Vacation!

Going away for a week!  Cooler temps for sure!  No beach unless a lake shore counts!

Peace!

Imagine for a moment...

That you love someone so much that you would risk you're own life for...  That you would not even think about yourself, and jump straight into a situation...  That you would disregard your own limitations... No time to think, no time to consider the situation, just a pure reaction...

That happened last night. For a mother who could not swim... whose child was splashing in a pool.

Imagine now... the intelligence of a child that knew his mother was in trouble and knew there was absolutely no way that they could help their mother, except to go seek another adult's help, running out of backyard/pool area to a neighbors house, being able to explain the situation in such a manner that the adult understood...

That happened last night.  For a child whose mother just got them out of the pool.

Now imagine... the foresight of an adult, running and responding to emergency, to call 911 as they made their way to there... who got there, pulled their neighbor out of the pool, and immediately began CPR...

That happened last night.

The rapid response of the EMS/Fire crews... the quick interventions... the decision to rapidly transport via helicopter to the closest facility better equipped to handle this emergency.  To the ED Doctor, RNs, the Lab Tech, the Respiratory Tech, the Rad Techs, the ED Pharmacist, the ED Tech, and the HUC...

That happened last night.

I was the primary ED Nurse. 

That's what happened last night. 

Ever have one of those moments?

One of those moments you realized you made a mistake... one there was no good recovery from?

The choices, actions, words... they were now made, done, said/not said...

Especially, when you've made very similar mistakes in the past... yes, you learned, but circumstances were just enough varied that your conscious mind didn't register it...

I fear I lost something very special to me...  and all because of something I did, or did not do...

You know, I have been hearing God whispering to me... this time he went straight to the 2x4!

Alternative Energy

I am all for forms of alternative energy (that is not from hydrocarbon sources)!

Recently, a local school district erected a massive steel structure... covered it in solar panels... and called it a "green project!"

I wonder though...  How much electricity was used to smelt said steel, the fuel burned to truck in the pieces, the fuel burned by said workers to get to the construction site, the hydraulic lifts used to raise the workers (I bet they ran on diesel fuel...), the arc welders, etc...  how "green" was this project?  And this massive solar array will power what?  One building?

This is my opinion: Unless you are stringing a cord outside, and using the sun and wind to dry your clothes... don't talk to me about "green" energy!

I once harvested rain water, even ran it to my toilet, that emptied into a septic system.  Flushes were minimized,because of the rain barrel volume... and the small pump that ran on batteries charged by a solar cell, that only had so much juice!  Showers were kept short because it was well water.  I even started building a wind generator (aka windmill).

So if I buy an electric vehicle... I ask, where will the electricity come from?   Coal? Oil? LPG? NG?  Nuclear? Oh... maybe from those windfarms I see when going to California... maybe from that Solar plant they just built...

The World needs a bridge... get from oil dependency to something else.  Don't force the transition... it will happen.

A throwback to simplier times...

I know I am going against the grain here... after all, it's all about progress and advancement... right?

But as I think back over history, and even watch what some would consider "classic" movies/TV... as hard as it was, I find myself wondering if it was actually easier...

So...

One had to get up at the crack of dawn... meant you went to bed early, probably even by sunset!
There were at least three meals a day, sometimes four... meant your belly always had something!
Had all the food you needed, between livestock & crops... meant you had to work 6 days a week though!
Had one day off a week... meant you worshiped your God though!
You knew your neighbors... meant you relied upon them and they you!
Generations lived together... meant you needed to love one another!
People were self-sufficient... meant they were able to help others within their means!
Almost every family owned a gun... meant everyone else knew that too!
Horse thieves were despised... meant you were hanged if caught!
Most people had manners... meant a civilized society!
Almost every boy could whittle... meant they had a valuable tool!
Hats and handkerchiefs were the most important accessories... meant you had two valuable survival items!

I could go on... but I digress!

Things seemed hard... meant you were hardened!

I can do without my cellphone, my TV, my internet... heck, I know where the Post Office is! Might take me 30 minutes to walk there though...

A Day! A week!

It is National Nurses Day!  The start of a week long celebration culminating with the celebration of a life!

How appropriate!

Tomatos and Peppers...

My Beefsteak tomato plant is doing so-so... a few blooms, maybe some fruit... there are a number of tomato plants on porches in my neighborhood... at least it is growing so I have added the aluminum cone/lattice!  There are a few leaves that have been munched on, but no resident pest...

The Jalapeno plant is growing and thriving... keeping up with the tomato!  No flowers yet...

Will keep you posted!