Hey Guys! This one is overdue.
Its saturday night. Just thinking about finishing up studying for the evening finally. Figured I would write this at school as I charge up my laptop a bit more.. Ive been having some problems with my charger at home. I can't charge it without getting shocked, so I make sure my laptop is charged for when I go home. Im usually at school until 11, so I never have a problem making it last until morning..
We are one week away from block 2! The material is coming in quick, but I think it is manageable for now. My tough course this block I think is going to be Pathology or Neuro. Micro is not challenging, its just a lot of material. We just finished two weeks on neoplasia in pathology, which I've found to be a little bit difficult. Its essentially being able to diagnose all the different forms of cancer/tumors etc. We are now into blood disorders which is a bit more straightforward. In Neuro we continue to do stuff that is way over anything I've learned before, but its just a matter of putting in the time. The hardest part about this block for Neuro would have to be remembering all the pathways in the cerebellum and brainstem along with the blood supply. Its a lot. It makes spinal cord (which we did first block) look simple. One more week to get it all mastered. It will be a long week as always.
On the non-academic front, a few things have happened since the last post. I went on a super cool hike to the crater of Mount. Liamuiga, which I learned is the tallest point in all of the Caribbean! The top of this hike is situated on the rim of the crater of the volcano. It was such a cool hike. On my next break I want to do it again, but camp out in the crater over night. There is also a hike that takes you to the highest point of the crater, but it is on the opposite side of the mountain and it required jeeps or 4x4's to get to the base. It also requires someone who knows the route, because very few people do it. Ill see If I can convince the right people to help me out:)
SGA also hosted Med Olympics again this year which was fun. My semester won this year which was exciting! I can't take any credit however, as all I did was help run some of the events.. I didn't actually participate in any. It was a great day however. Lots of faculty came out and a good amount of students as well. Next event I guess is the post block 2 party that happens on block Monday. SGA hosts that one as well, so I will be helping out in some way there.
This week I also found out I will be a hurricane team coordinator :P So in the event that there is something, I have a group of 20 people that I will be in charge of contacting to ensure they are in a safe place. The school is split up into these groups and there are a few coordinators who are each in charge of a group. Cant say I'm looking forward to it, but its a neat system in the event that something comes through.
The Muslim Student Association had an event 2 weeks ago about Ramadan and what it means to them. I got to learn what it is all about and sit through a call to prayer chant which was very interesting. We then all joined them in a post fast meal. Next week there is a Faces of the World event where all the different cultures represented at the school will have some sort of thing. Whether it be dances, songs, food etc. I am looking forward to it!
Things I've Learned
-Ive learned how to write in straight lines on non-lined paper! I could never do it before, but I've run out of lined paper and have been stuck using computer paper.
-There are very few Cruise ships this time of year
-Ive started taking my wallet out of my back pocket when I sit down now. It is so much more comfortable, I feel like I've lost 15 years of seated comfort.
-My record for number of people called in 3 hours (Ambassador program) is 89! I also had a 35 minutes conversation which I thought was pretty good until my friend had an hour long conversation..
-It seems like all the dive places on the island are either on vacation or their boats are being refitted in August when I have my break.. I had intentions to do a lot of SCUBA diving. Might have to make my way to Nevis for that.
-In Neuro lab my fear came true. I have this thing with eyes, in that I can't deal with eye problems or anything with eyes really. We had to poke each other in the eye for some cranial nerve tests. It was terrible.
Have a good night!
Mike