But now I'm back

Well, it's been a while. I feel like I've been less inclined to write and more likely to amass pictures that I want to post. This will probably ring even more true as boards study time inches closer and closer. We are already on Block 4 aka Pathophysiology aka the last block of pre-clinicals! Block 3 was all neuro and psych and totally up my alley. And as the new class started, it really sunk in that we are not the babies of the school anymore. Eek!

Orientation week party for the new kids on the block.

Med school is really hard.

Like really hard. Like so much so that your MS3 friends will bring you treats from their vacation.

In other news, my good friend L from like preschool (seriously) is getting married!!! I'm a little bummed that I won't be able to attend the wedding. It's on the East Coast and it would be nearly impossible with my class schedule. :(

BUT, I was able to attend the bridal shower, which was so much fun! And here are the cupcakes to prove it.

September Break Fun:

Chicken katsu.

Restaurant by my house that I did not know existed. 

Brunch with the fam.

Shakshuka for the win. 

And hot cocoa. Of course. 

I like to eat.

July (thus far)

Pizza night extravaganza with Year 1 Anatomy group!

K and I have an unhealthy relationship with colored pens.

Fam bam came up for a few days and wanted to do touristy things. Exhibit A: Sacramento River cruise.

Projected the World Cup finals at our lecture hall at school! Oh snap. 

Congrats to Germany! By the time the next WC rolls around I'll be finishing my intern year, ha!

This is what happens when you have neuroanatomy lab with clay. Brain modeling or professor modeling? ;)
All credit goes to the group that so expertly made this.

Harry Potter trivia night! Medical Muggles: Wingardium Mediosa placed a respectable 4th out of 46 teams.

On to MS2

Today is the first day of summer - the season, I mean. It's also the penultimate day of our "summer" break. These last six weeks have just flown by. I guess that was partly my fault since I split up my break. I did a two week "mini" psych clerkship where I followed around psychiatrists on the consult service in the mornings and outpatient clinics in the afternoons. Since I was going to be around, I figured I might as well be at clinic as much as I could as well. This meant the timing of things would be a little tricky. I ended up going home for 2 weeks after finals, then coming back up for a couple of weeks, and going home again for another 2 weeks.

I did learn a lot doing the summer program, though. My attending wanted to make me feel like I was part of the team so she had me do an oral presentation on the neurocircuitry of OCD and also present a paper for journal club. It was pretty cool being challenged at the level of an MS3. It makes me less nervous about the transition to third year. Anyway, psychiatry is definitely a tough field to go into. It's not necessarily physically demanding, but very much so mentally and emotionally. I really really liked being on the consult service though. It's a nice mix of medicine and psychiatry since these patients are usually brought in for a medical condition and need to be evaluated for an underlying psych issue or develop something throughout the course of their inpatient stay.

The rest of break was a mix of being sick right after finals, hanging out with friends, and eating a lot as usual.

Life lesson learned: I like inpatient much much more than outpatient - at least for psych.
Movies seen: 3 (X-Men, The Fault in Our Stars, 22 Jump Street)
Books read: 6
Binge-watched: alllllll of Sherlock and Game of Thrones season 4

The Fault in Our Stars was amazing. Amazing. Amazing. It's such a charming story and I bawled all throughout the book and movie. I'm a sap for YA lit. I tore through the Maze Runner series during the break. The movie comes out in September. Cannot wait. In the meantime, it's 12 weeks of Brain and Behavior and as many World Cup matches we can watch on the huge screens in our lecture halls.

Wet burrito at CaCao.

Traditional post-finals Porto's outing  with med school friend A. So happy!

Mmmmm cappuccino mousse.

Baked my brother brownies and a cake made with turmeric as soon as I got home. What a spoiled brat.

My brother's all-time favorite food. My grandmother made this for him even though it's blazing hot. It's yogurt-mint stew with meat/wheat balls and chicken.

Move night with high school friends. Those on the left are roasted strawberry-balsamic reduction-greek yogurt popsicles. The ones on the left are margarita mix-greek yogurt popsicles. 

I decided to chop off my hair for new beginnings. Wish me luck with Year 2!