It's really warm out, and although that makes me very nervous for the imminent destruction of the earth as we know it, it is also really nice for walking the dog. For the last week or so, Walter has been smiling. Literally. His nose is so short that when he pants he has to open up his whole mouth and it looks like a giant clown smile. This is an old picture, but gives you an idea of the kind of grin I'm talking about:

I've got a week and a half left on my current service (general medicine at the VA) and then four weeks of outpatient medicine, and then this year is officially over, so I've been doing a little bit of smiling myself. Lots of friends matched last week, solidifying the plans they've been hedging around and making contingencies for over the past few months, and I really love seeing folks so happy and going to the residency programs of their dreams. Ann Arbor is a great place to live for a lot of reasons, and one of the bittersweet perks is that lots of friends will leave for amazing places and incredible opportunities. Match day was a wonderful reminder that at this time next year I too will be at the end of this crazy program, preparing for residency. I've also been really enjoying my time at the VA. For a host of reasons I won't enumerate here (since many of them are administrative and therefore both complicated and boring), I feel so much more useful than I have on many of my rotations. Finally, I've actually been out riding my bike. Smiles all around!