A Fitting Quote for First Term Med Students

Rome was not built in one day.

Sugar Baby!!

So what happens after we devour our Valentine's Day Chocolate? 

First, Glucose (sugar molecule) gets converted into Glucose-6-phosphate (G6P) by an enzyme called hexokinase (in liver, the enzyme is called glucokinase), a highly regulated enzyme. Afterwards, G6P gets isomerized into Fructose 6 Phosphate (F6P) by an enzyme called phosphofructokinase (PFK1), which is another highly regulated enzyme. F6P then gets cut in half into two products: DHAP and G3P by an enzyme called aldolase. DHAP then transformes into G3P. So now we have 2 G3P. The 2 G3P both become phosphorylated to become 1,3 bisphophogylcerate (1,3 BPG) by an enzyme called G3P dehydrogenase, which uses 1 inorganic phosphate per G3P and produces 1 NADH per G3P. Now we have 2 1,3BPG. This is where oxidative phosphorylation occurs, where 1 phosphate gets plucked off 1,3 BPG by phosphoglycerate kinase, yielding 3PG. This yields 1 ATP per 1,3BPG. Now, our bodies then change the 3PG to 2PG by phophoglyceromutase. 2PG then gets reduced to phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) by enolase. Finally, the PEP becomes pyruvate by the third highly regulated enzyme, pyruvate kinase. The conversion of PEP to pyruvate also yields ATP. 

The 3 highly regulated enzymes in this reaction are:

hexokinase (glucokinase in liver)

phosphofructokinase (PFK) 

pyruvate kinase

These enzymes not only facilitate irreversible reactions but are also key sites for control of the glycolytic pathway.

It boggles my mind that an act as simple as eating a candy bar can elicit so many metabolic reactions without us consciously knowing. 

Hungry?

Bioethics

Physicians have a duty to only certify that which they have personally verified. 

My happiness cannot depend on the weather, environment, or people. If I let these factors dictate how I feel, I will never be in control of my happiness or my life. 

Gah!!

I am exhaustified and have no one to bitch to..and here you are..

So, I'm a bit overwhelmed...I feel like there is too much studying and not enough hours to complete everything....

it's funny how 1 week makes you feel SO behind

Yes, I'm in Med School!

So, a lot of things have happened since my last LAME entry.

1: I left Texas.

2. I started med school!!

So, med school is a lot of work...I love it!

Tomorrow will begin my 3rd week and we will be learning all sorts of exciting stuff such as the introduction to metabolism, bioenergetics, structures of the arm, and histology of bone and muscle. I don't get much sleep these days, but I don't feel it.

Going to this medical school is one of the best decisions I have made in my life.

On Finance

6.2% of my salary goes to Social Security taxes and 1.45% to Medicare taxes. My former employer also paid the same amount for me. By 2017, the government will be paying more benefits than it collects in taxes and in 2041 the SS Trust Fund will be delinquent.

So what does that mean? 

I must invest and save my money properly. Most importantly, I must differentiate between what is an asset and a liability. In simple terms, an asset is anything that puts money in your pocket (stocks, bonds, real estate, intellectual property) and a liability is anything that does not. 

By continuously investing in more assets than liabilities, I will begin laying the foundation of a secure financial future. 

you and me

Mi Vida Es Como Un Canción

Ella despidió a su amor

el partió en un barco en el muelle de San Blas

El juró que volvería y empapada en llanto 

Ella juró que esperaría

Miles de lunas pasaron

y siempre ella estaba en el muelle,

esperando

Muchas tardes se anidaron

En su pelo y en sus labios

Llevaba el mismo vestido 

y por si el volviera no se fuera a equivocar

Los cangrejos le mordían sus ropajes, su tristeza y su illusión

y el tiempo se escurrió

y sus ojos se llenaron de amaneceres

y del mar se enamoró

y su cuerpo se enraizó en el muelle

Sola, sola en el olvido

Sola, sola con su esperitu

Sola, sola con su amor el mar

Sola, en el muelle de San Blas

Su cabello se blanqueó

pero ningún barco a su amor le devolvía

y en el pueblo le decían

le decían la loca del muelle de San Blas

y una tarde de abril

la intentaron trasiadar al manicomio

nadie  la pudo arrancar

y del mar nunca jamás la separaron

Sola, sola en olvido

Sola, sola con su esperitu

Sola, sol con su amor la mar

Sola, en el muelle de San Blas

Sola, sola se quedó

--Maná

Forgiveness

Forgive yourself and everyone around you. When you judge others, you are the one who feels pain. Through forgiveness, all pain disappears. 

-Daniel Levine

You Are What You Think

You are what you think. Think it today become it tomorrow. Nothing can keep you or hurt yo uas much as the thoughts you carry in your head.

-Daniel Levine

Suspicion

I was not born yesterday. I will put girls through tests to see how they will behave. I do cocaine, will you? I must sleep with you, will you?

I was not born yesterday. I will see if she is loyal. Where do I stand in her priorities? How does she responds to certain situations? 

I was not born yesterday. I love myself and my belongings. Do you love me for my money?

I was not born yesterday. I will suspect betrayal from every human until they prove to me otherwise. 

Destiny

You can look and you will find it. 

You can not look and you will find it. 

That which is yours will surely come to you.

-Daniel Levine (Zen Cards)

Remedio Chino en el Canción de Manu Chau

No todo lo que es oro brilla.

Patience

Watch water drop onto the rock beneath it. One drop does nothing, but many drops over time create a whole in the rock-such is the power of patience. 

-Daniel Levine (Zen Cards)

Why I Do What I Do

Because when I turn 60, I want to look back at my life and feel that I have accomplished something extraordinary. 

A Lesson found in Taoism

Prosperity is not what you have attained, but rather in what you have given away, for it is only when you become empty that you can be filled with something greater.

History Just Made

This evening, I sat in my Arlington home with my friends and family as I witnessed history being made: Barack Obama will be America's first black President. 

 John McCain delivered his teary-eyed concession speech in Arizona to what I observed to be a mostly white audience who vociferously booed when he congratulated Obama.  Afterwards, Obama's acceptance speech was made in Chicago to an audience that reflects our America-an America of all generations and races . Interestingly, the Chicago crowd, which constituted about 125,000 people, reacted much differently to Obama's reference to McCain. They began to cheer when Obama mentioned him. I found that so very striking and reflective of the sense of good will that Obama and his followers have for his former running mate. 

By far, this historical night reinforces the belief that in America, any dream is possible to fulfill. 

Sunday Reflections

As the summer greens blossom to reds--I wonder what color you have become.

Is it Gray with sadness?

Yellowy optimistic?

Red with anger?

or Whitely numb?

Or maybe you've absorbed all the colors and become burned black.