I'm all class

Dear Laura,

Congratulations on finally moving into your new place. I'm looking forward to photos, as soon as that beautiful Vancouver fog clears!

I am looking out a very nice view as I write this. I'm in Toronto for a residency interview, and I think I already told you that Brad and I decided to extend our stay and have a little mini-vacation. We're staying in a nice hotel (thank you, Expedia, land of good deals) and planning to sleep for two days....er....I mean, we're going to do all sorts of cultural things and eat lots of good food. Yeah. Anyways, we're on the top floor of the hotel, and it looks south toward the lake - so we have a really nice view!

I have very little knitting-related news for you, sadly. I'm still plugging along on the hated black/grey socks for my father. I'm about halfway down the foot (they're top-down socks, so I'm getting there...), but I will spare you a photo since black stockingette socks are really boring to look at. I did buy some very pretty yarn the other day to start some socks for myself as soon as these ones are done, though! (Picture later - the yarn is buried in my truck, 22 floors down in the parking garage.)

On the medical front, I have done all sorts of interesting things since I last saw you. (I realize that I told you about some of this on the phone two days ago, but for the sake of our meagre but dedicated audience on this lovely blog, let's forget about that, okay??)

I did an elective in oncology (cancer medicine) that was great for my learning but very heart-wrenching. I worked with a wonderful, caring doctor who is just exactly the type of person that I'd want if I was a patient there. I really enjoyed myself for the most part, but I did find some of the cases really sad - like a woman only a few years younger than you and I who I met on her first visit to the cancer centre. She had just been diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma - which has a very high cure rate in young people, but is still cancer and still kills people. It was a bit too close to home for me.

I spent this past week working with the world's most unique dermatologist. He works in the town where I grew up, and I had heard that he was a bit curmudgeonly but that he had a busy practice so I would "see a lot" (which is apparently the best way to learn dermatology). Turns out he's had this huge change of personality over the past couple of years and has become a yoga instructor. He's really interested in complimentary and alternative medicine and actually prescribed meditation for one patient! He even diagnosed depression in one lady who came in complaining of a tingly tongue! It was wild!!! It certainly made for an interesting week, though!

Well, I'm off to prepare for my interview. I stupidly forgot my dress coat at my parents' place, so I will be arriving at the interview in my lovely suit....and my puffy pink winter coat, which I may have mentioned was purchased in the children's section. The lining fabric is pink stars. I am so classy.

Love,
Nikki