Why being a gamecock fan is just like being a Christian
- Sometimes we give up on our team. Just like a certain brother of mine who says he’s given up on the gamecocks unless they win their next game. Sometimes we give up on God unless he makes sure we win with our next ambition.
- Sometimes we support our side in all the wrong ways. Since Philip and I used to end up in the end zones every game we went to, I used to dream of catching an extra point kick after it went through the uprights and into the stands. I didn’t want to catch the ball just to catch it. I dreamed of throwing it back onto the field and hitting one of the refs who stand underneath the goalposts.
During the Georgia-Carolina game, the student section threw bottles and trash onto the field after the referees made an awful call. They were showing support for their team, but it was in all the wrong ways. I suppose Christians figuratively throw trash onto the field all too . In our fervor for “doing what’s right,” we frequently alienate others and fail as ambassadors for Christ. - Sometimes we forget what winning means. Ask a Tennessee fan what they think of their team, and they’ll say “they stink.” The same goes for any Arkansas, Alabama, Georgia etc etc etc. They all think their teams are bad because they sometimes lose. If there are 119 Division I football teams in the US, why does every football fan in the US think his team should be the one that never loses? Why doesn’t somebody say “Hey… we’re 3-2 and I think that’s pretty good for this team.” I think Christians have the same tendancies. We don't deal with loss very well, and we always expect all the battles to go our way.
- We always hope for tomorrow. Christians should look forward to the future. Gamecock fans should do the same. Good Gamecock fans are willing to accept the trials today in hopes of a brighter future. Today may not be the best day of my life, but I can look toward the future. Last night’s loss may not have been the result I was hoping for, but I was pleased to see the Gamecocks play so well, and I believe that a good future lies ahead.
Murphy's in Samoa: Do these Chickens Have Large Talons?
In response to my pessimistic "realist" brother(Do these Chickens Have Large Talons?), I make a new, different prediction about the Auburn/USC game. I believe that USC is win by 2. That's right, 2. Auburn, with Kenny "I'm bailing out" Irons in the backfield, Auburn will amass at least 200 yards rushing against the cocks. But he'll also fumble twice--both of which will be recovered by USC D-linemen. Unfortunately Doughty will recover one of those fumbles, and he'll be too tired to run more than 5 feet.
Final score 29-31. USC wins.
Despite my youthful optimism and great support for the team, USC will probably not be so fortunate. But this is the attitude all must have before a midterm.
So in my spirit of optimism, I proclaim that tomorrow will be a triumphant day for Josh Murphy, in which he will defeat the evil pathology monster, and his grade will be higher than the number of points that Auburn puts up against USC's sorry D-line.
Tests
No real post for today. It's study time. I've got to prove to somebody who's been talking at me, but never really to me, that I know the difference between liquefactive necrosis and gangrenous necrosis.
Before I go, I do want to share my story of the day.
About 7:30 tonight, I rode my bike about a mile from my apartment to the Taco Bell on Folly Rd. Several people I know have sworn off this Taco Bell because of shoddy service. If it weren't the cheapest grub within a 10 minute drive, I would probably avoid that Taco Bell as well. But I was craving a cheesey bean and rice burrito.
So I go and order off the 99 cent menu, as is the Murphy custom, and have one of the strangest Josh vs. Fast food cashier dialogues I ever expect to have.
Josh - "Um... Um.. I think I'll have a Spicy chicken soft taco, and a Cheesey bean and rice burrito."
Taqwanda the cashier - "Is that all?"
Josh - "Yup" As I begin to pull out my wallet, I remembered that I had some change rattling around in my pocket. I pull it out of my front left pocket and count 2 dimes and 2 pennies.
Taquanda the cashier - "That's $2.15."
Josh - "Alright..." and I hand her 2 $1 bills and 2 dimes. For those of you that went to South Carolina schools, that adds up to $2.20.
Taquanda the cashier - "Oops. Is it alright [inaudible] 5 cents? I [inaudible] the cash register.
Josh - "what?"
Taquanda the cashier - "Is it ok if I [inaudible] 5 cents back? I put in the wrong number in the cash register."
Josh - "Yeah sure.. whatever"
So at this point, I've put together that she doesn't intend to give me my change back. Especially since I came home without my nickel--just the two pennies I walked in with. But I'm still a little annoyed. What's so hard about reaching into your open cash register and giving me on of the shiny little nickels you've got sitting in there?
I think I want my nickel.
Injections
I gave my first injection today. As usual, it was another good day for me... and it was not as good of day for another poor soul.
When they tell you how to give an oral injection, it goes something like this: Stick the needle up in there until you feel it hit the bone. Then back off a little bit and squeeze.
I am currently accepting applications for my next volunteer (victim?).
In other news, my bible study will start meeting on Mondays, my flag football team beat the first year dental students on Sunday, and I've got two midterms coming up this week, so I'll have plenty to keep me busy.
Webcam of the week: Lion View
You don't have to go to the zoo any more to see the lions.
The Columbia zoo has a "Lion View" webcam of the lions, and I think it's just like going to see the real thing. Note how the lions just lay there. It's amazing.
My first patient
Nobody likes to go to the dentist. I've always hated going to the dentist. Almost anybody who's been to the dentist has a horror story about it. Quite frankly dental visits aren't any fun. Banks are boring too, but at least they give out suckers. Dentists only give away lousy toothbrushes. For most people, going to the dentist is like
Well, in order to read what other people have to say, I did a google search for "going to the dentist is like..."
Windows update It's tedious and sometimes painful, but those that avoid going today because they feel fine end up going through a more painful and expensive process down the road.
Dying and going to the really boring Christain version of heaven. Frankly, it's terrifying. (Josh's note: I don't really know what that means...)
Joining a cult. At first, your will is broken with stern lectures on "neglect" and vague threats of "surgery." And only after you're made pliant with repentance can you be built back up, reborn as a better, more obedient, rigorously flossing convert. I think the chair is part of it. You're restrained, drugged and threatened with injury, which makes anyone more susceptible to programming.
Going to a very bad show: It does not relax you, you get to see nothing, the sound is terrible, you rarely get good news, and to make the whole thing complete, you get to pay too much
Paying for car insurance, is like being processed on a conveyor belt, is like getting a haircut in your mouth etc etc etc.
And all of those describe what it's like going to a dentist who knows what he's doing. I can't imagine what my poor patient had rushing through his head. For the first time in my life, the table was turned. I got to be the object of fear--an inexperienced object of fear at that.In all honesty, my patient had every reason in the world to be horrified. I didn't have the heart to admit this little fact. He asked. I embellished. The truth is, I've poked around on some of my classmates--3 of them actually, but I never touched a real life patient who had some use for my "services." Quite frankly, if he couldn't see through my averted eyes, shaky hands, and poorly improvised confidence, then I deserved to get away with my little white lie.
So here's to my first patient. A bad day for some random guy. A great day for me. It only goes up from here. But hey, somebody had to start somewhere.
Painting ceiling in a smoking area
Somebody emailed this to me. I think it's quality.
We can't get everything we want
School today: recieves a big
That's right. A big sad baby face. I don't know what I accomplished today.
Practical Season
Sometimes we need to celebrate the little things in life.
School isn't interesting for everybody. In fact, I usually think my life is pretty dull: sleep, eat, school, eat, school, eat, write blog, call girlfriend, sleep... you get the picture.
But today, I'm celebrating a little achievement. On this day, I have accomplished and reaped a tiny ounce of reward from all of my gallons of hard work. I've studied dental anatomy, histology, immunology, and lots of other ologies in which I struggled to stay awake, and on this day, I am a workman approved. I created my first occlusal amalgam prep to which my mentor, chief critic, and expert fault-finder said, "Nice Prep."
When I wake up tomorrow, I think I'm going to try taking over the world.
In the meantime, if anybody needs an occlusal amalgam restoration, I think I'm good to go on taking care of it for you. Of course, I hope you won't mind if I need to remove it from your mouth first--that way it's easier to see and work on. Oh, and I'm still not really sure how to fill it up with that amalgam stuff yet, so you'll have to wait a couple of months until I learn that part.
India's Minister of The New New Super Heavy Funk
I've always thought of James Brown as a one-of-a-kind type of dude. Even though he's lived in BeechIsland, SC (near Augusta, GA) for many years, I never saw him perform until I went to a music festival in downton Little Rock. I usually don't like watching somebody sing and play music, but James Brown really didn't do either of those. I don't really know what it was that he did, but it was fun, and I had a blast.
It seems that India has their own James Brown of a sort. Look here, courtesy of youtube. This guy is nuts.
If you have dial-up, this might take a little while. After the first 20seconds, you'll get the picture.
My wax tooth for little Johnny
Pics of my handiwork for little Johnny. It's a bottom right first molar, and it's probably not nice to ask how long this little guy took. Next step: sprue and invest.
My masterpiece for little Johnny's Grill
I've had a bad feeling about art ever since I sat in church in the late 80s and early 90s. In order to keep me quiet, mom would give us a piece of paper and a pen or pencil so that we could draw whatever our hearts desired. With Joe Beam sermons in the background, I learned to draw circles, stick figures, and little birds flying in the distance. I remember an old family friend telling me that I was such a good artist, and I made me so happy because I was so very good at drawing stick figures and circles--an adult even told me so.
And I was happy about my art until I realized that I wasn't any good at drawing at all. In fact, I couldn't draw a good round circle, and the beginning of the circle and the end of the circle never connected quite right. Plus, anybody can draw stick figures, so how is it that I was so good at it? Somehow, I realized that drawing stick figures and circles doesn't make you an artist. I was no artist at all, and all the stuff that I thought I was good at was crooked stick figures. I'm sure I had no idea how bad I was at drawing until one of my brothers kindly gave me the bad news.
Ever since then, I think I've had a chip on my shoulder when it comes to art.
Before I got to dental school, I had no idea as to what it would be like. I really liked some of the things I saw and experienced. Other parts of school weren't quite so exciting.
I never really saw myself doing much in the way of art, but I think I may have accidentally stumbled into a profession where art is very much a part of practice. Although I can draw a pretty mean stick figure now, I still can't draw a round circle.
I'm supposed to wax a tooth as a part of making a gold crown. You prepare a tooth, take an impression, pour a cast of the impression, and then make a replacement tooth out of wax. This wax will be cast and should be duplicated in gold.
I spent hours today with some little wax instruments adding hot little beads of wax to create my masterpiece--an anatomically correct #30 tooth for my mannequin, little Johnny. I might not be all that good at it yet, but I still hope that little Johnny enjoys his bling.
Flag Football
August is one of my favorite months of the year. If some goober from a long time ago hadn't decided that August was a good month to start the school year, it would definitely be my favorite time of year.
Since it's still warm, there's plenty to do, and I'm motivated because I know that there aren't many days of summer left before everything turns to crap.
Best of all, August is the beginning of football season. Nobody really knows how to explain why a 5'7, 145 pound kid loves football, but this shrimp gets excited about it. I love watching the big hits, good defensive battles, and occasional trickeration. Aside from living out my fantasies through a bunch of really big sweaty guys jumping on top of each other, I love to play the sport.
Well, I love to play the version of the sport where nobody is allowed to hit, maul, or break me. In fact, you're not even allowed to use your hands to block. I know-- It's not all that manly, and I don't think my big interceptions are going to make the ESPN highlight reels, but it's the only way me and a bunch of other goobers in school can get our tuition to pay for ref's.
Flag football is more my style. My team is a couple of guys from my dental class plus a random resident. Last year, we went undefeated until the semis, then we lost by 1 point--on a missed PAT.
This year, we're out for revenge, and we've had pretty good success so far. Our first game was a easy win over some 1st year med students. Today's victory was a little more difficult. This goup of med students put up a pretty good fight--they even scored on us once. But still they had fewer points on their side of the scoreboard than we had on ours.
I'd like to claim that I'm one of the major contributors to our victories over our cocky peers, but I think that'd be a little from the truth. My group has some freakishly good athletes, and I proudly ride their shoulders to victory on the gridiron.
One pair of bright red soccer cleats: $39
Our team intramurals deposit (refunded so long as we don't forfeit any games) $200
Beating cocky med students: priceless
Webam of the week: Dental School Construction
Through the combined efforts of my tuition dollars, a lot of dentists' contributions, and plenty of somebody else's matching tax dollars, the dental college at the Medical University of South Carolina has finally started building their new dental clinics building.
Many dental people are excited about the new James B. Edwards College of Dental Medicine Clinical Facility. Many patients may have noticed that the choice patient parking area, G lot, has mysteriously shrunk. As for myself, I can't wait until they start hammering I-beams into the ground.
I hear that this building is long overdue. I think it's only a few years late. It would have been nice to avoid the construction. They say it'll be ready by 2008--the beginning of my senior year at MUSC.
I just got an email with a link to the exciting construction webcam. Watching this thing is only a little worse than watching paint dry--only paint dries in a matter of hours instead of years. At least you can see cars driving by on Bee St.
Memorializing America
In church yesterday morning, the preacher took the liberty of taking some time to talk about how he felt and remembered the September morning a few years ago. He talked about how he felt, how he worried about the man he knew who was working a few blocks away from the craziness, and how he cried that day.
Many times over, somebody has said to me, "you'll always remember what you were doing when..." It's usually when something memorable happens.
Dad says he rememebers when Kennedy was shot. That was 1963. He remembers well what he was doing. He told me a story about it, but I don't remember the story.
In 2001, I was swimming in the indoor Harding pool as part of a lifeguarding class. I suppose I remember September 11 pretty clearly. I suppose that all those people who said I would remember were right, and I certainly couldn't tell you what I did September 9.
But it bothers me too. About 3000 people died that day. One day, 3000 people. I didn't bother to check to see if we still have a moment of silence and lower flags for those 3000. I some ways, I don't really care because I feel like observing Sept 11 as a special day for rememberance doesn't do justice to the millions more who died from more admirable causes, or the millions who died for even more sinister reasons.
Do you remember June 15 1994? What about June 16? 17? It was from April to July 1994 that some 1,000,000 Rwandans were killed as part of some incident that included "evidence of acts of genocide."
I'm annoyed. Why do we whine and complain over 3000 people, yet we largely ignore and poorly remember the larger injustices in the world around us?
I think America loves to memorialize America. Maybe the desire to memorialize is part of what makes the United States special. Maybe genocide doesn't occur within her borders because we so easily memorialize those who died. We couldn't watch 1,000,000 people die in a few months because we'd need to stop every few hundred to set up a memorial fund for the families.
I love taking trips to Washington DC because I love to see the memorials and musuems that honor those who died in wars, and celebrate the achievements of those whose life work further advanced to ability of society. When I walk by the Vietnam memorial, somebody is always there--usually mourning. The statue devoted to the marines at Iwo Jima is similar. There are many more. I'm looking forward to seeing the WWII memorial that was constructed just a few years ago. I like those memorials, and I believe that they are appropriate.
The other day, CNN rebroadcast all of their coverage from that crazy day a couple of years ago, and it got a little under my skin. I didn't watch it. Didn't want to. Why are we watching rebroadcasts of buildings falling.
So here's my letter to the news:
Dear CNN,
Please stop talking about buildings that fell down with people inside. It's old news. Nor do I want to hear about JonBenet. It's old news. It's really not news at all. Let's build a memorial in New York, and we can think about it when we go to New York.
Maybe if we could get some good footage of airplanes flying into Sudanese buildings, somebody would really start to do something.
I never saw myself as an activist for anything. But the disparity here doesn't set well with me. It's not just that we ignore suffering in far away places. It's that we obsess with a cheap shot in New York. It's easy to play to victim. If life were a soccer match, the US would be the striker falling to the ground after he missed the shot--rolling around, playing the part. Acting lessons 101.