Last one before the big sha-bang…

So, fifth semester is done done DONE! It ended oh, say 3 weeks ago, and do you think that our grades are out yet? Nope. So hopefully all is well.

Currently I’m residing in Aventura Florida, which is just north of Miami. Its got some major attractions like a giant mall, and a casino that is also a horse track. Sadly I don’t go to either because its all business on my end… well, mostly business. Study study study, with some guilty pleasure television mixed in.

I take my next test on September 10^th (everybody cross your fingers, toes, and any other crossable appendage that I do AWESOME). After that, I immediately drive up to Fort Lauderdale to pick up my mom, and then back to Aventura to pack up all my stuff so we can head out in the morning for the grueling Florida to Illinois drive. Perhaps I will be greated by some pumpkin bars when I get home (hint hint cough cough). :)

Otherwise, not much to report here except that I have depleted all of my fancy popcorn seasonings, and now only have white cheddar…. Boring….

~Kristen

2 weeks and counting

PE exam- DONE. Thats 20% of my grade that I know is a 90 or above, so that sortof levels out my average midterm performance. Now for the other 50% that is still yet to be determined.... Let me whine for a moment, but is that not insane!?!?! 70% of our grades is still up in the air and the semester ends on August 6th. That is absolutely nutty.

Anyhow- I have one rotation left and it turns out that its in pediatrics. Hopefully that will go well. (I actually hope that the doctor wont want us there the whole week so I can go visit my mom and dad, but either way- lets hope for something). Nothing much as to add to the list of stuff I am doing. I am studying so I can get through this semester, and then I will study some more so I can rock the NBME comprehensive exam, so then I can (you guessed it) come home and study some more for the USMLE 1. *sigh*

Kristen

Are we done yet?

So 5th semester drags on.... getting close to the end though. Lets just do well with the rest of the semester exams and whatnot, which conveniently are all within this last 3 weeks. (NOTE SARCASM).

Just got done with a 2 week ER rotation, which was 3- 11 hour sessions in the hospital. Note to self- if I decide to go into ER make sure you a) have a good pair of shoes or b) can sit when you write about the patient. To much standing.

Now, I'm just studying for the final (which can be on anything) and gearing up for the Physical Exam test that I have in a week. What I need to do is practice, but Bela is never around, so I suppose I will substitute a pillow for her... not too much difference really, and practice that way. I need to do well on that to off set my not so stellar mid term and paper performances.

Cue posting!

Its been a month, so an update is in order :) (in actuality I forget that I have this now that I'm back in the states until I get an email from a family member)

So- Happy 4th of July!!!! I hope that everyones was just as enjoyable as mine was. Mike flew in for the weekend so I had to show him a good time riiight. We went to a piano bar and South Beach clubbing the first night, which was the first time both of us had gone to SoBe (what they call S. Beach) That night confirmed the fact that I'm an old fart at heart. My friend Ben and Brit were picking places based on closing times and well this one place was cool, but it closed at 3am, so they decided the club that closed at 5 am would be a better choice. All the meanwhile I'm tagging along thinking to myself- its already midnight.... my bedtime was 2 hours ago. And apparently Mike is pretty much on the same page as I am. Not exactly big partiers. Getting home by 4:30 am is insane, and not something I want to make a habit of. I dont know how some of my friends do it.

That was the 3rd (and the wee hours of the 4th) so for evening festivties on the 4th we went to Downtown S. Miami to a place called Bayfront park. Its pretty much right by where we have class. The fireworks were awesome and since the bay curves everyone pretty much had front row viewing spots. Very cool. The only thing not cool about the evening was the fact that the place we had dinner was a total disappointment. Bad food, bad service, but the major kicker was food poisoning. GROSS! Dinner is never good the second time around on the same evening- but I'm finally feeling better.

Otherwise- life has been relatively low key because I had case study for the last 2 weeks. But it has gotten better. Mom visiting for a week, then a delivery of my car and with it- FREEDOM!!!!!!!! This week I'm scheduled at a hospital called North Shore (somewhere up in North Miami... great- another hour long plus drive in the morning) but I dont know what in yet. Lets hope surgery. Had a midterm a week ago- could have gone better, but didnt totally F up. Now I just need to do better on the final and physical exam part.

Well, I'll try to remember that its not just me living my life right now :) and try to be a little better about updating.

Como se dice Miami en espanol?

After much deliberation and some persuation, I have decided to keep doing the blog. So far Miami has been like a roller coaster ride that started in an underground cave. Lots of ups and downs, but its getting better, and hopefully the ride ends above ground. I guess first you will need the basics- we don’t have a land line here so if you need/want to reach me call the cell phone. My address here is 6870 SW 44^th St. Apt 207, Miami FL 33155, if you need/want to send me anything.

So now- I will attempt to start my Miami journey from the beginning. Got here on May 8^th so that I could get situated and keep studying before our big test which was on the 20^th. But class started on the 17^th and they were basically 9-4 (or 5) days at a building that takes us 45 minutes to get too, and by the time class was over we were so tired that studying was a definite chore. I did get the program done that I wanted to complete, but in the end I was still just shy of passing this test. I will get another chance in September, and will have more than 2 weeks to study 2 years of medical school that time. The pass rate for this test was pretty much 50% so it wasn’t exactly easy. 4 hours of any test just sucks- next time I will do more practice tests as a means of endurance training.

Meanwhile- in the first week here, my friends were busy turning their lives upsidedown and changing my happy little normal existence. Jon (who had been looking at engagement rings for his girlfriend of 4 years not but 3 weeks earlier) and Bela (who is married) decided that they were both simultaneously unhappy in their relationships and that the other was a far superior option- and POOF they are now dating. Hopefully it all turns out fine, because if not it will sure make things awkward around the apartment complex, and in carpool rides to class. I was not exactly pleasant during the big reveal and change either, but I’m over it. I am adopting a Sheryl Crow mantra for the situation, and If it Makes Them Happy, then what the hell.

That first week, we went out too- an Italian place called Scarpetta’s where dinner cost me 100 bucks. I mean the food was fantastic, but I am just as content eating chicken fritters for 9 dollars thanks. And there is a pretty cool mall fairly close to our house. It’s a big 2 story outdoor type mall that also has a theatre and IMAX and a bowling alley/bar too. Its very cool.

Then school started. The first two weeks we (Bela and I- we are clinical partners, so we go everywhere together. They do it to make carpooling easier) were scheduled for Family Medicine. We went to a doctors office in North Miami (which takes an hour to get too) twice a week to shadow the doctor (who turns out isn’t even an MD- he’s a PA, so we felt jipped). And let me tell you- this office is shady as hell. If the HIPPA lady went there, it would get fined out the behind. Absolutely. The thing is that he has a niche because he speaks the Haitian dialect of creole and his office is located in a part of town very close to a Haitian neighborhood. AND his doctor patient relationships are probably what keep patients coming back. But still- shady as hell.

Our schedule here is basically a big giant mystery except for I know what I do on Wednesdays- Class at the Hyatt, in downtown Miami. Otherwise- they let us know what we’re doing about 4 days in advance- which super sucks for planning a vacation etc.

Otherwise life is very busy and in my free time I try to study so I can rock this test the next time. But last night was pretty fun. Bela and I went to a drug company sponsored dinner, so of course I ordered the most expensive thing on the menu- a beef tenderloin dinner, and let me tell you- it was the best piece of beef I have had ever. AMAZING. If only I could go to nice restaurants on someone elses dollar more often. *sigh* But it was funny, the head honcho dude that was there was from North Chicago, and he had a 17 year son that was looking into Augustana- small world right. Ha.

That’s pretty much all I’ve got right now. We just our schedule for next week today, and we don’t have clinical- but some other thing that was like learning how to do a proper neuro exam or something. Its all a giant mess really. I really wish that it were more organized.

~Kristen

Happy Easter

I'm so close I can almost taste it. I just took one of my final 4 tests, so 3 more to go and then HOME!!!! Unfortunately this test sorta sucked. Its just hard to do an exam on someone in 6 minutes when A- you dont know what one of 60 you're gonna get, and B- you're a little nervous. Needless to say, the buzzer went off and I still had two fingers in the poonanie model.... :( Oh well, I did a killer respiratory exam though. I'm just glad that one's over because I have bigger more intimidating fish to fry. Like mini 3 on the 14th, and our two part Uber intimidating final on the 22nd, but then, on Friday, I'm flying my white ass outta here!

Nothing much of interest has happened in the past 2 weeks here really. I studied, I went to the market for the last time, I made pumpkin cake- and while making pumpkin cake dropped an entire carton of eggs on the floor requiring me to the market for the real last time to buy more eggs, dyed my eggs for Easter, and took my ICM exam. Pretty uneventful. You can expect that I will be hard core studying for the next 16 days of my life to insure that I can do and will do my best. That being said, this is most likely my last Dominica post. Feel free to email me, and I will be home later this month. YAY! COUNTDOWN!!!

~Kristen

So close... yet so far

We'll, lots has gone down since my last post. I took a test, did both good and bad on it. Then went to the semester 4 banquet- ie "Med School Prom" that weekend and then celebrated some birthdays the next weekend. So basically, now I need to study like there is no tomorrow because 50% of our grades are still up in the air, and I dont particularly feel like staying on this island any longer than absolutely necessary.

I know I mentioned Splash Bash earlier, but I ended up not going. That party wouldnt have really started until midnight, and well, I dont stay up that late. AND Jon was sick and he was the only one of us that really really wanted to go. I hear that it was crazy awesome, but I got to sleep and then went to the market in the morning so whatever.

Banquet was a blast. Good food and fun people usually is though.

Then on Friday Jon wanted to celebrate his birthday (a week early mind you) so we went and had dinner at De Champs (a local bar on the top of a very large hill). And finally last night, was my friend Nadia's birthday party- which was UNBELIEVABLE. She rented our a place that was 40 minutes away and had the food catered in. I forgot that I was in Dominica for a few hours. It was sooo nice. I dont even want to imagine how much money she spent on it, because it had to have been crazy expensive. What I can say coming off of the adventure that was yesterday, is that if I dont hear Shania Twain's "Come on Over" album for the next year or so, I will still be ok. That was the only tape that the bus driver had, so we listened to it at least twice. But I did know all of the words, so go me.

~Kristen

Welcome to Miami

So big news, I'm going to MIAMI for 5th semester!!!!!!! (once I get through the hell that is shaping out to be 4th semester). Instead of dealing with the application process and selection nonsense for Michigan and the insecurity of not knowing if you'll even get in, Bela and I (convinced by our friend Jon) will be living together in a super nice townhouse/condo thing. Its called Ludlam Point, and its located in the Coral Gables area. You can check out what they rent out here. We will be staying in "The Beacon" model- 2 bed 2 bath, that will be fully furnished, water and electricity included, with a washer and dryer for $1000 each per month... which is pretty darn cheap unless you wanted to rent a room in somebodies house. They even allow dogs of any sizes! But I will most likely end up just adding to my fish collection because they are soooo much easier.

The next mini is in a week, so its once again crunch time. But the weekend after the mini is jam packed with events- the 4th semester banquet, Splash Bash, and more I'm sure. All I can say currently is that we are all feeling the pressure, and are having to dig deep down inside to muster the will to keep studying. It is BRUTAL! That being said, I am going to continue to study, or at least try to.

~Kristen

Happy Valentines Day- almost

So its been a busy few weeks since my birthday. I lay it out for you here quickly... First I had to Study Study Study, then I took a test, went to the Beach Bash after the test, studied some more, and then went to a surprise for my friend Kieran yesterday, and now its back to study study study. The parties were definitely a blast, but the test- not so much. I did not do as well as I would have hoped, BUT I did do better than I was doing last semester, which is good.

In island news, I'm not sure if you heard, but yesterday pretty much everything was covered in volcanic ash because a cap or dome of some sort on a volcano on a neighboring island collapsed and ash went everywhere. Here's the link they sent us- www.mvo.ms I didnt know this for a while and just kept wondering why everything was so damn dusty. Ha.

I still havent decided what to do for 5th semester yet. Lots of my friends are headed towards Miami, but like I said, I dont know if I want to throw my name in the ring for Michigan. All I do know, is that the countdown is at 68... I made a website for this semester too- COUNTDOWN

OH! I almost forgot the biggest scandal of the week!!!! On Tuesday morning, at approximately 5:15 AM my backpack was stolen from my apartment. How- you may ask??? I was staying at a beach cottage with Bela that night so I wasnt there, but basically the burglars took the screen off my back window and went fishing. Fishing because all of my windows are barred and the door was locked so they couldnt physically get into my apartment, but they did happen to have a 12 ft 2x1 with a nail in the end that they used to hook my backpack. Then they pulled it out of my apartment. Lucky for me my computer was NOT in there... but I sadly realized that the charger to my computer was, basically rendering my laptop useless in 1 hours time. SO I called security and the police (which by the way- the police here STILL havent called me back... I'm supposed to be waiting to hear back from them- I called TUESDAY!!!!!!! so Law Enforcement here is about as useful as a poopy flavored lollipop) and reported it. It turns out that a neighbor called security because she was woken up by the thieves fishing, and security had recovered most of my belongings from the backpack. I.E. the thieves stole my backpack, and instead of just taking it and running, they emptied it outside of my apartment (they didnt want my tampons and chapstick apparently.... but they also didnt want my COMPUTER CHARGER!!!) So happy day I got it back from security! :) But not before I had to fight them for it. They still have a bunch of my stuff but wont let me have it because maybe the Magistrate will want to take these guys to court and they will need it for evidence. I asked how long that would take, and the answer was "I dont know, it could be days, weeks, months, or years..." Ridiculous right. Then I asked if I could just drop the charges, because they dont have my backpack anyways, and his response "so then all of our efforts would have been in vein?" ARE YOU KIDDING!!! The security here is the biggest f*ing cluster f*** I have ever seen. All they do is sit on their arses all day watching students come and go and drive around. I think the robbery at my place was the first in almost a months time... So give me a break here! (sorry for the vent, but I'm fed up with it).

Anyways, here are some pictures from the past few weeks.

<3 ~Kristen

Another Successful Journey Around the Sun

One year older... and one year wiser?? Lets hope so :) So I had a pretty fantastic weekend. On Friday we went to the beach for my birthday, because Friday was "Research Day" which meant that there was no class, but instead Ross brings in speakers that students have the option to go listen to in the morning. I had ICM so I couldnt go, but at 3 pm we met up at the beach. I will put some pictures up from that.

Then for Saturday the plan was to try out this new Indian food place for dinner at my friend Jon's house. I was never to keen on this though because all of my friends that had gone there all said it had sucked, but whatever. But at around 3 pm on Saturday I got a serious case of heartburn and thought I was going to die. Its a good thing that my friend Kieran had some tums though and I felt better eventually... its a good thing too, because when I went over to meet my friends at Jon's place I was pleasantly surprised to find that we weren't actually getting Indian food, but instead they threw me a SURPRISE PARTY!!!!! It was amazing. All of it.... the food, the people, the fact that they planned it. All amazing. I was definitely surprised. They gave me a new Tupperware bowl for popcorn (because I broke another one of mine) and popcorn to go in it. And Kieran got me some mace. I will post pictures from that too.

What else is going on... well they decided that now would be a great time to add the 3rd floor to my apartment building. You know now that I could finally study at home because I didnt have a neighbor with kids, and it was peaceful and lovely... yeah. So basically it sounds like they are trying to juggle elephants but keep dropping them every day from 8-4. Other than that, nothing much else is happening as of yet... Our first test is on Feb. 8th so we are all working for that.

~Kristen

Photo Guide: (because it doesnt let me put the description by the picture....)
1) Josh
2) Charles
3) Me... all on friday
4) I blew all 23 out
5)The people at my party... from the left: Ben, Josh, Bela, Jon, Charles, Me, and Kieran
6)I was very very surprised.

I'm BAAACK!

Well I made it back to island safe and sound. There were a few minor hitches in the initial travels... ie I had to magically make 30 pounds disappear from my checked bag before they could go on the plane. Needless to say I had a very very heavy carryon. So far we have already had 27 hours of class plus ICM endeavors, and we all already feel behind, but still are going out this weekend because it will be the only one where we can "afford" it timewise. So yesterday our little group went out to dinner, and on Sunday Bela and I with other various friends are going river tubing. Then my social life is no more. :(

Disney world was a lot of fun, just as it should be. I dont really know what to say about it, but that it was a very good idea, and I'm glad we went, but it was pretty chilly. I had to bought another sweatshirt, and wore a hat and gloves the whole time, but compared to -2.... 45 is great.

Here are some pictures of the various excursions.