Kindargarten, 8th grade, high school, college, medical school. Today is graduation day #6 for me and probably #7 or higher for many of my colleagues who have also completed masters programs, PhDs, and perhaps even another career altogether before embarking on a life in medicine. It is unreal to think that three years have passed…
The Tragedy of Elephant Tourism
Overall, our time in Thailand was exceptionally relaxing and enjoyable. I am sad to say we did have one quite unpleasant experience, and it is something I feel the need to write about so that others can hopefully be better informed than I was. On our last full day, we were scheduled to go on…
Old Phuket Town
On our last full day in Thailand, we ventured into Old Phuket Town and thoroughly reveled in the old Sino-Portuguese and Sino-Colonial architecture, the various fabric shops along Thalang Road, a quick trip into a street-side temple, a handful of art galleries, and a delicious meal served up by 75-year-old Abdul, whose modest restaurant specialized…
Rainy Day in Kamala
Our last two days in Thailand showed us the monsoon season weather that is expected this time of year. The days were cloudy and intermittently rainy, sometimes pouring down and sometimes misting lightly. This did not stop us from exploring some more, however! Our fourth day in Thailand was supposed to have been spent touring…
A Lesson in Rattanakosin Cooking
During our third day in Thailand, we decided to take the Thai cooking class offered by our resort’s Recipe School of Culinary Arts. In the three major time periods of Thai history, the most recent one was the Rattanakosin period in which food became heavily influenced by China which brought in noodles and starches along…
The Big Buddha
On our second day in Thailand, we went out into Phuket for some sightseeing and souvenir shopping. The highlight of the day was the Big Buddha, the island’s most loved landmark. Sitting 45 meters tall atop the Nakkerd Hills, the calm face of Buddha looks out over the island with clouds and blue sky crowning…
A Thailand Anniversary-moon
This month, my husband and I finally made it to our honeymoon destination — Thailand! We jokingly refer to this as our anniversary-moon since we arrived there just a month shy of our first wedding anniversary. During my two-week vacation from residency, we spent the first few days at home in Philadelphia (highlights to follow),…
BRCA: Beyond the Pink Ribbon
In recent weeks, much attention has been given to a topic that previously had not crossed the minds or conversations of most of the general public: prophylactic mastectomy. It was not until a figure known world-wide chose this course of action for herself that the preventative measure became common knowledge. All of a sudden, everyone…
Beauty & Morbidity
It has been several years since I last looked at pathology slides under a microscope, identifying the different cells and patterns that constitute normally functioning organs and understanding mechanically how structure dictates function. The specialized myocytes of the heart contract in an interwoven manner to orchestrate a contraction. The glandular cells of the thyroid secrete…
The Dangers of Uninformed Autonomy
“There is a dignity in dying that doctors should not dare to deny.” [ Anonymous] Today, a patient I have been helping to take care of died. I and the medical team knew that she would die soon, but for the past 18 days, we have been sticking little bandaids on various components of her…
Thug Kitchen Puts the Rough in Ruffage
I often find it challenging to eat a well-balanced, healthy meal on a consistent basis. The excuses of long residency hours and an erratic work schedule contribute to this the most, for when I am on lighter rotations, packing lunch most days of the week and planning meals ahead of time seems easy, enjoyable, and…
Beauty and the Marketing Beast: Why I Can’t Love Dove
Many of us have seen Dove’s latest ad campaign as it makes its way around social media sites. Upon initial viewing, my first reaction was, “Wow!” They make a great point about how women view themselves, downplay themselves, and perhaps even emotionally handicap themselves when it comes to their physical appearance. I saw the reactions…
pen . paper . storm 