happiness is...

a pair of almost done blueberry mash socks (the toes will be finished tonight)


hand-dyed yarn; (colors not true - the orange/yellow is bright with a few dull spots where a drop or two of blue infiltrated = design element and the blue/green/purple hank is more pastel then I'd like, but still vivid. If that's possible.)


six pairs of needles off to Warm the World and a big bag of corn nuts. I think I still like corn nuts; I made the mistake of going grocery shopping while I was hungry... (thanks to Kathy for the idea of passing on my now-unused duplicate needles to a good cause)

Nikki, a med student who got in touch with me early on, has her own page now!

and a weekend spent with three cats - one of which decided to reach out and....

touch...

the camera... (okay, it's not the cutest picture I have of this ultra cute cat (one of three), but it's the best I could do; it wasn't a very good weekend for photography.)

My Kristen hat arrived quickly and included in the package was a color card for Dale of Norway Heilo yarn. I have to admit that I'd never understood the appeal of a color card until I set my eyes on the actual yarn samples all lined up; I get it now. I chose two different shades of blues (to match my everyday winter coat) and will be reversing the design so that the lighter blue is the "snow flakes." (I liked how that would look and was encouraged by others who agreed with me!) Depending on how this fair isle experiment goes I might need to order another two colors in the red family to match my more formal red wool toggle coat. (I won't be surprised when the colors arrive because I can hold my magic color card up to my coat to get a perfect match!)

I started a "my so called scarf" in some "scrap'ish" yarn and it's a good project to carry around. I forsee another pair of socks on the needles soon, and I think I'm going to make a big leap back into the world of sweater knitting. I'll share more once I (maybe?) get things figured out.

This is the last week of my current rotation and I've been trying to figure out how I can describe what I've been doing without being too google-able. I don't mind answering questions about it, but I'd rather not be listed on a page as a "look for more info here" site.

There are two different types of med schools recognized here in the states - allopathic (MD) and osteopathic (DO). DO's have the same education as MD's but we recieve additional training in manipulation. I hesitate to compare it to chiropractic care because it's not the same thing, but most people have heard of chiropractors and some aspects of the care are similar.

That being said, one of my favorite parts of my first two years of med school included lots of hands on training in a variety of treatment modalities that range from gentle techniques to the "cracking" and "popping" techniques also known as high velocity low amplitute (hvla). I first experienced osteopathic manipulation as a patient and it was a key part of my recovery from the car accident I was in. It's a huge reason why I went to the med school I did, and also why I think I'll go the family practice/fellowship in neuromuscular medicine (another name) route so I can be dual board certified. (the fellowship is an extra year, but what's another year after four years of med school and three of residency?)

The rotation I'm in now is one that I set up so that I could get some more experience with my hands. It's going okay, but I have a project and chart review that is more work then I thought it was going to be but it'll be over after my presentation on Friday. Overall the hard part is being in a established doctor's office and doing more watching then doing because they are trying to stick to their schedule and once they know the patient they can do something in 15 minutes that takes me 30. My best days are the ones spent with a doc who has lots of time set aside to work with me while I see my "own" patients. And the kids - it's a joy to treat kids, especially the little little ones only a few days or weeks old. (I was accused of being a closet pediatrican and had to admit that I love working with the little ones - but peds don't do OB, so family practice it is...)