Steinbeck

Sitting in College Coffee in Fairbanks, AK. In a bit of a funk these days - a Fairbanks funk. Apparently it's de rigor for the rotation up here. And not surprising, really. The town is a bit strip mally for most folks (think Twin Falls meets Pocatello or Idaho Falls) and it's lonely. And for many of us, spending significant amounts of time with doctorly folks intently focused on the money in medicine can be disheartening.

But all that is beside the point. . .a funk is a funk is a funk. And it's dissatisfaction defined. It's unsettled and aching. It's a pity party, but a confused one.

And so I'm sitting in the coffee shop and I walk up to the board and see this written:

"Where does discontent start? You are warm enough, but you shiver. You are fed, yet hunger gnaws you. You have been loved, but your yearning wanders in new fields. And to prod all these there's time, the Bastard Time."

-John Steinbeck, Sweet Thursday

Ahh Steinbeck, your words are wise. Message received, funk in check, thank you.