Medic 80 (from August 2006)

The other day I did some serious complaining about my crew not cooking at the station. It has been said that the sqeaky wheel get's the grease. It has also been said that it is the first to be replaced. Well it seems that there is a leak/snitch reading my blog, because yesterday breakfast was cooked. Dinner would have been better, but you have to start some where. You have to take what you can get. So to the "my space informant", I salute you, and I'd like very much to not be replaced.

It was another easy day at the office. We made some calls and got some rest. We also got our ambulance back from the shop. After being in 5 different vehicles in the last month, it's nice to drive something with less than 100k miles.

In my first HFD remembered blog, I made reference to there being a bunch of crazies in this city. Well I got to meet two more. The first one was a 60 something year old crazy lady. She was so much fun. She was saying that it was flooded and that there was water everywhere and then she said that her husband cut her with knives this morning. She was on a ton of good psych medications and had stopped taking em on her own. So her equilibrium was all off and she was hallucinating. She said the year was 002, 009, 006 and said she didn't want to go to the hospital, but she wanted to go to Hallisville, Tx. I did what any amused person would do, I played along. So I told her we'd take her to Hallisville. We made all kinds of small talk as I humored her delusions. When at the hospital they asked her if she knew where she was and she said " Hallisville, Tx". Now that's what I'm talking about. Can I get an Amen? The next one was a 22 year old person who has the mind of maybe a 13 year old. Poor thing didn't need an ambulance, just to respect authority and if she wasn't so old I'd say she needs a good old fashioned spanking. Her foster mother called because the child was yelling at her. If my mom called an ambulance everytime I yelled at her, they'd probably leave an ambulance parked in front of my house. So the crazy award goes to the mother who is too lazy to deal with her child. I really felt more for the girl than the mom. The mom decided she was going to send the child to find another foster home. It really irks me, because people like her are foster parents for the money. Everyone knows it's not easy. Heck raising your own blood children is hard work. More than anything kids need love, stability, structure and consistency. All the foster mother is teaching her is that you suck and I don't want you anymore, and you have not and will not earn my love. Meanwhile the child get's tossed to and for like a leaf in the wind, never knowing what it is to love and be loved. Well miss foster mom, you're the one who sucks, you lazy money loving.... Okay I'm off my soap box. So we called for a basic unit to take this hurting child to the hospital to talk to someone. I pray that someone will take her in and show her what true love is, love as Christ himself showed.

Let's see, we had to wait at the scene of a gas leak for an hour. Z said I was catching flies because I was sleeping so hard with my mouth wide open. Some workers were digging and busted the gas supply line. So all kinds of people were out there, and HFD was to the rescue. I sure am glad that I am on the ambulance today because those on the hazmat team and the pumpers had to be fully geared up in their firefighting gear in the 100 degree weather and dig up and cap off the leak. Crazy.

We went a whole day doing basic calls. Our last run came in as an overdose, and low and behold it was the real deal. This fella stopped at an undisclosed location after work to buy some pills, because he hurt his knee at work. Well his sister came home and found dude out cold, lights out, syanara, see ya wouldn't wanna be ya. Dude has high as a kite, with pinpoint pupils. We put him on some oxygen and I started an IV with our biggest needle and he didn't even flinch. Those must be some goooood pills. While we were on the way to the hospital I gave him some Narcan, which counters the effects certain drugs. About a minute later he popped up and was scared as can be. I told him what happened and that we were on the way to the hospital. Well they did what any other hospital would have done, they stuck a catheter in his manhood. Now I have had the misfortune of seeing this done way too many times. They take a tube that is about as thick as those big straws from Wendy's that you use for a frosty, and they shove it up the pee whole and into the bladder. It is painful to watch, I promise. Well this guy's high was gone because of me and he flexed every muscle, turned red as a tomato and screamed like a little girl. I don't blame him for any of that. My heart broke for him and I felt just a little bit guilty, but he did do this to himself. So once again, kids drugs are bad. Just say NO.

Over the last 3 years, I have gotten to see a lot of cool procedures done in the hospital. I have seen knee replacement in which the surgeons have power tools and chisels, play lout music and get down to business as if they were in their own garages. I've gotten to pump someone's stomach because she overdosed as she was awake and watching me. I've seen a stomach blown up with air that leaked into the stomach after I breathed for him using the bag just before I "tubed" him. And the most wicked thing was surgery on "testicular torsion." What happened to him was that his nuts got twisted up and cut off the circulation. The surgeon cut open his sack and all this liquid squirted out. Nasty. That hurt me to watch too.

Bad things happen to people all the time. In the car wreck I blogged about last week, I watched as they drilled and placed a bar in the lady's leg. Cool stuff. They can fix almost anything these days. If God allows you to live, they/we can drastically improve your quality of life. It is an awesome thing to get to be a part of. A true blessing. Til the next episode.