God doesn't want your contingency plans



I had a rather different day planned yesterday. And I think everyone I met also had different plans bringing up the question as to why all doctor's offices close on Good Friday. Or Christmas Eve or 3th of July. There is even an an acknowledgement among medical professionals that those winding up in an emergency ward on a holiday or holiday eve may get less than best of care. Treat and street seems more common. And more critically ill patients will delay coming in until the first work day after a holiday when it could be too late.

Doctors, nurses and paramedics want time off. They are human and their families want to see them. So administrations at urgent care facilities and emergency wards juggle rotations to allow workers some time off to enjoy family events. At the same time holidays can be inherently dangerous times. Not just 4th of July with the fireworks or boating accidents. I was shocked some years back, when researching DWI crisis in New Mexico, to find out Good Friday could be one of the worst for alcohol induced car accidents. Not good.

But holidays can also be a time when we over indulge in food or exercise or stress. And it can be an excuse to delay seeing your doctor even if they are open. Mother was a classic, "I will go to the doctor after Christmas. I do not want to ruin the holiday."  She died on Thanksgiving, which was when I first heard the saying, "God does not want your contingency plans."

My head injury was on Christmas Eve. I came off of the CBT bubble (you can actually feel overly wonderful) on Christmas Day but told myself I would wait and go back to the doctor on Boxing Day. The good news is I did not die. We all probably know such stories or have lived them. I was just along for the ride yesterday. I played a role in convincing a friend they needed to not delay. My involvement did not stop me from identifying with those in the waiting room at the emergency ward. Whether prospective patient or relative, none of them wanted to be there. Some had obviously protested being dragged against their will to the hospital. I wondered which of them would not leave the way they had come.

I was out in the parking lot getting some air when the life flight helicopter started winding up its engines. The weather was rough and I found myself accessing whether I would want to be lifting off. I am sure the passenger was grateful for the extraordinary measures being taken to save his life following a car accident, but he was probably cursing his luck for ruining Easter for his family. If his family had survived the car wreck.

I had planned to do some garden prep yesterday after picking up some mulch and compost. Today the local landscaping and nursery stores are closed. And I don't think sobriety is going to be any better on Saturday of a holiday weekend than it was yesterday so I am staying home. I hope the staff at Holy Cross Hospital gets to have a boring day today.

Holy Cross Hospital Emergency Room Entrance

Comments

  1. Ien in the KootenaysApril 4, 2013 at 7:56 PM

    Sorry to hear your plans went agley, but I love your picture of the emergency entrance with that spacious sunny landscape in the background. Hope your friend will be alright.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

I write for me but I care what my readers think. Please be polite and no scamming.

Popular posts from this blog

Swimming

Image
For much of my college career my fitness workout was swimming on the B squad of the swim team. I remember it as the days before heated pools and women coaches. I also remember being so exhausted and cold I could only lean against the shower wall and throw up. Not exactly warm fuzzy images but I was in awesome shape. Needless to say it did not leave me with a overpowering desire to swim laps. Point of fact for years my swimming became really informal: Swimming to shore after the canoe tipped over, challenging my sister once a summer to across the lake and back, seeing how long I could back float without moving a muscle, and a scuba course. I also played around with other ways of staying fit: aerobics, bicycling, jogging, skiing and dance classes. All of which seem to be bad for the knees, back or feet. After my ski accident my physical therapist steered me back to the pool. Damn if I was going to swim laps! However, aqua fit was just getting rather seriously taken so I took it. It r
Read more

The Pruning the Crown of Thorns

Image
Crown of Thorns Before I am a lover of Euphorbias . They are from the deserts of Southern Africa and Madagascar. They have evolved physical characteristics and forms similar to cacti of North and South America and are often incorrectly referred to as cacti. My big Crown of Thorns was one of my first of a growing collection of these succulents from the spurge family of Euphorbiaceae. I picked it up as a 6 inch plant in a New Iberia nursery when my sister and I were touring the northern gulf coast. I believe that was 15 years ago. I made an attempt at limiting its height a few years back to allow it to devote more energy to the new branches and make it a denser plant. That failed. And the height of the plant continued to challenge the window space and soon the long branches were leaning over and leaning against the window. I googled and found the proper way to prune this treasured plant. Still it was very difficult to cut off the four longer branches. Even with a plan. The f
Read more

Eagle Nest Dam

Image
Tour of Eagle Nest Dam Eagle Nest Dam is the largest privately built dam in the United States. It was begun by the Springer family in 1917 and completed in 1920. It and the reservoir beyond it one was privately owned by the CS Ranch which recently sold it to the state of New Mexico. Eagle Nest Lake is now a state park, but the dam and the waters in the lake are another matter all together. Water is well regulated in New Mexico especially during a drought. The lake is now at 25% of its normal capacity, and the water in the lake are water right lease holds of Raton, Cimarron, and historic ranches in the area like the UU Bar and the CS Ranch. Game and Fish department also get involved because the Cimarron River is an active fishery of the state. Our guide was a state engineer and the Gateway Museum secured permission of the land owners below the dam for us to gain access to the area. Some 100 locals and tourists attended this rare event. I have lived here almost twenty years and th
Read more