Jess's Jabber

New Roommate!

2009-03-17T18:49:00.003-04:00

Ben and I have decided to move in together and have found an amazing apartment for May 1st. We will be about a mile from the Davis Sq T stop, a 4.5 mile bike from work, living in a spacious top floor apartment.

I am very excited, although it is sad to leave 49 Harrison St... I feel like I have a long history there: 3 boyfriends, 3 roommates, 2 careers. It's been a challenging and fun ride, but I am ready to move on and am excited for the new adventures ahead!

The actual packing and moving, of course, I could do without :)

Bowling for Booty

2008-11-14T09:49:00.001-05:00

Bowling for Booty
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Here I am with my CCSE Bowl-A-Thon team "Bowling for Booty." We went a rough band of Pirates and helped to raise over $1000 to help fund the Center for Cancer Support and Education - the non-profit that Ben helps manage.

We won again this year for best costumes, and I think we also showed a ton of spirit. Craig, back row 2nd in, actually bowled all 3 games with that sword in his left hand. That's dedication!

I'm glad that my friends and I were able to participate and help Ben and CCSE reach their fund raising goals!

Hmmmmm, now what should we dress as next year?

Adoring Jeff

2008-10-02T08:26:00.001-04:00

Adoring Jeff
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

This is from Jen Blomberg's wedding in July. I was one of her bridesmaids. Here we are all adoring her new husband Jeff.

The wedding, like Jen, was quite elegant and sophisticated. She was married in CT at a function hall near the river. It poured earlier that day and even power lines came down, but by her 6:30 outdoor ceremony... it was perfect!

Ben made the drive down with me, and made quite a few friends with the husbands and boyfriends of the other girls. A great group to spend the weekend with.

I wish the Millers the best in years to come!

He Found Us!

2008-10-02T07:49:00.001-04:00

He Found Us!
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Ben was late getting to the start of Hub on Wheels and I have to admit that he did a good job catching up toi us. We were biking 15-16 mph so he must have been up near 18-20. Go Ben!

We are at the secnd stop point here.

Getting Ready to Ride

2008-10-02T07:48:00.001-04:00

Getting Ready to Ride
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

JIn, her boyfriend Matt, Ben and I decided to do the Hub on Wheels 50 mile ride around Boston on Sept 21st to benefit the public school system. Jin is showing off the extra bright jersey I lent her.

It's 7 am and she is ready to go!

Fool's Gold

2008-08-13T08:56:00.001-04:00

SHL Fool's Gold
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

I decided to play Ultimate Frisbee with my old roommate Helen. She convinced me to do learning league through Boston Ultimate Disc Association or BUDA for short. I spent 6 weeks learning the rules of the game and the ins and outs of throwing and catching a disc.

Then the 2 of us joined a summer Hat team. In the summer Hat League everyone's names are placed in a hat and teams are picked at random, although you can request to be with at least 2 other people. I, of couse, picked Helen (bottom right).

I was placed on a great team pictured here at the final tournament where we fought our way up from the bottom bracket to the finals, which were rained out... but we are co-winners of the tournament.

We were named Fool's Gold as it was Olympic themed and our shirts were buttercup colored. We also just loved yelling: Go Fools!

Playing with these guys every Monday night has been one of the highlights of my summer, and I have already signed up for Fall Hat League... not sure if a better team can be randomly picked though!

Great playing with you Fools!

Officially Staying in Boston

2008-06-25T06:02:00.002-04:00

So, even though I was been given a verbal commitment from MGH for a full time position a week and a half ago, there had been no mention of $$ or any official paperwork. Well, I got an official offer letter last night, and the salary is a tad more than I expected so I am quite pleased. My salary will go up slightly over 50% from my intern salary starting September 1.
I don't want to think about how this amount is 7 grand less than my starting salary at Sun was, because I never said this career change was about the money. In fact, it was about wanting to get out of bed in the AM and being excited about what I was doing. So far, that is the case. And speaking of which, I need to get moving to get in for my 7:30 patient! Just wanted to post the newest job update.

The Lord Family

2008-06-15T14:20:00.001-04:00

candace, jay and keiran
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

My friend Candace just had her baby a few weeks ago, and she recently sent me a picture of the family at their house in Cleveland. Jay and Candace are the proud parents of baby Keiran Lord.

I feel like it was just yesterday that I was studying for my anatomy class on Candace and Jay's dinning room table... but that was over 3 years ago, as I am now through grad school, finishing up internship and about to start my new career.

Candace is finishing up nursing school part time at Case Western and working full time as an RN. Well, currently she is staying at home with Keiran, but will return to her busy life soon enough, I am sure.

I wish them all the best and can't wait to meet Keiran!

Back in the Saddle Again

2008-06-15T12:46:00.001-04:00

Ben&I
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

So, I guess I mean that in 2 ways... (1) I am trying to get back on my road bike regularly and had an amazing 15 mile hilly ride with Anna Thursday AM... something I hope becomes a semi-regular event when she gets back from her work trip. The weather was beautiful and it was such a great way to start the day! I was actually quite sore the next day, so I am definitely out of practice.

And (2) I'm dating again. I struggle with this last piece a bit more. I actually don't feel as out of practice with dating someone as I do with biking. Matt and I just ended things back in early April, and it is uncharacteristic of me to start seeing someone else exclusively so soon.

I guess I also tend not to date people I already know, and I've known Ben now for 2 years. I didn't know what to expect when he asked me out a few weeks ago, and I am still amazed at how well we get along.

Unlike following Anna up hills, it's just easy.

Bridal Shower

2008-06-15T12:28:00.001-04:00

JA-Bridal Shower
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

I went to Jocelyn's Bridal Shower last Sunday out in Framingham. Even though her wedding is in October, her aunt and cousins decided to host us at a local fondue place to celebrate Jocelyn and Jacob's upcoming union.

It was great to meet Jocelyn's mom, as well as the rest of her family and some of my fellow bridesmaids. This is my first time being the maid of honor, and I think I did a good job with my duties of organizing all the gifts after they were opened. Of course the big event for me to plan is going to be the weekend in NYC in September.

I am very excited to be involved with all the planning and to support her during everything.

Pictures of me in an eggplant dress to follow :)

Perspective

2008-04-22T11:58:00.002-04:00

I just evaluated a gentleman who recently had a fairly minor ankle surgery. He was very jovial upon introduction and while we went through his medical history that included and past bout with cancer that has metastasized to his lungs and around his heart. They have given him ~24 months, and he came off chemo to have his ankle operated on as he was having too much pain when he walked.

He told me all of this in good spirits and is excited to begin physical therapy with me as his main goal is to be able to return to walking with his wife. He is not particularly old, and says that he has come to terms with the prognosis, although he keeps an open mind to future experimental treatment options.

He will be working with me till next Friday when he can move to another therapist, although he is considering following me to the main hospital based on how things go over the next 13 days.

Meeting someone going through something like that, well, it just puts things in better perspective for me. I have my health, my family and my friends, and I am so appreciative of all 3!

Marathon Weekend

2008-04-20T18:50:00.002-04:00

So, this is the weekend of the big Boston Hash House Harriers event centered around the actual Boston Marathon, which is tomorrow. So many of my favorite out of town people came in for the event this weekend, and it was great to catch up with them all. Especially my VTers... I miss Burlington.

The hardest thing about this weekend by far was having to have similar conversations with people about what happened between Matt and I. I guess his version is rather simplified: "She was planning a future, I wasn't," which I guess gets the point across, but some of my friends wanted to know a little more including how I was holding up...

interesting question

I don't really know how to address that one, except to say that I am keeping myself busy, and that I don't regret the decision to end things. I am disappointed that Matt could not envision a future for us together, but I don't necessarily fault him that. I just want to feel special, appreciated, and to be a priority in someone's life after 1.5 years. The fact that he couldn't provide that does not make him a bad person, it just makes him not the right person.

Not knowing who the right person may be is a little scary, but also thrilling in a way. Well, let's just wait and see how I feel tomorrow... this process is a very day-by-day kind of thing :)

A Second Job

2008-04-18T11:25:00.003-04:00

So, an opportunity arose to take a per diem job at a hospital I interviewed at for internship: Shaughnessey Kaplan. The position is for weekend work and it involves working in acute care and rehab. It also pays $50/ hr... I decided to interview with them to see if it was something I might be interested in doing.

I was wavering on the ride up to Salem 2 weeks ago as to whether or not I would be willing to give up weekend days for the extra pay, but then I realized there was no guarantee that I would even get the job. When I got there, it was barely an interview and more of a tour and an explanation of what my responsibilities would be.

I was excited to be back in a hospital setting, and realized that the experience in acute care would make me even more marketable after my internship with MGH ended. Once he explained that 2 days a month would be sufficient to work there, I thought... why not? It would be a new experience, and (like it or not) I have a more free weekend schedule these days.

I still don't know what I will do full time at the end of internship in August. MGH has not discussed hiring me, and I am toying with the idea of leaving the Boston area... Seattle? Chicago? Denver? I guess I could really go anywhere. A patient of mine who works as a nurse upstairs suggested getting my resume together and out there now for potential jobs out of the area. The thought scares me a bit, as I would be leaving some many close friends, but if I am seriously considering it, I need to start looking at potential employers.

I'll try and keep this updated with my search and job decisions. Funny that I started this 3 years ago to cronical my journey through PT school and I am almost to the end of it. Where did the time go?

New Scarf

2008-04-09T20:32:00.001-04:00

new-scarf
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

So, the best thing happened yesterday at work. The cute little Egyptian woman I worked with presented me with a present. One my colleagues actually came to get me and said my patient was looking for me after the session was over. I was worried she had not understood to head back to the waiting room as her understanding of English is limited. As I found her in our usually room, there she was with this scarf wrapped up for me.

She had knit it for me after I had complemented her on one she had worn to a visit a week earlier. It is very soft, and brightly colored so it may have to be my spring scarf.

I was just blown away by the gesture, and even wearing it now makes me smile!

Internship Update

2008-04-03T10:13:00.001-04:00

I am currently still at MGH West in Waltham, but the count down has started for my move to the ACC. 4 weeks from today will be my first day at the main campus. I'll have co-treat time with two clinical specialist: one who specializes in spine, the other extremities, have a 15 minute bike ride commute, and a schedule with at least 2 late mornings! I can not wait.

I will definitely miss the group of therapist out in Waltham, the gym next door to work, and my interesting conversations commuting in with Alex or Casey. I guess I am also a little nervous that the main campus will be more challenging, and perhaps I will not succeed there as easily as I did in Waltham. Well, I guess it wasn't that easy... I definitely struggled those first 8 weeks.

I have been told to study up on the shoulder including relevant literature before heading down there, so I guess even after the boards, my studying days are not over!

I do like a challenge, and I guess I have to remember that and just plan to do my best.

Golda Mark

2008-04-02T14:35:00.001-04:00

Golda
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Another couple who introductions I facilitated had a baby girl at the end of February.

Dasha and Zsolt have been a perfect match since she finally agreed to go out with him 4 years ago. He hounded me for a few weeks, and after she saw how refined his apartment was, she was in it for the long haul.

Congrats on the new edition to the Mark household. I have no doubts that Zsolt is also quite smitten with her.

Malena Devlin

2008-04-02T14:32:00.001-04:00

Malena
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Well, Marisa and Julian are now proud parents. It is funny to think that I helped the two of them meet almost 7 years ago when Marisa commented that he was "very cute" at a housewarming party I had.

I now have to say that perhaps Malena is the cutest in the household these days. Congratulations to them!

A Glimpse of Being Single...

2008-03-30T09:37:00.002-04:00

I will start off by saying that I have not written in a while, but will post a recap of the events since Oct worth noting later.

Last night was an interesting experience for me. After an ambiguous conversation with Matt on Tuesday of this week, I think I can safely say that I have no idea where our relationship is headed at this point. I find this slightly ironic because just a few days earlier we went on our first weekend trip together without an agenda other than to spend time together and explore a new area. This trip went better than planned, we had a great time, and for the first time in a few months I started thinking about our future together...

Perhaps that precipitated the subsequent thoughts and fear that Matt expressed Tuesday and the decision to take some time apart this weekend to think through things.

So, a friend of mine decided that I needed to go out last night to spend time out of my apartment drinking and dancing with strangers. While the thought was appreciated, I don't think it was necessarily the best choice.

We headed out to join a going away pub crawl for someone he had met once, and I had never met. To make the evening even more bizarre, I didn't show up there with my friend, but with my ex Brian, who happened to send me a message online while I was getting ready and we decided to head down together. It was good to see Brian, to catch up with what he has been up to, but half way through the night he could tell that something was up. You just can't live with someone and not know when they are unhappy or upset. We then talked a bit about our respective relationships, and he shared with me how much he misses his ex Natalie, and how he now wants to move to England to be with her.

This is someone who left FL for college, has barely used his passport except for work, and has been settled in Boston for almost 10 years. But, she means that much to him! While I could not be happier for Brian and truly wish him the best (I would even help him pack), his adoration for Natalie just seemed to magnify the lack of adoration I felt.

And I want to feel adored...

So, here I am at an expensive downtown bar where the DJ is playing music from my high school and college years, and I am surrounded by girls wearing more makeup and less clothing than me that appear to not know any of the words to the songs being played: ah, yes, they were too young to know these songs as the average age here must be 23. I watch the 23 year olds awkwardly trying to talk or dance with one another, all trying to be noticed and hoping to meet someone tonight.

I dance like no one is watching with my male friends, who are thankfully older than I am, hoping I am not being noticed. I don't want any of these guys to ask for my number or to express any interest in me.

This is not my scene. What am I doing at a 23 year old pick-up bar? Please tell me that this is NOT in my potential future as a single girl in Boston. The whole idea makes my stomach turn.

A Changing of the Guards

2007-10-14T11:05:00.001-04:00

Or, more appropriately a changing of instructors. When my clinical instructor and MGH West told me that she had been called for grand jury duty, I just knew that with my luck she would be chosen. Sure enough on Oct 10th she was picked for a 3 month term that mandated her to review cases in Cambridge, Lowell and Natick 3-4 days a week to determine, along with 22 others, if enough evidence existed to go to trial.

That was almost 2 weeks ago, and things have been gradually settling out at work. The plan is to transition me over to Aaron, a staff therapist who has been with MGH for over 5 years and has worked in both inpatient and outpatient settings. The problem with that right now is that Aaron has a full caseload and it will take a few weeks to transition some of his patients over to other therapists and/or to me, and to get my patients on his schedule. I've had to delegate a few of my favorite patients to Angela (my former CI) as she can see them once a week on Fridays when she is not at jury duty. This was done to free up my schedule to begin to take on new patients with Aaron. I've already moved to Aaron's schedule, which is MW 7-6:30, TFr 7-4:30 and Thursdays off. I've only had that schedule for a week, but it'll be interesting to see if I have the stamina for the longer days. Good thing I'm an endurance athlete, huh?

I guess the best part of this situation is that I get to work with a senior therapist who specializes in Spine in the interim. She has 30+ years experience and watching her work is amazing. She has different teaching approach that is more hands on that I am used to, but her intent is to give me words of wisdom for approaches, techniques and rationales that took her 5 or more years to develop and allow me to build from that.

We'll see how this all turns out.... 5 weeks down, 47 to go!

The Holy Rollers

2007-10-07T20:48:00.001-04:00

Catholic girl and priest
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Matt and I participated in a costume bowl-a-thon to benefit Cancer Support and Education groups. We needed a theme, so I came up with The Holy Rollers, a team that consisted of a priest, a nun, and 3 catholic school girls. We actually won for best costume and were awarded prizes.

My team consisted of Matt and three friends from school: Nicole, Tracie and Moriah. We had a blast, and helped raise money for a good cause!

Knee Deep into Week 3

2007-09-19T19:07:00.000-04:00

I am almost through my 3rd week at my internship, which even now that I am seeing it typed doesn't seem possible. I guess it's because my first 2 weeks were spend mainly in orientation, and I don't know if that time has really prepared me for the internship like they had hoped. I'm someone who would have been better off spending the past 2 weeks getting used to my physical therapy clinic and not shared my thoughts on what the word culture means or what the MGH culture entails. A few things were definitely worth the time spend, especially observing a clinical specialist do a functionally based examination. Having someone with 25 years experience talk through her thought process while performing an exam was probably invaluable, although it definitely scared me to realize how far I was from her level.

I am also still trying to adjust to working full time. I have to admit that I don't like some of the life changes that have already occurred. I am struggling to find time to see Matt as we now appear to have opposite work schedules and I have spent more time in a car daily than on a bike. I guess with every big life change you have to reprioritize and figure out how to fit in all the important things.

I guess the good news is that I believe I have figured out how to get into work without buying a car. One of the PT aides lives down the street from me and has a very similar schedule. Between her and my roommate, I should be all set. Of course I have a couple of backups as well, because I wouldn't be me if I didn't always have a plan for most situations.

Geishas of 350 Allston

2007-09-12T21:05:00.001-04:00

Geishas of 350 Allston
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

I was thankfully not that only girl that dressed up. Check out my fellow geishas... they definitely had the fancier fans, which were a blessing on such an abnormally hot September evening. Most of the guests ended up on the porch as the apartment was unbearable - especially in full costume!

A Ninja and his Geisha

2007-09-12T20:52:00.001-04:00

A Ninja and his Geisha
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Matt and Rob decided to have another theme party this past weekend. As usually, Matt and I went above the normal party-goer. I figure if you are going to dress up, you might as well make it worth the effort. The funny thing is that this really did not take me that much time. I feel some of the other girls spent more time picking out their non-ninja attire.

I have no idea what the theme will be for the next one, but I guarantee that Matt and I will go all out again!

Offically a Triathlete!

2007-09-09T16:45:00.001-04:00

CCTri 2007 - bike
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

So, I completed my first triathlon a couple of weeks ago. There were 584 participants at the Cranberry Country Tri this year, and my results are below. Anna did not end up doing the race with me as planned because she had to get stitches in her big toe the night before after stepping on a piece of sharp metal.

My mom and I had to leave at 5:30am in order to make it down there in time to register and set up my stuff for the transitions. I ended up having some time to relax before the start of the race, which allowed me time to survey the entire scene and check out some of the course.

I was in the Athena group, which was women who weighted over 150 lbs. We were in the last heat, so it was easy to find my bike out of the water (not many left at that point). I got a little lost on the swim, and had to stop twice to make sure I was on course. My goggles fogged up and I could not see at all on the loop back as the sun was rising and I only saw white blurs.

I felt great on the bike where I started passing people and gaining speed. I thought the run was pretty slow, but apparently I was 346 out of 584 for that portion... I guess everyone else was slower! For the bike I was 423/584, and on the swim I was 528/584. That still allowed me to place 424 overall in just over 3 hours.

424 639 JESSICA RIGGS SOMERVILLE MA 3:03:40 9/16 ATHENA 528 34:34 3:53 423 1:22:54 2:34 346 59:46

All in all I am please with how my first tri went. I think I definitely need to improve my swim and transitions! Not sure when I'll be doing another one, but hopefully it'll be soon.

Day 1 & 2

2007-09-05T20:56:00.000-04:00

I realize that I haven't posted since finding out my Waltham placement (still a sore subject) and it makes it seem like nothing has happened since early August. This is not the case. Since that time, I have completed an Olympic distance triathlon (my first ever!), changed roommates, had a lovely visit from my friend Sara and her boyfriend Kamyar, attended a wedding in Upstate NY with Matt, and got some very interesting news from my friend Dasha. Yes, her and Zsolt are finally expecting :)

I plan to write about all of these things. I am just a little exhausted from 2 full days of HR orientation, and plan to bike home soon. I decided to keep an evening shift at the computer lab to earn an extra $60/ week. Perhaps that will pay for the car it looks like I need to purchase. it's funny that I was so reluctant to sell my car 2 years ago when I decided to go back to school and now I can't imagine having to deal with owning one again. I plan to fight this and explore every other option... let's see how that turns out, huh?

Bad luck?

2007-08-12T09:04:00.000-04:00

So, I got two letters on Friday: (1) a typed letter from MGH stating that I would be joining the WACC Outpatient team on Sept 4th and it gave me details concerning orientation and my salary, and (2) an email introduction letter giving me my clinical instructors name and hours. The main difference between these two letters was the outpatient clinic where I was to work. The first stated it was the WACC, or Wang Ambulatory Care Center, which is at the main hospital and where I really wanted to go. The 2nd said: "As you know, you have been selected to go to our Waltham clinic." Well, not only did I NOT know that, I had just received contradictory information. I called the coordinator of clinical education at MGH and she confirmed what I feared: that I was actually chosen to go to a site that is not accessible via public transportation, that has a smaller number of clinical specialists (1 vs 5+), and that doesn't have a large neuro population. The woman I talked to was sorry that I had received incorrect information and was surprised that I had been chosen for Waltham when I don't have a car.

This changes my plans for the year slightly, as I will not be able to get a dog, and will have to borrow Matt's car. We need to work out an arrangement where I will probably pay the bulk of his car insurance, gas and some maintenance to have the use of his car during the week. I guess I will be helping him out with financial concerns right now, which is good. And I just mapped the route and should be able to ride into work at least a few times a week. It's about 9 miles, and with my new road bike, it should take me less than 45 minutes. I just hope there is a shower there or some way for me to cool down before my shift. My hours are as follows...

MWF 7-3:30, TTh 10:30-7pm. The MWF shift is too early to take the commuter rail, which would be a 2 mile walk to work anyways, and I won't be able to bike in the winter. I guess I will figure it all out.

I thought I was going to be able to stay in Boston, continue commuting on my bike, and have a regular schedule. Apparently that was not in the cards for me... is ti bad luck? or perhaps a blessing in disguise? I guess I will have to wait to figure that out.

I get a raise...

2007-08-02T08:45:00.000-04:00

So even though I have yet to start nor do I know the clinic where I'll be working, they have seen it fit to raise the hourly wages of the interns by an extra $0.90/hr. This means I'll have an extra $36/ week... perhaps enough to pay for a puppy! I'm already looking at dogs online, although I need to know exactly where I'm working (downtown or Waltham), my hours and my roommate's availability. Within the next year, however, I would love to have my own dog :)

Bride and Groom at Sunset

2007-07-31T18:22:00.001-04:00

Bride and Groom at Sunset
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Heather and Alex had everyone meet them at the Vermont Brewfest to enjoy some microbrews and to take pictures with the newly weds. We took a bunch of group photos at the large Adirondak chair, but Stephanie also snapped off a couple shots of them alone at sunset. They are so perfect together, and I wish them the best!

Under the Umbrella

2007-07-31T18:20:00.001-04:00

Under the Umbrella
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

This is a picture of Michelle and I at Heather and Alex's wedding a couple of weeks ago. After months of planning and getting everything in order, the weather decided to not fit into the plan of a lovely outdoor wedding. The bride in groom took it in stride, however, and still walked down the "aisle" to the tree house where they exchanged their vows while we hundled under umbrellas down below.

I'll admit that I did not actually hear much of what was said between the two of them, except I did hear Heather replace "I promise to stand by you through the trouble we may have" with "we WILL have." A nice touch that got a laugh out of those in attendance. The wedding was followed by a pig roast and dancing at the St. John's Club.

It was a great weekend, as I was able to go for a long bike ride with my friend Josh on Saturday AM and then head to the Vermont Brewer's Fest with the wedding party in the evening. I realize being up there again how much I really love the people and the atmosphere in general. Perhaps I'll end up in VT by the end of 2008... who knows?

First Brick Workout

2007-07-17T18:37:00.000-04:00

I did my first brick workout today. It wasn't planned but I was feeling great and felt like pushing myself, so after my 30 mile bike ride with Katie, I ran 3.5 miles. I was tired, but I felt like my legs were underneath me and I could continue to push through the fatigue. Of course, I did not swim beforehand and didn't run the 6+ miles I am going to need to pull off on August 26th, but I think this is a good place to be 5-6 weeks out. I am planning on biking 40-50 miles this weekend up in Burlington, VT with a good friend and avid rider. The couple I lived with for 10 weeks is getting married on Friday afternoon at a public park right on Lake Champlain, and I figured I might as well bring my bike and log some good scenic miles on Saturday!

I think I am even starting to think like a triathlete now, scary!

It's A Small World After All

2007-07-17T18:21:00.000-04:00

So, last night was Matt's DJ night at Rivergods. A new wave/ post punk night at a very chill venue in Cambridge conveniently located a few blocks from his apartment. He spun from 8-9, 10-11, and 12-12:30. I made it till just after midnight when I had to head out. A good group of my friends came out to enjoy some drinks along with the tunes and I think it was a pretty successful night.

Matt also had a good group of friends come out for it, most importantly his friend Rachel who has just moved from Albany to Boston (a transition he knows well). She arrived with the guy she is currently dating who, as chance may have it, is my ex's good friend from high school. Not Brian, but my ex from 4 years ago Mike. I tried to fight of the ghosts of ex past, but this guy kept offering up unsolicited information about Mike's business, his new girlfriend, and how they've moved in together. I tried to redirect conversation and insert some tidbits about how I am also doing well: dating a wonderful guy, about to finish graduate school, working at an amazing hospital, training for a triathlon, etc. He then started to pump me for information about Matt and I in order to report back to Mike. Yuck.

I am really glad that Mike is doing well, and has finally moved out of his parents' house. I know that I have moved on and have finally reached a place in my life where I feel truly happy, but the conversation last night through me back into a time when I was being rejected and struggling to find self-worth. Luckily I phoned Sara before walking home and going to bed, because I woke up fully refreshed and feeling quite confident that breaking things off with Mike and the rest of the decisions I've made in the last 4 years have led me down an amazing path. One that I am still excited to see where it goes!

Walden Pond Swim Route

2007-07-16T09:48:00.001-04:00

Walden Pond Swim Route
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

We went out to Walden on Saturday and I finally swam the entire length! Here is an estimate of my route. I obviously need to work on swimming straight. The pink is the way I went out and the orange back. Notice the improvement in aiming for the correct part of the shore. I think it's much easier on the route back because there are a ton of people camped out on the beach and you have a larger visual target.

It's ~1/2 mile across, so I actually swam over a mile total (counting my detours) with one break inbetween. I felt great and even managed to run for 30 minutes after the swim. I feel much more prepared for the swim portion of the race, although now I need to focus on the run and the bike!

A Funny Side Note

2007-07-12T23:09:00.000-04:00

Apparently the suit jacket was a wasted purchase, as the interview for MGH was the one where I had to find a different outfit when my suit was locked in the building. Perhaps my resourcefulness won them over... it certainly wasn't the stylish black button down shirt I wore.

My Year Long Placement

2007-07-12T22:56:00.000-04:00

We received notification of our internship placements today at 4pm. I ended up getting my first choice, which is Mass General Hospital Outpatient. I'm not sure yet whether I will be in the ambulatory care center attached to the hospital or at a satellite clinic in Waltham. I think I remember the director telling me that she wouldn't send me to Waltham because I don't have a car, and I would love it if I get to be in the hospital. I am very excited about this news, although I am also nervous for a few reasons:

I know that this will be the most challenging of any of my placements... Vermont tends to be a laid back place, and The General (I should start using the lingo) is anything but.
I think I may be placed with another Jessica R in my class and she is quite competitive. Great, they will definitely be comparing us now, not that I think I wouldn't match up if we were to be compared. I just don't think that is the point of our internship year.
And this one is silly... there is no more pretending or fantasizing about the different places I might end up and how each one would present different challenges. I now know where I'll be and that kind of takes the guessing out of things for the moment. I still don't know where I'll be after this year, so perhaps I can just start fantasizing about that early :)

Face Scan

2007-06-26T18:43:00.001-04:00

Face Scan
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

I participated in an MIT face scan study yesterday. The whole process, which consisted of me sitting still for 2 minutes inside a metal dome filled with cameras as they took 900+ pictures of my face, took all of 15 minutes to sign in, set up, and get all the photo's taken. For that they gave me $30 and some of the images, thus the spooky picture of me in a hairnet looking like a statue. I wish I could have posted the 3-D image... it was in a strange format and would not save to a standard .jpg format.

I guess they are using the data to develop software to age images, and various other reasons. They don't exactly seem to have all the uses for this data hammered out yet, but it definitely seems interesting and totally worth $30 for my time :)

Memorial Day BBQ

2007-06-26T18:39:00.001-04:00

Memorial Day BBQ
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Matt and I went to a BBQ in Cambridge on Memorial Day at his friend Irene's place in Cambridge. There was a grill and people were instructed to bring food. Someone decided to bring stuff to make Smore's and I came up with the brilliant idea of melting my chocolate using a spatula and tin foil prior to placing it inbetween the graham crackers with the toasted marshmellow. I did this because the marshmellow never seems to stay hot enough to melt the chocolate. I figured I would just preheat the chocolate, easy solution!

Well, the chocolate definitely metled and here I am attempting to eat my Smore's without losing too much of the marshmellow and chocolate oozing out the sides. Matt is laughing at me, but I still consider the venture a success!

Cape Cod Crew

2007-06-19T09:34:00.001-04:00

Cape Cod Crew
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

A month ago, a bunch of us headed down to the Cape for some R & R before I started classes and the summer officially begun. We were down at Matt's parents' house the weekend before Memorial Day weekend, which was rainy and cold the entire time. Still we managed to entertain ourselves and have a great time.

Here we all are eating breakfast the first morning. Michelle and I, seated at the head of the table here, made waffles and eggs each morning since we tended to be awake a good hour or two before anyone else. See, it pays to bring a morning person on trips like this!

Matt and Rob look quite pleased about their waffles :)

My Last Interview

2007-06-15T08:59:00.002-04:00

So, I was trying hard not to have any interviews on my birthday but when the opportunity came up to get both of my Mass General Hospital (MGH) interviews done in one day (on my birthday), I decided to just get the last interviews over with. I had a group interview Tuesday at Newton Wellesley that consisted on 6 of them grilling the 5 of us on various topics mainly related to spine manipulation.... grueling! This was followed by a more casual one on one interview at Youville on Wednesday, saving 2 interviews (one with the department directors, and one with 2 clinical specialists) at MGH for Thursday.
Well, after the Youville interview, I decided to leave my nice pants and blazer (my interview outfit that I will have to take a picture of and post for Sara) at school in my locker, since I had to bike in early Thursday morning to work in the computer lab. My plan was to bike in, change, work for 2 hours, and then take the Partners Shuttle over to MGH for my 9:30am interview.

I biked in yesterday morning, with my portfolio and various other school items, to find that the entire Naval Yard was without power and even though the security guard had keys, he would not allow me to go upstairs to get my suit with the lights out (liability or some crap like that). I waited an hour for NStar to figure out the power issue, and then decided to bike home (25 minute ride), change into the best pair of pants and shirt I could find, and then take the subway to MGH.

I made it to my interview on time, and the new outfit was acceptable, but I still told them my story to explain my slightly more casual attire and because it was so unbelievable. The interview seemed to go really well, and now I have a tough decision to make. I need to submit a ranked list by next Friday, and I think it now looks something like this:

Mass General Hospital
Spaulding
Brigham and Women's
Youville
Newton Wellesley
Shaughnessey Kaplan

Although I am debating on rearranging the top 3. I plan to discuss it with some faculty members who's opinion I value, and hopefully I will have a concrete list that I feel good about. And then I should find out my placement in July. I'll keep you posted.

Home Sweet Home

2007-06-15T08:59:00.001-04:00

Home Sweet Home
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

My roommate recently moved out of the apartment she had live in for 7 years, leaving me with a lot of cat hair and grime to take care of! I decided that if I was going to put in the effort to fix the place up, that I would go all out. My mom came up from PA to help and in 4 days we managed to fully clean and paint the place.

Here is what the living room now looks like with the fresh coat of paint and my furniture.

I just signed a 15 month lease starting June 1, so it looks like I have a place to call home for a while.... ahhh, it's about time!

Intership Interviews and the Beginning of the Semester

2007-05-27T13:37:00.001-04:00

It's odd being back in classes for what is my last semester of coursework. After that I will be starting my year long PAID clinical internship, which I have started attending information session for and submitted my resumes to the hospitals where I would like to work. I have 3 out of 8 interviews already set up (Brigham and Women's, Spaulding and Newton-Wellesley, first one June 1st), 1 that is currently being scheduled (MGH), and I'm waiting on 4 other sites to accept me for an interview (Boston Medical Center, New England Rehab, Shaughnessey Kaplan, and Youville: a new addition to the list). 29 students applied to Boston Medical Center for 1-2 positions, so they have decided not to interview everyone and will be hand selecting interview candidates. Shaughnessey is having their information session on Friday June 1, and the other two have not yet reviewed all the resumes.

The whole process is frustrating and nerve racking as students are looking around the room at the other information session attendees sizing up the competition. Meanwhile we've started 4 classes, with 3 more that will begin once we are through the interview process, and not much work has been assigned and there appears to be a lot of confusion in terms of logistics. I guess it'll all settle out once interviews are done, and our final ranking lists are submitted. That will all happen by June 25th, so I guess I only have a few more weeks of stress ahead.

Oh, and to add to the stress and confusion of my life right now... my roommate moved out yesterday and I have the next week to clean up, paint the place, and be ready to great my summer roommate, Amy. Amy is a first year DPT student at the institute adn her orientation is the 2nd week of June. I'll be able to give her some pointers and books... not sure who the roommate will be for Sept 1. We'll see.

Triathlon Training

2007-05-27T13:13:00.000-04:00

Well, now that I am back in Boston, I have officially started my triathlon training. Anna has been taking swimming lessons and biking with a group out of Newton while I was in VT, and boy do I need to catch up! My two workouts so far this week have left me fairly exhausted: swim ladder (300m warm up, 200, 300, 400, 300, 200 and 100 cool down), and a 20 mile bike ride with a lot of hills. I actually felt better with the swim, which means I need to work on my riding. There is another 15 mile ride planned for tomorrow, and I should plan to do another longer ride during the week. Our race is in August: The Cranberry Country Triathlon. I should be able to build up my biking endurance by that time. My lungs hurt when I returned back home yesterday and I was coughing for an hour until I felt better. Crazy! Well, I guess I'll be in great shape by the end of the summer.

Back in Beantown

2007-05-04T10:59:00.000-04:00

So, in just 9 more days I will be back in Boston for a full year! Yup, I got my internship list back and am approved to apply to all the places on my list that I posted a couple of weeks ago (except New England Rehab which is still not a definite option). This means that I will be living in Boston for another 15 months, and I have already spoken to my landlord about signing a 15 month lease at the current rent. She is even redoing the tub for me, buying paint for me to fresh up the place, and having her carpenter come in to discuss where he will build shelves in the kitchen to make it more usable. Oh, and she said I could have a dog in there if he wasn't a real barker. I just need to find a roommate for when Helen moves out and I am all set! I am so excited to finally fix up this apartment, to be on a lease, and to have all my furniture in one place. You know, to be somewhat settled.

I've been having fun with my last few weeks in VT and am helping my roommates with a neighborhood yard sale this weekend, and doing a charity walk. Anyone can donate. It's the COTS Walk to benefit homeless shelters, and my team is the Burlington Hash House Harriers. Matt is coming up this weekend to hang out and help move my stuff back to Boston. He has been absolutely wonderful in helping me get ready to come back and is showing my apartment to potential roommates tonight for me. :) Hopefully one of them works out.

Running for a Good Cause

2007-05-02T15:10:00.000-04:00

My friend Megan and I traveled down to Albany this past weekend for the Captain Timothy J. Moshier 5K Fun Run/Walk in memory of Matt's best friend who's helicopter went down in Iraq last year. It was great event with over 120 volunteers who made it all happen, including Matt's parents who helped with registration and course direction. It was a great day for running: overcast and in the high 50s, and we all did really well. Matt got 4th place overall and Megan and I had strong finishes as well. Below are my times:
89 Jessica Riggs 27 F Somerville MA 23:59 7:44

I was 89th out of 364 people, some of whom walked, but not bad for not training! I wonder if I could get my time below 7 minute miles with training. In any case, I am really glad that I was able to make it down there to cheer Matt on as he sped past me coming back in, to lend my support, and to spend time with Matt's family and the Moshiers. It was a great weekend.

Therapy Garden

2007-04-27T12:58:00.001-04:00

Therapy Garden 1
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Every Spring there is a photo contest between the different rehab departments at Fletcher Allen. Apparently the acute rehab team has won 3 times in the past 5 years. The idea for this year's picture is that we are a growing therapy garden. One of the PTAs who's been here for a while is the farmer with the pitch fork, the site manager is watering the back row, and our secretary is watering from the side. You can just barely make me out in the back. My clincal instructor is the one to the right of the "Support Staff" sign. A very fun group of colleagues!

I'll let you know if we win! The prize is $500!

Clincal Update

2007-04-26T19:24:00.000-04:00

I am now only a couple of weeks away from the end of my clinical affiliation at Fletcher Allen Health Care, and then I'll be returning back to Boston for my last 2 and a half months of classes. I've started to like being at the hospital now that I'm picking up patients with more complex medical issues. I really like working as part of the medical team and I now feel comfortable talking with the nurses, doctors and social workers to help decide what is best for our patients. However, when patients have more complex diagnoses, it can be more emotionally draining. I have a patient in the ICU who slips into an irregular heart rhythm every time I get her sitting up, and another patient who has to have both legs amputated or he will most likely become septic and die. I find that I am exhausted at the end of the day, and I worry that in the morning I may find out that one of them didn't make it through the night. Although it seems rather bleak, but I really like what I am doing.

The next step will be interesting, and I wonder where it might take me. I have decided to stay in Boston for my year long and only put places on my list that I can get to via public transportation. I just really want one more year close to my friends before people start going their separate ways. I know Anna plans to possibly move to Seattle, and Nelly and Rob are moving there this summer. Matt is also thinking that he might not stick around much longer than a year, so I guess it would be fun to stick around another year and spent time with the people who mean a lot to me. So here is the list I submitted:

Spaulding Rehab Hospital, Boston Medical Center, Shaughnessey Kaplan, MGH, Newton-Wellesley , New England Rehab, and Brigham and Women's.

Hopefully everything will go well with the application and interview process. They should tell me what places I can apply to by early May, and then the interviews will happen in May and June. I'm excited to have a year where I will be working a regular schedule and be able to have time to spend with friends... and maybe I can even get a dog. :)

Hashing is #1 in Boston?

2007-04-23T22:17:00.000-04:00

Ok, so it looks like a local station is ranking all the fun sports in Boston that involve drinking. The Boston Hash House Harriers are in the running... voting on the following site will increase our chances: Vote Now. I don't know when they have the results posted, but right now we are 4th place. I'd love to see us make #1!

Punk Rock Hares

2007-04-17T21:04:00.001-04:00

Punk Rock Hares
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Matt, Anna, Mike and I set trail for the BH3 Rock N' Roll Marathon run. We decided to all dress up like punks, and Matt took it to the next level with his mohawk, which only lasted for a totally of 2 days. Over 120 people showed up for the event, and trail was close to 7 miles for those who ran the full thing. We ran past some nice Boston landmarks including the cute neighborhoods in the North End, the Charlestown Navy Yard, Beacon Hill and the State House, and the Boston Commons.

Luckily we ran on Saturday and had nice sunny weather... I guess the actual Boston marathon was a little rainier. I guess we lucked out, and I think a great time was had by all.

April Showers...

2007-04-16T20:36:00.000-04:00

are supposed to bring May flowers, but in Vermont these showers are
6-16" of snow. I'm not a gardener, but I think that may impact the
tulips this season. I guess Boston is getting all this precipitation as rain, which must have made the Boston marathon today a bit miserable.

Four more weeks of snow, slush and rain and I'll be making my way back to Somerville.
Of course I am now starting to freak out about all the things I need to
get worked out before I return. I need to find a roommate for June 1st,
which is a little difficult when I can't be there to show anyone the
place or even to meet any potential roommate. I'm also freaking out
about picking my list for my year long internship. They recently sent
us all a spread sheet with the current placements including how much
each pays, whether they have insurance, and the patient populations
we'd get to see. I have to send in a final list by the end of this week, and I guess I am nervous about it. I will probably make a pro-con list, but I still don't know if I'll be able to narrow it down to only 6 choices.

Update on the Year Long Internship

2007-04-11T14:38:00.000-04:00

So, it looks like the position at RIC in Chicago that was focused on patients with spinal cord injuries is no longer an option for my class. Since I do not have any interest in the Pediatric position still available there, it looks like I will not be living in Chicago any time soon.

Our clinical coordinator also just sent out all the information on each site, including amount of pay per hour, insurance available and paid days off. There is a lot to think about on this one. Unfortunately so of my top choices are pretty poor paying and one has no insurance coverage on top of that. I guess I really need to think about what is most important, and I need to think about this soon... I need to send in my list within the next week or so.

I guess the really important questions right now are: do I want to stay in Boston? would I be willing to buy a car? is money or experience more important to me? and what clinical skills do I hope to gain in this year? I'll be sure to figure this all out in the next 2 weeks, and will solicit advice from those close to me (consider yourselves warned). This year is the start of my new career and I really want to get off on the right foot.

Operation Bridesmaid 2008

2007-04-09T18:39:00.001-04:00

Another 2008 Wedding
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

So, it looks like 2 of my best friends have recently got engaged and they both asked me to be in their weddings. Jocelyn got engaged earlier in March and asked me to be her maid of honor. I am so excited and am already thinking about what I need to do: bridal shower, bachelorette party, and helping her with the big day. It's kind of a big responsibility, and I think I am up for the challenge. She is getting married Sept. 2008 in Worchester, MA, so I will be out of school and requesting a few days off prior to starting my job so that I can be there for everything.

Jen (who is surrounded by flowers in this picture) got engaged a couple of weeks ago, and has set an estimated date of June/July 2008 for her big day. Jen is considering getting married at our highschool in CT, which would be beautiful, although I think her mom isn't too keen on the idea.

I'm happy for both of them and am excited to be a part of their weddings... and I get 2 new dresses that I might never wear again, but will look damn good in photographs wearing them both!

Erik's kids

2007-04-06T22:04:00.001-04:00

Erik's kids
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Well, my first boyfriend has recently contacted me and updated me on his life, wife, and 2 kids in Delaware. I guess a lot has happened in 13 years, huh? It's definitely been interesting getting emails from someone I was close with so many years ago, but I'm just a tad weirded out that he already has two little ones at home. Of course, these are 2 of the cutest kids I've ever seen!

Getting Bored?

2007-03-15T06:30:00.000-04:00

Well, I think I am getting the hang of working in the Acute Care Unit because I am not really finding it too challenging this week. I know that they have been trying to keep my caseload simple and low so that I can get orientated, but I think it may be time to step it up a notch. I have to say that I do really like my patients, even the guy who sneaked booze into the hospital was surprisingly good to work with. The turnaround time is quick, however, so I only see people for 3-5 days before they either head home or to rehab. The whole point of acute care is get people up out of bed and moving around as independently as possible as quick as possible. Not a lot of patient follow up, so I really don't know how my patients end up doing in the long term. I think that is why I'd like working in a rehab hospital where you work with patients for weeks to months and get to help them make some significant progress.

I am already thinking about my year long clinical and have a list in mind: Spaulding Rehab Hospital, Rehab Institute of Chicago, University of Michigan, Portsmouth Regional, MGH, Newton-Wellesley, Faulkner, and Brigham and Women's. I have to work on my resume this month and then I'll be sending it out to these places to see where I am interviewing in May/June. Then I'll rank my choices while the hospitals ranks theirs, and then I'll be matched in July. I can't believe I am almost done!

The pirates of 350 Allston

2007-03-13T12:09:00.001-04:00

Pirates of 350 Allston
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

I headed back home this weekend to attend Matt & Rob's housewarming party. The theme was Pirates, and here they are proudly standing on the deserted island in their livingroom. I came as a beer wench and filled many an empty mug throughout the evening. (Pictures of me to follow, once I get a hold of the ones Matt took!).

A couple of friends of mine showed up, but mainly it was Rob's B-School friends and Matt's friends from the ALB. Not everyone dressed up unfortunately, but those who did really went all out (as evidenced by the picture of our hosts).

It was great to be back down in Boston, and the rest of the weekend was more laid back, but it was still hard to leave :(

An interesting day...

2007-03-08T16:54:00.000-05:00

So, my first patient of the day was supposed to be a gentleman that I evaluated yesterday who had undergone a total hip replacement. He tolerated walking well, and it should have been an easy 30 minute treatment session... Apparently my patient took it upon himself to drink 4 bottles of Brandy (I'm guessing airplane sized) and attempt to walk on his own at 1am. He fell when getting out of bed, and proceeded to break his ankle on the same side as his hip replacement. Surprisingly he did not dislocate his hip in the process. He was heavily medicated when we went to see him in the AM and slotted for surgery to internally fixate his ankle. The plan is now to re-evaluate him tomorrow.

What was supposed to be a simple total joint replacement to "get my feet wet" has definitely become a bit more complicated... I'll have to see how he is doing tomorrow, and perhaps discuss how drinking may not be the best thing to accelerate his recovery.

Maybe Acute Care is going to be more exciting than I originally thought... definitely keeps you on your toes!

Erik and Matt

2007-03-06T19:34:00.001-05:00

Erik and Matt
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

I forgot to upload this photo over Christmas, but here is a picture of Erik and Matt goofing around at Sligo's on our 12 bar Christmas Pub Crawl.

I think this is bar 7 or so.... I don't exactly know what they are doing here, but it looks like they are having a good time :)

Greetings from the land of ice and snow!

2007-03-05T17:00:00.000-05:00

After a treacherous commute up Friday night, which involved one spin out where thankfully no one was injured and Anna was able to negotiate her car out of the snow bank and get us back on the highway, we settled in after arriving at 2am. We couldn't believe all the snow outside when we finally dragged ourselves out of bed and the house. There are drifts of over 5 feet in some areas (apparently this is where the snow has been hiding).

The people I am living with are great and luckily had the bed all ready for us with multiple comforters and blankets. We all went skiing together at Smuggler's Notch on Sunday (amazing conditions), and then proceeded to watch multiple spin outs while we tried to keep our own car on the road getting down the frozen access road. oh, this is after I fell on the ice in the parking lot and landed with my board on top of me... no broken bones, although I am awaiting a sizable thigh bruise.

Found the shuttle bus at 7am this morning and had a good first day. My CI is really nice, although a bit nervous as I am her first student at FAHC... we'll see how it pans out. So far, she seems to know her stuff although is a bit scattered at times. She is ready for me to begin treating patients tomorrow, that is of course if I can find their rooms as this hospital is a labyrinth!

Oh, and it is supposed to be -6 degrees tomorrow morning!

False Alarm

2007-02-18T16:48:00.000-05:00

So, I realized that I jumped to conclusions when Matt and I sat down to talk about VT. Granted, he was not chosing the right words, but I made the assumption that he was not willing to try to make it work during my 10 week stint in Burlington, VT. He also made some assumptions about me wanting a serious commitment from him before I left (something that after 3 months, he is not quite ready to do). All I wanted was for him to say he would try to make it work. No one can say for sure how the distance will affect things, but I think we both agree that it's worth giving it our best shot!

Of course he read my blog yesterday and was really sad at the finality in what I wrote. I guess my new reaction to relationships is to cut and run when they are getting difficult. I think I am afraid to make the mistake of staying in a bad relationship for longer than I should again. My friends made me realize that that is not a good reason to end a good relationship now.

I think I also scared Matt by saying I was thinking of a future... he isn't quite there yet, but admits that he is headed in that direction. I'm thinking about this coming summer and next year... no one is ready for marriage yet! No worries, Matt. :-p

Intense competition in Burlington

2007-02-18T16:47:00.001-05:00

Intense competition in Burlington
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Matt, Moriah and I headed up to Penguin Plunge in Burlington. Matt and Moriah both jumped into freezing cold Lake Champlain the following morning to raise money for the Vermont Special Olympics. I was smart enough to stay on land and witness the event.

Here they are the night before battling it out for the RockEm SockEm Robot championship belt. The Vermont Pub and Brewery has many games to entertain yourself with while you wait for a table. We drew quite a crowd, and I ended up with a sore thumb by the time we were seated.

Best Friends

2007-02-18T16:43:00.001-05:00

Best Friends
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Erik and I visited with Zack over Christmas break and here they are playing with the camera on my laptop. These two have been friends since age 1... doesn't look like they have matured much since then.

It was great to be able to visit with Zack before heading back to Boston. I think it's crazy that he is all grown up now with a beautiful apartment and a real job. Erik will hopefully get there soon. Actually he is graduating in May. I'm very excited about the trip out there.

A lot to report...

2007-02-16T19:13:00.000-05:00

Wow, so apparently it has been over 2 months since I last posted anything. I wanted to upload pictures from the holidays, but have not gotten any of them from my dad or aunt yet. I also have a couple of fun pictures of Matt and I tooling around on my laptop, but those don't really feel appropriate any more. I am sad to report that we are no longer a couple. I would fill you in on what happened, but I don't quite understand it myself. This kind of caught me off guard, as I actually found myself thinking about a future with him.

In related news, I am moving back to Burlington, VT for another 10 week clinical. I'm not as excited this time, as I had hoped to finally be at a Boston hospital closer to friends and well, Matt. I refer to it as related news, as it was the catalyst for the breakup. I don't think he wanted another long distance relationship even if it was only for 10 weeks. I'm pretty torn up about it, but I guess I need to put that aside and start planning for my move in March. 2 weeks! It is bitterly cold up there, and I hope to at least get some time on the slopes otherwise I'll just wish I was living in warmer weather. Why can't I get placed in CA? Ok, so I'm not a huge cali fan... what about Seattle or Denver? I would love to live near Erik or my Boston friends who have migrated to Seattle.

This semester is winding down and I find myself less motivated to study and just wishing I was already out of grad school. Perhaps I should have picked a year long program instead of a 3 year one. I don't even remember the last time I wasn't stressed out. I guess there is a light at the end of the tunnel, as my year long clinical is starting in September. I just need to make it till then...

Anti-Buffet 3

2006-12-17T08:31:00.000-05:00

Anti-Buffet 3
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Matt and I headed up to Smuggler's Notch last weekend for a running/ skiing weekend with the Hashers. This is an annual event that includes 3 days of skiing (if you can get up there early enough on Friday, which we didn't), a fun 3+ mile run, and a beer festival.

I ended up riding both Saturday and Sunday on the couple of trails they had open. It was great to be on my board, but boy am I out of shape for snowboarding!

It was a great unwinding weekend before final exams :)

Our Fabulous 3rd Place Prize

2006-12-07T08:02:00.000-05:00

Team Janine gets 3rd place
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Janine and I got matching Nike wrist bands for all our hard efforts. Here we are sporting our fabulous prize!

I wonder if snazzy wrist bands worn earlier in the tournament would have improved our game...

Final win

2006-12-07T08:00:00.000-05:00

Final win
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

We finally got pictures from the tennis tournament earlier in the semester. Here is a picture of Team Janine as we celebrate our last and final win. We ended up 3rd overall... and even got 3rd place prizes :)

Alumni Dinner Success!

2006-11-14T19:59:00.000-05:00

I had this idea earlier in the year about having a group of recent MGH IHP alum come to the institute and talk to our class about their experiences. In undergrad I felt they were always having different speakers or various networking/ career building opportunities, and I thought it a shame that MGH didn't do something similar. So, what did I do? I asked for help from other students to help plan an alumni panel dinner here at the IHP. 5 students agreed that my idea was worth putting into action, and we were able to get 2 very enthusiastic alumni to agree to come.

There was a ton of planning for food, and other logistics and the typical last minute freaking out. I almost cancelled the event a week ago because I feared 2 alumni would not be enough. Boy was I wrong! They were very engaging and had great answers to our questions and suggestions on what we could do for career development.

I am now feeling very relieved and excited about it. Apparently the first year students want to keep this as something we do every semester. Perhaps in a couple of years I will be an alum at this semi-annual event!

Clinical Placement at Spaulding

2006-11-02T07:39:00.000-05:00

I've been at Spaulding Rehab Hospital for 2 weeks now doing my neuro rotation on the brain injury floor. The first week was difficult as all my patients were younger than me: all in their late teens, early twenties. I talked to my advisor about it and apparently that is the demographic: males between the ages of 18 and 24. It's sad to see someone who was headed off to college one minute and then a freak accident caused them to loose it all. We have one patient now who has a poor prognosis and it is hard to look at all the pictures of him and his friends that he mom brought in, because he is no longer that guy in those pictures.

This is an area of PT that I applied to schools hoping to end up doing when I graduate. So far, I am really enjoying the work that I am doing, but I may have to develop a thicker skin if I'm going to go this route.

Sad News from VT

2006-11-01T17:39:00.000-05:00

I got an email yesterday from my clinical instructor this summer telling me that a patient of ours passed away. He was a war veteran who saw us 3 times a week for treatment of chronic low back pain. At first he was difficult to work with, but by the time I left he was telling us how much he appreciated his time in therapy. He would thank me repeatedly for caring about him, something he felt not many people did these days.

According to Alison (my CI), he didn't show up for a couple of appointments and so she contacted his MD to find out what was going on with him(he didn't have a phone). The doctor's office informed her that there was a note in his file from the VT Committee on Temporary Shelter stating that he was found dead in his apartment 3 days earlier. I don't think she knows the cause of death.

The email was very matter of fact and kind of lighthearted to the end, when she wished me a happy halloween, and I didn't know how to take the information. I guess she has had 8 years to adjust to patients not getting better or even dying. Well, this is my first patient to pass away, and I'm still a bit shaken up about it. I guess that makes me human, right?

Well, I'm glad I was able to make him feel better about himself and about life (which he told me often towards the end of the summer) in his last months.

Happy Halloween

2006-10-31T20:00:00.000-05:00

Happy Halloween
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

So, my friends Vanessa and Lisa dressed up as Killer Bees for Halloween. Here they are in Nelly's kitchen showing off their weapons. I had a ton of with these gals, who were the first to arrive and last to leave! Anna and I got beer for the event earlier and Matt & I were in charge of the music. I think a fun time was had by all :)

Earlier in the day, I ran a Halloween Hustle 5K in the rain. Anna was supposed to run it with me, but injured her knee so she watched me under her umbrella. Despite the weather, I had a great race and placed 10th in my age category! (81 out of 377 overall)

10 81 23:15 Jessica Riggs 27 F Somerville MA

Not bad! My pace was 7:29, which was my goal. Crazy that I am running close to my highschool times these days!

Ultimate Wingman

2006-10-25T10:12:00.000-04:00

Ultimate Wingman
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Poor Dave ended up talking to this girl for an hour because Steve thought her friend was cute. This woman was quite pissy and not a fun conversationalist, and of course Steve didn't even end up talking to the other girl.

Dave eventually had to whip out the wedding ring to get out of talking with her. You can tell how thrilled he is in this picture.

Would you like some cheese?

2006-10-25T10:10:00.000-04:00

Would you like some cheese?
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Ok, so Matt and his friends have this game that they like to play when they head out to local bars. Someone remembers (or buys on the way to the bar) a single die. Initally, someone challenges another person in the group to a dare (in this instance, serve cheese to people in the bar) and picks a number before rolling. If they get their number, then you have to do the dare.

Dave dared me to serve cheese to the patrons of Mahar's. I am quite the server with years of catering behind me, and was able to get rid of most of the leftover cheese. Too funny! I never got my roll, so no one did any of my dares :(

We'll have to see how well this game works in Boston...

Starting Bar

2006-10-25T10:05:00.000-04:00

Starting Bar
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

I headed out to Albany last weekend to celebrate Matt's last weekend before the big move to Boston. A bunch of us met up at Mahar's, a bar that prides itself on its international beer selections, so I tried some Belgian, English and good old American ales before we headed to the Lionheart.

Notice the dice Matt is holding... more on that later

Partners Running Club

2006-10-18T16:28:00.000-04:00

So, we have a health promotion project that we develop this semester at school. The project is supposed to serve a need in the community to promote health and wellness. There are 7 projects this year and we were all divided up based on interest earlier in the semester.

My group is working with the Partners Running Club. to develop an interactive program designed to improve performance, increase core stability, and prevent injury. We are going to start doing literature reviews to see what the experts say. Hopefully I'll learn a little bit myself and perhaps ward off any injuries :) I'll post anything interesting that we learn for those of you out there that run.

Of course without thinking about it, I was totally dressed the part yesterday. I was wearing my long sleeve shirt from the Tufts 10K and had on my track vest from highschool. Word to the wise: when you wear something from highschool, make sure it doesn't have a date on it! Mine read: Taft Track 1996. Yup, that was 10 years ago... way to date myself, huh?

Speaking of running, I did my first tempo run last night: 10 min warmup, 3 minutes fast followed by 2 minutes easy X 4, and then a 5 minute cool down. The fourth pick up was definitely painful as it ended up being half uphill. Oops, that's what I get for not planning my routes :)

Post AGM run

2006-10-17T19:15:00.000-04:00

Post AGM run
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

OK, so this was how excited Anna looked after the run. In her defense, it was quite cold outside. Actually, her lips even turned purple at one point.

No worries, she was AOK at the end of the night and we both had a blast crashing a Freedom Trail Pub Crawl later on in the evening: they went to 19 bars along the freedom trail starting at noon. We only did the last 5... perhaps that is why I was ok enough to run 8 miles the following AM with Anna.

She has me running way too much these days... but if I can handle, it's good, right?

Before the Run

2006-10-17T19:05:00.000-04:00

Before the Run
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

This weekend was the Boston Hash AGM run. We all started at Sissy K's in Fanueil Hall before going out for a decent 4-5 mile trail. This is definitely a picture from the start of the run because Anna & I are still smiling :) Actually the run was beautiful, and I was right up in front with the guys, which is a nice change.

I got the best compliment from Puffy before we headed out. He told me that the short hair suited me, that he didn't know what it was (the hair or something else), but that he had never seen me so happy. He was one of the guys who helped me move out of Brian's place back in March, so he has definitely seen me at lower points. I know that I generally feel healthier and happier these days, so I guess it shows!

The Grape UB

2006-10-13T12:24:00.000-04:00

UB picking grapes
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

UB was by far our most proficient grape harvester due to his amazing reach. He also made a godo target from far away distances to throw rotten grapes at :)

Farmer Dan & his Migrant Workers

2006-10-13T12:21:00.000-04:00

Farmer Dan
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Moriah and I headed up to VT this past weekend to help Dan's parents harvest their grapes this year. They have a small vineyard that has been in operation for a few years now and every year they offer a bottle of wine to anyone who will help with the harvest.

A free bottle of wine & time with friends in VT was enough to get Moriah and I up there. I even dressed the part in overalls. Of course while the rest of us were doing the back breaking work of picking all the grapes, Dan just rode the tractor around and picked up full buckets to be weighed.

It was a beautiful day, and I loved spending time with UB & CJ, but I had NO idea I'd be doing such hard labor for 5 hours!

At least the bottle of white wine was quite tasty!

Pictures from the Tufts 10K

2006-10-13T12:09:00.000-04:00

Pictures from the Tufts 10K
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Check it out! Apparently they took a few pics of me during my run on Monday. At this point I am headed over the Mass Ave bridge back into Boston, and have about a mile and a half to go.

I think from this picture that you can tell why my IT band was so tight. I don't think my left leg could come in anymore! Yikes! Hopefully my form was a little better earlier in the race.

I just ran yesterday for the first time since, and it went well. 8 miles at a 9:30 pace (just chillin') :-)

Tufts 10K

2006-10-10T08:21:00.000-04:00

So, Anna and I decided to celebrate Columbus Day by running in the Tufts 10K for Women. This is a huge race that starts and ends on the Boston Common, runs along Memorial Drive, and has over 7,000 participants. I ran this 5 years ago with Kate, and we were very excited to find out that we ran it in just under 9 minute miles. Now, I am in better shape this year and decided to try and beat that time.

It was an amazing day, although a tad warm, and I went out feeling pretty good. Anna encouraged me to go ahead of her as she is still recovering from an injury and felt our initial pace was a bit much (8:15 for the first mile). Well, apparently I got even faster as I finished it at a little over an 8 mile pace. Check out my results!

453 174/1530 F2029 51:39 50:29 8:08 Jessica Riggs 27 F 5636 Somerville MA

Crazy! I think I am a lot faster than I thought, since I didn't feel too bad when I finished and could probably have picked my pace up at some point. Hmmmm.... Anna is trying to convince me to really train for a 5K in a few weeks. Maybe I will do some speed workouts and see if I can run at a 7:30 pace. I would LOVE it if I could pull that off!

Team Janine's 1st Loss

2006-10-03T18:29:00.000-04:00

So, my friend Sarah B set up a tennis tournament at school. She even came up with an acronym and everything: ACE (Amateur Tennis Players Competing & Exercising). Basically people of all (or in my case none) abilities could sign up to play tennis and you were randomly paired with someone for doubles to compete in a round robin tournament. We started with 8 teams total, played 3 matches of 6 games each where the object was to win as many matches as possible. The top 4 teams after these matches, determined by total number of games won, advanced to the semi finals.

Well, I got randomly paired with Janine who competed at UVM on the varsity team. Needless to say, our abilities were a bit uneven, and my strategy was to returm the ball and pray they hit it back to Janine. I also began referring to us as "Team Janine." Oddly enough, my strategy worked as we were the top team going into the semi-finals.

Unfortunately we lost today, as we had to play a real match with best 2 out of 3 sets of 6 games. We lost 7-6 and 6-3. Luckly we didn't make it into a 3rd set with Nicole and Matty G because we played for the entire hour and twenty minute lunch break.

It's been great to be outside getting exercise during lunch, and I think my tennis may actually be improving. Of course I finally saw Janine play to her ability (she's been down playing her skills) for the 1st time today, and I have a long way to go!

Matt's visit to Boston

2006-10-03T18:13:00.000-04:00

Playing Around with the MacBook
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Matt was in Boston this weekend to spend time with his new roommate/ friend from college and to see a show downtown. My friend Lisa and I joined them at Avalon to see CSS & Ladytron. Very fun show, although I was surprised that more people weren't dancing. We then headed to a bar on Bolyston, and then to a club at the Park Plaza hotel. Somehow we managed to dance all night and stay out till after 3am!

This picture was from earlier in the day, when I was trying to convince him to get a new MacBook. He needs a new computer once he quits his job (they will most likely take back the laptop they gave him), and I think he should get a Mac. I was showing him the PhotoBooth program that takes a picture of you from the camera embedded above the screen. I can't remember if we were trying to look impressed or pensive. And why does he look better than me? Grrr...

I had a blast hanging out with Matt and Rob this weekend, and spent the better part of Sunday/Monday recovering from it! I can't wait until Matt is here full time. 4 weeks and counting...

A Little Dating Ego Boost

2006-09-28T08:02:00.000-04:00

So, I told a friend of mine recently that he needed to establish more of a dating ego. What I maen to say is that he is highly confident in his athletic abilities, but seems to be lacking in confidence when in dating situations. I think we can all relate to this one, and I have definitely doubted my ability to attact a worthwhile mate.

I decided to post a blurb from an email I recently received that definitely helped to boast my dating ego. A little back story: while waiting for my fellow RTB team members at a local dive bar, I fended off some advances from the older patrons while a younger gentleman looked on. I tried to get this guys attention and sigmal that he should come save me, but he did not approach me until my friends showed up a bit later. We chatted a with him about our big race up in NH, and before leaving he gave me his business card and asked me to keep him posted on how we did. So, I wrote him last week to brag about how team One More Beer did, but also informed him that I was seeing someone (true at the time, although recent events have changed that). Here is part of his reply:

Well, I guess I could take a reprieve and say that I was not hitting on
you- though, it wouldn't be completely accurate. I was mostly saying
hello, as I was curious as to your reasoning for being at that place
alone at 5:30pm. So, my curiosity was going, and the catch of your smile
was lovely, so I took a chance at saying hello. No real intent on
anything other than making an acquiantance, though if you were absent a
boyfriend, then I certainly would be asking you out now. :) That's as
straightforward as I can make it. :)

That email is getting filed away for those days when I need a pick me up... kind of like my voicemail collection which includes 2 drunken calls from Wick & Grey telling me how much they miss me, and the recent addition of Matt telling me how F-ing cute I look with my new haircut :)

Scott & I at the finish

2006-09-28T07:50:00.000-04:00

Last Leg!
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Here's a picture of Scott and I at the end of the race. Scott ran our last leg and definitely deserved the gatorade I brought him :)

Scott was one of the faster more competitive members of our team. JMo and he started a competition to see who could pass the most runners on their legs. Since JMo ran right before Scott, he would always tell him a number when he passed of the wrist band at the transition point and this would give Scott a goal to achieve. They referred to people passed on the road as "roadkill," and we kept an accurate tally for al team members in the van. Final score: Scott 88, JMo 69!

I was not really involved in the competition, but I was definitely proud of my 20 :)

My friend Matt was competing with them on another team... I don't remember his final tally though. I'm sure it was close. The 3 of them are crazy fast runners! Scott was never passed, and JMo was passed only once. I would love to have all 3 of them on my team next year!

RTB team: One More Beer

2006-09-26T20:08:00.000-04:00

RTB team One More Beer
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

The weekend before last I participated in one of the best athletic competitions: Reach the Beach. This is an event where 12 member teams run a 200 mile relay across New Hampshire (from Bretton Woods to Hampton Beach) in 24 hours time! There are 300 teams that register every year and each one starts on Friday according to their projected finish time. They try and plan it so most teams finish around the same time. We started at 10:40am.

Each runner is supposted to complete 3 legs total with varying start times. Because we were down a runner (my friend was injured last minute) and Anna was already injured, 4 of us ended up running 4 legs total. My total milage was 18.7 miles, with my longest leg being 6.9 miles @ 5 am Saturday morning. Oddly enough, despite a constant battle with my stomach, I felt great during my legs and even managed to pass 20 people total: 13 of those at 5am! My last leg was a bit painful and took a lot of willpower to finish.

Here is a picture of my team, although a few of us are hidden. We all wore the Boston HHH One More Beer T-shirt, which was our team name. We ended up finishing 78th out of 296 teams. My team was amazing, and I think we all had a great time. Enough to even consider doing it again next year...

Back to School

2006-09-22T15:41:00.000-04:00

Yuck. So, I am now full fledged into the fall semester and I think I am keeping my head above water. I can't tell if this semester is easier, or if I care less at this point in the game. I definitely find the subject matter interesting as we are now doing spine and neuro. My clinical placement for this semester is Beth Israel Outpatient for 6 weeks than the Brain Injury Unit @ Spaulding for the 2nd 6 weeks. Much more involved patients, but I'm excited about it.

I guess the hardest thing right now is that I have been out of town every weekend since I came back from VT: the wedding in Upstate NY, Reach the Beach (which I plan to write more about when I have pictures), and now a random event in NH... next weekend I'm staying in Beantown, going to my favorite coffeeshop, and taking some time for me! Woo hoo, I like that plan!

After

2006-09-20T21:53:00.000-04:00

After
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

So, I went to get my haircut today and it was long enough... so I let her cut it short in order to donate it. Hopefully someone will enjoy some nice golden locks while I get used to the cute new do. It definitely is an adjustment.

I think I may really be shocked tomorrow when I wake up and it is still gone!

Sara, you inspired me... hopefully I still like the decision in the morning :)

Before

2006-09-20T21:49:00.000-04:00

Before
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

I decided to donate my hair back in the spring and it wasn't long enough then, so I've been growing it out since...

Farewell Hash

2006-09-18T19:05:00.000-04:00

Farewell Hash
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

This is a picture from my farewell hash up in Burlington, VT. Heather took this picture of the two of us after I set a trail that made everyone run 5+ miles. Notice we are both still smiling, so it couldn't have been that bad!

I had so much fun running with them this summer, and I miss them all now that I am back in Boston. People here are in such a rush and they never seem to have smiles like these on there faces :(

My Mercedes

2006-09-18T18:51:00.000-04:00

My Mercedes
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

The rental car company did not have my Dodge Neon as promised, but they did have a Mercedes at the same price. I got to arrive to the wedding in style! Hard to convince people you are a poor grad student when you roll up in this vehicle though...

I totally look like I am trying to sell this car, not like the owner. Perhaps I should work on that for the next premium car I get to drive.

An amazing ride!

Before the drive

2006-09-18T18:42:00.000-04:00

Before the drive
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

I headed out to upstate NY for Igor and Ainsley wedding, and stopped off at a friend's place in Albany. I think he wanted to document my wearing makeup... it doesn't happen often :)

I am hoping to have actual pictures from the wedding to post, although people seem to be slow to get their pictures posted.

The wedding was beautiful. They got married up in the Thousand Islands and had the reception at her family's place on one of the islands. There was a boat taking guests over and everything. All the usual Brown CS guys were there and I had a blast with all of them. Makes me wish there was another wedding coming up soon...

Keeping warm by the campfire

2006-08-15T08:33:00.000-04:00

Keeping warm by the campfire
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Dan tried to keep me warm by the fire, but I eventually needed a blanket. Below 65 is NOT August weather.

Waiting for our turn

2006-08-15T08:31:00.000-04:00

Waiting for our turn
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Zack and I wait on shore for our turn on the boat. Greg has the cutest life vest for him and it has a handle. Greg then picks him up like a 6 pack and brings him on board.

How's the air up there?

2006-08-15T08:29:00.000-04:00

How's the air up there?
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

After Derek told her it was not possible to take a good wakeboarding action shot, Logan whipped out her camera and captured Greg in action. I think she may have proved him wrong on that one.

There are no great action shots of me, but I'm still working on getting the board out of the water... maybe next year.

The Lake Sunapee Crew

2006-08-15T08:27:00.000-04:00

The Lake Sunapee Crew
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

I went camping this weekend with Derek and a bunch of his friends up at Lake Sunapee. This is an annual gathering that consists of Lobster dinner Friday night, and wakeboading all day Saturday. And I added a new tradition of blueberry pancakes in the morning. Needless to say, I had a blast!

So, left to right starting at the bottom: Jake (dog), Emily, Greg, Zack (dog) & Dan. Logan, Derek, Jason, me, Nikki, and Sean.

Only possible in VT

2006-07-09T16:52:00.000-04:00

My roommate from Boston came up for a couple of nights to enjoy some fun outdoor activities, and I think we may have outdone ourselves. Orignially we talked about going on a nice hike, but then a friend up here was going out sailing on Saturday and was looking for a crew. Because Helen wanted to leave early on Sunday, we had a choice to make... and we decided to do both!

Because Jeff didn't plan to set sail till 3pm, we headed out to Camel's Hump for a 4 hour hike leaving Burlington at 8am and returning in time to shower, change and buy some food to bring on board. Jeff and another friend on board, Alex, both made Mojitos and we had a nice relaxing sail out to Juniper Island on Lake Champlain where we set anchor and swam for a bit before heading back to the docks. The lake was a bit on the cold side, but definitely refreshing.

We then hung out with some other sailors we know on shore at a bar called Breakwaters until after 10pm. I would like to tell you I then headed home for well needed rest, but unlike my older and sometimes wiser roommate, I decided to meet some of the crew out at a club later in the evening and stayed out dancing till 2am.

After a full day like that, I feel somewhat justified in staying in and doing laundry today. A slightly tamer, but still productive day, right?

Life at Fletcher Allen Aquatic

2006-07-01T10:31:00.000-04:00

I have just finished my second week up here in Burlington at Fletcer Allen Aquatic, and I am loving it. Everyone here is really nice and helpful. It is a great learning environment and I am really starting to feel confident when treating patients. I now have my own caseload, and am treating 6 patients almost exclusively. In only a couple of weeks time, I have formed a good relationship with them and have helped a few progress. I can't say how great it is to have someone thank you for making them feel better.

Outside of clinic, I have managed to make a few friends and already have offers to go sailing, running, and kayaking. I LOVE living in a place where people fill their weekends with outdoors activities :) I am actually going camping this weekend with friends coming up from Boston, so I am hoping the weather holds out. I ended up biking in the rain to work multiple times this week, and could really use some drier days.

Updates from the Green Mountain State

2006-06-20T17:57:00.000-04:00

I have moved up to Burlington, VT and am currently residing in the basement of my new roommate's townhouse. It is an interesting living situation for the next 2 weeks as the old roommate is still here, and they DO NOT get along. Of course both of them are super nice to me and constantly tell me how difficult the other person is as a roommate. I think they are both trying to win me over to their "side," and I am trying to lay low until the other girl moves out. Apparently I dodged a screaming match last night by going to bed early... I will have to continue to do that in the future.

Of course my 11 mile round trip bike ride, and my early hours should ensure that that happens most nights. I just biked to my clinic for the first time. The ride was 10 minutes quicker on the ride back because apparently I have a mainly uphill climb to get there. I just missed biking in 2 rain storms, and am wondering what my thunderstorm plan will be. There is a bus that goes almost to my clinic (within a mile), but that would still be a trek in the rain... oh well, I go right in the pool anyways most days.

Today I did not get into the pool as we did not see too many patients, since I had to do a lot of orientation type stuff. I have a list of patients that we will see tomorrow and I need to look up a few things in my notes to be prepared. She plans on me treating patients after a week or two, so I need to be prepared.

The weekend was nice. Derek and I walked around on Friday after he drove me up, and Matt and I went hiking on Sunday when he was here. I am hoping to spend my off hours outdoors enjoying the scenery here. I surprisingly have a lot of energy given my 2.5 mile run this morning, 11 mile bike ride, and 6 hour work day (it was short today). Well, let's see how I hold up after a full day tomorrow starting at 7:15, which means I have to be on my bike @ 6:30 AM.

Dark Moves on the Dancefloor Co-Host

2006-06-15T11:15:00.000-04:00

Dark Moves on the Dancefloor Co-Host
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

After some arm twisiting, Matt finally got me to speak on air with him. Boy was it nerve racking! I mean, what do you say? Does anyone really care what you talk about? I don't know how he does it every week.

Although my radio career was brief, I think perhaps the audience enjoyed my banter with DJ Matthew C. I can tell you that I would definitely do it again if I had the chance, and perhaps this tiem would be less timid. :)

Oh, and I wasn't bored in the radio studio like the picture suggests. Matt & I thought it would be funny to take a staged photo where I pretend to be thoroughly uninterested in his show, which is not the case.

DJ Matthew C

2006-06-15T11:05:00.000-04:00

DJ Matthew C
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Last Thursday I visited Matt in Albany and was able to sit in on his radio show at WRPI: Dark Moves on the Dancefloor. He gets to craft a set list and talk about his favorite bands for 2 hours every Thursday night. You got to love college radio stations! It was my first time at a radio studio, and it was cool to see how everything works. I'm very glad I was invited out there :)

Our new favorite accessory!

2006-05-31T10:33:00.000-04:00

All about the ring pops
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Sara and I are now hooked on ring pops after Amy Mendel's faux engagement party where she handed them out at the door. So many people kept asking us if we were part of a bachelorette party because we bought the ones that flashed. I think we bought 20 of them, so we should be all set the next few times we go out!

Sara & the boys

2006-05-31T10:31:00.000-04:00

Sara & the boys
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

Here Sara is with Matt and his roommate Erik. Logan did such a great job as the official photographer of BOOB. How cute are they!

Me & Matty G

2006-05-31T10:30:00.000-04:00

Me & Matty G
Originally uploaded by jessriggs.

A bunch of us went out for Sara's birthday, otherwise known as BOOB (Big Outrageous Outing for the Birthdays). My friend Matt from class came out and brought his roommate. We had so much fun tearing up the dance floor with the 2 of them. I think we may have to invite them out more often!