December 2006

I love the holiday season! I love the weather, the food-you know big daddy loves the food-giving presents, lights on the house. The whole bit. This also seems to be the season to get sick and sometimes die. Death seems to come about in spurts. I can go a month or months without seeing dead people then bam all the sudden they're everywhere.

I got to work on Thanksgiving day and made some serious dinero for doing so. It's always nice when a guy can make a little extra cash for the holidays. The holidays bring about the best and worst in people. For instance a young fellow organized Thanksgiving dinner for the firefighters at Station 69. They came through with more food than I have ever seen on one day at one place. There were 4-5 turkeys, salmon, dressing, calamari, 30 or so pies, drinks, chips, dip, rolls, bread, any side dish imaginable. It's nice to feel appreciated from time to time.

The runs:
--An old fellow passed out in his seat while eating Thanksgiving dinner at a very nice and expensive hotel. The cause, unknown. Maybe too much excitement and viagara for an 80yr old in one day. When he came to, he didn't know where he was, but everything else checked out.
Another old fellow had a stroke. He had just made it home when he noticed himself going paralyzed and having trouble speaking. He got on the phone and his daughter called 911. Everyone did their job-the patient, his family, EMS, and the Dr. We got him to the hospital fast, so they can work their magic. I assume he is doing great!

--Death came rearing for a 100 year old man at about 6pm. It's about time. 100 it's amazing he made it that far. What's more amazing is that we had a student who needed to get an intubation and had to run and race against our supervisor who is notorious for wanting to do everything himself so he can be the "hero." The supervisor was about 15 yards ahead of us as we entered the lobby and he the elevator. He didn't hold the door for us, and we watched the doors close as he rushed to get the "tube" first. Well when we got to the apartment he was about to open the guys mouth for the tube and I told him to hold on because we had a student and he gave some lame excuse, but conceded and our student did his thing. We ended up shocking the old feller quite a few times, but he was gone. There's only so much a 100 year old heart can handle.
2AM, the day after Thanksgiving, I saw some juvenile behavior from some middle aged people.

--This nice young couple, an engineer and a flight attendant, went to a Thanksgiving day party and got wasted like they were at a frat house and then said, "we wanted to have some fun," so they smoke some weed. Well the idiot of a man was acting like a little girl, crying, curled up in a fetal position, whining his girlfriend's name. Freaking loser wanted to be cool and then let peer pressure get to him and now he's acting like a baby. I wanted to pimp slap him, because I keep my pimp hand strong. I refrained and took him to the hospital where the loser put himself on the floor, shirtless, in the fetal position and crying. What a sight. Pathetic. Where are all the responsible adults at these days.

--Another elderly man was taken out of this world. His family found him in the evening. Dead. We were in first and did all we could. I got to use our IO drill which establishes and IV in the bone. It was cool. It was also the first time I can remember working someone to the max and then having our doctor on the phone terminate efforts-which is what the family wanted. I'm starting to get the hang of this trying to bring people back.

--We get called to an assault. When we pull into the neighborhood, there are police cars everywhere. At least 10 of them with officers in the street and a sea of onlookers. I'm thinking this can't be good. Apparently a mom tried to stop her 15 year old daughter from walking out of the house against her orders by grabbing her arm. The daughter ran upstairs and called 911 telling the operator that her mom was beating her up. The girl only had a scratch on her arm where her mother grabbed her. Hardly child abuse, though the girl's actions warrant some serious abuse. There was nothing the police could do to the mom or the daughter. That little girl needs a serious whooping. Old skool style. This whole human rights/freedom thing has gotten way out of control. Everyone has rights, except the people who are doing right.

--We made another scene swarmed with cop cars. We pull up and a guy is being hog tied by police. His face is all bloody, with blood on the ground, on a police car and broken glass. It turns out that this outstanding citizen was "high" on something-more than likely PCP and was pacing up and down the street talking to himself. Someone called 911, the police officer drove up in his car, lowered his window to ask what the problem was and the guy reached in and started choking the officer. A fight ensued, the officer managed to hit his panic button or called for back up. It took a bunch of men to get him down. They put him in the cop car and the beast kicked out all the back windows. I cleaned his wounds with peroxide and left him to be taken to jail. I don't think I could be a cop and put up with that kind of behavior without using my gun. That officer showed restraint. A little thing called self control, that not too many people in our society care to exhibit.

--Bullets to the head seem to pretty much end life quickly. It was a very surreal scene as we made the call for a GSW to the head. A middle aged man in a nice neighborhood decided it would be a good idea to end his life. He thought he was being considerated by laying out a note, all the insurance papers, bank account info, stocks etc, and then by shooting himself in the back yard instead of inside. Suicide is such a cowardly and selfish act period. Now his wife is a widow, his children are fatherless, and it is during the holidays, so they will forever associate the two.

Life is not easy. At times it is tough, it is stressful, we may even think that we are better off dead. The reality is that our selfish/sinful actions affect everyone around us. The reality is that as long as we wander through this life trying to cope with things on our own, without the help of an Almighty God, we will always feel inadequate. Jesus came to carry the burdens that we can't handle on our own. There is a God who loves you more than you could ever imagine, so much that he gave up his own son, so he could have a relationship with you. Life isn't all honkeydory as a Christian, we have the same problems, the same temptations. But he gives us the strength to overcome them. He gives us peace in the midst of a storm. He wants to do the same for you.