Random Musings on a Saturday

Beautiful day. Have only done 1 call so far, taking a woman with cancer into the hospital. A week ago she could go up and down stairs, today she couldn't get out of bed.

I just went out and vaccummed out my car using the power vac. It was so warm out, I took off my workshirt and just had a black tee-shirt on. On the radio this morning they said back in 1996, it snowed 24 inches on this date. I feel pretty sure that we are done with the snow for the winter. Thankfully. I love Spring.

Coming back from the hospital, we stopped at Seashore Seafood in the city and I had a Jamaician breakfast of ackee and codfish, boiled green bannana, yam and dumpling. Good. If I get a chance I may get some jerk chicken for lunch later. Maybe even get a Ting -- grapefruit soda.

I have heard rumours that one of medics of ten years has been fired for running a red light. He didn't get in an accident, he just ran a red light. The company has a zero tolerance policy, although I have heard some say the operative line is "may" terminate, rather than "will" terminate. I'm all for the safety measures the company has instituted -- ranging from mandatory seat belt usage to installing black boxes to montitor and rate our driving(the ambulance makes noices, beeping and shrieking if we hit certain speeds, too great G-forces on turns, too sudden stops or don't use a spotter to backup). People definately drive better than they did, particuarly the new younger EMT hotshots and I do feel much safer, but there is something harsh and unsettling about terminating a long-time employee, who from all I have seen, has done his job well and faithfully. I await hard news on this rather than rumor. There has to be more to the story.

My knees have been bothering me a little the last two days. I don't know if it is the heavy squats I have been doing in the gymn or all the hours I've spend scrunched in the cramped front seat of the ambulance of late. I'm going to back off the squats and try to stretch more in between rides. I have to stay fit.

Baseball season has started. The Red Sox are 2-2, tied with the Yankees after dropping the first two games to them. I'm going up next week to Fenway. I'm looking forward to seeing the game and drinking beers with my best friend. Going to Fenway is a tradition for us, and we usually take in 3-4 games a year.

I used to play in a competive softball league every year -- the highlight of my week was game day, but have turned down an invitation to play this year. I can't afford to get hurt. Plus there are other things to do on my day off. My last at-bat I hit a game-winning triple over the head of the right-fielder, who I saw out of the corner of my eye creeping in too shallow. I turned my shoulders and blasted it the opposite way. Oh, did it feel good to get a hold of that pitch. And I ran with no intention of stopping till I got to third. Made it standing, just beating the throw. A good memory to quit on.

I've been reading a blog by another medic, and find it very interesting. He has been a medic even longer than me and seems to be going through an angst (that I occasionally share) between loving being a clinical paramedic and wondering if maybe he should move on to something else. Here's the link to his blog:

http://www.themacmedic.us/

Saturdays are nice at work when they don't have any classes going out here. It's just me and my crew.

I'm listening to some early Bob Marley right now as I write.

"These are the words of my master...
Who so ever diggeth the pit, shall fall in it...

In a little while I will switch to the Red Sox game.

My crew is watching an early Clint Eastwood movie. He just tossed a lit stick of dynamite at a bad guy holding a hostage, who looked like a young Shirley McClain. The bad guy ran, Eastwood shot him, walked slowly over to the woman, looked down at the dynamite, and then stepped on the fuse.

I saw an ad in the paper for the Circus, coming to town in May. I think I'll go. I love the circus. It's been years since I've been there.


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Picked up later in the day: a seizure, a girl who tripped and fell in a store and bruised her hip, a pnemonia from a nursing home who I gave two neb treatments, and an assault.