Where did the winter go?

So Long Winter--The snow castle shrank into a snow pile which got made into a snowman which shrank into a snow blob and away he went underground. I feel like I nearly missed the onset of spring, I was so busy with the surgery rotation, up before dawn and home after dark. My consolation was the occasional glimpse of the moon as I drove to the hospital. When it was full and just setting one day it almost made up for how tired I was all day to see the giant orb hanging over the hospital. It was another magical moment that made the day worth living for.

I just got through a gruesome 8-week surgery rotation, which despite my best effort resulted in a mediocre exam score.  I'm not sure if it's because I was so tired, or if it was trying to organize the community art project that made it so hard to do both well. Sometimes somthing has to give and I guess I wouldn't give up the time I spent with the kids at Blodgett School for a better exam score. As Sarah Greenberg in the class ahead of me said--sometimes you have to take charge of your own education.

As tired as I was in surgery I was amazed at how much I liked parts of it. I'm not sure I'm cut out to be a surgeon, at least not in this lifetime, but all the tools and the creative inventions and strategies that people have come up with over the last hundred years are very impressive.  I also I really loved the variety of things surgeons get to do from seeing patients in clinics and offering advice, to cutting and sewing and patching broken bodies back into functioning units of humanity.   I was most wowed by watching a modified radical neck disection on a man with neck cancer.  I could not believe the incedible intricacies of the surgery and the depth of knowledge and expertise brought to the operating table.

I was, however, at times falling asleep on my feet--something I didn't think was really possible before I experienced it myself.  The other thing that I was really amazed by was pediatric surgery. Kids absolutely astonish me with their honesty and resilience. Two days out from a very major abdominal surgery one kid simply didn't want any more pain medication and he was up and at it, ready to get back to life. The same surgery on an adult would take weeks of recovery.  There is a lot of hope in it.

The week I spent in pediatric surgery was my favorite, although Ear Nose Throat was close behind.  Perhaps I can take it up in the next lifetime. For now, I'm terribly torn between a residency with a global/preventative medicine focus and radiology, which appeals to the academic in me.  Here are some picutures from the last few months.

Calvin and Isabel skiing at Salmon Hills about an hour north of here. I was so impressed by Calvin's perserverence despite his frustration skiing. He made me laugh till I cried racing Isabel tot he bottom of the hill on his hands and knees, skis still on, after he fell down. He has an incredibly competitive streak, fortunately tempered by good humor most of the time.

My friends Woinam and Yorum at Alison DesForges' memorial in  Buffalo.   This was an incredible shock. The most recent information from the investigation suggests that sleep deprivation among the crew members may have played a role--not news to me given how I feel when I'm getting under 6 hours most days.

Isabel at the All City Orchestra rehearsal. She has made great strides on the cello this year with her teacher David Ledoux. I can actually recognize tunes and she seems to be taking more initiative to practice. It helps when Dave plays dulcimer with her.  Do I see family duets in the future--only if Dave can find more time to practice too. We shall see. We are hoping that when I start residency he can cut down a day from work, which hopefully won't just fill up with annoying housework.