Brewer to Obama: Warning Signs Are Not Enough

I really just don't understand why its so hard to see how stupid this is. This infuriates me to no end when I hear what is really going on. Instead of putting troops and resources at our borders we bail out wall street and banks and other idiots that won't get off their butts and work for a living.
Watch this video....

I lived in Arizona for a while as a kid and I loved it. This just makes me furious that a President of the U.S. would think this is defending our borders.

Carpet cleaning...and other general craziness at our house

So last week I had a second "surgery" on my right shoulder.  It was more like a procedure really.  I had not gotten all of my ROM (That's Range of Motion for you lay people out there) back and had hit a wall in physical therapy. Now I'm recovering from a procedure and on narcotics for pain, albeit not taking them that much. And I'm supposed to be working from home this week because we are always "encouraged" to keep our billable utilization as high as possible.  So remote phone training sessions and other services are what I'm trying to provide while I'm rehabbing my bum shoulder.  PT appointments every day as well.

Well, it just so happens that we have been trying (not very hard) to get a bid for someone to come fix the walls and ceiling in our master bedroom from water damage that occurred during last years spring storms.  We got a bid we liked and the guy could start right away so we decided to do that at the same time.  This meant taking all the furniture out of the master bedroom and filling the rest of the house with it.  Which of course made the house unlivable for the week so we all moved to Grandma's house. 
Phew.....    We had a lot going on I guess you could say.   Well, when you clear a room of its furniture you really get a good look at the carpet in the room.  Underneath all the dust-bunnies it needed help.  So we thought, let's clean the carpets too.

Those carpet cleaning machines that you can rent from Albertson's are great.  Maybe too great... It did such a good job on our master bedroom that we thought we'd move a bunch of furniture around in the other rooms and clean all the carpets. We have a blond dog, a snow white cat and forest green carpets in all the bedrooms, living room and dining room.

Picture all of this with me crammed up in the corner of the dining room trying to work with furniture from the master bedroom all around me. Nothing like a little last minute home improvement project!   Of course, I forgot to mention that my daughter was attending a diabetes day camp put on my the ADA across town so we had to ferry her back and forth every morning and afternoon as well.  The funny thing is, it didn't really seem that abnormal for us.

Yes, my life really is a bruehaha.  And not just sometimes.

P.S.  The doctor wanted to really make sure we're getting the most out of our PT this time so he sent me home with my own personal torture rack to stretch my shoulder. 
See picture below taken at Grandma's house.

Going the extra mile at work...,Or learning is its own reward "In The End"

This last week I took a day off of work so that I could get a second procedure done on my right shoulder.  I've been nursing it back to health since dislocating it badly last October while mowing the lawn.  It's a long story that maybe I'll tell on here soon. It suffices to say that I think twice now before I do any yard work.  Anyway, since I'm convalescing this week and off of the road I thought I should share a recent story from work.

A few weeks ago I was at a Gastroenterology group in Kentucky.  This group had recently gone through a conversion of systems and was in need of someone to help them navigate the pitfalls of the new system and its alien workflows.  So I was chosen to go up there and be the hero.  They were a nice group of doctors and staff and things were going very well.  I hit it off with one of the doctors that was from South Africa and was showing him all the wonders of his new system.  To my surprise this doctor said that where he really needed my help was tomorrow when he was doing procedures in the GI Suite over at the local hospital.  I remarked that I could do that.  "Sure, no problem." I said.  "You just let me know where it is and what time and I'll be there".   Of course I had no idea what I was really getting myself into at this point.  I thought it would just mean me sitting with him in the doctor's lounge after he'd finished a procedure and then helping him to document it.  Easy as pie.  I mean some of these types of things I've done so many times I could probably do them with my eyes shut. 

So, early the next morning with my tummy full from a bagel at the hotel breakfast bar and the caffeine from at least one diet coke coursing through my veins I showed up at the GI suite and promptly presented my business card and asked for Dr so and so.  The charge nurse took one look at me and smiled wryly and said "follow me".  I did as was told and we wondered down a long hall with rooms on either side marked "Procedure 1" and so on. She took me to an open procedure room and showed me a desk in the corner of the room and said the doctor was in a procedure but would be with me in a few minutes.  As I made myself comfortable at the small desk crowded with hospital bulletins and various pieces and parts of medical machinery not currently in use I thought to myself that they must not have a doctor's lounge.  "Hmmm, low budget I guess.  Times are tight" I mused. 

After a few minutes the door adjoining to the suite next to this one opened and a nurse said "You can come in here now.  We've got a few minutes before the next one"  I gathered my laptop bag and walked through the door she was in, dodging gurneys and medical devices until I saw the doctor dressed in scrubs with his surgical mask still on the top of his head.  He was sitting at a desk in the corner just like the one that I had just left.  He was already logged into our software and was ready to document what he had just done.  "Splendid" I thought.  "This guy is on the ball.  I'll be outta here and back on my way to the office in no time".

We went through how to document a colonoscopy and EGD, making sure to mention the correct form of anesthesia and the technical names of the instruments used.  It was a very neat and tidy note.  Any specialist would have been proud to send it back to a referring doctor.  

About this time, I happen to look over my right shoulder and I notice a new gurney with a patient laying on it.  She was awake and looking around and her eyes caught my eyes for a brief moment.  That moment seemed like it took about 60 seconds.  It was like everything froze in time.  The doctor must have seen the dazed and confused look on my face because as he rose and put on new gloves and surgical mask he said, "Have you ever seen a colonoscopy before?"......  He then said hello to the patient and asked if she minded if I was in there to observe and help him with his new computer system.   To my surprise and horror she said no, she didn't mind.   I was suddenly struck dumb for the next 5 minutes.  It was as if I lost all ability to produce speech.  I didn't know what to say even if I could have spoken. 

I immediately turned and faced the computer screen in the corner. Thoughts raced through my mind of what was about to happen and why am I here and is this all a big joke.  I wondered if Ashton Kutcher was in the next room with a television crew secretly tapping this.  Or perhaps "Candid Camera" was back on the air again.   Then reality hit and I realized I wasn't a celebrity and didn't know anyone capable of pulling such an elaborate hoax.  No, this was exactly what I thought it was.  I was going to be here for a while. And with that the procedure started and sounds and smells and experiences that I never in my life expected to endure started happening to me against my will.   I fought hard to keep my eyes and ears focused on the tiny computer desk and not think about what was going on a foot and a half behind me.  Some patients would cry out during the middle of their tests as if they were in pain.  "Oh it hurts" one lady said crying in a loud voice. (Someone told me later that they couldn't really feel anything, they were just acting out.  Conscious sedation they called it)  It scared the heck out of me sure enough. The doctors and nurses would engage in mundane conversations while they performed their duties as if nothing of note was happening at all.  Add to that the occasional irruptions of flatulence and the constant background of vacuuming sounds, all of which was being put on a DVD for the lucky patient to watch at home.  Now there's some quality entertainment I tell ya......"Hey honey, wanna watch my colonoscopy tonight after the kids are in bed?"

I sat through it all. The doc would finish procedure after procedure and then come sit down with me and make small talk while we documented what was just done.  At least while he was sitting there working the mouse, it was safe for me to look around.  So I would stretch my neck and back while he was working the software because I knew in the next few minutes I would be stiff as a board again.   This went on for the better part of 2 hours and I endured it all.  An assault on my senses like none I've ever had before or hope to have ever again.  And as we were starting the last procedure I felt like I had accomplished something.  I had made it.  The evil GI Suite had not stolen my innocence.  Nay....I was about to immerge victorious!

And then it happened.  Almost involuntarily I turned to the right and my eyes caught the site of some poor soul sitting there on their side all prepped and ready to go.   Yes, the moon was out and shinning in all its fullness.  My neck snapped back around with the velocity of a sling-shot.   Suddenly my victory had been stolen from me and I was defeated. 

Well, all I can say was that the doctor was very appreciative and gave me rave reviews back to my superiors at work.  I got several "Atta boys" from important people.  Of course none of them had any idea what I went through to please this physician.  But that is the way that the world works.  We are asked to fight our battles and no one cares much what it was like.  They just want to know if you won the war.   I guess I came out better than the people who were in the gurneys.  Perhaps.  At least they know the state of their colons.

Anyway, I found myself laughing out loud on the way back to the hotel that night.  As a matter of fact, I laughed so hard that I had tears coming to my eyes and it was hard to see to drive.

So as they say....."All's well that Ends well"

Editors note: No fannys were harmed in the making of this blog post.  The picture is a stock photo from Google Images.  Did you really think I would've taken a picture?

Thank you to everyone for the birthday wishes

Facebook has been a part of my life now for over a year and it still amazes me how something so simple in concept can have such a profound impact on my life.  I don't base my life on FB or anything like that, but it sure does add enrichment in many ways.  One of the best is the fact that friends both old and new have the ability to see when your birthday is and pass along wishes of peace and happiness.
Don't take this for granted.  This last birthday was my last one in my thirties and one where I found myself all alone in a city where I knew no one except some new work aquaintances.   I was trying to be upbeat about it, but I have to admit that it was a major bummer. Its just not the kind of scenario you hope for on your birthday. 
My family was never too big on birthdays.  Not like my wife's family. Or at least to hear my wife and her sister describe it.  So I've never made too much fuss over the day.  At least not since I was a kid.  And we all know that once you get past a certain age, especially as a father, your birthday takes a back seat to pretty much everything else going on in life.  That's ok, I've come to accept it.  I'm at peace...
So, with that as my past I didn't have very big expectations.  But a phenomenon took place yesterday that really was something quite special.  I got "Happy Birthday Wishes" from a large number of my facebook friends. That may not seem like a big deal.  But think about what that represents.  When's the last time you sent a Birthday Card to someone you went to high school with?  Or a college roommate?  Or even a past workmate?   Probably never if you're like most of us.   It is not that you don't want them to have a nice remembrance of the day of their birth, its just that you are too busy and its too inconvenient.  Facebook actually makes it convenient to pass along these wishes!  Kinda cool actually.  And the net effect is that I was thrilled at how many people knew and cared that it was the anniversary of the day I arrived on this planet.
It really is amazing.  So the moral of this story is this. When you see that notification on the side of your home feed, take the time to pass along best wishes.  It really does make someone's day.  I know it did mine!

I'd like to thank each and everyone of the following list of people for taking the time to say "Happy Birthday" to me.

Mickey Inzer
George Demars
Crystal Liechty
Sage Hancock
Lisa Church
Kim Repnow
Amy Hopkins
Paulette Aguda
Mike Mershawn
Paula Dehncke
Bryan Jobe
Spring Rowell
Rene Hollingsworth
Legrand Joye
Ronnie Hollingsworth
Tim Ross
Mattison Brown
Ronzelle Green
Karri Wright
Kyle Nordberg
Jane Brink
David Rowley
Calvin Steedee Brown
Amanda Saner
George McCowan
Andrea McCrohan
Carlene Fonseca
Paula Sauls
Zanda Lampkin
Karen Woods
Shanna Pritchet
Bruce Oakes
Kimberly Brannon Cartin
Floyd Counce
Bonnie Matthews
Tracie Thomas
Josh Williams
Jason Frith
Chris Walker
JD Crowe
Tammy Nowiki
Jeff Rigler
Carmen Lynn Druckenmiller
Wendy King Whitfield
Niels Rojas
Tammy Sisk Emanuele
Mandy Mullikin Kibler
Tonya Gilbert
Allison Harbin
Stacey Warren Chatman
Lauren Johannes Missling
Jeni Gerich Long
Kimberly Deus Sullivan
Bryan Gillespie
Rob Perry
Stacy Hannan Debord
Jeff Waycoff
Kim Sudtelgte
Ben Dobberstein
Noni Hoadley
Leslie Spears Hooker
George Mcleese
Tommy Willis
Michelle Knighton
Ben Clark
Cynthia Wilson
JodyJo Joplin
Gary Graves
Becky Mullowney
Roland Entralgo
Cheo Jackson
Jane Brink
Travis Harbin
Christine Allen
Judy Eckhardt
Shannon Demars Wolf
Brittany Wendehorst
Linda Young
Sonya Kennedy Martz
Kenitha Hudgins Davis
Marty Nance
Barbara Henson Grisell
Timi Ingles Earls
Jason Callender
Jung Jacob Song
Sonya Bolt
Cecily Willard
Stacey Dalryample Rogers
Windy LeCroy Broadwell
Jennifer Maxwell
Tomeka Elam Walker
Kathy Phelps
C Jason McDonald
Jen Brakora
Elaine Richter
Mike Petersen
Theresa McCullough
Jie Jie Tang
Melissa DeAngelis
Christina Nicholson
Adrienne Graves
Marilyn Vickery
Emily Keeran Vickery
Lawrence Patterson
Wesley Steven Wolf
Portia Richmond
Eugene McBride
Jennifer Adams Brown
Adriana Cunningham
Shelley Fonseca
Joy Cooper
Allison Cavey Vermie
Clint Bargmann
Bob Moore
Gazelle Schreiber
Kristen Minth
Mg Gaskin
Eva Fleming McCall
Lisa Spero
Delahne Wright
Rebecca Kennedy Hunt
Patrick Ward
Shelley Kolman Tait
Vonda Olkjer Sisneros
Janell Carlson