In July, I went on a crazy roadtrip with my friend, Dave, to get my car from Provo, Utah (I graduated from BYU in April) to Charlottesville, Virginia (First day of med school was August 2). Below is a map of our route. We took the scenic route (And sometimes not so scenic route. North Dakota, I'm lookin' at you!) See facebook for further photographic evidence of our adventure.
In August, I got my white coat at the aptly named white coat ceremony. I almost didn't show up to class after that. I mean, once you have the white coat, what else do you need, right? Oh wait. An education, maybe.
I somehow survived the nitty gritty basic science coursework (biochemistry, molecular biology, etc). Having never had biochemistry made for a tough semester. Abusing whiteboards on a regular basis was the only way I survived. The second picture is me sitting in class. Can you find me??
I also had the opportunity to volunteer on the first aid crew for cross-country races at the beautiful Panorama Farms just outside of Charlottesville. Imma be straight with you. Any time spend outside of the library during med school is a dream come true. This was no exception.
In October, I went on a five-day cruise to the Bahamas over. We got a full week off at UVa for fall break, and I wanted to take advantage of it. I went with a classmate and two other friends. Favorite parts: eating fresh coconuts, snorkeling with stingrays, and ordering extra chocolate lava cake at every meal on the cruise ship.
Another highlight was that I got to class every day with all of my incredible classmates. I have no idea how UVa did such a fantastic job of putting together my class, but I'm thrilled to be with these people. Everyone is brilliant. And good looking. And athletic, musically gifted, multilingual, etc. And, most importantly, everyone of my classmates is a good person. I wouldn't say that unless I meant it. I'm incredibly lucky to be around these people every day.
In October, I volunteering as a kid-scarer at the UVa Med Boo House. Every year, the first year medical students set up a haunted house at the Charlottesville Boys & Girls Club. It was fun (Well...fun slash traumatizing) for the kids and even more fun for us.
In November, our entire class celebrated Mustache Movember. Before class, felt stick-on mustaches were distributed to everyone who wanted one. The result was priceless. Ever try keeping a straight face while a female classmate with a handlebar mustache answers a question in class on the nuances of herpes treatment? Yeah, not possible. I tried and failed.
In December, my team made it to the semi finals of the medical school football league playoffs. I was lucky enough to play quarterback, fulfilling a lifelong desire to play quarterback that began the first time I played Madden 99'.
Later in December, I went to my former best friend's wedding. He has a new best friend named Cristyann and she's much more attractive than I am. They were married in San Diego in the Mormon temple there. It's even more gorgeous inside than it is outside. Here are a few pictures, followed by a good little video that explains why we build temples.
Well that's about it. In summary, my first semester was tough, but great. I love UVa Med, and I love living in Charlottesville! It really is an incredible place to be. Don't believe me? Here are a few pictures to convince you otherwise. See you next post!
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