Bagel Shop & School

I have to say, so far I am really impressed with Poznan University of Medical Sciences. I don't know if they got EU funding or if it was paid for by student tuition, but they've taken great lengths to renovate the buildings and lecture rooms. The lecture room I was in this morning has an electric outlet for every seat as well as what looked like a DSL internet plug! I think the fact that this school has been around longer than Gdansk makes a difference too. Gdansk was built post war when everything was gray and made of concrete. Our major building was built before that so it has more character than the communist era buildings. Even the stair wells are amazing. The side stairs that lead up to individual departments have a skylight above and almost an MC Escher feel to them as the next flight of stairs begins at a different place than the first one ended. It's a great illusion.

And the students! I am in love with my classmates! Yes, quite a few of them may still be spoiled brats, but at least they are slightly older brats and are that much more mature and I'd say they are the minority. One guy showed me to this little mall near the school that has free wifi so I could check email. It turns out that a Bagel shop just opened there 3 days ago. I met the owners (a Dutch/Polish couple) because the guy had come around giving opening gifts to all the ladies. And the bagels...OMG, YUM! I have not had a bagel since Christmas last year in Ottawa. Both he and his wife spoke perfect English, of course, and told me all about their business plan and were super nice. It's a place I will definitely be going back to. Unfortunately, it's not the cheapest place, but I guess it's on par with US prices. I had an AMAZING bagel breakfast sandwich and a coffee for about $6. Actually, that'd be cheaper than some places in the states. Strolling through the little mall afterward I found they have a small world food store (hello, peanut butter and Asian delights!) and a pet store. The whole place is super-chic and geared towards international clientele. I went in the pet shop to see what prices were like for the cat litter we use and they were actually on par with our shop in Gdansk. I told the lady in Polish that I was learning Polish and tried to infer that Piotr and I were moving from Gdansk with two cats. She cracked me up, she started correcting my Polish! That's great! Most shop keepers (that I've experienced in Poznan) will switch into English at the first sign of Polish struggle, but not her.

I'm about to go in for our first Anatomy lecture. Anatomy may be interesting this year because I already took it. Unfortunately, I don't think it will transfer though because they have a higher credit requirement than Gdansk did, but it's worth asking.

Our New Apartment!

We've got a place! We sign the lease and get the keys next week. You can watch the slide show below or click here to view it in Picasa. The place is fully furnished, albeit with slightly ugly furnishings, but we will be able to make it ours easily. It's less than 500 ft from a tram stop with service to either downtown or the train station (about 10 minutes each) and a little more than that in the other direction to the "fast" trams that arrive in the center in about 5 minutes. It's closer to the city center than when we lived in North Portland and Poznań has been adding bike lanes and bike routes all over the city. Oh, I have a bike now too!!
Here's a map of where it is:
View Larger Map


We are very excited about it, but not so excited about actually moving. Those of you who have helped us before understand why. Our packing supplies arrived yesterday and this weekend we begin attacking the records! Oh, one more thing about the apartment--we have two couches that fold into double beds, so there's more than enough room for guests! Come visit!!

We are moving!

We are moving to Poznan and I start school on Wednesday. We spent Thursday and Friday of last week beginning our apartment hunt and it will continue when we return on Tuesday. While in Gdansk, we're starting the packing process, ordering extra boxes, and arranging all the logistics.

As for school, I am already on the official student's list. I will find out Monday what group I'm in and Wednesday I'll get to meet everyone. I'm excited and nervous at the same time. I can say this: every interaction I've had with the school has been great. The dean's office gave me a welcome package--a PUMS bag with course catalog, maps, and a nice new PUMS executive folder--with  with all the information I need to get things started.

I will try to post updates as the week(s) continue, but we haven't arranged for internet in Poznan yet.
Back to packing!

A morning of peace

This morning is different. This is the first morning in too long that I feel at peace. Perhaps it was the release of going out last night or sleeping in until 11am, but my stomach is not in its usual stress related knots and I have a feeling that everything will be alright. It's P's first real day off in over two weeks--two weeks of 12-20 hour days, almost no sleep, and way too much caffiene--so perhaps its the fact that both of us are relatively stress free today. We know that our situation will most likely be changing in the next week, but the fact that we will soon know what is going on is more of a relief than a stress. But for today, we are sitting around in our pajamas, listening to records and drinking coffee while we write emails and tidy up work spaces.

Application Submitted

This is what I received Friday morning in my inbox:

 Dear C.D.U.,

We've received your recent enquiry regarding our 4-year MD Program and, judging from your description, you would be a very good candidate for the our program. The classes have already started here, however we've had a couple of last-minute resignations which freed up positions in the freshman year.

Could you please scan and send to my e-mail or fax a copy of the following documents as soon as possible:

-completed application form this page
-college diploma
-college transcripts showing that you've completed your pre-medicals (Biology, Chemistry organic and general, Physics)
-a photocopy of the bio page of your passport

After reviewing your application, we will let you know in the beginning next week, if we can offer you acceptance for the academic year 2010/2011.

Best regards,
Mr. Man from Poznan

By Friday afternoon, I had submitted all the requested materials and now I am just waiting. I'm pretty good at waiting; I've been doing it for a while now. It's not a sure thing, but it looks pretty probable. My MCAT scores come out Tuesday as well, so by then we can make the most informed decision. Until then, I wait.

The news is no news yet.

We heard from our man in Poznań, P, this morning that the rector is out for the week. He'll be back on Monday and already has an appointment with our guy, who has forwarded our letter and his on to the rector and the deans. We also learned that P not only knows the rector as a classmate but was a former business partner with him too. Apparently they go way back. P says he's a very nice man, so we'll see what happens on Monday.

Until then though, I am still working on my US applications and Piotr will be heading to Warsaw on Wednesday morning for a couple days of intense business meetings. The cats and I will hold down the fort and keep each other company.

Time for plan K

Plans A through J haven't worked so far, so it's time for a new one. Here is the latest update.

The school did not get the 15 student commitment it needed to hire a full-time financial aid person--there were holes the size of Texas in the plan anyway--and so the plan fell through. One brave student has decided to take on the role of financial aid officer, and all the responsibility that it entails, in addition to his studies to ensure that he can get financial aid. He will handle other students' loans as long as he is in school--for 3 or 4 more years. Good on him.

Here is why that plan doesn't work for me. One, I'm interested to see if the Department of Education will allow him to have this position. It seems a huge conflict of interest to be both financial loan officer and student, as he is effectively loaning himself money. Two, if the Dept of Ed does allow this, what happens to the students who are still in school after he graduates? There is no guarantee that the school will allow another student to take over this role so that these students could continue. Three, why would I want to continue at a school that obviously doesn't want me?

Piotr labeled this relationship as a battered-wife syndrome. The school and the American students were in a working relationship, though I dare say neither were exactly happy. The school, in between kicking us while we're down, has moments where they welcome us back with, "If each of you pays $2000 more per year and is responsible for the cost in case of an audit, then I guess we'll let you back." At which point, many of the US students are ecstatic about returning only to find out the next day, "Haha, just kidding! You guys are on your own!" After the Chancellor lied to our face about when the school found out about this issue (he said mid-July but I have it from another authority as April 9th), that's when I checked out. Thanks for playing, on to plan H.

The one promise that the school has come through on is that they worked out a deal with the University of Medicine in Poznań, arranging for all students in good standing to be offered places in their respective classes. Piotr and I had been considering a move to Poznań anyway because it has a much better economy for Piotr to work in, however, moving to another 6 year program full of 19 year-olds is not that appealing. In a long shot effort, I emailed the rector of Poznań on Friday asking if there was any chance to be admitted into the first year of the 4 year program. It's highly doubtful, but the worst he can do is say no, right? We also have a secret weapon: Piotr's good friend in Poznań, Dr. Piotr, went to school with the rector and has agreed to go talk to him on Monday on our behalf. If it works, it means I would be starting classes, oh you know, Tuesday--which brings about a whole other load of timing issues with the move, but it could work.

Again, it's a long shot. In the mean time I am still working on my application for the states. I am trying my best to get my personal statement in check and get it out to those people who are writing me letters of recommendation. All the school related events this week seemed to put my life in slow motion and consequently, I accomplished very little this week. So now it's time to get my butt in gear and let my tenacity take over.

Personal Hell,oh wait, I mean Personal Statement

Writing a strong personal statement can take a couple weeks to a month to draft, edit, re-write, only to then trash it and start over again...and again. A couple weeks would be a luxury right now. The stress of timing my application is upon me and I am really struggling. I am trying to brainstorm stories, ideas, themes, and it seems all that is coming out is drivel. I gave myself all week, with the deadline of today, to have it finished to send off to all my writers of letters of recommendation and I find that I am in no better position today than I was on Monday, save a few pages of pure backwash.

The personal statement is my chance to make my application stand out from the GPAs and MCAT scores and I know that I have a diverse non-traditional background and life history from which to draw anecdotes and stories, but I cannot seem to find a theme to start with. Every time I try to write something I get a paragraph in and hit a wall. I wish I could just write, "Can't you see how awesome I am?"

London Photos!

London Photos are up! (well, mine are. I'll see if I can link to Piotr's when he gets his up.)

London

Back to Gdańsk

We had a fantastic trip to London this weekend. For those of you who don't know, I retook the MCAT because my old scores had expired and if I'm really going to go for another round of applications, then it's required. The exam went ok, not as well as I'd like unfortunately, but probably about the same as last time which is fine. London, on the other hand, was fan-freaking-tastic.

It was Piotr's first time to the UK and he fell in love with London at once. We stayed with his cousin and her family in Ealing and took a bus/tube combo to get into the city daily. We packed so much into four days without it feeling overwhelming.

But returning home has it's own issues. Well, I say "home" because it's where our cats are but really we're not sure where real "home" is right now. Stressful situations always seem to compound themselves too. As we need to make some potentially life changing decisions, Piotr just got a big job and is working 12+ hours a day. While this is a blessing (we'll be able to pay rent!) it's also tough because it means we don't have the leisure to really explore all our options. Or at least we both don't have that option, it's kid of up to me. On top of all that, I'm trying to get my application together, organize transcripts, letters of recommendation, and write that damn personal statement. I hate personal statements.

I'll be sure to let you all know what happens when it happens, but until then we're trying to get by living in limbo.

We may be screwed.

Earlier this year, the United States passed student loan reform. I was very excited about this reform especially as it pertains to the changes in repayment options. Well, while this reform makes the whole loan process easier especially for international schools, it does require each school to sign a contract with the US Department of Education. Schools were notified about the changes in early April. Medical University of Gdańsk chose to ignore the warnings and only when the subject was approached by returning students did they look into the problem and decide that the new terms are unacceptable to them. This leaves about 20 students from the first 4 years of study in a very difficult position of trying to arrange private funding or having to transfer to another institution. We have met with the Chancellor face to face and, unless the unlikely case that he was unaware of the April notices, blatantly lied to our faces that the school learned about this situation only last week.

Many students, including myself, cannot afford to take out private education loans to pay for school and rely on the Stafford loan not only to pay for tuition but to provide for living expenses as well. Some students are trying to further negotiate with MUG to be able to stay at the university. While I am interested to see where these negotiations go, if anywhere, I also want to make sure that I have other options lined up. Transferring to a six year program that cooperates with the US loan system, such as Poznan, is one of my options. There maybe some curriculum differences between MUG and UMP and I am trying to figure out how those would be reconciled.

I am also taking the MCAT next week in London as I am one of the few students eligible to attend a 4 year medical program. Depending on my scores, I will be applying for US schools again and perhaps some 4 year programs in Poland as well. Though, that doesn't necessarily help Piotr and I figure out what to do for this year.

The saddest part of all this is that the school is potentially going to lose some of their best students. It's the Americans who are the majority of class leaders and group leaders. I have already been  named as the 2nd year class representative to the student council, but I may have to forfeit this position due to the current situation. The other terrible part is that we RELOCATED OUR ENTIRE LIVES HERE at great expense to attend this school and now it looks like we may have to move again.

In the meantime, I am trying not to focus on all of this as I have the MCAT exam a week from today and I need to get back to studying. I will try to post updates here as I get them.

Summer Studying

Some of you know that I will be taking the MCAT again this summer. Yes, I am already in medical school, but I am considering the possibility of a last round of US school applications. My old scores have expired and to apply again, I must test again. If I do as well or better than my last attempt at the exam, then I will continue with applications. If not, then it will be a good review of the materials and I'll get a short trip to London out of the deal. Regardless, I have started the whole application process and, in so doing, wrote an update for my letters of recommendation from Portland State. I thought I'd share that letter with you because I feel it describes my position well. 

RE-APPLICANT UPDATE FORM

This update is somewhat unorthodox, as is my application. I am applying to medical school yet I am currently a medical student.

After years of applying and rejection, I was accepted at the Medical University of Gdańsk in Gdańsk, Poland, my husband’s home city and country. Once enrolled in their 6 year program, I withdrew my AMCAS (the med school application service) application because I had finally made it to medical school. While not my first choice, I was ready to accept it after so many attempts.

I just completed my first year at the school and have done very well. Attached is an unofficial transcript. I have been very happy with the quality of education and the subject matter, but I am missing the camaraderie that comes from a strong small class of medical students. I long for a class of educational peers.  The program I’m attending is intended primarily for students who do not have prior degrees and often have very little other experience. I am finding that my years of preparation and other experience are definitely not the norm.

In my current program, I will graduate in 2015. If I continue while I attempt one more round of applications for the chance of attending a choice school, I will still graduate in 2015. The difference, aside from tuition costs, lies in feeling that I may have a closer connection with and have more opportunity to be challenged by my fellow classmates. I have looked at the possibility of transferring, but very few schools entertain the idea of medical transfer students, particularly from foreign institutions. I will be retaking the MCAT this summer as my former scores have expired.  I will also be submitting my new letters of recommendation directly to AMCAS.

I am gaining valuable experience and knowledge that I would not have been able to achieve were I still working at my hospital job in Portland and continuing my US-based volunteer efforts. In summary, the way I have improved my application is by becoming a medical student.

One major downside to another round of applications is the cost. Taking the MCAT internationally costs  $295 plus the cost of travel to and from the testing site in London. If I continue with applications, the first school is $160 and each one thereafter is $32. There is a program setup to help students with these costs.  I applied and was denied. After submitting my appeal I receivedan email that reiterated: "The Fee Assistance Program (FAP) is provided to assist individuals with extreme financial limitations whose inability to pay the full MCAT registration fee or the AMCAS application fee would prevent them from taking the examination or applying to medical school." I was rather upset by this and I felt it warranted a response.

Dear Sir or Madam or Automated Response Generator,

Thank you for your response.

In light that I am not sure how I will be able to pay my rent next month, much less the MCAT fee or AMCAS application fees, thank you for assuring me that I am not an individual with extreme financial limitations. This is very reassuring. Since I do not have the funds to pay the registration fee, I suppose I can always use my credit card and burden myself with even more crippling debt.

Thank you for providing me with the awkward decision of choosing between food and shelter or my higher education goals. I had hoped my appeal would garner additional assistance, though, unfortunately, it seems it has fallen on deaf ears.

Sincerely,
Chelsea Unruh

I didn't receive a response.

One of the most frustrating parts about this whole situation of possible reapplication is that I feel I must be secretive about it. As I stated in the essay, I don't feel that I have many classmates here who challenge me. However, if I tell my classmates that I am applying for US schools, they will inevitably ask why and that's difficult. I want to go to a school that has smart students.* How can you say that without hurting feelings or sounding like a complete ass? It's a similar issue with my professors, although trickier as I need letters of reference from them.  I need a letter of reference so I can go to a better school, a US school.** As you can see, I have to handle this delicately. 

Starting tomorrow I am beginning a strict regiment of studying for the MCAT. I have less than a month before I take the exam and I have SO MUCH to review. I may not be posting as much, here nor on facebook, and I may be slow to respond to emails. I'm hoping I can handle 2.5 weeks of intense study without burn out. During this time, I will, however, be accepting emails or comments of encouragement and as much positive energy as can be sent this way. For now, it's off to a pre-study sleep.



* This is not exactly how I feel. There are smart students at my school. However, due to age and experience differences, there are not many students that I would call my educations peers. 
** Again, not a true statement. The school is excellent. The Polish division is the top in the country and int he top 10 in Europe. The English division, however, is not as developed and is not as competitive.

Tom and Rebecca came to visit

Piotr's brother, Tom, came from Ottawa, Canada, and Rebecca came from Shanghai, China. They met in Poland because it was exactly half way. We had a great week together, cooked amazing meals, visited some great beaches, and did some quality hanging out. Check out the photos of the week here. We have another guest coming next week, so look forward to more photos from that visit too.

The end is here.

Exams are done, school is out, & summer is here!

The day after my last exam, Piotr, his mom, and I took a train or a long weekend in the city of Poznań. It made me realize how small Gdańsk really is because Poznań is a real city! It was the new shiny sparkly Poland where Gdańsk is just not. A weekend away was exactly what we needed. View our Poznań pictures here.

This week was Piotr's name day (like a Polish 2nd birthday) with a family dinner party. Last night we had taco night with a bunch of friends from school. What I realized is that these girls don't know how to cook, so getting together to cook and eat is both a socializing and a learning experience for them. I told them what ingredients to buy and then we all worked together to make a huge great meal. It was a lot of fun. At the very end of the night though, I managed to cut open my big toe with a piece of glass which ended the night on the dramatic side as we had to improvise with what we had for first aid equipment. Using vodka as an antiseptic, bandaids as butterfly bandages, and gauze with masking tape we managed to wrap it up. The most frustrating part to me is that I have to suspend the jogging program I just started until my toe is doing better. And I was so excited to start a workout routine!

Tomorrow Piotr's brother, Tom, and his friend, Rebeca, are coming to visit for about a week. I'm looking forward to having them, but my toe has slowed me down on the cleaning front today. I have my work cut out or me for the rest of the evening!

Things I'd rather be doing

Things I'd rather be doing instead of studying for my Histology exam:

• Planning, shopping for, and building a Window Farm
• Prepping and painting the hallway
• Menu planning and grocery shopping
• Cleaning the house
• Brushing the cats
• Taking a hike
• Getting the house ready for guests
• Baking
• Dishes
• Laundry
• Knitting (I have multiple projects going on, so finishing some and starting others)
• Crocheting (again, multiple projects)
• Felting (goes back to the crafting projects)
• Blogging about above craft projects
• Blogging in general
• Watching hours of downloaded television and movies while doing the crafting listed above
• Organizing the kitchen, basement, garage, etc.
• Cleaning out the refrigerator
• Making lists (of things I'd rather be doing...)

This list is clearly not exhaustive, but looking back over it I see some pretty desperate procrastination strategies. I must resist and push forward. There is only a couple more weeks to go before I am done with year 1 and I am determined to kick this exam's ass. Ok, back to the books.

A night at the theatre

Piotr and I joined his mother and her friend for the premier of "Mały Książę" or "The Little Prince" performed at the Musical Theatre in Gdynia, Poland. The show is completely original, save the story, with new music, amazing costumes, great choreography and an integration of video. While the performance was dance based, small bits of speech and sound speckled the story giving it life. Overall, an amazing performance.

As we were leaving though two thoughts occurred to me: one, that theatre has come a long way since the last time I was in a show (nearly 10 years now); and two, that this was one of only (one) handful of theatre performances I've seen in the last 5 years. This amazed me! I was so involved in theatre in school and college, toyed with becoming a theatre major or minor, and traveled for a semester in Europe with a school group strictly focusing on theatre and literature. And I've seen less than a show a year in the last five years!

I have to thank my crew from the Portland Spirit, for without them I would have seen even less! Marianna Thielen in Sartre's No Exit was the first show I saw back in Portland and proved to be hauntingly memorable. Jacqueline Shoda-Iwasaki's opera performance at Portland State in Mozart’s "Cosi fan Tutte" was amazing. And the puppet-master, Shae Uisna, showed us a little of what she could do in Portland State's "Haroun & the Sea of Stories." Now that I think about it, I suppose the Spirit's Cinnamon Bear cruises were a form of theatre, which is probably why I enjoyed working them so much.

(I hope I'm not forgetting any performances I've seen. If anyone remembers another show I've seen, please let me know. I have a genetically inherited memory for things like this that sometimes needs reminding. )

Thank you to those who have performed, who continue to perform, and to those who have encouraged me to get out of the house and into the audience. My hat is off to you. While school takes me in a wholly different direction, albeit a good one, sometimes I long just to be back in the theatre.

Reminding me of home...

Just when you are super home-sick (read that Portland-sick), something badass like this comes past your window.

The bikes in front were Dutch style holding a complete drum line.

 

The view up the street. They took over the whole road and sidewalk.

These guys had a few seats left if anyone wanted to join.

This guy was far enough away from the front that you couldn't hear the drums anymore. So he brought his own sound system.

 

Those are ambulance bikes. Check it out, they're wearing medic suits and even bike bags with supplies.

Yes, that is an ape riding next to what could be the Polish equivalent to Little Miss Muffet.

And just like that I feel a little bit better about living here.

Some things are the same in any culture.

Just like back home, the people you work with can make or break your day. Monday was such a great day at the hospital with a really great group of nurses. Tuesday, not so much. One nurse, Ania, worked both days and thank God she was there because the rest of the group of nurses must have graduated from the Bitch School of Nursing. They bossed people around, seemed rougher with the patients, and were mean to each other. It really changed the atmosphere of the unit.

My German patient was still there and was very happy to see me, especially since right when I walked in a senile old woman had been trying to talk to him in German from across the room and was screaming "Hail Hitler!" and laughing! He asked, "Can you please explain to me what is going on here?" I shared that the older lady was a little bit crazy and just having some fun. Awkward!

I ended up leaving an hour early. The nurses had drawn straws to see who would get to go home early, the catch being that the nurse had to change the diaper and clean the shit off the bedridden patient. Ania "won" and since I was following her around, I helped her clean up the old man. She said that we both deserved to leave and that she didn't want to leave me with the mean ladies. Fair enough!

Back in the business

In order to complete the first year of classes I am required to participate in a 4-week nursing training internship at the hospital of my choice. I have already started accumulating hours by working in the Cardiac Surgery unit of the school's hospital. While there is a little bit of drama in the English Division about me working there--all the other students were told to go somewhere else, and I have a feeling it's because they don't speak (or try to speak) Polish--I must admit I am loving it. Thanks to Piotr and his family, I am very comfortable around the Polish language. Even if I don't understand everything someone says, I'm pretty good with context. Last night, I really got to put my Polish to the test.

Last night, an hour before my shift ended, we received a post-op patient, a German tourist who spoke English but not a word of Polish. The nurses, none of whom speak English nor German, were delighted that I was there and could get the patient situated. He was a nice older man but a little confused about everything going on around him. While I attended to other patients, the nurses summoned me repeatedly to help interpret. "She is going to take some blood now and connect your fluids." "Would you like to eat some dinner?" It also worked the other way though too: "Pan nie wie gdzie jest jego komuraka." (Sir does not know where is his cell phone.)

Yesterday, I also successfully drew blood for the first time all by myself. Actually, I successfully did it 5 times. I have had such a mental block when it comes to drawing blood and sticking people with needles and I was so relieved to see that I could actually do it. Most of the things I am doing in the hospital are such little things, but it feels so good to be back in a medical setting. School is great and all, but learning in a classroom can only take you so far. I feel like, despite the language barrier, I have learned so much in the few hours I've worked.

Today I have Polish class and another 4 hour shift.
Off I go!
C

They do things a bit different here.

I'll start with the bigger news because it's just too cool. I did well enough on the last (and all the previous) anatomy exam that my average for the year was 80.7%. I am exceptionally happy with my performance in the class and how I improved on each exam especially when I step back and remember that this is a medical school course. But that's not even the best part: for students who achieve an average of over 80% on all exams there is no final exam! Ok, we do have a formality of an oral exam, but after talking to the professor this sounds like it will merely be a conversation about anatomy over tea.

I'm sorry that I am tooting my own horn here, but I am excited at how the year has gone. And it is almost gone. Last weekend we had our last exam in histology before the final at the end of June. As it turns out, this is my only final exam and I have over a month to prepare for it. I haven't done as well as I'd like to in histology, but I feel like this is my chance to make up for that.

Since I am effectively done with classes for the year, Piotr and I get to focus on the apartment again. Well, he'll get to focus more after his work project is semi-wrapped up this week. Sunday, we spent half the day working on the kitchen and general cleaning/clearing of the rest of the place. Our kitchen has never looked so good! We still have a bit more to do such as installing a tile back-splash behind and to the side of the sink, putting up some matching shelves, installing a hood/vent for the stove, and so on. Regardless of how much more we have to do, it feels wonderful to have a silverware drawer!

As you can see in the photos, we get wonderful morning light in the kitchen, even if the sun is starting to rise closer and closer to 4am. We still have an ugly sticker-covered refrigerator, but it works so we'll keep it. Before we can do much else in this room, a much needed trip to the hardware store is in order. Oh, one more note about the kitchen cabinets: don't be fooled by how they look now, we had to do some serious work to get those in. The cabinet under the sink is covering a series of unmovable water & waste water pipes and had to have pieces cut to accommodate said pipes. Then building/installing the cabinet around the pipes was probably more than a two man job, but we managed. I love my kitchen!

On another subject, I have wanted to mention this on here but, as you may have noticed, have not been posting frequently. Medical school tends to get in the way of that sometimes. We have experienced a fair share of holidays in the past month or so here in Poland and let me tell you, Poland takes its holidays seriously. On labor day, for example, it is illegal to have any employees working for you. Every big shop in town is closed and the only shops that *might* be open are the little corner mom-and-pop shops and they have to be run exclusively by mom & pop. We found out the hard way that there are no food stores open on Easter or the Monday after. We have adapted to the European way of life where you shop daily for your meals, so closing a shop for a day or two can really throw things off!

That is all for now, though I will be trying to write more now that I have the time!