First Aid

Hey everybody! With all the terrible things that could happen in the world, have you ever wondered what you would do in case you were deprived of medical assistance in an emergency. For example, if there were an earthquake and thousands were dead or injured around you?

Well I don't know about you, but I'm not one to dependent on others to help me. So, I emailed an awesome doctor, and asked for advice on what to keep on hand in case of emergency. What should be in a "real" first aid kit.

He didn't write this list, but he likes it. Pick up a few things every now and again, and toss them in your first aid bag.

Stay safe!!

Essentials

• CPR face shield
• Barrier gloves (nitrile)
• Duct tape (infinite uses)
• Safety pins (infinite uses)
• Gauze bandages
• Betadine®
• Moleskin® & foam
• Trauma Scissors
• Cotton tipped applicators (eye foreign body removal-evert eyelid; blister care- medication application)
• Oral rehydration salts
• Dermabond®

Priority

• Suture kit/staples
• Sterile trauma pads
• Forceps
• Sterile dressings
• Low/high range digital thermometer
• Lip balm
• Skin glue (Krazy Glue®)
• Splint-padded molded aluminum (SAM®)
• Moleskin®/Molefoam®
• Snakebite extractor kit
• Petroleum Jelly
• Sun block lotion
• Adhesive tape
• Cough drops
• Stockinette bandage
• Non-adherent dressing
• Triangular bandage
• Gauze roll bandage (Kling®)
• Stethoscope
• Elastic roll bandage (Coban®)
• Antibiotic ointment
• Sphygmomanometer
• Benzoin®
• Surgical brush
• Wound closure strips

Dental Kit

• Floss
• Cavit® filling materials
• Zinc Oxide
• Cotton balls and pellets
• Eugenol® (Oil of cloves)

Medication

Non-prescription

• Benadryl®, Antihistamine (pills, eye gtts)
• Aloe Vera Gel
• Glucose paste (Glutase®)
• Ibuprofen
• Dramamine®
• Imodium®
• Pepto Bismol®
• Betadine®
• Antibiotic ointment (Mupiricin®)
• Oral hydration salts
• Hydrocortisone cream
• Mylanta®/H2 blocker (Pepcid)
• Afrin® nasal Spray (sinus-epistaxis)
• Zinc Oxide (Sun block, burn, filling material)
• Lidocaine soaked cleans pad/Benzalkonium

Prescription

• Epinephrine auto injector (EpiPen®)
• Antibiotics
• Biaxin®/Avelox® (resp. PCN allergy)
• Amox./Clav. (resp./skin) Augmentin®
• Ciprofloxicin® (travel diarrhea)
• Cefuroxime/Cephalexin
• Metronidizole® (Giardia/vag)
• Cortisporin otic®
• Compazine®/Phenergan® (motion-vomiting)
• Ciloxin® ophthalmic (eye infection)
• Hydrocodone (pain, cough, diarrhea)
• Acetazolimide (Diamox®) (hace/hape/ams-diuretic)
• Prednisone/Dexamethasone (hace/hape-poison oak, allergic reaction)
• H1 Blocker (Claritin®)
• Nifedipine
• Doxycycline (rickettsial/empiric)
• Albuterol inhaler

Things I Have To Be Thankful For

1. The health and well being of my family.
2. My new job which starts on Tuesday.
3. My new home. It's comfortable and safe.
4. My electric bill, after we moved, it went down by OVER $200 a month.
5. My new job.
6. My new job.....

George W. Bush Chuckles To Self Upon Thinking About How He Was President Of The United States For Almost A Decade

Things that irk me

I had this same feeling when George Bush was President, so don't get all bent out of shape.

One of my biggest irks, and it is mainly in regard to the news media, has to do with the way they speak about the President. Very specifically, I think it is rude and inappropriate when the President is referred to as Mr. Obama, or in the past, Mr. Bush.

The fact of the matter is, these men have earned the title of President of the United States, and thus should be referred to as such. President Obama, President Bush, or even Mr. President are what these men should be called. Bottom line.

Update

Well, Dan Brown's new novel The Lost Symbol is out, and I've obtained my copy. Only a few chapters in so far, but it seems like a good read. I can't yet say it's a masterpiece, but that's because I haven't read enough yet to make a decision one way or another.

On the weather front, it is unfortunately beginning to look like a bum year. Who knows if we'll have any major storms make landfall, and if we do, who knows if that will create any long term work for me. That being said, I'm going to explore some other options in the mean time. I'd love to move back to a staff position with a carrier, but with this economy beggars can't be choosers.

I"m even considering doing some off time with Disney again. I mean we can't go forever with no major storms, and in the mean time I can't go forever with no regular work. Something like Disney would give me the chance to make a few bucks doing something I truly enjoyed doing, and at the same time getting lots of discounts on the things my family really enjoys. It's a good thing my wife is the real breadwinner in the family though.

Also, we're going to be moving. Just can't afford this house anymore. Gonna put it on the market probably the first part of next month, and in the mean time we're going to get something inexpensive for a little while. Give us the opportunity to spend less, which will in turn mean have the ability to pay down debts, and eventually recover from this economic meltdown. Personally, I don't mind living a bit below my means for a while upfront, so I can enjoy my life more later.

So really this is not at all a sad time, it's an opportunity to try a few new things and see where life takes us.

Take care everybody.

Sick

So I have swine flu. Actually, it may just be a cold but I still feel terrible. Otherwise, there is a glint of hope in the air. I know we're officially like three weeks into fall, but today I could sense it in the weather for the first time. Fall is my favorite season. It's always been a time of new beginnings. It's the start of a cycle where what we have starts to leave us, and soon we'll be growing new things.

Mainly, I just really like the weather. Not so much the weather itself, but the feeling of the weather. The smells in the air of leaves and grass starting to die. When it starts getting cooler then we'll have that smell of woodsmoke in the air. Ohhh, I just love it. We always have a gathering for Halloween where the kids can all go trick-or-treating, followed by a meal of pizzas or something. This year, we probably won't be in our current house, but we'll be somewhere. Somewhere safe and sound, and with the people we love.

Also, the statistical peak of the Atlantic tropical cyclone season is September 10, roughly. Well last year I was deployed August 29 for about 90 days. I still came home for Halloween and Thanksgiving, and I was released before Christmas came. Now, we have Erika, the first storm that might be something brewing off in the southeast Caribbean. All this year we've had this really weird pressure system that has acted like a hurricane forcefield, but Erika is far south enough, and (fingers crossed) at this point moving at such an angle that she might be able to beat it.

Don't get me wrong. I don't wish ill and misery on others for my own gain. Well I do, but it's just so I can help them. Nature will always win in the end, and there is nothing we as humans can do to interfere, but what I can do after nature has moved on is what makes the difference for the victims, and for my family alike. Goodness knows we need some help right about now. And lets face it, so do the future victims. Some of these people may choose to not replace that flat screen TV that got busted and use the money to get their car payment caught up. Hey, that's fine. Whatever happens, we try to put people back in a position at least as good, if not better, than where we found them.

Well folks, enjoy fall in all it's glory, and hope I can get some long-term work here soon.

Healthcare

Lets get a few things straight. First, I am PRO healthcare reform, and PRO the public option on insurers. I also currently have the very best medical insurance money can buy. I'd say my policy is even better than the government policies that Senators have. At present, I would not give it up in exchange for public coverage.

My coverage comes from my wife's company. But what if her company changes the plan; decides they want to spend less on coverage than they do now? Or if she, goodness forbid, loses her job. Well, you can bet I'd be all for signing up for the government option at that point.

Up until now though, I've had a hard time understanding why so many people are against a healthcare system run by the government. Many of these people protesting are of Medicare age, and hell, Medicare is a healthcare plan run by the government.

People are screaming about government bureaucrats being between you and your doctor. What do they think is happening now? Unless you pay cash in full and have no insurance, a high-school educated bureaucrat-like guy is doing the same job down at BCBS and Humana right now. Nothing would be changing.

People are worried about their taxes going up. Well, yes, I admit taxes may go up, but your insurance premiums will go down; you'd be exchanging your insurance premiums for taxes, so again, no difference at all in the money out of your pocket.

The only people (at the individual level, not business level or higher) I can see who would gave a gripe with this are the ones who may have to pay higher taxes, but enjoy their current policy enough (like me) that they wouldn't want the public option. So you're still paying premiums as well as possibly a higher tax. The only thing positive they would get out of this is the knowledge that they're helping someone else, and the knowledge that if, goodness forbid, if something ever happened to their coverage they would have this coverage to fall back on.

Still, I wonder how many people out there are in this position.

This looks a little better

Well, TS Claudette did no damage at all and I doubt I'll be called out. TS Ana fizzled out, again. Hurricane Bill is blowing hard and was originally forecast to maybe affect Bermuda, but not to be a threat to the United States. As the days go on, that storm track is drifting more and more westward, which is good news for me. We'll just have to see what happens.

Standy

Well, I am currently on Standby. This basically means that the insurance company has notified my firm that adjusters will be needed, but until the storm makes landfall and initial damage assessments come in, we don't yet know how many adjusters are needed.

Adjusters should be taking this time to get their vehicles serviced, get all their laundry done, make sure their tools of the trade are in working order, buying supplies, etc. I will go as far as packing, which I don't do until the very end.

After this step, I either receive a "roll" order, or "stand down." If you are tolled to roll, you head to the direction of the storm site. Some carriers will have an in person induction and you have to be at the site for it, and some carriers, especially on smaller storms, do it via a big conference call.

Sometime after your roll order and induction, you'll probably start getting claims assigned to you electronically, which will download into your adjusting computer system. That is where you begin triage.

Where's Adjuster Mike

If you're wondering where business has taken me this week, I'm in Alaska, err Arizona, err Arkansas... It's one of those A states.

I'll bet you didn't see that commin'

Sometimes it's nice to take a step back from Hollywood... or even Nashville. It's awfully refreshing to see someone perform from their heart, to show their humility, and and to be humble. I don't usually watch these shows, and I saw this by accident while surfing Youtube. On his behalf, I hope you enjoy.

So what do you get??

So what do you get when you mix...

Ben Stiller
Robert Downey Jr
Jack Black
Nick Nolte
Tom Cruise
Matthew McConaughey, and
Danny McBride?????

"The Most Expensive Movie Never Made"

Tropic Thunder; and man was it FUNNY!!!

Racial Stability

You all know the story so I won't rehash it. I was a little upset by Barry's words the other day, but I guess I'd support my friend too. I do believe he realized very shortly after he got off the podium that he was sorry not for what he said, but for the fact that he was alienating all us white folks who voted for him. Let's face it, without a ton of white support, Black Barry would not have been elected.

Honestly, I felt betrayed. After hearing Barry's pseudo apology, I'm basically over it though. Here is the bottom line. Gates, completely without provocation flew off the handle, and had he not been an asshole, none of this would have happened. He also decided to pull the "racial profiling" card on the one single cop in the area who it was not going to work on, the one cop who teaches the racial profiling courses at the academy. Well, there came a point where Crowley said to himself, I'm tired of hearing this guy sprout shit at me. Crowley tells the guy he's leaving and if Gates wants to speak with him further he'll have to do so outside. Still being so far off the handle, Gates walks out in the front yard with his racist nonsense, (which is EXACTLY what Crowley was hoping Gates would do), and Crowley hooks him up.

Gates was wrong by being a serious asshole and spewing his blue eyed devil nonsense. Crowley was wrong because he should have tried harder to defuse the situation, rather than bating Gates into getting himself arrested. Obama was wrong because he gave an honest answer to the media, and he should have had a position-neutral scripted statement ready in advance, or just declined to answer the question.

Blacks are saying look at the history of racial profiling and police abuse of power directed at black men in our country. When you consider that fact, then you can't blame Gates for his actions. I think that's a cop out excuse attempting to justify many black people's bad attitude towards law enforcement, and white people in general.

Magic Jack

I'm not a fanboy product endorser, but I'm so happy about this I have to share it. My wife and I have used nothing but cell phones for years. I haven't had a home phone in a decade. But now, my mother has come to live with us and she doesn't have a cell phone. Well, she has lots of them but uses minutes like a broken pipe uses water. So, I was at BestBuy the other day and saw the Magic Jack for $39.99.

Note, I've seen them on TV infomercials for the same price. Basically, you plug it into the USB port of your computer, and you plug a regular phone into the Magic Jack, and BAM, you have a regular local phone, unlimited local and long distance calling, voicemail, call waiting, *411 calling*, and more, all for FREE. Once you bought the Magic Jack, there is no further cost for the rest of the year. Then next year, you only pay $20 and you get the full year's service.

The sound quality is great. The only drawback is that your computer has to stay turned on. If you turn the computer off, your phone doesn't work anymore. But that's a price I can live with.

We have a regular cordless phone hooked up to this thing, and it works just like our home phone when I was a teenager.

Ahhhh, home sweet home!

Yowzers

Someone else took this picture on their camera phone. Appears the lens was kinda greasy. Anyway, look at the size of that boat. Use the people in the background as perspective. Also note that on the left is a full size semi truck trailer.

Correction

Dave's company needed immediate guys in Iraq, so he is headed back there. Sitting at Dulles right now waiting for a flight to Germany, and then on to Istanbul for a night layover. Finally, off to Iraq.





Ahhh, the memories.

Ahhhh.

I was contacted by a reporter from The Tampa Tribune who wanted me to speak with him about Fabrizi. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get back with him before his deadline. The news article on tbo.com has about a hundred comments from people who didn't know him. All of them were positive and supportive, and thanking him for everything he did for our country. He was in the Army for a decade, two Bronze Stars, a Purple Heart, and more. I know this happens all the time, a solider paying the ultimate price for our country, but this hits home. He was such a good guy and was never cross with anyone. We called him "Red" for obvious reasons. He was always so happy.

I got a voicemail from Dave today, my best friend. He's been called back to Afghanistan himself, leaves ASAP for a one year tour. Dave is a former marine and for the last several years has served as a private security contractor in Iraq.

Carnage

Lets take a look at some of this week's carnage.


Notice the biohazard sticker. This crash was clearly a fatality.


Note the bullet holes in this Hummer H2. Different size holes = different calibers. Also note some are going in (ie the one at the bottom) and some are going out (the third from the left at the top). This was an old fashioned gunfight.


And this awful picture... this was the reading from the dash of my rental car. Clearly the most terrifying thing I've experienced this week.