Costa Rica thoughts

On vacation in Costa Rica, and it is a rather intriguing country to visit. Its natural beauty is obvious and the Costa Ricans have done an excellent job (from what I've seen) in preserving much of it, especially given the immense tourism industry it possesses.

Some thoughts on things I've noticed while visiting:

• On first impression in the airport, when arriving, it is absolutely flooded with tourists. I haven't been to Mexico or Hawaii so I can't speak in relative terms but I felt like I was in an American airport like in Florida or something. The crowd consisted mostly of tweens and young families with a few interspersed retirees.
• Poverty exists  and is apparent in some areas, but it doesn't quite have the feel of typical developing nations, nor does it give off the vibe of it putting up a massive luxurious front to hide the rest of the population (more than other places, at least). There does appear to be some money floating around in its economy from the thriving tourism industry. 
• I don't sense a strong resentment nor a will to exploit the tourism industry from the people here. More often than not, it more seems that the locals are proud to show off what their country has to offer, but are also fiercely defensive on preserving it... I appreciate both of those qualities.
• We asked one of our tour guides what has made Costa Rica safe for so long, and he quickly replied that their country has no army! A google search verified that it has been abolished since 1948 after the end of their most recent civil war. Since then, unlike any of its neighbors, there have been no further conflicts in over 50 years. 
• Again on tourism - I think it's astounding that given the foreign money that comes in, the locals still don't expect tips. They are gladly appreciated of course, but unlike many other places I've visited with strong tourism, they haven't taken tips for granted to this point.

And I haven't even talked about what we've explored yet. Until next time!

Blog adjustments in the dead of winter

Just my luck, my last winter in Ottawa is apparently one of the most miserable ones they've had here in years. I talked to a physician today who has lived here her whole life and says this is the worst (combination of cold, snow, cloud) that she can remember.

Despite that, I haven't really been keeping up with this blog. Finishing my research took up a lot of my time for a couple weeks in February, and studying for the big exam has begun.

With that said, I wanted to announce a "shift", I'll be making with what I'll be writing here. I wanted to make it more useful for the people or tumbleweeds who come across these parts. Self-serving blogs are a dime a dozen. The interesting, insightful and engaging blogs are the ones that people want to read. Every now and then, I'll still use this as a sounding board for something I'm going through in the raw moment because hey, it's the internet... but I feel that this blog should also serve some usefulness rather than me using this as a virtual soapbox half the time.

There still won't be a particular topic of focus. I keep myself busy with too many random things (at least for now) to commit to that. You can see on the right side the plethora of random labels I've assigned to blog posts over the years... but the focus will shift... I'm gonna try to see how each most posts can be one or more of the following: a) a post of interest, b) a post of insight or something to think about, or c) a post of utility to you, the reader.

Friday night music: Home call

Home call. Quiet evening. It's a Miles Davis/Nina Simone kind of night.

Top ten favourite albums of 2013

Thought long and hard about these personal rankings. There's a few more albums I want to listen to more closely like Laura Marling and Kurt Vile, and I'm still trying to convince myself I like more than a handful of songs on Arcade Fire's Reflektor. Alas, these are the ones I encountered throughout the year and that I feel will have the most staying power for me for years to come.

10. Robby Hunter Band - Magic City Hippies
9. Darkside - Psychic
8. The National - Trouble Will Find Me
7. Lorde - Pure Heroine
6. London Grammar - If You Wait
5. Vampire Weekend - Modern Vampires of the City
4. Blood Orange - Cupid Deluxe
3. Phoenix - Bankrupt!
2. HAIM - Days Are Gone

1. Daft Punk - Random Access Memories

Honourable mentions: Lucius - Wildewoman, Sigur Ros - Kveikur, Rudimental - Home, Basia Bulat - Tall Tall Shadow


Daft Punk takes home the title in the end... not because I love all of it (Cupid Deluxe and Psychic are the only two albums I would listen to all at once in the future), but when it hits its strong parts, man they're strong. I've listened to "Give Life Back to Music", "Giorgio by Moroder", "Get Lucky", "Motherboard" and "Fragments of Time" countless times, and I don't know if I'll ever tire of them. Unfortunately I didn't quite 'get' "Touch" which is supposed to be the piece de resistance of the LP, but the supporting cast of the back half of the album made up for it. To me though, this album was more than just the songs. In a day and age where it's cool to have made an album in a day in your underwear, the robots crammed every bit of sound and layer in ridiculously expensive studios, almost exclusively used live instrumentation without looping, and marked the trendy return of disco in the music industry this year (which looks like will continue into 2014).


In the end, there wasn't one album that I absolutely loved from top to bottom, and of course HAIM and Daft Punk were as close as it got, with them more of a 1a and 1b, I'd say. I like how the list covered all parts of the year... there were a few weeks in the summer where I was almost exclusively listening to Phoenix and Vampire Weekend. Lorde's album caught me by surprise in the fall when I was really into If You Wait. The National just hung around all year.

With all that said, I'm gonna be making some changes with the blog. I'll detail more in the next post but I think I'm gonna be moving all my music-related posts to my tumblr except for Friday Night Music.

Trail mix

Nothing compelling to write about today, so instead it will be a pot pourri, nay a TRAIL MIX of quick points:

• I had a couple interviews this week for two very good programs. Two more to follow in the next two weeks. I always find it interesting the extremely friendly yet underlying tense atmosphere behind interviews especially when it is happening en masse. It's also intriguing how one portrays and sees oneself because it is a time where you're putting yourself on display, like a product to be purchased. 
• I think these interviews were actually the first time I've faced the 'panel' format versus the in vogue 'MMI' more commonly seen for medical school and residency interviews. The most striking difference is it is essentially over before you know it. There's no rest time to regroup. You gotta lay it out all on the line all at once. 
• I really like that music can be (in fact it should be) a shared experience. Some of my most favourite and unique artists, were from friends' recommendations. Basia Bulat is an example, from my friend Courtney who randomly went to her concert, and I've posted one of her songs below. 
• I wrote 'can be a shared experience' above because it's not always shared. It can often be a rather unilateral dictation of what people should or should not like especially in the blogosphere, or what's good and what isn't. I've always maintained that songs I post here are "favourites" (i.e. subjective taste), and not something that can be objectively seen as "best". 
• Speaking of favourites, Arcade Fire is out with their newest album Reflektor. I've listened to it a few times and the album as a whole isn't quite pulling me in. It's growing on me a little but, only a few isolated songs stand out to me. I posted my favourite one below. 
• Another pet peeve about the blogosphere climate is only a handful give credit where it's due or cite the site (lol) when they post something "new". Comes with the pretentiousness I guess. 
• I miss gourde season. 

Arcade Fire - We Exist

Who needs coffee when you have CCR?

Busy night? Yeah. A couple hours of interrupted sleep, on home call night no less.

How do I fix this zombie-like sensation?

1. CCR - who needs coffee when you have them? 




2. Fresh ground coffee, just for good measure
3. Avocado scrambled eggs - I made these a few months ago when I had some extra guacamole lying around and the results are MARVELOUS. The avocado add this extra creaminess in the eggs that just make it melt in your mouth. Added some cilantro, feta, cheddar and grape tomatoes today. Hallelujah! 

Walt Jr. would be so proud.

Thankful

It's been a tiring weekend. Three overnight shifts in a row, with the last one tonight. I'll likely be sleeping through most of holiday Monday.

But I'm still thankful. I'm appreciative of the series of opportunities I've been fortunate to have, leading to where I am today. I'm grateful for the support I've received at every step of my life. I'm thankful for my safety, health, experiences and where I am in my career. I'm thankful that I still enjoy my career the far majority of the time. I'm very fortunate to have been born where I was and when. I'm indebted to my friends and family.