Paging Dr. Mary and Nurse Hayley

I promise I won't make a habit of asking you for medical advice over the interwebz, but I need to know whether it's crucial to see a doctor about a problem I've had all summer.

I've been having these awful coughing spells at night, especially when I first lay down. I also wake up with a stuffy nose and drainage in my throat. I don't have any of these problems during the day, so what's up? Am I allergic to our bedroom? Should I buy an air purifier?

These coughing fits interrupt my sleep and I'm majorly cranky today because I spent all night tossing and turning.

I have not consulted WebMD because I turn into a hypercondriac whenever I read anything on that site. Cancer is WebMD's answer for everything, it seems.

Okay, just writing this out makes it clear that I need to see a doctor. Are there any questions I should make sure to ask?

And so it begins.

4 days before the DNC:

Denver already has a scare where envelopes containing white powder are delivered to one of McCain's campaign offices. Five people drive themselves to the hospital to get checked out for possible anthrax poisoning. (negative).

I can only imagine what it will be like when several hundred thousand people descend upon Denver this weekend. Fortunately, if there is some sort of mass casualty, most of the trauma will go to the surgery services. However, every single alcohol or drug overdose and dehydration case will be coming to internal medicine. I also happen to be starting at Denver Health Medical Center on Saturday, which, as the county hospital, is first in line for any patients coming in. The ER is going to be a zoo. They've already told all the hospitalists at Denver Health that they need to be on call this week.

Apparently they are giving all the homeless people movie tickets to get them off the streets during the convention. Down at Invesco Field they will be having full size replicas of the Oval Office and AirForce One for tourists to see. La. I will be staying home to watch the proceedings on television.

Hooray for Shawn Johnson!

I think Andy summarized it nicely: Come on, you leggy beeyotch, let the little one win something!

For the record, we have nothing against Nastia Liukin. But c'mon, Shawn is our little Midwestern girl. (Nastia's home state of Texas is not part of the Midwest, IMHO.) Shawn's from IOWA; that practically makes us kin! Did you know that the Iowa State Fair is featuring a butter sculpture of S.J.? I realize butter sculptures are standard Fair fare, but the Nebraska State Fair sucks, so I must give Iowa credit for state fair excellence.

Wisconsinites, are your heads about to explode? I think you guys hate Iowa even more than we do.

Nastia is a beautiful gymnast, but I wish she'd wipe that sour look off her face. She doesn't need to be all smiles 24/7 like S.J., but doesn't she realize that pursed lips make her look perpetually pissed off? I predict that even though S.J. finished behind Nastia in the all-around, she'll get more endorsement deals simply because she's more likable.

The Des Moines Register has some excellent articles about Shawn.

Nastia Liukin got shafted.

You'd think they'd figure out a fair way to judge by now.

almost HAWAII time!!

I'll be there in just 2 weeks! When I find out my apartment number, I'll be sure to post my address. Yay! And to top things off, I found pole dancing studios (legitimate gym classes) near my apartment. ;)

There may still be hope...

After today, I have concluded my athletic abilities may not be totally lost. It all began this morning as I was trying to begin my first paper of the semester. Yes, the semester has not even begun and I already have an assignment for my Education class. It's not that it is particularly hard, considering it is a biographical sketch about ourselves, but I had been putting it off for weeks because my brain has been in suntan mode rather than school mode. However, since the pool is closed now, I figured I better start gearing my brain up. Anyway, I was experiencing severe writer's block when my phone rang -- a perfect distraction I thought! It was Margaret, calling because she was going to play in a slow-pitch softball tournament in Goehner and they were short a girl. She was calling because she wanted me to play! ME! I immediately began my attempt to get out of the situation, reminding her I sucked at softball, I hadn't played in years, and I didn't think I had a glove. She rebuffed my attempts by saying they were desperate, insisting if I played catcher, I would hardly have to do anything, and assuring me they had an extra glove. The game would begin in 10 minutes, so I needed to hurry if I was going to make it. Me, being a pushover, agreed to come. I threw on some clothes and was out the door only a couple of minutes. The kicker was Chip had been asked to play in this same tournament earlier in the week. I would be playing against him in the first game.

On my 10-minute drive to Goehner, the butterflies began. I was so nervous. I couldn't believe I had actually agreed to be publicly humiliated. My mind kept flashing back to the days of P.E. when Ryan Pankoke yelled at me every time we were on the same team if I made a mistake. I kept hoping none of the team members (Beaver's finest, by the way) would be as competitive as he had been. Then, I thought about how much Chip would probably make fun of me. For the most part, I have avoided playing any form of sport in front of him, but this was unavoidable.

As soon as I got there, I was up to bat. I thought, you gotta be kidding me. Luckily, there were 2 outs and the guy in front of me walked, which meant I got to walk too without even touching a bat. So far, so good. Then, when we were in the field, every player hit the ball, which meant I didn't have to catch the ball. Yay! Unfortunately, I didn't get that lucky all day. However, I am proud to say, I hit every ball pitched to me during the first game and I didn't screw up catching. The second game, I struck out once, hit once, and walked once, so it was all good. Plus, Chip never made fun of me once, he was proud of me, and it actually made me feel better knowing he was there. Sadly, we did lose to him, though. Also, the team wasn't super competitive, and they were happy with how we played! All in all, I am very proud of myself for giving it a try and not totally sucking. I would probably even play again, if I was ever asked. It turned out to be a fun day and it got me away from my paper for a little while (I did finish it later!). It also let me know that there are still some athletic skills in me, no matter how small they may be!

Alright PoliSci Paul, Call your shot.

A few weeks from conventions. Who are the Veeps going to be?

Appliance love

I don't understand why a rice cooker works so much better than a pan with a lid, but I don't care. I am in love with my new rice cooker, a birthday gift from Andy. Rice turns out perfectly fluffy and steamed each time. Whenever I cooked rice in a regular pot, it turned into a starchy, gooey mess. My upgraded model is compact, made of nonstick material and very cute. It even matches the toaster and the tea kettle (which you can see in the background)!

On another note, is everyone watching the Olympics? I am very sleep-deprived from staying up to watch the end of the men's gymnastics competition last night. On to the ladies competition tonight!

Still in the throes of summer

I look forward to summer all year long, and this one has not disappointed.

One of our best friends got married Friday night. The wedding weekend rocked -- a superbly tasty rehearsal dinner at a Greek restaurant, followed by a late-evening swim with friends. The wedding itself was very moving and emotional, and the reception ROCKED. I danced all night (and I wasn't even drunk while doing so, heh heh). After a recovery day on Saturday, we headed out to the lake with friends on Sunday afternoon.

August is one busy month: two more weddings, a bridal shower, a baby shower, a birthday party (mine!), a cookout, and a football game on Labor Day weekend. I may go into a mild depression when all these social occasions wind down ... or maybe I'll be grateful for more sleep. :)

The only thing that's getting me down is a case of the summertime sniffles. Boo. And I'm getting a wee bit fatigued, so I need to start pacing myself a bit better. My poor garden is looking all bedraggled too.

My quest to become stronger and healthier is still going strong. I've lost eight pounds and am sticking to my 5k training program (although I took a break last week to escape the 100-degree temps).

Trails are Overrated, IMHO

Yesterday one of my co-interns (with whom I also went to medical school) and I adventurously decided to go hiking near Mount Evans. Here is how it went:

First, admire Echo Lake and dutifully note the signs warning of black bears. Second, lose the trail after only five minutes but glimpse a lake in the distance. Vow to reach said lake. Find cool walking stick, poke hand with it, and later hurtle it off a steep cliff of boulders. Clamber down the steep cliff for an hour, maneuver down six-foot dropoffs, and come upon Idaho Springs Reservoir. Marvel at big trout. Sidestep horse poop left by a caravan of campers. Find trail again (marker 52), after missing intervening 50 markers. Continue leisurely for another hour, walking amongst wildflowers and pine trees, under the cloudless blue sky, with mountainous peaks surrounding us. Spot second lake up ahead but, alas, trail does not lead to it. No matter. Bushwack through a quarter-mile of prickly branches in running shorts, scratch up legs, ignore bleeding, accidently step in mudhole up to mid calves, note ground is growing progressively more swampy, press on, arrive at lake, and wade around in it to clean off mud-soaked shoes and socks. Eat lunch perched on a boulder. Realize need to bushwack back through bushes taller than our heads. Fashion mud-shoes by tying pine branches underneath shoes with long laces. This works for a while. Make it back to the trail and follow it back to the parking lot. Fortunately have not contracted a tick-borne illness or poison oak yet, but delayed-type hypersensitivity reactions require up to 72 hours to present themselves. Give it time.

Colorado is not for the faint-hearted. Tomorrow I'm going hiking at Eldorado Canyon. Four more days of vacation left!

Olympics in 7 days!!! Who's excited???

Anuncios

Julie,

In preparation for when you move to Denver, I have already scoped out the dance studio where we can take adult ballet, jazz, breakdancing, and belly-dancing classes...Cherry Creek Dance Studio. You're welcome for my foresight.

-M

the quilt

Scrubs Episode 2: My First Month

Hola todos,

Well, I have emerged from a month of q4 overnight call on VA wards. What has this first month brought? My attendings, co-intern, and senior resident were great. I felt like I had a lot of autonomy but enough back-up , too. My third day, though, my senior and attending weren't in the hospital, and my first patient that I had admitted died of sepsis. I had to pronounce the patient, call the coroner, call the organ donation office so they could prepare the patient's eyes for potenital corneal transplant, and talk to the family all by myself, including asking for an autopsy. The family had flown in from all over the country. They thanked me for all my help, which was kind of humbling...I really was THE doctor in that situation! Other highlights/lowlights of this month: putting in a central line (internal jugular) using ultrasound guidance; pushing IV metoprolol and diltiazem on the floor because my patient was in rapid atrial fibrillation with blood pressure in the 80s; and handing down a new diagnosis of AIDS to one of my patients. I worked over 80 hours every week that month; one week I put in over a 100 hours...so much for work hour restrictions.

I still feel that I have had a more balanced life so far than during much of undergrad and medical school. This past week I went to a Colorado Rockies game with a group of my co-interns. Yesterday, Lauren, another intern, and I drove 3 1/2 hours to the Great Sand Dunes National Park down towards New Mexico, by the Sangre de Cristo Mountatins (see above). It was amazing...if you turned your back to the mountains, it looked as if you had been transported to Egypt! We climbed the High Dune, which was 800 feet tall. People brought sleds and snowboards on the dunes, too! They also had "dune chairs" for disabled people, which were wheelchairs modified with thick wheels that could more easily traverse the sand. Then we waded around in a sandy creek right in front of the dunes...

Lauren exposed me to an Asian thing today. We went to Lollicups, which has these slushy drinks with tapioca balls on the bottom. Sounds disgusting, but I got a passion fruit slushy, and it was delicious. We went to WALL-E today, too. I'm telling you, I think the secret is making the most of your days off. My first vacation week is this coming week, and I am so excited. Talk to you guys later!

compass

http://www.politicalcompass.org/test
mine:
http://www.politicalcompass.org/facebook/pcgraphpng.php?ec=1.38&soc=-2.97

Reflections of Three Decades

So -- this old man turns 30 on Monday. That is so old, but as I bid my 20s farewell, I wanted to take a little stock of things and reflect a bit. Bear with me as I recount the last three decades.

First decade (ages 0 to 10)

• I remember I liked dirt.
• I liked pickles.
• I enjoyed the transformers and baseball cards.
• I think baseball cards were my first real dive into financial markets and stocks. As a player did better or worst, his cards got more valuable. So the challenge was to know which players would be stars before they became stars. I still feel bad to this day, but I probably swindled my friends out of hundreds of dollars in cards via our trading. But they should have done their research and figured out that Conseco was a junkie and Griffey Junior was going to have a phenomenal career.
• As much as I liked dirt, it did not taste good.
• My best friend, the Atari 2600. Awesome.
• Dude, multiplication tables are lame.
• I had sweet high-tops.
• What is a comb?
• You can never wear too much Neon.
• Saturday morning cartoons are the best TV shows ever!
  

Second decade part 1 (ages 11-17)

• Who are these girl creatures? Have they been here this whole time? Why won’t any of them talk to me?
• My best friend was a flannel tied around my waste and Pearl Jam was my God.
• I am clearly not going to be much of an athlete.
• I dig music.
• I want to be Zac Morris
  
• Why aren’t the girls talking to me yet?
• A powder clue Camaro Berlinetta was the coolest car ever.
• I wish I could gain weight and build some muscle – do not enjoy being a twig.
• I like people watching. Maybe I could have a career that involves getting inside the heads of people and trying to influence their decisions regarding discretionary income at a large not-for-profit corporation. Naaaah – I want to be a radio DJ or studio producer in a music studio.
• MTV is the best TV ever!

Second decade part 2 (ages 17-22).

• See, I was never much for math, so I consider my second decade ending after college, because I became a new person.
• I met a new friend at college – a pirate fellow named Captain Morgan
• Girls are talking to me. Unfortunately, none of them seem sane.
• If you get together with 300 friends and wear head to toe red polyester in front of 86,000 people and make a giant letter N, people will cheer very loudly.
• Dude, living away from home rocks. It’s like camp, only longer.
• I have this college thing licked, but classes are going too fast. Is there anyway I can stretch this out a few more years.
• I lived with an Alaskan, a Kansan, farm boys, Chicago guys, engineers, musicians, architects, business wannabes and has some of the best times ever when 8 of us lived together
• By the time I graduate from college, every building at UNL will be connected to this magic Internet thing.
• ESPN is the best TV ever!
• My landlord is a bitch
• Woo hoo. I got a degree.

Third decade (22-29)

• This Ashley gal seems OK. If she can put up with me, this may work out.
• Who is this FICA asshole and why does he get 11% of my money every month?
• Holy crap. I just signed a loan for over $100K to buy a house.
• Mmmmm – opportunities to be had in the Asian markets!
• I love my job and my boss is a fantastic mentor.
• Wedding showers are the shit. Guy shave to do nothing, and the ladies go and do something for a few hours and she comes home with all this stuff you registered for.
• My boss is now allegedly a crook being investigated by the attorney general
• I wish I could lose weight and build some muscle.
• Hmm, I still dig music. What other instruments do I want to play?
• Ok friends. Bye – as you all leave and go your separate ways.
• I had no idea I would attend 7,000 weddings in my 20s. Glad that’s over.
• I think I’m turning into Bob Vila.
• HGTV and the history channel (and CNN during the election) is the best TV ever.
• Eh, what the hell – I’m bored, so let’s go get another degree.
• Who needs a comb.

Wow. What an interesting evolution. I’m still not sure I am an adult yet. But I’ve come to grips with my own mortality and the heart problems in my family and have been doing a lot about it. On my 30th birthday (unless I really pig out on the 4th) I’ll be roughly the same weight as I was my freshman year of college and my running/biking stamina is the best it has been since I played outside all day as a kid.

I’m generally the same guy as I was when I was 18, only a lot more worldly. A sane girl finally talked to me. I concluded that there is a God, and I know that I’m not him. The rest I’m still trying to ponder.

I generally enjoy the road I took to 30, and the bumps and bruises made me who I am. Ash and I were happy and lucky (and ahead of our time) to live well below our means and save – which means the current economic mess isn’t really impacting us a whole lot like it is some of our friends who bought too much house or figured they could roll up debt forever.

I wonder what entering my fourth decade will bring? Likely children, possibly an opportunity to relocate or change careers, mastery of the guitar and Playstation 5 when it comes out, an iPhone, the country’s first libertarian president in 2016? Hair restoration surgery?

I’m not sure – but I can’t wait to find out.

Health food? I don't think so.

As I mentioned in an earlier blog, I’m making an effort to eat healthier. I’ve been very frustrated to discover that most low-fat or fat-free foods replace high-fructose corn syrup with something even more evil – artificial sweeteners. I have a huge aversion to sucralose, Splenda, NutraSweet, and the like. Not only do they taste terrible, but chemical sugar should not be considered a healthy alternative, even if it does contain fewer calories.

A few weeks ago, I found a terrific sale on Quaker Simply Harvest oatmeal packets. I tried the vanilla-almond variety and it was simply fantastic – filling, low-cal, high-fiber and tasty to boot! When I ran out, I had a dilemma: spend $4.29 for a 12-pack of oatmeal, which is ridiculous, or find a cheaper alternative. I went with the latter option. I picked up a variety pack Quaker Weight Control oatmeal, pleased that I’d found a similar product for less. Big mistake. On Saturday morning, I was stoked about drinking a cup of coffee and eating some banana nut muffin oatmeal. The first bite tasted cloyingly sweet, but I figured that I’d chosen the bad flavor in the box, so I finished the bowl. Then I looked at the package: Every variety contains a generous helping of sucralose.

Wonderful. I should’ve spent the extra $1.50 on the Simply Harvest, because I’ll probably never eat this weight-control stuff again. I expect to thoroughly inspect yogurt labels for offending sweeteners, but oatmeal? That one threw me for a loop.

Has anyone else run into this problem? It seems that most people aren’t bothered by artificial sweeteners, but my gag reflex kicks in whenever I get near the stuff.

I think I’ll stick with my Grandma Shirley’s advice: Eat the real stuff, just less of it.

Still Alive and Thriving

I have continued to obsessively check the blog for peoples' updates, but this past month I simply haven't felt I've had anything worth sharing. I'm living in La Crosse, WI and haven't made many friends here. For awhile I was able to hang out with a couple pharm girls from Drake, but their time here already ended and now I'm alone. A few classmates are in the area, but I'm not close to any of them and so haven't seen them outside of the hour-long weekly seminar. I joined a gym when I moved here and thought I could meet people at fitness classes, and once went kayaking with a group organized by a local outdoors store, but the only women in my age bracket I met have been married 5 years and have 2 kids. Today I then went to church because it was recommended as another place to meet people. The saddest thing is that I'm not actually lonely. In fact I'm frustrated with myself that I have no problem being without friends here.

My first clinical rotation is in the hospital with one of the general medicine teams. Acute care drugs are not my strong area, nor the mechanisms of actions of some of the common ones. Physiology has always been a little hard to conceptualize. I've made a lot of improvement since I've started, but my preceptors often look like they're a touch disappointed in my knowledge. It's not that I don't try, it's just that it takes me awhile to get into the groove. Luckily, I only have two more weeks in the hospital, then I start in the clinic/ outpatient pharmacy of the same health care system.

Back to my free time - the gym I joined is nice, but doesn't have a pool. The only gym in this town with a pool is the Y, and that was the most expensive membership so I had to do without. There are several outdoor community pools, but weather here has been difficult (random torrential rains). Kayaking was a lot of fun, but they only have trips Monday and Tuesday nights, which makes a long day by the time I get home from it at 9:00pm. I get up at 5:30 for work, so early bedtimes have been the norm this summer. I finished a pillow (hawaiian quilt style... see pic) that I started last August but hadn't had time to finish. The next day I started a quilt for Mary. It'll be a large throw, 65"x75", as a graduation/ birthday gift, but probably won't be done until end of summer (or end of fall if it's not done before I leave for Hawaii). It's going slow but well, and unfortunately I can't share any details except that it's a Julie original design, because Mary has to be kept surprised.

This weekend I've been trying to get a lot of pharm work done so my 4th of July weekend is totally free (I'll be going home to hang out with the fam minus Mary). Tomorrow I have to present a case presentation about complications with an intrathecal pain pump to my "colleagues" and not quite done preparing for that. It's been difficult finding pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic information about most of the drugs used in the pumps, because only the use of morphine in them is FDA approved. But I have to figure out if other drugs could interact with them, since there's apparently no systemic absorption. THEN I have to write a short research paper on use of sodium bicarbonate vs. other oral hydration for the prevention of contrast-induced nephropathy. My research for that is essentially finished, so hopefully it'll just take a few hours of focus this week to get that finished up. So then all I'll have to do is pray to the weather gods for a gorgeous weekend.

I'll stop typing now. Ironically, I could probably keep typing. How about I just write shorter, more regular blog postings?

Ashley, your bloggings have been lovely. It sounds like you've had a wonderful summer so far!

Friday musings

It’s Friday afternoon and I’m miraculously caught up on my projects for the week; therefore, I can justify blogging in the middle of the afternoon. : )

I fell in love with San Diego last week. I went there to be the “face of UNL” at a biotechnology trade show – scary thought, huh? Anyhoo, every day I ate breakfast at a restaurant overlooking the San Diego Bay and even made it to Coronado Island and the Pacific Ocean twice. I taught my coworker Joel how to boogie board. Being in open water feeds my soul like few things do. I wish it were easier to catch a wave in the Midwest.

We’re spending four of the next seven days at the lake (yay for three-day holiday weekends). I won’t be able to boogie board, but my father-in-law has the pontoon boat up and running. Aces. As Hayley says, pontoon boats are the new yacht! I think that’s a lot of wishful thinking on her part.

As Paul pointed out, we liberals love to watch our carbon footprint. To reduce our gas consumption and get in shape, Andy has been biking to work at least three days a week. I think I have enough endurance to do the same, but I’m concerned about being a hot, sweaty mess by the time I arrive at the office. Who wants to sit next to the smelly girl in a meeting?

I’ve dedicated this summer to eating better and getting into shape. Slowly but surely, I’m changing my lifestyle, but I haven’t totally eliminated my cravings for ice cream and naughty summer treats.

I love Pandora Internet radio. Plug in a few of your favorite songs, and Pandora magically predicts your musical tastes. This afternoon, my radio station consists of U2, Counting Crows, Coldplay, John Mayer, the Fray, and Snow Patrol. Rock on. (Or rather, mellow out.)

Mary, we’re invading Denver in mid-July next year. We looked into getting tickets for the Mile High Music Festival on our anniversary, but Andy gets back from a conference the day before it starts and we can’t get our travel schedules to work out. So, we’ll do that next year.

Andy turns 30 on July 7 and we're celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary in less than a month. When did we become full-fledged adults, and how do we make it stop?

In all honesty, life is pretty damn great right now, even if it does require acting like a grownup. ;)

Julie, how are your rotations going? I miss hearing from you!

Paul's Post

Andy: Since you're a pretty clever fellow, you might want to take a look into adding an HHO generator to your vehicle. They can increase fuel efficiency by 50-75% I hear. Liberals like yourself always want to find ways to reduce their carbon footprint :P http://www.water4fuel.info/

Julie: I finally ate your partial box of Special K cereal and I have to say that it tasted wonderful.

Mary: I didn't forget about your birthday. I tried calling you on sunday, since you were busy monday, but you didn't answer :/

To anybody: Heres a few good songs that you may appreciate

Category 1: Light and Beautiful songs

The Cure-Friday I'm In Love
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSmfNxmaQHc

Someone Still Loves you Boris Yeltsin- Glue Girls
http://www.polyvinylrecords.com/media/prc-151-01.mp3 (takes awhile to load)

Sugarbomb- Hello
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qer498uC0jc

Yes- Roundabout
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyR-BNo-tUk

Category 2: Ghetto

Nelly- Heart of a Champion
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0bh7AsIZRMw

Category 3: Heavy Metal
Hate Crew Deathroll- Triple Corpse Hammerblow
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWTBsncVr38

Scrubs, Pilot Episode

Gah. (strangled gasp). Orientation week is over, and, not feeling very oriented, I am starting on the VA wards on Monday.

This past week has been spent trying to forget this fact. This past Monday our intern class had a ropes challenge course as a team-building exercise. It was a great way to meet people, and I really like our class. I recognized several other interns from interviews. Monday night we went to a bar called Forest Room 5 for the evening social event. It was a beautiful evening out, with the distant sound of Blackhawk helicopters swarming through downtown and military peeps rappelling onto the top of skyscrapers, purportedly in preparation for the Democratic National Convention come August. Tuesday we all got our embroidered, long white coats that are all a size too big for us. Wednesday through Friday were spent getting parking, getting computer orientation on about ten different programs, and collecting our stack of ID badges which we will wear around our necks on no less than three lanyards. Highlight---I also received my business cards that I can hand out to people in the ER if I like them and want them to be my patients. Friday night we had a pool party at the Stapleton Puddle Jumper Pool, by the old Denver airport. We had the best BBQ from Famous Dave's there. Today, Saturday, about ten of us interns drove out to Boulder to hike up to Bear's Peak, in the Flatiron Mountains. It was seven miles round trip, and we gained about 2500 feet in elevation over the last mile. SO HARD!!! But, the view of snow-capped mountains and the clear blue skies was so worth it.
We stopped at the 7/11 on the way home for Cherry Limeade Slurpees. Delicious and very summery. Then I put on my suit, swam for about 45 seconds at our apartment complex pool, which was very frigid, and afterwards sat in the 90 degree heat reading my "Intern Survival Guide." Hah.

Here is a picture of my roommate, Lauren, me, and my classmate from med school, Ben, on the top of Mount Evans last week.

Ashley, Andy, and everyone else, thank you for the lovely birthday card! I would love to host you at the end of October. My vacation is from October 11-19. I am starting on the cardiology floor at UCH after that, but we can definitely still hang out in the evenings. Did I mention that I am on call overnight at the VA on our very first day, June 23, which also happens to be my birthday??? I am hoping that means I will be a white cloud. Bless you if you actually read this whole blog, and wish me luck because I am scared!!!