Who knew....

On friday I ventured out to Rochester NY to visit Alana. Of course, one mention of Rochester and my step-dad was begging to come along. I, being the nice one I am, said yes...and he took the day off from work to drive out with me. While he was out walking the locks of the old Erie Canal, Alana and I saw the new Batman movie....which should be called "That movie with Heath Ledger". After the movie, Alana, Fur and myself headed over to TGIFs for dinner. It was almost 8pm and Fur and I were planning on leaving when he asked if we could see the old railroad tracks in the city. Always up for an adventure, I said yes. I lived in Rochester for almost 2 years, yet I had never really appreciated the history or architecture within the city itself. It was really beautiful and I am happy I went. Of course I had to listen to Furry's stories (he thinks he is a huge history buff regarding the Erie Canal :) :) Here are some pics:







Aren't I cute??



Furry never smiles...only smirks....

Everyone have a great night!!

:) :)

So, what does one do on a tuesday night in good ole Utica, NY. Why, attend the roller derby event at the Auditorium!!! Mit was gracious enough to call me up and invite me to this most amazing event. I remember seeing roller derby on TV as a kid, but I vaguely remembered...plus, I had never seen it up close and so personal. It was like being in a foreign country. Who knew there were soooo many die hard followers and fans. It took Di a few times to explain to me what the hell was going on....but I finally understood. So, I will try to explain....in my own words....

So you have 2 teams who roll around on this oval track. When I say roll, I mean on roller skates. Remember those?? I remember being around 10 and my mom dropping me off at Midstate to skate on a friday/saturday evening. I also vaguely remember getting my own pair of skates as a present, but whether or not I had a big poofy ball on the skate boot I can't remember (or maybe I blocked it out). Anyway, back to the derby....so you have 2 teams on this oval track. Each team sends out 5 players. There are blockers, and a pacer....and the jammer. The jammer is the person who scores points. Each round lasts about 2 minutes, and the jammers for both teams try to circle the other players scoring points as they pass. Its up to the blockers to prevent the other teams jammer from scoring by knocking her down. They aren't supposed to use their hands but there was plenty of that last night (which apparently the refs were not paying attention to). If a player does do something illegal, they are sent to the penalty box and must sit there until they can rejoin the action. Overall, the game was fairly interesting. No injuries to report, which totally saddened the Doctor in me.....especially when Dy told me about the girl who broke her ankle weeks back, and bones were sticking out....I want to see BONES!!!

After the derby, we stayed to see some of the National Roller Hockey Championships. Very interesting sport as well. Its like field hockey on roller skates. Very fast paced. Honestly, I don't think I could do it....not having spent most of my time on ice hockey skates/roller blades!! :)

My last exciting news is that I ate at Panera Bread last night for dinner. I think I only ate there once before, when I used to work at the Pharmacy and my weekend warrior companions wanted to order out for dinner. I was surprised on how good it was...and how packed it was. I had the grilled chicken asian sesame salad. Very, very good. I was tempted to try a latte, but I really didn't need the caffeine at 6pm....maybe some morning I will try it. I also had a bit of Mit's chocolate chip cookie....and as she said, it was very good!!

Alright, I have some work to do today. Car is getting new tires, I need to go for a run, and do some studying. Everyone have a great day!!

:)

Well, I have officially been home for a week and so far everything is going well. I spent the weekend in Saratoga with the family. I really love that town...very busy...and beautiful....lots of things to do. I just wish it was racing season because I love horse racing. I haven't been in years :(

This week I am slightly busy. Have to take the car in to get its 60,000 mile check-up....also needs 2 new tires and a front end alignment. I have some pharm work to do (need to get a head start so i have more time to study for step 1).

Other than that, I am working out....trying to maintain my new figure, and just enjoying home. 5 more weeks and then its back to the grenada grind. Everyone have a great day!!

Rain, rain, rain

So I leave rainy Grenada to come home to rainy Upstate NY....AHHHH!! Actually, I don't mind because one of my favorite things to do is run in the rain, and this morning it poured!!!

So, my flight home was not very fun. Here is the story: I decided to get to the airport around 2pm, check my bags in, and then hang out at home until my 6:10pm flight. I found out the flight was postponed until 9:30pm. So, I went back home, took a nap, played on the computer and then around 6:30pm, I decided to walk to the airport because a large, dark cloud was rolling in. Then, I waited, and waited, and waited some more until 11:15pm when we finally boarded the flight. Funny short story....I got to my seat to find a Grenadian sitting in my seat. I said "Excuse me sir, you are in my seat" and he responded by saying "It took you long enough to get on the damn flight so you gave your seat up". I looked around....hardly anyone was on the flight yet because they were still back in the terminal (I was one of the first 25 to make it to the plane). Anyway, I decided not to be nice....I told him to get up out of my seat or I would make a huge scene.....he moved.....of course, he grumbled the entire time and was not very pleasant, but I slept most of the way to NYC anyway.

Landing in New York at 5:30am was great!!! Then I made my way to the Jet Blue terminal, checked into my flight, had some coffee and breakfast, and waited for my flight....which was also delayed, but for which I could care less because I was stuck in an American airport with Dunkin!!

Home has been really nice so far. I have gone to all my favorite places....Target, Walmart, Best Buy, Marshall's.....and, I had really good sushi Monday night!! Spicy tuna and an avocado vegee roll....:)

Today I'm heading out with the family to Saratoga for a nice relaxing vacation. I'll be sure to take some pics and post them next week. Everyone have a great day!!!

:)

Well, after waiting the entire week I finally got my path grade. My final for the course: 88.68. I was 0.32 points away from an A :( It was SO close.

So the rest of the week has been hell here...and by hell I mean really boring. I did nothing on tuesday, although I was supposed to be studying for clinical skills. I would start to study and then decide to do something else, like watch a movie, or take a nap. Wednesday's lab practical was funny because I arrived at my designated time slot and was assigned to a room only to find it was the same Doctor I had for my midterm....who happens to be very nice and fair. Then I walked down to the many pieces of paper face down with our practical exams and guess what I picked?? The same patient exam I picked for midterm. So, I told the Doctor I would do it again for her but I would really like to be tested on something else. So, I got to re-pick. So, I had to perform a respiratory exam, plus 2 minors....check for meningeal irritation and palpate the thyroid. My exam went really well, and I got an A. Then, I did nothing for the rest of Wednesday....studied a tad bit on thursday for the written. Took the written test yesterday and then.....

I saw a cricket game!!!!! Kate was nice enough to invite me to my first game and it was awesome....I had a great time. I watched Australia play the West Indies and it was really like watching a professional football team play a prison team. West Indies was okay....but Australia blew them out of the water. The only unfortunate part was I totally forgot sunscreen and I BURNED!!! My face, arms, knees.....so, i'm hurting a little today. I had a great sushi dinner last night and then went out with friends to Prickly Bay to celebrate. Had a few drinks...came home..slept for a few hours....brought Layne to the airport at 3:30am... hung out for a few hours....came home and went to bed.....got up at 9am...ate breakfast and here I am now!!

Today will be a fun and lazy day of packing and relaxing. If the sun comes out I may go down to the beach. Tomorrow I have laundry to do....some more packing....then, my fluffy butt gets on a plane at 5:30pm and I'm off to NYC!!! Can't wait to get home....play with my puppy....have some real sushi....and relax!

It's Over!!!!!

So, Pathology is now a distant memory. I officially finished the 3rd and last test at 12:08pm today. YAY!!!!! Overall, I thought the test was fairly easy and predictable. The questions were not 10th order like in previous tests. Also, the questions seemed to be alot more generalized...no testing of ridiculous details that none of us would remember in 10 minutes. I actually finised with almost 40 minutes left. And, since Pathology is the only class that will not allow you to leave the test early, I spent the rest of the time re-reading and looking over the questions on the one topic I had the least knowledge of....Male pathology!! How appropriate, right?? :)

Anyway, so....now I am just enjoying the moment of not having to study Path. Of course I have a stupid everlasting grin on my face. I think I will watch a movie now.....Baby Mamma is calling my name. And tomorrow morning, I get to spend the whole day cramming for my clinical skills practical. Everyone have a great day!!!

P DAY!!!

Today has arrived. The last Pathology final. :)

AHHHHH!!! Ready......set......

June 19th!!

Today is National Hurricane Awareness Day in Grenada. And I know this because of a neat little feature that is available to us here in Grenada. Something that I never had at home. Text messaging courtesy of your cell phone provider. Anytime there is a contest, or a chance to buy double the minutes for one low price, or a national event (like today) my phone makes its customary "I have a new text message awaiting your viewing" noise....and I look...and there is my message from Digicel updating me on the current news, events, and promotions. Verizon NEVER did that for me. So I guess being here has some nice perks to it.

In other news, I have been busy studying for the final Pathology test which will occur at 9 am sharp this monday. Am I prepared??? Well, I think I am. The better question is, am I prepared to answer insanely long, 10th order questions from professors who find it amusing to test us on disorders and diseases we will probably never see as physicians. Case in point.....we are constantly bombarded about this one disease called Goodpasture's which causes bloody urination and bloody cough/sputum (ask me about the pathogenesis on this one when I'm home because I know it!!). Anyway, today while I was trying to gain better insight into this disease through my search on wikipedia, I found out that Goodpasture's accounts for only 1% of ALL renal diseases. 1%!!! What?? The only doctor that will ever see this on maybe a yearly basis is a nephrologist and I know I won't be going into that field. But, we need to learn about it. Thanks Path for inundating my already swollen brain with useless material.

So, I had the opportunity tonight to try another Grenadian restaurant. We went to The Ocean Grill in St. George's. It was good. I just had a drink and appetizer....coconut shrimp and a pina colada. Yummy!!! Long story on how I ended up going out on a night when I should have been studying, but lets save that and just say that the food was very good and I definitely want to go back for lunch. If not this term, definitely next.

Well, plans for tomorrow are the following: Get up at 5:30am, make coffee and breakfast, drink coffee, wrap up breakfast, go to school, study, study, eat breakfast, study, study until 11am, workout for an hour, come home and eat lunch, shower and small nap, study, study, study, eat dinner, study, study, study, study, bedtime at 10:30pm.

Unless something really good happens this weekend (and you never know), my next post will be monday after the monstrousity. Have a great night. :)

Friday the 13th.....

Am I superstitious??? Absolutely not....because I have no time to be superstitious....I'm working hard studying for pathology. We just finished a week of Bone Path and Neuro Path and I just finished typing up my notes. Next week we get to hear lectures on Forensic Path and Skin Path. The forensics sounds fun and I am actually going to attend those lectures. The Skin packet has lots of pictures, so I may just attend those too (to see them in color).

So not too much to report here. This week has been really hectic. The nice thing is, I will be home really, really, REALLY soon!! I have been on this island for WAY TOO LONG!! And I desperately need a break. I have already been daydreaming about all the things I want to do. Go see a movie. Sushi. Chinese. Outback. Shop at Target. Shop at Walmart. Drive on the right side of the road. Of course, I can't eat too much because I need to maintain my new figure. But I can indulge a little :)

Since I don't have too much to talk about, I have decided to show you a picture of what I have to deal with here in Grenada:

These are the wonderful worms that just seem to appear out of nowhere. One minute they are not there....and the next....a worm. And these are not speed demon worms by any means. They are extremely sloooooow. So how do they suddenly appear in the middle of our dining room floor?? I have actually had the pleasure of finding out where they come from. One day, while sitting in my room....I catch something out of the corner of my eye and hear this very faint "thud" sound. I look over the side of my bed and see a worm (much like the one in the picture) that I know was not there 30 seconds before because I had just come in from getting a glass of water. These worms fall from the sky!!! No really...they do. I think they somehow make it up on to the roof, in through the rafters, crawl their way to a nice open space and drop down on to the floor. Nasty right??? I'm always nervous that one will land on me while I'm sleeping, so I make it a habit to check the ceiling every night before bed. I guess it could be worse....it could be a spider dropping down from the ceiling. I guess in the grand scheme of things I would much rather deal with quarter sized, slower than dirt worms, than quarter sized 8 furry legged spiders. :)

Bummed :(

My penguins lost to the red wings last night. It was inevitable considering Pittsburgh was a young team with little experience.....and Detroit has many experienced veterans and european players. I admit that Detroit really was the better team, but watch out for the Penguins in a couple of years when they are older and wiser!!

So today, karma came and bit me in the ***. Every monday for Path lecture we have a team based learning session where are lab groups assemble, we are given cases that we talk over, and then we spend about 45 minutes presenting them to the rest of the class. A few months back, no one in my group wanted to speak and kept insisting that I do it. I didn't feel like talking that day because I just wasn't in a very good mood. So, as our time approached I discreetly got up to "use the bathroom" and then conveniently returned when our turn was over. I know, that wasn't the nicest thing to do, but...my group was being mean to me that day. Well, today it came back to haunt me. This week, in addition to slides, we had 5 cases to do. Our group assigned the cases to correspond with the slides that we have to present. So on Tuesday, my slide was Adrenal Adenoma, and then I presented Case #2 on Cushing's syndrome. Then today, we learned that those cases were actually scheduled to be completed in lab today. They randomly picked 5 groups to come up to the front and present. And didn't our group get picked for Case #2, and wasn't that the case I presented on Tuesday...YES IT WAS!! So, my group MADE me go up and present the case. The only bad part was, I forgot what I had talked about on Tuesday ( I have been concentrating on studying Renal this week, and not cementing the details for Endocrine). But, I did okay (at least that is what my group mates said....although they are probably lying). There was one question from the professor that I was a little mixed up on, but Layne had gone up with me and she knew the answer. Overall, the moral is....Karma exists!!! So don't mess with it!!

In other news....I'm studying Endocrine tonight. In my attempt to still try for an A in Pathology, I once again have revamped my study style (this is the 3 time this semester for this class). I have decided to skip lectures, and spend that time making my notes and learning the concepts. Then, after reviewing everything, I am going back to listen to all the lectures online. The school records all of the lectures, although you can only hear the audio, no pictures. So far, this way seems to be working well for me. I'm not as confused as to what is going on during the lecture, and I feel I am able to pick up the little details that I usually miss when I'm actually sitting in class. We will see come test time if this method works.

Guess what Satuday is???? BELMONT!!!! Big Brown going for the Triple Crown. I think I will head over to school around 5pm to see history. Although, I shouldn't say that because I may jinx it. But I am rooting for Big Brown to win, and looking at the odds, so is everyone else.

Forgot to mention that Tuesday was Kaushik's b-day. Layne, Allison, and myself made him brownies (he's a choco-holic), went over to his apartment, and hung out for an hour. Of course, Kaushik's roommate Richard made a cake, so not only did I have a brownie, but that as well. Which meant that today, I had to run extra hard and long. 1 hour and 8 minutes. My knees are screaming!! But its okay, because I am deteremined to reach my final destination weight of 128 before I leave this island.

Well, enough about me....how are all of you doing??? I can't wait to be home in 3 1/2 weeks to find out. See you all soon!!! :)

150 - 30 =

20 POUNDS!!!! I have finally reached my goal....almost 4 weeks early! On January 26th I decided that by June 30th I wanted to lose 20 pounds, and I did it. The healthy way of course....eating well, exercising....plenty of water and rest. So, time to celebrate with a nice big ice cream!! No, not really....but I am having some sushi tonight, and that is very similar to ice cream (at least in my mind).

So what is next?? Well, I have decided to try and lose 2 more pounds before I leave the island. And, I have set a new overall weight goal of 125. By August that is where I want to be. Once I'm there, maintaining should be easy. Goodbye to the fluffiness!!!

In other news....I almost cried this week when my Pittsburgh Penguins were down 2-0 in the series with the Detroit Red Wings. But Wednesday put a huge smile on my face as they won game 3. I believe the next game is Saturday....hopefully they can win and even the series up.

I'm finishing up Renal Pathology today so I can work on Male Reproductive Path later. This weekend is study, study, study.... and Monday we start Endocrine Pathology (never ends....I know).

And, I leave you with this little funny moment courtesy of Yoshie, a girl in my Path group (as relayed to me by Layne). Please note that Yoshie is from Japan and english is not her first language....so many times she is looking up words online for their meaning and definition. The sentence in the case was "He has burning micturition." So here is the exchange:
Yoshie: What is micturition.
Layne: Micturition means like he needs to pee.
Yoshie: I looked it up online and it says desire to pee.....so, he has a burning desire to pee??
Layne: Laughing hysterically

Sometimes being lost in translation can be fun!!! Everyone have a great day! :)

Turtle Movie

So I tried forever the other night to get this video up on blogger. I finally converted it to another program and shortened it just a bit, so hopefully it works. Enjoy everyone!!!!

By the way...today is a holiday in Grenada (don't ask me what for). Its a gorgeous day, but unfortunately I will be sitting in the Vet building trying to catch up with Pathology :( I hope everyone has a great day.

AWESOME!!!

Wow....what a fun, fun, fun last couple of days. Lets start with Saturday. When I left you last I believe I was talking about how I was planning on going to the beach on Saturday to soak up some much needed sun. Well, it was cloudy and nasty all day. So, Layne, Alison and myself decided to go for sushi at Carib Sushi in Grand Anse. I ordered a carafe of Saki, edamame, the spicy tuna roll and the Alex roll. Now, please remember I am in Grenada, so this is no where near the variety and great eclectic tastes of the sushi back home. But, it was good. And very, very enjoyable. It was so nice to just hang out and enjoy a good meal. Of course, now I want sushi ALL THE TIME!!! I'll just have to wait for the really good stuff in July.

Monday morning I took my clinical skills written midterm. It was okay....I got an 86, so I still have an A in the class which is fine by me. Now on to part II where we learn examination of the lungs, abdomen, and central nervous system.

I just checked my micro score a few minutes ago and.......I got an A in the class. Which is great except I feel I cheated a little by just memorizing and not really learning the material, but that is okay...it will come back to bite me in the fluffy butt come Step 1 time :)

So, the absolute highlight of the past few days...last night a bunch of us traveled to Levera Beach to see leatherback turtles lay eggs!!! It was so amazing!! I can hardly describe in words but I will try. So, we set off around 7pm and after a quick stop at the store to pick up some beer (courtesy of the drunk boys in the back) we were on our way. The ride was almost an hour through the upper hills of Grenada. Once there, we had some dinner (I ordered the bbq chicken) and when turtles were spotted on the beach we headed over. It was so awesome. The turtles were HUGE!!! More than 5 feet long. I tried to take photos but because you can't use flash photography, only 1 came out okay. But I did get some great video of one turtle covering her eggs.

We were there for about an hour. We watched the female dig her hole, lay her eggs, and then cammoflage the whole area....can't have those predators finding the eggs. The guides and researchers that work/volunteer at this turtle laying preserve were all incredibly nice and helpful in answering questions and allowing us to get up close to the turtles. I was able to touch the turtle too!!! It was very rubbery, but its flipper was soft. I also purchased a royal blue t-shirt with the ocean spirits logo on it. Every little bit helps the turtles!! For more info about the turtles click here. So, overall I would say this was an awesome adventure in Grenada and I'm so happy I did it.

So, today its back to work. Female genital tract Pathology.....Yippy!!! Everyone have a great day!!

The Aftermath

The week is over!!! And I survived. It is so hard to explain how much time, effort, and energy goes into studying. Starting last Thursday with 4 straight days of Pathology and finishing up yesterday morning with a Micro cram session...my brain was screaming. But, its over and I am giving my brain a much needed break.

So, here are my results so far. Pathology went okay although I felt horrible coming out of the test. The questions were horrendously long and I almost didn't have time to finish. I felt so rushed and with many questions I simply picked my answer based on recognition alone, without really thinking the question through because I didn't have the time to think. Not to mention that the night following the Path test I had the worst dreams ever. In one of them I was sitting in front of the Path profs who were screaming at me that I was dumb and they were questioning how I ever got into SGU. Well, I still managed a low B on the test....very low B...but a B nonetheless. I still have an opportunity of attaining my goal of getting an A in this class if i work really hard in the next 6 weeks and rock the final exam. :)

The clinical skills lab exam was a joke.....JOKE!!!! Seriously, I don't know how they can say that their exams are standardized in any way shape or form with not only different patient scenarios but different tutors monitoring the exam. I did absolutely no studying for this exam, I walked in about and hour after my Path extravaganza and literally pulled the exam out of my fluffy ass....and managed a 97. My clinical tutor was really fair and unbelievably nice with her follow up questions. My exam was the following: Your patient has been diagnosed with Buerger's disease. Evaluate arterial sufficiency and report your findings. It was one of the easiest physical exams and I was done in 12 minutes. For my minor examinations I had to evaluate lymph nodes of the head and neck and check the patients sinuses for congestion. In contrast, several people I know had the unfortunate luck to pick the paper that said do a complete eye exam, which is long and tedious, and follow-up questions can be very, very hard depending on what tutor you get. I know some who did not fair as well on their exam. Luck was definitely on my side that afternoon. We have the written exam for clinical skills on monday morning and hopefully I do well.

Bye bye micro.....I officially took my last micro exam yesterday after cramming for 2 1/2 days!! Everything from the virulence factors of Streptococci to which organisms can be used for biological warfare/terrorism. Unfortunately, I barely studied for this class during the last 5 weeks because of lack of time/concentrating on Path. I wish I had the time because it is important and somewhat interesting. Who knew there were so many different E. coli strains hanging out in the large intestine. Or that rat fleas are so important in spreading dangerous organisms. But, cramming is also very helpful and rewarding when you just need to pass a test. I thought the questions were very fair so hopefully I did well. I won't know my final score until wednesday night so I'll update you all then.

Well, I was supposed to go to the beach today and do nothing but lay out and enjoy myself....but its cloudy right now and it looks like its about to pour. So, I may have to change my plans slightly (maybe some sushi and a movie instead). Either way I will just be relaxing today on an island in the carribean. Of course tomorrow is another day and I have to start my slides for Female genital tract/breast/ovary. That is right, Monday starts a whole new day and topic of Pathology. And on tuesday we start Nutrition. The work just never ends, but that is the best part of becoming a doctor!!! Have a great day!!! :)

AHHHHHH!!!

Today has finally come!!! The dreaded second Pathology test. So many students before have screamed how hard this test is compared to the first. I have been studying my fluffy butt off for 4 straight days for this test and I can only hope I have retained something. Nevermind the fact that yesterday my brain was screaming "NO MORE!!!" and wouldn't allow me the courtesy of one last slide review. Nevermind the other fact that not only do I have path from 9-12 today, but I was one of the unlucky few to also have my clinical skills lab midterm scheduled from 1:30-2:00 and because of this I had to TRY to fit in some studying yesterday (my brain was not happy about that either). Nevermind the final fact that because of the Grenada holiday yesterday, Dr. Grooms decided to throw a party which lasted pretty late into the night forcing me to extend my bedtime by a few hours. Besides all of that, I feel I am prepared. I am confident I can go into that test and do well. Stayed tuned for my follow-up where I prove that last sentence correct OR.....well, I am in a positive mode right now, so lets not think about that!! Wish me luck!!!!

Interference by Congenital Disorders of the Newborn

Today is Friday and I just spent the last 45 minutes laying on my bed with my laptop on my incredibly shrinking tummy (weight loss is still going well) watching the new episode of Grey's. Isn't that weird....considering the episode was LAST NIGHT!!! That's right......in my haste to fly through a subject that I have little interest in (see title above), I totally forgot that Grey's started at 9pm. And......I MISSED IT!!!! I can't feel too bad because Layne, my Grey's buddy, also forgot....although she didn't forget to remind me that we both forgot this morning at 7:30am while I was eating breakfast. I was so disappointed and desperate to find the episode that instead of having my usual morning breakfast over ESPN highlights, I preceded to search websites as far away as Japan looking for the episode. I did find it (thank you sidereel.com) and downloaded it....and as mentioned, just finished watching it. It was worth the scramble!!!

So today I spent most of the wonderful Grenadian day heavily involved in pooh.....i mean, in Gastrointestinal Pathology. I covered lots of info....I only hope that I can remember it all. I did break for about an hour to listen to a Micro lecture that I skipped yesterday and I heard an amazing thing. Baby rabbits can become "aerosolized". What??? I had to rewind to listen again because I apparently missed something. So, here is the story:

The prof was taking about the bacteria Francisiella tularensis, which by the way is on the CDC's Category A list for Biological Warfare/ Terrorism Agents. He mentions a colleague in New Jersey who was mowing his lawn one day in the early spring and apparently ran over a rabbit nest full of baby rabbits. Now, some of them made it but a few were "aerosolyzed" (his words not mine). Why is this important??? Because the above virus is found in wild animals like squirrels, deer, beavers, and rabbits. It is usually transmitted by ticks and when that happens you get an ulcer form of the disease with little chance of death. But, this bacteria can also infect humans by inhalation and when that happens, you get a pneumonia form that equates with almost certain death. So, because the mower made aerosolyzed bunnies, this prof had the unfortunate pleasure of breathing in the bunny/bacteria particles. In less than a week, his cough, difficulty breathing, fever, and chills progressed to a sitting on deaths doorstep disease. The doctors had no idea what this man was suffering from. What Doctor would ever think of taking a history and physical for an incredibly sick patient and ask "So, have you mowed over any cute baby bunnies lately???" Of course, once all of the "usual suspects" for pneumonia were ruled out, and more cultures were done the doctors eventually found the bacteria, were able to treat the man and he lived. The morale of the story.....well, from my point of view, even the most obscure, rarely seen/suspected disease in humans can pop up at any time in a patient....from your point of view, don't mow over bunnies!!

Everyone have a great night!!!! :)

Too much to type....

Okay, I have alot on my mind to say before I head off to bed. Hopefully, I can get it all out. Will start with studying.......BLAH!!! Too much studying. By earlier today I couldn't look at another packet, let alone finish GI (which I still need to finish). But, I'm retaining information, and that is all I need to do well on the test which is in 8 DAYS!!!!!

Yesterday I had the opportunity to have a nice break. Daniel had a friend come in to visit from Missouri. She recently graduated from school and is moving to Rhode Island for residency. So, we all (meaning Layne, Alison, Kaushik, Daniel, his friend, Gia, Amy, and Noah) went out to dinner at BB's crabshack in St. George's. I got the BB crab which is a crab and cheese sauce mix inside a crab shell. It was awesome (of course I had it before so I knew what to expect). I also ordered something new.....pumpkin fritters....basically seasoned and deep fried pumpkin........ fantastically AWESOME!! Although, since I have been eating healthy my ass (i mean rectum :) was not particularly happy with me this morning!!

I don't know if I have mentioned but I have been eating extremely well and working out since January. I made a commitment to this...plus I set a personal goal for weight loss on January 26th. I'm not going to say anything yet about how much I have lost. I'm going to wait until I reach my goal weight....so stay tuned for that update!!

So, every sunday morning Layne and I head off to campus to do laundry and workout. We get there about 7am, and are there until 8:30am. Its nice because so few people are using the washers and dryers at that time, so we are able to quickly get our stuff done plus get in a nice workout. I run on campus on these days, so because of this I normally don't eat breakfast until after my workout. Today was particularly hot. There are several steep hills I run up and I almost didn't make one. I started to get very lightheaded (my brain hates lack of food + heat + hills). But, I forced myself to keep going and felt better a few minutes later. I'm just waiting for the day when my brain says "NO MORE" and I face plant on the pavement after passing out....and then my fat fluffy behind rolls back down the hill (look out below!!!!).

Today was the IEA (honor society) mock practical and I signed up to work. Basically we set up cadaver stations for the 1st termers to practice on. It is similar to their practical final except for we ask them to fill in the blank to the questions while on the real test they get multiple choice. Today went well....I was there for about an hour. Anything I can do to help my fellow student doctor :):)

Almost forgot to mention....yesterday was Derby Day!!!!! I had to watch it on ESPN when I came home from dinner. Congrats to Big Brown.....wow that horse is fast. Will he become the 1st triple crown winner in 30 years???? Preakness is coming up in 2 weeks, so we will soon get closer to that answer. In sad news though, farewell wishes go out to 8 Belles. You ran a hell of a race against the boys....and 2nd place is great.....too bad it ended poorly.

Well, I have to start my concept map for tomorrow. What is a concept map you say??? Well....here is one:



Every week for extra credit in Pathology we can pick a topic from the previous week and do a concept map. Last week I did the above on restrictive lung diseases. Tonight, I'm doing the Stomach. Here I come H. Pylori!! Everyone have a great night!!!

May 1st

Today, I had the pleasure of having no classes because its a national holiday in Grenada!! Don't ask me for what, I really have no idea. So, instead of sitting in lecture or lab, I spent all day going over Pulmonary Pathology. Tomorrow, I have decided to skip lecture and spend the morning with my friend Cardio Path. Why am I skipping lecture....because the Prof is just not informative. His lecture slides lack that one thing that we count on from our profs....the knowledge on HOW the disease process is occuring. I am well aware that the gastro-intestinal track is fairly large and complex, and there is a lot of material to cover in a short week. Instead of having 1 or 2 slides per disease with no useful information, how about concentrating on the important diseases and give us details (I want details!!) and then tell us to read on our own for the rest. Well, the objectives pretty much say not everything can be covered....that is fine.....but again, cover the important things well with "need to know to be a successful Dr" information. Maybe its because the prof is visiting from Yale and he is confusing us with his students back in Conn. Maybe he believes we are genetically bred individuals who have mastered the ability to telepathically siphon the years of knowledge and important material gained out of his brain and download it into our own......POOF....I now know Crohn's disease....what's next?

So, tonight was episode #2 of Grey's Anatomy. Once again, it was awesome. I really like the writing on that show.....what I don't like is how they protray the "surgery residents". Come on, like the surgery resident would be telling an HIV patient she is pregnant.....NO!!! That would be an ER resident, or an internal medicine resident, or an Ob/Gyn resident. But, I understand that they need to make some drama somewhere, i just wish it was in the OR.

My week has been fairly uneventful. Study, study, study....that is what I do. Especially since we have a tests starting May 13th. I plan on reviewing for both Pathology and Microbiology (especially since I haven't even looked at this subject for weeks) over the entire weekend. And maybe sneaking in a movie on Saturday night :) Well see how the reviewing goes. Everyone have a good night!!!

License and registration.....

What is worse than being pulled over by a police officer in New York?? Being pulled over in Grenada....okay, so I wasn't REALLY pulled over. It was a check point, but to really see it from my point of view, let me entertain you with the whole story:

So on Saturday, I was coming back around 8:30am from working out on campus when up ahead was a check point. Of course I'm screwed....why?? Because I haven't renewed my license this semester. I came back in January and thought, I'm a good driver and I'll never get pulled over, so why bother giving Grenada 30EC every 3 months for some stupid piece of paper. So, of course now, on an early Saturday morning, I'm pooping my pants thinking about what I'm going to say to the police. I opened the glove compartment box to find my insurance paper and to my surprise Alison's (my roomates) license. For a brief moment I was saved...until I saw that it had expired 5 days earlier.....CRAP!! So, I slowly pulled forward to where the nice Police officer was standing and she says "We are checking for licenses, registrations, and insurance." So, I hand her the insurance paper....registrations are on the windshield and mine was current...and then I say, "Here is my license (which remember, was actually Alison's), but I just noticed its expired....I have been so busy these last few weeks with this term. I am really sorry....and I promise I will go this week to renew it." Now, you need to picture me saying that not with conviction or any amount of confidence behind me, but more in a "I promise Mom I was only going to have 1 cookie before dinner and I thought you were in the other room when I opened the package and now you have caught me and I'm really sorry" type of voice. Anyway, she handed my paperwork back and said "Okay, make sure you get it done this week....you can go". YES!!!! I made it!!! I lived to tell my roommates and the rest of the world my tale!!!

Well, true to my word, during lunch today I went to the Grenada Police Station in Grand Anse....

And, I got my licensed renewed......

And now, I am legal....until I get back in August where I will have to pay another 30EC..... maybe!!

Everyone have a great night!!! And don't forget....Episode #2 of Grey's on Thursday night. I can't wait!!!!

Hi vet building.....

So, tonight I am studying in the new vet building. Well, not SO new....it opened at the beginning of this year. Whats nice about it is its very quiet. Not many students know about this secret spot.....or, they know and just choose not to come. Either way, its great for me. Why you ask am I not at home on a saturday night pounding out path....well, every once in a while Dr. Groom's (bar on the beach nearby) hosts a local party....and everyone shows up. The music is SO LOUD, the base beat shakes the walls of our apartment. So, instead of siting in my dining room in my pajamas complaining.....i decided to come here to get work done. The only downfall will be trying to get home. There is only one road in and out....its very narrow....and on party nights people like to just stop their cars, get out and walk. Of course, they just leave theirs cars in the road because there is no place to pull over. So I get the pleasure and joy of trying to maneuver the car through the chaos. Wish me luck!!

What to talk about??? How about thursday night.....best night of my life.....why?? Because Grey's is back!!!!! I can't begin to tell you how exciting it is to look forward to something in Grenada. And I won't, because it would take all night.....just trust me.....anyway, Layne and I drove to school and sat in front of the TV at the student lounge and had the stupidest grins on our faces for an entire hour. Of course, all good things must come to an end....but then there is next Thursday!!!!!! I'm so overjoyed, i can't control myself right now!! And here is a spoiler...Addison's back!!!!

I'm getting comments from some that are asking "who exactly are your roomates??" Good question......so, sit back and relax as you watch my roommates in action!!!

Yes, my roommates are funny!! But they are also all around great. It has been a joy to live with them this term....and I think because of them, I'm not such a Grenada hater (I'll have to fill you in on this at a later time....no time now....sorry). Anyway, I love them!!! And I am also very grateful to have them around.

Well, time to get back to reviewing. I'm finishing up Cardio path now....then it's on to red blood cell disorders. Tomorrow, I get to start my slides for GI which we start on Monday. And.....in 2 weeks....we have tests!!!! I know I'll do fine in pathology.....don't even get me started with Micro though. Everyone have a great night.