7 weeks 'til MN

It is hard to believe that over 3 weeks have already gone by since I arrived back in Omaha following my 5 week vacation to home, Ireland, and Mexico. Pretty soon I will be on my 7th and final Omaha rotation, and then I'll be living with my sister and brother-in-law in Minnesota. And my time in Omaha, though a good experience overall, will have come to an end. The reason this is on my mind is that I am currently wishing I was there, and not here, and I have been having to make quite a lot of trips up north recently, and will be doing so again Thursday for a weekend with Amy & the fam, plus two interviews. Sure would save some money on gas and oil changes!

Speaking of traveling - I finally joined AAA! I had no idea it was so cheap to join, and that membership came with so many benefits. I highly recommend it to anyone else who does a lot of traveling, and I know it would have come in handy a few times over the past couple of years during all of my road tripping to MN and WI.  It was only $58 for the entire year, and short of fixing your car, they'll do just about everything for you, incl towing and changing batteries. Nice!

I have recently discovered that my desire to look and feel healthier has really taken ahold of me. I've found myself going to the gym or working out at home pretty religiously -and I can tell a difference already. Just from watching the P90X commercials, I've pretty much designed my own workout, and I haven't been this sore in awhile! Feels great and I think that tonight I may take a night off from the muscle building and concentrate on leaning up some more. On that note, I also can't wait until it's nice out so that I can play tennis regularly. Watching the Australian Open and playing last week with Amy was a blast and with the new racquet I have, I've never played better, especially after a long layoff.

My NAPLEX (pharmacy boards) review book came in the mail yesterday, and I already have started looking at its cardiology section in preparation for my next rotation, which I anticipate being my most difficult, due to material and preceptor. So far it looks like a pretty good book, and I'm sure I'll spend a good month with it leading up to the exam. That reminds me, registering for the Naplex and law exams costs over $1000, which is outrageous IMO. I mean, I'm already in waaay too much debt, and then I'll be adding that on top of my tuition loans. Sure is an investment in yourself, isn't it? It will be nice to finally have a positive cash flow in the next year!

I know I spoke of how excited I am at the prospect of becoming more fit earlier, but one thing I do really enjoy that doesn't so much coincide with this idea is my love for trying new craft beers. I've recently discovered Beer Advocate's website, and their list of the top 100 world beers - and so now I have another list to pick at. Most of them aren't even available in Omaha, which is good, since I don't really have the money to spend on these beers - since a 6-pack is usually closer to $10 than not - but everytime I'm at a bar that offers new beers I haven't tried, I make a point of changing that. I tried the Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout (9.0% ABV) at McCoy's in St Louis Park the other night, and it was delicious! And the best bar in the Cities as far as craft brews is concerned just so happened to be the spot of my first date with Amy - the Happy Gnome in St Paul. Check it out if you've never been, the food is fantastic and the beer selection is top notch. Just stay away from anything labeled as having a "chalky" texture...