the day off

If there is one thing I have discovered while attending medical school, it is that three-day weekends are the best time to get away from books and work on falling behind on studying. As predicted, the "study more" new year's resolution has been broken. However, it was good to have finally have the time to get away from textbooks, medical school, and most of all, Kirksville.

I managed to get out yesterday for a little exploring. I was playing around with Google Earth recently and noticed that there was access to a part of Thousand Hills State Park from the south part of town. Since it was sunny and in the mid-60s, I figured it would be a great day to go and check out the area. Of course, on Google Earth and maps, it appeared as though there was an access road that led straight to the water. Much to my surprise, the road ended at a trailhead nearly eight miles from the lake. So, I managed to hike about five miles in before I turned around to avoid being stranded in the dark. It was nice to get out and take some time to just walk without any true purpose or distractions.

Sunset in the Big Creek Conservation Area

We capped off the long weekend with a trip to the Red Rooster in La Plata tonight. We heard some good rumblings about this place and decided it would be the perfect opportunity to check it out. The food and service was astounding, but I think the most amazing aspect of the dinner really had nothing to do with the food at all. It was, in fact, the ridiculous hand dryers in the bathroom. That's right, hand dryers. I was actually disappointed because I didn't bring along my camera to take pictures or video of these amazing, gale-force generators. From the manufacturer's site:

"Hand dryer motor shall be a series commutated through-flow discharge vacuum motor/blower (5/8 HP / 20,000 RPM) which provides air velocity of 16,000 LFM (linear feet per minute) at the air outlet and 14,000 LFM at the hands (4 inches [102 mm] below air outlet)."

Now, much of my math skills have left me since starting medical school, but I do believe that translates to a speed of just under 3 miles per minute. 3 miles per minute. As best I understand it, Turboprop jet engines produce air velocities between 300-400 miles per hour. These handryers were pushing air around our hands at approximately 1/3 the speed of a jet engine. Ridiculous.