In contrast with last Monday’s five-hour cardio exam, when practically no one finished a minute early, Friday’s derm exam was finished by the majority within 11-16 minutes. Jim T, I think I love you. Maybe the most fun exam of med school yet, and that’s in competition with last year’s second anatomy exam, during which learning team 10 blue dressed as the supinators. Unfortunately, I’m not sure I love pediatric dermatology enough to appreciate receiving texts and emails at all hours with attached pictures of my sister’s co-worker’s cousin’s child’s butt, as our course director described. So I guess this field will have to be something I look back on with fondness as a very welcome treat between cardio and renal.
Post-16-minute exam, I hopped a bus to NYC, found my way to my meeting with Erica on the LIRR, then was greeted by Stephie and Liz at Port Jeff. Three of the best women in the world, as you’ve heard tell. Good food. Good wine. The best company. Hours and hours of not leaving the apartment, sitting in our pajamas on the soft carpeted floor, talking and listening about everything and nothing. I had been looking forward to this weekend for a long time, using it as motivation to survive the first six weeks of year two, and it served as the best possible kind of rehabilitation.
The golden weekend was capped off with brunch with two of my favorite gents at one of my favorite brunch nooks, a long run through the newly crisp autumn-ness, and hours of cooking up a storm so that we can have ready-made dinners for the week. It was a lucky day.
And then renal started at 8am with a bang…
anna in med school 
Hey Anna. Did you know that if you didn’t reabsorb any of the glomerular filtrate, you’d pee out all your blood volume in less than 30 minutes? I read that somewhere.
Yeah, I think I might have seen that somewhere before 😉 Guess the kidneys are pretty important. We should learn about them.
Kidneys are amazing. Especially those of my 19 day old child. Because without the awesome power of his kidneys, I am totally unclear as to how he could process the gallons of milk he is drinking everyday:) I often fear he will float away…. and then his kidneys come to the rescue!
I’m so happy to hear that his little kidneys are serving Beckett well! Erin, seriously, I cannot get over the pictures I’ve seen so far–absolutely adorable, and I’m sure already smart and uber-talented like his parents. I was actually thinking of him and you yesterday while I was shadowing a pediatrician yesterday. We visited a child who has chronic renal issues due to being born incredibly premature, right on the border of viability. I’m so glad to hear that Beckett is happy and healthy. Congratulations!!!
“a very welcome treat between cardio and renal” — pun intended? heheehe
btw, i kind of stalk your awesome blog! (it’s always so inspiring and beautifully written)
today i was reading a really silly and depressing blog (http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/abinazir/2005/05/23/why-you-should-not-go-to-medical-school-a-gleefully-biased-rant/) which made me sad, so ryan told me “stop reading that crap, go read anna’s blog instead”. 😀
❤
lucie
ha! i’m so glad you got the pun! yes, i try not to use last names in posts, but i thought that one was somewhat subtle enough 🙂
i am so flattered that you check out the blog–it’s a little silly, i know, but i really love trying to jot things down regularly, and thinking about the moments i’d like to revisit/reconsider. it’s not stalking if being read by people i care about and respect is one of its intended purpose. seriously, i’m very touched!
thanks for the link…i’m really tempted to write something in response. i agree, totally depressing, though maybe not inaccurate (but i’ve only just skimmed the blog). i kind of feel like the reason he/she provides for becoming a doctor trumps all, and isn’t that why most of us are here anyway?–i mean, the general point he makes about being a doctor because there is nothing else that will fulfill us in the same way, ignoring the somewhat condescending way he/she illustrates it
also, regarding the laundry list of reasons he/she provides against going into medicine, it seems to me to be all about gradations. you choose what’s important to you, and you try not to lose yourself entirely in school. some of the things i admire so much about you and Ryan are your sense of adventure, your passion for traveling, the arts, sports, and research, your commitment to your relationships (with each other, your family, your friends). certainly, there will be times when some of those things get pushed to the side, when relationships become strained, but i can’t imagine that “you will lose all the friends you had before medical school” or that “you will have difficulty sustaining a relationship” (to name a few of the points made). those concerns might be valid for some, but definitely not for most of us here.
as for me, i have it easy. i got to watch John go through the whole process (we became friends a few months before he took the MCAT, i guess nine years ago?). every year got better and better for him. and i can say honestly that he really loves his life and career. to come home after his 11th overnight (which is rare) still jazzed by what he got to experience in his last shift…there aren’t that many careers that offer than amount of happiness and satisfaction.
whoa…totally did not mean to rant like this…forgive me, it’s better than renal 🙂
finally, i’m smiling ear-to-ear in response to Ryan’s comment…very, very kind of him. thank you for telling me.
xoxo a