Finished!

I completed my last day of medical school yesterday, Friday, December 16, 2011.  I am still waiting for evaluations from my rotations this fall and winter so I can't technically call myself a doctor yet. (Someone could fail me, which I cannot fathom happening, but I can't technically call myself a doctor until the grades are in).  I didn't get excited about being finished until my attending physician told me I could leave on Friday afternoon.  Then the excitement started growing.  I realized on the train ride home that much of the tension in my back, shoulders, and jaw was going away and it was all I could do to keep myself from dancing in the train.  By the time I got home, I was dancing and looking forward to doing something fun with Farley.  However, Farley was in Manhattan seeing an old college friend and got home about an hour after I did.  By then, I was tired--I didn't sleep much Thursday night as I was packing for the move home--so we had take out and watched a movie at home. I don't think it will really hit sink in that I'm done nor will I be comfortable having anyone call me Doctor until I see my diploma declaring that I've earned my Doctorate of Medicine.  Wow...Doctorate of Medicine.  I can't believe that both Farley and I have finished medical school.

Planes, Trains and Automobiles

I have been very fortunate to have lots of residency interviews, but that also means I've had to do tons of traveling and will continue to travel for interviews until February 2012.  I have taken planes, trains and automobiles...the only mode of transportation I'm missing is a boat!  I hate the traveling and scheduling of everything--it's so much harder than the actual interviews! Most of my trips have been, thankfully, uneventful; however, there have been a few interesting trips so far.

Chicago:

My interview in Chicago was suppose to finish at 1:30, but we didn't finish until 2:30.  I had to catch an airport shuttle at my hotel at 3:30, which was about 10 minutes from the hospital.  The residency coordinator called me a taxi at 2:30, but one did not arrive.  I stood outside the hospital (in November) for an hour and a half waiting for this cab.  I kept calling the coordinator and I called the taxi company and even another taxi company.  No one could or would help me.  Needless to say, I missed my airport shuttle.  I saw a taxi coming toward the hospital at about 4:00 and begged him to take me to my hotel to pick up my bag then to the airport.  I was told by multiple people that there was no way I'd make the flight given Chicago traffic.  However, this taxi driver said it was no problem and I was at the airport by 4:40.  I don't even think he was speeding.  He had been driving taxi in Chicago for over 30 years and knew the roads.  I made my 5:30 flight with time to stop and grab a snack.  I wish I knew his name so I could write a letter to their union or licensing board: he was amazing!

Long Island:

The LIRR (Long Island Rail Road) is great, but I had to leave my apartment at 4:00am to my interview by 8:00am and I had no idea where I was going.  I decided to take a taxi, which was very expensive, but at least I didn't have a four hour commute (I was going out to Long Island when everyone else was coming into Manhattan so the trains were not coming frequently in the direction that I wanted to go).  I did take the train back and it was mid-afternoon so it took 2.5 hour due to the frequency of the trains, but I wasn't on a schedule so it didn't matter at that point.

Philadelphia:

I took the Greyhound Bus to Philly, which I've never done before.  Port Authority (the bus terminal in Manhattan) is full of the stereotypical bus rider.  Farley talked me into taking the bus rather than Amtrak because the bus is cheaper and initially he was going to go with me just for fun (he finished his rotations a couple weeks before me due to my schedule).  He decided not to go, but I was stuck on the bus.  The bus was fine and the trip was smooth, but waiting in line had me nervous.  Once I got to Philly, I had to walk across the street and take the SEPTA (train) to the airport, where the hotel shuttle picked me up.  I had no problem getting around the public transit in Philadelphia, but I realized I'm starting to become a New Yorker: I was annoyed by the slooooow trains. The interview was out a bit early.   I was able to do the same commute (shuttle bus to airport to train to bus depot) and make it back to the bus depot in time to take the 3:00 train rather than the 5:00.  We missed the Philadelphia traffic, but there is no missing the New York City traffic.  The trip would take two hours without any traffic and we could have done it except that the last two or three miles or so took more than an hour and a half.  I left Philadelphia at 3:00pm and arrived at my apartment a little before 8:00pm.

Buffalo: 

Now this takes the cake!  I was flying on a smaller commuter plane out of New York City.  We were about 10 minutes on our way to Buffalo, when they announced that we had to return to New York City.  I couldn't hear why (which was a good thing), but the flight attendant came around and told everyone it wasn't an emergency so don't worry.  Once we landed, which by the way was very smooth, I noticed many emergency vehicles surrounding the plane and they announced that we lost two-thirds of the power on the plane. The emergency personnel surrounding the plane made me nervous.  I suspect that they were preparing in case there were problems, but thankfully, everything was okay.  All of the passengers and crew boarded a new plane and everything went well except for a bit of turbulence, which I'll admit made me more nervous than usual.  

I hope that nothing eventful happens on my upcoming flights in January and I'm thankful that all of my travels have been safe, even if not as smooth as I'd like.

December 10, 2011: Grand Central Terminal

We had a last minute call from the Realtor asking if she could do an open house in 90 minutes, so we quickly cleaned up the apartment and got ready to leave (she was 30 minutes late, which irritated me as I was asleep when she called and I rushed to have the house and myself ready in time).  Anyway, we had to find something to do for a few hours and we have been meaning to go back to Grand Central Terminal for some pictures.  

It is such a beautiful building.  I am not a good enough photographer to capture the wonder of the space.  The architectural design is amazing. I did post a few pictures, even though they really don't do the terminal justice:

If you noticed, there are many Santa Clauses in the pictures.  Every year, there is a Santa Con, where people dress up as Santa and go on a pub crawl around New York City.  They are fun for a while, but the more they drink, obviously, they get feistier they get.  There are hundreds (if not thousands of them) around the city and I can guarantee they are being naughty, not nice!

Also, the new Apple store opened in Grand Central Terminal on the 9th.  It is the largest Apple Store in the world.  I don't think it is as cool as the Apple store on 5th Ave, because the store on 5th Ave is more clean-lined and modern looking like the products.  The storefront on 5th Ave. is a giant glass box with the apple logo and downstairs to the actual store.  I think the Apple store in Grand Central Terminal, isn't as awesome because it takes away some of the grander of Grand Central Terminal.  

After having lunch, at Grand Central (on another note, they have the best food court I've seen--diverse, local and yummy), we walked down 42nd street past Bryant Park to the subway station at Times Square.  Then we headed to Soho to check out the Uniqlo's new flag ship store.  Uniqlo is a Japanese clothing company that is mid-priced and they have some cool stuff.  I think it is a cross between the Gap and Zara.  It was fun, but I didn't pick up anything (I was temped by heattech innerwear, which is basically fancy long-underwear, because I'm often cold),  Next, we headed back to Union Square and had a coffee and biscotti at Whole Foods before heading home.  It was a fun day out in Manhattan and one advantage of getting woken up for the Realtor to do a showing was that we had already cleaned the house first thing in the morning!  

December 3, 2011: Bryant Park

Farley and I decided to head into Bryant Park after Thanksgiving to look around at the shops.  I did a little Christmas shopping and we had a great time looking at the Holiday Shops.  There are multiple Holiday shops in New York, but Bryant Park is my favorite location.  I think they have the nicest and most original things.  I love seeing all of the creative people and what they have made.  There are chocolate shops, tons of jewelry stores (with semi-precious stones), candles, and many shops with leather purses made either in New York City or via free-trade agreements.  It is one of my favorite things about the holidays in New York.  They set up the shops in the fall along with the seasonal restaurant, Celsius, that we had drinks at when Dawn and Chris came to town, and the ice skating rink.     

After Bryant Park, we headed to Union Square.  They also have holiday shops, but I don't like the items as much.  Mostly we just window shopped and people watched.  However, we did have to stop back at Bryant Park on the way home to pick up more things after I spoke with the family! 

Farley and me in front of the Bryant Park Christmas Tree

The Bryant Park Tree