Keep up the heat. Steam just builds.

It's hot & humid today. I don't know why I'm still surprised by such things? It's pretty much hot everyday. Unless it's raining all day long. In the case of the latter, it's not as hot. But then the humidity factor comes into play. Maybe it's just that I'm still not used to walking everywhere.

Yesterday, there were several points where I seemed to be operating on autopilot. But it wasn't the good kind. It felt like a I was in that VCR-style fast forward where you just shut down mentally, and time starts going by, and then suddenly you snap out of it, and it's three hours later.

I think several attempts at multitasking are party to my dissociation with time. Streamlining will be done. Definitely. Some other organizational activities will be forthcoming. I am especially excited about my forthcoming 7290. More on that when it arrives.

On another completely different note, I also had a couple of moments yesterday where I actively saw my life improving, even if the improvement was just a miniscule increment.

Firstly, I started using some new ice trays I purchased last weekend. MAN! What a difference a good ice tray makes. I know it sounds silly, but as the saying goes: "You never know a good ice tray until you find one." Or something like that.

Secondly, and more importantly, I acquired a nifty concept-mapping software package called CMap Tools. It's freeware, cross-platform, and has a pretty small learning curve. More importantly, as I was going through the help files as my tutorial, I actually learned a basic premise to concept mapping that I had not known, that had been lacking in my maps, and hence was slightly impeding my full potential use of such maps. Specifically it dealt with the use and expression of the connecting prepositions (or prepositional phrases) between map elements. Instantly, the map I had been working on went from just organizing general ideas to truly flowing information effectively.

Hopefully this weekend I'm going to get the opportunity to review most of my earlier material, and perhaps remap some of the more difficult concepts correctly.

This afternoon, I also went to the anatomy lab for some quality time alone with a cadaver. It's probably the best anatomy time I've had yet. The particular body I was at was particularly fatty, and well wrapped/contained, so the formaldehyde fumes were strong & got to me pretty quick. But I got used to it after about 10 minutes. Also, prior to getting my hands dirty, I was able to go through the lab computers and was really impressed with the radiology database program, and specifically one set of MRI images of the cervical spine. I think so far these past two weeks, the material presented in the radiology lectures has been the most interesting. However, it has also been pretty much the only clinically-oriented material presented, so that may be why I'm gravitating towards it.

And last but not least, we had our PBL introduction this week. As part of the introduction, the PBL director gave the majority of the first semester class what is typically given as the first part of a PBL clinical vignette. It's essentially a clinical problem or scenario with a very limited amount of facts, that is supposed to drive students to collaborate in research and differential exploration. What amazed me is that I think only one student mentioned part of a physical exam of the child. By the way, the case was essentially a young mother presenting to a doctor's office claiming her 3 year-old daughter's body had been shaking violently. Everyone immediately went into history taking, hypotheses, obscure diseases, and crazy diagnoses. Not one student mentioned a full physical and neurological exam of the child and verification of the stable vitals. I wonder how many of them know the number of potential answers and questions that can be had from the physical exam. I know we haven't been taught physical exam techniques, but c'mon. It's not that I don't think histories are important, nor that I don't appreciate all the potential factors involved, such as violent blows, allergic reactions, infections, or the febrile component...

...Maybe I'm taking it too personally? I just think the severity of a seizure or neurological condition warranted a little more attention to the physical condition of the patient, and from that point, stemming out to histories and other information. Yeah, that's the ticket.

Oh, and I was able to get a new locker today in some prime, library-centric real estate. I'm stoked!

Congrats to Ivonne & Anthony on the new addition to the family!

Well, lunch is about over. Back to the books.

Love y'all. And much love goes out to the Rodriguez-Perez Family, and the entire Rodriguez Clan. Titi Olga is in my prayers. May God bless her, Tio Yayo, and all of us in this difficult time. And may He grant us the peace and fortitude to overcome the grief and stress life brings us, and to realize the blessings of love and family He has granted us. Despite the heat, I think it's true what's been said, that He never gives us more than we can handle.