Hey, April *is* the Cruelest Month!

OK, I know I've been a wee bit of a downer lately--even though I have every reason to be grateful and optimistic--and I want to reassure everyone I'm going to get over it soon, because the days are longer, the black-tailed deer have returned to my field, and the farmer's market begins any week now, so what's not to cheer up about?

One barrier remains: April. Can I tell you how sucky this April is going to be? Here's why:

1. Property taxes, the unfabulous part about being a homeowner, are due no later than April 10th. Even though I put money aside every month, it is always a nasty shock when the due date rolls around.
2. Personal income taxes are, in case you didn't know, due on April 15th, and this little rural doctor didn't pay enough in estimated quarterlies last year, so I'm going to have to send Uncle Sam a pound of my flesh in the form of a big fat check.
3. I'm turning 41 on the 20th, which is not a big deal, but isn't very inspiring either. I mean, who hires a live band for their forty-first birthday?
4. Heads up, soon-to-be-licensed doctors: Your California medical license expires on the last day of your birth month every other year. For me, this is the other year, so I'm $800+ in the hole, which--after paying #1 and #2--feels like salt in a festering wound.
5. Today I discovered that my driver's license expires on my birthday this year. Did I realize this? No. The good news is I can renew by mail. The bad news is, I get to keep my extra-geeky, sleep-deprived, post-Night Float D.L photo for another five years.
6. Whoops--I have to recertify in ACLS today. I've tested in ACLS half a dozen times, but it always stresses me out. I think I'm emotionally scarred for life by the time I let a MegaCode patient slip into asystole during my intern year. Doesn't help that all the privileging people at my various places of work have been on me like vultures for my renewal card. Amazing how people are nice as pie to you until your PPD and ACLS are overdue.
7. I'm working seventeen hospitalist shifts this month, not because I want to, but because a) our staffing agency can't staff us properly and b) I need the income. These two truths really take the sizzle out of my steak, if you know what I mean.

I'm posting about the horror of April 2009 because I want to get my gloominess out into the open so I can get over it. Hear that? That's the sound of Theresa getting over it. Yup. I'm over it. 

(Note to my mother, who reads my blog: There is no need to call me after reading this post. Everything is fine, my finances are solvent, I can cover all my bills, and I promise I won't cry in public.)

Comments

[Brea in Texas]

I think it sounds like you should have a band at your party. Just what you need at the moment. :) And your mom also sounds like mine.

[dragonfly]

Your Mum sounds like mine.

[Michael]

I turned 21, and my roommate (then boyfriend) took me out for a celebratory lunch and drink at about 1 PM.

The waitress took my ID, certified that I was indeed a 21 year old man, congratulated me, and then politely pointed out that my driver's license expired that day.

...whoops.

So we raced to the nearest licensing office, only to find out that it was closed Tuesdays! And it was a Tuesday. And I was leaving the next morning at 8 AM for Vancouver, where I of course needed a license to prove identity and get more drinks.

On the door of the first office, there was a metro number to call, so we found that the downtown office was open, but only until 4 PM. It was now 3 PM and we were way north. I think my roommate drove faster than he usually does (and he's a generous grandmother when he drives). We got down there just after 3:30, I ran into the office, and got my number.

Whew.

...wait. I only had a debit card on me and they only take cash or checks! Crap! So I found the nearest bank and suffered a $3 transaction fee, then hop skipped back inside the office. One more person followed in behind me before the security guard locked the doors of the office from any new clients.

(At least I had a pretty hot photo that year!)

[David Magness, D.O. (as of May 24th)]

I am a 4th year med student (who just finished his last rotation [!]) and recently matched into Family Medicine.

I'm glad I stumbled upon your blog - I am still in the DoFM mode, which I hope to never leave. I am a National Health Service Corps Scholar, only for my 3rd and 4th year. It will be good for me in the next 3 years of residency and 2 years of HRSA practice to know that there's someone who has gone through the trials and tribulations that FP, specifically underserved medicine brings.

[emmy]

April can be cruel, and it seems like it's beating you up before it even gets in the door. I hope that many blessings come to you to make up for these cruelties. For me, today my daughter's pediatrician called to tell me that she definately does not have leukemia and on the 14th I will celebrate my 5th year as a breast cancer survivor. This month has already offered me a lot to be grateful for.