August 2009
20 posts
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Life Expectancy
Starting Monday, I will be spending two afternoons a week learning the ins-and-outs (literally) of a complete physical exam. Like, the kind that doctors do, including ALL aspects of the human body… you see what I’m saying. Yes, I’ll sometimes be touching their (ancient) privates. No, I don’t think that’s normal for a future-dentist. Yes, I think it’s immature to...
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Top Chef > Harvard
The above equation describes hours of time engaged in nutritional education and food fascination, with Season 6 of Top Chef weighing in at a projected 16+ hours, whereas Harvard Medical School dedicates a sum total of 8.5 hours toward the instruction of Clinical Nutrition. The entire course was three simple afternoon sessions, and the culminating assessment was a 14-question...
“I want to see the Real Housewives of Detroit.”
– Jonathan Greene II
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Cocaine --> Modern dentistry
Last night, after complaining about my lack of intrinsic motivation to study, I was determined to read about the most dental-relevant topic in pharmacology: local anesthetics. I think my quiet prayers to get quickly fascinated by what we are learning were heard, because I learned at least 5 fun new things from this chapter, and enjoyed nearly every minute of it:
1. Pain is incredibly protective,...
“For fast acting relief, try slowing down.”
– Lily Tomlin
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How to raise $1000 in two days
Actually, the profits of our 48-hour social enterprise total $1121, but who’s counting. :) It all started in June, when I began receiving many emails everyday from desperate upperclassmen trying to sell dozens of textbooks via mass emails. I would respond occasionally when an item piqued my interest, but NEVER got through on the party line because the items were always already dibbed. It...
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“Hunting. I just think that if it’s a sport, both teams should know...”
– John Caparulo, comedian of Chelsea Lately
The Exciting Collins Family
Today in class, I offered “nostalgia” as a developmental characteristic of life after 50. The professor replied, “Can you define that neurobiologically? It’s one of my favorite words!” All I could reply was, “Which one? Nostalgia, or Neurobiologically?”. Silly professors. :) Who cares what the definition is - what’s more important is to enjoy the...
Back-to-School Year Resolutions
One of the best features of a ‘work’ calendar scheduled from August – July is having TWO opportunities to start over and state bold new personal-improvement-action-plans. Move over New Year’s Day, because the resolutions proposed during this back-to-school season are far more likely to be held on to than those stated after a night of hard drinking and a week of overeating with family. During the...
Goodbye, pleasure reading
If you’ve been in a bookstore over the last few years, you’ve probably seen displays of “The World is Flat”, an intimidating book by Thomas Friedman that attempts to explain recent global trends of the 21st century. While at Costco early this summer, I decided to impulse-buy a cheap paperback copy, and just now finished (goodbye summer vacation!). It goes through the impact of the Internet on...
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Into the Wild, New-Hampshire-style
Wednesday morning I waved farewell to two full busses of medical/dental school colleagues as they began their journey to the wilderness of northern New Hampshire, to hike over 20 mountain miles and indulge in the isolation of true wilderness. The crew is still out there today, scheduled to return home tomorrow. As the at-home ‘emergency contact’, I’ve been content to hear nothing...
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5-hour Energy Might Save Michigan
And it’s not just because people are tired of being unemployed. In a year where it’s hard to find any positive reviews of Michigan industry, the parent company of this annoying product is obviously basking in their Best Year Ever. It’s not like it takes a whole lot to stand out as a successful company in this struggling state; if you’re in business, then you’re doing just fine. At the same time,...
TATTOO WEATHER?
I remember being the in the Phoenix Airport a week ago today and noticing a high frequency of large tattoos on my fellow passengers. My first thought was that since it’s so hot in the Phoenix area, especially compared to my “homeland” states, more people might be prone to commit to more ink if they know they’ll be showing it off year-round. So, weather would be the cause of more Phoenixers getting...
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Jon & Colleen + 7 Airports
Get it? heeheehee
Modern travel requires little physical effort, other than hoisting luggage into car trunks, airports, and up stairs. Why, then, am I so flipping exhausted upon arriving back at our apartment? Sheesh! Jon and I came home tonight to zero living space disasters, thank goodness, and an over-stuffed mailbox. He was happy to receive evaluations on 6 of his homebrews from the Sam...
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Halfway Home
Jon and I have had a very busy week, as this never-ending ‘U.S. Tour’ continues. We’re actually much closer than halfway to returning to our Boston home, but being with our families in Michigan is definitely a good place for pause and reflection. I’m surprised at how long this trip feels, and I think it’s because we’ve been surrounded by so many great friends from all stages of our lives, and the...