Shocking on 3: 1. I'm clear 2. You're clear 3. We're all clear. Zap!

Sorry about the lack of blog update today. I was taking my ACLS course this weekend and now I'm going to bed early cuz I'm zonked. I promise to update tomorrow. Hope you had a good weekend!

Great Stories from our Friends the Naturalists...

I've got 2 great articles to share with you... one was in the NYTimes, entitled "Dying for Discovery". It chronicles the sacrifices that many naturalists have shouldered in the name of exploration. One of the early examples in the article is of a birder and botanist pair who died when their plane crashed into a mountainside because of cloud cover. The author writes, "They lingered there overnight, trapped in the wreckage, and died in the morning. “It was beautiful forest,” a survivor, Parker’s [the birder] fiancée, later told a reporter, “and they were very happy. Lots of birds.”

I think that is the best eulogy I have ever read. Ever.

The other article is certainly more light-hearted. It's about the introduction of Douglas Adams (author of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) and Struan Sutherland (poisonous animal expert). The quoted conversation by Adams is comic genius and does not disappoint.

I hope you enjoy them. :)

Weekly Update: 1 Month and 1 Day until the End of Med School!

• Current Scholastic Pursuits
• Exactly one month from now I will be having a restless, sleepless, anxious day. It will be the day before I write my LMCC (licensing exam) and I will be prepared but also scarred sh*tless. If it goes anything like my last OSCE, though, I will be a rock star. I've been told over and over again that I shouldn't sweat the LMCC, but I'm sweating anyways. We all do. That's just the way it is.
• The nice thing about studying like a fiend is that my schedule has become a whole lot more flexible. My little cerebrum can only focus for so long, so after a few hours of studying, I take myself to the gym and work it. I'm getting into wicked shape. Yesterday, after yoga, and inspired by the lovely sunshine, I took the Impala out for her first run of the season. We did 50km in 2hrs 10 min. I was flying - and, thanks to my many hours at the gym in weeks previous, it was no big deal. My shoulders are a little sore today but that's it! I can't wait to get out for another spin now... endorphin addiction at its finest.

• Recipe I've Been Drooling Over
• I made this french toast with lavender and grapefruit compote yesterday. I overdid it on the lavender, so I tried again this morning and it's much better. Absolutely delicious.

• Favourite Thing on Etsy this Week
• My dress obsession continues. I love the AfterShowerShop. Everything is so awesome. I'd love to get this one for summer, too.

• What I'm Reading Right Now
• Nothing but Toronto Notes is gettin' read these days, sorry.

• TED Talk I Watched This Week
• Last week, my friends car pooled with me to the North to visit our respective significant others. They got together on the weekend and went to see some slam poetry while Penguin and I were out watching Rango. Their discussion on the way home made this TED talk catch my interest. I absolutely love the poem Sarah Kay starts with: B. There's 2 links here: one for just the poem and the other for the whole talk.

• Song of the Week
• I couldn't decide which song to post today, so here's both!

• If Ever There's a Reason by Derby

• To Build a Home by the Cinematic Orchestra

• Thing I'm Most Grateful for This Week
• This past Wednesday was our graduation ceremony for our regional campus. Having completed all the evaluated aspects of med school (except the licensing exam but that's administered by the MCC, not by Mac), we partied it up with our preceptors at a very suave location in the tropical tundra. Penguin drove for 6 hours on Wed afternoon to spend the evening with me and then drove 6 hours home the next morning to go back to work. If that isn't love, I don't know what is. I've never loved that man more in my life. Thank you, Penguin! xo

• Thing I'm Most Looking Forward to This Week
• This upcoming weekend I'm doing my ACLS course and since I'll be in the nearest big town, I'm going to meet up with a dear friend on Sat night to celebrate her birthday. I'm really looking forward to seeing her!

• Bunny Photo of the Week
• Jazz continues to molt but I think it's finally in its last stages. We've survived the bunny blizzard! Hurrah! 
• Here's one of my favourite pictures of Hoyle...

Weekly Update: April Fool's!

• Current Scholastic Pursuits
• This past week, we started our concept integration and review period aka as mad-studying time for the licensing exam (an exam that we have been told repeatedly by upper years that you CAN'T study for...). Anyway, the first week went well. I've mapped out my study schedule and I feel pretty good about things so far. Just gotta keep on track!
• Yesterday was also highly productive. I did my taxes with Penguin, I studied, we went for a 6km run along the river, and we had Indian food for dinner then went to see Rango as a reward. Rango was great, I really liked it.
• In other news, I won an award for my "academic performance" during Internal Medicine in clerkship. This came as quite a shock: first, because I know I failed that end-of-rotation exam; second, because Internal was definitely not my shining moment in clerkship; and third, because everyone knows I love Gen Surg and that's what I matched to. But, the award comes with a $500 cash prize, so I wasn't about to say no. The sketchy part was how they introduced us to the award: they sent an email out on April 1st, in the morning, and told us they needed our SIN number to get finance to cut us the cheques. I honestly thought that it was a very crafty april fool's joke and fired them back an email that said I wasn't that gullible. But, apparently, things were legit!
• Finally, to follow up on my last post and my vacation dilemmas - we've decided to save the Basecamp hike for a later time (these's words have never passed my lips before, so it's taking me some time to get used to the idea). Instead, we'll be doing Algonquin with friends, I'll hopefully be able to go visit Melon (at long last!), and generally take my time with the packing and moving process.

• Recipe I've Been Drooling Over
• After Indian food last night, I have become obsessed with figuring out how to make pappadums. I found this recipe online. It looks hopeful. I will let you know how it goes!

• Favourite Thing on Etsy this Week
• Check out this super cute children's book I found on Etsy... it's about a King who is loves with the number five but then discovers that he has six fingers!! Here's the quote from the item's page:
• "The story deals with an obsessive compulsive, polydactyly (hexadactyly) King and unfolds in a whimsical rhyme accompanied by mid-century illustrations. It ends on a very positive note with an important lesson about maintaining balance in your life."

• What I'm Reading Right Now
• I'm reading Toronto Notes. :S

• TED Talk I Watched This Week
• Here's one of the TED talks from the music video I posted last week. It's about a neuroanatomist who has a stroke at a young age. It's very moving and I hope you're able to find time to watch it.

• Song of the Week
• Airport Life by Dead Child Star.

• Thing I'm Most Grateful for This Week
• Penguin!! On Thursday night, he surprised me with a special dinner (pork loin purchased from our ethical butcher), rice, and grilled apples, as well as wine and cupcakes decorated as frogs. And as if that wasn't enough, he also had a little present and card for me to celebrate my getting into residency. I am the luckiest, and happiest, girl in the world. Thank you Penguin. xo

• Thing I'm Most Looking Forward to This Week
• Getting our last OSCE over with!! The next day, we get to party at our campus-specific grad party. Yay!

• Bunny Photo of the Week
• Bunny loaf (Jazz) disapproves of the concept that it will take 3 days of driving to get to Winnipeg. To demonstrate her disapproval, she has gone into the most berserk molt of all time. God, save us.