Resolutions

Well it's that time of year again. People start making promises to themselves to lose weight, eat healthier, start a new hobby, etc., so I figure why not join the pack. But I wanted to try to do something different this year. If I've learned anything from my short blogging experience, it's that I've got a lot to learn. Every once and a while the infinite power, connectivity, and sheer volume of information on the web gives me that feeling that I wandered a little to close to the edge of the cliff and I'm staring of into the abyss of things that I'll never be able to comprehend on a micro or macro level. Whether it's politics, religion, culture, history, medicine, music, or any other number of numerous possibilities, the amount of information that is available is intimidating. A very good friend of the fetching Mrs. Wookie and myself was in town for the holidays from Chicago where he is in medical school. Since medicine is mine and the fetching Mrs. Wookie's passion as well, we always get into fairly in depth conversations on the current state of affairs in the medical field. I've chosen to pursue a career as a PA when it became more and more obvious that doctors were becoming less patient oriented and more supervisory of their PAs and NPs, letting them make the diagnoses and just signing off on the paperwork. I had no desire to be a surgeon which is where doctors still get to do procedures themselves and don't necessarily need to farm the work out, so to speak. I was more interested in being a pediatrician or general practioner and that's where the most drastic changes have occured. Anyway I digress, we eventually chatted on other topics when the wealth of information to study came up and I expressed my desire to learn as much as I could about everything I could and the above uneasiness of being on the brink of a vast ocean. (My friend has always maintained that I would make an excellent doctor for that very reason, and I agree, but for some reason thirst for knowledge isn't tops on the list of admissions committees). So as far as this concerns my resolution, it's simple. I've done the lose weight, eat healthy, exercise more crap before, and they never work (and beside the fetching Mrs. Wookie and I started that about six months ago so we're more in the continue and maintain the progress frame of mind) What I'd rather commit to is simply to learn, to disregard the fears and dive in head first to the information available. The easiest place to start is at work. My co-workers will probably think I'm an moron for being enthusiastic about work, but the financial arena is something I know zilch about. My past jobs have included waiting tables, working in a bookstore, and a medical assitant. I majored in biology in college, so other than managing my bank account, I've no idea how the finance world works. I always turn to my father wookie, the quintissential banker (even though he doesn't do that anymore) for advice. The oppurtunities my current job present me are vast. Learning about how investment banking, securities, trading, and home loans work could be invaluable information. I'd also like to learn more about computer languages and web design, so that I can make the site reflect my personality a bit more. Plus unnamed people (ahem... LegalXXX) have started to complain, so I'll need to learn how to accomodate. Blogger is a great way to start up with the blogosphere, but I'd like to play with the template to give it a more personal touch. I dig Got Design's site, but he of course has the advantage of being a programmer, so that's probably setting my sights too high. I'll have to head off to Barnes & Noble and pick up the latest "blogging for idiots" book or something close to that. I'd also like to pick up a copy of Hugh's new book Blog (sorry no link, Websense sucks). I started my blog before the election because it gave me the oppurtunity to argue, vent, etc with anyone and everyone. But since then, things have slowed down a bit, so bloggers like Llama Butchers have started to question, why blog? It's an outlet, a diary, a way to communicate, a way to educate yourself. It kind of exhibitionist, yet you do maintain an element of privacy as well. It's the latest thing sweeping the nation. And of course I'll be starting PA school (knock on wood) in September, and for me that's a life changing event. It will be the start of a new chapter of my life that I am eagerly anticipating, something so momentus it's deserves a new tattoo (aha! betcha you didn't think I had a tat!). Fortunately, the fetching Mrs. Wookie is a pharmeceutical sales rep, so I've had many conversations with doctors, nurses, and PAs to help prepare and learn what tricks of the trade that I can. So that's more of a continue on the path resolution... So while many think of resolutions as stupid, it really depends, like most things in life, on your perspective. Better your life: start a blog, stop a bad habit, resolve to repair burnt bridges, start a new habit. There's so much to discover out there. Start the new year right and dive in.