Hi, everyone. This is my blog’s longest running tradition, a yearly wrap-up post.
Radiology, New Haven
I finished my radiology residency at Sinai. See other post. Being chief alongside Arthi was one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve ever had, but also a trying one. I got burnt out, there’s no concealing it. I think we both did.
I moved to New Haven, CT and Yale New Haven Hospital for my neuroradiology fellowship. The change has been refreshing, with new attendings with unfamiliar styles and priorities, a different case mix (high-impact and penetrating trauma), a better IT state, and a great new class of 11 co-fellows.
To complete another tradition that’s our years running… “now 9/10ths through my radiology training, I’m legitimately decent with a dictaphone.” I’m acceptably fast, my sensitivity is acceptably high, my reports are acceptably comprehensible, and I feel just about ready to practice as an acceptable independent radiologist.
I rent an apartment in New Haven (financial ouch), and Katie and I split weekends to and fro. I’ve become intimately familiar with the NYC-NHV train commute on Metro North. I am the sole neuroradiologist here without a car, like a true New Yorker. However unlike when I was a frugal college kid in Boston/Harvard, I’ve more properly explored New Haven/Yale. Restaurants, museums, adjoining neighborhoods via running, etc.
Running
This year, I made a thunderous return to running. On Strava I logged 700+ miles in 2023, the most in six years. From 2022-2018, my logged mileage was 402, 128, 373, 285, and 669 miles. Lower mileage is partially attributable to more biking around NYC, which I don’t log.
My monthly mileage trend is illustrative. Early in the year, much of the running was motivated by my friend Ben, a dedicated (and rather good) runner. He was a main inspiration for my starting running in 2013, and anytime I have the opportunity, I try to tag along on his daily runs. In January and February, there were 10+ mile hilly runs during is bachelor party, a pre-wedding running on the morning of his ceremony, and a post-wedding run the morning after his ceremony. Classic Ben.
Then, the mileage chart cleanly illustrates my spring burnout slump. Then, I struggled to sustain previously relaxed paces more than 15 minutes.
In July, moving to New Haven pushed me to rededicate myself to returning to form. I wanted to be able to summit East Rock, something I did when visiting in 2015. From my apartment in necessitates an 8.5 loop with 350′ elevation. It took two months to recover my fitness.
Since then, I’ve sustained about ~20 mi/week, similar to my previous heaviest running during med school (1000 mi/year). Edit 12/30/23: I made a big late December push to reach 700 miles for 2023. I pulled off a half marathon, which is a useful benchmark. I’m not as fast as before, but I’m also not working as hard on my running as before. I’m not engaging in cross-training or interval runs; the priority is cardiovascular fitness and the ability to run short distances when necessary. For instance, if I catch a late NHV->NYC train, I’ll run the 2.2 miles from Grand Central Terminal to home instead of waiting for the sparse subway trains.
Personal Hodgepodge
The random new project was pool, courtesy of the common room of my New Haven apartment. My aim is improved, but crusty balls and the canted slow table seriously hamper my ability to develop cue ball control or kick/bank shots.
I attended some concerts and events. As a NY Philharmonic supporter, I got to attend a handful of open rehearsals. Katie and I got tickets to watch the Taiwanese Symphony play at Lincoln Center and Batiashvili, Capuçon, and Thibaudet perform trios at Carnegie. We also saw Snarky Puppy (my Spotify top artist two years running) at Radio City Music Hall and John Mayer at Madison Square Garden. In New Haven, I listened to a Carillon (bell tower) concert, a pipe organ recital, a string quartet concert, and a med school orchestra concert. How Ivy League-esque.
I went to a Yankees game! It was my first big national sports game; someday I may attend an NBA, NFL, or NHL game. I also went to the Harvard-Yale game. Well, at least the Harvard-Yale tailgate… I had to leave before halftime for call.
Notable material acquisitions this year were my first desktop computer ever, replacement desktop speakers, my NYS medical license, Tracksmith running swag for Katie and me, some whisky, and a watch.
Speaking of watches, I convinced my younger brother to get a watch. I coached my older brother into finding a watch for his wife. I provided logistical support for my wife’s sister obtaining her most recent watch. Wow that’s a lot of watches.
I haven’t decided if I’ll do a dedicated whisky post (it needs a companion topic… palatal training? inebriation?), but I’m up to thirteen lifetime bottle purchases/gifts. Half scotch, two Taiwanese (Kavalan), two Japanese, one Irish, one American, and one Canadian.
Travel
I kicked off early January with two weeks in California. the longest I’ve gotten to spend with my family in years, more meaningful now that my younger brother is back in the Bay Area too. Katie and I returned to the Bay Area for Ben’s wedding (see above), then we skipped over to Mexico for a 6-day trip culminating in a wedding. We also flew to SoCal in May for my friend’s wedding. Lastly, we attended three weddings in NYC. Congrats to all of you; I’m sure you agree that being married is great!
In March, Katie and I joined my parents in Taiwan for an 8-day visit. The primary motivator was to introduce Katie to my aging grandparents. We met all of my uncles too! We squeezed in a lightning 3-day roadtrip down the east coast, paying visits to Taroko Gorge, YehLiu, JiuFen, that one cat town, and a whole bunch of night markets. We took the high speed rail to Kaohsiung. Sorry, I drafted a post but didn’t finish it.
In September, Katie and I drove around Scotland. Highlights were the treks, castles, and whisky distilleries.
In retrospect, this year was less rocky than 2022. Less COVID, no more near-death car accidents, no more camera deaths or unexpected hiccups in career progression. Well, my laptop is only partially functional, but what’s new…
I’ve got a good feeling about 2024. Happy holidays, and see you all on the other side!
