Advent season

Basketball Jones

Thanksgiving break has afforded me the opportunity to watch some of the Chicago Bulls films from the championship years. What made those six championships to memorable was not simply Michael Jordan, but also cohesive the entire team was. Take the two stars, Scottie and Michael, for example. I can't recall a time where the two publicly feuded (at least to the extent that we see players today do so). This isn't necessarily meant to be a dig on Kobe and Shaq but I can't recall another modern basketball dynasty that involved two star players who were on the same page (though I was a big fan of the David Robinson/Tim Duncan duo for those couple years). Plus, I can't recall such a memorable set of role players. Take Dennis Rodman. Yeah, he had the colorful hair and tattoos and even kicked a cameraman in the groin but, dude, who else can say that they've crushed Bob Costas!



As for this season, when I haven't been gushing over Derrick Rose, I've been admiring the team effort of the San Antonio Spurs. I was able to watch a couple of their games when Ginobili and Parker were out and, though it was pretty vanilla in terms of offense, the team game was solid. Plus, they have managed to find another potential stud in guard George Hill (and Roger Mason) who could really be something special. Props to Coach Popovich for assembling what normally would seem to be a bunch of no-name players to surround the trio of stars. I've always been a fan of the Spurs brand of play, boring as it may seem to fans.

Some memorable Bulls moments:

Sharing the spotlight with the short, white, role-player. I was at a church retreat and there was a bunch of us huddled around the radio (since we had no TV) listening to this game.



The flu game 1997 Finals. Unforgettable image: Jordan collapsing into Pippen's arms after hitting a three-pointer to seal the Jazz's fate...serious brotherhood. This NBA 2k9 rendition is pretty much spot on.



The Last Shot/Shove/Game Winner

Whatever you want to call it, everything about this was pure art. Even the graceful shove of Bryan Russell (poor guy never had a chance!) simply becomes part of the final image along with Jordan holding and posing for the follow through. As far as I'm concerned, Jordan's career ends here and his stint with the Wizards never happened.



And who could forget this gem!

Following the news

They say that M1 year leaves little in terms of having a life, but I find that there is still time to do plenty of other things as well, even at the expense of studying. One of things that I find myself doing more than I ever did in undergrad is following the news. Ever since the election, pretty much every headline story concerns the economic situation both domestically and abroad. There's so much talk of people that are looking simply to survive, to make ends meet financially (and I would suppose emotionally as well too). It reminds me that most of humanity would be content to have a job and make a living doing it--and that's commendable. Whatever discussion of finding the "right" career seems to be secondary to the overriding need to have food to eat and a place to sleep. The hyper-practicality for which ABCs chide their parents bears some of this wisdom.

Having the opportunity to do what one wants is a privilege and the ability to make ends meet is a blessing. Furthermore, having the chance to safely wallow in uncertainty is just as much a gift that not everyone can enjoy.

The wonders of graduate school

I think of the best parts of medical school so far has been being able to see how so many things a related to each other. No longer are the days where one could view school as an assortment of individual, unrelated classes. For example, today in Immunology/Microbiology, the professor played this song to help us remember the sugar-loving nature of lectins (or sugar binding molecules/receptors) on cells.

The class before, we had just talked about glycolysis in Biochemistry, which also involves sugars. Later, as I was reviewing over the lecture from Biochem, this song came to mind:

Not to be outdone, our Histology professor tried to turn the auditorium into a dance floor by turning off the lights, demanding that the class come down to the front of the room while using the sound system to blare the following:

"There is only one salvation for you: take yourself up, and make yourself responsible for all the sins of men. For indeed it is so, my friend, and the moment you make yourself sincerely responsible for everything and everyone, you will see at once that it is really so, that it is you who are guilty on behalf of all and for all. Whereas by shifting your own laziness and powerlessness onto others, you will end by sharing in Satan's pride and murmuring against God." -- Zosima from The Brothers Karamazov

In school, if certain people were "jerks," you had the option of not being around them. You could just as easily spend your time with more preferable and edifying company. One thing that has struck me in medical school is that you realize that if such people do exist in your class (and most certainly there are people of questionable character in every setting!), there's a possibility that so and so may end up being a physician to someone you do care about, and God forbid that anything horrible come out of that predicament. So in ignoring a jerk, it is quite possible to harm a loved one.

Happy Birthday

to two friends who have enriched my life
to two men who I am privileged to call brothers.

And we're off (part 2)...

During this first week of school, I have caught myself surveying the lecture hall and noticing the different groups in which people have settled. Because I sit in the middle row in the middle seat with a fellow classmate. I have an ideal perch from which to look over my fellow classmates. People, for the most part, are friendly here, though I have noticed that we've gotten to the point where if we pass a fellow M1 in the hallway who we do not yet know, we are quite comfortably able to avert the eyes and shuffle past one another.

As for me, I have found that though I may have sat in the same spot this week with the same friend, my thoughts have been constantly on the different groups around me. I see different parts of myself scattered in the different circles; I want to be good friends with people who are parts of circles that may never intersect.

As I continue to try find consistency in my interactions, I think one of two things is happening: I am either losing myself in an attempt to change who I am or I am finding myself anew in becoming part of new social network.

And then I wonder to myself if there is a third possibility: in achieving the latter, am I also accomplishing the former?