CVC San Diego

As a veterinarian, I need to obtain 20 continuing education credits every two years to keep my license active. We get 1 credit per hour of "class" attended - online, via small lectures presented locally, or at the big, national meetings. Some of the groups such as CVC, AAHA, or AVMA have annual meetings with large groups of people. Western States in Las Vegas in February has an enormous crowd every year (and I'm confident the attraction isn't so much the stellar presentations, though I'm sure the information is good). I've discovered that if I attend one big meeting every other year, I get enough credits without having to kill myself in the off years to fill in the gaps. I've heard good things about the CVC convention in San Diego, and in December the thought of warmer temps and the sun was enough to get me on a plane bound for San Diego at the beginning of that month. It dumped four inches of snow in Boise the day I left....

One of my best friends, Sara, graciously offered to come with me for the weekend. She's not a veterinarian but was able to get some work done from the hotel room Friday and had a good tour of Old Town San Diego during the day Saturday. I took Sunday off classes and we played. And walked. And walked some more. And laughed!

The meeting was great - I like the convention center in San Diego and there weren't so many people as to feel overwhelmed. As with all of these meetings, I learned lots from some of the speakers and should have taken a nap during others. Overall, I came out with several good tools for my veterinary and personal toolboxes. I realized that my favorite lectures were non-clinical in nature - personal well being, leadership, and communication in content. I also realized that I'm not emotionally vested in my clinic. I feel detached from the daily operations (which I am, only working 2-3 days per month), not really part of a team, and not connected to any clients or cases. Those aspects make it hard to continue to work as a veterinarian and I haven't come up with a good solution. Yet.

I'm thinking this could be an annual meeting for me. And one day, for Chadwick and I together. I have colleagues who meet up annually for a meeting and to catch up. I love that idea!

Chadwick's childhood friend, Phil, works near the airport and graciously offered to pick us up and take us to lunch. We drove around town a bit and ended up grabbing a burrito from a hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant. We ate on a bench with an ocean view. The burrito was amazing and the view even better. It was refreshing to smell the salt of the ocean and leave the stresses of mom-life behind for a few days. While a bit awkward to spend time with Phil as Chadwick wasn't there, it was good to see him and catch up a bit. He was so great to take time to show us around and then drop us off at the hotel. Much better than a ride on Uber!

Our first night in warmer San Diego (it was only in the 50s and breezy, which felt cool) we found an Old Spaghetti Factory in the Gaslamp Quarter near our hotel and happily consumed pasta in a place that holds a nostalgic place in my heart. We had been up since 5:00 that morning and were slightly punch drunk, and after Sara made a sassy comment about something, I chucked a piece of bread at her and we dissolved into giggles. Not just a chuckle, but tear-dropping, goofy, little girl giggles. In the middle of the restaurant. It was cathartic. Throwing bread, or threatening to throw bread, became a theme for the rest of the trip. Turns out Sara can be sassy and I adore this trait in her.

We talked about everything and nothing, read in silence in the evenings, and made good traveling companions. Dinners were eaten outside at every opportunity despite the chill and Sara found a small sweet shop that boasted hand made fudge. The woman who owned the place is originally from Mexico and Sara adopted her immediately, referring to her as "my Abuela."

I was a good girl and attended lectures Thursday afternoon and all day Friday and Saturday - I logged 13 credits under my belt and feel good about the event. One of the women in leadership lectures talked about "power poses" and the women leading the discussion had the audience strike several poses for 2 minutes while jamming to girl-power songs. Usain Bolt, Michael Phelps, and Simone Biles were three individuals whose poses we used. Here's Sara striking a Usain:

Sunday we treated ourselves to a play day, leaving husbands at home to fend for themselves through the snow, church, and early morning meetings (for my Chadwick). We spent a good portion of the day at Balboa Park and enjoyed warmer temperatures and the sun on our faces. The California Ballet performed in the afternoon and we watched a wonderful performance of The Nutcracker.

The San Diego Parade of Lights was Sunday evening - and instead of a parade of cars and horses, it was a parade of boats and yachts! All were decorated to some degree, some with music and a party on board, others more quiet. Ranging from a small rowboat to thousand-dollar vessels, it was quite the deal. Crowds lined the shore along the route and we had a good chat with a local family.

Monday was another travel day and we left San Diego with reluctance to head back to the snow of Idaho. On the plus side, we were looking forward to seeing our husbands and kiddos, who survived our absence with flying colors.

Our hotel had a ginormous gingerbread house in the lobby. And I love that they included an ingredient list!

My friendship with Sara has always been strong and I was grateful for the chance to strengthen the ties between us. I'm also grateful for the insights I gained into my feelings about my career as a veterinarian and hope that I can find a new direction in which to use my degree over the upcoming years.