I’d like to remind the reader, as they used to say in the old days in the results of the X Factor (I say the ‘old days’ only because I’ve not seen the show in many, many years, and I assume that it might still be going, and this may still be one of the catchphrases); I’m completing this list in no particular order. The reason that I wanted to emphasise this is because I have completed the thirtieth item on my list, however, I am far from completing the list in its entirety.
Here’s a reminder of where I’m at so far…
- Learn to ride a motorbike
- Go skydiving
Learn how to ski/surf- Eat a vegetable that you’ve grown from seed
- Deadlift 100kg
- Pay for a stranger’s meal
- Swim Boscombe to Bournemouth pier
- Learn how to play poker
- Do the splits
Have visited 30 countriesCycle London to BrightonGo to the opera- Read the bible entirely
- Get a tattoo
- Sleep under the stars
- Repair a bike puncture
- Go to a life drawing class
Engage in a clinical trialGo to Shakespeare’s GlobeGo to an outdoor screening of a film- Sell a piece of artwork you’ve created
Carve a pumpkin- Do a pull-up
- Go stand-up paddle boarding
- Climb the three peaks
- Write and record a song
- Learn to play chess
- Visit someone in prison
- Read a famous trilogy
Become a doctor
Now this one certainly required the most effort, and it wasn’t on my 25 before 25 list because I hadn’t started med school yet but I am now entering week 11 of my job as an FY1 Foundation Doctor.
I was quite concerned that I wouldn’t enjoy the job because there was a lot of medical school (okay, the majority of med school) that I didn’t like. To my surprise, and relief, I don’t hate it too much. Yes there are administrative tasks that feel much like being a glorified secretary, and there are some really tough days (I work in gynaecology and see a lot of miscarriages), but for the most part, seeing people who are having major operations that just didn’t exist a hundred years ago and get better is really satisfying. Seeing women on some of their very worst days and then watching their improvement and sending them home is really such a special way to spend a working day and I never want to take that for granted.
A couple of weeks ago I received a box of chocolates from one of my patients and it was better than any academic accolade or piece of paper or exam result I’ve ever achieved. There is just something so special about someone acknowledging you doing your job (well, I hope!) and so crossing this one off the list was a pretty big deal.
Much love, Dr Daisy x
Less Than One Hundred 