Travel Day

Today we went from Vancouver WA to just outside Corvallis OR. 102 miles. Easy enough drive, but too much traffic for my taste. Now it is sunny and hot and time for the pool. We woke up to this back window...



And will go to sleep to this back window...

That's it.

Another contract in the books. Worked late last night, didn't get home til after 5 am. That wasn't any fun, but the upside was that I got pictures on my phone of sunrise over Mt. St. Helens. That was cool.




Trying to make better use of the features found here. Let's see if they work.

So now we are off for two weeks worth of adventure before the next contract starts. I have some pictures to upload to facebook from the past week or two and we have some work to do still today to get ready for hauling Irv around. Hopefully the posts can come a little more frequent again as we move around and do stuff.

Every once in a while

It doesn't happen often, but when it does...

Sometimes you can help a patient beyond what is normally offered in the ED. It isn't a prescription, or a bandage, or suture. Sometimes it is who you are and what you have experienced placed through words and into someone at just the right time. Those moments when you see a light turn on when previously there was only darkness and pain are awesome. Sympathy and encouragement are powerful tools when they are appropriate. Just like any other medication though, they shouldn't be overused.

Portland music

So, only one of these artists is actually from the Portland area, but these three songs are the soundtrack for this visit for me. They got a lot of radio play while we were here and I didn't hear them before this trip. Of course, we would have to add Katy Perry to the list because Michael has fallen in love with her.

Portland soundtrack for me:

The Decemberists - This is Why We Fight
The Black Keys - Howlin For You
Mumford and Sons - Little Lion Man.

And anything by Katy Perry. Yeah, I said it.

Path of least resistance/free will

Up late last night and I couldn't think. This is the result.

I think that most people tend to take the path of least resistance in their lives. Because of genetic disposition and environmental factors as well as parental upbringing, these paths are varied and as individual as we are. I believe that this is often called being true to yourself.

It doesn't always look this way to the individual concerned or to an outsider. Many people naturally are drawn to relentless activity or chaos. The echoes of actions of their ancestors combined with their personality type might mean they routinely feign illness, choose abusive partners or other lifestyle choices which are seen as anything but easy. I wonder if maybe it is easy. You see, it requires no analysis of who they are or who they want to be. They simply react in the way most natural to them.

There are many who would say this is a good thing. You are becoming true to yourself. You are developing into the best 'you' you can be. I believe there is a school of thought that states that when you are on your true path, the universe will help you and many things will be easier. If I recall, Joseph Campbell espoused that type of view and I have a tremendous amount of respect for him. I can see where this line of thinking could be true and you could find happiness there.

But...

But then I ask myself where is your free will in this scenario? If you are following the path of least resistance in your life aren't you simply expressing the thoughts, feelings and teachings of your forebears in the way most efficiently expressed by your genetic predisposition? If you feel no resistance and your life seems to just be passing you by maybe you should question why you are doing things that way. Perhaps we are conditioned to this easy passage, I don't see how we couldn't be. Every time you question too deeply or act in a way you decide rather than a way that is natural, you get resistance. It could come from those around you when you cease to behave in a way with which they agree or they are capable of understanding. It could come from you as you question your own identity. "Can I even do that?"

Interesting question, to me anyway. The next question is: "Does it really matter?"

That's what happens when Max wakes me up at 3am and I can't get back to sleep.

Being a man.

A few things have come together lately that got me thinking. This post is the result.

I am raising two boys. I am going to have to try to teach them about being a man. What does that even mean. I regularly frequent sites, blogs and lists about self defense topics and often the macho BS runs high. There seems to be a current running through this society that thinks having the ability to hurt someone and the willingness to do so makes one a man. I would disagree...kind of.

You see, I think that the essence of being a man is the willingness to do what no one else wants to. If that means digging a well knowing that you will still have to work afterword when you are sore and in pain, you do it. If that means cleaning the warm vomit out of the rug when your child is sick in the night, you do it. If that means letting your ego eat a poop sandwich because it is more important that you lose face than lose your job, you do it. You do it, you smile and you work hard so that maybe next time you won't have to.

We all have seen that movies, read the books and whatever other source of entertainment you would like to choose. They show the man stopping the bad guy. Killer Kung Fu, Master of the Sword or Mace, Gunslinger, these are the men set up as idols.

I have an idea as to what went wrong. In the older movies and many of the stories, this man was set up as the hero precisely because he was willing to go and do the dirty work. Because of the background of the audience living in harsher times, they knew that. The audience understood, and I think that it was somewhat more emphasized, that the hero was not assured of success. Maybe he was even scared. That is where being a man comes in. You are so scared you are about to pee on yourself. You know, going in, that this might change you forever and the odds are good that it won't be in a positive way and you do it anyway because it needs to be done.

Being such a badass that you aren't afraid doesn't make you a man. Hurting or killing things doesn't make you a man. Understanding that life is sometimes unpleasant and requires you to do some unpleasant things is a good start. Learning to deal with those unpleasant things is a step. Doing what needs to be done, not just what you want to do, that makes you a man.

Oh yeah, I work in the emergency room as a nurse, I am surrounded by woman who do this. It isn't just about being a man, it turns a girl into a woman too. It is not about being a man, it is about being an adult.

Dozer Days

Took the kids to Dozer Days. This is where a local business or group of businesses got together and set up an event at a local quarry. They set up bulldozers, excavators, backhoes, and other construction equipment and, with the regular operator on board, they let the kids up to ride and 'operate' the equipment. Great fun for kids and it looked like it raised a ton of money for local children's charities. I don't see why there aren't more of these in different places. Another check mark for cool things in this area. They are mounting up.