“When you want something badly enough, the whole universe conspires to help you achieve it.” ~Paulo Coehlo, The Alchemist

And that, my friends, is the one and only way to explain how yesterday worked out the way it did.

Joe and I embarked upon a 24 hour celebration-binge commencing in Big Timber, Montana, on Thursday night… or as I like to call it, Match Day Eve.  We met up with our favorite Chuckie Baby at The Grand Restaurant and indulged in flaming cheese and fat steaks all around.  If you have never eaten at The Grand you are missing out and should find a way to incorporate it into your next road trip.

After dinner we hopped in Donna, our trusty metal steed, and high-tailed it to Chico Hot Springs.  When I made the reservation at Chico the receptionist stated “We have a room with a bed but no sink or restroom.”  When I said “Great! We’ll take it!” she replied, “But it is a room with just a bed.  JUST a bed.”  Not the greatest salesperson, but we didn’t budge on our offer and before long we had secured fantastic albeit simple accommodations!  After a late night soak in the steamy hot mountain elixir that is the hot springs, we were off to bed.

Joe couldn’t sleep a wink and I awoke at 6:30AM and couldn’t get back to bed.  It felt like the night before Christmas in childhood.  Where you look over the balcony and see a shiny new bicycle below the Christmas tree and you think it’s yours but you just can’t be sure until the morning, when you can check the label.  But in the back of your mind you can’t help but wonder if the bike is actually for Doodle Dog, because she always gets the good presents!  And then panic sets in and you become certain that the bike isn’t yours, and you even start to wonder if it could be for Patsy, that little rat!  And then you lay awake, tortured, as the clock takes its sweet time making its way toward 7AM, the time Suz & Bill decided Santa would approve of naughty kids awakening their parents.  THAT, my dear friends, is what Match Day Eve is like.  Was that Utah for me?  Or did it have someone else’s name on it?  Only instead of 7AM, the time to check the label was moved back to 11AM– the horror!

So, to kill time, we moseyed to the dining room and indulged in a little brunch.  But you can only eat so much on a nervous stomach so we started in on the mimosas, and took them to-go discretely packaged in coffee cups thanks to our scheming waitress!  We walked (paced) around the base of Emigrant Peak and then made our way back to the lodge for the moment of truth.

I set my computer up in the most logical spot, and then it was 3-2-1…. Match Time.

And then, amid laughter and tears, for the second time in my life I was reminded of the Paulo Coelho quote.  It was a moment of alchemy, where a UW Medical Student was transformed into a Utah EM Resident in just the stroke of a key.  My good friends and classmates had equally joyful and successful matches, which exponentially added to the day’s fun.  The only downside to the day was the reminder that we don’t get to stay leisurely fourth year students- the inspiration for this blog- forever!