Nothing left but hurdles

It's a little humbling to think that, since classes are over, I'm officially supposed to know everything I need to know for the USMLE STEP 1 - humbling and a little bit nerve-wracking. My last few days on this island will essentially suck big time, because they'll consist of an obscene information binge.

I realized some time ago that I'd gotten used to a certain amount of reliable transition in my life. I went to the same grade school for 6 years, but then all of my friends dispersed to different high-schools. After 2 years, I moved to Texas. After 2 years, I went off to college. Once there, I pro ceded to shuffle around my friend-group every year-and-a-half or so. There were of course some constants in there - some folks I'll do my best to stay in touch with - but the change was always welcome. After that I lived at home and worked for a year, and then the time came for that to end too. Now that I've been here on this island for almost 16 months, I think I'm getting ready for a change.

I was told that this wanderlust-like friendliness with change is something unique to military kids and other folks who've moved around quite a bit. The military really didn't shuffle us around too much - I moved when I was 2, 7, and 16 - but that last one was the most significant. All of the moves have been positive - but I find myself wondering what happens when I have to settle down and stick around for more than a few years at any given place. I bore easily and am in constant need of stimulation - I guess that means I'll have to (1) do my residency in a huge city, offering endless diversions, and (2) work as a wandering locum for the rest of my medical career.

There's still the possibility that I'll end up as a teleradiologist, reading scans at home on my giant, wall-sized plasma screen TV - in my underwear - but that still just one pipe-dream among many.

I digress. You know, just because someone teaches at a med school, it doesn't mean they can teach - not even if they've got all sorts of fancy letters after their name and are old enough to remember the Mayflower. Don't get me wrong, the vast majority of the professor here have me in complete awe of their ability to simplify and condense boatloads of information - but a few have me in just as much awe of their precise knack for doing the exact opposite. So now I have to read the kidneys all over again. Gee, thanks.