The Old Man of East River Road
Today, on my solitary walk to school, I noticed a man leaving his home. I have seen him everyday since I moved to Minneapolis, and yet I don't know anything about him. Everday he leaves his house and walks two blocks to the school. His old, weathered coat, orange hat, and stooped back are visible daily near the Java City in Moos Tower. He sits at a table and reads the paper. Sometimes I see him carrying a large plastic sack, full of something myserious. It must be important to him, as he is NEVER without the sack. I often want to ask him his name, and a little about himself. His house is the only one on its block with an immaculate yard, and nice clean sidewalk. I alway wonder, as I pass it, who is he? Does he live alone? What does he do all day?
Does he wonder the same about me?

Missing Fargo?
Believe it or not, but I am actually missing the frozen tundra that is Fargo, ND. I don't think it is the weather, or even the city that I missing, but the friendships that I made while there. I miss going to pep band on Friday and Saturday night. I miss late nights playing trivia at Wild Wings. I really miss (and crave) Juano's on Sundays. But what I am really missing is my friends. As much as I like my new friends here at medical school, NOTHING can ever replace my buddies from back home (Fargo and Jamestown). If any of you are cruising by this site, drop me a line to say hello, for I am NEVER too busy for friend.

The semester is in full swing here. Because of scheduling torture (and lab work) I have been getting home after 6 most nights, leaving me four short hours to make supper, eat, clean up, study, talk to Matt, and do any of the other billion things that come up. Hence, my blog postings have been suffering.
Lab work is really bothering me right now. I am very unhappy working in Dr. Yee's lab because I don't feel like I am doing my two main objectives 1. Learning something, and 2. Getting know what working WITH Dr. Yee is like. All I am learning is that post-docs are inherantly evil and controlling. I know that if this is what I can expect as far as mentoring goes from Dr. Yee, then this lab IS NOT FOR ME! However, being the stubborn ND gal that I am, I am sticking it out until March......
The good news is that I have my next rotation lined up with Dr. Dan Kaufman. He is an MD/PhD who works on stem cells. I will be back doing vascular biology, looking at how ESC differentiate into endothelial cells and smooth muscle cells. This research is valuable, because it could determine a way to revascularize hearts after damage.
Today is one of those days where the "plan" never goes as intended. I was going to work out today, but my stupid heel is bothering me again. I seen to be on this two year cycle of extreme foot pain. Too many years of marching band I guess. Tomorrow, pain or not, I am going to the gym, because I am starting to go nuts here with nervous energy (I literally tapped my foot for two hours straight today while studying....poor people next to me!)
Tomorrow is another night of Gopher Hockey! I am really happy that I got season tickets, even if the team isn't doing so hot. It makes me feel like I am part of the University. That is really nice. The school is so large, and sometimes I feel a bit disconnected from my Medical School classmates because of the whole MD/PhD thing. Part of it is for my own personal protection, because I know that they will be moving on in three years, and the rest is because sometimes I feel like no one really wants to get to know ME. Hence, opportunities like hockey games, where I get to associate with people OUTSIDE of the classroom, are cherished. I guess I need to work up the guts to get on the phone and ask people to do stuff.
I am a littleupset with my friends and family back in ND. It seems like no one can come and see me. My friends here at Medical School get to see their significant others and friends at least once a month. I, on the other hand, don't get to see anyone until the END of February. I understand that the weather is unpredictable, but there is just something depressing about the fact that no one wants to come and see me. Instead I will be expected to spend every moment of my break travelling around the state of ND visiting with people.
I am in serious need of groceries tonight. I have no yogurt or anything that resembles a vegetable or fruit. I also need a new light bulb for my room, as now I have "mood lighting" in my room. That is NOT condusive to studying neuroscience.
Well, I need to think about eating some food (most likely toast) and heading out to the grocery store and Target.

I survived the Histology final (barely) and was able to spend the last few weeks back home with friends and family. I had a great holiday season, and I want to thank everyone who made it special.

Matt came to Minneapolis for New Year's. We had a good time, and we even got some stuff done on the wedding. We are now registered at Target and Herbergers. Hopefully now we can get the bigger stuff (menu, invites) out of the way.

Classes started on Monday. So far, so good. I found out that since I am an MD/PhD student, I am exempt from the Microbiology lab. I am going to skip it in favor of my lab rotation. I am really going to enjoy micro though. The verdict is still out on neuroscience.

Well, I need to get some productive stuff done tonight. Derek might come to town tomorrow for lunch, which would be awesome since I haven't seen him since July!