EPISODE 15: JAMES DWECK

march 14, 2024

Interview by pRIYANKA gERA

Edited by Priyanka Gera

Photo by Daniel Furhang

Where did you grow up?

I grew up in Armonk, NY. It’s 1 town over from campus. I did not spend a lot of time there until I moved back after college. My community was centered elsewhere for most of my life. 

Where did you go to college? Where did you spend most of your time outside of Armonk?

I went to college at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore. Before that, I went to boarding school for high school. For elementary and middle school, I attended a school in Stamford, CT. So all of my friends and community were there.

Any reason you were all over the place? 

It had its benefits. I went to the Stamford school because the school near my house at the time only served dairy food at the time, which obviously doesn’t work very well when you can’t have any dairy.** I was the oldest kid, so I went to that school first, then my siblings followed. Going to boarding school is actually a fun story. It was a Jewish boarding school, which is unfortunately defunct at this point. My brother attended the sports camp at that school and really loved it there. I was already enrolled at a different high school, but I tagged along with my brother on a tour of the school and I also really liked it. I thought “this is amazing. I want to go here.” So that night, I filled out the application and submitted it the next day. A few weeks later I found out that I got accepted and that I was released from the other school. It was the most impulsive decision I ever made.

**For context: James is allergic to dairy.  

How many siblings do you have?

I have 2 younger brothers. 

How is it being the eldest child?

It’s really interesting. They are both bigger and taller than me, so I don’t get all the eldest child benefits. We are all very close in age though. When we were younger, we’d get into a lot of fights, especially my and my youngest brother since we are more similar in ways to each other. We butted heads a lot. Nowadays, we all just get along. 

Do you have any pets? I am asking this question, knowing full well the answer [both laugh]

I have 3 cats. One of them is the family cat––her name is Rocky Okapi. She is insane and looks really tiny. She looks like she is still a kitten. When she meows, it sounds like a velociraptor or a bleating sheep though. It is so strange. The other two cats are mine. They lived with me in college and they will come with me when I move out. They are Gal and Djinn. Djinn is the shy and quiet one. Gal is smaller; we love her but she is an idiot. There are no thoughts in her head, but she is beautiful and she knows it. 

She’s playing to her strengths 🤣. What’s the last book you read? 

The last book I read is called “His Black Tongue” by Mitchell Lüthi. It is a horror audiobook that a friend recommended to me. It has music and it is very gory. I enjoyed it though. I am currently in the middle of “In the Lake of the Woods” by Tim O’Brien. It is essentially a 300-page character study which is very interesting, but it is about this man who loses this big election and runs off to the woods to be sad about it with his wife, who goes missing. It has interspersed chapters of musing and speculation of this outsider perspective on what could have happened. It’s been a fascinating read so far. 

Were you a theater kid growing up? Because from the books you are reading, that’s the vibe I’m getting.

Oh yeah. I am still a theater kid. It never ends. It started in middle school. I remember my first audition ever, I sang “I Feel Pretty” from West Side Story. I was 11 at the time and in my infinite wisdom, I tried to sing it in an accent––since it is sung by a character who is Puerto Rican––I never did that again. There was an incident in 7th grade that led to me taking a break from theater, before I picked it back up in high school. Let’s just say there was a very mean director and some last minute changes that led to that decision––it was very upsetting. 😢

Are you a window or aisle seat person?

On a plane? Window. I want to look outside. 

What’s the best view you’ve seen thus far?

Not any particular city, but sunrises and sunsets in general are my favorite out the window of a plane. There are so many colors; it’s really pretty. And I love when you look at the clouds and it looks like a different world. You could bounce on the clouds in your imagination; it’s very fun. 

Speaking of travel, what are three things you always travel with?

Book. Snacks because the likelihood that there is something I can eat on the plane is low. Another thing I travel with on a plane is a change of clothing because if checked bags get lost, you can still have an extra outfit on hand. 

What do you follow the most, your head or heart?

Honestly, it depends on the day. In high school, I followed my heart. I do trust my gut more and more as I get older. On the flip side, I do face analysis paralysis for some decisions, usually the less important ones. 

Who is your role model?

I think so many people. I can pick a number of people in my fire department who have been my friends and mentors over the years. My mom as well because she does so much, and she is very good at it all. I think what I admire most about my mom is that she does a lot of good for other people and it's her driving force. And I think I got that quality from her. If you have just one role model, then you aren’t doing something right. You get different advice/support from different people.  

So you are an EMT and volunteer firefighter. Is there something you don’t do?

I can’t fly. [both laugh] I am not great at most team sports. I am okay at Frisbee though, but I love rock climbing. I started in middle school, but stopped in high school after I got a concussion. I just picked it up a year ago because of friends. I do like writing too. I got back into songwriting, so that’s been fun. I play D&D; lots of nerdy stuff. 

Is D&D “Dungeons & Dragons?”

Yes. My friend introduced me to “Magic: The Gathering,” which has also been really exciting. I like to bake too, although I haven’t been doing it as much recently. 

What’s your favorite thing to bake? Or your favorite baked good to eat. Either one. 

This isn’t technically a “baked good,” but I have an edible cookie dough recipe and it is the thing I am known for making. Everytime my younger brother comes home from college he asks “When are you making that cookie dough?” 

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?

Most of my life, I wanted to be a teacher. If I hadn’t applied to medical school, it was either going to be a paramedic/firefighter or teaching. I am kind of on that path now because I plan on pursuing academic medicine to teach and build curriculums. That is something that is really important to my future career path. There was some time I wanted to be a veterinarian or a forensic scientist. I actually applied to college with the intent of pursuing forensic science, but by the time I actually started I switched to pre-med. I have loved biology since I was a kid, so that has stayed with me my whole life. 

Are you into collecting anything?

I used to collect quarters, but not anymore. As of right now, you could say I collect books. It’s not technically a collection, but it’s like a library. 

How can someone gain your trust?

It sounds basic, but by not being a bad person. Being honest and kind. Laughing at my jokes helps. 

What song would you sing at karaoke night?

Oh I have a whole playlist with over 100 songs on it, that either I’ve learned or want to learn. If I get in the car and want to scream-sing stuff, I just put on this playlist. If I had to pick 1, it would either be “I See Red” by Everybody Loves an Outlaw or “Renegade” by Styx. Those are both very fun to sing. 

What is your favorite gift that you’ve ever received?

My cats. 

Oh! They were gifts?

It was my idea to get them for my 20th birthday, and my mother covered the cost of getting them, which was very nice. That’s become kind of a tradition now too. My middle brother wants a dog, but can’t have one right now because he lives at home. But once he moves out and he’s in a place where he can have a dog, my mom is going to help him out too.  

What are you feeling grateful for today?

The sun. It is so nice right now. It is hitting just right and it's very warm**. Also my cats because one of them slept with me last night and she purred a lot. It helped to de-stress. 

**We were sitting near 2 windows for this interview in the afternoon. ☀️

What is one thing you will never do again?

Sit in a car without a seatbelt. 

What happened?

Oh, I've just seen too much. The end result of so many car crashes. I check to make sure everyone in the car is buckled in. The funny thing is that when I am in an actual responding emergency vehicle, the chances that I have my seatbelt on are very low. BUT outside of that, I will never not wear it. The safety features on cars nowadays are amazing. There are some people who would have gotten badly hurt without these features, but we were able to send them home from the ambulance––no injuries at all. 

Top moment from anatomy lab. 

The last day. Realizing what we just finished and that we were inextricably bonded as a group. That feeling of accomplishment on the last day was great. Anatomy lab in general, is probably one of my least favorite parts of medical school so far, but bonding with my group was memorable. 

Words of advice to incoming/current M1s. 

The biggest thing is to be kind to yourself. This is really hard and you are not here because you are ready to be a doctor, but rather to be a medical student. You need to learn how to do that, and struggling with it does NOT mean that you are not cut out for it, or that you are not good enough. It means you are a normal person, doing something incredibly abnormal and hard. Talk to your peers and lean on them. People are struggling with the same things you are, and you can help each other. Talk to upperclassmen too. We want to help you guys and we have the insider information to help you succeed. Try different things as you try to figure things out too. Also, try to have a life outside of medical school, but it is important to not be a burnt out shell of yourself. Be happy :) 

Contact James at jdweck@student.touro.edu.

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