The American Dream

I was walking in the Crossroads District near downtown KC and came upon this steak house. As a pseudo-vegetarian, I'm not sure why you would want to advertise the head of one's dinner on the outside of the restaurant.

Leaving Kansas City

Well, I didn't have much luck with public transport to the airport so had to pay the 17 dollar transport fee. So it goes. At least there's free Wi-Fi at KCI Airport.

The Family Medicine conference was a bit overwhelming. There were a plethora of residency programs from all over the U.S., trying to sell their program and giving me lots of free stuff. I made out with some waterbottles (as if I needed more), a nifty blue flashlight pen (unfortunately, it doesn't match my stethoscope, but I already have one that does match my maroon stethoscope, thank goodness!), and tons of chocolate. I could have wrangled up more free stuff, but I got tired of talking to residents and program directors after a few hours.

The northwest programs (Washington/Oregon) are appealing to me and the residents I spoke with were wonderful. But I feel that most anywhere you go, the residents will be super nice and whatnot. So I think a great deal of trying to figure out residency is based on where one wants to live rather than solely on the program.

Some of the states held receptions on Thursday/Friday evening so I ended up not having to spend very much on food, which was VERY exciting. For breakfast/lunch, we got monopoly-type money for food from registration. I also got to try some of Oregon's microbrewery beer - Dead Guy Ale, (http://www.rogue.com/brews.html), quite tasty, your taste buds will thank you!

For some reason, I couldn't handle all day, every day Family Medicine, so I took the afternoons off and went out and about. The newly renovated Nelson Art Museum has a great collection of art and the world's largest birdies. I also went to "The Plaza" which is an upscale outdoor shopping experience, very similar to the Grove in Los Angeles. It was a nice area, but not really my scene. There was also a great farmer's market which was incredibly cheap! Quarts of blueberries for ONE DOLLAR!

"Crushed by massive birdie"

My flight has been delayed due to an Air Force One landing in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Darn President Bush. Actually, its not too much of a delay, and I'm sure he has lots to do there with the bridge falling and all. Actually, I'm glad for the delay as it means I can procrastinate from packing. I think that will be an adventure in itself. Packing 2 suitcases for a year in a place that has all four seasons, especially a harsh winter, does not sound too appealing to me right now.

Kansas City

I arrived in steamy Kansas City, Missouri yesterday afternoon, after a super early flight of 6am from Hartford. I ended up having a 4 hour layover in Detroit and used the time to watch "Finding Neverland." The movie is quite poignant and I thought to myself, "great, here I am in the middle of the airport, trying to brush away my tears." (If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it)

Anyhoo, I was psyched to find a public transport bus to the downtown area for only 50 cents! I saved myself the hassle of a $17 shuttle trip. Apparently, it was an "ozone alert" day which meant that the fare was reduced from a buck and a quarter to fifty cents. I guess I was more caught up with the savings than worrying about the signifcance of "ozone alert."

Everyone so far has been incredibly friendly and welcoming. I'm impressed with the Mid-West hospitality, as people in the Northeast are not overly hospitable. Don't get me wrong, we're nice people, but not as nice as the Midwest folk.

Today, is the first day of the Family Medicine Conference. I'm hoping to get more information on various residency programs across the country, minus the sout and mid-west, no offense.