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• 06:33 Monrning world. Back at the firehouse. Another 24 hours of unaduterated boredom. Can you feel the love? #
• 08:32 Training @ 10:30 EMS Shock. Not that I dis like training but I just had a paramedic class! #
• 10:28 Time to train! Shock 'till you recognize the rhythm! #
• 12:41 Whats for lunch? The crew is thinking Raferty's #
• 16:32 Just finished waxing a hazmat trailer. The glorious life of the firefighter. #
• 22:17 I pledge to read 20-40pgs of my paramedic book. Going to test soon (written in Dec hopefully). Need to study. I hate tests. #

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• 08:50 Morning in the bluegrass state. I always liked the fall weather, crisp & cool mornings #

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• 07:38 Stuck in the middle. Paramedic time is getting habitual. What will I do when it's over? #
• 09:55 1st run 93yo M c/o weakness. No wonder w/ a-fib & bradycardia. BP was good though. Poss UTI #
• 12:12 The most difficult decision of the day. What is for lunch? #
• 19:34 1yr old male 2nd deg burns 30% BSA accidental. 1.5mg morphine via IO 240ml NS bolus. Tx- childrens Hosp. #
• 20:30 From KT4GB- It is better to be hated for what you are than loved for what you are not #

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• 10:35 Out to do more fire inspections. Hooray! Flashed new ROM to my tilt, still trying to figure it out. #
• 13:54 Eating Lunch @ Chinese Tea Bistro in Norton Commons. Best in the area. #
• 17:45 Standing on the corner watching all the girls go by..... #
• 17:47 No really it just sounds better than sitting at the station watching 'House' #

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• 09:00 Dogs decided 07:30 was time to get up. Eating Pizza 4 b-fast. Lots to do today on my 1 day of #
• 13:43 Damn. Working 84 hours over next 5 days. Only getting paid for 48 hrs. Next day off- thursday. #
• 14:08 renewed the 2 dogs licenses, now to renew the car's license. Giving meto government more money. #
• 23:42 got to sleep. must get up in 6 hours for another tour @ firehouse. #

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• 06:44 Up early again. Only 1 run torough the night. Off to more paramedic ride time. The end is in sight! #
• 10:00 People w/ Hist. of stroke need to be seen if they exhibit signs of same. With in the hour, not 13.5 hrs later. #
• 10:09 I think I am giving humans too much credit for informing themselves. Are people really happy with their ignorance? #
• 11:57 Got J.Gumbo's for lunch! Hopefully we get to eat it in peace. Needing to study #
• 20:04 Drinking a beer waiting for the pizza. I wish I had New Haven pizza here. Oh well. #

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Thoughts

The past two years of my training in advanced prehospital medicine will come to a close by mid November. I am almost finished with my field internship (ride time) and I need to start thinking about when and where I will take the two tests.

The National Registry for Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT) is the agency which sets standardized testing for Emts and Paramedics. Their tests are widely recognized (even despised) and accepted by most state agencies. The written test can be scheduled at anytime, since there is a testing center right here in Louisville but the practical exam (skills test) is a horse of a different color.

There are few "testing centers" in the country that offer practicle exams. The process is long and involved to become a testing center. Paramedic graduates in Louisville used to travel to Memphis, TN or Indianapolis, IN to test. The NREMT website lists the open test sites and dates. A paramedic candidate must register 3 weeks prior to the test date. All the paperwork must be completed prior to registering, which is to say that the program coordinator has to certify that the student has met all the requirements.

I plan to be finished with my ride time in the middle of November. There are a few choices for testing sites. Here is a list:

Deer Park, TX 12/13
Savannah, GA 12/13
Wisconsin Rapid, WI 12/13
Columbus, OH 12/13
Concord, NH 12/14
Allentown, PA 12/19
Tuscon, AZ 12/20
Denver, CO 12/20
Macon, GA 12/20
Hartford, CT 01/08

Hmm...Hartford Connecticut. Obviously Columbus Ohio is closer and there is a Cincinnati, OH date for the 14th of February. Cincy would be more than three months after I finish my ride time, too much time to forget everything. Columbus could work out if I finish before the 10th of November, too close to hedge my bets on making that date. Hartford though is two days after my birthday, in my home state. It just seems fitting that I try to test there. I could visit friends and family while I am there.

So there you have it, I hope to test in Hartford.

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• 06:55 Woke up @ 4am, went the gym before shift began at firehouse. Don't really want to be here today. #
• 07:00 I will be happy when they let us do our jobs and cut back on busy work. #
• 07:02 We need to disband the 18 FDs in the county and make one strong Dept. The 18 kings are too greedy and self important. #
• 07:03 Fire & EMS in KY are stuck in the 1970's. We need advanced thinking in Fire commission and KBEMS. #
• 08:59 Crew going to the gym, then inspections! Can you feel the sarcasm? #
• 09:31 I want a new operating system. Screw you MS and your lousy windows mobile product. We need Mac OS for mobile phones. #
• 09:40 Does anyone really care that Clay aiken is gay? Really? Lets move past this like we moved past the Spanish inquisition. #
• 09:44 Why won't Vista let an admin download a program from the web? Vista is also junk. I've had to fix more problems than with XP #
• 09:56 Twitter is dangerous. I get to say exactly what I think w/o needing social filters. Yeay randomness! #
• 10:04 I'm just a firefighter/medic student. I want to learn more about everything, but my "server" space is limited. #
• 10:07 Someday I hope to learn usefull skills. Maybe I could learn piano...wait I said USEFULL skills. Damn. I'm screwed #
• 10:32 I need some motivation to make it through the day. Music usually works. Need more music! Wish we had radio on fire truck. #
• 11:09 Playing Fire Inspector. Lots of businesses to inspect Hopefully they are all pleasant to deal with. #
• 11:55 People don't like to be inspected. I am not in the mood for mean people. They don't like laws I guess, too bad. #
• 13:39 Thinking about taking Medic practical exam in Hartford,CT on Jan 08 2009. Good excuse to visit the old land. #
• 15:58 Sleepy. I need OSHA safety nap. Where is the gov. regulation on this issue? Useless government. #
• 18:49 Chacha is interesting. Go ahead and ask a question. Send via txt to 242242. They have answers #

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• 07:22 Working 12 hours at OCEMS. 295 hours ride time completed. 205 to go. #
• 08:25 Taking practice exam for National Registry test. #
• 09:13 09:45 BLS transport (round trip) to Dr's office. Oh, the glamorous life of the EMT. I'm so excited I could sleep. #
• 12:50 Trying to schedule my October. Feels like I'm juggling knives! #
• 13:15 Loading android for my Kaiser. Hope it works better then Windows Mobile #
• 14:18 I wonder why Microsoft products are so flawed? MS seems to ignore everything people want and head straight for disaster every time. #
• 14:47 What's the use of an ER that cannot treat an acute MI? really freaking useless. #
• 15:45 Riding in to cath lab w/ inferior MI runs of V-tach and I'm just and EMT today. #
• 16:28 Who started the whole rubberized bracelet fad? Can we end it also? I don't need those things to have convictions. #

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• 07:26 Beautiful morning 63 deg. and I am just waiting for someone to call 911. Seems kind of twisted #
• 08:58 Back to indentured servitude on the ambulance. Looking to be finished w/ ride time at end of October. Oct. Will be long month. #
• 11:17 1st run 19yo F 17 wks pregnant c/o syncopal episode. Nothing overly exciting. Gest. diabetes. #
• 12:40 50yo M c/o Nausea & vomiting; Big spider bite on back of neck. PT stable got 2nd IV for the day. #
• 14:01 Is it bad if the break pads are grinding your rotors (on the Ambulance) ? We #
• 14:02 We are not having good luck with trucks. This is 3rd truck since friday. All mechanical failures. #
• 14:11 Have not had lunch yet. Hungry & sleepy. Luckily we are OOS, and we can eat on the way back to the station. #
• 15:51 Yeay lunch. Waiting to get a 4th truck to switch into. Emergency equipment breaks often. #
• 18:33 95yo F syncopal episode. 1 deg block. PT's g-daughter gave PT NTG (thus the syncope) then att. CPR! #
• 20:58 Walked the dogs, ate dinner, now time for sleep. Wake up @ 4am for EMS shift tomorrow. Was 2/3 for IV's today. Good day for me. #

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• 12:52 Had a dream about living in FLA, so I am lookings at FLA houses. Should continue cleaning the house #
• 15:35 Paying Bills & thinking about re-arranging the kitchen #
• 20:06 Wife & I took the dogs for a walk. Time to feed the pups. #

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• 13:32 Returning from BLS transport to Shelbyville. Wondering what's for lunch? #
• 15:20 Waiting for the next run. Luckily I am getting paid today! And I have tomorrow off! #
• 19:46 Had dinner @ Irish Rover! Best pub in town. They have Tennets beer from Scotlandq #

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• 07:32 Did not want to get up this morning. Providing free labor for Ambulance again. Paramedic is fun. #
• 09:06 hello boys & girls this is your old pal stinky wizzleteats. This is a song about a whale..NO this is a song about being happy! #
• 09:09 If'an you ain't the grandaddy of all liars! The little creatures in nature, they don't know they're ugly. #
• 09:13 ...the rest of my lite-brite pieces. My name isn't Adam We, or is it? Who is this? How did you get this number? Guess I showed him. #
• 09:14 Nobody messes with Adam We. #
• 11:34 71yo M c/o Chest pain. 12 lead ST elev. in V2,3,4 concave upwards. Rhythm keeps changing w/ PVCs to boot. Looks junctional accelerated. #
• 11:35 Transport code 3 to hosp. ER doc & cardiologist req we Tx PT to cathlab. So we did. He is undergoing cath now. #
• 17:00 2nd run 24yo F abdominal pain secondary to MVC. No abd bruising & PT was stable. BLS to hospital. Slow day for us. #
• 19:42 Getting sleepy. Hopefully we can make it back to quarters before we get another run. I have to be at OCEMS at 6am! #

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• 06:52 24 hours begins @ 07:00 EDT. Review of Charleston Fire for training. #
• 08:18 Daily routine finished. Training next. Looks like power is back on in most of the district #
• 15:24 Seagrave, why is our new (aug. 2007) engine in repair more than in service? Has E-one bought you out? #
• 15:26 Switched to reserve engine (again). Engine 31 needs alternator. #
• 15:28 Presentation on Charleston 9 LODD. Shame on CFD and their Chief. What were they thinking (or not thinking) #
• 15:29 CFD has proven that ISO rating is useless. They proudly display ISO class 1 but they didn't even have ICS established. #
• 17:06 Listening to the people in my head. They have a nice soundtrack, I should get the album. #

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• 08:57 Paying Bills & running errands on my 1 day off this week #
• 09:26 Making a list and checking it twice. Still more than half city w/o power, can't get much done today #
• 10:45 Trying to find the motivation to achieve something. #
• 11:37 Killing me Softly was written about Don Mcleans American Pie song. Learned something new today. I'm done. #
• 15:41 Making dinner preperations for wife's parents who are still without power. Nice nite 4 cook out #
• 17:52 Grilling. Potatoes are on and steaks are ready. Beautiful evening! #
• 20:13 Feed the dogs, drink a beer and go to sleep. Back to the firehouse in the morning. #

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• 08:28 Lots of Patient assists. You'd think people on O2 would know how to operate their own regulators. #
• 09:34 Anchorage has no cable tv, no internet and cell signal is weak at best. This is going to be a long 12 hours. #
• 11:35 Slow morning, but now only 4 ambulances metro wide. Guess people are waking up now #
• 13:41 2nd run Overdose Consious PT= nasal intubation x 3 attempts & IV #
• 14:24 3rd run 26yo M seizures = IV & transport. #

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• 05:10 Power came back on @ 22:24. Finally got some sleep. Now I'm up and off to work @ Firehouse today. 1st day back from vacation #
• 08:05 Drove Engine 31 to shop for PM. Only took 40min to get there. #
• 10:07 Why promote a guy to sergeant then not let him ride up as officer? Answer: Because he doesn't have enough experience #
• 10:08 Solution: Let the firefighter you didn't promote ride up as officer. WTF?!?! #
• 10:10 I'm disappointed in the lack of pride & ownership in my department today #
• 10:31 Power has been out almost 24hrs. Dry sprinkler systems losing pressure = lots of water flow alarms. #
• 11:42 Dr.'s Office - gas generator running in basement; CO 275ppm in basement. Yes patients were in waiting room #
• 12:09 Long lines at gas stations. Had to push our way in for fuel, guage says 1/4 tank. Why the rush on gas? #
• 13:26 Off work for 5 shifts. 5827 junk emails waiting for me. Spammers suck. I hope they die. #
• 16:16 Yesterday they did 38 runs. Today we only have 9 but we are having trouble keeping up with the paperwork. #
• 18:16 Going to eat dinner, then finish paperwork. Tomorrow should be a fun day for paramedic ride time (power still out everywhere) #
• 20:18 Washing cloths & bedding. Tired. #
• 21:54 Posted new blog. fyrdog21.blogspot.com/ I miss the job I loved. #
• 22:10 www.ted.com Great place for advanced thinking. Presentations are good too. #

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Day of Reckoning

The day after the day after. Yes That is what I said. The people who are experiencing life after a storm are not the brightest (although in my district they are are well educated). You will see the twitter log of the stupidity I have witnessed today, but I thought I might expand on a few.

Dr.'s Office - gas generator running in basement; CO 275ppm in basement. Yes patients were in waiting room
What on earth was this Doctor thinking? Her husband, a licensed electrician, made a valient effort to get the office open and wired a gas generator into the circut panel in the basement. I am not electrician, but it appeared that the wiring was correct and it would not back feed to the power grid (which would pose a danger to all the electricians working to repair the downed powerlines). This is a good way to ensure that you can power what is needed without running a mile of extension cord. Good thought perhaps, but to place the toxic fume emmiting power plant in the basement of the Doctor's Office is worthy of a Darwin Honorable mention. THey did make an effort to open the doors and try to naturally ventilate the basement (it had two exterior doors on either end of the building, with one leading up stairs to the office proper). We took our CO detector and found 305ppm of carbon monoxide. The experts recommend that no one is exposed to more than 35ppm over a 10 hour period (NIOSH) and not more than 200ppm. I would have hoped that the Licensed Medical Doctor knew the dangers of CO in her own business. I guess not. The patients that were waiting to be seen understood why we had to evacuate the building, but I don't think they were too happy. How would you feel if you were poisoned AT the Doctor's Office?

Why promote a guy to sergeant then not let him ride up as officer? Answer: Because he doesn't have enough experience
Well...Ok here is the scoop (yes a large lighting fixture used to produce broad soft light with no shapable beam), the person we just promoted to sergeant is not allowed to ride in the officers seat because he does not have enough experience. One of the candidates who was passed up for promotion DID ride as officer. WTF? Why promote someone then say they don't have enough experience to perform their job as officer? I have nothing against the two persons, I just do not understand the logic behind that decision. I did not apply for promotion and with this logic passing as leadership I don't think I am going to try any time soon.

I'm disappointed in the lack of pride & ownership in my department today
Seems simple enough. Today was my first day back from vacation. I knew this was going to be a difficult day with the storms that passed through yesterday. I tried to think about the greater good and suggested that we drive around and survey the damage in our district. My thought was to help clear roads that were blocked by trees (not with wires, I don't feel like playing with that much electricity) and provide good PR for our department by offering a hand to those in need. I was told that the Chief wanted us to clean up our parking lot. The lot was not in NEED of cleaning, it only would have improved the cosmetics of the station. A co-worker stated that he made that suggestion to the 1st Platoon Major and the response was "That's NOT our Job". That is a crappy attitude.

Anyone who follows fire service talking circut is familiar with Al Brunacini former Chief of Pheonix Fire Department (AZ), and Rick Lasky Cheif of Lewisville Fire Department (TX). Chief Brunacini championed the high end constomer service (not unlike Disney's idea of Guest Service). Brunacini is known for stories about this philosophy. One run PFD made was a medical call on a male. He was having some medical problem and needed to be in a hospital. The man was pouring a new sidewalk when the medical emergency happened. The Pheonix FD engine that made the run, returned to the mans house and poured the remainder of the person's sidewalk. Now that is service. Chief Lasky has taken this to the newer generations of Fire Chiefs. Chief Lasky makes the talk circut with his "Pride and Ownership - A Firefighters love for the Job" book and subsequent seminar presentation. Lasky's approach is the same as Brunacini's (and Disney's).

Two days ago I had a similar experience during my paramedic ride time. We made a run on a middle age man who fell down the stairs. He was helping move a washing machine up from a basement. The man refused transport to the hospital. My perceptor suggested that we move the washing machine for the man (so we don't have to come back when he hurts himself again). The whole process did not take more than 5 minutes (we took the machine to the street) and we went on our way. I admit that I did not want to perform heavy lifting (we did have a furniture dolly that they were using), but I understood how important that was for the patient. We not only treated him with respect, but we moved the washer for him (not That's Constomer Service). We got good PR and we were assured not to return when he tried to move it again.

That is what we should be doing. Going above and beyond for the community. Somedays I forget the good Karma that we can spread with much ease. I am ashamed for all the times I took the lazy way out. I hope to be a better person in the future.

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• 09:01 Morning. Sunday. My one day off. Hopefully we can relax and Ike remnants won't be too bothersome. #
• 14:27 Wind hit us hard. Power out all over city. Multi working fires. Expect to go to work early tonight. #
• 14:54 75 mph wind gust. Should calm to 40-50 mph in an hour. Most of city w/o power. Cell towers are extremely busy. No Wx nets on yet. #
• 16:48 Wind calmed down. T-storms 2nite. 145000 people w/o power in Louisville. Mayor to speak in 10 min. #

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• 05:47 Hello world, it me. Waiting to see what you have today. i'll do my best paramedic impersonation and treat the sick. I'm ready. #
• 07:05 06:57 Fire run w/ middletown. Sump motor over heated, no fire #
• 08:33 Meaning in life is arbitrary. Why ruin the universe with rigidity? #
• 09:58 Ok listen, your nausea is NOT worse than the PT who is intubated. There are priorities & breathing trumps nausea. #
• 10:32 Here's one for you squeekers (audio techs) you you run you power supply cable along side of you snake? #
• 10:34 Oh yeah and the power supply is standard outdoor 3 prong plug powering a rack & console. #
• 11:51 What do you want to do when you grow up? No really I am taking a poll. Let me know. #
• 15:46 Your heart does not like you when consuming Red Bull. Don't let Paul drink them. #
• 17:11 Big brown won another race (not by much). Was it all steroids? One more race then he retires to stud farm. #
• 19:36 I can't believe the UK vs MTSU game is only on pay-per-view. Freaking stupid ESPN #

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