I want to quickly mention one thing about my coffee situation. I did use my new thermos today and it worked very well - an entirely adequate replacement for my old thermos, but without the sentimental attachment.

However, just when I thought that my coffee situation was well settled, a distressing event occurred with my coffee maker i.e. coffee storage is secure and adequate, but coffee brewing was problematic this morning. It took nearly thirty minutes for my six cup pot of coffee to brew and I had to interrupt it to use the pause-and-pour feature in order to get a cup with breakfast.

For the record, I loathe the pause-and-pour feature because it creates an unequal distribution of the coffee strength for the batch being brewed. When one uses pause-and-pour, the first cup is stronger than the rest and all the rest of the coffee is weaker. A marxist at heart, I believe each cup of coffee should get an equal share of the boiled juice of the coffee bean.

Jill and I have been running water and vinegar through the coffee maker all day long in alternating batches in order to collect data on the situation. The assay I just finished running brewed the requisite six cups in about seven minutes, so that should be fine for tomorrow.

I had a standardized patient interview today and was not very happy with its result. The constructive feed back I recieved was to carry a clipboard instead of a little notebook. I was a little unprepared for the whole situation. I arrived thinking we were taking a patient history, and then was given the patient history before the encounter. What kind of history can I take when everything is already in the chart? So after covering the Chief Complaint and History of Present Illness I wasted a lot of time by talking slowly, taking big pauses. Honestly, I had to spend some time thinking about my next question. But my interviewer didn't like the pausing or slowness. She said, "It made me feel like you don't know what you're doing." Of course, I don't know what I'm doing, so that doesn't help much.

This standardized patient encounter was complicated by the fact that the patient desired a perscription for antibiotics to treat the apparent viral respiratory infection.

Finally, she said that I should have come right out and said that taking antibiotics when you have a viral infection is "bad for you." Instead of saying that it's not the right medicine, or the tylenol and sudafed are the right medicine. I have some ethical qualms about saying that anti-biotics are bad for you in this case. Certainly, they won't help, and, certainly, they raise the spectre of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, but I felt that telling the patient that anti-biotics would hurt her would be a misrepresentation of the risks posed by an inappropriate theraputic response.

Anyway, my biggest regret about the whole event was not standing up to my evaluator and saying 1) I needed to waste time, 2) notebook vs. clipboard is totally irrelevant, and 3) there are ethical issues at stake in the misrepresentation of the danger posed by an inappropriate therapy.

Two jobs ago, I had an almost equally hilarious assessment when my former supervisor told me, "I'm marking your 'teamwork' score as 'needs improvement' because I'm doing that for everyone this year."

Thanks.

Everyone woke up early this morning. I set my alarm for 6:45, and I remember hitting snooze, but I think everyone was up before then. May came in and told us that Pink Puppy ( a prominent stuffed animal in the pantheon) had an accident in bed. We thought that Pink Puppy might be a fall guy for the accident in bed, but as it turned out, May's bed was dry. She does a pretty good job of going all night without accidents.

Before I left for school this morning, I asked May to play quietly during Jill's afternoon nap. We'll see how that goes. Yesterday May, Jill, and Ben went apple picking with May's school. Jill didn't feel like they got enough time to pick apples.

Benjamin has been wilder than usual lately. He has developed a temper-tantrum-precursor in which, when disappointed, he runs wildly and smashes his whole body against the lower kitchen cupboards while screaming. His hot dog eating is slowing down. Mostly, I think, because I bought cheap, gritty hot dogs rather than the silky smooth Oscar Meyer that he's been enjoying so much. Yesterday he was throwing sand while playing in the sandbox and I had to close the sandbox.

I had something in my eye all morning long, but it seems to have resolved itself.

My new coffee thermos arrived in the mail today. It looks smaller, but it holds as much liquid as my old thermos; one red coffee cup plus a little extra.

At 6:30 today, fifteen minutes before the alarm went off, May got up and needed to use the bathroom. I brought her to the bathroom and helped her out, then got her back into the bed with Jill. I turned off my alarm clock and snuck down stairs without waking up anyone! I am very happy about this, as Jill, I'm sure, would like the extra sleep.

We found out yesterday that Ben's toddler music class will be delayed until after the new year. We may have to sign him up for a class that we have to pay for.

I'm a little sore from doing yoga last night, but not that bad.

This week we are learning about viruses in school. The Norwalk Cruise Ship virus has no phospholipid bilayer enveloping it, so once it gets onto something, like a cooktop or someone's hands, it cannot be removed with soap and water. Normal flu and herpes (I think) viruses do have an active membrane used in spreading infection that can be destroyed with detergent action.

The bottom line: wash your hands with soap and water a lot during flu season to keep from getting sick.

Jill was pretty crabby today when I got home. I think the kids were getting on her nerves. Right now she's out at the Junior Women's Drinking Club. Tonight they're drinking vodka tonics and having sardine-cream-cheese sandwiches with the crusts cut off as a snack.

Yesterday, on my way to the coffee shop, I saw an ambiguously gendered person with no arms. S/he had his/her shoes off and was smoking a cigarette with his/her toes.

My sister was visiting this weekend and we had a blast. Friday night (actually before my sister arrived) we had a cheesesteak binge. We ordered three of them, ate two, and saved one for later, which my sister did get to eat half of before she left on Sunday. In addition to the binge on beer and cheesesteaks, we went on a walking tour of constitutional walking tour of some historic sites in Philadelphia.

The tour was timed perfectly so that the kids fell asleep in their strollers after lunch and we enjoyed the walking tour without any screeching or weeping. The guide was very good and had some interesting factoids and quotes. For example, John Hancock was a rum runner and smuggler and, after the British confiscated a few of his ships, was very interested in taxation and representation. Also, a great quote from Benjamin Franklin, "Beer is proof that God exists and that He loves mankind." (I might be paraphrasing the quote)

The scores were returned on our pathology exams from last week and I scored very well. Every time I take an exam I have a score that I hope for within reason and also an unreasonable score that I dream about. My score was in the 'unreasonable desire' range. I bought one pathology textbook, and two review books, I read all three in addition to lecture attendance and reading the faculty lecture notes. so, I did work hard. Even though the pathology we covered was introductory material, I'm pleased to have started the year with some strong work.

May was a little bit naughty this morning. She put a big pile of her favorite stuffed animals and blankets (handkerchiefs, doll blankets, burp cloths, and cloth napkins) on the kitchen table and wouldn't remove them. We argued back and forth about them until I took them away and put them up on my dresser. Jill, bless her heart, read my intent correctly and kept the animals and blankets away from May all day long. I felt bad after leaving for school knowing that May would complain all day about the animals, and that Jill was stuck enforcing a punishment that I had decreed unilaterally. Still, the vengeful arm of justice must strike blindly and let those who bring toys to the breakfast table beware.

Ben is refusing to be seated in a high chair. Tonight at dinner he screamed all meal until he was freed, whereupon he promptly ran to the living room and dumped out a box of sixty-four crayons and several tubs of toys. Jill ran to the living room, feeling very distraught and discouraged, to clean up the disastrous mess. In the mean time, Benjamin returned to the table, pulled himself up onto his mom's chair, and ate his dinner (or at least the chicken flesh - which is all he eats these days anyhow).

Today on the train I noticed a guy was reading a printout about cheerleading. I couldn't help but read over his shoulder. Apparently, this professional cheerleader (she worked for one of the NFL teams) had worked at NASA and then went on to work as a cheerleader. The article tried to draw a lot of analogies between the two professions. It was hilarious, but in an unintentional and derisive manner.

Yesterday on the train I noticed a woman using her rosary. The Philadelphia area is a lot more catholic than Wisconsin. It's a little shocking, but not altogether unpleasant. The catholics in the area have a long and strong history of social service and activism. Of course, they have a strong anti-choice bent, but, no one's perfect.

Benjamin played a new game today. He climbs up onto his sister's bed, then sits on the edge, dangling his feet over the edge. Then, sliding forward, he jumps off the bed and lands on his feet. After squealing and running around the room, he climbs up onto the bed and does it again. On a completely different subject, he is on a strict cheese and hot dog diet.

Tonight, before bedtime, May and I played 'princess video game.' We made a princess and named her Princess Daddy. May told me that Princess Daddy had flat, blue eyes and wore glasses. When it was time to pick a body for Princess Daddy, we assigned a short, fat body. Princess Daddy got a red dress with hearts on it, a big blond wig, and bows down the front of her shirt. Later on in the evening, she told me, "I've been watching Fox News."

Yesterday on the train I rode home next to a guy with lots of tattoos on his arms. He looked middle age, though he was a heavy smoker and sometimes that gives you an early worn appearance. He got a call on his cell phone and told his friend, Gary, that he was riding the speedline home. He was wearing a t-shirt with a front pocket, blue jeans, and newer tennis shoes.

I had an argument with another med student this week. He accused Hillary Clinton of killing Vince Foster, which threw me into a rage. I don't think I called him stupid, but I think I did say that this idea was ridiculous and stupid. Then I said that I did believe in a Vast Right Wing Conspiracy and accused him of being a member. This particular student is both arrogant and naive, which is an unusual combination of obnoxious personality traits.

That night when I got home, I looked up Vince Foster on wikipedia and they presented some compelling evidence. Read for yourself: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vince_Foster#Death

As you can tell, I'm still angry about this. If this yahoo brings this up again, I'll mention the evidence of VF's suicide presented in wikipedia, and acknowledge that he doesn't necessarily need to believe in the evidence, but if he doesn't faith in logic and reason, maybe he should continue to study at a more faith based university, like maybe Oral Roberts University, and leave reason and logic to those more gifted with rational thought processes.


My new workout plan is to exercise hard every day. I want to either be working out or sore from working out.

Sadly, earlier this week I lost my coffee thermos. I will need to shell out twenty or thirty bucks for a new one. Fortunately, I found the exact same model that my friend Tony gave me years ago. It's a good thermos that keeps the coffee warm all day. Here is a product description from amzaon.com.

Nissan Travel Companion Stainless-Steel Insulated Bottle
Product Features

• Keeps beverages hot or cold for hours
• Holds nearly 26 ounces
• Easy, no-drip pouring without removing stopper
• Hand wash with mild detergent
• Five-year warranty against defects

I definitely want the 26 ounce model. Bigger than one cup, but not so big as to be unwieldy.

Benjamin has been pushing chairs around for a long time, however, today he figured out that if you push a chair over to the table, kitchen counter, or refrigerator you can climb onto the chair and access previously unreachable and forbidden areas. My cousin told me a few months ago that a friend of his told him, "Having a girl first does not prepare you for having a boy." True words, but bitter, bitter.

May was playing with her stuffed animals on the couch and beside her was her empty rocket ship (a larger basket). Ben brought his toy mop over and began to put it into the basket and began to mop. May was very upset and they fought. I settled the quarrel by explaining that Ben was only mopping out the rocket ship so it would be ready for her to fly to the moon. May told me, "Good. My animals have been pooping in the rocket ship and it needs to be cleaned."

Today I will rectify the inequality in blogging about my children. In the past, blog entries have been mostly about May, but this entry will be mostly about Benjamin, and the things he did yesterday. Our goal yesterday was to go to a Labor Day BBQ at the house of our friends, Dominick and Becky, which we finally did.

Earlier in the day, Jill was moving the family's towels and sheets from one container into a functionally equivalent container in a room next door. The moving of the sheets resulted in the fact that a new container was available in which one could slam ones finger - should you be so foolish. Benjamin slammed his finger with spectacularly bloody results. All day long I tried to bandage that bloody finger tip with no skin on it, and all day long he removed the bandages. I tried to tape the bandages on with packing tape, electrical tape, and medical tape. I taped the bandage on his thumb and wrapped the tape around his wrist; still the bandage was removed. I even taped his thumb to the side of his palm, still the bandage was removed. I must have bandaged his finger with the bloody, flappy skin twelve time. Today, he has a big scab and no bandage.

Our plan was to lunch and then go to the BBQ. We were eating lunch yesterday (I've forgotten what we were eating), and I said, "Who's looking forward to having a hot dog for dinner?" Benjamin happens to have recently developed a palate for hot dogs. However, he has not quite mastered the concept of past, present, future, and our temporal orientation (In a non-relativistic, Newtonian sense; I will not touch on time and relativity in this post. It's too broad of a subject, and quite off topic, as my kids rarely concerned with Einstinian physics.) Benjamin thought we were talking about hot dogs for lunch NOW.

"Hot dog!" He demanded. Then he pointed at the fridge and screamed. Once again, he demanded, "Hot dog!" He kept screaming and demanding a hot dog until we were able to change the subject and he forgot about it.

I hesitate to tell this story, but I should be up front about it. It's a shocking story and it almost derailed our plans to go to the BBQ. The kids were ninety percent ready to go. May was getting ready to go and Ben was all ready to go. I was trying, futilely, to print out directions to Becky and Dominick's house. Jill gave Benjamin a sippy-cup full of milk to drink. It wasn't a good Playtex sippy-cup; it was a cheap, disposable sippy-cup. Benjamin figured out long ago that a fun trick with these disposable sippy-cups is to through them on the floor, smashing them open, and spilling out the contents. This is an extra good trick, because you can both outrage your parents and manipulate them into cleaning up the mess.

So after smashing open his cup and spilling the milk everywhere, Benjamin laid down in the milk on his stomach and thrashed his arms and legs up and down, as if he was swimming. When Jill saw him, she was upset and had to change him into new clothes.

My final story from yesterday about Ben. After the party is winding down, May is watching The Little Mermaid in Becky and Dom's living room. Ben wants to go into the living room, but isn't interested in climbing down the step from the foyer into the living room. Instead, he hurls himself off the step and bell flops onto the carpeted floor of the living room. The first time it happened, I was quite alarmed . The next fifteen or twenty times he did it, he seemed to be really enjoying himself. What would be terribly painful and humiliating for me, he seemed to thing was hilariously funny and quite entertaining.

One quick story about May, then I must go put her to bed. Yesterday, May was talking about New Jersey. She said to Dom, "Would you like to buy a swamp in NJ?" and Dom said, "Sure, I would, how much would it cost?"

May replied, "One dollar."

Dom said, "A whole dollar! I don't know if I can raise that kind of capital. Do you think I could get a loan?"

And May said, "You won't have to be alone with all those things."

May even helped me write this tonight, because she sat on my lap while I was typing and was a very good girl, during the last few paragraphs, by not touching the screen, the keyboard, or anything else on my desk.

I will try to go read her bed time books with her now.

May
-a loan, alone

Today my wife and I celebrated our 6th anniversary. We got hoagies (a Philadelphia word for submarine sandwiches) and went to the park for a picnic while a neighbor watched the kids for a few hours. After the picnic we went to a shop called 'The Christmas Tree Shops' that Jill likes a lot. They have a lot of decorative things there that I am not interested in, but they do have some good deals on food and there are generally good bargains to be found. We got separated in the store when I kept nagging her about leaving and she sent me to the food section.

When we got back to the house, the kids were having a good time, but were very tired. Benjamin didn't take his afternoon nap today. Both kids were a pain in the neck all afternoon.

On the bright side, we saw Pan's Labyrinth last night and really enjoyed it. A little violent, and a little to adult-fairy-tale, but still a cool movie.

I've been hearing a lot of noise about poor Miss South Carolina lately on the internet. If you know about her geographic agnosia and have overcome the bleak depression that her comments have brought upon you and are ready to move on, check out this clip for a good yuck...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cBQXgFn6TQ&mode=related&search=

If you haven't already seen the original, search for it on you tube first.

I feel bad because all of my extended family is visiting my grandma on Lawn Gisland this weekend, but having just gotten back from a really long vacation, we declined to attend the family function. I may try to go out for a visit during october or november. We may even go there for thanksgiving, if Jill thinks that's OK.

I have to finish writing a letter to my other grandparents tonight. They recently moved to a new nursing home in NC and I feel like I should write them more often. Grandpa is deaf as a stone and can't talk on the phone and grandma is a shade on the crazy side. So, they're good people to communicate with through written means.