My Two Cents...

Aaah, it's April. Another month, another post.

I could not make up my mind on what to rave and rant about so I just took a couple of random snippets from the eternal sunshine of my spotless mind.

RANT: I genuinely harbor a growing dislike for expats. I guess that's too much of a generalization. Let's narrow it down to expats who think that just because they've gone to work in a foreign country, make them authorities on how to best treat their sick family members.

One incident in the recent weeks was a nurse who worked in a 1st World country (as opposed to our country's glowing ranking in the world), came to tend to his sister who had a hemorrhage in her brain due to an aneurysm. She was awake with no motor problems whatsoever. She had an elevated white blood cell count and a slight fever. To placate him, one of the attendings had an infectious disease consult immediately, and even started antibiotics for prophylaxis, but we all knew that, given the paucity of other symptoms linking to a likely infection, her fever and white blood cell count was reactive in origin.

I went on duty at the ICU and he went on about blood cultures, and how it was standard in the country he worked in to get them before starting on antibiotics, the necessity of a sputum exam, among other things that we did or did not do that apparently was common practice in his country.

Feeling a wee bit insulted, annoyed, and concerned all at the same time, I got up, spoke in perfect and straight English as I could, and proceeded to go through how a cerebral hemorrhage can cause fever complete with pathophysiology of the breakdown of red blood cells and how it can cause irritation and further inflammation, how a blood culture though useful is actually a poor yield for isolates (but you can't dispute it if you have a growth).

He looked at me in disbelief, and even gave me a grin/sneer/smile that made me even more furious and said,"That's new to me. Really?" he chuckled and added,"You'll get killed if you mention that in the NCLEX."

I smiled, and calmly said, "Oh sir, I don't need to take the NCLEX, I'm a doctor."

I gave him a pat on the back and tended to the other patients.

Welcome home.

RAVE: This season of American Idol has not been as great as seasons past. I'm glad that my preperformance favorite Crystal has quietly emerged as the frontrunner (though I usually like the underdogs, so mixed emotions about that). And that her peformance of Midnight Train To Georgia was beautiful (what can I say, I'm partial to the piano).

There were only 3 voices I liked hearing this season -- Crystal, Casey James and Alex Lambert -- since then, Lambert is gone, James has been reduced to strumming his guitar and heartthrob status, so that just leaves Bowersox for me.

My two cents worth on AI:

Michael Lynche is somehow good because there isn't anybody else who is doing the whole R and B, Hip Hop thing, he sings too much on the consonants and not the vowels, there is something that annoys me about his voice and his antics, and I don't trust a performer when it looks like anytime he could break his guitar by just cradling it.

Siobhan Magnus is serial-killer, artsy chick, Bjork weirdo singer. Sometimes I like her (Rolling Stones week), and sometimes I don't (the rest of the other weeks). I've grown to hate inappropriate screaming and she's bordering on Adam Lambert Status.

Tim Urban should be gone. Aaron Kelly and his "aw-shucks" routine is getting on my nerves. Seriously, I really wouldn't want to listen to a whole album of his songs. Lee Dewyze and Andrew Garcia are redundant. Katie Stevens (despite her sometimes look-a-like to Lei, a close friend) remind me of a beauty pageant queen / evil mastermind at the same time. And she just doesn't know what to sing.

Aaargghhh, who cares right? I'm just one vote.

RANT: My Pistons....Oh the pain.

Looking forward to the draft. This season is over for me. I could not care less who wins the championship but they better look out, next season we're coming for you.

RAVE: Hooray for the Holy Holidays and skeletal duties. Nothing like a good day's rest to get you ready for the weeks ahead. It just rejuvenates the tired soul. With that being said, I expect it's going to be a really busy busy busy week.

Happy Easter everyone.