JACK!

Philly, part I

Since I loved my trip to Milwaukee so much, I decided to fly out to Philadelphia for the same reason, but this time I took Eliza. She was such a good sport for flying out there on a red-eye flight, 7 months pregnant. (It was a horrible flight, although I realize now that all flights are horrible.)

Despite our lack of sleep, the first day was great: we rented a van, drove out to the country, found an enormous mall in a town named King of Prussia (no joke), and bought clothes at H&M. Well, I bought clothes while Eliza slept in the van --I was making up for our trip to Europe when I didn't get to buy anything at the London H&M because Eliza wanted me to wait until we were in Paris, but we only found the women's H&M in Paris, and therefore my opportunity to buy those great corduroy pants, which would have come in handy this winter, was foiled, though probably for the best because I ended up not fitting into their pants since I've gained so much sympathy weight during Eliza's pregnancy.

Wow, what a tangent...

Our hotel was in downtown Philly, in the Chinatown neighborhood. We ate great chinese food. I didn't know Beef with Broccoli could taste so good! We also ate philly cheesesteak sandwiches, which were awesome.

I had high expectations that this trip, like any trip I take, would be a gastronomical delight. I researched trendy restaurants, mapped out an eating plan, everything. But, like on any trip I take, I was let down. It just so happens that I married a person who doesn't share my excitement and appreciation of food, especially while pregnant. Eliza is content to eat peanut M&Ms for breakfast, McDonalds french fries for lunch, and dinner, well, dinner is optional.

I have to thank Pam for teaching her daughter such good eating habits...

Another unexpected tangent.

Due my inability to reach the point of this post, which is that I had an awesome medschool interview in Philadelphia, I am going to conclude now and attempt it again tomorrow.

Stay tuned to find out about the interview, the school, and my mad east-coast driving skills; and be the first ones to read the heartwarming essay, Ring the Bell for Freedom, My Brother, by Eliza P. Platt-Hutchings, inspired by the Liberty Bell.

FRIGID!

That is the only way that I can describe the degree and saturation of coldness that I felt in Milwaukee. The sad thing is, I really liked it there, and I wouldn't mind moving there. Milwaukee's downtown is really charming (you find random, huge, orange asterisks), they have great restaurants, and their medical college is really nice. The people are very friendly, the cost of living is probably comparable to Logan, UT, and I felt like a good sturdy scarf and hat would protect me from the frigidity.
The interview was great. I was paired up with a faculty member whose field of study is psychoneurology (which was strangely convenient because I had just finished reading a book by Norman Cousins that argued the critical connections between positive and negative emotions and mental processes, and physical health, btw), who had thoroughly read and enjoyed my application, who readily asked questions about my mission, church, and even theater experiences, and I felt like she highly valued my efforts and experiences. I don't think it could have gone better.
This interview was for placement on their alternate list. At the time of my interview, they had awarded acceptance to the maximum number of applicants. But as people choose to go to other schools (since each applicant applies to at least 10 schools) they will grant more acceptances to people on the alternate list.
And, as of yesterday, I am on that list! It's not a big deal, but it is one step closer to acceptance. It means that I may be accepted as late as August, for the school year that starts in August!
In light of the good news, I will only mention in passing the fact that I was held up in the Milwaukee airport for 5 hours due to the freakishly huge blizzard that came out of no where, forcing me to miss my connecting flight in Denver, arriving in Salt Lake 7 hours later than scheduled. It could have been worse (I could have stayed the night in the airport) but it was still pretty bad.