Long time no post!
Wow...I can't believe that my last entry here was on March 30th. That just makes me all kinds of sad.
Suffice to say that the last two months have been pretty busy. I finished my last rotation May 7th with being able to watch an awesome open heart surgery from beginning to end. But I was definitely glad to be done with the whole rotations thing. Doing pointless projects and hanging fliers around the hospital was not exactly the best use of my time there. Our class spent a week back at the main campus after rotations doing a board review class, which was mildly helpful.
And May 15th, I graduated with my Doctor of Pharmacy. And almost a month later, I still feel weird as heck when I think about it.
In the ideal world, I would be starting a residency in a few weeks, giving me a leg up later when I would look for good jobs. But as my last entry said, I did not match with a residency program, and am left mildly directionless. So I have put out applications (and so far been turned down) to multiple possibly employers. I can understand why, however. Before I have my license, who will really want to hire me?
So, I have been studying like mad since getting done with school in preparation for taking the first part of my boards on June 17th. After that, I leave the next day on a vacation to Seattle until the 28th, and will hopefully take the second part of the boards a couple of weeks after getting back. To say I am apprehensive about taking these tests is putting it mildly. If you don't pass, you have to wait THREE MONTHS to retake, which in my current jobless state would really, really suck. I want a good employer and some monies, please.
A few months back, I wrote a letter to myself through FutureMe.org for the occasion of my graduation. It went as follows...
Dear FutureMe,
Wow...can you believe that you've finally made it to the end of Pharmacy School? Does it feel like the ending of a horrible nightmare, or are you the tiniest bit nostalgic (like I know you are).
Looking back, how does it feel to have spent the last six years of your life pursuing a goal in higher education that at first you didn't even really want, but then slowly grew to kind of enjoy? At any rate, I bet it feels fucking awesome to be done with UOP and school.
I'm writing this wondering if you'll be ready to embark on a Residency, going to work for CVS, or maybe something entirely different. The road of life is a little foggy at the moment, so I hope the sun shines through for you and things all worked out to their best.
As you move on from Pharmacy school, don't ever let the soul-sucking nature that your career can have affect your dreaming. Like Holly Lisle is so fond of saying, follow your dreams. Get better at piano, write a damn novel, see the world and taste the wine of life for the first time in your life. Don't live the sheltered, tiring existence you have for the last ten years.
And last of all, take care of yourself. Lose weight. Get fit. Become fucking hot, and prove all those dickheads wrong. It's your 10 year reunion in another four years, after all.
Cheers, and the best of everything to you.
~J, 2/1/10
On a non-graduation note, I have been really getting into Barbie Collector lately. My collection has grown from my three Star Trek dolls to around 22 (including some vintage repros that are on their way). This is all very surreal to me. Not only was Barbie/Ken always the kind of "taboo" line for me to collect as a guy, but this is possibly my fastest growth of a collection EVER. I really enjoy the history that this brand has - I mean the fact that it's been around long enough to even have vintage repros really scores points in my "sense of history" category.
But when I pass both board examination, I think I'll reward myself with a new Pullip and Taeyang. I haven't gotten any of them in a long time.
Suffice to say that the last two months have been pretty busy. I finished my last rotation May 7th with being able to watch an awesome open heart surgery from beginning to end. But I was definitely glad to be done with the whole rotations thing. Doing pointless projects and hanging fliers around the hospital was not exactly the best use of my time there. Our class spent a week back at the main campus after rotations doing a board review class, which was mildly helpful.
And May 15th, I graduated with my Doctor of Pharmacy. And almost a month later, I still feel weird as heck when I think about it.
In the ideal world, I would be starting a residency in a few weeks, giving me a leg up later when I would look for good jobs. But as my last entry said, I did not match with a residency program, and am left mildly directionless. So I have put out applications (and so far been turned down) to multiple possibly employers. I can understand why, however. Before I have my license, who will really want to hire me?
So, I have been studying like mad since getting done with school in preparation for taking the first part of my boards on June 17th. After that, I leave the next day on a vacation to Seattle until the 28th, and will hopefully take the second part of the boards a couple of weeks after getting back. To say I am apprehensive about taking these tests is putting it mildly. If you don't pass, you have to wait THREE MONTHS to retake, which in my current jobless state would really, really suck. I want a good employer and some monies, please.
A few months back, I wrote a letter to myself through FutureMe.org for the occasion of my graduation. It went as follows...
Dear FutureMe,
Wow...can you believe that you've finally made it to the end of Pharmacy School? Does it feel like the ending of a horrible nightmare, or are you the tiniest bit nostalgic (like I know you are).
Looking back, how does it feel to have spent the last six years of your life pursuing a goal in higher education that at first you didn't even really want, but then slowly grew to kind of enjoy? At any rate, I bet it feels fucking awesome to be done with UOP and school.
I'm writing this wondering if you'll be ready to embark on a Residency, going to work for CVS, or maybe something entirely different. The road of life is a little foggy at the moment, so I hope the sun shines through for you and things all worked out to their best.
As you move on from Pharmacy school, don't ever let the soul-sucking nature that your career can have affect your dreaming. Like Holly Lisle is so fond of saying, follow your dreams. Get better at piano, write a damn novel, see the world and taste the wine of life for the first time in your life. Don't live the sheltered, tiring existence you have for the last ten years.
And last of all, take care of yourself. Lose weight. Get fit. Become fucking hot, and prove all those dickheads wrong. It's your 10 year reunion in another four years, after all.
Cheers, and the best of everything to you.
~J, 2/1/10
On a non-graduation note, I have been really getting into Barbie Collector lately. My collection has grown from my three Star Trek dolls to around 22 (including some vintage repros that are on their way). This is all very surreal to me. Not only was Barbie/Ken always the kind of "taboo" line for me to collect as a guy, but this is possibly my fastest growth of a collection EVER. I really enjoy the history that this brand has - I mean the fact that it's been around long enough to even have vintage repros really scores points in my "sense of history" category.
But when I pass both board examination, I think I'll reward myself with a new Pullip and Taeyang. I haven't gotten any of them in a long time.