O-week, day four

Our last day of O-week was called "How to Be an Effective Medical Student," but everyone referred to it as academic day. It was on this day that we finally received our actual schedules, for which we had been begging for a while. There were two optional workshops in the morning -- one on finding your own learning style, and one on dual degree options. I went to both and quite enjoyed them. I sorta doubt I'm going to do a dual degree since I'm all old and stuff (kidding! but not really) but it is nice to know the many options that are there in case I change my mind. Next we had a curriculum overview. After lunch we got to break up into small groups and ask questions of second year students. They gave us great tips on book buying, how to study, what the different professors are like, and such things.

I am going to try to not be a crazy textbook buyer this year. I love books, and I always buy every book, required and recommended, for every class. Of course, I wind up not using half or more of them, and then I feel bad about wasting the money. So I really am going to try to reform my ways, especially as it seems to be very possible to do here with the voluminious and extensive class notes and slides we are given. Besides, multiple copies of all the books are on reserve at the library, so if there's one I didn't get that I need, it's not the end of the world. I have several texts already, and I do think there are two or three more I would like to get, but I'm going to try to pick them up used at the AMSA book sale this week.

The second to last thing we did was to have anatomy lab group icebreakers. I was so happy to learn that not only did I already know the three other people in my lab group, but I already liked them a lot. I think we are going to kick ass and take names... I couldn't have picked a better group if I'd tried. So that was happy.

After that, we had a sort of capstone/keynote/whatever bogus name you want to give it speech by a really phenomenal speaker... an invasive cardiologist (alumnus, of course) who basically did the abbreviated history of cardiac medicine and talked about all the changes we are going to see in our careers and stuff. He ended with tips and advice which included things like be nice to the ancillary staff and that nurses will save your ass, so of course I liked him a lot.

Everything he talked about really made me miss working in cards, though, and sort of brought to life the idea of going into cards as a specialty again for me. I just keep telling myself that I have a lot of time to sort it out. :)

Then we all had to race home and change into nice (and hopefully warm) clothes for our grand finale event, which was a boat cruise on Lake Michigan and the Chicago river. It was really, really neat -- much cooler than I had even anticipated. Nice appetizers and an open bar with beer or wine. I think we may have continued what is apparently a tradition of being banned from ever returning to the venue at which the O-week finale is held due to an unfortunate excretory incident on the part of one of my classmates, but, hey, we had fun.

Afterwards most of us went over to this really chi-chi club. Apparently the cover is usually $25, but our social chair talked them into letting us in with no cover and free Ketel One drinks for the first twenty minutes. I was exhausted but I figured this was probably my only opportunity for a long while to check out a bar with a $25 cover so I went for a little while. It was very nice and all, and the DJ was great, but damn. :O I only stayed for about an hour and caught a taxi home with the first group I saw leaving.

It was a fun night, though, and a great way to end O-week. Except it really wasn't the last thing for me. :)