Why I love WY pt 4: what waiting tables taught me about choosing a medical specialty

living in the woods for a summer = legit

Part 4 of a 5 part series - Why I love Wyoming.

Pt 1: An intro

Pt 2: A summer of XC training in WY

Pt 2: Running a 100 mile week

Pt 3: Climbing Middle Teton

I spent the summer of 2007 in Flagg Ranch of Moran, Wyoming - smack dab inbetween Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Park.  

When I landed in Jackson Hole, Wyoming I had no idea what I was doing there.  In my joke of an online job application I listed three preferred jobs.  My #1 job was housekeeping because it had the least hours.

I ended up with the most time consuming job possible - the restaurant.  It opened up at 6:30 AM to please the early morning crowd, but also stayed open until 11 PM for the late-night drinkers.  Everyone in the restaurant had to work 50-60 hour weeks, and it was hard work - I've never done so much standing or speed walking in my life. Much respect to any waiters out there - your life is hard. 

the Flagg Ranch team

My favorite part of Flagg Ranch: My coworkers cared about life. There's a lot of boring people in this world, and I never wanted to be one of them.  I have a theory that society forces people into square pegs with words like "mature" and "important" which really just means "boring."  If there's anything that's bad for your soul, it's being bored.  I'd bet that boredom leads to more alcoholism and sexual infidelity than any other emotion.  So what's the cure to boredom? Adventure!

Enter my awesome coworkers.  Several of my coworkers at Flagg were kindred spirits - young college kids in a finding yourself mold.  There were also college students from Turkey, Jordan, Russia - wanting a taste of the American experience.  And then there were the older folks - including our fearless leader - the bartender that doubled as a youth gymnast, hardcore solo mountain climber, ladies man, entrepreneur extraordinaire.. the whole 9 yards.  

the backyard

Whether we were from the Midwest or the Middle East - we all made the conscious decision to leave our comfort zones and move to a place where we didn't know anyone.  We slaved away at tough day jobs, and all the while climbed some monstrous mountains, and met some fellow brave spirits.  These were people who were throwing up a middle finger to the square peg of society.  

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great book

I'm the kind of med student that's going to change my mind every six weeks about what sort of doctor I want to be, but whenever I think about match day 2,286 days from now, sidenote - WOW that is long. Anyways, whenever I think about the match - I remember those days waiting tables at Flagg Ranch.  

I want to be with people who give a shit.   

The life of a physiatrist sounds sweet - but I want a medical specialty where my co workers and I aren't chasing lifestyle. I want to live in a world where my friends and coworkers are after greatness.  Token NBA analogy - I'd rather be Kobe Bryant than Shaq.  I see my future filled with long nights in the hospital fixing babies hearts, drinking coffee at 3 AM, and talking shit about how the medical system is broken.  Peds CT surgery, see you in seven years.

See you on the other side,

from ken

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