2017: A Look Back

Happy holidays! I'm cozied up in front of the wood stove at my parents' place with a glass of sparkling wine and couldn't be happier to be winding down the year with a week back home in Victoria.

At the outset of 2017 I was midway through PGY-3. Our PGY-4 and PGY-5 had just left on mat leave and our residency program was feeling a little sparse. By default I became chief resident (not that 'chief' means anything when you're in a program of 7), but in general rad onc life was much the same. I saw CaRMS anew from the interviewer side and we cleared the bar come accreditation.

I also continued my dappling in the provincial residents' association. Though I never would've expected to find myself in an executive role, it was something that I really ended up enjoying -- I met great people that honestly enriched residency for me. As my job was organizing the resident socials, a byproduct was that I attended nearly all of them.

swing dancing

cooking at Sunterra

I took a month off in March and April to visit Malaysia, South Korea, and Japan with my mom. We caught cherry blossom season, indulged in all the street food, and had our first Airbnb experience -- a tiny studio apartment in Kyoto.

Penang mornings

up a volcano on Jeju Island, South Korea

Otaji Nenbutsu-ji, our favourite Kyoto temple

I spent the May long weekend back in Victoria then headed to Vancouver with my family for my sister's graduation.

Victoria Day Parade together, for the first time in twenty years

And before we knew it it was summer again in Edmonton. I continued to discover great things about this city I've come to love, like new river valley trails and the outdoor Shakespeare festival.

Somewhere in there I also crossed paintball and go-karting off the list of fun things I'd never tried.

My mom visited and we ventured over to Saskatchewan for the first time and spent a weekend in the mountains.

lovely Saskatoon

Patricia Lake in Jasper

September was a busy month, as I was lucky enough to go to both the Canadian and American rad onc conferences. I had my first oral presentation and met with a few fellowship program directors. It was all at once the most fun, intense, inspiring, and exhausting time.

Toronto

San Diego

In October I took two weeks off to visit my sister's new place in Kingston. That led into a road trip to Quebec and the Maritimes with my parents. Fall colours, lobster by the sea, and free visits to countless Parks Canada sites will comprise our memories of Canada 150.

November brought my first meeting with our national residents' organization, which I'd joined in July. I made the briefest trip ever to Toronto to attend.

And now I'm back in Victoria, where I started the year, to ring in a new one. When I thought about writing a little 2017 reflection, I honestly didn't think I'd have anything to share, but now that it's on paper (well, computer screen) I can see that it's been filled with family, friends, and adventure, and it makes me really happy and grateful to see such richness in my life. Here's to 2018. I hope it brings health, happiness, and adventure for us all!