A new meaning of the word "eighth" for me.

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Last night I was at a comedy club in San Francisco with some friends and my wife (not that she isn't also my friend) and, lo and behold, actually laughed. We saw Steve Byrne and an opening act, and even though I wouldn't call it the best show I've ever seen, we were laughing pretty much the entire time. Going to the club was a belated birthday present, especially picked out because my wife said I haven't been laughing enough lately. Well, that is probably true. Endless memorization of signalling cascades can do that. It was definitely nice to get out, especially since this upcoming week is our fall break. It will be void of lectures and labs, but there is more than enough to keep me busy, especially since next Monday morning opens with an exam -- what a nice way way to welcome us back.

As many of you know, medical school in the US is comprised of a total of four years, with the first two being (almost) exclusively classroom/lecture instruction, and the last two being all clinical rotations, where students spend six to eight weeks being involved in a specific specialty (surgical, internal medicine, OBGYN, etc). So, having the first two years so divorced from the experience of not only the second two years, but the real world experience of practicing medicine, I and many of my fellow students are focused on just getting through this first phase with the best grades possible and a good board score. We are just over the half-way point of the first semester, of the first year. This means I am 1/8th of the way through what many people have identified as the most difficult phase of medical school. It kind of feels like I just started, which makes sense, as it hasn't yet been three full months of school. On the other hand, life as it was prior to school seems like a distant, foggy memory. I still wouldn't trade this away though.

Comments

Becklynn's Thinkabouts said…
I'm glad you enjoyed the show--as a student doc, I'm sure you have learned laughter is indeed the best med. And here's to completing the first eighth!
October 16, 2011 at 2:40 PM
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