Maybe they are on to something

So as some of you have read and others have experienced, people in medical training now have limits on how many hours they can work a week. The limits have been met with mixed reviews. We all know how much I love being told what to do. For the most part, I have thought they were silly, and besides a little part of me recognizes that I need to be able to function post call.

I was on call last night. I had for me a typical call. Very busy for most of the night with 2 cases and about 2 1/2 hours of sleep. I came home around 9 am this morning. I needed to run several errands, so I took a "quick" nap and headed back out around 1 pm. Grocery store, Target, Mall and oil change were on my agenda. I started at Target. I spent 30 minutes wandering the store picking up the couple items that I needed. I lacked motivation to move quickly. When I got up to pay, it occurred to me that I had left my house and gone shopping with nothing but my car keys. . . no license, no money, no credit card. After a return trip home, I only made it to the grocery store and target today. I decided I am not safe for more than that today. Maybe the powers that be are on to something. Patient care probably not within the realm of my capability today.

Waiting again!

Have I ever mentioned that I am not the most patient person on the planet. No? Well let me do so at this time. I mean - for a surgeon I think I do okay (not as good as Bassam, but we can all admit that he has the patience of Job and the calmness of Gandhi). It is currently almost 8 pm my time, and I am still trying to get through my day's operative schedule. Luckily, I am on call tonight so I am stuck here anyway, but that seems like very poor solace at the moment.

I was stuck here last night until after 10 pm. It is not so much the lateness of the hour because quite honestly - not so bad. Most importantly it was particularly painful because Trader Joe's closes at 10. I have not been to the grocery store in over a month. I traveled for most of the past month, so did not want to be wasteful. Unfortunately that meant when I got home last night starving, my choices were water, frozen broccoli, sun dried tomatoes and instant cheese grits. As only Kris can understand, I skipped the broccoli and had the grits. I like grits as much as the next Southerner, but not as my complete dinner. Oh well, hopefully can go tomorrow when I get off.

Still waiting by the way, I can't believe it has taken us all day to do six cases. Our new attending is so incredibly slow. I am only stuck operating with her because I am on call, but it still does not make me happy. Oh well, enough whining. Life is otherwise good. I spent much of the last month visiting family and friends, and now get to spend Christmas with my friend Beth and her family. Life is nothing to whine about - I'll be better.

Here kitty kitty

All that was old is new again. Hello Kitty, Care Bears, My Little Pony, and Cabbage patch kids have all made a come back. I lived in Georgia - home of the cabbage patch hospital - so it was my biggest obsession. I also had a pony and Susan had a couple of bears. Hello Kitty was extremely popular with my friends, but I was never really into it. I am not sure why exactly - maybe it was the fact that my mom thought it was ridiculously priced for pens and erasers or maybe I have always preferred dogs even as a child. I walked through the stores a lot and enjoyed looking at the merchandise, but never had much of my own.

Matt and Grace gave me a Hello Kitty necklace for Christmas. (I will try to remember to post a picture so that you can really appreciate how cute it is.) I must admit that I am now a convert. I wore it to work today, and every time I caught a glimpse of it in the mirror it made me smile. Considering how crappy my day was and that I am just now getting home - that is a miracle. I dare anyone to see my sparkly kitty smiling and not be in a good mood. I am not sure the hows and whys of the way that it's magic works, but will simply say that it is one impressive cat. Next up for me - a Hello Kitty lunch box.

home cold home

Just arrived back in town from Nashville. When I landed on Thursday, several people blamed me for bringing bad weather. It was in the 30's for a large portion of the weekend. I was as cold as anybody so I took the blame and kept going. However, upon arriving back here tonight, I remembered why it is so much worse here regardless of how "cold" it is back home. I had a fairly uneventful flight and caught the train back in to Center City without much delay.

However, when I popped up on street level at 16th and Market, I remembered why cold here is bad. I honestly thought I was going to lose a hand or an ear on the walk to my apartment. I think the issues are a couple. As I have mentioned before - wind is clearly a player. The other major factor I think is the amount of time spent outside. Back home (be it Tennessee or Georgia) the amount of time spent out in the weather is blessedly short. You are simply bolting from the car to the house or the car to the mall, etc. However, here you walk a lot. Things are considered very close if they are within 6 blocks. I LOVE this fact the rest of the year, but not a fan in the Winter.

Had a fabulous time in Nashville. I got to catch a Christmas show, tree trimming party, and a housewarming party. I spent time with a personal shopper and had great pedicure. I caught up with lots of old friends, and I also got to spend some serious quality time with my favorite under 5 duo. I will admit that I am a little tired, but had an absolutely amazing time. If only Nashville needed a Thoracic surgeon - I could be happy living there.

Christmas Spirit

I had not yet gotten into the whole Christmas spirit thing. I usually do at home with my mom dragging me shopping, but as I mentioned - I spent a lot of Thanksgiving at the hospital. Therefore, I had not given Christmas much thought.

I headed out this evening to the bookstore. I wanted to pick up a copy of A Christmas Carol. I have been hankering to reread it every since I started a Facebook conversation with a friend of mine from second grade. I must admit - although cold - there is something magical about walking down a bustling street at dusk with Christmas lights twinkling everywhere. I am now very much in the Holiday spirit.

Now, I need to get in the spirit to go pack. I am heading to Nashville tomorrow, and a suitcase of belongings would be nice to take with me. It is funny - I never traveled in 6 months - and now I am taking my 3rd trip in 4 weeks. Excited to see everyone. Will hopefully bring back pics.

Predictable

Further proof that I am not anywhere close to normal. . .

I love Christmas - no surprise to anyone. I particularly love decorating for Christmas. Something about the smell of a fresh tree is very soothing to me. However, I have foregone a Christmas tree and any significant decorations for the last two years. My decorations are somewhere in storage, and I was so busy in Nashville it didn't make sense to put much effort into it. (I just spent a lot of time at the Helou's inhaling their Christmas smells.) I had already decided that I wasn't going to do a tree this year either. Decorations still in Georgia, and apartment tiny. I was content with my decision.

That is - until yesterday. When I came home from work yesterday, I had a message on my door informing me of the "Holiday rules". My apartment complex does not allow real trees. This is a perfectly logical decision on their part. In an apartment complex this size, I can see where lots of things can go wrong. However, now that I can't have a real tree - I desperately want one. Why is it that I can't stand to be told no? Reverse psychology works great on me. Guess I will spend a lot of time at the Christmas tree stand smelling the trees.

Thanksgiving at the Hospital?

Sorry I didn't get a chance to call everyone on the Holiday. Hopefully everyone had a great Turkey day. I made it home Wednesday without much of a headache, and luckily made it back to Philly yesterday just before the entire east coast got delayed. However, my time at home wasn't exactly peaceful.

As most of you know, I am very close to several of my cousins. We literally saw and played with each other every day growing up. Paul, my cousin who lived next door growing up, now has two beautiful little girls - Serenity and Sidney. They have not had the smoothest year. Early this year, their mom left. She really didn't give much of an explanation, but did say that she didn't want the kids with her. The "kids" are now 8 and 5. Since her departure, she has only been to see them twice and that was with much prompting from my cousin. He understands - mostly because he is living with the girls - how much they miss their mom. Things got worse for Sidney this holiday.

I had just walked into my parent's house when the phone rang. It was Paul asking if I could come take a look at Sidney (he now lives across the street and a couple of houses down). I stated that I am not a pediatrician, but would be happy to see her. She had come home early from school on Tuesday, and had spent most of Wednesday just lying around. If you knew this kid, you would understand how not right that last statement is. As soon as I saw her, I suggested we head to the emergency room. Anyone in the medical profession - be it doctor or nurse that is any good - will tell you that somewhere along the way you develop a sixth sense. Often, even before they "start looking bad" by medical standards, a little buzzer goes off in your head. Sidney had all kinds of alarms going off in my head. This little girl was not well.

We quickly learned why. At the hospital, routine blood tests revealed that she was an undiagnosed diabetic. She is only 5 years old. Her blood sugar had risen to a dangerously high level and she was now in a diabetic coma from the ketoacidosis. She was flown to Egleston Children's Hospital in Atlanta. For much of Wednesday night, we were not given much hope that she would make it through the night alive. She was intubated and her brain started to swell requiring placement of a ventricular drain. Many prayers later, she finally started to improve. She was extubated on Saturday and is slowly waking up. Unfortunately she still has a long road ahead of her. She developed a blood clot in her leg from a groin line and will need treatment for it. She now also has to deal with insulin shots and glucose testing for the rest of our life. I have adult patients who don't like to give themselves shots - I can't imagine that this 5 year old will cope all that well.

We did not get a chance to have the normal Thanksgiving that we would have liked, but we all ended the weekend with so much more for which to be Thankful. For those of you who sent prayers for Sidney - Thanks and keep them going.