The interval between Christmas Day and New Year's Eve always feels so short; it's like it's not even there. Not a whole lot has been going on since then, except for the conspicuous consumption of Christmas Dinner. My brothers and I went to see Sherlock Holmes (much over-hyped, yet still enjoyable), while Mom and Grandmom went to see Alvin and the Chipmunks; and I had my eyes examined - essentially paying a professional to confirm what I already knew (so I'll go pick out some glasses tomorrow). While waiting for the exam, I finished Cormac McCarthy's Pulitzer Prize - winning The Road. Perhaps I'm just an uncultured Philitstine, but I fail to see what all the hype was about. Sure, some parts were poetic, but I generally don't consider it a good sign if I can't wait for a book to be over. I enjoyed Blood Meridian and All the Pretty Horses, but this one was just cold and gray, and even boring (maybe I just need to get back to fantasy). Anyway.... today was split between taking down Christmas wreathes and lounging around, but last night was New Year's Eve, and true to tradition, we went big with the fireworks. I love living outside the city limits! Also, strangely enough, my mother and I were caught in a high-velocity baking storm, somehow beating out a carrot cake, strawberry cake, and a batch of brownies and cleaning the kitchen somewhere between ten and midnight.
My family has a tradition – after fireworks, we have our new year’s prayer, asking the Lord to continue to bless us and keep, and to guide us along His path. This has been a year of transition for almost all of us – Dad and his partners moved into a new building, each of them forming their own cardiology LLC. Caleb started at a new public school. Stefan’s almost done with college. Mom’s continuing to shape the minds of the kids in her class, fighting an uphill battle against the replacement of old-fashioned fun and creativity with video games, TV, and short attention spans. As for me, I finished the basic sciences this year, and left Dominica forever. I came back to Miami, completed the Comprehensive Basic Sciences Shelf Exam, and withstood the stress of 5th semester. I studied, sat for, and stomped Step 1. However, more than all of the changes we went through, I’m struck by the fact that these were choices my family and I made voluntarily; we were not forced into action. This has been a terrible year for the rest of the world – compounding financial and economic crises with the seemingly endless loss of life to senseless violence. Everyone agrees that 2009 was a bad year, but I consider myself truly blessed, because there were times when, had I not checked the news, I wouldn’t have known what was going on; my family and I were relatively insulated from the hardships that battered our country and our world. For this I am truly grateful, and I know that, true to what my parents and grandparents say, this is an example of the Lord protecting us.
I have yet to hear from the administration concerning my third-year placements, but it should be any day now. It’s been a little over a month since I’ve been home, and I’m starting to get a little antsy; there’s a certain amount of time generally allotted for vacation time, but I don’t know how long this is supposed to last. I’ve done my share of lazing around, playing Halo with the boys, and walking around the mall. I’ve read a few books and watched a few movies, and have gotten to work out until my heart’s content. I guess I need a little mental stimulation – when I tried to read Paul Ekman’s Emotions Revealed towards the end of my time in Miami, I found it more academic than I wanted; perhaps now is the time for such an exercise. After that, perhaps it’ll be Steven Erkison’s Gardens of the Moon, or Diane Setterfield’s The Thirteenth Tale? We’ll see.
I went and got my glasses today - mom and Grandmom helped me pick them out before mom's hair appointment. I must have tried on 30 or so pairs - I don't think it was that many, but I wasn't planning on wearing them all the time. So, I decided on the pair above after deep-sixing a pair with very interesting frames, but too-loose arms. After that, I left the boys and Grandmom in the food court, and headed off to Starbucks to read and await the completion of my corrective lenses. While thumbing through Emotions Revealed, this guy who worked there came up to me, and asked what I was reading. We got to chatting, and it turned out he'd moved down to Harlingen with his wife and 4 month old daughter from Houston, where he worked at this really hippie-sounding cofee shop, and was eager to get the same sorta thing started here. After that, I went back and picked up my frames - and was shocked at the difference. I stole the picture from pfsk.com, to illustrate my myopia. That's honestly what it's like, but it's not something I really noticed; I knew that my far vision was going, but not until I was presented with the alternative (switching back and forth between my new lenses and the naked eye while looking across the mall) was the difference so clear. I won't wear them all the time, but I'm certainly going to take advantage of my upgraded vision.
