match week / i'm glad i'm not in it

the biggest anxiety provoking event in the pursuit of a medical career is getting in to medical school. after that, the next series of hurdles are much smaller and less ulcer inducing. but, one that causes people a lot of grief is the process of securing a residency position. not only do you spend the last two years of medical school figuring out what you want to do for the rest of your life as a doctor, you have to get the spot... somewhere.

and that's how you first become involved in the match. a process where you apply to residency programs, they interview you (or not) and then, you make a rank list and each program ranks the people they like from the people they interviewed. the computer then takes all the lists and tries to match each applicant to their top ranked program. you find out in the 3rd week of march where you match. these days, you can check the computer to see if you matched. so, fourth year medical students all over the united states ran to a computer at 12 pm (eastern) to check their email. they found out if they matched (very long story if you didn't match) and then, on thursday, they find out where they matched.

i'm so glad to be past all of this business. but i remember how nervous, anxious and neurotic i was last year. i hated the experience. but for my friends going through this, i wish you the best. and in the end, everything works out just fine. really.

exciter / depeche mode's new album

with the aid of napster, i was able to snag the latest DM album online on friday. i really like it and will probably love it. i haven't loved a depeche album since Violator and that was 11 years ago. you can definitely tell that alan wilder is not in the band. the music is very minimalistic and the lyrics are almost as good as ever (if not sometimes the best work martin has done ever). i'm really enjoying it.

may 15 is the official release date. even though i have the whole thing, i can't wait to buy the cd. i really like artwork and the whole new CD "experience" ... the RIAA may have won the battle but they haven't won the war. digital music distribution is the wave of the future. they can't stop the steamroller forever.

spring is almost here / yeh

not being on call is nice... too bad it's only for a month. i started my ambulatory rotation and it's been very sweet. finally took my oral boards for my medical license... it went pretty well but i won't know the final results for a while. after i get my finger prints in and some other paperwork, i'll finally have my license. scary.