You waited a month and a half to post this??

Holy cow it's been a long time since we've posted. As in terms of a brief update, I am writing from Boston, MA in the midst of my "hell week" on the interview trail. Over the course of the last 4 days I've been to 3 programs, and will be interviewing in some way shape or form for the next 3 days as well. You certainly get to see a lot, but my answers to recurrent questions (why do you want to be a psychiatrist? you did research in WHAT??) are beginning to sound a wee bit rehearsed. I should comment a bit more fully on the whole process, but currently am planning to err on the side of discretion, lest I get dooced. At any rate, I'm enjoying the process of seeing new cities and learning how different places get the training done.
I am also learning about what it's like to be a guest at somebody's place for an extended period of time. Last week I found myself in Baltimore, MD for a few interviews. I had a great time while I was there and was lucky enough to land a place to crash for the entire week with a friend of a friend. Myself and Chris Tjoa stayed with one of his friends from high school who now works in Baltimore. In exchange for the rent free living, Tjoa fixed his furnace and installed a digital thermostat, we fixed all of his broken light fixtures and winter-sealed his downstairs windows. While it's true that fish and company stink after 3 days, I think those guys wouldn't have minded if we stayed long enough to winterproof the rest of their house. Hell, long enough and we probably would've found a way to finish their basement. I had a great time sleeping on a air-mattress on a 2nd story landing for a week (thank you, Ozark Trail!)and only had to contend with one small problem. The 2nd story landing had connections to the bedrooms of our host's 2 roommates, one of whom had a girlfriend. Also, said bedrooms had thin, thin walls. Holy cow, you'd think that guy had been on a submarine for the last 3 months. Anyway, 'nuff said. I also got the opportunity to see what other folks had found on that darling of the internet, YouTube. So without further ado, I give you the irrefutable proof that you need go no further than the local news to get all your laughs. Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you Bubb Rubb, and Lil' Sis. Woo WOOOOOO!



(p.s. I love the part where he nearly wrecks the car then blows the stop sign. yeah Oakland. YEAH.)

Ella the Sneak

Posting has taken a back burner lately here at Elmwood and North, primarily because I'm busy studying for the USMLE step II. I've decided to *attempt* to make a video of the Interview trail leading upto Match Day at the end of March, when I'll find out where I'll be spending the next 4+ years. I'll comment more on that if the project ever really gets off the ground. As for now the project has been going pretty well. Below you'll find a short clip that was intended to serve as some footage of myself studying for step II. More specifically, I'm taking a timed test online. What's interesting however, is how sneaky Ella can be when she knows no one is looking. Ever since we adopted our little furry pet as a kitten, we've been pretty rock-solid in enforcing a "no tables, no counters" rule for her. I'm 100% confident that she knows that she's not supposed to be on the dining table. I'm also 100% confident that she's a sneak. I submit the following video as irrefutable proof of both. Witness how she stops and scrutinizes me before hopping off the table and trotting away as if nothing happened. She's gauging just how much more she can get away with without being caught. Oh yes Ella, the camera never blinks. I'm on to you now.

Freaky Friday

Aww look, snowflakes! Yeah, they're cute, 'till they start ganging up on you. What the &$%#! This is a picture from the evening on OCTOBER 12th! Sure, some flurries in October are nothing new. Maybe even a dusting to an inch. But what transpired after this picture was something else all together. We had ourselves a honey of an October storm, people. I'm talking Biblical. Late the evening this photo was taken, Tahera and I ventured off to bed, marveling at the fact that the snow had actually managed to start "sticking" to the ground. But as we lay in bed trying to sleep, all sorts of ominous sounds filled our senses. First there were the frequent flashes of lightning and immediate booms of thunder, not so peculiar per se, but in the midst of an early October snowstorm? Oh yes...Freaky. But not as much as the popping sounds of branches and the siren call of fire-detectors going off as the power kept tripping off and returning. But last of all came the focal, flare like burst of blue-white light that came from outside the window as a power-line snapped loose under a falling tree branch. Oh yes folks, there are cute snowflakes, then there are Evil Swarming Snowflakes From Hell! We knew the morning would bring us some interesting sights, (if we made it through the night, that is....)

Here's a fellow Buffalonian's video from the overnight.

When morning came we awoke to an unimaginably thick blanket of snow (news reports have claimed some places received +18") Friday the 13th indeed. Tahera and I noticed this young tree bowing under the weight of the snow as it first began to accumulate overnight. From the repeated power outages setting off the smoke detectors and waking us up, we knew there had to be some branches giving way under all the added load. As we looked outside that morning we saw this. But even then, we were in for a surprise at how much damage there actually was.. 

Much bigger trees also couldn't withstand the stress. The leaves, acting like so many baskets served to catch untold pounds of the heavy, wet snow. Other people reported fully grown trees splitting completely in half due to the weight. As people began to venture out (ignoring the driving ban), it became apparent just how much damage the storm had done. In all honesty it looked like no tree was spared at least some damage. Branches littered every lawn and each street we passed.  

This is probably one of the most amazing scenes I saw after the storm. The white car on the right was surrounded huge fallen branches, but didn't have a scratch on it! Contrast that with....

This unlucky bloke, who was parked right behind the white car and got nailed. Oh yeah, the back window of the car was smashed in as well, and the car was full of snow. Today it sits on the side of the road, covered by a blue tarp. man that sucks.

Of course, every cloud does have a silver lining. As a result of all the destruction, 300,000+ Buffalonians were left without power (T and I lucked out). Amongst the unfortunate were both Aziza and Sameena, sharing an apartment in near UB's North Campus in Amherst. As their apartment has an uncanny ability to remain 5-10 degrees below the outside temperature, and National Grid estimates full power won't be restored until as late as Wednesday of next week, it was fixing to be a pretty miserable experience for them. Through the incredible generosity of T and I's neighbors, we were able to shovel out her car from the snow 3 times as it got stuck trying to pull out of our driveway, put it back into it's parking space, and take one of their SUV's to go pick Tahera's sisters up. Welcome houseguests!

The cool thing about having Tahera's sisters over is they only feed of one another's silliness. See below for a video of what happens when Dead or Alive start's a-playin.  

As the 3 girls got bored, they also become more bizzare. I began prompting expressions from them as I took pictures: The "motivation" for this picture was me yelling, "What'dchu say to my sister?" Certainly as the power continues to remain off in Sameena and Aziza's apartment, things are bound to only become more and more silly here in ours...

My Bag of Tricks

Yes!!! Long time no post. Thanks for the inspiration S. Whatever the season, my bag/tote needs to be big enough to hold my life. I can't remember exactly when I started carrying a bag which is disturbing to me because I remember every outfit I've worn on the first day of school since 4th grade. How did I go anywhere without that familiar weight on my right shoulder? And what in the world did I stash with all that stuff??? Though its’ contents would be useless in an emergency situation (no pepper spray, alarms, first aid kit, important phone numbers), it strangely makes me feel safe. Stupid girl. So….. what’s in there?

-Wallet from a shopping excursion (masked as a “medical conference” w/ Nader) in Philly. Nothing good in there. License, gift cards with values around 86 cents, first aid and CPR card, no cash, coffee punch cards.

-Sunglasses…always in case when not in use (last year’s anniversary gift)

-Lens cleaner and cloth

-My little “T” notebook (not the tech-y type) and pen for grocery lists, reminders, and random “I should really get around to…” lists (wedding album..ahem. S, can I just give you like a hundred billion dollars to do it?)

- Reminder appointment card to visit the orthodontist (today) which also would explain the mini bottle of mouthwash and the x-mas tree tooth brush in the travel case. HATE braces.

-Keys

-Breakfast bar

- New BNL album. Fab.

-Black headband (for an attempt at quick and chic)

- A bag of jewelry???? I don’t know. I never leave myself enough time in the morning for those finishing touches so I bring my favorites with me.

- Tinted lip gloss

- Cell phone

- The Diary of a Madman and Other Stories by Nikolai Gogol on loan from Ziza. Yay for Russian lit.

So what does that say about me? Unfortunately my friends are apparently even less tech-y tech-y than I (imagine that) as none have jumped on the blogger-wagon and all siblings are the face book types (whatever) which leaves no one juicy to tag. Miss Mina? No? Ok…. Soon enough. 

On Smoking, Solitude, and Crunchy Peanut Butter

I spent a number of years in Albany living by myself, and was happy with it. As a matter of fact, prior to the departure of my housemate (and older brother, Mr. Slapdash), I looked forward to having full run of the place.
I had it all planned out in my head for months before he left. I'd move into the bigger bedroom, arrange the couches downstairs just how I wanted, (paying homage to the TV, of course) and most importantly, I'd get a pedastal ashtray like John Odorisio and properly abolish the smoking ban from the premesis with a good old fashioned beer-and-cigarettes get together.
Alas, just weeks before he left, I saw The Insider. As a result, I developed a sense of self preservation and quit smoking. Truth be told, the couch layout turned out to work best the way Osman had it originally, so it went back that way. At least I got the big bedroom.
Nonetheless, I began to enjoy the isolation. I grew accustomed to the conveniences that came with the absence of another person sharing my living space. Home became my own private sensory deprivation tank. Sweet silence. Solitude. Solace. I found myself having a shorter and shorter fuse when it came to human interaction. When I had to go to campus and ran into some random schmoe from a class, I'd rapidly come to the point where I'd be thinking, Damn it, I don't want to chat with you for another minute. They'd keep talking, and I'd start to just hear a test pattern in place of their voice. I can't wait to get home. Away from these people. . I was far more content to just explore my thoughts, uninterrupted.
The one exception to this aversion was Tahera. Through all my years living alone, the daily phone chatter was a constant. Sharing with her, a basic need. She was my other self, connected to me by hundreds of miles of telephone line. In fact, she had always, always been that. Even in the beginning, with her in High School, talking on a portable phone until the battery died.
Like one who finds themselves blind and heightens their other senses to compensate, we learned the subtle nuances of each others tone, inflection, and pause. I could hear it when her eyebrows were up. I could feel it through the static when she was pensive. The bond was so close, so pervasive that she wasn't like a virtual roommate, but rather a continual double-take for anything that I'd experience... Just me looking, and me looking again.
Our bond grew closer as the years went on and continued that steady course even after we were married. It wasn't as much of a transition as I'd expected when we began our married life under one roof. I was so incredibly comfortable with her; with her central place in my life. I didn't miss the quiet house. I didn't miss the autonomy. I accepted the change from one-alone to one-plus-one absolutely. Even when we'd argue (often) about dishes or her being the "cleanliness gestapo" or me the ever-aloof pig. Even when we stocked the shelves with herbals and natural foods. Even when Pepsi disappeared and a cache of 'pika's chocolate' emerged. Even when braces were donned and crunchy peanut-butter had to go. Even when acoustically optimal speaker arrangements had to be compromised. I never ever longed for those former years of isolation.
So now, I find myself 1 week into a 2 month odyssey through New England as part of my education. Back to being one-alone. This first week in Worcester has been one of unpacking, working and otherwise settling. I've gotten my bearings here in town and have developed as much of a routine as my ever-changing shift schedule will allow me. Necessities such as those must be taken care of before one can fully reflect on their situation. Now that I know the business of settling has been done, I can finally talk about this state I'm in.
This evening as I scurried through the ER witnessing people whose day-to-day lives have been interrupted by life itself, I found myself accompanied by Death Cab for Cutie singing about the hospital and the lives that end there. I thought of how alone patients (formerly just people) must feel when they're surrounded by us, the workers. We forget that the familiar department in which we spend the better part of each day is an alien world to those people confined to the beds. I kept hearing the song in my head, and I kept seeing patients; thinking about how this place must make them feel alone. Then I thought about how I'm alone right now.
It's a lot like it was in college. I go to work, and do my work thing. I then come home, settle in with the computer and do other work, check mail or just decompress. I haven't spoken to anyone for the last 4 hours and haven't even really noticed. I've let my mind wander and have had the time and absence of interruption to really let it go wherever it wants to. The only constraints are the ones I've put on myself by deciding I'm going to try and make a coherent blog entry.
It's 4 a.m. and I'm 4 days into a marathon streak of "swing shifts" which run from 4pm-12am. I've adjusted to the phase change as completely as I had when I was working in Albany to buy an engagement ring. I haven't had a friendly conversation with a single person who isn't somehow related to the hospital, school, and my grades.
Except of course, Tahera. Each day we find time to reconnect through that old familiar static. The phone conversations aren't how they used to be because of all the other things we both have to do. Her schedule and mine don't coincide well, so 10 minutes a day is about as well as we can fare. We haven't been "blind" like this since we've been married, and it's clear that we're still getting the rust off. I've said "I miss you" so much that it's officially become meaningless. I keep saying it.
I think we'll get back to how it was when I was in Albany. When that happens, she'll see how much I miss her right through the phone, and that picture's worth a whole thousand times saying it. Until then I'll just say I'm feeling sad music more than I have in years and the extra-crunchy Jiff I bought tonight after work hasn't made me feel any better.

My Kids

I have 20 kids. Okay, they're not actually mine but Shortie and I refer to them as "our kids". Shortie and I have been friends since the 5th grade. We've done everything together. We founded a club called AAA together. We didn't know there was already an AAA and had we known it probably wouldn't have mattered. Our AAA was the "All Against Alison" club. Along with couple other select 5th graders, we would meet once a week to share in our hatred for our classmate (who really shouldn't have been our classmate 'cause she failed like 10 times), Alison. I know. We were mean girls. But she had it coming. I don't know what she did but it must have been awful to necessitate weekly meeting minutes dutifully recorded in the AAA notebook. TOP SECRET. 15 years later we're neighbors in Buffalo and we work together. We're still working on one day living next door to one another and having water slides from each of our bedroom windows that lead to a super cool pool. Anyhow, I digress.
Our kids are hilarious. They are 6-9th grade Buffalo Public School students enrolled in a NYSED funded after-school and summer program. These kids are something else. I don't know how many " yous guys" and " I seen yous" I've corrected. At least several hundred. But they will call you out instantly if you slip up. I had a royal slip up in April. The last week of April is national tv turn-off week and I wanted all the kids to participate. I got up in front of the class and explained the rules: no tv, no computer, no movies, no video games, no play boy..........Did I just say what I think I said? Maybe they won't notice. Cue uncontrollable laughter. Shit. I meant game boy. No playing game boy. It's 4 months later and whenever someone brings it up the rest of them are soon rolling on the floor. They still say "yous". Sigh. I do love them though. Today was probably one of funniest days yet. The girls in the program are working on a Travel-Savvy themed curriculum this summer. Over the past two days they've been creating their own country. I gave them complete creative control. They could be princesses, presidents, czarinas, whatever. They could decide who lived in their country, what the weather was like, what the customs were, what buildings there were, etc. I decided to create my own country along with them. Today we did a little show and tell. All of the kids went, then Shortie, then me. I held up my colored pencil drawing and began describing my country "Island T". There is a lovely mansion protected by a grand iron gate with a disproportionatley large porch just meant for sitting under shade and drinking lemonade. There's a spa just steps away from the house. In the middle of the "T" is a great city where it's perpetually night-time so you can always see the city lights. Only 2 people live on this island, me and Johnny Depp. Hey, it's my country. At that point one of girls stopped me and asked very sincerely: "On your anniversary will Johnny Depp dress up like Captain Sparrow for you?" I had nothing. What could I say? It was my turn to laugh. I love them.

Everbody Loves a Wedding.....

...especially when two of your best friends decide to tie the knot. After nearly seven years of dating, Matt and Angie made it official last weekend.

The ceremony was lovely. Riz and I were given credit for introducing Matt and Ang to one another. Actually, the credit goes to Mom Ejaz who made it very clear that I was never to be alone with the likes of Rizwan Parvez. Smart lady. Matt soon grew tired of being our on-call chaperone. He asked for a lady friend and we got him one. For the record mom, I'm only good, rule-abiding daughter. Perhaps my favorite rule was the 11pm curfew that was imposed in 11th grade and was still going strong when I was 21 years of age and engaged. Mom, do you know where Sameena is right now?  

Some wedding night advice from an old pro. 

I have to say Riz, you do clean up rather nicely.

T and Brett post ceremony. 

Riz belts out his fav Celin Dion ballad "Power of Love" to get the groom's attention. Ang, assumely her wifely duties decides not to encourage him. Even a wedding singer would have been embarrassed.  

The happy couple poses for some pics at Elmira College. 

The afternoon sun is brutal and their smiles are strained. They have lost yet another brother. So young. Such a promising future. 

Cheers to the bride and groom! 

The geeks will appreciate this one.

OK, so I took a break from studying this morning to rearrange the speakers in the living room to optimize the sound stage. After a little reading, I learned that the optimal arrangement for the front speakers was have the width spaced apart 3/4 the length. (i.e. X=0.75Y) and to have their intersection point be some distance (~12-24") behind the listener's head.

I set about to arrange the speakers following this formula, and discovered that I had to move the speakers 1' forward from the television to maintain the optimal 3/4 ratio.

After having done so, I had speakers all sorts of odd distances from the center of the seating. Fortunately my receiver is programmable to correct for variations in distance for the center, front and surround speakers, so with a little fiddling around (and a bunch of measuring, and the Pythagorean theorem!) I was able to electronically correct for those aberrations and virtually optimize the space.

After having done all this, I've learned 2 important lessons:
1) When the speakers are arranged optimally, they really do disappear. Music seems to take on an airy, immersive quality that's exceptionally better. It didn't cost a cent and it made a huge difference.
2) Instead of using math and measure, would-be optimizers can achieve almost-as-good results by merely arranging their speakers in the most ugly and intrusive way possible. Showing a disregard for the physical comfort of listeners will also improve the audio quality considerably. As those who've studied the diagram carefully must have already noted, the sweet spot of the sound stage requires you to sit on the seam between the two sectional halves of the couch.

Philistines may ask, "Isn't that a strange spot to sit in?"

Yes.

They may even go on to query, "Is it really worth all the bother to achieve maximal listening enjoyment?"

The answer of course is yes. Yes, philistine; it definitely is.

Additional Tidbits from Boulder

T and I spent most of yesterday posting, but didn't quite get all the goodies up that we wanted to. Here are a couple of terrific leftovers that were still on deck:


This first photo was taken as a series immediately after the huge hailstorm. The view is from an overlook on road up to flagstaff





This panorama was taken as a series of 6 shots from the roadside at Rocky Mountain National Park.

Osman and I both were playing with our cameras when the hailstorm was in full fury. He's posted one video clip from the same time period on his site, but I thought this one was interesting too. look at how high the standing water splashes up when the hail hits it.





and finally, I took a video clip with my camera of this guy at the farmer's market playing guitar. Actually, this is Colorado's unofficial theme music, and they've stationed guys like this every 25 yards so you here the music wherever you go.

Boulder, Colorado

Now we all know "Virginia is for Lovers", and in Texas, "It's Like a Whole Other Country"....

For Colorado, it's Fresh Air and Fond Memories Served Daily! 

So without further ado, here's a (relatively disorganized) review of our romp through CO.