Escaping the snow

Last week I was home in Colorado between my internal med rotation, and my dentistry rotation.  There were days I got in my car, only to see the thermometer display in the negative single digits.  I keep managing to go home during the really cold snaps.  On the plus side, I've managed to skip much of winter this year, and I'm continuing the trend by spending the next few weeks in Clearwater, FL.

I had a hard time finding a veterinary dentist who would take me on a 4 week internship.  The one local to me said he would, and then when I sent his office manager the information to get approved as a site for the school, she backed out.  Some, I emailed, and were booked solid.  Others never replied to emails and voicemails.  But the one out here replied immediately, and has been incredibly informative all week.  I'm loving the time I'm spending working on teeth, and I'm considering that if my current plans for general practice don't work out after a few years, applying for a dental residency.  I could see myself doing this and loving it.

Today was my first day to really get out and explore, and I found manatees!  In Tampa, there's a power plant that releases warm water into the bay, and the manatees congregate in the warm water.  (I'm not too sure how I feel about that, but at least it seems like they're trying to make an effort at conservation and stewardship.)  It was amazing to see so many manatees in the wild.

I made an attempt to see a wild alligator, by going to a local park that had yelp reviews for tons of wildlife viewings, but did not get so lucky.  Saw a crane, but no gators.  I'll try again sometime later in the trip.

Sure beats being cold.