Waiting for Miss NB

Last evening I worked with an old friend and urgent care was a madhouse.  Every time I returned to our office I would say, "I am off to such a bad start. Everything is so complicated."  My "bad start" lasted throughout the evening.  I was grateful to be in a good groove though, and able to sort out lots of issues.

My old friend V. is a hilarious storyteller, and when we were writing our notes, she would turn around to tell me a clinical story.  Each story had a lesson to be learned from it, even at this point in our careers. V. told me about how, during a phone call, she tried to explain a rash in simple language to a mother for whom English was apparently a second language.  At the end of her simplistic explanation the woman told V., "I do not believe that you know what you are talking about.  The things you told me do not make any sense. I think you are bad at your job."

V. got someone to call the woman back and clarify matters.  Her message was, "Don't ever talk down to people."  It's hard to balance that with being able to explain yourself clearly.

Little Jack is enjoying himself immensely here with us.  Pablo beats him up daily but it is playful rather than vicious.  There are times when Jack looks at me and I think he is trying to tell me that he has been through some pretty unpleasant times in his life.  He seems weary and pensive.