#1601 to 1578 - On Zeniths

Well, I've reached mine for this year's blogging challenge.  I hope those of you that found me this year will stick around... It promises to be ever eventful with lots of trips planned throughout the summer, and the never-ending dramas of life in the ER... Grazie, thank you, et bonne nuit...!

#1579 - On Yoda

My good friend M and I are huge Star Wars fans.  Aside from seeing the originals, we went to the theatre to see the "enhanced" versions when they came out.  Unfortunately, I was in med school when the "prequel" trilogy came out, so we weren't able to go see those together, but we have a date for December 18th, 2015 to go see the first of the new "sequel" trilogy.

If you know anything about Star Wars, you know that Yoda figures prominently in the series.  And I love this meme that has been circulating recently...

Of course the most famous of Yoda quotes is the:  Do.  Or do not.  There is no try.

But do you remember these...?

 - “Death is a natural part of life. Rejoice for those around you who transform into the Force. Mourn them do not. Miss them do not. Attachment leads to jealously. The shadow of greed, that is.”

 - “Named must your fear be before banish it you can.”

 - “To be Jedi is to face the truth, and choose. Give off light, or darkness, Padawan. Be a candle, or the night.”

Of course, my favorite tribute to Yoda is this....

Weird Al Yankovic sings "Yoda"

2013 A to Z Challenge Post:

Y is for Yes, I Can!

#1579 - On eXercise...

I was looking back through some prior posts, and I came across this photo...

St Lucia 03/2013

which is actually connected to the link that I will share

tomorrow from last year's challenge.

Fast forward to January of this year where I was actually

heavier than I am in this picture, and suffering

the effects of the extra weight while trying to hike in Yosemite.

I made a promise to myself to never be that heavy again,

and I bought my Fitbit which I have

discussed on a recent post.  Which one...?

Hmm...?

My lifesaver...!

And, I talked earlier as well about counting calories

and how much fun that has been... not!

But, now I am finally starting to see some results.

You see, working in "pajamas" on a daily basis

makes it real easy to gain weight and not even realize it.

You just let out the drawstring on your scrubs from

time to time, and you don't think about it

until suddenly your pants are tight across the seat

and you worry about ripping them when you bend over.

Plus, you have that set of "fat clothes" that fit comfortably

no matter what.

No problem, right?

Wrong.

Over the course of the last couple of months

since I've been counting calories and making a concerted effort

to get more exercise, I'm noticing that suddenly

I am sleeping better

I don't get heartburn

I can just about keep up with my dogs

Dixie encouraging me up the hill...

I am enjoying doing more with my husband

(I used to balk at the idea of going for a walk on the beach)

and now I actually want to eXercise...

on a treadmill some days

The view from my treadmill

Rainy, like most days, so easier just to eXercise inside

and...

I had to buy new scrubs...

Smaller, actually tapered womenly scrubs

that aren't just a square with arms...

And, while on vacation, I was able to fit into some of my

"thinner" clothes.  White pants and a breezy top I ridiculously bought on sale

and never thought I would actually fit into.

But now I do...

And, I hope it will be looser soon...!

2013 A to Z Challenge Post:

X is for eXasperation

#1595 - On Workplace Humor

I get comments every once in a while about patients wondering

why the ED staff is laughing while at work.

Shouldn't you be busy saving lives..?

When you get patients like this:

You sometimes have to laugh.

Of course, I can't post some of the more

life-threatening emergencies we see,

but after a particularly bad code, you

sometimes have to let off some steam.

So, I thought I would again share some of my

favorite medical cartoons...

enjoy...!

And the reason we continue to do what we do

is no laughing matter:

2013 A to Z Challenge Post:

W is for Weary Traveler

#1596 - On Vivacity

I always hated that project in school, or sometimes at camp

where you had to introduce yourself with an adjective

to help people remember your first name.

What I wouldn't give at that time to be:

Darling Darla

Laughing Linda

Awesome Anna

I, almost always, had to be

Vivacious Veronica

I mean, how many other adjectives that are appealing

are there that start with the letter V?

The only thing is, I didn't feel Vivacious.

To me, at that time, Vivacious Veronicas were 

cheerleaders, student body presidents,

cute fun girls who drove convertables,

and dated football players.

I was the smart, short and dumpy looking girl

who had a lot of boy "friends" but no one

that I really dated.

(I later found out it was because most of my

male friends turned out to be gay;  I was a hag

even then and just didn't know it.)

But, Vivacious, not me...

Of course, in college, alcohol helped a lot...

At parties and at the bar, I was the funny one.

My friends attracted the boys with their looks,

but I kept them laughing while my friends

danced and enjoyed the free drinks.

I still didn't date much at all,

and I continued to be friends with guys

who later turned out to be gay, again.

But, I had fun, and continued to have fun

with my gay friends until I met my husband

and finally didn't have to worry about being a hag

all my life...

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Still, Vivacious...?

Well, maybe just a little after all...

2013 A to Z Challenge Post:

V is for Veronica

#1596 - On Undecidedness

I can't think of what to write tonight, so I will leave this short and sweet...
only 5 more to go... whew....!

2013 A to Z Challenge Post:
U is for Unbelievable

#1596 - On Triage

 I know I've written about this before, but I want to make sure that you really get the concept.  And, since I am preparing for a mass casualty exercise for my EMS group tomorrow, I thought I would share some of what I've been doing today.... plus have a good excuse for the short post...

Triage is the system used to determine in what order patients are seen in the emergency department.  So someone having a heart attack or a stroke will be seen before someone with a toothache.  And, while you may be worried about that fact that your kid fell and hit his head on the coffee table, we're more worried about the kid whose parents continue to smoke and who is on their third nebulized breathing treatment because they're still wheezing.

Now, I know you've been waiting for three hours, but I can't control what comes in the "back door;"  you know, the big one labeled "Ambulance Entrance."  Sometimes, people who are having actual emergencies come in on the ambulance.  I can't determine that until I go in and see them.  Then, when I have determined that their month long bought of abdominal pain which is suddenly worse today, isn't life threatening, I can get to you.  For your drug refill, or your migraine headache that magically appears every Friday night that needs that "dilaudid" stuff, but please be quick about it because "my ride is waiting."

And, not to sound callous, but you have to remember that we have seen the worst that can happen to someone.  So when we reassure you that the finger you almost cut off with a table saw because that "pesky plastic shield just kept getting in the way" is going to be ok, it's because we've dealt with this kind of emergency before.  You're not going to bleed to death, but that finger's going to be just a little bit shorter than the others.

2013 A to Z Challenge Post:

T is for Time