Moving on

Dear all 30-40 people who look at this site every day,

I decided to grow up and graduate from Blogger. I got my own domain name and made my own site using wordpress:

The Outlet

It's got all the old posts plus all of my photos, and secret bonus features. Or maybe just photos...you'll have to check it out to be sure.
Sincerely,
Todd

Prototypes

I'm consistently about 1-2 years behind the times when it comes to finding new music. It works out well though, because it allows time for all the Spin and Rolling Stone hype to blow over. That way, I can sift through what remains and pick up the best of what each year offers all at once.

Before I left for my Hawaii rotations, I did some musical research on 2007 albums. For the most part, I was unimpressed with what I found out there. I was a little indied out; I didn't want another Arcade Fire album or Feist's latest or another posthumous Elliott Smith cash-in. I wanted something fun, and hit a major home run when I picked up Prototypes' self-titled album.

This album is a blast. [The] Prototypes are a French synth-pop-handclap-punk extravaganza. Isabelle Le Doussal sings in well-enunciated French, most of which I could understand with my college freshman level language skills. Even if you don't understand a lick of it, you get the gist (i.e. dance to the shit that's on the radio). Don't take my word for it; check it out - don't know if this is legal, but they're only clips:

"Danse sur la merde"


"Je ne te connais pas"


"Medicalement"


Apprently this album was a mash-up of 2 other French albums Prototypes released over the last few years and re-released for American audiences. It's the best French export of 2007 in my opinion.

First Impressions

I sat down to write a blog about how awesome my first 2 weeks in Hawaii were but found myself somewhat uninspired (read: lazy). So instead, here are some inane observations:

• Drivers are very courteous and drive very slowly (60mph or less)
• Honolulu traffic sucks both ways, especially when maniacs throw children into traffic
• Weeks after the fact, people still lament Hawaii's trouncing in the Sugar Bowl
• More people worship June Jones than any other major religious deity
• You can find a beach or mountain to climb within a 15 minute drive of wherever you are on O'ahu
• Anywhere you look could be a panoramic vista worthy of photographing
• People really do wear aloha shirts as business attire. I look like a Mormon in my shirt and tie
• People really do say "Aloha" when answering the phone
• When talking, people intersperse "Yah" into their sentences. "It's really cold today, yah. At night it got down to the 60s, yah, and I had to close my windows." This isn't like the Fargo "yah;" it's actually more like "yuh."
• Everyone born here surfs, and they do it well into old age

I've never been anywhere with such a rich mix of cultures, history, geology, plant and animal life, and opportunities for lying on the beach. Do I want to spend the next three years here for my Pediatrics residency though?

Depending on what I think of the program when I interview next month, it could be pretty high on my list. I'm ranking programs in other expensive cities (Boston, NYC, DC) already. I feel like I'd miss my friends and connections on the east coast though. It'd be hard to convince my buddies to fly for 10 hours just to visit me for a few days. Spending my post-call days sleeping here does have its appeal, though...

RIFFS OF THE GODS! - 1st Movement, 5th Symphony (Beethoven)

Ludwig von "Dave" Beethoven wore many mantles: inventor of the telescope, founding father, convicted heretic. However, most people aren't aware of his musical exploits. Indeed, he wrote a ton of symphonies, minarets, and virtuosos. Many consider him to be the first metal god of the classical world. Others think he was a total pusillanimous dandy. I think he kicked ass, regardless of his foppish frilly cravates and powdered wigs.

The music speaks for itself. I mean, listen to his 5th Symphony. During this section, I bet ol' Ludwig Van was pissed at one of his out-of-tune oboists and started strangling him mid-symphony. Everyone else kept playing and upped their intensity, mimicking their conductor and creating the manic snippet we hear below:



In all seriousness though, I played the viola in Beethoven's 5th years ago, and it was a blast. And by blast, I mean blast like someone blowing up a mountain of harpsichords with TNT.

Paradise

I've finally made it. After months of toiling, studying and test-taking, I'm finally starting my rotations in Hawaii. This place is jaw-droppingly gorgeous. Everywhere you look is a scenic lookout and photo opportunity. Groceries are horrendously expensive, but that was expected. I finally got to start using my new camera today and unleash its power on unsuspecting plants and volcanic craters. Everything's getting uploaded to flickr here. Here's my best shot from today:

This is the steep path leading up to the top of Koko Crater, which is about 1o minutes from my place. I thought I was in shape until I climbed to the top in a half an hour after losing about 10 pounds of water weight. I'll be starting my dermatology elective tomorrow, which will set the tone for the next month...I'm hoping that tone will be "kickass."

In other news, I'm in the process of creating a new blog/website using my new domain name and wordpress. Seeing as how I have lots of other fun things to do right now, it may be a while before it's finished, but it will be within the next month at least.

In even more other news, I'm almost done reading Island of the Sequined Love Nun by Christopher Moore, lent to me by the lovely Jennifer. It's a hilarious page-turner about religion, alcoholism, penile trauma, anthropology, and medical malpractice. Oh, and it takes place in Micronesia...which is kind of close to Hawaii. How appropriate! When I get back I'm putting all the Hawaii Five-O seasons on my Netflix queue. Rock on.

So this is the new year...

2007 turned out to be decidedly mediocre year. A few trips spruced up the year, including a little travel including a week in Jamaica and a weekend in San Diego. For the most part, I slogged my way through my mid 20s, transitioning from one short-lived dating experience to another with no long-term prospects in sight. My summer consisted of the one weekend between the third and fourth years of medical school. November and December were blown on Pediatrics residency interviews and taking my board exams. And here I sit, on New Year's Day, alone in my house, blasting Bondo do Role to cheer me up, and packing for my upcoming 2-month trip. Hawaii sure as shit has more photogenic camera fodder than my backyard.

and I don't feel any different...

New camera, PART DEUX!

After two and a half years of faithful service, my Olympus C-770 Ultra Zoom finally kicked it. Well, not really. It turns on fine but never turns off, which means the zoom lens is constantly sticking out, and I need to take the battery out to kill it. And that just won't do.

What a great camera it was. It's been beaten, battered, drowned and resuscitated (Labor Day weekend 2005), and most recently used as a paperweight. It's provided beautiful visual memories of Peru, Chicago, Jamaica, and my medical school years. As I write this, I'm getting a little choked up...I'm going to miss my Olympus.

To fill the void, I've upgraded in a big way. It's time for me to join the world of big boy amateur photography. I went and got myself a Nikon D40x Digital SLR, along with an 18-55mm lens and a giant 55-200mm vibration reduction lens. I haven't had a chance to get outside and use it yet, but why bother? It's been gray and miserable for about 2 months now. I'll unleash its true power when I go to Hawaii in a few weeks. YEAH!!!

I never did finish that Worcester photo project, did I?