Weekly Update: the end of February

• Current Scholastic Pursuits
• We've made a rule - we're not going to talk about it until Monday next week, ok? Good. Glad we've got that straight. Waiting is definitely the hardest part so the best I can do is not talk about it even though it's pretty much the only thing on my mind at any given moment.
• In other news, Family Med has been crawling by. Clinic is definitely not my thing and it's hard to get excited about stuff that I know (hope) won't be part of my future practice. But, still, it's good to know for my own experience and so as to be able to help loved ones out in the future. Only 4 weeks to go!!

• Recipe I've Been Drooling Over
• I was out at lunch yesterday and my friend ordered the BEST pizza ever. I have recorded the toppings here for your future enjoyment:
• Begin with a homemade, thin, whole wheat crust.
• Spread on some goat cheese as a base.
• Top with brie, spinach, and roasted pumpkin seeds.
• Broil until cheese is melted.
• Swoon with enjoyment. And try to not eat so much that you make yourself sick.

• Favourite Thing on Etsy this Week
• Bicycle Scarf! 

• What I'm Reading Right Now
• Munk Debates Volume 1 as previously alluded to here.

• TED Talk I Watched This Week
• This is the BEST TED speaker I have watched to date. I absolutely love his message. So much so that I've included both his talks on this link. Please please watch them... they are SO good.

• Song of the Week
• Mumford and Sons - The Cave

• Thing I'm Most Grateful for This Week
• Good friends and great wine. And boy, did I drink a lot of wine this week! Whew!

• Thing I'm Most Looking Forward to This Week
• Penguin is coming down this weekend for The Event That Shall Not Be Named. I can't wait to see him, I can't wait for it to be over, and I can't wait for the planning and moving to begin.

• Bunny Photo of the Week
• Sorry for having such a bright flash, bunnies! I hope your retinas recover.

Another recipe...

Ok. So candycane beets ARE awesome but so is kale - and I couldn't bear to withhold this recipe from you for another 7 days, so please make me proud and go make this for yourself this week.

Kale Spinach and Pear Smoothie. It will transform your life. Have I ever lied to you? Didn't think so... now get blending!!

Weekly Update: Back from CaRMS!

• Current Scholastic Pursuits
• After ‎15 flights, 18 hours in the car, 8 Canadian cities, 14 days, and $280 for taxis... CaRMS is finally over! Overall, everything went really well. I only had one crash and burn interview but it was at a school I considered not even applying to, so I didn't sweat it too much. In fact, it was good experience how to keep my cool under fire. The rank list has been submitted and Penguin has agreed to come down for match day on March 7. We've agreed to have both champagne and whiskey at the ready when twelve noon rolls around. If the news is good - we'll pop the champagne. If the news is not so good, we'll start taking shots of whiskey until my new destination for the next 5 years grows on us or we're too numb to care. Let's all keep our fingers crossed for good news, ok?
• In the meantime, I've started my last rotation of clerkship: family medicine. The clinic runs from 9:15 to 3:30 on weekdays and there's no call. It's about as fluff a rotation as you can get. Fortunately, this means that I've had a good chance to (a) catch up on my exhaustion post-CaRMS and (b) develop and initiate my LMCCQE review/study plans. The end is nigh and I can see the light - on Match Day, we'll find out if that light is sunshine or it's an on-coming train. Woot woot!

• Recipe I've Been Drooling Over
• the recipe this week is called "Badass Beet Salad!" and it includes candycane beets, which are pretty much my favourite veggie ever. I hope you try it out!

• Favourite Thing on Etsy this Week
• Compass Cufflinks! That's brilliant!

• What I'm Reading Right Now
• I just finished The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls. It was a tremendous book made all the better for me thinking that it was a fiction novel until I was halfway through and clued in that it was actually very real and autobiographical.

• TED Talk I Watched This Week
• The Story of Stuff is a great video by Annie Leonard that will really make you think twice about your current lifestyle and the impact it's having on our future. Not a TED Talk, but definitely worth watching.

• Song of the Week
• King of Anything by Sara Bareilles

• Thing I'm Most Grateful for This Week
• Spending a weekend of complete R&R with Penguin! We went to bed early and slept in late. We ate until we were stuffed at every meal. We laughed and cuddled. We spent hours in an outdoor hot tub becoming human raisins. There was sunshine and snow. There was good wine. And now, there is no more stress. Thanks so much, Penguin. xo 

• Thing I'm Most Looking Forward to This Week
• Writing my last PPI EVER on Wednesday! Sadly, I hear that everyone walks out feeling awful but I plan to raise a glass of victory later that night regardless.

• Bunny Photo of the Week
• Bunnies have it tough, too, you know. It's exhausting to be cute 24/7.

Everyone dies but not everyone lives.

Hi Folks,

I'm currently in the Porter Lounge in Toronto waiting for my connecting flight to my next destination. I had a terrific time in TBay and finally got the chance to go ice climbing. It was awesome! Many thanks to the wonderful people of the TBay Alpine Club for taking me out!

This is me climbing Ice Stud on Mount McKay!

Since the Super Bowl is tonight, I'm not certain I'll be able to update the blog today as I'm planning on attending the party at Penguin's parents' house. But, I do have most of the day off tomorrow so you can expect an update soon.

For your entertainment, here's a nice comparison between Superb Owls and the Super Bowl on Timothy McSweeney (... brought to you, courtesy of Scarlet).

WORDS THAT COULD CONCEIVABLY BE USED TO DESCRIBE BOTH THE SUPER BOWL AND A SUPERB OWL. BY MICHAEL WARD - - - - Unpredictable Head-turning Majestic Fast-paced Expensive Bone-crunching Spirited A hoot