Finals

I've reached the other side...

At 3:00pm Friday I walked out of the NBME Microbiology test, heaved a sigh of relief, and laughed. For the first time in a month, I did not have a test to study for. For the first time in nine months, I did not have anything school-related to do.

I was free.

Oh, how beautiful is freedom. Our founding fathers got it right. How could they have foresaw the exquisite joy of having no pressing responsibilities weighing down on your shoulders as you watch tv in the evening? They were men of genius.

The exam schedule was rough--nine exams spaced over two and a half weeks. Studying for the exams starts about a week and a half before the first exam, so in reality a full month is spent on these things. I study and go to class from 8 am until 2 am for a week and a half, then have three exams in a row--Wednesday, Thursday, Friday--just to finish the fourth block. Two weeks, six exams, and no sleep later, I'm done.

Thank you to everyone who's helped me--or laughed at me--especially my wife, who lived without a husband for a month. It's no fun going to bed before your spouse, so you only see him for ten minutes as you drive him to school each morning, but that's what she did for four straight weeks.

Now it's on to summer--the last "summer" of my life. I start a preceptorship at Ben Taub hospital on Tuesday and hopefully I'll do research to keep me busy once the preceptorship is finished.

But for now, it's nice to watch tv....