Two hours well spent.

It's the night before compre, and I just spent a good two hours hanging out at the medstones with a few of my classmates. All of us reluctant to spend the night studying, all of us wanting to spend just a little time reminiscing on the year that was. And so we did. We looked back on enrollment and the first days of school, the first impressions that certain personalities made on us. We recalled some special moments that our class has shared. We remembered the professors that have made an impact on us, whether good or bad. And we sadly looked to the future, on our eventual separation, as we will be split into two blocks in second year, and into more blocks the years thereafter.

We may have lost two hours' worth of miscellaneous facts that we could have crammed into our heads for tomorrow's exam. Those two hours might cost us a few points. But for me, they were two hours well spent. I spent them with a few of the people I have trudged through first year med with. People I've listened in and slept through class with. People I've studied and laughed and shared stories and spent the wee hours of one morning practicing a dance number with. Our class, class 2014 is made up of such unique and wonderful people. We may be known for being quite a noisy and unruly class, but I wouldn't have us any other way. I can't imagine being a part of any other class.

Compre woes

I'm having a Holy Week hangover. Or maybe I'm fast-forwarding to summer. Either way, I'm not studying for the comprehensive exam that covers everything I learned or should have learned in my first year of med proper.

I had every intention of studying over the Holy Week. I made a schedule per day; I had it all planned out. I asked my parents to bring home some of my heavy heavy books and my maleta was filled with envelopes filled with countless pages of transes. Until now, they are untouched, save for maybe five transes. I've barely even scratched the surface of the samplices. Samplex na nga lang eh, wala pa rin.

I had every intention of spending the night in Coffee Bean or Starbucks, where I might have gone further in my compre review. But no, I stayed in. And as always happens, I couldn't tear my eyes away from my laptop screen, my fingers from they keyboard. I never learn.

There's really no point to this entry, except to reiterate how much I'm not studying.

Motivate meeeee. Please?

Just say yes

Today is March 25. Exactly nine months before Christmas. Thus, we celebrate the Feast of the Annunciation. When Mother Mary said yes to God and, as we say in every Angelus, conceived by the Holy Spirit.

I've never commemorated this day before, March 25. I've never thought to celebrate the Annunciation. It was always just a mystery in the Rosary to me. But how wonderful it was to learn about it in mass today. For it was this thought that I took with me as I started studying for my final exam in human ontogeny and parturition. I thought, if I had to learn about the conception, fetal development, and birth of a mother to her child, might as well be that of the Mother Mary and her Baby Jesus, right?

I've been dreading the thought of having to take finals. But it doesn't seem so bad now. This was the new perspective that I needed. Thank You.

Full circle

I've often told the story of how I first knew I wanted to become a doctor. It started with a book, really. I was six years old then, and my mom was pregnant with Monchie. Mom had all these pregnancy books lying around, and being the biblophile that I am (I've loved reading ever since I could read, at the tender age of four), it was almost instinct to pick one up and start browsing through it. And I was fascinated by what I found. It was a different kind of adventure from those in my story books and fairy tales--it was a tour of the human body, specifically that of a pregnant mother's, and it was also a story of the creation of a life, from conception to birth. I was so hooked that even the very graphic pictures of vaginal delivery couldn't keep me from turning page after page. I don't remember what book that was or how many others I read, but Mom told me I read more about pregnancy than she ever did. I was six years old then.

Reading Williams Obstetrics 23rd ed now, at 22 and in medical school, I feel like I've come full circle. I actually resisted buying the book for the first two OB exams because of its price, but I gave in in the end. I've only read a few chapters but I can already say that I don't regret my decision. Not one centavo's worth. Williams is a joy to read, not at all a chore. And not only because of its glossy pages and colored photos that are new to the 23rd edition. For me, it is because it brings back the same feelings I felt at six years old--wonder at the architecture of the human body, specifically the female reproductive tract, and awe at the beauty that is human life. And not to mention, it has also expanded my medical vocabulary quite vastly, with new words like ballotement and puerperium, and of course our class's favorite, violaceous.

I've said before that I would never consider OB-GYN as a specialty, but I'm actually rethinking that now. Because really, OB was my first love, the reason for my desire to go into medicine in the first place. Of course, this is all before I've experienced any duty or rotation in OB, and the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at PGH is legendary for its toxicity. But who knows? For now, I'll just keep reading.

Benign?

Am I the only one who's overwhelmed with all this free time? Not that I miss the OS subjects or anything; I've been looking forward to the HD series. It's just a shock to my system not having lectures after lunch or classes on Fridays. It's like my mind can't deal with all this time on my hands, so I'm compelled to fill it with whatever I can--Medchoir practices, prayer meetings with Fr. Francis, errands for Phi store, our class oath, group project for HD201, nightly sessions with the Adri Tower 2 treadmill--you name it. Not that all these things didn't need to be done before. It's just that I can't help but do them with a certain level of, um, obsession? Haha. In short, tinotoxic ko sila. Tinotoxic ko sarili ko.

Oh, the irony that is my life as a med student. When I'm drowning in consecutive neuro exams, I dream of the weekend. I dream of summer. But when given some unexpected free time, to relax and revel in benign-ness, I run away, find more stuff to do fill it all up, and end up not benign at all.

Happy blog birthday!

This is what I found in my search for a birthday cake to post in this entry. Now I love penguins more than anyone I know. But this is kind of freaky, even for me. Kind of like eating a live penguin. Imagine if it were red velvet cake. Haha.

Today marks my blog's first birthday/anniversary. I didn't anticipate this date much, I just happened to be browsing through my old entries and saw that my first entry was on this day, one year ago. Back when the things I was concerned with included organic chemistry and med school applications. Last week I performed a neurologic physical exam on an actual patient. And just yesterday, the list of this year's applicants who qualified for the interview was released. Amazing how much happens in a year's time.

Forgive me.

How could I have doubted. I will doubt no more.

And thank You.


:) :) :) :)

Lord.

It doesn't get any easier. Well, maybe slightly. But I still find myself running to the chapel each time.

To give and not to count the cost.
To labor and ask not for reward.

The Wedding in Ward 14B

After a weekend of blessings spent with my family, and 21 years of blessings behind me, I wanted to give thanks. It has been a tradition of mine to hear mass on my birthday, and this year I specifically wanted to attend the mass at the PGH chapel. I was hoping that Fr. Francis Alvarez would officiate the noon mass. I’d heard him say mass at PGH several times before, and his homilies were truly inspiring. I was eager to find out what his homily would tell me on my birthday.

Unfortunately, when Mama, Papa, Monch, and I arrived at the chapel, we found out that the noon mass had been cancelled because it was a holiday. So Mom suggested we go to the chaplain’s office on the off chance that Father would be there, and ask for birthday blessings. Luckily enough, he was around. And after exchanging pleasantries and praying over me and my family, Father mentioned that there would be an emergency wedding at the PGH wards the next day, and if some of us med students could possibly take time out to help. I wholeheartedly said yes, thinking it would be the perfect way to celebrate my birthday.

Fr. Francis explained that the patient who was to be married was a woman named Mary Grace Lumogda. She had been diagnosed with cervical cancer just a few months ago. She and her boyfriend of several years, Titus Quintela, had been saving up for a dream wedding, but the funds they raised ended up being used for her hospitalization and treatment expenses. They also have a one year-old daughter with hydrocephalus. Mary Grace’s doctors said that she could go any day, thus the reason for the emergency wedding. Fr. Francis described to me how Mary Grace’s eyes had instantly lit up when he told her that she and Titus could still get married. Father was able to somehow make arrangements for Titus to be flown to Manila from Antique, and so that Mary Grace’s relatives could buy a simple white dress from Baclaran. He asked me for help with the makeup, just enough so she could feel special on her special day. For that, I asked Julie, 2014’s resident makeup artist.

The Lumogda-Quintela wedding was held on September 8, 2009, at Ward 14B of PGH. A number of us gathered to witness the occasion. Julie did the makeup, some of us took pictures, and some members of the MedChoir sang It Might Be You, Mary Grace’s favorite song. Mary Grace was even singing along softly. Titus held on to Mary Grace as Fr. Francis took them through the rites and the vows. And when he proclaimed them man and wife, you could see nothing but joy in their eyes. There was no cancer, no sickness, no pain. Only love for each other.

I am so thankful to have been a part of such an important event in the lives of Ate Mary Grace and Kuya Titus (I was even one of the witnesses in their marriage contract!). Some have said their story is straight out a Nicholas Sparks novel or a Maalaala Mo Kaya episode. But this was no fictional love story created from someone’s imagination. This was real, it happened right inside PGH--a miracle of the Blessed Mother, on her birthday. A miracle because a woman was made to smile and sing even at the point of death. A miracle because two people were brought together and were married, against all odds.

I look forward to many more miracles, both big and small, within the wards of PGH and beyond.

To see photos of the event, click here.

Tao rin.

Two posts in one day? After not posting for a month? Shocking. I shock myself. But I was disturbed by this note that has been going around Facebook. And I just had to set the record straight.

HOW TO DATE A MED STUDENT 101

1. Don't expect to see them. Ever. Exag. I still get to see Ruari every week. My family and high school friends still get to see me. And we in UP Med have highly varied extracurricular activities. I know one who is on the dragon boat team that trains every morning before class. A few of my classmates participated in an international chorale competition with the UP MedChoir. The sororities get to hold fashion shows, for goodness' sake.

2. Accept the fact they will have many affairs. With their books. This is true. Netter, Moore, Berne, and I have become quite intimate these past months. Oh, and Acland. I can't forget Acland.

3. Learn to hide your “ew, gross” reactions when they tell you all the stuff you never wanted to know about your bodily functions. Pwede. This can also apply to the stories we tell about our cadaver dissections. Haha.

4. Support them when they come home after each test, upset because they failed—and gently remind them after they get their well above passing grade how unnecessary the “I’m going to fail out of medical school and never become an MD” dramatics are. I've been there. And you've left out the more important part--when we rise up, move on, and do better the next time around.

5. Each week they will have a new illness. Some will be extremely rare, others will be more mundane. Doesn’t matter. They will be certain they have it (no second opinions necessary.) Med school can, and will, turn even the sanest into a hypochondriac. Date them for long enough, and you’ll become one too. I've been warned about this "medical student syndrome." It's not true. We do sometimes complain of myesthenia gravis (when we're tired at the end of the day) or ptosis (when we can't keep awake during lectures)--but only as a joke. Learn to tell the difference. And not to generalize.

6. There will be weeks you'll forget you even have a boyfriend—friends will ask how he is and you'll say, “What? Who? Oh....right. He's well...I think.” Not true. Throughout our two-year relationship, Ruari has been in med school. We still see each other every week, and we communicate constantly.

7. They'll make you hyper-aware that germs are everywhere and on everything. Even though you used to walk into your home with your shoes on, and sit on your bed in the same clothes you just wore while riding the subway, or sat on a public bench in, you'll become far too disgusted to ever do it again. Believe me, it's going to get bad...you'll watch yourself transform into the anal retentive person you swore you'd never become. And when you witness others perform these same acts that, before you began dating your med student, you spent your entire life doing too, you'll wince and wonder, “Ew! How can they do that? Don't they know how many germs and bacteria they're spreading??!” Er...maybe in higher years? But I doubt. And honestly, I know some med students with less than hygienic personal habits. Haha.

8. Romantic date = Chinese take-out in front of the TV on their 10 minute study break. Ruari and I watch movies, go out for dinner, go out with each other's friends--just like normal couples. We do study together, and that's the nice thing about us both being in med.

9. A vacation together consists of a trip down the street to Walgreens for new highlighters and printer paper. Excuse me. We're not that sad. A classmate of mine went wakeboarding with her boyfriend over the long weekend. I know someone else who's going to Boracay.

10. Their study habits will make you feel like a complete slacker. For them, hitting the books 8-to-10 hours a day is not uncommon, nor difficult. You'll wonder how you ever managed to pass school on your meager one hour of studying per night. Eight to ten hours a day??? After nine hours of class? You've got to be kidding.

11. They're expected to know everything. Everything! The name of the 8 billion-lettered, German sounding cell that lives in the depths of your inner ear, the technical term for the “no one's ever heard of this disease” disease that exists only on one foot of the Southern tip of the African continent. But ask them if your knee is swollen, or what you should do to tame your mucous-filled cough, or why the heck your head feels like someone's been drilling through it for oil for two weeks straight, and they won't have a clue. I have classmates who have done circumcisions, even before first year started. And we are already allowed to conduct medical missions, which involve patients consulting about just that--swollen limbs, coughs, headaches, and more. The whole point of med school is to prepare us for practice, not just to teach us the theories.

12. “My brain's filled with so much information, I can't be expected to remember THAT!" will be the standard excuse for forgetting anniversaries, birthdays, and, if you get this far, probably the birth of your first-born. Birthdays are birthdays and anniversaries are anniversaries. We still celebrate those. I'll celebrate my birthday even if I have to take a biochem exam then. Haha.

13. You'll need friends with unending patience who pretend never to get sick of listening to your endless venting and complaints. Or, you'll need to pay a therapist who will pretend never to get sick of listening to your endless venting and complaints. It's your choice if you want to spend your four or five years in med school complaining. But you should think about it if you do; maybe you shouldn't have taken med in the first place.

---

Of course I can only speak for UP Med students (and St. Luke's hehe). But seriously, whoever wrote this obviously is not a med student. Or maybe a med student from some sadistic med school. Don't underestimate us. We're still human. We're capable of more than just studying.

So much to be said

...after almost a month since my last post, and as I enter my fourth month in med.

For one thing, kaya ko naman pala. After two heartbreaks, I think I'm getting the hang of this. Of studying, that is. I've accepted the fact that I'm not naturally smart, and I don't have magical testmanship skills either. I've learned that it takes more than highlighting a trans to really understand it. Starting early really helps. And so does studying with a friend (CarlaBon!). I learned also not to believe in all feedback about exams or subjects i.e. 204 (Head and Neck) ang pinakamahirap sa OS series. I actually enjoyed 204. I hated 203 though (Skin, Muscles, Bones), and I'm am looking forward to 205 (Thorax).

To anyone else, my life now may seem quite routine and monotonous. Class from 8 to 5 everyday, with just an hour for lunch. I've never consumed so much coffee in my life. It is not only recommended that we study every night, but necessary that we do so. Starting three days in advance is already cramming. The circles under my eyes are darkening by the week. The only TV I get to watch is on weekends, and my internet time has been reduced to checking the class Yahoo! Groups for trans errata. As I drift off to sleep at around 2 a.m., my neurons are still firing with thoughts of sternocleidomastoids, thyroid ima arteries, inferior obliques, ansa cervicalises, lesser occipital nerves, foramen rotundums, etc etc etc.

But I'm happy where I am. I know that even as I sit through lectures upon lectures, willing myself not to fall asleep, that this is exactly where I want to be. I prepared myself for this throughout college, impatiently counting down the months, weeks, days until the first day of class. I want to be doctor more than anything. And if studying like mad for five years is what it'll take, then I'll do it. If memorizing the stages of swallowing or the roots and branches of the cervical plexus will help me save a life one day, then so be it. Always with the end in mind.

Of course, we all need our "small holidays." For me, a cup of yogurt topped with strawberries in syrup, mango, and cheesecake does the trick. So does time with Ruari, which I find myself longing, no, aching for as each week ends. And as much as possible, I don't compromise time with my family. No matter what exam is coming up, I have to go home for the weekend. I have so much to go home for, and I can only be thankful.

I know also that my life in med school can only get better, richer even. I'm looking forward to the second semester, and the years beyond with the wonderful girls who all made the same decision. I hope many more will do so. :)

An exam has been scheduled on my birthday. Biochem, nonetheless. So in anticipation of my special day, I will have to master the metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins, and lipids, bioenergetics, metabolic integration, metabolic regulation--all of which are completely new to me. Birthday blessings please? :)

The wind is whistling

and this is the view outside my window.

Adriatico Street.

Adriatico "clubhouse" between Towers 2 and 3.

What a lovely rainy day. :) Here's to our first suspension of classes (because of rain, and not AH1N1). I thought that didn't happen anymore in med school.

Week Three!

Actually I'm entering Week Four. So much has happened, and I am a bit sad at not having been able to document it all. Just off the top of my head--carsick/drunk car rides, adjusting to life inside a mall, finally deleting Minesweeper, getting to know my alphamates, mind-numbing scares, failing to win a steth or a laptop, sorority dine-outs, the Topshop private sale (for which I was late to class!), first scrubs day, inspiring professors, sleep-inducing professors, missing the PMHS Acquaintance Party, and love lost and found. Whew.

Weekends have never felt shorter. I pack so soon after I unpack. And I feel so disconnected from the universe! I've never appreciated the TV more. Not to mention the internet! Thank God Globe works well in Adriatico. I'm surprised to find that maintaining the household isn't so bad. We clean up after ourselves, dishes, garbage, and all. I call it the Domestication of Mindy. Haha. I still can't cook, but it's a start.

Jess is too good to me lately. I've been getting everything I want. And yet, I can't seem to stop asking for things. Jess, please let me pass my neuro exam. Jess, please take care of me as I drive home. Jess, please take care of my family while I'm gone. Jess, please let me fall asleep, I need to get up at seven. Jess, please keep me safe as I walk through Pedro Gil.

I still get shivers when I think that I am in the UP College of Medicine. I do hope that won't go away. Throughout the toxicity of med, I hope to never forget how lucky I am to be here.

Ang gaan-gaan ng feeling. :)

Summer--extended!

I was all set to write my end-of-summer/first-day-jitters entry. I was half done packing, right down to my new pencil case filled with shiny new school supplies with price tags still on them. I had paced my reading so that I would finish The Almost Moon tomorrow night. I was already making the most of my last few nights here at home, before I move into the internet-less, water heater-less, TV-less Adriatico condo.

But nooo. Pres. Roman announced at 7:10 PM that the opening of classes in UP Manila is to be moved from June 8 to June 15. So I'm left with one more week to look forward to/dread the official start of med. And with the weather the way it is (and the H1N1 virus already having penetrated Manila) it's unlikely that I'll be able to go out of town, or do any summery things. My first reaction to the text was one of annoyance, not relief or excitement. Pardon the geekiness/overeagerness.

UPSIDE:

There's more time for reading! I have time to pick up another Jodi Picoult (or two) with my one remaining Powerbooks gift card. Or, since I'm kind of in the mood for something heavier, Atonement. There are also the various TV series I've yet to finish, namely Chuck, Pushing Daisies, House, and The Big Bang Theory. But TV has not really been my thing lately.

There's also time to visit Ruari! Since according to him, adik sila sa St. Luke's, it's unlikely that they'll be suspending their start of classes as well. So I can visit him this time. :) Bea also expressed a desire to meet up before classes start. And I don't need to mention more time to spend with the family, at home, not studying.

On another geeky/overeager note, there's more time to wrap my new school books, and label them too. Haha. :p

And, much as I hate to admit it, Facebook is consuming more and more of my internet time. I only just realized how dead Multiply is already. I guess it's time to get with the times. I will still upload my pictures to Multiply though. The photo upload feature of Facebook isn't as user-friendly.

Shut up, and put your money where your mouth is.

Bea finally made sense of it. It's like you're making a mockery of my lifelong dream. It's nothing but a joke to you. And it isn't funny at all. Time to get serious, honey.

Grey's love!

The Grey's Anatomy season five two-hour finale was simply EPIC. There's no other word for it. It had me in tears and chills. This is a show I've followed all throughout college, and this episode has just renewed my love for it completely. I can't wait for season six. Anatomy and biochem and physio be damned; you know I'll be tuned in every week.

"Doctors spend a lot of time focused on the future.
Planning it. Working toward it.
But at some point, you start to realize: your life is happening now.
Not after med school, not after residency.
Right now. This is it. It's here.
Blink and you'll miss it."

Thanks, Meredith. :D

Limbo

That's how I feel right now. Stuck in limbo. Transitioning between college and med school. Somewhat missing the past, and anxious about the future.

On the one hand, it's allowed me a much-needed break. I'm not attending class, I'm not reading any textbooks, I'm not cramming for exams--all of which I will definitely be doing a lot of come June. Instead, I've been sleeping until noon, failing at my diet, not exercising, finally trying to catch up on my reading, and watching more TV than I have in years. Seriously, I'm currently following Grey's Anatomy, Gossip Girl, Pushing Daisies, The Big Bang Theory, Chuck, and Brothers and Sisters. Oh, and American Idol. That's a lot for someone who typically watches only cooking shows late at night because they're non-scary and they're the perfect background noise for when I'm studying.

On the other hand, I'm desperately waiting for school to start. The few who actually read this blog know that there is no topic that I write about more often than med. I can't wait to finally become a med student, complete with the white uniform (which we can't wear until July, sadly). I'm excited to start living in Adriatico with Karen and Sam. The nerdy part of me wants to order my textbooks as soon as possible, so I can start reading already. And I haven't even enrolled yet! I haven't even been through the physical exam, or undergone psychological testing, which are scheduled this Thursday and Friday, respectively. I haven't even been cleared from Diliman yet, for God's sake.

Speaking of med books. I knew med would be expensive, but I had no idea how much until now. Forget books, I'm only talking about tuition here. When my mom and I inquired at the admissions office about a month ago, they told us it would be around P30,000. So naturally I was shocked to find out just last week that it would actually be P50,000, for the first semester alone. How lucky for us, the class of 2014, that the administration decide to increase the tuition fee this very year. It's still hard to wrap my mind around the fact that my tuition for just one semester in med will roughly equal the cost of my entire undergrad education. And that's just tuition! There's also books, as mentioned. And uniforms, rent, furniture, medical equipment like steth and sphygmo, and who knows what else. Oh, the guilt. I can't help but think again of how I could be working and helping my parents out instead of being an additional burden to them. Hay.

So anyway, going back, limbo. Summer has been limbo for me. I'm enjoying it, yes, but also can't wait for it to be over, as though the moment summer ends is the moment my life starts again. It does sound sad, doesn't it? It totally violates my live in the here and now motto of two summers ago. I blame it all on my being so un-busy this past year and a half. I need work to get my mind working and blood pumping again.

I know I'll be sorry I said that, but yeah.

And oh, I did not just come back from Boracay, as originally scheduled. Due to certain conflicts, Bea, Melch, and I moved our trip to the 24th, until the 27th. Still hoping Fen can come with us. And praying for good weather. No more storms, please?

Float like a butterfly

I feel like I've been floating these past few days. I guess it's all of this transition. I'm facing the last week of my college life, summer is beckoning, and I'm slowly preparing myself for life in med school. I so, so want to move forward already, but these last few requirements (135 proposal, 135 third exam, possible chem finals) are still in my way, breaking my stride. Not to mention the last of my PMHS duties, Days music committee duties, and Grad party logistics duties. Sometimes I forget why I signed up for all of this. Haha.

Monday was chem examSS day. This meant that I spent most of the weekend trying in vain to memorize all of the mechanisms of reactions, the reagents to be used in characterizing organic compounds, their visible results, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. Though I was able to enjoy parts of Saturday and Sunday (Melch's birthday dinner and lunch at Lola's), my brain felt so exhausted after being fed with so much organic chemistry that I really just wanted to get the exams (lec and lab) over with. Finals na kung finals. Thus, with around 45 minutes still left in the time allotted for the lec exam, Lee-Ann and I submitted our blue books and headed straight to Cantina for a much-needed, celebratory weng-weng. Now I'm not much of a drinker (as my lack of tolerance is rather shameful); I've never seen the point of cutting class to go drinking, or to go drinking every single night, but once in a while it really does feel soooo good.

On that same day, our helper, Yaya Sonia gave birth to a baby boy. There were a number of complications to the point that we were afraid she might need a Caesarean section, but thankfully she was able to deliver normally. On Tuesday we visited her at the Pasig City General Hospital. She was fine, recovering from her stitches, but reeling from the unkind treatment she received from the attending OB/Gyn. She kept saying this doctor was masama ang ugali, with no care at all in handling her patients. Her examination of Yaya Sonia was quick and painful, simply saying "kaya mong i-normal [delivery] yan."And this was nothing to how she stitched up Yaya after the delivery. Yaya said it was so painful, as though there was no anesthetic administered to her. But this doctor didn't care. She just went right on doing her "job." Yaya Sonia couldn't take it anymore, so she ran out of the room, not completely sewn up yet, and screaming that she wouldn't go back there unless another doctor did the job. Fortunately they found another one, and Yaya was fine. That OB/Gyn, however, was reported by my mom to her doctor friend. Hopefully something is done about her, because she really should not be practicing medicine at all, much less treating expectant mothers in delicate conditions. Though she works at a government hospital and probably receives little pay, there is no excuse.

The good news it that Yaya Sonia's little boy, Gian Karlo, is doing well, though he was hooked up to an IV when we saw him. He was born weighing six pounds, and is already looking very mestizo. :)

Yesterday was my last day of class in college. It didn't really feel like it though, because there's still so much to be done. After class, Karen and I headed to UPCM to submit our confirmation letters and view condo units. We were able to see five condos, three of which look very promising. We had a yummy merienda at MoMo afterwards. Definitely going back there to try their dessert. Karen also gave me a tour of the Tahilan Study Center, which is really nice and homey.

Okay this has been long enough. Sabog much? Haha. I'm off.

12 March 2009 :)

The list! I wanted to keep a record of it somewhere. Hehe.

Now that it's finally real. I don't know how to write about it. I'm so happy (yet a bit sad, too, of course), so thankful, so scared and excited all at the same time.

UPCM Admissions, thank you for not prolonging the agony. I was actually already preparing myself for the possibility that they release the list next week pa. And yet here it is! A day earlier than expected.

Of all the congratulatory text messages, Tito Joey's was one of those I loved the most.

The pleasure is mine. I told you not to worry. I believe you will be a good doctor. Save your energies and focus on becoming the best doctor you can be! :-)

Thank you, Jess. :) Now to find housing. Haha. Yay!

(Nice dream)

It's been happening ever since grade school. Every time I'm anticipating the results of something, typically the release of my grades or an important exam result (report card, deadline of grades on CRS, NMAT score, etc), I have a bad dream about it. The dream takes place maybe a week or so before the real result comes out. And in the dream, the result is always bad. Very bad. Sad as it is that grades and test results are what occupy my unconscious thoughts to this degree, these dreams never fail to come.

I had such a dream this afternoon, during my extra-long nap. Three guesses as to what the dream was about.

I'm still reeling, still in that stage of relief, the thank-God-it-was-just-a-dream aftermath. I'm glad XKCD is there to properly distract me.