Our Greek Vacation by the numbers

Now that Dear Husband and I are home again, and Rosamunda has forgiven us for abandoning her to the doting care of our next-door neighbor--who not only feeds her wet food, changes her water, and scoops her poop but leaves treats every day(!)--I can post the numbers I collected while we were gone, illustrated with some extra photos, like the hand-painted keepsake from Santorini above.

Days of vacation: 8 + 3 travel days

Cities: 5 (Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill, Newark, Munich, Athens, Fira/Firestefani, Oia)
Islands: 1
Cars/vans: 10 
Airplanes: 9
Buses: 6, including ones at airports

Metros: 1 in Athens 
Trains: does the one at the Pittsburgh Airport count?
Boats: 0 due to high winds :-(

Funiculars: 1 out of 2 (Fira Old Port, but not Lycabettus Hill in Athens)
Donkeys: 1 for each of us

Street cats: at least 15
Street musicians: 4 (including a guy playing accordion on the Metro)
Books read: 2/3 (Leg: The Story of a Limb and the Boy Who Grew from It by Greg Marshall and The Taste of War: World War II and the Battle for Food, by Lizzie Collingham) (I didn't make it to How He Died, about our friend Steve Shoemaker)

Work emails checked: 0 for FrauDoktorDoctor; DH had to square some things away shortly after we arrived

Lost items: 3 (several bottles of water, sunglasses, sports coat)
Found items: 1 (sports coat)

People who threw up: 2 (food poisoning for me, airsickness for him)

Broken cellphone screens: 2 (both mine, since I didn't get a screen protector for the new one soon enough after shattering the old one)

Flat tires: 1.5 (our cars clearly missed us while we were gone)

Since I had mixed up the dates of our appointment to be pampered at a Turkish hammam, and the other museum we wanted to see was closed on Tuesdays, we had a low-key last day. In the late afternoon, we took a walk in the neighborhood around our hotel. First stop: the pretty little church above was across the street from our hotel, and we could hear the bells when they played. Loudly. At 7:30 in the morning.

Second stop: the Panathenaic Stadium, the first stadium constructed for a modern Olympics, in 1896.  We're now 100 days from the opening of the 2024 Summer Games in Paris!

Due to rain the first night, food poisoning the next two nights, and Saharan dust that turned the sky orange like Mars the night before our departure (the picture doesn't do it justice), we could only use the hot tub on our hotel balcony once. Reflected in the glass, you can see that I figured out how to log out of the previous occupant's Netflix account (in Dutch??) so we could watch something before bed. We settled on the pilot episode of Star Trek: Enterprise. It was just okay, like our trip, which DH and I have decided was "a mitigated disaster." While not the "dream vacation" I had hoped for, there were definitely enjoyable moments, like eating meals overlooking the caldera on Santorini, basking in the sun on the Aeropagus (Mars Hill), and using my extremely rudimentary Greek in the taxi on the way to the airport. In the end, the important thing is that we did it together, the two of us.

My Wife: A Photo Essay

This is a guest post by Dear Husband, in honor of our 18th wedding anniversary, of some of his favorite pictures and facial expressions. 

Baaaa-by!

(Not ours, a colleague's.)

Ready to eat a dinner of leftovers from the Hayhurst family picnic

while spending the night at a tiny cabin.

Pre-s'mores grin.

(What could she be so happy about?)

Mmmm, hot tea with breakfast at the diner.

Napping in the car on the way home after church; note the partially open mouth.

Coda: DH asked to snap a picture of me enjoying dessert after our anniversary dinner, but then he didn't tell me he had taken the photo, so I held the pose until I finally opened my eyes and laughed because he was still watching me with his phone camera up.

Everything's a metaphor, notes from the Love Shack

While crashing through the underbrush that had overgrown what we finally determined wasn't actually the "nature trail" (there was too much nature), Dear Husband regaled me with a metaphorical reading of our predicament as it related to our marriage (setting out with good intentions, unexpected obstacles, etc.). Our path in life has been no better signposted, as we work together to try to figure out the best way forward. 

Later we made s'mores, and I reflected upon how making and tending a fire is a lot like a long-term relationship with its ebbs and flows--whoops, wrong metaphor. At any rate, it takes a great deal of effort and some resourcefulness early on to get damp wood to light. Eventually you notice healthy flames licking across the logs, but after awhile, the fire settles down again and has to be coaxed into flame again.

We humans sometimes do ridiculous things, like build a campfire in the sweltering August heat, or buy a big expensive white dress to wear for one day in your life. In both cases, we do them to say we've done that thing, and/or because they carry other meanings (nostalgia, tradition, comfort, conformity, ...).

DH and I rented a tiny cabin at a wooded campsite for one night to celebrate with one set of rituals the 18th anniversary of another. This one was decidedly smokier but no less satisfying for having been spent at a trailer with the tiniest possible bathroom. 

We ate leftovers from the family picnic, took that ill-fated "hike," and tended a fire for several hours.

Even when I spread out the coals at the end of the night, in preparation for dousing them before bed, it was surprising how much heat they gave off.

Okay, if not the smallest bathroom, than the worst designed. You had stand between the wall and the toilet to close the door. It should have had a sliding door, or an accordion-folding door, or a door that opened into the main room instead of into the bathroom. As you can see, we survived. But it kinda puts a cramp in your glamping style if you get wedged in the shower. I'm just saying.

A Grand Pause in the Heart of Ohio Amish Country

The big news is that Dear Husband is changing jobs! He has been hired as the music director and  organist at Sewickley Presbyterian Church. We are sad to be leaving our friends at Third Presbyterian Church after 6 years, but this full-time position (with benefits!)(and a pay scale that reflects his doctorate!) is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that was too good to pass up. PLUS, the assistant music director is an old friend who used to live 2 doors down from us in Point Breeze until they moved to Sewickley for him to take his position. Pittsburgh really is a small town like Baltimore.

As soon as I knew when DH's last Sunday at Third Pres was, I dropped whatever I was doing to book us a weekend getaway. People who work Monday through Friday jobs may not appreciate how rare and exciting it was to think we could take off for 2 days without having to worry about being back in time for church on Sunday morning. On one month's notice so close to Valentine's Day, I couldn't find a cabin with a jacuzzi tub within an hour's drive, so I opted for one 2.25 hours away in "the heart of Ohio Amish country." I took my last available vacation day on Friday afternoon so we could leave at 1pm, and arrive for check-in at 3pm. As it was, we left a little late but had a lovely drive along Tappan Lake, arriving at the Pretzel Nook in downtown Berlin (emphasis on the first syllable) right before they closed at 4pm. He had the garlic and herb pretzel and I the cinnamon and sugar one. Here we are savoring our warm, baked to order snacks!

I had wanted to walk up and down Main Street to window shop, but the road was kind of busy and the weather too cool, so we moved on. It was 5 minutes down the road to a cute cabin on a hillside overlooking a pond. Out the front windows, we could see horses on the hillside of the farm across the road. Outdoor amenities included our own parking pad, a picnic table, a grill, a firepit, and wooden rocking chairs on the front porch. Because we came in February, we didn't avail ourselves of those. However, we did enjoy the efficiency kitchen, comfy couch and large flat-screen TV, king-sized bed, and spacious bathroom with both a shower and a jacuzzi tub (with a chandelier!). Everything was done in wood and stone, and there was plenty of light inside. 

 There was a regular house just behind us; we wondered whether they (originally?) owned the land that was too hilly to farm and so decided to develop it as part of the burgeoning tourism industry.

There is no wood around this cabin, so the blinds were appreciated for privacy.

The paving you can see is the driveway in the property, there's actually a dropoff

to the main road below that, and the pond is part of the farm across the road.

Is this cottage chic?

I didn't get any photos, but actually the kitchen table and coffee table both had

live-edge tops and legs out of burnished twisting branches that looked pretty cool. 

The bathroom was half again as large as the main room.

For the first time in our relationship, we took a trip for which I had planned no activities except for dinner Friday evening at one of the local Amish buffet restaurants, Mrs. Yoder's Kitchen. Rather than try to see cheese-making, Amish handcrafts, the railroad museum, the wood-carving museum, the Swiss-Amish museum, the world's largest cuckoo clock, or even the local state park, we stayed in, watched two movies, used the jacuzzi, read, sewed, cooked, ate, and napped. We did minimal emailing and patient care. It was the rejuvenating break from schedules and expectations that we needed--a "grand pause" in musical parlance. DH said the only thing that would have made it better would have been snow. As it was, we had sun and clear skies for the driving both ways.

Plus, I finished the Princess Bride cross-stitch sampler he got me for Christmas! Because the kit didn't match the instructions, the Etsy seller actually sent me a whole second kit. I'll make it again, hopefully better the second time, keep one for myself and gift or donate the other one.

DH's transition is actually almost a month long. While he is not playing for 3 Sundays, he is still going back to Third during the week to be let in to practice the organ. Next Sunday we will go to church with friends before flying out to Phoenix for our annual Spring Break vacation. The week after that we're going Sunday brunch (another first for us!) before putting me on a plane to Chicago for a nutrition in medical education conference. He starts at Sewickley after that, and of course I'll share photos.

What Attending Looks Like

I know I said back when I finished residency and shared my last bloopers post this summer that I wouldn't start a new series about attendinghood. However, every once in a while I would like to give you a window into my world.

Despite how incredibly over-busy I was this week, I made time to look up the tracking number for a parcel that the email that showed up in my work in-box claimed was from the American Board of Internal Medicine. I didn't end up reporting it as phishing, but it sure seemed fishy to get an unsolicited shipping announcement with a link. (Instead of clicking on it, I copied the purported tracking number and entered it into the USPS web tracker. It appeared legit.) Lo and behold, on Friday a big flat package arrived in the mail with my certificate in Internal Medicine. (Photo altered from my real name + MD to "Frau Doktor Doctor, MD PhD.")

The other package that arrived at the same time contained three Lyrica "surgical caps" from Etsy. I started my first two weeks as a ward attending in the hospital today, and I wanted to take extra precautions not to bring COVID home with me. In addition to wearing scrubs (which I don't do when I see patients in the clinic), I bought the caps to cover my hair. They say "one size fits most," but I am unfortunately in the minority: if I pull them all the way forward, the front edge reaches my eyebrows! (My child-sized head is the reason I failed all N95 mask fittings until Thursday, when a special set-up showed that there is exactly one model that fits my petite jaw. The nurse running the test told me I should have eaten more ice cream, because the masks fit better with a double chin.) Dear Husband even demonstrated his remarkable attachment to me by walking 4 miles round trip through Homewood Cemetery on an unseasonably warm Sunday afternoon to a locally owned shoe store so I could try on Dansko clogs to wear instead of my usual sneakers. The risk of me bringing COVID home on my shoes is honestly pretty low, but the risk of me bringing home a drug-resistant bacterium is actually pretty high. They didn't have the fancy punched-out leather ones from their website, so I went with a matte black, waterproof pair that were very comfortable for the 12 hours I wore them on my first shift.

I don't work directly with COVID patients, but I might take care of some while their tests are pending. And there are plenty of others with chest pain, back pain, cancer, asthma exacerbations, bloodstream infections, unexplained kidney failure, delirium after a prolonged hospitalization, and everything else I'll see between now and Thanksgiving. Low person on the totem pole again as junior faculty, I am working on Thanksgiving, just like intern year. I suppose it's just as well, because 2020 is not the year to travel across state lines to eat with other people, not matter how much we love and miss them. (I'm also working Christmas.) Please stay safe out there, wear your masks, and distance as much as you can. Yesterday we got a briefing from the Chair of Medicine about new bed spaces being opened up and asking for volunteers to staff them. We're seeing the aftermath of indiscretions on Halloween weekend, but also coworkers, church members, and households not taking as much as care as maybe they could have. Maybe scrubs, caps, and clogs are "hygiene theater" like having your temperature taken when you walk into the hospital building--today I was so cold after my hike from the far parking garage that the automated robot reader couldn't pick up my temperature at all--but maybe the fact that I'm willing to dress like the virus is serious will help someone else take it seriously too.

Having a "Saturday"

When I showed up for an extra shift at work one morning and was assured they didn't need me, it was perfect timing to stop by the fancy bakery on my way home for second breakfast. Having just opened, it smelled heavenly inside. I opted for three pastries: a croissant aux amandes for me, a panier framboise for Dear Husband, and an extra pain au chocolat. The first two looked delightful (below) and were good to eat, but to be truthful, they tasted less than fresh. 

DH went off to church to practice, and I decided to study with my suddenly free morning. This was a relief after having spent the prior weekend "in" a conference. After lunch, I continued my "Saturday" with a couple household chores, such as reattaching the hinge to the cupboard island that had come completely off when I opened it to feed the cat that morning. This involved texting my dad for advice (a home repair consult, if you will), match sticks, wood glue, and a power drill. Success!

Then, because the weather was absolutely gorgeous, DH and I took a long walk through Frick Park. You can see how sunny it was by our squinty expressions in front of the tree that is changing colors behind our apartment. The fall colors have not really set in yet, but the foliage is still full. It was a restful backdrop for a prolonged discussion of our finances and the hope that we can afford to purchase a house in the spring. 

Everyone's experience of the pandemic will be different, of course, but one of the things I will remember most will be the long walks up and down those tree-covered hills. The green space in Pittsburgh really is one of its greatest assets. 

There was a lot of wildlife, even in the middle of the afternoon. In addition to the usual squirrels and chipmunks, a lithe garter snake slithered right in front of my feet and into the underbrush. We thought there were quite a lot of people around for him to be out and about--and he probably felt the same way! On our way home, we came across the mowing and pruning goats.

Then it was time to decorate the front porch for Halloween. Nothing ambitious, just some bones in the garden, a skull on the railing, some fake cobwebs with a large dangling spider, and the piece de resistance: a string of monster eyes that light up. Halloween is on a Saturday this year, and I am no longer seeing children in clinic, so I have to decide whether to dress up this year. If I do decide to wear something punny, now taking ideas!

Happy 15th Wedding Anniversary!

Today Dear Husband and I celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary. This year there was no trip, no theater performance, not even a fancy dinner from our favorite restaurant, Altius, which is not even offering take-out right now (thanks, COVID). We did the best we could to celebrate together anyway: DH wore a button-down shirt to pick up salad, steak, and scallops from Paris 66 Bistro; and I set the table with our best china. He picked out smooth tunes from Dave Brubeck, while I dialed up "restaurant background noise" on YouTube. He lit our unity candle, while I pulled out our wedding photo album.

The food was as good as could be expected for having been cooked and brought home. The company was the best! We enjoyed looking through the photos; too bad the honeymoon album is still in a box somewhere. We even danced in the dining room while waiting for the ice cream cake to soften enough to cut. We ate it off the hand-painted plates I purchased on sale in Meissen, which I only just realized depict the Chinese Zodiac. Although we are a Pig and a Dog, we somehow ended up with a Monkey and a Rat. Oh well. I'm still hoping we can take a second honeymoon to the Greek isles...maybe next year. 

Thank you to everyone who helped two "kids" have a special wedding 15 years ago. Many couples aren't so lucky this year, but hopefully they will find truth in the adage that a wedding is only the first day of the rest of your lives together. Oh, the adventures we're having:

"I, Frau Doktor Doctor, take you, Dear Husband, to be my husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer and for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, until death do us part. In the presence of God, our family and friends, I promise to love you unconditionally, to support you in your goals, to honor and respect you, to laugh with you and cry with you, and to journey with you wherever life’s adventures may take us, for as long as we both shall live."

The most quarantine things I did

I have been more or loss quarantined for the last three weeks. The last time I left my house for work was Friday, March 27, but I had basically stopped caring for patients in person the week before that, either because they did not show up at clinic, or because I went to the hospital but did my consults from a distance. Being relieved of clinical duties freed up significant time for me to do other work, when I wasn't managing the influx of COVID-19 related information from the news, social media, my three residency programs, hospital, clinic, and every medical organization that has ever gotten possession of my email. Ditto for a number of companies reassuring me they were ready for the pandemic, and oh by the way did I want to purchase something from them for delivery/to use in the future once I got out?

Like all the other pediatric residents at my institution, I was pulled from the elective rotations I so carefully chose for my last three months of residency for their diversity of experiences--and favorable work hours, I won't lie--to be kept at home "on jeopardy" 1/4 of the time, be off 1/4 of the time, and work 7 days in a row the other 1/2 of the time. The children's hospital is being maintained on a skeleton crew due to the low number of patients and high number of potential COVID exposures on the staff. Quarantine is a novel experience for me, as for so many of us, although I confess that the introverted workaholic who was already overextended is not so secretly grateful to be able to devote so much time to studying, teaching, sleeping, and the following activities:

Cleaned house, did laundry
Sent long email updates to friends and family (if you didn't get one, have you checked your spam folder?)
Never set an alarm in the morning
Alternated my outfits between couch potato and put-together, depending on my mood and whether anyone besides Dear Husband would see me via teleconference
Cooked: potato and bean casserole, tuna pasta, black bean and corn soup ("Pittsburgh soup")
Baked: scones, chocolate chip cookies, blackberry oatmeal bars
Took a walk everyday with my housemate while trying to remain 6 feet away from everyone else
Had a conversation from the sidewalk with friends on their front porch
Watched a lot of COVID parody songs, famous people reading stuff, and late-night comedians become day-time YouTubers
Listened to the entire soundtrack of Hamilton
Held a weekly disaster-themed film series

Things I used Zoom/Microsoft Teams/Google Hangouts to do: listen to COVID updates multiple times per week; participate in live-streamed educational sessions about medicine and/or history; worship on Sunday mornings; teach college and medical students; participate in a hip-hop class; have "happy hour" with friends; celebrate my father in law's birthday; and eat Easter dinner "with" family. (We had ham, roasted asparagus, and black-eyed peas with spinach and onion.)

Palm Sunday under Quarantine

This Palm Sunday Dear Husband and I celebrated Palm Sunday with Third Presbyterian Church via Zoom. Despite the occasional technical difficulties (we got kicked off twice!), it was really nice to see our church family. You can see our Communion set up here: tea in appropriately Pittsburgh-themed black and yellow mugs, and Lenten pretzels on a ceramic sand dollar paten from my parents. The Miracles of Jesus in Galilee place mats are from DH's parents' trip to the Holy Land. It was a beautiful service with plenty of time for meditation. I hope we can have singing next week; at the very least, I suppose DH and I could sing together at the piano here.

I have spent the last two weeks basically home, and I expect the same for another week before taking my turn at the hospital for a week. Being off clinical rotations has let me cook more than usual. So far I have made scones from a mix, an old favorite, Bean and Potato Casserole with roasted Brussels Sprouts, and a new recipe, Creamy Tuna Pasta. DH complained that the sprouts with olive oil, salt, and rosemary were too bland, so I spiced up the leftovers with red pepper flakes and was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked them that way. This week he will bake a pie out of mixed frozen fruit, and I want to make chocolate chip cookies.

On the left, I am pleased with how well my spider plants are doing. There is another little group on the mantel in the front room, and the "giants" are now out on the front porch. On the right, snuggling up together on the couch to stream a movie on my laptop. We have been holding a disaster-themed film series every Friday evening. So far we have watched Contagion (2011), War Games (1983), and Cast Away (2000). Also Dial M for Murder (1954), split up over two other nights, if you want to count that. DH gets to choose next week; he is thrilled(!) to finally get to show me The Shining (1980).