We love you Kara! Kara's friends and family have begun a "Click-it for Kara" campaign to encourage people to buckle up. I think this is just about the only way to deal with such a tragedy-turn it into something proactive; much the same as the MADD concept.

The countdown to Boards begins today...10 days till USMLE & 13 till COMLEX.  I can't wait until it's over!!!

Heartbroken

On Sunday Steve's cousin Kara, almost 16, was in a terrible car wreck. She was thrown from the car she was riding in and airlifted to the hospital in Daytona. The only injuries Kara sustained were, unfortunately, to her head. Yesterday Steve flew down to Florida to be with his family and say goodbye to Kara. Her life will continue on through the amazing gift of organ donation. I don't really feel like getting super personal in this blog, but I wanted to ask people to pray for Kara's family and friends as she leaves behind a whole ton of people who love her very much.

Please be careful on the road and buckle up.

Due to the fact that all I do every single day is study for boards, I have nothing the least bit interesting to blog about...so it will be about 3 more weeks before I resume being a normal person again. 

I did race the St. Joe mountain bike race a couple weeks ago (which was super duper fun and my Paragon is the best freaking bike a person could ask for) and I managed to have a really good race even though all I do is sit on my behind and read all day long. I've decided to follow in Dan Larson's training footsteps by expending as little energy as possible throughout the day so that I have everything saved up when I finally do get to ride my bike (I may keep using both sides of my mouth when I talk though). So the St. Joe trails were insanely twisty-turny and my Paragon tore that junk up. I think I made a couple guys who don't like to get beat by girls cry on their way home...how rewarding.

At the moment it is really "raining it's ass off" as Steve just eloquently put it so the Landahl race might be a no-go.

So Steve got a job at Wheat Ridge Cyclery and will be heading out in a couple weeks to find us a place to live (preferably not in the Mexican ghetto-apparently Denver is the capital of Mexican gangs, SWEET). We are totally pumped about the relocation, but sad to leave some good friends here in KC. I will be staying thru most of July and August, and then my 1st rotation starts September 2nd!

Okay, that's the extent of my boring update-ciao.

2 years from today.

This is my ridiculous dog last year on one of his many trips to Mission Med Vet...I think this is the time he got attacked by the mean neighbor dog...what a doofus.

Today is KCUMB graduation and I'm at school pseudo-helping with the event. It's exciting for me to think that my classmates and I will all be back here graduating in exactly 2 years! I found out yesterday that I passed my cumulative exam for 1st & 2nd years so, aside from boards, I'm officially a 3rd year. I've found that in med school it's the small achievements that keep you going. We're continually counting down to the completion of something...it doesn't matter how big or small it is, we need to be able to feel relief from crossing things off the checklist.

So speaking of 3rd year, Steve & I are off to Denver on Thursday to scout out houses & jobs. The trip can also double as a celebration of our 3 year anniversary! I'm super excited to see all the houses that I've been checking out online for the past few weeks, and I'm also just excited to get out of KC for a couple days and think about something other than board exams. We're staying with the Shuldas and I can't wait to finally meet Saige!

The forcast looks perfect for the mountain bike race tomorrow in St. Joe! I'm not quite sure what the course will be like, but it sounds pretty fun. I'm hoping that I can pull out a decent race even though my training has been less than desirable. I did do the Wednesday night hill ride and managed to chase back on enough times to end up with the main group...can that count as a whole week's worth of training?

Czech capital of Kansas.

This past weekend Steve, Jackson and I packed up the mom-mobile and headed west to Wilson Lake, Kansas for the Midwest Fat Tire Festival hosted by Doug Chambers & Golden Belt Bicycle Company. We didn't get to the park until after midnight on Friday and were greeted with 30+mph winds that made setting up a tent very interesting. We got very little sleep due to the constant whipping of the sides of the tent in the wind and Jackson's paranoid neroses, but (irregardless-which is in fact not a real word but all too commonly used by intelligent people as if it is) were excited to be out of Kansas City in a place with fun, dry trails. I did the hill climb on Saturday morning (twice b/c I stuffed up the 1st run) and the short track in the evening with a XC trail preview ride in between.  I was really loving the trails...lots of fairly short climbs, fun fast sweeping descents, random technical spots, longer stretches of  minimally technical trail that you could pedal hard through. 

No other expert women showed up for the weekend, so I was the lone gal on the short track start line with the expert men. They, along with a few sport guys, promptly pulled away from me from the gun, but I was able to slowly get up to and around those few sport guys by the end of their laps and I was obviously the last finisher of the 8 expert laps. I really love short track races because they're fast and intense like a road crit but you probably won't be in a big group of sketchy riders with the risk of unexpectedly smashing your face/body/bike into the asphalt. I love that you get the encouragement of the spectators on each lap vs a XC race where you might see a person or two every 30 minutes or so. It's also cool because you can see things changing in the race and feed off of the suffering of other riders (that sounds bad, I know) whereas in a XC race (which I really do love as well) I have an uncanny ability to convince myself that everyone else is riding strong and steady the whole time.

Saturday night after the races we hung out, roasted smores and got the best sleep we'd had in days. The wind died down to almost nothing and the skies were crystal clear. The next morning we ventured into the town of Wilson (which happens to be the Czech capital of Kansas) for a homecooked breakfast at a local joint called Made from Scratch-yum! 

The XC race began at 11:30 with the expert & sport racers going off together. I ,again the only expert woman, fought my urge to let everyone pass me at the start and I actually headed into the trail in front of some of the guys. I don't know what my deal is, but I hate to feel like I'm holding people up and I spaz out and mess up a bunch when I feel like this, making it worse. Anywho...the race course was gorgeous, the sun was shining and it was warm enough to sweat. I tried to keep myself in race mode even though I was only racing against myself, but many times I found myself just spacing out and enjoying the ride. 

We headed home after the race with our worthless dog who had the most fabulous weekend of his entire life. Great times were had by all and I have decided that I love Kansans.

This is our tent's inaugural adventure and this is Ivy-the smartest 2 y/o in the world who wanted to play house in our tent.

This is Jackson with marshmallow on his lip...and he and Cam breaking the wishbone stick.

XC Race

Curse the Kansas weather...

So this weekend was supposed to be our debut for the MTB season, but alas, it became the 4th race to be cancelled for the year. It seems that most of those that were planning on racing ended up doing a similarly beneficial ride/workout, but Steve & I were super lazy and took a day to relax. I decided that I would go ahead and not study since I had already marked it as a day off on my Boards study schedule. We started out with a Pancake breakfast (I feel that my pancakes are worth bragging about, along with my homemade pizza creations) then took Jackson to Loose Park and threw the frisbee for him all over the park. The day was absolutely beautiful! Jackson has finally learned not to run away from us and he actually brings the frisbee back when we throw it rather than running in the opposite direction. Since Jackson was so good at the park we drove down to the Plaza and stopped at the Three Dog Bakery. The gals that work there always feed Jackson about a million samples and he shows off his good dog behavior-anything for carrot cake & peanut butter cookies. We strolled around the Plaza for a bit and then hit up Smoothie King on the Way home. Later we decided to get our exercise by riding bikes down to the Plaza to have dinner at P.F. Changs because my wonderful dad sent us a gift card. He also sent us a Cold Stone gift card so we got some ice cream to go and rode back home with our ice cream in our bottle cages. I'd say we had a pretty fabulous day even though we didn't get to race. Now it's back to studying...

Procrastination is my game...

This is the tick that I brought home with me from Perry Lake the other day...don't worry I used tweezers and got the head out.

This is the view from where I've been sitting for what seems like 48 hours straight studying for my Reproductive final...

This is Jackson's way of helping us fold laundry. He has an insanely sneaky way of finding each and every dryer sheet...then he eats them.

And who watched The Office tonight?? Holy freaking hilarious.

And I'm back in the game!

So this is my new Gary Fisher Paragon...
This is the first 29er that I've ridden and also the first hardtail that I've ridden in a super long time. My first ride on it was quite a bit less than awesome for many reasons and I was afraid that I had made a mistake with this bike. But, after switching tires, making the wheels tubeless, adding a women's saddle and swapping out a few other things (more accurately-after Steve did all of these things for me), it has turned out to be an absolute blast to ride! I'm still getting used to the whole hardtail and 29" wheel thing, but overall I am very happy with this bike and have been taking every opportunity to get it out on the trails. I'm hoping to race it this weekend at the Heartland Series Race #2 in Trenton, MO...crossing my fingers that it didn't rain as much there as it did in KC. I'm also crossing my fingers that the 29er crew gear arrives in my mailbox before the weekend-I can't wait to see the jerseys!

SCHOOL NEWS...
I am taking my Reproductive finals this week, my OMT practical next Wednesday and then it's hardcore Boards studying time until June 18th.

JAYHAWKS are NATIONAL CHAMPS??
I'm not gonna lie, I was rooting against the freaking KU Jayhawks (Rock Chalk Jayhawk?? How ridiculous is that chant?) but Memphis became painful to watch in the last few minutes of the game and completely fell apart under the pressure...so I guess KU deserved the win. I do happen to think Lawrence, Kansas is one of the coolest cities in the country so they do have that going for them. I think I've received too much flack from obnoxious KU fans in the past 2 years for graduating from the University of Florida, that I just can't muster up the support. Way to go, though.

FAVORITE COFFEE SHOP OF THE WEEK
The Filling Station at 30th & Gilham...totally worth a try. They have fantastic coffee (the barista guy made me a surprise concoction and it was tasty) and fresh giant muffins, cookies, sandwiches, etc. It's kind of a funky, trendy place with metal tables and fixed gear bikes parked out front...I'm a (new) fan.

Goings on.

So as the few fine folks who actually read my blog have probably noticed, I'm not super great at updating my blog. I think mainly it's because I don't have anything all that interesting to write about. Nonetheless, here's an update on the life of Lis Heal...

1-We went to Florida for spring break and it was fabulous. You can read all about it on Steve's blog (it's all about blog promotion). We made the most out of our days and got to hit up the beach a few times, ride most of the trails we miss, see some of our favorite Floridians, and get some much needed sleep.  (this pic is me "studying" on spring break)

2-After tomorrow, I have 2 weeks of real class left! Well, basically it's a week of class and a week of tests. We are nearing the end of the Reproductive section and I've been enjoying it for the most part. I don't know that it's convinced me that I should go into Ob/Gyn, but it's an option. I guess I didn't realize how surgical of a specialty it is, and that's appealing to me. I also LOVE babies and pregnant women, so that would be a pretty great aspect of the specialty for me as well. I'm just not so sure about the day-to-day pelvic exams...but who knows, I will be doing my 1st one next Friday and will be sure to post about how that goes.

3-I have been invited to be on the Gary Fisher 29er crew/team! I didn't think it was actually going to happen and I had already accepted that I wouldn't be a part of it, but then out of the blue I got an e-mail about the team blog with instructions on how to begin posting on it. Assuming my inclusion was a mistake, I e-mailed the guy in charge who informed me that it was in fact not a mistake....so YAY! I'm really pumped to start the mountain bike season off soon (as soon as it stops raining/snowing/precipitating in the midwest) and could not be happier to be riding a GF 29er (where are thou Paragon??) and sporting a super sweet team jersey. I'm also pumped to sport the same jersey as the legendary Cameron Chambers (even though it makes him cry inside when he thinks about me being on his team) at the local races (Midwest Fat Tire Series here we come)...maybe it will add some intimidation factor and I can psych out my competition. I am also really excited about the prospect of Chambers/Heals Road Trips.

4-After nearly 2 years of being afraid to go on the infamous Wednesday night "hill ride," I finally did it last night! Although my performance was less than stellar, it was a really good workout and a shock to my system as I forced my body to remember what it feels like to go hard on a bike. Add a little rain and it was absolutely good times.

5-I have a little over 2 months before I have to take my first National Boards exam and I am slowly but surely beginning preparations. I intend to hit the review material hardcore as soon as Repro is over, but it is constantly looming over me at this point. I take USMLE (allopathic) on June 9th and COMLEX (osteopathic) on June 18th...and there will be much partying and good times beginning on June 19th. In the meantime, I have been able to ride my bike and study pathology at the same time thanks to Dr. Goljian's audio board review lectures...that's right, how cool am I that I listen to path lectures while riding (and I enjoy it-the guy's amazing, and funny). Whatever-it's all about multi-tasking and I've accepted that I'm a nerd.

6-Bikram yoga (hot yoga) is really cool and you should try it. I don't get to go very often, but it's a great workout and good for flexibility. You seriously sweat your brains out for an hour and a half...it's great, do it.

Where art thou spring break?

This is the crew that finished off a week of fun, hardcore training with an off-road duathlon (run/bike/run) at Leawood City Park. It was awesome to ride my bike on trails again...it's been way too long. Ben Schleogel graciously allowed me to participate in this EnduraCamp winter session that included spinning, yoga (at Jiva Studio), urban adventure running, plyometrics, strength work (at the Fit Pit), swimming, etc. The week of activities was super well planned and was geared toward people who work during the day so I was pumped to be able to make it to most of the activities. Ben, Cameron, Pat and Ken put in all kinds of work in order to make it happen and I really appreciate it! In case it's not completely evident, I highly recommend doing one of these camps. I had such a good time training with a great group of people all week long and now I'm full of motivation to continue getting into better shape.

Next week Steve and I are heading down to Florida for my last spring break ever. I didn't think about it being my last one until this very minute, but I fully intend to savour every minute of it. My major objective for the week is to go to the beach and get a tan. I think it's been almost 2 years since my skin wasn't pasty white and I intend to do something about that (I'd also intend to relax and destress). Steve's main objective for the week is to mountain bike on trails that aren't covered in snow, ice, or mud. Thank God for sandy Florida trails. While in Florida, we are going to try to see as many people as we can in Gainesville, Daytona, and Tallahassee...so give us a ring if you live in or near those places-we want to see you!

Continuing on with my school countdown...I've got 1 full day of classes next week (then lab and exams) and then 5 more weeks after spring break!! Woo hoo!

Light at the end of the tunnel

This is a picture of my hubby the year before I met him and before he had to work all the time and he had time to ride his bike (or lay out in the sun with his jersey on). 

So after this week, I officially only have 7 weeks left of real med school classes!!! I will still have classes over the summer, but they are supposed to be more fun, hands-on type classes where we learn things that will help us not look like morons when we start rotations in September. I also have to take Boards in June, but at least we will be finished with all the systems in 7 short weeks! I almost can't believe that I've made it to this point. I remember starting class last year and thinking that 2 years of classes seemed like an eternity; it has really flown by. The problem with the time flying by is that I don't exactly know what I want to be when I grow up yet. I feel a lot of pressure to know what residency I plan on applying for and it's almost impossible for me to look into potential residency programs at this point because there are so many that I think I might be interested in (I don't even know which type of residency, forget specific programs). I have been using AAMC's Careers in Medicine website and it has been really helpful. These are the specialties that I am currently considering:

Pediatric Emergency Med, Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, Neuro surgery (is it too bold to say that I'm interested in that out loud??), ObGyn (not so much on the Gyn part, but we'll see), Peds Ortho, Neonatal/perinatal, Interventional cardiology, Peds Cardiology, Peds endocrinology, Peds plastic surgery, radiation oncology, interventional radiology, Thoracic surgery, and Congenital cardiac surgery. 

Ummm....yeah, so that's my problem. I listed 14 specialties!!! I have almost narrowed the list down to just pediatric specialties, but I believe it's going to take me shadowing each type of doc in order to rule them in or out. Awesome, I'll go ahead and do that in my spare time. I know I will eventually figure it out, I'm just feeling anxious to know what I am meant to spend my life doing (as far as my career goes).

**Feel free to make suggestions!**

So aside from school, I am trying to get my butt back in shape for the upcoming mountain bike season. I have been going to spin class at the gym because I'm a baby about the cold and I like the torture of doing intervals. I said in my last post that I was going to do the PsychoWyco run last weekend, but I decided I didn't have the $40 to spend on the entry fee so I did the LisHeal Trolley Trail Run instead. I have been wanting to run the whole trail since we moved here in August and finally did it. It was the longest run I've done since we moved to KC (12.5 miles) and it was a real challenge. I feel that I'm on my way back to doing regular long runs again, which I have really missed. I would absolutely love to be back at the San Felasco trails in Gainesville. 

Minor Park post-snow melting run

So I decided to go for a run today on the trails at Minor Park in preparation for the PsychoWyco run on February 9th. I knew it would be muddy since the snow has just melted (I'm not a complete idiot), but I was not quite prepared for the amount of muck that turned my sweet Salomon XCRs into 20 lb. moon boots. I may as well have worn ballet slippers because I was sliding all over the place! I am surprised every single time by the mud here in Kansas City; there's nothing anywhere close to this in Florida-it's like glue, dirt, and diarrhea mixed together. I hope the Earthriders won't be pissed at me for messing up the trails...I feel like running is less destructive than riding on wet trails, however.

So I've chosen some rides/runs to train for since I get very complacent if I don't have something specific to work towards.
#1: PsychoWyco trail run. (Hopefully the 10 mile run)
#2: Dirty Kanza. (Okay, seriously...I don't know if it's physically possible for me to ride 200 miles on dirt roads with the lack of time I have to spend on my bike, but my goal is to finish...no one will see me sprinting off the line; Steve Heal put me up to this particular challenge)
#3: Nashville Country Music Marathon (I've been wanting to do this race forever, so perhaps 2008 is the year to make it happen...I may pick another one to do instead around the same time, but we'll see)

10 Reasons why I can't wait to move to DENVER.

1. The Rocky Mtns will reside on my license plate

2. Wahoo Fish Tacos

3. Season passes to ski

4. No more class! I'd rather work 24 hours straight at the hospital than go to class and take tests every other week

5. REI

6. Boulder

7. A billion mountain bike trails will be within riding distance of my house

8. Sarah & Scott Shulda & unnamed baby girl

9. People will actually want to come visit us because Colorado is freaking sweet

10. Everything's better in Denver

oh to be back in australia.

So I've decided to start a blog. I don't really know what purpose it will serve other than to help me waste time when I should be studying, but we'll see...perhaps it will be entertaining.

This picture is from a few years ago when I was living in Australia. I like to daydream about going back sometime soon...what an amazing country. I can't put my finger on what I love about it, but there is a general attitude or outlook that I am drawn to. Perhaps they'll be looking for a doctor that fits my description in a few years.

I have a blogspot.com!