Tuesday, October 24, 2006

Eid, a Mini-update, and Some Random Stuff..

Yin3ad 3aliakom.


I went out the night before and had so much fun.


Check out the guy in the orange.. he had his shirt tied up in the front and a scarf around his hips heh.




Can you spot the famous person :D


My dad's flying in tomorow to check that I'm still alive and haven't haven't made too big of a mess of things. So I get my roomate to tuck away all the beer, I throw out my cigarettes, call my friend and have him pick up his houka, clean my car and change my oil, pay my credit card bills.. God.. it's like spring cleaning out here.

What else?... I don't know what to do for Thanksgiving.. any suggestions? Actually I don't know about New Year's either.. I'd rather just go home. My grandfather is sick and I meant to go see him before I left last summer but the moment I got on the plane I realized I had completely forgotten and coulda kicked myself for it.

I went to dinner at my boss's the other night along with all my co-workers and someone mentions how cheap it is to fly to and within europe these days.. a flight from the east coast to Italy can be about $400, I scoffed and remarked that it's around $3,000 for me to fly home which is just about double that distance. My boss laughs and says I should have my layover in Lebanon, or better yet, Iraq and he bets that'll make it cheaper. He then explodes in laughter along with the whole table. It's moments like those I realize just how ill-mannered and ignorant people here are.. aside from myself, no one at that table had anything below a PhD.

You know what's funny? The other day I had a syrian friend of mine over helping me cook and I strode into my room to grab something mid-conversation. He follows me as far as the hall way and then just sorta stands at the edge facing the wall awkwardly and hollers the rest of our conversation until I re-emerge out of my room. A few days later, I forget my glasses up in my place when another friend, an American, is coming to pick me up. He follows me up and before I had even closed the front door he's already barged into my room and is hollering "So this is where the MAGIC happens".

Anyhow, that's it by ways of an update.. I really am quite boring these days.

| 18 CoMmEnTs| -- Posted by [[ On My Own ]]--|Permanent Link|

Wednesday, October 18, 2006

Needless to say. I'm ecstatic. My only regret is I didn't get to share it with my mom. Hearing her screeching over the phone was a close second .. I love you mama. God I'm a sap.
Anyway, I'm so.. happy.

Boston. Beautiful, breathtaking place. I walked around for over 3 hours, I got back and the hotel had shuttles to area attractions so I hopped on and found myself here. I was a little nervous walking around alone downtown but it was packed with people walking about. I just LOVED it. Too bad it gets so cold.

Also in Boston. You all know my infatuation with old architecture. I was staying the South end of Historic section of Boston. Everything was cobblestone and old. Lovely.

Down south. As always, I'm much too early for my interview and sat around outside wasting time and pumping myself up.

Waaaay down south. It was 10 AM and those two were eating fried chicken!

Out west where the sun shines and everyone's Nekkid. Eh.. who am I kidding..
it's all about the shoes.

| 25 CoMmEnTs| -- Posted by [[ On My Own ]]--|Permanent Link|

Saturday, October 07, 2006

One of those moments...

It's been quite a week...

I've been jetting off across the country interviewing for medical schools.

Some where in Virginia, I got on a hospital elevator with a woman carrying a tray of cornbread over her shoulder.
In the same place, the dean of admissions told us he lived in a city called 'Chickenhomeny', I burst out laughing at his self-deprecating joke... his school has a reputation for being a bit country... he looked at me with a straight face.. I realized it wasn't a joke.. he really did live in 'Chickenhomeny'. Clearly I'm not getting into that school.. it was worth the laugh.

On the other side of the country in a largely military town, a gas station's que read "Your best suit has five collars... RED NECK!". At another place, when asked what my strenghts are, I accidentally said 'brilliant' instead of 'bright'... not getting in there either heh, but again.. worth the laugh.
Throughout the week, I had to change in my car a good 5 or 6 times in the most random places.. a CVS parking lot, a hospital parking lot, a starbucks drive-through.. what is it with me and stripping in cars?

Som where down the Atlantic coast, I had reservations at the Howards Johnson. I pulled into their parking lot after a 3 hour drive, and stared in horror.. there were construction workers lurking about without any construction in sight.. Jumpin jesus.. there was no lobby. I could hear my mom's voice in my head "Trevely, learn to live like a student.. learn to be moderate.. learn.. (something or other)" (By the way.. Holy shit.. I almost put my real name in there). I stared at the Hilton sign across the street in my rearview mirror, put my car in reverse, and screeched into the Hilton lobby. Sorry .. I value my thread count. I'm also gonna be playing bongos at the corner by the end of the month when I'm broke.

At one school, it was sunny and simply brilliant outside. I lingered wasting time at a bustling corner in the urban city before it was time for my interview with the head of surgery. A street vendor smeared mustard on greasy hotdogs nearby.. a woman on my left smoked a fragrant cigar.. across the street a homeless man with "Ass, gas, grass, dope, or dough... I'm an equal opportunity beggar" walked about. I caught a glimpse of myself reflected on the massive, arc shaped, glass building with my slim black suit and dark pink shirt. I smiled, thinking I looked like such an imposter... dwarfed by this magnificent structure.. my sleeves hung over my slender writsts and down to my fingers, a little girl in such an endless world... playing dress up.

Later, on a tour of the hospital, the tour guide stopped over a 10th floor railing and pointed out how the new hospital was built over the old one. Standing there, leaning over the rail, I felt like every ray of sunshine seeping through the glass paneled building was shining on the spot I stood on.. patients, nurses, doctors, children and visitors looked like little ants walking around on the ground below ..

But up here.. there was only me. Me, with a memory of the excitement I thought I would feel at such a moment... With all my dreams seemingly materializing in front of my eyes... With a goofy sentimental smile staring down at the world at my feet.

.. and for a fleeting second, I was completely overwhelmed.

| 17 CoMmEnTs| -- Posted by [[ On My Own ]]--|Permanent Link|