This post is password protected. You can read it at awaitstheday, where it was originally posted. You can comment here or there.

I’ve begun ‘shadowing’ a physician at a nearby hospital for the semester, to get some ideas for my dissertation topic. Since I have a habit of forgetting things, I will be journaling the visits that I observe. In the interest of privacy (and covering my butt from HIPAA) I’ll be locking my shadowing posts.

If you want to read these posts and can’t ( Read more... )

Since Christmas, I’ve been viewing the world as though I’ve always lived with blinders. I can categorically claim that it is not fun relearning the world after 23 years of operating in a certain way. I feel as though I am 28-turning-45.

Ever since I was five years old, I’ve been building up walls to guard my mind and heart. This is not as ( Read more... )

Imagine your typical day: You wake up at 5:30 or 6am, depending on your commute, to reach work at 7am. After going through security and maneuvering your way to your office, you are bombarded with emails and phone calls. Reports need to be completed, meetings need to be attended, communications must be sent to outside locations, and money needs ( Read more... )

This post is password protected. You can read it at awaitstheday, where it was originally posted. You can comment here or there.

There was a time, not too long ago, when I Googled “Actress Sujatha” and could only find a 150 by 150px blurry photo of her. If you Googled her today, you’d find the public life of a woman that I called my aunt for 27 years of my life, but apparently never knew.

This post is mostly for my own benefit, but it is also for yours. This was a real- ( Read more... )

It’s been a little more than a month since I’ve been in Richmond, VA, so I feel it’s an appropriate time to discuss what it’s like.

Apparently Richmond has a population of about 200,000 within city limits (which is where I currently am), and it’s pretty obvious. I’m so used to the bustle of NYC that the quiet here actually frightens me. Downtown ( Read more... )

Conventional wisdom suggests birthdays are a celebration of another year on earth as well as a day for a Reflection on Personal Growth. Despite my 27 years on this planet, I’ve yet to experience something life-changing on my birthday. That is precisely the reason why I never have a big celebration for it. And no matter how much I’ve tried to ( Read more... )

Apparently, I lied. Applying to PhD programs are excruciating, but not nearly as horrible as being rejected from programs you’ve applied. This statement particularly applies to PhD programs you loved and interviewed for, with faculty who seemed to love you back.

Defeat is bitter, but not nearly as sour as the knowledge that I didn’t even warrant ( Read more... )

I’ve recently admitted to myself that I despise applications. By ‘despise,’ I mean I hate them to the point that I will procrastinate finishing them until the latest possible day and/or hour. Considering that in the past two months I’ve filled more applications than I have in the past two years, you can imagine the state I’m in.

And for those ( Read more... )