Sunshine and showers

Today was lovely and sunny, but the previous two days it rained constantly! It was crazy, I mean, it's not unusual to have rain but it's pretty unusual to have solid rain for two days. Where I grew up we had what we used to call the '5 o'clock sun' - basically no matter how crap the weather was, the sun came out sometime in the evening. Admittedly sometimes it wasn't at 5pm, sometimes later, but still.

And there's a phrase where I live - 'if you don't like the weather, wait half an hour'!!

Have been going to lectures this week - I know, I know, have the exams then the lectures, very weird, but still. Most of them are useful, although I wasn't expecting them to be! Stuff like how to prescribe things, how to hand over well at the end of a shift, and tomorrow we're getting talks about how to handle stress, medicolegal issues and stuff from the BMA.

Today, it was a friend's birthday - she started the day in lectures with the rest of us, then managed to win a prize draw for £150 to spend in a shop of her choice! What a cool birthday present! We went out for lunch, me and another friend with nine Malaysians - I feel like a giant next to them, it's disturbing! But they are lovely, so all is well.

So not a lot to report - I'm trying to pack up my room in preparation for moving to Big City near to Big City Infirmary in a couple of weeks. It's pretty therapeutic chucking stuff out! The grad ball (or more accurately, the grad ball 3 day extravaganza) is next weekend, I still need an outfit that looks vaguely seventies, any ideas?!

It's nice here on the other side

So, today, ladies and gentlemen, I became a DOCTOR. Yes, me. Yes, a doctor. Who'da thunk it?! I have a badge that says so and everything. The results for the final viva exemption exam went up, and I was on the pass list.

I'm pretty sure there's been a mistake, but I'm gonna keep quiet about it. Shhhh, don't tell. I'm still waiting for the letter saying I was admitted to medical school because of a clerical error.

I'm pretty chuffed, when I really think about it, but honestly it's a bit of an anti-climax. It's like, when you're a kid, and it's your birthday, you feel like you should feel different, sparkly or tingly or something, but actually it just feels like another day (except people give you presents and cake and things). Also a couple of my good friends didn't get so lucky and I'm so gutted for them I could cry. I don't feel like celebrating if I can't celebrate with them, there's no point.

Tonight I'm not going to stay in, don't worry, but I'm going to have some Chinese food, wine and a movie with two of my best friends - I started this epic six-year journey with them and it feels right that we should end it together too. There will be much remeniscing, much chat and probably some old photos where some of us look skinny and young (ah, those were the days) and one of us always seems to have coloured icing on his face. What krazy kids we were.

So yeah. Dr Joey. Freaky.

Will you still need me, will you still feed me?

Well, I still have exactly 40 years to find out, so for now I will feed myself! Thanks for all the messages people, I felt loved.

Have had a really good day, I talked to my family, I went out for lunch with a friend, I offered my *limited* medical skills to a lady who got vasovagal in the bathroom at the cafe and knocked herself out on the sink (I know, I know, can't take me anywhere or I'll try and do something medical), saw another friend who came round in the afternoon, talked to my family again, and now I'm faffing about. Brilliant.

The exam is tomorrow, I'm not studying any more. I've read everything I wanted to read, I've been over every angle I can see the examiners picking up on yet I'm sure they will ask something I haven't read about. I've heard mixed reports - some people have had a bit of a grilling, some have had more of a chat, I think it all depends on your examiners and your perspective and expectations, and I'm sure the experience alters with hindsight.

This time tomorrow it will all be over, I can't wait for that moment! And 36 hours from now I will know, one way or the other. Wish me luck, I'll see you on the other side!

Fun in the Sun

Been an alright couple of days, I finally managed to do an eensy bit of work, although still not much. Today though I took a break and went to a beach and forest close to my uni city - it was our church summer barbecue, always held in May before all the students disappear. Here are some pictures.

It was really nice to run about in the sun for a while and play rounders, chuck a ball around and enjoy the sun for a bit. Am now back home, going to do a little work, then we have some friends coming over for a take-away dinner.

This is the last week of study, so I'm really going to try and get my head down. It's my birthday on wednesday (gosh I am so old, I found a white hair the other day and was really upset!) so I'll go out for lunch then, and then my viva exam is on thursday. So after that, I'm free! I hope...

Friends in scary places

Today I had lunch with a good friend who is a medical student in Big Scary Teaching Hospital where I'm starting work in August. It was lovely to see him, although he got stuck in a tutorial so I was wandering about for a while feeling lost and panicking that there were two 'main entrances' and thoroughly regretting my decision to move and wishing I'd chosen to stay in Uni Teaching Hospital where I know my way around and who to be scared of and where things are and I recognise people and feel like I belong!

What a wimp. I'm sure I'll get used to it quickly, and it's not the most complicated hospital because although it is massive it is pretty new, so it was built in a sensible way and doesn't have random extra wings tacked on like Uni Hospital. Also it has a lot of artwork on the walls which is good for navigational purposes (oh, look, here's the big wooden thing, I must be near radiology.......of course this bites the dust if they ever move the art around...). I'm getting more scared by the day, it's all going to be new and they have different blood bottles and a different bleep system and I don't know anybody, but thankfully if there's an arrest the number is the same!

Anyway it was great to see my friend, who is currently my only friend in a big, alien, rumoured-to-be-not-that-friendly hospital, and I appreciate that and him so much! He's even offered to come and do some bloods for me because they don't get much chance at his med school. What a sweetheart.

Back at uni now, after picking up the car and driving back (and feeling quite sleepy - had the occasional moment where I thought, 'oh, I can't see' and realised in a truly petrifying manner that my eyes were CLOSED and that's why I couldn't see! Cue opening windows and turning up music! DO NOT tell my mother about that bit!). Feeling actually like I'd like to do some work tonight, which is awesome, must capitalise on motivation while I can!

Home on the range

I write this from home, where I shall shortly move permanently, on the very snazzy iMac which currently graces the study desk. It's a beaut, but at the moment, since the study has become Editing Suite Extraordinaire while my brother is working on stuff for the band, there is the iMac screen, then another screen, then a tv all on the desk, so I feel a bit overwhelmed by technology! The weirdest thing is that I click on the safari icon on one screen and the window opens on another screen, and the mouse cursor moves between the two. Clever.

It's nice to be back, although I may feel the need to clean things in a while - my brother's flatmate is fastidious about his personal appearance but doesn't lift a finger otherwise, and consequently I am baulking a bit about having to clean my contact lenses in a bathroom where you can no longer tell what colour the tiles are! This current flatmate is moving out in the summer and a different guy, who just so happens to be the drummer in the band and a bit of a neat freak (hallelujah!) is moving in, so all will be well when I live here!

It's always nice to see my brother Stephen, and always interesting to see what he looks like - he changes something every couple of weeks! I understand that he has to be on trend for the type of music they play, but I still find it very entertaining that he knows more about hair than I do! He's starting to get recognised now - we went to pick up a copy of a music magazine in which there is a very glowing review of the band, and some girl gave him her email address, which was weird but good!

Anyway, I like to have the chance to catch up on band developments, fashion changes and things when I'm home, but on this particular occasion he had a slightly disturbing tale to tell...

(You should know, my brother is not ugly. In the slightest. He has never even seen the ugly tree, whereas I clipped a few branches on the way down...it's ok, I'm fine with it, I got the brains, he got the braun!)

Part time, Stephen works late shifts in a busy bar/club in town in order to fund his developing rock-and-roll lifestyle (!!). Mostly these shifts go off without a hitch, but recently, he was working on a pretty quiet bar, mainly serving two American men. He wasn't alone, there was another female staff member, who was chatting to the men too.

As the night progressed, they chatted to these two guys while serving other people. Then one of the guys calls my brother over to a quiet corner of the bar and beckons him to listen:

GUY: So what time do you get off work?
STEPHEN: 4am. Why?
G: Want to make some money?
[I have sussed what's going on already - naive brother has no idea]
S: Sure, doing what?
G: You know where the ****** hotel is?
S: Yeah...(getting suspicious)
G: Well, you could meet me there.
S: But why?
G: We could, you know, fool around and stuff.
S: (horrified) NO WAY!!!!!!
G: Oh, ok, how about for £100?
S: NO WAY!!!
G: Ok, is that not enough? How about £200?
S: No, I don't think you understand me, I said NO WAY!!
G: Oh, sorry, £300?
S: (growing more horrified by the second) What part of NO WAY do you not understand?!
G: Oh, right, ok.

[Guy exits, Stephen relays the story, traumatised, to his colleague. Shift forwards a few hours, the men are about to leave...]

Guy: How about £400?
S: (verging on GBH) NOOOOOOO WWWAAAAAAYYYYYY!!

...man, I was so horrified! If I'd been in the bar I would have said (after I had knocked the guy senseless for hitting on my straight-as-an-arrow brother, oh my word) that solicitation is illegal in this country and I'd take his £400 as payment for not shopping him to the fuzz!

My word! Once I'd got over the horror, it was actually pretty funny, but what was even funnier was the look on Stephen's face as he was saying, 'but I was just being nice, why do people not understand that I'm just being nice?!'

So that was the main shocker of the day, but also the main hilarity! Poor kid, apparently it's not the first time he's been hit on by a guy and not had a clue what's going on, it seems that it's not possible to look individual and still convince people that you don't paddle the kayak that way!

Back to uni tomorrow, final stretch...must...study...must....learn......useful.........things...............

Wish me luck!

Change of heart?

Had a good day yesterday, despite not doing any work whatsoever! (Unless watching ER counts...) Went with my lovely friend to Local Posh Area where there is a beach and lots of nice shops and cafes to wander around. We had some lunch, talked about medicine a bit, which might be thought of as work, wandered around the shops, went for a walk on the beach and generally enjoyed the sunshine (yes, the sun was shining!). Enjoyed it, was a great way to not-work. I figure if you are going to skive, you should do something fun with your day!

Today has got off to a similar start, but I am DETERMINED to do something this afternoon! Perhaps I should change my working remit though? If I think, 'I am working for the portfolio exam' then I tend not to do anything useful and just get cross about it instead, but perhaps if I think 'I am working because I start work in 8 weeks and people will die if I don't know stuff' then I will feel The Fear which is a very good motivator! I know that this thought is something of a hyperbole, I would hope that if I don't know something then someone else more senior will come and help me, but that rather detracts from The Fear, which as mentioned I need in order to work!

My parents called the other day and told me about their summer plans - it gets VERY hot in their part of the world during the summer, so they are planning to be 'swallows' and fly back west where it's cooler for a bit! (Oh, and they also might be coming for that graduation thingy that I have to go to!) Anyway, they are coming back at the start of July for a couple of weeks, then my dad has to go back out and hold the fort for a while, but my mum is staying for 2 MONTHS!!!!!!!!!! I am SO EXCITED!!!! Man, I miss them LOADS and it will be so awesome to have them back, and to have my mum for so long is brilliant. She wanted to be here for when I start work, and is staying till the end of August so will achieve that! My dad's coming back for a couple of weeks at the end of August so they'll go back together. So much looking forward to some good parent time, they've been away over a year now but so far I've been able to see them a fair bit - on the way to my elective last summer, then for a while on the way back, then a few other wee trips too.

I am also hoping that my dad will help me buy a car (hopefully this one) while he's home - I currently 'share' a massive Nissan almera with my brother (by this I mean he has it most of the time and I occasionally get a look-in) but I really need my own, and I don't want to buy my first car without my dad (yeah, I know, 'but Jo you're an adult grow up etc etc') and also I need help with finances until September when the cash starts rolling in!

Right, enough spraffing, really must go and learn useful things now, like when to call the procurator fiscal, which I have no idea about!