eric135

The Kite Runner, Bees, Pandas, Resumes, Pet Food Recall, Professor Hawking

I just finished Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner. It's the story set in Afghanistan, about two boys (Amir and the son of the servant, Hassan). One of my co-workers told me it was the best book she had ever read. It took me a while to get through it (it isn't Sci-Fi, Mystery or Thriller/Horror) but it was excellent. I finished the last third of the book in one sitting. Too easy to spoil so I won't write more.

• Honey bees are disappearing. No one knows why. They are responsible for up to 1/3 of the US diet. The cause might be one or more viruses that are making the foraging honeybees too sick to return to their hives.
• Cute pictures of Pandas. My favorite is the third picture, where the baby panda gets his head measured.
• MIT Dean of Admissions, Marilee Jones, resigns after admitting she fluffed her resume when she was first hired 28 years ago. She's long been an advocate of reducing the pressure on teens to live unrealistic and unhappy lives basically to get into a prestigious college that they don't really want to attend. She wrote a book about it. “We’re raising a generation of kids trained to please adults,” Jones told The Associated Press in a profile published last year. “Every day kids should have time when they’re doing something where they’re not being judged. That’s the big difference with this generation. They’re being judged and graded and analyzed and assessed at every turn. It’s too much pressure for them.”
• Another entry in the "They Should Have Thought of That" department: Pigs were fed recalled pet food and now melamine and cyanuric acid have leaked into the US human food supply. "The pork and pork products from these animals will be destroyed," Peterson said. Each year, more than 105 million hogs are slaughtered in the United States, the AP noted.
• Professor Stephen Hawking experiences zero-g on "The Vomit Comet," NASA's training plane that allows astronauts (and actors and politicians) to experience weightlessness. I know I'd definitely blow chunks all over the place.

Next, Hannibal Rising

I have had quite an appetite for reading. I finally managed to get my hands on a library copy of Michael Crichton's Next. He is good at writing likable heroes, and there are several in this book, including two talking apes, a talking bird (that has been watching too much TV and loves country music) and a room full of nerds that got straight A's in Biology.

I'm also hugely impressed by the bibliography at the end of the novel. He certainly did his scientific homework.

But the talking bird dialogue was funny as hell.

A pre- prequel to Silence of the Lambs. Hannibal Rising describes how Hannibal Lechter survived the Nazi's, and was warped by them. I thought it would be another thriller-mystery story, and I guess it is (he kills a few people but, as usual, they're just "free range" trashy folks). He matches wits with another investigator/detective type.

Final Exam

I've been sick as hell for the past several weeks, almost from my most recent post. So much for my flu shot back in November. I know, I know, that has nothing to do with it, but again, this was one of the worst bouts of flu I've had in a long time. My room mate was sick at the same time, so we were just miserable. I'd set my alarm clock for every 4 hours around the clock, and I'd go into the kitchen, parcel out are medications in the same little plastic cups from work, and I'd go into his room with the 20mls of cough medicine, 650mg of Tylenol, and a glass of juice. I know. Awwwwwwww....

 

I finally got back to reading. I had heard about this book while reading the online version of the New York Times, and I put it on my request list from the library. Then I never gave it another thought because I was just so damn sick. So it turns out I let Michael Crichton's latest novel go unclaimed, along with a few others. But this one made it through. I devoured it almost a 24-hour period. I don't want to go into it too much, you can click the link and read about it. But her stories about her first Code experiences, her description of working on her cadaver in medical school, and her fumbled mumbled responses to terminally ill patients really rung a bell inside me. She seemed as haunted by her work as I am by mine. Every morning, I walk out the building to the parking garage, and I sometimes can't tell who is winning anymore. Or if any of us even like to play. Certainly, the game makes some of us angry. Since the last I wrote, I have been involved in four codes. Of the four, none were younger than their 80's. Two survived at least to the ICU. None qualified for organ donation, even though I spend about 2 hours after each death doing all of the required paperwork for the organ donation folks. Lots of time working with the survivors. The two deaths shocked no one that night, and both of the wives of the departed seemed caught between the wretched world of the grieving widow, and the sinful guilt of that feeling of release and calm. I didn't run into any spirits that night either. But I am still trying.

Re-discovering the Public Library

The last time I used a public library was probably during my grade-school years in Hopewell, Virginia. But recently, my roomie picked up some books for a friend from the library, and I decided to get a library card. But what I'm really enjoying is that I can select books, DVDs and CDs online, and mark them for "hold." A couple of days later, I get an email indicating the material is ready for me to pick up, and I just walk in there and they have a wall of shelves with books/DVDs/CDs wrapped in paper marked with the name of the patron for pick up. Sweet. The checkout materials can be borrowed from other branches (I think there are about 20 branches).

Over the weekend, I've read Forever Odd, by Dean Koontz, and Bad Prior Acts, by Tami Hoag.

Four Books and TV

I've been catching up on my reading.

Spin, by Robert Charles Wilson, was a new author I decided to try. The story is set in the near future, when suddenly the Earth is surrounded by a field which makes time pass incredibly slowly for the Earth compared to the rest of the universe. So for every day on earth, millions of years pass everywhere else. There are a lot of other story lines developed.

Cell, by Stephen King, is King's most recent book. Cell phones cause people to turn into zombies. I avoid zombie movies because they give me nightmares, but zombie books don't seem to bother me. And King does such a great job developing characters. After I bought the book, I noticed that the fifth installment of his Dark Tower series is out in paperback, which I'll have to read.

The Chronoliths, by Robert Charles Wilson. I picked this one up after I read Spin, but didn't want to read two books by the same author in a row. It's my current read. Set in the near future, these towering monuments appear out of nowhere all over the world, coming from the future.

Kill the Messenger, by Tami Hoag. I've already picked out my next book. This one's a thriller/suspense novel.

Last night, I watched 8 episodes of the TV series, Invasion. We had given up on it back before Thanksgiving because the story line was moving way too slowly. But watching all of those episodes in one sitting was very entertaining. I'm now caught up with the original weekly airings. And I can't decide if I'll start watching it weekly, or if I'll just let TiVo record a bunch and watch them in one night. I'm thinking of watching 24, We have about 6 episodes TiVo'd. I gotta check out who they will be torturing/taser'ing/electrocuting this season.

Outlook, and I finished GTD

As I mentioned in a previous post, I no longer have wireless access via my Palm VII. The only feature that I really miss is wireless email.

I was playing with my Palm and noticed its interface with Outlook. I had never used this function before, but it allows sending and receiving email via the Palm Hotsync feature. Since usa.net has recently added IMAP accessibility, I managed (without my sister, Karen's, help btw) to get all the settings right. So now (6 hours later) I'm able to send/receive email at each Hotsync.

As an added benefit, I notice that Outlook is able to check my usa.net email a hell of a lot faster than accessing via Internet Explorer. Sweet!

GTD:

I know I keep going back to this book, but I've managed to finish reading it. I've already mentioned the points I personally find most useful, but I also got a lot out of the last three chapters, which took a more encompassing view of life. My favorite quotes:

"When groups of people collectively adopt the [GTD lifestyle], they have a tight ship to sail. It doesn't mean they're sailing in the right direction, or even that they're on the right ship; it just means that the one they're on, in the direction it's going, is doing that with the most efficient energy it can." -- p 235

"The challenge is to marry high-level idealistic focus to the mundane activity of life. In the end they require the same thinking." -- p 253

"There's plenty of talk in the Big Meetings that sounds good, but learning to ask, 'Why are we doing this?' and 'What will it look like when it's done successfully?' and to apply the answers at the day-to-day level -- THAT is what will create profound results." -- p 255

And my all-time favorite:

"Talk does not cook rice. -Chinese Proverb" -- p 245.

There's a web site (43 Folders) that's devoted to GTD with lots of discussion, and pertinent links, now with their own domain.

Toyota and GTD

I spent most of my morning at the Toyota dealer getting my Echo fixed. For the past couple of months, we've been hearing a rattling sound from under the steering wheel. Turns out the brake line was loose, and was rattling against another part of the engine.

As is usual for me, I decided to wait it out rather than come home and wait for a phone call. The whole service area was very nice (didn't think to take any PalmPix shots). You drive into a covered area where you step out of the car, and a fellow steps out to meet you and take your key. Then another guy steps out of these offices that open right up to the parking strip, and you step right into a little office to register for the work. Then, you enter this spacious waiting area, which includes a large-screen TV with cable and an office area with two desks equiped with phone and internet access. Very nice. Even though I was there from 0730 until 1030, I hardly felt it. I even got free donuts and coffee.

Prior to going, I equipped myself for what might have been an all day wait. I bought 3 cans of soda, 2 of those "Lunchable" things, my Palm PDA, my AlphaSmart 3000, my cell phone, two books (Getting Things Done by David Allen, and Lost Light by Michael Connelly). The only item I consumed was the first can of soda.

During the 3 hour wait, I finished the night shift nursing schedule for next month; got about 60% through scheduling for the triple-holiday of Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year; wrote two memo's to my co-workers about the schedules, read about 1/3 of USA Today, and read several chapters of Getting Things Done.

There are some pointers that I did get from GTD that have been helpful just in the single day I've implemented them. I have changed my Palm ToDo list to nothing but Next Action Items (the very next physical thing to be done), splitting my projects into longer lists of actions. I've also utilized the "@" sign in the category name for non-specific environment/conditional type items, such as "@computer" for things I could do the next time I'm in front of the computer, or "@phone" for people to call, "@work" for the administrative actions (non-patient-care stuff) to do at the hospital, "@waiting" for items that are waiting for input/response from others (have I mentioned how infuriating this list can be?) and "@whatif/someday" for those general ideas that float around in my head. The nice thing about using the @ sign is that, by sorting, I can get a list of all these bunched up together at the top of my list, regardless of their due date.

There are some points where GTD and I part ways:

I don't use a fancy labeler for my file folders. I just use pencil. This way I can easily re-use the folder for new projects. Also, there would be some weird mind games going on if I started depending on a machine for labels, especially if I should run out of tape.

I firmly believe in the "touch it only once" rule, which GTD dismisses. Once I get a piece of paper in my hand, it gets entered into my calendar, to do list, or in my phone book. Then I toss it.

I'm sure it's some kind of ADD or ADHD, but I can't work at my computer station for more than a few minutes. I have to rotate between my computer, the bathroom (I like to read there, and get my best ideas sitting on the toilet), the kitchen (planning, making and storing meals seems to be pretty high on my list of nesting activities -- vaccuuming and dusting are not), and the TV (I only watch what has been TiVo'd, for 10-15 minutes at a time).

I rotate between these stations, and get a lot done surprisingly. Generally, when I get stumped or frustrated at one "station", I move on to the next one.

I am sure this behavior is linked to my behavior as a nurse, where, if I'm in the same place for too long, one of my patients is surely taking a header over the side rails onto the floor, or has swallowed their own tongue, or is painting the hallways with their feces. So I keep movin'.

One thing GTD and I do agree on is the importance of not getting too much piled on one's plate.

I reject new projects more often than I take them on. When I do accept them, I agree on firm goals and guidelines.

I don't accept social invites any more than once a month.

Any current project that has not moved along toward previously agreed goals and timelines gets the axe.

I only accept projects with people who know how to use email, and are computer-savy enough to consider using web pages, blogs and other new-age tools to get more done in less time.

When superiors are unwilling to axe dead-end projects, I just hound them mercilessly until they release me from the project. As a peace-keeping effort on my part, I'm starting to tell people "contact me after xyz has been done", which for most of the folks I work with, essentially takes them off my grid.

I'm on Chapter 9 of 13.

Getting Things Done... by overnight mail!

Yesterday afternoon, a copy of David Allen's Getting Things Done arrived on my doorstep. It turns out I had gone to Amazon.com and ordered myself a copy of the book. I don't seem to remember doing this, but I checked my account at Amazon and it definitely looks like I ordered it.

Overnight delivery.

Which is another lesson filed under "things to avoid doing while under the influence of Ambien: online shopping."

I'm taking it as a sign from the Almighty that I should give the book a serious peruse (I had dismissed it on a previous post because I really don't have problems getting things done, and, to use the first couple of chapters I've read so far, I am more likely to find myself at the bottom of other people's buckets.) My God, I can't even begin to imagine the years I've squandered waiting for other people to get their damn act together. Seriously, at work, everyone running the place could quintuple their productivity and I'd still be tapping my foot impatiently waiting for someone to work through his/her backlogged email.

I read the first two chapters during a lull in my nursing shift. I had five patients: two with heart failure, one with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (cigarettes will kill you, every damn one of you, so damn it quit smoking those damn things right now), and one guy who basically was admitted for flu.

Towards the end of shift, I did run into time management issues, as all five of my patients simultaneously 1) pulled out her IV 2) started screaming in pain 3) vomited 4) had a blood sugar of 30 and 5) arrived as a new admit. One of my co-workers looked over at my desk and pointed at the book and suggested I get more chapters read.

I'm back tonight.

Booksfree.com

I have recently re-joined Booksfree.com. It's a great service where, for a monthly fee, you can rent paperback books. It works like NetFlix, where you can keep the books as long as you want, but you are limited in the number of books you can have checked out at one time. My sister Vina got me started years ago, but when 9/11 happened, their service was so severely disrupted due to problems with sending packages through the mail that they had shut down for a while. A co-worker that I had gotten started with it had one of their books, and so I decided to rejoin. I spend about $12/month, which I figure is a deal if I read at least two books a month (an easy task usually). I really like the fact that I don't have endless piles of paperbacks sitting around (I almost never re-read a book). Their book lists are very comprehensive. But the neatest thing they've added since the last time I was a member is an online personal reading list. You can keep a list of up to 100 books, and they send them to you as they come available. Recommended.