Winding up to wind down

Just call me Captain Workhorse. Who would have thought putting a poster together would be so hard? Let me reverse...on Thursday all of the med students who did summer research have to present their research project at a poster session for all to see. In true fashion, my poster has yet to be printed...but this time it is not entirely my fault. Apparently politics are alive and kicking in just about every professional setting. Especially one that is predominately male, extremely competitive, and involves big salaries (and even bigger egos). I basically played a round-about game of "who is more important," which may [appropriately] be confused with "who has a bigger penis." At a research institution everyone is fighting to have their name in lights, which in this case means attached to a research project for publication. And as Heidi Klum says in her adorable accent on Project Runway, "either you're in or you're out." Well, people will do their best to be on the ins if you know what I'm saying.

At the height of my stress, I turned to an old habit: I am a recovering nail-biter and I just could not help myself. But Dr. Meyer quickly caught sight of my transgression. Not only did he *flick* my hand away but preceded to tell me about a nurse in the outpatient clinic who had her air filter cultured...and found that she brought home a multitude of grossness with her from the hospital. I'm talking MRSA, staph, strep, you name it. I subsequently threw up a little bit in my mouth and did not bite my nails for the rest of the day.

So eventually I figured out a way to please everyone. And I might as well get used to it now because in the end, if I don't learn how to stand my ground, I will be eaten alive in this profession. But if this medicine thing doesn't work out, maybe I will pursue a career in legal mediation.

OK so it is time for a little trivia game. What University of Texas player, formerly a Doak Walker Award winner as one of the nation's top running backs, was recently pepper-sprayed by authorities for resisting arrest? Okay here is another hint. He was arrested in May for boating while intoxicated (is that even a real charge?). Still don't know? He was released from the Chicago Bears this month. One more clue, just for funsies...he will have a built-in ignition interlock breathalyzer installed in his car this week. If you haven't guessed, I just described my favorite Longhorn Alum Cedric Benson. And if you didn't guess 5 minutes ago, you may want to catch the news sometime soon. Or at least have CNN alerts sent to your Blackberry.
So today I salute you, Mr. Professional Football League Player. You make more money than you know what to do with, but apparently not enough to hire a driver to get you home from downtown. The world is your oyster, and you roll it up and smoke it. You watch your team from the bench but your Myspace is cluttered with team wallpaper. And finally, you have three kids with two different women, and a third on the way from your high school girlfriend. Congratulations, you have officially made it.