Ignorance is NOT bliss

Another one I have to get out of my system..
A complaint letter from a patient. We all knew it was coming. The patient had been deemed a pain in the butt. The nursing staff had warned me about how difficult it was to deal with said patient. There were two bits in the patient's complaint letter that irks the hell out of me. This patient is demanding and ignorant at the same time, leading to the formulation of some pretty stupid sounding complaints.

Like how the patient got moved out of ICU on a Sunday and wasn't seen for *gasp* two whole days!! Bullshit. An intern saw this patient on Monday. Yes, an intern. Fresh out of med school. A doctor nonetheless. I saw this patient Tuesday. Worked my butt off and didn't leave hospital until just past 2300h just to speak to this patient and address the concerns voiced. Then drove an hour's drive back to come back AND SEE THE SAME PATIENT AGAIN THE NEXT MORNING. So wtf is this complaint of this patient about? Doctors don't see all their patients daily over the weekend unless they are sick. Newsflash to ignorant-patient!

And the sarcastic bit about "are you confused, because I'm confused!" when I FINALLY clarified who her attending doctor was after two days of chasing down consultants and registrars and answered her bloody question. She gets her answer, then QUESTIONS IT?! WTF.

It's people like these that make me want to rant and rave and cuss at the world, and pad my already-unhealthy levels of cynicism.  Ungrateful ignorant bitch.

℞: A Cup of Concrete

Every so often, my ears perk up at a bit of news that floats through my bubble of a personal space and gets me all riled up for the wrong reasons. Like this little newsflash about how parents are deeming "fairy tales" a la Hans Christian Anderson and the Brothers Grimm fame ...too scary, opting for "modern" stories instead.. whatever that means. SERIOUSLY?! For those parents out there with that perception, what do you have to say about "scary" modern stories such as.. hmm.. let's say, Harry Potter and all the seven books about his "adventures"? There's death, kidnappings, battles, and *gasp* magic in those stories. If Jack and the Beanstalk was considered inappropriate for the modern kiddo because it was "too unrealistic," then you all should really boycott the fiction section and let your kids watch National Geographic documentaries for bed instead. Wiat a second, scratch that thought. They might be too scary for your kids because they depict animals hunting other animals! Oh no. Or what about all those cartoons out there showing cutesy characters bashing each other on the head.. like the Tom and Jerry, or Wile E. Cyote vs the Roadrunner.. OR WHAT ABOUT THOSE FREAKISH TELETUBBIES?! Scary much? 'Nuff said.

Parents apparently deem classics like Snow White and the Seven Dwarves and Little Red Riding Hood inappropriate for their precious coddled young because "dwarves" is simply inappropriate for the former, and they are uncomfortable explaining to their kids how the grandmother gets eaten by a wolf for the latter story. Man, these people should go read the original tales by the Brothers Grimm (go on, download it free off Amazon and read it off your Kindle!) and then come and complain that the sugarized, commercialized versions we know as "fairy tales" are pretty damn tame. There, I cussed. I suppose this entry, hell, this whole blog is now inappropriate for kids because it has scary bad words, oh my. Oops, I said two scary bad words.

Don't deny your childen the opportunity to figure out for themselves right from wrong, black from white, dark from light. Go ahead and deem fairy tales inappropriate and "too scary" (for reasons that will always baffle me), butt don't transfer those adult insecurities onto the children. Why can't these parents grow up a bit themselves and regale their children with fairy tales that spark the children's imagination. Yes the Snow Queen was freaking scary when I first read about her in my anthology of Hans Christian Anderson tales, but I figured out for myself at the age of seven that one, she wasn't REAL and even if she was, I had learnt what NOT to do from Kai and Gerda's mistakes. Yes, I was a little too overactive with my imagination at the time but if not then, then when? To those parents polled, if there are issues with the story, why not use the opportunity to use it as a teaching tool about life? Kidnappings too scary? Why not spin the tale around and ask the kids what THEY would do if they were Hansel or Gretel? Turn it into a "don't talk to strangers" and "be vigilant, stay close to mommy and daddy when we go out" talk.

Am very very appalled at how much society has changed. In my eyes, I think that with the mentality these parents have of "protecting" their kids, they're just coddling a generation of pushovers who will grow up so insulated from all things "bad" that they won't have the mental or emotional capacity to deal with life's lows that will surely come with life's highs. Seriously people.. in the words of a senior I once worked with, drink a cup of concrete and harden up!!

another month has quickly gone

and what a month it has been

 we're recovering slowly still from

all the things we have seen!

we scooted over an ocean or two

and saw some awesome views

we ignored all the fuss from new year's day

and blocked out the earthquake news

we readied our tummies

and pigged out in style

their goodies were yummier

by more than a mile!

sushi and tamago, 

sashimi and rice

sour calpis and yakult

served up with ice!

ramen and curries,

udon in broth,

tempura and sake

we felt like a sloth

temples and fire,

coin tossing with glee

museums and ghibli

there was so much to see!

'twas a pity when we had to leave

we pouted and whined

for we weren't quite done

there were so many one-of-a-kinds

but we eventually made it back

with both bags filled to the brim

and then i realized work was to start

things started looking a tad grim

things turned out a wee bit worse

for the other guy couldn't work

it meant i was working 24/7

that first week drove me beserk!

things have settled, now that he's back

 my workload's thankfully less

yet, things aren't quite settled

for i'm still feeling stressed

but everything's good, for this weekend, i'm off!

chillaxing is what i'll do

a brand new start excites me so

gotta feeling smiles will brew!