Not a great headline to start my 3rd decade on earth with. Yesterday I turned 30th while at the American Society of Hematology meeting in San Diego, CA. Everyone was great, and this meeting was HUGE! I am exhausted because I have been traveling pretty much non-stop since last Sunday. Here is a brief recap.
Dec 4-6: Travel to Nashville, TN to check out a program and catch up with some Minnesota MD/PhD grads. This little city has a LOT more to offer than just country music and is someplace that would not be a bad choice for me career wise and personal wise.
Dec. 6-7: Chicago, IL. I got to see little Zoë Hofsommer and her beautiful mother Jennifer for a few hours after arriving. The rest of my Chicago experiences was a little bewildering. Was VERY happy to land in Minneapolis a little early
Dec. 8- Minnesota interview Day #3, a nice little breakfast. Followed by running through ASH presentations and redoing slides. I got to go to orchestra to have a little fun, then more packing for myself and Matt for ASH
Dec 9-today: Fly to San Diego. Sunny and in the high 60s. Sunglasses and sunscreen required:) The convention center was VERY large, and the meeting was spread out a long distance. Felt like track shoes should have been required in order to get from one session the next. I did get to meet some very nice people from institutions I will be visiting, and got to catch up with some old friends who have left Minnesota. Many thanks and appreciation to David Knorr and his fiance Katie Hill for helping me ring in my 30th in style at Cafe Sevilla. The sangria, tapas food, and flamenco music was perfect!
Starting tonight I have to hit the books BIG TIME to study for boards. I also have my normal writing of a hundred thank yous and attempting to send out Christmas cards, etc.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Friday, December 02, 2011
Long hard year
Wow, almost a year since I updated. I could probably spend hours updating on a month-by month basis, but tonight, let's stay in the present.
I am now rapidly approaching the end of my journey. Two advanced degrees in eight years seemed liked a million years back in 2004, and now it feels like time has barely passed. I applied for residency positions, much in the same fashion as I did in 2003 for MD/PhD programs. Applications are nerve wracking, as no one likes the sting of rejection. I guess I am blessed as I was offered interviews at 10 out of 16 programs I applied to. This week I started the interviews.
My first interview was appropriately at the place where I am most at home, UMN. Despite getting an awful cold I think the interview went well. Minnesota is a great place, which is why I have been happy hear for the past 8 years. The question now is if I should spread my baby bird wings and fly to coup, or stay and build on to an already strong foundation.
My second interview was about as 180 degrees opposite to Minnesota as you could get, the Big Apple, NYC. Mount Sinai is a great program. Over my academic career I have interacted with their faculty and students at various conferences, and I was always impressed. The program continues to impress me, and I highly enjoyed the interview. Needless to say, I felt like a bit of a novelty item at the interview, as I was the only applicant one person had ever met from North Dakota. Thank god I memorized that Peggy Lee was from Jamestown! Who would have guess that piece of trivia would come in handy. I consequently read through the Wikipedia "celebrities from ND" page today in case this comes up in the future....
Now I am back in my humble home nursing my sore throat, aching joints, and runny nose. Next week finds me traveling to Nashville, TN (Vanderbilt) and Chicago, IL (Northwestern). I am excited to go see these programs, but to also catch up with old friends in both locations.
It is going to be an excited two months, and at the end of it all Match Day. I will not write on the pages of this blog which program will be 1,2,3, etc as I am #1 a bit superstitious, and #2 trying to weight this major life decision carefully. As far as I can tell so far, the interview process is mostly recruiting, and ultimately the Match helps balance personal choice with institutional preference. Therefore, as I travel many thousands of miles in the next few months so stay tuned for more briefs.
I am now rapidly approaching the end of my journey. Two advanced degrees in eight years seemed liked a million years back in 2004, and now it feels like time has barely passed. I applied for residency positions, much in the same fashion as I did in 2003 for MD/PhD programs. Applications are nerve wracking, as no one likes the sting of rejection. I guess I am blessed as I was offered interviews at 10 out of 16 programs I applied to. This week I started the interviews.
My first interview was appropriately at the place where I am most at home, UMN. Despite getting an awful cold I think the interview went well. Minnesota is a great place, which is why I have been happy hear for the past 8 years. The question now is if I should spread my baby bird wings and fly to coup, or stay and build on to an already strong foundation.
My second interview was about as 180 degrees opposite to Minnesota as you could get, the Big Apple, NYC. Mount Sinai is a great program. Over my academic career I have interacted with their faculty and students at various conferences, and I was always impressed. The program continues to impress me, and I highly enjoyed the interview. Needless to say, I felt like a bit of a novelty item at the interview, as I was the only applicant one person had ever met from North Dakota. Thank god I memorized that Peggy Lee was from Jamestown! Who would have guess that piece of trivia would come in handy. I consequently read through the Wikipedia "celebrities from ND" page today in case this comes up in the future....
Now I am back in my humble home nursing my sore throat, aching joints, and runny nose. Next week finds me traveling to Nashville, TN (Vanderbilt) and Chicago, IL (Northwestern). I am excited to go see these programs, but to also catch up with old friends in both locations.
It is going to be an excited two months, and at the end of it all Match Day. I will not write on the pages of this blog which program will be 1,2,3, etc as I am #1 a bit superstitious, and #2 trying to weight this major life decision carefully. As far as I can tell so far, the interview process is mostly recruiting, and ultimately the Match helps balance personal choice with institutional preference. Therefore, as I travel many thousands of miles in the next few months so stay tuned for more briefs.
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