A Hauntingly Good Week

I am officially done with MSK II! I spent the whole week studying, and it paid off! I did well on the exam and the anatomy practical. I also did some very cool volunteer things this week, including the orientation training for NODA NOLA on Monday, which, as a reminder, is a student-run organization I joined that will provide support for patients who are experiencing the end of their lives alone in the hospital. I am really grateful that I can be part of such a unique and impactful organization, and hopefully make someone’s last moments a little brighter. I also had my first Acacia observership shift on Tuesday at one of the local shelters here in New Orleans. It was super cool to have my first real patient experience and provide care. It’s still so wild to me that I have the privilege to do things like this in the community. It was really cool to answer patient questions, support them in getting the care and resources they needed, and feel like I am actually doctoring (for lack of better words).

Outside of volunteering and studying at the library, I also did my favourite yoga sculpt class with my friend Edith. Another one of our classmates joined us, and we had a great time. We unfortunately have to miss this week’s upcoming class due to a conflict, but it’s for a good cause, so stay tuned next week. I also hit a solid upper body workout on Thursday, and did a hot girl walk between my exam and anatomy practical on Friday. Between the exams, I felt like I was going to crash, so I grabbed the only source of caffeine I enjoy (a Coke Zero (no, I do not drink coffee)), scrolled reels, and walked for 30 minutes. It genuinely revived me, and I think I am going to make it a habit for any future exam days where we have an exam followed by a practical. Speaking of future exams, our next block is the cardiovascular system, which does not have an anatomy practical. I am honestly not very excited for this block, partly because of how much physiology there is to learn, but also because I feel like it’s probably not something I am even considering going into (watch me become a cardiologist lol). To be fair, I did say that about MSK I and II and ended up loving it, so genuinely, who knows.

Okay, now what you’ve all been waiting for, how did I celebrate my exam? Well, like I mentioned last week, one of my best friends from undergrad, Katie, flew in to visit me. She is my first visitor since my White Coat Ceremony! It was her first time in NOLA, so you know we had a jam-packed weekend. Our Friday night started with some Raising Canes, followed by a pre-game at my friend Aashana’s place. Aashana also had one of her best friends, K-LA, visiting from Chicago! I feel like meeting people’s friends outside of med school helps you learn so much more about them, and you get to hear about all the fun things they did together pre-med school, so it was such a treat to meet her. She is also genuinely such a gem of a person. Post pre-game, we had our block party at Tchoup yard, which gives beer garden vibes. Post Tchoup yard, some of my classmates and I made it out to Frenchman St. to keep the night going. We stayed out way too late, but it was super fun to be out with Katie and my med school pals.

Saturday started with the monthly Walk with a Doc event in Audubon Park. This month’s speaker was Dr. Weiss, an incredible child psychiatrist who specializes in early psychosis intervention. Her talk was so amazing and touched on things like how to spot signs of someone developing symptoms of psychosis, how to approach people in a non-judgemental way to help them get support, and what her day-to-day looks like in her early psychosis intervention clinic that she created and runs here in NOLA. I also won a raffle for a Tulane Medicine hat, which is my first official Tulane merch (I do really want to get more, but have not had time to go to the bookstore yet to buy any). We then walked around Audubon Park and enjoyed the fall-like weather. It is still around 26 degrees every day, but it feels so cold compared to the 30+ we have had the last few months, so I am officially wearing sweaters in 20+ degree heat (the Canadians back home would frown upon me, I know). I am really enjoying this weather though; like the air is crisp, a little chilly, but the skies are still very blue and sunny. Post walk, some of my classmates who also attended the walk and I went to Flour Moon Bagels, which is a delicious bagel shop in Mid-City. I got their special of the week, pictured below. After the bagels, I really needed a nap, since Katie and I had another big night ahead of us. Once I woke up from my nap, I took Katie out to Magazine St. for some window shopping, followed by dinner with a couple of my classmates. We went for sushi, and honestly, I was not sure about sushi in NOLA since Vancouver has the best sushi ever, but I will admit that it was very good, and I will be going again someday. I do miss Vancouver sushi, though. The classmates that I went with were Mia and Allison, as well as Mia’s bestie from home, Dasha. It was so great to meet Dasha, since she is also such a ray of sunshine. As I said above, it is so great to meet and spend time with the friends we have outside of med school, since sometimes our class feels like a bubble. After sushi, we went to Ghost Manor with no idea what to expect. It is a house on Magazine St that puts on a whole Halloween production with music, talking skeletons, and graphics. It was hilarious and a great warmup into spooky season. Then we headed back to my place and hosted a small pre-game. Some of my other classmates came before we hit the town. First, we went to Hot Tin, which is a rooftop bar at a really nice hotel that I do not remember the name of. It overlooks all of New Orleans and has a pretty cool vibe. Then we made our way to Bourbon St. Bourbon St. was crazy as usual, but also fun as usual. We spent the night dancing before calling it a night way later than we should have.

On Sunday, I finally slept in and felt decently rested. I did a couple of errands, including putting more air in my tires (this was a new task for me since my dad always did it for me back home, and I deserve a round of applause for doing it all by myself), before taking Katie to the Tulane undergrad campus. I gave her a quick tour of some of my favourite spots on campus before we headed downtown to the French Quarter. We spent the afternoon exploring and even got our Tarot cards read by a local reader. I have never had my cards read before, but from what the reader said, I gathered that I am a girl who is going to be okay. We then met up with Mia and Dasha again for Beignets at Café du Monde and said our goodbyes since Dasha and Katie are both heading out soon. We then ended the outing with a seafood boil at Fiery Crab! I have never had a seafood boil before, but it was so yummy. Shout out, Katie, for the idea to go there. It felt very on brand for a must-do in NOLA. After dinner, we headed to the iconic Skeleton House, which is a mansion on St. Charles that has so many funny skeleton decorations on its lawn. One day, when I am rich, I will also decorate my house like the skeleton house. Then we headed back to my place and watched the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. All I can say is iconic (and I really need to lock in). Tate McRae performed, and I genuinely had my jaw on the floor the entire time. Megan Moroney also performed (she is another one of my favourite artists), so to me, this was the best VS fashion show there has ever been. Now I am writing my blog and savouring the last bit of my Sunday before school starts back up again tomorrow. I am dreading it already (not because I don’t want to learn, but because having a study break is awesome). Plus, I really need more rest. Anyways, I hope you all have a good weekend, and may next weekend last longer than this one.