AlanChengMD: What have I been up to lately...

This past month has been an easier month. This is my "consult" month - where I get to work regular hours M-F, no overnight call, no weekends. I have been on the GI consult service, which is a specialty that I'm interested in. Its been good - we see people with GI bleeds, trouble swallowing, abdominal pain, diarrhea, liver and pancreas problems, and more. They have cool "toys" to play with, mainly the "scopes": colonoscopy and upper endoscopy. At first glance, yes, its sounds gross sticking a plastic hose up someone's ass - who would want to do that? But its kinda cool, like a video game. In one hand you have the controls, which feels like a complex airplane joystick. Your other hand is, well, sticking the plastic hose up someone's ass. There's not much poop, since the patient is supposed to take a strong laxative to clean out their colon before the procedure. And while you're in, you can look for any problems, use tools to remove polyps or get biopsies, and even in the stomach use things like lasers and rubber bands to stop bleeding. You can even get near the liver and pancreas and use ultrasound, or even xrays while you're in to remove gallstones or get biopsies.

I've also had a 2 week vacation this month, which quickly came and went. I had a fantastic time, going back to Atlanta to see some old friends and visit the old school. Got to hang with Ben at a Falcons game and played some tennis with him, and met up for dinner and drinks with my good med school friends Shveta, Dinesh, Dorothy, Mariano, Pei and Alice. Got to see Nicole's aunt Carey and her kids Warner and Kate and their cute golden retrievers, though it was sad to hang out there without Steve (Nicole's uncle who recently passed away).

Then I came back to North Carolina, where my parents visited Nicole and I for a long weekend. We went for some good dim-sum, showed them around the city and where I work, and they even outfitted our 'home theatre' with a new projector!

And then I went to Long Island with Nicole, to hang out with her mom and Francis out in their summer home. It is in Orient, the far eastern (not the "far east") part of Long Island, where its covered by miles of vineyards and fresh farmstands. The house, which is old and rustic with an outdoor shower, has a view of the bay, which is gorgeous. We ate and drank and just lounged around.

Nicole has worked the last 2 months up here in North Carolina, doing some elective rotations as part of her PA schooling. And she just finished a week of vacation as well, and is now back in Atlanta to finish up school. She graduates December 9, and will officially be a Physician Assistant by then, and my sugar momma. I'm sad she's not here... =(

Other cool updates --
- Jenny just found out she is pregnant! Jenny and Jeff, along with Tyler who's almost 3 is expecting their second!
- Amy just started at University of Florida and is loving it!
- I heard Bryan is trying out for American Idol. He's got the look, cuz he looks a lot like Clay Aiken

Alex and Sarah, our neighboring twins. Alex is an ER resident at UNC, and Sarah is a PhD grad from UF. We live in the same neighborhood, and yes, girls dig the Asians guys.

Nate and Amy with Nicole (note long stick for marshmallow). Amy is one of Nic's good friends from PA school, and Nate is Amy's soon-to-be-fiance.