The (Acting) Surgeon General and Me

Yesterday was a particularly good day ... after a few weeks of scheduling and preparing agendas, I took part in a meeting with the (Acting) Surgeon General, RADM Ken Moritsugu, at the Department of Health and Human Services! I was primarily there talking about preventive medicine as a field and opportunities for getting medical students and residents involved through his office's initiatives. Incredible! He is perhaps the most congenial government official I have ever met and very enthusiastic toward his work ... I think I'll have to convince Iowa to let me stay here an extra month late next summer and do a fourth year elective rotation early through his office. :) Regardless, I think I would like his job ... I mean, why not!?!

As well, yesterday was also a particularly fun day as I received a great package in the mail - my new MacBook! I'm in the midst of trying to convert files from my dying HP laptop to my new Apple. So, for all those with built-in video conferencing capabilities, it's time to chat! I was quite startled when in setting up my computer last evening and selecting whether I wanted an icon or a personal picture for my login, my face bobbed across the screen. Nothing like a personal camera watching you at all times!

I hope you all enjoyed your Thanksgiving weekend - I had a great time with my friends John and Gretchen here in D.C. and Gretchen's parents that were in town visiting. We ate a terrific meal (John is a fabulous cook AND artist!), went for a walk around the neighborhood, and played forty-some odd rounds of Hearts. I just learned to play the game, and let me tell you - I was on 'fire'! I've got a ways to go in learning the strategies behind the game, but I sure had fun and pulled out a few - just a very few - impressive tricks.

Last Friday, I took off on a short road trip to Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's home, and Richmond with my friends Jeff (my 4-H bicycling sidekick) and David, a German foreign exchange student at Georgetown who is in my health economics class at GW. Nothing like a 70-degree day in late November! It's been particularly warm this fall, which I don't mind at all. I had been to Monticello before, but it was fun to return. We ate lunch at Michie's Tavern nearby TJ's home - real fried chicken, homemade mashed potatoes, beets, biscuits, green beans, and stewed tomatoes all served on tin plates - before swinging by University of Virginia's campus in Charlottesville. Jefferson, among his many other accomplishments, considered being the founder of U VA as his most beloved contribution during his lifetime. The man - no matter how you spin it - was a genius.

I had never before been to Richmond, and we found it to be rather quiet downtown for a Friday night and a very strange juxtaposition of brand-new construction as a backdrop to a handful of historic homes that have been saved from the wrecking ball. We stopped by the National Museum of the Confederacy and talked to some "Confederate" soldiers who explained the details of their uniforms, weapons, and food, saw the White House of the Confederacy, the state capitol, and an old ironworks factory by night, an institution important to the South's weaponry production during the Civil War. Perhaps my favorite image of the day was when we left the Confederacy museum and saw the 'soldiers' packing up their wares into the back of a (none other than!) Dodge Caravan! They assured us it was the best ride around ... at 300 horsepower!
As a side note, one man informed us that you must have a very patient wife to get into this hobby - to be an 'authentic' re-enactor, all portions of your uniform must be from hand-spun fabric and hand-sewn, just as they were in the 1860s. From head to toe, this particular gentleman spent $1000 on his costume. He expressed interest to his wife about also portraying a Union soldier, but she flatly told him one side was expensive enough!