Outta Town
I decided on Thursday while trying to study for my test that it would be nice to get outta town. I found out that Beth, Nana and Felix were gonna be in DC for the weekend and of course my mom was free to drive up to meet me there. Pete, Barbara, Sylvie and Annabeth were as always glad to have me visit. So I flew down and had a wonderful time. Lucy brought her girls over on Saturday. It was nice to sit back and do nothing all weekend and even nicer to be in a real house, drive and see that there is life outside of this city. Here are some pics of the kids.



Felix


Felix and Maxie


Sylvie


Annabeth and Maxie (sitting in her chair in the driveway depite the freezing weather!)

We had a little snowstorm last week. These were the pictures I took while walking to work at 5:20AM when eveyone else was still asleep.

me and cheryl


me and sam


sam, alex, chris and pete


barb, jenna and me

me and pete

When can I wear my flip flops again??

It is snowing like crazy up here in NYC. We are supposed to get 5 to 7 inches of snow by tomorrow night. It looks beautiful coming down right now. I am prepared for it. I bought some wellies this weekend so I can trudge through the snow without getting my feet wet. I had a great weekend. Pete and Sam came to visit from Detroit. I hadn’t seen them since May (9 months ago) when I departed the tropics. It was a great reunion. I wish they lived closer so we could hang out more often but I’ll take what I can get.

The ob/gyn rotation has been draining the last three weeks. This weekend was my first day off (other than post call days) in three weeks. I really needed the time to recoup. I only have two and a half days to work then I finished with the rotation. Then I have my test (oral and written) on Friday. It was a little rough going when I started. I had three incidents where I almost passed out. I didn’t ever actually pass out but it was close. The sweats, lightheadedness, tunnel vision, hearing loss that takes over hit me two times when I was helping with vaginal deliveries and once in a c-section. BUT, I am proud to report I got over it. I finally got desensitized and can now handle anything (I think!). My next to last call was awesome. I got to help deliver three babies vaginally, two c-sections, a manual placental removal and a D&C. It was nonstop action and made the 26 hour call fly by. On another call, I did manage to do just what the title of my last blog had mentioned. I caught a baby by the foot. I was all scrubbed in with the resident and the baby had a cord around the neck. We cut that and with the next push the baby flew threw the residents hands and by some miracle my quick reflexes were working at 2:30 AM and I snagged the kid by its ankle and tossed it on the mother’s stomach. I know there must be cases of babies falling on the floor. Thankfully, this one did not. Last week, I was in the gyn part and this is mostly surgeries. Thursday there were four surgeries I went in on and it was fun. It makes me excited for my surgery rotation that I will start in May. As for ob/gyn I liked it and would consider it if the hours weren’t so horrendous and the malpractice weren’t so high. A week from tomorrow, I start internal medicine. I am dreading it. Twelve weeks of it with Q3 call (aka on call every third day). Gone are my weekends. During this time though I will have a visitor coming! Angie has booked her ticket and is coming in mid April. I can’t wait. I might have to call in sick when she arrives so I can see her. I will try to take some pictures of the snow accumulation and post them later this week.

Catching Babies
I am almost finished with my first week of my ob/gyn rotation. It is definetly keeping me busy. This week I was on clinic service. But last night, I got a new taste when I was on call for OB. It was my first overnight call since I started rotations in August. I spent 26 hours straight in the hospital (I went in on Wednesday at 9AM and didnt' leave till Thursday 11 AM.) Now, I am "post call" which means I had the rest of the day to sleep and dont' have to go in till Friday. It was a like a crash course in delievering babies. I got to take part in the delivery of one baby and was about 30 minutes short of a second when I had to go to morning lecture. The baby I did get to see born was my first delivery ever and I did almost start crying. It was a pretty moving experience. It was special to take part in bringing a new person into the world. I dont' think I could do ob as a career but I now see how rewarding it would be.

Lilypads in the conservatory


The blossoms in January!


me and Liz in the gardens


Some more of the blooms


A heron in the Japanese Garden

Wishing the weather could be like this all the time


me and liz in Central Park enjoying the sun and warm weather


me and lauren at New Years Eve Party

The giant tree at Rockefeller Center


me at the tree


Sunset over the gulf

Sunset over East Pass, Destin


My nephews Hunter and Spencer


My nephew Travis

"Rage, rage against the dying of the light."- Dylan Thomas
Time to update everyone on the last few months. I don't really have any excuses for not blogging other than not wanting to sit down and write. Since the last post back in November, lots has taken place.
The most significant is the passing of my beloved uncle Hall. He passed away on New Years Day. Thankfully, I was able to go down to FWB to spend some time with him back in September and over Christmas to say my goodbyes. It is never easy to see someone in such pain but he remained full of vigor and was determined to fight till the end. The time I spent with him over the break was short but i was able to convey how important he was/is in my life and thank him for so many things. He will be missed but he left so much behind. I have some of his artwork in my room here. There was a memorial service held at sunset on the point of the yacht club. I didn't go but I can imagine how beautful it must have been. The marine guards shooting their guns in honor of their fallen soldier.
As for work, the last two months I have been doing my neurology rotation. The first half was ok and the second has been much better. It is a very interesting field and I am glad I have gotten exposure to it. I can't imagine going through medical school without having had some neuro experience. I am due to start my ob/gyn rotation a week from today. Most of the people I know who have done this rotation at my hospital are not happy during the rotation. I am hoping this will not be the case for me. The hours will be some of the worst I hear. We shall see how it goes.
I have been doing a bit more touristy stuff lately too. I went to see the HUGE Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center. The place was packed with tourist but worth it. The smell was amazing! Up until a week ago the weather was "mild" here. (Well, mild for NY but still not my ideal.) I was so excited the last weekend when it reached 72! This is apparently unheard of here. I spent the day in SoHo with Liz and then we went to Central Park. Then the next day we went to the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens to see the cherry blossoms. I will post a picture of them. The trees must be confused with all the spring time weather we had in December! The gardens although mostly barren were still a sight to see and I look forward to going back in the Spring when the rest of it comes to life.
Yesterday, I registered for the USMLE Step 2. I can't believe that in less than 8 months I am going to be studying for that horrid test again. I am not looking forward to it. Also, I am trying to arrange the electives I will do during my fourth year and make sure that I can graduate on time.
Thats all I can think of for now. For those of you out there reading this blog, I am going to try to post more frequently and if I don't please do feel free to pester me to post!

Me, Sylvie and Annabeth under the Chrysler building.

I can't believe it is almost Thanksgiving!
Since I last posted nothing too exciting has happened. Things are just moving along. I am now almost finished with my pediatrics rotation. Only two more weeks to go. I spent three weeks on the inpatient floor and last week in the ER. It has been a good experience so far and hopefully will continue. I am gonna be in the clinic this week and then well baby nursery the last week. I think that might be my favorite! The hours were way more intense than laid back psychiatry was and a lot of on call time (on call means your in the hospital working). My hours weren't as bad as they could have been but for two weeks there i was putting in almost 70 hours a week which was not fun. Now that I am off the floor the hours have improved. I had to stay home on Friday from work due to a massive sinus and ear infection. (It actually was pretty nice to have a little more time off too). I have almost fully recovered and am ready to go back for a few days before Thanksgiving. I get the day itself off but not Friday. Good news is though that Pete, Barb and the girls are arriving on Wednesday and I plan to spend lots of time with them! I dont' think I will be having any turkey this year but I'll survive. In the last four years I have only had one thanksgiving dinner so another missed one won't kill me. I'll try to post some pictures of the girls and our activites once they leave. Everyone in FWB is getting together for a big turkey dinner and I do wish I could be down there with all of them. Hopefully I can make it down for Christmas instead.

a little something to hold you over till I update my blog!

taken by my dad 

The Penguins!

Isn't he adorable!

one of the polar bears

Beth and Felix at the Zoo

Brooklyn Bridge at night

Fireworks from under the Brooklyn Bridge

they were everywhere about the size of basket balls

big fat jelly fish off the dock

Me and Uncle Hall

Heather, Travis and Me

Lunch at Bay Cafe

Alphabet mess

Two weekends ago, I went and met Liz for dinner at the famous Grimaldi's Pizzeria under the Brooklyn Bridge. The trip there tops the lists of "how much worse can this get". I must share this with you all because it is almost comical the trouble I went through to get there. Note this restaurant is less than 2 miles away from my apartment. So I left my place and headed for the subway. I am sitting on the platform waiting for my train, the "F" train. A "G" train arrives, I continue to sit on the platform waiting for my train when I suddenly realize there has been a change and the "G" is running as the "F". So I hop on and try to figure out where I'm gonna
have to get off. I then get off at the place it says to change to the "F" train. I wait for the "F", get on the "F" and realize after about four stops that it is going in a direction completely oppostite of where I need to go. So I ask those around me for directions and come to find out about 5 other people are also in the same predicament as me. Apparently the "G" is the "F" the "F" is the "C" and I am totally confused as to where or how to get to the restaurant. I get off at the next stop and change to the "F" train (really the "C" train) going the correct direction after much up and down and crossing platforms accompanied by the other lost passengers. I ride to station that seems to be the closest to where I need to go and decided to just get out of the subway cause this whole thing is not working. I leave the station and start walking and asking for directions and am told "ohh its a nice day for a walk there" (ohh god, what does that mean). After 15 minutes of walking, I ask someone again and they tell me it is another 20 minute walk! WHAT! So I hailed the first cab I found (not easy to do in Brooklyn). I tell him exactly where I need to go and am relieved to know I will finally get there. I had already called liz like 5 plus times to tell her I was still on my way an hour later! All of the sudden I realize that the cab is about to go OVER the Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan. I explain to him the situation and he says, in broken english, ok, get out here (aka in the middle of the major road and cross over the double concrete barriers to the sidewalk). I was like NO, I dont' think so! So we had to go over the bridge and back over the other way and finally after 1 hour 30-45 minutes later I arrived at the restaurant. Thankfully, the food was great and there was even a huge fireworks display after dinner. My trip home cost me $10 dollars and only took 10 minutes.

Time to play catch up!
I haven't posted much in the last weeks. No particular reason other than I just kept putting it off. So since I last wrote, I have finished 4 weeks of my psych rotation, been down to FWB, had Beth, Nana and Felix as houseguests and managed to squeeze in some tourista stuff too.
The rotation is going well. I am pretty sure that I can say I dont' want to be a psychiatrist! I dont' know how people do that kind of work all the time. They should be nominated for sainthood for all they endure. I am glad to get the experience though and feel I can get a thourough history from any patient after this rotation. I have my oral exam a week from tomorrow and the written a week from Friday. Which means I need to crack down on studying!
The trip down to FWB was short and fast paced. I was able to visit with all the family down there and especially Uncle Hall. I only wish I could go down there more often. The trip back from there was a nightmare but after a night in Atlanta, I made it back in time for my morning meeting with my preceptor.
This weekend Beth, Nana and Felix came to stay with me! Felix has grown so much since I saw him last in July. He is an adorable baby and so alert. He looks a lot like Pete. Beth, Felix and I went to the Central Park Zoo on Saturday. The weather was pleasant and I especially enjoyed seeing the penguins. I think I might want to go back again to see them. I will post pictures so you can see for yourself.

LOCKED IN

The vacation has come to an end and my exploration of the city will be limited to weekends and the little bit of spare time I find. The break was definetly a chance to get my ducks in a row and now I am ready to start back.

My first rotation is in Pyschiatry. This is apparently an "easy"start compared to other core rotations. This week I was on the inpatient ward with two other students. I spent most of the time trying to figure out what the expectations are and what my attending wants me to do. I am happy with the attending I am following (such a relief). The ward is locked down at all times, I can't even go to the bathroom without someone letting me in. They dont' give med students keys to anything! I have met some interesting patients but sadly cannot discuss them since patient confidentiality must be maintained!

On another note, I am going to be heading down to FWB not this weekend but next! It will give me a chance to visit with Uncle Hall who is not in good health. Please keep him in your prayers.
I will try to post more often than I have been.

Rooftop view of the light memorial for 9/11 

Brooklyn Bridge

Took a walk across Brooklyn Bridge. It had amazing views despite the cloudy weather.

Sunset from my place last night....see lady liberty shining on the horizon?

In honor of dad and wm!

New York Stock Exchange

Trinity Church

City Hall Park (sat here and had lunch)

Camden Plaza, Brooklyn

a nice touch of color in the city!