After finishing the grueling Gastrointestinal-Liver sequence, it was time to enjoy the weekend. Thanks to Flextime quizzing, I was able to take the exam on Thursday and thus be done with GI after the Friday anatomy practical. Good thing too, as my weekend was jam-packed!

First, on Saturday, I worked first aid with the Red Cross First Aid Support Team (F.A.S.T.) at the UM Women's Gymnastics meet versus Ohio State. Thankfully, not too many people needed our help, and we were able to enjoy the majority of the meet. The women were amazing, and more than a few of us sat there wishing we could perform those tricks too. Unfortunately, considering I can't even manage a handstand, I'm pretty sure that vault (and beam, and bars, and floor exercise) is far out of my reach. Michigan beat Ohio State by over two full points, demonstrating why their program is currently ranked 4^th nationally (tied with Utah).

Soon after leaving Crisler Arena, I went to Hill Auditorium for the Collage Concert, an annual performance by students in the School of Music, Theatre, and Dance which "is a study in antithesis. It calls for rapid juxtaposition of musical styles and forms without the interruption of applause." (Collage Concert program) Performers quickly transition from the University Symphony Orchestra playing "Rhapsody in Maize and Blue" (Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue" with interspersed Michigan motifs) to a jazz ensemble playing Fred Sturm's "Dijeridu;" from Die Fledermaus (Johann Strauss) to a scene from Shakespeare's Comedy of Errors.

As always, Collage demonstrated the great talent of our musicians and performers. But, frankly, the highlight of the evening occurred during the intermission. As soon as the house lights went up, nearly every person in the audience pulled out their phone and checked SportsCenter. Why? Well, Michigan's men's basketball team just happened to be playing Michigan State at the Breslin Center in East Lansing. After toppling two other top-ten ranked teams earlier in the week, the Wolverines were eager to derail a third.

Two minutes were left in the game, and Michigan had a slim lead. For the remainder of the intermission, everyone frantically updated the score. Eventually, we got to the point where phones were saying that Michigan was up 5, with four seconds to play. The updates were made even more frequently. I looked over to the VIP seats when I heard a scream of delight--evidently, one person saw the update that Michigan had won, 80-75! She jumped up and started dancing. Everyone else followed suit and started singing "Hail to the Victors." I guess being University President counts for something, as Mary Sue Coleman's phone received the update faster than the rest of us!

The next morning, I baked cupcakes while we watched a replay of the UM-MSU game. Every year, the MSTP hosts Winter Party, which includes a dessert competition. I am entering Minion cupcakes filled with buttercream icing and covered with chocolate ganache. It was lots of fun decorating them - some are holding candy bananas (think the opening of the Lion King) and others are doing Nik Stauskas' three-goggles (I was still rather happy about the previous night's win). All I have to say now is…Assemble the Minions.

A University Musical Society Concert was next on the schedule with Olga Kern, the 2001 winner of the Van Cliburn competition, effortlessly performing showstoppers by Schumann, Chopin, and Rachmaninoff on the piano at Hill Auditorium.

My final event of the weekend involved walking to the Lydia Mendelssohn Theatre at the Michigan League to watch Biorhythms, a performance presented by medical students dancing and singing short vignettes. It was incredibly entertaining (and hilarious) throughout. Phlomax began the show with a group rap and were shortly joined on stage by blinged-out Dean Raj Mangrulkar. After salsa, jazz, contemporary, Tahitian, and myriad other fantastic routines, the show closed with the Mance (large group of men dancing), a highly anticipated routine that did not disappoint. It was a perfect end to a busy, but fruitful, weekend, and all I have left to say is

GO BLUE!!!!