research elective didn't really go anywhere, so now work is pouring into official vacation time. so in the end i've been on pseudo-vacation for 1 month. i kind of prefer it...maybe
was just in DC. love that city. I dunno why i didn't consider it when applying to residency.
the national gallery of art is amazing! i could probably spend a week in there. just not the sculptures cuz i am not a fan for some reason.
ethiopian food.
reunion with the best college friends.
stuffed our faces at this all you can eat italian restaurant. ordered the "family style" which meant a choice of 2 salads, 2 pastas, 2 appetizers, and dessert. refills on anything you want. man, what a delicious but painful dinner.
read a book at a tea-shop.
met up with family.
met up with high school friend who i haven't seen in 5 years.
pretty damn good for a short trip.
can't get enough of this song for the moment. doesn't it make you just want to say "fuck you. i am awesome" to all the people who get you down?
started out a little bit rocky. missed my bus, along with 8 other passengers, b/c the bus was not clearly marked. i ended up cabbing back home and then driving all the way there anyway.
tried to attend "first night" events...but sadly wasn't able to catch too much of it. it's really pretty awesome how we start traditions. as i was watching a parade of randomly costumed people, i realized that only in america would there be a parade that anyone could march in and and sign up for 5 minutes prior to the starting time. also saw some crazy BMX bikers and skateboarders do their thing...way to ring in the new year? quite amazing.
i then attended a new year's eve party thrown by a group that supports non-profit organizations. "Space with a Soul"
It was located in an office space near South Station overlooking the water. Sadly, my friend and I ended up drinking way too much way too soon. We ended up sitting on the floor of the room stuffing our faces with cookies and cheeses to stop the drunkenness. We even missed the champagne!! Not that we should have drank anything more at that point. We met boys who were way too young and probably thought it was so sad that we were so old and so trashed. But you know? I had a great time. We didn't break any of our 3 rules (1. No face-planting. 2. No vomiting on strangers. 3. No making out with strangers.). Definitely a once in a lifetime checkmark. More civilized fun next year.
Then the next day, we had "brunch" at 3 pm at a delicious little cafe. Then we went shopping. Finally finished shopping for my brother haha.
At 6 pm, we met up with another friend and watched "The Descendants." Don't even watch the trailer, just go see the movie!
After that we had sushi at "Thelonius Monk"...sake don...mmmmm....
Then today, i woke up and went to a coffee shop and read bits of "songs of solomon" and then parts of a medicine book on kidneys.
Then, I got a haircut, had lunch at chinatown and bought some leggings while shopping for shoes with good friends.
Had a delicious homemade smoothie, said hello to some bears :) and then headed back here.
On the way had a bladder emergency like never before. Saved by a little grocery shop.
And now home. Totally content. Probably should not spend anymore money in a while. But I think maybe this is what money should be spent on?
I am missing absolutely nothing in my life right now. at 10:14 pm on January 2nd, 2012.
I had the best Christmas. I am thinking that I need to adopt this tradition even though my parents never did. It's lovely to sit by a beautifully decorated tree and open presents. The act of giving is beautiful. Doesn't even have to be expensive. Somebody thought of you this year and that's all that really matters.
Not to mention the copious amounts of chocolatey desserts that you get to eat.
My roommate and I got each other "Love Actually" this Christmas. :) What a feel good movie. Favorite part, hands down, when Hugh Grant (prime minister) dances by himself. Sort of like when Colin Firth dances in "What a Girl Wants"...which we also have in our apartment.
finished with my 2 weeks on the liver disease service. in traditional chinese medicine, the liver is a huge part of how to keep your body healthy. it's pretty much true. when it fails, everything fails. your liver goes, then your kidney goes, then you can't pee, then your heart goes because you have too much volume to pump, then your lungs goes, you bleed because your liver stops making the cells that help you make clots. if you get an infection, which is pretty common, then everything gets 10 times worse. it's a huge and terrible snowball. sometimes it rolls so fast there is nothing left to do.
that pretty much sums up my time on the service. cautious optimism about every patient.
i've never seen people with such yellow skin in my life. it's a like a tan from hell.
i've also never met such young patient with liver failure. People in their 20s and 30s. Some of them have a genetic disease, some of them have been drinking since their teens.
preparing to work on Christmas eve into Christmas day. yuck.
funny how last year it snowed way too much and this year it feels weird that it's not snowing yet.
