Lessons from the PACU

Last week, a friend commented that I seemed to be unusually successful in avoiding the petty jealousies that too often plague high school years (and even college years). My response was that I try to quell any feelings of envy in myself, because I've been on the receiving end of jealousy a couple times and I've seen how ugly it can make the other person as well as harming both sides. Thinking about it a bit more, it only makes sense to try avoiding jealousy, because there's always going to be someone smarter, richer, or prettier. You can be the best at one thing, or maybe a couple if you're only thinking about a small group, but it's impossible for a single person to be #1 in everything. Does Bill Gates envy Steve Jobs? Maybe, but he sure doesn't show it in any of his philanthropic work!

Volunteering this morning emphasized the flip side: there will also always be people who are worse off than you are. There is a lot more to be grateful for than there is to gripe about. I've been volunteering in the Pediatric PACU at Yale-New Haven for over a year now, but every week I go there's still something or someone to learn from. There are the simple, happy stories - kid comes in to have tonsils removed and goes home 2 hours later - and then there are the more complex ones, like the toddlers with leukemia that go to the pediatric wards on the seventh floor, rather than out to their cars.

Today it was the infant who has been in the hospital for several months since she was born as a preemie, confined to her crib because she can't breathe without a ventilator. I can't even imagine how the parents are coping with all this - seeing the preschool-style drawings from an older sibling and family photos hanging on the crib made it hit home even more. Once she woke up, though, she seemed to have the same concerns and like the same things as any infant: opening her eyes wide to see the toys hanging above her head, sucking her pacifier, grabbing my finger, etc. All the nurses stopped by at least once to remark on her big smiles or how round her head was (apparently you used to be able to tell that a baby had been in the hospital a long time by the squared-off "toaster head" that came from resting on one side or the other all the time!)

Pauline Chen, a well-known surgeon and writer, recently began a series of articles in the New York Times about doctor-patient relationships. Reading today's piece about medical student burnout was somewhat discouraging to my dreams of becoming a physician, but then I thought back to this morning and how that baby girl tugged on my heartstrings, as so many others have in both the PACU and the MICU. If I can hang on to that sense of yearning to help while receiving the training I need to be more useful to patients, I think I'll be ok =)

Random conversations around the grill...

From the Halloweenie Roast earlier tonight:

1) "We should get a Silliman hot tub!"

2) "I kept a dream diary for a couple weeks - they say that's the best way to learn to control your dreams...one time I dreamed I was riding in a cab but I wanted to try flying, but then I was bumping my head against the top of the cab." [There was more to this story, but I'm choosing to keep the rest private out of consideration for the person who told it =P]

3) "You know, I feel bad for not canvassing for Obama this weekend. Maybe next week I'll go up to New Hampshire." [Um...what about class?]

4) "If they had just put 'Free Food!' in the subject line, I would have read the email and known this was happening! What I need is someone to read the emails for me and screen them..."

Nothing like s'mores to bring out the most amusing in people! Photos of pumpkin carving creativity and other fun stuff to come...tomorrow night: Haunted House!

Safety Dance!

The biggest Yale party every year is undoubtedly the 80s-themed Safety Dance, run by Silliman! We book Commons for the night, spend a couple hours moving all the tables and chairs, bring in a crazy DJ with video screens and laser shows, then let everyone in for dancing the night away to 80s hits from the likes of Michael Jackson, Cyndi Lauper, Madonna, and more!

The tradition was born in 1990 - before then, Silliman hosted an "End of the 80s" dance, but they clearly couldn't keep that name. "Safety Dance" comes from this amazing/crazy song by Men Without Hats, which was a huge 80s hit. Youtube video below:

Even if you weren't born in the 80s (as many of our current freshmen were not), everyone can get into the spirit of the event. The week before, everyone heads to Salvation Army to get their costumes, and some people definitely go all out! Even a couple of the DJ crew came in costumes - they say this is their favorite event all year =P

Guess which guy is a residential college dean?

Group hug during the last song

Starting to feel like fall...

Even though fall technically started a couple weeks ago, the leaves are just starting to change colors, and there are still some wonderful flowers blooming.

I don't know what these flowers are, but they're almost like Christmas ornaments!

Mini-morning glories in the Saybrook courtyard

A single bright branch on the walk down to the medical school

The first blush of autumn in Branford courtyard

A very resilient rose in Harkness courtyard

A sea of yellow leaves behind the tennis courts at the IM fields

Perhaps the cutest indication of fall was the decorations in the Silliman dining hall!

Mystery of the freezing hallway

Part I: A couple nights ago, I was coming out of the basement in my entryway when I noticed there was a simultaneous blast of hot and cold air. In front of me, the window was open (hence the cold air), but even worse (to my environmentalist instincts) was that the heater directly underneath was on full blast, with no control in view (it's behind a black wall thing).

Naturally, I closed the window, hoping that would warm up the freezing hallway as well as saving all the energy that had been flowing out needlessly out the window.

Part II: Tonight, I notice it's still freezing in the hallway. If possible, it's even colder than before. I know the building is made of stone and all, but it shouldn't be as bad as a medieval castle. The window by the basement is still closed properly, the door isn't open that often, the heat is on...everything points toward the idea that the hallway should be warm!

Then, I look up. The windows one flight up are wide open, both of them. And the heater underneath is on, full blast.

Windows closed, problem (hopefully) solved...we'll see how things feel in half an hour or so.

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Random moment of amusement today:

*student walks into Greek Literature class, 5 minutes late, carrying a laundry basket*
Professor: Ritual cleansing?

Mini-NJGSS reunions and more

So, this morning I'm at NJMS , and guess who walks into the waiting room...Ryan Nolan, from NJGSS! We spent some time catching up, comparing notes about mutual friends, ribbing each other about the crime rates in our respective college towns (he's up in Cambridge, which apparently had a bunch of recent robberies), etc. It would be pretty awesome if all my interviews included running into old friends =)

Another random coincidence: one of my tour guides happened to be the roommate of a someone I knew from high school, so I even got to see their apartment (which was very nice for student housing, btw.) It was comforting to find out that even if med school is tough, students have time to relax a little and do things like sing acapella, pursue art, or put together a 500-piece puzzle.

Speaking of old friends, it was an equally surprising event to run into Kristi a couple weekends ago. Talk about (less than) 6 degrees of separation:
1) I went to NJGSS with Kristi.
2) Kristi is now dating Nathan, whom she meet working at CERN this summer.
3) Nathan was in my PoS class freshman year, but I haven't talked to him since. He is suitemates with Tyler.
4) Tyler is friends with Chidimma, one of my friends from YSS.
5) I went to Tyler's suite with Sara to pick up Chidimma before heading to Miya's...let's just say it was a huge shock to open the door and have Kristi be the first person I see! I think it was also just as much of a shock for everyone else in the room to realize we went waaay back =P

In more humdrum news, heading back to New Haven tomorrow morning...work, here I come *sigh*

NYC Olympics?

One of my favorite things to do while traveling is people-watching. Every fellow traveler has unique characteristics, mannerisms, and stories, things that I catch only a glimpse of in passing. Someone could be returning from a tour of duty, or reporting back for another one. Someone could be a successful businessman, or desperately trying to look for a new job after the recent collapse of several finance companies.

Something I thought of while waiting at NYC Penn tonight: if NYC doesn't win the 2012 Olympics bid, wouldn't it be hilarious to have a "City Olympics" with events that would be...unique to NYC? I'm thinking of something like the 100-meter dash...in heels. Or 3-piece business suits. Or flip-flops. Just watching people in the train station, it's amazing how fast people can run in any of those!