Sorry for the Hiatus…

Hey All!

I know its been a while since I’ve posted, but believe me the past few weeks have been so incredibly hectic!

(cue the loooonnnggg sigh of relief)

So, because I know that you all have been missing me dearly, I will tell you in categories what has been going on with my life.

Here goes everything…

Work Life: My cubicle is no more, I stopped work about two weeks ago, so that I could focus on packing and getting ready to move for medical school. I think the happiest I’ve been was when I wasn’t stuck in those 3 walls calling people. Sigh, I’m thankful that I had an opportunity to work, but I will definitely not miss it.

Social Life: A few days before I was to officially leave AU, Antoinette took me out to eat! We went to a local joint that we all affectionately called Niffers. They have the best burgers and we decided to be really southern and order some corn nuggets for starters. (Don’t knock it till you try it!) Check out the yummy images below:

The honey mustard dipping sauce was EVERYTHING!

I got a burger called the Gus Bus! (Ten gold stars if you know who this burger is named after!)

After my farewell dinner, we went back to Antoinette’s place to chill for a few minutes. Plus I got to see my nephew, Lotto!

My nephew is the cutest thing ever! He gets his good looks from me 😉

After Lotto’s walk we left the house and went over to a friend’s place. He so kindly donated me some moving boxes and we ended up talking about post-grad life for about two hours. Antoinette even got some doodle time in…Don’t ask me what the doodles are about because I would have to lie and act like I know what they are. And, you see, I just can’t do that.

Moving Life: After days of packing and throwing stuff away, I had officially tore my apartment apart and I was ready to make the big move. I decided to move a week before Orientation, so that I could have time to unpack and get used to driving around my new environment. Here’s the packing damage:

Believe me, it was a lot worse in person. My oh so fabulous boyfriend, Justin, helped me move. We rented a U-haul truck and then proceeded to drive to Auburn to pack up my old apartment, while towing my car behind us. When we finally reached our destination that afternoon, we were both beyond tired, but him even more so, because he drove over 200 miles that day alone.I definitely couldn’t have done this without him, and I realized on this trip that he really is a blessing. He knows how to calm me down when things don’t go as I have planned and remind me how blessed I am to even be accepted to medical school. So here’s a little sap moment for my best friend, biggest supporter, and the best boyfriend ever!

Med Life: Now for the real news…I start medical school in one day! You heard me, ONE DAY! When Monday, July 27th comes I will be up bright and early to trudge through the horrible interstate traffic so that I can attend Orientation. It really hasn’t hit me quite yet, and I don’t think it will until I am standing in that lecture room with 184 other students. I honestly can’t believe that I have made it this far. I am so thankful!!! I’m looking forward to the challenges and fun times ahead. I think my class is going to be filled with incredibly talented and intelligent individuals and I am so proud to be apart of that collective group. I will definitely keep you all updated on my orientation, so be on the lookout for more blog posts!

Finally, I don’t know whether any of you are wondering where I moved too, or what medical school I am going to and I really want to release the surprise in the next blog post once I get my official ID.

If you figure out which city just let me know in the comments below!

P.S. I really missed the blog world. How are you all doing? Is life going okay? Anything special happening? I really like communicating, so feel free to let me know!

Crepes and Thrifting

Happy July 1st everyone!

I woke up knowing that this month, in about 2 weeks, I will be moving from my college town and beginning my journey as an MS1! I am both excited and overwhelmed. I still have to start organizing, packing and cleaning to get ready for the move and so my plan after the holiday includes doing all of those things.

Anyway on to more interesting news…

Today, my best friend Antoinette and I visited a restaurant that we had never tried before. It’s a little cafe that specializes in making savory and sweet crepes. The interesting thing about this place is that it is located right up the street from where I live and I never even noticed until a few months ago. It’s called Crepe Myrtle Cafe, and it also doubles as a local farmer’s market. They sell all types of flowers and plants, as well as fresh organic produce.

Ignore my finger, it just wanted to say hello…

I loved the feel of the place and I enjoyed the clever signage pertaining to crepes. Plus the desserts all looked amazing!

My sweet tooth was begging for a fix, but I resisted…barely

We looked over the menu and we each decided to try a savory crepe since it was lunch time. I decided on the Philly Steak crepe, and Antoinette got the Fajita crepe. Yummy!

Both crepes turned out to be delicious and we vowed that next time, when we come back, we will try the dessert crepes (they have one with nutella in it…need I say more?!).

Right before we were about to leave we saw a chicken randomly walking around the store area and we decided to snap a picture of her.

Once our bellies were full and happy, we embarked on a journey only known to the few and the brave: THRIFT SHOPPING.

I was looking for a couple of picture frames to use for some really cool DIY artwork that I could display in my new apartment, but of course I ended up finding something else entirely. I bought some really cute black and white striped bowls and some gold rimmed plates for less than $4.00 total.

I couldn’t help it, they just spoke to me.

Antoinette got some really cute boot socks for the upcoming fall and winter season and then we found another store to hunt through. This store was a little bit too huge and we only browsed for about 20 minutes before calling it a quits.

This thrift store was so big that it had its own lands, complete with thousands of chairs, sofas, books, desks, and mattresses. Even though we left early, I did manage to find a couple of frames for my projects and I’m really excited to show you all the finished results when I’m done (if they don’t look like trash, that is…).

All in all it was a great day! I’m off now to put in a few hours at my job and then I’m settling in with Grey’s Anatomy and ice cream tonight.

How did you spend your July 1st? Do you like thrifting? Or crepes? Let me know!

Nom Noms, Peace and Med School Updates

This morning I went to the medical clinic AGAIN…to get my second TB test for my medical clearance. It was a very nice day out and the wind was blowing so my walk was really enjoyable.

The past few days, I have been moody and its, regretfully, been reflected in my attitude with other people. With that being said, I have realized that talking about my feelings, although I hate having discussions centered around my emotions, is necessary in order for me to feel at peace. After finally calming down from my overemotional state, I prayed and immediately felt better. Prayer, for me is vital to having a healthy soul. When I pray I feel that it is a direct link to God and it makes my soul feel lighter to know that I have a personal savior named Jesus, that loves me enough to listen to my problems, forgive me for my sins, and intercede on my behalf.

Can any of you relate?

On another note I have been cooking up a storm lately, and I wanted to share a few of my nom noms with you all.

My lunch for today is really one of my healthiest meals this week. It’s blackened chicken (no salt added) with roasted red peppers, red beans and rice, and romaine lettuce topped with a very light lemon vinaigrette. It literally took me 15 minutes to make and mostly involved chopping things up.

Last Thursday, I invited my best friend over for dinner after work and we pigged out on chicken Cajun pasta.

There might have been gelato involved. But, it was all gone before any pictures could be taken, so…~~not~~ sorry.

Overall, despite my moodiness, things have been good food wise!

On the medical school side of things, I have slowly but surely been completing HIPAA training, and printing off my lovely certificates showing that I am now a master of all things privacy and patient.

I am starting to slowly become more anxious as my matriculation date becomes closer. I’m currently shopping for my new apartment furniture while trying to stay on budget.

Speaking of budget…

If you didn’t know, medical school is expensive! Like not undergraduate expensive, but I mean buying a house or 20 used cars expensive. My school sent out budget worksheets and PowerPoint presentations just to inform us about how we should be living super cheap on our allotted monthly budget. I knew medical school was going to be a sacrifice, financially, mentally, and socially, but the realness is starting to hit me smack dab in the face.

I shall overcome though, and since I’m used to living on a tight budget I know I will be fine.

Despite all my steady realizations, I am also coming to know how extremely blessed I am to have made it this far. I have realized that not everyone gets the honor and privilege of learning the art of medicine. I am so proud and grateful to be one of those lucky few. Not a day goes by, that I don’t thank God for allowing me to fulfill his calling on my life, and for never leaving me on this journey by myself.

I hope you all are having a fantastic day! Let me know what nom noms you have been munching on? And how are your moods these days?

Hep B, BBQ and Baked Apples

So these past couple of days have been interesting. That’s kind of the only word I have for it. Darn diction.

On Friday, I received a lovely email notification telling me that I had yet to submit my immunization records for my medical clearance protocol before I start med school this fall.

I have been procrastinating going to the doctor because I honestly was not looking forward to a TB test and having to start my Hep B series all over again, just because my immune system is ratchet and won’t produce any antibodies…Darn immune system.

So with a heavy heart, I rode my school’s transit and went to the medical clinic to get shot up (the ultimate struggle!).

I arrived. I told the medical assistant what I needed, with a sad face, and proceeded to wait.

Once I was called back, the nurse asked me which arm I wanted to sacrifice for execution (She didn’t really say that, but its definitely what I heard). I held out my left arm as tribute, and she proceeded to do the deed.

Hep B shot and TB injection down, I was given instructions to take Motrin if I started to run a mild fever and to not carry my rather large purse on my left side.

Even though I complained about having to get immunizations, I immediately realized how completely grateful I am to have them available to me. Immunizations are one of medicine’s greatest gifts to humanity. Vaccines are responsible for saving many lives and not to mention they have single-handedly eradicated some of the most devastating diseases mankind has ever had to tackle. I don’t want to get into a vaccine debate, but I urge you get your vaccinations and make sure your children are vaccinated. Not only could it save your child’s life, but it can and does save other children’s lives. Individuals who are immune-compromised and thus cannot get their own immunizations count on herd immunity to remain safe and healthy. Check out this infographic from the Cleveland Clinic for more information.

After my visit to the doctors, I went into work not thinking that I would even spike a fever. However, 3 hours later, I felt feverish and had a mild headache, and so I called it a day and went home to sleep off my fever. I woke up completely fine and well rested.

Saturday morning arrived and I decided that I wanted to cook a very nice meal for one. So pulled out all the stops and cooked some BBQ ribs, potato salad and a delicious apple and carrot romaine salad. Check out the nom noms below:

the bbq sauce stains add character to the plate…

Yes, amazingness I know.

After dinner, I decided I wanted a nice dessert to treat myself and so I made a baked apple and topped it with vanilla ice cream and walnuts! I’m going to include the recipe for this one, because its really quick and easy and that apple was heaven in my mouth…

That’s heaven in a blue bowl, right there!

Check out the really easy recipe:

Cinnamon Baked Apple

Ingredients:

1 medium to large apple (Gala, or HoneyCrisp work great)
1 tbs cinnamon or apple pie seasoning
1/4 cup of light brown sugar (I used a granulated sugar mixed with a teaspoon of honey)
1 tbs of flour
1 tbs of butter
Vanilla Ice Cream (~~mandatory~~ optional)
Walnuts or Pecans (optional)

Instructions:

Core the apple.
In a small bowl or cup, mix the flour, sugar and seasoning together.
Fill the apple cavity with the flour, sugar and seasoning mixture, and place the butter on top of the apple.
Place 1/3 cup of boiling water in the bottom of the pan or whatever you are using to cook your apple.
Seal tightly with aluminum foil.
Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.
Once out the oven, let rest for about as long as you can stand.
Throw scoop some ice cream on top and sprinkle with your choice of nuts.
Devour apple without regard for anyone else’s well being!!!

Well, I hope that recipe makes you as happy as it made me! I’ll be posting more about my meal plans (which are mostly healthy and always delicious) and fitness goals and plans soon.

What are your favorite baked treats? Let me know in a comment or an email!