I was sitting at a nurses' station working on my progress notes, and the nurses were all complaining that the printer wasn't working. I ignored them for as long as I could, but after they started ripping some sheets out (a big no no if you don't know what you're doing), I pushed to the front, cleared the jam, reset the printer, and got it running smoothly.
"How did you do that?" one of the cuter nurses asked. I have had such a stupid crush on her, because she is very hot, and very friendly. And very married, sadly.
"Oh, I used to build computers. This stuff is nothing." Play it cool. Nonchalant. Switching into 'Dr. ifinding knows everything' mode.
"Ohmigod! you're a nerd! Ha ha!"
If you ever want to have your self-confidence utterly destroyed, find the prettiest girl you know and have her ridicule you in public. That will pretty much do the trick every time. I felt like I was back in 7th grade. If I remember correctly, I went straight home and hid in my room with a six pack, reminding myself that I am a physician, one of the most prestigious and honorable professions, and how awesome I am in general.
But I guess there's no escaping it. I am a nerd. But maybe being a nerd isn't so bad anymore. After all, it got me this far.
