I have a Blog?

So I'm finally back at my blog. I last wrote way back in April before my return for the summer. I was only home five weeks with an additional week spent in NJ to visit Kristen. Then I returned to the island for a 6 week course in the summer. During that short term I took a vacation to Aruba with Kristen and her parents at their timeshare. It was a very nice break and the island was great. It was very developed in comparison to Grenada, so it was fun to enjoy the Caribbean from a tourist's perspective. Here's a picture of Kristen and I on the beach during the sunset on the way to dinner. A week or two after I returned from Aruba, Jenny and my Parents came down to visit for a week. We had a good time, and the hotel and pool was a nice bonus for me too. Plus we also went scuba diving and ate at a few scenic restaurants around the island. I just wish I had had some time off of school so I could have had some more extensive activities planned for the family, but c'est la vie. As they were leaving my 4th term was starting. It's usually considered the hardest term during these first 2 years because of the workload (23 credits) and the difficulty of pathology which is a 13 credit class itself. A lot of my time was spent in lab or preparing my slides to present for lab. Thus, there wasn't a whole lot of extra time to just study the material. When everything was said and done I ended up doing well, so the whole term was worth the effort. Winter break was nice and relaxing, but it was definitely too short. I started studying a little for my US medical licensing exam (USMLE step 1) that I'll be taking this summer already. But now the next term has already been in swing for the past 2 weeks. This term I'm taking pathophysiology, pharmacology, and clinical skills. I'll find out where I'll be doing my clinical rotations later this spring, but about 85% of the reserved spots are in the NY/NJ area so I have a pretty good chance of being out on the east coast. I'll continue to study the early part of the summer for the boards in mid-July, and will start my rotations in early to mid August. So that's where I've been and where I'm heading. I hope to keep you all informed on a more frequent basis. Until then, enjoy your cool weather.

Super-high-tech jet fighters

I've kept you all waiting for 3 weeks because I really wanted to have some juicy tidbits to share. First of all, over about the last week the U.S. Air Force has been on the island to keep the area secure for Obama's visit to Trinidad for the America's Conference. So we had a few F-15 fighters that made the airport very near my apartment into their temporary base. They'd take off in pairs, and due to their proximity we could always tell when this was because they were very loud. I got to see them a few times from my balcony, once even during the night, so that was interesting. Here's a video of 2 jets picking up 2 more of their buddies at the airport. The path that the guy is shooting from is the one I walk to class every day. You can even see one of the local cows in the video. Secondly, Kristen's parents were in town for the Easter holiday. It was the first time I got to meet them, so It was a nice opportunity. We also had a lot more fun than usual because unlike most of the time when we're sitting around with fellow students whom have been pushed into the red by student loans, they actually had money. So being a proper mooch, I got to eat at a few restaurants, and it was delicious. Plus, we also got to do some touristy things like head to Grand Etang National Park. It's a rain forest on the top of one of the volcanic peaks on the island. We got to trek down to a waterfall while the guide told us about some of the various spice, fruit, and flowering trees. There was a possibility to see monkeys, but he said they're usually not keen about hanging around people. The trip was one of the better times I've had on the island, and the included picture (pending) is of us swimming at the falls. Other than that, not too much more to talk about before I come home. I have an immunology final on Monday, and after that I only have 2 classes left to take finals for during my last week here. See you all after I do wonderfully on them (knocks on wood.)

The Home Stretch

I only have about 7 weeks left until I fly home for the summer. Granted I only have 6 weeks off before returning for 6 straight months of classes, but at least I get a little taste of home again. The week since midterms has been enjoyable. I got to go on another hash run through the forest again last weekend. We skipped the sandblast party on the beach to do this, but I think this decision was for the best. I really had a good time, and it was probably more relaxing than the party would have been. Midterms went fine, I've done well enough to have a good shot at the deans list this term. There isn't a lot more that's worth noting. Although I did get a used blender from another student. I've actually gotten a lot of use out of it, and I've been perfecting a piña colada recipe along with a variety of other fruit smoothies. All I need are some paper umbrellas and I'm ready to host any visitors willing to make the trip down here. Now that I've hopefully enticed some of you down here I don't want to scare you off again. This last picture I just took tonight. It's a giant cockroach that I stepped on in the parking stall in front of my apartment. This is the first one of these I've seen. Suprisingly, there haven't been many bugs down here like I expected. I can usually leave my balcony door open at night and not have a problem, but evidently we still have some mutant sized bugs like other places in the tropics. See everyone in a few, until then I'll keep you updated.

Hurray for Midterms

I'm going to be able to enjoy midterms again this coming week. Things get rolling on Monday with physiology. I've found that these things don't seem to be getting any easier to face. I still feel a little bit of anxiety before every round of tests, but I guess that's good in a sense. I won't be getting complacent. I've also realized that I'm coming home in just over 2 months. It seems like this term has flown by really fast, and It's a nice carrot at the end of this midterm stick. Not much has happened in the time since my last post. I've just been going over all my lecture notes in preparation for the exams. The lecturers for the courses I've had this term haven't been as good as last term, so I've had to do a lot of self teaching from the lecture notes, and there is a lot of material to sift through for those testable tidbits. Oh, this is kind of old news, but Kristen (the girlfriend) and Crystal (her roommate) adopted a pair of kittens about a month ago. They've been fun to play with and they're pretty good company when they're not being the destructive forces of nature that they can be. Here are a few pictures of the little devils. Eris is Kristen's, she's the one with the black spots, and Otto is Crystal's he's got shorter hair and only orange spots. So they keep things from getting too boring around here. Hopefully in the post midterm lull I'll be able to go on a few more of those hash runs through the jungle, or attend the sand blast party next weekend. Until next weekend, I'll catch you all after the studying has subsided.

Hey, sorry long time no see. It's not that I've really been avoiding posting or anything, it's just nothing really interesting has happened since my last post. But, I'll fill you in on the little tidbits that did happen. I just took another final for my last 1 credit class of the term. It was titled Community and Preventative Medicine, I had a similar class in undergrad, and I've actually both times taking them. They kind of put my role in the health care system into perspective, and they emphasize doing the greatest good with current technologies and funding. I actually got a 102% in the class. I aced the final and went to the 1 point extra credit counseling seminar that they had. It's my first 100% on a test maybe ever, well except for maybe middle school, but nevertheless I was pretty excited. Other than that not much has happened. I stayed in and cooked dinner for Kristen on Valentine's Day, I set the table all pretty and had folded napkins and everything, but it was my one chance to act cheesy all year and still feel justified. Other than that I have 3 weeks until the start of midterms, maybe I'll do at least something moderately interesting to fill all you in on in the meantime. Until then, I'll catch you later.