Well, hello again!

In the blink of an eye, another month or so has gone by and I've managed to go through all of September without posting on this blog even once. Things really have been that busy around here, and I can't believe how quickly this past month flew by. School has been keeping me on my toes. Since the 3rd week of school or so, my cohort began our midterms, and we'll hand in our final midterm (almost an oxymoron!) next Monday. There are also homeworks and projects and things due every week on top of those, and always many really interesting-sounding lectures to choose from and squeeze in :D So we've been really busy, and it has been a challenge to stay on top of it all. I really love it, though. I still get excited on almost a daily basis about some neat thing we talk about in class or in conversations or hear in speeches, so I guess that's a good sign ;-) Today was a perfect example - thinking outside of the box and encouraging creativity in problem solving, merits and limitations of ANOVA testing (somehow, the biostats professors here manage to make even that mundane-seeming subject truly interesting. Needless to say I am impressed and happy), monopolies, oligopolies, and monopsonies, non-profit efforts to further public health agendas, and encouraging pharma. to develop drugs for the diseases most prevalent in developing countries.

Ok, I know, that was really quite nerdy :-) But this is the stuff that gets me up in the morning and makes me look forward to the next day, and something that I am passionate about. Public health, as a multidisciplinary approach to the social and economic ills that result in poor health for millions of people around the world, really has tremendous power and potential to bring about positive change. People here are passionate about what they do in this vast field, and one cannot help but catch onto this drive that easily spreads like wildfire. Or an infectious disease in a highly susceptible population. You get the idea. That's what I love about this place.

That's not to say that I don't get tired though. It's incredibly intense so I do need my time to decompress and relax. I've been doing that this past month by enjoying my roomies and friends, eating yummy foods, music (listening to, and trying to write some songs..I really need to find a keyboard so I can try some of them out. I would love to learn guitar as well. And I listen to K's Choice and Manu Chao so much that I've almost always got one of their songs stuck in my head :-), working out sometimes, exploring my neighborhood when I can, reading for fun, and trying to structure some sort of language curriculum for myself. No, I have not given up on that idea. I sometimes think I should just find a job that allows me to travel all over the world and immerse myself in new cultures for extended periods of time. Completely a fantasy, but it would be a wonderful thing to do if you can find the funding for it ;-)

So I'm doing just fine here :-) Loving this so far for what I'm learning about things external to me, and for what I'm learning about myself.

I miss my old friends though, so much. They are constantly in my mind and I wonder what they are doing, what their lives are like, when and if I'll ever see them again. And you, the lovely reader, are thinking, well quit blogging and write/call them already! You clever folk, you :-)



Before I end this post, an enthusiastic plug for Afghan food. Savory, subtle, delicious, and I will be back for more! If you are ever in Baltimore, check out the Helmand Restaurant; here is a link:

http://www.helmand.com/