Birthday, Birds, and Beach

I've said it before, and I'm sure I'll say it many times again: I'm SO HAPPY to be in my second year of medical school.  So many of the little things we had to worry about last year are simply nonexistent this year.  We know how to study.  Our first exam, which was last week, was not easy, BUT it was a familiar hurdle.  That means the world when it comes to studying.

On the morning of the test itself, I was treated to a beautiful sunrise over the Bronx.

Then, afterwards, the rest of the week couldn't have been better.  The night after the exam, our class convened in Manhattan for the typical after-exam celebration.  The next day was my birthday.  I was overwhelmed with wishes and greetings from friends and family alike.

I was also overwhelmed with the gutsiness of my classmates in feeding our extra seafood to the creepy birds on City Island.

The next day, Cat and I drove to Virginia Beach.  I guess it's a bit far, but really, 7 hours isn't that bad of a drive for a long weekend (which we had because of the Jewish holidays).

Kayaking was fun (but tiring)...

We even got to take surfing lessons!

Surfing, by the way, is waaaaay harder than it looks.  Today, 2 days later, I still can't lie on my stomach because my ribs are bruised from flopping up onto the board as fast as possible to attempt to catch an approaching wave.  My hip and knee are scratched from being violently churned under the waves on the sand  after wipeout upon wipeout.  My forearm is bruised from the time the board smacked directly into it...while it was guarding my face.  (Good thing I was covering my face!)  Oh, and just as a matter of pride, I must mention that my board was actually the same size as Cat's, but by the time we took the picture, mine had been packed away so I had to pose with the smaller one.

Somehow, in the end, we made it back to the Bronx without killing each other.  A fun weekend!