First Day of Work - Part II

Today was my second first day of work in Charlotte, not to make it confusing.  I already blogged about my first day of work in Charlotte - that was as a Grad Intern (an unlicensed pharmacist working under the supervision of a licensed pharmacist).   Today was the real deal, my first day of work as a fully licensed pharmacist!  So here is the obligatory first day of work photo taken by my hubby...

...moments before showing up at this fine establishment...

...which will surely become my second home here in Charlotte (whether I like it or not).  

For those of you wondering how it went, all I have to say is that I SURVIVED!!! And I only stayed 15 minutes after closing! (And I only called my lifeline down the road from me aka - Lindsay, best pharmacist trainer ever - 2 times!)  I'd say thats a good first day.  It took me probably negative 30 seconds to realize that I was actually in charge of everyone's medications, I no longer had that other pharmacist checking after me.  It was a scary feeling but I got used to it very quickly and was surprisingly very comfortable!  I'll be ready for day 2 tomorrow after a glass of wine & movie on the couch with my hubby tonight.  Some things still stay the same after becoming a grown up :)


PS. The highlight of my day was definitely when my hubby dropped by to visit me with a bouquet of flowers - I am so lucky to have him!  I can't wait to be there for him in the same way when he starts his first day of work as an attending next Sunday! 

A Week of Celebrations!

So much has been going on this week that I have felt extremely overwhelmed at times, but I know this is all supposed to be happening so the overwhelming feeling is for the best.  

Saturday, June 30th

I took my MPJE (NC Pharmacy Law Exam) in the morning and walked out thinking and hoping that that was the last pharmacy related exam I'd ever have to take in my entire life, it was a feeling of exhilaration to say the least.  Some poolside celebrations with my girlfirends were definitely in order :)

Sunday, July 1st

There are no photos for this day sadly but it was by far THE BEST day of the week.  I spent the afternoon shopping with Melissa recovering from the day before and as much as I LOVE shopping, Concord Mills Outlet Mall was not the best part of the week.  Rup had left Michigan that morning and had planned to drive down to North Carolina over the course of 2 days to give himself plenty of rest and time on his way down here.  He had updated me several times along his route and even told me where & when he had "stopped" for the evening.  I bought most of his nonsense since I was not expecting to see him until the next morning and had stayed pretty distracted with shopping.  After I had finally settled in for the evening I heard some loud abrupt knocking on the door which honestly startled me.  Rup also happened to be on the phone with me at the same time this knocking is occurring just telling me about the hotel he has checked into, the dinner he had, blah blah blah.  I open the door and there was my hubby standing in front of me with a huge smile on his face and the phone still in his hand.  That was one of the happiest moments of my life :)  Three years of long distance and several plane tickets later we are finally together and words cannot express how exciting that is for both of us!

Monday, July 2nd

We bought a small home office set & some balcony furniture, pictures to come soon after we are somewhat settled in.

Tuesday, July 3rd

Now this was a HUGE day for us for so many reasons.  

1. We met on this day 3 years ago - July 3, 2009! I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason and I was meant to meet Rup on this day 3 years ago even if I didn't know at the time (or maybe I did...) that he was going to be my soulmate & best friend.
2. The movers delivered ALL of our things from Rup's place in Michigan.  Box after box after box after box after box after okay you get the point.  There was stuff EVERYWHERE.  Yay for finally living together in the same place!
3. In the midst of all the moving chaos, I found out I passed the MPJE!!!!!!!  This meant two things: I never have to take another pharmacy exam ever again AND I am a legit pharmacist!!!!  All of the hard work I put into my education has finally paid off and I can say that I not only can see the light at the end of the tunnel but have made it thru the entire tunnel :) As soon as the movers were done unloading and left, my hubby & I dropped everything and he took me out to celebrate at my favorite establishment within walking distance of our place - On the Border Mexican Grill.  I was so happy he was here to celebrate this accomplishment with me since I had really missed him last week when I found out I had passed the NAPLEX. 

                        

Lastly, I had planned a surprise date for Rup a while back knowing that on July 3rd we would be celebrating the day we had met and Rup's arrival into Charlotte, little did I know that we'd also be celebrating me becoming a legit pharmacist!  I am a HUGE fan of the tv series The Bachelorette/The Bachelor and have no shame in admitting that!  This season especially has been so exciting because the first few weeks were filmed in bachelorette Emily's hometown of CHARLOTTE!  Emily took Ryan on their first date to Osso, her favorite restaurant in Charlotte and of course I looked it up immediately while watching that episode.  I discovered a bachelorette package the restaurant was doing as a promotion and snagged the opportunity immediately!  Not to mention, Osso is an Italian restaurant which is one of our favorite genres and was the first type of restaurant we went to together :)

The date involved a rose that I could give out during the date if I wanted ;)

 In addition to having some of the BEST Italian food we have ever had, the desserts at the end of our meal were phenomenal.  

       

The best part of the entire experience was that we got sit in the exact same seats as Emily & Ryan did during their date at Osso.  We received VIP service & a bottle of prosecco.  It was definitely one of the coolest dates we've been on and I highly recommend this restaurant to anyone in Charlotte!

Of course I asked Rup if he would accept the rose towards the end of the date and thankfully he accepted so he is safe at next week's rose ceremony ;) 

Wednesday, July 4th

See my previous blog post for this day's events if you're interested!

Thursday, July 5th

I officially became licensed!!!!!  For those of you not in the pharmacy world this means the NC Board of Pharmacy gave me a license number under which I can practice.  In one word, it means I'm OFFICIAL.   And let me tell you, they're not wasting anytime having me start.  TOMORROW is my first day as a real pharmacist. 

Friday, July 6th

That's today. Phew, told you it was an eventful week for me!  I have spent any and all of my free time this week unpacking & setting up our new apartment together and today was no different except that we went out to celebrate Melissa taking her MPJE today and never needing to study or take another pharmacy exam again.  It was a nice relaxing afternoon/evening and is just what I needed the day before my first solo shift as a pharmacist.  I am so sad that my week off has come to an end but I am excited to begin my career!

Wish me luck for my first SOLO shift as a pharmacist tomorrow and stay tuned to hear about how my first real day of work went!

Fun Filled Fourth :)

After telling everyone to have a fun filled 4th of July,  I decided to follow my own advice and do the same!

My friend Sherri & I spent the day preparing for our poolside celebrations by making some super fun themed treats for the group to enjoy.  These included some pinterest inspired creations:  1) white sangria & rum with blueberries, strawberries, and star shaped pineapple slices AND 2) an American flag fruit kabob platter with strawberries, bananas, and blueberries.  

 I really enjoyed having my hubby here with me finally to celebrate our first holiday together in Charlotte :) 

 The men -  Brad, Chris, & Rup - held down the grill!

 And the girls - Kandi, Sherri, Melissa, and I - watched them :) 

 We had such a great time just relaxing in & around the pool!

 After we'd had just enough sun, food, & relaxation, we made a last minute spur of the moment decision to go uptown to see the fireworks show.  We made it there in 15 minutes, pulled into the first parking garage we came across and somehow ended up having the best view possible!  Talk about spontaneity pulling thru for us! Here are some of the patriotic moments I captured: 

I am so excited to explore this summer and see what else this city has in store for us!

Happy 4th!

I am so excited about the 4th of July this year!!!  My hubby and I are finally together in a new city ready to start our lives together and we are spending this year's 4th poolside grilling with some of our good friends here in Charlotte.  There will hopefully be some pinterest inspired concoctions!  More to come on the celebrations later - this is turning out to be a week of celebrations which will require a separate blog post in itself.  

A special shout-out goes to my mom.  Every 4th of July is a very special day for her and our family because she immigrated to the USA to join my dad on July 4th 29 years ago!!!  I am so grateful that my parents decided to start a life here and am even more grateful for the absolutely wonderful life they have given me for the past 26 years.  They have taught me the value and product of hard work in leading by example and I can only hope to accomplishment half of what they have in my lifetime. 

I hope everyone has a safe and fun filled 4th!

I broke up with the NAPLEX & have my life back again!

And by breaking up with the NAPLEX I mean that I ended my long standing relationship with "NAPLEX studying." Done. Done. Done.  

Dear NAPLEX, you took over my life long enough and are no longer welcome! Does this mean I need to stop eating comfort food.... Love, Swati.

Upon waking up, every morning began with "NAPLEX studying" and my bedtime stories at night also came in the form of "NAPLEX studying."  It is going to be quite the lifestyle adjustment now that "NAPLEX studying" and I no longer get along and have stopped talking but I'm really okay with that. 

Yesterday, I celebrated passing the NAPLEX with Melissa, Kandi, and Chris (Kandi's awesome fiance who took this picture) at TacoMac.  And the celebrations had started earlier in the week when we celebrated Melissa passing her NAPLEX on Tuesday at North Harbor Club (below).  

The celebrations do not end here though for several reasons.  1) I still have one more exam (MPJE - Multistate Pharmacy  Jurisprudence Exam) to take (and more importantly pass) on Saturday before I'm completely legit and 2) My husband FINALLY moves down to Charlotte at the beginning of next week.  To say that I am excited would be one of the biggest understatements of all time.  Because he could not physically be here for me for the past month which was probably one of the most stressful ones in my entire life he sent these precious flowers to me at the beginning of the week to brighten my mood up and wish me luck:

Mission accomplished :) Although does this mean he's going to stop sending me flowers since he's moving here??? 

Speaking of "NAPLEX studying" taking over my life for a month, I failed to acknowledge 4 very important events that occurred earlier this month (well two of them occurred two days ago but still...).  Better late than never!

On June 13th, my "baby" brother turned 21 so everyone better watch out! Can't believe that the little chicken back in pre-school (he must have missed the "everyone is going to be the blue power ranger for halloween" memo that year!) is now a 21 year old man.  I'm so proud of you and can't wait to celebrate the big 2-1 with you when you come visit your big sis and bro-in-law in Charlotte soon. Also, I'm not really sorry that I embarrassed you with the pre-school picture, its kind of my job as your big sister, no matter what age you are. 

 

On June 17th, I recognized my two dads for being wonderful fathers for me and wished them a Happy Father's day.  Best part of it all was that we were all able to spend Father's Day together because it was Swarup's graduation weekend :) 

Finally, on June 27th my best friend Prutha and her FIANCE Raj got ENGAGED at the Dallas Cowboys stadium!!! This was the most perfect and special proposal for them; Swarup & I could not be happier for them!!! 

We have so many good memories with them:

This was the day we met at our mutual friends' wedding.  Our boys were groomsmen together.

One month later, we rang in New Years 2011 with them :) 

And almost a year after that (December 2011), we went to Vegas together!

We are so looking forward to celebrating ya'lls engagement and upcoming marriage every step of the way, congratulations Prutha & Raj <3

Yesterday was also my best friend Jess' birthday :) HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESS!

Although college AND pharmacy school are over and we are no longer roommates, we will always continue to be friends and sisters.  Love you girl, hope all of your birthday wishes come true this year!

Lastly, as I was reflecting on everything that has happened in the past month, I slowly came to the realization that as the month comes to an end, so many new doors are opening for me.  I want to give a special shout-out to Lindsay who I've spent the past 5 weeks with (has it really been that long ?!) training as a Grad Intern.  I can honestly say that I feel completely (well maybe 99%) ready for my first solo shift thanks to her.  I couldn't have trained with anyone better!  So glad that I'll be working just down the road from you :) 

I Heard There Is a New Attending in the Area....

Sorry for the long hiatus, ALL of my time these days is STILL spent studying (and eating, and sleeping, and working out - these 3 tasks comprise of my study breaks).  So nothing has changed. June 30th - I will have my life back (not that I'm counting or anything)!  Speaking of what I will have back.....I will also have my hubby back finally!

This past weekend I traveled up to Detroit, Michigan for the last time in a long while to see my husband graduate from his residency program.  After 4 long years of an Emergency Medicine residency with the St. John Health System he escaped! Well almost, he has 2 more shifts left. ONLY 2 MORE SHIFTS LEFT IN HIS RESIDENCY! While I spent a significant amount of my time in Michigan studying, I made sure to make time to celebrate with my husband and boy was it a jam packed FUN 5 day weekend for me. 

The first day I got there, Swarup's attending Dr. Pitus had arranged to take the senior EM residents out on her sail boat on Lake St. Clair.  The weather was great, the company was fun, and it was such a relaxing afternoon. 

The following night, we got to spend some time with a couple of our favorite nurses :) Kim and Dawn are so much fun to be with and are two of the most caring nurses (and friends) I know.  It was definitely a blessing for Swarup to have worked with them!  And not to mention, I benefited from their connections and made new friends!  We will miss you both so much!

Onto the next evening now! I know I've said this before but you should never take people for granted, especially not your family.  Swarup was fortunate enough to have lived so close to his cousin Saroj and his family during residency and I'm so lucky that they have become part of my family too.  Although life is busy and we always feel like we don't spend enough time together, the time that we do spend together is always so nice.  Brandy & Saroj had us over for dinner and the boys enjoyed grilling while Brandy and I caught up.  The highlight of visiting with Brandy & Saroj is always our 2 gorgeous nieces Nisha (on the left) and Asha (on the right).  They are always full of energy and remind me constantly that life is short and we all need to take time to relax, be carefree, and just be kids every now and then :) 

Finally the next day, the big day had arrived! 

                 

While I can truly say that I spend every single day of my marriage being proud of my husband for all of his accomplishments - big or small - this past weekend I was extremely proud of not only the person he is but also the doctor he has become.  I know that he has taken advantage of every opportunity presented to him during his residency to make himself a better physician and I have no doubt in my mind that he is ready for the "real world." 

 

 Congrats honey! You did it! 12 years of grade school, 4 years of college, 4 years of medical school, and 4 years of residency has finally paid off :)

I speak for both of us when I say that without our families in our life, neither of us would be where we are in our life today.  It takes extreme dedication, support, and love to help your children work towards their goals so we are grateful that our families stood by us every step of the way.  It also happened to be father's day weekend - how appropriate :) And how awesome is it that both of us could celebrate father's day with both of our AMAZING dads at the same time in the same place. 

Swarup got to celebrate with cousins Saroj  & Brandy, his parents, and my parents (my brother sent his love even though he couldn't be there).  We are all so proud of him. Especially Saroj who is a St. John physician himself and was in Swarup's shoes not too long ago. Swarup has considered Saroj a great mentor through much of his medical career. 

And the celebrations continued as the night went on...

Here are the majority of the EM residents with program directors Dr. Pitus - aka sail boat hostess from earlier (on the left) and Dr. Corsi (on the right)  

 Lastly, this picture makes me so happy because this is Swarup with one of his best friends Bryan.  This was their second graduation together since they go way back to the start of medical school.  Bryan was part of our wedding party and has been such a close friend to Swarup from the very beginning.  We wish him all the best in his new career in Florida with his wife and daughter.  

Congratulations Dr. Swarup Misra! You've reached attending status now.  I don't know what you're looking forward to but I'm looking forward to you working better (and significantly less) hours :) See you in the Queen City so soon!