The Code according to Maxim

Rule #85 (The Sergeant Schultz Rule): When queried by a buddy’s wife, girlfriend, mother, father, priest, shrink, dentist, accountant, or dog walker, you need not and should not provide any useful information whatsoever as to his whereabouts. You are even permitted to deny his very existence.

Rule #959: You may exaggerate any anecdote told in a bar by 50 percent without recrimination; beyond that, anyone within earshot is allowed to call bullshit. (Exception: When trying to pick up a girl, the allowable exaggeration rate rises to 400 percent.)

Rule #1,073: Under no circumstances may two men share an umbrella.

Rule #2,811: If a man’s zipper is down, that’s his problem—you didn’t see nothin’.

Rule #3,462: The universal compensation for buddies who help you move is beer. The reward formula is as follows: (hours of labor) x (number of boxes) x (flights of stairs) ÷ dollars, in hundreds, of damage to belongings = beers owed. Bonus for the friend who owns the truck: first crack at that hot new neighbor chick.

Rule #7,105: Unless you’re in prison, never fight naked

Rule #8,812: Never hesitate to reach for the last beer or the last slice of pizza, but not both. That’s just plain mean.

Rule #511: When asked, your best friend's girl is always beautiful-and never your type.

Rule #732: Sex with a hot stewardess is still cheating. But sex with hot Swedish stewardess twins, surprisingly, is not.

Rule #7,000: If a man compliments your "outfit," he is accusing you of being gay.

Rule #7,975: It's OK to like Fight Club, Seven, and Snatch. It is not OK to be a Brad Pitt fan.

Rule #8,746: Corollary: Never hug another man from behind or allow yourself to be so hugged.

Rule #8,820: Never talk to a man in a bathroom unless you’re on equal footing: both urinating, both waiting in line, etc. For all other situations, an almost imperceptible “I recognize you” nod is all the conversation you need.

I bet pasta sounds real good right now...

BTW, if you're pregnant or trying, check this out.

Marites, go have a sandwich or something. With extra bread. Maybe a pasta sandwich. With rice on the side.

Emotionally Unavailable

A friend of mine told me she was "emotionally unavailable" and thus was not able to have a relationship with any of the guys the had been dating recently. She didn't have the energy to put into something that wasn't "special". So if it meant going out of her way to spend time with someone, forget it. I thought about this and came to the following conclusions:

-I am emotionally unavailable.
-I blame this on my job. After putting so much of myself into my work and using so much of my energy communicating with those that are sick or injured, I don't have enough energy to put into my personal life.
-due to my emotional unavailability, I have not only suffered personally, but I have put myself at risk for early burn-out in my professional life.
-I am full of shit and being "emotionally unavailable" is an excuse for saying I am lazy, selfish, and unable to commit. I told my friend to get over it and to go find herself a boyfriend and quit making excuses for dating losers.

Movie Review

Monster starring Charlize Theron

This was good. Charlize was pretty amazing. You should see this movie.

Thank you.

Top Ten Reasons I Don't Like My Job

10. two words: Code Brown
9. people can be pretty stupid sometimes
8. I have to work long hours and half of them are graveyards shifts.
7. too much red tape
6. I meet people when they are at their worst.
5. people can be pretty annoying sometimes
4. the human body no longer holds any mystery to me
3. I work weekends and stat holidays a lot. 3 Christmases in a row!
2. I see the most disgusting things you've ever heard of
1. the thought of a major disaster is doubly terrifying.

Top Ten Reasons I Like My Job

10. between me and my patients, I'm the boss.
9. I feel cool walking into the hospital with scrubs on.
8. I have my own stethoscope and I know how to use it.
7. I make a worthwhile contribution to society.
6. I get 5 days off in a row, work a 34hr workweek, and I get a month of vacation.
5. I can tell exciting code blue stories (even though I never really like ending).
4. I work with, like, a gajillion women.
3. I meet thousands of interesting people.
2. I can work anywhere in the world if I wanted to.
1. I understand what they are saying in "ER".

Some people...

I just read the stupidest thing ever. There was this guy that decided he would commit suicide by crucifixion so he builds a big cross and makes a sign that says "suicide". He proceeds to nail one hand to the cross and then realizes the flaw in his plan. Unable to complete his mission, he dials 911. Seriously, did this guy not think this through? I mean, its not rocket science - you need at least one hand to use a hammer. To beat this kind of stupidity, I think I need to see someone shoot a gun in the air and miss.

Third Time

Last night was the third time I had to be the one to pronounce someone's death. The man dying wasn't a surprise at all, we were just waiting for him to go, but I hate being the one to do the pronouncing. I think every nurse has this fear of sending someone down to the morgue when they're not really dead. As we were preparing the body to go down to the morgue, I swear I saw his leg twitch from the corner of my eye. Then, while we were waiting for the porter, I thought I saw the bodybag move like he was breathing. Okay, when I first pronounced him dead I had another nurse just confirm it. After these creepy things I had another nurse check again for me. I was kinda freaked out about the whole thing. I couldn't wait until the body was gone. Another creepy thing is that the family (who was there when he died) told me that the man's son died exactly 11 months ago at exactly the same time. Weird.

Good day at work

I had a patient say to me, "Keep smiling." She didn't just mean to keep smiling - I think she meant keep smiling as you work. I guess she liked me. I really know how to charm these 82 year-old women. They're like putty in my hands... Anyway, its nice to know that some people recognize your efforts.

Movie Review

Starsky & Hutch starring Ben Stiller & Owen Wilson

Holy shit this was funny. These guys are hilarious. Redeeming social values? Deep insight into human nature? Screw that, this movie is here to make you laugh. You should see this movie. Do it. Watch the movie. Do it.

Portability

What would I do with a notebook computer? I have a wireless network at home so I figure I'd be able to use it anywhere in the house. I could surf the web from my bedroom or sitting on the couch or even in the bathroom! I could bring it around with me, but where would I bring it? Do I need a computer outside the house? I just want one because I think it would be cool to have. That would be 3 computers in the house with only 2 people living here. Hmm. I think a notebook would be too much. That's one expensive toy.

Suggestions

Randy suggested to me that if I'm going to have a long entry to break it up into easy-to-read paragraphs. That way its not such a chore to read I guess. I can see where he's coming from. This whole blog/internet/web stuff is his specialty so I'll concede to his seniority. He does take my snowboarding tips after all... ;)

Old friends

Its so nice to see old friends. Jeff and Gary are in town this weekend with Shauna and Diana. In the past 15 years I've seen Gary and Diana twice. Whenever I see them I'm reminded of growing up in Regina. It really makes me feel nostalgic when I see old friends. It makes me want to call up everybody I grew up with, except I don't even know where most of them are now. Well, if they somehow come by this blog: HI!!! How the hell did you find this?

Book Review

Douglas Adams' Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy 5-book Trilogy
That's not a typo, there's five books. That's the kind of humour you can expect. Thoroughly entertaining and easy reading. This'll probably never be on any reading lists of literature classes, but you should read it. Very, very funny.

Margaret Atwood's Oryx & Crake
Have you ever read The Handmaid's Tale? I liked this better. I'm gonna read more Atwood.


J.R.R. Tolkien's The Silmarillion
If you liked Lord of the Rings so much you re-read The Hobbit, then you have to read this. All those references to characters and stories from the ancient days? They're all in this book. Required reading for all Tolkien fans. It explains why the elves had 3 rings of power and why the dwarves had 7, where the light in Frodo's vial came from, and the significance of the Arwen/Aragorn relationship.

New Job

Yup. Got the job. We're going out on Friday to celebrate this unlikely event. Stay tuned for details...

101 Things About Me # 71-75

71. I'm just average. I'm not really good at anything, and I don't totally suck at things I try.
72. I like the smell of coffee more than the taste, I end up putting lots of sugar and cream. But I can only drink 1 or 2 cups/day or else my stomach gets upset.
73. I can type 60wpm.
74. I've gained 20lbs in the past 4 years. Before that, I was 130lbs for 10 years.
75. I hate wearing suits and ties.

Logic

Let me tell you the most brilliant piece of logic I've ever heard: You have to be crazy to keep flying combat missions but the only way out of it is to ask. Just ask to be taken out of combat because you're crazy and they'll say you're crazy. But, by asking to be taken out of combat shows that you're not really crazy. (Catch-22, Joseph Heller). Logic is a funny thing, huh? You can use it in a twisted way to say whatever you want. In my life I think I've learned that when making decisions using logic is a terrible thing to do. Go with your gut. It never lies to you and it can never be turned against itself.

Book Review

So last night I finally finished reading a book that I had to struggle through for 3 months. Its not even a really long book or anything, it was just so hard to read. Ernest Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises isn't really a book with a great plot. Let me tell you what its about: Its about a writer named Jake who goes around different parts of Europe eating and drinking. He goes fishing once. Now you're probably waiting for me to tell you the hook. Well there isn't one. That's all the book is about. Eating and drinking in various cafes and restaurants, mainly in Spain and France. Isn't that great? Sounds interesting, huh? I'm guessing that Hemingway's other books are better but I'm not going to bother trying to find out.

Interview

I had my interview yesterday. It was okay, but not great. I don't know whether or not I got that job (I'm thinking I didn't), but from the moment I walked into the interview I got a bad vibe from the interviewers. Nothing I could put my finger on, but I don't think they liked me. They described the job in a little more detail for me and I now know that if I don't get this job I won't be really upset or anything. It sounds like something that I would enjoy for a couple of months, but to work on for a year would be difficult. I'd still like to do it because it would be something that really interests me. Clinical information, adult education, computer systems, only temporary, a little more money, away from patients for a while. Sounds perfect. But on the down side we have: adult education, only temporary, away from patients. Funny. Well I'll find out for sure probably by the end of the week. They're still doing interviews.

Code Blue!

Last night I was on my break talking to a friend of mine that works downstairs in maternity. Then I hear an overhead page, "Code blue South 3 Orthopedics" Oh crap, that's my ward! I ran upstairs because I knew that there were some other people on their break and they wouldn't have heard the page so there weren't very many people left on the ward. I go into the room and they've already started CPR. Seventy-two year old woman about 90 lbs soaking wet. I'm pretty sure some ribs were broken. Well, the code team got there, and based on this woman's medical history and her chances for survival, no one was very optimistic, but we did what we could. "Epi 1mg! Nothing yet... ok, everyone clear!" Its not exactly like on TV. When you shock the body it doesn't jump off the bed. It shakes a bit, that's all. We got a hold of the family and they said to stop. Always, we find this out AFTER we've got their heart pumping again. Everything stopped and the heartbeat was still there but she wasn't breathing. "Its not going to last long. The adrenaline we gave is keeping it going." Well, he was right. 10 minutes later no pulse, still no breathing. "Time of death 2235hrs." I think the strangest thing about codes is how when the person is pronounced dead everyone seems to just leave. All the energy and activity in the room seems to just disappear and we're left with this body laying naked on a bed in the middle of the room. There's garbage and dirty linens all over the floor, everything is a mess. It just seems so... cold. Everybody is out at the desk finishing the paperwork, clarifying details, calling other doctors, and restocking all the stuff that was used. Anyway, after everyone left we cleaned the body a little, toe-tagged her and bagged her. Its creepy zipping up the bag and seeing the outline of a body inside the white plastic body bag. I went with the porter down to the morgue because she needed help. With all the people working in the hospital and all the patients there, its kinda funny to think that the morgue is probably the most secure area in the hospital. No one goes in there alone.

The rest of the night was uneventful.

Bills

Who hates getting bills in the mail? Raise your hand. Come on, don't be shy, we all hate bills. Now, if your hand is up, put it down cuz if you're alone you must look like an idiot and if there are people around you they think you're strange. Anyway, I get tonnes of bills. Hydro, gas, phone, cable, credit cards, credit cards, and credit cards. I'm able to keep up (barely), but I'm proud to say that my hydro bill is actually paid up for 2 months in advance! I pay it month-to-month and usually what I do is just dump a certain amount in every paycheck so I don't even bother opening the bill when it comes. Well I opened it today and I had a huge credit because I've been paying too much over the past year. See? I'm so damn responsible it makes me sick. Now how do I get that money back?

Am I Busy?

A friend of mine asked me if I was busy for the next few days. Let's see, tonight is my friend Renee's last night in Vancouver so I think we're all going out, tomorrow I have to work (12 hours, mind you), then after work I'm going to a retirement party for a woman at work in Aldergrove, Sunday I have to work again (12 hours, mind you), then on Monday morning I have the dreaded interview, and then on Monday night I'm working again (12 hou...you know). I think when I'm complaining about too much to do I'm just being dumb. I really enjoy my time off and sitting around doing nothing, but staying busy helps me stay organized. This reminds of one time when a friend of mine (name omitted for anonymity) said to me, "I've been busy all day: I went to work, went shopping, took a shower, dropped off my car..." Okay Steve, when you list your activities for the day, you DON'T add "taking a shower". I know what he meant, but it just sounded funny. oops, so much for anonymity.

New links

You might notice a few new links on the right. Give their blogs a read, some are informative, some are inspiring, some are fun. I thought I'd add the links because I read them fairly regularly and I'm all for finding new ways to distract people from real work so they can sit at their computers and waste a lot of time (like me). I hope no one minds that I added their links.

Wish me luck

I have an interview on Monday for the new position I applied for. I haven't had an interview for years. I'm kinda nervous. What do I wear? I still have to find out where the office is in the hospital. What if I suck at interviews? I think I do. Wish me luck.

Mt. Baker

I had the most amazing day at Mt. Baker! It snowed all night there and was still snowing when we got there. Our first run was pure powder up to my thighs. I learned that its very difficult to ride in powder unless you have a lot of speed and going down on one edge isn't an option. You just have to ride down and float on top. It took a while to get used to all the powder but it was probably the best snow I've ever had. Thank God I have a new board that was made just for days like today! Its such a rush to be flying down the mountain and carving new tracks in untouched snow. I even did a couple of small jumps with Rodney and Greg. *sigh* unfortunately, the season is ending soon. What am I supposed to do in the spring and summer?

101 Things About Me #66-70

66. When I'm unsure, nervous, or scared, I become very withdrawn and quiet.
67. Blue Powerade is my favourite hangover drink.
68. as it turns out, I'm a typical gemini.
69. I've had 5 jobs in my life including my current one.
70. I have very bad eyesight.

Whistler Trip

I definitely like Blackcomb mountain better than Whistler mountain. Not as many flat areas and a lot more exciting runs. The day started out pretty good. I had to get used to my new board for a couple of runs first and we didn't want to leave Jeanette right away so we went to Whistler mountain and did a long run there first. This new board is really fast! Then we decided to hit Blackcomb and go right to the top. We took the gondola, 2 chair lifts, and a t-bar to get to the glacier. Wow! Very nice. If the conditions were a little better (ie. more powder, more sun), it would have been "spectacular", but as it was it was just "amazing". 7000ft, 2.2km elevation. The air was a little thin. The t-bar was a joke. This is another thing that was made for skiers. Greg, Randy and I all fell at least twice in the first 5meters. Randy, however... We were all at the top of the t-bar just waiting for Randy to come up. We saw him coming up and not even 10 meters away from us, he bails. The T-bar was dragging him up. "Randy! Let go and hike it!" He just said "No!" and let the tbar drag him the rest of the way. I wish I had a picture of that! Well we made our way down from the glacier and then moved over to 7th Heaven. Again, if the conditions were better it would have been amazing. We came down and did a bunch of blue runs for the rest of the day. The "under-26" trio went to the terrain park and Randy and I stuck to the runs. It was a good day. At the end we did the glacier, 7th heaven twice, tree runs, rocky runs, and at least 6 long blue runs. All this with only a 15 minute break. BTW, did I mention that I love my new board?

trying something new

Yesterday I applied for a new job. Its only a temporary (1 year) position and when its done I get my current job back. The position title is "Clinical Information Specialist". My manager said that when she heard about it she thought of me and that it was "right up my alley". Thanks Lorraine! I'm guessing they'll start calling for interviews in a couple of weeks. Wish me luck

New Board - Burton Indie 158

Well, I did it. I bought a new snowboard. Damn, its sweet. I can't wait to try it out. And what better place to put it to the test than Whistler-Blackcomb? I think it may take a couple of runs to get used to it, but I'm not worried about that. I'm worried that somebody is gonna bump it in the lineups or that it'll get scratched in the car on the way up there. Like the guy at Comor said, "You shouldn't use this board for rails. Its too nice." hehe. The only problem is that I had to buy new bindings for it because Burton has a different screw design or whatever. I couldn't use my old bindings. Oh well, at least I was able to sell my board and bindings to Steve for a fair price (dude, I think I could have sold it to my mom for more).

Movie Review

The Passion of Christ

Whoa. Intense. I wouldn't call this a "must-see" film unless you doubt your faith. This will bring you back to the Church.

Mindless ramblings

I think I might be buying a new snowboard. The one I want is on sale at Comor and if they have any more, I think I might just get it. Its, like, half price and with the upcoming trip to Whistler, I think a new board would be great. Then, all I'll need are new pants, bindings, and boots. Actually, my bindings are fine, but I think I definitely need new boots. My feet cramp up in mine which isn't a good sign. Oh, I waxed my board the other day too. Well, actually Rodney waxed it while I watched. He's awfully good at it. I didn't want to get in the way. Well, wax on a snowboard is better than stealing some 12-year-old kid's brand new board. OMG, get your board waxed NOW! You'll be glad you did.

Anyway, we went to Cypress again on Monday night. The snow was a little slushy, but otherwise it was a good night. Hit a few jumps, tore up the mountain, and a good time was had by all. I went with the regular crew but Randy's friends Aimee and Sandra came too. Jeanette made a good point: we should meet these people seeing as we're going to be spending a few days with them in Whistler. I think we're all gonna have a blast! I'll let you know.

So lately I've been feeling like a realy bum (No offence to all you bums out there that are reading this (how did you get access to a computer? are you in the library? and how did you find my blog?)). I think I mentioned that I had a couple of weeks off earlier this month. Well, I went back to work, did my regular set (2days, 2nights), and traded a few shifts for this weekend so I could go to Whistler. So by the end of this month, I'll have worked a total of 8 shifts. Mind you, those are all 12hr shifts and one of them was on Valentine's Day. I'm a busy guy these days... I think I need to get out more.

On Sunday night we went to Section 3 for a little down-time and to say goodbye to Tina. Rhoel showed up with this little girl (18 - sorry forgot her name already) that he met in his youth group thing. What the hell is he doing in a youth group? Sorry, had to say it. So, here are my shout-outs for the evening: Bye Tina! We'll miss you! Sorry you didn't win a truck, Michelle. Maybe next time. Emily, you're so cute! Rhoel, high five for showing up with a younger woman! Keep up the 80's pop trivia Rodney!

Gross

So the other night there was this woman on the ward (not my patient) that had a postpartum bleed so she was bleeding vaginally. Well I guess she got up to the bathroom and was sitting on a commode when she decided to pass out. Well first off we had to get her back into bed. Since the commode was on wheels, we rolled her right beside the bed. To get her back into bed I did a 1 person pivot because she was half awake but halfway through the pivot she decided to faint again. I had one knee under her so she ended up sitting on my knee for a second. We got her back into the bed (finally!) and everything turned out just fine but then I looked down at my knee and guess what? I had a big smear of blood on my pants! Oh gross. I'm considering just burning those pants...

101 Things About Me #61-65

61. I don't think chicken belongs on pizza. Its just wrong.
62. I like pasta with red sauces rather than white sauces.
63. Oreos are my favourite cookies.
64. Doritos are my favourite chips.
65. Cheers is my all-time favourite sitcom.

Offensive to say the least

Check out this article in the Globe and Mail website. I thought it was demeaning, ignorant, offensive, and just plain stupid.
Nanny-TV

Have you Googled yourself?

C'mon, don't lie to me. Have you ever searched for your own name in Google or some other search engine? I Googled myself and found that there is a filipino-american poet named Oliver De La Paz and there is also a literature professor somewhere in the States with the same name. Hmm, I was hoping for something a little more exciting. An inventor maybe. or a dj or something. I guess a poet is alright. I read this article in the paper where some guy googled himself and found out he was a missing baby. As it turns out, his mother abducted him 14 years ago when he was 3 years old. The guy is now living with his father who has legal custody and his mother is in police custody. Weird, huh?

just out of it i guess

These past few days I've been really slacking. Its been 5 days since my last entry. Before you know it Nick will be making more entries than me! j/k. The real reason I haven't made any entries is that I've been quite lazy lately. Ever since I got back from my big day at Whistler I haven't been feeling all that great. Just feeling 'blah'. You know what I mean. I think it might be a combination of poor eating, an impending cold, and wintertime blues. Oh, and also I've been hooked on playing Baldur's Gate 2. Its taking over my life. Again. Seriously though, I don't know what it is, but I really have been feeling a little out of sorts lately. Maybe I've been off work too long with nothing to do. Well I'm back to work now so maybe I'll get back into the groove.

So at the end of the month I have the chance to redeem myself. Last month you may remember that I mentioned I had a friend in town from Calgary and I didn't go see her because it was too late and I had to work the next day. I tell ya, I didn't hear the end of it! Well she's coming back because her best friend just moved here (and is working for Z95.3) and she's coming to visit her. The days that Renee is here I'm actually off so I think I'll be able to spend some time with her and show her around.

Whistler

Wow. What a great day of snowboarding. We stayed on Whistler Mountain all day and didn't even touch Blackcombe. Next time, we'll stay on Blackcombe. Whistler mountain is made more for skiers it seems. Too many flat parts, even on blue runs. Anyway, we went right to the very top and conquered the mountain. When you're sitting on the Peak Chair and looking at the runs its pretty crazy. At one point you go over something that says "bomb tram". You feel like a pro when you're up at the top! I'm getting better on moguls and the straights are fast fast fast. ...and a good time was had by all. Next time, we're going to watch empire strikes back in calgary. Randy and Rodney know what I mean.

Weekend

Last night, I had my Valentine's Day dinner at the Macaroni Grill (my favourite restaurant). We had reservations for 7:30pm, but we were pretty late (got there at 8:10), so we ended up waiting half an hour for a table. That's okay, I didn't mind. One of the staff at the restaurant, as it turns out, was in a lead role in Mammia Mia! and sang some ABBA songs for the table next to us. That was pretty neat. I love how the servers at the restaurant all sing. Our waitress sang some Italian opera or something like that for our section. She was pretty damn good. Anyway, after dinner we met up with a bunch of people at Jupiter Cafe for Vanessa's birthday celebration. That was fun. We left just before midnight because Saturday morning I had to work. That sucked but it was an easy day today. Anyway, tomorrow morning we're going to Whistler for some much needed big-mountain snowboarding! I can't wait. I'll let you know how it goes.

Happy Birthday Vanessa!

If anyone out there didn't know it was Vanessa's birthday on Thursday, well you do now and you have no excuse for not calling her. She's celebrating at Jupiter Cafe (somewhere downtown) Friday night at 9pm. Be there. So on Wednesday, being the good friend that I am, drove all the way out to Vancouver to spend a little quality time with Vanessa. We went for lunch and watched TV (not at the same time). Then, because she is SOOOOO busy, I had to leave so she could go do whatever it was she had to do. Who else did that, huh? How many of you spent your free time on your day off to see Vanessa to wish her a happy birthday? Well I did.

funny stuff

I got this email a couple of years ago after LOTR: Fellowship of the Ring came out. I just found it when I was cleaning up my inbox. I thought I'd post it in parts. Its pretty hilarious.

THE SECRET DIARY OF ARAGORN SON OF ARATHORN
Day One:
Ringwraiths killed: 4. very good. Met up with Hobbits. Walked forty miles. Skinned a squirrel and ate it.
Still not King.

Day Four:
Stuck on mountain with Hobbits. Boromir really annoying. Not King yet.

Day Six:
Orcs killed: none. Disappointing. Stubble update: I look rugged and manly. Yes!
Keep wanting to drop-kick Gimli. Holding myself back.
Still not King.

Day Ten:
Sorry no entries lately. very dark in Mines of Moria. Big Balrog.
Not King today either.

Day Eleven:
Orcs killed: 7. Very good. Stubble update: Looking mangy. Legolas may be hotter than me. I wonder if he would like me if I was King?

Day 28:
Beginning to find Frodo disturbingly attractive. Have a feeling if I make a move, Sam would kill me. Also, hairy feet kind of a turn-off.
Still not King.

Day 30:
In Lothlorien. Think Galadriel was hitting on me. Saucy wench. Nice chat with Boromir. He's not so bad. Took a shower. Yay!
But still not King.

Day 32:
Orcs killed: none. Stubble update: subtly hairy. Legolas told me that a shadow and a threat had been growing in his mind. I think Legolas might be kinda gay.
Nope, not King.

Day 33:
Orcs killed: Countless thousands. very good. Boromir killed by Orcs. Bummer. Though he died bravely in my arms, am now quite sure that he was very definitely gay. Not so sure about Gimli either. RIP Boromir.
Still not King, but at least Boromir seemed to think I was. Might however have been blood loss.

Day 34:
Frodo went to Mordor. Said he was going alone, but took Sam with him. Why? My God, is everyone in this movie gay but me? Not so sure about me either.
Still not King, goddammit.

101 Things About Me #61-65

61. Did I happen to mention that I like to go snowboarding?
62. Ever since I broke my wrist last year, I've lost my nerve when I'm snowboarding.
63. I like babies.
64. I have terrible handwriting.
65. I don't like wearing watches.

101 Things About Me #56-60

56. I like all that new technology stuff like computers, tv's, cameras, pda's, etc etc...
57. My favourite alcoholic drink is Vodka-seven. You can buy me this in the bar anytime.
58. I hated school while I was in it, but now I want to go back.
59. My rice cooker is the only thing in my kitchen that doesn't match.
60. I like to collect shot glasses. Not just the regular ones, but the tall, 2oz. ones.

Everybody's Got A Story Part 1

I met this lady once, we'll call her Connie, that came into the hospital with broken hip. Cute little lady, a little eccentric, but at 75 I suppose you have the right to be a little weird. Let me explain the usual path my fractured hip patients take: they come into the Emergency Room (ER - as if you didn't know) with a broken hip, the docs take a look at her and she gets admitted to my ward to prepare for surgery. They go have surgery in the Operating Room (OR - where Marites works), then they go to the Post Anaesthetic Care Unit (PACU - to "wake up"), then back to the ward (Orthopedics - where I work). They usually stay about a week or two, until they get walking again, then they go home. There are usually some factors that will slow this process down but that's the idea anyway. Ok, back to Connie. When she came up from the ER we had to take a history on her - just find out a little bit about her and her medical history. Well we found out her pension wasn't paying her very much so she was very malnourished and only eating once a day and once a month she would go to A&W as a treat to herself. She was living in a trailer because she couldn't afford anything else and her clothes were very very dirty. She had fallen and broken her hip on the way home from the grocery store so when she came to us she had a bunch of groceries. Nothing fancy, just some milk, bread, mayonnaise, canned beans, and soup. Apparently, this was all her food for the week. When we told her how long she was probably going to be in the hospital, she was very worried that her groceries would go bad and could we please put it in the fridge so it wouldn't spoil. She was in a lot of pain, but she never told us because she didn't want to be a bother. We ended up just giving her painkillers every 2 hours just to keep her comfortable. Well, she had her surgery and went through the usual post-operative confusion that many of the elderly suffer through but eventually cleared up and began walking on her own again. This took about 3 weeks (3 times longer than the expected recovery time from this type of surgery). She could go home again. The problem now was that her family, who had control of her "estate", had sold her home and weren't being very helpful. No one would take her in. Now she no longer had a home to go to. Our social worker, Janice, got involved and found her a home: a local care home. Connie was initially very upset about not having a home, but when Janice told her she could live at this care home, Connie became even more upset. She wanted to live on her own. She didn't want to be put in a nursing home, but without money or a home to go to, she didn't have much choice. After being with us for a month, Connie went to a care home willingly, but not happily.

Movie Review

My review of the movie Mystic River with Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, and Kevin Bacon:

Deep shit, man. This movie was a great whodunnit. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Without giving it away, here's what happens: someone dies and they try to figure out who the killer is. Sean Penn is amazing and the person that plays the dead body is very believable. I say again: deep shit, man.

My job isn't easy

Did I ever tell you about the guy who's life we saved? I came on shift on a Wednesday night last month and had this guy who wasn't doing so well. He went downhill all shift until about 4:30am. At this point it got so bad we had to call the doc to come up. He took a look at the guy and called his wife to see if she wanted him to be rescusitated if he ever stopped breathing. Obviously, she was pretty upset so she said she had to call her daughters and that she would phone us back. About 15 minutes after we get off the phone with her, the guy codes. No breathing, no heartbeat. Well, we haven't heard from the wife yet so we call a code blue. The code only lasted about a minute because the man started to breathe on his own again and he came around pretty quick. He was still having a hard time breathing though. I phoned the wife and asked her what her decision was and she said to just let him go if the time came. We did what we could for him to make him comfortable but his breathing was difficult and he looked like he was in pain. We gave him morphine for the pain, but that depresses the respiratory system and decreases his level of consciousness. So now it was either pain control or mental alertness all balanced with poor respiratory function. We called a code on this guy Thursday morning at 0530hrs and he died Friday morning at 1015hrs.

101 Things About Me #51-55

51. I like spicy foods.
52. I'm mildly allergic to melons. Honeydews, cantaloupes, watermelons. They make my throat very very itchy. I eat them anyway though.
53. I like red wines. Cabernet Sauvignon, Valpolicella, and Merlot.
54. I'm very anal retentive about my computer. Don't try to customize it to make it "better" and don't download shit onto it without telling me.
55. I don't have a single hair on my chest.

Vacation

Yay! I'm on vacation for 2 weeks! What am I going to do, you're probably asking. Nothing. No plans. Oh well, as long as I don't have to go to work.

101 Things About Me #46-50

46. I think I'm heavier than I should be.
47. I've never watched a live hockey game, a baseball game, or a soccer game.
48. I wear very little when I sleep so my door is always closed.
49. I like my steaks medium-rare.
50. I know nothing about politics.

Clarification

Ok, there seems to be some confusion about my contest. You have to send me a picture of someone. Anyone. The only requirement is that the picture has to be fun, entertaining, H.O.T., exciting or cute. That's it. A picture. I'll post a picture on the contest page as an example.

Contest!

Ok, I'm going to have a contest. Everyone is invited to participate (tell your friends) and the deadline is February 14. I'm the only judge and my decision will be final. This contest is in no way representative of anyone's opinions except my own. Also, this contest is not sponsored by anyone except me and thus there will be no prizes and no compensation to anyone except me. If you feel my judgement is biased in any way and you seriously doubt the validity of my wholly unscientific method of evaluation, tough shit. Valentine's Day is the deadline because I think I have ADHD and keeping my attention beyond that date will be quite difficult. Okay, now here's the contest and its rules:

1. You must submit a picture.
2. The picture must have at least one person in it.
3. This person may be you or someone you know, but be sure they are aware that you took their picture to begin with (I don't want to get sued or anything like that).
4. This person may be of any age, but keep in mind that child porn is illegal and I don't want to see disgusting pictures of old people.
5. I will be judging the picture on its entertainment value. Send something cute, fun, exciting, H.O.T., or entertaining in some way.
6. Email me the picture. If you don't know my email address, there should be a link somewhere on your screen right now.
7. I will not accept prints. All submitted pictures must be digital. I can resize it if you don't know how, just send it.
8. You may add captions to the picture if you feel that they may make the picture more entertaining.
9. You may enter the contest as many times as you like.
10. Contest ends on February 14 and the winner will be announced soon after that.
11. There sure are a lot of rules to this contest.
12. Any of these rules may change at my discretion and no, you can't dispute them.
13. Good luck! (this isn't a rule, just me sending my well-wishes)

Stuck at home

You know what really sucks? When you don't have a car and you're stuck at home. To be honest, even if I did have a car, I don't think I'd be going anywhere anyway, but at least I'd have the option of leaving home. Right now I'm thinking of all the things I could be doing if I had a car. Maybe I'll walk to IGA or something. Nah, then I'd have to walk home carrying all that stuff. Maybe I could walk to the sushi place for lunch. Its kinda cold out though so maybe I'll just make something here. Oh well.

I've never seen the movie 12 Monkeys. Is it any good? I've always wanted to see it, but just never got around to it. Have you ever seen the move Seven? The one with Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman. That movie is seriously twisted. Whoever thought of that shit is one crazy mofo. Legends of the Fall was on TV again yesterday. That was a good movie if you're into that sort of thing. Tristan's life was pretty tragic. The only movies I've really been into lately are stupid comedy movies. I watched a couple of Monty Python movies and that golden oldie Airplane!. "Surely there must be something you can do." "There isn't. And stop calling me Shirley." And those two black guys that needed subtitles. Omg, I'm laughing out loud now. "Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?" "Yakum smakum." lol.

BTW, if you didn't get the Province newspaper yesterday, it was the Babies of the Year issue. I was going through it and there's, like, 4 or 5 babies that I knew in it. Holy crap there's a lot of kids around. Maybe I'm getting old. Naw, I'm still just a kid.

Man, I need to get out of the house...

Stuff I Think You Should Know

1. A broken bone and a fractured bone are the same thing.
2. The Lord of the Rings is actually one book broken down into 3 books but further broken down into 6. If you read it you'll know what I'm talking about.
3. Your sense of balance is in your ear.
4. If you break your neck above the C3 level, your respiratory system stops.
5. When you do the whole "cheers" thing with drinks its because in the olden days, you would drink with your enemies and you banged your glasses together hard enough so that your drinks would splash and mix. That way, you knew your enemy wasn't trying to poison you.

101 Things About Me #41-45

41. I have 15 pairs of shoes. Jeff probably has double that (or more), but a lot of people tell me its a lot for a guy. Is it?
42. My favourite kind of junk food is chips.
43. Last year around this time I had a fracture of the right distal radius and styloid process that was casted for 5 weeks.
44. When I make frozen orange juice I water it down a bit. I find it too sweet and thick if I don't.
45. My favourite book of all time is The Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

Today's the day

I'm bringing my car in today. Wish me luck.

Vacations

Well, I have three vacations this year. No, wait, let me rephrase that: I have three scheduled times when I am off from work for 2weeks. I'm not actually going on vacation because I'm just staying home. First vacation: I just want to go snowboarding. I'm off for 2 weeks starting next Tuesday. I can't wait. Second vacation: This is in July and I'm planning to go to Winnipeg for Randy's wedding. This ought to be fun. There's a bunch of us going so it should be enough to make Winnipeg interesting. I haven't been back there since I was 20. Its been a long time. Third vacation: This comes at the end of August and I don't have any plans. I'd like to go away somewhere but I don't think I'll be able to afford it. Oh well, paid time off from work is good enough.

1974

What happened 30 years ago? Thirty years ago it was 1974. I know some of you are thinking "It wasn't that long ago." Let's consider this: take your current age, and subtract 30. If this value yields a negative integer, you are still young. If the result of our advanced math yields a positive value, you're starting to reach what teenagers call "OLD". *damn those teenagers. The reason I bring this up is because last night I was thinking and realized that most of my friends are married and have children, some with 2 or 3 kids. Holy crap. It doesn't seem that long ago when we were all going out and getting drunk or just sitting around at restaurants having coffee for hours. Now when I talk to Lisa I don't even understand her language. I say Skybar and she says, "What?" She says Movies for Mommies and I say, "Huh?" Thank God I'm only turning 26 this year because I don't feel older than 22. But age is just a number anyway. Its all about how you feel (and sometimes how you look). I know some 30 year olds that look fabulous and can still party like it was 1999.

Anyway, this is just something that popped into my head last night. Stop rolling your eyes at me, let's see what you think about at 4am.

101 Things About Me #36-40

36. I know absolutely nothing about financial matters. What the hell is a GIC or a variable open mortgage or whatever?
37. I think math is interesting but I'm not very good at it.
38. My biggest role models in life are my parents and my relationship with them got a million times better when I moved out.
39. I like crossword puzzles. The tabloid Star has a really big, easy one.
40. I enjoy books and movies that let you see a whole different world rather than stories that take place in the real world.

Dilemma

I hate it when things conflict in my schedule. I mean, I have so much time off you'd think that I'd be able to spread out my activities. Next Tuesday I had an offer to go snowboarding at Mt. Baker - my favourite mountain - but instead I have to go to an inservice on Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis at work. I know, it sounds so exciting. :/ I can't believe I'm missing out on snowboarding so I can sit in a classroom for 4 hours. At least I'm getting paid for it...

Cars

I'm finally making progress with the whole car situation. I emailed a mechanic in New West the other day and asked roughly how much it would cost to make my car safe. He emailed me back with a rough guideline and when I called him he gave me a good idea of what I would be spending. It looks like it'll cost me anywhere between $1000-$3000. I made an appointment on Monday to drop off my car with him. So starting on Monday, I won't have a car for a few days. This is what you'll hear from me, "No, I can't go. No car." and "Hey, can you pick me up?" I'll let you know how bad the situation is with the car...

IQ

I just took an IQ test online and it said my IQ was 133. I am so smart! S-M-R-T! I don't really believe in IQ tests. From the various online tests I've seen, they mostly just test your ability to read a question properly, find patterns, think logically, and know some high school math. I also found that if you didn't know some mathematical formulas like the Pythagorean Formula, you wouldn't be able to answer the question without guessing. "Sure," you might say, "but you have to be smart to know that stuff." Not really. Learning how to spot patterns, knowing formulas and carefully reading questions can all be learned in school by anyone. All it takes is a little bit of effort. I think the real test of how smart someone is lays in one's ability to get through life and say, "After all that, I'm alright."

101 Things About Me #31-35

31. A & W has my favourite fastfood burger: The Teen Burger.
32. Wendy's is my #1 fastfood joint because their menu has the most variety. (well not really, but i like their menu overall)
33. The first thing I like to drink in the morning is something cold, like orange juice, rather than something hot.
34. I'd rather hand-wash my dishes than use my dishwasher because I don't really feel like their getting clean unless you're wiping them with soap and a sponge.
35. I wear jeans a lot.

Oh No

This getting out of hand, I think. Another obsessed fan. This one was a little more obvious though. I'm really starting to get nervous! Pretty soon I'm going to have to hire security. This guy even sent me a picture! How bold. I'm really going to have to be more careful...

My Job

In my job I need to be tough with my patients. I'm not dealing with the sick and dying, I generally deal with healthy individuals that have undergone ELECTIVE surgery. They wait 6 months or more to have this surgery - don't tell me they didn't have time to read the information package they received in preadmission. They are having major surgery. I think it should be their responsibility to know what they are facing. Its called informed consent. Too often I get patients saying, "If I knew it would be this hard, I wouldn't have done it." Now why would you think that having your hip removed and replacing it with a stainless steel prosthetic hip wouldn't be hard? Its not that I'm uncaring or mean, I just expect that if you're having ELECTIVE surgery, you should do your homework.

One of my pet peeves at work is when I get patients that don't belong on my unit. Now I know this isn't a problem that is easily fixed. Its a bigger problem than I know how to solve, but I don't have to like it. I work in orthopedics. Not on a medical unit, not in psychiatry, and not in extended care. And just because I'm a nurse doesn't mean that I can do any nursing job in the hospital. I know a little general surgery and orthopedic surgery. I don't know anything about oncology. And, no offence to them, but a lot of medical nurses can't work on a surgical floor. Its just not safe. No experience, no orientation, no specialized knowledge. I don't know what to do with a new stroke patient. I've just never done it before. But I do know the difference between an Austin Moore Hemiarthroplasty and an Omega Hip Pinning. I know how much blood loss to expect in a Total Knee Replacement, and I know how to watch for signs and symptoms of a DVT or Compartment Syndrome. My nursing knowledge has become very focussed and specialized. Don't expect that I can work anywhere in the hospital.

Car trouble

Last month I mentioned that my car was seriously f#@-ed. Well, its now the middle of January and its still f#@-ed. I hate having to get my car serviced, so over the years I've done what every other poor, lazy, idiotic car owner does: I ignored the problem. Now, I'm seriously thinking that I should get it looked at. Based on what I've been told by friends, I'm looking at major engine repair/replacement. Holy crap I'm an idiot. Maybe I would be better off just getting a new car. I'm kinda attached to the little old green-machine as I've had it for about 10 years now. Fixing it would still cost me less money, I guess.

Stalkers

So I'm a little worried here. I think I might have a stalker on my hands. I don't know too much about this whole "fame" thing, but I now know what Madonna means when she says she doesn't always feel safe - even in her own home - because of stalkers and obsessed fans. Let me back up a little here. There was this guy that I'm friends with. Sure, we hung out, we were buddies, but I'm starting to realize what's going on here. I recently got a posting on my guest book and it was signed "Your number 1 fan." Now, whenever you get these kind of letters you really have to be careful. These people can be unpredictable. I think I might have to watch my back for now on...

101 Things About Me #26-30

26. I'm 5'7" and 145lbs
27. My hometown in Regina, Sask. but I've also lived in Winnipeg for a couple of years.
28. I don't like gummi bears or sours.
29. I like watching movies.
30. I lived with my parents until I was 28 years old.

Delays

Well I think it'll be longer than I thought before getting my own domain name. Don't ask why or I'll give you some smart ass answer. In the meantime, however, you can go to my website here. Its nothing special, in fact its pretty bad, but it'll have pictures (when I get around to putting them on) of me and my friends, and some other fun stuff. Check it out but remember, its still under construction so there's hardly anything there. If I hear about anyone complaining that it sucks, well I've got something else you can suck too, jerk.

Another bad night

Man, last night was one of the worst. Let's start with the easy patients. The first lady, very sweet little lady really, decided at 2am that she needed to get up and "take care of some things." The problem with this is that she is a high risk for falling and breaking her hip. This lady was very very confused. I just didn't have time to babysit her because down the hall I had a patient just get back from the OR. He was stable, but his wound was bleeding like a mofo. That had to be dealt with ASAP. In another room, I had a patient with alzheimers and severe dementia. He had no idea what was going on and he was climbing all over his bed. He's another one that's at risk for hurting himself. These three patients would keep anybody busy all night long. Then, to top it all off, I had another guy that was going downhill very fast. Starting at about 2:30am, he was having more and more problems breathing and by 5am, we had the doctor up there calling a code blue. He wasn't breathing, no pulse, completely unresponsive. Basically dead. We brought him back, but then when I called the family, they said to stop. Don't bother doing that again. Its difficult to ask the family what they want in situations like this. As if they didn't have enough on their minds. The guy is doing somewhat okay now, but his breathing still sucks and I don't know how long he'll last. I'm dreading going back to work tonight.

Help Me Out

Ok, I'm leaving this one up to you guys. I'm planning on getting a domain name but what should it be? Here are my choices:

www.oliverdelapaz.com
www.odelapaz.com

Also, should it be .com or .ca? This is such a big decision... Go to my guestbook with your choice.

Coming Soon!

www.oliverdelapaz.com

Don't try clicking on it, stupid. There's no link. I said it was coming soon.

Carry on with your daily web surfing.

101 Things About Me #21-25

21. I like the smell of bleach, chlorine, and those little alcohol swabs at work.
22. My favourite sports to watch are volleyball, track & field, x-games snowboarding, and tennis.
23. My favourite sports to play are volleyball, tennis, and snowboarding.
24. My eyes are -5.25 and -5.5
25. I hate the dentist (sorry Dino).

I love email

You know what the best thing about electronic communication? You can have conversations with people you would never call (for whatever reason) and it lets you easily and conveniently stay in contact with hundreds of people even though you don't see them very often - or ever. I love getting email, even the stupid jokes and chain mail and all that crap (but not the spam). Every once in a while someone emails me with their favourite stuff lists or their petpeeve lists. I like those questionnaire emails. You know, the ones that go: what's your name? how many candles were on your last bday cake? what's in the trunk of your car? You know, those ones that no one seems to have time to fill out except for your 3 friends that keeps sending them to you. I like them because I can fill them in and be a smart ass and Steve gets a big kick out of them. I make stupid comments and tell monty python-esque jokes. I'll post one on here someday. Anyway, sometimes people don't have time to fill them out, but they DO have time to leave you messages on your msn messenger. (btw, check out www.mess.be/ for neat little msn hacks). Here's what Dinah wrote:

ya.. i hate it when people bump my board in the line!

and ER rocks

okay my pet peeve..cuz i don't have a blogspot i will blog on oliver's msn chat box

pet peeve #1 people who's status is "online" but not at their computer. hello..use "away" if you're not there!

pet peeve #2 why do filipinos say Happy Trip?
is the trip happy or are you happy during your trip? WHY?

pet peeve #3 if you call leave a voicemail, please leave me your number! how am i supposed to know how to call you? i don't have call display!!! and i don't have an address book.

pet peeve #4 if oliver doesn't come back soon then my messages will be erased when i sign off. WHERE ARE YOU OLIVER!!!!!

sheeesh.

pet peeve #5 stupid girls who blog on other people's chat box.

Okay, she'll probably kill me for posting this. Maybe she'll sue me cuz I didn't have permission to publish her creative property. Oh well, she's not Margaret Atwood or anything.

Mountain Etiquette

-Please don't stop suddenly in the middle of the run. Move to the side if you can.
-Don't cut me off.
-I know its funny when you fall when getting off the lift, but please get the hell out of my way.
-When we're waiting in line for the lift, you don't have to get so close as to bumping my board with board/skis. No one is going to butt in front of you.
-Don't complain about the beginners "getting in your way", you were a beginner once too.

Things That Scare the Crap Out of Me

5. loneliness
4. alzheimer's disease
3. breaking my wrist again
2. swimming with fish
1. The Dentist - it hurts every time and the instruments they use are scary as hell. What kind of "professional" uses instruments of torture?

101 Things About Me #16-20

16. I upgrade my computer roughly every 12-18 months. Just so I can play games on it.
17. Empire Strikes Back is my favourite movie of all time.
18. I think Monty Python is pretty fucking hilarious.
19. I really like Coca-cola. Probably more than water.
20. I went to the Philippines for 3 weeks twice - Jan 01 and Jan 02.

ER

Damn that show is good! Carter's back and he's having a baby with Thandi Newton. I think Cristina was right when she said Thandi will die in some heartbreaking episode. Maybe during childbirth, maybe Carter won't be able to save some guy's son and the guy blames Carter and kills Thandi. Who knows? Carter's life, however, is too tragic for him to finally be happy. But since she is still a "guest star" she obviously won't be around for the long haul. The cool thing about the show is that when they start talking medical stuff, I kinda get what they're saying. They go way too fast for me to really "get it", but at least its not just a bunch of gibberish. I kinda miss George Clooney and that other guy, Dr. Mark Green (I can't remember the actor's name). Hey wanna know something funny? There's a doctor at Surrey Memorial named Mark Green. He looks nothing like the guy from ER though.

101 Things About Me #11-15

11. I like spicy food.
12. Pet Peeve: poor spelling and poor grammar.
13. The last PC game I was really good at was Quake2. You wouldn't want to come up against me in that game.
13.5. Steve wants a piece of me in Quake2. I told him to slowly back away.
14. I'm not mean to my patients at work. In fact, I'm quite nice to them. Sometimes I just have to be assertive.
15. I like Tomato Soup.

101 Things About Me #6-10

6. I like fiddling with my computer.
7. I probably smoke too much but I'm constantly trying to quit.
8. I can't cook.
9. I have one goddaughter and she's sooo cute!
10. I have one brother and a sister-in-law. We also say her sisters are my sister now too. So I now have one brother and 3 sisters.



I think my favourite part of this whole blog thing is that I can write about anything I want and not really care if people are rolling their eyes or not. Also, I can talk about myself and babble about all that crap that floats around in my head. This is great.

Back to basics

Due to various comments, I've changed the look of the blog. Back to a basic white with a few coloured titles. I kind of liked the green...

Working

Busy evening. I have a couple of people not doing so well, but they're okay for now. Its difficult to keep an eye on them when there's so much paperwork at night. Luckily, things have settled down now and I actually have some down time. Better than last night. I wonder sometimes how long some of these people would stay if they had to pay for their health care. Would they work harder to get out of the hospital? Would they be more motivated to participate in their own care rather than just become so dependent on the nursing staff? Hard to say. If you're sick its one thing but when the length of your stay is dependent on how much effort you put into your rehab... well, I won't get into that now.

New Things Here

Here at Oliver's Blogspot, we're starting a new series. It's called "101 Things About Me." Its not listed in order of importance or anything, just random stuff.
Starting at number...

1. I'm not really a chocolate fan. I only like it once in a while.
2. I've worn glasses since I was 10 years old.
3. I like musicals.
4. No, I'm not gay.
5. I prefer tropical weather to winter weather but I like winter for the snowboarding.

Next time: #6-10


Well, I had a rough night at work last night. I don't mind having a busy day at work. I mean, it happens, right? The problem is knowing that I have to go back tonight and do it all again. Discouraging. At least tonight is my last night until next week. I'll let you know how bad it is.

Winter 2004 Update
Yup, still cold.

Winter 2004

Holy fuck its cold.

The Couple Scam

This isn't something that has come up recently, but it came up in conversation and I got all riled up about it again. Okay, here's the situation: a buddy of yours is getting married. You're single and your friends are married. The invitation says "Presentation" (for all you people that don't know what that means, it means that the couple don't want you to go buy them a toaster, they just want the cash. Anyway, you're at the wedding and you're sitting beside your "couple" friends and you're all sealing the envelopes with the cheques in them. Just out of curiosity, you ask your friends, "How much did you guys give?" They give you this proud, we-spent-a-lot-of-money look and say, "a hundred bucks." You quickly glance into your envelope before you seal it and you see clearly written on one of your cheques: "seventy dollars". Ok, I'm not calling anyone cheap and I'm probably the last person in the world that thinks I have money to burn but how do couples get away with spending less on these things? You're probably saying, "I don't give seventy bucks, I give fifty." Well let's say there's a registry. You buy a gift for $40 off that registry. Maybe a couple of towels or something. The couple gets away with buying the same towels from both of them! Jeff and I have had this conversation many times and its the biggest scam couples have. Whoever said it was cheaper to be single was a moron.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year to everyone! Best wishes for 2004.

love,
Oliver

Big news:

Starting in 2004, all blog entries will have a title. Just like Randy's.

Please carry on with your daily web surfing.

Wow, I'm really sore today. We went snowboarding yesterday at Cypress and we were just givin 'er. 18 runs. I think I'm gonna have to blame Jenee for pushing us so hard. I'm hurting all over today. Good times...

Today is my parents' 32nd anniversary. Happy anniversary to them. I'll see them later for dinner. I wonder who's gonna pay this year? I don't know how it happens, but I always seem to get stuck with the bill.

Tomorrow is the last day of 2003. Usually people go out and have wild parties but this year I think it'll be pretty mellow. Some friends are coming over and we're gonna celebrate here. So if you want to go to a loud, wild, crazy party, my house isn't the place to go. But everyone is welcome to come by. There'll be some food, some drinks, some music, some fun. Well, the food might be a little sparse, but what do you expect? I can barely feed myself sometimes.

Top Ten New Year's Resolutions for 2004:

10. pay off some bills
9. go to church
8. have a relationship that I won't screw up
7. get in shape
6. learn to cook
5. advance my career, even if its just for personal growth and not for money
4. keep close friends nearby and bring the not-so-close-friends closer
3. spend time with my family
2. don't be so shallow
1. smile more

Two more sleeps until Christmas. I'm finished shopping! Now I just have to clean my house. What a mess! My tree looks great though. :)

So guess what I did yesterday. Yeah, I'm a nerd but I had to watch it again just to be sure. The first time I saw it, it was very... okay. But now, after watching it again, I can say that I like Return of the King. See, the problem I had with it was that it focussed so much on Frodo and Sam. When I read the book, I liked the stories of the humans. Frodo and Sam were kinda dull. They also left out a couple of things that I really enjoyed in the book, but whatever. Its still a good movie.

I signed up for disability insurance about a month ago and based on my age and health and lifestyle, it was no problem. But because I broke my wrist last year they're still asking me all these stupid questions. "Did you go to the hospital?" "Did you have to stay at the hospital?" "How long did you have your cast?" "Were there any complications with the wrist after?" Look, it was an undisplaced fracture of the distal radius that was casted for 5 weeks. You tell that to your company docs and they'll tell you its no big deal. I've met 90 year-old women that have healed perfectly from the same kind of injury. Now leave me alone until I call you.

Well, Merry Christmas to all. I probably won't be back until after the 25th unless I find myself really bored at some point (doubt that'll happen, too much to do). So take care during the holidays and be safe. And to quote a Christmas card I got... "With a wish for Christmas joy to light your world in a special way and lead you into a new year that shines with God's wonderful gifts."

Last night was probably the most expensive dinner I've had in years. I mean, Aqua Riva is a very nice restaurant and the service was excellent and the food was great, but I think I'm going to have to stick to Mr.Noodle for the next month to balance my food budget. Oh who am I kidding? The only thing I spend money on is food. Well, maybe on lift passes and DVD's too, but that's all. Sometimes I'll buy beer too. But that falls under food, doesn't it?

The new Sarah McLachlan CD is great. Its very... Sarah. So if you didn't like her before, don't bother with this new one.

Christmas is in 4 days. All I need to finish my Christmas shopping is to buy 8 more gifts. Damn. That means I have to go back to the mall. Every year we all say, "I'm going to finish my shopping early this year." but who ever does? Obviously, the 12,000 people at the mall on December 24th didn't finish early. At least I'm off until Christmas so I can shop during the day and not in the evenings. Maybe I'll even have time to go back up to the mountain one more time.

You know when you have childhood friends that you don't see in years? You just figure that if they're ever in town, or if you ever go to where they are you'll see them. It would be a great reunion. Telling old stories, catching up with all the things you've missed - it would be so much fun, right? The best part is that there's never a time limit. If you haven't seen them in 10 years, 15 years, or even 20 years, it wouldn't matter. The stories of when you got in trouble at 7 years old would still be the same. There would just be more catching up to do. I always figured that this would be the case. When we went to Regina a couple of years ago for Jeff's wedding it was a big reunion of all the old friends I grew up with. Some of them, I haven't seen since I was 12 years old, and others that I'd never met until the wedding (Gary's son - wow, he looks like a little Gary). But there were a couple of people missing. Its too bad they couldn't come. At the time, I just thought I'd go make a trip someday and see them. But now, I have to apologize. I'm sorry Richelle. I'm sorry I never got to see you. I'm sorry I never kept in contact, and I'm sorry I didn't get to catch up with you and tell old stories again.

The biggest question in my life right now? What am I going to do for New Year's? Maybe I'll just rent a movie or something...

Top Five Favourite Chocolate Bars:

5. 3 Musketeers
4. Wonderbar
3. Reese Peanut Butter Cup (I know, its not really a bar)
2. Eat More
1. Coffee Crisp

Movie Review:

The Last Samurai - Wow. Good shit. You should go see this.

LOTR: Return of the King - Long, but definitely worth the 3-1/2 hrs. You should go see this too.

And that concludes my reviews.

Anyway, just to prove that I'm a huge Lord of the Rings fan (and a pretty big geek too), I watched the first showing of Return of the King at 12:05am, Tuesday night. Yup, stayed up until 4am watching this movie. If you really want to know what I thought of it, see above.

Well, the last baby of 2003 (out of my friends) was born yesterday. Congratulations to Tsering and Heather on the birth of their new baby girl (yes, another girl)! That makes 5 or so girls born this year.

I didn't think that I watched much TV, but as it turns out, I'm pretty good with Friends trivia. Maybe not as good as Jeric, Mar, and Lisa (those 3 know WAY too much about Friends) but I think I was able to hold my ground.

Oh, I went snowboarding the other day too. Night boarding at Cypress. Nice snow, but it got a little windy and it hurt my face. My new jacket kicks ass. Even more than canadian girls.

Top Ten Liberties Taken by Peter Jackson in Making Lord of the Rings (in no particular order):
10. the Aragorn/Arwen love thing wasn't a big deal in the book.
9. The Shire was not "scourged" in the movies.
8. Saruman was actually at traitor to Sauron.
7. Gimli wasn't supposed to be comic relief.
6. Tom Bombadil WAS an important character.
5. Faramir was supposed to be a much nobler character.
4. Faramir and Eowyn are supposed to hook up at the end.
3. Merry and Pippin were supposed to become big heroes.
2. What happened to Sam's box of soil from Lothlorien?
1. There were no elves at Helm's Deep.

There you go. If you've read the books, the movies left out a lot but I don't blame them. They were very faithful to the books and were an excellent adaptation for the big screen. Overall, the movie trilogy was good shit. If you're a fan of the movies, I recommend reading the books. What else are you going to do until Star Wars Episode 3 comes out?

Christmas shopping 2003 as of December 14: Not done. Broke. Frustrated.


I have to say, other than the preparations for Christmas, things seem to be going well for me. I'm liking my job again despite a couple of really bad days, my personal life jumped from a 1 to 8 and still climbing, and everything else is falling into place. Hopefully this lasts a little longer than a couple of weeks. I guess now would be a good time to start thinking about my New Year's resolutions. Exercise more? Save money? Learn to cook? All of these would be good things for me, but I'm pretty sure that none of them will come to pass. I have to find something more meaningful. Less materialistic, less selfish. Something that would make me look back and say, "Yeah, I feel good about 2004." If anyone has any good ideas, let me know. And don't give me any, "be nicer to my patients" or "go to church every week" crap. I mean ideas that will improve my feelings of self-worth and personal growth.

Top Ten Things I DON'T Want for Christmas:

10. extra hours at work
9. appendicitis
8. earrings
7. extra bills
6. 10 more pounds
5. unexplained hair loss
4. an STD
3. power surge in any of my electronics
2. a pink sweater
1. another pet in the house

Well I had a friend in town from Calgary. Yup, Renee was here for the weekend and had a great time. Partying, shopping, sightseeing, etc etc... Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to see her while she was here. On Saturday night she called me up to say her and her friends were going to Shine for her last night. Sounds great! What time are you going? Around 11 or so. Oh crap. I have to work Sunday morning. Ok, let's see... get to shine at 1115, stay for an hour or so, 1245. Drive home to Surrey, 1:30am. Shower, get settled for bed and fall asleep, 2 -2:45am. Wake up for work, 6:30am. Let's see, that would be... um, 6 carry the one, subtract that... 3 or 4 hours of sleep. Then on Sunday, I work for 12 hours. Hmm, sorry Renee, I'll have to pass. Its actually a good thing I didn't end up going because Sunday ended up being a really crappy day at work (see below).

I know, I should've gone to see my friend who I've seen once in 15 years. I do feel pretty bad that I didn't get to see her while she was in town. I keep telling her to come visit and look what happens. Well I'll make a trip out to Cowtown someday when its warmer. I'll have to wait for spring or summer cuz there's no way I'm going into the prairies in the middle of winter. So, sorry again Renee. Can I still be in your book?

Top Ten Things I Want for Christmas:

10. A new snowboard. A Burton Custom 158cm.
9. A 5-disc, progressive scan DVD player in black.
8. Monty Python's Life of Brian DVD.
7. Star Trek Movie Collection DVD's.
6. Sony Clie PEGTJ35.
5. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic PC game.
4. A new sweater
3. pair of jeans
2. socks & underwear(boxerbriefs pls)
1. a new car

There. That should help anyone that feels they need to buy me a gift for Christmas.

I would have to say that today was one of the worst days ever at work. You know on TV when they yell "Code Blue!" and everyone goes running? Well a code blue is when someone's heart stops. The lack of circulation leading to poor oxygen transport around the body makes the skin look blue, hence the term "code blue". Anyway I had my first code blue today in 3 years and 4 months. Basically, my first code ever. We have a code team at our hospital made up of some ICU nurses, an RT, and a couple of docs. They all came running after the announcement over the PA system. It was just like on TV with everyone calling out orders, pushing equipment around and more equipment being set up. When I got into the room, the patient's nurses were doing CPR and I started setting up some stuff. The code team arrived and I became the official person to document everything that was happening (there's always someone to do this). There was no heartbeat, no breathing, no vital signs. The patient was intubated, got a bunch of drugs but to no avail. Eventually, the doc said, "Stop! I'm calling it. Time of death 1630hrs." Then everything stopped. I've never been in a code before and I hope I'm never in one again.

So anyway, last Thursday I finally went snowboarding. The one thing that I've been waiting for all year. AAAhhhhhhh. Yep, it was as fun as I remembered. We went to Mt. Baker. I tell ya, that's the best freakin mountain around. Not crazy crowded like Whistler and wide open for your boarding pleasure. The best part is when you're going down and you don't know where to go so you just go wherever you feel like going. One problem this year: I'm still a little nervous about hitting some jumps. After last year's little broken wrist incident, I've been a little gunshy. I'll get my confidence up again someday...

I went to a Christmas party on Friday too. That was fun. Free meal, open bar, very entertaining dance show. Those BP people are wild. Is that what happens when you work in an office or are they just all crazy? Had a great time even though I was sober. Thanks to the one who brought me there.

Is anyone out there finished their Christmas shopping? If you are out there and reading this: I hate you. I still have a lot to do and I don't have money. I think I might have to learn to cook or something. Eating out is getting expensive.

Day 12 2003-04 Snowboard Season

Still haven't gone.

Wow, the wedding was great. Check out these pics if you want. Mad props go out to all those that had a part in making it happen. Everyone looked great, the place was beautiful, the party was awesome. I think my vodkaseven was a little watered down though. I must have had at least 4 and I didn't even feel it. Maybe my alcoholism is catching up to me...

So I still haven't gotten my car fixed. The thing is just totally f#@ed and if you heard it you'd think it was going to fall apart at any minute. Just imagine: sitting at a red light when *bam!* the tires go flat, the doors fall off, the hood pops open with smoke billowing out, and fluid starts pouring out of the bottom. I feel like that's going to happen to me soon. I guess I should get that taken care of, huh? Its just a car. I've seen too many things at work to make me think my car is important. Sure its convenient, but its just not meaningful. '

Can someone explain to me what fibromyalgia is? I don't believe in it. To me its one of those fictional diseases that hypochondriacs make up. Not to belittle anyone's suffering, but I've met some people that have it and it seems so... I don't know, exaggerated. Now someone's gonna say: "Don't you know what it is? You're a nurse." or "I thought you were supposed to be caring and compassionate." Whatever. I work orthopedics. Its my job to make my patients work hard. So when someone says they need 30mg (or more) of morphine a day without any physical evidence to support it, I become skeptical. Oh well. What the hell do I know anyway.