NU med H1N1 vaccine saga comes to a close

I settled for the nasal mist.

(photo by Dave McNamara, MPH)

Comments on air travel

Things that annoy me about air travel.

1. Security. Mainly removing my shoes and taking my computer out of my bag. I hate this. Its not that difficult, but it seems so unnecessary and adds significantly to my stress level. Today my new bottles of shampoo, conditioner and shaving cream were confiscated by the obese lady working the x-ray belt. Maybe she will shave that beard.

2. People who take up more than one seat in the waiting area near the gate.

3. The dude who sat down next to me in the waiting area and immediately ripped the nastiest fart I've smelled in a long time. The kid may well have shat himself. Then having the attractive girl to my right give me the most convicting glare I've ever seen.

4. The fuzzy picture quality and crappy programming shown on televisions in the waiting area.

5. The people who insist on lining up in front of the gate prior to the announcement that boarding has commenced. I really don't get this. Southwest now has assigned letters and numbers for every passenger- your boarding spot is reserved retard.

6. People who carry-on more than a small personal bag and a small roller bag.

7. Morbidly obese people riding airplanes. They can't fit down the aisle, they spill over armrests into your personal space, and if there is a need to evacuate they will certainly clog up the emergency exit window. Note: I have very little sympathy for grotesquely obese people.

8. Riders who try to prevent other people from sitting next to them on the plane by placing their bag/coat/book/newspaper in the seat next to them. (Air travel really brings out the selfishness in people; also see points #2, #6)

9. The low concentration of hot women in the Southwest flight attendant pool.

10. People who unbuckle their safety belt before we arrive at the gate, despite very clear instructions that seat belts should remain buckled until the plane comes to a complete stop at the gate and the fasten seat belt sign has been turned off. Like point #1, this one really chaps my hide.

11. People who stand up as soon as the plane arrives at the gate and the door opens. JUST SIT DOWN AND RELAX! This has bothered me since I first started flying as a very young child. I love it when I'm sitting in the aisle seat and the two folks next the window quickly get to their feet when we arrive- I remain seated allowing them to awkwardly bend over as they try to stand under the overhead compartment. I then rise when it is our turn to move down the aisle towards the door.

12. The baggage claim process. People crowding around every last inch of the conveyor belt perimeter, and my bag is always last. Always.

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I realize the last few posts have sucked. We're very concerned about quality here at The Wire, so I will be putting more effort towards writing during December.

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Update- this seemed appropriate. Compliments of www.failblog.org

Thankful for forbidden vampire love

As always had thanksgiving at the family farm in Milford, Nebraska. After the meal we shot an absurd amount of clay pigeons and then I introduced the family to 'telephone-pictionary.' My obsessed younger sister has been hyping the movie "New Moon" (the sequel to Twilight) for over a year now, so we went to see that late tonight. Just reminds you that life is tough when you're a human straddling the space between vampire love and werewolf friendship (both forbidden).

Happy thanksgiving.

Author not present at campus singles event

Curses. I need a personal assistant to help set my schedule so I never miss an opportunity like this again. I was walking out of the library around 8:15p and saw this going down in the atrium- more smokin' hot law students than you could shake a stick at. Without a doubt the greatest tragedy since that lane violation two weeks ago.

The Kovler Center

I'm currently in a class called Vulnerable Groups, which is part of the Patient-Physician-Society curriculum where we learn about the social side of the profession. The goal of this class is to expose med students to a variety of groups who are thought to be underserved by the health care system, or who are especially vulnerable to poor health outcomes. Examples: poor people, homeless people, certain minorities, prisoners, demented seniors, disabled people, etc...

To fulfill a requirement of this course I've joined a group that goes to the Rogers Park neighborhood to visit 'The Kovler Center for the Treatment of Survivors of Torture.' I picked this site out of curiosity, and that working with torture victims seems like a very rare and special opportunity. During the first visit we heard from a doctor that volunteers at the site, and he described many of the physical and psychological problems his patients present with. He said that forensic medical examinations are very important to the political asylum process and may be the most important way he helps the survivors. We had a didactic session from managing director and a social worker about the services they provide (mainly legal, medical, and mental health services), the nature of torture and its consequences, and the political asylum process. They have hundreds of new clients each year, mostly from African countries. Its been pretty interesting. I am looking forward to our next visit because we will be able to talk to a few of the torture survivors- hopefully it will be more discussion based than the last couple visits. Its special opportunities like this that make school kind of cool.

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I can't wait for Thanksgiving break. We've been going non-stop since August. Now we're studying endocrinology- which is actually very cool. The clinical presentations are very interesting (gigantism, goiters, 'chick's a dude!,' etc) and the therapies are straight forward and effective.

Season over for the upper management

The IM team lost again. Our final record: 1-5. Four of those loses were by less than five points, including tonight's game, but that doesn't really count for anything does it. Gosh. Trust me, the last two loses were really, really tough. I was going to give the players a post-game talk about the season, you know, reminding them how much fun we had and how hard we played and how proud I am, but I just couldn't do it. I am too disappointed right now- this team underachieved mightily. The 'thanks-for-playing, lets-kick-ass-next-season' speech will have to wait for the banquet. Also, I've completed my two seasons of service as general manager of this club, so I hope to find some M1 to step up and retire. On the bright side, I am very happy with a few of my players who showed up for every game and played hard. When people follow through on commitment that goes a very long way in my book.

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Tonight I was thinking about the concept of "sucking up." You know, when someone goes out of their way to please or impress an authority figure. Its not cool. And I think there is a significant difference between carefully following instructions, doing quality work, and being polite versus "sucking up"- that is unabashedly engaging in the politics of academia. I think and I hope I fall into the former category. Why am I reflecting on this? Its not because I have recently been called an ass-kisser (which is probably what you were all thinking), but I am realizing that I know an ass-kisser. Actually I know a couple of them. And it is extremely annoying because I think they are terrific people, but in some situations they can be so phony. Man, this is tough. I should just worry about myself. I am becoming more cynical- not necessarily a bad thing if you get the dosage right. I think this warrants further reflection.

Family day is success

My dad flew in from Omaha to participate in the M2 family day. The program started with a couple lectures in the morning and then we played around with some of the surgical and clinical simulators in the afternoon. My old friend and current OSU law student Ty Miller was also in town, so he put on a collared shirt and joined us for dinner. We capped off the day by watching Nebraska defeat Oklahoma.