Okay, I will admit I've been procrastinating about writing this entry. It's been on my To-Do List but I keep pushing it back because there's just so much to say and so much to cover. But, without further ado....
(1) I successfully finished the spring 2012 semester! Sociology and physics went very well and I'm happy with how much I learned and my performance in both courses. The funny thing is I've always been able to somehow connect all of my classes together in college, regardless how disparate they may seem. Physics and sociology both try to explain the world around us, but of course the theories and methods are completely different.
(2) My parents have been on this renovation craze! I might actually be going crazy. If it's not the bathroom, it's dumping half a driveway full of soil/sand to be shoveled to the backyard. Y'all already know I HATE outdoorsy work! I have so much respect for the laborers - I physically could not do what they do for a living. And the heat. My goodness. I want to yell at my parents to chill the hell out because one has chronic pain issues and one has cardiac problems - know your limits! But I will say that throughout this experience, I can definitely see where a lot of my personality traits come from - my dad's neurotic obsession with having things being perfect and my mom's strict adherence to order. I think the renovations are slowing down though, which is great because it's about to get even hotter.
(3) I've officially accepted my admission offer to the University of Texas School of Public Health over the University of Minnesota. UMN is a great program, but I don't think the focus of the program was what I waned to concentrate on. And honestly, the whole moving-out-of-state thing really just stressed me out. Not to mention, it snows there. I don't know how to handle that. I've found housing and will be moving to the Texas Medical Center in mid-August. I'm ecstatic because I'm closer to my friends and I can get out of Podunkland, Suburbia! Of course it would've been cheaper to stay at home but there's no way in hell I would've tolerated the insane commute from Podunkland to the TMC every day, in rush hour traffic, plus the obscene parking fees. No. So I'm once again packing up and moving, but this time, just "down the street." For the sake of my own sanity, I NEED to move out of the house. I feel like even at a molecular level, it's just not appropriate for a college graduate and soon-to-be-graduate-student in his 20s to be living at home with Mom and Dad. Don't get me wrong - I love the convenience and my family, but I value my space, privacy, and what little independence I have.
(4) I'm bummed my regular season shows have all ended, but all superb finales. I feel like a part of has moved on with the series finale of shows like House and Desperate Housewives. These shows were on since I was in high school! And now they're over. Maybe they represent all great things also have to come to an end and we have to move forward. But my summer shows are starting up this week: Drop Dead Diva, Rizzoli & Isles, Franklin & Bash, Covert Affairs.... so pretty much TNT and USA.
(5) I start summer school this week - organic chemistry. Joy. I'm going to spend tomorrow reading ahead and attempting the homework. Obviously it's not ideal for me to complete pre-reqs during the summer but I don't see any other alternative because when I start the MPH in the fall, I want to focus my time solely to public health and not worrying about organic or physics. So I'm going to have to suck it up and plow through once I hit the ground running. I hope that four years later, I've developed the maturity, patience, discipline, and focus to get through the material this time. A few years ago, I would've bitched incessantly about these silly pre-med requirements but I think more than anything, they test a person's discipline, patience and ambition. Sure, maybe you'll use 5% of the material in your medical studies but I think the approach, focus and pedagogical objectives between undergraduate science courses and medical school coursework are different. I think once we hit a certain threshold of understanding fundamental medical sciences, adding a shit ton more of discrete facts doesn't really add any more to educational experience and only serves as a distraction from other endeavors, like more clinical exposure to various specialties, or seminars and research in the medical humanities. Hence, the American medical profession requires aspiring physicians to partake in ancillary activities to see who truly wants to be a physician, who can delay gratification longer in order to make it to the other side. Despite all of the negatives to becoming a physician in today's political and economic climate, I know that I wouldn't be happy in the long run in any other field. Believe me, I've searched and searched, but I know ultimately I want to be a full-service clinician with autonomy and the versatility to see patients, prescribe medication, order and interpret tests, teach medical students and residents, and do research that helps inform policy makers of the realities of medical practice.
(6) I can't believe it's already the 2012 London Olympics! Just four years ago, the world was focused on China. I remember taking summer classes, watching the Olympics coverage non-stop, with So You Think You Can Dance and America's Best Dance Crew (I know, I'm embarrassed to even admit it), Shit, time flies. It's been nearly a year since I left Oakland and it's been a year since I gradated from UT. AH! The other day I was watching a two-hour special on the History Channel entitled "The History of Us." It pretty much started out with the Big Bang Theory (an amazing show!), how the sun formed, how Earth formed, the first organisms to live on Earth and the subsequent evolutionary and geological transformations on this planet, all the way to the dinosaurs, Ice Ages, homo sapiens, to the first humans, the diaspora from Africa, the start of ancient civilizations, trading networks, Columbus sailing to the New World, and pretty much the rest is history once we get to the 1500s right? It's just incredibly amazing how much humans are capable of accomplishing and the history of out species is really just a blip. It was inspiring to witness the amazing ingenious technological innovations invented by man.... but then people start getting greedy and wars are waged in the name of the almighty dollar or the political/ religious ideologies of extremists. People wonder if there are other aliens in the universe and if there are, why haven't they visited us? A comment on a website pretty much said that the evidence of other intelligent life is that they have NOT visited us yet - probably because they don't want part of this clusterfuck. Understandable. People fear the extraterrestrial and supernatural but I think humans are unfortunately capable of any kind of wickedness. But there's always some sort of justification for that kind of behavior isn't there? Despite all the shortcomings of human behavior, I'm excited to see the London 2012 Olympics and I know I'm going to get goosebumps seeing Team USA and hearing the national anthem and seeing a flurry of national flags marching into a packed stadium. If only for a few weeks, the world truly is united. Plus, let's get real - shirtless swimmers and divers, men in spandex and bulging muscles - this all leaves very little to the imagination.
(7) I've still got a few months but I can't help but wonder what my classmates will be like in the MPH program. How are the faculty members? Is it just going to be like undergrad all over again, with hundreds of kids in one class? What's the workload like? Are there opportunities to do an international practicum or work abroad after completing the MPH? I was briefly considering the joint Master of Global Policy Studies with the LBJ School of Public Affairs but I don't know if there is a compelling enough reason to add on another year of coursework + tuition. I'd love to be back in Austin but I ultimately don't know if it's worth it. Will the MPH be sufficient to satisfy my interest in health policy and my desire to go abroad again? I'm really feeling Brazil right now - probably because they're going to be hosting the FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics! In true HMQD fashion, I've analyzed my degree plan and at the latest, I should be able to finish the MPH in May 2014. If I can get in and start med school in 2016, I'll graduate med school with the Class of 2020! AH! How poetically awesome is that?! So that gives me roughly two years to work in a public health capacity. But that's just me thinking out loud right now... who knows, my plans will surely change!
And I'll continue to keep y'all posted of any new developments! =)
Until next time,
Dean
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