My weekend in Chicago...

Pure craziness and taking advantage of tourists... inside the actual city of Chicago - 9.0% sales tax. That's a lot of sales tax.

Last night I went to go see Eight Below - the movie about sled dogs in Antartica. I think when I move back to the Duluth area, I may just take up Dogsledding. You can wear more clothes dogsledding than cross country skiing. Nah... I'd never give up cross country skiing... as the Olympic news guy just said, "The 50k cross country ski race is the ultimate winter endurance test... Perhaps the fittest athletes here." I agree. I'm definately not in that kind of shape... but maybe agian sometime. Oh, and one more comment about going to this movie - PLEASE for the sake of the other movie-goers do not bring your 2 year old who can't shut up to the movie theater. Please wait until they can sit still for 2 hours. Either that or go to the mommy's day out movies that allow babies and such. There should be some sort of age limit on the movie theater - like, 5 years old or something.

And today, I went to check out Willow Creek Community Church - one of the country's biggest mega-churches. And you know it's a contemporary church when the title of the sermon series is "Bling-onomics" - about a Godly way to manage your finances, get out of debt, etc. A church used the word bling... wow. Ok, so you know that little rhyme we all learn in Sunday school "Here is the church, here is the steeple, open the doors and see all the people" while doing the appropriate hand motions? Well... this church was more like... "Drive up to the church and pick follow the parking guides and the appropriate signs to the appropriate parking lots for the main entrance... Here is the church that's as big as my high school... There is no steeple, but a lot of pretty ponds... Open the door, see TONS of people, decide whether to go through door A,B,C,D or to take the escilator UP to the balcony." Seriously this church seats more people than any theater or auditorium I've ever been in. Here's a pic of after church... had to take one to prove how big it is.



This is only about 1/3 of the seating.

More Chicago pics to be updated on my photo site as I get them... see link to right of screen.

Things cost money

So, I started the morning by buying a new printer/scanner/copier combo because there was a good one on sale for $79.99. Yay! Later in the day I went to Midas... I needed 2 new tires and I needed new break pads (I thought). Figured it would cost about $200-250. Little did I know, the reason my breaks were so sqeaky and not nearly as good as they should be... not only the break pads... The whole thing was shot, and they told me I needed new roters and drums too (not exactly sure what those are, but they're part of the breaking system). So, the whole thing costs $840. Holy crud. Oh well, at least I know I have a safe car with breaks that work. I wasn't willing to tell them not to replace it incase they were lying to me... becuase if your breaks don't work, you're screwed. Better safe than sorry. So yeah, things cost money.

For You Mom...

Yesterday, my mom, who definatley is not as addicted to the internet as many of us as she dosen't even log on daily... told me thatre is. I hadn't "written on my internet thing lately." If she noticed... others of you must have as well.

Today I had my first "real" Chicago deep dish pizza... this place I got my pizza from, is apparently some of the best pizza in Chicago. The weird thing is... the layers from bottom up are: Crust, cheeze, sausage, sauce. It's good... but the sauce is ON TOP of the cheeze. Weird.

This has been some of the coldest weather I've felt in a couple years. The east coast made me a wuss, even though I like to brag I'm from Minnesota and I can handle the cold. That sucks. I need to be re-hardened.

I'm working on my application to go on my elective rotation in Bolivia... essay questions... reference forms... I forget how hard stuff like. Blahhh... I want to do it, but lots of work.

Those of you that have children... be thankful that you know who the father is and he's involved in your child's life. Oh, and that most of you actually wanted that baby you have. Every day I'm reminded how lucky people are to have those simple things. Way too many people have way too much sex without birth control with too many people. That's how we get 15 year old mothers who seem annoyed by their babies even on the first day who are there alone with no father and half the of them withdrawing from either marijuana or cocaine because they've been in the hospital without it for a day or two... even though many, like one today... Her urine drug screen showed definate marijuana use, we asked her about it, and she said she hadn't used marijuana since she found out she was pregnant... even though this urine test showed without a doubt she'd used it within the past 48 hours. Liar. Remind me agian why we can't charge those mothers with child endangerment? Oh yes... it's because in our society a baby isn't a living thing until it takes a breath on it's own, even 4 hours before, not something we can endanger or neglect. Sigh...

Rant of the day over.

Chicago-ness

Things I have learned in 2 days of pediatrics in Chicago

I need to learn Spanish... Yesterday.
The bowel movements babies have the first day of life are very sticky.
Everyone has viral upper respiratory illnesses and they for some reason insist on coming to the ER instead of going to their pediatrician.
The traffic on city streets of Chicago are not NEARLY as bad as the interstate traffic through Chicago, even during rush hour.
One way streets... why do big cities insist on them?
If I ever live in a big city, I think it'd be Chicago.
Some people who have babies... shouldn't.
You should have to take parenting classes before you can have a kid. You have to take classes to do anything else!
My apartment is awesome.

That's what I have to say for now.

I'll be back soon...

Ok, so the craziness of the actual surgery rotation is over. (hence the reason for my lack of blogging)

I gave my presentation on manipulation and otitis media this morning, I don't feel it went too great, but hopefully good enough for at least a C between that and the paper.

Now I'm studying surgery like mad for tomorrow's 8:30am exam.

Today I also have to listen to 11 more presentations (and study simutaneously)

AND I have to finish packing my stuff and load it into my car tonight.

Tomorrow - exam and lectures until 2pm.

Then... drive to Toledo until 10 or 11pm...

Stay with Andrea until Sunday lunch-time-ish... YAY!!! :)

Then drive the remaining few hours to Chicago, check into my apartment, and unload all my stuff. Woo hoo. I hate loading, unloading, loading, unloading... worst part of this moving every 6 weeks thing. Oh well.

Start pediatrics on Monday. Should be better than surgery!

So yes, after this weekend I should be back blogging more regularly. Sorry for the hiatus.