Wednesday, September 29, 2010
First, let me apologize for my tardiness. I really have no excuse. I suppose we'll call it a mix of creative roadblock, preoccupation, and tiredness. Lucky for you, I'm back. Just in time to talk about bad drivers.
I would be willing to bet that if someone performed a good solid scientific study on the number of bad drivers, Winston-Salem would have a HUGELY higher number (of course, statistically significant) than Lancaster does. We could use any number of things to determine a driver is bad. Running through "yellow" lights that are actually red. Continuing through a turning arrow LONG after it has turned red, forcing the oncoming traffic to wait. Driving down the wrong side of a divided road. Stopping in the middle of intersections. Driving the wrong way in parking lots with slanted parking spots. Not looking before pulling out of a parking space. Parking on the line/over the line. Driving slow in the left lane of the highway. Braking quickly in the middle of the road. Switching lanes without a turn signal.
Need I go on?
Seriously, I think that people around here suck at driving. And it makes me angry. Really, really angry. Not many things make me angry. But bad driving is one of them, because, seriously, it's NOT that hard. It's not complicated. There are very few things you need to do. I think the problem is that driving requires paying attention. And we're not very good at paying attention to one thing. Because we think we're super-important, and need to do everything at once. While driving. Because really, we're all really really important! And shouldn't HAVE to pay attention to the road. Or use common sense. Or be courteous.
See, it makes me angry!
Unless, the person driving is old. I have NO capacity to be angry at old people. I just assume that their cuteness means they can do no wrong. And if I get angry at a driver for doing something RIDICULOUS, but then see that they are old, I forgive them. I just can't be mad. I've tried. But I can't.
Everyone else, stop being stupid, pay attention, and drive your car. Through green lights only.
Thanks.
Love,
Kari
I would be willing to bet that if someone performed a good solid scientific study on the number of bad drivers, Winston-Salem would have a HUGELY higher number (of course, statistically significant) than Lancaster does. We could use any number of things to determine a driver is bad. Running through "yellow" lights that are actually red. Continuing through a turning arrow LONG after it has turned red, forcing the oncoming traffic to wait. Driving down the wrong side of a divided road. Stopping in the middle of intersections. Driving the wrong way in parking lots with slanted parking spots. Not looking before pulling out of a parking space. Parking on the line/over the line. Driving slow in the left lane of the highway. Braking quickly in the middle of the road. Switching lanes without a turn signal.
Need I go on?
Seriously, I think that people around here suck at driving. And it makes me angry. Really, really angry. Not many things make me angry. But bad driving is one of them, because, seriously, it's NOT that hard. It's not complicated. There are very few things you need to do. I think the problem is that driving requires paying attention. And we're not very good at paying attention to one thing. Because we think we're super-important, and need to do everything at once. While driving. Because really, we're all really really important! And shouldn't HAVE to pay attention to the road. Or use common sense. Or be courteous.
See, it makes me angry!
Unless, the person driving is old. I have NO capacity to be angry at old people. I just assume that their cuteness means they can do no wrong. And if I get angry at a driver for doing something RIDICULOUS, but then see that they are old, I forgive them. I just can't be mad. I've tried. But I can't.
Everyone else, stop being stupid, pay attention, and drive your car. Through green lights only.
Thanks.
Love,
Kari
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
It's been a while since I added to the list of Things That Make Me Happy! So tonight, I will talk about candles. Specifically, candles that smell good. Smell is one of those things that is strongly connected with memories (good, bad, ugly), and I LOVE to find things that smell like some old distant good memory! When I make home made chex mix, it reminds me of the holidays. And when I smelled this candle in the store today...
I thought of apple cider, taking long walks a night during the fall in college, and jumping into leaf piles in the front yard after "helping" to rake the mountains of leaves that our giant tulip poplar spontaneously drops all in one night at home in PA (I'm talking like 8 inch blanket of leaves when you wake up in the morning...). So, I bought it. It also happened to be on sale for 25% off!
Supposedly, this will burn for lots and lots of hours, filling my apartment with happiness all fall. And when winter comes, I will buy a new one that smells like Christmas tree farms, chex mix, and cinnamon rolls. Do you think I can get that all in one candle? I'll have to see if Willy Wonka ever made that gum in candle form.....
If you could make a candle that smelled like anything, what would it be?
Happy sniffing (in a non-druggie kind of way)!!
Kari
Monday, September 20, 2010
Not to climb a tree to get a fishing lure unstuck from a branch... drunk.
Not to ride a motorcycle, or a moped.
Not to shoot myself in the heel.
Not to jump on a trampoline.
Not to play near large farm equipment.
Not to put my hands down if I fall... tuck and roll, people! Tuck and roll!
Not to skateboard.
Not to put my foot on the dashboard when I drive (okay, I really do this one... but it might end badly).
Not to text and drive (although I already knew that one).
Not to be a tree doctor.
Not to get in bar fights, especially again people bigger than me, with baseball bats.
And that was just in the first week... imagine how much I will have learned by the end! Good thing I have my patients to keep my life on track...
Stay safe,
Kari
Not to ride a motorcycle, or a moped.
Not to shoot myself in the heel.
Not to jump on a trampoline.
Not to play near large farm equipment.
Not to put my hands down if I fall... tuck and roll, people! Tuck and roll!
Not to skateboard.
Not to put my foot on the dashboard when I drive (okay, I really do this one... but it might end badly).
Not to text and drive (although I already knew that one).
Not to be a tree doctor.
Not to get in bar fights, especially again people bigger than me, with baseball bats.
And that was just in the first week... imagine how much I will have learned by the end! Good thing I have my patients to keep my life on track...
Stay safe,
Kari
Sunday, September 19, 2010
I have a little patio. It's just barely big enough to fit a table and four chairs, but they are so comfy (even though they are like 20 years old...) I just can't give them up. I try to grow plants, but over the summer, I was busy, and fell down on the watering part of gardening. I do have a bird feeder, which I keep full of seed... although sometimes the birds stay away because one week Wyatt spent a lot of time outside, and the bird population decreased by two... He lost his outside privileges because I felt guilty baiting the birds.
So anyway, I looked out on my patio on Friday afternoon, and realized it looked sad, and dead. And since fall is my FAVORITE season, and I like to sit outside when it's cool, and I like fall colors, and I needed a good way to spend my Friday night, I decided to give it a face lift.
Here are some pictures of before the face lift...
So anyway, I looked out on my patio on Friday afternoon, and realized it looked sad, and dead. And since fall is my FAVORITE season, and I like to sit outside when it's cool, and I like fall colors, and I needed a good way to spend my Friday night, I decided to give it a face lift.
Here are some pictures of before the face lift...
Dead plants... and part of the table.
Table, and more dead plants (including my dead tomato plant).
Storage door, storage tub, sliding door.
There are a few chives still alive in there... although Wyatt may have eaten them.
View from the apartment... drab, drab, drab.
See why it needed a face lift? So I ventured out to a couple stores to see what I could hunt down that would be 1) seasonal, 2) festive, 3) colorful, and 4) low maintenance. It was a fun shopping trip. Here's the loot in the shopping cart, and on my living room floor.
It definitely took up more space than my groceries.
It looks little... What will it become?!?!
It was already getting dark by this point, but I was on a mission... so I forged ahead. The plan was to turn as many existing things into something prettier, and then deal with the rest of the empty planters later. I was working very hard, and only took one picture during the remake process...
I wove swirly twig things through the tomato cage, and then wove flowers through that...
In the end, I was quite pleased with how it turned out! I'm not quite done yet... I'm going to get some gourds and pumpkins (which are gourds, but that's beside the point...), but want to get them at the farmers market, and I didn't make it there yet. But I will. But this looks MUCH more like a place I will want to sit outside and drink coffee...
Left side... still a little dull, but waiting for gourds!
Right side, with my giant flower project that took like 3 hours!
Giant flower thing, close up.
Centerpiece close up.
Candles close up, in pretty fall colors!!
Mini pumpkins in a little bucket, with a bow!
My new basil plant from the apple festival! Apparently, it will survive until first frost, which will be a while considering it was 92 degrees today.
View from the apartment. I would like to note how CLEAN the glass is... because I cleaned it for the first time ever. My apartment is much lighter inside...
Okay, so send me your suggestions for how I can put the finishing touches on it!
In other weekend news, Sarah was here for the night, and we made good use of our time! We ate Chic-fil-A, went to an apple festival, went shopping, had coffee, saw Eat, Pray, Love, made dinner, made homemade Take5 bars (ummmmm, delicious), watched football, fell asleep on the couch, drank Ethiopian coffee, made eggs for breakfast... then Sarah had to leave to go take pictures at a friends Ordination (Sarah, is that supposed to be capitalized?), and drive back to Atlanta. Bummer. Anyway, I went to Lowe's to get potting soil and cleaning stuff, did dishes and laundry, made granola bars, and roasted broccoli, planted my basil, mounted a bike headlight (for nighttime cyclocross), rode my trainer, did some reading, went to Target. All in all, it's been a supremely productive and enjoyable weekend... except for the 90 degree weather. But at least I can look outside and pretend it feels like fall!
Hope everyone else had a great weekend too!!!!
Cheers,
Kari
PS. I have 4 interviews!!! First one will be in November sometime. I'm excited.
Friday, September 17, 2010
This season, the Wake Forest Cycling Team will host it's first cyclocross race! For those of you that don't know, cyclocross is a mix between mountain and road biking, designed for people who like speed with a little technical challenge. We're organizing two races for our race weekend, one on Saturday that will be open to the public, and one on Sunday that will be collegiate only.
Sadly, I won't get to race this fall like I was hoping to. But I'm still going to help out at the races, and try to get some decent pictures!!!
Last night, a teammate and I went out to one of the courses that's just been set, and gave it a trial run. He rode, and I walked and took pictures. It just so happened that the sunset was gorgeous. Here are some photos of the course! It's winding and rough in some spots, with a nice uphill/downhill/mudpit obstacle in the middle and a couple tight turns. Should make for a great course!!!
Sadly, I won't get to race this fall like I was hoping to. But I'm still going to help out at the races, and try to get some decent pictures!!!
Last night, a teammate and I went out to one of the courses that's just been set, and gave it a trial run. He rode, and I walked and took pictures. It just so happened that the sunset was gorgeous. Here are some photos of the course! It's winding and rough in some spots, with a nice uphill/downhill/mudpit obstacle in the middle and a couple tight turns. Should make for a great course!!!
Monday, September 13, 2010
Today I started my orthopedics rotation (specifically foot, ankle, and trauma)...
I forgot how good it feels to have TONS done by 7:30am.
I also forgot how tiring it is to work such long hours.
But it's good fun... it'll be a good month.
But I'm too tired to tell you more right now, so you'll just have to wait until later.
Goodnight.
Kari
I forgot how good it feels to have TONS done by 7:30am.
I also forgot how tiring it is to work such long hours.
But it's good fun... it'll be a good month.
But I'm too tired to tell you more right now, so you'll just have to wait until later.
Goodnight.
Kari
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Not the facebook kind... the life kind.
If you look WAY back to my post in May titled "Playing Catch-Up", you'll find the list of rotations that make up my 4th year. Seeing that I just finished a rotation on Friday, I thought it would be appropriate to take a look back at where I am in the schedule. So, here's the list of what I'm supposed to do this year (and how much I've already done...)
April-May : Peds ICU
May-June : Step 2 study block
June : Vacation in Michigan
June-July : Physical Medicine/Rehabilitation
July-August : Emergency Medicine
August-September : Orthopedics (Trauma/Ankle)
September-October : Family Medicine
October-November : Burn Surgery
November-December : Campus Medicine @ WFU
December-January : Vacation/Interviews
January-February : Law in Medicine
February-March : Sports Medicine
March : MATCH DAY!!!
March-April : Community Medicine
April-May : Senior Seminar
May : GRADUATION!!!
You may be confused as to why I crossed out Family Medicine, not Orthopedics. Well, when I scheduled my ankle surgery, it would have been the first week of my orthopedics rotation. We decided that only having one leg, and trying to scrub into surgery and then hop into the OR would probably result in me stumbling face first into some open sterile field. So I flip-flopped Family and orthopedics. I just finished family medicine, and have orthopedics starting tomorrow... a much better choice. So, 5 rotations down, 7 to go!
And, I have my first interview scheduled! Crazy.
And, I bought two new suits! On super-sale! I always find sales when I shop with my mom... not sure why, but it seems to be a pretty reliable fact of the universe.
In other news, this has been a weekend full of sports for me. Not so much playing as watching/covering as part of the medical team. Friday night, I went to one of the local high school football games, yesterday I went to a volleyball tournament, then the Wake Forest football game (in the stands, not on the field... sad, I know), and then today I'm headed to a men's rugby tournament... always a wealth of injuries. If only I could be playing any of those.....
It's Sunday morning, so I'm drinking coffee and watching Meet the Press! I hope everyone enjoys their weekend!
Cheers,
Kari
If you look WAY back to my post in May titled "Playing Catch-Up", you'll find the list of rotations that make up my 4th year. Seeing that I just finished a rotation on Friday, I thought it would be appropriate to take a look back at where I am in the schedule. So, here's the list of what I'm supposed to do this year (and how much I've already done...)
August-September : Orthopedics (Trauma/Ankle)
October-November : Burn Surgery
November-December : Campus Medicine @ WFU
December-January : Vacation/Interviews
January-February : Law in Medicine
February-March : Sports Medicine
March : MATCH DAY!!!
March-April : Community Medicine
April-May : Senior Seminar
May : GRADUATION!!!
You may be confused as to why I crossed out Family Medicine, not Orthopedics. Well, when I scheduled my ankle surgery, it would have been the first week of my orthopedics rotation. We decided that only having one leg, and trying to scrub into surgery and then hop into the OR would probably result in me stumbling face first into some open sterile field. So I flip-flopped Family and orthopedics. I just finished family medicine, and have orthopedics starting tomorrow... a much better choice. So, 5 rotations down, 7 to go!
And, I have my first interview scheduled! Crazy.
And, I bought two new suits! On super-sale! I always find sales when I shop with my mom... not sure why, but it seems to be a pretty reliable fact of the universe.
In other news, this has been a weekend full of sports for me. Not so much playing as watching/covering as part of the medical team. Friday night, I went to one of the local high school football games, yesterday I went to a volleyball tournament, then the Wake Forest football game (in the stands, not on the field... sad, I know), and then today I'm headed to a men's rugby tournament... always a wealth of injuries. If only I could be playing any of those.....
It's Sunday morning, so I'm drinking coffee and watching Meet the Press! I hope everyone enjoys their weekend!
Cheers,
Kari
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Some (who know the medical school/residency match process, and know that it is in full swing this time of year) may think that a blog titled "matching" might be about that. Well, this one is not.
It's about kitchen utensils. And how much I love them.
Now, these aren't just any kitchen utensils. These MATCH! And are all awesome in their own individual way. And will someday look sweet in my big stainless steel appliance filled lots of cabinet space cool back splash accented kitchenaid mixer containing kitchen. For now, they look good in the kitchen I have.
Why do I love these utensils so much? And why does it matter that they match?
Well, I love that they are all lime green... because lime green is a cool color. And they match because I happened to get the garlic press, and then find things that were also lime green, which I just thought was cool. I would have bought the garlic press no matter what color it was, because it's the best garlic press ever. It just happened to be lime green, and gave me permission to buy other things in the same bold color. And I like bold.
Anyway, here are the utensils, that match, and make me happy... because I like gadgets, because they are for my kitchen, because they are nifty, and because they are lime green.
Okay, so here's the breakdown (from left to right).
1. Ring vegetable peeler. This is makes me happy for so many reasons. You don't have to hold it. It just slips on your finger, rests in your palm, and you peel veggies by stroking them like a cat. Although I would recommend against using this on an actual cat. They would definitely not appreciate that.
2. Basting brush. Did you know there is a difference between a basting brush and a BBQ brush? I didn't. I just knew that when I made peach pie the other day, I used a paper towel to brush egg across the top, and that is just not okay. So I bought a brush, a silicone brush with a removable dishwasher safe head, from the Le Creuset factory store (which I may have to revisit soon.....).
3. Spatula. There is nothing special about this spatula, except it was also on sale (umm, plus 50% off the sale price...), and was lime green, and matched my new basting brush... And who doesn't need another spatula?
4. Garlic press. Okay, seriously, this is the coolest garlic press ever. It's big, spring loaded, and kind of like a jack for your car... little effort, lots of force. Garlic doesn't stand a chance! And it's lime green. To match everything else. Well, actually, everything else matches it... but that's beside the point.
I seem to be on a food theme for Things That Make Me Happy. The next one will be non-food related. Promise.
What's your favorite kitchen utensil?
Be happy,
Kari
It's about kitchen utensils. And how much I love them.
Now, these aren't just any kitchen utensils. These MATCH! And are all awesome in their own individual way. And will someday look sweet in my big stainless steel appliance filled lots of cabinet space cool back splash accented kitchenaid mixer containing kitchen. For now, they look good in the kitchen I have.
Why do I love these utensils so much? And why does it matter that they match?
Well, I love that they are all lime green... because lime green is a cool color. And they match because I happened to get the garlic press, and then find things that were also lime green, which I just thought was cool. I would have bought the garlic press no matter what color it was, because it's the best garlic press ever. It just happened to be lime green, and gave me permission to buy other things in the same bold color. And I like bold.
Anyway, here are the utensils, that match, and make me happy... because I like gadgets, because they are for my kitchen, because they are nifty, and because they are lime green.
Okay, so here's the breakdown (from left to right).
1. Ring vegetable peeler. This is makes me happy for so many reasons. You don't have to hold it. It just slips on your finger, rests in your palm, and you peel veggies by stroking them like a cat. Although I would recommend against using this on an actual cat. They would definitely not appreciate that.
2. Basting brush. Did you know there is a difference between a basting brush and a BBQ brush? I didn't. I just knew that when I made peach pie the other day, I used a paper towel to brush egg across the top, and that is just not okay. So I bought a brush, a silicone brush with a removable dishwasher safe head, from the Le Creuset factory store (which I may have to revisit soon.....).
3. Spatula. There is nothing special about this spatula, except it was also on sale (umm, plus 50% off the sale price...), and was lime green, and matched my new basting brush... And who doesn't need another spatula?
4. Garlic press. Okay, seriously, this is the coolest garlic press ever. It's big, spring loaded, and kind of like a jack for your car... little effort, lots of force. Garlic doesn't stand a chance! And it's lime green. To match everything else. Well, actually, everything else matches it... but that's beside the point.
I seem to be on a food theme for Things That Make Me Happy. The next one will be non-food related. Promise.
What's your favorite kitchen utensil?
Be happy,
Kari
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
I have been derelict in my blogging duties! It's because I was really busy having a fantastic weekend. I apologize for my absence.
There were just too many things to detail all of them, so I'll give you the play by play, day by day...
Thursday
I can't wait.
I love fall.
And apple festivals.
The end.
Love,
Kari
- Went to work (and by work, I mean the hospital... where I work for free... actually, I pay...)
- Went to the doctor, cleared to walk, swim, and ride (a little)!
- Went back to work
- Got free lunch at conference
- Went back to work
- Went home
- Went to the first Wake Forest football game of the season! The Deacons beat the Blue Hose... shocking.
- Went to bed
- Went to work (drove myself... without crutches!)
- Went to sports med conference, got more free lunch!
- Went back to work
- Went home.
- Took a nap
- Ate some dinner
- Went to the Winston-Salem Dash game with my friend Lindsay. They won. And this kid did some fantastic Michael Jackson dancing on the dugout. It was pretty sweet. And we ate ice cream.
- Went to bed.
- Went to work, but only for a short time.
- Went to my friend Keli's house to plan our tour de US, interview style. And ate fruit, and drank coffee, and played with dogs.
- Went home and cleaned... a lot.
- Drove to Burlington to hang out with some awesome LeadershipNOW people.
- Went to the Le Creuset factory outlet and picked up a blue 5.5qt enamel finished cast iron, 1st quality pot... and a couple kitchen utensils (to be featured in a later post...)
- Drove home and cleaned some more.
- My parents came! And we went to Brixx for dinner.
- Came home, ate peach pie, and watched TV (and drank coffee, which we had to stop at Starbucks to get, because I didn't have any decaf. Now I do. Phew.)
- Went to sleep.
- Made coffee.
- Went to Salem lake for a walk with my parents (I walked over 3 miles! Woot!)
- Went out for breakfast... and drank more coffee.
- Went to Dick's Sporting Goods and helped my dad pick out some new athletic shoes. He rivals me for thoroughness! Gotta get the right shoe!
- Went to Shelton Vineyards! Met one of the Shelton's, went on a tour, tasted some wine, bought a bottle and sat outside at a picnic table next to a stream and drank it (not by myself... my parents were there too!), went on a hayride through the vines with a funny dude on a New Holland tractor.
- Went to the grocery store to get supplies for Monday's cooking.
- Went to Five Guys and got dinner, because my parents haven't been there, which is a crime.
- Went home, ate our Five Guys, watched City Island (it was funny, I recommend it), and fell asleep watching TV.
- Made coffee, and breakfast (of the fruit, yogurt, granola variety).
- Cooked... lots. We made deviled eggs, the worlds best baked beans, and apple cobbler to take to a picnic!
- Went shopping... ohhh did we go shopping. Not for me. Or my mom. For my dad. He needed some "going out" jeans. We ended up with a few pairs of jeans, a few long sleeved shirts, a few short sleeved shirts, three pairs of shoes, and a belt. It was a success. He will look very debonair. Oh, and I got a couple suits (on like super-sale) for interview season! And some hiking pants.
- Went to the pool/hot tub.
- Went to some friends house for a picnic, played with the puppies, ate EXCELLENT food and drink, hung out, chatted, etc etc etc.
- Came home.
- Said goodbye to my parents.
- Looked up patients for today.
- Went to bed.
Kari
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Okay, so maybe free is a bit of an overstatement. I'm free from crutches... as long as walking without them doesn't cause me too much pain. So far, so good! But I'm verrrry slow. I'm sure that will improve quickly. I'm also free to swim! And ride my bike... stationary... with low low resistance. But it's a step! And last, but certainly not least, I can DRIVE!!! My friends have all been great about getting me around town, but I'm ready to not dependant on others :)
Hopefully, this will mean I can get some house cleaning done... not an easy thing to do when one leg is out of commission, and two hands are occupied!
I'm not cleared to run until I go back and see him (in like 6 weeks), but I can handle that. And that will still give me enough time to get in decent shape for some late fall/early winter races. I miss races.
So that's the ankle update! Here's to a quick recovery and pain free return to the activities I love. I haven't done anything competitive in 9 months, and it's slowly crushing my competitive spirit. Don't worry, it will be revived.
Happy Thursday!
Kari
Hopefully, this will mean I can get some house cleaning done... not an easy thing to do when one leg is out of commission, and two hands are occupied!
I'm not cleared to run until I go back and see him (in like 6 weeks), but I can handle that. And that will still give me enough time to get in decent shape for some late fall/early winter races. I miss races.
So that's the ankle update! Here's to a quick recovery and pain free return to the activities I love. I haven't done anything competitive in 9 months, and it's slowly crushing my competitive spirit. Don't worry, it will be revived.
Happy Thursday!
Kari
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Or might go...
Today, I submitted my application to the 10 residency programs I am applying to. It's a little terrifying! I now have it narrowed down to 10 places I could be living in this time next year. And they are a bit all over the place... There are over 400 family medicine residencies in the country, so picking 10 out of that mix that had something the others didn't was a challenge. I looked at programs with sports medicine fellowships, because I'm confident that's what I want to do eventually, and want to have exposure in residency (as I've been able to have in medical school!). I ruled out places I don't want to live (re: places likely to be hit by natural disasters of some form), and community programs that I hadn't heard GREAT things about. I nixed cities I wasn't interested in living in. I checked off programs that had LOTS of driving to get from clinic to clinic. And then I just started throwing darts.
That's a lie. I wanted to make sure that each program I'm applying to offers something special that others don't. What exactly that is varies from program to program. But each of the 10 are programs that I think fit all the criteria I have, plus offer something else that others don't. I'm very pleased with the final list, and anxious to hit the interview trail! It looks like I'll be doing a bit of traveling during my vacation in December, which I'm very excited for (I miss airplanes.)
I love me some Dr. Seuss. So I pulled out "Oh! The Places You'll Go!" and read it earlier this week. Most of it made me think that Dr. Seuss must have at some point been a resident, because I most of it is, to the T, what I imagine intern year will feel like. But, one paragraph struck me at that particular time in my life...
"Waiting for a train to go or a bus to come, or a plane to go or the mail to come, or the rain to go or the phone to ring, or the snow to snow or waiting around for a Yes or No or waiting for their hair to grow. Everyone is just waiting."
So, now I wait. Hopefully interview invitations will come in, then interviews, then waiting, then match lists, then more waiting, then the match in March, and I'll know where I'm going :)
Until then, who knows where I'll go!
Today, I submitted my application to the 10 residency programs I am applying to. It's a little terrifying! I now have it narrowed down to 10 places I could be living in this time next year. And they are a bit all over the place... There are over 400 family medicine residencies in the country, so picking 10 out of that mix that had something the others didn't was a challenge. I looked at programs with sports medicine fellowships, because I'm confident that's what I want to do eventually, and want to have exposure in residency (as I've been able to have in medical school!). I ruled out places I don't want to live (re: places likely to be hit by natural disasters of some form), and community programs that I hadn't heard GREAT things about. I nixed cities I wasn't interested in living in. I checked off programs that had LOTS of driving to get from clinic to clinic. And then I just started throwing darts.
That's a lie. I wanted to make sure that each program I'm applying to offers something special that others don't. What exactly that is varies from program to program. But each of the 10 are programs that I think fit all the criteria I have, plus offer something else that others don't. I'm very pleased with the final list, and anxious to hit the interview trail! It looks like I'll be doing a bit of traveling during my vacation in December, which I'm very excited for (I miss airplanes.)
I love me some Dr. Seuss. So I pulled out "Oh! The Places You'll Go!" and read it earlier this week. Most of it made me think that Dr. Seuss must have at some point been a resident, because I most of it is, to the T, what I imagine intern year will feel like. But, one paragraph struck me at that particular time in my life...
"Waiting for a train to go or a bus to come, or a plane to go or the mail to come, or the rain to go or the phone to ring, or the snow to snow or waiting around for a Yes or No or waiting for their hair to grow. Everyone is just waiting."
So, now I wait. Hopefully interview invitations will come in, then interviews, then waiting, then match lists, then more waiting, then the match in March, and I'll know where I'm going :)
Until then, who knows where I'll go!
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