Category: health

Open Wide

No, not that. [1]Get your mind out of my gutter!  Finally, I got off my ass and found a new dentist.  Digressing for a moment, please ignore the multitude of typo’s in my last post.  I was pressed for time and didn’t really check it for accuracy.  Anyway,  the new dentist is conveniently located in the heart of the Castro and I liked him immediately.  I am very picky about people who I pay to make me better.  Trust is big with me and I like knowing I’m not being shafted (in the bad way). 

I must admit I was a tad paranoid.  I found a dentist when I first moved to SF however, it had been 10 years since my teeth had seen any kind of professional work.  Boy did I have some catching up to do. lol  So today, I was thinking of the last time.  It went very smooth though.  Only minor build up and I was in and out under 2 hours. [2]For a first time visit, that was pretty fast.  Ex-rays, consultation, cleaning. BAM!   He did say he thought my choice of toothbrush had a big impact.  My last dentist suggested the Sonicare brush and I gave it a whirl.  I have an issue with paying $100 for a freaking toothbrush.  I have to admit though, it was a good buy.  Even on my random schedule of brushing, my gums were in good shape.  And seeing a dentist get overly excited about your choice of toothbrush is rather comical I might add. 

I only have one new small cavity and one of my existing fillings is cracked. [3]Damn popcorn kernels!  I go back in two weeks to get the cavity fixed, two weeks after that the filling.  Then comes the scary part.  I get a referral to an orthodontist for braces.  I’m hoping I’m a candidate for invisilign.   I’ve decided if I’m not, I’m not getting braces.  Try as I might, I can’t resolve myself to that.  My teeth aren’t that crooked first of all.  And trying to manage a clean mouth full of metal is more than I’m willing to bear.  Wish me luck!

References

References
↑1 Get your mind out of my gutter!
↑2 For a first time visit, that was pretty fast.  Ex-rays, consultation, cleaning. BAM!
↑3 Damn popcorn kernels!

Heifer

I’ve all but given up on keeping up with my blogroll.  I just have too many damn blogs to keep up with.  It was easier when no one read my madness. hehehe.   Anyway, in making an attempt today, I’ve noticed several of my blog buddies ranting about weight loss. 

We have become a nation obsessed with instant gratification.  We care more about fast food than healthy food.  Sad but true.  We are constantly bombarded by fast food ads.  No wonder so many folks are overweight.  It is just easier to be an overweight slob.  And don’t even get me started on a sub-section of the bear culture the delights in slothfulness.  Rather than deal with the problem, let’s make it glamorous.  Oh yeah, there’s an answer.  I digress…  Staying in shape is no easy task.  It takes a conscious will to maintain a good diet.  You might say, "well why should I bother then?"  My answer, it may not be your fault but it is your problem.  Another complaint I often here, "I just don’t have time in my day to workout."  That is the biggest cop-out I think I’ve ever heard.  We make time for things we care about.  Stop finding reasons why you can’t and find some why you can.  Three hours a week ain’t that hard in the scope of things. [1]Hell, I spend more time just looking for sex.

There are some fairly simple things you can do to combat your exploding waistline. 

1) Cut out sugared sodas!  High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) has become the number one contributor to obesity in Western Culture. [2]I’d wager other places too  I’ve beat this horse before so I won’t go on and on. If nothing else, switch to a non-sugared soda.  Your waist (and your heart) will thank you.

2) Cut way back on trans-fats. That means fried foods too.  Being a Southern boy, I know the delights of fried foods however, I’ve cut most of it out of my diet.  I splurge every now and then.  There is a big difference between a random splurge and routine consumption.  That also means about 80% of fast food places.  You do need some trans-fats in your diet however, not to the extent that we consume it.  There is enough trans-fat in one fast food burger/fries to meet your daily requirements for a full week! 

3) Cut back on sodium (salt) and preservatives.  A good rule of thumb, if it has more than 20% of sodium per serving, you don’t need it. 

4) Reduce your portions at meal time.  You’d be surprised how much this helps. 

5) If you don’t exercise regularly, add 3 hours a week.  Three hours!  If you can’t find the time to add 3 measly hours, stop whining because you obviously aren’t serious about losing weight.  If you do exercise, consistency is key.  Intensity matters however, most folks burn themselves out by going overboard.  Slow and steady progress wins every time. 

I could go on and on but you’d be surprised how much weight you’d drop by trying out the 5 tips above.  Obviously, if you are trying to lose 5-15lbs of vanity weight, the above tips might not show a dramatic increase however, it will help.  Most people aren’t looking for ripped abs they just want to see their stomach muscles. 

I was telling someone today, I hate the word "diet".  Dieting just teaches your body more efficient ways to store fat you aren’t using.  This makes it harder to burn off later.  Duh.  Don’t starve yourself.  Work on gradually changing your eating (and exercise) habits.  A good way to do this is to set goals and track your progress.  Tracking your weight loss (gain) gives you focus.  We tend to succeed at things we focus on routinely.  Setting an empty goal with no action plan will almost always fail. 

/rant

References

References
↑1 Hell, I spend more time just looking for sex.
↑2 I’d wager other places too

Confused Again

So I came up with the poll this week after my friend Matthew said he was a bit upset over being turned down by poz guys. He said two different guys he was interested in dating wouldn’t go out w/him because he was negative. I had to ask again as I was sure I misheard what he said. Nope, I heard him correctly. A poz guy wouldn’t go out with him because he was negative. Ironic wouldn’t you say? Being completely flummoxed, I asked one of my long time (20+ years) poz friends and his response, “well, it is just easier to play with someone who is also poz.” Wait, wait….wait just a damn minute. So now the poz community is using the same flawed logic as the negative community? WTF? After all, isn’t that the same excuse an ignorant negative person would use. After he thought about it, “yeah I guess it is.” I just don’t get people sometimes. Someone would have unprotected sex w/a complete stranger because he says he is negative but they won’t have safe sex w/an honest poz guy. Oh yeah, that makes perfect logic to me. NOT!

Frankly, I’d have safe sex with a serodiscordant person before I’d have any kind of sex w/a meth or drug addict. At least w/a serodiscordant person I know where I stand and what I’m protecting myself against. The latter not so much. I could go on and on about the damage meth does to your brain. Simply put, the most apparent symptom is often extreme paranoia. Paranoia that can and often leads to violence. No thank you.

Sadly, even today there is still a lot of ignorance surrounding HIV and how it is spread. Unless you are into some freaky shit, it really just takes a condom and condom-safe lube. Yep, that is all it takes. And, in an age where a plethora of medical knowledge is only a click away, you have no excuse not to know at least the basics.

219

This is the code we use at work for a stabbing victim; which is what I felt like the other day when I went down to Magnet for a routine STD test.1 I get signed in and go to the back to face the obligatory interrogation as to why I’m there. No worries, as I know all to well the burden placed on the City’s healthcare system. We make it thru the throat swab and the “bend and spread’em” swab problem free. I mean how hard is it to fuck up a swab test? Then comes the very minor, one would think, routine blood draw to test for the ugly-headed monster called syphilis. Forgetting for a moment, both of my arms are very vascular,2 the phlebotomist managed to stab completely thru a large vein. Naturally, I end up with a large hematoma afterwards. (Simply put, blood collecting under the skin) If you’ve never had one, the blood quickly dissipates however, it tends to be very unsightly and causes pain days later from the surrounding muscle tissue being irritated. So now, I look like Farrah Faucet in the ‘Burning Bed’ after she’d been thoroughly beaten by her husband. Lord, I know they don’t get paid a lot to do that job but, asking for a minute amount of competence is not pushing it in my opinion. And the real kicker was this was not the first time! It also happened on my previous pilgrimage. I wrote a stinging letter to the City Health Director as well as the Clinic Director. I guarantee you next time I go back it won’t happen again.

I called off work today. For a variety of reasons, I was not in my “happy place” and work would have been a disaster had I gone in. I did finally use the down time to get the laundry done. I don’t honestly know why I have such a mental block when it comes to laundry. I wonder if it stems from my childhood. I know, you are probably going “childhood? WTF?” Well, once when I was about 3 or 4 years old my father locked me in the dryer and turned it on for about a minute. You see, I used to climb in our dryer and hide. I had been warned countless times not to do it so I guess he thought he’d teach me a lesson. It worked too. I never ever played in the dryer again after that. No, I don’t seriously think it’s related but it is an odd coincidence don’t ya think?

*

In other news, my friend Matthew, who just moved to SF, got a temp. job working for a porn company. No, not as an actor or a fluffer, he is a grunt. In regular movie terms, he’d be a grip. He is all excited and couldn’t stop talking about it today over lunch. The most pressing issue on his mind was what to wear. Bless his heart. I’m sure it sounds exciting but when you actually do it, it isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be. Well, from my point of view anyway. However, I am rather jaded as I live with a porn star who I have known practically all of my adult life. And lets face it, you can’t shake a stick w/o bumping into a rising star here. (pun intended) He is getting paid a fair share for his efforts so there is a positive aspect to it. And moving from Oklahoma City to SF, I can certainly understand his excitement.

1 No, I don’t have a nasty drip just past due for my routine test.
2 A misappropriation of the word referring to large veins close to the surface of the skin.

Testing 1 2 3

I had my oral interview this morning for the EMT gig. I did not do as well as I wanted but I did ok. I expected something completely different and had to radically adjust my thinking once there. Not the end of the world as it is the overall score I’m concerned with however, I could have done better. The physical agility test is this afternoon. I am not worried about it at all as I do the skills required on a very regular basis.

So now I’m home, licking my wounds and having lunch. More later.

***Update***

I made up for sucking ass on the oral interview. I fucking aced the PAT1! Not only that but I was the oldest guy in my group and I had the fastest time. hehehe. The other 3 guys were all in their 20’s. Two were very young and the other was late 20’s. All of us were in pretty good shape. I am so proud of myself! The test consisted of several components. You had to pick up and carry two 35lb bags (70lbs total) and run up 6 flights of stairs (7 floors). At the top, you dropped the bags and dragged a prone dummy 30 feet from one line to the next. After you get the all clear, you grab your two bags and head back down the stairs to the bottom. At the end, you run over and pull a loaded gurney from an ambulance, secure the legs, and then put it back in again. No biggie right? Here’s the catch. You have to do it all under 4 minutes. I had a full minute and 30 seconds to spare from beginning to end!

Admittedly, the hardest part is dragging 70lbs up six flights of stairs. I was chugging along pretty well until that last fraking stairwell between 6-7. My poor quads were screaming for release and more than a little rubbery. I had forgotten to change and wear my tennies and I’m sorta glad now. On the way down, my boots provided a lot of traction as my poor legs were barely under control. I kept saying “feets” don’t fail me now!
Continue reading Testing 1 2 3

I Got It!

I got my notice from the Fire Dept. about my test. I passed! Yeeehawwww! LOL

Next comes my PAT (physical agility test) and the oral interview. Both are scheduled for the 25th of this month. Those are the last two hurdles before I get my final placement on “the list”. The list determines where I rank in order of seniority. What does that mean? Well, if I rank 10 on the list, then I get slot 10 going down the list from 1. There are 32 slots available. If I rank 33, I end up in line for the next group of hires.1

More good news, I found out I have the option to do a waive. If I get called up in the first group, I have the option to waive off. This bumps me to the top of the list for the next group of hires. The only down side is the first group gets instant seniority above me but I’m ok with that. The EMT position pays half what I’m making now. I’ve crunched the numbers and I just can’t take that much of a hit right now. However, if I get on the list, I can work toward putting some moolah away for next time. Even better news, I found out they are definitely planning on an in-house program to promote EMT’s to Medics. That was my game plan from the start and you can imagine my relief at knowing it is a definite.

People keep asking me why I’m jumping for a job that pays half my salary. Well, I’m not planning on staying an EMT. I fully plan to become a paramedic. It is more inline with I want to do, it pays more than my current position and the retirement is hugely better. If I get on in the next 2 years, I would be able to retire, if I wanted too, anytime between 55-60 instead of waiting till I’m 65.2

I plan on using the land my dad left me as nice retirement bonus too. By the time I do retire, it will fetch a hefty price. One might say, yours truly is smart and handsome. . . naaaaaah.

1 I’m hoping this is where I end up actually.
2 That is if Bush doesn’t completely bankrupt the damn country.

Stick a Fork In Me…

…I’m Done!

I finally took my test today! I showed up again today and it was busy as hell this time. Apparently, they took 500 applications not 400. But no pressure, right? The test was hard but I did about how I expected. Best case scenario, I got a B plus. Worst case, I got a C+ Either way, I’m happy. A big thank you to everyone for all the encouragement and good thoughts. It really helped. One of my classmates from my EMT class was there and sat next to me. Having someone I knew around made me less nervous. I was having a hard time focusing though. Sooo many fine ass men. Dayum! I can’t remember if I mentioned it but a huge chunk of the applicants are attempting to use this job as a way to get into the fire dept. as a firefighter. SF Fire has a very long waiting list for firefighters. Because of the classification differences and civil service rules, they could feasibly bypass the original list if they got in as an EMT and transferred to an open spot later. Sneaky huh?

The test had some stuff I’d never seen before. It is designed to test your working knowledge as well as your reasoning skills in unforeseen circumstances. The latter being the true test of your triage and treatment skills. I was a little intimidated at first however, I realized I have a good a chance as anyone else there.

Now that it’s over, I’m sooo relieved. My week has been a chaotic mess of studying and running around making sure I had all my ducks in a row. I get to relax and enjoy the rest of my vacation days.

Thank you again to everyone. I’m off to dinner w/the roomie.

Body by Moby II

Someone reminded me today I never posted the follow up to this post. Oopsie. I forgot. So here it is. Keep in mind, if you have medical problems, you should definitely consult w/a doctor or nutritionist before making any drastic changes to your routine.

Back in post one I covered three ways to a better body. First and most important is diet. For the purpose of this discussion, this definition works best for me.

Diet – 1) habitual nourishment and 2) a regimen of eating and drinking sparingly so as to reduce one’s weight. Notice how the word has two very distinct meanings. Sadly, most folks think dieting means starving yourself. That is the worst thing you can do to your body. And just so you know, starving yourself teaches your body more efficient ways to store fat.

Rule 1 – Eat Better
Continue reading Body by Moby II

Two More Seconds of Fame

If you live anywhere in the area you’ve heard about the breaking story of the day. Some guy goes bonkers and decides to start running over pedestrians all over the city. All told he hit over 15 people w/14 of those being transports. Of course, today was my ride-along so guess who’s crew was first onscene? Not to mention, we were code 3 half way across the city to get there. And, we had just finished dropping off a resuscitation patient.

Again, I’m not gloating over others misfortune just my good fortune to gain such valuable on the job experience. Skipping ahead the guy was finally caught and hauled off to jail. But that’s not even the best part. I got caught on film on the news! I found out via my ex. He called to tell me I was on the news. The clips are from news sites that don’t like to share their feeds so they are in asx formats. I had to be very sneaky to find’em. If you have windows media player installed it should open and play automatically.

I found two clips of the same scene edited differently. I’m about half way thru each clip. You see me once briefly in the background behind a gourney. Then again a few seconds later, you see a closer shot of me walking into the hospital. As usual, I think I look gay as hell but you decide. hehehe.

Clip 1 and Clip 2