The Perfect Day

July 17^th, 2008

Today may have been the perfect day. Well, let me qualify that. It was the perfect day that I didn’t get to spend with my family or with strippers. Or both. Whatever. It was a perfect day if you’re selfish, like me.

I’m still down here in Decatur, Texas, and I haven’t gone to hell yet for my 1 am phone call. I guess my day started out crappy with the unexpected phone call, but it quickly turned around as I chuckled myself back to sleep.

5 hours later I got up and went for a short 20 minute jog. After a great breakfast in the Ramada (does anyone else love those 2 minute cook your own waffles?), I showered and took off for work at the hospital. Right away I got to do one of my favorite things – I made someone feel better. How many doctors get to do that, truly? Mostly we just give bad news or we tell you to suck it up and you’ll get better in a week. This morning I met John, a massage therapist with a horrible tumor in his belly. The tumor is going to kill him eventually, but it’s trying to make his life miserable in the mean time. The end result is that his belly fills up with fluid. A lot of fluid. With a well placed scalpel and a long needle, I drained over 6 liters out of his previously distended belly.

He was a pretty neat guy. He recommended seeing What the Bleep (Down the Rabbit Hole). I’ve never seen it, but I told him I would. You can’t go back on a promise to a dying guy, right? During the procedure I was wearing my Visitors Badge. Afterwards, he asked if I was actually a doctor or just a visitor. I quickly replied, “Well, technically, I’m a visitor, but I did stay in a Holiday Inn Select last night.”

The next thing was pretty cool, too - I saved a life. Another cancer patient had gotten short of breath. He came to me and I did his CT scan. Turns out he has multiple huge pulmonary emboli. I was able to get him treated immediately. If no one was there to make the diagnosis, he would have been dead in hours.

After finishing up my banner day at the hospital, I decided to reward myself with a good dinner. So, off I went to Dallas for some Churrascaria. On the way, I spotted a Harley dealer. I’ve been wanting a Harley for quite some time (almost as long as the Ferrari), and I always stop in to drool. Well, today they have a new bike. It’s a variation on the Softtail called the Crossbones. It’s exactly what I pictured my Harley would look like. But wait? You’ll let me take it for a test drive? Really?

So there I was, cruising down TX 114 on a Harley and feeling like a million bucks. The ride was too short, but it really worked up my appetite. 20 minutes later, I’m at Fogo de Chao, a great Brazilian restaurant where they slice the meat off right onto your plate. Of course, what meal would be complete without a glass of Macallan 18 year-old scotch?

So, to sum up:

Played a practical joke on a moron

Had a jog AND a waffle

Made someone feel better

Got a cool movie recommendation

Saved a life

Rode a Harley

Drank some Macallan

Ate enough to put me in a meat coma

How was your day?