Doctor, Doctor -- Gimme the news!

What is medical school like?

Well, I'm not entirely sure yet, but it seems an awful lot like high school -- with much harder classes of course. Speaking of course difficulty - so far (after only one low stakes exam) I'm high passing one class (though most people high pass/honors pass it) and right at the average for a second course. Not bad, but I've got more work to do if I'm going to get to where I want to be.

Of course, my view of medical school will be different from that of someone who has gone/is going to med school at a large public school, or a prestigious private (Ivy) school. You see my medical school has about 115 people per class. Furthermore, the EVMS campus proper is all of about 4 buildings. We're small. Kind of like my high school actually. So everyday is sit in the same classroom, with the same people, with the same (four) professors. Kind of like high school. Still, the people are all intelligent, the people teaching the classes care, and it isn't a massive drama/clique driving machine -- not at all like high school.

The professor in my (only -- for this semester) Master's Degree only class is a man of about 65 years of age. He's a succinct, no-nonsense, bastard of an old man. He also tells sexist jokes, and apparently gives much higher grades to pretty girls. Yeah, I think it's fair to say I liked him from the start. He's also relatively high on the admissions committee, and I think he likes me -- or at least doesn't hate me.
I was shocked to learn today though, that he's a recovering alcoholic. I want to say a few things about alcoholism for the close of this post. I do feel somewhat bad for people (such as my old prof.) who have struggled with alcohol addiction. Given the appropriate opportunity I would do what I could to help people with such an addiction. But alcoholism is not a disease. It's an addiction, and there are obviously biochemical changes within such a person. But alcoholism is the result of weak people who've made repeated bad choices. Calling it a disease, when it is self-inflicted is a smack in the face of people who have been hurt/crippled/killed by real diseases.
There's my rant of the day.
My brother's wedding is only a month away. Being the best man I have to give a speech. I have it more or less planned out -- though I've yet to put pen to paper for the finishing touches. I have a feeling that about 10 people are going to think that I gave an excellent toast/speech, and everyone else is either going to think it was boring and stupid or worse. I'm still going to do it, because it's what I believe in. Consequences be damned!