is it really wednesday already?

August 12, 2009

the only kind of list i don’t like
i almost lost my cool in clinic yesterday when one family came in with a written list of symtoms, which read like:

nasal congestion
cough
fever
decreased appetite
low energy

accompanying this log was an index of wants. a veritable acute-care shopping list, it included things like:

chest x-ray
cough medicine
antibiotics
blood work

the lists came on the back of an envelope and had been written by mom, who did not come to the appointment. grandma and grandpa were there and seemed a bit sheepish and apologetic about it, but i could tell they had been instructed to come home with the demands met, come hell or high water, because basically they told me this.

the kid? happy, playful, and dancing around the room with a stuffy nose and a temp of 99.5. she was only just sick enough to spatter my face with virus-laden droplets while i examined her throat. the sibling was also there (and checked in), but clearly only along for the ride, with very minimal symptoms ( . . . so far)*. we had actually seen the first child 3 days prior, on day 2 of her cold, and instructed to return if symptoms were to persist past 7-10 days or (of course) if there were any breathing problems or other scary new findings. yesterday was day 5.

it took 30 minutes of talking this family down (including time spent with mom over the phone) before they we could convince them that irradiating their child’s chest was unnecessary and that THIS IS WHAT A COLD LOOKS LIKE. so while i love lists most of the time, i shudder when i see one in a caregiver’s hand, especially in acute clinic (bringing a list of accumulated concerns to a regular check-up is much less offensive and even sometimes helpful).

* rule of multiples in same day clinic: number of children checked in is inversely proportional to acuity. also, with any multiple, there is typically only one ‘sick one’ and the others are along for the ride to get ‘checked out’. it’s sometimes kind of fun to figure out who’s who, although most of the time a quick glance around the room does the trick.

google reader
personally, i use google reader for pretty much all of my blog-perusing. sometimes it can get overwhelming (hundreds of unread posts!) but i’ve learned to just suck it up and ‘mark all as read’ from time to time when i need a clean slate.

for those of you unfamiliar with the service, it can be found here and it basically serves as an organizing hub for all of the blogs you enjoy following. you can bookmark favorite posts, and it is constantly updated so that you can see when one of your favorite writers has published something new.

one fun feature for those of us who blog is that you can track subscriber numbers and watch your readership grow. ghost world is currently at 88 subscribers, which is 1/20 of the number who subscribe to kath‘s blog and about 1/5 as many as michelle’s the underwear drawer, even though she has posted exactly once in the past 3 months.

not that i’m bitter.

(i’m not, though, really! i’m actually kind of thrilled with 88!).

the only downsides to google reader are that you have to click through to posts in order to comment or see comments, and that bloggers with sponsored sidebars (such as BlogHer on this site, or FoodBuzz on others) won’t get credit for posts read via reader because the ads aren’t visible. however, i suppose that’s a plus for readers, and i don’t make enough cash from this endeavor to warrant caring about that!

question of the day: how many of you use google reader? or are there other, even better blog-reading services out there (i’ve seen some click-throughs via bloglines, but have never used it).

————————————————————————————

8.11.09

workout: 40 minutes elliptical + weights
– pushups, 2 x 12
– squats with ball, 10 lb weights, 2 x 12 (my butt hurts today!)
– lat pull-downs, 50 lbs, 2 x 12
– walking double lunges, 8 lbs, 2 x 12
– lateral/forward raises, 6 lbs each hand, 2 x 10 each side
– tricep pushdowns, 15 lbs 1st set, 10 lbs second set, 2 x 12
– ball tucks, 2 x 12

doin’ time: i’m on a cooking roll this week! inspired by julie & julie perhaps? last night’s dinner was based on martha’s shrimp and basil pasta recipe (on the sidebar), but i made a few modifications based on what was in the house.

instead of linguini, the pasta is a hodgepodge of whole wheat penne, rigatoni, and spirals, using up 3 opened packages. i didn’t have canned tomatoes, so the tomato component was just fresh cherry (local durham heirloom!) tomatoes. and finally, though i know it’s not traditional on seafood dishes, i added some parm to use up a container.


it was good.

so was my LLL: laptop leftovers lunch!


peaches, leftover jicama slaw, leftover corn and blackeyed pea salad, whole grain crackers, and a laughing cow wedge

reading: oops, i slacked and watched entourage instead. note to self: i am NEVER going to be able to study in bed after watching TV. NEEEEVVVVVVER.

6 Comments

  • Reply Anonymous March 10, 2019 at 7:28 pm

    Your dinner looks fantastic!

  • Reply Anonymous March 10, 2019 at 7:29 pm

    I only have 34 subscribers. And I&#39m not embarrassed to admit that I check all the time and get a little excited when the number goes up! 88 is a lot!

  • Reply Chelsea March 10, 2019 at 7:28 pm

    Hmmmm… I use Sage reader and I wonder if I should switch to Google. I have no idea how many people subscribe to me, but I&#39m guessing it&#39s in the single digits.

  • Reply Meredith (Pursuing Balance) March 10, 2019 at 7:28 pm

    I use Google Reader. I wouldn&#39t be able to keep track of all the blogs I read anyway.

  • Reply Jess March 10, 2019 at 7:28 pm

    I subscribe to blogs through Google Reader but I never read them that way. I don&#39t like the way they look in there.

  • Reply Anonymous March 10, 2019 at 7:29 pm

    i use google reader and while it&#39s amazing to keep all the blogs and stuff i read in one place that tells me when it&#39s updated, if i&#39m really busy one day it&#39s soooo overwhelming to see how many unreads i have!

    and i laughed about that mom with the written lists. in clinic the other day one mom came in with a BINDER of everything that had ever happened to her kid!

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