palmd

Weigh in this morning: 205 lbs. Still looking asymptotic, but decreasing. Yea! I had some stress-related over-eating, which isn't (obviously) a good coping mechanism, but in general, I'm doing better.

The Drake Passage is infamous. Supposedly, it's nearly impossible to make the crossing to without throwing up----a lot. But few "civilians" ever get to experience the passage, and it's ultimate goal----Antarctica. Devorah Bennu is an exceptional science writer and photographer. Reading her…

For the last five hundred years, white America has feared black America. When physical chains were broken, the fear only increased. Rumors of black on white atrocities frequently circulate in white communities that live on the edge of black communities. As my home town integrated, rumors of white…

So, I cheated as usual over the weekend, but not as badly as I might have. I had a seriously awesome bike ride with my kiddo. And today, I'm not terribly hungry. I'm finding that certain things just whet my appetite. One of the drawers in the office has a bad of mini chocolate bars. I can't…

China's a communist country, totally different from the capitalist U.S., right? They probably have some sort of socialized health system that makes Canada look downright libertarian. Right? No. I was talking to a friend (who I'll call "Pu") this week. She was surprised that I had to bend over…

From time to time we see an article (usually from LA) about hospital patients being "dumped" on street corners. I don't know how wide-spread this problem is, but the systemic problem that leads to this is common and serious. Most American hospitals are required to render emergency care to anyone…

The "summer without summer" continues with fall blowing in early. Sitting outside with the kiddo yesterday we found a garter snake sunning itself (and it was pretty big for a garter snake!). Despite the strong north wind, we hopped on the bike and rode up to the school where she'll be starting…

Here in the northern hemisphere, flu season generally starts in the fall and rapidly falls off at the end of winter. This past flu season, we had a "two-fer", with an initial dip in cases, followed by a spike in new cases attributable to the novel H1N1 ("swine") flu that emerged late last year…

I sometimes feel that if I don't crank out two posts a day, I must have "lost it", whatever "it" is. But I've got the shpilkes and I have to write something. The end of the week is hard. Wednesday and Thursday are long days for me, and after I put my kiddo to bed Tuesday night, I often don't…

So, I ate a big meal last night and I'm at 206 today. I think I've gotten a little out of hand with the "cheating". I'm going to have to be more attentive to what I'm shoving down my gullet. Ugh. Well, back to work, then.

The Right is desperate---desperate to derail any sort of health care reform. Notably absent from their diatribes is any debate on the merits of one plan or another. They know that the only way to convince Americans to keep the terrible system we have now is to make them think that any reform…

No, I haven't given up on my diet lifestyle change. I've done a little bit of sinning, especially Friday night at Skeptics in the Pub---beer, burgers, nachos...you name it. Interestingly, it turns out that it's more uncomfortable for me to overeat than it used to be. I'm not sure why that is (but…

People who support our current abominable health care system like to cite Canada's supposed failures as an example of what could happen to us. The argument is a non-starter---it's a straw man designed to scare people. We are a very different country, with a different economy and different needs…

OK, it's time for another science-y post. Usually, I take on something very relevant to my specialty---it's a helluva lot easier to write about stuff I already know. But some basics are just really cool, and worth exploring, even though I'll have to step a bit outside my comfort zone. In this case…

My friend Janet has a piece up about what qualifies one to be a philosopher, a piece which is remarkably brief but says much. She points out that get a position at a university, there are certain requirements, but that one can be "off the books". Anyone can call themselves a philosopher, and if…

I'm really trying to understand this. Really. Why is the outcry against health care reform so much louder than the call for reform? I have a very hard time believing that a majority of people are against some sort of improvement in our system. Around here, people are losing their insurance right…

Last night's Daily Show was hands down the best discussion of the health care reform insanity on TV, radio, or web. What interested me the most was how McCaughey revealed some of her real agenda, and how she actually brought up some almost-right points. Even more surprising, Jon Stewart…

It's about time! Thanks to some terrific folks, like my buddy JB, we are having our first SE Michigan Skeptics in the Pub. This is an informal pilot, originally a small get-together, but seems to be growing. If you're in SE Michigan and want to have a beer with a group of like-minded folks,…

Let's say you have cancer. And let's say you're really, really sick of having cancer. And let's say that you're also pretty tired of scans, chemo, radiation, hair loss, nausea. And let's say you're not really sick and tired of living, but actually pretty happy to be alive. Finally, let's say…

I was one of those crazy folks who loved medical school---not just the clinical years, but the pre-clinical sciences as well. The transition from pre-clinical to clinical can be rather unnerving (picture learning how to do a pelvic exam on paid models). One of my first clinical experiences was in…

In his latest comment, Philip H has accelerated my reluctant discussion of health care reform. In fact, it was Philip who bullied me into writing about this topic in the first place. I've been avoiding wading into this mess, but being on the front line, it's in my face every day. What he says in…

So, I'm at the end of week #2. I started, fully clothed and after breakfast, at 212. Last Wednesday I was 208. Today I'm 206. My successes have been in maintaining sustainable eating habits. My failures have been in keeping to an exercise program. I haven't been completely sedentary, but I…

Once again, I'm sucked into the discussion on health care reform. I despise this topic, because so much of what is wrong with our current system could be fixed relatively easily, if Americans could just take an ideologic leap. Most of us have heard of "pre-existing condition (PEC)" clauses---those…

I had a chance to watch the President take questions at town hall meetings this weekend. He sought out opposing views, and handled them brilliantly, responding to them rather than giving empty answers. He also didn't talk down to the audience. The pity is that the take home message in the news…

So, my exercise has fallen off a bit, but I think I'm getting back to it. I rode a bit this weekend but the heat drove me inside. I tend to let myself eat just about whatever on weekends---turns out I don't like to eat that much. I get nauseated (not that it always stops me). Saturday morning I…

I'm passionate about medicine. I love practicing it, teaching it, learning it...everything about it. It's also damned scary sometimes. Knowledge changes; patients don't walk in with textbook diseases; and you have to be able to doubt yourself without drowning in indecision. Every time a patient…

This is, of course, an absurd question. Getting all 300 million of us to agree on this isn't going to be easy. But a parody circulating on the internet shows how misunderstood we Americans can be. National social programs are relatively new in the States---Medicare, the plan that gives medical…

I've been blogging long enough now that it's hard for me to keep track of what I have or have not written, and on which particular blog. I used to be pretty compulsive about digging up old links to my first blog (now in storage) or to denialism, or even to this blog, but this can be paralyzing. I…

The cupcake wasn't even that good. Look, you can say whatever you want about satiety, but I WANT FUCKING CARBS ALL THE TIME!!!!!!