Hello from Vancouver!

Let's be clear, because we've been questioned several times - we didn't move to Canada. We're writing to you from Vancouver, Washington where we're living for a year while Scott completes a Sports Medicine Fellowship.

Backing up to Match Day (1.3.18)... We were on pins and needles to learn our match to one of the 10 Primary Care Sports Medicine fellowship programs where Scott interviewed. I was sitting at my work desk, yoga breathing, stressing out that we would experience something similar to the last match we went through for residency. DrH was cool as a cucumber waiting for match results and was elated when at Noon Eastern Time he received an email that he would be working with one of his favorite program directors at PeaceHealth in Vancouver, Washington. We love us some PNW!

I didn't as much about the fellowship application, interviews, and match process, but please send me a message if you are ever in the same position and would like some details and moral support. We're already advising medical school friends who are a year behind but going through the fellowship application process. We feel so much satisfaction when we can use our trials and experience to help someone have smoother transitions in their medical training.

After the match, DrH still had to finish up his last year of residency. Back in the day when we were interns and 2nd years, I remember hearing stories about graduating residents that complained and refused to come in for extra shifts. Hearing those stories I would comment to my husband, "Why are they being so difficult with staffing at the end of the year?" Now I know. Once a resident has their contract for a future job or fellowship, their mind is already in summer vacation mode. All of a sudden, staffing with your attendings seems so tedious! I know this, because DrH did the same thing. He's always been a little passive aggressive, but snark was coming out of his ears by the end of residency when Medical Assistants were giving him extra drop-in patients. EVERYONE could tell that he was looking forward to (read: needed) a month long break before fellowship began.

The "Brother Friendly" jacket strikes again.
Aurora Family Medicine Graduation June 2018

As graduation came closer, though, the realty of our move began to hit. We hadn't even left, and we were already missing the friends and the cheese curds that we would be leaving behind. It was really poor planning on our part to schedule two vacations in the last two months of residency, because every week we had friends that wanted to hang out with us before we moved and there was so little time to fit everyone we loved in. Milwaukee was SO good to us! Aurora Healthcare was so good for DrH. We've said it before, but the SOAP was the best thing that could have happened to our medical journey.

The day after graduation, we struck out in our moving van to make the 33 hour drive, just DrH and I. This move went much better than expected (minus one Honda window fiasco and the fact that the Vancouver/Portland housing market is crazy). We're now settled into a really comfortable apartment overlooking the Columbia Rive. It's only fellowship orientation week, but we're crossing our fingers  that this will be a perfect location for us over the next year.

Also, here's hoping that I do a better job of documenting our adventures here!