Snow Days and Shunning (15/30)

Greenlawn Cemetery after Juno

Same bridge, different seasons

     Massachusetts was having a rather mild winter and then... Juno happened. We'd had a little bit of snow before that, but not enough to really affect transportation, work or school, and most of it melted quickly. Now it seems that I shall spend the next month or so walking in the street at times because the sidewalks aren't completely cleared and they're not going to be until the snow melts, at least in Salem. Boston got a bit less snow and is more like one big slushy mess than a land of snow drifts and piles up to your chest. Today though, everyone is staying inside and bundling up as eastern Massachusetts gets another 6-12" of snow. I do not mind one bit as this gives me extra time to study for Wednesday's Clinical Therapeutics exam and catch up on some housecleaning. To be completely honest however, I really haven't gotten behind even on housework as we haven't had that many actual days of school this term. We've had a grand total of 8. That's right: 8. Between lab days (labs are on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but only half the class goes each day and the other half gets it off), snow days, and the one day a class got canceled for other reasons, we've only had 8 full days of classes. We've already had one exam though, which meant that some of the lectures had to be dictated for us and posted online, or we had to read the guest lecturer's slides and teach ourselves the material. So far it's worked. It does mean though that this term feels like it has already been moving very quickly. 

     Today our resumes and forms for outside rotations are due, and in just 14 short weeks we will begin our first of 9 clinical clerkships. Each of those will last 5 weeks and be in a different specialty (e.g. surgery, pediatrics, women's health, etc.). Then it's just those one right after another until the end and we graduate. It's a crazy thought. Our professors keep telling us that we know more than we think we do, but sometimes it's hard to believe them when we've covered so much information in such a short amount of time. Then again, we were just tested on all things musculosketal on Friday and after yesterday's Superbowl, someone posted the picture at left of Jeremy Lane's fall after his interception. Immediately my classmates started guessing exactly what type of fracture he had. I think we came up with an excellent list of differential diagnoses, so who knows? We might just know this stuff after all.

     Since I already brought up the Superbowl, I have one quick note as a followup to yesterday's post. My family back in Oregon and Washington might have shunned me, but it was worth it. Even if the Patriots' season did not start off smoothly, they certainly pulled it together and, I think, 100% deserved that win. Of course, I may be a bit biased now since I currently live in New England, but I think my opinion still stands. It was an excellent game, and so much fun to watch with friends and other fans. I thought my roommate was about to have a heart attack a couple times, and there were moments when I had to tell my other friend that it would all be ok, but that just added to the excitement. And what a payoff when we did win! I feel like everyone I was watching the game with was just as excited as Tom is in the above photo. Also, despite the ridiculous fight that broke out in the 4th quarter, I say good job to the Seahawks for being decent losers. Richard Sherman's devastation at Butler's interception may have provided me with my favorite gif of the game (seen below), but he was also the first person to congratulate Tom Brady on the Patriots' win. Good job, sir.

    Lastly, as Chris Pratt and Chris Evans demonstrated at this year's Superbowl, even people rooting for opposing teams can remain friends, and help a good cause in the process. I hope the kiddos at Seattle Children's Hospital and Christopher's Haven in Boston enjoy their visits from Star Lord and Captain America. Go Team Marvel!