Old school memories: Fun in MedSchool 2

Thank God, there was no smart phone or Facebook in our days at medical school. I can't imagine how life would be back then with these gadgets and apps - each to each own while holding a phone with one hand and swiping it with the other and staring at it continuously. That scenario is the total opposite of our time. During breaks in the lectures and when school was out we were in groups either in discussion or planning for some fun. Someone would suggest that we eat at Shakey's and all 15 or so would troop there, give our orders, eat and succumb to the dare to sneak a large pitcher on the way out. Station 55 was another place were we rowdy guys accidentally broke the door handle. Delumbar, D' Counter, One down, Uncle Toms Place, Aling Minat's, Merco and a dozen more places knew that these doctors-to-be are a unique bunch to deal with.

Movies? Yeah, we had enough time for that even with our busy schedules, and the best way to see a movie was to take an empty notebook page and a pen and sit next to Khalil. He would not ask what the items are for, because he knows that all he has to do is write: "Admit one + his signature." This "pass" is accepted without questions at the Lyric and Crest cinemas and we went in for free. During breaks in the "double showing" movies, we would hie to the bathroom and take some puffs on a joint and the movie would become funnier than it actually was.

Spiritual retreats were something that we looked forward to. This meant no boring lectures, a cool day in a hilly or coastal retreat house of the Jesuits, and free snacks and lunch. Meditation was one of the highlights of our retreats and when comfort room break time came it would sometimes take a little longer for some of us to get back to our seats. Some of our classmates would giggle when we would file back inside with our sheepish smiles and our hair and shirts smelling like a field of grass on fire, but this brought meditating to a higher level, no doubt. 

Out-of-town sorties on a convoy of cars was another activity during long weekends. A stop at a roadside store for eggs and ripe tomatoes gave us enough ammunition for throwing at each other while we sped to another province. Activities like these gave the much needed balance to the grind for survival in medical school.