Thursday, January 31, 2008

Some new Simon pics...

I was laughing with a woman at work the other day about how we have folders with about 50 pictures in each of Simon's first 12 weeks of life, one for each week of course. Then it became a folder for each month and it has very quickly become a folder for the entire year. Sorry I'm a camera slacker.


The newest addition to Simon's wardrobe, his "Grump shirt", which he insists on wearing every waking moment and saying very loudly, "YOOK MOMMY! I YOOK YIK RUM-PA!"




Sunday, January 20, 2008

Contracted...

...finally. We found a house, we made an offer, we got a great deal and we're under contract. Of course a lot is dependant on the sale of our house, but it's a step in the right direction. We love love love the house. It's in South Portland, 0.3 miles from our best pals, a house with lots of potential, but not in the way that realtors talk about houses with lots of potential. I learned in realtor speak a house with lots of potential = a dump that with thousands could be not so bad. We're plan to put in a new kitchen and maybe an expanded, but certainly new bathroom. Otherwise it really only needs refinished floors and paint. It has a great backyard (I think, looks nice anyway with two feet of snow covering it) and a garage. It's very cute, and we're really psyched.

Otherwise things are normal. My grandmother is improving every day. I had a dream last night they discharged her from rehab, I think it was more like a nightmare. I love having her close and would be very concerned if she went home, so concerned I might spend every night driving to her place to check in on her. We're going to take her to breakfast this morning, which will be nice for her to get out of the nursing home for a bit.

Kim and I signed up for a race in March. It's a 7 mile relay with 4.5 miles of bike, 2 miles of run and then a sled to the bottom of the hill around Back Bay. Should be fun, and cold...

COMLEX-PE scores were released Friday. I passed. It's unfortunate that I spent $1000 on this exam and all they tell me is, I passed. No feedback, no constructive criticism, no "here's what you do well." Just, you passed. But still a relief. Boards done, urology halfway over and now not nearly as bad as it was that first week, one more rotation to schedule and six more weeks of school...the countdown continues. And if we don't have enough going on we have an appointment with our RE in a few weeks, round two mayhaps? We'll see.

Friday, January 11, 2008

There's something satisfying....

...about seeing your pomous ass (very rich) attending driving to work in....his MINIVAN!

Uncharted territory

....urology. Not my area of expertise, for obvious reasons, but I guess that's why I'm here. Be it known that I would much rather be spending my days attending deliveries and catching babies. It's been a long week, to say the least. The new rotation is okay although I miss the quiet peacefulness of my abandoned family practice rotation. The attending leaves much to be desired, but I don't hate it too much.

I spent the better part of this week and last weekend in the hospital with my grandmother. I got a call from Kim on Saturday while I was at work that (demented) grandmother was standing naked from the waist down in the kitchen and was quite confused when Kim showed up for her Saturday morning visit. She called rescue on my recommendation and they brought her to the ER where she proceeded to go downhill from that moment on. Kim took the kids home and I stayed with Merma in the ER trying to encourage her not to rip her IV out of her arm for the second time. I called family to notify them of this unexpected turn of events. My parents were vacationing in Myrtle Beach, my uncle at work, and my aunt very quickly on the road to Maine from Massachusetts. She was admitted on Saturday night with pneumonia and has since been recovering beautifully. She was transferred yesterday to rehab and is in surprisingly good spirits, she keeps telling me she's going home tomorrow. Okay, fine, whatever gets her through the days. I don't know at this point that she'll go home at all. Getting old must suck.

Simon has enjoyed visiting Merma at the hospital. He asks to go everyday and expects that the visit will include ice cream and "cow milk". He's in heaven. Last night he wheeled the walker around the nursing home saying, "I DRIVING!" The residents got a kick out of him. We'll probably head back tonight after I grocery shop. Did I mention in addition to all that fun and excitement our furnace died and we have spent the last three days at my parents house? What a week.

Match rank order list submitted, seven more weeks of school, still waiting on PE exam score...nearly there....

Thursday, January 3, 2008

Another one bites the dust....

Tomorrow markes the end of a super fabulous rotation that I have been on for the past two plus months. Sometimes being a med student is so hard. I just feel so transient all the time, and when I finally find a place where I really connect with providers and office staff it's off to something else. In this case it's off to urology, which makes this goodbye even more difficult. I have spent the last two months with an exam room OF MY OWN, a luxury unheard of for a student, the priviledge to see nearly all of the providers patients, ON MY OWN, to precept with him a plan or care I developed ON MY OWN, and this will all end tomorrow at 5:00. I will head to the hospital where I will have the priviledge of following around some pompous ass attending, and getting asked to do exciting tasks like photocopying and vital sign taking. I will have next to none of the autonomy I have become accustomed to and I will once again be put in my place. YOU ARE JUST A STUDENT...yeah, but only for eight more weeks you pompous ass. And this my friends is what I am paying $40,000 a year for, and no, this doesn't include room and board. The final countdown begins...57 more days. Deep breath.