squeezing in time

Still on this endless stream of night shifts in the ER... I was deathly ill on Sunday, with a fever to 102, and thought I either had strep throat or the flu. I had a co-resident do a strep test on me which was negative, so I'm fairly certain I had the flu. I have never been that sick in my adult life. Other than that one time I got sick with gastroenteritis in Ecuador and couldn't get out of bed for 3 days.

So. it's been busy. But I wanted to share two things.

I went to the Oriental Institute for the first time since I moved to Chicago. They had an exhibit on a mummy named Merasamun, who they recently put through the high tech CT scanner at the hospital. We were amused. It was a really interesting exhibit and they have a lot of other cool permanent exhibits there!

Last night, we finally went to North Pond. The Husband got a gift certificate for his birthday, and we tried to go for Valentines Day but he got sick. So even though I'm recovering from the flu, I felt well enough to venture out there last night. It was so worth it. We went with the 5-course tasting menu. and here are some pictures.

this was the amuse bouche. an oyster that smelled funny and green apple jelly with pureed cauliflour and mini-cavier. not my favorite.

this course was yum. it was lobster tortellini and crab, in broth. couldn't get enough.

this was scallops and pork belly. the scallops were okay but the pork belly was fabulous. so fatty and extra crispy skin. mmmmmmmm.

this was the "main" course of grass-fed beef. a little chewy.

this was another highlight- coconut foam and passionfruit custard.

and the grand finale dessert- chocolate wafer and milk ice cream with chocolate flakes. yum.

sleep deprivation

argggg. It's 1am and I'm wide awake... I've had 4 10-hour ER shifts in the past 5 days and I have 6 more in the next week. With crazy hours like 6pm-4am, I won't see the Husband for 4 days.

I really hate working in the ER... it's just cold after cold after cold... educating people that no, a fever won't kill your child. and yes, the fever will come back after the motrin wears off and it doesn't mean you need to rush your child to the emergency room at 3 in the morning. and that small patch of ringworm she's had for a week? that won't kill her either. sigh. so jaded.

different pace

after restaurant week, we really needed to penny-pinch and eat at home.

we've been moderately successful.

we met up with friends for brunch at Southport Grocery and Cafe. they are famous for their cupcakes, supposedly. but i had their breadpudding pancakes and thought they were delish. very moist. i could only finish 2 pancakes of the 3, because it was pretty heavy.

the next day, we had dim sum with some out-of-town friends at The Phoenix. mmm. i think we're going back here this next weekend.

i've been enjoying my outpatient allergy/immunology rotation. though i must admit, toward the end, it's gotten quite boring and unexciting. but i'm sad because tomorrow, i start working in the ER again and that means back to all night shifts and crazy sleep cycles. :(

we did manage to have friends over for dinner twice this week. mostly, our place is not presentable, but we did some "spring" cleaning over the weekend.

this morning, i spent literally 3 hours filling out paperwork from UCLA.

confession

Dear Readers,

I have a huge confession... I've been in denial. I didn't want to tell you.

But I have relapsed into my addiction for Flamin Hot Cheetos. It started out so innocently. Just one little bag from the store. I tried to replace this unhealthy addiction with Cheddar Chex Mix, which are very good. But I keep going back. I can't help it. It's a disease. It makes my stomach hurt but not always, so I refuse to believe there's a direct connection.

I hope you forgive me... and support me as I try to get back on the Wagon.

Love,

Vivian

first the diploma, now the license

the medical school diploma hangs over my desk...

it says that the University conferred on me, the degree of "Doctor of Medicine."

it's still a little hard to believe.

during residency, i've been practicing under a temporary illinois license.

but a couple days ago, i received my REAL california license.

it only took 5 months and a mound of paperwork (including my fingerprints being sent to the FBI and DoJ) to receive my california license.

it certifies that i apparently "possess the qualifications, education and training prescribed by law: and am "hereby granted a license as a Physician and Surgeon entitled to practice the profession of medicine in the state of california."

i am so excited.

culinary adventures

David Burke's Primehouse

we went for restaurant week because i'm pretty sure they offered the best deal, so to speak, of all the restaurants that participated in restaurant week. david burke's is famous for the SALT CAVE and the unbelievable aging process, whereby they let the meat sit and basically rot, infusing more flavor into the meat, and then chop off the bad parts, and serve a most perfect steak. for $32, we had a pre-fixe meal with a few options for each course. i chose the lobster bisque, the 28-day aged delmonico, and the prime dessert chocolate cake. mmmmmmmmmmmm. every thing i ate there was lovely. the lobster bisque was so full of fresh lobster taste. the 28-day aged steak was melt-in-your-mouth. and the chocolate cake was rich and decadent.

The Publican

oh wow. this was our third time at the publican and i'm really going to miss it when we move. we went for the brew masters series with three floyds, during which the publican introduced their very own beer! banana split 7". i didn't have the beer pairing but i pretty much tasted each one anyway. we started out with the yellowtail crudo with intense candied orange zest and celery. mmmmmmmmm, anyone who loves sushi, or sashimi rather, would have loved this starter. i couldn't get enough. then... we had the duck heart. yes. you read that right. DUCK HEART, with oyster mushrooms and fried polenta. first of all. none of us, except Dan, knew they would be serving duck heart. in fact, when Dan sent out the email about this dinner, he purposely deleted the "heart" part so we all thought we were getting duck. but it was too late to back out once we realized. this is how i felt:
but really...? it was sort of like eating pork rinds... if you think about it, it will totally gross you out. but if you don't think about it, it's DELISH. and the duck heart was the perfect texture to go along with the mushrooms. you could almost convince yourself it was just another mushroom with the most intense duck flavor. :) after surviving that experience, we had the pot au feu with baby chicken (mild in flavor but very tender), morteau sausage (the best sausage i've had), and pot roast (the highlight of the entire meal). the pot roast just about melted in your mouth. SO GOOD. and the meal ended with a very tart yogurt panna cotta with passion fruit and granola. i was practically licking my plate.