On Margaritas, Ceremonies, and Fine Fancies

The ceremony for my Clinical Excellence Award by some cruel joke was the evening after my last final. It's been tradition that immediately following finals each semester we all pile on at the nearest BAR & Grill for some appropriately "ineffective coping". This year, the last final was on Wednesday afternoon at 1300, and so not everyone was finished until after 1500. So we didn't really get to the restaurant until 1530, and I had to be at the ceremony at 1830--dressed up.

Whoever got to the restaurant first decided we were going to sit on the patio, despite the 20-30 mph and gusting wind, the ridiculous humidity, and the spring sun. But hey, at least they had $2 double-size margaritas. The first one I ordered was so weak it may as well have been (probably was) Koolaid, so I quickly ordered another. It came out with an honest to goodness brown tint from the tequila--did I mention I hadn't eaten since breakfast? As I was happily sucking down my brown margarita (served in a styrofoam cup no less), I realized my legs were going numb and I decided I better get some food. The service was so ridiculously slow it took me half an hour to get a plate of nachos. Here I am, margarita happy, and nacho poor.

Note how messy my hair is and the 3 days of final exams beard growth.

Lucky for me I have a large liver, and I was able to safely drive home with enough time to spare for me to shower, shave, and dress up. I originally thought that it was just my wife and I going to the ceremony while her sister stayed with the kids, but when I got home I discovered that everyone was getting ready to go--even her sister. I had to be there about 30 minutes early, so we all packed into the trusty Expedition and drove up to school.

I had to sit up front in the reserved section while my wife and kids and SIL sat further back in the audience. Of course my award was quite nearly the last to be given, and the kids were restless. In fact, just as I was about to go on stage to get mine, littleXX announced she needed to go potty. So, she actually missed me getting my award, but was back in time to see me still up on stage. Ah well.

There was a small reception after the ceremony, and my wife got to meet my pediatrics instructors. During that conversation it came up that I did not get the summer externship at the pediatric hospital. Of course it turns out that my instructor worked there for years, and she told me to let her know when I apply for the internship for after graduation and that she'd do her absolute best to get me hired. So very sweet of her. I'm a little scared to get my hopes up, but there is a the squirrel of excitement at the thought. It felt good to have my wife see that (some of) the instructors actually appear to like me--she's convinced that with all my prior education and often unbridled mouth that I must be a nightmare student for them.

After the ceremony, we took the kids and SIL home where she got them ready and into bed so my wife and I could have a little date night. She had a Cosmopolitan and I had a Tanq & Tonic, and we ate appetizers and dessert while we talked like two young people in love.

It was a fine fancy.