Study week = I post to my blog. Hey, the first step to solving your problem is admitting you have one, right? This week, I have to relearn all the pathology I ever attempted to learn over the last five months, and add to it about 100 generic drugs -- names and functions. Ugh. We have our regular set of tests on Thursday this week, instead of Friday, and on Friday we take the pathology shelf test (a standardized subject-specific test, kind of like an SAT II).
We just booked our post-boards/summer vacation: An Alaskan cruise! We leave out of Seattle the afternoon of June 3 and return June 10, which still leaves a day and a half to hang around in Seattle before we have to fly back to DC. I'm very excited! Next weekend, when I have time for my life again, I'm going to start researching all the different shore excursions.
Tax season is upon us again, which means, for the ninth year in a row, I need to do my taxes early and file my FAFSA. Ugh. At least things have gotten easier the past few years, since I'm no longer claimed as a dependent and I'm old enough that the school doesn't even want my parents' tax info anymore -- my dad was always the rate-limiting factor in my FAFSA-filing equation.
I've noticed that there is a new type of commercial war occurring on television (even though we now have DVR, I still seem to be seeing commercials everywhere): the tax-filing method war. One of the DIY software brands (TurboTax, I think?) has a commercial wherein customers realize how easy it is to file themselves and take keyboards away from their tax preparers ("Did you make any donations this year? N-o..."). To fight back, H&R Block's commercial shows a couple freaking out over being audited. "We're being audited! What do we do?!" "I'll check the tax software for advice... oh wait, there isn't any advice." (These are paraphrases, not actual transcripts.) Lesson: Use real tax preparers and count on real advice when you need it. (Oh my goodness. I just checked the H&R Block website, and their slogan apparently is, "When you got H&R Block, you got people." Ugh. Since when is bad grammar appropriate for a tax firm?)
Along those lines, I have a dilemma. In 2004, when I was working at Merck, my income taxes were withheld in Pennsylvania, even though I had requested that they be withheld in Maryland, where I was still claiming legal residence for the purpose of applying to medical school (PA and MD are reciprocal states, so you can do that). But the paperwork apparently never went through, so my taxes were withheld in PA, and when I tried to claim exemption from PA income taxes by being a full-time student from another state, I was told that I had to pay my PA taxes then submit paperwork to file for a refund. Well, I finally my $444 refunded to me early last year, which was good. But last week I got a 1099-G from Pennsylvania that shows they refunded me my $444 and suggests I claim it as income for 2006. BS! I refuse to do it! That's ridiculous!!!! It wasn't income, it was me getting my own money back after accidentally lending it to them. So anyway, I'm not claiming it. And if they come after me, I'll claim ignorance. And delete this post...
And one final tax-related story: A man who won a free trip into outer space had to turn it down because the value of the trip ($138,000) would have to be reported as income and he would end up owing $25,000 in taxes, which he can't afford. Sucks for him. If you ask me, he made the wrong choice -- that's like not going on Jeopardy because you're sure you're going to win lots of money and will have to pay taxes on it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And in other news, Senator Barack Obama has pulled away from the Democratic presidential hopeful pack early on by announcing that he supports full and complete universal health care. Hooray! (Also notice that CNN misspelled his first name -- Barak -- yikes!) Senator Hillary Clinton has also called for universal health care, but she seems to be shying away from an all-out coverage plan and is instead focusing on SCHIP funding. Not bad, but I'd rather see some higher goals set. After all, as Les Brown (who?!) said, "Shoot for the moon; if you miss you'll be among the stars."
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Monday, January 22, 2007
Can't stop watching
that Scrubs episode. My favorite lines in the whole world:
"We're as close as the vena cava and the aorta!
We're best friends just like amoxicillin and clavulanic acid!"
Amoxicillin and clavulanic acid! So clever! So funny! So dorky! Right up my alley.
"We're as close as the vena cava and the aorta!
We're best friends just like amoxicillin and clavulanic acid!"
Amoxicillin and clavulanic acid! So clever! So funny! So dorky! Right up my alley.
Sunday, January 21, 2007
Pan's Labryinth
Go see it! And if you haven't seen Children of Men yet, go see that one, too! But to lessen the emotional distress, either see them on the same weekend so you do all your crying at once or give yourself plenty of buffer time in between them (more than two weeks) to recover and not feel like you're reliving your grief from the first one all over again. Or, if you're unlike me and don't cry at movies, then don't worry about this crazy pre-planning.
I didn't know anything about Pan's Labyrinth before heading into it; a friend called us up last night and asked if we wanted to go, and we didn't have anything better planned. I actually hadn't even heard of the movie at all (entertainment news is the last thing on my radar these days, unfortunately), and just in case you haven't either, here's all you need to know: It's set in WWII Spain and is filmed in Spanish, so you have to read subtitles (although I was really proud to recognize the word "dolor" multiple times throughout the movie -- yay for my crappy Medical Spanish class!). It's a weird mix of reality and fantasy -- they intermix with each other, not like a fantasy movie set on a backdrop of reality, like Narnia, or a movie where fantasy IS reality, like Harry Potter. This is unlike anything else I've ever seen in my life. The movie has gotten all sorts of awards already, and deservedly so.
I can't keep watching these emotionally burdensome movies, though -- it's an exhausting experience! Plus, we just got all three of the LOTR movies, so we've been watching those again and again at home. Too many epics in too short a time. I might have to put on something light and Disneylike tonight to make up for it.
I didn't know anything about Pan's Labyrinth before heading into it; a friend called us up last night and asked if we wanted to go, and we didn't have anything better planned. I actually hadn't even heard of the movie at all (entertainment news is the last thing on my radar these days, unfortunately), and just in case you haven't either, here's all you need to know: It's set in WWII Spain and is filmed in Spanish, so you have to read subtitles (although I was really proud to recognize the word "dolor" multiple times throughout the movie -- yay for my crappy Medical Spanish class!). It's a weird mix of reality and fantasy -- they intermix with each other, not like a fantasy movie set on a backdrop of reality, like Narnia, or a movie where fantasy IS reality, like Harry Potter. This is unlike anything else I've ever seen in my life. The movie has gotten all sorts of awards already, and deservedly so.
I can't keep watching these emotionally burdensome movies, though -- it's an exhausting experience! Plus, we just got all three of the LOTR movies, so we've been watching those again and again at home. Too many epics in too short a time. I might have to put on something light and Disneylike tonight to make up for it.
Saturday, January 20, 2007
I love DVR
We've had it for a week, and there are still some kinks to work out, but overall it's great. How did I ever live without it before? Because of it, we were able to watch this week's Scrubs episode (the musical episode!) over and over again. The songs are quite catchy, if embarrassing to be caught singing in public. Too bad pretty much everyone in the cast can't sing, although I try not to be too harsh in my criticism of other people's singing -- glass houses and stones and all that.
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
MLK Weekend
My mom and sister Laurel came to visit this weekend, and I had a lot of fun. They came in on Sunday morning and didn't leave until last night, and it was nice to forget about school for a few days. However, I just realized how completely screwed I am for the rest of the week, so everything comes with a price. Oh well. Here's what we did:
Sunday:
-Dim sum at Jade Palace Sunday. Yum. Not as good as back home (or HK) but very acceptable for Kentucky.
-Drove down to Fort Knox for a trip to the PX and a drive past our old house -- the first house I ever lived in, almost 26 years ago. Fort Knox is closer than I thought it was (only 45 minutes); too bad I don't have base privileges anymore or I'd be able to go to the commissary myself.
-Dinner at Havana Rumba, a first for Eric and me. It was sooooo good! We'll definitely be going back.
Monday (no school!):
-A visit to Campbell's Gourmet Cottage, a local kitchen supply store. It was fun to look around at all the kitchen gadgets that are out there, in a layout less cluttered and overwhelming than Bed Bath and Beyond.
-Lunch at Saffron Buffet, the lunch version of the popular Persian restaurant we still haven't tried. Good as always.
-Drove around town looking at all the houses for sale and setting up viewing appointments for
Tuesday.
-Dinner at Vietnam Kitchen, which wasn't very good. I wasn't impressed with any of their sauces (I can make them better myself, and mine aren't very good at all), and I don't think I'll be going back.
-Watched Pride and Prejudice at home, my mom's favorite movie -- a good choice by Eric!
Tuesday:
-Skipped two classes in the morning but went to the other two, then spent the afternoon driving around to all the house viewings we had scheduled. We saw the Mercantile Lofts downtown, which are really nice, unlike anything else I've seen in Louisville; a set of new, perfectly-sized single-family homes off of Frankfort Ave that were absolutely gorgeous; and a completely updated 100+-year-old house in the Frankfort Ave area. All were really different from each other, and all were really nice. All the looking was pretty much just for fun, since they were out of our price range and we're only living here for two more years anyway. Oh well.
-A late lunch / early dinner at Grape Leaf, a Mediterranean restaurant on Frankfort Ave. Always a good choice.
It was a good weekend, but really packed full of activities and exhausting. After my mom and sister left last night, I couldn't do much more than crash in front of the TV, and I slept in late this morning. I only have class from 3-5 today, which is nice, but I just took stock of where I stand with my schoolwork and I'm in trouble. I didn't get much studying done this weekend, and I've already wasted most of today instead of taking advantage of my time off. I have two quizzes tomorrow, another Friday, and tests coming up really, really soon. January's starting to get out of control!
In the long-term, I'm also starting to worry. I need to register for boards but haven't gotten my spring loan disbursement yet. I need to figure out my board studying plan, but that obviously is a moot situation if I can't get past these quizzes and tests in the next couple of weeks. And I need to do my taxes and FAFSA so I can get money for next year. Plus we still have to figure out what to do for our June vacation. Ugh. That's what I get for taking a break this weekend!
~~~~~
Twelve Angry Men
Our third Broadway series show was last week, featuring Richard Thomas and George Wendt. The show was great, as we expected, and all of the actors gave great performances. The show was at the Palace Theatre, an absolutely gorgeous theater downtown, rather than at the Kentucky Center, where all of the musicals have been. It's always fun to see a show at the Palace because the interior has been decorated in a really elaborate Spanish Baroque style (according to the website) and it's so beautiful inside.
Sunday:
-Dim sum at Jade Palace Sunday. Yum. Not as good as back home (or HK) but very acceptable for Kentucky.
-Drove down to Fort Knox for a trip to the PX and a drive past our old house -- the first house I ever lived in, almost 26 years ago. Fort Knox is closer than I thought it was (only 45 minutes); too bad I don't have base privileges anymore or I'd be able to go to the commissary myself.
-Dinner at Havana Rumba, a first for Eric and me. It was sooooo good! We'll definitely be going back.
Monday (no school!):
-A visit to Campbell's Gourmet Cottage, a local kitchen supply store. It was fun to look around at all the kitchen gadgets that are out there, in a layout less cluttered and overwhelming than Bed Bath and Beyond.
-Lunch at Saffron Buffet, the lunch version of the popular Persian restaurant we still haven't tried. Good as always.
-Drove around town looking at all the houses for sale and setting up viewing appointments for
Tuesday.
-Dinner at Vietnam Kitchen, which wasn't very good. I wasn't impressed with any of their sauces (I can make them better myself, and mine aren't very good at all), and I don't think I'll be going back.
-Watched Pride and Prejudice at home, my mom's favorite movie -- a good choice by Eric!
Tuesday:
-Skipped two classes in the morning but went to the other two, then spent the afternoon driving around to all the house viewings we had scheduled. We saw the Mercantile Lofts downtown, which are really nice, unlike anything else I've seen in Louisville; a set of new, perfectly-sized single-family homes off of Frankfort Ave that were absolutely gorgeous; and a completely updated 100+-year-old house in the Frankfort Ave area. All were really different from each other, and all were really nice. All the looking was pretty much just for fun, since they were out of our price range and we're only living here for two more years anyway. Oh well.
-A late lunch / early dinner at Grape Leaf, a Mediterranean restaurant on Frankfort Ave. Always a good choice.
It was a good weekend, but really packed full of activities and exhausting. After my mom and sister left last night, I couldn't do much more than crash in front of the TV, and I slept in late this morning. I only have class from 3-5 today, which is nice, but I just took stock of where I stand with my schoolwork and I'm in trouble. I didn't get much studying done this weekend, and I've already wasted most of today instead of taking advantage of my time off. I have two quizzes tomorrow, another Friday, and tests coming up really, really soon. January's starting to get out of control!
In the long-term, I'm also starting to worry. I need to register for boards but haven't gotten my spring loan disbursement yet. I need to figure out my board studying plan, but that obviously is a moot situation if I can't get past these quizzes and tests in the next couple of weeks. And I need to do my taxes and FAFSA so I can get money for next year. Plus we still have to figure out what to do for our June vacation. Ugh. That's what I get for taking a break this weekend!
~~~~~
Twelve Angry Men
Our third Broadway series show was last week, featuring Richard Thomas and George Wendt. The show was great, as we expected, and all of the actors gave great performances. The show was at the Palace Theatre, an absolutely gorgeous theater downtown, rather than at the Kentucky Center, where all of the musicals have been. It's always fun to see a show at the Palace because the interior has been decorated in a really elaborate Spanish Baroque style (according to the website) and it's so beautiful inside.
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
Travel
I'm so exhausted just thinking about it.
January 12-15: Was going to fly home for the weekend, but my mom and sister are coming here instead. That's going to be exhausting because I have to host, not because I have to travel.
February 17-18: Drive to Abingdon, VA, to help Eric's sister and brother-in-law and niece move into their new home, assuming they find a place to move into this weekend.
February 24-28: Fly to Aspen for our yearly dean's leadership retreat. Skiing, apres-ski, and discussing leadership topics; what more could I ask for?
March 2-4: Fly to Philly for my friend Melissa's wedding. Yes, that's only two days after I get back from Aspen. Yes, I have tests on Friday, March 9, so I'll be losing some study days to attend. Yes, that sucks, but yes, the wedding is going to be so much fun. I have tentative plans to squeeze in visits to just about everyone I know in Philly during that weekend; we'll see what happens.
March 9-18: After midterms on the 9th, I fly to Maryland for spring break. I'm probably going to hang out at the AMSA National Convention that weekend, either crashing with the other kids from school at the hotel or with my sister in College Park. Then it's home for a week to prep for my friend Paula's bridal shower on the 17th and read First Aid for Step 1, to officially kick off my board studying.
Sometime in April: Just about the only free time for a possible weekend trip to Chicago to visit our friends Jon and Alissa. Jon, if you read this, Eric is supposed to call you up about this soon.
May 4-6: Drive to Stone Harbor, NJ, for Eric's cousin's wedding, wedding #2 for 2007. We're driving instead of flying because it actually isn't that much more difficult, as long as we can leave by the early afternoon on Friday. By this point, school will have ended and I'll be studying for boards hardcore, so it sucks to have wedding season and board prep season coincide.
May 18-19: Drive to Maryland for my friend Paula's wedding in Baltimore on May 20. This time we're driving because I'm going to stay in Maryland and go home for a week to finish studying, then take boards on June 1 (assuming everything goes OK with my registration, which I can't complete until I can pay for it, and I'm waiting for my spring loan check, which is taking FOREVER). Eric will fly home late on May 20 or early May 21 to go back to work, then fly back to Maryland on...
June 1: ...for his friend Aaron's wedding on the Eastern Shore on June 2 (wedding #4 for 2007). We'll take my car, which I will have kept from the May 18 drive, to go to the wedding, then drive to one of the DC-area airports on
June 3: to leave for our vacation. We were hoping to go to Scotland or Rome, but both of those vacations would be about $1000 too much for us to manage right now (surprisingly, either location would end up being about the same; cheaper airfare to the UK is balanced out by the high cost of the Pound, while more expensive flights to Rome are balanced out by the slightly-lower Euro). So right now we're thinking about Seattle/Vancouver. I'm surprisingly excited by both of those cities, so I think it will be a good trip. We'll be gone until
June 10: when we fly back to Washington, pick up my car, and drive back to Louisville on June 11. Originally, when we were thinking of going to Europe, it was definitely going to be cheaper to fly from DC than from Louisville, and it's still roughly the same from either city to fly to Seattle, and if we fly from DC we can leave our kittens with my parents. Then it's back to work for Eric on June 12 and I get a few days to prep for the start of my third year, on June 18.
Whew!
And along the lines of weddings and other life-changing events, I found out my friend Karen is having a baby, due in July! I couldn't be more happy for her and Jake!
January 12-15: Was going to fly home for the weekend, but my mom and sister are coming here instead. That's going to be exhausting because I have to host, not because I have to travel.
February 17-18: Drive to Abingdon, VA, to help Eric's sister and brother-in-law and niece move into their new home, assuming they find a place to move into this weekend.
February 24-28: Fly to Aspen for our yearly dean's leadership retreat. Skiing, apres-ski, and discussing leadership topics; what more could I ask for?
March 2-4: Fly to Philly for my friend Melissa's wedding. Yes, that's only two days after I get back from Aspen. Yes, I have tests on Friday, March 9, so I'll be losing some study days to attend. Yes, that sucks, but yes, the wedding is going to be so much fun. I have tentative plans to squeeze in visits to just about everyone I know in Philly during that weekend; we'll see what happens.
March 9-18: After midterms on the 9th, I fly to Maryland for spring break. I'm probably going to hang out at the AMSA National Convention that weekend, either crashing with the other kids from school at the hotel or with my sister in College Park. Then it's home for a week to prep for my friend Paula's bridal shower on the 17th and read First Aid for Step 1, to officially kick off my board studying.
Sometime in April: Just about the only free time for a possible weekend trip to Chicago to visit our friends Jon and Alissa. Jon, if you read this, Eric is supposed to call you up about this soon.
May 4-6: Drive to Stone Harbor, NJ, for Eric's cousin's wedding, wedding #2 for 2007. We're driving instead of flying because it actually isn't that much more difficult, as long as we can leave by the early afternoon on Friday. By this point, school will have ended and I'll be studying for boards hardcore, so it sucks to have wedding season and board prep season coincide.
May 18-19: Drive to Maryland for my friend Paula's wedding in Baltimore on May 20. This time we're driving because I'm going to stay in Maryland and go home for a week to finish studying, then take boards on June 1 (assuming everything goes OK with my registration, which I can't complete until I can pay for it, and I'm waiting for my spring loan check, which is taking FOREVER). Eric will fly home late on May 20 or early May 21 to go back to work, then fly back to Maryland on...
June 1: ...for his friend Aaron's wedding on the Eastern Shore on June 2 (wedding #4 for 2007). We'll take my car, which I will have kept from the May 18 drive, to go to the wedding, then drive to one of the DC-area airports on
June 3: to leave for our vacation. We were hoping to go to Scotland or Rome, but both of those vacations would be about $1000 too much for us to manage right now (surprisingly, either location would end up being about the same; cheaper airfare to the UK is balanced out by the high cost of the Pound, while more expensive flights to Rome are balanced out by the slightly-lower Euro). So right now we're thinking about Seattle/Vancouver. I'm surprisingly excited by both of those cities, so I think it will be a good trip. We'll be gone until
June 10: when we fly back to Washington, pick up my car, and drive back to Louisville on June 11. Originally, when we were thinking of going to Europe, it was definitely going to be cheaper to fly from DC than from Louisville, and it's still roughly the same from either city to fly to Seattle, and if we fly from DC we can leave our kittens with my parents. Then it's back to work for Eric on June 12 and I get a few days to prep for the start of my third year, on June 18.
Whew!
And along the lines of weddings and other life-changing events, I found out my friend Karen is having a baby, due in July! I couldn't be more happy for her and Jake!
Found it!
The massager thingy was on top of the kitchen cabinet. I don't know who put it there or why, but thank goodness Eric gave me a hug in the kitchen yesterday! (It caused me to look up, since there's such a large height difference between us, and I spotted it.)
Oh yeah. And I also figured out how to change my fonts again. Turned out I was in composing in html mode by accident, rather than the non-computer-geek wysiwyg mode. I'd go back and change the fonts in my previous posts, but then there would be no documentation of my former angst. Or I'm lazy. You choose.
Oh yeah. And I also figured out how to change my fonts again. Turned out I was in composing in html mode by accident, rather than the non-computer-geek wysiwyg mode. I'd go back and change the fonts in my previous posts, but then there would be no documentation of my former angst. Or I'm lazy. You choose.
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
Thursday, January 04, 2007
Things that make me depressed:
1. At our new year's party, only 2 things disappeared: my cable bill, from the fridge (called the cable company to get all the pertinent info, no real harm done, but strange nonetheless), and my wooden ball massager thingy from The Body Shop (you know the kind, all wood, supposed to roll out your tensions or whatever). I don't understand either disappearance, but I don't like that the massager is gone.
2. The Inquirer has announced layoffs that amount to about 16% of its newsroom staff. Eric is supposedly on the waiting list for an editorial job (supposedly because he got on the list a couple years ago), but I don't know how likely it is a spot will ever open up, never mind the fact that he actually wants a reporting job now. I don't like to see his chosen field shrivel up like this. First, the page size shrinkage, then more and more consolidation (Knight Ridder, my old employer, doesn't even exist anymore), now staff cutbacks at what was probably going to be his No. 1 choice for a paper to work at. Bummer.
My mentor asked me recently, regarding Eric and his work, "Doesn't he know he's in a dying profession?" I responded, "Well, the health care system is failing and I still chose to come to medical school." "Yeah, but we don't have doctors providing diagnoses for free on the Internet [a reference to newspaper subscription rates being down because of free online access]." I didn't get the chance to respond, but the truth is, we do have that situation: sites like WebMD allow people to self-diagnose (although they usually still have to come into the office, and I have no actual problem with WebMD), and radiologists halfway around the world are being contracted out to read night-time films for half of what U.S. physicians are paid.
The Inquirer layoffs also make me stressed because we're planning to go back East for my residency, and I'm planning on applying heavily between DC and Philly. It's going to be hard for Eric to stay in journalism and not try to move up to a better paper, but the better papers are becoming fewer and farther between and harder to break into. Whatever happened to the sentiment of Thomas Jefferson, who said,
"Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter."
?
In any case, if you want to read about the Inky layoffs, here are a few stories:
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/business/special_packages/cf_biz/16367798.htm
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/business/special_packages/cf_biz/16367568.htm
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/nation/16371748.htm
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/business/16370474.htm
http://blogs.philly.com/blinq/2007/01/most_of_the_nam.html
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/nation/16379732.htm
(The blogs.philly.com one is a blog, not a news story, and puts a more human spin on the situation.)
Things that annoy me:
1. Blogger is better now that it's a Google service, but I lost my ability to change my font and type size. WTF?
2. Trying to decide how much weight I can actually lose by mid-May. I need to know NOW what size I'm going to be THEN so I can order my bridesmaid dress. Maybe I'll just fast for 36 hours and then go get fitted.
Things that make me slightly happier:
1. We gained a few bottles of champagne from the New Year's party (granted, one of them is Andre so I don't think that counts) as well as half a bottle of some nice bourbon someone left. I think that makes up for the massager.
1. At our new year's party, only 2 things disappeared: my cable bill, from the fridge (called the cable company to get all the pertinent info, no real harm done, but strange nonetheless), and my wooden ball massager thingy from The Body Shop (you know the kind, all wood, supposed to roll out your tensions or whatever). I don't understand either disappearance, but I don't like that the massager is gone.
2. The Inquirer has announced layoffs that amount to about 16% of its newsroom staff. Eric is supposedly on the waiting list for an editorial job (supposedly because he got on the list a couple years ago), but I don't know how likely it is a spot will ever open up, never mind the fact that he actually wants a reporting job now. I don't like to see his chosen field shrivel up like this. First, the page size shrinkage, then more and more consolidation (Knight Ridder, my old employer, doesn't even exist anymore), now staff cutbacks at what was probably going to be his No. 1 choice for a paper to work at. Bummer.
My mentor asked me recently, regarding Eric and his work, "Doesn't he know he's in a dying profession?" I responded, "Well, the health care system is failing and I still chose to come to medical school." "Yeah, but we don't have doctors providing diagnoses for free on the Internet [a reference to newspaper subscription rates being down because of free online access]." I didn't get the chance to respond, but the truth is, we do have that situation: sites like WebMD allow people to self-diagnose (although they usually still have to come into the office, and I have no actual problem with WebMD), and radiologists halfway around the world are being contracted out to read night-time films for half of what U.S. physicians are paid.
The Inquirer layoffs also make me stressed because we're planning to go back East for my residency, and I'm planning on applying heavily between DC and Philly. It's going to be hard for Eric to stay in journalism and not try to move up to a better paper, but the better papers are becoming fewer and farther between and harder to break into. Whatever happened to the sentiment of Thomas Jefferson, who said,
"Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter."
?
In any case, if you want to read about the Inky layoffs, here are a few stories:
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/business/special_packages/cf_biz/16367798.htm
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/business/special_packages/cf_biz/16367568.htm
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/nation/16371748.htm
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/business/16370474.htm
http://blogs.philly.com/blinq/2007/01/most_of_the_nam.html
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/nation/16379732.htm
(The blogs.philly.com one is a blog, not a news story, and puts a more human spin on the situation.)
Things that annoy me:
1. Blogger is better now that it's a Google service, but I lost my ability to change my font and type size. WTF?
2. Trying to decide how much weight I can actually lose by mid-May. I need to know NOW what size I'm going to be THEN so I can order my bridesmaid dress. Maybe I'll just fast for 36 hours and then go get fitted.
Things that make me slightly happier:
1. We gained a few bottles of champagne from the New Year's party (granted, one of them is Andre so I don't think that counts) as well as half a bottle of some nice bourbon someone left. I think that makes up for the massager.
Wednesday, January 03, 2007
Happy New Year!
Update: What a busy holiday season! My two weeks off miraculously felt like more, despite nearly constant travel, so it was a great break. After finishing finals, I took the weekend off to party and relax, then went home for a few days before Christmas to see my family. I spent Christmas weekend in Pennsylvania with Eric's family -- and got to see the new baby! -- then went back home for a few more days before flying home on the 28th. That left me a few days to clean our entire apartment before our New Year's Party, which ended up being a big success, except for the drunk girl passed out in our bathroom at the very end of the night.
January 2 had me back at school, and they dove right in, no easing into the semester. We only have 4 weeks this block before our test, which also serves as our Path final, so it's going to be a busy January.
AA: In other news, I went to visit the local drug/alcohol rehab facility in town, The Healing Place, this morning, and that was surprisingly interesting. We attended a community meeting for the clients currently being served, which consisted of 76 of us sitting in a large circle (2 staff members, 6 med students, and the rest clients) and taking care of business. Business point #1 was to assign duties for the next two weeks: housekeeping supervisor, kitchen supervisor, maintenance supervisor, and runner. The process followed Robert's Rules of Order fairly well, a person being nominated and seconded, more people being nominated and seconded, and then a motion to close the nominating and a second. The people who made nominations had to explain themselves, and then we all had to vote, by standing up and counting off, to ensure that all 76 people voted each time. At first I was worried about voting, since I didn't know any of these people, but this problem was easily solved, due to two things: first, the nomination explanation was actually quite useful; second, you didn't vote based on who was most qualified for the job, but based on who would benefit the most from having the job. For example, we voted a guy into the position of maintenance supervisor because his nominator said,
"We came into detox at the same time so I've been with you a lot, and I notice that you're very clean and meticulous. Your clothes closet is as neat as a department store's! I was on maintenance duty these past few weeks and we were doing really dirty things like moving toilets and cleaning moldy basements, so I'm nominating you because I think doing something dirty will pull you out of your comfort zone and give you a chance to grow."
Obviously, that guy was therefore the best choice, so I voted for him. It's an interesting concept, voting people into positions based on what will be the best for them, rather than what will be the best for the position. It focuses on personal growth, rather than on jobs being done.
Then two clients who had submitted petitions to leave for the weekend explained their requests to the group, and the group got to ask them questions before we voted to allow them to go. One man, Joseph, was going to go down to Elizabethtown to his dad's house for the weekend so he could make amends with his father, which was what he needed to do to move to Step 9. The group questioned him on whether making amends at his father's house was wise or if a neutral location would be better; on what he would do if the amends didn't go well; and other similar things.
Finally, everyone went around and told their "issues" and "grievances" -- issues are things you've done wrong that you're reporting (like being late to a meeting) and grievances are issues you are calling out on others. The theory is that other people can identify your shortcomings better than you can (definitely true) and so they're brought out in a community atmosphere with a goal of improving each other. James was called out for shirking his duties as kitchen supervisor, and the group came up with an appropriate punishment (although I don't think they call it "punishment"): 2 weeks of more menial kitchen duties, writing 1000 words on "my disease doesn't forget," 2 weeks of a Feelings Journal, two weeks of doing "meet and greet" at the shelter, writing out Chapter 5 of the "Big Book" twice, writing a two-page synopsis of each of the first three steps of AA, and various other things I can't remember anymore. Talk about homework!
The Healing Place uses a "social" or "peer" model of drug/alcohol recovery, as opposed to a "medical" model of recovery. Thus, most of the recovery is done in peer groups, with only minimal leadership by professionals. There was a Social Worker leading the community meeting this morning, but he only served to keep everyone mostly on task, and didn't facilitate or lead the discussion in any way. Grievances are brought by peers, decisions are made by peers, and lots of graduates of the program work at the center so there is a sense of success and credibility everywhere. It was really quite interesting.
I sat next to a man named Shakur (sp?) who came to Louisville from Richmond for a reason I didn't quite catch, but he said he had been living on the streets for 31 years and trying to become sober since 1979, and he had done AA in Richmond, but with all of his family and old friends there, it was too easy to relapse, so he left. He was a really nice guy, and watched out for me the whole meeting, explaining when I had to participate and what I had to do. I wish him luck in his recovery.
Another interesting fact I learned today is that a surprising percentage of alcoholics/addicts are actually very smart, since so many have their high school diplomas or college degrees, and they were able to obtain them while, for the most part, drunk/high. There were college courses I didn't do well in sober, and I can't imagine having to go through them high, but these people are so smart that they were able to lose that much cognitive ability and still be successful in school. It really is a shame when you think about it.
Medical Spanish: I started Medical Spanish today, and we'll see how it goes. I took French in high school and Chinese in college, and the only Spanish I know is from Sesame Street. I figure, though, if I can just learn the basics, like pronunciation and basic sentence structure, that I can always look everything else up later on an as-needed basis. So far, the hardest thing is trying to figure out what words are supposed to sound like, since I want to say them with French pronunciation and accents. I learned today that "le" in Spanish is pronounced like "les" in French, and while "le/les" in French is a direct object, it is an indirect object in Spanish, and "el" is the equivalent direct object. I foresee more confusion along these lines for me, much as there was between French and Chinese when I first started... On the plus side, a lot of the vocabulary is similar between French and Spanish, so it makes sense to me what "biblioteca" means, whereas learning "bibliotheque" in the sixth grade was somewhat more difficult. In any case, the professor is nice and said he'll give everyone Honors, so it's just for fun!
And finally, I have to give a big CONGRATULATIONS to Jamie and Tim -- they're engaged! Luckily, the wedding's not until 2008, so I'll have a chance to recover from this year's string of weddings (1 in March, 2 in May, 1 in June, and 1 in September, with a bridal shower in March also; the added stress is that 3 are during my board studying time, so that is going to be a marathon to get through).
January 2 had me back at school, and they dove right in, no easing into the semester. We only have 4 weeks this block before our test, which also serves as our Path final, so it's going to be a busy January.
AA: In other news, I went to visit the local drug/alcohol rehab facility in town, The Healing Place, this morning, and that was surprisingly interesting. We attended a community meeting for the clients currently being served, which consisted of 76 of us sitting in a large circle (2 staff members, 6 med students, and the rest clients) and taking care of business. Business point #1 was to assign duties for the next two weeks: housekeeping supervisor, kitchen supervisor, maintenance supervisor, and runner. The process followed Robert's Rules of Order fairly well, a person being nominated and seconded, more people being nominated and seconded, and then a motion to close the nominating and a second. The people who made nominations had to explain themselves, and then we all had to vote, by standing up and counting off, to ensure that all 76 people voted each time. At first I was worried about voting, since I didn't know any of these people, but this problem was easily solved, due to two things: first, the nomination explanation was actually quite useful; second, you didn't vote based on who was most qualified for the job, but based on who would benefit the most from having the job. For example, we voted a guy into the position of maintenance supervisor because his nominator said,
"We came into detox at the same time so I've been with you a lot, and I notice that you're very clean and meticulous. Your clothes closet is as neat as a department store's! I was on maintenance duty these past few weeks and we were doing really dirty things like moving toilets and cleaning moldy basements, so I'm nominating you because I think doing something dirty will pull you out of your comfort zone and give you a chance to grow."
Obviously, that guy was therefore the best choice, so I voted for him. It's an interesting concept, voting people into positions based on what will be the best for them, rather than what will be the best for the position. It focuses on personal growth, rather than on jobs being done.
Then two clients who had submitted petitions to leave for the weekend explained their requests to the group, and the group got to ask them questions before we voted to allow them to go. One man, Joseph, was going to go down to Elizabethtown to his dad's house for the weekend so he could make amends with his father, which was what he needed to do to move to Step 9. The group questioned him on whether making amends at his father's house was wise or if a neutral location would be better; on what he would do if the amends didn't go well; and other similar things.
Finally, everyone went around and told their "issues" and "grievances" -- issues are things you've done wrong that you're reporting (like being late to a meeting) and grievances are issues you are calling out on others. The theory is that other people can identify your shortcomings better than you can (definitely true) and so they're brought out in a community atmosphere with a goal of improving each other. James was called out for shirking his duties as kitchen supervisor, and the group came up with an appropriate punishment (although I don't think they call it "punishment"): 2 weeks of more menial kitchen duties, writing 1000 words on "my disease doesn't forget," 2 weeks of a Feelings Journal, two weeks of doing "meet and greet" at the shelter, writing out Chapter 5 of the "Big Book" twice, writing a two-page synopsis of each of the first three steps of AA, and various other things I can't remember anymore. Talk about homework!
The Healing Place uses a "social" or "peer" model of drug/alcohol recovery, as opposed to a "medical" model of recovery. Thus, most of the recovery is done in peer groups, with only minimal leadership by professionals. There was a Social Worker leading the community meeting this morning, but he only served to keep everyone mostly on task, and didn't facilitate or lead the discussion in any way. Grievances are brought by peers, decisions are made by peers, and lots of graduates of the program work at the center so there is a sense of success and credibility everywhere. It was really quite interesting.
I sat next to a man named Shakur (sp?) who came to Louisville from Richmond for a reason I didn't quite catch, but he said he had been living on the streets for 31 years and trying to become sober since 1979, and he had done AA in Richmond, but with all of his family and old friends there, it was too easy to relapse, so he left. He was a really nice guy, and watched out for me the whole meeting, explaining when I had to participate and what I had to do. I wish him luck in his recovery.
Another interesting fact I learned today is that a surprising percentage of alcoholics/addicts are actually very smart, since so many have their high school diplomas or college degrees, and they were able to obtain them while, for the most part, drunk/high. There were college courses I didn't do well in sober, and I can't imagine having to go through them high, but these people are so smart that they were able to lose that much cognitive ability and still be successful in school. It really is a shame when you think about it.
Medical Spanish: I started Medical Spanish today, and we'll see how it goes. I took French in high school and Chinese in college, and the only Spanish I know is from Sesame Street. I figure, though, if I can just learn the basics, like pronunciation and basic sentence structure, that I can always look everything else up later on an as-needed basis. So far, the hardest thing is trying to figure out what words are supposed to sound like, since I want to say them with French pronunciation and accents. I learned today that "le" in Spanish is pronounced like "les" in French, and while "le/les" in French is a direct object, it is an indirect object in Spanish, and "el" is the equivalent direct object. I foresee more confusion along these lines for me, much as there was between French and Chinese when I first started... On the plus side, a lot of the vocabulary is similar between French and Spanish, so it makes sense to me what "biblioteca" means, whereas learning "bibliotheque" in the sixth grade was somewhat more difficult. In any case, the professor is nice and said he'll give everyone Honors, so it's just for fun!
And finally, I have to give a big CONGRATULATIONS to Jamie and Tim -- they're engaged! Luckily, the wedding's not until 2008, so I'll have a chance to recover from this year's string of weddings (1 in March, 2 in May, 1 in June, and 1 in September, with a bridal shower in March also; the added stress is that 3 are during my board studying time, so that is going to be a marathon to get through).
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