Sunday, November 30, 2008

Running. Yesterday I went for a run down by cooper river. Toward the end of my run, I turn around in a park that is at the intersection of hwy 130 and S. Park Ave. It's an area where the ground is probably at or below sea level, so it floods a lot. There were about 75 Canadian geese in the park crowding around the path I run on my return. They parted quietly, waddling to the side and looking at me out of the corner of their eyes. I expected them to run or fly away, but they continued watching me silently.

Restraints. Restraints, when used in the hospital, are a problem. People who are violent need to be restrained for staff safety. However, if you are restrained for too long, your muscles atrophy and you need to go for inpatient physical therapy after you're medically stable. But, if you've been in restraints anytime in the last 48 hours, no inpatient physical therapy location will accept your transfer. Furthermore, without moving, you're more inclined to develop blood clots, and if a blood clot breaks up and goes to the lungs you develop a condition known as a pulmonary embolism (potentially life threatening and no easy treatment). Finally, it sucks to be in restraints. You can't sleep and being in restraints makes you crazier. This week, I heard a woman in restraints crying out, "OhGod PleaseHelpMe! Get Me Out of Here! Pleasepleaseplease! OhGod! Why are youdoingthis to meeeee!"

The Kids. My dad is visiting and we took the kids to the children museum. My dad followed May around and I followed Ben. Ben spent most of his time at a play construction site where you bring planks up a long winding ramp to a play house and can either hang the planks on the walls or slide them down a chute where they return to a storage bin. Ben chose to send all his planks down the chute. Then he carried them up the ramp to the house, then down the chute again. etc., etc. for 30 minutes.

My sister. When I was 8 or 9 and my sister was 2 years and nine months younger, my grandma bought us some Chinese food for my birthday. Sarah ate all the meat out of the Chinese food but nothing else. I remember being incredibly angry, "It's *my* birthday! And you ate all the meat, but nothing else! And it's *my* birthday!" Grandma Tina tried to settle me down, "ssshhh Samuel, Ssshhh. Don't make such a big deal out of it.