Test Block 2 Begins

Tests - a way to prove to yourself and to your teachers that you know what you are talking about.

As I embark upon the second test block of my first semester of medical school, I can't help but think about how fast time is really going by. In about a month and a half, I have learned a lot about various subjects and memorized it enough to be able to perform decently on tests. I remember the first week or so of med school when I thought it couldn't get much worse, but I think for the first time today, i realized that I am getting used to the workload.

Why do I say this? Well, after the first developmental test, which coincidentally was the first test of med school, my brain was fried and I wasn't able to do anything school-related for a couple of days. After the test today, I didn't really feel too burnt out, and felt like I could go to class and complete the rest of the tasks that I had to (however, I did get a nap in).

Somehow, I am adapting to what I need to be doing. On another note, taste of nations is really taking off I believe. Apparently there are enough people in our class that share the love of food with me, which is pretty awesome. We are all planning on going somewhere tomorrow even though we do not know where we will go as of yet.

I think its really interesting to see the dynamics of a class work themselves out. Some people will associate with each other because of similarities in education, hometown's, culture, and the like. And even though they said that we don't need to be forming cliques (not sure if that's the correct spelling), it seems that they are somehow forming. Its funny that we are going through professional school but the social aspects of our relationships are very similar to high school students. How can people so smart act so adolescent? I attribute it to the fact that we are given so much information to memorize, we forget common sense and end up doing stupid things that we thought we had outgrown.

So I learned I got used to the workload, people love tasty international food as much as me, and that med students are really like high school students.

And that's the Gulati Opinion...

Down Time

I am not sure if down time is really good for me right now. Since I got finished with my first round of tests, I don't think I am studying that hard. I just feel that I am going through the motions and information isn't sticking as well. I actually thought it would be the other way around. I figured that once I got through one test, I would have a better idea on how we are tested and so I would be able to perform better on future tests. However, that doesn't appear to be the case right now because I feel even more lost than I did the first time around. I'm not sure if everyone else is going through similar stuff in my class, but i'm going to make the assumption that they are.

On another note, I have found out that my OCD is going insanely crazy now that I am fed lots of information in a short period of time. Sometimes I will just be sleeping or about to sleep and then think of what structures are in a certain triangle or what a specific nerve innervates, and I can't fall asleep until I get up and actually find out the answer. I am thinking that the next step of this will be dreams where somehow I get quizzed, freak out, wake up and then look up information about my dream. This does not sound like something fun to do for the next 4 years, but i can't really get around it. Once again, I am assuming other people in my class are going through similar situations.

Thinking outside of medicine, the Fed lowered interest rates, the market went back up, it is close to 14,000 again (I love how people have internal points on where they think the economy should be. some people think things couldn't get much better, and others think it couldn't be much worse. It really is all subjective). I'm not sure what I think about that move right now, I sometimes wish I could talk to some leading economists to figure out how they think certain moves will impact the US and the rest of the world. Its just so hard to be involved with it since at this moment I feel that any federal policies will have a minimal impact on me personally since I am not really in the right state (e.g., I have no money) to invest.

So basically, down time has the possibility of hurting you, med school makes you go crazy (or at least seem it), and the stock market remains confusing.

And that's the Gulati Opinion...

Nap Time

I just woke up from maybe on the of the greatest naps of all time. We finished Test Block 1 yesterday so a lot of people celebrated (including yours truly - see the picture below where we are discussing flip cup strategies at around 2:30 in the morning on a Monday).


And for the record, Yes, I did end my night at Waffle House, and I have to say that Bridgette was one of the finest waitresses the company has and the food was ridiculously good and definitely needed. HOWEVER, I have to say that being hungover during med school classes is a little worse than undergrad classes and here's why:

1.) Classes start at 8:30 every day
2.) Classes last longer. The 50 minute MWF class is no longer a luxury that I have.
3.) Pertinent information is covered every day giving an individual very little downtime

So basically this morning was spent with me having the most stupid look on my face and being unable to understand any of the concepts that were being taught. When we got out of class, I took the much needed nap. I woke up a few minutes ago and now i feel rejuvenated and refreshed. I actually may be able to even study a little bit tonight, which is amazing. So, in conclusion, be careful when you are partying during the week when you're in med school but if you do, please make sure that you take some sort of nap so that you can be ready for the rest of the atrocious week of school coming up.

And that's the Gulati Opinion....

Another Test Down

We finished with our biochem exam 1 today. Now we have gross anatomy in a few more days. I would just like to mention that cramming for med school is not too much fun because there is too much information. I am actually still feeling like my life is a blur right now and cannot seem to focus on the next topic at hand.

I joined a fantasy football league this year, and I must say, it makes me care more about what the NFL is doing. I think its truly insane the amount of money that you can make running a fantasy league. I know many people that have no problem forking down hundreds of dollars so that they can VIRTUALLY play against their friends in a statistical battle. The best part for the people running the fantasy sites, they get paid money and they don't even have to give a reward. Apparently someone thinks its cool enough to just win your league and doesn't think a prize is necessary (and for some reason I have to agree with that because I would just be happy to have the bragging rights that I beat the rest of my friends in Fantasy Football).

On another note, I would like to discuss the statement that "you have to spend money to make money." This seems like a logical term to many in business. I have to agree that this statement. Think about it this way. I want to enter the computer business and compete with Dell. Firstly, I wouldn't really dream to do such a thing because it would be nearly impossible to compete with Dell's amazing supply chain (just ask Gateway, who recently got bought out by Acer). However, if I were to do it, I would have to buy some raw materials (e.g., memory, motherboard, other computer stuff) to build a machine that I could sell to someone. All that would not be free, and therefore, I would have to spend money to make money. If you're like me, you would read this and say, what about if you have advanced orders and have already been paid for your merchandise before delivering it to the customer. I would respond to this by using my accounting knowledge and say, "Revenue is recognized when it is earned. Even if you have the money in your hand, under generally accepted account practices, you cannot recognize the revenue until you DELIVER the product and it is really deferred revenue."

And that's the Gulati Opinion...

Vacation Nation

So today is Labor Day, which means we have no class! I have been trying to study all day and also got some laundry done. I am about to go to the gross lab to look over some of the stuff so that way i will be better prepared for the test.

i talked to a friend of mine yesterday, and he was telling me about his labor day plans (which included beer and poker...and i was envious) and then i told him about how I basically had to make sure some studying got done. he proceeded to laugh in my face, which i would have also done if i was in his situation. Vacation in the Nation (the US) is in full force.

So, that is Vacation Nation, and different people spend it doing different things...I know some people may be out barbecuing right now, but they should remember the students who are unfortunately spending even their vacation preparing for school....


p.s. The Nick Saban Era began, and Alabama beat Western Carolina 52-6, yes Bama fans, this is not an error, we actually did manage to put up 50 points in a FOOTBALL game.