Here are some pictures from my (y mi amiga Alauna, y Leah) first days of thirty doing a rotation in infectious disease and psychiatry in beautiful and joyfully hot cuidad de Panamá. Muchos gracias to the largess of the BCM Psychiatry department. 
La Jolla Cove, California is known for its inexplicable beauty (and real estate prices) so it isn't any wonder why a professional photographer decided to use it as a backdrop for his scantily clad models. Enter gawking audience stage left. Here is a very lovely old woman (complete with 16-point buck jacket) who decided to take it all in for about 15 minutes or so (I was...er...reading during this time). I chuckle when I see this photo, not just because its a startling contrast or that it contains a strange granny voyeurism, but more so because when I thought she was about to push her walker to finally continue her walk along the cove, she in fact just traveled 5 yards or so to reposition for a more direct viewing of...er...La Jolla Cove's bounty. Go granny.
So, finally I have finished my last interview. Thanks to my schools super-liberal elective time, I have had the luxury of making my interview trips as painless and enjoyable as possible.
Instead of crisscrossing this nation at breakneck speed, like a number of my compatriots (especially those poor misguided surgery applicants), I've somehow managed to visit long-lost friends and family, eat at amazing restaurants, and of course get a more in depth view of the precious seats of these great cities.
So where have I been? In chronological order:
Recently, I've been unpleasantly accosted about what I think about Bush's forceful cheerleading for troop increase in Iraq (on the left, on the right, and in the Post). Its been unpleasant in that, given my interview season absence from newspaper-junkidom, I been far from aptly digesting the nuances of current world events.
Good thing we have our current Commander in Chief. He's simple.
Bush's policies have been far from nuanced and demonstrate a very limited understanding of the world's complex economic, political, and social connectedness. As I have been recently using and accruing frequent fliers at an unprecedented rate, I, will employ an airline experience I had just before the cabin door closed on a San Diego-Houston flight. Let's begin.
We must think of Bush as that obliviously loud, Valley-cadenced, fashionista high-schooler on cross-continental flights.
You know her. She's the one with the haute couture (read obscenely bug-eye) shades that suggest entitlement and wealth, though her $70 "Princess" t-shirt and overwhelming scent of suntan lotion and perfume removes all doubt of this. She defiantly rejects low respectful tones in favor of grating and all-too-audible cellphone account of her recent beach house party drama with "Becky," "Ahmadinijad" or other appropriately clueless compatriots. Ms. SoCal repeatedly and cavalierly punts the backs of chairs around her with her pink de rigueur Ugg boots, and refuses the restrained requests for civility (which soon evaporated to visible disgust and vulgar mumblings) much to the chagrin of a varied group of tired souls whose history and apparent imposition is unknown to her.
She is Bush.
As for the Bush's new request for troops sans civility?
Someone's about to get kicked off the plane.
In any case, the whole situation reminds me of a painfully apt quote I read by Emerson in the Foreword of W.E.B. Du Bois' The Souls of Black Folk.
"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson-
Interestingly enough, the left-leaning satirical Slate Magazine has a groovy little video of how believable the President's Iraq Troop Surge Speech was to a focus group (stratified by political affiliation). Very interesting.
It's not just a day off.
Celebrate Morehouse Alumnus Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Day and reflect on America's history, progress and future. The picture above is the King statue at Morehouse College.
My dear childhood friend and Orange County resident decided that a visit to La Jolla was warranted since her handsome Marylander pseudo-cousin (read as yours truly) was interviewing there. After an evening of shopping (read as yours truly following Ms. OC with bags up and down Girard Ave), I witnessed the single most amazing MacBook decor I've seen yet.
A blinged out Apple logo with Schwartzky crystals.
Nice, eh? There's no one quite like this future psychologist Applephile from Anaheim Hills. No one.
First, I must thank San Diego. Besides the fact that this city so graciously provided wireless internet in this beautiful spot of La Jolla Cova above, but more because it means I can publish on the ocean.
Second I must thank Ribka. Besides the fact that she so graciously offered to take me to the airport at an ungodly hour of 4:30a, but more because of her new addiction.
Netflix.
I must admit, it has been more than a bit difficult to satisfy my craving for thought-provoking foreign and domestic films in megaplex-laden Houston (thanks be to God for Angelika and River Oaks). However, Ribka the day previous to my San Diego departure showed me all that Netflix had to offer. Clearly, I'm about to brush up on my Almodóvar and Sopranos.
In any case, given my new subscription to Netflix, and my renewed sense of medical school freedom, I thought it would be fitting to again, publish what I feel are the best movies of 2006 (much in the same style of my films of last year)
"What this film does is capture the essence of flawed, dysfunctional, and ultimately hopeful and resilient American families through... (continue previous review)."
"Take a good look. Not simply for more obvious reasons such as deeply, dazzling, dark eyes, but for being witness to one of the best actresses of our times...(continue previous review)"
"Some would say that the character 'Borat' created by the British Comic of Ali G fame, Sach Baron Cohen, is a startling misogynist, anti-Semite, racist, with the acumen of a dim-witted Abramoff Republican....(continue previous review)."
Yes. Places like this exist in the continental United States. Its name is San Diego which an old Iranian couple in a La Jolla Fish market describes as "The Earth's Heaven." Here are some photos from my time here so far before my interview.
