Why July?

I thought that I should explain why I entitled this blog "Busy 'Til July."  In April 2007, I moved back to Michigan (from Portland, OR).  At that time, I made some phone calls to old friends.  A friend of mine, Nicole, was in her second year of medical school in Detroit. She was finishing up the year and about to begin studying for her Board exams.  I'll get into the Board exams later, but suffice it to say, they are MAJOR.   (Without getting into too many details, it is a series of exams that are leaps more annoying than most other annoying exams.  For example, most multiple-choice exams give the usual answer options A-E.  Five options.  Even if you guess, you have a 20% chance of getting it right.  Not terrible odds.  On the Boards, the answer options are listed A-K.  Eleven.  Eleven options all starring back.  Blank faced.  Guessing brings your odds of a correct answer down to a measly 9%.  And it is not just a matter of passing, it's a matter of doing so well that you get a competitive residency, which is what determines your job, which is what you work so hard for and sacrifice so much.  One exam.  In July.)

So, Nicole was about to begin studying.  I called her to hang out.  She told me she was busy studying.  I asked when she'd be free.  She thought about it, and replied, "I'm pretty much busy until July."  She wasn't exaggerating. She wasn't being funny.  She was actually busy studying until July. It was early April.  (No small aside: she rocked the exam.)  By that time, I already knew I was going to med school and knew that in two years, it will be my turn to look down the list of A-K.  It struck me as a small glimpse into the life ahead.

That pretty much captures the spirit of this blog.  At this point, I pretty much feel that I'm busy until...2011? During first-year orientation, an academic counselor actually suggested that on our voice mail, we record something like, "Hi, you've reached Lara.  I'm a first year medical student and I probably won't be able to call you back."  During those first days and weeks of school,  I looked at second year medical students, and wondered how they had gotten through it, how they had managed to pass their classes.  How they remembered to make a sandwich after cramming so much other information into their brains.  

The key is, like hot water, you get used to it.  A four-year long tub of very hot water.  And as soon as you think you might be used to it and you can stop squirming around, they turn on the water and crank up the heat. But day by day, month by month, time goes on and you know that if you wait it out, you'll be okay.  At least, that is, until July.