End of Surgery - Start of PhD Land!

Well, after surgery marked the big transition.  

Official Start of my PhD.

July 1, 2013 

I crammed and finished my surgery shelf, had a day to myself and then it was directly to lab without a break! 

The moment I walked into lab it felt like the clock was ticking, yet I had endless time to get things done.  For that reason the first few weeks are painfully difficult to focus on the project/thesis at hand.  Additionally, I kept getting to lab WAY too early and couldn't convince myself that it was normal to sleep past 4:30AM.

I decided to do my PhD research in the McGeachy Lab, and I couldn't be happier.  The atmosphere and environment is collaborative, fun, and a place I can see myself talking too much to my awesome coworkers!  The transition was easy in some ways and difficult in other ways - since it is such a drastic change in pace and thought processes from the clinical world.

I will surely keep you updated with the progress of my research as the years go past!  

Thank you for joining me on this wild adventure!

Celebrating my Birthday with Eric Church and Kenny Chesney!

Me, Katie, and Taylor at the Concert!

People waking up from their day long bender in the parking lot... to join the concert!

After a whirlwind Winsand wedding and traveling to Wisconsin and back... it was my 25th Birthday! Whoot whoot... Who better to spend it with than my favorite artist and man crush... Eric Church.
Yes, I said it.  The Eric Church.

My 25th Birthday Date!  MR. Anderson himself...

Ohh, and my beautiful husband to be, Paul Anderson, he came too, haha! Luckily for him, we also had some relatively sane sidekicks of Taylor and Katie for Paul to relate to while I was going off the deep end in awe of my man Church.

In my happy place, singing and dancing alone.

So, I forgot to mention that Eric Church was only the opening act for Kenny Chesney, but in my opinion I really went there for him and Chesney was a bonus. Eli Young Band also played before Church, so it was three great concerts in a row!  All of the acts were great, and the concert went by MUCH too fast.  Now I remember why I hesitate to spend money for such entertainment... hmmm.  Before we knew it, we were cheering for the encore, and lucky for us Eric Church came out to sing one of Kenny's songs in the latter part of the concert!  I think Chesney must understand Church's fan base is wild and dedicated!

Thanks Paul!  Those shades have been in SOO many photos!

Zoom in on Church's stage... aviators, much appreciated Church.

25 years old and still getting asked if I go to high school... score!

 What a blast!  This experience made me want to immediately follow around Eric Church across the nation on his tour.  I was looking up other shows and joined his fan club the "Church Choir" in order to have a chance to meet him backstage. Unfortunately I didn't have the chance to meet the legend, but I have been following his work like a hawk.

View of the fountain - the renovations are finally finished!

Kenny Chesney: No Shoes Nation!

The concert was a perfect way to spend my 25th Birthday!  The next morning I was up early to get to the wards to pre-round on my patients on my surgery rotation.  Dedication, and proof you can have a life in medicine, as long as you're willing to give up an hour of sleep here and there!

Celebrating Erik and Cara Winsand's Wedding!

Erik, Carol and Bill Winsand!  Wedding DAY!

Marsh Clan and the Adopted Lyssa P, my date.

It was in the colorectal section of my surgery clerkship, and I asked off well in advance to attend and stand in Windpants' wedding! I was so honored when Erik called me to stand in Joel's place with the men in his honor. It's a true testament to lifelong friends like the Winsands. We grew up together and got into trouble at the end of Pit Lane and wherever else we set up our Winsand and Marsh Agency, formally known as WAMA.  We begged for sleepovers every time my parents would go to Bonduel to work on the brewery.  Seriously, some great times...  ahhh, makes me want to go back to being an awkward middle schooler again so we can relive those days on the trampoline and with the crazy dalmatian and billy goat.

Alyssa and I walking down together, in honor of Joel Buck.

Then we started growing up, and life started happening, but we stayed close.  I got to see Alyssa at her prom and we went for ice cream at the Cecil diner every once and a while.  We also got to take long trips up north to Bill's cabin out in the woods with no electricity or water.  We played poker upstairs and had a blast watching people run with the toilet paper flag to the outdoor john.  After high school Erik and Joel went to college together at Michigan Tech. They didn't room together the first year, but shortly after became roommates and met some amazing friends as a group.  I was fortunate enough that Joel let me drop in on their college times every once and a while.  It was a blast every time I stepped into their apartment or mansion.  Erik was always entertaining... hahah!  Oh man, I will save Tech stories for later...

Erik and Cara's impressive dance!  Nice moves you two!

After college, Erik moved to Madison, where I was going to school, for a job.  We had a blast in Madison.  Erik was a man of many locations.  There was "Cold Nights in the Prairie Erik"... and my favorite "Downtown Erik".  This was when me and the crazy roomies were living in Kendall Ave and had a place for Erik to stay in case he couldn't make it back to the Prairie.  Donut in one hand and pizza slice in other while watching morning football... such a hard decision of which one to eat...

Let the party begin!

While Downtown Erik was getting to meet a new group of friends, I remember when he met Cara and starting dating a pretty young lady.  I was so excited for him!  Of course they hit it off right away.  Erik was also important in my new relationship with Paul!  He was the one who made him feel at home and came out for my 21st birthday party, which was one of our first few dates!  Crazy how it all happened really...

Nothing like a good polka with the Polka King himself!

Well shortly after moving to Pittsburgh, I got a call from Erik about rings... just general questions and then bam!  He saw the perfect ring and was engaged!  It was the perfect story... and engagement at the Capital in Madison where it all began!  Precious.  The time of their engagement flew by quickly and before I knew it, I was buying dresses and plane tickets to come back for their big day!

Mom and all of Joel's buddies!  Jon, Dan, and Shnick!

Due to my surgery clerkship, I had to catch the earliest flight out of Pittsburgh in order to get to Madison by 9:30AM.  Becca was kind enough to pick me up at the airport and let me invade her house in order to try to do my hair in a classy wedding up-do and freshen up for the day.  I had tried to put my hair in curlers in Pittsburgh, and was frantically taking them out of my hair as Paul drove me to the airport.  I was a hot mess... per ush.  Nonetheless, we got my hair done with Becca and Lyssa's assistance, and I took the kitchen shears to my bangs to create some sort of hair that I could curl for a face framing piece... haha, Becca's voice of reason begged me not to, but I cut it anyway... !!

From there, my parents met me and we headed off to the church to get ready for the ceremony.  I unfortunately had to miss the rehersal, so I quickly learned my part and we were ready to walk down the isle in no time!  It was a beautiful ceremony and I was getting pretty emotional being Joel's placeholder.  A lot of people told my family just how special that was, and they knew right away the purpose of me in a black dress on the boys' side.  I was so honored to be a part of their day.

The two lovebirds... still on the dance floor after 35 years of marriage!

Dan and Katie... momma to be!  So exciting!

Ryan and Kate Goddard!

After the ceremony it was time to run around town for wedding pictures!  They turned out beautifully and nothing beats the views of Madison.  The lake, the parks, the terrace... ahh, how I miss Madison!  Then the wedding party came back to the hotel where I found my date, Lyssa, hanging with the fam and giving Curty a hard time, as usual!  Or more like, encouraging Curty!!

That looks like a touchdown my friends... Solid Erik... ahah!

Uncle Whitey and Alyssa!  Northwoods neighbors!

We ate dinner and enjoyed the evening... especially the dancing.  With Lyssa as my date, things always tend to get a little wild and crazy on the dance floor...  (see photos below for confirmation)

This pretty much sums up our relationship... especially on the dance floor!

Well, this is a dollar dance gone...twenty dollars.... and wild.

Nothing like a little air guitar...

 To take a break from the dance marathon, Lyssa and I found a wild crowd in the photo booth... and joined them for a few photos.  We took some pictures together of course... I personally like the sensual salute photo... God Bless America.

The damage in the photo booth... pure hotness.

How many people can we fit?

Curty and Deb also joined us in the photo booth which was quite entertaining.  My dad... so camera shy. I wonder where I get it from... geeeze.  Yikes.

Lyssa, Deb, Curt and Alyce... Team Marsh.

After the long night, we tucked ourselves in bed because we already had a date with Becca the next morning for breakfast and to stroll around Madison.  We made our way to the terrace to catch some sun and a bite of ice cream.  After our short visit, it was back to the airport for me and I waited out a few delays before finally getting to Chicago and then back home to Pittsburgh so I could make it back for rounds at 4:30AM the next morning.  WORTH IT.

Lyssa, Me, and Becca... the Madison ladies back at the terrace for some ice cream!

 Thank you Erik and Cara for the amazing wedding and many wonderful memories!  Here's to a long loving marriage and many more adventures!

Surgery Clerkship!

After my week of construction, it was time to get back to business full force and start my clinical clerkship.  WILD.  I cannot believe how fast the first two years of medical school went.  I remember the first few weeks of anatomy, where I was bored and terrified all at the same time.  That was an adjustment, whew!  Now, here I am, starting my third year... with my surgery clerkship.  Awesome.  There were many reasons why I decided to do surgery first... I wanted to be fresh off the boards, I wanted an excuse for not knowing where the bathroom is, or how to use the electronic charts... and, I wanted a ride to work every morning with my soon to be husband...    It was a good choice, and I got lucky to be on two excellent services with Zimms giving me tips along the way to learn the ropes.

My "first day of school photo" ... for 19th Grade.

I started out my rotation with two weeks of anesthesia at Magee Women's Hospital.  There I had the chance to learn the basics of what Paul does everyday.  We went to the simulation center a lot, and I intubated a few really expensive simulation people and managed some airways.  I also made sure that I "stayed off the teeth" like Paul suggested, and pulled toward the corner of the room to get a good view!  :)  It was a lot of fun, and I was able to work with some of Paul's classmates and colleagues.   One day I even had the opportunity to work as Paul's assistant down in labor and delivery.  He was at Magee for the month doing epidurals and C-sections... luckily it was the same day I was there observing as a medical student. It was odd, hilarious and awkward all at the same time - but we made it through and followed him around for a day.  Funny funny.

My next rotation was Endocrine Surgery.  I was terrified of the OR in general, but I absolutely loved it when I walked in and learned how to scrub.  It was a blast.  The surgeries were fast paced yet had impressive detail.  I loved getting in on the mix and finishing a few stitches. We even went a week without an intern which meant that I was really getting to have some fun trying to help the team and felt that I was able to learn a lot.

The last piece of my clerkship was spent on Colo-rectal surgery, which I had specifically requested.  I was looking forward to seeing a lot of IBD related cases, colectomies, and J-pouches! It again, was great!  My residents were awesome which makes any service that much better.  It was nice to talk to patients about their care and check in to see how their bowels were feeling.  I really enjoyed it!  

For as much as I loved surgery, Paul was getting a little nervous that I was falling a little too hard for the demanding specialty.  We'll have to see how our lives unfold, but for now... it was AWESOME.

Post Boards Parental Visit!

Time to get some frozen yogurt!

I LOVE SUGAR.

Home makeover!

Right after boards, just a few hours after it was done really, my parents drove all day and arrived in Pittsburgh!  It was the first time I had seen them in a long time, since we study for boards about 8 weeks straight... yeessh!  I was spending a lot of time with Steph, Taylor, and Duerr during the study session, which was a blast!  It was one of the first times that I could actually handle myself in a group study situation.  Haha, I guess when the stakes are high, I will actually stop talking!  Who knew??  I was so relieved to have the test over and came back pale as a ghost in my Eric Church shirt ready to kick of my boots and a have a glass a wine.  Done!

I planned the test perfectly which allowed me to take almost a week off to finally start working on the house - and with my mom and dad in town, I knew that we were going to put a major dent into the projects that we wanted to complete!  The top priority was painting the house... ewww.  The current color throughout was a light pink which made my stomach flip.  Mom and I went shopping and picked out a bunch of warm Martha Stewart colors to put on the walls. The color pallet all seemed to come together quite nicely!  Nice work Martha.  We even decided to paint the ceilings in our madness!  The only color that we were scared about when it went up on the walls was our color for the first floor - before it dried completely, it appeared that the warm white we had chosen was actually neon green.  Luckily, we stuck to our wits and painted anyway - because the color we have now is perfect!

Curty painting the master bedroom a warm green...

Paul and I out for Chinese in Squirrel Hill

Chinese food to say thank you for your help!

The only thing we didn't paint was the kitchen (because its a hot mess) and the upstairs bathroom because I mainly just got lazy.  We put two coats on the entire house otherwise, and it turned out excellent.  Paul and I are so scared to nail anything to the walls because of how nice it looks!  We still haven't put up a decoration yet... maybe next visit.

The new lumber truck... the Prius!

Don't worry mum, we covered it completely in tarps!

We also accomplished a lot of tasks around the house like mounting Paul's TV, planting new grass in the backyard, cementing all of the cracks around the garage in the front yard, filling in all of the thousands of nail holes that were in our walls from the previous owner, and generally whipping the house into shape in a short time!

Dad filling in the connection to outside that was randomly in our house... nice.

 Our favorite repair however was the new drains in the basement and garage - OH THANK GOODNESS!  The old school drains that were installed were hooked up with a direct connection to the city sewer - which results in a direct connection to the smell of foul human feces.  UGH, absolutely disgusting...we know!  But now, thanks to father's genius, we found drains that have water traps, which means no more turd fumes!  YAHOOO!  The best score of the whole remodeling project - by far!

Handyman Pauly

The TV Mount, on Paul's MUST DO list...

So, thank you Curty and Deb for the help and motivation to tackle some of our massive DIY projects!  It was quite a feat, and everyone was exhausted after the week - but we did it!