Things I Know

I'm a fan of lists. They keep me on track. They make me feel accomplished. I love crossing things off and, sometimes,  I make lists for things I have ALREADY done for the simple purpose of crossing off each item. Nerd. Geek. OCD freak. Whatever. Label me what you will. It doesn't bother me and I've heard it before. But there is one time I especially love lists. When I'm feeling nostalgic. And Christmas and nostalgia go together like methylene blue and Heisenberg (Yeah, I so just went there).

So, without further ado, here are 16 things I've learned in 16 weeks of medical school.
1. Sleep is overrated
2. Sleep is the best thing ever.
3. I don't know anything.
4. I've learned a lot.
5. Pathology is hard.
6. Everyone is awkward in mock patient exams. (Though things are markedly less awkward when you refer to your female patient as a woman. Not a man.)
7. There is a wrong way to ask a patient about their sexual history. (It involves the phrase "sexually active" and "Oh" followed by an "um" and a long pause.)
8. It's important to remember you can't learn ALL the things. Triage what is important. Don't worry about the rest. (Case in point, it is SHOCKING how little I know about the human foot. And I sleep great, thanks.)
9. Friday nights are for Fun.
10. I don't know what is going on in the world. Really, no clue. (But seriously, I didn't know the government "shut down" until it was already "running" again.)
11. I can study 80 hours a week and survive. Ish.
12. Food is awesome.
13. Showers are awesome.
14. Some of the friends I've made here will be my friends for life. (We've been in the academic trenches together. Cue the Band of Brother's Sountrack.)
15. Anatomists are evil. (Decide on ONE freaking name guys and let's just all agree to go with that one.)
16. I would go insane without all the support from friends and family back home.
Super-special-awesome-amazing-climactic bonus thing: 7-0 equals D.O.

Goodbyes Are a Bitch (or My Self Diagnosis for Why I Can't Sleep)

I have been watching lots of TV lately (I am also demolishing my summer reading list and developing a very nice base tan.) Thanks to Netflix and Hulu I am currently very well-versed in Frasier, Scrubs, The Mindy Project, and The Office - just to name a few. Today I finished Season 7 of the office. I also felt like a total wimp when I watched the episode "Goodbye, Michael" and fought back tears the entire time. (Same thing with the series finale of Frasier and various moments in Scrubs.) I guess goodbyes are hitting me harder than usual right now. (Besides crying at comedic television, I have also adopted some abnormal sleeping patterns. Abnormal in the sense that I'm not really sleeping.) And I'm 99% sure it has to do with the fact that my own  goodbyes seem to be looming towards me with ever-increasing speed. In 15 days, I am going to move across the country. I've never had to say goodbye to so much all at the same time. I'll be saying goodbye to the only place that has ever been home, along with my family and friends (not to mention the sun). And while I am excited to start this new chapter of life, and definitely beyond excited to finally be going to medical school, I am so sad to be leaving.

There is this incredibly sweet moment in that last episode of the office when Michael asks Jim why he is so sad and if he is doing the wrong thing by moving to Colorado. Jim replies "Absolutely not. It's just that sometimes goodbyes are a bitch." And that's pretty much where I am at right now. I am excited to go live somewhere new. I know the chance to go to medical school as something I have been working towards for a long time. I know that moving to Pennsylvania is absolutely the right thing for me to do right now. But I am still sad. And saying good bye to so much all at once is going to be a bitch.