M4 year: interviews (part 2)

Statue outside public library in Denver

Art museum in Denver

The excitement after Thanksgiving all happened further west. I interviewed in Denver and visited the downtown public library while I was there. Since I was there by myself and only for 2 days, there weren’t many other adventures.

 

View from the hike Whitney and I took Saturday morning

Snowshoeing (right across the ski slopes)

 After Denver, I headed for Chewelah, WA to visit my friend from BVU.  Whitney (Lyon) Kuefler was my roommate my senior year and it was awesome to see where she and Joe live and work. I flew into Spokane, rented a car, and drove about an hour north to the small town where they live. Chewelah and Colville (where they work) are surrounded Colville National Forest. It was interesting to learn a bit about the logging industry. Whitney and Joe work for a company that makes wood and pellet stoves (or fireplace inserts) and many people in the area use those type of devices to help heat their homes. The stoves/inserts are more efficient than just a fireplace. Whitney also talked about the state politics of Washington and how in the east people get frustrated because laws are made for the state in Seattle and they feel like the people that make the laws do not really understand how life is in the eastern half of Washington and how the law will affect them. She gave an example of wolf reintroduction/protection. The campaign in Seattle is “save the wolf” and the rural communities in the east do not agree because the wolves kill their livestock.

Yurt we registered to go snowshoeing at

Whitney on the ridge

 Whitney and I did a lot of awesome things while I was there. We went for a walk/hike up the “backyard” hill on Saturday morning. Then later on Saturday we went to an ugly sweater Christmas party hosted by some people from their work. On Sunday after church, we went up to 49° North, the local ski resort. Joe hit the slopes, while Whitney and I broke out some snowshoes and went trekking in freshly falling snow. We left from the yurt seen in the picture, and went 4 km one way (if I am remembering correctly). We made it to Moose something-or-other corner and I would have loved it to see a moose in the wild (in the distance, of course)… Some of the xc skiers said they had seen a moose and they reported there were lots of fresh tracks. Of course I wasn’t that lucky, but it was fun and good exercise too. My calves were incredibly sore the next day.

I left Washington early on Monday morning and arrived in Boise around noon. (After a layover in Salt Lake City - I think that airport might be my favorite so far!) The gentleman we were set up with through the HOST (Help Our Students Travel) program picked me up at the airport. Dr. Rod Miller graduated from med school at Iowa in ’58 after going to St. Olaf college where he had met his wife, Lois. He did an intern year, spent some time in CO, did surgery in Vietnam, but spent most of his years working in Sac City, IA as a general physician. He and his wife moved out to Boise 15 years ago to be closer to their daughters and grandchildren. Unfortunately, Lois Miller passed away this summer from cancer. It was an invaluable opportunity to get to know a physician who exhibited such a model professional AND personal life, and my only regret is that we were unable to meet and get to know Lois as well. 

Michael and Dr. Miller near McCall

Dr. Miller kept us on a pretty tight social schedule. We saw and did many things in Boise, as well as venturing out into other areas of Idaho (really just one trip out to Lake McCall and their nearby cabin – but the 2 hour drive to get there was almost as important as the destination).

On Monday after I arrived, we went for a walk on the “greenbelt” – a paved bike/walk way along the river that goes through Boise. I was told the total distance you could go on the greenbelt as 26 miles. Somewhere along that walk we stopped at a nature conservatory. There were protected habitats and aquarium exhibits about the salmon’s life cycle. I was impressed when I looked down over the railing by how clear the water was in the pond I was walking over. The water had been diverted from the river and Dr. Miller said the river’s water is similarly clear. He thought that, when comparing it to the Mississippi, it more clear because it comes down from snowmelt in the mountains over rocks instead of dirt and it just doesn’t have the same muddiness to it. 

Tuesday, Michael and I ate the oatmeal Dr. Miller prepared for us before leaving for the Y (this was a daily occurrence, and high quality oatmeal with fruit and nuts – a great way to start the day!) The next thing we did was visit Idaho’s capitol building, where Dr. Miller’s granddaughter was singing with her classmates for school. After Josephine sang, Natalie (her mom) showed us around the building. Natalie is an interior decorator and she helped with the remodeling that was recently completed. It isn’t very big, but the floors and columns and, well, basically the entire main hall is marble. They also added wings on either side of the main building – the interesting part of the wings is that they are underground (in order to keep the above ground aesthetics of downtown pleasing). They don’t feel like dungeons and are actually quite pleasant, thanks to the natural light coming in from the skylights. 

Boise is in a high desert plain

We studied at the Library! (that’s what is on the sign – exclamation point and all) in the afternoon, and then went to “international club” for dinner. International club is a gathering of people in Boise who have an interest in other cultures and world events. The feature for that night was the former ambassador to Mali who spoke about Niger and the politics of Saharan and sub-Saharan Africa and the role of those politics in Al Qaeda’s presence in Africa. The parts that didn’t go flying over my head were interesting (even though I wouldn’t really remember well enough to speak intelligently with you if you wanted a recap). Before the talk, there was a fancy dinner of salmon with cheesecake for dessert. There was plenty of time to socialize, and I met a retired plastic surgeon. He still works once a week with the Family Medicine Residency of Idaho, doing a minor procedures clinic. He had traveled numerous times to Pakistan with a non-profit organization and during one of his trips he met Greg Mortensen (author of Three Cups of Tea). He defended Mr. Mortensen to me, saying it is too bad his reputation has taken a hit because he believes him to be a good man. I also learned that before becoming a plastic surgeon, he was a dentist, and cared for Elvis Presley’s teeth.  What a life!

View from back porch of Dr. Miller's cabin

Wednesday was not so interesting. We spent 9 hours taking tests. Dinner was the best, where we met DJ and her husband for dinner. DJ is a very outspoken woman, and it was good entertainment for us post test. She was blunt, as evidenced by her direct complaints about the browned avocado in her salad, her statement that Dr. Miller must have had a rough time in Vietnam because he doesn’t talk about it much, and her prying question to Michael – “Well, are you giving her a ring for Christmas?” (To which Michael said “None of your business!”)

We did go up and see the woodwork of DJ’s husband, who had made much of the furniture in their house. Michael was very impressed, and excited to start his own woodworking project. 

Lake McCall

Thursday was the day we drove out to McCall. There is nothing I can tell you that can’t be said with pictures, so I’ll spare you more tedious words. 

And Friday, our last functional day in Boise, was interview day followed by get-to-know-you social with the residents and faculty of the program. We had a really fun time at the interview, the other applicants were really cool and made the day relaxed and entertaining. 

 

 

That concludes my interview travels. I ended on December 15^th, then went home and spent a few days packing and getting ready to be gone for 3 months.