kidzdoc "Stays Woke" in 2018, Chapter 7

Dette er en fortsættelse af tråden kidzdoc "Stays Woke" in 2018, Chapter 6.

Snak75 Books Challenge for 2018

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1kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 23, 2018, 8:54 am

This will be the first year that I'll spend Christmas abroad, as I'll be in London from 21-27 December. I can hardly wait!

This year end thread will serve as a preview for 2019, as I'll adjust my reading plans for the new year.

Currently reading:

Happiness by Aminatta Forna

Completed Books:

January:

1. Red Star Over Russia: Revolution in Visual Culture 1905-55 by Sidlina Natalia
2. Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward
3. Go, Went, Gone by Jenny Erpenbeck
4. I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life by Ed Yong

February:
5. Locking Up Our Own: Crime and Punishment in Black America by James Forman Jr.
6. Smoketown: The Untold Story of the Other Great Black Renaissance by Mark Whitaker
7. In Pursuit of Memory: The Fight Against Alzheimer's by Joseph Jebelli
8. Mayhem: A Memoir by Sigrid Rausing
9. I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death by Maggie O'Farrell
10. The Devil Finds Work by James Baldwin
11. Fifteen Dogs by André Alexis

March:
12. Coltrane: The Story of a Sound by Ben Ratliff
13. Midwinter Break by Bernard MacLaverty
14. Men Explain Things to Me by Rebecca Solnit
15. Winter by Karl Ove Knausgaard
16. Die, My Love by Ariana Harwicz
17. The Vaccine Race: How Scientists Used Human Cells to Combat Killer Viruses by Meredith Wadman

April:
18. On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century by Timothy Snyder
19. The Butchering Art: Joseph Lister’s Quest to Transform the Grisly World of Victorian Medicine by Lindsey Fitzharris
20. With the End in Mind: Dying, Death and Wisdom in an Age of Denial by Kathryn Mannix
21. Miró: The Life of a Passion by Lluís Permanyer
22. Stay with Me by Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀
23. To Be a Machine: Adventures Among Cyborgs, Utopians, Hackers, and the Futurists Solving the Modest Problem of Death by Mark O’Connell

May:
24. Lisbon: A Cultural and Literary Companion by Paul Buck
25. A Man: Klaus Klump by Gonçalo M. Tavares
26. Sozaboy by Ken Saro-Wiwa
27. The Good Immigrant, edited by Nikesh Shukla
28. The Impostor by Javier Cercas

June:
29. Everybody Loves Kamau! by W. Kamau Bell
30. Rick Steves Snapshot Lisbon by Rick Steves
31. The Poor by Raul Brandão
32. City of Ulysses by Teolinda Gersão
33. The Portuguese: A Modern History by Barry Hatton

July:
34. Act of the Damned by António Lobo Antunes
35. The Struggle for Catalonia: Rebel Politics in Spain by Raphael Minder
36. Kader Attia: Architecure of Memory by Beate Reifenscheid
37. Guernica: The Biography of a Twentieth-Century Icon by Gijs van Hensbergenh

August:
38. Cyprus Avenue by David Ireland
39. Where Pain Fears to Pass by L. Burton
40. From a Low and Quiet Sea by Donal Ryan
41. Warlight by Michael Ondaatje
42. The Prisoner by Peter Brook and Marie-Hélène Estienne

September:
43. Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss
44. In Our Mad and Furious City by Guy Gunaratne
45. Washington Black by Esi Edugyan
46. Losing Venice by Jo Clifford

October:
47. Natives: Race and Class in the Ruins of Empire by Akala
48. My Brother Moochie: Regaining Dignity in the Face of Crime, Poverty, and Racism in the American South by Isaac J. Bailey
49. Picasso 1932 by Tate Modern
50. Barber Shop Chronicles by Inua Ellams

November:
51. The Dinner Guest by Gabriela Ybarra
52. The Hospital by Ahmed Bounani
53. When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir by Patrisse Khan-Cullors and Asha Bandele
54. The Years, Months, Days by Yan Lianke
55. Asthma: The Biography by Mark Jackson

December:

8kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 8, 2018, 10:39 pm

2018 Wellcome Book Prize longlist:

*Stay With Me by Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀

*The Butchering Art: Joseph Lister’s Quest to Transform the Grisly World of Victorian Medicine by Lindsey Fitzharris

In Pursuit of Memory: The Fight Against Alzheimer’s by Joseph Jebelli

Plot 29: A Memoir by Allan Jenkins
The White Book by Han Kang translated by Deborah Smith

*With the End in Mind: Dying, Death and Wisdom in an Age of Denial by Kathryn Mannix

Midwinter Break by Bernard MacLaverty

+*To Be a Machine: Adventures Among Cyborgs, Utopians, Hackers, and the Futurists Solving the Modest Problem of Death by Mark O’Connell

I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death by Maggie O’Farrell

*Mayhem: A Memoir by Sigrid Rausing

Behave: The Biology of humans at our Best and Worst by Robert Sapolsky
*The Vaccine Race: How Scientists Used Human Cells to Combat Killer Viruses by Meredith Wadman

2017 Wellcome Book Prize longlist:

*How to Survive a Plague: The Inside Story of How Citizens and Science Tamed AIDS by David France
Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow by Yuval Noah Harari
*When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi

+*Mend the Living by Maylis de Kerangal (alternate title: The Heart: A Novel)

The Golden Age by Joan London
Cure: A Journey into the Science of Mind Over Body by Jo Marchant
*The Tidal Zone by Sarah Moss

*The Gene: An Intimate History by Siddhartha Mukherjee

The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry
A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived: The Stories in Our Genes by Adam Rutherford
Miss Jane by Brad Watson
*I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life by Ed Yong

*shortlisted title
+prize winner

9kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 8, 2018, 10:43 pm

Planned reads for December:

An American Odyssey: The Life and Work of Romare Bearden by Mary Schmidt Campbell
Happiness by Aminatta Forna
Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body by Roxane Gay
Minority Leader: How to Lead from the Outside and Make Real Change by Stacey Abrams
Queen of the Sea: A History of Lisbon by Barry Hatton
Summer by Karl Ove Knausgaard

10kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 8, 2018, 10:59 pm

Congratulations to Atlanta United FC, who are this season's Major League Soccer champions after they defeated the Portland Timbers 2-0 before a rowdy home crowd of 73,019 in Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the largest attendance for an MLS match in the league's 25 year history!

11weird_O
Redigeret: dec 8, 2018, 10:21 pm

May I grab number 11 spot?

Edited after grabbing spot: to say, Happiness, Darryl: new thread, Christmas in London! Great stuff. Have a very good trip.

12figsfromthistle
dec 8, 2018, 10:30 pm

Happy New Thread!

13kidzdoc
dec 8, 2018, 10:57 pm

>11 weird_O: You certainly may, Bill. Thanks for your good wish for my trip to London!

>12 figsfromthistle::Thanks, Anita!

14Whisper1
dec 8, 2018, 11:04 pm

Hi Darryl...I send all good wishes for a wonderful time in London!

15kidzdoc
dec 8, 2018, 11:06 pm

>14 Whisper1: Thanks, Linda!

16Oberon
dec 9, 2018, 1:11 am

>10 kidzdoc: Congrats. I watched the game tonight and Atlanta was excellent. They deserved the victory.

17Deern
dec 9, 2018, 1:18 am

Happy new thread Darryl, happy Sunday! How lovely you'll be in London for Christmas, it'll surely be a wonderful experience.

18connie53
dec 9, 2018, 2:51 am

Happy New Thread, Darryl. Christmas in London! Great.

19kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 9, 2018, 3:41 am

>16 Oberon: Thanks, Erik. It was a great match, and a great season, for Atlanta United. The biggest surprise of the year was the 3-0 dismantling of the New York Red Bulls in the Eastern Conference semifinals at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, as many of us assumed that the Five Stripes's successful campaign would end at Red Bull Stadium, as they lost both matches to the Red Bulls during the regular season. They will lose their coach, Gerardo "Tata" Martinez, who will become the leader of the Mexican national football team, and almost certainly their second best player, Miguel Almirón, to one of the English Premier League clubs, so this level of success next year may not be achievable. I'm glad that they were able to come out on top when all their pieces were in place.

>17 Deern: Thanks, Nathalie! Happy Sunday to you as well.

>18 connie53: Thanks, Connie! I may not see many of my UK friends on this trip, but it will certainly be special to be in London for Christmas.

20Ameise1
dec 9, 2018, 4:00 am

Happy new thread, Darryl. Wishing you a great time in London.

21kidzdoc
dec 9, 2018, 5:17 am

>20 Ameise1: Thanks, Barbara! Zürich must be absolutely beautiful at Christmastime.

22Ameise1
dec 9, 2018, 5:22 am

>21 kidzdoc: Currently it's too warm. We do have lots of Christmas markets but that's not my cup of tea. Too many people and too expencieve. My daughters love them. When we have snow and all the lights and decorations are on then it's beautiful here.

23kidzdoc
dec 9, 2018, 5:30 am

Oddly enough it will be considerably warmer in Zürich than Atlanta today. Google forecasts a high temperature of 8 C today there, and it's currently 2 C here at half five in the morning, although that will also be our high for the day. We're very fortunate that it's stayed above freezing during this late autumn storm, as it's been raining since late Friday afternoon and we would have received a foot or more of snow if it was 3 or 4 degrees C cooler. Much of North Carolina and Virginia will experience that amount of snow, though.

24Ameise1
dec 9, 2018, 5:35 am

In the mountains they got snow but here in Zürich is no snow in sight. They predict that it's getting colder during the upcoming week but I'm not sure it will be so. This morning we've got lightening and thunder like it would be a hot summer day. Crazy, isn't it?

25kidzdoc
dec 9, 2018, 5:40 am

>24 Ameise1: I imagine that is crazy for Zürich, but it would be not altogether uncommon in normally far warmer Atlanta. I wouldn't be surprised if there was some lightning and possibly thunder to our south last night, as the rain was quite heavy. We'll warm up to more seasonal temperatures (10-12 C) here by midweek.

26Ameise1
dec 9, 2018, 5:45 am

>25 kidzdoc: Climate changes make the weather unpredictable. I suppose we have to learn to get used of it. We haven't had lots of rain during the last six months. It's absolutely too dry and that could be dangerous in the near future.

27kidzdoc
dec 9, 2018, 6:06 am

>26 Ameise1: Uh oh. Dry weather can be dangerous, as people in California and Portugal can sadly attest to. I hope you get plenty of rain from now through spring.

I just listened to yesterday's climate summary from the National Weather Service branch in Atlanta. We received 1.8 inches of rain yesterday, and it's still raining. We've had 61.5 inches of precipitation this year, which is over 14 inches above normal for us for early December. Hopefully this will be good news for farmers in Georgia and other Deep South states next year.

I'm off to Walmart (which opens at 6 am) to buy frozen crawfish tails to make crawfish étouffée this afternoon. I'll check back in later this morning.

28Ameise1
dec 9, 2018, 6:36 am

>26 Ameise1: I hope your shopping will be successful.

29kidzdoc
dec 9, 2018, 8:39 am

>28 Ameise1: It was a success!

I'll make crawfish étouffée for lunch, and post a photo and the recipe here.

30Ameise1
dec 9, 2018, 8:41 am

Very good. :-)

31FAMeulstee
dec 9, 2018, 9:34 am

Happy new thread, Darryl, congratulations on the Atlanta United FC win!

We have had an unusual dry summer, and finally are getting some serious rain. A month ago the gas prices were going up because the water in the Rhine was getting too low for the barges and all gas had to be transported by trucks.

32drneutron
dec 9, 2018, 2:10 pm

Happy new thread!

Crawfish etouffee. You’re killin’ me here! 😀

33kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 9, 2018, 4:02 pm

The crawfish étouffée is ready!

Here's the recipe which Heather, my group's former Business Operations Coordinator and a native New Orleanian, shared with me several years ago:

Crawfish étouffée (makes 6 to 8 servings)

Ingredients:

6 tablespoons butter
2 medium onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
3 rib celery, chopped
1 pound peeled crawfish tails
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can cream of shrimp
1/2 cup water
½ to 3/4 cup dry white wine
Salt, cayenne and hot sauce to taste
Minced green onions for garnish
Add Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning to taste

Instructions:

In a heavy pot, melt the butter and sauté the onions, garlic, bell peppers, and celery until wilted.

Add the crawfish tails and cook for 10 minutes.

Add the soup, water, and wine and stir. Simmer for 30 minutes.

Add the seasonings and simmer another 10 minutes, add the green onions and serve over steamed rice.

Note: If you have extra serve it over baked fish.
__________________________________________

I use 2 lb of crawfish tails instead of one, as I want my étouffée to be loaded with crawfish. I use a generous amount (2-3 tsp) of cayenne pepper, and little if any Tabasco sauce. I haven't made this in at least two years, I think, but I'll make it far more often from now on, as it tastes fabulous, IMO.

34banjo123
dec 9, 2018, 4:05 pm

>10 kidzdoc: Hi Darryl, it was tough to see our Portland Timbers lose, but Atlanta was definitely deserved the win. Next year!

And how about that little girl who sang the National Anthem?

35kidzdoc
dec 9, 2018, 4:05 pm

>30 Ameise1: Indeed.

>31 FAMeulstee: Yikes. I hope that the good rains continue in NL and elsewhere in Western Europe, Anita.

>32 drneutron: Sorry, sir. I'd be happy to share this with you if you lived closer. Can you buy frozen crawfish tails easily in the Baltimore/Washington area?

I think I'll take a nap, now that I've had lunch, and decide whether to make Instant Pot Butter Chicken today, or later this week.

36Ameise1
dec 9, 2018, 4:30 pm

It looks delicious.

37jnwelch
dec 9, 2018, 5:18 pm

Happy New Thread, Dr. D.

Oh, somehow I missed that you'd be in London for Christmas. Great! Never mind about being in Pittsburgh during that time. Can't wait to hear; London supposedly is magical then, although it's pretty darn great any time, isn't it.

38reconditereader
dec 9, 2018, 6:07 pm

I love to hear about your food and reading, but I can never keep up with how fast these threads go. BUT! I didn't know about that Stacey Abrams book way up in the first post, and now I have to get it. So I'm glad I stopped by!

39EBT1002
dec 9, 2018, 6:57 pm

How exciting to spend Christmas in London. It will be good practice for all the Christmases you will spend in Europe after you retire. :-)

40kidzdoc
dec 9, 2018, 9:50 pm

>34 banjo123: Hi, Rhonda! The Portland Timbers had a great season, but now that I've attended two Atlanta United matches at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in the past two years I can firmly state that it's a very difficult place for a visiting club to play in. The Timbers needed to score first and take the fans out of the game, and when they didn't get an equalizer just after Josef Martínez scored the first goal, or at least before halftime, they were in trouble. Franco Escobar's second half goal all but closed the door on the match.

I didn't see the singing of the National Anthem, so I'll have to look for it online. Ah! It was Malea Emma, the adorable Indonesian girl with the impressive voice. I'll definitely want to see that.

>36 Ameise1: The crawfish étouffée was very tasty, if I may say so myself, although 100% of the credit goes to Heather's recipe. It will taste even better later this week, after the flavors blend in the pot in my refrigerator.

>37 jnwelch: Thanks, Joe! It would be nice to be in Pittsburgh for Christmas, but London will be even better. I'll see Claire before and after Christmas, and probably attend a Christmas party at Rachael's home in Cambridge that her husband Rupert, a fellow physician, is hosting. Hopefully I can meet up with more of our friends as well, although everyone will be busy preparing for the big day.

The one downside about being in London on Christmas Day is that all forms of public transportation come to a halt, including the Underground, Overground, buses, trams, the DLR, and all National Rail services. I almost certainly won't meet anyone that day, so I'll probably walk around central London, depending on the weather.

>38 reconditereader: I'm glad that you visited! My reading has come to a grinding halt this month, but I do hope to finish Minority Leader by next weekend.

>39 EBT1002: Right, Ellen! This is the first time I'll spend Christmas abroad, so it should be special. I'll take plenty of photos while I'm there.

41SqueakyChu
dec 9, 2018, 10:41 pm

>10 kidzdoc: Congrats on Atlanta's win, Darryl. I stopped making latkes in time to see the whole game! :D

42SqueakyChu
dec 9, 2018, 10:44 pm

>34 banjo123: That girl who sang the national anthem was extraordinary! So adorable!! I just wanted hug her. :)

43drneutron
dec 9, 2018, 10:57 pm

>35 kidzdoc: Yup, we can get crawfish here, but yours looks great and I haven’t made it in ages...

44kidzdoc
dec 10, 2018, 4:34 am

>41 SqueakyChu: Thanks, Madeline! Mmm, latkes...

>42 SqueakyChu: I just watched the video of Malea Emma singing the national anthem: wow! Here a link to the video of her outstanding performance:

https://twitter.com/twitter/statuses/1071573402387771397

>43 drneutron: I hope I've inspired you, and others, to make crawfish étouffée soon, Jim. Is your recipe similar to Heather's?

45Caroline_McElwee
dec 10, 2018, 5:06 am

Wow, what a little vocal powerhouse Darryl. I wonder if she will make singing a career?

46hosonto
dec 10, 2018, 5:24 am

Thanks !!!

47kidzdoc
dec 10, 2018, 5:43 am

>45 Caroline_McElwee: That seems likely, Caroline. She is an actress and has sung our national anthem in other public venues.

48drneutron
Redigeret: dec 10, 2018, 12:30 pm

>44 kidzdoc: Yeah, the recipe looks pretty similar. Making a batch is on the docket for the days I take off near Christmas.

49johnsimpson
dec 10, 2018, 4:15 pm

Happy new thread mate, a great win for Atlanta FC over the Portland Timberwolves. The attendances have been fantastic, just about matching Manchester United's regular home attendances, just a shame that you may lose one or two players especially Miguel Almiron but if I was him I wouldn't go to Newcastle United with the way the club is being run. It would be good for him to work under Rafa Benitez but not sure how long Benitez will be at Newcastle unless the ownership changes.

Have a great Christmas in the UK mate and hope you will see a few friends while you are here, have a good week ahead mate and we both send love and hugs.

50kidzdoc
dec 11, 2018, 6:08 am

>48 drneutron: Sounds good, Jim. I look forward to hearing about, and hopefully seeing, your crawfish étouffée.

>49 johnsimpson: Thanks, John. If what I just read is correct the capacity of Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the home of Atlanta United and the NFL's Atlanta Falcons, would fall behind only Manchester United in the EPL. The attendance for Saturday's MLS Cup Final was just over 73,000; the stadium only seats 71,000, though. Their continued success will hinge on getting a coach with a similar philosophy and style as Tata Martinez, preferably one from Central or South America, as the club wouldn't have been anywhere near as successful otherwise.

Unfortunately it looks as though I won't be able to visit you & Karen in Wakefield this month, as I have three meetups already planned while I'm there, on the 22nd, 23rd and 26th. We'll definitely have to get together in 2019!

51msf59
dec 11, 2018, 7:45 am

Good morning, Darryl and Happy New Thread! I am slowly making my way through much neglected threads, after my Mazatlan trip. Tough coming back to the frigid grind.

I hope everything is going well for you. I am sure you have heard the buzz on Heavy: An American Memoir and I also highly recommend it.

52Familyhistorian
dec 11, 2018, 6:51 pm

Happy new thread, Darryl. How wonderful to be anticipating a Christmas in London but I didn't realize that all transport closes down on Christmas Day there. Nice for the people who work for the transit companies though.

53PaulCranswick
dec 11, 2018, 8:18 pm

Happy new thread, Darryl.

I do hope that we can meet up over the Christmas period as I will be united with Hani in England over that time. Will be arriving in Manchester on 22nd.

54catarina1
dec 11, 2018, 11:21 pm

I hope that you have an enjoyable time in London for the holiday. Such a treat. I haven't been present on LT much this year, but do check in occ. My fiction reading has dropped way off, a side effect of the political climate. Its been newspapers, news mags, on-line news, etc.

55Sakerfalcon
dec 12, 2018, 6:51 am

Happy new thread! I'm looking forward to seeing you very soon!

Going back to your list of books by African American male writers, I've heard great things about Friday black and it's high on my list of books to check out.

56kidzdoc
dec 12, 2018, 8:03 am

So far this is the worst week in the history of my group, in the 18 years that I've worked at Children's and certainly before then. We started Monday with 105 patients on the General Pediatrics service, which was at least close to our all time record number of patients. The team admitted 29 patients to the hospital from 8 pm Sunday to 8 am Monday, which bested our record by two that several of my partners, including me, in previous years. Yesterday morning we had 116 inpatients, which was certainly our record, and we have the same number of patients today, with one more headed our way from another hospital. I was on call for my group yesterday (8 am to 8 pm), but I was so busy with admissions that I didn't leave the hospital until nearly midnight.

Influenza has now struck metro Atlanta hard, as we had 114 kids test positive for influenza in our system last week, and I admitted two kids yesterday from the ED with complications due to influenza. It continues to amaze us that so many parents don't choose to immunize their children, especially given the widespread media coverage about the large number of hospitalizations and deaths due to influenza last season and in past ones. I pray that this season is nowhere near as bad.

>51 msf59: Thanks, Mark! I'm glad that you and your wife had such a good time in México last week; I'm sure it was a welcome break before the holiday madness starts. I probably won't make the rounds on the threads until the weekend, as I'll be swamped making rounds on my inpatients through Friday.

I have heard a little about Heavy: An American Memoir, so I'll keep an eye out for it. I have read one of Kiese Laymon's earlier books, How to Slowly Kill Yourself and Others in America, which I didn't like at all, so I'm admittedly a bit reluctant to buy his new book at the moment.

>52 Familyhistorian: Thanks, Meg. There is essentially no public transit in the UK on Christmas Day, and few if any National Rail trains running on Boxing Day, although Luci did tell me that there will be Megabus service on the 25th.

>53 PaulCranswick: Thanks, Paul. I'm completely free on Christmas Eve so far, assuming that I don't go to Birmingham that day to spend Christmas with Genny and her family, which at the moment seems unlikely.

>54 catarina1: Good to see you here, catarina1 ! This will be the first time I spend Christmas Day abroad, so it will be a treat.

My reading has also dropped off since 2015/2016, thanks in large part to "Individual-1", who will hopefully be "Convicted Individual-1" sometime next year.

>55 Sakerfalcon: Thanks, Claire! I look forward to seeing you next week. I'll be in closer touch this coming weekend, but feel free to contact me before then.

Friday Black has received good reviews both here and in the UK, and I'll get to it early next year.

Back to the grind...

57torontoc
dec 12, 2018, 10:06 am

Have a great holiday at Christmas!

58Caroline_McElwee
dec 12, 2018, 3:45 pm

Wow, not the kind of milestone you want to be hitting Darryl. Is child influenza a US thing? I'll be honest I don't recall hearing reports here of needing to immunise children. The aged, and those with chronic long-term illnesses get an annual jab.

I know that your winter weather can be a lot worse than in much of the UK, I wonder if that drives your problem.

Will look at your London visit thread on Facebook tomorrow, and see if I can catch up with you this visit.

59catarina1
dec 12, 2018, 11:31 pm

Sorry that you had such a bad day at work. I wanted to tell you that I recently made your quiche recipe - it was as good as ever. I've written down the one for mac and cheese and for etouffe (although I'm not too sure of finding crawfish here in B'more-would shrimp work?). And I did see the Ottolenghi Simple book in my local indie bookstore and it looked so good and simple that even I could make some of the recipes.

60charl08
dec 13, 2018, 2:59 am

Sorry to read things have been so busy in the hospital. I hope that things will improve soon.

On a happier note, great to read about the planned holiday trip in London. There is so much to choose from in the way of festive events, it must be hard to decide. Have you been to a pantomime?

And thank you for posting those lists as toppers: all very tempting.

61SandDune
dec 13, 2018, 2:09 pm

>58 Caroline_McElwee: I don't recall hearing reports here of needing to immunise children Children that are primary school age or less get a free flu jab I think.

62streamsong
dec 14, 2018, 2:18 pm

Hi Darryl -

Sadly a six year old kindergarten girl in Missoula died of influenza complications last week.

On a happier note, Christmas in London sounds absolutely amazing. I wish I could make the letters in that statement all turn bright envious green so you could see how much I mean that.

I'll be heading off to my brother's house in Arizona for some sun and time with his family, my son and his fiancé.

I've copied your crawfish recipe. I'm not sure I can find them in stores here, but I'll keep a look out. We have little bitty ones in lakes and rivers in this area, so I guess I could go fishing (as kids we used pieces of hotdogs on string) next summer.

63ChelleBearss
dec 14, 2018, 4:15 pm

Sorry to see that you've been so busy at work! Hopefully that eases soon!

64kidzdoc
dec 16, 2018, 9:06 am

Happy Sunday, everyone! I'm certainly grateful to be off this weekend, after the busiest week, in terms of number of patients, in the nearly 25 year history of my group (I've been there for 18 of them, and before I joined the General Pediatrics census was a pittance compared to now, so I can say that with confidence). I'm even more grateful that I was fortunate to have an outstanding Emory third year pediatric resident sharing the load with me all week. She wants to be a hospitalist, so she was in her element, and functioned at an even higher level than most of her very good colleagues. I still had to see her patients, along with the ones I was following myself, but I didn't have to spend much time with "her" kids, as she managed them very well and there wasn't much that I needed to do in follow up, other than use my grey hair (and, sadly, male gender) to reassure a few nervous parents. Kristen and I got on very well, as we were on good terms even before the week began, and it was a pleasure working alongside her (and she said the same about me).

Bad news: I won't have a resident, or team of residents working alongside me next week. Good news: I won't be on long call any day. Better news: I'll only work Mon-Thu, and I'll fly to London late Thursday night!

I can't remember if I mentioned that I "bought" an Instant Pot on Cyber Monday; it's meant to be my Christmas gift from my parents. I used it for the first time yesterday, to make Murgh Makhani (Butter Chicken), using a recipe contained in the Indian Instant Pot Cookbook by Urvashi Pitre. Dr Pitre is commonly known in the Indian community in the US as "The Butter Chicken Lady", so it only made sense to try that recipe first. It tasted fantastic, so much so that I had a second serving of it yesterday afternoon shortly after I finished the first one. I'll post a photo and the recipe after I finish catching up with posts.

I'll use the Instant Pot again this afternoon to make beef borscht, using a recipe that also comes from Urvashi Pitre, although needless to say it isn't in the cookbook I own. I'm sure Joe can't wait to see a photo of it.

Once again I did hardly any reading, as what little I did read took place on the ride to and from work on the metro (15 minutes each way). I won't finish anything this weekend, and I doubt I'll complete any books until I arrive in London on Friday. I doubt that I'll finish more than two or three books by year's end, as I'll go right back to work on the 28th, the day after I return to Atlanta, and I'll be on clinical service through New Year's Day.

65kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 16, 2018, 9:49 am

Catching up...

>57 torontoc: Thanks, Cyrel!

>58 Caroline_McElwee: Is child influenza a US thing?

Forgive me for my shock at your question, Caroline. For me and others who provide medical care to children, that would be akin to someone asking if the Pope was Catholic. It most certainly is "a thing", and I'm quite surprised that our horrible 2017-18 influenza season didn't make the news in the UK. For that matter, I'm surprised that the UK didn't have a horrible influenza season as well, especially since the vaccine was only 33% effective. You may remember that I was sick for three weeks early this year due to contracting influenza, even though I was vaccinated*, and ran fevers on eight days out of nine.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), during the 2017-18 influenza season approximately 49 million Americans had proven influenza or an influenza-like illness (ILI), which is roughly 15% of the country's population. There were approximately 23 million office visits as a result, 960,000 admissions, and 79,000 deaths. The CDC counts 185 deaths due to influenza in children this past season, which is the second highest total on record since influenza became a reportable illness in 2004. In the 2008-09 season 358 children in this country died from influenza, which was the last season prior to the most recent one that the vaccine was a poor match. That was also the only other time I've contracted influenza since I started getting annual influenza vaccines in 1993, my first year of medical school.

Last season 80% of the 185 children who died from complications of influenza were unvaccinated. I know of at least three deaths that took place in my hospital, and I wouldn't be surprised if there were more there, due to our large (55+ bed) pediatric ICU, which was often completely full last season.

These data don't take into account the number of lost work days by parents who had to stay home or in the hospital taking care of an influenza infected child. I have no doubt that thousands of adults were fired as a result of missing work, as every so oftten I care for a child whose parent was let go for that reason. That's bad enough at any time of the year, but especially worse around the year end holidays, which usually corresponds to the peak of the influenza season in the Deep South.

I won't soon forget working over Christmas as an intern in 1997, when I was the only member of the team that was vaccinated. Everyone else was sick with high fevers, cough, myalgias and malaise, and looked like crap, but everyone had to work, regardless of how they felt. I was completely fine, even though I was surrounded by sick residents and patients.

*Children's requires that all employees who could potentially come into contact with patients and families must receive an influenza vaccine by December 1st. If I didn't I would have to wear an N95 facial mask, which we use when we encounter patients who are suspected of having or are proven to have tuberculosis, which is the case for me at least a dozen times every year (I usually see 3-4 kids annually who are diagnosed with TB during their hospital stay). Those masks adhere close to your face, let very little air in, and are quite uncomfortable to wear for more than 10-15 minutes. I'd rather be hung upside down by my ankles and beaten with piñata sticks. If I didn't agree to do that then I wouldn't be allowed to be on the hospital campus, nonetheless see patients.

Influenza has just started to pick up steam in the Deep South, as I don't think I had any patients who were diagnosed with it (based on a rapid test of nasal secretions) before early December. I took care of at least half a dozen kids who were admitted due to complications of influenza last week, and I wouldn't be surprised if there are even more this coming week.

The mother of my best friend from medical school, who was stricken with a rare form of leukemia, was infected with influenza in Belgium during the H1N1 pandemic, and swiftly died shortly after she first became ill, and not long after she received a bone marrow transplant which seemed to achieve a state of remission, which was thought to be impossible in her case.

I'll be honest I don't recall hearing reports here of needing to immunise children. The aged, and those with chronic long-term illnesses get an annual jab.

In the US the influenza vaccine is recommended in all people six months of age and older. It's particularly important that people at the extremes of life, those with chronic respiratory conditions, including asthmatics like me, and those who are immuncompromised. As far as I know, the vaccine is covered by all insurance companies, and those who receive the vaccine at Publix, my supermarket of choice, are given a $10 gift card after they are vaccinated.

I think I've made my case for the importance and benefits of getting vaccinated against influenza, right? ☺️

*climbs down from soapbox*

66kidzdoc
dec 16, 2018, 10:16 am

This page from the CDC provides much of the data I quoted about the 2017-18 influenza season in the US, along with information from previous years:

Disease Burden of Influenza

Okay, now I'm done. I think.

>59 catarina1: Hi, catarina! I'm glad that you made and liked the Caramelized Onion, Mushroom and Gruyere Quiche with Oat Crust. That's one of my most favorite recipes, but I haven't made it in months (and possibly not at all this year), so I'll do so early next year.

You may be able to find frozen crawfish tails in one of your local Walmart stores, as I did last weekend. By searching Walmart's web page I was able to quickly find out which one did (the other three or four stores Inside the Perimeter did not), and I had no trouble finding them in the frozen seafood case when I went there. If not, or if you prefer, you could easily substitute shrimp for crawfish in that recipe.

Right regarding the Ottolenghi Simple cookbook. I had several copies sent to my parents' house during Thanksgiving Week, and gave them to my brother, my cousin who visited from Ann Arbor, and to my (non-biological) uncle and his wife after Thanksgiving dinner. All of them made essentially the same comment while they were looking at the recipes. I also left my barely opened copy with my parents, and ordered another copy for myself. I don't expect them to use it much, if at all, but it's a nice showcase book for my mother, and, more importantly, I'll use it whenever I visit them.

>60 charl08: Thanks, Charlotte. Our census did decline very slightly (down to 112 on Friday, woo), and hopefully that trend has continued over the weekend. I have no desire to check what the census is currently, as that will only stress me out, and I'm happy to think about work as little as possible until Monday morning!

I need to look at what I should do in London, especially on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, as I'll likely be by myself on those days (that's not a problem, mind you). I'll see Claire, who lives in the capital, on the 22nd and 26th, and I'm sure she'll have suggestions for things to do and see. I'll bring my camera, and take plenty of photos, especially for my closest partners and coworkers, who are jealous of my trip but also eager to experience Christmas in London vicariously through me.

I haven't been to a pantomime!

You're welcome regarding those lists of African American/Black writers. They will appear in all of my threads throughout 2019, at least.

67kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 16, 2018, 10:44 am

I'm not done!

>61 SandDune: I found this information from the Children's flu vaccine page on the NHS website, which is for the 2018-19 influenza season:

The children's flu vaccine is offered as a yearly nasal spray to young children to help protect them against flu.
Flu can be a very unpleasant illness for children, with potentially serious complications, including bronchitis and pneumonia.

At what age should children have the nasal spray flu vaccine?
In the autumn/winter of 2018/19, the vaccine will be available free on the NHS for eligible children, including:

*children aged 2 and 3 on August 31 2018 – that is, children born between September 1 2014 and August 31 2016

*children in reception class and school years 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5
in some parts of the country, all primary school-aged children will be offered the vaccine (following a pilot in some areas)

*children aged 2 to 17 with long-term health conditions

>Who will give the children's flu vaccination?

*Children aged 2 and 3 will be given the vaccination at their general practice, usually by the practice nurse.

*Children who are 4 years old are also eligible for flu vaccination provided they were 3 on August 31 2018. These children should be offered the vaccination at their general practice.

*Children in reception class and school years 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 will be offered their vaccination in school. In a couple of areas it might be offered in primary care settings.

*Children who are home educated will also be offered the vaccine, provided they are in an eligible age group. Parents can obtain information about arrangements from their local NHS England Public Health Commissioning team.

As a comparison, these are the CDC's recommendations for this season:

should get vaccinated this season?

Everyone 6 months of age and older should get a flu vaccine every season. Vaccination is particularly important for people who are at high risk of serious complications from influenza. See People at High Risk of Developing Flu-Related Complications for a full list of age and health factors that confer increased risk.

Flu vaccination has important benefits. It can reduce flu illnesses, doctors’ visits, and missed work and school due to flu, as well as prevent flu-related hospitalizations. Flu vaccine also has been shown to be life-saving in children. In fact, a 2017 study showed that flu vaccination can significantly reduce a child’s risk of dying from flu.

Different flu vaccines are approved for use in different groups of people. There are flu shots approved for use in children as young as 6 months of age and flu shots approved for use in adults 65 years and older. Flu shots also are recommended for use in pregnant women and people with chronic health conditions. The nasal spray flu vaccine is approved for use in non-pregnant individuals, 2 years through 49 years of age. People with some medical conditions should not receive the nasal spray flu vaccine.

There are many vaccine options to choose from. CDC does not recommend one flu vaccine over another. The most important thing is for all people 6 months and older to get a flu vaccine every year. If you have questions about which vaccine is best for you, talk to your doctor or other health care professional.

I'm admittedly shocked that the NHS has such an apparently lax position on the influenza vaccine. Maybe Caroline is right, and influenza isn't as big of a problem in the UK as it is in the US. I received my vaccine a little less than three weeks ago, which is extremely late for me, as I was very nervous when I was in the rooms of kids diagnosed with influenza, as it takes two weeks for the vaccine to provide full protection, which would have been this past Monday morning for me.

>62 streamsong: I'm saddened to hear of the death of the child stricken with influenza in Montana, Janet. I'm not surprised, though. Children with influenza can develop a secondary bacterial pneumonia, usually caused by Staphylococcus aureus, which can be aggressive and rapidly fatal if it isn't diagnosed swiftly and treated promptly and correctly; the typical antibiotics we would normally use to treat bacterial pneumonia in children would work poorly or not at all against staph, as you know. I'll never forget the call I got from an outside hospital who wanted to transfer a previously healthy teenaged girl with influenza and pneumonia to my service; I told the physician that she sounded too sick for the regular inpatient service, and that she would be better served in our PICU. Unfortunately by the time they could arrange transport she coded and died there. Those of us who have cared for sick children with influenza, not just the ones seen routinely in the office setting, have a healthy respect of how bad that infection can be. I may have mentioned earlier this year that I ran into a PICU nurse I knew in the hospital during the height of the influenza season, who was shaken because two kids had died there earlier in the day from complications of the flu.

If the nurses had their way, and the means to do so, they would undoubtedly give me the Tonya Harding treatment, so that I couldn't leave town next week. They would also undoubtedly take good care of me and my broken kneecap, though.

Have a great time in Arizona over Christmas!

No, Montana does not sound like Crawfish Country to me. I'm not sure that you could find frozen tails in your local Walmart or other stores. The closest I've been to Montana is Minneapolis, though, so my knowledge of your beautiful state is similar to my knowledge of Kazakhstan. One of my closest friends from residency moved from Atlanta to Boise, Idaho recently, though, and I do have an invitation to visit him and his family, which I hope to do in 2019 or 2020.

>63 ChelleBearss: Thanks, Chelle! I hope so, too. If past years are any indicator our census usually drops precipitously in the two or three days before Christmas, and January is typically nowhere near as bad as December. So, with any luck, this upcoming week will end our Winter Madness.

68kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 16, 2018, 1:41 pm

As I mentioned above, I used my Instant Pot for the first time yesterday to make Murgh Makhani (Butter Chicken), using a recipe from the Indian Instant Pot Cookbook, which tasted better than I expected it to.

INGREDIENTS:

*14.5 ounces (1 can) diced tomatoes, undrained
*5 or 6 garlic cloves minced
*1 tablespoon fresh ginger minced
*1 teaspoon ground turmeric
*1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
*1 teaspoon smoked paprika
*2 teaspoons garam masala divided
*1 teaspoon ground cumin
*1 teaspoon salt
*1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs
*4 oz (1 stick) unsalted butter cut into cubes, or 1/2 cup coconut oil
*1/2 cup heavy (whipping) cream or full-fat coconut milk
*1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Put the tomatoes, garlic, ginger, turmeric, cayenne, paprika, 1 teaspoon of garam masala, cumin, and salt in the inner cooking pot of the Instant Pot®. Mix thoroughly, then place the chicken pieces on top of the sauce.

2. Lock the lid into place. Select Manual and adjust the pressure to High. Cook for 10 minutes. When the cooking is complete, let the pressure release naturally. Unlock the lid. Carefully remove the chicken and set aside.

3. Using an immersion blender in the pot, blend together all the ingredients into a smooth sauce. (Or use a stand blender, but be careful with the hot sauce and be sure to leave the inside lid open to vent.) After blending, let the sauce cool before adding the remaining ingredients or it will be thinner than is ideal.

4. Add the butter cubes, cream, remaining 1 teaspoon of garam masala, and cilantro. Stir until well incorporated. The sauce should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon when you’re done.

5. Remove half the sauce and freeze it for later or refrigerate for up to 2 to 3 days.

6. Cut the chicken into bite-size pieces. Add it back to the sauce.

7. Preheat the Instant Pot® by selecting Sauté and adjust to Less for low heat. Let the chicken heat through. Break it up into smaller pieces if you like, but don’t shred it.

8. Serve over rice or raw cucumber noodles.
_______________________________________

I used chicken thighs, and had it with jasmine rice. Once I felt remotely comfortable using the Instant Pot it wasn't hard to make, and it tasted so good that I greedily had a second serving of this curry. Once nice aspect of this recipe is that it makes twice the sauce that is required, so you can cook another pound of diced chicken, sauté it in or outside of the Instant Pot, and you have another batch of butter chicken. This was a great recipe to make as the first one in my Instant Pot, and I'll certainly make this on a regular basis from now on.

69lauralkeet
dec 16, 2018, 1:00 pm

>66 kidzdoc: I haven't been to a pantomime!

I second Charlotte's recommendation to see panto. It might be more fun with children (which is how we experienced it), but there's a layer of (usually bawdy) humor aimed at the adult audience. It's quintessentially British and you're unlikely to find anything like it here in the US (side note: there's a theater outside of Philadelphia that stages an annual panto, which comes close but not exactly right). Maybe Charlotte can recommend a specific show to you.

70kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 16, 2018, 1:44 pm

This morning I read an essay by pastor and author John Pavlovitz, which struck a deep chord in me and explains more than anything else I've read why I've lost hope in the future of this sick and terminally racist country.

I Don't Grieve Over His Cruelty. I Grieve Over Yours.

I really don’t care about him.

I know you think I do, but my sadness really has nothing to do with him.

I know who he is—and more accurately, I know what he is.

I know that he is just a mirror.

He has simply revealed clearly the disfigured ugliness of the place I call home and the people I live here alongside—and that is the thing I grieve over. And this is not the mourning over a singular loss, it is a daily grieving.

I grieve when I see elementary school teachers dressed up like a border wall for Halloween.
I grieve when I see a white woman screaming obscenities at two Muslims teenagers at a stop light.
I grieve when I see a Jewish professor’s office littered with spray-painted swastikas.
I grieve when I watch a father of four being tackled by ICE agents outside immigration offices.
I grieve when I witness white high school seniors making a “Heil Hitler” arm gesture during class photos.
I grieve when I see the contempt from white friends, when young black men die at traffic stops.
I grieve when I find the most vile sickness on my social media feed, hurled toward people of color and women and transgender people.
I grieve when I hear professed Christian pastors calling for the killing of LGBTQ people.
I grieve when I see rambling, racist tirades on subway cars filled with families with young children.
I grieve when I see supremacist candidates being elected and re-elected.
I grieve when I overhear dehumanizing conversations from old, white men, about Democratic women leaders, in crowded cafés.
I grieve when I sit across holiday tables, and witness bigoted tirades that I’d have thought people I knew and loved were not capable of.

And though all of these things are undoubtedly emboldened by him and encouraged by him and celebrated by him—that is not the source of my despair. It is the reality that all of this vicious, toxic, filth that we are infected with today—is something you are largely fine with. The rising hatred is not alarming or discomforting enough to you, to move you to action or to speak against it.

Oh sure, you might inwardly twinge with discomfort at one or two of the most egregious offenses, but by and large you’re good with it all.

With your silence, as much as with your volume, you show me you are more with him than you are against him, that you are more like him than different from him—and that you and I are increasingly morally incompatible.

So yes, he is a mirror, and I am seeing you my countrymen and women through him.

That is why I grieve, friend.

That is why I don’t see America or my church or my neighborhood or my family the same anymore, and I’m not sure I ever will again.

The greatest tragedy to me, isn’t him. It isn’t that the person supposedly leading our country lacks a single benevolent impulse, that he is impervious to compassion, incapable of nobility, and mortally allergic to simple kindness.

The greatest tragedy, is how many Americans he now represents.

And that he represents you.
______________________________________

Yes, "Individual-1" will, or at least should, be gone in no more than 25 months, and hopefully far less. However, a majority of white Americans continue to support him, despite the damage he has unleashed on this failing democracy, and they will survive him, which is a far more significant source of despair for me. These people have spoken and shown themselves for what they are, and they won't ever revert to being decent, compassionate and truly Christian beings, as far as I'm concerned. This is why I've lost faith in a sizable number of my fellow Americans, and wish to leave this country behind within the next few years.

71kidzdoc
dec 16, 2018, 1:41 pm

>69 lauralkeet: Thanks, Laura!

72SandDune
dec 16, 2018, 2:29 pm

>67 kidzdoc: I’ve received several reminders to get my flu vaccine, as I’m deemed to be in an at risk group. I had two reminders from the GP and then one from the pharmacy when I was collecting medication. The info you have above refers to who gets a free vaccine only. Virtually all pharmacies also provide flu vaccines which usually costs up to £10 if you’re not within one of the at risk groups

73Caroline_McElwee
dec 16, 2018, 4:01 pm

>70 kidzdoc: I hope beyond words Darryl, that those who did not vote for Mr T (and there may be many who did who do not believe or hold the extreme end of Republican views) will haul things back in the other direction, and make hope possible again. Make growth, nurturing, joyousness, the norm. I don't think anywhere greed is embedded, will it be totally eradicated. And at the end of the day the greed of those wealthy who don't want to share is at the root of what is going on right now, and the bigotry that it has exposed in all walks of life is painful to witness. But so many people do not share those attitudes, even if they don't get everything right, that they don't always see that some of their biases and prejudices are wrong. They can learn to change. And I'm sure we all have something to learn, truth be told.

I think it is wonderful to have the goal of moving somewhere that embraces more of who you are Darryl, and I hope you achieve that. But all too often, when we move, some of the problems follow us, or new problems occur. Dealing with those problems is what grows us as humans.

Find your hope again friend. Find it in the eyes of all those young children you treat and send home healthier, as they are the worlds future, they are the ones who will take up the baton, they and their parents and siblings who believe in the wonder of the world and the joy in the simple things in life.

74jnwelch
dec 16, 2018, 4:11 pm

I may not eat borscht, but I get my flu vaccine every year, goshdarnit. Is flu worse (generally) in the U.S. vs. the U.K.? That would be weird.

75kidzdoc
dec 16, 2018, 9:01 pm

I took a relatively long afternoon nap, so I didn't get around to making the Instant Pot beef borscht recipe until late this afternoon, which was ready in time for dinner.

Ingredients:

For the first Cooking Cycle:

4 strips bacon chopped
1 cup chopped onion
5 cloves garlic
14.5 ounces can diced tomatoes undrained
2 large carrots chopped into big pieces
2 pounds beef short ribs
2 cups water
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
1 teaspoon salt

For the second Cooking Cycle:

1.5-2 cups water
2 cups shredded cabbage or coleslaw mix
1 cup peeled, coarsely shredded beets
1 cup peeled, coarsely shredded carrots
3 tablespoons vinegar

For Serving:

Fresh dill
Sour Cream

Instructions:

Turn your Instant Pot or Pressure cooker to Sauté. When it is hot, add chopped bacon and cook for 3-4 minutes until the edges are crisped.

Add chopped onion, chopped garlic cloves, and large chopped carrots, tomatoes, short ribs, and all remaining spices from the first cooking cycle. This step cooks the meat while also making a rich meat stock.

Set the pot to cook on high pressure for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, using a coarse grater or a zoodler, grate the beets and carrots and set aside.

When the pot is done cooking, allow it to sit undisturbed for 10 minutes, and then release all pressure.

Add the additional water, vegetables, and vinegar.

Seal the pot and cook for 1 minute and high pressure. This will cook the vegetables just enough.

When it is done, release all pressure quickly.

Serve with fresh chopped dill and sour cream.

You can also serve with a side of dark rye bread toasted with olive oil and rubbed with a garlic clove.

Recipe Notes:

Nutritional info will vary with the amount of meat and fat on your short ribs

You can add 2 shredded potatoes into the second cooking cycle if you'd like.
__________________________________

I bought organic beets from Whole Foods last weekend, and I didn't realize that they were golden beets until I peeled them today. The recipe calls for a ridiculously small amount of beets, so I shredded three beets, which made 3-4 cups. Since I used extra beets I did not added potatoes. I used 2-1/2 lb of inside skirt steak, which was tender and practically melted in my mouth, even though it only cooked in the Instant Pot for 20 minutes. This is the first time I've made beef borscht, although I've made meatless borscht once or twice in the past, and although it doesn't look like anything I've ever had it tastes great, and since it made four quarts of soup I'll be able to get 6-8+ servings out of it. Highly recommended!

76drneutron
dec 16, 2018, 9:50 pm

The butter chicken looks great! Gonna have to give that one a try.

77msf59
dec 16, 2018, 10:03 pm

>75 kidzdoc: Ooh, looks tasty. How was it?

Happy Sunday, Darryl. I am into the second half of My Struggle. Not all of it is working for me, but there are plenty of impressive stretches. We will see what the final verdict is. I would love to continue the series...

78jnwelch
dec 17, 2018, 4:17 pm

I'll be back when the beets stop showing up. :-)

79benitastrnad
dec 17, 2018, 6:39 pm

I get a flu shot every year. Have done so ever since my school teaching (K-12) days. Most of the time it keeps me healthy and at work.

I was incensed to learn that my mother, on Medicare, has to pay for her flu shot. What? You would think that this would be free. I am going to question her GP about it when I get home, but I suspect she may be correct. I hope she isn’t.

I tried hard to get the student employees at the library to go get the flu shot. It is free for students at the University of ALabama. NOT a one of them took advantage of the offer! I couldn’t persuade them and all they had to do was walk across the street. Everyone of them said that they didn’t get sick last year and doubted they would this year. It is nearly impossible to deal with their feelings of invincibility. The University said that last year 35% of the students had severe cases of flu and at one point 50% of the students were out (in one three day period) using flu as an excuse to miss class. There is speculation that students were using flu as an excuse to miss class and the University acknowledged that fact, but still with stats that I you would think they would go get the shot.

80EllaTim
dec 17, 2018, 6:55 pm

>75 kidzdoc: Looks very tasty Darryl! I have made borscht once or twice, the pure vegetable variety, and thought it surprisingly nice. Yours looks wonderful, I agree with you: borscht should have lots of beets to be real borscht.

I could get a flu shot this year, I should get a call from my GP, but apparently she has forgotten. I'm 61, and everyone over 60 can get a free flu shot, GP is supposed to organise this.

There's discussion here in Holland, should kids get a flu shot. But there is a lot of ado about vaccinations in general, somehow some people have started to link vaccinations to autism, and are now convinced vaccinations are dangerous to children.

81tangledthread
Redigeret: dec 19, 2018, 9:34 am

>70 kidzdoc: This is powerful and true. Thanks for sharing...I've found his website and twitter feed and will follow.

>73 Caroline_McElwee: Also, I'd like to echo Caroline's sentiments.

Safe travels and be well, Daryl.

82LovingLit
dec 19, 2018, 10:53 pm

Christmas abroad! *woop woop*
I had a Christmas in London in about 1999, I think. It snowed for about a minute, and that counts as a white Christmas to me.

83jjmcgaffey
dec 20, 2018, 2:39 am

>82 LovingLit: yeeeessss... I remember that. Snow and then slush. I was in Richmond, and going in to the City now and then - I got the snow while walking around Richmond Park (around, outside. For which I am grateful - it was muddy enough on the pavement). '99 or '98.

84jessibud2
dec 20, 2018, 8:11 pm

I can't find if you wrote what day you were flying, Darryl, but if it's today, I hope you aren't affected by the idiotic drone delays affecting Gatwick. I hope that whenever they find the guy who is responsible, he is duly punished. Maybe he could be made to financially compensate all the hundreds of thousands of people whose holiday plans were messed up. For starters....

Have a great time in London!

85kidzdoc
dec 21, 2018, 9:34 am

Woo! I finished my last work day before Christmas yesterday, and my flight for London leaves late tonight. I was originally going to leave last night, but I got home from work too late on Monday to Wednesday nights to finish last minute tasks, and I was absolutely exhausted when I got home yesterday, although it was probably the easiest day of the month, even though I had a full load of patients. I'm still pretty fried, but since I'm off today I'll have plenty of time to get everything done by the time I need to leave for the airport, in nine hours or so. I'll return to Atlanta on Thursday, work from next Friday through New Year's Day, and visit my parents from January 3-6, weather permitting.

I'm 0 for December for reading books, but I hope to read at least two books while I'm in London, Happiness by Aminatta Forna, which is very good so far, and Plot 29: A Memoir by Allan Jenkins, which was longlisted for this year's Wellcome Book Prize. I'll also bring My Struggle: Book Three by Karl Ove Knausgaard with me, as one of my goals for 2019 will be to read at last Books Three and Four, and finish his Seasons Quartet. I don't expect to finish it before the end of the year, though.

86kidzdoc
dec 21, 2018, 9:42 am

>76 drneutron: Do give that Butter Chicken Instant Pot recipe a try, Jim! It's fabulous.

>77 msf59: The Beef Borscht was equally outstanding, Mark. I had a bowl for dinner last night, and if anything it tasted better than it did on Sunday.

There were parts of My Struggle: Book One that were a little slow, but overall I was absolutely captivated by it, and to a slightly lesser extent Book Two. I would be curious to find out how it compares to Remembrance of Things Past by Marcel Proust, a series that I'm very interested in reading in the near future, but not before I finish all six books of Knausgaard's series.

87richardderus
dec 21, 2018, 10:01 am

Find the Light—Reflect the Light—Be the Light

Happy Yule 2018!

88kidzdoc
dec 21, 2018, 10:04 am

>78 jnwelch: Good morning, Joe! Isn't she adorable?

I'm getting the impression that, similar to cilantro and (gag) Miracle Whip, there is a community of beet lovers and (a deluded) one of beet haters, with very little middle ground in between.

>79 benitastrnad: Well done, Benita. For me and my physician and nurse colleagues who care for sick children, not getting a flu shot would be akin to playing Russian Roulette with a six chambered pistol containing one bullet and having to fire it eight times. I've taken care of at least a dozen kids this month who were hospitalized because they contracted influenza, and so far I've remained healthy, but I know that I'm definitely not out of the woods yet, as I haven't seen any data from the CDC about the effectiveness of this season's vaccine.

According to the Medicare government web site, "Medicare Part B (Medical Insurance) covers one flu shot per flu season. You pay nothing for a flu shot if your doctor or other qualified health care provider accepts assignment for giving the shot."

https://www.medicare.gov/coverage/flu-shots#

The belief of many teens and twentysomethings in their own invincibility is astounding. It seems as though more of them these days are sheltered by overprotective helicopter parents who fix any problems they create instead of letting them deal with their messes themselves, as many of us Baby Boomers had to do, which may exacerbate their views that nothing bad will happen to them.

89kidzdoc
dec 21, 2018, 10:27 am

>80 EllaTim: Thanks, Ella! I've made borscht twice before, but this was the first time I've made it with beef. I didn't think of doing so until Richard brought it up on Joe's thread, so I have him to thank for that. Despite what Joe thinks this is a great cold weather soup, and I'll make it on a regular basis from now on. It has to be topped with sour cream and fresh dill, in my opinion. As you rightly said, borscht has to be loaded with beets as well; it's the main ingredient! (Sorry, Joe.)

In the US most insurance plans cover the cost of the influenza vaccine, and most major pharmacies provide the shot on a walk in basis, for no charge provided that insurance covers it. Publix, my preferred supermarket in Atlanta, also offers flu shots in its in store pharmacies, and those who choose to get it there receive a $10 Publix gift card. So, it's very easy and convenient to get the vaccine here, and you can even get rewarded for receiving it.

Far too many American adults don't have health insurance, and the cost of the vaccine to them is roughly $40, a not insignificant sum, especially if multiple members of a family need to be vaccinated. It's possible that county health departments might provide the vaccine at little or no cost, but I'm not sure.

Oh, good Lord. I knew that the anti-vaccine community was a significant one in Europe, so I shouldn't be surprised, I suppose. I'm curious to see data on the relative number of cases in the US as compared to western Europe, especially in kids. We pediatric health care providers in the US are huge proponents of it, as we see how much of a burden it is to kids, families and the health care system, especially during the December holiday season when thousands of kids across the country are sick or require hospitalization, when the vast majority (70-80%) would have not gotten ill or had a relatively mild illness had they been vaccinated (that doesn't apply to last season, though, as that vaccine was rubbish).

>81 tangledthread: Yes, Father Pavlovitz's comments are absolutely spot on. I'll subscribe to his Twitter feed as well.

Ah...thanks for the reminder about Caroline's comments in >73 Caroline_McElwee:. I'll respond to her posts and the others I missed shortly.

90kidzdoc
dec 21, 2018, 10:42 am

>82 LovingLit: Thanks, Megan! A rather loud voice in my head is urging me to cancel the trip altogether and stay home to catch up on sleep, but the other voice urging me to go is even louder. Because of the last minute switch I wasn't able to get an exit row seat over a wing, which has unlimited leg room, so I ponied up for a first class seat on tonight's flight. I'm very tired now, which means that I should have no trouble sleeping during the flight.

I would assume that a White Christmas in New Zealand is at least extremely rare, if not completely impossible, so you're justified in your claim. White Christmases are extremely rare in Atlanta; the one that happened here in 2010 was the first since the 1880s. I'm pretty sure I was in Philadelphia for that event, and by the time I returned the very minimal snow had melted. White Christmases in NYC and Philadelphia are uncommon, but not so in Pittsburgh and definitely not the upper Midwest.

>83 jjmcgaffey: Ick. I don't like slush, but at least it's preferable to ice.

>84 jessibud2: Thanks, Shelley. Caroline and Heather also told me about the drone problem at Gatwick. I'm flying into Heathrow, but I understand that some Gatwick bound flights were diverted there, so hopefully none of the London bound passengers will be affected by the clown that decided to pull this prank (who hopefully will spend his Christmas in prison).

91weird_O
dec 21, 2018, 10:58 am

Have that Happy Happy Joy Joy in London, Darryl. Safe flight and all that. R'n'R.

92kidzdoc
dec 21, 2018, 11:25 am

>72 SandDune: Since you're considered to be in a high risk group do you have to pay for your influenza vaccine, Rhian?

>73 Caroline_McElwee: I wish I could share your optimism, Caroline! I think that things will get far worse in this country before they get better, as the Republican Party has been taken over by ultra conservatives who seek to hold on to (white) power at any cost, even if it means behaving illegally and immorally and destroying our democracy. I'm not the only one who fears that there will be increased blood shed in the streets, churches and elsewhere by white supremacists like Dylann Roof in Charleston and Robert Gregory Bowers in Pittsburgh who murdered churchgoers because of their race or religion. Yes, I'm sure that Portugal is not free from problems, but I highly doubt that I'll be at risk of being assassinated by a racist because I'm black there.

>74 jnwelch: I'm very eager to find out if influenza is worse in the US than in the UK, Joe. I may be able to ask Rupert about that on Sunday, when I go to the Christmas Party in Cambridge that he and Rachael (FlossieT) invited me to. He's an NHS physician researcher, so he'll probably know.

>87 richardderus: Thanks, Richard! I shall do my best to let my light shine in 2019. Merry Christmas to you, too.

93kidzdoc
dec 21, 2018, 11:25 am

>91 weird_O: Thanks, Bill! Merry Christmas to you and your family.

94jnwelch
dec 21, 2018, 12:48 pm

Merry Christmas, Darryl, and have a great time in London. Please give our best holiday wishes to Claire and Caroline and the gang.

95ChelleBearss
dec 21, 2018, 1:57 pm

Hope you have a great flight and an awesome trip!

96drneutron
dec 21, 2018, 4:17 pm

Merry Christmas in London! I hope your travels are safe!

97torontoc
dec 21, 2018, 4:27 pm

Have a wonderful time!

98Familyhistorian
dec 21, 2018, 7:56 pm

>88 kidzdoc: She is such a sweetie and that is one huge beet.

Have a pleasant trip, Darryl, and a great time in London over the holiday season.

99SqueakyChu
Redigeret: dec 21, 2018, 8:04 pm

Have a safe and uneventful flight to and from Europe, but have a rollicking merry Christmas while in London!

100lauralkeet
dec 21, 2018, 8:20 pm

Darryl posted the following on Facebook this evening:

Due to a sudden emergency I'll spend the next few days with my parents, and instead of traveling to London tonight I'll fly to Philadelphia in the morning and spend Christmas with them. Thoughts and prayers for my mother will be greatly appreciated; please don't call them, though.

Darryl I'm sure I speak for everyone here in hoping for the best for your mom. Sending hugs.

101jessibud2
dec 21, 2018, 8:22 pm

Only the best, Darryl. How fortunate that you are still on this continent, so that you could be where you need and want to be right now.

{{hugs and strength}}

102SqueakyChu
dec 21, 2018, 8:39 pm

Hope all goes well with your mom, Darryl. She needs your love now. She and your dad will be very happy to have you at home for Christmas. London will wait for now. Wishing you a peaceful holiday at home with your parents.

103Caroline_McElwee
dec 21, 2018, 10:52 pm

Keeping you and your parents in my thoughts Darryl.

104Deern
Redigeret: dec 22, 2018, 12:44 am

Thoughts and prayers on the way for you and your parents, especially your mother, extra hugs for you.
As >101 jessibud2: said, how fotunate you hadn‘t left yet.

105PaulCranswick
dec 22, 2018, 4:44 am

Darryl, Hani and I send our love, hugs and best wishes to you and your family this festive season especially. I was looking forward to the prospect of our meeting up again over the holidays but I am pleased for you that you hadn't yet set-off and are able to be with your family at this time.

106EllaTim
dec 22, 2018, 6:22 am

Love, hugs and best wishes to you and your family, and especially your mom, Darryl. I'm glad you were still able to go to them! I hope everything will turn out for the best.

107torontoc
dec 22, 2018, 6:32 am

Thinking of of you and your family !

108jnwelch
dec 22, 2018, 12:20 pm

Ditto, buddy. I hope your mom recovers well and that you have a good holiday with your parents.

109The_Hibernator
dec 22, 2018, 1:34 pm

Hope you have happy holidays with your parents, Darryl!

110SandDune
dec 22, 2018, 4:30 pm

(Or in other words, Happy Christmas, to you and yours!)

Hope everything is OK with your Mum Darryl.

111banjo123
dec 22, 2018, 11:57 pm

Darryl, sending positive thoughts to your mother and family. From everything you have shared, she is a remarkable woman.

112kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 23, 2018, 8:52 am

Thanks for your kind thoughts, everyone. I arrived at my parents' home yesterday, and will stay here until the 27th.

My mother has been having what my father called shaking episodes for the past two weeks, which were nonepileptiform in nature and seemed relatively benign, especially since an EEG (electroencephalogram) and CT scan of her head was normal. However, this week the episodes have become more frequent and disabling, and for the past few days my father has had to feed my mother, as she has been unable to do so. On Friday she became sleepier and less responsive. I was unaware of her decline this week until one of their close neighbors, who is a nurse, sent me a text message late yesterday afternoon to let me know that she wasn't doing well at all that day. As soon as I read it I called my father, found out what was going on, and immediately decided that I needed to get there ASAP. One of their other close neighbors called me shortly afterward to give me more information, and afterward I cancelled my flight to London that evening and booked a ticket on the first available flight I could take to Philadelphia yesterday (several of the early morning flights were already full).

I arrived yesterday mid afternoon, but I barely saw my mother, as she was sleeping from that point until my father and I called it a night at 9:30 pm. My father hasn't wanted to leave her alone, so I went to the supermarket shortly after I arrived and bought ingredients to make soup for dinner today and lunch tomorrow, as he suggested making foods that she could easily chew and digest. She opened her eyes briefly to the sound of my voice when I told her that dinner was ready, but she closed her eyes again after she thanked me.

Her neurologist called in a prescription for an anti-epileptic medication on Friday night, which she started yesterday morning. It's possible that much of yesterday's sleepiness is due to starting this new medication, as she is sensitive to meds, and hopefully as she gets more used to it she will be more alert.

I'm not sure what is going on at the moment, but this is a dramatic change from when I saw her a month ago during Thanksgiving week. The symptoms my father initially described sounded more like anxiety attacks, but obviously this is far more serious. Her local hospital hasn't been very helpful in figuring out what's wrong with her, and unless she recovers significantly in the next day or two I'll probably suggest that we take her to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania so that she can be evaluated and hopefully admitted there.

My father has only been sleeping for 3-4 hours a night for the past three days, so he was absolutely exhausted yesterday. He & I had the soup for dinner, as she was still asleep, and both of us crashed shortly afterward. I'll take over the bulk of the cooking and shopping responsibilities for the next few days, and plan to stock their large freezer with soups and stews that they can reheat.

On top of that, we found out early yesterday afternoon that my mother's youngest sister, who lives with their older sister in a suburb of Houston, suffered a stroke. She was taken to a stroke center in Houston, where doctors quickly identified and dissolved a blood clot that was thought to be the cause of this event. She is doing fine, according to my cousin (the youngest son of my mother's older sister, who lives in the same city as they do), but I'm sure that she'll stay in the hospital for at least another day or two.

113Caroline_McElwee
dec 23, 2018, 7:33 am

Keeping you in my thoughts Darryl. I'm sure your dad is so happy to have you there with him. That generation are so bad at asking for help and support. I hope the sleep your mom is getting is restorative, and the meds helpful.

114kidzdoc
dec 23, 2018, 7:39 am

>113 Caroline_McElwee: Thanks, Caroline.

115msf59
dec 23, 2018, 7:43 am

Morning, Darryl. Thanks for the update on your Mom. We hope she rebounds from this latest setback and starts to respond to the medication. Sorry, to hear about your Aunt too. This could be a tough holiday for your family. Wishing you all best.

116FAMeulstee
dec 23, 2018, 8:32 am

Thanks for the update, Darryl, I hope your mom feels better soon.
Sending good thoughts for you and your parents.

117kidzdoc
dec 23, 2018, 8:52 am

>115 msf59:, >116 FAMeulstee: Thanks, Mark and Anita.

118scaifea
dec 23, 2018, 8:57 am

Keeping you and your parents in my heart and in my thoughts, Darryl. Big hugs coming your way, friend - you're a wonderful son and your parents are lucky to have you in their corner.

119lauralkeet
dec 23, 2018, 9:00 am

Thanks for updating us, Darryl. I've been thinking of you a lot. Hope you start seeing improvement today.

120kidzdoc
dec 23, 2018, 9:17 am

>118 scaifea:, >119 lauralkeet: Thanks, Amber and Laura. I just peeked in on her. She's still in her bed and is very sleepy, even though she had a good night last night, with none of the abnormal involuntary movements that she had been having. She's a bit more awake at the moment, but was agitated for a minute or so. Hopefully she'll improve as the day progresses.

121Ameise1
dec 23, 2018, 9:31 am

Sending lots of healing vibes to your Mum. Keeping you and yours in my thoughts.

122jessibud2
dec 23, 2018, 9:47 am

Continued healing vibes out your way, for your mom, Darryl, and your aunt. I know that your presence there is a big relief and blessing for them all.

123torontoc
dec 23, 2018, 11:14 am

Yes, thinking of you and your family- I hope that your mother responds positively to the new meds

124richardderus
dec 23, 2018, 11:44 am

>112 kidzdoc: I am so glad for you that you've got the resources and the desire to be of service to your mother, Darryl, as it will be a lifelong source of peace for you.

>120 kidzdoc: I'd be agitated too! This sounds like something terrifying for her to be experiencing. I repeat how lucky you are to be able to be their rock in this unnerving passage.

125jnwelch
dec 23, 2018, 12:12 pm

Woo, that’s odd and no doubt scary stuff, Darryl. Mystery health issues are so unsettling.

Debbi, Becca and I are sending you and your mom and dad lots of healing vibes, positive thoughts and our love.

126Oberon
dec 23, 2018, 12:51 pm

>112 kidzdoc: I hope things improve for your parents and you are able to enjoy the Christmas season with them.

127ELiz_M
dec 23, 2018, 12:54 pm

Darryl, I can't think of a better healing aid than a visit from a soup-and-stew-cooking son! I hope your Mom stabilizes and improves enough to not need a hospital visit. Wishing you and your family the best.

128souloftherose
dec 23, 2018, 2:45 pm

>112 kidzdoc: Thanks for the update Darryl. Keeping you all in my prayers.

129kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 26, 2018, 5:11 am

Much to our delight and great surprise my mother is completely back to normal, at least for the moment. She looked absolutely awful this morning, as she was lethargic, couldn't sit upright, her head lolled to either side, had flapping movements of her arms and legs shortly after getting up, and had very slowed speech. Within two hours she was completely normal, with no abnormal movements, as if nothing had happened. Either she was having atypical seizures, and Keppra, which she started yesterday, has gotten rid of them, or she was having pseudoseizures, seizure like paroxysms that are psychological in nature and may have improved because I came to visit. I'd lean toward the former explanation.

Needless to say there is no reason to bring her to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania later today or tomorrow, if this improvement is sustainable.

>121 Ameise1:, >122 jessibud2:, >123 torontoc: Thanks Barbara, Shelley and Cyrel; those prayers and good vibes certainly worked!

>124 richardderus: Thanks, Richard. She was very distressed by these abnormal movements, as she couldn't control them. She's as relieved as any of us are that they have stopped.

>125 jnwelch:, >126 Oberon: Thanks Joe & Erik.

>127 ELiz_M: Ha! I think she would agree with you, Liz.

>128 souloftherose: Thanks, Heather. Everything is back to normal now, thank God.

130klobrien2
dec 23, 2018, 2:53 pm

>129 kidzdoc: What great news about your mother!

I know how unsettling those neurological symptoms can be-- my sister has dealt with epilepsy since she was a child, and we were taught early how to be there for her should she have a seizure (luckily her meds tamed them so she rarely had a grand mal seizure).

You are such a good son, and I know both of your parents appreciates your presence so much (and, this time of year, maybe your "presents" as well? I'm such a wit!)

Best of everything to you now and in the new year!

Karen O.

131Caroline_McElwee
dec 23, 2018, 3:01 pm

>129 kidzdoc: that is wonderful news Darryl, I hope that will continue going forward, and that you are all able to enjoy a fine festive season.

132johnsimpson
dec 23, 2018, 3:14 pm

Hi Darryl, wonderful news about your Mum and hope that all continues to go well, we would like to wish you, your Mum and Dad a very Merry Christmas and have a lovely festive season, sending love and hugs to you all.

133jnwelch
dec 23, 2018, 3:36 pm

Great to hear, Darryl!

134connie53
dec 23, 2018, 5:12 pm

That's great news, Darryl. I was so sorry to hear about your mum and so happy she is so much better now. I hope you have a great Christmas with your parents. London will be waiting for you next year!

135banjo123
dec 23, 2018, 5:42 pm

Great news on your mom! Sounds like that soup was magic.

136catarina1
dec 23, 2018, 8:18 pm

So sorry to read about your mother, Darryl, but it seems as though she is doing much better now. I hope that you and your family will be able to enjoy the holiday. I'll be thinking about all of you.

137laytonwoman3rd
dec 23, 2018, 9:47 pm

Hoping for continued normalcy for your Mom, Darryl. May you all have a peaceful Christmas enjoying each other's presence.

138ronincats
dec 23, 2018, 10:34 pm

So glad to hear that the medication seems to be working for your mom, Darryl!

139tiffin
dec 23, 2018, 11:20 pm

What a good gift to receive just in time for Christmas! So happy for you and yours, Darryl. I hope it continues to be effective.

140EBT1002
dec 23, 2018, 11:34 pm

I'm glad your mom is doing better, Darryl. Scary.

141Deern
dec 24, 2018, 12:43 am

I‘m so glad your mum‘s situation has improved so much! You‘re all in my thoughts. Wishing you and your parents all the best for Christmas and the holiday season.

142Familyhistorian
dec 24, 2018, 12:45 am

I hope that your Mum continues to do well, Darryl, and that you all have a good visit over Christmas.

143Ameise1
dec 24, 2018, 7:44 am

144ChelleBearss
dec 24, 2018, 8:48 am

Glad to hear that your mother is doing better! I'll keep my fingers crossed for her!

145scaifea
dec 24, 2018, 8:56 am

Wonderful news!! I'm so glad.

146katiekrug
dec 24, 2018, 9:25 am

Good news about your mom, Darryl. I hope you all have a very merry Christmas.

147tangledthread
dec 24, 2018, 9:53 am

Merry Christmas, Daryl.

So sorry about your Mom's health. Here's hoping that her condition stabilizes and stays that way through the New Year.

148drneutron
dec 24, 2018, 10:32 am

Glad that your mom's improved!

149kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 24, 2018, 12:23 pm

Good morning/afternoon/evening and Happy Christmas Eve/Merry Christmas, everyone! I know, unlike most trump supporters, that the earth is round and that it has 24 time zones, but it's still hard for me to conceive that Santa Claus has already visited Australia and New Zealand and is now flying over Kuala Lumpur, delivering gifts to good boys and girls, and dropping other objects on bad ones:

Individual-1 has enough coal already, so this "gift" may prove more useful, although he's also full of s***.

My mother had a great day, but developed more abnormal movements just before midnight, which resolved after my father gave my mother an extra dose of Keppra. She's had no further episodes since then, and continues to sleep comfortably.

I'm about to send a summary of her situation to my best friend from medical school, who is a pediatric neurologist (my buddy in Madison, Wisconsin). I'll catch up here after I do that.

150Caroline_McElwee
dec 24, 2018, 11:50 am

To Darryl, mom and dad, Merry Christmas. May the new year bring health, joy and new adventures.

Here is something for your Christmas tree.

151SqueakyChu
dec 24, 2018, 2:37 pm

Have a tasty Christmas with your family, Darryl! :D

152tangledthread
dec 24, 2018, 6:01 pm

Daryl, is your mom on any medications that would cause tardive dyskinesia?

153EllaTim
dec 24, 2018, 6:18 pm

Merry Christmas to you and your Mom and Dad, Darryl!

154PaulCranswick
dec 25, 2018, 3:27 am

Happy holidays, Darryl.

Continued prayers for your family dear fellow and we hope to see you in 2019 in the UK.

155kidzdoc
dec 25, 2018, 5:37 am

Happy Christmas from Santa Mouse and Rudy the Red Shelled Lobster, everyone!

156Caroline_McElwee
dec 25, 2018, 6:24 am

I hope your mom continues to improve Darryl, and that you all have a pleasant day.

The Ottolenghi Brussel Sprouts with burnt butter and black garlic was delicious btw.

157msf59
dec 25, 2018, 9:09 am

Merry Christmas, Darryl. Glad to hear your Mom is showing improvement. Hopefully, she has a very good day today.

158kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 25, 2018, 7:30 pm

Thanks again for your prayers and thoughts, everyone! My mother is now back to normal, and after consulting with my best friend from medical school, who is a professor of Pediatric Neurology at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine, it seems highly likely that she was experiencing atypical seizures. She responded well to Keppra, an anti-epileptic medication, on Sunday, was overly somnolent and had altered mental status yesterday, probably because my father gave her two extra doses over the previous 24 hours to control her abnormal involuntary movements and too much was in her system, and after doses of Keppra were held last night and this morning she's been back to her usual self. Then again, it could be the chicken matzo ball soup that I made on Sunday and she had yesterday for dinner did the trick...

None of us has slept all that well since I arrived on Saturday, especially my parents, so we're all wiped out. I took an early afternoon nap, but we'll all turn in for the night soon, even though it's only a little past 7 pm. My father and I will make Christmas dinner tomorrow, and my brother will come back over then.

I'll catch up on posts here tomorrow, and create new 75 Books and Club Read threads for 2019.

I hope that everyone who celebrates it had a very Happy Christmas today!

ETA: My mother's youngest sister, who suffered a minor stroke on Saturday, was discharged from the hospital early this afternoon. Like my mother she's also back to normal. Needless to say, these are the two best Christmas gifts I have ever received.

159SqueakyChu
dec 25, 2018, 7:24 pm

>158 kidzdoc: Heh! I DEFINITELY think it was the matzo ball soup. Glad she's back to her old self. You keep scaring us! Rest up, Darryl. Talk to you soon.

160kidzdoc
dec 25, 2018, 7:37 pm

>159 SqueakyChu: Thanks, Madeline! I firmly believe in the healing benefits of chicken matzo ball soup for upper and lower respiratory infections, at least.

161torontoc
dec 25, 2018, 7:41 pm

>158 kidzdoc: >159 SqueakyChu: >160 kidzdoc: definitely the chicken matzo ball soup!

162laytonwoman3rd
dec 25, 2018, 8:53 pm

>159 SqueakyChu:, >161 torontoc: "definitely the matzo ball soup"....and the love, of course.

163lauralkeet
dec 25, 2018, 8:53 pm

I'm so glad to read this update on your mom. Sleep well, Darryl.

164jessibud2
dec 25, 2018, 11:18 pm

Another vote for the chicken matzo ball soup! Of course!! :-)

And yes, both bits of family news would be the best Christmas presents, for sure! Sleep well, you all, and enjoy tomorrow's post-Christmas celebrations.

165Familyhistorian
dec 26, 2018, 1:03 am

>158 kidzdoc: Definitely the best of Christmas presents with both your mom and her sister doing better, Darryl. I hope it all continues on a positive trend.

166scaifea
dec 26, 2018, 8:32 am

Oh, that's great news, Darryl!! I'm so glad!

167kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 26, 2018, 5:02 pm

Thanks, Cyrel, Linda, Laura, Shelley, Meg and Amber. These past few days have been quite the rollercoaster ride, with completely normal days alternating with ones in which my mother is very altered. Today started out great, but my mother suddenly went downhill, possibly because she hadn't had her seizure, anxiety and dementia medications for over 14 hours. Fortunately we were able to convince her to take her morning dose of Keppra, after we put on some gospel music and sat with her, and now that it's starting to work she's coming around again.

168souloftherose
dec 26, 2018, 2:54 pm

>167 kidzdoc: I'm glad to hear the medication is having a positive effect on your Mum but the continual ups and downs must be exhausting for you all. Continuing to pray she stabilises and you can all get some much needed rest. So glad you were able to go and be with them.

169Caroline_McElwee
dec 26, 2018, 6:11 pm

I agree, great Christmas presents to have your mother and aunt recover Darryl. I hope you all get some good sleep, and enjoy the rest of the festive season.

170connie53
dec 27, 2018, 5:12 am

Hi Darryl. I hope the good news will continue and that you all will get the rest you need.

171Sakerfalcon
dec 27, 2018, 5:13 am

It's good to read the fuller updates about your mum here, and share your news. I'm so relieved that your mum has been responding to treatment and that you've managed to have a good family Christmas. I will keep you all in my prayers for the days and weeks ahead but hope that she is well on the road to recovery. Great news about your aunt, too; it really has been a rollercoaster of a season for your family.

172FAMeulstee
dec 27, 2018, 4:34 pm

Glad the meds work well for your mother, Darryl.
I hope you and your father get some rest now.

173kidzdoc
dec 27, 2018, 9:27 pm

I'm now back in Atlanta, after an emotionally draining but very rewarding week with my parents. My mother has done well since yesterday afternoon, now that she is on what seems to be a therapeutic dose of Keppra for her abnormal involuntary movements and what seem to be atypical seizures. The next steps will be to determine if these are seizures, and if so, why she is having them all of a sudden, as she has never had them.

Although I'm grateful that I went to medical school and have a great job as a result, I'm even more happy that I have been able to use my medical training and physician friend connections to help out my parents over the past year and a half.

I'll go back to clinical service for the next five days, starting tomorrow, and I'll spend the last four days of next week (Thu-Sun) with my parents. I probably won't be able to see them again until late February, so I hope and pray that things continue to go well for both of them.

174ronincats
dec 27, 2018, 9:38 pm

Glad to hear the positive news on both your mom and your aunt, Darryl. It must indeed have been exhausting but I'm so glad you were able to be there.

175kidzdoc
dec 27, 2018, 10:03 pm

>168 souloftherose: Thanks, Heather.

I normally sleep well at my parents' house, but that definitely wasn't the case since this past Saturday. Fortunately the General Pediatrics inpatient service has tailed off significantly, as it usually does just before Christmas and for the remainder of December, and hopefully that trend will continue, as I could use some relatively easy work days to catch up on rest.

Oof. It's now 10 pm, and I can barely kep my eyes open. I'll finished catching up tomorrow...

176connie53
dec 28, 2018, 3:24 am

Hi Darryl. You must feel exhausted after the last few days. Not only physical but mentally it must have been heavy too. I hope you get all the rest and sleep you need. And I hope your mother will stay stable for a long time. Sleep tight!

177laytonwoman3rd
dec 28, 2018, 9:21 am

Your medical training and network of contacts are certainly a godsend for your parents in times like these, Darryl. And then there's your love and devotion...and your cooking skills. You're all lucky to have each other.

178Caroline_McElwee
dec 28, 2018, 11:35 am

I hope you have the opportunity to catch some rest Darryl, and that your parents are OK on your return, so you can just enjoy the time together.

179jnwelch
dec 30, 2018, 6:08 pm

Continuing good news about your mom, Darryl. Personally, I think it was your chicken matzoh ball soup that saved the day most recently.

Like Caroline, I hope you get some rest, and that your parents are okay for your return.

We're in your old stomping grounds, Pittsburgh, watching the Steelers trying to make the playoffs. If I've got it right, they need to beat Cincinnati today, and Cleveland has to beat the Ravens. The latter's looking like a tough go (the Ravens lead 20-7). Adriana can't believe she's rooting for the Browns!

180johnsimpson
dec 31, 2018, 7:46 am

Hi Darryl, we would like to wish you and your family a very happy new year mate and all the very best for 2019 and hopefully we will get to meet you at some point in the year, sending love and hugs from both of us mate.

181thornton37814
dec 31, 2018, 11:54 am

182Familyhistorian
dec 31, 2018, 2:27 pm

Happy New Year, Darryl. I hope you get some rest and your parents continue to do well.

183Berly
dec 31, 2018, 5:54 pm

Happy New Year's Eve!!

184connie53
jan 1, 2019, 3:55 am

Happy New Year, Darryl.

185vivians
jan 1, 2019, 12:07 pm

Sending best wishes and hope that your mother's recovery continues!

186EllaTim
jan 1, 2019, 12:27 pm

Happy New Year, Darryl, and best wishes for you and yours.

187kidzdoc
jan 2, 2019, 4:14 am

Thanks for the New Year wishes, everyone! See you all in the new group.

kidzdoc "Stays Woke" in 2018, Chapter 7

Snak75 Books Challenge for 2018

1kidzdocRedigeret: dec 23, 2018, 8:54 am

2kidzdocRedigeret: dec 9, 2018, 2:59 am

3kidzdocRedigeret: dec 8, 2018, 9:37 pm

4kidzdocRedigeret: dec 29, 2018, 6:41 pm

5kidzdocRedigeret: dec 8, 2018, 9:51 pm

6kidzdocRedigeret: dec 8, 2018, 9:53 pm

7kidzdocRedigeret: dec 9, 2018, 3:12 am

8kidzdocRedigeret: dec 8, 2018, 10:39 pm

9kidzdocRedigeret: dec 8, 2018, 10:43 pm

10kidzdocRedigeret: dec 8, 2018, 10:59 pm

11weird_ORedigeret: dec 8, 2018, 10:21 pm

12figsfromthistledec 8, 2018, 10:30 pm

13kidzdocdec 8, 2018, 10:57 pm

14Whisper1dec 8, 2018, 11:04 pm

15kidzdocdec 8, 2018, 11:06 pm

16Oberondec 9, 2018, 1:11 am

17Deerndec 9, 2018, 1:18 am

18connie53dec 9, 2018, 2:51 am

19kidzdocRedigeret: dec 9, 2018, 3:41 am

20Ameise1dec 9, 2018, 4:00 am

21kidzdocdec 9, 2018, 5:17 am

22Ameise1dec 9, 2018, 5:22 am

23kidzdocdec 9, 2018, 5:30 am

24Ameise1dec 9, 2018, 5:35 am

25kidzdocdec 9, 2018, 5:40 am

26Ameise1dec 9, 2018, 5:45 am

27kidzdocdec 9, 2018, 6:06 am

28Ameise1dec 9, 2018, 6:36 am

29kidzdocdec 9, 2018, 8:39 am

30Ameise1dec 9, 2018, 8:41 am

31FAMeulsteedec 9, 2018, 9:34 am

32drneutrondec 9, 2018, 2:10 pm

33kidzdocRedigeret: dec 9, 2018, 4:02 pm

34banjo123dec 9, 2018, 4:05 pm

35kidzdocdec 9, 2018, 4:05 pm

36Ameise1dec 9, 2018, 4:30 pm

37jnwelchdec 9, 2018, 5:18 pm

38reconditereaderdec 9, 2018, 6:07 pm

39EBT1002dec 9, 2018, 6:57 pm

40kidzdocdec 9, 2018, 9:50 pm

41SqueakyChudec 9, 2018, 10:41 pm

42SqueakyChudec 9, 2018, 10:44 pm

43drneutrondec 9, 2018, 10:57 pm

44kidzdocdec 10, 2018, 4:34 am

45Caroline_McElweedec 10, 2018, 5:06 am

46hosontodec 10, 2018, 5:24 am

47kidzdocdec 10, 2018, 5:43 am

48drneutronRedigeret: dec 10, 2018, 12:30 pm

49johnsimpsondec 10, 2018, 4:15 pm

50kidzdocdec 11, 2018, 6:08 am

51msf59dec 11, 2018, 7:45 am

52Familyhistoriandec 11, 2018, 6:51 pm

53PaulCranswickdec 11, 2018, 8:18 pm

54catarina1dec 11, 2018, 11:21 pm

55Sakerfalcondec 12, 2018, 6:51 am

56kidzdocdec 12, 2018, 8:03 am

57torontocdec 12, 2018, 10:06 am

58Caroline_McElweedec 12, 2018, 3:45 pm

59catarina1dec 12, 2018, 11:31 pm

60charl08dec 13, 2018, 2:59 am

61SandDunedec 13, 2018, 2:09 pm

62streamsongdec 14, 2018, 2:18 pm

63ChelleBearssdec 14, 2018, 4:15 pm

64kidzdocdec 16, 2018, 9:06 am

65kidzdocRedigeret: dec 16, 2018, 9:49 am

66kidzdocdec 16, 2018, 10:16 am

67kidzdocRedigeret: dec 16, 2018, 10:44 am

68kidzdocRedigeret: dec 16, 2018, 1:41 pm

69lauralkeetdec 16, 2018, 1:00 pm

70kidzdocRedigeret: dec 16, 2018, 1:44 pm

71kidzdocdec 16, 2018, 1:41 pm

72SandDunedec 16, 2018, 2:29 pm

73Caroline_McElweedec 16, 2018, 4:01 pm

74jnwelchdec 16, 2018, 4:11 pm

75kidzdocdec 16, 2018, 9:01 pm

76drneutrondec 16, 2018, 9:50 pm

77msf59dec 16, 2018, 10:03 pm

78jnwelchdec 17, 2018, 4:17 pm

1kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 23, 2018, 8:54 am

2kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 9, 2018, 2:59 am

3kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 8, 2018, 9:37 pm

4kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 29, 2018, 6:41 pm

5kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 8, 2018, 9:51 pm

6kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 8, 2018, 9:53 pm

7kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 9, 2018, 3:12 am

8kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 8, 2018, 10:39 pm

9kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 8, 2018, 10:43 pm

10kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 8, 2018, 10:59 pm

11weird_O
Redigeret: dec 8, 2018, 10:21 pm

12figsfromthistle
dec 8, 2018, 10:30 pm

13kidzdoc
dec 8, 2018, 10:57 pm

14Whisper1
dec 8, 2018, 11:04 pm

15kidzdoc
dec 8, 2018, 11:06 pm

16Oberon
dec 9, 2018, 1:11 am

17Deern
dec 9, 2018, 1:18 am

18connie53
dec 9, 2018, 2:51 am

19kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 9, 2018, 3:41 am

20Ameise1
dec 9, 2018, 4:00 am

21kidzdoc
dec 9, 2018, 5:17 am

22Ameise1
dec 9, 2018, 5:22 am

23kidzdoc
dec 9, 2018, 5:30 am

24Ameise1
dec 9, 2018, 5:35 am

25kidzdoc
dec 9, 2018, 5:40 am

26Ameise1
dec 9, 2018, 5:45 am

27kidzdoc
dec 9, 2018, 6:06 am

28Ameise1
dec 9, 2018, 6:36 am

29kidzdoc
dec 9, 2018, 8:39 am

30Ameise1
dec 9, 2018, 8:41 am

31FAMeulstee
dec 9, 2018, 9:34 am

32drneutron
dec 9, 2018, 2:10 pm

33kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 9, 2018, 4:02 pm

34banjo123
dec 9, 2018, 4:05 pm

35kidzdoc
dec 9, 2018, 4:05 pm

36Ameise1
dec 9, 2018, 4:30 pm

37jnwelch
dec 9, 2018, 5:18 pm

38reconditereader
dec 9, 2018, 6:07 pm

39EBT1002
dec 9, 2018, 6:57 pm

40kidzdoc
dec 9, 2018, 9:50 pm

41SqueakyChu
dec 9, 2018, 10:41 pm

42SqueakyChu
dec 9, 2018, 10:44 pm

43drneutron
dec 9, 2018, 10:57 pm

44kidzdoc
dec 10, 2018, 4:34 am

45Caroline_McElwee
dec 10, 2018, 5:06 am

46hosonto
dec 10, 2018, 5:24 am

47kidzdoc
dec 10, 2018, 5:43 am

48drneutron
Redigeret: dec 10, 2018, 12:30 pm

49johnsimpson
dec 10, 2018, 4:15 pm

50kidzdoc
dec 11, 2018, 6:08 am

51msf59
dec 11, 2018, 7:45 am

52Familyhistorian
dec 11, 2018, 6:51 pm

53PaulCranswick
dec 11, 2018, 8:18 pm

54catarina1
dec 11, 2018, 11:21 pm

55Sakerfalcon
dec 12, 2018, 6:51 am

56kidzdoc
dec 12, 2018, 8:03 am

57torontoc
dec 12, 2018, 10:06 am

58Caroline_McElwee
dec 12, 2018, 3:45 pm

59catarina1
dec 12, 2018, 11:31 pm

60charl08
dec 13, 2018, 2:59 am

61SandDune
dec 13, 2018, 2:09 pm

62streamsong
dec 14, 2018, 2:18 pm

63ChelleBearss
dec 14, 2018, 4:15 pm

64kidzdoc
dec 16, 2018, 9:06 am

65kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 16, 2018, 9:49 am

66kidzdoc
dec 16, 2018, 10:16 am

67kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 16, 2018, 10:44 am

68kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 16, 2018, 1:41 pm

69lauralkeet
dec 16, 2018, 1:00 pm

70kidzdoc
Redigeret: dec 16, 2018, 1:44 pm

71kidzdoc
dec 16, 2018, 1:41 pm

72SandDune
dec 16, 2018, 2:29 pm

73Caroline_McElwee
dec 16, 2018, 4:01 pm

74jnwelch
dec 16, 2018, 4:11 pm

75kidzdoc
dec 16, 2018, 9:01 pm

76drneutron
dec 16, 2018, 9:50 pm

77msf59
dec 16, 2018, 10:03 pm

78jnwelch
dec 17, 2018, 4:17 pm

79benitastrnad
dec 17, 2018, 6:39 pm

80EllaTim
dec 17, 2018, 6:55 pm