It was the best of naps, it was the worst of naps...

Actually, it was probably just the worst of naps. Bleargh.

So anyhow, here's the background: Melissa studies until pretty late in the day. And, like the good spouse I am, I stay up for her (partly because Rosco and I pick her up down the hill, but I would stay up anyway). So this means that I'm basically on the same sleep schedule as her. Which is probably about 5 1/2 or 6 hours, average.

Now, Melissa is pretty good at napping. She's told me that she can take a 10-minuter easily, if need be. Unfortunately for me, I've never learned good nap-taking. So when I try, usually I just end up laying down for a few minutes before I give up. Also, it's too hot up here for naps; Melissa has the benefit of AC-controlled classrooms to nap in. But I digress. All in all, the cumulative hours of sleep that I've neglected to "nap back" finally seemed to get back at me.

Yesterday at around 2:45, I decided I was just too doggone tired. So I went to lay down on the bed (first mistake, apparently) without my phone/alarm (mistake #2) and the fan cranked way up (#3). I read for literally 4 minutes before the tiredness overtook me.

I actually woke up briefly around 3:20 or so, but I think it was just to roll over.

The next time I woke up? 6:15. I took a 3 and a half hour nap. BLEARGH. For those of you who haven't experienced what it feels like to come out of a REM cycle as the sun's setting, it's like someone made your brain do a 360 inside your skull. I simultaneously was hungry, nauseous, energized, and sleepy. And Rosco needed to pee. Luckily (or not), he didn't try to bother me while I was asleep. But he seemed happy that I was up.

I feel for Rip Van Winkle. Waking up at the wrong time of day (or year) is extremely jarring. I guess I'm just used to my energy levels being at a certain point at a specific time of day, so when I feel like 9 am at 11 pm, it messes with my head.

In short, naps are hard.

But you know what else is hard? Med school! Melissa has her first mini on Monday, bright and early at 8 am (EST). So be thinking of her then! Apparently the first test of 4th semester is the hardest, mini-wise. I think this block is Neuro, but I could be way off. I just remember hearing the students talking about personality disorders the other day, so if that's not brain-related, then beats me. [Melissa: when you read this, feel free to correct me with a comment :)]  {Check out that double bracket going on over there; takes me back to undergrad math courses <shudders>}

Alright, it's getting a little out of control. Also, I ran out of brackets. I hope you're still enjoying autumn!

-Eric

Go Fourth and Multi-task!

I'll begin with an anecdote of sorts.

So down here, we have these creatures called "rain flies", colloquially. Apparently they lay their eggs in the puddles after it rains, so a day or two later you can expect hordes of them buzzing around your lights. Fortunately, they don't usually get too bad up at our apartment, but when they do, Rosco enjoys licking them up after they pass out/die on the floor. They aren't his favorite bug; that would have to be grasshoppers. Once in a blue moon, when we're out walking at night, he'll happen to find one. And oh boy, does he make a whole thing out of it. Regardless of where he finds it, he drops straight into a perfect "down" position and starts batting at it, with the occasional bite-check to make sure it doesn't completely get away. And he will just sit and play with it for as long as you let him. Or when it finally dies from him playing too rough. Then he eats it. Such a weird dog.

Honestly, sometimes I think he lived with cats before we got him, because he has some weird tendencies that aren't very canine of him. He'll rub his side up on your leg, he arches his back in that classic cat fashion, and of course, the playing with his prey. Also, it took him a really long time to figure out how to lift his leg when he pees. And he still doesn't do it all the time. Oh Rosco, you goof. 

Melissa meanwhile is working virtually non-stop as 4th semester continues to throw material and obligations at her, and I think she's handling it very well! This semester is different from the first 3 in that there are only classes on Monday, Wednesday and Friday instead of every day. But rather than have 4 hours of lecture 5 days a week, the 4ths are given 8 hours over 3 days. Yes, it does add up to more hours, but the reason for that is so that Ross can provide a 3-week review course at the end of the semester so students can prepare for the "Comp" (aka Step 1 litmus test). But I can tell that the pace is hard to adjust to. With all of the clinical practice sessions and trips to the hospital in Roseau, Tuesdays and Thursdays aren't as free as you'd think. But Melissa has a good system set up for studying, so she's staying on top of it.

Now for me: I finally got a new case for Standardized Patient! At last, my kidney stones are gone (what a relief). But, for professionalism's sake, I'm not going to spoil what my new condition(s?) is(/are?). You never know who reads this! I also subbed at the prep school for the first time in a while. It went pretty ok; just gave some pre-tests. So they had to be quiet and I couldn't help them. Tons of fun, right? But other than that, I've been jamming with some other spouses every week or so, brushing up on my guitar skills. So that's pretty fun as well. I'll keep y'all posted more frequently as things happen, and I should be able to get back to blogging once a week or so.

So, I think that'll do it for today. I hope you guys are enjoying the weather turning to fall! Save some leaves for me!

-Eric

Melissa's Summer Break in Dominica (with plenty o' pictures!)

So sorry about the complete lack of blogging this month! I guess in the lead-up to Melissa's final, I was too focused on keeping her going through the week of studying. Also probably a little bit of laziness, as well as not much happening outside of the studying. And once break started, we were spending too much time going all over this beautiful island and seeing the sights that have eluded Melissa for the most part. So here is a picto-blog, narrated by Melissa herself (!). Enjoy!

Aww what a cutie! He's smiling for the picture.

These crabs are funny to watch. They dig out their holes by using the big claw to hold the dirt against their body. Then they sidle out and flick the sand away. This one came out after fighting another crab for the same hole.

I sense a new profile picture for Eric here. Look how nicely Rosco is sitting for the camera!

Rosco still isn't sure about the water. We're working on it.

Sunset on Coconut Beach.

This is one of those accidental awesome shots. The plant in the foreground, the blue of the sky, the red of the palm tree, and it satisfies the rule of thirds. Kudos to me!

The looooooonnnng line of new first semester students we walked behind on the way to Syndicate Falls. There were nine tour buses! This hike was not for the faint of heart; the Welcome Committee neglected to tell us that this hike requires 3 river crossings and good hiking shoes. A few of the parents that came along were in nice sandals or socks and shoes they didn't want getting wet. It was entertaining to watch them wringing out their socks and complaining to their student about how hard the hike was. 

Happy Eric.

Aren't these awesome? I almost tripped because I was looking up at the ferns instead of my feet. 

These are the rocks at the base of the falls. They were super slippery! They also had to tell us not to bathe in the water because this river supplies the town below. Apparently it's ok if 150 people walk in it though...

Just hangin' out.

Yes, that is barbed wire behind us. I guess climbing isn't allowed.

Some pretty flowers near the end of the hike.

Here's a different day when we went to Champagne Reef to snorkel. Eric's really excited to get out in the water!

This is a gem for the scrapbook...

So this place didn't have a beach, just a bunch of rocks. It's really too bad we don't have a waterproof camera, because the sealife here was amazing. It's called Champagne Reef because there are volcanic vents deep below the sea and they give off bubbles that make it look like champagne. It was gorgeous.

This is about right for Dominica. Luckily, he had already made our food before he left.

The juices of the day were passionfruit and pineapple. Eric had a chef salad and I had the grilled mahi-mahi. Although here, mahi-mahi is not a nice fillet of white fish. Instead it's the name locals use instead of dolphin fish. I suppose too many students were worried that they were eating dolphin or something.

Yes I know, I'm still terribly white. But it's hard to get sun in the classrooms!

This is a different waterfall called Trafalgar Falls. You can't see it here but there's another fall up to the left of my head. Our guide told us that it used to be one waterfall but a landslide happened and caused the second waterfall to appear. 

Here's the other waterfall. I actually think this one's prettier. See the different cascades about 1/3 the way up? It's smaller but nicer. Apparently someone climbed this one, while the water was rushing down!

Lovely ladies! Kaydee is in the middle and Sarah to the right. Fourth semester here we come!

Here we are at Screw Spa. No, that water's not dirty, it's just full of sulfur. This place is great; there 4 or 5  pools of varying temperatures and they are all fed by natural hot springs. This one was probably a normal hot-tub temperature. They cemented the walls and floors of the springs so they are rather pleasant to be in. Also, it's only 10EC ($4) with an ID so it's a great deal! 

We went to a fancy hotel in Roseau for dinner and had some drinks. Eric's rather proud of this picture.

Enjoying our drinks...because it'll be the last time before the semester's over! 9 weeks until our final and 12 weeks until the comprehensive exam...and less than 6 months until the USMLE Step 1! Scary thought.

And a nice ocean shot to finish it off. This is back on Coconut Beach. The two bumps are a piece of land called the Cabrits. There's a fort on the larger one that's a remnant of the colonial era when England and France were squabbling over rights to the island. 

Ok, it's Eric again.  As you can see, we had plenty of fun this break! And we did even more things, but forgot to bring a camera to those...Gotta work on that. Photography is one of those things that I always forget that I enjoy.

So tomorrow, Melissa starts back up! She actually started studying this week, reviewing old topics, previewing lectures for the upcoming week, and doing as much printing as the school will allow her to. I'll try keeping you peeps updated as her final island-semester goes along.

Have a good one!

-Eric (& Melissa)