The Playoffs...

Well, so far my picks have held up. I picked the Chicago Blackhawks from the Western Conference and the Pittsburgh Penguins from the Easter Conference (only because Brandon Sutter and Jussi Jokinen are not playing for them. Round 2 is progressing, so we'll see how it goes into Round 3.

Back in Black...over and over and over...

Classic rock’n’roll is back in Raleigh.

Back on April 1, we were treated during the early morning ride to non-stop “Back in Black” from AC/DC. Of course, the timing brought ideas that it was a joke of some sort and maybe they were going to another format, bluegrass/rap or classic polka. But by the end of the day, radio heads around these parts from way back were relieved. The station letters had changed from WRVA to WRDU.

For the past few years radio around here has, well, sucked.

When I was growing up in the 60s, the popular radio station was WKIX, 850 AM. It was known as the “Big 85”, and there were even some famous people who DJd at WKIX became famous- Charlie Brown and Rick Dees, among others.

I listened to WKIX almost exclusively, occasionally tuning in WRNC 1240 AM, but mostly it was KIX. I won more than one t-shirt and a couple of albums (Elton John’s Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only The Piano Player was one of them).

All that changed in 1971 or 1972 when WQDR 94.7 went on the air as an album rock station. Like

the vast majority of my friends back then, we migrated quickly from WKIX to WQDR. I remember laying in my room late at night with QDR in my headphones and waking up the next morning, headphones still on.

In 1984 the  unthinkable happened- QDR went…country. It’s OK if you like country music, but for the most part, I never have. Later on in ’84, WRDU 106.1, the Home of Rock and Roll, went on the air Labor Day weekend. The first song they played was “Start Me Up”. For several years WRDU won Rolling Stone’s “Best Radio Station award. Personalities like Reynolds and Silva (mornings), Bob The Blade, Kitty Kinnin, and Tom Gongaware ruled the rock airwaves.

Of course, WRDU was sold and it was the beginning of the end. In 2006, WRDU changed to country. Bob “the Blade” Robinson resigned on air, saying he could not be a country DJ. I remember that one. WRDU experienced some more changes, going from country to talk, becoming Rush Radio on January 1, 2010.

For the rockers around these parts, the pickings were slim. There were stations in Fayetteville (WRCQ 103.5) and the coast (WSFL 106.5), but right around Raleigh, you were SOL. We had Rock 96.1 for a while, but now they are Radio 96.1, and well, it just ain’t the same.

So here we are back. WRDU is back playing, for me at least, real music.

I have a couple of suggestions, though.

First, I know The Blade walked out, but it would be really good to have him back on a rock station where he belongs. Raleigh needs The Blade.

Second, how about reviving something WQDR used to do? I remember QDR playing entire album

sides during the night.

Third, a real morning show. Something with lots of music, but a little bit of personality.

That’s it.

Welcome back.

Next Season, Pt II

So, I was at the Carolina Ale House last night, where a good friend was celebrating his 40^th birthday (Thanks, for the invite, Howard!). The reason that particular CAH was selected was that it was the site for the Carolina Hurricanes Cool Bars Tour, where they host ‘viewing parties’ for some of the Hurricanes’ away games. Last night they were play against the Washington Crapitals.

I had a pretty good view to watch the game on a humongous TV screen (just about as big as the footprint of my office!) and I really watched it.

What I saw was a team playing hard, playing with their heart, playing with grit, and never giving up. They went up 1-0 in the first period, but then eventually fell 3-1, with Washington scoring their final goal on an empty net (Coach Muller, you are way smarter about hockey than I, but I wish you wouldn’t do that. It never works out, and call me crazy, but I would rather lose 2-1 than 3-1, or 4-1, based on one or two empty net goals!).

Listening to Mike Maniscalco on the post game show The Aftermath (one of two shows Mike hosts, the other being the pre-game show The Storm Front) on WCMC, 99.9 The Fan, he highlighted the fact of the Canes' play- it was good. In my mind from what I saw, they out played the Crapitals. They put more shots on goal, and from my vantage points, most of those were good shots.

A lot of what I see in hockey games is the “lucky bounce”. A so-so shot is placed and the puck takes a half-assed bounce and scores a goal. For whatever reason this season, the hockey gods are frowning on the Canes, because they cannot even buy a lucky bounce.

And I do see the occasional breakdown on defense- a turnover in the neutral zone, for example. I see a lot of teams, even some of the so-called ‘old school’ teams, like the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Boston Bruins, and others, make these small mistakes, and many times they end up creating a scoring opportunity for the other team. Seems like this year every time the Canes make one of these gaffs, the other team scores, while the Canes can’t seem to capitalize on the occasion when they get the chance, but not for the lack of trying.

They haven’t given up, they show up every game, and they play hard.

I can’t help but think that, given the talent the team has, and with a whole training camp and pre-season, the Hurricanes are going to, well, prove all of the naysayers wrong next year.

Rock On!

Part of my new job involves review of clinical stuff that the field crews do- call report review. After a month, I have come to a conclusion.

I happen to be working with some pretty doggone smart people. Without getting into details, which would be frowned on by the HIPAA people anyway, over the past month I have seen some pretty damn good assessment catches, clinical decision making, and just out and out great care.

Often times, EMS folks, in general, don't get the recognition they deserve for some of the amazing things they do. And then, too many times we see things that, well, tend to frustrate us. A lot.

But, EMS folks do a lot of good stuff. And in particular, the folks I work with, well, rock.

Next Season

Well, my beloved Hurricanes are dwelling in the cellar of the standings right now, keeping company with the Florida Panthers, Calgary Flames, and Colorado Avalanche. Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Just a few weeks ago there was…hope. Actually, the Hurricanes were at the top of the Southeast Division and were at third place in the Eastern Conference.

And then…the skids. A slump. One win since 12 March 2013.

A lot of folks are of course, pointing fingers. You know, the hockey experts that most of the fans are. So, I’ll jump on the bandwagon…sort of. There is a really good commentary by Mike Maniscalco here. And it sort of sums things up.

I don’t think there is any one reason for the slide, but several. Injuries have come at inopportune times, most notably Cam Ward (#30). I think that his absence has highlighted his place with this team. That is not to say that Justin Peters and Dan Ellis have been bad, but as Mike says, they have not made the big saves when the ‘Canes needed them. Maybe this will put some of Ward's naysayers quiet. Plus there have been other injuries- Justin Faulk, Chad LaRose, Alexander Semin- all seemed to come at inopportune times.

A couple of other things I have noticed. One is the constant revolving door that has become the Charlotte-Raleigh shuttle. I understand that you need to see what the guys in Charlotte can do, but as a paramedic, I understand the value of chemistry- getting to know your partner/ fellow players. Constantly sending players back and forth cannot have helped matters much.

Then there is what many people have expected out of various players- Jeff Skinner, Jordan Staal,

Alexander Semin, etc. And I have to say, from my vantage point in section 314, I was expecting more out of these guys…a lot more. Maybe it is the lack of a training camp, a pre-season, or the compressed season. Maybe it is the lack of chemistry. Maybe it is, as some fans say, because of the play of players like Joni Pitkanen, Chad LaRose, Jamie McBain, and others.
There is no doubt that the Carolina Hurricanes have a great deal of talent. Short of a dramatic turn around this season, I would think they are out of the play-offs.

So here’s to next season. At the least, I want to see what Kirk Muller can do with a full season and training camp.

The View From Under The Bus

Over on Facebook, on the page Paramedics on Facebook, there is an entry by an old boss of mine, Chief Skip Kirkwood. Now, there are a few things that Chief Kirkwood and I disagree on, but there are a few we agree wholeheartedly on. And this is one of them.

Chief Kirkwood asks the question, basically, why do we in EMS suffer from a lack of camaraderie, brotherhood/sisterhood, sense of family, or whatever you want to call it?

Basically, it is this- Why do we as EMS providers seem to be so willing to throw our co-workers under the buss at the drop of a hat?

I’ve seen it. Someone makes a mistake or a call goes bad and the crap starts flying. I’ve seen careers and reputations hurt by it. Really good people suffering long term at the hands of other, for all practical purposes, good people. Why?

I wish I knew.

When I was serving in the United States Army, we had folks that struggled. Maybe they were not too good with push-ups, they couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn at two feet with an M-16, they had trouble starting IVs, or just had some problem with some task or another. Did we throw them under the bus? Did we initiate a blanket party as depicted in “Full Metal Jacket”?

No. Not just ‘no’, but ‘heck no’. We helped them. During my Army career I can remember running in the rain, doing push-ups in the rain, letting fellow medics practice IVs on my arms, studying flash cards of obscure military facts, along with dozens of my fellow soldiers and NCOs…whatever it took to help my fellow soldiers overcome their obstacles.

And guess what? Never once did we fail.

During my fire service career, we had folks who had a hard time pulling attack lines, getting into an SCBA in less than five minutes, crawling around in turn-outs and SCBA, trouble with friction loss calculations, setting up and climbing ladders…you name it. And me and my fellow firefighters did what needed to be done- we helped them out. To use the quote from “Apollo 13”- failure was not an option.

I see this phenomenon in military and fire service all of the time- people helping people. In the Army, we did not throw people under the bus. In the fire service, we did not throw people under the bus, either.

But EMS? You make a mistake, a call goes bad, or a call goes like you think it should not have gone, and word travels faster than you can say “uh oh”.

Now don’t misunderstand me. The military and fire service are full of Monday-morning-quarterbacks who will second guess what other people do. All you have to do is look on the internet at any one of the thousands of blogs and forums out there. But it is always ‘someone else’. It is not the co-workers or fellow soldiers/Marines/sailors/airmen of the person who slipped up or had a bad moment.

EMS people? For whatever reason we will cast you to the wolves. Handle a call in a way that goes south? What your chain-of-command does to you is nothing compared to what your co-workers will do. And what is worse is something that I have seen in EMS that is, well, unique- command staff members that will throw someone under the bus, as well. Those are the ones that will tell their subordinates about the trials and tribulations of a fellow subordinate.

So what is it about EMS that grows this behavior?

 

The Need For Self Control

Maybe you have seen this, maybe you haven't. Someone told me about it, then I read about it on The Happy Medic.

First, everyone has a video camera. I mean, if you have a smart phone, you have a video camera. Also, full fledged video cameras are nowhere near as big as they used to be, so a lot of people have them, as well.

Sometimes we as emergency folks don't like to be videotaped. Sometimes the scene is dramatic and emotional, and we don't like for those situations to be exploited. It could be considered a natural response. It upsets us. But just because it upsets us, we cannot ever lose control like this. The public expects us to be that 'beacon of stability' when things are stressful and chaotic. They don't expect us to lose our tempers. And in the age of YouTube and smart phone video, they don't tolerate it very well, either.

Go read Justin Schorr's take on this one at The Happy Medic. To me, he is spot on.

Don't like to be videotaped? I would venture a job in any of the emergency and public safety services is not for you. We are in the public eye. All the time. Every time you go out on a call, you are subject to be videotaped. The motives of the videotaper? Irrelevant, really. As long as they are not interfering with you (and this guy was not interfering), then so what? It doesn't matter.



Want to invoke the 'safety card'? Then the street should have been shut down. If you are allowing all of those private vehicles to pass between the spectator and the helicopter, well, you sort of lose your credibility.

HIPAA? Bystanders are not covered by HIPAA. And like Justin said, if you have made every reasonable attempt to protect the patient's privacy, I think you are covered. I think the patient's right to privacy is a lot more likely to be compromised when we ask them on scene for things like birthdays, social security numbers, etc. And besides, what kind of 'sensitive information' could this guy have gotten from ACROSS THE STREET? Other than a tape of a helicopter landing, idling, loading and obscure patient, and taking off again. That is, other than the captain making a d*** of himself.

Now as to how I feel about it? Well, it is not the image of a fire captain that would inspire confidence in my mind if I was a taxpayer in Miami. It would inspire me even less if this guy was my supervisor. Yeah, to be a leader, in particular a fire captain, just like an NCO in the military, you have to be willing to 'pull the trigger' on being nice and PC.

But that certainly is not with a random member of the general public.

I may not terminate him, but I would have a lot of real concerns about his stability. And if he is willing to act this way with an unknown member of the public (I like to pretend that everyone is either the brother, sister, father, mother, or child of a county commissioner), then how will he act with the people he is 'comfortable' with.

Take a chill pill, Captain Smart. They make medications that can help you with that anger management problem.

Random thought while eating an Almost Famous Hot Dog

Most of you know that I have a new job. I wrote about it on my 9-ECHO-1 blog a short while back. So today while I was eating a pair of “Almost Famous Hot Dogs” from The Grocery Bag (also known around these parts as the Percy Flowers Store) I had a thought or two.

I have spent my entire adult life taking care of people. Sometimes on a big lime yellow fire truck carrying 3,000 gallons of water and 500 gallons of AFFF, sometimes wearing the uniform of the United States Army, other times in and around an ambulance.

So now, my new job is still taking care of people. It’s just a different set of people. Earlier this week it was a hard thing to listen to sirens leaving the station and not being out there. Of course, yesterday it was raining outside, so it brought a different perspective…

But still, my new job is still taking care of people- the people that still go out when the doors go up, start IVs, dress wounds, and try to be nice when sometimes the person they are being nice to either doesn’t appreciate it, or maybe since their day has gone all to crap, so they didn’t seem to notice.

But they do. Trust me.

Google is a powerful tool. When looking for something else I came across another EMS related blog (another one, right?). But this guy seems to have his stuff together.

I had heard of the “5x5x5”, but did not know where it had come from. Now I know. Go here to read about it.

But I also found a nice blog post about being nice, which, if you think about it, is what the majority of our job is all about. So go read this entry about being nice.

And then go out and be nice. You may be the smartest medic in the world, but if you are not nice, it really doesn’t matter.

Economic Stimulus

Well, the 9-ECHO-1 refrigerator has experienced an MI. We are awaiting the final word as to whether this is a fatal event or is something that is treatable.

But I just saw something on the news that gives me hope. Seems like the Carolina Panthers would like for the cash strapped State ofNorth Carolina to chip in a few dollars to renovate Bank of America Stadium. 

Which gave me an idea.

I would like for the State of North Carolina to provide me with a grant to purchase a new refrigerator. And it will cost a lot less than the $62 million in state money that the owner of the Panthers, Jerry Richardson, is asking for, in addition to asking for state approval for $144 million in higher local taxes to residents of the Charlotte area.

$1,000.00.

That’s it.

And I would be stimulating the local economy. I would buy it from a local dealer, providing support for jobs in my local area. In all probability, the dealer is a national company, so I would be supporting jobs over multiple regions, maybe even multiple states. Plus, someone has to make the refrigerator and ship the refrigerator. This is a significant economic impact.

Plus, since all of the stuff in my old refrigerator had to be thrown out, well, I need to replace it. That means economic support to area grocery stores (Carlie C’s, Food Lion, and Harris-Teeter, all NC based companies, stand to benefit). That will keep jobs at those stores, along with supporting employees of those grocery stores that are involved in the purchasing, transporting, unloading, and stocking of those grocery items.

This is a tremendous impact that I would be making in supporting local jobs and local corporations. While not actually creating jobs, I would supporting those jobs already there.

So what do you say, Governor? You guys have my address, so you can send me a check. Or, in order to save the state the costs of mailing it, I am more than willing to come by and pick it up.

First Place in the Southeast Division

So, I am reading this email I get a couple of times a week, The Bleacher Report (I get the NHL edition). This guy Erik Cotton has written an article about ‘power ranking’ the top players in the NHL and he has Carolina’s captain listed as number #15 on his list. No problem there, as there is an incredible amount of talent within the NHL. I guess the following statement is the one that, sort of, ‘gets my goat’-

Now it is worth noting that the Canes are winning the weakest division in hockey, so let's not overstate their quick start too much.  However, if Cam Ward returns to form, this is a team that can make some noise in the East.

OK, they are #1 in the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. Yes, it is not the ‘traditional hockey market’ (of course, the Winnipeg Jets are based in Canada), nor is it a ‘powerhouse’ of hockey teams, but as I look at the teams that the Hurricanes have won against of late, I see those ‘traditional hockey market’ teams of the Ottawa Senators, Buffalo Sabers, New York Islanders, Toronto Maple Leafs, and the New Jersey Devils. Yeah, Carolina lost to the Boston Bruins and the Philadelphia Flyers, and drop their openers against the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning, but still, Carolina has a winning record, and is rated #3 in the Eastern Conference.

Of course, it’s no surprise that a lot of sports writers sort of downplay anything the Hurricanes do. And while I have to agree with some of the detractors of NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, that hockey will not work everywhere (i.e. Atlanta Thrashers), the Caniacs have proven that we will support our team, in good times and bad, and that hockey will work in a non-traditional market.

Doubt it? Sure, we don’t sell out every game, but just drive around these parts. There are a lot of Carolina Hurricanes stickers and NC DMV vanity plates on a lot of cars and trucks. You can see a of Carolina Hurricanes jackets and hats on people. And come game night, while every seat may not be full, PNC Arena tends to get really loud- louder than a lot of the other arenas, based on what I hear on TV.

The powers-that-be for the team have invested a lot. And while it took a bit for everything to come together, based upon my observations, it seems to be coming together quite nicely.

I’m just looking forward to seeing what kind of excuses are offered up if the Canes make the play-offs, or better still, bring it all back to Raleigh.