Today was Research Day at my medical school.
Basically, all of the nerd types (so, everyone) prints up their summer research on a poster (that they have probably already presented at some conference). Then, for two hours, they talk to each other stand in front of their poster in the Grand Ballroom of one of the fancy buildings on campus while judges circulate and…judge things.
As a formerly overzealous high schooler who started doing lab research at age 13, let me tell you, it is exactly like science fair. It is the Intel International Science Fair all over again, except 1. You don’t get to travel somewhere cool on someone else’s dime, 2. We have posters now, so you no longer have to build an 8 foot plywood board that gets hand-covered with felt and shipped with you across the country (not that I did that…but obviously, I totally did…), and 3. As a grown up, you no longer have to give your competitors the stink eye and hope that they lose, because winning the international science fair could totally be your edge to get into the school that will make you a doctor. (Haha...oh, dreams.)
But alas, I digress.
Towards the end of Medical School Science Fair today, I posed with two of my classmates in front of our (awesome and amazing) posters and posted the picture to Facebook. I am usually not a Facebook picture poster, but I’m trying to be more social and friendly these days, feigning like I am having fun in medical school, when really, we all know that I lie awake at night regretting the career options that I did not pursue. (That is another blog post, but I think a normal emotion for second semester, pre-boards MSII. RIGHT?)
After I posted the picture, I had class, so I didn’t log into Facebook again for hours. Then, one of my friends, who was in the picture, texted me.
“Who is David McOlney?,” she wrote.
“Ha! My high school prom date,” I wrote back. “Why? Did he comment on our picture? That’s very weird if he did.”
I mean, David was cute and all, but we haven't talked in years. (Read: He was stunningly handsome. I was totally the nerdy girl who walked in with the Italian stallion on her arm at prom, and all the popular girls turned in unison, staring with jealousy and wondering about all of the fine-looking friends that Red Stethoscope obviously had outside of school. Take note, high schoolers: One day you end up being the cool kid and when it happens, the looks on the faces of those people who you never liked anyway will be PRICELESS.)
My friend’s response is nothing that I could have expected it to be.
“No, he sent me a message that said, ‘wow, you’re cute.’”
Umm…what? Eww, no, David. NO. Do not go randomly messaging my friends on Facebook when we have not seen or spoken to one another in 12 years. We are not church kids in the same youth group anymore, David, and that is not cool.
My medical school friend has a boyfriend, so she kind of laughed it off, and I apologized, and followed it up with, “But seriously, you ARE cute.”
I think I threw in an emoticon to lessen the blow. Then, I went straight to David’s Facebook page…and saw that he is listed as “In a Relationship." He also has lots of girlfriend-ish looking pictures on his page.
Seriously, what is wrong with people? How does flirting with someone, when you are in a relationship, translate as being OK in someone’s head? Did he not think that my friend, in a picture with me, would tell me that he sent her that message?
So take note, scumbag men, who do inappropriate things and act like they’re still in high school: I, and all of my friends, are TAKEN. Incidentally, so are you.
6 comments:
Heh. Ah yes, this is why my love of facebook is undying- with the inappropriate remarks from people that you really, really, REALLY don't talk to, but just KNOW they are stalking your facebook page. It is seriously strange. Maybe he's just a dodgy garden-variety badventist.
Second, onto this doozy;
"I am usually not a Facebook picture poster, but I’m trying to be more social and friendly these days, feigning like I am having fun in medical school, when really, we all know that I lie awake at night regretting the career options that I did not pursue. (That is another blog post, but I think a normal emotion for second semester, pre-boards MSII. RIGHT?)"
This describes be now. Hell, it described me in October of last year. That's right, 1.5 months into MSII, I was bemoaning what I'd gotten myself into. I've turned into this exhausted, occasionally over-caffeinated, churlish, vulgar (!), unbelievably inept test-taker-extrodinaire, who can't remember ANYTHING, even after studying for weeks on end. Sad. Shoulda gone to grad school- I would have been done by now- environmental chemistry is a place of warmth and light. (Whimper). Maybe I should get a blog and vent...
And finally, since I haven't been on for a while (or commented for that matter), I just wanted to say that you and The Lawyer are adorable. Wish I had more than two thumbs to put waaaay up.
Anyways, all the best with step 1.
nik
nik- Hang in there! I feel your pain. I haven't even been able to talk about how awful this semester has been, because I'm either hysterically crying and thus, can't write. Or, I'm so worked up and angry that I can't get the words out. Or, I'm too stressed by whatever madness is happening that I can't make extra time to blog it out. So yes, this year sucks. I'm told that it's going to get better. If those people are lying, it's not going to be pretty.
I am right on the verge of deleting myself from FB. I hate the ticker to the right...since I have teenage nephews, some of the rudest things that they and others post on various sites that are open to the world show up on it. I had to tell my nephew last night that I was disappointed in what was showing up in my ticker, could he please up his security....and I see that he has now blocked me. Sad but really, do we need to see all that?
Those people never change!
You tell 'em, but there really are survey results that show that a good percentage of people don't think that's "cheating." I don't get it, myself. I'm still not seeing much to convince me to create a Facebook page.
CC- Ugh. Well, hopefully he'll grow out of it--unlike my HS friend!
Sarah- No, they don't.
Kate P- The Lawyer and I had a long talk about whether or not this counted as cheating. Obviously, it doesn't, but what good could come out of it? It's not appropriate if you're trying to stay faithful, I think!
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