A quick costume change

This is not the first time I have decided to go for fairy wings as a low-effort Halloween costume. However, this costume quickly became medium-effort when I found that there is a huge floral supply warehouse just a five minute walk from campus.

In ninth grade, I was a fairy in our school's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream; subsequently, I have been drawn to fairies in art, literature, and design. If it isn't clear from this blog, I like plants and want to be surrounded by them. The florist supplier was a wonderland of silk flowers and foliage and ribbons -- my favorite part of any arts and crafts store, but at an unreal scale.

If/when I enter private/group practice, I will decorate my clinic to my heart's desire.

I still do want to revisit my autumnal fairy costume from two years ago (sparkly orange wings with foliage) and make a crown and wand. Maybe I can alternate Halloweens with these fairy costumes. Anyhow, I don't have a good name for this dark fairy costume. I place curses and may cause disease (congenital birth defects of the thorax, abdomen, or pelvis...exam tomorrow).

I'll keep the wings, crown, and wand for future Halloweens or costume-required events. They're props and don't take up much space, and will save me the trouble of hunting down costume items in the future. The wings were bought new, and the big blue flower, the blueberry pick, and the black leaves came from the aforementioned florist supplier. I used a friend's black electrical tape and the whole effort looks kind of cool.

I haven't decided if I'll be going to the exam tomorrow in costume. I'll bring it with me to school just in case.

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And to follow, I have a more reflective post coming up, mostly about gross anatomy and my career goals and about Boston. As spoilers: it's fun/sadly almost over/lots of Latin, surgery, cold and historical. I'm possibly going backpacking in New Hampshire or Vermont this coming weekend, but I'm not sure about that yet.

A/W 2016 | Wardrobe Planning

Alternative title: Winter Is Coming

1.5 weeks ago, a perplexing heat wave swept Boston and I wondered when summer would end. Well, the weather changed precisely around the autumn equinox and yesterday was rainy and mid-50s F. Over the past few weeks, I've been collecting cold weather advice from classmates, and it looks like I actually really do need to plan my purchases this time around. Early childhood in Chicago notwithstanding, this is my first real winter.

Coat and shirt from L. L. Bean, denim jacket and jeans from Levi's

1. L. L. Bean Winter Warmer Coat - this coat is rated +15 F/-35 F light/moderate activity, which means almost nothing to me because I have no concept of what +15 F, much less -35 F feels like. What I do know is that this temperature rating more or less covers what I can expect of a typical Boston winter. It is down-filled, is long, and has a hood. I showed this coat to a friend born and raised in Boston and she gave her stamp of approval
2. Levi's trucker jacket - last week, I rooted around an army/navy surplus near Boston Common looking for socks, and found a huge selection of jackets instead. I'm looking for something for another jacket to tide me over to parka weather. The men's Levi's jackets I found, some sherpa-lined and some not, seem like ideal candidates. They're pricey, but maybe I can find one secondhand. The women's cut is too high at the waist, of course, and the men's XS seems a good size on me
3. L. L. Bean scotch plaid flannel shirt, blackwatch - I have wanted this exact shirt for months now. I have about three total long-sleeved shirts, which does not seem like enough for the impending cold weather. Although I am sure I could find many other flannels like it in thrift stores, this may be one that I buy new to get the exact color and size
4. Levi's jeans - I have jeans, but I want more. Specifically, I'm looking for a looser fit, and something that I can wear a base layer underneath if it gets cold. I don't care for the skinny fit anymore, and given my recent squat and deadlift gains, my jeans are even skinnier. In all likelihood, I will buy a new pair of jeans during Black Friday and flip a coin about black or blue
5. All the other things - a hat, a scarf, wool socks, mittens if my gloves prove insufficiently warm, a little black dress for when I need to clean up nice

It's been a damn long time since my last post. Medical school has been great. Gross anatomy is everything I have dreamed of and more. I found friends and have been catching up with old ones as well. I jumped onto an orthopedic surgery research project as a code monkey. I still want to be an orthopedic surgeon, but general surgery and trauma surgery and EM all look cool. Boston is changing colors, but right now it's just grey and rainy. That's the story thus far.