Sometimes, work sucks...

To the gunner in my current rotation.
Dear douchebag,

I think we all get it. You are THE MAN. Thank God you interrupted me today during my patient interview to ask that question...So important to get out that the already described "unemployed" man actually did NOT have a job. What would we do without you???

xxxxmy butt!
p

Best damn grilled cheese EVER!

OMG

Petite loaf of asiago cheese bread with muenster cheese and sliced roma tomatoes!

(and some blue chips!)

Why I love chocolate, Frenchmen, and my parents!

It’s the summer of 1986 and for whatever reason, Christie Ross is going to some French language camp and wants me to go with her. Two weeks in Minnesota. I begged, cajoled, and stomped my feet until parents gave me paid for my plane ticket and camp expenses.
Lac du Bois was a total French immersion camp in Minnesota. It remains one of the most beautiful places in my memory. The beach, the rows of silver canoes, the long dock where we set the guillotine –beautiful place. There were no showers, just a dry sauna and instructions to bring biodegradable shampoo and soap. The store sold only European candies and chocolates, and since the food in the café sucked, I lived on Toblerone and something we called “fruities”; long and flat like sticks of gum, “fruities” tasted like a more subtle Starburst.
The next summer, I came back for month and fell in love with Jean Marc, a camp counselor. It sounds so cliché-he was young, French, so excited to be alive, so kind…and not in a pervvy way. The accent-the kisses (just on the cheeks)-the swear words he taught us (the only phrases I still remember with confidence). He was beautiful!
And what I absolutely love about the memory of being in love with Jean Marc is that I didn’t care. I didn’t care that he knew, I didn’t care that everyone else knew, I didn’t care that he didn’t feel the same way. I wasn’t ashamed or embarrassed because it was no big deal. Why did that have to change? And where can find Jean Marc? :)

An update on eating out in Wichita…
Pump House: Interesting place. The appetizers were ok. We had your basic bar food-nachos, chips/salsa, chicken wings (very spicy!) and chicken fingers (kind of cold in the middle which I find gaggy). They also had two types of eggrolls-traditional pork and southwestern chicken. Not a fan of the southwestern eggroll but I would have the pork again. Overall a good place to hang out with friends but next time I will try to find something unfried on the menu!
Oeno Wine Bar. Well priced wines by the glass and I loved the couches. Very comfortable place-next time I will try dinner.
Sugar Sisters: I’ve been twice now and the coffee is kind of strong but it goes well with mini cupcakes served on delicate little plates (see image!). The bierocks are very good (meat and cheese in a butter soaked roll)-next time I’ll be sure my sauerkraut is included. Only problem with this place is no free WIFI. L
Mike’s Wine Dive. Divine Cuban pork sandwich. I couldn’t finish mine and took half of it home. I went to bed and woke up after midnight and actually got out of bed to eat the rest of it. Crispy pickles, tangy Dijon mustard, and super tender pork on a hoagie. Divine. But I would pass on the truffle fries next time and get the sweet potato fries instead. Also, I have heard the chocolate bag dessert is delish….The wine book was amazing. I not a wine connoisseur and it was helpful to have such good descriptions about the different wines.
Cinnamon Deli: I had a great Reuben. Portions are huge. Fast service. I would totally go again for lunch.
Zen’s Veg Cuisine: A wonderful find. I am not a vegetarian but I do get a bit gagged out by chicken sometimes. And I am not a fan of over processed turkey and beef-too many frozen meals in my lifetime! This place uses vegetable protein/soy/tofu to mimic the texture and taste of beef and chicken. The lunch box is great because it includes a spring roll, a cherry blossom (no crab in the crab Rangoon) and tempura veggies. They do close every day in the afternoon between lunch and dinner!
Mead’s Corner: a delish simple veggie Panini. The veggies were so fresh-and the portion was one the smaller side, which I really appreciate. The space was very relaxing and I think it offers free WIFI.The Donut Whole: a favorite. Offers great coffee, funky donuts, and free WIFI. The staff is super nice and it’s just a great relaxing place. I also like the selection of drinks besides coffee-organically sweetened sodas that have zero calories. None of the phenyllywacky stuff

The move!

Well, it's a day shy of a full week since I made it here to Wichita! So far, so good!
I am going to start a list of favorite places and hope to add to it weekly.

My new apartment is tiny-but well put together! No holes in the ceiling or floor and there's paint on the walls! I still have a lot of decorating to do and pictures to hang but I love it! I am just waiting for my student loan money to get some new throw pillows and maybe a new dresser!

The cats are bit crazy still-Mouse keeps trying to climb up all the boxes in the walk-in closet and she hasn't decided if she can drink water from the kitchen faucet. Both Birdy and Mouse act strangely towards the new toliet-maybe it's because this one has a lid?

I start third year orientation a week from this coming Monday. In anticipation of having to be somewhere by 7:30am every day, I am sleeping in, taking a lot of naps, watching horrible reality TV and rereading Harry Potter The Deathly Hallows.

Life is good!

The search is over....

Most of you have already heard that my deal for an apartment in Wichita went south this week. The changes in deposit amount (up to $600), pet rent ($50-ridiculous), and total rent ($711) killed any chance of me living by a certain golf course.

I just think pet rent is extortion-plain and simple. Charge a deposit and let that be the end of it. Charging both a high nonrefundable deposit and nonrefundable rent per pet is bullshit. Maybe if you allowed big dogs-but my two cats will not cause $1000 in damages every year. So I told the wearesofancywechargewhateverwewanthahaha apartment complex to tear up my check and held my arms wide open to embrace the wave of panic I knew was heading my way. That was Thursday.

Yesterday, after taking a pharmacy shelf (a national subject exam-fun fun fun), I found the cure to my panic about living quarters. I hopped in my car, drove 3 hours to Wichita, found an apartment, turned around and drove 3 hours home. (Incidentally I randomly meet up with a friend at a MacDonald's in Emporia on my way down. We just happened to stop at the same highway MickeyDees - kind of funny)

Central Park Apartments have much smaller one bedrooms that I had originally wanted but they are so well put together. Granite counter tops, brushed nickel hardware, maple cabinets, nine foot ceilings, etc etc etc. And the manager is the nicest guy-very pet friendly-only $100 pet deposit and no pet rent. I just saved myself $2232.

The only downside is that not all my furniture will fit. My sweet sister Pam is going to have to store my kitchen table and maybe a few bins of stuff I don't need but cannot throw away. And I may not be taking the ratty couch....Small price to pay to keep my cats and my $2232.

Cure for post test blues

Test day sucks even when I do well. And I did well today-but still it's an emotional hangover every time.

So, I lay around, watch Netflix, maybe workout, eat too many cookies, and wonder wtf am I doing with my life. It passes.

A good good meal makes a big difference.

Tonight I had brown rice, steamed sugar snap peas, and Quorn's Gruyere and Chik'n Cutlet (a vegetarian entree-totally awesome!). The rice and peas were frozen steam in the bag-and perfect for this terrible cook. The chik'n entree just takes 20 minutes in the toaster oven for crispy goodness.

And the best news is that Wichita has an organic grocery store (Green Acres) that stocks Quorn and many of my favorite frozen organic foods. Not that I'm a vegetarian but I think frozen "meatproducts" are disgusting-no matter how much gravy is included.

God bless my microwave and toaster oven.

Just one more cookie-another episode of Burn Notice-and then calling quits so I can hit the ground running tomorrow....

The seven week countdown....

In 2 weeks, I will done with my second year of medical school. Five weeks after that, I get to take the boards. yay. And the day after my brain explodes, I am moving to Wichita.
This seemed like a bright idea two years ago when I asked to go to Wichita for my clinical years. And the same reasons still hold up-fewer students and residents to compete for time and instruction, way more hands on clinical practice, and it seems like medical students are well taken care of in Wichita. But it's Wichita.
And that's not a knock on Wichita, I just don't want to leave my friends and my sister. boo hoo.
SO, I am going to use this blog to let everyone see what a wonderful time I am having and how they should drop everything and come visit for long long stretches of time!
Stay tuned....