Brain & Behavior has taken a turn toward the behavioral sciences. One of our lectures today was on social attachment and its necessity for basically becoming a functional human being in society. The lecture included a brief discussion on Harlow’s monkey experiments that, cruel as they were, effectively demonstrated the importance of care-giving on cognitive and social development. And I, in true medical profession fashion, chose to deal with my disturbance by finding humor. I inappropriately laughed a little internally as I thought about a physician at UVA that John and I know and love, who calls himself the “wire monkey” for students and residents. He’s not touchy-feely, he won’t comfort you, but he will give you the information and experience you need to succeed on his service. I think that if I work with an attending on the wards next year who calls himself the “wire monkey,” I might just run home to snuggle with my cloth monkey, very maturely choosing comfort over sustenance.
Here are some snapshots of said monkey taken by a couple upperclassmen friends at UVA who, having nothing better to do during finals of their last semester in college, swiped my monkey and forced him into slave labor:
Kinda reminds me of the garden gnome ordeal from Amelie…now if only I had some creme brulee to crack with the tip of a spoon.
Since we didn’t have small group today, I spent the morning catching up on doctor’s appointments. They took TEN VIALS of blood from my veins. Apparently, I am an excellent bleeder. Who knew? With Spoof coming up this weekend, we’re all looking forward to seeing the hidden talents (which, unlike mine, hopefully don’t require a needle and tourniquet) of many of our classmates. Break a leg, uber talented friends!
anna in med school 