It’s kind of crazy here right now.

I’m on the otorhinolaryngology rotation that’s paired with dermatology (two courses, one student – whoo), and I’m also assisting our Centre for HIV/AIDS Research Education and Services (CHARES) with some research with HTLV-1/HIV co-infection and I’m in the middle of rehearsal for Jamaica’s Independence grand gala.

Talk about a full plate.

It’s all fun (except the school part), but it’s all so draining. Every day is a full day. There are nights I don’t get home til 11, have rounds the next morning at 8 and homework that needs to be read.

Who am I kidding? No homework is being done. I’m not one of those “on top of it all” medical students who seem to find time to read amidst a plethora of co-curricular activities. I am a “put it off til exams” med student who reads the lecture notes really quickly while the consultant is talking so I get to nod along in quasi-understanding. That’s my tried and true tactic.

Meanwhile, I’m rekindling my love for dance and my hatred of large, open spaces (and crowds) by rehearsing for a national event involving 500 dancers. From 3 til 7 every day I am dancing my heart and soul out on a ginormous field. You think it’s easy to cover ground that size? Fancy footwork gets converted to flat out running just so you can reach your designated space in time to start the routine. The director’s on the mic in the grandstand giving these obscure orders (it’s easier to just run where you’re told, no questions asked), and the 5-foot-likkle-bit choreographer tells you to watch her demonstration in the middle of the crowded field. For the record, I am not a tall person.

Then from 8 til 10, I’m with the major companies on the island learning intricate choreography (who am I kidding? it’s old school dancehall) and having my endurance challenged all over again. There’s my dance company tired from the four hour trial on the fields, dancing alongside people fresh from home. And you better believe we look good. Go team.

Meanwhile, meanwhile I keep trying to find pockets of time to go through dockets and extract data for CHARES, which is mind-numbing work that I am peculiarly drawn to. Why would anyone in their right mind enjoy poring over badly-written old notes for hours on end, picking out and recording minutiae? Maybe I’m just not in my right mind.

Which makes sense. Because any sane person would have gone crazy by now.