed when we most crave their cuisine- so frustrating! Instead we went and had lackluster Mexican. I studied for a bit at home and then we took a break to go to the REI sale! I have been trying to exhibit some restraint, both in the social world and in the consumer world, and I refrained myself from buying a really cute jacket that I didn't really need (oh, but I did!).

So this week, instead of studying every night like most of my classmates, I did some really fun stuff instead, with a little studying interspersed in between. Monday was one of the prophecied last nice days, so I went to the park and laid in the sun. A few people from my class joined me later, and we played tennis (or rather, attempted to play tennis....I've lost my touch!)....and then we played ultimate frisbee....and then I plopped on my picnic blanket for a few more hours, finally watching the sunset over Willamette River. It was a wonderful afternoon/evening, topped off with burritos from Chipotle (damn, I miss Papalote!). Tuesday evening was mostly studying, topped off with Forgetting Sarah Marshall (which I believe wasn't nearly as good as knocked up or superbad).

Wednesday, our Principles of Clinical Medicine lecture and small group session actually went quite well! Usually we talk about nothing in particular, and we don't get the hands on physical exam practice that we should be getting....but this day went very smoothly and I felt we accomplished what we were indeed supposed to. That night, the orthopedic surgery interest group and the family medicine interest group hosted a "Splinting/Casting" workshop....we partnered up and learned how to put volar and thumb spica splints on each other! It was awesome. (Oh and last week, we had a workshop about suturing - on pigs feet!) I love this hands-on stuff. After the casting workshop, my classmate Justin and I went over to OMSI - the Oregon Science Museum. Adults only, Rogue beer and spirits tasting, fancy coffee and wine samples, all intermixed with dorky (but awesome) science exhibits - my ideal date.

Thursday after class, Anuj and I made a fancy fish taco dinner for a few of our classmates. We later ventured out for "First Thursday", an event once a month in Portland where many stores and galleries host art and give out free wine and beer. We went to Adidas because I knew they had kegs there....we had a few drinks, hung out, looked at cool shoes, etc. Chris, Anuj, Justin and I headed out to the 'burbs to hit up an all night cafe....we got in a few hours of late-night studying.

Friday was class as normal, but then I rushed off to go observe my second afternoon of orthopedic surgeries! I followed Dr. Mirarchi around as he removed a mucus cyst from a woman's middle finger, and then later screwed in some hardware into a guys broken's ankle. I love this stuff!! I also observed a small part of a knee surgery, in which they were measuring the length/depth of a meniscus tear to see if a patient qualified for a clinical research project. A few weeks ago I witnessed a rotator cuff repair as well as an A1 finger ligament release.....these sort of observations really get me excited about medicine. Many more surgeries to come, I hope!

Doctor as a townsperson.

I saw a truly remarkable thing this week. Something rare in the world of medicine. The most intimate relationship between a doctor and his patients. The good doc has over 2500 patients, more people than the town itself...people come from miles around to see him and figure out their illnesses, whatever is ailing them. Mostly pain management, diabetes, hypertension, but some other cases of rashes and blisters and sore throats. Fifteen minute mini-sessions of patient counseling in what hopefully results in compliance with medications and advice. What I loved most about observing the doctor in action was his relationships with them. He was one of them. He wasn't just acting the part of the doctor. He was a resident, a neighbor, a caretaker, a family man, an adviser, all rolled into one person that people pay to talk to. And most of the visits involved him sitting there, listening intently, and maybe providing some options for treatment, and usually explaining the physiology of disease in order to engage his patients, and more often than not, letting the patient decide on the next stage of her health management. He provided guidance during a person's most vulnerable state of being, without being too pushy.

I am grateful that so many of his patients allowed me to observe during their visits. I had the opportunity to interview a few patients before the doc entered the room - simple cases of sinus infections or strept throat. I probably should have asked more questions than I did, obtained a more thorough patient history, but I had no clue what I was doing and the patients were very...well...patient.

Most patients main concern, besides their medical problems, involved how they were going to pay for their treatments. In every case, the doctor had to cater his diagnosis and plans according to the patients' insurance, or lack thereof ("Do you want this antibiotic, which is cheap, but might not help you in your case? Or we can run this semi-expensive test, and once we get the results, we can decide which antibiotic to use?"). And on the flip side of the whole encounter was the doc's own medical bills - the high cost and overhead involved in running a private practice. You bill the insurance company for a routine check-up, the insurance company might pay you 50% of what you billed, or they can try to deny the case in the hopes that the office will drop the charges. It's a constant uphill battle for the doc to get reimbursed for treatment. And subsequently, the manner of primary health care has changed significantly, resulting in hustled appointments and rushed diagnosis.

This week has not helped me decide which type of medicine I might go into. The family physician that I stayed with recommended that I choose a specialty that has at least one "procedure" - a high cost but quick fix for the patient, financially rewarding and not time restrictive for the doctor. See, dermatology. Surgery has always interested me, but it's a lifestyle that no one should have to endure, and it is certainly not conducive to having children (something else that I am unsure about). Family medicine is appealing because of the slightly better schedule, and the ability to build lasting relationships with people-patients. And it's all dependent on where one chooses to practice, from the boonies to the big cities. However, changing locations is much easier than changing specialties.

I guess for now, when all my classmates and all my professors and preceptors ask me what type of medicine I want to study, I'll continue to give the vague, uncertain reply, "Not quite sure, I guess I'll figure it out when I start my rotations". I'm sure it won't be an easy decision. But nothing in life really is.


And with that, I have to enjoy my last day before the rest of my life! Er, the last day before medical school starts.

Family Practice in a Rural Oregon Community

Upon arriving to Cave Junction, I was slightly nervous but mostly excited. It's been quite a while since I've spent time in a small town - Santa Barbara, San Francisco, Oakland, and Portland are certainly large urban areas. Downingtown, Pennsylvania, where I went to middle and high school, is populated with 8,000 people....I thought that was a small town (my backyard was a corn feed farm!!) Whereas San Francisco is close to 800,000 people, Cave Junction is a mere 1,600.

When I first talked to the doc, he told me he and his 4 children live in a 2 bedroom house, and they weren't sure where I was going to sleep. I was a little concerned....it seemed impossible to me to raise that many kids in such a confined space! The house is actually pretty huge, lots of open spaces, lots of deck space and crafts spaces and a game room - the kids have it pretty good! My doc and his family live on a 60 acre plot of land a few miles from the "downtown" area. They've put a lot of effort into a beautiful garden, plush with grapes, blueberries, squash, strawberries, basil, garlic, peas, peppers, and probably a whole bunch of other veggies I couldn't identify. A few apple, pear, plum, and cherry trees spot the land close to their small house. The rest of the land is mostly light forest, and the kids fall oak and madrone trees during the end of summer to sell as firewood to the townspeople. The good doc dabbles in wood etching, silversmith-ing, pottery, rock collection and jewelry making, woodwork, and probably a whole slew of things he forgot to mention. Hobbies do not go unheard of in this household. His kids are so well-behaved, they do well in school, and they care not for the material possessions that sometimes us city-folk get carried away with.

I probably got a slightly biased view of their seemingly relaxed, weekend lifestyle. He's on call every 7th week, which means he might get paged a dozen times a day, for which he calls back and either briefly counsels his patients or tells them to go to the Urgent Care or the Emergency Department of the nearest hospital (which is in Grants Pass, about 30 miles away). He doesn't make house calls, he doesn't have to answer to any hospital - he's his own boss for a private family practice that he built from the ground up after working at a group clinic bogged down with bureaucracy. He has Wednesdays off, and he told me that he would really like to share the practice with someone else so that he can work less and take more vacations, a real family man! He jokes with me, "If you're interested, when you finish your residency, come on back!"

It's tempting. And this is only my impression from Saturday and Sunday with his family. We went on some neat excursions, tempting poison oak while on a hike through his property, mountain biking down the hill to pick 5 gallons of blackberries for pie, swimming, playing cards and Snooker (sp?). I have been instructed to pick a project to complete before leaving - I think maybe a pair of earrings would be fun. He's got some fancy Jade that he'll cut up if I desire. This week should be a great experience.

The move to Portland

Lake Tahoe, California....2 days before I moved to Portland.

I made it to Portland! Jen drove her car and I drove my car - we left on Monday last week. The drive took a while but it went pretty well. My car was full, packed to the brim, exploding with possessions I have accumulated over the past years. Jen's car was full, too, and I'm so grateful to her for helping me move.
We arrived at night and met my new roommates, who are also my classmates. Anuj and Mark. Really nice guys. The cars were unpacked before long and we had a few beers before retiring for the night.
The following day I had my orientation for the summer observership I signed up for. I had been assigned to a doctor in Cave Junction, Oregon, which is halfway back to California. I deemed it a bit unfair that I would have to drive so far while the some of the other Portland-resident classmates were "stationed" closer, but I tried to be happy for the opportunity to stay with a family practice physician and his family. During the orientation, we did some mock patient interviews and learned a few basic skills for the physical examination. Family docs spoke to us with inspiration and love for their practice.

The next few days were a whirlwind of unpacking, exploring, running errands, and visiting friends and family. My brother and his fiance are on a road trip to Idaho for a wedding and they stopped by on Wednesday to visit Portland. Heather made some new feather earrings (smoobage.etsy.com); she gave pairs to Jen and I. We walked around Portland, went to a happy hour on the 30th floor of a building (cheap apps but expensive drinks!), watched an American-Brazilian samba group, and then hung out at home playing Wii, eating stuffed shells, and drinking. The next day, my best friend from high school came up from Corvallis, and we went over to Hawthorne and later to the Pearl District to try to catch the tail end of "First Thursday". We had a drunken dance party late at night and we all woke up with a bit of a hangover - we had to scratch our plans to go to the Rogue Brewery and the Tillamook cheese factory along the Oregon Coast.

Jen eating a doughnut on the wall at Voodoo Doughnuts in Portland!

Eeek - I found out that my loans didn't quite go through as planned - one big chunk of them was denied due to a delinquency in my credit report (don't worry, I got that part straightened out). I'm going through the appeal process right now....and all I can do is sit back and hope they have enough information to change their mind.....or else I'll be scrambling to pay my rent come September!

After I spent an hour trying to fix my credit, Andrea, Mark, Jen and I bussed downtown (Anuj wasn't feeling too good) to go to "Mother's Bistro", a tasty joint with tasteful new-age colonial decor. Andrea and I shared some banana pancakes and a potato and bacon fritatta - yummmmm.

A few more errands, a movie, some more Mariokart, and packing....and a Friday night of no sleep....but Saturday morning (at 5am) I awoke to prepare for the big drive back down to Cave Junction, OR. I carpooled with 2 of my classmates, Sharen and Dawn. Music and good conversation filled the 5 hour ride down to Talent, the first stop on our journey. Dropped Sharen off, drove back up the I-5 to Merlin, where Dawn's doc resided, and then back down along the 199 to Cave Junction.
Took me about 30 minutes to find my doc's driveway! This was definitely the most rural of all the rural observerships, and I was super excited!

I am back from my Big Western Europe City Hop

It's been 4 weeks since my last post, I didn't really have the time or the patience to blog while I was hopping from one tourist hub to the next. As planned, we hit up all the majors: Madrid, Granada, Venice, Florence, Rome, Paris, Amsterdam, and Brussels. What I didn't plan on, however, was the severe sense of homesickness and general malaise I would feel after about 1 week of backpacking in Western Europe.

I wrote everything down in my paper journal (gasp!) and I am not sure that I will post my thoughts during my travels. All I can say is that I am so very happy to be back in San Francisco, where the summers are not hot, and where the food is the best in the world. I believe I have the experience to make such a general statement. We do food well here.

I missed Papalote most, my favorite burrito joint in SF. I missed my fluffy down comforters and my spacious shower. Creature comforts. I have written off backpacking as a means of traveling - from now on, I will spend 1+ week in all future destinations, parking myself in one place, with one accomodation/base camp and the ability to take day trips. That's the way to go.

Dali and Cadaques in the Costa Brava

A pictorial-recap:

Boat on a pedestal in the courtyard

This one looked like Abe Lincoln from further away

My Favorite drawing

Cadaques at Dusk

Virtual Tour

Managed to do a few neat things this week! I feel like my time in Barcelona is running out, and while I've accomplished so much, I still feel this weird need to do more. More...more!!

Jen and I went to the Olympic Pool in Montjuic, had a nice swim and sun day.

I attempted to go see a local band, The Unfinished Sympathy, at Sidecar on Thursday, but when we got to the show, the bouncer informed us that the singer had a fever and the show was cancelled. They didn't even give us a full refund!

Friday, Jen and I needed to get out of the house so we went up the into the hills to the Parc del Laberint, an estate built in the 1700s, host to a large family with enough money to build and maintain a maze garden. Jen and I felt silly and we took videos, in the Blair Witch approach, of us stuck in the maze and panicking. It was funny to us.

Jen's friend from Seattle, Nicole, is back from Morocco so yesterday we ventured up to Figueres, about 2 hours north by train. Home of Salvador Dali and the famous museum that he built for himself.

I love the guy and his art intrigues me, makes me laugh and cringe at the same time. The fine details of the paintings will never cease to impress me.

Golden loaf of bread, delicately balanced on the head

Weird larger-than-life display, as veiwed through a convex looking glass

algunos fotos

On the way to Barri Gotic


Park Guell


Rurbar Cafe, at Can Masdeu (house of the mountains)


Plaza Revolucio, for Ai Ai Ai and my birthday!

My travelling companion has fallen ill....

...so I am forced to spend some time writing in the blog. I guess that's a good thing.

We've spent so much time in Barcelona, taking part in a slow travel movement and really getting to know the city, which has been utterly amazing. The nightlife is crazy here and the parties don't stop till the break of dawn. Some, even, continue on after that. Our days have been filled with late awakenings, late lunches, late siestas, and dinner and drinks around 10pm. Sometimes we'll walk over to Gracia, or even to the Ramblas to pursue a danceclub around 1am or 2....the bars are filled with so much smoke, sweat, and people making out. Drinks cost an arm and a leg, so we are forced to find street vendors selling illegal cervasas for 1 euros. A bargain worth the relatively low risk of getting caught.

We have hung out with some local fellows, Catalonians, who have been kind enough to speak to us in English. I feel guilty for not speaking Spanish, and when I venture out on day trips alone, I always speak in Spanish (or Castellano, here).

Hangovers abound, and the food is actually quite good, despite what my friends have said. Their palettes are accustomed to the relentless spices found in the international cuisine of San Francisco.

Lost in Translation

A few days ago we went to a restaurant at 10:30, the only paellador open. We ordered paella noir, colored with squid ink, from the server. He told me it would take 20 to 25 minutes and I said that was fine. The server was behaving a bit oddly, but we didn't think much of it. He brought Jen a bottle of wine, even though she only asked for a cup. And about 10 minutes after we placed the order for paella, we decided to snack on pa amb tomaquet, a local appetizer of bread with olive oil, salt, and tomato spread on top. The watier said "nada mas?" "eso es total?" and continued to behave strangely; he walked away and placed the order with the kitchen.

We got our bread and snacked for abit. And then about an hour passed by and we realized that our paella was taking way too long. Our appetites had subsided, with the drink and the bread, and about 20 more minutes went by and we finally asked for the check. He didn't say anything about the missing paella, and the bill was only 9 euros. We went home confused, giggling, amused by our lack of communication skills.


Em pots posan una cervesa, sius plau?
Can I have a beer please? (in catalan)


Radiohead at Parc del Forum

The venue was a big open parking lot sort of thing, like the places that host the Warped Tour or similar festivals. Clinic was pretty bad, Liars was weird, and Bats for Lashes was interesting. Jen and I spent most of our time lounging on bean bags chairs in an artificially grassy area. Radiohead rocked out, the crowd was very into it, singing and dancing along. I was surprised at how small the crowd was - I imagined a huge stadium, full of drunk Spanish kids - but I welcomed the relative quaintness of it all.

Ai ai ai!

Barcelona is host to all kinds of music festivals over the summer, which helps fill our time here with authenticity....not just tourist filled streets and beaches, we are getting down with the locals in the smaller parts of the city. Ai ai ai played last weekend in the crowded Placa del Revolucio. Street beers were up to 1.50 because of the festivities, but it was still way more fun and way cheaper than going to a club. Ah, but we did end up going back to a club that we visited the first weekend - Otto Zutz - it was hip hop night and Jen was digging the grooves of the DJ. We dragged our friends Julian, Chris, and another guy (sorry, guy, none of us remember your name!!) to the club, and we danced until dawn.

I'm a quarter of century old

Birthday drinking began in the placa and continued pretty much all weekend. Saturday was very hungover but we managed to go to a flea market in Glories with Giorgos. From there, we walked a few miles to the beaches of Barceloneta, had some lunch and then a siesta. We went out to dinner with our local friends and much was discussed. It gets a little exhausting, trying to explain the U.S. and all of its stupid intricacies, how different the coasts are from the middle, the language, the government, our priorities. I insisted that like Catalonia from Spain, we West-coasters should try to become our own nation-state. We talked about race, politics, nationalism, music....we went to a Pub and had a drink called a bull, which consisted of a little lemonade, tequila, amstel beer and ice. It tasted like a cross between a red bull, vodka and a long island iced tea! and it was very drunk. We tried to get into one night club, but our friend picked a fight with the bouncer so we weren't allowed in. We decided to go to Sidecar, which is sort of like Cafe du Nord of San Francisco, except hotter and smokier. The music was U.S./U.K. indie-pop but we didn't recognize any of the songs they played. By 5:30am Jen wanted to go home....she got a little pissed at me for procrastinating our departure.

Okupa: Can Maseu

Sunday morning/afternoon we took the metro to the northern edge of the city, which is in the foothills of the mountains. We walked up a dirt road to visit this place called an Okupa in Catalan. The building was an old public leper colony/hospital, deserted and re-inhabited by some people that wanted to make it into a self-sustainable commune. They have photo-voltaic panels, different levels of farms with fruits and veggies, running water and a sewage system. On sundays, the people living their open up Rurbar, a little cafe with homemade breads and coffee, and they serve a menu for cheap (4 euros) using foods grown mostly on the farm. We had a veggie puree/soup, salad, and paella, all organic. The guys cooked the paella in a huge pan (possibly 4 feet in diameter) in the center of this big room, full of information about sustainability, the government, and general awareness. I read a magazing about the ever-changing definition of a terrorist, the government's policies on privacy, and a list of the wort corporations of 2001 (the pamphlet was a little old) - most coming from the U.S., of course: Coca-cola, Walmart, Bayer, Abbott labs, and many more.

We sat around for a while after lunch, people conversing, relaxing, watching a german shephard puppy playing in the grass, reading, etc.

Something I've been wanting to do for a long time is live like this. Just the basics. Back to the simply life of working in a community, eating food grown from a garden and giving the waste back to the earth. Dara told me of an international organization (I think it's called WOOF) of farmers and farms that host travelers in exchange for working the land. I think I will do this next summer. It tears me apart -- wanting to become a doctor, but also wanting to live like this. In the U.S., these are opposite ways of life, and there is no real compromise. The more I think about living in the U.S., the more I want to leave, and I lost sleep over these very ideas a few nights ago.

Other okupas exist in Gracia and elsewhere, abandoned buildings that become occupied by "squatters". But from what we heard, the inhabitants take care of the homes and they fix them up. The police or the owner may become aware of the situation and try to kick the people out. But apparently there are still a lot around here, bands play in them and they host parties in this somewhat anarchist neighborhood of Gracia.

Figueres and San Sebastian (Donostia)

I keep trying to make plans to take a trip to San Sebastian, in Basque country, and also to Figueres to see the Dali museum. I really like his art growing up, and I'd love to visit his museum. Unfortunately, Jen got sick shortly after visiting Can Masdeu, so this week has been sort of a downer.

Giving back to our gracious host

Giorgos and I made a trip to the paint store to buy paint....for every room of hs place. We picked out a color that I deemed "Gracia Green" which is hard to explain...but it's a medium green with subtle hint of blue. It's soft, and slightly dark, but after we got 2 coats of paint on, it looks really nice. We also bought light yellow, blue, and a deep red for the doors - Giorgos wanted traditional colors found in Barcelona. Jen and I bought him a nice little dining table for the room, as a thank you for his tremendous generosity. We are so fortunate to have this place to stay.

More to come.
Some observations:
-Barcelonians can be kind of rude. They give Jen and I evil looks, and the customer service is generally pretty poor
-They love ham here. You can't walk down the street here without seeing pig legs hanging from windows. It's really disgusting.
-Asides from clothing, I love their non-labeling of products. There's the meat store, the bread store(the bread here is semi-stale all the time and when I eat bocadillos, the roof of my mouth gets rough and tough), the cheese store, the pharmacy, the market, etc, but there isn't so many goddam choices like there are in the U.S. and it makes things a lot less complicated.
-pigeons and parrots abound in barcelona!
-i am suffering from a severe lack of quality, lake merritt-style sleep.
Cheers!

Un Poco de Gracia...

The first week in Barcelona went splendidly, with a few hiccups, some power outages, near death encounters with speeding scooters, and an amazing blend of international and Catalan cuisine.

There´s so much to write about, I´m not even sure where to begin.

Jen and I are staying at Giorgos´and Amaliás place near the Gracia district, a little north of all the commotion of the downtown area. Neither of them were in the flat last week, so Jen and I pranced around the empty hallways (they just moved in so there is little in the way of furniture) like genuine squatters.

We have visited many of the typical tourist attractions, from the Museu de Picasso, to the crazy colorful bubbly buildings of Gaudi, the most famous modernist architect here in Barcelona. I posted some pics in my picassa web albums:



Before I arrived here, I thought I should learn some Catalan, the native language of the people of Catalonia. I had read that the locals might be offended if you try to speak in Spanish to them, as they have been trying to become their own independent country for some time. I printed out a few basic catalan phrases but quickly gave up on any inkling of fluency in the language. It´s a blend of Spanish and French; the pronunciation is much more complicated than Spanish. Most of the locals do speak Spanish, and so for the first few days I thought that speaking my broken Spanish was at least better than speaking in English. After talking to a few guys that we met one night, however, I remembered the importance of making an effort to speak the language of the country that you are in. When Eric and I were in Chile, our tour guide reminded me of this important fact. So I have revisited my Catalan phrases, am slowly learning the numbers and a few simple phrases, in the hopes that I can take away more than just pictures and memories of buildings and restaurants.



But I guess that means I should try to learn French and Italian, too, on this vast european adventure. And frankly, my brain does not have the capacity to absorb so many similar-but-different languages in a 2 month span.



Anyway, aside from spending my mornings reading David Eggers´What is the What and trying to learn Catalan, Jen and I have had so much fun. Giorgos arrived home on Sunday night, and last night Jen and I cooked a hodgepodge dinner for him and his friend Julian. We enjoyed some strawberry-flavored gelatin and apple-flavored hookah for desert. Molte be!



It has been raining about every other day. We tend to stay indoors on these days, eating, sleeping, reading, working on a Simpsons puzzle, and at times I feel guilty for not wanting to go out and explore the streets of the city. I am here for 3 more weeks, though, and I am sure that I will have plenty of time, so I am not in a huge rush to see every museum all at once. I do want to go to Figueres, a town about an hour north of here - a place where Dali spent some time and built himself a museum to house his own work.



There is plenty more to write about....and I feel a little overwhelmed with the task of defining my travels thus far. So here´s a picture of an apartment built by Gaudi, Casa Battlo. Hasta luego, muchachos.

What have I been up to?

Bullet points seem most appropriate for this summary post:

• I almost forgot - we moved! Lake Merritt, in Oakland. I'm carpooling to work and we end up driving to the city every other night for something or another.
• Eric and I went to Mammoth Mountain for a few days of snowboarding during his Spring Break. We stayed at a really awesome hostel (Davison Guest House) which I highly recommend! The snow was great the first day and it was super windy/icy the following day.


• I saw my friend Kjersti, who is finishing up her third year of medical school. She's thinking about going into emergency medicine. Before that, she was thinking about surgery (which is sort of where I'm leaning). And she really enjoyed her psych rotation in Santa Barbara.


• My neice turned 3 years old! I get to see her in May!


• Eric's band, Goodbye Nautilus, played their first show at the Retox Lounge in Portrero Hill. The show was really fun, they had a lot of energy and they sounded really tight.


• I took a motorcycle training class!!!! This was the highlight of April! We had one day in a classroom and 2 days out on the "range", driving motorcycles! I think I picked it up pretty fast. Extremely thrilling. I'm not gunna go out and buy a bike, but it's just something I had wanted to do for a long time. I'm hoping to rent a bike while I'm in Europe.


• I saw Hot Chip at the fillmore! Phil and I danced to the groovy beats of this amazing band.


• Went camping in Santa Cruz. Realized my sleeping bag is too warm! The night of camping was flanked on either side by 2 goodbye nautilus shows!

On the Agenda for May: I have 2 days left of work. I've been scrambling to train my coworkers on a technique that they probably should have learned 6 months ago....but oh well. Jen's hosting a movie night (Reality Bites!) tomorrow and Friday is a work lunch at Red Robin! Eric's made some plans for the weekend, in honor of six years together. It's a surprise! And it better be good because he completely forgot last year. I'm taking my permit test for the motorcycle, and finally flying to Savannah on May 5th.

Here's a visual re-cap:

New apartment (panoramic pic with my new camera!)

Eric rocking out!

Hanging out in Santa Cruz, right by the beach, boyeeeeee!

My Last Week of Work

There's so much to do. I have no idea where to begin.
I guess I began with putting in my two weeks. I bought my ticket to Europe about a month ago.
And then I bought a tent.
And I traded in my sleeping bag for a lighter, more compact version.
I had to buy a new hiking pack because the one I had mysteriously disappeared. Good thing I've been saving money for the past few months.

I found out my friend Jen will be joining me in Spain! It's such a relief to know that I will have a traveling companion. I've never been to Europe and I've certainly never traveled alone anywhere, at least for more than a few days. One very exciting aspect of the trip that we've planned thus far is Radiohead! That's pretty much the only part we have planned out. June 12th, the Daydream Festival in Barcelona. People all around the world can agree on one thing - not war or terrorism or oil or global warming or guns - it's fucking Radiohead. They are amazing.


To break it down, I'm "moving" in with my mom for a few weeks before I head to Europe. She's already got a little list of chores she would like me to complete, but that's okay. I've got to pay my dues, I suppose. I haven't lived "at home" (and I use quotations because I don't consider Savannah my home) with my parent(s) since high school, so it should be an interesting engagement. I really just plan on going to the beach, working out (hopefully), and possibly getting another tattoo.

And then I'm off to New York for a night, and then to Barcelona. Barcelona will be my base camp and Jen and I might venture out to other places, but nothing's been planned. Eric plans on joining us on June 23rd - he has to work up until that point and then he has the whole summer off. If you're curious/jealous/spiteful/angry/happy about why he is afforded such luxury, consider getting a job as a teacher.

Jen will depart from us and then Eric and I will cruise the South of France, the North of Italy, catch a flight to Paris, and then a train to Amsterdam....meandering around said places for however long we deem necessary, until we fly home on July 17th. It's a very exciting trip; the details haven't been ironed out and things might just stay wrinkly until I find myself getting off the plane in Spain.

I have heard from a friend in Barcelona that people are living in places called occupas -basically abandoned houses taken over by a community of people. Rent-free. Sounds nice, but a bit sketch. Though Amalia says her boyfriend and she might consider living in one if they can't get a legitimate apartment in the next month.

I have a feeling it'll all come together. It better. It's not that I want it to be perfect...but I know it will be challenging and relaxing at the same time. I just hope it's a little more of the latter. This is my big summer off before I start medical school. I'm sure I'll be posting from Europe so stay tuned for the details and the wrinkles form and fade.

February was a busy month….

Pretty Ice Sculpture/Dynamic Art on display in Chicago

.…I traveled to Chicago, Tahoe, and Denver, shopped for apartments in Oakland, voted for Obama, went snowboarding a few times and even broke out a sled for some old school fun.

Hot Water Music
On the first of the month, I flew to Chicago a few days after a blizzard. Friday night, my aunt Ritz met me at O’hare and we took the train into the city to grab some dinner. Afterwards I walked a few blocks to the Metro, near Wrigley Field, to catch my favorite band from high school, Hot Water Music. After a 4+ year break-up, they were doing 2 nights of “reunion” shows in Chicago as a part of a 3-stop tour: Florida, Dirty Jersey, and Chicago. (And I’m not too bitter about the lack of a west coast stop – Chuck Ragan lives in CA now, and I’ve seen his solo act twice already).

Years ago, I was completely infatuated with these guys: the musicianship, the comraderie found at shows, the energy of the crowds, the lyrical prowess of the songs. I traveled all over to see them with my friend Dave. I would get giddy like a school girl upon seeing the band unloading their tour van or doing the sound check. Despite a feeling of hesitation about flying out to Chicago to see them play, I decided it was for the best. It would provide some closure from the band that, cheesy as it sounds, may have shaped who I am today. Besides, the last time I saw them was 2002, when they opened for Sparta, played to a crowd who didn’t appreciate them, who told them to “go back to Florida”. That was not how I wanted the “last” show to be.

My favorite bassist, Jason Black

The Metro is actually a really cool venue. It’s pretty small, with a capacity maxing out at 1,100. I met up with Dave right before the show started – he lives in Boston now but flew out to visit a friend in the city and to see Hot Water. About a foot taller and with a little more meat on his body, Dave looked approximately the same as he did 6 years ago He had already been to the NJ show, in typical Dave fashion. . He said “Andrew and Heather say hi” – I guess he unexpectedly ran into some old friends from high school at the show. He was stoked about the smaller Chicago venue.

I guess the venue “lost” some of the will-call tickets, as some of the people in the line were turned away – one girl, from California, right in front of me in line. I got a little nervous that they wouldn’t have our tickets! The fine folks at the Metro came through for me, though.
The night began with a few beers passing for the meager selection of microbrews at the venue. The mediocre punk band HiFi Hand Grenades opened, and the alt-country-soft-punk band Lucero paved the way for HWM. Lucero typified a sort of drunk/mellow sing-along alt-country, with lyrics like “I kissed the bottle, but I shoulda been kissing you”. I’m glad the first half of the show was sub-par, though, because excitement for Hot Water built up rather quickly. Dave and I got right into the pit for the main event.

The one and only, Mr. Chuck Ragan

Overall, the show was really exciting. They played a bunch of newer songs off A Flight and a Crash and The New What Next sprinkled with oldies from their previous (and in my opinion, better) albums. The crowd sung along, pushed and pulled, swayed back and forth and I got kicked in the glasses by several crowd surfers. Just like old times!

The following night the “all ages” crowd came out, but it wasn’t a drastically different atmosphere. More of the same – with a substantially better setlist. I have a horrible memory for setlists, so here’s what I gathered from someone on youtube:

The setlist, in order:
Alachua
Remedy
Wayfarer
Trusty Chords
Better Sense
Rooftops
End Of A Gun
Giver
Free Radio Gainesville
All Heads Down
Moonpies For Misfits
A Flight And A Crash
God Deciding
Poison
Swinger
Our Own Way
Kill The Night
Choked And Separated
Turnstile
Manual
220 Years

ENCORE: Paper Thin Position It's Hard To Know
followed by a long, endearing hug between Wallard and Ragan.

Yeah, it was that good. Nostalgic, sweaty, crowded, loud, and off the hook. Worth the trip.

Apologies to Chris Wollard, the other guitarist, who didn't make it into these pics!

Snowboarding:
This month had some great powder dumps. I didn’t get to snowboard last year because of the knee surgery, so I’ve been addicted to it this season. We’ve been up to Squaw, Alpine, and Kirkwood a few times thus far. Eric and I are planning a trip to Mammoth for the end of March during his Spring Break. I bought a new(er) board this season – basically I just upgraded my very old feelgood 152 to a new feelgood. Same board, same feel, just in better condition. I’m so happy with the toe-strap bindings, and if you haven’t tried them, you really should. They make a huge difference. I finally got a helmet, too, to protect the noggin. It’s come in handy a few times – I’ve definitely slammed my head on the hill hard enough to warrant some extra protection.

Valentine’s Snowboarding:
I rented a cabin south of South Lake for Valentine’s. We had a crew of 10 people the first night, and then 6 of us the second night. ‘Twas fun. We went sledding on Sunday instead of boarding. At first I was really disappointed that we didn’t go to Heavenly as planned, but Eric was sick and sledding turned out to be really enjoyable. And even though I was supposed to be at work on Pres’s Day, I called out sick and sat around on my bum all day.


Snowboarding in Colorado:
Oh yeah, and I got to go to Vail, Colorado. My job sent me to Boulder for training, and my boss and I squeezed in a day at Vail. We flew into Denver, rented a car, and hit a stray cat on the way to the hotel. Then, on the 60 mile drive to the mountain in the morning, in the midst of slightly heavy snow, we nearly spun out….fish-tailing left and right, heading straight towards a giant snow plow truck that would have doomed our Camry rental. Luckily the car stopped like 10 feet in front of the truck. Craig (my boss) was shaken up, but he was quite a trooper – he kept on driving. Since he’s a SoCal kinda guy, and I practially learned to drive in the snow, I had to give him a few lessons in snowy driving, ie. Put it in 2nd when braking/going downhill in the snow. He took my advice and I’m happy to report that we made it to the mountain in one piece. I didn’t bring my gear, so I demo’ed the latest and greatest from Burton. By the way, Vail lift tickets are $91 and they don’t sell discounted tickets ANYWHERE! The locals that I talked to said they don’t go up much because they can’t afford it.

Overall, I really enjoyed the mountain. It’s just like Heavenly in that it’s so freaking ginormous (to put it in Stacy’s words) that you can’t cover it in a day. Their online trail map is like 3 pages long! The snow was fluffy but a bit sticky. And not to whine, but the board I demo’ed wasn’t all that great. The boots were fantastic around the ankle, but they came up too far and therefore dug into my shin a bit. Burton’s new toe strap is really stretchy and flexible (unlike my own which are shapely, sturdy leather) so it took me a while to get used to that, too.

OK Sorry, I’m rambling about boarding. It’s just that I love it. There’s nothing like it on earth.

Noise Pop:
I’ve lived in SF for 2 and half years, and 3 times Noise Pop has come around. Still, I haven’t gone to any of the 87+ shows the festival hosts. Blitzen Trapper, Helio Sequence, Cursive, Delta Spirit, and Tilly and the Wall are a few of the bands that I probably should have seen this weekend. I partially blame Eric for going to L.A. for the weekend – his friend from high school got married, which to me is essentially equivalent to attending someone else’s high school reunion. Therefore, I opted out. Can you blame me?
Friday night was “Girls Night”, the most drunk a girls night has been so far. Shots of tequila ensued, and we went to the Rickshaw stop to go dancing.

Medical School:
I got my rejection letter from Berkeley. I sort of knew it was coming….but still I am slightly disappointed. However, OHSU is on the horizon, and Portland is the promiseland in my mind. I’m super stoked to be moving on in my life story. I am a nomad. I’ve had over 13 addresses in the last 6 years, 18 since I was born. The roller coaster of applying to med school is coming to an end: Please keep your hands and feet in the cart at all times with your seat belts fastened until the ride comes to a complete stop.

This ride ain’t over, who am I kidding? There’s residency…then applying for jobs….then…then….whatever else life throws at you. Take it as it comes. Life is like a bacterial chromosome: tightly wound, unzipping, replicating, reproducing, overcoming obstacles (antibiotics!)…it’s all pre-programmed.

There’s my scientific metaphor for the week. And with that, have a lovely evening.

My favorite news this week:

My favorite news this week:

Chewing gum may cause extreme, undesired weightloss.

Vending machines in LA now dispense medical marijuana! From USA Today:

“ This is how the AVMs — Anytime Vending Machines — work:
• Customers bring their prescriptions for approval at the AVMs, housed in enclosed room guarded 24/7.
• They are fingerprinted and photographed.
• They receive a pre-paid credit carded loaded with their individual profiles.
• They choose their dosage (3.5 grams or 7 grams) and one of five strains of marijuana.
• The marijuana is in capsule form and dispensed in vacuum-sealed packages.
• They can buy no more than 1 ounce a week.

Anticipated future vending: Viagra, Vicodin, Propecia and anti-depressants. (Seriously.)"

USA Today article: http://blogs.usatoday.com/ondeadline/2008/01/hot-button-medi.html?loc=interstitialskip


LOST starts up again tomorrow night. Girls night with pizza and beer, and 8 episodes (instead of 16 because of the writer’s strike) to last me through the winter.


I'm getting excited to go to Chicago this weekend to see Hot Water Music! I'll be sure to post pictures of this momentous occasion.

Beerluck V

Beerluck V:
Rules: Bring a 6-pack of beer, wrapped. People are arranged in a non-specific order and they unwrap a 6-pack in said order. If one type of beer shows up twice, a shot of nasty liquor is the consequence. If you are thoughtless and bring a gross beer, the committee votes and consequently you may have to take a shot of nasty liquor.

To those of you who may be unaware, a beerluck is a wonderful opportunity to explore and exchange some of the best beers in the country. California, Oregon, and Colorado beers frequent the beerlucks because, well, the fine people of these states just know how to make good beer! Other countries* (Phuket from Thailand and Imperial from Costa Rica) may try but they all end up tasting more or less the same.

Beerluck V welcomed a smaller crowd, a wonderful selection (minus the aforementioned Thai and Costa Rican beers), and no talk of jenkem. We turned the exchange into a white elephant, but there weren’t too many swaps. The 2 losers became “Edward 40-hands” – forced to drink the watered down domestic beers of Miller and Bud. The 2 winners were rewarded/punished in a similar fashion but with good beers – Rogue Shakespeare Stout and Russian River Damnation.

I brought El Toro Poppy Jasper Amber. I received Deschutes Obsidian Stout. A fair exchange!

Highlights included: Bear Republic Red Rocket, Rogue Mocha Porter, and Avery Ellie’s Brown Ale

Needless to say, drunken-ness ensued, beer-pong was played, hips were harassed and events of the night became blurry. Very blurry, in my case.



*Sorry for the generalization. I am a big fan of some international beers. Guiness and Stella probably make the top of the list.


!Oh and prior to the event, Igor and friends tried to get Beerluck listed on Wikipedia. The motion was declined and marked for a speedy deletion. They were accused of such harsh crimes as sock-puppetry and single-purpose accounts by the hounds that protect Wikipedia. Check out the ridiculous argument here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Beerluck

hand-made iPhone case

I was checking out Etsy.com for a hand-made iPhone case. No one had come up with one yet, and there was one inspirational hit when I googled the idea.

So, this morning, I set off to make my own iPhone case. The problem with me and sewing is that I like to have this wonderful picture of the final product in my mind before I figure out the logistics of the project. It seemed so simple - the only thing that I thought would be difficult was avoiding the "looseness" of the fabric around the touch screen.

Basically, I just wrapped the fabric over the phone to measure the correct size.....and an hour later, wha-la! Below is the final product. It was my first attempt at the idea - so there are some obvious flaws and steps I would change the next time I make one. It's not very protective, but it adds a nice personal touch to the boring cases and skins that are mass-produced.

My roommate Fabiola suggested that I sell them.

Suggestions? Comments? Glad to hear 'em.

Holiday Pics

Amita and Rahul's Wedding

The weekend before the holidays began brought enjoyment with friends and strangers alike. We went to an Indian wedding, which included a Sangeet on Friday night, the ceremony on Saturday, and the reception on Sunday. Amita (the bride) wanted to make sure the money that they paid to rent the various halls went to good causes, such as the Latin American Museum in Long Beach, as well as CalState LA. Bless her heart for her thoughtfulness, but Eric and I had to rent a stupid car to get around all weekend (I dislike LA with a passion).

Bungra and delicious food aside, the most memorable part of the weekend was the wedding ceremony itself. And by memorable, I mean it was the most interesting and beautiful ceremony I have seen. It's beauty astounded me so much, mostly because I had no idea what was happening for the 2 hour long arrangement! I am pretty certain that over half the people in the hall were in the same boat as me - together we sat there, happy for the new couple, content to watch this cultural phenomenom without any clue about its social context. By the looks on their faces, Amita and Rahul were confused/surprised/intrigued just as much as everyone else.

To make matters more interesting, about 30 minutes into the ceremony, some commotion started in the front of the seating area. It looked as though men were fighting over something - pulling and pushing each other, forming alliances in order to win a prize of some sort....it turned out that they were fighting for possession of the groom's shoes! I'm not sure who proved to be victorious, but it was entertaining enough.

If you care to read about Indian wedding ceremonies, go here: http://weddings.iloveindia.com/gujarati-wedding/index.html

Christmas in Georgia with my Family







My Favorites

Portland, here I come!!

Right before the whirlwind of holiday break, I received an acceptance letter from OHSU - that's Oregon Health Science University. The most exciting part about getting this letter is that the school told us that the earliest we applicants would hear from them is MAY. They said that possibly (read: highly unlikely) one person out of the group of interviewees (there were 8 of us that day) would hear back sooner.

That person was me!!!

Wooohooooo!!!

Out of the places that I have interviewed for medical school, including Temple, Drexel, UC San Diego, and OHSU, OHSU is by far my first choice. I was accepted at Temple and Drexel, waitlisted at UCSD. UCSD was sort of lackluster: the students seemed busy, the curriculum needs to be restructured, La Jolla is beautiful but it doesn't seem quite real to me.

But Portland excites me. Granted, Philadelphia would have been an adventure - I have a handful of friends from High School that I still keep in touch with....great public transportation....good weather.....close to NYC.....diverse patient population....delicious cheesesteaks!! - but Portland is right up my alley and it's close to California, close to Seattle, close to most of the people I love and care about.

A view from the top of Marquam Hill, the campus of OHSU - just south of downtown Portland.

I was offered an interview at University of Colorado, and though I already purchased a flight and planned to see my cousin and her blossoming family, I think I am going to skip out on the trip. I think if I was accepted at UCo, I would still choose OHSU. So there's the first big decision I've had to make.

I also have an interview for the Berkeley/UCSF Joint Medical Program this month. It's a Masters/M.D. 5 year program with a class size of 16. 16 people!!! You spend your first 3 years at Cal doing the required coursework for both the M.S. and the M.D., writing your thesis, etc, and then you do the rotations at UCSF in the final 2 years. This program really excites me but I am also slightly intimidated - I think it will be extremely challenging but perhaps also the most beneficial for my future career path. So I need to get prepared for that interview.

I'd like to give a few shoutouts to my friends and family for supporting me throughout this whole application process. Eric has been extremely patient and supportive. My Mom has helped me financially with the cost of apps and interviews. My aunt Tosh and uncle David probably had a hand in scoring me the Cal/UCSF interview and I am glad that they live so close to us here in the Bay Area. My coworker/mentor Peter wrote me a really kickass letter of recommendation and I think he has really helped me get my foot in the door of these competitive medical schools. And to my friends and family, in general, thanks for your love and support - it means a lot.

I am so happy that I have been given this opportunity. I am so excited about going to medical school and becoming a physician. It has truly been a dream come true and I am sorry my dad isn't around to experience my achievement. May he rest in peace.

Lots of love,

Jade