Physician In Numbers – Page 71 – A female primary care physician opines on money, travel, fitness, and other topics to be determined

Just What the Doctor Ordered

I don’t know if it’s come through in my writing, but I haven’t been feeling super for a few weeks. It’s been a combination of fatigue from all the trips in May and June, and getting a nice summer cold while working in the hospital.

I have just been feeling drained. The thought of exercising made me tired. Organizing or clearing clutter was too hard. Going to work and paying the bills were about all I could handle.

Then along came a de facto 5-day weekend (holiday hours combined with home coverage).

Lunch Out is a Treat, Not an Expectation

Last week, we had a lunch fail. For the first time in many years, I went off to work without a lunch packed. To be honest, there might have been a packed lunch in the kitchen, but it didn’t make it into work with me.

Fitness Log #38

Each week I have been logging my exercise. Mostly this is an exercise for myself; it has, on occasion, prompted me to get up and move (“for the blog”).

It is also meant for encouragement, in case a busy reader wants to know how other people get their recommended exercise; I don’t think it’s easy to get enough exercise these days, and I think it does people a disservice to imply that it is. Our lives are busy, and yet, you have to take care of your health.

Wednesday Wool-gathering 2

Some scattered thoughts, gathered together to make one post.

Oh No! You Didn’t Save for College

If you read anything at all about money and college, you know that the cost of college is outpacing inflation, and that even the “cheap” public colleges and universities are no longer inexpensive.

Therefore, the smart thing to do is to put money aside as soon as a baby is born. Or maybe you should start saving while you’re pregnant. Heck, start your college stash as soon as you stop using birth control.

If you can’t save enough, you can tell your kid to get scholarships, or go to community college for a few years to save money, or enter into indentured servitude with student loans.

Fitness Log #37

Each week I have been logging my exercise. Mostly this is an exercise for myself; it has, on occasion, prompted me to get up and move (“for the blog”).

Talk vs. Action

I had planned to blog today, but we have company coming.

I figured I could either write about wanting to connect more with friends, or I could work on making a visit with those friends more pleasant.

Until next time.

Thoughts for July 1

As spring turns into summer, I prepare mentally for our brand new interns. I (and I’m sure I am not alone) remind myself to transition from a hand’s-off, strictly-advisory role in May or June, to an in-the-trenches, double-check the orders role come July 1.

I still remember my father, a retired surgeon, telling me after my graduation from medical school “Congratulations, you now have a license to kill.”

What he was referring to, of course, was not a new career as a sexy British spy, but to the fact that I was entering a time where (especially in those days) my orders did not need to be reviewed by anyone before they were executed. And that a doctor can, through ignorance or poor judgement, make decisions with grave consequences.

Fitness Log #36

Each week I have been logging my exercise. Mostly this is an exercise for myself; it has, on occasion, prompted me to get up and move (“for the blog”).

What You Miss

The other day I read a blog post detailing the “Best Day Ever.” The author is retired, and has a lovely day fishing, playing tennis, watching his wife mow several lawns. Despite the fact that I don’t fish, play tennis, or want to mow lawns (even with a nifty riding mower), I was so jealous.