Trip to Montreal: Day 6

 

Woke up to a rainy day today. A few phone calls made to speak to officials at the municipal office in Khopoli regarding issues with property taxes got me a bit behind time to reach the conference. Luckily the rain had paused as I walked over to the place. 

It was another day of some heavy duty learning. I was pleasantly surprised to see Dr Andre Cipta in the seat of a presenter during one of the sessions on mid career fellowships in hospice and palliative care. I had gotten in touch with Dr Cipta last October just before I left for India. He is the program director for Hospice and Palliative Medicine at Kaiser Permanente in Los Angeles. Upon his advice I joined AAHPM and enrolled for this conference ( the Annual Assembly). It was also his recommendation to seek the Hospice Medical Director Certification which I am in the process to obtain. It was such a joy to meet him in person today. We will be meeting again tomorrow at another session he is going to conduct and later for dinner with faculty.

So many terminologies were new to me in the last 2-3 days. CTI( certified terminally ill), LVAD( Left ventricular assisted devices), discharge or revocation of hospice. I am beginning to realize how each specialty in medicine has its own language. It feels like being in the seat of a student driver. But that’s the first step before anyone becomes a seasoned driver. I am mostly just absorbing everything intently. And it has been a fun experience so far. People in this field are exceptionally compassionate. It kind of rubs onto you unconsciously. 

Did a few phone calls to family before heading downstairs for dinner at the French restaurant within our hotel. Now getting ready to call it a day. Oh, can’t forget to mention the beautiful sight from the room window this evening before dinner. The thin crescent of the moon and a bright Jupiter just above it seemed to be in conversation with each other on top of the Montreal skyline. Tried in vain to catch a glimpse of Mercury that was supposedly in between the moon and Jupiter but it was too faint to be seen in the light. Nevertheless it was a beautiful sight.

Saree is a Cambodian inspired ikat from one of my favorite designers and friend Meera Mehta. She is best known for her paithanis but ikats are as much of her specialty. The finesse in her motifs and the subtlety in use of colors is what makes her stand apart from generic works one finds in the market. This particular saree is a single ikat with such definition of motifs that it can be mistaken for a double ikat. The use of maroon and blue amidst the black is done so cleverly that one can’t stop admiring the beauty of the fabric. I could see heads turn all day and women staring at the fabric whether at the convention center or streets or restaurant. It is truly eye catching, one of a kind creation.