Trying to hotwire my brain back to a normal sleep cycle -- and failing miserably.
Blame it on 18 straight months of shift work.
But to be honest, I really enjoy irregular hours. Lounging in bed when everyone else has to rush to the hospital, strolling around town or having a nice cuppa on a weekday when the shops are quiet and the service outstanding :). Watching a movie in the morning then off to work with a skip in my step. Or a relaxing swim, perhaps a stop at the gym, which keeps me well-energized for the next 8 hours.

Now that it's the usual 8-5 routine, I can tell you with 100% confidence that I am definitely NOT a morning person. Waking up before 8am EVERY SINGLE DAY makes me extremely grouchy. I half-doze through my breakfast, then fight through the inevitable traffic jam on the highway, yuck. Teaching rounds tend to begin at 7:30am, which is a bit of a torture when you're an insomniac who can nod off only after midnight most of the time. I emphasize yet again that the people I work with are absolutely wonderful. BUT no matter what, I can't stand clinics, ward rounds and calls that exceed 12 hours. Sorry.

Oh yeah, that and having to see the same FON patients on a daily basis, as opposed to different FON people whom you can dispose of in various ways in the ER.

11:30pm, and I'm wide awake. Have my trusty David Eddings tome at the bedside -- am re-reading The Diamond Throne to relive some of my best memories from pre-med school days, ahhhh :) Just watched "Road To Fame", a terrific showcase of Hollywood stars pre-celebrity status. Keanu Reeves looking adorable in a cornflakes commercial, John Cusack intense even as a teenager during an audition, Tom Cruise and Heather Locklear trying out for the same play ( she definitely has had plastic surgery ), Kelsey Grammar and Bill Murray with hair (!!!), Drew Carey when he was thin ( double !!! ), Jerry Seinfeld and Jim Carrey doing stand-up in tiny clubs, etc. How far they've all come.

Had an interesting breakfast with a surgical professor this morning. We MOs were asked to "air our grievances", and when it came to my turn, I naturally brought up the issue of how the A&E doctors are required to refer even the most obvious appendicitis cases to the general surgeons for approval prior to admission. On good days, the process is speedily carried out and the patient sent up to the ward pronto, and the appropriate treatment given. Worst case scenario -- which has happened before -- the case is cooked for 2 hours, reviewed only when the surgeon finally gets out of the OT, then the patient waits another 2 hours before a bed is obtained. Seems a nasty complaint letter came out of just one such situation, and for what, I ask? Sheesh, just get one of the senior ER physicians to vet the admissions lah. Imagine a surgical registrar second-guessing an A&E consultant. It's just plain wrong.

Anyway, back to the issue I brought up. The professor -- who has a reputation for being, err, abrasive, but whom I actually like ( and even referred my father to for an operation 3 years ago ) -- gave a vague answer along the lines of "the A&E side needs to work closer with the surgical side", and that was the end of that discussion. Oh well...

The light at the end of the tunnel :)
X'mas in Tasmania is confirmed, yeeha! Hobart and Launceston, Cradle Mountain, Port Arthur, Tamar Valley, Cataract Gorge and Richmond, here we come!

Ahh :)

Aaahhhhh :)

Double Aaaaahhhh :)

Now I'm even more wide awake. Shouldn't have blogged at this late hour. Especially about Tasmania :D
Time for some David Eddings...