MILES TO READ B4 I SLEEP

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Of all the judgments we pass in life, none is more important than the judgment we pass on ourselves."

-- Nathaniel Branden

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?Life,? my mother told me, was ?just no fun anymore

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Zazen [Zen meditation] practice continually reminds us to unhook from our projects, which always reflect in some way a desire to be elsewhere. We are continually invited to come back to “just this,” to come back to who we really are.

—Julie Nelson, “Sick and Useless Zen”

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Uropathogen Resistance and Antibiotic Prophylaxis: A Meta-analysis

Rachel E. Selekman,

CONTEXT: Limited data exist regarding uropathogen resistance in randomized controlled trials of urinary tract infection (UTI) prevention and antibiotic prophylaxis.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effect of prophylaxis on developing a multidrug-resistant first recurrent UTI among children with vesicoureteral reflux.

DATA SOURCES: Cochrane Kidney and Transplant Specialized Register through May 25, 2017.

STUDY SELECTION: Randomized controlled trials of patients ≤18 years of age with a history of vesicoureteral reflux being treated with continuous antibiotic prophylaxis compared with no treatment or placebo with available antibiotic sensitivity profiles.

DATA EXTRACTION: Two independent observers abstracted data and assessed quality and validity per Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. Adjusted meta-analyses were performed by using a mixed-effects logistic regression model.

RESULTS: One thousand two hundred and ninety-nine patients contributed 224 UTIs. Patients treated with prophylaxis were more likely to have a multidrug-resistant infection (33% vs 6%, P < .001) and were more likely to receive broad-spectrum antibiotics (68% vs 49%, P = .004). Those receiving prophylaxis had 6.4 times the odds (95% confidence interval: 2.7–15.6) of developing a multidrug-resistant infection. One multidrug-resistant infection would develop for every 21 reflux patients treated with prophylaxis.

LIMITATIONS: Variables that may contribute to resistance such as medication adherence and antibiotic exposure for other illnesses could not be evaluated.

CONCLUSIONS: Prophylaxis increases the risk of multidrug resistance among recurrent infections. This has important implications in the risk-benefit assessment of prophylaxis as a management strategy and in the selection of empirical treatment of breakthrough infections in prophylaxis patients.

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The quality of your life does not depend on your clothes, car, or home, but on how peaceful and joyful you are.

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Exercise may help outrun a family risk for heart disease

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NAFLD was found to be associated with the presence of asymptomatic noncalcified atherosclerotic plaque, which has been shown in previous studies to have an association with acute coronary syndrome. So, these data strengthen the correlation between NAFLD and coronary artery disease and mortality.

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The longer you wait for the future, the shorter it will be. ~ Loesje

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A hospital acquired thrombosis (HAT) is defined as any venous thromboembolism occurring 24 hours to 90 days following a hospital admission

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Findings suggest mothers' overall experiences are characterized by a constant struggle, with evidence of negative impacts on family life, though there is also evidence of resilience and coping. Implications regarding the provision of services are discussed.

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Lentils are a lot like beans. In fact beans, lentils and peas are often grouped together and collectively called pulses. They all grow in a pod and are similar nutritionally. While pulses do contain a lot of carbohydrates, they are largely the kind of complex carbohydrates that raise blood sugar slowly. And their high fiber content also helps slow the rise in blood sugar that comes from eating other starchy foods such as rice and potatoes.

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Replacing half a serving of rice with lentils caused blood glucose to drop by up to 20 percent. Replacing potatoes with lentils led to a 35 percent drop.

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WALK IT OUT

TALK IT OUT

HUG IT OUT

WRITE IT OUT

MIFU BREATHING

COOK IT OUT

COMEDY IT OUT

LET GO OF IT

BATHE IT OUT

SUN IT OUT

CONNECT WITH NATURE

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High self-esteem linked to reduced likelihood of crime and delinquency

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Processed foods, white carbohydrates, and sweetened drinks cause sugar spikes that can lead to hunger or powerful cravings that can wreck your progress,” Shapiro says.
“Pass on the fried foods,” Kaufman says, as they’re high in fat, low in nutrition and the excess oil will leave you feeling lethargic.
“Remove extra sugar from your diet: sugar in your coffee, flavored or sweetened dairy products, basically anytime you sweeten something, stop,” Alpert says

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Scientists are now warning that without global commitment to finding solutions, there will be more plastic than fish in our ocean by 2050.

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Every year, an estimated 8 million metric tons of plastic waste pours into our ocean.

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An oxygen saturation target of 91%–95% reduces early and late mortality for extremely preterm infants.

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13-Valent Pneumococcal Vaccine Improves Protection Against Acute Otitis Media

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Remember that failure is an event, not a person.

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Solitude is where I place my chaos to rest and awaken my inner peace."

-- Nikki Rowe

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vivre sans temps mort (live without wasted time).

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The worst thing in life that you can have is a job that you hate, that you have no energy in, that you’re not creative with and you’re not thinking of the future. To me, might as well be dead.” — Robert Greene

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জার্মানির বিদায়, সার্বিয়াকে চূর্ণ করে শেষ ষোলোয় ব্রাজিল

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When you encounter something positive and healing, pause with it, lighting the lamp of your mindfulness to savor and appreciate it.

—Thomas Bien,

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The temple bell stops but I still hear the sound coming out of the flowers.

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"Our knowledge is a little island in a great ocean of nonknowledge."

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The association between sugar- and artificially sweetened drink intake and risk for stroke or dementia was evaluated in the Framingham Heart Study Offspring cohort. After adjusting for multiple confounders, both recent intake and cumulative intake of artificially sweetened drinks were associated with significantly greater risks for ischemic stroke and dementia.
Similar associations were not found for sugar-sweetened drinks.

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You should let go and make yourself empty and quiet, clear and calm. ~ Ying-An

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Binge Drinking Among Young Adults Harms the Heart

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Abstract

Background

Henoch‐Schönlein purpura (HSP) is a common form of vasculitis in children. It typically involves small vessels of the skin, the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, joints, and kidneys. GI involvement is the most severe short‐term complication and GI bleeding is a major complication of HSP. However, there is no established predictive marker of GI bleeding. Blood neutrophil‐to‐lymphocyte ratio (NLR) has been proposed as a potentially useful marker of clinical outcome in diseases with an inflammatory component. We aimed to determine the association of NLR with HSP and investigate the usefulness of NLR as a marker to predict GI bleeding in children with HSP.

Methods

All patients newly diagnosed as having HSP were reviewed retrospectively. White blood cell count, hemoglobin, platelet counts, mean platelet volume, neutrophil and lymphocyte count were evaluated. NLR and platelet‐to‐lymphocyte ratio (PLR) were calculated using the results from complete blood count tests.

Results

This study included of 141 HSP patients. GI involvement was found in 65 patients (46.1%); of them, 15 patients (10.6%) had GI bleeding. The NLR (P = 0.001) and PLR (P = 0.032) at the time of diagnosis was significantly patients with GI bleeding than in those without GI bleeding. Logistic regression analysis showed that NLR was the only independent predictor of GI bleeding (P = 0.004). The optimal cutoff value of NLR for predicting GI bleeding was 2.86 (sensitivity, 73%; specificity, 68%).

Conclusions

NLR, a simple and easily obtainable parameter, is a potential predictive marker of GI bleeding in children with HSP.

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Normal’ narcissists have a mental toughness that helps them succeed, new research finds.

Normal narcissists are those that are more narcissistic than average, but are not clinical narcissists.

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Niagara Falls is a set of three waterfalls on the United States/Canada border. Collectively, they have the highest flow rate of any waterfall in the world, with over 2,400 cubic meters (or about 600,000 gallons) of water going over the edge every second.

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What are the course entry requirements?

A typical offer will require a UCAS Tariff score between 112-128 points; or an Access to Nursing qualification (minimum of 30 Level 3 credits at Distinction, 12 at Merit, and 3 at Pass).

You may find it easier if you have prior knowledge of health, so we prefer if you have relevant A Levels - such as Biology, Health and Social Care, Chemistry, Psychology, Physics, Physical Education, and Sociology. However, it is not essential.

In addition, you will require five GCSEs including Maths, English and Science at Grade C or above (or equivalent).

Those whom English is not their first language must achieve a minimum score of 7.0 overall or equivalent for the International English Language Test Score (IELTS).

For further details of our international English entry requirements, please visit our international pages.

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BGM · 09-11-2014 15:36

GREENWICH UNI -UCAS 112 PTS

LMU- BBC

SOUTH BANK UNI- CCD

UNI OF EAST LNDN UEL -UCAS 112

OXFORD BROOKES-UCAS 112 BBC

HERTS UNI-UCAS 104 PTS

BEDS UNI- UCAS 112 PTS, 2 A LEVEL PASSES

Coventry, Aston and Kent aren't as prestigious but they are IBMS accredited and they offer sandwhich placements.

/////////////////'ve accepted an Unconditional for Biomedical Science at the University of Birmingham this coming September, simply because I absolutely loved the course and facilities, and of course Birmingham is "prestigious". However, I also applied to Surrey, and that was my contender for Birmingham. In the end, the only reason I didn't choose Surrey was because I didn't actually like the fact it was accredited - the course was far too rigid and gave you little to no choice and flexibility on what you study and specialise in. Plus for me the accreditation didn't matter because I want to do a postgrad afterwards. However, if your heart is set on an accredited Uni, then I would say Surrey is definitely the way to go. The course is still excellent, it's accredited, the University is prestigious (and plus my sister did Nursing there - she said it was absolutely excellent and she really enjoyed her time there).

//////////////////////mention Surrey offers a placement year in Industry which seems like that's what you're after, and Birmingham offers both a a placement year OR a summer research project depending on which you like and if you want to do one at all - you just apply to one course and can choose whether or not to do one at the end of Year 2

//////////////////////////My friend coming out of a year in a hospital lab for placement, didn’t need to ‘afford’ to give the NHS a year of her time, it was covered by her student loan and she was able to get a full loan for living costs and didn’t even pay tuition fees because it was for the NHS.

//////////////////////////here are people out there with B/C grades at A level who do want to better themselves and graduate with a good degree and these individuals should not be deprived from Higher Education. Getting a good job without a degree nowadays is extremely hard. You are competing against many other degree holders. Essentially, this creates quite a large pool and surely gives companies a wide choice in choosing candidates for their graduate programs etc. Companies look for the 'best' - this does not just mean who is academically the smartest. Giving degrees to as many people who have the minimum knowledge to progress surely would create a better knowledge based economy? Just because someone attended Leicester, UEA, Sussex, Surrey, Kent etc does not mean they won't end up successful.

/////////////////////////Be ready for a large shortage in important jobs and high unemployment rates in graduate jobs the UK if you're going to shut down all non-Oxbridge universities.

/////////////////////////

- 1
- 09-11-2014 15:36
- Report post
Dear students

dont take biomedical science as a career for life as it is not worth it. this is my opinion only. the job market is saturated. please see this email below.

Attention: Chief Executive, IBMS

My name is Daniel and this email is about my genuine concern about pathology and its future along with the growing, frustrating community of students in biomedical science and related degrees who are unable to get a job in this field or are stuck in a particular liminal space in the pathology job profession. Part 1 of this email is my personal plea. Part 2 is my opinion about a growing issue about jobs/NHS pathology/Biomedical Science(BMS) degrees/universities/future of pathology and its genuine concerns.

Part 1- IBMS did an evaluation of my “non accredited degree” on 10^th April 2014 which concluded I had to do 4 top up modules to get accreditation. I would like a refund of my 250 pounds which I have worked hard to earn as a medical laboratory assistant. I have decided not to do top up modules in this field as there are not enough jobs and rarely ever any trainee positions. Also my assessment outcome was unfair as I had already done Microbiology and Biochemistry previously. But more importantly there is a bleak future for people like me who have first class degree in a related science degree but unable to get anywhere beyond Band 4(NHS or Private) in this profession because paperwork and rigidity is more important than ability, skill, passion in a scientific profession. I am awaiting a refund of my money as I don’t see why IBMS should hold my money if I am not pursuing this career anymore. You can have the original papers as well if it helps.

Part 2- Raising awareness of a growing but silent problem is the reason for my writing of PART 2. A problem with the saturation of this field is a very serious concern. I have seen and experienced myself while working in pathology laboratories where students who have BSc, MSc are doing jobs that they are very overqualified as there are no jobs for them in this sector for their skill and experience with nowhere to move in terms of knowledge and experience. If anyone did a checklist of any of the pathology locum companies and their candidate list with their experience and qualification, it will be interesting to see how many are skilled or qualified or state registered biomedical scientists are there who can’t find a job respective to their training and experience. But they were told that when they were studying that it’s a growing field in the university years with potential trainee jobs out there.

NHS Pathology is getting into public private partnerships and other private mergers as seen from the latest Sonic Healthcare and UCLH NHS Foundation Trust Hospitals Laboratories couple of months back. Automation is getting to be the norm because of the efficiency and amount load. All this needs to be considered when teaching Biomedical Science to the future kids who would be more of an "instrument specialist" rather than fully fledged Biomedical Scientist in Blood Science and the cons of the field should be explained to them so that they don’t make the same mistake like us when deciding their career. There is a harmless joke about BMS being called "Babysit Machine Scientist" instead of a Biomedical Scientist. Privatization is a blessing in my opinion to inject some much needed money into this broken system.

I would once again urge IBMS also to please reconsider their position when advertising this profession to students of the future e.g. A level students as there is a growing frustrating community of existing students in the field over the past years who are fed up of the bureaucracy and inflexibility. They are either starting or have started to look at alternative careers. Also it would be a very good idea to be transparent about the statistics about job numbers ,trainee positions, number of voluntary portfolios, number of jobs per year etc on the IBMS website. A real discussion about the value of a biomedical science degree need to take place at the level of students where its relevant. This is not just my opinion but given the chance I think more people will come out and voice their concern and thoughts.

Thank you for having the patience to read my email.

Yours Sincerely
Daniel
Following is the reply form the Chief Executive of IBMS-:

Dear Mr Daniel,

Thank you for your email and for raising your concerns with me.

I am sorry you feel the assessment outcome did not reflect your hard work in specific areas. The charge we apply (£250) is for the service provided by the Institute of Biomedical Science to assess your degree content and its equivalence to the QAA subject benchmark statement for biomedical science. These assessments are time consuming and are carried out with due diligence on the part of the assessor and the charge levied is independent of how candidates choose to follow up on the reported outcome. I am sorry if you did not understand this process in advance of your assessment application. We do build in an appeals process which allows candidates eight weeks after the assessment outcome is known to appeal any decision, as indicated in your outcome letter. Unfortunately, you do not appear to have appealed the outcome of your assessment.

I regret I am therefore unable to provide a refund as requested.

Regarding the second issue raised in your correspondence, the Institute of Biomedical Science is the professional body for individuals working across the entire biomedical science sector, not just those who work in the NHS. We work hard to raise the profile of the profession and ensure our members are supported throughout their career, and our accredited universities consistently report successful recruitment of their graduates within the sector and in other careers applicable to their graduate skills. We will continue to promote the high standards of practice and to champion biomedical science and those who practice it.

I am truly sorry that you have been unable to find employment that matches your skills and I do hope that you will be successful in the not too distant future.

Yours sincerely

Jill Rodney

Jill Rodney
Chief Executive
Institute of Biomedical Science
12 Coldbath Square
London
EC1R 5HL

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In a population-based study, most antidepressant classes were associated with weight gain.

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That you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose.

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Awareness of the truth of suffering and impermanence always provides fertile ground for spiritual practice.

—Pamela Gayle White, “Who Are We Without Our Memories?”

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"Our genomes are where evolution takes place. Our DNA changes over time, every generation. Most of these changes are subtle, many trivial. Some are teasingly interesting

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If you spend your life pleasing others, you spend your life.” ~Cheryl Richardson

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Zoo animals with proper care and enrichment, for example, have similar hormone profiles, live longer, eat better, and are healthier than their wild counterparts. Why? Because life in the wild is hard. In captivity, it’s easy.

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To think of domestication as a form of enslavement or even exploitation is to misconstrue the whole relationship, to project a human idea of power onto what is, in fact, an instance of mutualism between species," Pollan explains

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When we domesticated animals, we forever altered how they respond to their environment. We reduced their sensitivity to things that are otherwise very upsetting to their wild relatives - like interacting with us. The side effect of this is that domesticated animals are predisposed to being happier than their wild counterparts, in spite of captivity.

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When it comes to wild animals, though, only the last is guaranteed. They have to struggle to survive on a daily basis, from finding food and water to another individual to mate with. They don’t have the right to comfort, stability, or good health. Moreover, when the ‘expression of normal behavior’ encroaches upon people, whether it be raiding trash cans or attacks, that last one gets thrown out the window, too. the life of a wild animal is cruelty.

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Domesticated animals don’t feel stress about the future, because they don’t have an understanding of their future in the same way we do. A cow doesn’t live a more stressed or unhappy life than a dog or a deer because it is destined to be killed for its meat. Cows aren’t upset that they will end up as steaks because, as Michael Pollan phrased it, "in a bovine brain the concept of nonexistence is blissfully absent."

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Happiness is hard enough to define in people, let alone in an animals. You can’t just ask them how they are feeling. Instead, we tend to qualify happiness in animals as a lack of chronic stress. Stress, unlike happiness, is very easy to measure. You can look for decreases in overall health in just about any kind of creature. You can keep an eye out for neurotic behaviors, and measurements of hormone levels of cortisol, norepinephrine, adrenaline and other "stress" hormones provide a quantified means of measuring stress. Though lack of stress doesn’t guarantee "happiness", it’s the closest we can get.

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We, as emotional beings, place a high value on happiness and joy. Happiness is more than a feeling to us – it’s something we require and strive for. We’re so fixated on happiness that we define the pursuit of it as a right. We seek happiness not only for ourselves and our loved ones, but also for our planet and its creatures.

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Being overly affectionate in the first few years of marriage is a sign a couple will divorce later on, research finds.

While hugging and kissing is normal, being all over each other is a bad sign

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Social bonding key cause of soccer (football) violence

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The planet’s largest ice sheet is now losing more than 240 billion tons of ice every year ― a threefold increase from less than a decade ago.

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"Cure for an obsession: get another one."

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By 2050, there may be more plastic in the oceans than fish.

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brown rice to your diet:

Make a grain bowl for lunch with brown rice, veggies and protein
Top brown rice with eggs, salsa, avocados and black beans for a savory breakfast
Swap oatmeal for brown rice porridge at breakfast
Use brown rice instead of white rice when making stir-fries
Instead of white pasta, incorporate brown rice into your favorite soup recipes
Toss brown rice with fresh veggies and olive oil for a tasty side dish
Make black bean and brown rice burgers for a plant-based dinner or lunch
Use brown rice to make energy bars
Switch white rice with brown rice for a healthier version of rice pudding
Ask for brown rice in your sushi rolls to up the fiber content of your meal
Use brown rice in your curry recipes
Try a healthy twist on risotto by using brown rice instead of arborio rice
Swap white pasta with brown rice pasta
Sauté brown rice with olive oil and garlic for a flavorful carbohydrate option

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May you live every day of your life."

-- Jonathan Swift

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Spain leads the world in organ donation.

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What is the greatest part about getting old?

Jeff Pinner, Not as evolved as my age suggests. Still plays with trains.

At 63, the older I get, the more I lose. I lost my oldest brother three weeks ago. Speaking at his memorial, I went back to a time when he, two of my three other older brothers and I visited Yosemite Park together in 1964. Chuck was 24 and in charge, Steve 18, Darryl 15, and I was 9. Overnight at the base if the falls. When I brought it up, Steve and Darryl both let out a whoop in the pews that broke up the entire somewhat solemn occation. By the time I finished the story of four idiots ignoring all safety precautions at the top of the falls to stick our heads in the river to cool off, the gathering had finally gotten off the solemn mark, and become the celebration it was meant to be. Mission accomplished.

Every year I get older, I lose something. This year, so far, my oldest brother. By the end of it, I expect ovarian cancer will take my wife. 21 years ago, my mother, the lady who both taught me that I AM an SOB, and how to be the best SOB I can be. 4 years later my dad, who taught both giving my best, and when to declare “close enough for government work”. 5 years ago, my second oldest brother, who gave incredible meaning to the words “by your bootstraps”, dragging himself from the depths of alcoholism to rescue his teen son from the depths of schizophrenia. Those losses are reminders of how blessed I have been. The magnificent people whom have graced my life are the trophies on my mantle, and it is only with age that we see them for who they are and were.

Now, in retirement, I get to count those whom I have touched. The millions of patients whose lives I made a bit safer with software that insured their prescriptions wouldn't interact with each other to make them sicker, or contain something that would send them into anaphylactic shock. Small touches, but not inconsiderable. Maybe even someone reading this. The son I raised, who, with his wife, are becoming foster parents, just ’cause kids need them. The banks I helped merge. Oh well, can't get ’em all right. Sorry about that, folks.

Now, I get to work on something that won't pay a dime, in fact it could break me financially, but it's important. I'm studying the world's first packet switching networks, railroads. My goal? To understand how one specific railroad, in one specific time, helped save the world. The time? April and May of 1944. The road? The Nickle Plate Road in NE Ohio. Saved the world? I don't know what you would call it when a railroad operates at a tempo the world has never seen to move the men and material from west to east to supply the greatest invasion the world has ever known. You've got my name for it. That and the one in the history books: D-Day.

Now, as I age, I get to remember how I became who I am, screw ups and all. I get to chose my targets without worrying about whether I can make money off of them. And I get to love those I will without wondering what anybody else thinks.

One more thing. Mom had a bit of fridge magnet wisdom on the front of hers in the final years of her life: Getting older isn't so bad when you consider the alternative.

Meditate on that for about 15 seconds. I'll wait.

Saturday 30 June 2018

Friday 29 June 2018