For the past three days, I have wrongly concluded that I have successfully completed the gigantic tome of paperwork the fellowship program sent to me for enrollment purposes.

No joke: The postage on the packet was over $10 at the time of receipt. And I have already spent over six hours working on the packet. And there is still more to do. And there will be even more forms to fill out when I actually relocate to New York City. Which is happening in less than two months!

!

And this is when the Muse strikes, of course. She’s a coy creature, she is.

Ideas:

• The concept of “manipulation”. As in, “She’s so manipulative.” There is a psychiatric diagnosis that has lost all useful meaning; instead, people use this label to encompass all traits they dislike in an individual. People also use the word “manipulative” a lot in conjunction with this diagnosis. To be clear, we’re all manipulating each other all the time. When manipulation is done well, no one notices and no one cares. (In some contexts, “manipulation” is interpreted as “charm”.) We only notice manipulation when it is not executed effectively.
• I’ve received a lot of advice about moving to and living in New York. Much of the counsel I have heard is more a reflection of the person than of the city.
• Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned: I recently laughed at a patient. To his face. I tried to suppress my laughter, but my efforts failed miserably. I apologized and lamely explained the reasons for my laughter. He wasn’t offended. Patients are extraordinarily forgiving.
• Sometimes, we get too caught up in what we think we “should” be doing as physicians. Instead of behaving like ourselves, we behave like we believe physicians should behave. What is the role of authenticity in patient care? And why are we so scared of being genuine?

I am hopeful that elaboration will (soon) follow. Wait for me, will you?

On an unrelated note, I also asked Kevin, MD, for his “take” on a specific issue. This is my peripheral brush with fame, people. And I’m hoping that he’ll help remove the word “medblogosphere” from the lexicon. Don’t let me down, Kevin.