Week One...done!

Now I sit in the library on a Friday afternoon, planning my studies for the evening. I have survived the first week of medical school and even had fun. I think the administrators scheduled it so that the first week was not too overwhelming, we had 3-4 hours of lecture each morning followed by labs or more lecture in the afternoon. One mode of study that seems to be working out well for me are when they schedule in time for what are called DSA (designated student assignments), which are hours blocked off on the schedule where we have specific reading assignments. By far my favorite part so far is that each lecture or DSA comes with objectives so it is easier to understand what needs to be gleaned from a 40 page reading assignment, which is easy for me because my books all arrived at my apartment this morning (or so amazon.com says). So reading up to this point hasn't been a possibility.
We are on a block schedule where we will go through one major system at a time, this was a huge relief to the gal from the quarter system. I wasn't terribly excited about having to remember 18 weeks of information from 6 classes for a final exam. We have other classes that run through the semester called Principles of Clinical Medicine and Osteopathic Principles, both of these involve lectures and labs. It should be exciting!
Outside of school I am slowly exploring the Town of Parker, it is still pretty slow because I rode my bike through a bramble patch and currently have 2 flat tires on my bike. The tubes to replace them sit at my apartment, but I have been too focused on studying for my first quiz to do so. Parker is an old town, incorporated in the late 1800's (I am not sure of the exact date). There are 2 distinct areas, one is the old town district with nice brick buildings, parks and sidewalks. The other area is where the big-box stores reside. You can get anything you could possibly want, there is a Target next to a Wal-Mart next to a Lowes next to a Home Depot with other smaller chain stores interspersed around the parking lots.
There is a nice bike path that runs south from my apartment and as far as I can tell I may be able to make it almost to Castlewood Canyon State Park. On Monday, I attempted to go North because I found a sign that said Cherry Creek State Park was only 5 miles up the path, unfortunately the path ends abruptly into a drainage where I found myself wondering why there were no warning signs. I am sure I can make it to Cherry Creek, but it may be more complex, I will investigate!