Posted: August 11th, 2008 | Author: Ryan | Filed under: Randomness | Tags: design, housekeeping, thoughts | 2 Comments »
Okay, I promise this is the last “countdown to medical school” post I’ll write, but that’s pretty much what occupies my mind right now. I’m not nervous, per se, but excited – ready to get started.
I was thinking earlier today that, while I really like this design for the site, I also realize that it’s somewhat hard to read. There are multiple categories scattered all over the page. No offense to you, dear reader (Hi Mom!), but I know your time is valuable and it’d probably be better if I just kept things simple.
So, I think tonight I’ll change the design of the site (at least temporarily) to make things a bit easier.
Posted: August 8th, 2008 | Author: Ryan | Filed under: Medical School | Tags: education, humor, medical, notes, school | 1 Comment »
27 lbs of knowledge
One of the things I’m most impressed with about VCOM is the way that students have embraced technology as a means of sharing information with one another. The SGA has created a website where students can post news, notes, study guides, and podcasts of the lectures – and it is used frequently.
Earlier today, I was looking around the site and came across a post by an MS2 who apparently stacked all of his/her course notes together, placed a ruler beside them and snapped a photo (left). The caption reads, “Here is the stack of documents for all of first year. It’s 27 pounds of knowledge.”
Yee-haw! This should be fun.
Posted: August 6th, 2008 | Author: Ryan | Filed under: Inspiration, Medical School | Tags: encouragement, Inspiration, medical, school, thoughts | 7 Comments »
In less than a week, I will officially be what’s known as an MS1 – that’s Medical Student (year 1). I was talking to a friend at LACA just the other day and trying to relay to him that time has passed quickly, but I can still feel the pain of “the waiting.”
If you know me well, you know that the decision to go to medical school is one that I’ve struggled with for a long time. Truth be told, I still struggle with it. I know I will be a good doctor, one who cares about his patients and does what’s in their best interest. The thing that concerns me the most has remained the same through the years, “Can I be a good friend and family man at the same time?”
I’ve decided, for better or worse, that I will never know until try. I have real hope that this is possible, mostly because I’ve seen a few other physicians do it, specifically a small town surgeon and dear friend of my family, Pat Greer. In his unending modesty, he would say I am exaggerating – but he would be the only one. I don’t imagine he’s perfect, but, in his ability to balance his love and care for his patients with the love and care he shows his family and friends, he comes as close as anyone I have ever known.
For the past few months I’ve been bombarded with the question, “are you nervous or excited.” The answer, of course, is both. I’m ready to get started. I’m ready to step into the unknown and dig into the course material. But my concern remains in many forms: debt, time, discipline – all of these are things that can, in the name of patient care, distract me from being a good friend and family member. So, I suppose I excited about school, and nervous about its potential fallout.
In related news, I plan to frequent this space a bit more in an effort to stay connected. It worked wonderfully when Jeanna and I traveled to Central America a few years ago, and while I cherish the things we wrote while we were there, I cherish the things that our friends and family wrote much, much more – so please, comment away on this and all future posts. I’m no doctor, but I know it is good for my soul.
Image courtesy of flickr user laffy4k
Posted: May 30th, 2008 | Author: Ryan | Filed under: Featured, Inspiration | Tags: creativity, ira glass, npr, practice, public radio | 2 Comments »
Ira Glass, Peabody Award winner and host of Chicago Public Radio’s This American Life, talks candidly about what it takes to become good at just about anything – practice. In it he defines the disparity that creative folks initially have between their tastes and their abilities. And he encourages them to keep moving forward in order to, eventually, meet the standards of their taste.
What’s interesting to me is that I know that practice pays off. For some reason I’ve just never attached that knowledge to creativity – even though all the clues were there. A brilliant artist and friend of mine says that he can teach anyone to draw. In essence, he’s saying the same thing. “If you want to practice, you can be good.” I suppose the struggle – for me anyway – is determining which things I really want to be good at. Because there simply isn’t enough time to practice them all.
Jeanna and I had the pleasure of seeing Ira Glass at the Tennessee Theatre in 2007 and I finished this short video with the same feeling I had when we saw him on stage – hopeful, inspired, & creative.
Posted: May 28th, 2008 | Author: Ryan | Filed under: Costa Rica, Featured | No Comments »
Recently I was looking back over some of the posts we made leading up to our trip to Costa Rica and thought it would be fun to revisit the packing list. I can’t really think of anything we needed, but didn’t have (or couldn’t buy), but I can think of several things we could’ve done without.
Bedroom
Closet
Miscellaneous
Bathroom
Kitchen
Office
First Aid Kit
Wound Care
- alcohol prep pads
- iodine pads
- irrigation syringe
- 2 x 2′s
- 4 x 4′s
- tape (athletic,
waterproof, electrical, duct)
- triple antibiotic ointment
butterfly bandages- band-aids
(all sizes)
- moleskin
- rubber gloves (3 pair)
Stings, Bites, & Burns
- stings, bites, burns
- ana-kit
- insect repellent
Survival
waterproof matches- cigarette lighter (2)
orange route tape- mylar blankets (2)
multi-purpose tool
Medicines
- chloroquine (malaria)
- ibuprofen
tylenol- benadryl
immodium- nb pills (?)
- scopalomine patches
dramamine- z pak
cipro
Orthopedics
Miscellaneous
- miscellaneous
- forehead thermometer
cotton swabs- lip balm
- sunscreen
- tampons
petroleum jellysuper glueplastic garbage bag- plastic ties
- ziploc freezer bags (5)
utility shears
Documents (with copies in each bag)
- passports
- driver’s licenses
- cash
travelers checks- credit cards
- itinerary
- emergency phone numbers (?)
Everything Else
